Saturday with no games

It is unusual for me to have a Saturday without games. Richard offered a game in the morning (he is busy doing holiday stuff on Saturday night), but I decided to shop the Portland Saturday Morning and could not make it. I wrote the blog the evening before to enable an early departure in Air Ford (Escape). I made coffee, read, spoke to Deborah briefly, and dressed. A t-shirt, floppy sweater, coat, and hat; it is wet out there.

The Portland Saturday Market opens at 10, and I arrived at the parking lot a few blocks away twenty minutes after opening (some stands were getting a slow start–tourists don’t show until about lunchtime). I was disappointed that there was a liquor-tasting tent instead of a place to eat. Just two small tables. I was unwilling to eat breakfast/lunch (which I skipped) while standing in the rain. I bought some Tibetian Chai and tipped well as I always just get chai there and was happy to see them. They used to serve sweet yak butter tea, but chai seemed better to fit today’s selective customers. Only a few food carts were left, and the rows had many open spaces. Apparently, the two weeks before Christmas is not quite the Christmas rush. The market opens for the week of Christmas in ‘The Festival of the Last Minute.’  The marker closes on Christmas Eve and reopens in March.

I found a few light and easy-to-pack Portland-style (weird) gifts for Deborah there. The usual items I buy for Dungeons and Dragons folks were not there that Saturday. The vendors, customers, and food carts were not ready for Christmas on two Wednesdays. Since I had to travel, I had to plan and prepare everything ahead.

I left early, but I had more plans. Next, I walk four blocks to the Lan Su Chinese Garden on the edge of the faded remains of Portland’s Chinatown. There were only a few other visitors, and my entrance was free; I am a member. I know the history and style of this garden and have been to a few in China. I have answered visitor questions and added some welcome details to tour guide talks. Should I be unable to travel, I suspect I would volunteer here. Even as I walked the garden loop, I remembered the spiels of tour guides (and made up my own name for some locations, such as ‘The Unreachable Corner Garden of Noisy Traffic’), and thought I would write a story of each look including the translation of the Chinese characters (sometimes in different styles) and the stories the guide tell to explain the area. Yes, my actual retirement may be here. It was peaceful in the rain. A few tours started.

But my retirement for traveling, I plan to be in the distant future. I remember Scott, Matt, Dondrea, and Deborah (and others) telling me to take better care of myself in the garden’s peace; I make two more loops. It is a pleasant walk, and I leave something I have not done on each walk to make it include a ‘surprise.’ The uneven stones help me practice my balance without much risk. All good.

I spoke to a young gal at the entrance about traveling and Chicago. She plans to be there at Chicago in the spring. I go over everything I would recommend, including the veggie version of the pan pizza there. She takes my biz card with my blog on it. Maybe another reader.

Next, I will waste a few minutes (and dollars) on the pinball machines at Ground Kontrol. I keep my card in my wallet below my driver’s license. I score terribly on the new version of The Addams Family, but I like the play. Even a magnet in the middle of the machine throws the ball in strange directions. I also played The Doctor Who machine and did far better. A gentleman was playing The Dracula machine (Based on the movie Bram Stoker’s Dracula), scoring 23 million (ten times my scores), and even playing the video play. These machines are on the back second floor, are older, and are set to play at a lower price. My style.

I played for a while, and my scores improved as my reactions, sight, and eye coordination improved. Yes, I tell myself, this is good exercise for someone recovering from brain surgery and chemo. It is medicine! But still, I stopped after thirty minutes (I did not bother to look at how reduced my card was); it was time for lunch.

I stopped at Deschutes Public House in the Pearl District near Powell’s and the theater. There, I had a Chris Kringle Ale from Deschutes Brewery and their chorizo hash recommended by my waiter and bartender, Kevin. It was covered with four poached eggs and was the perfect mix of spicy and starch from the potatoes. I ate slow, unusual for me, read my email, texted, and drank my beer.

I decided I could not fit The Twelfth Night playing next door and walked over to Powell’s. There, I found a gift for Deborah but ordered it for the reduced shipping costs through Amazon. Sad, but it would have cost me another $10 to ship.

I walked back across Portland. Seeing my Carhartt coat and hat, the homeless accepted me as a friend and addressed me. “Merry Christmas,” “The hat is great,” “Look, I have the same coat,” or “I want that hat,” from a more direct guy. They were happy to be seen and treated as equals. I smile, nod, and tip my hat.

Rushing as I have to finish this…

Soon, after investing ten bucks in parking and checking that the payment went through, I had a record of payment. There was no ticket, and I reached home. I did the boring things there: laundry, dishes, and a snack. David and Michelle called, and we will meet soon for a late-ish dinner. I gave them the New Orleans cooking kit. We talked about my cooking classes and got caught up. It was lovely to see them again, but I am sorry to miss their daughter, Cat and Tash, and Jason (Natasha’s husband).

I got The Machine to work well for my shirts and pants. Hmmm. I finished the laundry around 11. I read Analog Magazine SciFi stories for a while. Soon, I fell asleep, turned off the light, and listened to sleep music in the background. My legs were cramping and sore in the night. Deborah woke up early in the morning (her time) and sent me a ‘good night’ text, which I replied to. I woke up a few times and had to prove hydration.

Thanks for reading!