Sunday 3-15-26 New Pinball Challenge, Waxing the Minnie & Working Out

 

Have a great day

We had hot windy day with sunshine. The morning temperature was 68 degrees and the high was 94 degrees. It suppose to be a lot cooler tomorrow. 

We started the day out by finishing waxing the Minnie. Today Larry waxed the driver side of the Minnie, overhead and cab. It took us another three hours to complete. I didn't do too much. Larry had to use the ladder so I held it for him. Then he moved onto the overhead. He had to get out his bigger ladder to reach it. He also had to put a foot on the hood of the Minnie to wax the overhead. I spotted for him and held the ladder. While we were waxing the Minnie our neighbor behind us Chris came by with his dog Diamond. He stopped and visited for a little bit. I think the wind was worse today then yesterday. When we finished waxing the Minnie we wiped down the hub caps. Now it's all clean and shiny. Thank, you Larry.

The driver side of the Minnie

Larry waxing the bottom half of the southside

Larry waxing the overhead

After finishing waxing the Minnie we put things away. Then we relaxed indoors.

Today is the beginning of a new week so I got a new weekly pinball challenge, which is Star Trek The Next Generation. We already have the game so Larry changed the number of balls from 5 to 3. Before last week's challenge of Elvira and the Party Monsters ended I played it for about a half hour. I wasn't successful in getting a new high score but I got close. I ended up coming in 80th out of 107 participants. I played Star Trek and the Next Generation a few times once the challenge started. My first high score of the challenge is 207,002,810, which put me in 18th place out of 23 participants. 

Elvira and the Party Monsters

Star Trek The Next Generation

I played five other pinball games. I played three games on the mini cabinet, which were Fish Tales, No Fear and Pirates of the Caribbean. While playing Pirates of the Caribbean I became high score #2. I played two games on the big cabinet, which were Time Lord and Willow. I didn't get on the board in either games but had fun.

Fish Tales (Mini)

No Fear (Mini)

Pirates of the Caribbean (Mini)

Time Lord (Big)

Willow (Big)

I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong before going to bed. The event was Event: Solitaire World Tour of 30 games. I only did 29 of the 30 games because I couldn't solve the Free Cell Expert game. I played the games for 3 hours, 22 minutes and 17 seconds, which put me in 14th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

I worked out with the Wii Fit for 30 minutes using the Wii Fit Program of 12 different exercises for 26 minutes and I played the Table Tilt Plus from the Training Plus section for 4 minutes. The 12 exercises I did using the Wii Fit Program were Big Top Juggler (Train Plus), Jack Knife (Strength Training), Lotus Focus (Balance Games), Advance Step (Aerobic), Sun Salutation (Yoga), Lunge (Strength Training), Perfect 10 (Training Plus), Tricep Extension (Strength Training), Bird's Eye-Bird's Eye (Training Plus), Island Cycling (Training Plus), Rowing Swats (Strength Training and Triangle (Yoga). I had a great workout.

Wii Fit Workout

In the evening we watched two documentaries on Hoopla from PBS American Experience. They were The Code Breaker and A Midwife's Tale. The Code Breaker was about Elizabeth Smith Freeman, who was America's first female cryptanalyst. She broke up a Nazi spy ring in South America, brought down Al Capone and laid the foundation for the National Security Agency (NSA). She was a fascinating woman and it was a good documentary. A Midwife's Tale was about a midwife (Martha Ballard) in the 1700's. She left a diary about her daily life. She lived a very hard life. It was interesting but quite dated and more like something you would watch in a museum. 

After Larry went to bed I watched a movie on Hoopla called Some Like It Hot. It's an old movie starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon. It was a cute 1959 movie about two musicians, who dressed up like women to escape the mob. It was funny and I liked it. I ended up doing 3,000 steps. I didn't get a chance to work on my puzzle.    

  

 

Saturday 3-14-26 Waxing The Minnie, Puzzle, Workout & More

 

Hold on tight

We had a windy day with sunshine. The morning temperature was a chilly 55 degrees and the high was 84 degrees. The wind was out of the south and at times it was strong.

We started the day out by waxing the Minnie. We only did half of it, the passenger side and the back. It took us three hours (10:15 am to 1:15 pm). . The passenger side was hard because of all the doors, awning and uprights and door. The back was hard because of the ladder. Larry had to wax the area between the ladder and Minnie by hand because the buffer couldn't reach the whole area. Larry did most of the work I kept him company and helped when needed. When he was on the ladder I held it. The wind kept it comfortable to work in.

Waxing the southside of the Minnie

Waxing the bottom section of the Minnie

Waxing the back of the Minnie

Getting ready to wipe the wax under the ladder

Wipe off the extra wax

In the afternoon we relaxed. 

Larry got caught up with his internet reading I worked out. I worked out using the Wii Fit for 31 minutes and 35 minutes with Synth Riders. 

While working out with the Wii Fit I used five Balance Games, two Aerobics and two Training Plus. The Balance Games were for 11 minutes, which were Soccer Heading for one minutes, Ski Jump for two minutes, Tightrope Walk for three minutes, Balance Bubble for three minutes and Penguin Slide for two minutes. The Aerobics were for 12 minutes, which were Super Hula Hoop for four minutes and Boxing for eight minutes. The Training Plus were for eight minutes, which were Obstacle Course for four minutes and Perfect 10 for four minutes.

Aerobics programs to choose from

The Balance Games to choose from

Train Plus games to choose from

While working with the Synth Riders I used four games two times for 35 minutes. The songs were Dust to Dust, Enemy, Into The Void and Phoenix. While working out with Enemy I earned two outstanding scores, Phoenix I earned one outstanding score and Into The Void I earned one outstanding score. 

Dust to Dust

Enemy

Into the Void

Phoenix

 

I did the Daily Challenges before going to bed. The event was Event: Easy Street Mini of 5 games. It took me 10 minutes and 35 seconds, which put me in 16th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

I played eight games of pinball. I played four games on the mini, which were Dead Pool, Mission Impossible, Playboy and Pirates of the Caribbean. While playing Dead Pool I became high score #4. I played four games on the big cabinet, which were Elvira and the Party Monsters, Magic Pinball, Superman and the Justice League and Transformers. While playing Elvira and the Party Monsters I got a new high score and became high score #3. While playing Superman and the Justice League I became high score #1. I had a good day of playing pinball.

Dead Pool (Mini)

Mission Impossible (Mini)

Pirates of the Caribbean (Mini)

Playboy (Mini)

Elvira and the Party Monsters (Big)

Magic Pinball (Big)

Superman and the Justice League (Big)

Transformers (Big)

In the evening we watched a movie on Hoopla called Ender's Game. It was a science fiction movie, that took place in the future where kids were programmed to kill. It was an ok movie and the ending left it open for a follow up movie. After Larry went to bed I watched the second and third Jason Bourne movies from our movies collection, which were The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimation. I ended up doing 3,500 steps.  

I worked on my puzzle while watching television. 

  

Friday 3-13-26 Friday the 13th, Minnie Project, Dancing & More

 

Happy Friday the 13th

I hope everyone had a great Friday even though it was the 13th. We had a great day with sunshine and wind. The morning temperature was 44 degrees and the high was 80 degrees.

We started the day off by going to Aldi to do some grocery shopping for our Spring Trip. Aldi is a great place to go grocery shopping because they are constantly stocking the shelves. If you ask for help they stop stocking and help you. When the cashier is finished checking everyone out they go and help stock and keep busy. When they see people going to check out they stop what they're doing and check you out. They have items that other grocery stores don't have. We always have a great experience when we shop there. 

Aldi is unique because you have to put a quarter in a slot to unlock a grocery cart. Today when we were leaving a lady needed a cart so we just gave her the cart we had. She offered to give us a quarter but we said it wasn't necessary. People have done the same to us on different occasions. 

We have had some rain and it has been warm so the bluebonnets are coming up already. The last few years the bluebonnets have been coming up earlier then normal. We usually don't see any until we come back from our spring trip or we don't see them at all because they come up during the trip. Today when we were going to Aldi we saw a lot of beautiful bluebonnets on the side of the road. I took a picture of them they were beautiful and thick.

Bluebonnets in a field

When we got home we put the groceries away and had lunch.

After lunch we went outside to wash the Minnie. Larry got the buckets he needed along with brushes, and sponges. He started by climbing the ladder to get on the roof of the Minnie. I went outside and watched him to make sure he didn't fall. After doing the roof he washed the rest of the Minnie. He started on the back, moved onto the southside, then the overhead and cab and finished on the northside. I helped him wash the Minnie. The last thing he washed were the hub cabs and tires. It took us three hours to wash the Minnie and it looks great. Hopefully we'll wax it tomorrow if the weather permits.

Larry washing the southside of the Minnie

Larry washing the roof of the Minnie

After washing the Minnie we went inside the house and relaxed. Larry worked on a music program. 

I worked out with the Wii Fit for 35 minutes. I did 11 minutes with the Balance Games, which were Ski Slalom for 2 minutes, Ski Jump for 3 minutes, Table Tilt for 4 minutes and Balance Bubble for 2 minutes. I did 8 minutes with the Aerobics Boxing. I did 7 minutes with the Strength Training, which were 2 minutes Single-Leg Extension (10 reps), 3 minutes Torso Twist (6 reps), 1 minutes Single-Leg Twist (10 reps) and 1 minutes Sideways Leg Lift (10 reps). I did 8 minutes with the Yoga, which were 2 minutes Warrior, 2 minutes Sun Salutation, 2 minutes Standing Knee and 2 minutes Palm Tree. I did 1 minute with Perfect 10 on Training Plus. I had a good workout.  

Aerobics

Balance Games

Strength Training

Yoga

Perfect 10

I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong before going to bed. The event was Event: Two Game Tango Mini of 10 games (5 Free Cell and 5 Tri Peaks). It took me 1 hour, 10 minutes and 21 seconds, which put me in 14th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

I played seven games of pinball. I played three on the mini cabinet, which were Medieval Madness, Nightmare Before Christmas and The Lord of the Rings. While playing Nightmare Before Christmas I became high score #4. I played four games on the big cabinet, which were Elvira and the Party Monsters, Mustang, Stars Wars Trilogy and The Godfather. While playing Mustang I became the Grand Champion. I played pinball every well.

Medieval Madness (Mini)

Nightmare Before Christmas (Mini)

The Lord of the Rings (Mini)

Elvira and the Party Monsters (Big)

Mustang (Big)

Star Wars Trilogy (Big)

The Godfather (Big)

In the evening I attended Ett McAtee's Weekly A2 dance at 6:30 for an hour. She called five tips to eight dancers. She did a little cueing by saying what formation and if you were looking at head walls or side walls. In between the tips we visited with each other. The dancers were from the United States, Canada and Australia. We had a small group but it was fun dancing with friends.

After the dance we watched a documentary on Kanopy called Loving Highsmith. It was about Patricia Highsmith, who was a famous writer, the movie was based on her dairies and notebooks and intimate lovers. It was a good documentary. When Larry went to bed I watched The Bourne Identity from our movies collection. I ended up doing 5,500 steps. 

While watching television I worked on my jigsaw puzzle. 

   

     

Thursday 3-12-26 Trip Preparation Begins, Workout & Games

 

Sunny Day

We had a gorgeous day with sunshine. We had a very comfortable day, the morning temperature was a brisk 42 degrees and the high temperature was 65 degrees.

While waiting for it to warm up I played games. I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong before going to bed. The event was Event: World Tour of 10 games. It took me 35 minutes and 8 seconds, which put me in 20th place in my group. I played Angry Birds Friends and Angry Birds 2.

We started our Spring Trip preparation after lunch. Yesterday, Larry backed the Minnie onto blocks on the passenger side to get under it to replace the shocks. He also sprayed a penetrating lubricant on the shocks bolts to make them easier to get off. Today, he got his wrenches and his his creeper out to use to crawl under the Minnie. He started the project on the left side because it would be easier to do and tell him how to do the project. He ended up going in and out of his work room multiple times to get other tools. He has air bags on the Minnie to stabilize it while driving. The bags made it a little more challenging because the shocks are behind them. He removed and replaced the left side and then he moved to the right side. When he moved over there he had to jack the Minnie up a little higher. So I went outside and sat in a chair just for safety reasons you never can tell what will happen. While sitting outside I did a few Sudoku puzzles It took him a few hours to do the job. We put the tools away and got the Minnie off the blocks. We stacked the blocks and put them on the table in the garage.

The Minnie

Replacing the shocks in the back

Sudoku puzzles

Afterwards Larry backed The Minnie on the side of the house where our dump station is to fill the Minnie with water. He filled the water tank and the hot water heater. Once the Minnie was filled with water he returned it to the driveway. Tomorrow, we'll started washing the Minnie.

When we were finished with the Minnie projects I worked out on the Wii Fit for a half hour. I worked out ten minutes with two Aerobics exercises, which were Boxing for eight minutes and Basic Run for two minutes. I worked out ten minutes with five Strength Training exercises, which were Single-Leg Extension (10 reps per leg) for two minutes, Torso Twists (6 reps) for three minutes, Single-Leg Twists (10 reps) for one minute, Sideways Leg Twist (10 reps) for one minute and Balance Bridge (10 reps) for three minutes. I worked out with five exercises with Yoga, which were Half Moon for two minutes, Warrior for two minutes, Standing Knee for two minutes, Chair for two minutes and Downward-Facing Dog for two minutes. I had a super workout.

Aerobics Exercises

Strength Training Exercises

Yoga Exercises

I played eight pinball games. I played four games on the mini cabinet, which were 60th Anniversary, Cirqus Voltaire, No Good Goffers! and The Goonies. I played four games on the big cabinet, which were Attack From Mars, Elvira and the Party Monsters, Tales of the Arabian Nights and World Joker Poker Tour. While playing Elvira and the Party Monsters I got a new high score for the challenge, which put me in 59th out of 70 participants. I didn't get on the board on the mini cabinet or big cabinet but had a good day of playing pinball.

60th Anniversary James Bond (Mini)

Cirqus Voltaire (Mini)

No Good Goffers! (Mini)

The Goonies (Mini)

Attack From Mars (big)

Elvira and the Party Monsters (Big)

Tales of the Arabian Nights (Big)

World Joker Poker Tour (Big)

In the evening we watched a movie on Kanopy called Regarding Susan Sontag. It was a biography documentary about Susan Sontag's life. She was a very interesting and brilliant person. She was an important icon politically, literary and feminist in her generation. It was a good movie. When Larry went to bed I watched the two Lara Croft movies starring Angelina Jolie from our movies collection. The movies were Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Lara Croft: The Cradle of Life. I ended up doing 3,000 steps.

I worked on my puzzle in between doing this and that.

Jigsaw puzzle so far