My plan for today was to work along with "my" carpenter constructing another built-in bookcase* but that plan fell apart when the carpenter phoned to reschedule. So I just sort of hodge-podged the day.

After my early morning coffee and post writing**, I walked back to our "barnyard" and found raccoon number 3 waiting for me in my live trap. (I am on a roll, here.) So it was another drive-and-hike raccoon release*** for me before I could officially start my day. But I will never complain about a hike.****

9:30am to 12:30pm This seemed like a good day for it, so I put in 2 hours of emptying stored boxes***** and filling up book and display shelves. That plus some mundane chores (like doing the cat boxes) got me to lunch.

12:30pm to 1:30pm Had another enjoyable lunch and DVD lecture on ancient civilizations.

1:30pm to 6:30pm Got totally immersed in stocks****** and household financial paperwork for the rest of the afternoon.

6:30pm until... A leisurely drink, a nice dinner at home, and a big time-chunk of pc strategy gaming******* wrapped up the day for me.

My plan for the day was to set up our new art/what-all booth at a local indoor antiques mart, do some stock searching, and relocate another trapped raccoon. Things went even better than I planned.

After my early morning blog post writing*, I went to check my raccoon trap at our barnyard -- and found another "customer" to relocate!** So the next thing I did was to drive and hike in to a good spot where I released the pesky critter before really getting my day started.

10:00am to 12:00noon I did the initial setting up of a 3-by-5 against-the-wall booth that we have started renting at the local indoor antique mart. We have SOOO much art and other stuff that we can find no place for*** that we are going to see if we can sell some off. And -- unbelievable as it may seem -- I sold 2 small pottery art pieces for $155 while I was still setting up. Let's hope that is a good sign of things to come.

12:00noon to 4:30pm After my usual "lunch and a DVD lecture", I spent the afternoon updating my stock records and researching potential new stocks to add to my portfolio.**** Except now it is more of a game instead of a chore.***** And that is a very good thing.

4:30pm until... I ran out of steam early, so -- being Sunday and all -- I hung up my "stockering" hat and spent the rest of the evening watching movies.

My plan for today was to tag along with my wife to an offsite church group activity at Virginia Safari Park. But I did not expect to turn into a kid again or have so much fun!

We carpooled about 100 miles from the church assembly point to this Virginia Safari Park, a place I had never heard of. It turned out to be the kind of wildlife attraction where you drive through a huge park-like area where exotic animals from around the world roam free and come close to your vehicle. But instead of driving in our own vehicles, our group program included riding through in a large, open, tractor-pulled wagon that made this even more fun.

As we boarded the wagon after an ostrich-gawking picnic lunch, the driver-guide gave each of us a large plastic bucket full of animal kibble. Every so often, he would stop the wagon along the trail and the animals would converge on us to be fed, close and personal, and essentially by hand. I loved it!

You name it, we fed it. Food bucket snatching camels, pot-bellied pigs, huge-headed Scotch Highland cattle, super tame buffalo, all kinds of gazelles and antelopes, llamas, deer and elk, and more. All coming right up to the wagon and sticking their heads in over the transoms for the food.

The bunch of little kids in our group got me acting like a little kid too. Wanting to be sure I got to feed everything. Wanting to pet everything. Keeping the camels from stealing our buckets. Pouring kibble onto the gigantic tongues of begging buffalos. Ooohing and aaahing over everything. It was great.

After the wagon ride, my wife and I roamed all over the pedestrian zoo-like part of the park to see many more exotic creatures and birds as they "did their thing" in various enclosures. And some of those animals were super-unusual australian and south asian species I had never ever heard of before. So that was great, too.

The trip to this place took practically all day, but it was sure worth it to me. On the way home, we errand-bundled building-supply and grocery stops. And topped it all off with a nice dinner out.

What a nice break.

My plan for the day was to spend the day packing up stuff* at our now-vacant previous home while my old and blind doggie, Little Bit, had surgery performed to remove a massive mammary growth. All went as planned. All went well.

Again, I had to skip a coffee-and-blogging start to my morning** so I could get Little Bit to the vet by 8:00 am -- which I did. Then back I went to our old house to keep working at getting the heck out of it.

It might seem strange for me to take my dog to a vet that is located over 100 miles from my present home, but it actually often ends up being more time efficient for me to do things like vet trips, bank stops and DMV visits when I am already going to be doing the 100-mile trip anyway.***

By 2:30pm, I had done all the packing I could stand doing, my truck was loaded and I was ready to get the heck out of Dodge. Got to the vet by 3pm, and there was Little Bit with a successful surgery under her belt (no pun intended).

With my doggie snuggled up in one of her most favorite places in the world (my pickup's passenger seat), we were off and running. Two-and-a-half hours and 102 miles later, we were home. Another half-hour and my truck was emptied out and I had had it for the day.

After that, it is all a blur but I would not be surprised if I wrapped up my day with a big Chivas Regal and an extended round of Pacific War!****

My plan for the day was to drive over to our now-vacant previous home (102 miles each way), do some caretaking there, load up my pickup* with yet another load of boxed up stuff**, and do a nice hike*** at nearby Shenandoah Virginia State Park. It all worked out.

8:00am to 1:30pm
I skipped my usual early morning coffee-and-blog-writing**** routine to get an early start on my drive. (It takes me a long time to get ready to go.) So I arrived at our previous home around noon, just in time for lunch.

After setting up for my overnight stay (because staying at a vacant house is just like camping!), I had a sandwich lunch while viewing the lecture on The Egyptian New Kingdom in my Human Prehistory and the First Civilizations DVD course.

1:30pm to 5:30pm
Drove over to Shenandoah Virginia State Park and piggybacked Overlook Trail and Allen's Mountain Trail (up and down the mountain) to trailwalk some 4 miles. Great stuff.

5:30pm to 7:30pm
Got a couple of hours packing in and then goofed off the rest of the night.

7:30pm until...
Cooked up dinner, ate it and then caught up my Pacific War fantasy combat journal*****, all while watching the movie Gettysburg.

My plan for the day was to focus mostly on doing stock research* and working on setting up my part-time hiking blog business.** That got changed by a raccoon, a newspaper flyer and a brochure in the mail. But it was all good in the end.

Today, I did my early morning coffee routine at the computer while I edited, typed up and posted my blog article Cashback Cards ARE Worth the Effort. Then off to the barnyard -- where we found our first trapped raccoon.***

8:00am to 12:00 noon
-- Drove and hiked into a secluded wooded area with fresh water access, and released the raccoon. It trotted off about 20 feet, went behind a tree, and then stood there on its haunches looking at me. (Yes, you are welcome for your life, raccoon.)
-- Back at home, I did some stock portfolio monitoring**** and it was time for lunch.

12:00 noon to 1:30pm
-- Another enjoyable sandwich lunch eaten in front of the TV watching a DVD lecture in the Great Courses' Human Prehistory and the First Civilizations.

1:30pm to 6:30pm
-- A day or two ago, a newspaper flyer from Ace Hardware sold us on picking up a modest above-ground pool there at a great discounted price*****. This afternoon, we set it up. (1000 gallons of water is a lot of water.)
-- Having some leftover time and energy, I knocked off a few boxes off our monstrous storage pile.****** It's a start and it felt good.

6:30pm until...
-- Having hardly made a dent on my June 30-deadlined $5000 spending spree*******, I opened today's mail to find an offer I could not resist from the Great Courses company. Seventy percent off on anything and everything in their catalog, including all already discounted courses on sale. So I spent an hour or so deciding what to buy and how to get the most bang for my buck, and then I picked up the phone and ordered TEN courses at a total cost of $795 including taxes and shipping. (List price on the courses was well above $3,000.) Take that, spending spree.
-- And then I played a little Pacific War********...

My plan for today was to spend most of my task time "stockering": reviewing quarterly earnings reports on my portfolio companies* and researching new investments to make.** Plus doing a little more start-up planning for my TrailWalkers Club part-time business***. And I accomplished all that.

Today was also the day we trapped a big raccoon we suspect is the raider that killed 2 of my wife's chickens last week!****

I launched my day with an early round of blog writing, getting down 200 more words***** on my newest opus, Cashback Cards ARE Worth the Effort, while enjoying a cup of my free gourmet coffee.******

8:00am to 12:00 noon
-- barnyard critter detail and house chores
-- pinned down all the regulatory hoops I will have to jump through to start up TrailWalkers Club (county, state and fed -- oh, my!)

12:00 noon to 1:30pm
-- lunch and another Great Courses DVD lecture from Prehistoric Man and the First Civilizations.
-- welcomed my wife home from her latest business trip.

1:30pm to 6:30pm
-- researched stocks, plowed through several quarterly earnings reports, and set up some new buys and some possible profit-making sales.

6:30pm to ...
-- set out our new and BIGGER live trap at the barnyard.
-- after dinner, played a long session of Pacific War******.

and a trapped raccoon!
-- the trap worked and the next morning we found a big raccoon in the trap!

My plan for today was to go hiking* in the morning (before the rains came) and hunker down to do paperwork in the afternoon. And so I did. Walked a long, hard new trail and swept a bunch of paper out of my inbaskets.

I am now back to my early am routine of good coffee** and blog post writing.*** So I did some 200 words on my new blog article "Cashback Cards ARE Worth The Effort", had breakfast and got ready to go hiking.

8:00am to 1:30pm
-- With my wife Kathy on a business trip, I took care of her barnyard (geese, bunnies, chickens) for her.
-- Took a nice drive to Walnut Creek Park for my hike.
-- Since I had enough energy and time, I walked the longest trail in the Park (about 4 miles) for a darn good workout, seeing as this Wilkins Way Trail was designed for trail biking and that made it challenging in places for on-foot hikers. But what the heck!
-- Back at home, I had lunch while viewing The Origins of States and Civilizations, lecture #19 in the Prehistory and First Civilizations DVD course I am currently "attending."

1:30pm to 7:30pm
-- Dove into my paperwork pile and paid bills, updated stock records,**** fixed admin problems and placed orders for miscellaneous house stuff.
-- Wrapped my tasks time block***** with 45 minutes of new-planting watering for my wife.

7:30pm to ...
-- Had dinner and played Pacific War****** until I got too sleepy to stay awake.
-- NICE DAY!

My plan for today was to sweep through May-end pending chores and paperwork, and to do some blog planning. I managed to do all that, while continuing to act out our raccoon raid saga.*

I got back to my routine of starting my day with good coffee and writing or posting in my blog.** Today I posted an article I titled Is That Expense Essential or Discretionary?***. Then onto the chores and paperwork.

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- First thing, I went to check the traps we set out last night.* No raccoons. Just sprung traps several feet from where I set them. We are going to need a bigger trap! (So my wife promptly ordered one.)
-- Then I blitzed through a whole bunch of home administration paperwork until lunch time.

12:00noon to 1:30pm
-- Back to my routine of a nice sandwich lunch while viewing a Great Courses DVD lecture. (Presently, I am halfway through the course on Human Prehistory and First Civilizations.)

1:30pm to 5:30pm
-- Because it is month-end and I just returned from a 3-day trailwalking trip****, I doubled up today's task time and dove back into the paperwork.
-- That done, I spent a couple of hours reviewing quarterly earnings reports***** from companies in my stock portfolio (something I am falling behind on) and placing some orders for tomorrow.

5:30pm until...
-- Work time done, I spent my evening doing some blog planning, organizing my TrailWalkers Club to-do notes, and playing my Pacific War pc game.******

Whatever plans I may have had for today flew out the window when, early in the morning, my wife came in from her barnyard and announced that we had "a crisis in the henhouse." I spent the better part of the day helping her address that crisis by setting up chicken coop defenses against suspected raccoon raiders. Here is the whole story.

Yesterday, my wife had reported the disappearance of Goldie, one of her preferred egg-laying hens. Not finding her in the coop when she opened it that morning, she had speculated that Goldie might have somehow escaped the previous evening before the coop was closed up for the night. But, alas, no. Because today she found the mangled and torn-asunder body of Cochee, her only Cochin hen, on the roof of the 8-foot chicken coop.

She deduced that a raccoon had found a way to scale the coop wall, crawl into the coop through the ventline that runs along and under the roof, catch and drag out the hen, and then totally shred her. So, we had a job to do if we were going to keep our remaining 5 chickens from suffering a similar fate.

So off we went to obtain the materials and get the tools to completely wrap the roof ventline in tightly-stapled chicken wire so no raccoon could again crawl in. But there was more to be done, because who was to say that a dexterous raccoon would not be able to open one of the rabbit hutch doors and make off with one of my wife's cute bunnies? So we installed raccoon-proof spring-loaded latches on all four rabbitt hutches and weighed each of their swing-up hutch tops with a brick.

That took care of defense. Then on to offense. Because the raccoon(s) had to go.

So that night we set up 2 live traps around the chicken coop (each baited with an open can of tuna) and retired for the night hoping for the best.

I did do some stock portfolio management today and took care of some other paperwork. But that was just minutiae. Today was the day of the raccoon.

Whatever plans I may have had for today flew out the window when, early in the morning, my wife came in from her barnyard and announced that we had "a crisis in the henhouse." I spent the better part of the day helping her address that crisis by setting up chicken coop defenses against suspected raccoon raiders. Here is the whole story.

Yesterday, my wife had reported the disappearance of Goldie, one of her preferred egg-laying hens. Not finding her in the coop when she opened it that morning, she had speculated that Goldie might have somehow escaped the previous evening before the coop was closed up for the night. But, alas, no. Because today she found the mangled and torn-asunder body of Cochee, her only Cochin hen, on the roof of the 8-foot chicken coop.

She deduced that a raccoon had found a way to scale the coop wall, crawl into the coop through the ventline that runs along and under the roof, catch and drag out the hen, and then totally shred her. So, we had a job to do if we were going to keep our remaining 5 chickens from suffering a similar fate.

So off we went to obtain the materials and get the tools to completely wrap the roof ventline in tightly-stapled chicken wire so no raccoon could again crawl in. But there was more to be done, because who was to say that a dexterous raccoon would not be able to open one of the rabbit hutch doors and make off with one of my wife's cute bunnies? So we installed raccoon-proof spring-loaded latches on all four rabbitt hutches and weighed each of their swing-up hutch tops with a brick.

That took care of defense. Then on to offense. Because the raccoon(s) had to go.

So that night we set up 2 live traps around the chicken coop (each baited with an open can of tuna) and retired for the night hoping for the best.

I did do some stock portfolio management today and took care of some other paperwork. But that was just minutiae. Today was the day of the raccoon.

This was the third and last day of my kickoff trailwalking* trip. I planned it as a 350-400 mile driving loop that took me all the way to Fairy Stone Park in Stuart (VA) and by today's end brought me back home. And in between I explored 5 state parks and took 5 hikes** covering 8 trails. Today's part of the plan came off without a hitch, as I hiked some 5+ miles on Otter Path Trail at Twin Lakes State Park and Channel Cat Trail on Bear Creek Lake State Park.

I started off the morning with a 50-or-so-mile drive from the Super 8 in South Boston to Twin lakes State Park*** in a pit stop of a "town" called Green Bay. Once I got on Otters Path Trail, I found it to be a "rolling wave" type of trail, going up and down and up and down and getting me to huff and puff almost the whole 3.5 mile way. From the nicely cleared and wide trail,I had pretty views of the lake and picturesque views of "acrobatic" creek crossings.

After a picnic lunch, I drove another 40 miles to Bear Creek Lake State Park**** in Cumberland (VA). Channel Cat Trail itself was well marked, but not so its junctions with cutouts and side trails. This made it a challenge to stay on course, even with the help of a trail guide (which was not very much help at all). But I managed.

I chose to do Channel Cat because it was described as an "interpretive" trail. But the signs along the trail were off the mark, not really interpreting the scene around you but instead imparting information on such burning topics as what bait works best on a particular fish. The real highlight of this hike was a half-mile side trail named Running Cedars Trail. Narrow, with towering trees close-in and lush vegetation underfoot, it delivered a very satisfying woodland experience.

And then another 50-mile drive and I was home. Just in time to go out to dinner!

This was the second day of my three-day "shakeout" trailwalking trip.* The weather forecast predicted rain, but I dodged it all day and did all my hiking** while staying dry. I pulled off my plan for the day and logged 3 hikes in 2 state parks along the Staunton River.

I started my day with a nice country drive along 40 or so miles of back roads from the Best Western in Danville to the Staunton Bridge Battlefield State Park*** outside the teeny-tiny town of Randoph (VA). Although this was a smallish, one-day battle, the state and a non-profit group have done a great job of preserving the site. There is a very well-done visitor/education center and the 2.2-mile battlefield trail I hiked**** is well posted with interpretive signs on what happened when during this engagement fought over control of a bridge vital to Confederate resupplying of the besieged city of Petersburg.

Next, I headed for the Staunton River State Park***** some twenty miles away, after enjoying a picnic lunch at the battlefield park. The big highlights of this hiking were the river views along the trails. This was aerobic, up-and-down, body-leaning-forward hiking that gave me a good workout. From the extensive network of intersecting trails, I cobbled a composite 3.5 mile hike going from the River Bank Trail to Crow's Nest Trail to Robin's Roost Trail to Captain Staunton's Trail and back to end at the River Bank Trail trailhead. And I was ready for some rest!

My stop for the night was the Super 8 at South Boston, which I reached after another 20-mile drive. No luggage cart there, so I had to do a lot of back-and-forth trips to my truck to get fully set up in the room. But it was all good, anyway. I had a good night and it was a good day.

Today was the first day of my 3-day TrailWalking trip. Not only did I have fun, but this day's hike* also marked the start of my attempt at a hiking-based part-time business**.

My morning was spent actually driving down to my destination area. I arrived at Fairy Stone State Park (VA)*** around noon or so. Had lunch at a picnic table (I always pack my own trip vittles) and planned my hike.

I spent the next 3 hours finding, hiking and photographing Little Mountain Falls Trail.
-- The park trail guide was not very good and neither were the trailhead sign posts.
-- Long story short, I had to hunt for the Little Mountain Falls trail head by cutting through a campground and walking around a closed-gate access road. But I found it.
-- I hiked the 3.3 mile loop trail, which included a panoramic view overlook and the 20-30-foot drop creek waterfall that the trail is named for.
-- And I did my first test of the "TrailWalkers Trail Notes Form" that I developed to record trail observations which I will then use as the basis for a trail report to be posted in my new hiking blog.

With that nice workout under my belt, I drove about another hour to get to the Best Western at Danville, where I spent a very comfortable night.

A good start to the trip!

My plan for the day was to do some financial paperwork and finalize my planning for the 3-day TrailWalker trip I am going on tomorrow. By day's end I was good to go. Lots of hiking fun coming up*!

My early-morning blogging went very well. I finished the article "Cashback Cards ARE Worth the Effort" and started a new one titled "Free Gourmet Coffee Every Day."** All while having some of that delicious free gourmet coffee.

My morning went to financials. Reconciling all the bank accounts, updating the income and expense projection records, and managing my cashback cards*** all got done.

My afternoon went to trip planning. After lunch and a prehistory course DVD lecture (The First European Farmers), I concentrated on getting ready for the TrailWalker trip I am starting tomorrow. My plan is to do a 300-to-400 mile loop that will take me to 5 Virginia state parks where I will hike 5-10 different trails.

My evening went to relaxing by watching (again) some of my favorite DVD war movies (Zulu and Windtalkers). Can't wait 'til tomorrow!

My plan for the day, which is my plan for most Mondays, is to dive into last week's piled up home administration work and do a heavy investment management timeblock. Got it all off my to-do list and cleared the rest of the week for want-to-do stuff.

I started my day by starting a new blog article I am titling "Cashback Cards ARE Worth the Effort" while enjoying my first cup of coffee.* Then off to "work" at the computer the rest of the day.

8:00am to 12:00noon
Did a 4-hour time block on home administration (bills, phone calls, follow-ups and record-keeping) and cleared the decks.

12:00noon to 1:30pm
Had lunch and watched a DVD prehistory course lecture (Why Farming?)

1:30pm to 5:30pm
Caught up my stock portfolio records** and then went hunting for more stocks to buy.***

5:30pm to ...
Playtime! Dinner, movies and some Pacific War game playing.****

My plan for the day was to give myself a day off from tasks and chores and enjoy. So I did. I caught up my blog day posts for May 23 and May 24, completed and posted my latest article post "LTC: a Lesser and Necessary Evil"* and went with my wife to a nice church picnic.

Today was also the day that we ordered 16 new windows for the house and got a whole wad of credit card cashback** by charging the purchase on my Discover Card. And scored a big bagful of free gourmet coffee at Bed Bath and Beyond using leveraged cashback gift cards.***

My plan for today was to crunch through a bunch of household paperwork and to spend a good amount of time developing my TrailWalkers Club (TWC)* business idea. I made good progress.

Over my first cup of coffee, I wrote 200 words or so** on a new blog article that I am titling "LTC Insurance: A Lesser and Necessary Evil". Then breakfast and off to "work."

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- plowed through that paperwork
-- finalized my day plans for next week***
-- used "left over time" to do some housework

12:00noon to 5:30pm
-- lunch and a DVD lecture on prehistoric man (After The Ice Age)
-- developed a "Trail Note" form to document all aspects of a trail hike from trip mileage to costs to trail observations to picture records, etc. Everything on one form from which to write up TWC blog posts and document expenses for tax purposes. The form came out great.
-- updated my TWC accounting and other journal pages

5:30pm to 7:00pm
-- ran a couple of bundled errands****
-- cleaned out the back of my truck

7:00pm to ...
-- dinner and a movie (Donnie Darko)
-- and played Pacific War*****

My plan for today was to dry up the standing water in the basement of our rental-house-to-be, do a "dump run", do some errands and go home. It all took me until after 8:00pm but I got it done.

Over my early-morning cup of coffee, I wrote the first 200 words or so* on a new blog article that I am titling "Long Term Care Insurance: a Lesser and Necessary Evil." Then breakfast and off to "work."

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- checked the news on my stocks**
-- spent 2 hours in the basement mopping and wringing out wet towels until the floor was dry
-- loaded up my Dodge Dakota*** for a dump run
-- drove to the dump and emptied out the truck

12:00noon to 5:30pm
-- had a "treat" lunch at yet another Chinese buffet
-- drove around doing bundled errands****
-- including getting a smoking deal at WalMart on just the perfect camera for hiking***** (a $270 retail-value display model for $155)
-- and when back at the house loaded up the truck with another batch of boxes for storage******

5:30pm to 8:00pm
-- had a nice country backroads drive home

8:00pm to ...
-- dinner
-- and some Pacific War game playing*******

My plan for today was to drive 100 miles to our rental-house-to-be and do some work there. And to do a good hike* at a park that is on the way. The hike went great; but the work on the house took an unexpected turn.

8:00am to 12:30pm
-- got myself ready for the trip
-- drove the first 50 miles to my targeted park
-- had a nice 1.5 hour hike along a creek and up and down hilly terrain
-- treated myself to a chinese buffet lunch

12;30pm to 3:00pm
-- drove the last 50 miles
-- did an errand-bundle** stop at the town's DMV office to get our car tags renewed
-- and got out of DMV in less than a half-hour by going to that office(!)
-- then went to the rental-house-to-be and the surprises waiting there for me

3:00pm to 8:00pm
-- found a stink bug infestation (dozens of them) in the front room
-- found a lot of standing water on the basement floor from the recent super rain event
-- found the grass had grown to about 3-foot high since my last visit
-- first I took care of eradicating the stink bugs
-- then I mowed a small fenced backyard area with the gas-powered pushmower I had brought with me
-- and found that a pushmower was not going to be up to the job of mowing the meadow now grown on our one-acre property (and I would not have the stamina to do it anyway)

8:00pm until...

-- dinner and a movie... and crashed

My plan for today was to draw up some legal papers for a dangling real estate deal, clean house a little and do a "blog blitz". I did all that. But the neat surprise my wife sprung on me pushed my scheduled cost optimizing time block aside.

That is because today was also the day that my wife surprised me upon her return from a family assistance trip by showing up towing a lake boat and trailer!

Over my first cup of coffee, I wrote and posted my May 19th day "what did I do today" blog memo*. Then breakfast and off to "work."

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- first thing (of course) I did the am critter care
-- checked the news on my stocks**
-- swept the house and cleaned the kitchen
-- caught up the laundry
-- drafted two real estate deeds to correct a boundary discrepancy between 2 parcels of land we sold last year

12:00noon to 3:30pm
-- lunch and a DVD lecture on pre-prehistoric man (The Great Diaspora)
-- wrote and posted a May 20th "what did I do today" blog memo
-- played an hour of Pacific War***

3:30 to 8;30pm
-- my wife comes home from a 2-week trip towing a surprise!
-- it is a 12-foot lake boat on a trailer, with a 5-hp outboard motor, a trolling motor and anchor
-- which she got for just $300!
-- and which goes towards my way-behind-schedule $5000 spending spree****
-- so after finding a place in the yard for our new toy, we took a walk around the property to check her new plantings and then went out to dinner

8:30pm to...
-- finished editing and posted my blog article "The Chuckle Benefit of Financial Planning"
-- and played some more Pacific War!

My plan for the day changed to bookcase-building after I got a late-night phonecall the previous evening from Anthony the carpenter letting me know he could come to work today. We had to adapt and improvise some, but we had a good day and got those bookcases* built.

I did not do my usual early morning blog post writing.** Instead I spent that time getting the work area, materials and tools ready for the day's project.

8:00am to 3:00pm
My usual 8am to 12noon task time block also went by the wayside as Anthony and I remain fixed on getting the first bookcase completed.
-- from 8am to 9am I kept readying things for the carpentry to come
-- from 9am on, Anthony and I worked together to construct a floor-to-ceiling built-in bookcase measuring 28 inches wide by 12 inches deep to fit into a corner/nook of my library.
-- I modified my original books-only design to be able to use the expensive lumber panels more efficiently and so ended up with 5 shelves for books and 3 for DVDs.
-- my final cost for the built unit was $315 ($165 for materials and $155 for Anthony's labor). And that I am counting as a part of my current effort to do a $5K spending spree.***

3:00pm to 7;30pm
-- with Anthony gone, I took a DVD prehistory lecture coffee break (The Great Diaspora)
-- then filled out my new bookcase with some 120 or so DVDs, my books on Roman history, Greek history and my biographies (bookending each shelf with one of my collected horse figurines).
-- and in the process emptied out 6 of the boxes in my packrat pile****

7:30pm to ...
-- dinner and a movie (The Joyluck Club) after I had put the barnyard to bed
-- and some Pacific War gaming***** to cap off the day

My plan for today was to do the weekly bill paying, straighten out some discrepancies in my recent dividend payouts and hike a "first time" trail.* All went according to plan.

Over my first cup of coffee, I wrote another 200 words or so** on a new blog article that I am titling "The Chuckle Factor of Financial Planning". Then breakfast and off to "work."

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- first thing (of course) I did the am critter care
-- checked the news on my stocks***
-- paid the bills, checked my follow-up file and took care of pending admin "fixes"
-- reconciled the dividends discrepancy (and found I had a 140-share count error in my QRE position)

12:00noon to 5:30pm
-- lunch and a DVD lecture on pre-prehistoric man (The Origin of Homo Sapiens)
-- had a great time doing a 1.25 hour hike on a new trail (for me) at Walnut Creek Park. Saw a young fox close up. And there are more MILES and MILES of trails over there for me to do!
-- back at home, I wrote and posted a May 18 "what did I do today" blog memo
-- played Pacific War****

5:30pm to 7:00pm
-- straightened out my QRE stock tax lot positions and worked out my true cost basis for them
-- watered all those plants (again) and put the barnyard to bed
-- surprise! Tony the carpenter called and he can come tomorrow to get those built-in bookcases done!*****

7:00pm to ...
-- dinner and a movie (Hereafter)
-- and some more Pacific War!

My plan for today was to finish setting up the protocol and forms for my new investing work plan* and to also have some fun -- which I did blogging and playing my Pacific War pc strategy game.**

Over my early morning coffee, I started writing a new blog article*** that I am titling "The Chuckle Factor of Financial Planning". Then breakfast and off to "work."

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- first thing (of course) I did the am critter care
-- got nearly done with my investing paperwork revamp

12:00noon to 5:30pm
-- lunch and a DVD lecture on pre-prehistoric man (The Neanderthals)
-- wrote and posted a May 17 "what did I do today" blog memo
-- played Pacific War
-- watched a movie ("Lovely Bones") while I brought my diet control tracking forms up to date (Yes, I have those too.)

5:30pm to 7:00pm
-- finished the forms and plans for my new approach to reinvesting
-- watered all those plants (again) and put the barnyard to bed

7:00pm to ...
-- dinner, reading mystery short stories and more Pacific War playing

My plan for today was to deal with our flooded-floor basement before any mold developed, and to bring my investing old paperwork up do date and set up a new system for it. I got it all done and still had time left over for fun.

Over my early morning coffee, I did the final editing on my blog article "Should I Still Work at Investing?". Then breakfast and off to "work."

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- first thing (of course) I did the am critter care
-- it took me 2 hours, but I got that basement dry as a bone! I also set up 2 dehumidifiers as an extra help.
-- got halfway through my investing paperwork revamp

12:00noon to 5:30pm
(This is my first day on my "new" time block plan)*
-- lunch and a DVD lecture on pre-prehistoric man (The First Human Diaspora)
-- posted "Should I Still Work at Investing?" on my SavingAdvice blog
-- wrote and posted a May 16 "what did I do today" blog memo
-- played Pacific War**
-- watched a movie ("Purpose")

5:30pm to 7:00pm
-- worked some more on forms and plans for my new approach to reinvesting***
-- watered all those plants (again) and put the barnyard to bed

7:00pm to ...
-- dinner, another prehistory DVD lecture (The First Europeans), and more Pacific War playing

My plan for today was to do some errand-bundling*, draw up a new day-by-day plan for next week** and otherwise take it easy. And that is just what I did, though it included putting into place some big changes in how I allocate my time.

Today was also dividends day!. Ten of the 20-some companies in my portfolio paid their quarterly dividends this week***. So, now that the dividends have been duly credited to my investment accounts, I spent some time checking to make sure they actually came in and adding them up. The total came up to $3349. Yowsir!

Early this morning, I edited my blog article**** "Should I Still Work at Investing?" while enjoying some nice Keurig-brewed Tully's French Roast coffee. Then I "officially" started my day.

8:00am to 12:00noon
-- did the am critter care for the rabbits, chickens, geese, parrots, dogs & cats that are part of our lives
-- monitored and reviewed my stocks*****
-- and did some mundane housework

12:00noon to 4:00pm
-- had lunch
-- did those errands and added a fun library pit stop to pick up some DVDs

4:00pm to 8:00pm
-- played some Pacific War on the computer******
-- tried to do my daily plan for next week but got stuck because the way I have been allocating my time is not working right
-- watered the new plants and put "the barnyard" to bed. (The hens still have to be bodily carried one by one into the geese-and-chicken coop.)

8:00pm to...
-- after dinner, I totally revamped my daily plan structure
-- concluded I must boost task time to 6 hours a day from the 4.5 hours I have been trying to make do
-- I developed an approach to my investing work that takes away the reinvestment pressure and now makes it more like a hobby. (So it does not count as a task now, either!)
-- and then I was able to come up with a base weekly activity plan that may work.

My plan for today was to concentrate on a rethink of my approach to the work of investing (not the strategy), and to mix that up with blog writing and pc game playing. I did all that, but the heavy rain threw another (wet) iron into my fire.

While I drank my morning coffee, I completed the drafting of a blog article titled "Stock Panic Nets Me 13% Overnight" -- which I posted later in the day.

Today I did not divide my activities into time blocks. Instead I did 2 hours on, 2 hours off back and forth between my work (the investing work approach redo) and my fun (the blogging and pc game playing). Throw in the hour or so that it takes to take care of all the critters around here and that was my day.

I developed a new investing work approach that will change it from feeling like it is a part-time job* to feeling like it is a hobby. It all had to do with taking the time-urgency pressure to reinvest gains and dividends off the table -- which I have now done.

I drafted another blog article based on the introspection that led me to deciding to change my mental approach to my investing. That one, which I titled "Should I Still Work at Investing?", I will post this Friday or Saturday**.

Today was also the day that very heavy rain seeped in, wetting both the basement and the "patio room" floors.[/b] We thought we had the patio room seepage taken care of. Back to the drawing board!

My plan for today included chipping away at my storage boxes* and some home improvement decorating. But the rainy weather dissuaded me from doing all the back-and-forth from the garage that working on my stored stuff would have required. I did a bunch of house stuff instead (but not decorating), got lazy and gave myself a Pacifc War gaming** afternoon off.

I started my day with good coffee, breakfast and another 200 words*** (plus) on my next blog post "Stock Panic Nets Me 13% Overnight".

8:00am to 12:30pm
-- just a bunch of house to-do's, the critter caring and the plant watering. Ho hum...

12:30pm to ...
-- after lunch, I just blew off being "productive" the rest of the day and played Pacific War. After playing this game for over 15 years, I have found a new (very mentally challenging) "theatre army" approach to the game and I am really having fun with it.
-- around 11pm, I decided I better review my plans for the rest of the week. Did so (while watching the movie AVP), made some adjustments and felt better about the week so far.

My plan for today included selecting the windows we will have installed thanks to our $7800 roofing windfall*, the monthly doing of the household "books", and taking a hike** in a new (to me) Park. Ahh... things did not happen that way.

Yet again, I kicked off my day with good coffee and blog post writing. I set aside the post I originally titled "Enough Should Be Enough" and started drafting*** "Stock Panic Nets Me 13% Overnight" because I am too much in touch right now with just how stupid "professional" investors can be and I have to write about it.

8:00am to 12:30pm
-- did the daily am 45 minute critter care
-- watered wife's dozens of new plantings
-- worked on a real estate "transaction issue"
-- searched for those windows (still needs more work)
-- did some cleaning and fixed a modem problem
-- but no time to do "the books"

12:30pm to 2:30pm
-- lunch while playing some Pacific War****
-- kept catching up my Pacific War fantasy journal
while watching Elizabeth R.

2:30pm to 7:00pm
-- headed out for my hike but got rained out on the way to the park. Aborted.
-- errand-bundled***** a couple of spots on the way back home
-- did some brainstorming on my way-behind-schedule $5000 spending spree******
-- caught up my Pacific War fantasy journal (now at
December 18, 1941).

7pm to ...
-- dinner and a movie (Kingdom of Heaven)
-- more Pacific War gaming

My plan for today included paying bills and other "mandatory" paperwork, cleaning the kitchen (ugh), a trailmarking hike*, a library visit, and some more Pacific War gaming fun**. Oh, and posting a new blog article titled "Optimizing My Use Of Time".

Today was also the day that I scored a 12.5% OVERNIGHT stock profit thanks to stock market idiocy. I will be posting a short article with all the details tomorrow.

Once again, I kicked off my day with good coffee and blog post writing. I continued writing a post I originally titled "Enough Should Be Enough." But I have had an epiphany about my stock portfolio management being "work" while writing today, so I may have to reslant the beginning and retitle.

8am to 12:30pm
-- did the am critter care
-- monitored my stocks***
-- cleaned the kitchen
-- paid the bills
-- made the phone calls, did the follow-ups...
-- watered the wife's plants

12:30pm to 2:30pm
-- lunch
-- mental fun (people must think I'm nuts) planning out the organization of 5 separate theatre-based armies in my Pacific War pc game

2:30pm to 7:00pm
-- went on my hike (and was challenged on the trail by an I-am-standing-my-ground copperhead snake). Ran out of paint so I only did 3 trail marks.
-- did a library stop for more DVDs and some browsing
-- polished up and posted my blog article on "Optimizing The Use of My Time"

7:00pm to ...
-- dinner and a movie. I watched Carlito's Way: Rise To Power. Unexpectedly good.