Thursday Less Colors

Thursday was a terrible day with smoke and heat in the valley. We broke 100F (38C), and there was smoke from the fires. However, it was not a dangerous level of air pollution, and the usual allergens were not present, so I was not coughing and sneezing all the time. There was an additional warning of a red flag fire condition; Thursday would experience low humidity with wind, making fires quickly uncontrollable. Don’t even spark near dry grass or a forest!

I decided that I would not let it slow me down today. I rose before 8, and the house was cold, 65F (18C); I hope the orchids are happy! I soon enjoyed liberal coffee made in my French press with pumpkin spice bread and a banana. There is nothing like the taste of liberal coffee in the morning to remind you of all the possibilities.

Some colors ran out of the world while I wrote this morning. The heat and smoke limited what I could do, and that, with no plans, seemed to bring forward a deep sadness. I believe this is depression, and it really sucks. I pushed through the feelings and decided I would follow through with my plans.

I packed up large slices of the Celtic cake I made and boarded Air Volvo. The smoke made the trees look 2-D, meaning there was more smoke than I saw (your eyes correct for smoke). Mount Hood was a grey blur. The coastal mountains were now white-colored hills, and the mountains disappeared into the grey. It was terrible, but we have seen worse.

I take the back roads over Cooper’s Mountain to reach the other side of Beaverton. It is a pretty drive, but I am dodging so many construction barrels that it seems like a terrible idea for a video game, Furious Urban Construction Traffic. You get points for arriving faster but not speeding in a school zone and avoiding hitting a barrel or another car. You also get extra points for texting and not being caught by Beaverton’s Finest.

I find my groove again while driving, and the colors return, though many are grey from the smoke to the world. I arrive not knowing what to expect at the Portland Running Company of Scholls Ferry Road, and a grey-haired and retired Nike employee finds me some new Brooks shoes for walking. They feel excellent, and I was told they improved for walking than the Air Force Ones I usually wore. They offered to recycle my worn-out AF1s, and I was out and about in new shoes.

I headed by Dondrea’s house, dropped off the cake, and headed home across Beaverton. No walking in lousy air; this restriction sends me back to the house. Lunch is forgotten–I can’t remember if I ate lunch. I try to focus on something after Air Volvo delivers me, but the colors run out of the day, and soon, I am sad. I read and watched a new show on Apple TV (I just ordered the three-month trial as there are some exciting shows there); Slow Horses gets my attention as I like spy shows.

I wrote a few words in my Dungeons and Dragons adventure, which I am revising. It is approaching 4, and I turn off the AC and fan and leave only the orchid light on. PGE, our power company, asks us liberal and kind folks to reduce our electrical use at critical times to prevent PGE from having to buy or create power on demand, often from high-carbon methods, by cutting our use. We get a small payment in kind. I see that Beetlejuice Beetlejuice 2024 is playing now nearby and at 4:30. Perfect. I wish the orchids well and hope they enjoy the higher heat; I give them a misting. I board Air Volvo in the 100F+ heat and smoke and am at Movies on TV Regal minutes later.

Popcorn and a complimentary tiny kid glass of water (it is my limit for two hours and often finds me still running to the restroom after the show). The movie, while not terrible, ain’t great. While I laugh frequently, it drags and gets lost in a four-way story. All the actors, even those not there (one of the four strange intersecting stories), do well and are believable. The movie just does not come together nicely and seems disjointed. I would say that the film failed in the cutting room and should have been reshot and organized, but still, it was icy AC on a 100F day with no smoke, and I was using electricity that would be used if I was there. I was living being liberal while eating my popcorn!

I stopped by Carl’s Jr. and committed a dietary sin: a Western Burger with fries and a Diet Coke. Air Volvo and I arrived after 7, and I could resume AC and power use; the house was 78F, and the orchids did not look impressed. They were looking for the 80s. The food worked, and I felt more like myself again. Between the movie, popcorn, and burger, my groove was back, and soon, I was writing until 10:30 and making improvements. The original is for D&D 4E, nothing like 5E (or 3.5 or D20), and the editing includes rewriting. I have enough done that I can now plan to play it. I will be looking for players soon.

I head to bed after a shower and hope to sleep tonight. The sadness does not reappear, and I soon sleep happy, knowing I have done some D&D stuff. I do not wake up until after 6.

Thanks for reading.

Update: I had lunch with Scott yesterday, and we had a great discussion about politics, Nike, and investing. I’m not sure why I keep missing that. Sorry, Scott! But Thursday lunch usually involves meeting Scott and chatting.