I haven't taken much vacation this summer because I've been hording it, in expectation of having to schedule vacation/child care around Mrs. Ha's possible work schedule. But, the kids are going back to school 2 1/2 weeks, perhaps I should start.

Other than that, work is pretty good, no trips in sight, lots of business.

In other work news, Mrs. Ha does have another job starting up, a part time morning job in a flower shop. The pay is not great, but the hours are, and it should be low stress. It's also close enough to walk/bike, which is good, as Mrs. Ha does not like driving in bad weather.

I just finished reading lots of posts on the American Civil War on consimworld, perhaps it will become my newest obsession. It's certainly easier to visit Gettysburg or Manassas than Normandy.

I also became more aware that people are still fighting the Civil War, at least in retrospect. You can google the Lost Cause if you want to know more. It was entertaining to see numerous authors and other authorities cite primary sources to demolish arguments that slavery was better than being a Irish immigrant in a northern mill town.

When I'm feeling down like this I should count my blessings. I'm pretty much off acetominophen. The heat is nearly gone, so my little Toyota will be comfortable to drive until January. We have a conventional mortgage. I didn't have to drive to Buffalo late Monday night to negotiate the release of someone from the psych ward.

I also found out how to reprogram our satellite remote to turn on and off our TV, and adjust the volume. Somehow it got deprogrammed, the magic number if 566.

There's not a lot planned for this weekend. I should replace the socket in our ceiling fan light. I should also try again to fix the crankshaft leak on my bike.