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Sleep was wrecked the previous night, and I finally slept about 5, waking a few times and rolling over. At 8:30ish, I finally rose, feeling the mopping and vacuuming in my back, legs, and arms. I found the kitchen and my usual chair in front of my Apple M2 Air Macbook 2023 24G memory 2T solid-state storage (called out if you are wondering, dear reader, what I use now); nothing moved. I made breakfast and started to write. The NYC bagel from Zabar’s on 79th (thanks, Joyce) was split and then toasted before cream cheese was applied. Coffee was again locally ground and roasted from Hillsboro. A banana was forgotten while I spent hours writing.

Yesterday’s blog was over 2,000 words, and I started to write it after nine, late. I also read the news (all good for liberals like me), downloaded my financial transactions into Quicken, and corrected the stock to show 500 newly purchased shares of Ford (which promptly went down). Ford currently pays a 6% dividend but failed to pay that during the Great Depression, making investors wary that Ford would cut or stop the dividend. While I believe the people running Ford are not crazy, others are less sure.

I wrote until the afternoon when I used the last of the Pine-sol cleaner in the mopping bucket and mopped the second large section of tiles that lead into the kitchen (which looks much better now). I had to do the dishes to clear the kitchen sink to run water for the bucket, and to dump dirty water when mopping. I also mopped the entranceway, leaving just the section of my work table and writing area to be mopped. The water was dark when I finished just those sections. Yes, I need to do this more often.

Air Quality was rated to green, but the smell, Mount Hood missing in the smoke, and irritates in the smoke kept me inside all day. I was sneezing and coughing inside the filtered air-conditioned safety of The Volvo Cave. I stripped the bed and washed the sheets. I risked a short trip to Safeway and acquired more Pine-sol, dishwasher soap squares, and paper towels (all things I missed in the last two trips). I was coughing, and my eyes burned from the air. I unloaded Air Volvo and retreated to my sanctum, The Volvo Cave.

Lunch was delayed, so it would also fill in as an early dinner. I made a grilled cheese (gouda) and ham. This is fried in butter, and a lid is used with water in a section of the hot pan towards the end of browning the bread, not near the sandwich, to heat the sandwich through. I cut the sandwich into squares so each is a little sandwich. Susie used to save one of the little sandwiches for later. I would hear her yelling at Corwin if he found her tiny square and thought it was up for grabs.

There was a tear as I looked at dinner, but it was a good memory. It is a blessing to remember those you have lost at a meal; meals have always been holy in human experiences, even when we don’t have time to remember them. I had some coleslaw (another Susie fav) with the sandwich.

I returned to SMS Derfflinger and started to paint the parts still on the plastic holders, sprue, and some of the etched brass. I used the hull color XF-66 Light Grey for some items and then went back and painted them the correct color, XF-19 Sky Grey. The Imperial German Navy, which lasted until 1919, painted their ships generally in two colors: a sea grey that matched the North Sea and a lighter grey that matched the mist. There was limited air use, so the decks were still bright wood and dark Linoleum (XF-79) for raised areas. When I corrected the grey color, the second lighter coat became easier and looked good.

I also looked into cutting a rifle from one of the unused parts of my American Civil War figures (yes, another unfinished project) for Scott to use in Dungeons and Dragons (his composite character uses a magic gun-like weapon). When I cut the rifle free from the holding arm (I have plenty of spares as Perry’s models are composed of various parts and poses, leaving lots of spares), but broke it. The plastic is too thin at the stock to cut free. I will bring spare arms and see if we can use the arm and rifle together on the figure (Matt V and I are good at bashing figures and models). We play D&D on Sunday night.

With some modeling done, I wish to make some progress every day. I headed out to Richard’s in Portland. The traffic was moderate, but the driving was not moderate. I witnessed more fascinating lane changes and desperation driving. I arrived early.

Air Volvo was just recently repaired after an Engine Check light appeared. I was disappointed to see the light back today after crossing Portland. Air Volvo will need to be back to the repair shop and with some family visiting next week, this is quite poorly timed. As my sister said, buying a new Volvo would be easier than getting an appointment to repair it. Last time, the dealership could not fit me in for two months, so I will return to the local mechanic who almost fixed it last time.

Richard was taking a walk, so I waited outside. The air seemed better in Portland, but soon, I started coughing, and my asthma would become uncontrolled later. F**k.

It was just the two of us as everyone else was busy with visitors or other reasons. We tried a new game, Aquatica, that Richard purchased after hearing good things about it. This is a fast deck-building and card-collecting game with some clever and easy-to-learn techniques for running your play area. We played two games, with the second game being more intense as I was ahead until Richard found a way to pull ahead using a card we had not seen before. The game ends abruptly and is quite short, and I found myself ten or more points behind Richard, but I enjoyed the game and would play it again. I might have to purchase this one as it is fast and easy to learn.

We got out the cooperative board game Unsettled from Air Volvo’s cargo hold. In this game, your ship has landed (crashed) on an unexplored planet. You need to do tasks to escape/survive. We played the Grakkis planet, which plays much differently than the first easy planet, and introduced some new mechanics. There are many planets, and each one resets the game to give it a new experience. The base box has two planets; I have a pile of extra planets and some add-ons from the last two Kickstarters. More fun and exploration; “try not to die” is the game motto.

My plan to stay together was wrong, and the risks on this planet were defined by the storm and not by random events of nodes (locations). We could have been more efficient and less risk-averse; we failed mission A (we died) by three moves. We had some other options that could have given us more time, and we could have split up. Next time. It took us two stressful hours of desperate trying to survive Grakkis. We had a few rules issues as I had not played the game in about six months.

Richard was already plotting the next game of Unsettled with Grakkis; I look forward to playing again. I headed home after chatting for a while with Richard. My coughing worsened, and I did not want to take a broken Air Volvo across the Portland bridges late, so I headed out before 11. Air Volvo had no issues and crossed the high-flying on-ramp and the tunnel as usual.

At home, the cough was worse, and I was pumping in my emergency inhaler, and my breathing soon stabilized. I showered and made the bed. I am reading The Berlin Stories by Christopher Isherwood, which is the basis for the musical Carberet. These stories are dark and strange, and the writing is almost cruel to the characters. More to follow. I started to dream of Berlin instead of reading, put the book away, turned off the light, and crawled into my covers.

With the breathing issues gone, I was exhausted (likely the cause of some of the coughing). I soon fell deeply asleep and did not wake until after 5 a.m.

Thanks for reading!

Going backward, I could not sleep. I took Benadryl for hives, and that stopped the itching, but that left me wired. Ugh! I think I managed a few hours of sleep.

Before that problem, I had been with Dondrea, Michael, and Jack on MAX, coming from the Chinatown stop to Beaver Creek. I was dressed in a boater hat (a recent purchase), a red vest with a pocket watch, and a tie. Dondrea was in a black dress, a loose jacket, and flats. Michael was Oregon casual. Jack looked great.

We met Ashley in Portland about 8 at Darcelle XV LLC, the longest-running Drag Show in the world (57 years). This is in a cramped older building, and I imagine it looks better late at night. One of the queens later said that they look better after a few drinks, and I think that is true of the single room with a small stage wedged in. To that end, Ashley bought the first round, and Jack bought us tickets (thanks to both). I believe I paid for my second drink. Sober was not a state to be in for a Portland drag show. I also purchased a stack of one-dollar bills from one of the queens to use as tips and distributed this to our group throughout the show. They were giving mostly away by the end of the show.

The show started with monitors playing RuPaul’s announcement that Darcelle XV LLC was the longest-running Drag Show in the world. Next, the show started with an intro dance routine, and we saw this was mostly a lip-sync show with routines that matched familiar and often sing-along rock songs. The MC of the show then asked about birthdays, events, and weddings and spent time letting people be called out. The show resumed.

The dancers, all Queens and made up to the max, were a mix of older and heavier gals and some younger, strong dancers. The songs were matched to the skills and looks. I knew most of them and was sang out loud for the Abba songs with hands in the air waving. There were lighted wings, and other Las Vegas looks. There was a pause, and the second half started. This half had a more rushed and sexy tone. There were some pushing the limits with fake genitalia that I thought was funny, surprising, and just enough to say, “Honey, you are at a Drag Show; get over it.”

I would say this is (a 21+ show) recommended for a fun night in Portland with friends who will not forget that it is a local Drag Show and not Las Vegas. The drinks were heavy on cheap booze, and it tasted of it. There is food on the menu, including a Darcelle Cheeseburger, which I did not try. It reminded me of a typical old-school dive.

Jack did much of the footwork and we all had a great time. Thanks, Jack.

Before this, we met at the MAX station at 6:45 and boarded the MAX into Portland. I still have the HOP app, as Michael did. We helped Dondrea get a day pass. We spent much of the trip chatting. I was next to Michael, and we talked about ancient history, as we often do. Michael was curious if I believed that Troy was a real place and that the stories about Troy were based on real events in Homer and other ancients. My take is that the Hittites should have matching stories in their ruins; Troy would have been in their empire, and so far, nobody has produced a Hittite text. It is hard to accept Troy as real if all we have are one-sided Greek legends. I also doubt that the current heavily dug sight of Troy is correctly identified as Troy.  I believe more work is needed in Turkey to explore this further.

MAX was familiar to me, and I helped our group know where they were and got us to the correct station.

Before MAX and Darcelle XV LLC, I was at the Volvo Cave. Due to the moderate air quality warning, I stayed inside for the day. I spent the morning, rising at 8ish, writing a very long blog. For breakfast, I had a NYC bagel (thanks, Joyce) with cream cheese. I added some locally ground and roasted coffee and a banana to finish off breakfast. I was not hungry until the later afternoon.

I washed out my mopping bucket and soon mopped the kitchen floor, which needed attention. This was my workout instead of walking in the smokey air. I was breathing pretty heavily by the time I reached the limits of the small kitchen floor. The bucket water was dark. Yes, I need to do this on a more regular basis! I will mop the other floors in the next few days. Next, I vacuumed all the carpet. I did not move the furniture. It was not a perfect vacuum job, but the amount of dust removed was significant. I did run over something that made the vacuum unhappy, but I could not find it, and soon, the mechanical screaming stopped, and I was back to pushing it around.

After that, I cleaned the toilets and sinks and the window and woodwork around the wall in the smaller bathroom. The Volvo Cave has a main bath with a tub and a half bath off of the master bedroom (14,800 square feet, three bedrooms, 1.5 baths, two-car garage—somehow always getting smaller–and currently valued at an inflated $475,000). I will mop the bathrooms and clean showers and tubs soon.

With that done, I was sweaty and covered in dust and cleaning stuff. I took a shower, dressed, and was ready for the rest of the day in a Star Wars T-shirt and brown pants. I found a lunch of cold chicken and some Jambalaya leftovers for lunch. I am happy to report my weight fell to 230 for a moment.

I decided to do some more work on SMS Derfflinger 1916 as I would not have time this evening. It is important to try to complete something every day. I managed to fold tiny brass and glue some of the assemblies together with my special cement, G-S Hypo Cement, often used in watches and jewelry. I have completed all the assemblies. There are many tiny wicked parts to go, but I was happy to get through the assemblies. This is concentration to the max, and I usually only do this for an hour at a time.

Next, I rested until 5ish and then changed into my dress clothes for the show. I reheated a left over white potato, cooked, and had that with some sour cream and cheese and a cup of apple sauce as a light dinner. I took Air Volvo, with my new hat, to Beaver Creek MAX. And there we have connected back and finished Friday’s story.

Thanks for reading.

I slept into 8 and nearly 8:30 on Thursday morning. Smoke was here, and the air was of moderate quality, and I could feel my throat and lungs reacting. I had trouble sleeping as my legs became itchy again. I found the kitchen (it had not moved) and made locally ground and roasted coffee in my French Press. I had another scone from a bakery in Hillsboro and a banana with the coffee. I spent the morning writing the blog for Wednesday and all the usual reading of news (mostly political), downloading transactions for Quicken, checking the purchase of 500 more shares of Ford (F) as part of my liquid assets, and other morning online tasks.

As often happens, the morning just disappeared in a puff of writing, light Internet surfing, and breakfast. I am always surprised to find the morning over. In this case, I had lunch with Scott and was only fifteen minutes early. Even when I am not trying, I am often early. Strategy and Tactics’ new regular issue had a new war game; they publish a new military game every quarter, and this one covered the siege of Jerusalem 70AD, a topic of interest to me. I used to have a subscription, but I never found time to play even a tenth of the games and gave away most to GoodWill. I have just a few favorites. I was reading the story and rules while I waited.

Scott soon arrived, and we found lunch at Elephants Delicatessen. I had my usual tuna fish heated sandwich with a slice of cheese. Scott went for two types of salads (a noodle and pasta), and that looked good. I may go that way next time. We caught up and covered our matching experience of investing in liquid investments. We both went with CDs as easy and high enough interest. I will look again at bonds and bills from the treasury as Scott saw higher rates than I did, but I was in inflation-adjusted stuff, and I suspect it pays much less.

We talked about our projects with Scott, who was disappointed that his scaffolding purchase had been mangled and only comes in partial deliveries, doing all those house things that accumulate. I, too, have a list of things that need to be done, but my loss of balance on the left side precludes me from climbing ladders and lifting things. Falling is always bad, but it is very bad for someone only less than ninety days from gaining a metal plate on the side of his head. No ladders and the project can wait, or I will have a local guy handle them.

There was other news, all good, but that is Scott’s story to tell. We were happy and finding things to do. I voiced my concern to Scott, saying that I was planless and felt slightly guilty just doing what I wanted. Scott suggested that I should drop the guilt. We will skip next week.

From there, I took Highway 26, which had surprisingly slow traffic mixed with hell-bent driving (Air Volvo goes fast), which made for some interesting stops and starts and sudden lane changes. I did not trip any alarms on Air Volvo. I took the folky-named Jackson School Road exit and then connected to locally named and unhelpful names like Old Church Road, which has an actual old church on it. Washington County has decided that traffic circles are safer and has installed three now on the back way to Forest Grove. Signs to Forest Grove do not appear until about halfway there and thus will not help anyone who needs them. I think the signs are there to help the locals remember which new turn on the new circle they take instead of just turning left like they used to.

Linda, my sister, texted me that there was a tsunami warning, but none of my usual warnings were kicking. The warning was local to the Far East, but Japanese officials did send out the first ever, according to reports, mega-quake warning. They feared that the 7-point quake would be followed by a massive quake. An 8-9+ point earthquake would create a tsunami that would smash up Oregon and the US West Coast, but this did not materialize. When you live on the Ring of Fire, paying attention to this stuff is important. Oregon will kill you if you don’t respect it, and it has many imaginative ways to do this (sharks, “sneaker” waves, fires, mudslides, floods, heat, and so on). There is always a toolbox, jump cables, and a first aid kit in the Air Volvo.

Enjoying the views of all the farms and curved roads that should be straighter in my Midwestern thinking, I connected to Forest Grove and soon parked Air Volvo, again, a surprise, right in front of the gaming place. The staff told me they were too busy to play games (I was disappointed), but I decided to finish reading my Strategy and Tactics Magazine and game issue in a chair at an unused gaming table. Ray finished his work, and soon, I was teaching him the easy and fast game of Furnace, the base game. My wait paid off. We used the matt I have for the game, too. Ray soon started running his own factories and bidding without help. I fumbled the last two turns and lost by just over ten points.

Furnace is one of the games I purchased after playing multiple games with Richard–I loved it. It is cheap, has a tiny footprint, and has an add-on that allows you to add more options once the brain-melt of the layered strategy of the base game wears off (for much more brain-melt with the add-ons). This is one of the most basic engine-building and resource-management games I have ever played, and it simulates building your own industrial base and using resources to power it. The winner is the player with the most money–yes, perfectly capitalistic. The bidding system allows for complex planning, too, and some bluffing, and, in a two-person game, chance-taking. The add-on includes new bidding options and more complex factory functions, which are fun, but you need to master the base game before approaching the add-on! Furnace is recommended, but find someone to teach you and then enjoy. I also find new players win (Ray and Dondrea both won in their first games).

Ray took my phone number and will let me know when he is free for some more games. I was relieved to hear him mention his girlfriend, as I did not want any confusion about roles. I am just here to play games.

Next, I headed into Forest Grove Old Town’s hot, 91F (32.7C) streets. I found a straw hat that fits from a Maryland-based hat shop, Hats in the Belfry, which Susie and I visited back when we lived there (1988-1996). It was only $15; this Italian-made version sells for about $200 new. I spent the rest of my day in Forest Grove with my new hat.

I looked for an early dinner in Forst Grove and settled on Urban Decanters, as their sign said they had the best AC and were near Air Volvo. While the wine shop and Mexican place seemed less high-flying (meaning cheaper), some folks in the Urban Decanters at 4 suggested it was worth it. The scent of the place was cleaner and almost sent me out as it was nearly overwhelming. The place was clean. I got a small table in the window (which was hot from the unrelenting sun). It was happy hour. Due to the nerve issues in my mouth, I ordered their base red, which first tasted like vinegar mixed with cleaner. Yikes! I braved the process and continued to sip the wine, and soon, my brain and nerve sorted it out, and it was no longer divided up into component tastes. That was a rather cheap red with no age on it. I like old-world flavors, but still, it was good to retrain on something cheap and easy.

I ordered the happy hour pâté with their bread. This was a strange mix of local flavors ground in with pits of pork. It was quite good, but I like my pâté to spread on the bread. I had the heated olives, which were all freshly pitted and reminded me of Casablanca olives. This and the wine, slowly changing taste with the other foods, helped bring me back to a more normal experience. This is another reason I have been avoiding the food scene–if everything tastes wrong, why be there. I see another wine experience in my future to help bring those tastes back.

Aside: Yes, I can add special characters to WordPress to spell pâté. Yay! And Grammary is out of its AI mind and keeps rewriting my stuff. Grrrl.

I looked at the regular items; everything was expensive but also promised to be more calories than I should eat after diving into olives and pâté. I asked my waiter about dessert, and she recommended the Olive Oil Cake. I believe I had a slice of this strange cake once before but did not like it, but the waiter’s eyes lit up when she mentioned the cake. Until this time, she managed to be the perfect unemotional waiter: lovely and unapproachable. I agreed to have a cake and got a smile from her. It was soon delivered, and it was excellent. She checked on me twice, eyeing the cake. The cake was wonderful, with a hint of orange and salt working in a near-perfect combination. A bit of handmade whipped cream on top, also with a hint of orange, reduced the heaviness of the oil-soaked cake. I finished and paid the bill, certain my waiter would be slipping a slice of cake for herself later.

I returned home in Air Volvo with only mild traffic. I tried another street, Walnut, and it was nearly blocked by traffic heading west. I was right to use 26 and bucolic roads to reach Forest Grove.

At home, I rested for a moment and woke just before 7 and the Theology Pub monthly Zoom call. I had planned to call from a bar, but the poor air, wine, and driving had tired me. I still tire easily after the surgery. I soon connected.

This topic was prayer, and I have to admit I am not that comfortable with it. I can do the group prayer and even make one up on the fly when leading worship, but I never find it comfortable to pray alone. I learned that my friends on the call have more trouble with group prayer, which is so strange to me. Being alone with God is scary to me.

The discussion covered that it seems to be better to leave those things you cannot control to God than to worry or fight for control of them. I had to learn and practice this “give to God those things you cannot control” over the last four or five years with Susie’s decline and passing and my own illness and career challenges, though I saw it more as giving to the universe. Less prayer and really tearful acceptance. For me, prayer is a sad mixture of acceptance and my scientific learning, saying there is just physics, no God, and trying to find some mix that works and does not seem to be me acting a part. In the end, a difficult topic for me. I should have been at a bar!

I would recommend joining Pub, with Dondrea handling the details with her usual perfection of the last-moment. Contact me or others at Beaverton First United Methodist Church if you would like to join the once-a-month Second Thursday at 7PM PDT.

Aside: Part of my exit package from Nike was a bonus for 2023, which is payable today (don’t ask me about corporate fiscal years). I was slightly distracted by yet more money to leave Nike while Pub was going on. This is the last payment.

After the Zoom call signed off, I decided that the air was too smoky for a walk. I did the dishes, worked on the model SMS Derfflinger 1916, and managed to fold and glue some more brass. My favorite smelly glue was a mess: G-S Hypo Cement. I found my (be f**king careful with) Tamiya Lacquer Thinner and cleaned up the mess twice. I managed to do one impossible, tiny brass folding and glue without spilling the thinner. I’m getting better at this. I have likely ten-plus hours more of tiny folding parts. I will get really good at this. IJN Yamato is in the work Q, too.

I am watching Jerry Bourget’s videos on building the wooden ship I have. I like his YouTube channel. It is here.

I headed to bed early, showered, and read some more brain cookies, a Star Trek novel from the 1980s. I soon nod off. Sleep is interrupted by itchiness and proof of hydration. Yes, I drank three glasses of water during Pub, f**k. I consider just staying up all night but falling asleep (until the next proof) before I can decide.

Sorry for how long the blog is today and the many asides and musings. Thanks for reading!

I continue to rise late and after 8. My weight fell to 232, surprising as I had some beers and snacks. I am keeping active and walking. I also broke through the 5,000-step limit on Wednesday and two days before. I am keeping away from restaurants because I think the portion size and salt are not working.

My plans went a bit sideways on Wednesday morning. I wrote the blog while enjoying a scone from the bakery in Hillsboro, a banana, and locally ground and roasted coffee also from Hillsboro. I had trouble remembering everything the day before and found I had finished the blog before 10:30.

(these are all the trees in front of the Volvo Cave)

I then tried on my XL swim trunks, but they would not stay on, so my plan to try out the Aloha Aquatic Center faltered. There are so many jokes about exposure available. Yesterday (I forgot to put this in yesterday’s blog), I stopped by the center and talked to one of the staff. He explained that I lived outside of their supported area and would have to pay extra. They do have monthly passes and annual passes. I have a schedule for activities and was trying to make an open swim session to see how it all works. They don’t have towels or lockers in the changing rooms. Bring a gym bag and a towel.

I headed to Forest Grove again. I was hoping that the construction and delays would be minimal. Nope. I spent thirty minutes in a mess, and there was some impressively aggressive driving as folks would not queue up in the one lane. I got a dose of road rage when a muscle car dangerously slipped between construction barrels and cut me off; the Charger made all sorts of engine noise and made me brake. I was sure I was better insured and thought I might prove it, but I calmed down.

I reached Forest Grove without any more incidents or chances to prove my insurance quality. I parked beyond the usual parking as there were signs about no parking in the late afternoon. Like Hillsboro yesterday, Forest Grove had a street party in the late afternoon. I walked to Pacific University and walked around its lovely campus. The trees are huge and block the hot sun. There are plenty of well-maintained paths and some folks around (the regular sessions start in a few weeks). The bookstore is tiny, and there were only a few items I was interested in (mostly higher math) last time, so I skipped it this time.

I did a large loop and then walked back into Forest Grove Old Town. I visited the antique stores I missed last time and a locally-owned sports goods store. I found a pair of large swim trunks there. I stopped by the local gaming store, Gongaii, and the manager, Ray, chatted with me for quite some time. I will try to stop by on Thursday afternoon with Bloodrage and Scythe, and we will see if we can teach and play. I will be delayed a bit as I have lunch with Scott on Thursday, but I am sure that will be OK.

I headed back to the house in Air Volvo with no traffic snarls, but I witnessed more aggressive driving west of Beaverton. Safe, I opened the frig and got out the pre-cooked chicken from Safeway, and stripped the meat from the bone. I then took about 1/3 of that and added chopped onion and celery. Next, I mixed in some spices and mayo to make chicken salad. I put that between two pieces of bread and had that as an early light lunch.

It is Wednesday, which means Praise Band practice and gaming. Andrew was coming to add to Z and me. Z and I set up the older board game Istanbul, and soon Andrew appeared. I did a short teach of the game for Andrew; Istanbul turns are easy to understand and the game has a logical order. Z was distracted and soon was visibly upset; something about a friend and was texting. Z played the game anyway; a trooper.

The game is a race, and every turn is important. You collect plastic rubies and put them on your cart. Your cart is your own playing board and records goods you collect and then sell or trade for money, special powers, and rubies. You have a criminal uncle that can do a shady deal for you, but then is loose until another player arrests him. We played the Coffee add-on, giving players multiple ways to be efficient in the race. Z was using the Guild and the Coffee House (all additions in the Coffee version) to get many powers and gems. Andrew and I used the mosque-like locations to gain powers and gems and the wainwright and other base games options. It was a close game at the end. I held last place for the first 1/3 of the play!

The practice ended before the game, so we agreed to finish with just two more gems. It was a rushed game, and three turns each before I shocked Andrew and Z by jumping ahead and grabbing two more gems and winning. Andrew managed to match me and tie. Z was one coffee from matching us at the Coffee House.

Istanbul is an older game originally published on cheaper card stock. One side was in German (the other in English), and the cards used only iconography to avoid publishing an all-English version. Only the rule book was in both languages. Now, it is published in separate languages. The Big Box version is recommended as it includes Coffee, my favorite add-on. While recommended, it is a unique game and takes a while to get used to. It is also a bit aggressive.

We said good night, and soon, Air Volvo had me home before sunset. Even with the smoke, I walked to the bench and back to get over 5,000 steps for the day. Next, I returned to folding and gluing little bits of brass for SMS Derfflinger 1916. I managed to spend an hour doing two pieces. The gluing and folding were tough, as these are railings on curved surfaces. I also managed to fold and attack two wheels no more than three millimeters in size. This is a no sneeze, no drop, and no bump process. At 10, I was relieved to have finished two. I was disheartened when I saw that some of the next parts have brass extensions that are as thin as a hair! Not sure how to even store that!

I took a shower, dressed for bed, and read more brain cookies: Star Trek. I soon nodded off. As I said, I woke multiple times and had to use some anti-itch stuff on my legs. Ugh. Sleep was hard to reach Wednesday through Thursday night.

Thanks for reading.

These mornings, I am sleeping into 8ish. I wake with the sun rising around 5ish and then go back to sleep. I often wake up a few times and even drink water. I have no alarm as I have no plans on most days. It feels quite pleasant to make up the day as it happens.

I read my emails, looked at the news (mostly reading the political items), updated Quicken with transactions, eyed all my account balances, and started on the blog. I had a NYC bagel (thanks, Joyce) with cream cheese, a banana, and liberal Equal Exchange coffee for my breakfast while writing.

I find Tuesdays harder to start as I am tired from all the weekend things. Monday was more of an extension and clean-up for the weekend. Tuesday, my legs hurt, the bed felt very comfortable, and I just wanted to go slow. I am paying for the weekend and Monday.

The blog took until late morning. I cleaned up, dressed, and was still working on the blog until the morning was nearly gone. I took out the bacon, nothing special, and fried six pieces in a non-stick frying pan (thanks, Steve) and then sliced a tomato I remembered buying yesterday when I picked up a few things from Safeway. The lettuce was still looking fresh in the crisper in the frig, and I pulled off a few leaves. I toasted the new bread (the artisan bread had a very artful beard of mold, and the last two pieces were trashed) and soon had an excellent BLT. I saved three pieces of bacon for a later creation.

I watched the newest videos of ShipHappens, Battleship New Jersey celebrating finishing replacing all the teak wood on the main decks, and Drachinifel’s discussion of whether the IJN Kongo class were fast battleships (no) while enjoying my BLT. My tastes are slowly returning. I could get a lot of the sandwich flavor. Dr. G said the loss is caused by the brain tumor surgery and should slowly recover over the next year. It seems to get better every couple of weeks. My left eye is better, but it still does not close as well or as fast as it should. I wear eye protection to prevent dust from damaging it–it cannot blink fast enough. It was a nice early afternoon.

I loaded up the box of office books, empty frames, and some Christmas items I don’t need in the Air Volvo Cargo hold (which is filled with board games). I decided to head to the park to walk, but then I had to return my phone. I forgot it again!

After returning for the phone, I decided to head to Forest Grove and walk the lovely Pacific University campus. At Hillsboro, on the way to Forest Grove, the highway was closed to one lane for construction. I decided that I could change to Hillsboro and skip the mess. It took me a while to find a parking spot as the streets were closed late Tuesday afternoon for an event. Once parked I walked across Hillsboro and managed about 3,000 steps. I walked through the antique stores but did not see anything I needed or something I could use for 1920s gaming props.

I stopped by Rune and Board gaming store and talked for some time with Nick, the owner. I talked about various board games, and I purchased a reduced-priced game, A Sherlock Holmes case book game but this one on Jack the Ripper (I have the other one). Nick gave me his card, and I will send him a note to see if he wants to have a night for board games (I am willing to rent a table). Nick would get a chance to play some of these games he does not know. More to come on that. It sounds exciting.

After buying the game, I stopped by the place where I bought coffee. I bought ground, freshly roasted coffee, and a few other items. I also stopped by the bakery and got a few scones for the next couple of breakfasts. I also got a Smoky Robinson cookie made with smoked salt; it was a complex and interesting cookie. With all these goodies, I left Hillsboro. I stopped at GoodWill on the way back to the Volvo Cave and unloaded the office items and Christmas stuff.

Once Air Volov had me at the house, I started chopping and soon was making Jambalaya from a box. I made the Trinity (green pepper, onion, and celery in equal proportions) and added the Pope and Cardinals (a can of chopped tomatoes with garlic). I let that cook until shiny in a large pan with just a bit of oil. I chopped various sausages and then made a mistake. I should have cooked them in another pan and drained them. Nope, just threw them in. I added hot water from the electric kettle and the from-the-box rice and seasonings and let that cook for twenty minutes on low. I added frozen huge gulf shrimp (headless) that cook on top for five more minutes. I then stirred them in and cooked the jambalaya for another five minutes. I had three bowls and three shrimp which were not rubbery and excellent. It is not the same as the smoky flavor of New Orleans, and I will have to return to NOLA for more research!

I rested, read more of Grant’s 1864 actions, and napped after that. I rose, which was harder than I expected as my legs were not interested in moving, and soon, I was putting away the jambalaya in bags and loading up the freezer with easy, spicy, ad hoc meals. Next, I got in Air Volvo, forgot my phone, reached Reedville Creek Park, returned, got my phone, and returned again to the park. F**k.

The park was busy as we approached sunset, about 7, and the Hillsboro library folks were there giving away free books and crafts for little people. I thanked the library folks and demurred when offered a free book and bookmark. I headed out doing loops and tipped my hat often to other walkers and runners. The grass was filled with people playing soccer and volleyball. The skatepark was full of young and less young folks doing impossible stunts and some making, for me, impossible to recover from falls on cement (they laugh and get up). I manage three pleasant loops with many smiles, hellos, and hat tips. I finished Tuesday with more than 5,200 steps (Monday with 5,700+).

Air Volvo takes me to Wildwood Taphouse and they are happy to see me. I appear less often as excellent beer is not The Way to weight loss. I have Lisboa, a huge box of a board game, and I plan to re-read the rules so I can teach it again and play it. It is one of my favorites, but it is complex and intimidating to most new gamers (Z loved it). It flows well and has a happy vibe (unlike Brass, where everything is dark and competitive). It also has a mechanic that other players may play on your turn, meaning that everyone has to pay attention. This is a favorote mechanic of mine and Vital Lacerda, the designer, a favorite too. Two beers later and approaching 10, I finish the rules and look over the components. I remember how to play now and could teach it. The strategy I am less sure about, but that will make the next play more fun as we discover that together.

Lisboa is about the 50th rank game out of thousands at Board Game Geek and is rated a huge 4.58/5 complexity (ye ‘r warned) and sells for about $126 for a new copy. It is still in print. There is also a bonus card, The Queen, available that is only a minor update to the game. Lisboa plays 1-4 players (I have never tried solo mode), and it will take a few hours for new players. To any would-be player, clearing rubble is the most important thing you can do. Lisboa is often ranked, even with its aging from 2017, as Vital Lacerda’s best game.

I returned to the Volvo Cave, showered, read in bed, and finished Strategy and Tactics Quartly Fall 2024: Grant’s Overland Campaign. I enjoyed the sad finish as both Grant and Lee never achieve the war-ending breakout, and both legends are discolored and marred by the 1964 Forty Days in the Wilderness. General Bell’s, the author of this history, story is much more focused on action and less on the poetry-like writing of Shelby Foote, who tells the same story in his histories. This is what you would expect from Strategy and Tactics Magazine. I like this more-to-the-fact version. I also recommend their book to any ACW readers, The Quest of Annilation. This explains the mechanics of the ACW and the flawed tactics.

Soon, I was asleep, dreaming of moving and trying to reach somewhere. I woke a few times to prove hydration and to apply Benadryl cream for hives. It helps.

Thanks for reading.