Spring in the air (temporarily)
Last Friday, Angie and I took the day off together. It was supposed to be a nice (warm) day and we were going to go to Six Flags. Unfortunately, Six Flags isn't open on Fridays until later in the year. But it was good that I checked in advance so that we didn't make the trip for no reason. But we decided to still take the day off and go Hacklebarney State Park. Hacklebarney is a park that we go to often(ish) and bring our dog(s). For like the last month or so, we've been dog sitting Molly, who is Angie's mom's dog. We often joke that she's dumb, but even if that's a little true, the true issue is that she's just really poorly trained, mainly because my mom-in-law has lost all her ability to discipline anyone or anything.
But here's a picture of Jabba hugging Molly in the morning:
Jabba's so friendly
Molly's supposedly a mix between a Silky Terrier and a dachshund, I think. I guess she's a short legged version of a terrier. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/lTXuwDYQNrhALkS52)
The day turned out excellent! It was about 75°F and sunny. And since it was a Friday (and most bozos had to work) and early in the season, the park was relatively empty. That is especially good because Molly is crazy (little dog) and barks SO MUCH and SO LOUDLY! We walked around the park with Alfie leading us since he's been there several times. He brought us by the creek and around rocks, which is an area that we all enjoy. It was also interesting since there were lots of fallen trees (from winter storms) and not much undergrowth yet. So it was a slightly different view than we normally see. There were "what this always here" comments surprisingly often for how much we've been there. Molly also did surprisingly well when we were going over rocks and such since she's such a small dog with little legs.
Pictures
Everyone (minus the cameraman) posing for a picture. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/QkVQNMkQCZIbHrPl2)
Molly exercising caution on stairs. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/TZqCDDjSPQ1uIg6D2)
Alfie always likes (?) to explore around the water. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/Q2tdkZIlO9mL3fDp1)
Afterwards, we stopped off at Petco to get more treats for Alfie and Molly since treat consumption has been greatly increased due to two dogs and trying to train Molly. I wanted to look at fish too, but Alfie wasn't having it. Originally, we were planning to have pizza but since it was such a nice day, we decided to have our first barbecue of the year. So we had some burgers, hot dogs, Taiwanese sausage, and beers. It was a really nice time, especially considering that we did it all before we'd be home from work! We even washed our cars since it was so nice out.
On Saturday, it was even warmer! It felt like the summer (~85°F). We had a birthday gathering for a nephew (-in-law?) at Hometown Buffet. After eating, we went to Home Depot to buy lots of stuff. Then met up with Angie's family again to have cake and tea before heading back to home. But the warm weather didn't last because there was about a 40°F drop that evening. During the day, I switched into shorts because it was so warm but by the time we were walking the dogs in the evening, it was pretty chilly. By that evening/next morning, the temp was in the 40s (°F). The last few days, the low has been in the 30s, so it was good to take advantage of the Friday.
Oh, at the family gathering, Jasmine (brother-in-law's wife) was talking about how their chickens lay eggs now! So she gave out a few. We ate it over the weekend.
egg pictures
The one on the left is "fresh" while the other one is "normal" store bought. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/fsxn18AB3x9KEWxO2)
"Fresh" egg is upper right and it's yolk is a little darker. The whites were also runnier. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/CJzk0lysali2ij3r1)
We also had a guppy that was incredibly fat and bloated looking, displaying all the signs of pregnancy. So we isolated it and placed it in a breeder box, which is just a little box that hangs on the side of our tank. It shares the same water but is isolated (so it can't be harassed by the male) and there's slots so the babies would fall to the bottom and not be eaten by the mother. We've done this in the past, but haven't had too much luck. Basically, the mother tends to die during/around the birthing processing and nothing survives. Although we have found guppy fries in the main tank and moved them to the breed box for isolation while they grew.
Well, yesterday, I looked at the breeder box and there were TONS of fries! I thought the guppy would have 2-3 fries (since it's live birth), but there must have been 30 or so fries! And several didn't drop into the bottom, but were avoiding their mom. We figured that we'd give the mom a day to recovery on maternity before transferring her back to the main tank tonight. That'll also give the fries more room, but I don't know what we'll do with them if they all survive. I guess we'll see. They're super cute though since they have such big eyes!
miracle of life
The angelfish is in the main tank, but wanted to be in the picture. The female guppy is and moss ball are in the actual breeder box. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/FzoOG7EAKfFo5Pbk1)
Close-up of the fries. I probably overfed the mom since I heard that pregnant fish need more feedings due to less stomach room. I am surprised by how much crap (possibly literal) built up in a few days.(https://photos.app.goo.gl/wU6V37ZFReJYlhD03)
Otherwise, not too much else is going on. Basically, I feel like I'm waiting for the weather to stay warm so our banana plant can be moved. Also, on one of those days, Angie replanted her bonsai tree. While she was doing that I planted several starter seeds so it'll be good to see if those take. But again, once it's warm, it'll be good to buy and plant our garden for the year. And lots of lawn care.
In non-outdoorsy things, I've been playing a decent amount of Final Fantasy XIII-2. It's pretty good, although I think the battles are a bit disproportional, which isn't a good thing. Like "normal" encounters are too easy while boss fights kind of tough, especially if you don't maximize due to the easiness of normal fights. It's a minor gripe. A major gripe though is Mog. I generally like moogles, especially Mog (from FFVI), but in FFXIII-2, moogles try way too hard and aren't very cute. But otherwise, the game has been going well.
I've also been trying to try to watch the NBA playoffs. Since the NBA sucks, I assume it'll be GS and CLE in the finals, but I've been watching OKC and PHI. I also find that I actually have been rooting for Carmelo Anthony who I normally hate, but I guess as the 4th best player/role player/scoring specialist, he's not bad. I'm also excited to see Embiid more/if ever since he's always hurt.
Sunday, we're going to try to give blood again, so I've quit coffee for the week and been upping our "iron rich" foods. I'm excited for hot pot on Saturday as our last feast of meat/vegetables hopefully to push my iron into 'acceptable' levels.
But here's a picture of Jabba hugging Molly in the morning:
Jabba's so friendly
Molly's supposedly a mix between a Silky Terrier and a dachshund, I think. I guess she's a short legged version of a terrier. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/lTXuwDYQNrhALkS52)
The day turned out excellent! It was about 75°F and sunny. And since it was a Friday (and most bozos had to work) and early in the season, the park was relatively empty. That is especially good because Molly is crazy (little dog) and barks SO MUCH and SO LOUDLY! We walked around the park with Alfie leading us since he's been there several times. He brought us by the creek and around rocks, which is an area that we all enjoy. It was also interesting since there were lots of fallen trees (from winter storms) and not much undergrowth yet. So it was a slightly different view than we normally see. There were "what this always here" comments surprisingly often for how much we've been there. Molly also did surprisingly well when we were going over rocks and such since she's such a small dog with little legs.
Pictures
Everyone (minus the cameraman) posing for a picture. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/QkVQNMkQCZIbHrPl2)
Molly exercising caution on stairs. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/TZqCDDjSPQ1uIg6D2)
Alfie always likes (?) to explore around the water. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/Q2tdkZIlO9mL3fDp1)
Afterwards, we stopped off at Petco to get more treats for Alfie and Molly since treat consumption has been greatly increased due to two dogs and trying to train Molly. I wanted to look at fish too, but Alfie wasn't having it. Originally, we were planning to have pizza but since it was such a nice day, we decided to have our first barbecue of the year. So we had some burgers, hot dogs, Taiwanese sausage, and beers. It was a really nice time, especially considering that we did it all before we'd be home from work! We even washed our cars since it was so nice out.
On Saturday, it was even warmer! It felt like the summer (~85°F). We had a birthday gathering for a nephew (-in-law?) at Hometown Buffet. After eating, we went to Home Depot to buy lots of stuff. Then met up with Angie's family again to have cake and tea before heading back to home. But the warm weather didn't last because there was about a 40°F drop that evening. During the day, I switched into shorts because it was so warm but by the time we were walking the dogs in the evening, it was pretty chilly. By that evening/next morning, the temp was in the 40s (°F). The last few days, the low has been in the 30s, so it was good to take advantage of the Friday.
Oh, at the family gathering, Jasmine (brother-in-law's wife) was talking about how their chickens lay eggs now! So she gave out a few. We ate it over the weekend.
egg pictures
The one on the left is "fresh" while the other one is "normal" store bought. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/fsxn18AB3x9KEWxO2)
"Fresh" egg is upper right and it's yolk is a little darker. The whites were also runnier. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/CJzk0lysali2ij3r1)
We also had a guppy that was incredibly fat and bloated looking, displaying all the signs of pregnancy. So we isolated it and placed it in a breeder box, which is just a little box that hangs on the side of our tank. It shares the same water but is isolated (so it can't be harassed by the male) and there's slots so the babies would fall to the bottom and not be eaten by the mother. We've done this in the past, but haven't had too much luck. Basically, the mother tends to die during/around the birthing processing and nothing survives. Although we have found guppy fries in the main tank and moved them to the breed box for isolation while they grew.
Well, yesterday, I looked at the breeder box and there were TONS of fries! I thought the guppy would have 2-3 fries (since it's live birth), but there must have been 30 or so fries! And several didn't drop into the bottom, but were avoiding their mom. We figured that we'd give the mom a day to recovery on maternity before transferring her back to the main tank tonight. That'll also give the fries more room, but I don't know what we'll do with them if they all survive. I guess we'll see. They're super cute though since they have such big eyes!
miracle of life
The angelfish is in the main tank, but wanted to be in the picture. The female guppy is and moss ball are in the actual breeder box. (https://photos.app.goo.gl/FzoOG7EAKfFo5Pbk1)
Close-up of the fries. I probably overfed the mom since I heard that pregnant fish need more feedings due to less stomach room. I am surprised by how much crap (possibly literal) built up in a few days.(https://photos.app.goo.gl/wU6V37ZFReJYlhD03)
Otherwise, not too much else is going on. Basically, I feel like I'm waiting for the weather to stay warm so our banana plant can be moved. Also, on one of those days, Angie replanted her bonsai tree. While she was doing that I planted several starter seeds so it'll be good to see if those take. But again, once it's warm, it'll be good to buy and plant our garden for the year. And lots of lawn care.
In non-outdoorsy things, I've been playing a decent amount of Final Fantasy XIII-2. It's pretty good, although I think the battles are a bit disproportional, which isn't a good thing. Like "normal" encounters are too easy while boss fights kind of tough, especially if you don't maximize due to the easiness of normal fights. It's a minor gripe. A major gripe though is Mog. I generally like moogles, especially Mog (from FFVI), but in FFXIII-2, moogles try way too hard and aren't very cute. But otherwise, the game has been going well.
I've also been trying to try to watch the NBA playoffs. Since the NBA sucks, I assume it'll be GS and CLE in the finals, but I've been watching OKC and PHI. I also find that I actually have been rooting for Carmelo Anthony who I normally hate, but I guess as the 4th best player/role player/scoring specialist, he's not bad. I'm also excited to see Embiid more/if ever since he's always hurt.
Sunday, we're going to try to give blood again, so I've quit coffee for the week and been upping our "iron rich" foods. I'm excited for hot pot on Saturday as our last feast of meat/vegetables hopefully to push my iron into 'acceptable' levels.