Author Archives: Sparky
Pandemic selfie
With COVID-19 still raging, I now wear a mask and gloves whenever I go out to a store. This is how I dressed for a simple trip to the post office. Life is no longer simple. Every shopping trip is fraught with danger. Everyone hopes that this will go away soon. Rusty, meanwhile, is taking … Continue reading
Irrigation shock
Our RV site is irrigated, meaning that our lovely bushes and shrubs are supposed to get a daily dose of water. But I have seen the system work exactly once in the two years we have been in residence – I heard the sprinklers activate once at about 2am. Somewhere way down on my To … Continue reading
Lee Memorial Park
I have several times alluded to the time I spend in cemeteries, usually looking for the graves of ancestors – either Jett’s or mine. But this season, I have taken to walking cemeteries as (1) a way of getting some regular mild exercise and (2) collecting some feel-good endorphins. No ancestors involved as neither of … Continue reading
“Personal” by Lee Child
Copyright 2014 by Lee Child. Published by Penguin Random House LLC, New York. There is no such thing as a bad Jack Reacher book, but some are better than others. This one, #19 in the series, is about average. It features an interesting primary plot in which Reacher is tasked – unofficially as he is … Continue reading
George and Melissa (Freeman) Richardson
I haven’t done much genealogical research lately, though I have been getting a lot of exercise walking cemeteries. This morning I decided to catch up on some accumulated Ancestry.com “hints.” In doing so I think I solved – at least partially – one of the great mysteries in my ancestry: how George Watson Freeman, a … Continue reading
Air conditioning!
I bought an air conditioner for the shed on March 3, 2019 – just over a year ago. The intent, at the time, was to get it installed to keep the shed cool through the summer of 2019. Didn’t happen. And attempts to get it installed this year hadn’t gotten anywhere. But, finally, it got … Continue reading
Gearing up for a blog upgrade
I am – or was – a professional software developer. I spent over 45 years developing commercial software, mostly of high quality. The term “development cycle” is one that I have heard so many times that it may be tattooed on my forehead. So why, in the 9 years since I started this blog, have … Continue reading
Flooring!
After many months of inaction, there is now some movement toward getting a washer/dryer installed in the shed. The main goal right now is plumbing – can’t wash clothes without water – but I also have to get the air conditioner installed and get the walls insulated. I spoke to a contractor last week and … Continue reading
“The Steel Kiss” by Jeffery Deaver
Copyright 2016 by Gunner Publications LLC. Published by Grand Central Publishing, New York. I like Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme books (this is 12 in a series of 14). Some of the puzzles that he has to unravel are among the most intricate – and perverted – of all the mysteries that I have read. His villains … Continue reading
Life in the time of corona
Two weeks ago if you had said “corona” I would have said “beer.” Now? Maybe “death.” How quickly things can change! I am not panicked. I think the extreme actions taken in response to the coronavirus pandemic – cancellation or postponement of sporting events, shutting down Broadway, closing Disneyworld – are probably overreactions. But appropriate … Continue reading