Thursday

I had plans on Thursday. I had lunch with Scott W and dinner with Z and Dondrea on Thursday. A busy day for me. But first, I had to write the blog and get started. I woke up feeling uncomfortable, cold, and congested. I had woken for just as the sunrise would start, but rolled over and slept poorly for the next couple of hours. Crawling out of bed at 7, I found the coffee already running in the timed coffee pot. I had the last not totally black banana with a Keto English Muffin (I bought Keto by mistake) with marmalade to add to the coffee.

I get going on the blog and stop, and first write a card to Mom Wild. I then walk it out to ensure that it makes it to the mailbox, me in my robe and slippers, before the mail is delivered. I want a different card to arrive at Mom Wild’s place every morning. Something to look forward to for her.

Aside: Mariah wrote a blog entry about her recent trip. Please enjoy it here.

The blog just flows, and I manage to finish it before I have to dress to make the 11:45 lunch with Scott. I read more about Assyrian history and approach the interaction between the Ancient kings of Israel and Judah. In the Hebrew scriptures, the Assyrians are the bad guys. Later that evening, I began to read about the connection, specifically that in the 800s BCE, the Assyrians created an image of King Jehu, the only surviving one found so far (here). I am teaching Sunday School in September for the new member class and want to spend time on the connection to archaeological finds, hard dates that we know, and the impact on our understanding of the Old Testament.

I met Scott W at the McMenamins Cedar Hills location. We have both been traveling, and we will miss most of August as Scott has to take a trip that bookends my trip to Queens, NY. We catch up on travels and our adventures. Scott is thinking that Iceland might be a good intermediate stop on his next European trip. I recommend the Golden Circle bus tour with Sky Lagoon and our hotel (here), Hotel Reykjavik Centru (careful, there are others with like names, Aðalstræti 16, 101 Reykjavík, Iceland).

Scott W and I talk about money and our concerns. We are not seeing a positive impact of Trump policies; we had hoped (even as liberals) that Trump was right and things would be good, but instead see clouds starting. Layoffs, chaos, and falling interest rates will not improve things. The loss of numerous government jobs, the reduction of services, and the failure of infrastructure to aid in emergencies (the local Texas response to the flood is appalling, and FEMA appears to be a no-show). We are staying in defensive positions, but we did notice Nike’s stock price is slowly increasing (we have options that are underwater or have weak payoffs that could become valuable if Nike’s stock takes off).

After lunch, I went home, napped a bit, read more, and did a little. Retired.

Rising, I drove to the Food Carts at Beaverton Central and met Z and Dondrea for dinner. Z had poke and Dondrea had Étouffée. I had Raman-style noodles with lots of extras. My usual place is gone; this happens in the world of cart food, and I found a new excellent provider of Raman-style noodles. It was hot, but once we had food done, Dondrea had a cider and I a Red Zepplin beer, we tried Ticket to Ride: London. This is a simplified version of the Euro game and was fun and fast. Dondrea won with me not getting enough tickets and Z getting too many that she could not complete (causing negative points). It is a light train game (though it uses buses) with some diminishing resources, but generally a race to complete the routes before a player runs out of buses.

After we played that, I headed home, read more, and then made a bundt cake from a box mix from King Arthur Flour. I cleaned the kitchen and then read more, purchased a newish book listing all the dynasties of Egypt (the Internet was just referring to the book), and read more about the artifacts found that connect to the stories in the Bible. I was saddened to learn that a museum featuring replicas of some of these famous findings on a Christian college campus had closed. I would have driven down to Salem to see them.

I went to bed, read, and then slept. I have no memory of dreams. No wandering in dream versions of Ancient Israel, or Assyria, or Indian Jones moments, finding the latest text proving Solomon and his Mines exists (and a map, of course), only to have someone steal it from me. No memory at all.

Thanks for reading!