Remorse

While readying for bed last evening shortly after 9:30 p.m., I was shutting down browsers and such ere restarting my computer to have it all set for when I next rose and posted something freedom-oriented to Facebook (you know, stuff like the image above), when I came across an unfinished game of Microsoft FreeCell that I had forgotten I was involved with.

Well, I never give up on a game ─ I have been known to 'undo' my moves all the way back to beginning a specific game all over again. I have also had to keep at least one game open on my computer for three days because try as I did, I just could not beat it ... but I finally did.

So last evening I figured I was going to be expending maybe five to 10 minutes at best.

Not so; it was after 10 p.m. before I beat the game and was able to get to bed. My cellphone alarm had been set for 1:30 a.m., so I kept it that way despite the half hour reduction in my planned time in bed.

I guess I slept better than is normal, for I do not recall having any conscious period after getting to sleep until I heard my cellphone alarm's chiming. Thus, I did not feel at all poorly in getting up to ready for my five-mile+ walk.

It had been storming all evening since the latter afternoon yesterday, but wonderfully the rain had stopped. I was not going to have to carry an umbrella after all.

My wife's bedroom door was pulled tight, so it was obvious that she had come home following her full day working at the Thai restaurant where she is employed part-time. Her youngest son was still up in the lads' den area, but he never seems aware when I sneak away on one of my walks.

I weighed myself fully clothed (sans jacket) when I was set to leave: just barely a shade below 185 pounds. And it was 2:01 a.m. once I was outside the locked front door and ready to begin my hike.

There seemed to be as much black night sky as there were broken grey clouds moving about.

I stopped at the elementary school playground three or so blocks away for my usual six sets of pull-ups and chin-ups, and a set of decline push-ups on a cement ramp.

I had to spend some time wiping a jungle gym monkey bar dry enough to use, but with considerable effort and whole body heaving, I managed my current maximums once I had my jacket off:

• Two sets of pull-ups: 8 and 2 repetitions
• Two sets of chin-ups: 3 and 3 repetitions
• Two sets of pull-ups on a pair of gymnastics-style rings: 2 and 2 repetitions, with the very final pull-up held at full elevation for a 35-count

Then 14 full-range decline push-ups.

A stop like this is arduous for this 74-year-old, but it also works wonders for my outlook after finishing and resuming my walk.

There was nothing of note to relate about the walk, except that it was 4:04 a.m. once I was back home and outside the locked front door.

I have kept forgetting to mention an interesting incident that occurred during two recent evening walks, the first of them being possibly a week ago.

I had been hiking along 100th Avenue from 148th Street and was about to cross 140th Street (Google Map), but I was awaiting the traffic light. Then I noticed a female figure coming my way along the forested or eastern side of 140th Street, so I made a snap decision to head on down her way.

But it was not a certain lass (Rayah) I rather keep hoping to again cross paths with. This gal was very nicely dressed in a knee-length skirt, and had a sort of Pixie cut of her blonde hair. Her legs were slim, as was she, but she was quite tall ─ possibly my own height.

As we passed, she kept her eyes and her face down-turned, never once looking up at me. Nevertheless, she was clearly very attractive.

This is not somewhere that a classy-looking well-dressed attractive young woman would be expected to be walking, so I could only speculate as to why she was doing so.

The second incident was this past Sunday evening. Again, I was walking 100th Avenue in the direction of 140th Street after having just accessed it from 138-A Street (Google Map).

The sidewalk along there is side-by-side with a bike lane that is removed from the avenue, so the sidewalk seems especially wide as a result.

Coming my way from 140th Street in the dark was a guy pushing a cart or baby buggy that seemed to contain the sort of sundry items a scavenger might be hauling about, but he had a female companion wearing shorts or cut-offs that could not possibly be any shorter.

He was coming along the bike lane, and she was on the outside of the sidewalk, rather forcing me to pass between the two of them ─ something I do not much like doing because I feel rude in breaching the companionship of couples in that fashion.

She was lagging just slightly, so I passed him first and then was coming abreast of this lass with the seemingly very long, bared legs ─ in the dark they seemed exceptionally slim (i.e., skinny).

She was attractive in a rather 'hard' way, for her hair seemed completely shorn to stubble length on the side of her head nearest me, with the hair above of course considerably lengthier. I suppose it may have been reflective of a Mohawk look.

As we passed one another, her eyes were locked with mine, and she issued a very quiet "Hello."

I responded with an equally low "Hi."

I assumed that she probably did not want the guy she was tagging along with to hear her make the greeting in passing, so I responded in an equally quiet tone. Had she been alone, I would have happily conversed with her.

Little such events are practically titillating to this lonely old soul who has had no physical intimacy with anyone since sometime in March 2013, despite being married and having my wife in my life.

But enough of this topic.

After my walk this early a.m., I probably did not get back to bed until at least 6:10 a.m. It had appeared that I might manage to make it to bed by 5:30 a.m. at latest, but I got heavily involved in seeking to find a download source for a very long 2004 movie that is variously titled, including Dark Kingdom: The Dragon King and Ring of the Nibelungs.

Wikipedia claims that in its original T.V. version, it was three hours and 42 minutes, but in its shorter version it was two hours and 42 minutes ─ i.e., reduced by about a hour.

Well, I was able to locate a source at a so-called torrent website that allowed me a download as an MKV file that I have no idea if our Android TV Box will be able to play on our T.V., but that discovery is some weeks away at this point.

As for length, in checking the file's properties, it is supposedly 2:57:14, so two hours and 57 minutes (or nearly three hours).

Maybe I should have downloaded an AVI file? Such were also available at the same website, but my flash or thumb drive cannot presently afford space for two downloads of such large files. Consequently I have bookmarked the website for potential future use.

Anyway, after getting to bed for some further sleep this morning, I rose just past 9 a.m. My younger brother was already watching T.V.

I had to wait until 9:30 a.m. before he turned the T.V. over to me so that I could operate our Android TV Box.

My first choice was a 19-minute (19:27) video published earlier today at Rumble's WTFLouie channel: 15 minutes with Dr.Makis Ep 026 Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has been Threatened 26-Aug-2026 e.

This man astounds me! How he has the courage to declare what he does whilst still living in Alberta is beyond understanding.

My next and final choice for this morning was nearly 1½ hours (1:28:06), and had been published yesterday at Rumble's Tucker Carlson channel: RFK Jr: Teaming up With Trump, Pavel Durov’s Arrest, CIA, and the Fall of the Democrat Party.

When Bobby Kennedy endorsed Donald Trump last week, he burned his boats. There’s no turning back for him, or for American politics. Here’s his first interview since that happened.

We had broken from that video so that my brother could keep an appointment for a haircut. Then after we had finished watching it, he sought some bed rest. I had already eaten while he had been out, so I was also soon enough able to return to my own bed and enjoyed a deep nap.

My brother was gone, but not for the day. He had gone forth to get some errands run with his girlfriend Bev, I was to discover, for he returned while I was boiling water for my day's third and final instant coffee.

However, he returned only to leave his van here. He was going to catch a bus and re-join Bev at her home two miles hence, and then they would be going to the nearby Legion over where she lived.

The day has been a mix of brilliant sunshine and cloud, with considerable wind. Had it been exclusively sunny, I might have spent some time sunning out in the backyard.

This has been a second consecutive and rare day when neither of my stepsons have been home, both apparently away to work. I am enjoying the alone time.

I intend an evening five-mile+ walk once dusk arrives, and then I will be sitting up late watching at least one show with my brother when we are back home, and enjoying a couple of beers.

My monthly pension was not directly deposited today, so my walk cannot include any shopping ─ grocery or beer. I am too broke.

Exacerbating matters was a text from my wife ─ she had another full workday today, so she left for work this morning shortly after 10 a.m. Her text was to enquire if my pension had come ─ if so, could I please transfer her $1,200, and she would repay me at the end of September.

???????

Well, that led to a rather heated exchange. I emphatically declared that such would not be taking place even if my pension had come. I had weakly previously acquiesced to $700, but I have since concluded that it would be the last time she is taking big money grabs like this and leaving me virtually destitute each month while she lives high with her friends.

To suddenly have her seek to grab another $500 on top of that was too outrageous.

She finally phoned me. She conceded in the call that the $700 would suffice.

Frankly, I do not care if she does not pay me back after I manage to struggle through September, because this is not going to happen to me again. NO MORE huge transfers to her when her own income matches mine ─ I am done funding her extravagance.

Since April, I believe that she has gotten a minimum of $2,400 from me, always promising some payback, but never honouring that promise. Her promises have proven worthless.

Maybe at the end of September if I do make it through, I will tell her not to bother paying me anything back because it will only mean that she will be 'needy' all that much sooner and she will then be after me for another 'loan' that is really only a claw back of her repayment.

I will tell her to keep her money, but not to bother coming to me again for more once she blows everything she's got. She can go crawling to her sons ─ who do not tend to be as weakly stupid and gullible as I am.

Lots on my mind ... as usual.

I chose this early evening to tune in FBI ─ episode two ("Remorse") of season six. I wanted some alcohol boost.

Despite first watching the show and eating a natural peanut butter sandwich comprised of just peanut butter and two slices of mostly organic whole grain bread, I was still able to drink a can each of Cariboo Malt (8% alcohol) and Bumper Crop cider (7% alcohol).

It was a darned good show! I watched it here at my bedside computer at this link at M4uHD.net, if interested.

I was home alone until one of my stepsons finally arrived into the house at 7:27 p.m.

It is now 7: 43 p.m., and I am going to rest my eyes and frame for a while. It's not going to be gloomy enough for me to care to brave the public for at least another half hour.