Friday was a cooler day, but the hot fall sun was still striking. The yellow jackets are out, annoying everyone as they search, with some desperation — it is their nature — for food to complete their cycle in their buried dens. They rush to form the queens they need to participate in next year’s summer. From my reading and experience, there seem to be more now, and it is unwise to step into unfamiliar bushes or other plantings off the main paths without looking for wasps. I was one of those children who stepped in a nest and was stung over and over with them in my clothing. I do not love wasps, or fear them, but I treat them with respect.
No wasps that I saw in my backyard as I rose at 7:30ish and reheated my coffee in my new microwave (remembering to push the “Open Door” button before I pull the door handle). I found my focus and wrote the blog. I had lunch planned with Brad J and Scott W, my fellow retired Nike colleagues. I got a message from Scott W that he would be early, and I started to rush. I managed to publish the blog, shower, shave, and dress. Air VW the Gray got me there before Scott W had reached 1/4 of his beer. Brad and Scott greeted me, and we enjoyed an hour and some change talking about travel, and Scott W and Brad J sharing notes on various hikes. Both Scott W and Brad J hike and enjoy the changes in altitude, sometimes climbing boulders to reach lovely places on this earth. Brad J and Scott W might hike some places together when they are in the same area.
We did not talk about money, as the market seems to be rising inexplicably in both yields and equities. Junk bonds are over 7.5%, and while the markets are flat, I made enough to crack my nut of expenses, including my travel. I have not planned my year-end yet and may give some capital away to church and other non-profits (in ways less efficient than just paying the taxes; it is definitely more satisfying and fun).
We broke up and will meet again — just Scott and I in September, and Brad J, back from Eastern Oregon, in October. I travel for over 1/4 of the remaining year. We are enjoying our traveling years (let’s not call it retired years).
I drive around Beaverton, find a muffin-and-coffee place, and add to my Friday calorie load with an almond-and-poppy muffin and coffee. I read more about quantum computing. They are closing in an hour, and I take a break as I finish the first introduction, using a playing-card computer as a metaphor for quantum processes. I am tempted to try to code the example, as suggested in the book, to better understand it. Maybe in Rust. Thinking.
I hear from Dondrea; she is running Hood-to-Coast in the team, Super Delegates: “How Can We Make This Suck More,” and has safely completed her first run. Dondrea is also preaching this weekend. Last I heard, she was revising her words to include a remembrance of Dolly Parton in the sermon.
I find my way to Cosmic Monkey Comics by taking the slower, non-highway route, which is slower but more fun. The sun is bright, and I squint often as I turn, and the sun is once again blazing in my windshield. I park within a block of the store and realize I missed out and should have been here sooner. Doomquest #4 is sold out, and I am told, “It is quite popular.” I order #3 in error and take a Doctor Who and a Solomon Kane #2 (#1 is sitting unread at home), and later regret ordering the wrong comic.
I am already running out of time; I agreed to dinner with Mariah at Nudi (a noodle house with fantastic mixed drinks) and to head across Portland again, this time in the other direction, to reach that area in SE. Hollywood, Laurelhurst, and Reed College are passed by. I sit in the EV and read Short Circuit comic about the Fugitive Doctor in the Doctor Who universe. I enjoy the story and the return of the hand mines and Daleks.
Mariah appears after I sit down (having finished my comic), and we order insane fruit and tequila drinks. We have fried pickles to start, and then a new noodle dish. I liked it, but I think their soup-based items are more my style. Still, it was wonderful, and I ate most of it. We talked about plans, and I was still distracted and unclear in my thinking, so I kept much of it on the surface. I did whine about all the church emails, texts, and the misadventures that came with them, and my frustration that this is not what I want to do. We ordered the house flan, another caloric mistake, but it was sooooo good. It was cold, and the flan was cooked into a squash. Wow!
With all of that, I spun the EV around and headed back to the house and talked to Deborah while I took the well-worn path home. We are both missing each other and must focus on the usual mundane things of modern life, like buying groceries and organizing the house. We talk often. We will see each other again on 15th Oct and then again on Christmas.
I return home and watch For All Mankind on Apple TV. This is the American story from the same people who made the alternative-history Star City show as a prequel. I finish the first episode and find the fun mix of Nixon and his tapes and Senator Ted Kennedy, who misses a trip that would have been a disaster for him, when the Soviets beat the West to the moon. All interesting.
I complete the first chapter and stop there, as the next chapter is filled with mathematics. No reason to start that at night. Not bedtime reading. Instead, I return to my figures and seal the colors with a gloss coat. Once that’s dried, I brush them with oil paint to shade them black. The Army Painter inks tend to change the colors of the underlying acrylics. Also, their Anti-Shine spray seems to dull too much and change colors. Instead, I use Mr. Clean brands.
With this undercoat of gloss, the figures’ shine becomes uniform, and some colors stand out more; the oil paint flows well, and I can fill in all the details, making the figures “pop” into 3D. I soak the figures in a black wash. When it dries, it can be wiped off to bring back some metallic shine. I will also check if I need to brighten any areas with dry brushing a mix of the base colors with some white, but this can be wiped off if overdone before it dries (the oil paint can always be wiped off).
The final coat of dull must be a light coat, or the figure will wash out the colors and metallics will turn to grays and shades of yellow. The purpose is to lock in the new work and remove the shine. Only the lightest spray is needed. But tonight, I just let the oil shading dry. I will finish them tomorrow.
I talk to a sleepy Deborah, to whom I wish a good night. It is always wonderful to end and start our days together.
I am tired, but I feel less frustrated because I got some reading done and my figures are nearly finished. I also got my printer to work. With a new, expensive black ink cartridge, it now prints well. Hmmm.
I read the Solomon Kane comics, #1-2, which take Solomon Kane to pre-British-conquest India. I know the history and the areas (having been to the ruins of the palace featured in the story). It is interesting to add magic, mysticism, and Kane to these stories. I like it. There is a published version of the early story, and I might acquire that.
With that done, and not wanting to dive into more quantum or a spy story. I calm my breathing and drift off. I am having breathing issues again and feel like I am drowning again in the air. I know it is stress and pollen. The chemo also gives me this feeling and is one of the side effects. My 02 levels are good. My inhaler gets more use in the fall. Love all those pines and the pine smell, but it does make it harder for me.
I sleep and only wake to check hydration, then find my way back to my remade bed. The sheets always are so inviting when newly replaced. I snuggle in, and the world fades to black. Dreams fill the night, but all are forgotten; I suspect there was quantum India with Kane from the flashes I can sort of remember.
Thanks for reading!
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 