Sunday Musings In Late April

~ beetleypete

Weather-wise, we were quite lucky this week with not too much rain. Although we had a few cold days, and near-freezing overnight, the sun has been out, the birds singing their heads off, and it does feel like we might finally be able to enjoy the outdoors soon.

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I bought Julie a new stand-mixer to replace the old hand one that she had been using, and she responded by making some tasty bread. She has rediscovered her love for baking during the past year, and now enjoys her days off work by spending more time in the kitchen.

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Our grandson has been staying for the weekend. He is very bright, and already knows a lot about many things, especially ancient history and astronomy. But he still prefers to spend the majority of his time on a tablet or laptop, playing computer games. Julie gave him some of her crystals, and let him read her book about them. That caught his imagination, and now he hopes to start a collection. We took him out to eat at a ‘family’ pub/restaurant last night, and he made friends with a girl his own age while they were playing outside. He made me smile when he came back inside by saying “She has younger siblings”. He’s only nine, and sounded so grown up.

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Other than that, I have stuck to my usual weekly routine. Still going out on what would have been long dog-walks if Ollie was here, and keeping my daily exercise going. I am looking forward to warmer days and venturing further afield.

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It is only 7C (45F) here today, and despite the sunshine, there is a cold north wind. I hope the weather is better where you are and that you have the perfect Sunday for you.

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54 thoughts on “Sunday Musings In Late April”

  3. In the age of nine with interests in ancient history? Your grandson is definitely very bright. Congrats to a nice weekend, Pete! Here, we now got delivered the lower temperatures from the UK. A week before we had around 22 C. What a great living. 😉 Best wishes, Michael

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  4. The kid (no longer a kid) loves studying ancient (actually all) history. He found a set of games called “Civilization …” that allowed building and maintaining worlds (not like the Sims, though he liked those, too.) Anyway, I was asking him some questions about one or another of them, and he said he thought he was ready for the next game, because he’d run out of ways to play the one he was on. He also asked me about what I would do if we moved to a new, not-yet-settled place. I told him Horace Mann’s quote about how building schools closes prisons, and told him I’d start a school. He decided to save his money a little longer, and went back in to see what would happen if he did one, then the other, then mixed them in another. He was a little surprised to find Horace Mann was correct, his schooled civilizations prospered with little crime or war, which I thought was cool. Depending upon the games, some screen time isn’t so bad. When he was 9, everyone was playing Runescape, which he enjoyed. I don’t even know if it still exists, but I know the Civ games are both old, and still around. Just like us!

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  5. Homemade bread … yummmmmmm!!! I’m glad you’re still going for walks … it’s good for you, though I can imagine the first couple of weeks were difficult. I wish I still could … until mid-2021, I used to walk 4 miles every morning, but now I can barely walk to the end of my street. Ah well, such is life. Your grandson sounds like a joy!!! And smart, like his granddad! But you should warn him to stay away from the girls … they’ll bring him nothing but trouble! Glad you had a good weekend with him! Our weather here is much like yours … about the same temperature, after it being 81° two days ago, today’s high was only 42°. But, I’m okay with that, for I know that in just a month or so it will be so hot and humid that just breathing will become a major chore! Take care, Pete!

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      1. Until the last decade or so, it was our average summer temperature, but nowadays our average summer temps are in the 90s and occasionally topping 100! Coupled with high humidity because we are near the Ohio River, and it makes every breath a struggle for those of us who have smoked for 60 years!

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  8. (1) The high today is forecast to be 92° F / 33° C. It was no nice yesterday on the Bonanza Trail, where we stepped our way through one snowdrift after another!
    (2) Back when I was young child, my father delivered Taystee Bread all over Southern Missouri.
    (3) When I was in third or fourth grade, and living in Golden Colorado, I started a rock collection. My father built a nice wooden case with compartments that I then labeled. Most of the rocks were ones that I found on the ground. I still have everything! (As an adult, I began collecting holed rocks. I have quite a few of them!)
    (4) Capt. Kirk also ventured further afield. #Starfield
    (5) It’s on the warm side here [see (1) above], but it will cool down a bit later in the week. During the summer months, I will try to get up into the Spring Mountains as often as possible. (Yesterday was a good start, as you may have noticed from an email I sent you featuring photos taken on the Bonanza Trail.)

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      1. I appreciate your kindness and I wish I could think about recovery– but at my age I think it is going to become a matter more centered on coping …nevertheless…Life is good.

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      1. Walkings good and maybe if you keep walking that feeling something in you will change will pass… its early days , Pete and walking without Ollie is bound to bring up thoughts both good and bad because you had some great walks with Ollie and of course you are sad because now you are walking alone..Enjoy your walks I love my walks and if I miss a day I get grumpy with myself…I hope you have a lovely week and get some sunshine on your walks xx

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  17. It’s hard to imagine what it would be like to be a young child these days. I had a general knowledge book that was like my bible. I had read it cover to cover but still went back to it every day. If I had had access to the world wide web I would probably have spent all day on it but maybe the games would have been more entertaining. Your grandson sounds a good lad. Julie must be thrilled with her new appliance!

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    1. She does love the new stand mixer. It saves her wrists hurting, and it’s 100% quieter!.

      Our grandson spends half his life watching You Tube, but mainly looks at films about Ancient Rome and Egypt, or exploration of the galaxy. He knows more about stars and planets at the age of 9 than I ever did.

      Best wishes, Pete.

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  18. Well done with keeping up with the walking, Pete: I think that’s very sensible. We had a mixture of weather down in Lincolnshire on the film shoot: plenty of sunshine, but also some rain, and the persistent north wind, which meant I was very chilly filming outdoor scenes without a coat, and with ‘bloodied’ hands, which meant I had to rely on one of the crew to help me on & off with my coat before and after scenes. Luckily, the crew were very helpful & respectful, and it is very gratifying to be able to work with such competent young people. Cheers, Jon.

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      1. Compared to Yorkshire, Lincolnshire is very flat, but there is some lovely scenery, nevertheless. To be fair, some of the filming was indoors, so that was fine, but I wouldn’t dream of complaining about the conditions, because it’s all part of the job, and I was grateful for the opportunity: there is even a small fee, which is unusual for a student film!

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  22. Coming into one of my favourite times of the year for walking (I’ve run my own dog-walking / petcare business for 17 years) – that’s when the hawthorn trees and hedges bloom – and then become wet with the spring showers, giving off that amazing, sweet scent. 🙂

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