While not as hot as Thursday, the air pollution from smoke increased on Friday. I rose before 8. I planned to fry up some bacon, but I sliced another bit of pumpkin spice bread and peeled a banana for breakfast. I made liberal coffee in the French press; I am to my last bag. More is on its way—the warehouse is in Portland, Oregon. I am sure you are not surprised, dear reader.
I wrote the blog and finished it early. I was so surprised I was done early that I forgot to publish it! In the late afternoon, I noticed it was missing and corrected that. I also updated my base page, and that change went poorly, and I ended up creating the page. I used a newer photo of myself. The initial page was created back in 2019 as I learned how to use WordPress and tried out Grammarly. I learned from other sites that WordPress’s provided content is basic, and its page models are not designed to attract Google and other scanners. You have to properly tag to attract the scanner, and the tooling for tags, while there, is more of an add-on than a focus. Still, I like it, and it does what I want, to post a daily blog with all the content mine and under my control and ownership.
I got out the non-stick OXO pan (thanks, Steve), cooked six slices of bacon, and stuffed the rest of the slab I bought into a large ziplock bag. More bacon to come! I was talking to my sister, Linda, on the phone and told her I should take the pan outside, set it on fire, and fill the already smoky neighborhood with bacon smoke—something different from the burned pine smell we have enjoyed all week. But I resisted my ironic urges and instead sliced some fresh tomato. I was out of lettuce, which I should have bought when I got the tomato at the 185th and TV Highway Corner veggie and fruit stand. My good bread was green; I, like most IT professionals, had a backup loaf in the freezer and toasted the frozen slices. A little mayo and the bacon slices, cooked to just starting to crisp, were layered between two thin slices of tomato. Excellent.
I returned to the last Matrix movie on my laptop while I enjoyed my BT sandwich. I sliced it in half to make it easier to bite and handle. There is no sign of sadness with the colors leaving the world showing in my thinking this morning, and bacon makes everyone happy. I put away the remaining bacon (three more pieces) and the remaining tomato in ziplock bags and will return to another sandwich soon (or a salad once lettuce is reacquired).
I wonder about my reading and check what is on my Kindle online. I find my Kindle and charge it. While I can use my iPhone to read, I like the Kindle better. It is back-lighted (without causing a headache) at night, so I do not need a light to read. I have forgotten the book I started,
I returned to the “Lord of the Rings, Rings of Power” series for the next episode. This episode was too dark to see clearly—a foolish mistake for such an expensive production. The storyline with the elves went sideways and was inexplicable. The hobbit story got some eye-rolling. Overall, it was unforgivingly predictable, physically too dark, and greatly disappointed me.
I had spent the whole day indoors and decided that The 649 would be an excellent place to finish my day. I got some writing done on my Dungeons and Dragons adventure but could not find much focus. Air Volvo had me there soon. The smoke, while hard to see in the air, made the trees look two-dimensional, and the hills before the Coastal Mountains were grey. All the mountains disappeared into the grey smoke.
I had to park in Safeway’s parking lot, but a space was open as I walked in. The 649 was busy, and I found a chair along the windows with just enough space for my laptop and food. I got two red ales. Stephen opened and would soon be done. Taylor had just started. Kera (Avery’s sister, and I am not sure I have the name right) was also finishing up. Natalia, wearing a mask after a nasty illness, showed up later to help close on a Friday. The energy and noise of the place seemed to help, and soon, I was writing and making progress. I noticed some remaining 4E notations that are meaningless in the new 5E and 5.50 versions. I deleted the notation and made a few updates.
I found some more interesting writing, including a friendly vampire exchanging magic items for blood, which I had forgotten. Instead of giving the items in a lost treasure that somehow only the players find or facing the magic items used by their enemies, they can negotiate for them with a powerful undead who has his own reasons for the exchange. How much damage they will take is part of the challenge instead of combat. It gives the Dungeon Master a chance to role-play, and deadly yet helpful undead is a perfect foil for a DM.
I also reorganized my 401K and moved the piles of money to be less protected by bonds. I had received a note in the mail that the 2025 retirement fund would close, so I bumped all the money to be the exact breakdown, but I set 5 years in the future. This seemed the most straightforward and least risky choice.
I explored traveling to New Orleans in mid-October, staying at the same hotel as last time, Le Richelieu, and taking a cheap flight. I will likely order the flights and hotel when I am in Chicago once I determine how I fared on that trip. The cost, mostly the hotel, was not too high. It would be the same room as last time, too. This trip will have fewer museums and graveyards, more jazz, and visiting locations now forgotten. I have read more about the history of New Orleans, and there are places to see that are not on the usual tourist paths.
I continued to revise the document until after 8 and ordered dessert: coffee, bread pudding, and a shot of amaretto (Taylor suggested I have my usual finish of coffee and amaretto). With the noise, my reduced hearing, and my concentration on writing about the undead, Taylor startled me with the coffee and then again with the rest. I enjoyed my dessert and put away the writing. Natalia and Taylor wished me well after paying the bill and heading towards Air Volvo.
I do the dishes watching ShipHappens on YouTube, and soon head to bed after a shower. I read until late and manage to sleep without waking until 5ish.
Thanks for reading.
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 