I rose before 8 and ran my Quicken updates. It polls all my active accounts and downloads transactions. It makes an attempt to assign the transaction to a category (think of a GL account using names, not numbers). I then review them and correct the transactions; I then re-review all transactions at month-end and make corrections. There, in US Bank, was my severance payment of 48 weeks pay with taxes withheld using my W-4 settings. Excellent. I had set my W-4, after Susie’s passing, to “Single” with few deductions as Trump’s changes to SALT (State And Local Taxes) meant I would be back to the standard deduction. Trump’s tax cuts for corporations were paid for by putting limits on SALT deductions, costing folks like me, with house interest and medium to high local taxes, to lose the equivalent of $2,000 and more some years of Federal refund every year when filing with the standard deduction.
Aside: For my Republican friends who dismissed my tax information as political, SALT changes were made in a process called reconciliation that required no increase in the deficit. Thus, the SALT changes had to be made to pay for the corporate tax rate. This process, reconciliation, was used by Trump and his congressional allies as there were not 60 votes in the Senate to allow for a deficient increasing tax cut. As a taxpayer in a high-tax state, I was impacted, and I regret the loss, but I do give Trump credit for completing these campaign promises. Thus, I set my W-4 to assume the worst, and so far, there has been no repeal, and I will likely pay the worst case. Golf clap to Trump and his allies.
I wrote the blog slowly, read the news, and checked in on Mom Wild, who is in the hospital (I will keep her status private) in Lansing, Michigan. Linda and I chatted by text and later on the phone. We decided that I would remain here in Oregon and continue my recovery. Linda is rightfully worried that the travel would be too much for me; I am still only up to 5,000 steps (which is less than the usual for a flight and airport walking). I spent the day going slow and using Air Volvo (with a check engine light) for short trips.
Charlotte called, and I am tapped to cook hot dogs for the church this weekend. She were wondering about that (Charlotte was calling the wrong number and finally reached me on Thursday). I cannot move my gas grill (I have balance issues and limits to what I can lift). Charlotte will have her husband and someone else come and get it. They will deliver it to the church and return afterward. I agreed, but I was not sure I would be at the house when they came.
After the call, I washed the grill, disconnected the gas, and cleared a path for folks to carry it out. I did the cleaning in my PJs, dressed, moved stuff, and then tossed an old hose. I bought all the new hoses in the spring but did not have to use them until the summer.
I finished the blog around 11 with all of these interruptions at 1,200+ words—more than I was expecting. However, Thursday (I was writing the blog in the morning again and getting to bed earlier) was more chaotic than I remembered when I started the blog (thinking I would be lucky to make 500). I begin to remember as I write. If I take my time, I discover memories of events of the previous day I missed and add them to the blog, going back to place them in the proper order. I try to make the story tell a continuous and well-organized tale, but often, it is a jumble in my memory, like a poorly edited documentary with parts missing. I next fix wooden and incorrect wording. Grammarly is good at this and then rewrites my sentences to mean something completely different. F**king annoying and hard to spot (for example, it wants to replace in this sentence “F**king” with “It is,” which is definitely not the emotion I want). I make a strong effort to remove Dryer’s forbidden words, which, sadly, the AI in Grammarly likes to use.
I headed out to Reedville Creek Park and walked my loop for 4,000+ steps. It was harder than the day before, and I struggled to finish the fourth go-around. As I was later in the day, I did not recognize anyone, and there was a mother and daughter practicing softball, with the daughter making some good hits. The park has tennis courts, a baseball diamond, and a large grass field for soccer and setting up other games. There is a cement curvy and wavy skateboarding area, too. A most excellent park. Sadly, I have not seen the county or city adding these parks to new areas. We are just building more and more houses with tiny lawns and miniature parks in drainage areas. Not enough.
After walking, I head to La Provence Boulangerie & Patisserie at Orenco Station. This was once a favorite, and I would take Susie or bring her back French Onion Soup if she wanted to sleep in. I would have a glass of wine and have some wonderful French-style breakfast or go for the most decadent sandwich, a Monte Cristo. It was no longer breakfast time, so I ordered a gin and tonic (it is my summer drink since the janitors of the Kronheim Companies told me it is the only proper drink in the hot Maryland summers back in the late 1990s).
I ordered a Monte Cristo from the bartender, Marko. He later brought me a box for a quarter of the wonderfully made sandwich, which I will keep for lunch on Saturday. I am sitting at the bar (most folks are outside) and watching a Thor movie while I eat (without sound).
I finished most of my sandwich, and Marko got me extra jam to take home. Yes, you put jam on the sandwich—if you are in, you need to go all the way! I stopped by after paying to get a croissant to take home and a cheese and berry Danish (breakfast for two days). This bakery is unmatched in the Beaverton Area. I next do some catch-up grocery shopping at the New Seasons. I get some sausage, freshly made, and non-cured bacon. I pick up bananas and a few other items.
I get this all home with Air Volvo still holding together (the engine light issue is OK to drive for a while). I put away the stuff and read. I nap. While I am asleep, the grill disappears, and my trash contains are moved back for me. I assume my grill is at the church now.
As I wrote, I woke up and discovered the grill was gone. I decided to make jambalaya from a box mix with bacon and two types of sausage I acquired at New Seasons. I also made a spicy rice and meat-only version with onion, pepper, and celery as the base (the Trinty) and garlic (the Pope). I bought the movie Twister on Apple for $4.99. I used 1/2 of the meats from New Season and cooked it all until shiny and good. I add the box mix with water and cook that on a simmer for 25 minutes.
I can taste the mix, and it is very hot and spicy. This is new, as the thrush infection from the effects of the surgery had robbed me of my taste. It is coming back (or the food is so spicy it can’t be ignored). I am grateful for dinner and for tasting it. I watch the rest of the movie. It seems dated and artificial–the love angle is not that interesting; the last time I saw it, I was flying in 1996 from Maryland to Oregon (for my move to Oregon). It’s not a film to watch with turbulence!
I head to bed early and read after a shower. I finish
I slept after that, waking once for proof of hydration.
Thanks for reading.
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