365 Days and Counting

I did my walk but no swim--just wasn't feeling it. Did the trash pick up; things went just fine. Went to Mom's to meet Tracy, who was dropping off the Buick and took her back to her house. I gave her my old laptop.  Going to miss it...it was a good machine. I watched ENDGAME twice, once with Commentary. 

No walk no swim.  I got up and did my 10 PM check and tossed and turned in my bed for THREE hours when I gave up and watched TV.  I picked up my golf cart and then got what trash there was out. I went to the movies and saw Once Upon a Time in Hollywood , which turned out to be much better than I thought. I bought a Padres burger special for dinner and that was that.

No walk or swim.  I needed to sleep in and catch up and I did with a good ten hours. It is very rare that I get a headache.  I'm very lucky in that respect but I did deal with a slight one during the night.  Fortunately, it seems to have gone.  There are people who deal with headaches all the time.  I don't know how they do it. After getting home the plan was to just sit and catch up with the You Tubes, but I went to see Mom and Papa when Donna was there as I thought Papa had something important to share but it turns out there was nothing much aside from Mom is simply miserable.  A nurse did come to the house and I left.  I enjoyed some wings (I had been craving them for weeks) and I know the I have to get my ass back on the diet.  I feel so fat right now and am very disappointed in myself for sliding back.  I've fallen off the wagon and now I simply have to get the hell back up.

7-27-19 I was up after a good 8 hours of sleep (unusual when I’m on these trips).   After the necessary morning routine business, I headed down to slide my card for the multiplier (2X—big surprise) and to also slide Terry’s card as he’s allowing me to use it for the free weekend buffets.   I got the ticket.   The VIP section of the buffet is on the left and you don’t need to check in the front; just go down and hand the ticket to the hostess (no ID requested).   The buffet is excellent.   Truth be told, I wouldn’t pay for it as it’s pretty expensive, but I really enjoy the free food and service.   My problem is that I eat too much. After the food, I headed for some playing.   I played two or three penny games and waited for a bonus or feature and then cash out.   One game was a bust but the other two gave me a small profit.   I then played some single line Jacks or Better for the next couple of hours.   I stayed clear of ...

A text came in to me at 3:15 AM, very unusual.   I got up to look and it was Terry.   He has been playing at the Golden Nugget since 2 AM and invited me over.   I got dressed, picked up some coffee and walked over to find him at a table in back with a huge stack of chips.   He woke up and just decided to go over and play for a bit but the table was very soft and he was winning.   I told him I didn’t want to play, so he stacked up ($245) and cashed out.   We hung out at McDonalds drinking coffee for a bit and I headed back to the room to shower.   I met him and Louise at the Fremont buffet (yes…we pay…but it’s cheap and worth it).   We had a long breakfast and I (was already packed up) checked out and headed for Laughlin.   I didn’t want to drive in the heat of the afternoon. I arrived at the Aquarius just after 10:00 AM.   It was too early to check in, so I decided to go see THE LION KING, but the next showing wasn’t until 1 ...

7-25-19 The day started out well.   I picked up Terry at 7:45 and we headed over to Sante Fe Station.   We had their breakfast buffet ($8.95; excellent buffet for the price) and then signed up for the 10 AM Limit Omaha tournament.   We walked around playing a few Lightning Link machines for fun (made a small profit).   There were three tables of 10 for the tournament.   Terry lasted just before the final table.   I managed to hang on.   I won’t go into hands except to say that I was chip leader at the beginning of the final table, but got beat up when my A/2 low was matched by two other players and my dealt trips were beat on the river with a gut straight.   I did felt three of the final table players.   By the time the bubble burst (5 th place and we agreed to give him $100), I was the short stack but fortunately the other players (all regulars) wanted to just end the game and chop (it had been almost four hours).   With th...

Las Vegas 7-24-19 Quite a full day. I woke up at 4:30 AM (habits hard to kick).   Because I forgot my coffee maker (shit!), I walked down to McDonalds to buy a large coffee and bring it back to the room.   I finished the day’s report and did my other Internet stuff. I walked down to the Grand to confirm the new policy there.   Sure enough, every single VP machine had full pay games: 10/6 DDB; 10/7/5 DB; NSUD; 9/6 BDX; 8/5 BP; and 9/6 Jacks.   However, also on every one of those machines was a sticker that said Video Poker does not accept slot club points or benefits.   Considering their points didn’t offer much in the first place, that seems to be okay, I suppose.   We shall see how this works out.   I walked down to the Golden Gate and I had $20 in free play.   I used it in a Zeus machine and I caught a feature that soon doubled my money.   I cashed out $40 and went to the 8/5 progressives and hit a couple of quads.   ...

Las Vegas 7-23-19 After I finished the trash pickup, I headed out and was on the road by 7:30 AM.   Of course, I got stuck in some traffic getting on the 52 (morning rush hour) but by the time I was on the 15, things went just fine.   The biggest problem was on the 15 at the Corona Crawl and it was pretty much stop and go all the way until almost the merge with 115 (?).   They are widening the freeway and I have made the mental to NOT take that way to or from until next year.   I’ll take the old way through San Bernadino and Riverside.   I got to Las Vegas at a little before 1 PM (too early to check in), so I stopped at the Silverton.   I hadn’t been here in a long time and wanted to see any changes.   There were none aside from the old poker room is now a “Lightning Link” room dedicated to all those types of machines.   As noted, there are no full pay machines any more EXCEPT at the bar by the Café where I found plenty of 8/5 BP bar top...

No swim or walk today as I prepare to head to Vegas.  Some exercise will be had with trash pickup. Got my car washed and did my wash and cleaned some in preparation for the Las Vegas Strip. I finally had an extra KEY made for the golf cart.

Walk and swim went fine. Did some shopping and found the mat material I was looking for at Target.  Also bought forbidden snacks for here and Las Vegas. I got the old laptop set up for Tracy.  She never did make arrangements to pick it up with me.  I'll take it to Vegas with me and if there is time...drop it off at her place on the way home.  Why?  Because I'm a good dad!  Well, I try to be.  Nothing more.  Watched the Padres and a couple of movies.  I'm a sucker for movies on sale and there were a lot of them for five bucks.  I bought a few.  It seems I'm spending money willy-nilly lately.  Will it come back to bite me in the butt?  We'll see.  I've decided to keep my job through the new manager and if I don't like what's going on, I can quit.  Granted, the $500 a month is nice.  It covers my Entertainment budget, which is a lot.  I spend crazy money on my entertainment...but hell...what else...

Swim and walk was just fine. Did some shopping buying TWO pair of shoes (buy one get the second for half off--I'm a sucker for these kinds of things).  So...I spent $105 on shoes...what the?  Of well, I bought some things that were far worse (how about a $600 scooter that I have never ridden except for the trial).  I didn't do much other than computer things and TV.

Walk and swim went just fine. Did NOT do anything other than turn in my time sheet.  Never left the house.  Yikes!

No walk but I did get my swim in.  I had to make and leave a Final Notice on a car as Cindy wants ME to have it towed this weekend if it is still there.  I hate being the bad guy put into this situation. I did some shopping and had planned to do other things, but I end up looking at videos to improve my film editing skills and downloading software on the new laptop.  I wouldn't say it was a wasted day, but in a lot of ways, it was.

No swim or walk.  I could not get to sleep last night and stayed up until 10 for the security check.  Hopefully this is not a pattern. Trash pick up went fine.  I then went to Papa's to sit while the dishwasher was being fixed.  That finished around 10.  I came back to wait for my new laptop, which finally arrived around 2:30. I set it up...very easy.  I haven't noticed any specific speed difference but I've yet to do any video editing.  It was a hot day.  I'm anxious to go to Vegas and enjoy the non-stop air conditioning.

No swim or walk today.  Something in me told me to sleep in and I did and I feel good for it.  I slept for more than 10 hours.  Guess I needed it. Picked some trash today.  Stopped by the office to learn that Cindy had given her notice.  She will stay until they find a replacement.  I will need to make a decision on whether I want to keep this job or not.  I am truly conflicted.  I like the money though it's really not that much and I honestly don't need it and oddly enough I rather enjoy doing the trash. It gives me a little exercise and I like having a purpose.  Go figure. I saw the movie Stuber  today and though there weren't as many laughs as I thought, I still really enjoyed the movie.  You just can't beat a good buddy comedy in the summer. I had a couple of the slices of pizza from yesterday and they were okay, but there was a lingering question left in my throat, so I think I'll just throw the rest away.  I did b...

Walk and swim went just fine. Took Martin to my favorite pizza place and added some things to his computer and we played some WSOP over pizza.  Interestingly, they made us the wrong pizza and then gave it us to take home and made us the right pizza.  With Sunday special pricing that was two gourmet pizzas for $15.  Sweet.  Not that I should be eating that much pizza... We then watched the Padres game here at home and right on cue, Martin talked throughout the ENTIRE game never stopping.  It's really quite amazing.  It's HOT already and I'm sleeping with the fan on and still sweating a bit; however, surprisingly, I'm still falling asleep.  That's a good thing.

Did my walk and my swim and must admit, it feels good to be back to it.  I needed it. Book Club went just fine and I honestly didn't go or do anything else.  I'm SO lazy...and I love it.

No swim and no walk...why?  Too damn sleepy.  That's all ya get. Went to see Mom and Papa.  She was awake and talking.  She's expected to come home the week I'm in Las Vegas. I bragged about the pizza to Papa and he asked me to get him a couple of slices, so I went back to the Black Market Brewery and ordered a 14 in pizza. I got the two slices to him and took the rest home.  You can figure out the rest.

Walk...no swim.  I started for the gym and realized I had not started the coffee.  I made a U-turn and went back the house only to find that I did  turn it on and thought perhaps this was a sign  I shouldn't swim today...that's my story and I'm sticking to it. I went to the movies ala Trolley and saw Pets 2 .  I didn't have a lot of faith in this one as I thought the first one was disappointing.  However, I was pleasantly surprised that I laughed a few times and enjoyed it a little more.  I was the only person in the theater for this 10:05 showing that had already been out a month or so.  On the way back to Santee on the Trolley, I got a call that Papa's chair was ready so I got in my car and picked it up and then took it to their house and dropped it off.  It was $75...I suppose that sounds about right. On my way back, I took the El Cajon Blvd route and decided to stop at this new brewery and pizza place that had just opened in the old...

Swim and walk went fine. Interestingly, my knees were a little tired after the brief walk.  I had to change in the toilet stall because the crew was a little late and were cleaning the showers when I was done.  I find that irritating but I can live with it. Didn't do much of anything today other than get my haircut and picked up a $5 nachos meal at Taco Bell, which was very delicious, but I know it's NOT good for me.  One time. I am still looking for good intros for video channel, but I'm more and more thinking I really don't need to.  Trooper simply takes some short vids, changes the sound to a song and puts in his test.  If I can find a good TEXT manager for videos, I'd be very happy with that.  I tried a couple of shows I've enjoyed in the past and have decided they're just not for me.  Jessica Jones  (breaks my heart because there was so much potential there) and The Good Witch, which was produced by Hallmark and I just can't take the Di...

Walk and swim went just fine. Trash pick up went well though there was an unusual amount this morning.  All four dumpsters were crammed to the top. I went to pick up the chair at Subby's and took it to be fixed.  They gave me an estimate on having the four dining chairs redone, and it was far too expensive, so I'm now just going to try to find some new ones. Alita  came online and I watched it with many of the extras.  It was excellent.  I'm very disappointed that it didn't do well at the box office as they had ended it with an obvious sequel set up, but after looking at IMBD, it appears that's not going to happen. Was sleepy and went to bed earlier than usual, but woke up about five times during the night (bathroom, texts, phone calls, etc.)

Did my walk and swim this morning.  The swim felt good.  Taking the one day off seemed to rejuvenate me some. Did some trash pick up and then went to Jamual Casino to test my glasses cam.  I picked up a few good pointers. I spent the rest of the afternoon making and experimental vid that I uploaded to You Tube.  It's okay...nothing special.

I did my walk, but took a day off from swimming.  It was time.  Spent some time with Subby...Mom, as always, was asleep.  I walked along La Mesa Blvd.  It is truly a great street to walk around as many new restaurants and breweries have opened.  I had a burger, fries and a beer...that's right, I had a beer.  It was very good, but as usual very overpriced...with tip, $25. I suppose I am very spoiled when it comes to spending money of food.  I need to loosen up and eat out more.  I have the money and I have the time.  It's just the damn calories I hate!

Walk and swim were fine.  I'm NOT enjoying the walk.  I miss jogging but knees will have none of it.  Funny how I'm waking up minutes before each alarm (10 PM and 2 AM) goes off on most nights.  I suppose my inner clock is on full alert. I tried watching Fleabag , and though I can see why it's a hit, it's just not my kind of thing.  Jessica Jones  is another that I should really like, but there is ZERO humor in it and I need a bit of humor mixed in to keep me interested.  Padres beat the Dodgers TWICE.  No wonder we've had a series of earthquakes.  I suppose it's a clear sign the world is coming to an end. 

Walk and swim went fine. I stopped by see Mom, who as usual was asleep, but stayed a spoke with Papa for a while.  We are both waited for her go...that's a huge step for him, but taking care of her has taken its toll and he agrees there is simply no quality of life for her anymore.  I went to see the new Spider Man movie and it was good.  I do like the others more but this was certainly a good romp.  I won't see it again but will buy it when it becomes available.  After the movie I came home a began watching  Stranger Things 3rd season.  I'm not enjoying this one as much.  The problem with these types of series is that after a while it's repeating things and I just don't enjoy it as much. I'm looking for a new serial to get into.  I'm going to check out Fleabag  today as I've heard good things about it. 

Swim went well.  The walk was short and just in the park. I went to Tracy's new place.  It's small, but very nice.  I think I want to buy them a bed frame and will look into that.  The whole family was there and Javier made breakfast.  It was a very nice time with the kids. I ate FAR too much but I'm not feeling too guilty.  Spending time with my family is the best.

Walk and swim were fine except I'm developing some certain pain in my left knee while walking.  I'll just need to wait and see if it fixes itself, stays the same, or gets worse.  The idea of beginning to jog again is becoming more and more remote.  Went see Mom.  I stayed for about 15 minutes.  She slept almost the entire time. Trash pick up went very well.  There was a little less than usual.  They've replaced a white can with a green one and that makes a big difference. I started watching the Jessica Jones final series and at this point...not a big fan.  Too bad as the first series was excellent but they need to have at least a little humor.  Marvel missed the boat here.

Walk and swim okay. I went to the movies and Mission Valley Center and saw Yesterday ,which turned out to be a wonderful surprise.  Great movie!  Sleeper of the year. Breakfast crackers 400 calories..yeow!  Popcorn and candy at movies: 800 calories; two hotdogs for lunch: snacks during TV, 400 calories; 500 calories; and chicken nuggets for dinner: 500 calories. Okay...granted...not off to a very good start, but things will get better. The one thing that I struggle to give up (and likely will not) is my crackers in the morning with my coffee.  I simply love that time and that combination...it make me happy.  So it stays...for now.

Walk and swim went just fine, though my walk was abridged because there were some sketchy guys at the park.  I also went by a sheriff who was giving parking violations on Mesa Dr....at 2:30 AM.  I said hi as I walked passed. Today begins my BACK TO WORK day in two ways.  I am back to my diet, albeit slightly abridged.  I am going to stay away from carbs as much as possible.  There will be no more ice creams, candies (aside from movie little ones...and ONE package I have left over) and I will do my best to begin getting in my 10K steps once again. I weighed myself in this morning and was at 247...terrible consider how far I got it down to, but not as bad as I was afraid I would see.  My goal is 3-5 pounds a month...this should get be between 210 and 220 by Christmas.  I'd be fine with that...but I'm honestly hoping for it closer to 210...and away we go. The other way is that when I picked up the chairs, Cindy took us all to lunch and she informed ...