Monday Quiet

It is likely to be a short blog as it was just a typical day together with Deborah and her son, Donovan. I rose tired and with poor sleep. My eyes, although improving, remain crusty, and my eyelids are still slightly swollen. I keep them clean and avoid rubbing or touching them. I have avoided drops for now.

I started at 5ish as sleep was not returning. This is another fun aspect of time changes. I can’t sleep in either time zone! I have trouble getting to sleep as I usually read, write, or even paint figures at night, and then I wake before sunrise anywhere. Thus, I sleep little in the first days. I nap in the afternoon, planned or not.

Aside: I recall drinking cup after cup of Turkish Tea in Istanbul during a work trip, when the accountants explained Turkish Statutory Reporting requirements in a dark room using PowerPoint on one afternoon a few days into the trip! I made it through it and was able to ask meaningful questions.

Returning to my story of Monday, I dressed and had the complimentary breakfast that is more or less the same in most hotels. I was able to write some of the blog, but I had not quite finished it when Deborah signaled it was time to get my car.

We bopped over in Donovan’s car. Deborah’s Mini was at her Mini guy’s place and would need a fix to the throttle body (an air valve) before it would be back to normal. I waited in a polite line at Enterprise, and a helpful clerk soon had a Nissan Rogue for me for a week. The staff, all younger folks, were disciplined, extremely polite, made eye contact, and processed the customer fast with clear statements. I was impressed, and it reminded me why I thought Midwesterners are the best at getting things done.

I was handed the keys to a gas-powered vehicle, and it took me a while to adjust to the lack of power and the wait for gears and things to fire (using the throttle body, I learned today). EVs are quicker. The steering was also old school and required more care than my fly-by-fire EV stuff. The screen was large, but I soon discovered it was just a version of buttons, and there was no CarPlay or Navigation. The shifting to Reverse and to Drive (or Manual with paddles on the steering wheel) was by moving a box in the center. The start was a button.

I managed to reach Deborah’s house with my iPhone leaning on the panel. We decided on lunch at Paul’s downtown, and we took the Rental there (No cool names for this thing). With little difficulty, we arrived intact, and I had a club sandwich, while Deborah had a wrap that she couldn’t finish. We then returned and spent the afternoon together.

We returned to Deborah’s house and made dinner. Deborah had put the ribs we got at the farmer’s market in the slow cooker with BBQ sauce, and the meat was done and falling apart. Deborah cut up the fresh beans, and I sliced the red potatoes in half (Deborah would have preferred quarters). We then baked them. It took about forty minutes (we had them at 350 and not 425, at first, a mistake). We’re watching more of season 1 of Matlock, starring Kathy Bates, as we try to finish the season now that the new one has begun. We almost finished an episode before dinner was ready. Donovan and I ate while Deborah took a call. It was good.

Deborah and I headed to the new TRON movie, but Donovan demurred. He was concerned that Jared Leto, the actor cast in the lead role, had ruined another movie. We rushed, with me almost going down the wrong way on one street (Deborah calmly corrected my error, no really), and we made it to the theater minutes before the show.

TRON Ares is a spectacle and a perfect continuation of the first movie, harvesting only the lightest items from the less-than-perfect second movie. I loved it and thought the wooden dialogue and stiffness of Jared Leto’s acting were perfect for the movie, reminding me how Arnold was perfect for his Terminator movies, especially as ‘Pops’ in his last(?) one. All the complaints are valid, but the movie is an excellent trip, especially for a computer geek like me. I loved the 3D printing lasers (which are insane; lasers don’t print, but it looked great), and it built supports that melted away. Anyone who, like me, did their own printing would love that effect (and be jealous as we hate cutting that stuff away).

If you are looking for geeky fun, watch TRON, the original, and then watch this one (or even the second one too). It is a wonder, and the music was good. Recommended. Deborah said to me, “Eric would have loved that movie.” I agree. We miss you, “Elric.”

I took Deborah home and then arrived at the hotel without any issues. I was able to sleep after reading until late. I dreamed of coding, writing, and old friends.

Thanks for reading.