What did you do today? - 2020 version

[W2R]

Had fun at the gym today. I think of the gym as "recess for grownups".

My workouts are quite mild compared with other people, or compared with what I used to do myself before my knees went bad. Now that I am recovering from knee surgery on my right knee, I am having to start at about zero and cautiously build back up to where I was and that could take years. But hey, what else do I have to do?

So, after ten minutes warming up on the seated elliptical, I used six weight lifting machines, two sets of ten at each. When you add up all the weights lifted for each lift, it comes to 3.1 tons. That sounds like more than it is! I used to lift 20-28 tons but that was back in the good ol' days when I was just a young thing 65 years old and knee surgery wasn't an issue. Also I did some stretching at the stretching station.

Anyway, it feels good to lift weight again, no matter how much or little I lift. I intend to keep at it. If you don't lift weights at the gym then honestly you should at least try it. It's so much fun.

 

[Walt34]

Gym day with DW, then lunch, and the kitchen knives I'd ordered from Amazon arrived, and flew an R/C airplane in the back yard for 45 minutes or so. Even with a heated jacket it was too cold for me to keep at it.

And I didn't even fly into any trees!

There are two "airplane-eating trees" in the back yard, cousins to Charlie Brown's kite-eating trees.

 

[harley]

3 weeks ago I went to an event with a silent auction. I bid on and won a 3 month membership to our local YMCA. It was my intention this year to walk in a buy a membership anyway, since I like to swim for exercise and it is the only place to swim here in the winter.

Last week I attended at Tai Chi class there for the very first time in my life. It was amazing. I now look forward to my Tuesday afternoon class each week. We are doing Chen form and Yang fan form. Fan form is a real joy.

Part of my fitness journey-balance, strength, cardiovascular, and flexibilty. And joy along the way. Tai chi is for balance, but it builds strength too.

Good for you. I love Tai Chi. Hopefully you won't have the problem we had when we took it at the Y a few years ago. It was an open session, and every class was a first class, as new people showed up every week. We never could get through more than the first forms. It took signing up for a real class to amke it through all 24 and finally learn what we were doing.

 

[braumeister]

When you add up all the weights lifted for each lift, it comes to 3.1 tons. That sounds like more than it is! I used to lift 20-28 tons but that was back in the good ol' days

My understanding is that 16 tons is equivalent to one day's work, so that might be your goal.

 

[W2R]

My understanding is that 16 tons is equivalent to one day's work, so that might be your goal.

Love that song!!

 

[rodi]

I used six weight lifting machines, two sets of ten at each. When you add up all the weights lifted for each lift, it comes to 3.1 tons. That sounds like more than it is! I used to lift 20-28 tons but that was back in the good ol' days when I was just a young thing 65 years old

I had never bothered to add up the 'tons' of my work out... I'm at about 24 tons... Who knew?

Now I want to increase the tonnage LOL.

 

[aja8888]

I put new wash tub suspension rods and springs in our Maytag top load washer. I also replaced the hot and cold hoses with high burst pressure metal braided ones. Maybe the tub will not bang the washer sided if the load gets a bit unbalanced.

These new design washers are junk.

 

[MRG]

Got up to bacon that was cooking all night long in sous vide. Went out to get breakfast and was shocked to see the temperature at minus 3. Beautiful sunny day but cold.

Tax guy and I chatted about a Roth withdrawal from 2019. After all said and done we owe nine dollars this year. Not bad considering we paid zero in.

I was looking at some posts my former co-w*rkers put up from the Chief's Superbowl parade downtown KCMO. I flashed back to 1985, I was on the same corner(10th and Grand) during the Royals World Series parade. I remembered who I was with and our conversation about a colleague who would die a couple months later.

Hit the grocery store, DW wanted chile. When I was getting meat I saw a beautiful pack of short ribs. I've never made them but they are going to be sous vide for a couple days. I need to make sure how many days they cook and have it set up out of the way.

Had sous vide bacon tonight with egg in the hole. The bacon was unique, crispy and juicy, not like anything I've had. It won't be the only way I cook bacon in the future but it's the best.

 

[capjak]

Made Sous Vide boneless, skinless chicken breast. Best I've had, wife doesn't like white meat "too dry" but she said this was as good as dark meat and would have it anytime but sous vide only.

 

[pacergal]

taking care of DGS while DS is at work, getting ready to take him to preschool soon. Then off to DD house to help with our other DGS!
Love all the little ones, and so thankful of earlier retirement that allows us to do this. Years ago, I thought we would need to work until 65 or more.

 

[Bir48die]

Last day in Mexico on this trip. Lazy morning. Coffee and then to the pool to sit and read. Leaving early due to sickness but still trying to drink the last of the booze before we leave. I don't think we're going to make it. Will go back to 30+ degrees less.

 

[MRG]

Spent most of the day at the eye doctor. They were late seeing me and when the doc listened to me she spent quite a bit of time with me. I'd had retina reattachment surgery back in November, the surgeon told me on 12/26 all my remaining issues were surface issues like dry eye.[emoji849]

Today I saw my eye doctor again for the first time post surgery. She listened to me describe all the visual distortions I'm having and calmly suggested that's not dry eye![emoji848] No crap, I'd had a second opinion on 12/31 and received some more prednisone drops to help heal it more, they helped some but... things are not supposed to still be distorted. I explained how flat objects are bent and the impact it's having, my best thinking said I should stick a knife in my eyeball to remove the problem. She thinks I might have a retnia pucker that's causing the distortion which is a theory the second opinion floated too. At the end she held my hand and asked me to promise I wouldn't remove my eye.

In two weeks I see the original surgeon again to see what she thinks. I seriously doubt I'm going to let this person cut on the same eye again. I know she didn't cause this but she blew me off on 12/26 by ignoring my complaint. I'll go back to the second opinion doctor and start over.

 

[Gumby]

Yesterday, I spent all day creating a spreadsheet to model my Roth conversions and RMD's for the next 20 years. Today, I sharpened all my straight razors. The yin and yang of retirement.

 

[braumeister]

Got this wonderful snapshot from a friend, taken this morning of an owl with three newly hatched owlets.

 

[Ronstar]

Went to our real estate tax appeal meeting. It appears our taxes will be reduced, but we need to wait and see. Swung by the hospital and brought MIL home following 2.5 days of tests following an auto accident where she may have blacked out at the wheel. Tests ok but she has to wear a heart monitor for a while. Went for a neighborhood walk and watched youtube videos of toolboxes for a few hours.

 

[Walt34]

Went with DW to the Prime Outlets Mall in Hagerstown, she wanted to show me/buy a couple of bookcases. We took one home and ordered another. Then lunch at Longhorn, a nearby restaurant where we met up with Braumeister a bit over a year ago, then home. On arrival the lamp sockets that I'd ordered from Amazon were on the porch so I installed one in the broken bedroom lamp so that's fixed.

Took a nap, and as I write this there is some marinated chicken cooking on the grill.

 

[Hermit]

I'm on my way to a birthday party. Unfortunately, I am the guest of honor. I turned 70 yesterday. Most all the folks up here in the valley will likely be there. Good excuse for a beer or two...

 

[Ronstar]

^ Happy Birthday, Hermit!

 

[RobbieB]

Put a new stock (composite, 40% fiberglass) on my .308 Win bench rest rifle.

Looking forward to 1 hole groups.

 

[traineeinvestor]

The Hong Kong Marathon (which offers full marathon, half marathon and 10K) was supposed to be held today but was called off because of the coronavirus outbreak.

I went and did my own informal half marathon ... as did a lot of other people. It was good to see a people doing positive things amidst all the gloom.

 

[blueskyk]

Ambushed by beauty and wonder yesterday on morning dog walk

 

[Nemo2]

Great pic!

 

[Ronstar]

Great pic!

+1. And I see how you got your username.

 

[Retired Expat]

Ironed out all the details on our March/April trip to Berlin, Dresden, Krakow and Budapest. Looking for high quality moderate hotel rooms is time consuming but not difficult with the internet. No need for travel agents any longer.

Been doing travel planning a little everyday. You are right about time consuming! Did all my planning on paper for a complicated trip. Assumed pickOmg up a rental in Ireland and return it in Scotland. Come to find that one way drop off is another $2000 ! So no problem. Drop off in Ireland and take the ferry and pick up a new one on the other side. Oh but no car rentals on the Wales side where the ferry goes, change ports and voila, except not on weekends. Move around all travel dates and start over looking at hotels, flights etc.

Now I am okay with spending money but that i2 grand is blowing dough for nothing!

 

[BrianB]

I helped a young couple, friends of our daughter, do their taxes. They're not married so it was two returns, but each had just one W-2 form and TurboTax downloaded the info in an instant. No investments or other 1099's so the returns were very simple. They work at the same small business that does not have retirement or other benefits.

I talked to them about starting savings / investment plans. One earned just over $32k so I showed her how opening a Traditional IRA and contributing enough to get under that limit would save her some money because of the Savers Credit. She looked puzzled, so I said "Look, you are buying $500 for a cost to you of just $413. Where else can you get a deal like that?" She agreed. She will keep it in a MM fund for now; I will talk to her about investment ideas in the next few months.

I'm happy she did this, and now I'm trying to help her get her debt under control - $21k total for car, CC, and a student loan for a course she never completed (that is priority #1!)

The other one is going to school and he is a veteran. His classes are paid and he gets a tiny stipend for living, so no money at all to invest right now. At least he's moving forward and will get a two-year certificate in something to do with computer systems & security. It sounds like worthwhile program.

They are good kids but grew up in spend-it-when-you-get-it families.

Brian