I started my day at 5:45ish this morning. Susie was up to use the bathroom, and I discovered I had a headache, so I got up to get a drink of water. I decided to just start my day like normal, about 6ish. I have been sleeping in late for a few days. It felt good to have an early start.
I also have to admit that having my personal laptop back made it feel like a more normal morning. I could do my email and read the news as usual. The same way I have been doing this for more than a decade. The current Mac is actually the continuation of two other previous Macs–I just restore to the next new physical system. I try not to be a creature of habit as that can lead to disappointments, but it is nice to be back to my familiar screens and set-up.
To that end, I received a My Passport brand external hard drive from Amazon today that I am now using as a backup device via Time Machine. I have to plug it in to use it, but it is much faster than the WiFi solution I previously used and has 5TB to handle updates. It took two hours to get caught up on back-ups, not the WiFi all night update. I have moved to newer technology! I am current on back-ups (again) and can work safely again.
I also have a perfect copy of the previous files on a Lacie hard drive–these are shock-proof and to some degree waterproof hard drives. I restored the Mac files to this hard drive first to ensure I had a safe collection of my files before trying to get the laptop to work again. I will stick this spare in a safe location. This is how I ensure I do not lose files anything over time. I even have a copy of an old Windows system on a shelf on another USB drive–this was the predecessor computer to my Mac and for a few years lived a virtual Windows instance on a Mac Mini. It has some of my original Dungeons and Dragons writing on it.
Returning to events of this morning, I spent the morning making a Carrot Cake for Susie’s next 29th birthday on Friday. I made it from scratch using a recipe from King Arthur’s Flour. Corwin and I shredded carrots and I got bowls and pans ready to make a layer cake. I then executed the cake.
One of the cakes fell (the center collapsed). The center was not fully cooked. I put it back in the oven and decided to ignore that. It is a carrot cake, extra moist! If it was a regular cake, we would be looking at a do-over.
I let the cakes cool. I watched the series on Amazon Prime, Truth Seekers until Susie gets going. It is a mix of horror and SciFi with the goofiness I adore and try to emulate in my own writing. Truth Seekers is about a cable guy with the hobby of investigating the unknown. Not only has he found it, but it has also noticed him. In the story, he does a YouTube channel and is tied into a community of fellow wackos. Just fun and scary too.
Susie did her exercises and took her special Thursday only medications. We stayed in all day as there is a lot of virus cases out there. No time for an outing!
I called Senator Wyden’s office and asked them to try to help stop the election shenanigans in Michigan. I spoke to a nice person at the Portland office for the Senator and told them to look at the 1876 Election for what is happening; Chef Justice Rehnquist wrote a book about it that, if you can get through the dry start, is quite amusing and explains what happens when votes are not certified. Oregon was unable to certify its votes in 1876, and Michigan could go that way. The Supreme Court selected the President for 1876!
The nice gal said she would tell the Senator that I called and what the subject was and look up the book. I do not think Senator Wyden can do anything, but he has at least one person originally from Michigan and now living in Oregon, me, called and said essentially, “ugh.”
Once the cakes are cool, I make the frosting and use a cake knife to cut the cake flat on the bottom. This of course allows us to sample the cake. It is a bit more intense than spice cakes I have made from a mix. The roasted walnuts are marvelous. The frosting is not as easy to make as I hoped. The powdered sugar had lumps (!?); I have to add some cream to the mix and beat it until my arm is tired. The frosting is a bit thin but a mix of butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, cream, and vanilla tastes fresh with a hit of tang. I also do not like a lot of frosting. I tribble some leftover frosting on the cake bits I cut off. Excellent!
The cake is done and sprinkled with almond slices. It does not fit in the frig, but it is cold tonight, so it is on the deck in a Tupperware cake case.
I had a cleaning appointment with the dentist today. Masks and care took every step. No change, so we will just return in six months.
Susie has her Physical Therapy appointment on Friday. I read and napped a bit—Susie even rode her bike for the first time after the stroke.
First easy day in weeks. Dinner was Beefaroni for Susie from a can and a sandwich for me.
Deaths from the virus in the USA today rocketed to more than a dismal two-thousand sixty. This includes twenty deaths in Oregon and is the worst day for Oregon so far in 2020. New reports are that the hospitals are filling-up in Oregon. The next three months will be hard.
I have done this song before, but it fits today’s news: A Little Mercy Now.
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