A break in the action

It looks like we might have a short break in all the rain today.  Yesterday was the worst!   Traffic was slowed almost to a standstill during the evening commute hours due to flooded freeways.  I-80, which probably has 5 or 6 lanes in each direction, was flooded because the pumps that normally clear the water off the roadway were jammed up with so much water and debris.

Vehicles were limited to a single lane, and some trucks and high profile vehicles tried the second lane from the middle, but many cars stalled out, especially when they tried to get off on an exit.  I can't imagine the panic I would experience in a situation like this.

I took these photos off the TV so I know they aren't the best, (click on a photo to enlarge it), but if you can imagine many lanes of freeway that would normally be bumper to bumper traffic, you can see how traffic everywhere was affected.  I emailed Jeannie, trying to warn her but she didn't read it as she left work early to go to Autumn's soccer game.  She got stuck in terrible traffic on a major street that crosses over I-80, and missed the soccer game entirely.  It took her several hours to get home.

This morning I washed and refilled my hummingbird feeder.  Last time I did that I lost the metal hook that holds it, so I devised a temporary fix using a big fat red rubber band.  The windy conditions have made the feeder swing back and forth and I guess the rubber band weakened and frayed.  I still couldn't find the hook so I filled and rehung the feeder using the rubber band and of course it didn't take 15 minutes to snap, sending the feeder into the rocks and gravel on the side of the porch.  I will get a new one this morning as I've had a lot of birds using it lately.  (Note:  I couldn't find one at Target, and will have to go to Home Depot one of these days.)

I would love to find a suitable radio, you know, the AM/FM kind, preferably with dials, not digital.  Sounds sort of like a transistor radio, doesn't it.  (I'd love to find one of those, assuming they still work.)  About a year or so ago I bought a replica of the old Crosley radio, and it would have been perfect if I could have gotten a signal.  It seems you have to wire up something to be able to tune into a station, and I'm past the stage where I am willing to figure it out.  It seems that anything you buy in the electronics department does multiple things - and I don't want a multi-purpose device, other than my computer.    I have a TV, computer, phone, and I just want a radio although it seems like I'll never be able to find one.  (Note:  I also don't want to pay to listen to a radio, which leaves out satellite radio as a choice.)

I have a final gripe for today, and that is about the emails in my inbox trying to sell me stuff.  These are from companies  and charities I sometimes do business with, but I sure am tired of deleting all those "shop online" emails - sometimes more than 1 or 2 a day from the same advertiser.    Consumerism is killing our society, our nation, and our way of life!