Monday with Music

Monday is like my Saturday, as I seldom have plans, and the weekend is over. While I don’t work, others do, and I rush on the weekend to be included. On Monday, the rush ends. I rose around after 8 and found I forgot to put the timer on and had to wait for coffee. I entered the office—the corner bedroom is now my office—and started my online morning.

I write this blog most mornings. I am more of a morning person, and the task seems easier than late at night. I used to write a blog late while working for a living. Now I can afford to invest the morning in the blog. I use WordPress for the blog, and Grammarly checks my text and makes suggestions, many of which are useless, while I type. I prefer it to spot missing plurals and insert commas. It corrects my spelling, but most tools do that now. Quicken is updated with the transactions from most of my accounts. Only the IRA and my Treasury account were not updated–both are too complex and provide only limited or no Quicken transactions.

I am done at about 10, and then return to the 3D printer. It is cool today, and I suspect this is the real reason it won’t print, but instead puddles on the tank film. The operating temperature for the resin is 25-30°C (72-80°F). I cleaned up the Egloo Mars 3D resin printer and started a new print. I changed the model to be at an angle with supports and a base the night before. I also changed the run parameters to be the recommended values. It will fail as a puddle again.

Deborah is back to work, but working from home, and I get a few texts and a call. She is doing chores all day. I woke up to her text, and we talked as I started the blog.

It is nearing noon, and I reheat the Chinese-style food. I watch Elsbeth and enjoy the quirky show while I eat. The show reminds me of The Rockford Files and Colombo. This episode’s guest murderer is a modern matchmaker from The Hamptons, and the viewer is treated to a view of the winter version of The Hamptons. I liked it.

After that show, I looked at replacement printers and various options. The highest-tech one would cost about $600, and I was not ready to spend that much (the latest Saturn Ultra 16K with a heated tank, with the extra wash and hardening solutions). But we will see. I have always dreamed of printing my stuff for gaming, and I am still tempted.

Time was slipping by, and soon it was time to head out again. I changed to a dress shirt, Pride tie, and green sweater vest and boarded Air VW the Gray for the short trip to the MAX station. The trip into Portland was faster, and I was enjoying my Canadian murder crime novel on my Kindle and missed my stop. It was just a few blocks’ difference. But I walked to the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, and the Heathman Hotel Bar was on the way. I decided to try the remodeled location next to the Schmitzer.

I ordered a Sazerac, which was perfectly mixed without ice (better). I had the chips with the salmon dip. The chips were house-made potato chips with a hint of vinegar and salt. The dip had roe on it and was not overly fishy flavored, and it went well with the chips. I had the mushroom soup, which, while good, was a bit cooler than I liked. Oddly, there were noodle bits sprinkled on the top that I thought did not work. I saw that other symphony goers were sharing the cheese and meat plate. It looked excellent. Next time!

I reached the Schnitzer next door while the talk was still happening and heard a few words from the conductor, Jun Märki, and the principal guest conductor. Conductor Märki described Debussy’s La mer like waves and storms. He shared his excitement, and when conducting later, I could witness his love and enjoyment of the piece.

The most memorable piece was unexpected: Korngold’s Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 35 had me laughing and tapping my feet. Koldgold was a movie composer who combined those bits to make this concerto. It was enjoyable, and Paul Huang, the soloist, seemed to create his own movie with sweeping arm movements as he played the dramatic notes. He really leaned into that music. Medelssohn’s Calm Sea and Properios Voyage, Op. 27, mixed well with Debussy, but I remember Haung’s music more. He played an encore solo that was lovely, too.

I stumbled when the concert was done. It is a long fall. I barely caught myself. My knees had frozen up. Something new. I will be more careful!

I arrived, safe, home via MAX and the EV. I stayed up late and made a pound cake from the Cake Bible Cookbook. I had a slice of the cake, excellent, and went to bed.

Thanks for reading!