Author: alohawild

I still am tired and coughing more now. The inhailers are helping, and it is more sinus than anything in my lungs. I also have to use my inhaler more often, but I don’t see any symptoms of Covid or anything else going around. I have been here before in the winter.

I woke before my alarm, and then it blasted me out of bed on this work-from-home Friday when I fell back to sleep for thirty minutes. My first meeting was a team meeting at 7:30 to better include our India team members, so I had enough time to make coffee and start some hard-boiled eggs for breakfast.

The status meetings went on for two hours. I tried to be a positive influence, and now the presentations show how many days behind we are on the testing and data conversions. I would always ask as others wanted to know the same thing.

After the status meetings, I did stretching exercises and rode Susie’s stationary bike for six minutes. I had read the instructions this time and did less of some of the more strenuous exercises. Again, I did not feel any pain, just a few muscles complaining–nothing serious.

I showered and got dressed. I did the dishes. I stripped the bed and washed the blankets (which will go on all day as many blankets take a while to dry). I then grabbed my ladder and replaced the faulty light fixture in the hallway (just like the last one). The new one was an upgrade on the previous models–I saw more capacitors (two in a series) and even a plastic cover over the electronics.

The installation was the usual trying to hold things while attaching them. You need three or four arms to manage. Then, the house wire broke, and I had to strip it. After that, I managed without issue to get the fixture replaced (no zaps). But, in the end, I installed all the wires, and the fixture worked.

The new fixture is slightly brighter than the other one, and when powered off, the LED lights slowly bleed off the capacitors for a moment creating a more pleasing look. This also means the flicker I have faced twice will not likely happen to this version. Next, because they are different models, the likelihood that one of the fixtures will generate an AC current slightly out of phase with the AC in the wall and cause a flicker is near zero. I am hopeful the problem is solved (also, that many capacitors in an AC circuit will likely help suppress any stability from the grid–All good).

Next, I collected Corwin’s mail–just some of it is still coming to the house–and his Christmas present (a small picture of a US historical figure on a small piece of paper in a card) and headed to Hawaiian Kine Bar-B-Q nearby. I gave the mail and card in a large envelope to be given to Corwin, who was working and then ordered Uncle Biggie for lunch which is orange flavored chicken and excellent BBQ chicken. I got a text from Corwin later in the day apologizing for not contacting me sooner. Glad to hear from him!

Next, I crossed Beaverton to see Susie. I was following along on my iPhone with Nike and the testing and data conversions. It is a busy day full of critical paths that, if late, will make us later. I arrived with Air Volvo undamaged after enjoying heavy traffic on Friday at Susie’s place.

Susie was in her recliner sleeping while Blue Bloods was running on the large TV. I awoke her, and she was delighted to see me. I then went to the car and got her some remaining Christmas wear and a few other favorites. One is a tiny poncho that is close to something that Clint Eastwood would wear. Susie likes the outlaw look.

Susie and I opened the next day on her Advent Calendar and were rewarded with another candy–not very good this time. Next, we called Susie’s mother, Leta, and chatted with her for a while. Leta is still planning on making cookies and fudge next week to send to Susie. After we rang off, we called Susie’s sister, Barb, who was happy to be off from work and was grocery shopping. Barb and Susie chatted for a while and exchanged intelligence and logistic information on gifts inflight.

Soon I had to travel and left Susie with a kiss. I was amazed to find a four-car pile-up at the Hall Boulevard intersection. It is only thirty mph, and I am not sure they did that. Seeing that I am very attentive, and when someone in the right lane slammed their brakes and another car suddenly shared my lane, I crossed the yellow line without any cars coming at me to avoid scraping paint.

I stopped next at the hobby store to get some modeling supplies, Tammie’s. I needed some putty for a model I am working on. I also got the latest Fine Modeler magazine; the painting suggestions are invaluable for modeling and figure painting.

Next, it was only thirty minutes to my PT appointment. So I headed to Bethany. I checked the messages and emails at work and then read Fine Modeler for a few minutes. After that, I checked in for my appointment.

My appointment with Michael today was about an hour. Michael decided to keep it mostly to exercises today as I had hurt a bit last week. So they added another exercise to my group of four already. I was tired after that and all of the travel and traffic. So it was a long but careful process today.

While driving back, I saw a house door fall out of a truck on 185th (!?), and cars were making emergency lane changes to avoid smashing into it. So I parked the car with the hazard light on just off of 185th, walked out into the traffic, which stopped for me, dragged the now broken brand new door out of the street, got in Air Volvo, and went home. I plugged in the lights for the evening–they look marvelous.

Back to work online. I rested for a few minutes but got up and made tea to help with the cough and to wake up more. The last meeting was at 4:35 and was a bit gloomy as we had to assign work over the weekend. Meetings will continue with the work on the weekend. But I think we managed to get some clarity, and though folks will work the weekend, it will not be 7/24, and there is room for breaks. So that brightened things a bit.

I heated up the leftover couscous, North African sauce, gnocchi, and some wilted green beans for dinner. Mariah told me to retry The Umbrella Academy on Netflix and wait until the third episode before stopping. The second episode was great, and I look forward to the next one.

While watching this, I got a text from Mariah asking about meeting in the Pearl for dinner and beer. I was tired and had already eaten, so I passed tonight to enjoy

Another Advent day song: I was listening to Sting today, and here is his Christmas song: Here.

I awoke a few minutes before my alarm, and it is my bad habit to fall completely asleep three minutes before it startled me awake. I started to get out of bed but actually fell asleep half out of bed. I managed to get started without getting hurt.

I had no pain, so I did my stretching exercises and managed five minutes on Susie’s stationary bike, which is now adjusted to fit me–the pencil marks are still there for Susie’s settings. I also had some sudden colon exiting but managed to have no spills. I would have a few more of these events without any tragic results.

I had the last bagel-like bread product for breakfast with French Press liberal coffee. I will have to grocery shop soon. It was a rushed morning, but the first meeting was at 8:30, not 8 like the other rushed days, so I got some slack and left at 7:45.

I did manage to play connect the school buses as I was later. I reached the Clubhouse building at the shoe company without issue and soon enjoyed ninety minutes of Zoom meetings. After that, I had a short break and more meetings. I had a lunch meeting WHQ campus, so I headed out after 11 to get parked and walk across from the NYC garage to the Serena Williams building. I had lunch there, a salad from the salad bar.

I sat in the lobby for a bit. It is pretty nice.

Next, I walked again in the light Oregon mist across campus for fifteen minutes to the NYC garage. I park on the third floor by the elevators. I headed to Susie’s place in the early afternoon.

Susie was in her chair in the living room with Blue Bloods, her fav, on the big TV. I got her Advent Calendar, and we had a gummy candy for the day. Susie got just a taste. Susie was doing better today; she was wide awake and talkative. Next, we called Leta, Susie’s mother, and chatted with her for a bit. We discovered she had no spare in her car. For Christmas, we will buy her a spare tire–she will check with the dealership on how to get one and how much. Leta worries about getting flat and having few options without a spare.

I left Susie with a kiss and headed to the Volvo Cave. Along the way, I refueled Air Volvo, a conventional car, noticing another twenty-cent reduction in cost.

I stopped by the pharmacy and got some old-school cards that hold money. I address the cards while listening to meetings and following along on Slack. I got the gifts out in the mailbox tonight. Done!

I ordered more gifts for folks between meetings.

I did a written review of Technical Design which I have not done in years.

The last meeting was a get-to-green meeting to catch up on testing almost a week behind. Our team will likely be working this weekend, dealing with data loading issues.

After that, I made dinner; I made gnocchi with couscous sauce from a bottle but made in Noth African style with lemons, olives, and capers. I made couscous to go with it. I just poured the sauce over it, which was terrific.

I watched more Doctor Who season six with Matt Smith. I enjoy his crazy Doctor, and the storylines are working this season for him and Karen Gillian. Night Terrors, the episode I watched, is quite scary.

And then I got a text from Mariah and headed out to Portland and Hopworks for a beer and a snack with her. I was happy to meet her there and enjoyed a beer and a friendly chat. I gave her a Christmas gift (wrapped).

I headed back at 9ish, and while the traffic was light, folks flew down the highways at 80+ mph speeds in 50 mph posted streets. I managed to not scrape the pain on Air Volvo when passed on both sides.

I returned home, put out the trash, and wrote the blog. I have yet to do my stretching.

For day eight of Advent, I will pick the Grinch song.

Today I heard on the radio the voice of a man, 101 years old, that was a sailor on the USS Arizona when the battleship was destroyed on 7Dec1941. Americans always pause on this day to remember the day; even though most of us were not born yet when the attack happened, it is something carved into the collective memory of most Americans. I always notice the day and hear some new memory of the battle most years.

The day started with pain. I had overdone the stretching or the exercising, and there was back pain. I decided to take a break today. I had slept poorly as I had vivid dreams of staying at a hotel for some reason. The hotel got dirtier and more bug infested with each loop of the dream. At the end of the dream, the hotel manager was a vampire, and I was trying to leave before he “got me.” I was not relaxed when I woke.

It was a work-from-the-office day, so I was rushed to get ready. I noticed the pain and decided to stop today on excises and stretch and see if I felt better. The pain is gone now. I think it was a good choice. I finished the cereal box while making breakfast with some liberal coffee I made in the French Press.

I got through the emails, texts, and Slack messages for work and my personal accounts. Next, I showered and dressed. I was out the door a bit early. I was at the shoe company with plenty of time to start the reviews and status meetings. I spent the meeting reviewing some items, revising a PowerPoint, and handling a few crises of the moment.

I headed out at 11ish to see Susie at the hummingbird house. Air Volvo got me there with no issues in light traffic. Susie was in her bed; they were having trouble with the screen in the shared living room, so Susie was lying down and watching Miracle on 32nd Street on her TV in her room.

Susie was sleepy. We called her mother, Leta, and chatted for a while on my iPhone. Susie nodded off but managed to wake up, and we had a pleasant chat on FaceTime. We also remembered the Advent Calendar, and Susie had a tiny piece of caramel from one of the doors we opened. We are caught up now and have some chocolates to try. I forgot the fruit cake slices I got her–the fruit cake I ordered on her request has arrived, and I cut a few slices for her. We will have to be careful when she gets a tiny piece. Susie was soon falling asleep. I left with a kiss.

Next, I stopped by the bank to get pictures of presidents and postmasters as gifts for folks. I will try to send these out soon.

I got lunch, thinking of Susie, at Red Robins, where Susie used to get lunch all the time when she took the bus. They are still trying to get back to normal but were short-staffed today, and I was ignored for ten minutes. When Jen, my waiter, spotted me, I ordered a cobb salad and some fries, which arrived promptly. It was nice to sit down for lunch and visit again with a bartender, Jen (she had tables and the bar). I thanked the folks at Red Robin when I was leaving and was introduced to the General Manager. I told them how happy I was to get a chance to eat there again.

I miss having a beer and lunch at Red Robins with Susie and the bartenders. Susie would get bourbon and ginger ale.

I returned to work after that and worked the afternoon, skipping the Christmas Party as my master data folks were covering for test builds; I stayed with them to help. I took the 4:35 status and get-to-green Zoom meeting (we are trying to catch up after being behind by about three days–depending on how you count it).

Once the status meeting was done, I headed to Old Town Beaverton. It is Wednesday, so I meeting Zophia, Dondrea’s daughter, at the church to play games while the band and choir practice. Traffic was horrid, and I was stuck on Walker Road for twenty minutes for a usual five-minute traversal. I reached the church at about 6.

Zophia was brave and decided to give Brass: Lancashire a go. This is a cut-throat resource management and worker placement board game with minimal space, meaning the players will be in conflict. The board game is in its second printing through a Kickstarter project. Thus the artwork is excellent, the components good, and the rules and play debugged. This is the more brutal version of Brass, and I like it better.

Zophia’s head nearly exploded when I reviewed how the game was played. There is a lot to get straight. The turns flow logically, and Zophia knew it was hard and a learning game. So we just played through it, and soon she ran her turn without my help. Zophia also saw how the game can be mean (your turn may remove options from another player and foil their plans). She nearly tied me for the first epic and crushed me (I was not paying enough attention) at the finish. Yes, I was crushed by an 11-year-old playing Brass!

Brass is not something I recommend to casual or new board gamers. It is harsh and punishes mistakes (like not taking out that last loan before loan giving stops), and you often take a turn back as you see you are missing some resources after you start changing things on the board–this can be frustrating. But, it is an elegant game, and you feel the theme of building an empire in the Industrial Revolution in the UK. “I just need another coal mine to build those trains,” you often think. It is a favorite, #20 of all games at BoardGameGeek (its lighter version, Brass: Birmingham, is #2 for all games). I love playing it.

After that, I went home and had a bagel-like product. This is because I have to have some food with my meds. I then wrote the blog.

Today, we had moderate air quality, but I felt it all day, and my breathing was laborious a few times. Another reason to pass on exercise.

Today’s Advent song is Hark the Angels Sing, a new take.

Going backward, I just started on the blog after resubmitting a more detailed invoice from Allegiance Senior Care, also called by me the hummingbird house, to see if the reimbursement of medical expenses will accept the more detailed invoice. I am getting ready for next year and want to use my reimbursement account next year, on the advice of the CPA I used last year, to cover the first part of Susie’s expenses. I am trying to write off in my taxes part of the expenses and therefore need IRS-level detailed invoices. I will work with the Forest Grove Rehab and Care Center to get the same documentation.

Before this, I made dinner, chicken Cordon Blu from Schwann’s, green beans from Schwann’s, and some noodles. I wilted the beans in a pan with butter, almond slices, and garlic salt. I wilt the beans as they a frozen and need a little more kick to make them good. The noodles, which I have tried before, were a failure. Just not a good product.

I watched the last episode of Wednesday on Netflix while eating, and it did not hold back. The character Wednesday is so cold that she is sometimes hard to like, but she never breaks character–so it works–and she would not care what you thought. I was happy with the series and sorry to see the last episode. Recommended!

Before cooking, I walked in the cold dark street and back as part of my exercises. It was just too cold to go any further. I will ride the bike later tonight and do my stretching. The pain is mostly in my back, with only a little in my right leg. I was told that when the pain centralizes is a good thing.

Before this, I left Nike at about 4PM and took Air Volvo home. I had no issues, but the traffic was heavy, and I took an alternative way home to avoid the long lines to turn onto 185th. I plugged in the lights when I got home. Chris, my next-door neighbor, put up the lights for me. Large icicles of various colors that look like the colors drip down the icicles hanging below the gutters. It is pretty festive.

I was at work before this, working on two issues and helping with a few crises. I was busy, as usually happens in December, rushing until the break. We are running two tests over each other using all the same people. It is going a bit rough.

I can’t go into detail here, but I was busy writing up recommendations and decisions on software design today.

I managed to visit Susie between meetings and crises of the moment. I drove over to the hummingbird house without issue in surprisingly light traffic without problems or witnessing any extra-legal driving. Susie was just finishing her breakfast, and we headed to the social room–it was cooler and damp than yesterday, so we decided not to visit the park today. Leta, Susan’s mother, was in a minor crisis as she lost one of her hearing aid and could not chat for long. Leta did recover it later after retracing her day. As we could not speak with Leta for long, we called Susan’s sister, Barb, and we chatted with her for a while. Susie was delighted to talk to her sister. We talked for a while until Barb, still at work, needed to ring off.

I failed to take a picture today or catch up on the Advent Calendar. I will try to remember on Wednesday. I stopped by Carl’s Jr and had a Western burger, a guilty pleasure.

My day, moving further back, started at 6:15, with me rushing my morning. I had the usual dream that I was back in college and trying to find the classes in a dream-logic mix of Nike WHQ and a poorly remembered Central Michigan University campus. I was wound up this morning. I managed coffee, liberal and French Press, and cereal for breakfast. I was at work before 8 to make all my meetings in the office.

Thank you for reading.

For Advent, day six, I picked the number one disliked Christmas song for a likely inaccurate poll: Santa Baby. I like it.

I remember hearing a comedian saying one year that they felt like they were wing stalked by the song Sleigh Ride. “Every time I stop, I hear it,” was the joke. When I hear it, I smile now, thinking about being stalked by it.

 

 

 

Monday was a later start at 7ish, and me trying to find my way in the morning. I was a bit confused at first as I had a ‘Walk Thru Nike’ meeting at 7:30, but that was a review of software design with our friends in India working on a complex interface. But for a moment, I thought I was supposed to be on a tour of the world headquarters campus (it is stellar), but no, this meeting was a strangely worded review meeting invitation. Nevertheless, I managed to get coffee and breakfast ready before the meeting.

I also read the Technical Design (TD) document before the meeting. It was a mad rush. Many points were raised, and, as usual, that birthed another early morning meeting on Tuesday. I did review the TD in the afternoon and supplied some off-line feedback as the folks are from India, and the scheduling is tricky.

The regular status meetings happened, and I did my stretching exercises and then spent five minutes on the stationary bike with the Nike laptop next to me, listening to the meetings. All these help unlock the muscles in my back and other places.

I had to stop attending the usual Monday morning status meetings, clean up, and dress, and instead, attend Physical Therapy in Bethany. I took Air Volvo and was just a few minutes early. Colin was my therapist today, and he went over my experiences so far and can register some improvements–I am less frozen when I walk.

He was doing some stretching which involved a belt across my legs. I said deadpan, “I usually pay extra for this,” which did get a laugh. Colin then misspoke and said the next part would be painful instead of his usual painless. I told him he was getting into the Addam Family PT theme (he is also watching the new show Wednesday on Netflix). Next, we discussed staying in Addams family theme, that Uncle Fester was getting the bone saw to help me be more flexible. Better to release the locked muscles. Colin suggested that Uncle Fester was “rusting” the saw, which was why he was delayed in my therapy.

I have new exercises and had quite a workout. I headed home as it was still morning when I finished after 10AM. I was back to work, trying to reschedule some items and working on a few crises.

Next, I put aside the Nike laptop for a few minutes, took Air Volvo to the local strip mall, and got a chicken bowl and a side of shrimp. I ate that while watching a YouTube video on one of my favorite channels, The Battleship New Jersey. They had a video of the one known hull leak they had with the museum ship. It was in a steam condenser, usually made of non-ferrous metal (this one was steel, surprisingly), and the dissimilar metals were causing corrosion. One of the issues old warship wrecks have is people cutting them open illegally and stealing the condensers. I have read about that for the wrecks from WW1 Jutland. So it was interesting to see one, even a WW2-styled one.

Next, I headed to see Susie and forgot to do the Advent Calendar when I got there. Susie was finishing her lunch when I got there. She was finished, actually pushing her wheelchair out. We then got Susie’s coat and headed outside to the park. I wanted to get Susie out of the hummingbird house, and I had no meetings left, so I could spend extra time doing the park.

The park is well cared for but still looks sleepy as it changes to winter and the rains. One of the cedars is brown, and I think it is a Bald Cyprus and suppose to lose its needles (leaves). There were a few dogs, as dogs are welcome (on a leash).

We found a place with some sun and called Susie’s mother, Leta. Leta and Susie chatted for a while, with me adding a few comments here and there. Today, as Susie was all bundled up, I held the phone for Susie. I had to put on my gloves as it was 47F (8C), but there was no wind, and the sun was out–so a good day to be outside in Oregon. Soon Susie was cold, and we rang off. I got Susie back, stopping at the car as Susie recognized Air Volvo, and then got a kiss goodbye.

Aside: Ensure is now being delivered by the pharmacy. I will not have to buy it and deliver it. Also, it is now part of the pharmacy bill, and the doctor’s order to use it makes it likely that I could write off the expense next year.

I returned to the Volvo Cave without issue. I was feeling exhausted from all the workouts and travel. I got home, checked in on the Nike laptop, and crashed for an hour. After that, I was back up, checked in, and then made dinner.

I reheated the tacos and taco meat left from a few days ago. I cut up lettuce and added olives, cheese, and sour cream to the leftover to make a killer taco salad. I watched episode 5 of Wednesday on Netflix, and this one disappointed me, but I am hoping this was just building more storyline. I still love the show. Recommended.

After that, I rested again and was out at 6PM to the Wildwood Taphouse to write the blog and maybe work on my Dungeons and Dragon Adventure. I need to adjust to let it end at the next gaming session. Next year we will be changing to Spell Jammer, so just one more session for my stuff. Cutting it to a short one or two sessions adventure is fun. Seldom have I written a short adventure–a challenge.

Thanks for reading.

Today’s Advent song is The Carol of the Bells. This version is as if this song was played in a war zone, a very dark version: Carol of the Bells. I think of the folks in Ukraine who are living this.