Started listening to a podcast called Morbid. I swear I used to listen to it years go, but none of the episodes were already marked as played in Apple Podcasts, so I’m not sure, but I really like it and there’s a huge backlog of episodes to enjoy.
9/02 (Sat)
Went on our second bike ride of the year at Cricket Creek where we saw a herd of deer. I chose that location so we could pick up breakfast from a Mexican restaurant on the way home.
That afternoon I ripped out a bunch of zinnias since they had gotten out of control. Next year I will plant fewer flowers.
9/05 (Tue)
Saw a bald eagle at Armstrong Park!
Obtained our REAL IDs from the state so we could get into Fermilab (they started requiring those, or a passport, earlier this year).
9/13 (Wed)
Our new windows and patio door was installed. There will be a separate entry about this at some point, and I will link to it when it goes up. Some stuff is going on post-installation so the “story” is not complete yet.
9/15 (Fri)
Purchased a pair of Sketchers from Target to replace the shoes I wear on the treadmill which are literally falling apart. A few days later I saw there was a Target Circle deal for 20% off shoes so I chatted with an agent to see if they could refund me the difference. They ended up giving me $15 back which was way more than I asked for, but who am I to argue? So instead of $30 the shoes were $13.88 which is good because it turns out they aren’t that comfortable for treadmill walking. I should have known better – I’ve never like Sketchers. I plan to keep them because they are slip-ons which comes in handy for walking Wookie, but I still need to find something else for the treadmill.
9/21 (Thu)
Wookie turned 7 years old! She has kidney issues which are currently stabilized with medication and a special diet, but it pains me to say she will have a shorter lifespan than her breed normally does because she will eventually go into kidney failure. I really do not like thinking about it because I love her so much.
We bought her a special treat – Milk-Bone Pup-Peroni Mash Ups which are described as “crunchy Milk-Bone biscuits, exploding with baked-in, meaty Pup-Peroni chunks”.
I figured they might be better for her stomach issues. She loves Pup-Peroni but they didn’t seem to agree with her. She LOVES these. She gets one every evening and she does a million little excited spins when she knows it’s time.
I tried to sign up for a paid Dropbox account so I could migrate away from Google One, but Dropbox didn’t want my money. Once I got to the payment page there was a “verify you’re a human” test that would say I passed, disappear, and then say “verification failed”. I tried it multiple times but got stuck in this endless loop of telling me I was ok and then saying “sike, you’re not! try again!” What a bummer, but maybe it’s for the best.
9/23 (Sat)
Visited the Morton Arboretum for the first time in about 5 years. Between my 2019 sickness and them changing to timed entry during the pandemic, it was no longer appealing. They finally dropped the time entry requirement for members, so we signed up. Fall is the best time of the year there, plus we can drive around the grounds in the winter and hopefully see some owls. We’ve been looking for them everywhere and have yet to spot a single one.
9/24 (Sun)
Went to both Fermilab and Mount Saint Mary Park again, but neither were as fruitful as our previous visit. It seems the birds just aren’t as active this time of year.
9/28 (Thu)
Had lunch with my friend, C. I drove to her place and then we went and grabbed food from Burger King to bring back to her house. It was a very nice afternoon.
9/29 (Fri)
An issue I had with Chick-fil-a was finally resolved. I had mobile ordered their limited time Honey Pimento Chicken sandwich on 9/9 only to find barely any of the specialty sauce on it when I opened the sandwich at home. I submitted a complaint online and other than an automated reply, never heard back. I even called their customer care a week later and all they could do is tell the local restaurant to call me, which still didn’t happen. So I called them directly and the woman I spoke with, Heather, was very apologetic and put five free items in my rewards account to redeem:
Two honey pimento chicken sandwiches
A caramel crumble milkshake
My choice of a few other sandwiches
And a free drink of any size
I got the special chicken sandwich and the milkshake the next day and both were delicious!
9/30 (Sat)
Went to a few nature places and then Bass Pro Shop to look at hiking boots. Ended up buying a pair that I plan to wear around the house to ensure their comfort. Afterwards we went to IKEA to look at window treatments and found some white cordless cellular shades that should look nice in the living room. We have been using temporary black paper cellular shades but decided black was too dark.