Friday was another super fun day!

Slept ok. I always feel great, even when my sleep isn’t terrific.

I still find the science of tracking it interesting.

Continue to practice Brain Training.

Went to the mission to watch the grand girls!

Everly still wasn’t feeling well. Teething is a bitch. But she wasn’t!

I took them to the park near their house. The swing made E feel better.

After an hour or so, I took them home, gave them baths and put Everly to bed.

Ashley came home after working out and I took a nap with Everly. That helped!

Went to the church to check on mail.

Watered my ficus tree. She really took a hit with that cold snap that one night, but she’s ok! One side took the brunt of the cold it seemed. I’m hoping that the leaves will come back on that part.

Went to see Bad Suns Friday night. Todd Rundgren is 72. Most of the people at that concert were my age or older. Could not have been more different with the Bad Sun crowd. I’d say there were ten women to every dude and age was around mid 20s! After getting in this huge line and seeing all these youngsters, I felt pretty out of place. For a moment I actually thought, “Maybe I’ll blow this off.” Then I came to my senses and said, “I can out rock all these kids.” Which turned out to pretty much be true!

I have to say that it was one of the BEST concerts I’ve ever been to.


Incredible energy. And like me, the crowd knew pretty much all the words. Light show was phenomenal.

Here’s what they sang. Their new album Mystic Sun is also super good.

This was the analysis of my work out at the concert!

I waited for about two hours after the show and got to meet Christo Bowden who is the lead singer. He was a super nice guy and a real talent.

I got him to sign my shirt.

Wow! What an amazing three days this has been. Especially since I haven’t been to a show in nearly a year. Awesome.

Still catching up on admin duties. Nearly finished. My discipline is almost an obsession. In fact, I actually broke my Duolingo streak because I got home after 1AM! But Duolingo cut me some slack. As well they should, since it was still the same day to me! LOL.

This has been a whirlwind of musical activity! Thursday night I stayed up late and the same with Friday! So I’m catching up on admin duties now!

Slept ok.

Brain Training

After practicing the Wim Hof method of breathing plus the brain training.

Studied. You guessed it!

Went to the Todd Rundgren book signing for his new book The Individualist. I really liked it. While I was waiting in line I met Alan Meero who is a famous botanist. Of course, you know my love for flowers!

This one is named after him!

Todd and I had a fun conversation.

There was a long line of folks. I went to eat and came back and finished my conversation with him. I ate here. The FIRST Moes! I thought that was cool! Delicious salad.

After the book signing, I went by the church to pick up mail.

Went to the mission to help with homework, but the girls weren’t feeling well. Penelope had a stomach ache and Everly was teething. She still flashed me a smile for the picture!

Went by the bank to deposit checks. Amen!

I liked this sticker. I do.

Enjoyed night #2 of Todd’s show “The Individualist!” He was great!

His wife, Michelle, invited me to a get together after the show. I had another fun talk with Todd. He’s a cool guy who likes many of the same things I do, in particular foreign cultures.

Another late night! But one of the best!

Had a late night on Wednesday watching Todd Rundgren! Catching up on admin duties Thursday morning!

Brain Training to start off my morning.

Then Español!

Sent out a mass email to the Youth Directors who worked with us.

Went to record, but instead spent time coming up with new titles for podcasts! Part of the work!

Then deposited checks.

They trimmed branches in my yard. It’s to keep branches from bringing down power lines during ice storms. Which we didn’t have any of last winter. AMEN!

Glad they didn’t hurt any of my plants!

Went for a 13.81 mile bike ride. Glorious outside!

While riding, I practice my scripture and poetry. I now have over a hour of material completely memorized. That seems like a lot. And it also seems to be getting easier to commit things to memory. Just learned a big chunk from Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman.

Listened to Spanish radio on the ride into Chamblee.

Tried to call my Mom. Keep missing her. Bahd luck.

Helped the kids at the mission. And always enjoy the Grandgirls! What a blast of oxytocin they are!

One of the kids at the mission brought ice cream treats.

Always fun with the kids!

After the mission, got some huevos rancheros at Taco Veloz then went into Buckhead to see Todd Rundgren. I’d say he’s my favorite artist of all time.

Interesting reflections on the mirror buildings in Buckhead. I always wonder which one Elton John lives in

I’ve really been looking forward to this. In a moment, I’ll be going to see him at a book signing near Perimeter Mall.

I sat right behind Michelle Rundgren, Todd’s wife. We had a fun conversation. The lady on the right is Candy, she and her husband sat next to me. She was nearly as enthusiastic at the show as I was. And that’s saying something.

He was super good.

I got home around 11:30pm.

It’s funny how almost everyone in the audience was my age or older. Friday, I’ll be going back to Buckhead Theatre to see Bad Suns, another of my favorite bands. I listen to their stuff while I’m biking all the time. I’m sure I’ll be the oldest one there by far that night!

And probably rocking the hardest.

Welcome to me, baby!

I look forward to concert #2 with Todd this evening!

Brain Training!


Español!

Released a new episode of Verbal Surgery -651- “Star Shine”

Be your best self, because you are AWESOME, baby! Just click on the title and GROOVE!

Uploaded to server.

Link on Facebook.

Recorded “Me, Myself, and PIE” and put it on my Mac. I’m now over two months ahead of my two episodes a week schedule.

Biked 10.41 miles. With this new technology and programs I also pushed myself a lot harder today.


Listened to Spanish radio during my drive times to the mission.

Checked on mail at FBC Doraville.

Helped the kids with their homework, then played with bubbles.

Grandgirls love it!

And chalk art!


Admin duties now.
Helped Jesse draft a letter to his tax accountant.

Had a good night’s sleep.

Brain Training! It’s been very interesting to see what happens when I use the Wim Hof breathing method.

I was looking forward to this! But, alas, too cloudy.

Español!

Some of the sentence structure really takes memorizing. Doesn’t follow English syntax.

Progress and longevity!

Watered my plants.

Went to Al Madina to have lunch with my buddy Bennett Ekandem.

Got my new sleep mask in. Looking forward to trying it out this evening.

I trapped and transported squirrel #50 today!

Took it to Chamblee and released it at the mission. The kids get a kick out of seeing it scramble away at full speed.

Got mail at FBC Doraville.

My buddy Alan was transplanting some bushes to a new area near the parking lot. Lot of work! Looks great!

Helped the kids with homework.

I thought Penelope’s hair looked fantastic.

After homework, we did chalk art.

Kids wanted everyone to know we were back from Spring Break!

Chalk hands.

I liked this one. Hashtag heart.

GREAT to see the grandgirls!

Just to clarify.

Set up the next meeting with my buddy Jon. Time is actually for lunch.

Penelope had fun walking around in my flip-flops.

Got gas on the way home.

Listened to radio from Madrid. Most of the ride I quote poetry and was memorizing a section from Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman.

I moved the rest of my bromeliads outside. I think they made the plastic flowers look more natural. It’s nice to add some color!

Admin duties now.

Doing some research on the benefits of cold showers. It’s another part of the Wim Hof methodology.

I’m practicing a different type of breathing strategy based on the “Ice Man” Wim Hoff’s ideas. I immediately did way better in my brain training.

It was Rock Bridge’s 10th anniversary today! Had fun there with Kathy and Ashley!

Came home and studied Español!

I had a shortened Brain Training time this morning. Practiced again this afternoon. Did my best ever.


I got a new app on my iPhone that serves as a heart rate meter AND a oxygen saturation device. Very good is 97.

Pulse Oximeter also “talks” with Apple Health.

Went for a 21.53 mile bike ride today.

Great weather and absolutely gorgeous outside! We had over 1″ of rain last night. The Yellow River was really running and muddy.

The Wisteria is especially splendid.

This reminded me of Jacaranda trees in Kenya.

I enjoy all the science of getting healthier. I primarily get “moderate” exercise. The irony is that the fitter I am, the slower my heart beat is. For me, 110 is actually my goal!

Spent time listening to Spanish radio from Madrid.

Went to Walmart to get the groceries.

Beautiful sky.

Admin duties now.

Woke up! Yeah, baby! I’m doing well at remembering my dreams now that I have a small handheld recorder that I can talk into rather than writing stuff down. I’m averaging three dreams a night. Most of the time, I can’t remember what I talked about when I wake up!

Four entries this morning.

Brain training.

Español!


Got about .5″ of rain yesterday. I cleaned this out this morning so I can read it better.

I got my new fitness tracker on line. So far the only thing I don’t like about it is that it interferes with the other bluetooth devices that I may have running. I’ve read about this problem in reviews for other devices. Apparently, it’s a common problem.

I’m still learning how to use it properly. I tried to check it just now. Apparently, it didn’t track what I wanted it to do. I just realized it’s better to set that up with the app on my iPhone that to do it with the tracker.

Recorded “Greener Grass” this morning for Verbal Surgery.

Sweet Penelope got her first real haircut today. She loves it!

Went to the bank to deposit checks for Whirlwind. AMEN!

Always puts a smile on my face!

I worked on my Wisteria project today. Started planting the cuttings that I got yesterday. Planted nearly fifty! Not sure how many will survive. It’s definitely a learning experience for me. I think the plants that already had roots will do the best.

This was just tracking the planting project. Later, I also did some pruning.

Here are baby plants. Like I said, I’m really not sure how many will survive.

These larger specimens all had root structures that I pulled up out of the ground. I’m more optimistic about these.

My new pruning shears worked great. I got a cheaper pair from Walmart day Thursday. They were useless.

One of my goals for today was also to bring all the plants that I had inside back outside. I used to keep a LOT more outside. Over time, I realized that just wasn’t workable for most plants. They just died. I always thought outside was better. Not anymore! But some do well.

English Ivy is really bad for trees. I got a mitre saw and chop all these runners away.

I found the solid blade and handle works pretty well.
The other thing I’m always on the lookout for is my nemesis: Poison Ivy. Every year I go after it! And every year there is less than less in my yard. So far I have found ZERO! But it’s early. . .

The key is to try and pull out as much of the vine as possible. Just cutting it off at ground level does jack.
Also swept off my outside carpet area. Keeps me from tracking stuff inside.

Went for a 12.07 mile bike ride. I didn’t intend to do that much, but it really was delightful outside.

Gorgeous!

Admin duties now.

Every morning I look at the Sleep Cycle program to see how I slept.

I pretty much always feel fantastic, but it’s still interesting to see. This evening I got my new fitness tracker/watch in. It will also measure my sleep patterns and my heart rate, which is the primary reason I got it.

I’ve increased my Brain Training time to 8 minutes sections from 5 minutes. I’m doing three in the morning, but my goal is 15 when I wake up and 15 before I go to sleep. If I stick to what I’m doing now, I’ll be doing 48 minutes rather than 30. It’s definitely added more focus to my prayer time.

Spanish!

Progress!

Language, like growing trees, is a long-term project.
I released Verbal Surgery -650- “No Ledge!”

What we know can make us happy OR sad! Concentrate on what makes you feel better! Click on the title and GROOVE!

Uploaded to server.

Link on Facebook.

My last episode, “Who am I?” has been downloaded nearly 3,000 times. That really is astonishing to me. It’s one of my very best, for sure!

I got my new calendar in today. I made a schedule to release material to three separate groups: Our supporters from the teams that have worked with us, the group of Youth Directors from the Research List (the seven states around us that have yet to work with us) and the group of Youth Directors that HAVE worked with us.

Today was the Supporter Group.

I sent our supporters a link to “Who am I?” I’ll release my favorite episode of Verbal Surgery once a month.

I’m still learning how to use Mail Chimp. It’s definitely a work in progress.

Went by FBC Doraville to check on the mail.

The dogwoods are looking fantastic! They are supposed to flower around Easter.

The flowers are supposed to represent the four wounds of Jesus. Traditionally, the cross was made of dogwood.

Great to see the support come in!

Always fun to spend time with the grandgirls! We ate at Taco Veloz. It’s my favorite. I always imagine Anthony Bourdain being there.

Since it was kind of rainy, we did inside fun today: Hippo Hop!

We stayed about two hours. Wore them both out!

Eventually, Everly wakes up, I take her out of her chair and she sleeps beside me in the bed with Penelope.

They really are such a blessing to me! It’s like having daughters all over again. Everly is really picking up a TON of new worlds. Super cool!

I read Leaves of Grass while they snoozed.

I posted that picture to my buddy Anthony. He said, “That will lower your heart rate!” He was right!

I continue to make progress on the Wisteria project! This afternoon I read some more information about how to grow these vines. They said that the best of all possible worlds was to find where the vines and rooted and were sprouting new growth. I managed to pull these up. I’ll plant them tomorrow in pots and eventually put them in the ground. It was nearly dark by the time I got home.

Depending how these do, I may go back with a shovel and dig some more up. I got quite a lot today.
These have probably been growing here for decades.

The spot I was going to get them from near my house was even more prolific than this. I went by it on my bike recently and everything had been completely cut down! Saddened me. I saw this spot today. It’s near where Ashley lives.

These little sprouts can each grow new vines.

My original strategy was to just use cuttings. Then I realized that there were small
plants that were already established that I could use. I think that will be a lot better, but we’ll see. . .

The mother plant was absolutely gorgeous!

It was a huge area of Wisteria.

I wet the wash rag down to keep the tender shoots and roots wet. I’ll plant everything tomorrow. I may need to get more soil! This is typical for me. I pretty much overdo everything I set my mind to.

I got my calendar in so I can keep track of what releases when. Pray that all this effort will result in financial support and more teams coming!

I’m charging my new fitness tracker now. I’ll set it up tomorrow.
I used my new recorder last night. I actually talked about five separate dreams in one night. It’s a WAY better strategy than trying to write it down. In a moment, I’ll connect it to my Mac and start a filing system to keep track of it.
Admin duties now.

Still collecting data about sleeping. I find it fascinating.

Starting my day off with Brain Training has also been a good investment.

Then into Spanish!

Started out pretty cool. Turned out to be a beautiful day!

Got me some new shoes! I used my last pair almost exactly on year to the day! My old ones now become my work shoes.

This is my coffee making area. The tiki cup I’ve had since I was a boy. It’s from my grandparents who lived in Laredo, Texas. Makes me think of them every morning.

I normally record Verbal Surgery in the morning, but I didn’t have quite enough time to do that, so I had a fun chat with my buddy Bob Burns in Scotland! He’s always a blessing and super funny.

Have you ever heard of lucid dreaming? It’s when you become aware that you’re dreaming while you’re in a dream. Bob is quite a source of knowledge about that. We had an interesting conversation about how to develop that skill. Jesse is also good at it and has a few books in his library that I will also be looking at.

Had a fun lunch with my good friend Jon Paul. I’ve been working with his wife, Linda about some pain issues. Sadly, she had a big fall and got kind of beat up. I didn’t get to pray with her today, she’s on pain meds and was sleeping.

Went to Walmart to pick up some groceries and supplies for another plant project. I’m interested in growing Wisteria vines. I’ve been doing some research on it and have done a recon on areas that have plants that I could take cuttings from. Today, I got potting soil, some dowels and some growth hormone for root stimulation. I have about eight small pots that I’ll start the shoots from.

I’m also thinking about using the blue plastic tubs for growing bedding plants in. I think that will be better than trying to put soil in such a large area.
I also bought some plastic flowers that I thought might be fun to also “plant” in my front area near my door.

As I was trimming bushes yesterday, I noticed this fungus growing on some of my shrubs.

I already had fungicide in my arsenal of plant stuff, from when the Pink Magnolias had a fungus. After spraying them a few times they are completely healthy. I gave the shrubs the same treatment.

I was super careful with the fungicide. I wore glasses and a bandana around my nose and mouth plus used rubber gloves.
After that mission was accomplished, I got the lawn mower out. But before I fired that up I put in my hearing protection. It’s a special type of wax that is normally used for swimming. It’s kind of dirty now, but still works fine.

I’d done almost all the front yard, but had the side piece to finish up.

I raked a lot of the mulched up leaves and put it in my back recycle area.

Everything looks SO much better!

Then I got the weed whacker out.

Unloaded all the materials for my Wisteria project.

Final piece is to blow the area off.

I track everything with Runkeeper.

Helped Jesse get his taxes done. Took about an hour and a half to do his personal taxes.

Started my morning with Brain Training.

Espanol!

Progress!

I’m enjoying and memorizing sections from Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass. All the highlighted area!

The clouds have been really interesting this week.

I recorded another episode of Verbal Surgery called “The Unsearched for Answer.” It’s a good one! On Tuesday, I released, “Who am I?” it’s on course to be the most downloaded episode EVER! Had nearly 1,500 downloads in two days.

I had a problem with my new fitness tracker/watch. Sent it back to Amazon for a replacement.
I get to do that for free if I drop it off at the UPS store. No problem there!

You may remember that I hurt my left hip yesterday when I was doing yard work. I stepped into a hole and jarred myself pretty badly. Today, I went to Evergreen hotel at Stone Mountain to soak in the hot tub. The hot water felt good on the injury. It’s such a beautiful place. I always feel like a Kardashian when I’m there.

Poppin’ pansies!

The lake and Stone Mountain looked lovely.

My favorite bird.

I saw the Waste Pro truck today. Asked them about recycling some old lawnmowers.

While I was biking, I memorized a part of Leaves of Grass. With really long pieces, I break it down with individual words and a letter. Memorize the list of letters, THEN memorize the section for each letter. If you have a little trigger it’s WAY easier to remember what comes next.

This is one of my favorite dogwoods. Both of mine I had in my yard died. They are kind of a fragile tree from what I understand. That’s why I went with Pink Magnolias and Cherry Blossom. But it’s still a beauty! I had pink ones.This is red.

Rode my bike 12.50 miles. I had planned on farther, but when I got to mile five, my hip started hurting. I turned back and after a while, it stopped hurting so I did my two mile loop a few times to get the miles in. I really work on time, rather than distance. I did over 1.5 hours.

I was hoping to have my new fitness tracker on to check my heart rate today. The new one will be here in a couple of days.

Whenever I’m stressed out, I record. I am now a whopping 18 episodes “in the can” ready to be released! NEVER been that far ahead! Says something about what I’ve been going through lately. That and I love to hear myself talk! Verbal Surgery really is my best work.

Admin duties now.