Cold and windy

The cold front arrived along with the wind. It stayed windy all day. It was 39 degrees when we got up and got into mid 60's for the high. It felt much cooler with the wind.

Went to Verizon and got a new cell phone for Al. I wanted him to have one with Bluetooth capability for the next time he goes to Tampa. It is safer driving. I will get one later, after I check his out and see if I like it.

We then went to the little Mexican restaurant in town that we just discovered. As long as we were out...

We came home and I needed to start laundry as my 5 days of being off are ending today and it's back to State Farm tomorrow. I don't know why I always wait until the last day to get in gear but I do. Anyway, the dryer started smelling like it was burning. We decided to change out the venting. We had the thin foil like venting which I remembered was dangerous and could start a fire. We went to Stones hardware in town rather than having to go all the way to Thomasville and hit Lowes. Fortunately Stones had what we needed. We got it all back together, tested the dryer and still smelled smoke. I happened to notice behing the dryer by the cord was a red/orange color and I saw smoke. Al took the cover off and noticed the cord was burnt and melted where it attaches to the dryer. Lesson learned...check the cord connection, clean the vents and underneath the dryer drum on a regular basis. I don't know what caused this problem but we were very close to having a major fire. It may have been fixable but we weren't comfortable with that so tomorrow it's off to buy a new dryer. When Al replaced the venting, we looked inside the old stuff and noticed a thick lining all the way around of built up lint. I rarely use fabric softener, which I heard can cause that, but it was there just the same.

Our friend came to visit again. (The neighbors German Sheppard). He is a very nice dog and we have gotten attached to him, despite our best efforts. We come inside and he sits out side and stares inside waiting for us to come back out. Yesterday, he took off with some paint rollers and shoes Al had on the back porch. I went out and explained nicely to him that he was not supposed to do that. So far, so good. He helped me hang laundry out, helped Al change kitty pans and just kept us company. He finally went home. We have been calling him Max. First rule..don't name them. Second rule, don't feed them. (we haven't)