Email Barbara

Barbara Fritchman Thompson Diary

Week of 16 August 2004

Latest Update: Sunday, 22 August 2004 22:06

Monday, 16 August 2004

[Last Week] [Monday] [Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday] [Next Week]

Last night I started the 4th book in the Jane Austen mystery series. I think we are up to about 1805 in this one where she Jane is attending the horse races in Kent.

As usual for Monday we ate an early dinner so I could make the 5:30 step class. Otherwise not much in the way of news. I called Jodi this morning to check on Misty. She is doing fine. 

[Top]

Tuesday, 17 August 2004

[Last Week] [Monday] [Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday] [Next Week]

[Top]

Wednesday, 18 August 2004

[Last Week] [Monday] [Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday] [Next Week]

This afternoon I got my haircut then went over to my folks house to take them out to dinner. We ate a newer little diner type place just out beyond where we play golf. 

It was 7pm by the time I got home. I called Mimi and she said we could bring the dogs down for some play time. While the temperatures are quite comfortable, mid 84 degrees, the humidity is awful at 53%. All I did was stand and talk with Steve and Mimi and walk around kicking the ball for the dogs and walked back home. I am sitting here sweating as if I had run around the block. 

I am about half way through the Jane Austin 4th mystery. This one is very good, much better than the third one. 

We are covered up at work with database changes and clean up. 

[Top]

Thursday, 19 August 2004

[Last Week] [Monday] [Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday] [Next Week]

Our cool spell is over with temperatures today almost hitting 90 with high humidity. Of course, I wait until one of the hottest days in the last three weeks to take my car in to the shop and drive the white (no AC) Trooper. Ol' Blue needed an oil change, tires rotated, inspection, and the transmission checked. All was fine except for routine maintenance stuff. 

We dropped it off this morning at 8 then I brought Bob back home getting to work at 8:30. Man, was traffic horrible at 8:15. Glad I do not normally go in that late. Bob was waiting for me when I drove up this afternoon. He noticed one of the headlights was burned out. I drive with my lights on during the day. He thought we would have to replace the entire lamp but I told him I had already had the bulbs replaced in mine. Tim just happened to have one in stock to replace it when we went out to pick up Blue.

On the way back home I picked up Subway sandwiches. No gym tonight. Sounds like a storm might be rolling in. I have some work to do on the PC.

[Top]

Friday, 20 August 2004

[Last Week] [Monday] [Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday] [Next Week]

Today I took an hour and half of vacation time leaving at 2:00. I needed to get my license plate renewed and stop at the phone store for a new 90 day card plus make a library and grocery store stop. It was 4:30 by the time I got home. While Bob put the groceries away I mowed the lawn. After dinner--Bob ate hot dogs and I had a veggie burger--I put out my fertilizer. Even though the temperature was 89 with a heat index of 91 there was a fairly good breeze blowing. Plus, with the sun off to the west most of the yard was in the shade. I have a lot of stuff I want to get done tomorrow in the yard. By getting the mowing and the fertilizer down I now have a head start.

I did it again last night. I only lacked about 100 pages to finish my book so I sat up until 11:15 reading. Thank goodness today is Friday. Have a great weekend.

[Top]

Saturday, 21 August 2004

[Last Week] [Monday] [Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday] [Next Week]

I started in the front patching and repairing some bare spots with dirt, seed, and pellets. These new pellets work in place of straw to keep the seed moist and from washing. They are supposed to expand when they get wet releasing fertilizer and eventually breaking down into the soil. Afterward I used the drop spreader to go over the whole front and side with the grass seed.

Moving to the back I had several very large dead areas from the drought. Again, I patched and seeded then did the whole yard. In between working I took a break to play ball with the dogs. After they went in and rested for awhile Malcolm was barking at the downstairs French doors to come out and help. While I used the tree loppers to cut some branches from the red bud tree I let Malcolm and Duncan out to help. As each large branch fell Malcolm would grab it and go flying across the yard with it to spot he thought appropriate for piling them up. He did this about five times finally wearing himself out after dragging, shaking, the them systematically ripping the large limbs into smaller ones. He actually went over to the basement door and asked to be let in.

I dragged the limbs to the curb then cleaned up the mess he made of the smaller branches and leaves. I also cut a few branches from the front weeping cherry tree. It has been so dry this summer the bag worms got into both the cherry and red bud. I cut the worm bags down and trimmed some low hanging stuff.

After getting all the tools and bags of the lawn stuff put away I washed the spreader then watered down the patched areas good. The whole purpose of this exercise this morning was the forecast of rain showers this afternoon and tonight starting around noon. When I finished up about 12:15 the sun was and still is shinning with no rain in sight at this point.

After I shower and lunch I need to spend some time doing stuff here at my desk. Bob had done the laundry and is working on his power supply chapter. I shall take dog duty for the remainder of the afternoon to let him work without interruption.

The temperatures this morning were fairly nice with only highs in the low 80's and not much humidity. There was a nice breeze blowing off and on making it tolerable to be outdoors working.

Last night I started the second book in the Sarah Andrews series featuring the geologist Em Hanson. As I mentioned in the review of the first book, Tensleep, at the very end she was promoted as a geologist for the Blackfeet Oil Company she was doing the contract work for as a mud logger on an oil drilling site.

In this book, her promotion has taken her to their main headquarters in Denver where she has exchanged jeans and t-shirts for skirts and hose. YUCK! I hate skirts and hose. Anyway, the first day on the job a man goes sailing out of the 16th floor window of her building. A week later, an engineer she works with on her floor also went sailing out of the same window. Em begins to wonder what is up...suicides or murder. Her first week on the job she has not found anyone being overly friendly. Having only a four year degree in geology, Em cannot understand why she was hired to replace her good friend Bill, who was murdered in Tensleep. Bill had a masters and years of experience. Finally, after three days, Em is given an oil drilling site to monitor but things do not seem to  be right about the entire project. 

While Em is living in Denver she is staying with Bill's widow, with whom she became good friends during Em's investigation of Bill's death. Em really hates Denver, missing the wide open spaces of Wyoming but seems to be willing to try to adjust her hatred of big cities. 

[Top]

Sunday, 22 August 2004

[Last Week] [Monday] [Tuesday] [Wednesday] [Thursday] [Friday] [Saturday] [Sunday] [Next Week]

Back home, I cleaned house while Bob did the bathrooms. I just emerged from the shower. After a quick mail check I will head out to the den to read the paper and catch up on a couple of magazines dad gives me to read after he finishes. 

Other than a brief shower and thunderstorm late yesterday afternoon we did not get any of the promised rain. 

Have a great afternoon.

[Top]