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I managed to get started around 9AM. The air quality was lower today, and the lack of wind left the smog building in the valleys. My chest feels like a vice–the usual bad air feeling. I will use my inhaler all day, and that provides some relief.

I made NYC Zabar’s coffee in my French Press today (thanks, Cat, for bringing that from the source) and had just a banana. I then wrote the blog for the remains of the morning. I wrote over 1,200 words–more than I expected. I tried to publish it, but the email version was hung on the server until I discovered it this evening. The Facebook version was out when I finished it. Puke!

I jumped into the shower, dressed, grabbed my Dungeons and Dragons stuff, and boarded Air Volvo. It is about thirty minutes to M@ house, our Dungeon Master who hosts and runs the game. M@ made burgers for us. M@ and others practice Keto, and so he had something appropriate. Our Vegan player was exposed to something and thought it best to isolate, so he did not join us with a salad and other Vegan positive foods.

While it is wrong to cover the details here as others might play this adventure, and some of the content is purchased and copywritten, I will cover some. We are playing a Spelljammer 5E version of Dungeons and Dragons (D&D). This is a sword and sorcery in a space setting. My cleric, evil and lawful–highly effective and an excellent, if not violent ally, had a vision. He would conquer and rule a flying fortress. My cleric worships the concept of war and is unimaginatively named War. Our player playing a fighter believed that it would be a great battle. Our ranger believed that our adventure would make a great song. So we were all in.

We first fought a small ship in orbit, and it was close. We fought off the initial brutal attack with my cleric using up all of his best spells. Our ship has a ram, and it finished off the bad guys (remembering that I play an evil character) with remote spells. They ran out of air. This led us to find the real bad guys.

We flew our Spelljammer and pretended to be the bad guys while my cleric was pretending to be an ambassador from the God of War–not far from the truth. In the game, our luck held to an insane level, and we reached the throne room. By even more insane luck, we were expected (apparently, another cleric was late for his/her/appointment).

It was a fun game. I will likely miss the next session while I am in Texas next month.

After the game ended, I headed to Oak Hills McMenamins for a light dinner. I ordered clam chowder and a Ruby (locally made raspberry wheat ale). I ate that and decided to head to Portland early and tour Guardian Games’s huge building. I had not heard from Richard if we were on for a game.

Air Volvo faced light traffic and no surprises on the dark Oregon Mist-covered roads. I arrived at Guardian Games and saw that one table remained open for a large group. I hope to play my D&D 5E adventure again there after the holidays with Corwin and Kathleen. I did not find anything I needed, which was unusual, and I got a text saying we were on for games tonight.

Darwin’s Journey is a working placement and resource management with unique mechanics to unlock options and improvements for your workers. I like the game but score at the bottom as it takes a while to remember how to play, and the game has only four rounds–every choice is important. We played with four players: Shawn and his wife Val, joining Richard and me. Richard crushed us, and Val and I missed a few things, sending us to the bottom of the scoring.

If you like a heavy game with layers of complexity, this is one of the medium-difficult ones that lose the theme in the mechanics. I did lead the game for a while, but I made some mistakes and soon slipped to last place and stayed there only chasing Val. Next time.

We played a card game after that, which was fun, with Shawn winning. After that, I headed out and took the large ramps and bridges to get home, but without issue and nothing scary this time. It was the right mix of Oregon Mist and darkens to hide the heights of the ramps and bridges.

I arrived home, no neighbor cats demanding to be fed, and headed to the in-home office to write the blog.

I am headed back to the coast on Sunday. Thanks for reading. Sorry if it feels rushed tonight–it is.

 

I am writing this on Saturday morning with the grey clouds thin enough to hint at blue behind them. It rained much of the night, but it started to dry out later in the morning. I did something I had done for a long time. I went to bed too early, 9ish, and while my sleep was broken and I woke and read a couple times, it was the first time in my memory that I rested and slept over eight hours. It feels good.

Friday morning started with me waking in the spare room at the Smith’s beach house, warm enough under a quilt but still also wearing my warm robe. I woke, as usual, before my alarm set at 7:30, turned off the alarm, found my way into the darkened house, and sat at the dining table. There, I spent the early morning writing. The sunlight grew as I wrote, but with the raging sea, dark sky, and rain, it just got exchanged black for grey.

Cat and then the rest of the Smiths rose just as I finished the blog, about 1200 words, and published it. Cat toasted some chocolate babka from a NYC bakery and made coffee. She grinds the beans and uses various devices she offers to teach me. I demurred, and we carried our coffee and goodies to the great room over the garage, joining Michelle and David.

I clean up somewhere in these processes. One has to be aware of the timing, as the beach house has one bathroom.

There, we plan the day. I get ready to leave, but there is a delay. Cat and Michelle punch their copy of board game Istanbul that I gave them years ago. I applied the stickers, all male images, and commented that I replaced mine with some other images to include a few women instead (available online with a quick Google search). Soon, we had the game ready to be played. Next, we managed to play a quick three-person game of Azule; Michelle crushed us.

Wanda’s Cafe and Bakery is an old-school breakfast-lunch restaurant in Nehalem. I ordered biscuits and gravy, which was no more than it should have been. David, Michelle, and Cat shared their orders of French toast, eggs benedict, and an omelet of local items. It looked good, and everyone was pleased. I should have ordered 1/2 an order. I had this with more coffee as I had to drive home soon.

David and I walking on the beach.

I got a request from Michelle to bring some cooperative board games, including Pandemic.

We got back into David’s tall Jeep, which had a step come out to help, but still, I found it a challenge to grab the handle, balance, and climb in. David parks the Jeep at the breach road, and we walk through some grass on a well-worn path to the beach. The sea is high with 7′ waves (that is average, not the tallest wave), and the tide is going out, showing the beach now. It is winter, and so the King tides are here, so more water comes in. The beach is the usually brown, sticky sand of Oregon (we have no issue with sand here), but the tides have removed all the shells and other jetsom flotsam I usually see. No shell to take home today.

The Smiths, beach regulars, have high boots, and I have to retreat once as the seas grasp for us. I keep one eye on the sea at all times. You only turn your back on the ocean when walking directly off the beach. Our beaches will kill the careless or at least soak you.

Walking on the beach and hearing the waves’ roar is always so peaceful. It is a delight to look out into the sea, watch the large waves break, and wonder how tall that was. I saw at least one ten-footer.

We returned to the beach house, and then I departed on time at 3PM. In time to cross the Coastal Mountains in daylight. Michelle had offered another day with them and then an early return on Saturday. I stayed with my plan as I was tired. I am always sad to leave the coast, and the sea was an artist’s dream. I took 101, avoiding Highway 53 to not explore the capabilities of Air Volvo and my driving, and I got an extra twenty minutes taking peeks at the sea while driving on 101.

I took Highway 26 back to Beaverton. The drive was slower today as folks were not going fast, so I was happy to reach 60 mph and did have a moment of 70 mph. The rain was heavier, and a few puddles slowed folks.

The mist was still in the forest, and the views were storybook-like. The clearcut near Highway 26 was a planted forest being harvested–not a safety item I reported in yesterday’s blog. This always gives me mixed emotions as I love the forests, but as a planted forest, it is a resource like wheat, and people here make a living from this process. It is also the only considerable tax revenue for the local governments. So, I respect the Oregon logging traditions and know they will replant the forest. Also, the cuts are made in pockets to allow the local animals to adjust. No longer are hundreds of acres of wood cut at once. Oregon loves its trees.

As I wrote, I am always sad to leave the sea but happy to reach the valley and see the familiar laser-straight four-lane Highway 26. The rains slowed, and the sky was more broken grey. I was treated to a car taking a sudden crossing of five lanes and then exiting the street–yes, home to the Greater Portland Area. Air Volvo soon arrived after 78 miles at the Volvo Cave. The trip took 1:46.

As I was unloading, my neighbor’s dark-colored cat came to me, meowed, and let me pet it. It then walked home, waiting for me to follow. I walked up to the cat area in front of my neighbor’s house. The house was dark, and their cars were not there. The cat showed me empty dishes. Oh.

I finish unloading and then head to Safeway. I find a smaller bag of neutral cat kibble and two bottles of salad dressing. Everyone seemed to come simultaneously, and everyone just had a few items. The checking lines, even the DIY version, were backed up. I went with a human as the wait seemed the same.

Soon, I returned. The cat was waiting. I put some food in the dish, and I no longer existed as far as that cat was concerned. The cat had performed the appropriate summoning ritual, and food appeared. The human servant may go, and I did.

At the house, I made a salad to go with the dressing I had purchased (I was out of salad dressing). I turned the cable to The Sandman show and watched the last episodes of the first season. The following season is still being made.

As it was Friday, I started the laundry.

I went to bed and read for a while, got sleepy about 9ish, and fell asleep. I woke around 10ish to take my meds, read again, and fell asleep again. This process was repeated a few times. It was nice to just rest one night.

Thanks for reading.

 

 

 

 

Going backward, I am in Smith’s beach house in Manzanita, Oregon, just a stone’s throw from the beach. I am at their dining table writing this blog on Friday morning before folks get going. We had a lovely evening playing card games, “Oh, Heck,” a new card game to learn. Cat scored worse than me in this card game, with Michelle winning and David chasing her score.

We did not make it out to the shore today, but I saw the sea was high from Air Volvo, and the waves appeared large to me, maybe over five feet. It is also the King Tides, so most beaches are missing in high tide. The drive along the coast was fabulous, with the steel-colored sky above when I arrived in the afternoon.

The Smiths served baked chicken dinner, using newly acquired spices (a Christmas gift from the Kramers) and root veggies. Quite simple and good. The dessert was Ginger cake.

Before this, Michelle, Cat, and I learned the Board Game Root. Initially, David was going to play, so I had included the Lizards and Vagabond, which would work in a four-person game with The Woodland Alliance and The Cats. Instead, it was three, and we should have exchanged the Vagabond for The Cats to even out the game, but it was a learning game. We struggled the first few rounds, but soon, my Lizards and Cat’s Woodland Alliance (looking like little green toasts instead of mice, so we usually call them “the toast”) were fighting for clearing. The Vagabond decided to attack me, a wise choice, and to ally with Cat’s Toast. I am unsure how the Scoundral, the Vagabond Michelle selected, plays, and we had to make up some rules quickly. Michelle kept gaining points, reaching thirty and winning; Cat was just ten points behind, and my Lizards were never a threat.

It was fun to try it again, and I will have to play again a few times to get the rules down again. Root is a strange board game as every player picks a faction in the forest, and that faction has different rules, goals, and capabilities than all the other factions. Some factions have strong interactions, while others have more conventional resource management. All the different rules and actions are all played together, making a strange mix. Root does not make it to the table often as it requires so much to learn to play well, but if you can get its complexities down, it is an excellent game.

After dinner, we played another board game, Azul, the Smith’s copy, and I had to teach it, but soon everyone was playing well, including David in this play. Soon, the game’s strategies became apparent, and Michelle tied me. Azul is a pattern game with little, pretty ceramic tiles. Recommended.

Moving backward, I started the morning by sleeping into 9 again. I had trouble sleeping, found myself awake, and had to prove hydration a few times. At 6AM, I rolled over and slept deeply for three hours. I finally rose wide awake at 9, found my slippers and robe, and located the kitchen (it had not moved but seemed further away today). I made NYC Zabar’s ground coffee. I also found the piece of pizza I left for breakfast. I carried my bounty to the home office and started to write the blog. I wrote it for over an hour when The Smiths called and suggested I reach the beach by 1:30 to enjoy Wanda’s Cafe.

I completed the Wednesday blog and then rushed to shower and dress. I packed a bag. I put out the trash. I found the traction devices for the Volvo (strange sock-like coverings for the tires–chains are impossible as there is almost no clearance) and then boarded Air Volvo. I then crossed Beaverton, stopping at the local Shell to fully fuel–I never cross the Coastal Mountains on less than a full tank. Finally, running behind, I started my direct trip to the Oregon Coast.

It was Oregon Mist today, and the windshield wipers were running the whole trip. The traffic was light, and I cruised at just below seventy most of the time. I did have a few places where drivers were just scared of the curves and the wet roads and drove ten or lower below the posted speeds. The passing lanes allowed me to get around them. Most of this trip used one lane each way on highways, but an additional lane is added here and there, with the slower traffic moving to the right to allow the faster traffic to pass them.

The drive was lovely, with some low clouds or mist floating in the valleys to make everything look like it was from a Tolkien book. Logging only impacted a few sections of trees, which might have been a safety fix as the trees looked unstable next to the highway. I skipped the turn onto Highway 53, an old-school road that crosses the mountains in twists and turns with cliffs in place of shoulders for the road and one-lane bridges, and took the highway to the coast. Navigation should rate some options! Highway 53 is an especially wicked choice when it is dark and rainy.

I missed the time for brunch, and instead, David Smith called in a pizza in Seaside that I picked up. I changed the navigation on Air Volvo to the pizza joint, but I needed something to find parking! I found public parking two blocks away and got a damp walk through Seaside. The sea was boiling, and the waves were huge at the Seaside. It was good to walk, and the sea air was pleasant.

I adjusted the navigation to head to the Smith’s beach house and soon arrived with pizza. We had that for lunch. Next, I got to share a phone conference with the recently returned Kramers (Dr. Tasha and Jason), and they had a video Christmas present opening party.

And that takes us full circle for Thursday. Thanks for reading!

 

I slept poorly, finally stopped getting up at 6AM, and then slept soundly until 9AM. My ears were stuffed, as was my nose, and I coughed for a while. My left ear is having some issues that are likely caused by the brain tumor and is even draining a bit. Ugh.

Despite the challenges, I rose and started on the Boxing Day blog. I write slowly as I had no plans for the day other than playing board games in the evening with Z during choir practice–we are returning to our regular schedule. I also surfed the Internet and read the news. As a liberal, I shook my head often, and I read the year-end essays recasting history and current events suggesting that liberalism is the source of all evil in the USA and history. I drank my fairly traded Rwanda coffee and did not finish many essays (Thank Kramers for the coffee).

I slowly wrote while drinking my coffee and reheated the eggs, sausage, and veggie scramble I had made the day before, and it was still good. I saw that Mariah texted and suggested meeting for lunch at Golden Valley Brewery in less than an hour–I noticed later in the morning. So, I finished the last few paragraphs and then rushed to publish them with a few pictures.

I showered with speed, and so on, and was soon aboard Air Volvo with fifteen minutes to cross northern Beaverton. Traffic was light, and extra-legal driving was at a minimum. One car was in the fast lane and then through construction at ten miles an hour below the speed limit. My close approach finally got them to change lanes. I was only a few minutes late.

Mariah informed me she had spent a few minutes hitting on the good-looking waiter. We both tried to be extra nice to the waiter and smiled often. I managed to get him to know my name. I am not gay, but I felt I should try too and see who got his phone number. A contest. Mariah was amused and told me she might return to the GVB without me next time. Next time, I will try to be a Wingman. All in good humor; even the waiter seemed to get it.

I ate half of an avocado BLT, and Mariah also had a sandwich, sliced beef, and cheese. We both had beers to wash it down. It was a nice chat.

After being silly for lunch, I headed to our local Barnes and Noble. There are so many new books and even some more Sherlock Holmes books! Instead, I found Dreyer’s English and got a trade paperback version (the larger paperback); I buy physical books on style and grammar. The book states on its cover, “An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style,” how could I resist that? I also have my account with the chain and got a slight discount, so I bought it. I am often tempted to head to Powell’s on more technical writing books and find a used copy, often a hardcover, at a reduced price, with the hardcover often priced below the new trade paperback’s price.

I headed home and soon arranged to meet The Smiths on the coast at their beach house on Thursday afternoon. I read the rules, The Law of Root, for the board game Root. I have not played the game since before the pandemic, and each player gets a faction with its own rules. In fact, each player is playing a different game, all placed in a shared framework and board. Quite amazing. The Smiths want to try it. It is a lot of rules!

I also reviewed Brass rules, as the two versions have slight differences that could easily be mixed up. I did see that we have not enforced the closest coal rule–matching in the games, but there were seldom choices in our usual play; I suspect we never broke that rule. The more loved version, Birmingham, rated number 1 for all games in Board Game Geeks, is easier and kinder. I like the slightly less loved version, Lancashire (ranked 20th best game).

I headed to the Shake Shack in Beaverton for dinner before playing games with Z and Andrew during choir practice. I had an avocado, bacon, and cheese single burger with fries and a Diet Coke. Just wonderful there. I read my Star Trek book, Wounded Sky, on my Kindle app on my phone. The app and my device can track what page I am on. I don’t carry the Kindle as I can read on my phone now. I cried through the words (I cried a few times today as I missed Susie) as it addressed death and creation–an excellent story.

Air Volvo got me to the church on time, and soon, Z selected Concordia as today’s game. We picked the map of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, which I have had for years, but I don’t remember playing it. The map is designed to play with the Salsa rules, so we had to make an easy adjustment of pulling some random extra cities from the ‘D’ bag (I have to draw bags as an improvement to the game from Board Game Geek)–We don’t play with salt.

I think I won the first game by just a few points; Z has this game down cold and even stacks out her cards and plans her turns four deep or more. I am just a bit more flexible. I captured the Weaver Card and built all the cloth trading posts worth twenty points at the end of the game. I was not sure I would win the whole game.

Concordia is a favorite game and is supplied with extra boards, so you can buy as much as you want after getting the game’s base. The more compressed boards are best for lower player counts, while the Mediterranean Sea base board suits any player count. The game has very simple turns, and end-of-game scoring is based on your play–my favorite instead of collecting strange goals from a random process. The game uses deck-building and resource-management mechanics, which are also favorites. Every play increases your resources and capabilities, making the game bright. Player interaction is not weak with purchasing personality cards from a shared market (get that Weaver Card before it is gone!), and building on an already built location is more expensive but possible.

Andrew joined us for a second three-person game on the same map, and we did a little resetting. It’s fun to try the same exact map again! Andrew had not played before, so we walked him through his turns, and soon, F**K, he was far ahead. Z had her turns and now planned five cards ahead with the same map, helping her to plot everything. Andrew sang in the choir practice, and we played while the Praise Band practiced. We managed to get about 1/2 way, and Andrew still was leading. We scored the game just to show Andrew how it is done. Next Wednesday, I hope to play a complete game with Andrew and not have him win in a partial game. Z scooted by my score, too. Yes, last place for me this time. But I had such plans! Ugh, foiled by an early ending. Next time!

I stopped by Safeway in Air Volvo after wishing everyone a good night and a Happy New Year while boarding at the church. Aw was checking; an Iraqi who has been making it work in the USA was happy to see me. We have talked for years about our family and are always happy to see each other. I got a pizza and a few crackers for a snack.

At the house, I cooked the pizza in the oven and watched more episodes of The Sandman. An excellent series on NetFlix that I wanted to rewatch before the new season is published. I ate most of the pizza but left one slice for breakfast.

I had trouble sleeping again, as I wanted to do much more. A problem I get on vacation. I want to do everything at once, even when sleeping. I finished my book, The Wounded Sky, and started back on Sherlock Holmes and read another story. I finally slept but was up a few times.

Thanks for reading.

 

 

I stayed in bed until 9ish, and I have nested in my bed until 10. The rains have stopped but we did keep the gray skies, usual in winter for the Pacific Northwest (PNW), and my lawn service is now out twice a week a month as the leaves are done and the pruning is completed. Time for the garden that is my lawn to sleep in the gray winter.

Aside: The lack of sun often causes a vitamin D deficiency in folks (I have had it once) and can cause or worsen depression. PNW has a high suicide rate in the winter. It is also why I look funny at people who talk about solar panels here–and I am a liberal.

I found my home office and saw on my Apple that the world was still running. Sadly, the Incarnations, being very Piers Anthony today, of War, Starvation, Plague, and Cruelty, were still on their horses and riding through the world. The latest version of COVID-19 is raging. Ignorance and stupidly unimaginative conspiracy theories are running rampant.

Yes, but I put on my comfortable slippers and robe, find NYC Zabar’s grind coffee (thank you, Smiths), start my day ignoring the terrors, and listen to music while surfing the Internet. Yes, a nice dose of liberal NYC coffee makes all the difference–I am centered now. There is hope. The gray is nice. The dark greens are lovely–even the moss.

Thus, revived, I start my day.

I cook some russet potatoes in boiling water. I cut up some sausage left over from making jambalaya spicy by cutting the sausage lengthwise into quarter strips and then cupping that into little chunks. I don’t do coin cuts of sausage. I find a small onion still in good form and chop half of it (Susie does not like onions, so I am used to only a hint of onions). I chop a green pepper, too. All that goes in a non-stick pan (thanks, Steve) to heat with a lid to help it cook. I am watching the other half of the movie, Midway (the new version), while cooking. I nearly burn my breakfast when the main attacks happen; the computer graphics and special effects make you feel like you are both with the American pilots and the Japanese on the ships. I pause the battle, rescue my breakfast, and add three scrambled eggs to my sausage, sliced and pre-cooked potatoes, and veggies. I managed not to burn that as the battle ended. This movie incorporates much of And I Was There by Admiral Layton, published in the 1980s, and changed our understanding of the early years of WW2 in the Pacific. In this movie, the character of Layton is a hero–an excellent improvement.

Breakfast is good, and there is enough left for tomorrow (it will microwave, OK). I finally get dressed, and board Air Volvo with the cargo hold full of board games. Next stop Guardian Games (formally, Rainy Day Games) to see if there are any excellent specials for Boxing Day.

No sales and prices are higher. I find a game on the buy when you see it list, and it is full price. At least there is no sales tax in Oregon to make this extra painful. Brass: Birmingham is the highest-rated board game as scored by Board Game Geek, and I have not been able to get a copy with all the extras, so I have ignored it. Today, I have more realistic barrels to replace the wooden ones and poker chips for these purchased games. The $79 price is eye-water (there are other cheaper sellers, but with the shipping cost now, they are not that cheap, and return policies are complex by mail). So I decided to take it.

I see something that I do manage to resist. Doctor Who Role Playing Game (DW RPG)has published a 5E version. Yes, that uses the current Dungeons and Dragons system to play Adventures in Time and Space. The DW RPG 5E is marvelously decorated with color photos from the show. Previously published, there are sourcebooks for every doctor full of pictures. I am surprised to see two books in 5E–A player’s book and a 1/4-inch adventure book. Finally, somebody produced an RPG version with something to play–my usual complaint is that a rule system is printed without anything to use (Wizard of OZ RPG was released without supporting material). This makes it both tempting and expensive–I managed to walk past it. But Adventures in Time and Space sounds so fun. Resist!

I’m off to Wildwood Taphouse to punch, read Brass, and maybe play a solo game. JR is there, and we share a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year over drinks. He asks about my health, and I tell him about the benign brain tumor my left ear is unintentionally hosting. I am waiting for the doctors (4 Jan and 29 Jan) to update me on the process to evict the squatter.

I enjoyed a lighter beer and managed to copy the rest of the Amsterdam Trip (2019) into MSWord on my Apple laptop. This is harder and messier than I hoped, and with 1430 entries in my blog, an interesting task to take on–copying the blog to transform it into a book. But it is still a process, and if done every day or so, it should not take forever.

I then go out to the car and get Brass and another game. A young couple next to me asked me about the games, and I showed them the still unpunched Brass and the solo game. We talk for a while; I have a second beer, and so do they. I got the board game Azule from the Air Volvo’s cargo hold and taught them how to play. We are now sharing a table. We play three games, and I return to my usual cut-throat play now that they understand the game. I win the next two games, but not by much. They start to see that you need to play your card and block the other players to win. It was fun, and as dinner time approaches, we share phone numbers and will likely meet again. They want to learn Scythe next time (oh my, that is 4X).

Meeting would-be gamers and playing with them while enjoying a beer was a surprise. A most pleasant afternoon and early evening!

I return home and grill another ribeye (I had three when I started) with corn again. I watch Sandman episodes while cooking and eating. I managed not to incinerate the steak.

Time disappears fast, and soon, I am headed to bed. I cannot sleep tonight. I roll over and over. I manage a few hours of sleep. I just could not get comfortable, and the dreams were unpleasant.