Today 1Jan2023: New Year 2023

I managed to sleep despite the explosions, but I was not asleep until 2AM again.

Because I could not sleep, I put the stamps I bought in 2022 and were delivered so far into my albums. I also located a Christmas present that was in the wrong place. So I placed the new stamps and checked that they matched the description. It was relaxing to follow old habits.

I went to bed again and managed to sleep this time.

I woke at about 7ish, got up, and logged on to Wageworks. I put in the new bill for Susie for reimbursement using 2023 money collected before taxed through my employer, the shoe company. While most folks spent the first moments of 2023 on something less bureaucratic, likely nursing the partying impacts from the night before, I was getting my first expenses covered according to the planning I did to make 2023 more tax efficient. Thus I would have more money to pay the medical bills. I was excited to execute the plans.

Next, I started writing the blog. I wrote a long blog and was done just before the church meeting. I got a shower, shaved, dressed, and was ready for the New Year Zoom-only worship service. Unfortunately, the process faltered, and I never connected.

I next received a text and call from Mariah–lunch in Beaverton was solicited. We agreed to meet at the Golden Valley Brewery, but it was not open today–we adjusted to BJ’s Brewhouse.

We split a full rack of ribs and had a beer to celebrate 2023. Our waiter was Nick, and he was a bit creepy and showed a lack of skill. Katie, another waiter I know at BJ’s, stopped by and was happy to share New Year’s wishes. The food was good, and Mariah had a good talk.

I headed to Susie’s place, the hummingbird house. There was no traffic with me using 26 to 217, but I did notice many of Beaverton’s Finest were everywhere. I did not touch my phone, watched my speed, and was careful not to have a hot yellow at stoplights.

When I arrived, Susie was delighted to see me. We moved to the social activity room, and I set up the screen for a movie. We watched the movie John Wick 3 with Susie nodding off for a few gunfights. We paused the movie called Leta, Susie’s mother, and caught up with her. Susie was up late with Jennifer getting up for the local New Year, so she was tired. I headed out as Susie was getting a late lunch/snack. Susie gave me a 2023 kiss, and I headed home.

I started on the year-end paperwork yesterday and continued. I closed out the paperwork for November, and I am waiting for the bank transactions to pass into Quicken so I can close the year. I already have end-of-year statements for my investments. I am using physical copies and notebooks as I plan to have a CPA and may face IRS audits–so everything is getting printed out, punched, and put in a notebook arranged by month.

Today I made a year-end copy of my files from my Mac unto my new (and expensive) drive. I discovered that the software library (which includes the backups for Quicken) is not being copied (!?). I did a manual copy of the Quicken file.

I made a salad for dinner. I have plenty of ham to add to the salad. I also have olives, pickled beets, croutons, and shredded cheese. It was close to a chef’s salad. I need to hard-boil some eggs for the next one. After the ribs and beer, a light dinner seemed perfect. I did have a slice of the pumpkin pie I made for Christmas–almost gone.

Next, I worked on my model of a monstrous scorpion for Dungeons and Dragons. I got the epoxy modeling clay and finished sculpting the stinger. I let the clay harden, then prime it in black, over-spray in lighter colors, and then finish with some ink to make it more 3D. I have reworked a plastic lobster you see on the walls of restaurants into a giant scorpion.

I then decided to write the blog as I had my cold symptoms back and could not rest. I am not sure what caused my distress, but I wonder if I am allergic to some tea flavors. I used the same tea when I was ill last time. Hmm.

Thanks for reading. Sorry if it seems just a list of items, but that was mostly what today was. Just stuff. Welcome to 2023!