Story 8Sept2022

The morning started with me waking to my alarm at 6:15 AM, as usual. Thursday is a strange day as there is an all-day party at Nike WHQ, Just Do It (JDI) Day. I was rushed and managed to get to the Nike campus in Beaverton before 8 AM. I parked in the distant parking lot, Jay Street Lot 2, so I could walk out and visit Susie. The parking garages sometimes have lots of slow traffic.

I met some friends and saw my boss, Brad, from a distance. They were signed up to run or walk to celebrate Nike’s 50^th. Yes, that is how you have a party at a sports company. Still recovering from chemotherapy, I was clapping and cheering on the walkers and runners.

I then went into the new buildings; I had not been inside. I toured each lobby and was happy when my badge let me inside. After that, I had breakfast at one of the new Cafes.

I saw a lot of older computer folks, and many folks said hi to me whose names I had forgotten. It has been twenty-five years at Nike, and I do not remember all the names. But, it did feel nice to be together on campus and see each other.

Aside: I am still working on my ticket with Grammarly. They asked me to use their editor; it was not that good. I am now writing in MS Word with their legacy plug-in. It, too, will go away soon. I am strongly urging them to rethink this. Sadly, the MS Word version is missing some of the issues found with the WordPress editor add-in. I am now editing twice.

I spent the morning walking and talking and enjoying the cool day. Soon my feet and back proved once again that I was brittle, and it was time to leave. So I headed to Susie’s area, walking another mile to Air Volvo.

I drove 26 to 217 and then stopped by Jimmy John’s to get a sandwich, and then headed back to Susie at hummingbird house. I made a mistake and discovered the roads were a mess of construction with a multi-mile backlog of cars. Oh my! No place to go. I drove back to Beaverton Central and got back on 217, and retraced my route. It is the only means to get there!

Susie was happy to see me, and I was tired and fading. We called Susie’s mother, Leta, on my iPhone using FaceTime so they could see each other. They had a friendly chat. Next, Susie wanted to head out to Metzger Park. I promised only a short time as I was tired from walking.

Susie enjoyed the park, which was busy, as usual, with dogs and little kids enjoying the cool September afternoon. The weather is changing to cool temperatures (with only Saturday being hot). We did not see any large butterflies today. Susie was soon cold, and we headed back a bit early.

I left with a kiss and headed home. I returned to the Volvo Cave without issue. I soon reviewed my emails, discovered I missed a friend from Europe at JDI and checked for any crises of the moment. I then rested for a bit as my back and feet were uncomfortable.

I ordered Italian Food from Grub Hub as I was tired. I re-watched the Rings of Power episode 2 to see if I would like it better. It was a bit better. So I am hopeful for the series now.

We had Theology Pub tonight at 7 PM, local time, using Zoom. The subject was Fear, and we talked about how Religion uses fear to push terrifying agendas. We discussed finding the means to find the faith to remove or reduce the fear. We also are concerned about the people who are alone and thus have no support groups to help them with fear. We were told to look for people pushing a cart at a store looking sad or sort of lost. They are there to be with people and are alone and scared. It was a frank discussion.

Next, I returned to my fiction story for the Naval Institute contest due on 15Sept and finished the first draft. It is slightly over 3,000 words. I can cut, so I feel good about it and make the deadline.

I then fought with Grammarly some more and ended up in MS Word writing tonight.

I was reading a lot today about the Queen’s passing. Sad to see her go.

Thanks for reading.