Author: alohawild

I was feeling tired and a bit unhappy last night, so I just went to bed and slept for hours and hours. I am feeling better but very stiff this Saturday morning.

Returning to yesterday…

It was Friday, which means “there are only two more working days left of the week,” as we used to say in another project that never seemed to end. Fridays are also work-from-home days at Nike, but I worked from home for these two weeks anyway (the new building on Nike WHQ is not ready for us until 5 September). I still try to keep the days the same for Susie, and today means working from Susie’s room for the afternoon.

I wake and I am tired and running a bit late. I totally space the thirty minutes of exercise, start breakfast, and rush to the office to make the 8:05 weekly team meeting. We have a nice, calmer meeting as the boiling chaos that is the huge project we are working on has cooled, and we can reflect and share holiday photos. Excellent. The rest of the morning was a blur of status and process Zoom meetings. At 10ish, I showered and dressed. Next, I rested for a bit as I was feeling off. I read Cold Welcome by Elizabeth Moon, the second to last book of the Vatta series. Strongly recommended, but do them in order.

Rising to the challenge, I find my shoes, Air Force Ones, and fit them on. I reheated the leftover Broccoli Beef from Trader Joe’s I made the day before. Then I watched a few things on YouTube, including an amusing story about the miss sizing of the gun turret from The Battleship New Jersey Channel. Next, I board Air Volvo (not named after the shoes) and travel in heavy traffic across Beaverton. I finally arrived at Susie’s place at Allegiance Senior Care LLC, 9925 SW 82nd. Ave. Portland (Tigard), OR 97223; phone (503) 246-4116.

It is close to 2PM, and Susie is set up in her bed to watch M.A.S.H. while I visit and work from my laptops in the overstuffed chair beside her. Susie is happy to have company and stays awake for the various episodes about midway through the catalog. I read and approve some designs and follow along at work. I stopped M.A.S.H. for my call at 2PM. After that, I stayed until about 4PM.

While I worked, we managed to fit in an Ensure, and Susie watched M.A.S.H. I try to get Susie to drink one while I am visiting. Now, desserts or ice cream would be a good mix, but Susie chokes on them easily and never finishes them. The Ensure gets finished. It works, and I will stay with it for the moment.

Leta, Susie’s mother, and Barb, Susie’s sister, called us, and we had a great chat. Leta is safe. Lansing, Michigan, was hit by tornadoes and high-wind thunderstorms, which took off the roof of a retirement center; trees are down everywhere, and Leta has no power. Her neighbors have trees down on their houses and cars. Leta had cut down her trees as they were having issues. With no power, Leta would have no AC or power for her medical devices in her house, so she is staying in a hotel in East Lansing, which still has power and will be safe. Barb was with Leta, getting her mother set up in the hotel. We had a lovely brief chat.

Leta resides in the East Lansing Hampton Inn, Room 222. I heard, but I am unsure, that the ETA for power is Tuesday. Prayers, thoughts, and positive energy for our friends in Michigan facing outages and all the storm damage.

At the close of a M.A.S.H. episode, Jennifer was happy to pop Susie into her wheelchair, and we then visited the park. School is starting soon, and the park was full of younger kids trying to get that last swing in or to practice some more soccer shots. A little dog was playing with a large basketball; it pushed it with its nose and ran with it, soccer style. It runs as fast as it can while guiding the ball. Impressive.

After 4PM, I left Susie with a kiss and a promise to return on Saturday. Traffic back was worse, and the trip took over thirty minutes. On reaching the house, I turned off the AC. As a liberal, I am willing to sacrifice for the greater good (and get a small coupon) by lowering my electrical usage when requested by the power company. I got a text saying it was another critical high day for power consumption from Portland General Electric (PGE), and I cut some of my usage. I did make broiled tuna fish salad bagels for dinner, and that was more power as I have an electric stove. I also had to finish the laundry, so I was not wholly successful at not using electricity, but I lived without AC for four hours. Liberal means taking action.

Aside: Yes, you EV haters readers out there, you are right that charging your EV car after getting home makes this worse. EV cars should be charged after 10PM. So I agree that liberal-loved EVs are also causing the problem, but the EV chargers use the same power as a washing machine and only run for a few hours, so they are not the real problem. Electric stoves (yes, I know liberals are stopping gas stoves) and electric clothing dryers running with the AC at 4-7 at night are the issue. Yes–it is a problem. I try to help by cutting the peak usage at a request for PGE.

As suggested by the above text, I made dinner instead of going out on a busy Friday. I chopped celery and onion fine and mixed that with all the usual items to make tuna fish salad. I then defrosted a NYC bagel (thanks, Joyce), cut it, and toasted it. This was put on a solid cookie sheet covered with tin foil and broiled until almost burned. Excellent. I watched The Girl Who Played with Fire in Swedish while I ate. This is a favorite and does not match the Hollywood English versions. The acting and camera work is as good as anything from BBC or Hollywood, but it has the Swedish dark crime novel feel. The darkest crime novels I have read were translations of Nordic books, especially detective series.

I tried next, after finishing Cold Welcome and not starting the last novel of the series, to make a Teensy 4.1 microcontroller work. I had trouble that I attribute to having to learn something new (the Oregon-made Teensy is a complex Arduino-like technology); I was too tired to learn something new. I put it away for another day.

I read a good story, “Blackmail,” in the Strand magazine (Issue LXIX 2023). This is by the mostly forgotten Noir writer James M. Cain. The story “Blackmail” was so vivid and dated at the same time–how do you do that? I will be looking for more of Mr. Cain’s work now. Jacqueline Winspear, a mystery writer I read each year as she publishes another book in her long series about Ms. Dobbs, had an essay on finding that gold nugget for a writer. I finished half of it before sleep, pulled the magazine out of my hands, and had me sleep reading.

I was up at 1:30-ish taking my pills I forgot, and I did prove my hydration twice that night. Still, I managed to sleep and feel better.

I have noticed that the depression and exhaustion seem to follow a trip to Wildwood. Two beers and a bar mix should not be enough to self-medicate for depression, but it does fit the symptoms. I will reduce my trips and consumption of beer to see if the exhaustion and depression stay away. Also, not getting the exercise may be an issue. So discipline returns. So keeping to the exercise, more salads and fruit, and less alcohol seem to be a good plan. Scott and Matt should be smiling.

Additionally, Susie’s weight remains at 70 pounds. Terribly low, but she has stopped losing. Her health at the moment is stable. I also have enough money to cover the year, I think, and then I will sell some more retirement assets to cover next year; for tax efficiency, these transactions must be kept to the next tax year. After insurance, Susie and my medical expenses are over $8,000 a month. I find myself fortunate to have the resources to cover this. I am honored to work with so many good people at Allegiance and Cornerstone Tax to make this work for us.

My health is improving, but I cannot stop (or soften) the approach of the passing of middle-aged life to whatever is next. Vision and hearing show the usual loss for my age (f**k you, aging), and muscles and weight gain are starting to show the age change (I get hurt easier, and weight loss is hard–f**k aging). I am resisting. My colon has begun, these last few weeks, to run more usually–the cork followed by dumping has stopped (I call it the champaign moment). I have a new oncologist, and a body scan to see if I have produced more work for the oncologist will be scheduled soon. I have a good chance of being cured by my first encounter with chemotherapy.

Thank you for reading. It was a good day.

 

 

The day started with me just waking before my alarm, just a few minutes. I was still trying to understand what awake meant when the alarm on my iPhone went off. I think I moaned when I heard it. I went to the office first and connected and logged in all the laptops, mine and Nike’s, to get the email and other updates while I did other things. Next, I padded over to the kitchen, dumped the water out of the kettle (an ant was floating in it–the bug people still have not come), filled it, and turned it on. Next, I enjoyed thirty minutes of peddling on the Immoble Schwinn and not going over six miles while watching steaming commercials while claiming it was ABC Streaming News. I was sweaty when I finished my fourth day in a row of thirty minutes of exercising.

I next acquired a NYC bagel from the freezer and made it editable by heating, toasting, and covering it with cream cheese. I got the last peach 1/2 from the can and put that in a bowl. All of this was matched with liberal coffee, which I have been drinking since the first ever mug-shot taken president was elected (sorry, I had to get that in–I am a liberal, after all). All this, I took to the home office and soon started an online odyssey of three hours of Zoom work meeting on status and process.

I quickly showered around 10ish and continued with some more alignment Zoom meetings. I managed a break for an early lunch of reheated (via the microwave) pizza. I watered the plants (the sapling redwood expired in the 105F heat–40C), took out the trash, and loaded the recyclables. Friday is pick-up day, so it is best to prepare everything on Thursday. Finally, I boarded Air Volvo and saw Susie at Allegiance Senior Care LLC, 9925 SW 82nd. Ave. Portland (Tigard), OR 97223; phone (503) 246-4116. The traffic was light, and I crossed Beaverton without issues or the auto braking.

Susie was napping in the recliner in the shared living room when I got there before 1. Susie was thrilled to see me, and we soon headed out into the still cool air (it would heat to 92F later–33C) of Metzger Park. We found a nice bench near the large green space and watched the kids and parents enjoy the last days before school started. We did have one wasp visit; Susie must have been too sweet, but I was able to wave it away. Next, I called Leta and Barb (Susie’s mother and sister in Michigan, respectively) to form a three-way call on FaceTime. Barb was done with her work day and talked to us while walking out and driving. We had a lovely short chat. Again, it was a regular work day for me, and I had to be back to more Zoom calls at 2 and follow on Slack channels. We finished our park tour, and soon, I had Susie back with Jennifer at the hummingbird house. Jennifer is the weekday and live-in nursing aide. I left with a kiss and promised a more extended stay on Friday.

The drive back was in lighter traffic than I expected, but some lights did take three times to finish. I found some packages when I arrived. I ordered more 15-minute epoxy as mine showed its age and a new model Teensy microcontroller, 4.1. These are small-footprint but very fast Arduino-styled microcontrollers that apparently are made in Eugene, Oregon (I did not know that)–I am sure I will find a use for them.

I spent the next couple of hours in a series of Zoom work meetings and then took a short break. I read a bit. I enjoy Cold Welcome by Elizabeth Moon and can barely put it down. I then carried the Nike laptop to the kitchen for the 4:35 status meeting and made dinner while listening. I heated a Trader Joe’s Indian-style microwave meal and heated Naan in the oven (frozen and also from Trader Joe’s). It was wonderful Tikka Chicken with a cup of cooked rice that was better with the Naan. While I consumed this fine repast, I watched some YouTube presentations from The Discriminating Gamer and Battleship New Jersey–Excellent.

I read some more but decided to head to Wildwood Taphouse and enjoy company and beer while writing.

Thank you for reading.

Going backward, I am reading Cold Welcome (Vatta’s Peace Book 1) at the Volvo Cave on my Kindle. This is a Space Opera series and the final two books. I had read the first series and left the finish for another time, or in other words, now. I recommend reading them in order, starting with Elizabeth Moon’s first book, Trading in Danger. Excellent. 

Before this, Air Volvo delivered me to the Volvo Cave from Portland. I picked up Corwin at 3ish at his house to help him make a few trips (he still is not driving) and drove him all over Beaverton. We had some spare time, so I stopped by Tammy’s Hobbies and bought some flat black spray paint (Chaos Black)–since the pandemic paint is not always available. Next, we dared the lousy traffic and went to the Pearl District in Portland. I found parking on the street a short distance from Von Eberts. We took a table outside and had a few beers and some excellent wings; the legend is that the wings are so good, smoked first, that the chicken volunteer. The staff remembered me and were helpful. Dinner was excellent outside on a picnic table set on the street.

Next, we were going to spend money on Powell’s, but we resisted and instead stopped at Screendoor for pecan pie and coffee. They make a dessert that makes you wonder if there are other real desserts in this world. The staff were happy to serve us at the counter. Our waiter had on a mask and kept her distant–excellent. The coffee was good.

Before picking up Corwin, I worked at home and attended various Zoom meetings. I had to participate in the 1:30 and 2 meetings. While they were going on, I wrote a status report on my new project at work–all good news.

Moving back towards lunch, I took Air Volvo to see Susie after reheating two pieces of leftover pizza. The travel across Beaverton was without events, but I did need to refuel Air Volvo. We are still learning how to do gas as Oregon left behind full-service this month to a mix of self and full-service. I pulled into full-service without thinking, and the attendant filed Air Volvo at $4.89 a gallon. Remember, we don’t have a sales tax, and the price is the same for full or self-service (self-service is faster).

Traffic was higher this Wednesday, and I had to be attentive to avoid unplanned stops. I soon arrived safely at Susie’s place at Allegiance Senior Care LLC, 9925 SW 82nd. Ave. Portland (Tigard), OR 97223; phone (503) 246-4116. Susie was thrilled to have me there for a short work-day visit. Soon, Susie, now in her wheelchair, we were sitting on the shady bench near the redwoods and cedars in Metzger Park. I called Susie’s mother, Leta, and Susie’s sister, Barb, on the iPhone using FaceTime to do a three-way call. We had a pleasant call, but a yellow jacket wasp did come to check Susie out. She is just too sweet, I think. I was able to wave it away. It was good to get caught up. Leta and I talked about my upcoming visit to my sister’s wedding. I will try to meet Leta for lunch or breakfast while I am in Michigan for the weekend of 10 September 2023.

I could only stay for a short while as I had Zoom work meetings in the early afternoon I could not miss and needed to be online. After the call, Susie and I finished the tour of the park. I soon delivered Susie back to the hummingbird house, left with a kiss, and took Air Volvo back to the Volvo Cave. Traffic was worse, and I took three times to get through some lights.

I started my day by waking before my alarm and finding the kitchen and heating water for my French Press-made liberal coffee. While the water heated, I climbed into Immobile Schwinn and rode for thirty minutes. Managing to not travel over six miles with some resistance and going at two bars. I watched the ABC News stream on cable while I rode. It is 50% commercials. I might have to buy Bloomberg News.

Next, I made the first Zoom status meeting at 8:05 with a NYC bagel (thanks, Joyce) and cream cheese. I added some peaches from a can to balance out my breakfast. I then did hours of meetings, sneaking a break in for twenty minutes to shower and dress. I did not get another break until after 11:30.

Aside: I wrote a letter to the People’s Republic of China Ambassador to the US about the disappearance of Naomi Wu, Sexy Cyborg. I fit that in during boring Zoom meetings. In my letter, I told Ambassador Xie Feng that Naomi was my hero, and I suggested that she was a great asset. It went out with today’s mail, and I hope it will help.

As I said, I reheated some pizza for lunch and then headed out. And that brings the story full circle…

I paid the bill for Susie’s care. Thanks to Michelle Nixon and her staff for all your good care of Susie! I put the check in a goofy or nice card each month.

Thanks for reading. Please remember Naomi Wu.

Before I start with Tuesday, I should add a few items to Monday.

After I wrote the blog, I stopped by Barnes and Noble–their magazine department is better than Powell’s in Beaverton. There I found the current Fine Modeller issue with an article about the build of a vast (five-foot-long) IJN Yamato 1/200 model. Something I only dream of building (and the matching scale versions of KMS Bismarck and USS Arizona). I also found a copy of Strand, a mystery writer magazine, and a travel book on New Orleans. Depending on events, I plan to make my first visit to the Crescent City in 2024. I also got a fan magazine for Doctor Who as it came with the Doom Comic book I have been buying (#2 is sold out).

Air Volvo took me home with the magazines, travel book, and 1/2 of a pizza from The Rock Wood Fired Pizza. I then returned to my radio project and tried to hot glue the new power board on the inside of the left side of the antique radio box. This failed as the glue bound to the dirty wood was not strong. Eye rolling occurred. I used the matching prototyping board, I had two, and drilled small shallow holes through the stand-off holes. I then counter-sank those with my small drill just fitting in the radio box. Next, I mixed up yet more epoxy (15 min hobby stuff) and glued the brass stand-offs into the holes; and they fell over. More eye-rolling. I then put them in the board holes, and that then held them in place.

I then started to code the new board, M4 Grand Central (from AdaFruit in NYC). And then the serial communication was not available. Well, puke. It seems the incredible and powerful board does not have easy-to-use serial ports. My code will not work, and I will have to configure the ports to make UART connections; oh my, how to do that? It was 11PM, and it was time to head to bed.

Which takes me to Tuesday. I woke before 6AM with it still dark–summer is nearly gone. My arm hurts, and I am enjoying a random pain in my arms (but not my legs) and hands–not cool. I try to roll over and go to sleep. Nope. Have to prove hydration, and then my colon wanted attention–F**k. I pretended to sleep and fell asleep until the next pain woke me. D**n. I rise like an old man and stumble to the kitchen, make hot water with the electric kettle, and work out how to turn on the ABC streaming news on cable, which is about 50% commercials. I then board Immobile Schwinn and go nowhere for thirty minutes and six miles of non-travel. Twice now, I have reached a thirty-minute workout–a personal best, I suspect.

This leaves me with just enough time to make a bagel with cream cheese (again, thanks, Joyce, for the Zabar NYC authentic bagels) paired with some canned peaches in a bowl. Coffee too.

Aside: Grammarly wants all those commas there. I think it is crazy. A bit too staccato for me.

Work begins, and I spend hours in status meetings. As I am working from home these next two weeks (our new Nike WHQ building is not ready for us), I am sleeping in until 7 (at least I try to), exercising, and just making the first meeting at 8:05 AM PDT after making breakfast. I have meetings all morning. I shower and dress at 9:45ish and have some more communications until just before 11AM. I board Air Volvo and head to Susie’s place at Allegiance Senior Care LLC, 9925 SW 82nd. Ave. Portland (Tigard), OR 97223; phone (503) 246-4116.

The trip across Beaverton was eventless, and there were no entanglements with Beaverton’s finest. Susie was excited to see me, and Jennifer popped Susie with envious nonchalance into the wheelchair from her recliner in the shared living room. We headed over to Metzger Park, next door, and found my favorite bench was available, the shady one in the cedars and redwoods. Sitting there and Susie in a wheelchair, we called Leta and Barb (Susie’s mother and sister, respectively) on my iPhone using FaceTime to do a three-way call. Soon everyone was talking, and we had an excellent call. Leta had finished lunch at Panera, and Barb had a late lunch at home.

I could not talk long or stay long. I had a hard stop as I had important work meetings at 1 and 2. So I took Susie for the complete circle and looked at the magnolia tree (no flowers). Jennifer took over as I rolled Susie inside and kissed her goodbye–a usual working day visit. My travel back to the Volvo Cave was also without events, and the traffic was still light.

Another M4 Grand Central from NYC arrived today (a spare, just in case), and some more tools (my small files are aging, so I replaced them). The mail was junk and catalogs. I returned to work online with just a few minutes to spare. I did two more hours of Zoom meetings. I rested for thirty minutes and then moved my Nike laptop to the kitchen.

While making dinner, I listened for the last long status meeting, the 4:35 end-of-shift meeting. I grabbed a frozen broccoli beef from Trader Joe’s and followed instructions while making some rice (only 14 months expired, but it is rice). Rice is not suitable for folks with diabetes, but I am hoping it will not be too bad. The food was spicy, almost too spicy, and the rice created a fire extinguisher effect that I appreciated. The meeting finally ended just as I finished cooking–good timing. I ate the meal while watching The Swedish version of The Girl Who Played With Fire (Extended Edition). This version is far from the Hollywood version (The Girl in the Spider’s Web), and I like it. Recommended. After an extra bowl, or may two, I put away the food for another dinner or lunch.

I made a pot of tea (Sticky Rice Tea which comes in little blocks) and headed into the office to write and work.

While writing, I looked at the alternative to the M4 Grand Central called a Tensey, a more usual Arduino but insanely fast–180 MHz. There is a new version, and I went to their website to order two new ones, 600 Mhz. I am sure I can find a use for them.

Well, I am now caught up on today and Monday; thanks for reading.

 

I woke before my alarm at 7AM with pain in my right hand. This is a new thing, and I am unsure of the cause. I am currently using my hands more for reading and working on my radio project. My hands and toes feel odd after the chemotherapy, so this might be the next round of chemo leftovers. Every day I treat my hands and feet with Utter Smooth with Urea cream, and yes, the cow pee is helping. Recommended.

I was up at 7AM and started the water in the electric kettle to make coffee later in the French Press. Next, I mounted the non-moving Schwinn bike, rode a bit faster (two bars), and did not travel over five miles for thirty minutes. It was my first time reaching my goal of thirty-minute workouts. I then found some yogurt (with fruit) in the frig. I also opened a jar of canned peaches and had three halves with the yogurt, plus liberal coffee.

I was on time for the first status meeting at 8:05 and continued status meetings with a few breaks when they finished early until 9:45. While there were breaks, I read emails and Slack channel updates to catch up. I had powered on the Nike laptop the night before and logged in. All the updates and emails were already downloaded for the week.

I found a break at about 10AM and slipped into the shower. I quickly dressed (including the application of Utter Smooth) and was back online and texted various folks about my new work. I was ready for a break at about 11:30. I watered the roses without soaking my shoes. It has not rained in weeks, and there is no rain in the forecast for the next ten days–regular for us. I started a load of laundry after I discovered somehow I had flooded the shower, and my towels were soaked.

At 11:45ish, I started to chop carrots and celery to add to the lettuce I tore by hand. I added some cheese, olives, croutons, and a can of good tuna. Lunch. Topped with some ranch dressing. I ate that while watching some videos on YouTube (Nerd of the Rings).

Air Volvo, after I boarded, flew me to Susie’s place at Allegiance Senior Care LLC, 9925 SW 82nd. Ave. Portland (Tigard), OR 97223; phone (503) 246-4116. There were no incidents or close calls today; Monday seemed calm with school starting, and the smoke was gone. While still burning, the fires sent their smoke east and not toward us (north). Our skies are still pale blue, showing the air quality is still not great, but I no longer feel my throat burning after talking.

Susie was in her recliner in the shared living room when I arrived. Jennifer, the weekday nursing aide, popped Susie into her wheelchair. We then headed to Metzger Park with the light again clear and white (not the yellow color we see with the smoke). We sat on the shady bench by the cedars and redwoods. Using FaceTime, I called Leta and Barb (Susie’s mother and sister, respectively) on my iPhone to form a three-way call. Everyone was happy to see each other and us out in the park. The park was busy but not packed like it was on the weekend. We had a friendly chat and then, after ringing off, finished the loop through the park and back to the hummingbird house. A yellow jacket wasp did land on Susie a few times, but I managed to wave it off before it did any harm.

Once back, Jennifer sat Susie in bed, and I put on M.A.S.H. for Susie. I set up my Nike laptop and Apple and sat in the overstuffed chair doing work items. I had to stop M.A.S.H. for one call, but other than that, Susie was awake and enjoying M.A.S.H. while I worked next to her. Jennifer also brought in an Ensure, and I helped Susie finish that as a snack. We are always looking to get a few more calories into Susie. I finished at 4PM and headed home with a kiss and a promise to return on Tuesday. I always pull up the gate and set up the crash pad before I leave.

Air Volvo then steered a course for The Rock Wood Fired Pizza, and there I had a pizza, salad, and a brewed product, a red ale. I was hungry and thought an early dinner would be good as I have an 8PM meeting with India tonight.

Meg was my waiter in the bar, and soon I had my favs and was writing this blog.

And that, dear reader, is where the story ends for Monday. Thank you for reading.