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I will skip work as it was busy and unpleasant, and I cannot share any of that here.

I started with the alarm waking me at 6AM, and I knew that was wrong, so I reset it to 6:30. As usual, just as I was nodding off and feeling comfortable, it was time to get out of bed. I had a 7:30AM Zoom meeting at the office (I know that sounds bizarre to you working permanently from home, but f**k, it is so corporate), and I then rush to read emails, Slack channel updates, and the news. I make coffee. I forgot the coffee (made in the French Press but never tasted today) and forgot to take my pills. It was not a good start, and it was going to get worse.

Breakfast, for the last time for a while, was served with coffee. I was happy to get something when I was so rushed. I had a lot of coffee!

I got to work and did various Zoom meetings, and again, I cannot cover more. Later in the morning, Mariah was in the area, and she suggested lunch in text. I was late to meet her, more work stuff, but we had a nice lunch at the Golden Valley Brewery. I had the Avocado BLT sandwich served in a non-sleep-causing 1/2 sandwich with just a few fries. That I had with water–better for me. A Cobb Salad was perfect for Mariah. We had a nice chat that I cannot share–we both were having painful work days.

It was a tough afternoon, and I was happy to leave around 5PM. I grabbed some chocolate kisses on the way out, and that made it a bit better in Air Volvo. It appears that we have next week free; I am glad for the break. I have been working every day since 27 Nov.

I don’t usually enjoy driving home in Air Volvo, but the rains have stopped, and we have clear blue skies. I tried to leave the problems at work, but the emotions burned. With Susie’s death, I overreact and am always a moment from tears. So the driving and other distractions helped–keep busy.

At the house, I found the gifts for The Smiths and wrapped them. I found the Alamo (not the car company, but the one in Texas) shopping bag to hold everything. It was fun to get things organized and Christmas-ready. After taking the pill (I forgot in the morning), I read until 7ish as we were to meet at 7:30. I boarded Air Volvo and went slowly to our usual Indian place, Swagat Indian Cuisine, at Orenco Station. I got a note from Cat Smith that they were late, so I drove across the parking lot to Four Seasons Grocery and went shopping. I got some veggies and other items I needed. I got some sausage and some fire-roasted tomatoes in a can for Jamablaya.

I was still waiting after that was done and loaded into the bags in the cargo hold. I then accessed my Kindle on my iPhone and started to reread one of my favorite Star Trek books, Wounded Sky. This is set in the original show, but using Diane Duane’s, the author, updated version of Star Trek, which I find more logical and exotic. If you like Star Trek, her version takes it to a new level. The latest DC movies are just reaching the vision of the exotic universe and creatures you find in her books. She also did a few Spiderman books, including Venom, which were a kick. Diane Duane’s books are recommended.

The Smiths arrived as I had just read a few pages, learning that Kirk’s desk was usually a mess, but when he cleaned it up, the crew cleaned everything as the Captain was in a mood. Putting away Star Trek, the Smith and I walked to Swagat. There, we had two platters of grilled meats and all the sides, plus plenty of naan. The Smith got me The HP Lovecraft Cookbook and NYC Zabar’s Coffee.

I got Michelle animal drier balls (very liberal). Cat received the newest items from the Kickstarter from Lamp Black, a lovely new comic. David got playing cards with drawings of the Oregon Coast and a diagram of the Battle of the Alamo. David’s small gift was in one of Susie’s Christmas Snoopy bags (I still have some), so Susie’s was included.

We had a nice dinner, and it was wonderful to exchange gifts. I may meet them at their coast house later next week as I am free, so far, next week.

Thanks for reading.

 

 

 

 

 

Today started as usual, with me waking a few times a night, but I managed to get some sleep. I saw, to my shock, that I had a 6:30 meeting. It was 6AM, so I rushed into the shower to be ready, and then I would drive to work to make my 8:05 Zoom meeting at the office. After a quick wash, shave, and so on, I was ready, except the meeting moved to 7AM, so I had enough time, if I left immediately, to get to the office for the now three hours of meetings. So, I swallowed my yogurt and dumped my coffee into a thermal cup. Air Volvo flew to the Nike WHQ Swift building with minimal traffic. The rains are back, and we have possible light flooding–a dark morning.

Of course, I get on the meeting before 7AM, and after a while, it is apparent that the meeting will be rescheduled. I have time to read the emails, Slack channel updates, and the news to prepare for the meetings. The meetings continued, and I noticed that leadership was tight-lipped or missing. The approved changes were also a bit muted. I grabbed breakfast and coffee (I had already finished my liberal coffee) and switched to Nike catering Starbucks coffee from an urn.

Around 11AM, I was free and talking to some folks. Lunch was Asian style and good. I did have the rice, just a bit, as it is not good for me (diabetes). I was following along, and everything was quiet. Surprisingly, the afternoon meetings were canceled. Then, a surprise meeting for the project was sent out, and I was hoping they had decided to give us Christmas Eve and maybe Boxing Day (26 Dec) off. But instead, I cannot share it. I will suddenly have some time available as the project revisits its go-live date and activates contingencies (those are official words I am allowed to use).

I would love to express my feelings and thoughts, but that is not allowed at the moment. I am both relieved and grieved for the changes. I might even get to travel for the holidays. I looked up flights but will likely be home for the holidays. Change is good, and I await the working out of the contingencies.

I was home late and got out the dinner that Barathi, a friend from work who helped on India Night, brought me Sunday. I heated it back up and dived in. I must admit that I used sour cream on the chicken–it was spicy and not made for Americans! Perfect. I reheated the naan in the oven, which was good again. Food is always good when stressed out by activating contingencies (see, I can stay corporate).

In the past few days, I have started playing the soundtrack to Evita on Alexa, the movie version with Madonna, and I am singing the parts while writing. Alexa displays the lyrics to help you sing along. I may be connecting with my inner showgirl (drag queen?), but I sing with the male leads, too (I had to correct that when I had ‘male parts’ for ‘with the male leads,’ which got a smirk when I read it). Besides Don’t Cry for Me Argentina, my favorite is I Could Be Good for You. I sing both parts.

I have a few gifts to arrange for online for Christmas. Folks should expect Heifer Project updates. They had a problem on their website, so I will try again.

I talked to Leta driving home. She had her first day alone, and she did well and dressed, bathed, and ate without issues. Leta sounded happy.

I wrote the blog, deleted the contingencies, and wrote what I could about work. Thanks for reading.

It is day 5 since the tumor diagnosis, and I will continue to count until something changes. It is not cancer and is slow-growing and not related to my previous colon cancer. The tumor has been there for a while.

I reached the E.N.T. surgeon’s office today and have an appointment at the end of January. It was usual for Oregon Clinic, which Susie often used, that I was on the phone for thirty minutes to reach someone to get an appointment, and I was happy that I could get something in January.

I called the doctor and made the appointment after getting started for a work-from-home Monday at 7:30. I rolled over on the 7AM alarm and rose at 7:30. I just did a yogurt and some liberal coffee made in my French Press for breakfast. I did consume two cups of coffee and did not have the nervousness I suffered yesterday. Better.

It was my usual morning of reading status updates on Slack channels and then news to prepare for my day. We had quite a few breaks (details cannot be discussed here), so I had to review some of the issues at the defect meeting and listen to updates on the status meeting. The all-project meeting was also today. The project is moving forward and installing these in the next few weeks. I was finally finished with status at 9:30ish.

I had to help and closely follow along this morning. I slipped into a shower and got dressed. I then started the laundry. I usually wash clothing on work-from-home days.

I found a box of winter earrings and matching necklaces in Susie’s things. I also found some elephant earrings in a box. Some misplaced Christmas presents, I am sure. I wrapped the two boxes as gifts from Susie. I called Zorida and checked if she could wear piercing earrings, yes. So I will take the box to Zorida next month. I addressed a mailer for Barb, Susie’s sister, and put the gift in the mailer. I am glad to find a place for them.

Checking everything was moving at work, I headed to the post office. The cars were backed up in the parking lot. Strangely, there was parking, but nobody was going to the end of the parking to reach it. Air Volvo finally moved around the other cars and parked. I then removed my hat and used it to wave vehicles into the parking spots like a cowboy directing cattle. I then enjoyed a thirty-minute wait to mail my packages. Since I was there, I got some stamps with pretty golden-colored Christian icons.

I then headed to the Nike Beaverton Employee Store. Air Volvo found a parking spot in the second parking lot–I was happy that I could get a parking spot. In the store, I found some gifts, and at the cash register, I learned they do not do shipping in the afternoon, so I went off to UPS with the stuff.

Another line and someone was in line just to get postage stamps. I let her have my recently purchased stamps–she needed three. The gal offered to pay for the stamps (handing me the money), “No, it is Christmas,” and the line in UPS practically cheered.

The Christmas spirit ended at the cashier for UPS; it was insanely expensive to mail the stuff using UPS. I already had a small gift on the way, so I went with the slower, just expensive shipping. I returned to the Volvo Cave via Air Volvo, happy to have the stuff on its way.

Back to work and the last status meeting. Dondrea and Z were meeting me for dinner. I managed to pick a place that is closed on Monday. This is a chronic problem for us of late. We met there at about 5:30. We decided to try The Rock: Woodfired Pizza. It was nearly empty, and they were happy to have us.

We had the veggie and white cheese pizza–not my usual meat pizza with red sauce. Change is good, and we had the pizza with side salads and wings for Z. We had to change tables as the doors opened to the outside (there is no lobby), and the cold air just blew on us. I can’t do cold anymore, and Z and Dondrea were cold too.

We enjoyed the pizza and had a nice chat. It was nice to talk, but soon, we had to head out.

I also talked to Leta, Susie’s mother, before dinner; she is happy back home. There is a plan to make this work. Leta sounded very happy to be in her house. Tomorrow, she will try to go solo.

After dinner in Air Volvo, I returned to the Volvo Cave and started writing the blog and finishing the laundry.

Thanks reading!

Just a boring day; nice to still have those.

Another lovely day with a frosty morning and blue skies–so NOT Oregon. We are tripping on California weather. I turned off the heat and opened all the doors and some windows to air out the house. Well, 48F (9C) is a bit cold, and soon, I was closing up the house again and turning back on the heat, but it did feel excellent for a while.

The morning started as these December Sundays, with me rising to my alarm at 7:30 and rushing to start my working day, working-from-home Sunday. I read the status updates on Slack channels and related emails. I understood the issues, and during the first Zoom meeting at 8:05, I could cover them. More status calls followed, and I watched all day and stayed home.

I managed an NYC bagel (thanks, The Smiths, Kramers, and Joyce) and a yogurt for breakfast. I had two and a half cups of liberal coffee and was nervous again. The coffee was hitting too hard, and I did not dare another cup. I will be careful to stick to a cup tomorrow.

I finished reading the rules for the board game Quartermaster General 1914 and think it would be fun to try again, but it is really a game for history geeks, especially for us crazies who can’t stop reading WW1 stuff. I folded all the laundry and put it away. I did all the dishes. I got the recycling out of the house.

Barathi, a friend from work who helped on India Night, brought me lunch. It was very kind of her, and I ate that while watching one of my favorite sets of linked Doctor Who stories: Extremis. This is Peter Capaldi at his best for the show (Heaven Sent also being good). The food was excellent!

I also called Leta, Susie’s mom, and we chatted for a while. Now a resident in a home (Leta is headed home on Monday), she saw the things that shocked me when Susie was in a physical therapy facility. Susie would be left at a table for hours. I remember Susie trying to help another resident who could not stop crying, even with her weak hands and broken words. The old Mariott spirit of service would rise in her, and she would try to improve the conditions for another resident. Leta was trying to help others and even brought cookies to a fellow resident who did not get much for dinner.

A memory comes to me; I remember Susie shaking me awake when I, in the middle of my chemotherapy cycle, had fallen asleep sitting next to her in the PT facility. Susie asked me, “Are you alright?” and looked worried. Always trying to help. I had to use a cane to even walk. I reassured her that I would be safe and would head home. I don’t remember missing a day visiting Susie during chemo, except for my infusion days (one of those sent me to the ER).

Today was a housework day. I vacuumed the carpet and the floors. I cleaned the toilets. I kept checking in and did one review for work. I made some soup from a can for dinner. I watched the rest of the three related episodes while having some soup with crackers. Shana stopped by to buy my old laptop (she was the first person who wanted it), and we went over setting her up on the Apple. All done.

I put away a few items and prepared some other items to mail for Christmas. While the house needs what seems to be an endless amount of work, it is a bit better today. I hope to use more Sundays to get things more on track.

After that, I started on the blog.

Thanks for reading. Sorry for a boring day.

It was another rainless day with blue skies and a cold wind. Frost appears in the mornings. It is an unusually dry and cold mid-December for the Greater Portland Area. I was cold all day.

I was nervous and hungry for much of the day. I am not sure if this is stress, exhaustion, or I am ill. I just kept going all day, freezing often. I also missed Susie a few times, but there were no tears on Saturday. I was a bit numb still from the diagnosis of a tumor in my head.

I started Saturday dragging out of bed at 7:30 for my project Zoom status calls. I was rushed to be prepared. I made liberal coffee in my French Press–I love the taste of liberal in the morning. It gives me hope that we can make life work better and the confidence to say something is wrong–yes, liberal.

Aside: What is liberal? To me, it is the desire to free the world exemplified by the Four Freedoms from the FDR speech called by the same name: The freedom of speech, the freedom of every person to worship God in their own way,  the third is freedom from want, and the fourth is freedom from fear. Liberal can mean that policies, budgets, behaviors, and actions should be measured to achieve these freedoms for everyone everywhere.

Returning to the narrative, the meetings included a severe break in our code for the data loads. Puke! Rajani, our director, rallied the coders and the team leads to evaluate the break and find a solution. This took all day, and Rajani worked two shifts. By 10PM, the fixes were in and being tested.

I left the meetings and dressed. I forgot to put my old Apple Laptop in the cargo hold of Air Volvo. I headed out to Portland in Air Volvo in light traffic and parked off of Burnside in a lot just off the Portland Saturday Market locals. The old location, a parking garage, is now replaced with a nice partially covered pavilion by the river on the riverwalk. There are also some excellent tents filled with tempting goods in the old parking lot and the open areas of the Skidmore Fountain area. The MAX stop is by the same name, Skidmore Fountain.

There was no music today, and Elvis was not playing by the tracks. The whole looked a bit tired and battered by the recent past. The protests and the COVID-19 restrictions hit the market hard. But still, I found most of what I was looking for. New vendors have filled in (I counted three different soap makers), and the food looked good, but the choices diminished. There are now food cart parks in Portland that are likely a better economic model for some food folks who used to attend the Saturday Market. Still, the food looked and smelled good.

I got my usual set of artist playing cards I give away for Christmas. I found soap and bought a bar from two of the makers (I spotted the third soap maker when I was headed out). I found a glass-made item for Meg, my newly minted niece (via a marriage of Linda, my sister, and Jesse). Evan found me as I was finishing my shopping. He was joining me in Portland. He found a bottle of wine for a Christmas gift.

I did think about Susie and all of our visits today. No tears this time. Just happy memories.

We headed to Kell’s for lunch. I had a Kell’s beer, a match to Harp, and corned beef and veggies. Evan stuck to appetizers of soup and some oysters. The bill was surprisingly high–a hazard of Portland food joints and explained the light lunch attendance at Kells so close to the Saturday Market. Definitely priced for the deep-pocketed hipster crowd.

Evan convinced me to try TPK (Total Party Kill, a Dungeons and Dragons term) for gaming. The place is an old pizza place with a giant, non-working brick oven near the end of Hawthorn. Since the pandemic, I have not returned to the edgy Hawthorn area, which I see was updated with the latest food and trends. Crepes are gone, eggs are in, and various themed bookstores are still de rigor for a trendy area. I observed this as I slowly flew in Air Volvo in traffic and dodged brave/trusting pedestrians. I parked on the street after calling Even to discover the location I missed. I should have made a strange half-left to continue on Hawthorn instead of being sent down 50th Street, another malfunctioning junction.

The place is a rebuilt pizza place showing an expensive remodel and the addition of enormous brewing tanks for their own ales. The tables are small for a gaming place, and the light is dim on the first floor. A huge set of stairs takes you to a well-lit larger table on a balcony. These mainly were reserved, but not until the evening. Evan and I went for that as we would be done before the reservation time.

We tried Quartermaster General 1914 board game that simulates WW1, a favorite setting for me. This game uses mechanics that I learned later were a hallmark of the Quartermaster General system. I have been looking for a more accessible game version of WW1 that leaves you to make the decisions without being buried in rules and exceptions. We struggled as I did not know the rules, and we could not understand the build army rules, troop placement, and the fact that allies can share a location (I read that late last night when I had trouble sleeping). While there are better and more entertaining games, I think this one does well with its theme.

The game is driven by card decks, each different and driving the countries represented by the deck to take specific actions. Instead of the rules forcing a WW1-like game, the cards do this. Thus, the rules and play are simple. The decision is to play the card, burn it for troops, or add it to your resources by preparing it for use. Each country has different cards and card counts (for example, Austria-Hungary has only two attack cards; use them wisely and protect them). The opposite is the WW2 games like War Room, which has endless rules, devices, and resource tracking, or Victory In Europe, which has endless exception rules. The Quartermaster’s idea of decks of cards for each country (or pairing of countries) is a good answer. You can do interesting things on those cards. My favorite is the Russia +1 Victory point for assassinating Rasputin; it’s perfect. The exceptions are worked into the cards–better.

While not a fun game, if you love history and don’t mind letting history direct your gameplay, it is fascinating. I would try it again, and it can host two to five players. One complaint from the Discriminating Gamer is that some players felt the game played itself and was not that interesting, but he recommended it.

Evan was happy that the Central Powers won by a few points when we stopped at turn 7 of 17 (!). Next time!

Next, Evan and I got out the board game Architects of the Western Kingdom. This is my version with every add-on and promo card. We use the premium mat that includes all the changes for the final game versions with all add-ons. I had 1/2 a beer and a freshly made chicken sandwich, which took thirty minutes or more to arrive. It was too large, but I was strangely hungry and nervous, as I said above.

Aside: I have described this game before, and I recommend it. But it is hard to learn at first, so be prepared.

Evan and I ran close until he raided the mines, and I did not arrest him until he built up a pile of gold that gave him a nine-point lead at the finish. I should have arrested him immediately, and I usually do. I was working on an end-game plan and got too focused on it. An unusual mistake for me, but I was feeling odd. Evan deserves the win, and nine points is a crush.

It was a longer drive back through Hawthorn to Richard’s, but arrived without incident. Hawthorn looked busy, and the new Willy Wonka movie was playing at the Bagdad Theater, a favorite movie house of mine, a few years back when they did second-run movies for just a few bucks. I might have to be back to Hawthorn and see what I have been missing.

Richard did not mind me being fifteen minutes early, but I was cold and nervous again. Richard got me a coffee, which did not improve my nervousness but did warm me. I had asked to repeat last weekend’s game, Dune Imperium, but to add the add-on that Shawn recommended, Rise of Ix. I played the same personality, and my fellow players thought I should pick some better and new; I resisted and stayed with The Duke. I was surprised to take an early lead, and that held until the end of the game when Richard, in usual Richard fashion, suddenly jumped up five points (which I saw possible in the last game). I had the pleasure of ending the game and scaring my fellow players with the possibility of a crush. Shawn never caught up. I was excited and interested through the whole game, even with my hands so cold they burned–I was exhausted, pissed, and grieving at the same time.

The game is a deck-building Euro game with elements of the rougher 4x games. The add-on, I thought, improved the game and removed some elements of luck. You had more control of your fate. It certainly worked for me.

I did not stay for a second game. I returned home, and the trip was unmemorable in Air Volvo.

I tried to sleep and could not sleep until about 1:30. I read some more of The Whole Art of Detection: Lost Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes, which has me laughing and amazed at the author’s ability to invent adventures for Holms and Watson that feel so real and also modern at the same time. Recommended. I finally started to nod off while reading the rules for Quartermaster General 1914.

Thanks for reading.