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Photograph of Robert Bruce Thompson Barbara Fritchman Thompson Diary

Week of 4 July 2005

Latest Update: Sunday, 10 July 2005 12:50 p.m.


Monday, 4 July 2005

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Happy July 4th. I have been up and at it since 8:30 spreading mulch. Three scoops of mulch does not look like very much when lying on the driveway nor does it sound like very much. However, once you starting digging in and spreading it become A LOT of mulch. I am taking my first break at 11am. As Bob remarked, when he looked out the back window, "your mulch pile looks much smaller". I guess it is now a little over halfway gone. I have done the bed at the back by the deck around the two trees that I started several weeks ago, the two small beds by the front door, and around the new bush I planted. I am add additional mulch to the bed in the middle of the yard in the back and will finish up with the bed along the drive. 

My new yard mantra, "if you cannot grow grass make it a mulch bed". This new bed will be last major one I should have to create. 

We had a little over an inch of rain last night and this morning. It has not rained since I started in the yard but I am now on my third shirt and second pair of shorts. The humidity much be 90%. Thankfully it is mostly to partly cloudy. That at least keeps the temperatures down with the humidity so high.

After this lengthy break I will get the rest of the mulch spread. This afternoon there is a chance of thunderstorms.

I finished the Inspector Banks last night and started one of the Alpine series by Daheim.

This afternoon I shall get some work done at my desk but otherwise spend the remainder of the afternoon and evening relaxing since tomorrow is a work day.

Hope you enjoy your 4th. Have a save and happy one.

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Tuesday, 5 July 2005

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Work went very well for a Monday/Tuesday. My co-worker is off on vacation this week leaving just me and the head of the record center. He is playing catch up from being on vacation last week.

The weather today was brutal downtown with the heat, humidity and cement. I walked to the PO at lunch, only a couple of blocks, and was soaked by the time I got back. The skies looked dark as I drove home and sure enough we had a pretty good storm around 6pm just as I finished cooking dinner.

Looks like we may get a visit from a couple of tropical storms by the weekend if they continue on their projected course.

The city is trimming the trees around the power lines on our street this week. I don't know about where you live but Duke Power hires a tree company that mainly butchers the trees. They trim tops and sides of trees to clear the lines leaving the other half, top, or side of the trees looking ridiculous, one sided ,etc. I only have the one big maple they are ruining. We had our both maples in the front trimmed back right after we moved here. They have since grown out nice and tall and need to trimmed back again.  We also have two in the back that have a bunch of limbs still hanging that were broken off by the bad ice storm a number of years ago.
 


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Wednesday, 6 July 2005

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The weather remains hot and sticky with Cindy on her way and Dennis possibly coming in behind her.

I went to the gym and the grocery store after work.

Last night I finished the Alpine Christmas. At lunch today I started The House Sitter, another book in the Peter Diamond series.

Guess that's about all the news fit to print.


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Thursday, 7 July 2005

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We did get nailed by Cindy moving from South to North. Most of our area was under tornado watch from this morning until 4pm. There were reports of severe weather and possible tornadoes off and on all day with Winston-Salem going under a Watch late this afternoon.

Bob kept me updated from home. He and the dogs moved downstairs for awhile. Since I work in the basement I could only see what was going on when I had to make trips upstairs to the other floors. At one point it was raining so hard you could not see out the windows of the building.

By the time I left work things had calmed down somewhat. We have had well over 2" of rain since this afternoon. Some parts of the city are without power but so far we are fine.

Bob and I had already planned to go to the library and out to dinner at the Chinese place tonight. He called this afternoon and said perhaps we should stay home. In the meantime our friends Paul and Mary do not have power and said they were going out for dinner anyway. They will be picking us up in a little while for dinner. Bob said we did not need to go to the library and I can make a pet store run later this weekend.

By the way, I will not be posting again until Sunday. My sister is picking me up tomorrow night after we both get off from work here at home. I will be spending the night at her house for an early departure on Saturday morning for a one day trip up to the Scottish Highland Games in Linville, NC. I have never attended the games but have always wanted to go. My friend Bonnie mentioned back in February she also had always wanted to go so we signed up for the day trip with Holiday Tours. And, who do think will be driving...yes, Al so of course Frances gets to go along. The weather forecast right now calls for temperatures in the high 70's with partly cloudy skies.

I am riding with Frances and Al down to Level Cross rather than wake up Bob and the household to catch the bus here at 6am. I will meet up with Bonnie at the Winston pick up. We arrive back home around 8pm Saturday night and Bonnie said she would bring me home since Frances and Al will have to continue on down to Level Cross with the bus. Thus the reason she will be picking me up tomorrow night so I will not have a car at her house.

Last night, after I posted my journal page, I decided I better go ahead and mow the lawn since we have tropical storm Dennis coming on the heels of Cindy. Not sure when it would get here I did not want to risk it raining on Sunday and preventing me from mowing. With all the rain we have had it was getting pretty high anyway. Since I mulch rather than catch in the summer I don't like to let it get too high.


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Friday, 8 July 2005

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No update.



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Saturday, 9 July 2005

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No update.



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Sunday, 10 July 2005

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We had a great time yesterday despite the fact it was very long day. I will have pictures on my journal page tomorrow. It was very hot except for a few times when the sun went behind the clouds and the wind came up. It look like it was going to rain/storm at one point but it never did.

The bus let us off at the main gate to the games around 9:15. Going by bus is definitely the way to go. Individuals had to park down the mountain in Linville or in Boone and take a shuttle bus up to the gate. When we were leaving yesterday around 4:30 to walk back down to the gate to the shuttle bus lines were miles long. We just walked across the street and boarded our bus.

Bonnie and I took turns deciding which events we wanted to watch or where we wanted to walk to next. While everything is confined to one area a lot is going on. Major events take place on a field in the center of a standard 1/4 mile track. Surrounding the outside of the track are two rows tents for the various Clans with bleachers/hillside seating on the other. Back behind the tent rows and concession stands are smaller stages with various performances going on continuously. It was very crowded all day but we did not have to stand in line too long to get something to eat or use the porta-johns.

I ate something called a Eccles Cake which is filled with cinnamon, raisins, other spices in a puff type pastry and a Cornish Pasties, chicken, peas and carrots in a folded over pastry. Very good stuff.

The souvenir tents were outside the main gates to the events/tent areas. With our arm bands we could come and go as we pleased. We heard some great piping music, traditional Celtic stuff, and a very good young sort of upbeat punk/Celtic drum band that was rocking the place down in the late afternoon. And of course lots of kilts, bagpipes, and drum corps plus the traditional games such as caber and sheaf tossing, etc.

We made a dinner stop on the way back home arriving back in Winston around 8:30. Bonnie dropped me off back home around 8:45. Hot and tired I played with the dogs a little before taking them out for last time. I had intended to go to sleep early but instead sat up and read the last few chapters of my Peter Diamond mystery. Of all the books I have read in the series I think this one was my favorite, House Sitter.

No golf this morning. I cleaned house then mowed, edged and swept up. It was starting to get hot at 11 and is supposed to get very warm into the low 90's by this afternoon. After spending all day yesterday in the heat and sun I wanted to get finished outside early today.

I have several days of e-mail, snail mail, and newspapers to catch up this afternoon. Sine the NASCAR race starts late, at 3:30 and the golf comes on at 2:30 I will catch up on computer stuff first then spend the remainder of the afternoon watching TV and reading.

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