Going to the Dogs

June 27, 2021

Going to the Dogs

My how times flies when you're having fun. I don't know where June went but it got there in a hurry. We're beginning our 8th week in Huntsville and we've only been here a few days. It seems like I'm settling into a routine already: 4AM wake up, pictures on Monte Sano (the mountain East of Huntsville's downtown), Dunkin' Donuts for coffee (okay, sometimes a doughnut) and Home Depot for a load of mulch and whatever I need for the day's Honey-Do list.

I don't know what happened to my yard man but I gave up on him. I bought a mower and started seeing all sorts of things that needed to be done as soon as I started mowing. Hence the mulch. Bags and bags of mulch. We went from 2,500 sq. ft. on 3 stories to 2,700 sq. ft. on one level. You walk yourself to death but you don't have to do any steps.

I may not do steps but I do try to walk up the mountain a few times a week. You're never quite sure what you're going to get.

That's right. I'm going to the dogs. I've learned from my Facebook feed. It doesn't matter that you get up at 4AM to get to the top of the mountain and take dozens and dozens of pictures to get it just right...

....any decent picture with a dog in it will get 10 times as much attention. And, obviously, we all crave attention.

What I crave at the moment is attention from my air conditioning technician. My air conditioner quit a week ago. Yeah. A week in Alabama, in June, without air conditioning. We're waiting on a new coil. Is this part of that just-in-time supply chain I always hear about on MarketPlace? Oh well, I can't say Kai didn't warn me.

Our saving grace has been a whole-house fan. I have to wonder if some younger people have ever seen a whole-house fan. I know my kids never saw one growing up. Anyway, it makes the house tolerable and, on a few mornings, it's actually been cooler than air conditioning. Right at sunset is still kind of tough. If you've never thought about how people stayed cool prior to air conditioning, you might want to read about the "stack effect". You'd be surprised how cool a good breeze can keep you.

That's the best part of Monte Sano -- there's almost always a breeze. And it's always cooler up there. Especially before the Sun comes up.

Y'all do know that before sunrise is when you see the prettiest colors, right? I'm almost always alone up on top of the mountain. But 5 minutes before sunrise, suddenly people start arriving. I figure they just didn't want to get up earlier but I have to wonder. Some are Son worshipers.

But I think some are Sun worshipers. They show up to see the red rubber ball rise and then take off, 10 minutes after they showed up. (The things I learn when I take the time to write.)