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This is an attempt to write this late at night as I had no intention of writing it tonight, but I prefer staying up late to getting going early and trying to remember the day. So please forgive me if it gets a bit wooden. (I could not finish it until Saturday morning, and then I had to be on a call with Ziply Fiber for an hour; I have tried to edit it better with the extra time).

Let’s go backward, and start with me just disabling the old WiFi after reprogramming the two Echo Dots (Amazon Alexa) to use the new Ziply Fiber WiFi. I have also updated the printer with the new BetterWild Wifi. I think I can shut down Xfinity now–everything seems to be working at the house now (this may be premature).

Before this, I changed the Amazon Fire device to use Ziply Fiber for its connection and powered off the Comcast TV box. I watched an episode of The Sandman using the new setup without issues. I connected the Philips bridge device to the Ziply Fiber router by Cat5, and the lights are again controllable by Alexa. You can now buy Amazon light bulbs, but when I set this up, only Philips was available, and you needed to bridge the connection with yet-another-device.

The Mac is set to use the new Wifi, and the OWC device is hard connected to the router, so access is fast with or without WiFi. My speeds are around 800mbs, far better than anything I have had before.

Previous to all the configuring and testing, I was having dinner alone at BJ Brewhouse. My waiter was Mo, a black gal with dreadlocks and huge dangly golden heart earrings–pretty and in her 30s or early 40s. She remembered me from my previous visits. She recommended BJ’s pizza with meat and veggies, which was a good choice. I ordered the large pan pizza, so I took half of it home. I had a beer and 1/2 a beer (I ordered a smaller beer, and I got a breakfast glass with beer. Mo did suggest a pint twice–should have listened).

I kept offering her a piece of pizza, but she did not eat carbs. Always funny when the waiter does not eat the food they serve.

Before this, I was home, and Victory finally showed up to install the fiber network to the house. I was surprised, as was Victor, to find a fiber cable all ready to use. Apparently, another group had installed the fiber from the phone lines. Victor drilled holes and made the final connection at the house. He then attacked the fiber model and a router. He then called Ziply and was put on hold for ten minutes, but finally reached a tech, and they enabled the landline. I was then able to call it, and it worked–503 848-4089 is the house phone number. I had untangled the phone from Comcast and had it ready in my new office.

I see good speed, the fiber runs into the house, and the modem is in my new office. The new network is named BetterWild instead of the older name WildWifi. The router, which I am renting, is connected to another powered box and translates the fiber to Ethernet–the modem, and plugs into the router via a standard CAT5. The equipment is Arris, and you could buy the router and repeaters in any store or from Amazon. I rented the equipment as this was a new connection and wanted to have Ziply Fiber own it all and be responsible for making it work.

Aside: The speed collapsed on the Ziply Fiber to worse than Comcast this Saturday morning. There agent’s phone connection was so bad it was difficult to run through all the test procedures. A tech is coming on Sunday morning to try to fix the issue, which appears to be an issue with fiber to the house. Speeds are slow. It fits with my expectation as the usual problem is that it is hard to make things as good as the glossy brochure!

Before this, I was tired of the yellow jacket nest by the deck and the increasing number of wasps near me when on the deck. I had read that pouring boiling water on the nest was a solution. I also doused the area with dawn dish soap. I used two loads of boiling water, about 3 liters total of boiling water from the electric kettle, to kill the nest. I later washed the area with lots of water from the hose and foamed up the soap. I will repeat this treatment as needed.

I did the dishes and laundry. I washed the toilets. I also watched some more of The Sandman, I really like the show on Netflicks, but I am likely less as it goes on. There seems to be a focus on gods now as I am beyond the tenth episode that I am not sure works for me.

Before all of the housework and cable stuff, I was at hummingbird house. I was on paid time off for Friday so I could see Susie and deal with the cable install (the unsuccessful install) this Friday. Susie was finishing breakfast when I arrived in the morning. She was a bit quiet this morning, and we headed out to the park and enjoyed a wonderful late summer day in Oregon.

The park was full of younger kids and families. We did not see any picnics starting as it was a school day and a workday. Families have after-school sports and activities that fill their evenings and weekends now. Only the pre-school and 1/2 day kids will now be in the park. When the endless rains start, usually in October, the park will be empty again. It is the way of things in Oregon.

We called Susie’s mother, Leta, and Susie and her mother used FaceTime to see each other and to share. Susie was distracted by all the kids and dogs. I forgot to get a pic.

Also, the butterfly is missing at the park. I have not seen the swallowtail for three visits now. Summer is late, and fall is nearly here. The bugs are rushing now.

Before this, I wrote the Thursday blog and started my day in my new office. Comcast was slow again, and I was looking forward to the possible improvements (trying not to sound ironic). The drive in Air Volvo was without incident or even heavy traffic–yes, school is back, and we will be seeing the usual jam-ups at noon and five in the evening now.

I wanted to dream and visit Morpheus more, but there are only so many days in my life, and I want to use them up and wring every moment I can while I can; thus, I started most of my day in a rush. I learned the lesson from my father as his life began to end in sickness. He told me there are only so many sunrises left, “I get up and watch each one.” I do not get up that early, but you will see me distracted by a sunset–I am grateful for it.

 

 

 

 

The workday morning is always a rush to get to the office early. I made it about 7:30ish this time. This was done by jumping up with the alarm and hopping into the shower. Playing loud music–I am the only one in the house now.

By the way, we pay a monthly fee for music from Alexa that allows Susie and me to play most music through the devices. Through the device, Susie gets her tunes, and anything else she or the nursing aides want at hummingbird house–I share the account. We have changed the listening word to echo and not Alexa for all the obvious reasons.

After the shower and getting dressed, I discovered in the kitchen that I had forgotten to run the dishwasher. The French Press was still in the dishwasher, so I made a pot of coffee using the old coffee pot. I used liberal coffee, Fair Trade, that I have drunk every morning since Trump was elected to remember that the small things matter. Vigilance is the price of freedom!

Aside: While that is a political statement–liberal coffee–this blog is about my experiences, not politics. Trump is part of my world, and my reaction to the world is recorded here. For me, this is my memory of these odd years. As for Trump, I see him as a sincere player (I did not say he did not lie a lot) in that his actions were true to his nature as a disrupting force. He brought forth the vaccine that saved so many. He also cut taxes and, as he promised, slammed us in states with high or highish local taxes–trying to drive us to cut taxes in the regional states–by cutting or limiting deductions for local taxes (called SALT) and thus raising our federal taxes. He stacked the courts and government with supporters. We saw the same thing in the 1970s, massive disruption, with Jimmy Carter, and both were single-term presidents. They were elected as outsiders and brought in a non-professional staff into the White House that soured the American people, and also both presidents faced, yes, let’s use it, unprecedented events. Carter had uncontrolled inflation and Iran Hostage Afair, while Trump had 2020, the year of disasters. Both now, as ex-presidents, are making waves and changing things.

Returning to the narrative, I made my fav muffins after finishing the blog on Thursday, lemon poppy from King Arthur Flour mix. I had a few of those with my coffee while rushing to finish reading my emails and checking for any crisis of the moment that I needed to react to ASAP. None.

Air Volvo got me to work, as I said, early. I then had a parade of meetings, all Zoom and one in-person (unusual even when we are sitting in the office), plus Zoom. I also read about some technology showing up more on my space, Node.js.

I left work at about 11:15ish and arrived early at hummingbird house. Susie had breakfast and was sitting in her recliner. I headed to her room, and I assembled her peddle elliptical machine. It was much larger than I expected and heavy. It even came with a screwdriver!

I brought Zoraida’s gift for Susie, a handmade shaw. Susie loved it, and it is on her bed, so she can use it in the mornings.

Aside: We send our best to Zoraida, who helped us for years. With the unexpected passing of her husband, Zoraida decided to shut down her business and move to Texas to be closer to her family. For years and even during the pandemic, Susie would have a spa day with Zoraida on Mondays. A driver would pick her up and return her to the house. Hair, skin, nails, and so on, plus often Zoraida’s homemade soup. These weekly visits kept Susie going for years. Thanks, Zoraida, for everything, and best wishes in Texas!

Susie had blood on her blanket, and Jennifer said that when she cleaned Susie’s mouth, there were signs of bleeding. Susie’s gums are bleeding again–this was an ER trip at Forest Grove earlier this year when it could not be stopped. Susie is on high-quality blood thinners to prevent a new stroke. Jennifer and the staff will monitor for bleeding at night and chat with the RN about actions to take.

Tracy, the physical therapy person, was ten minutes late. Her session with Susie ran over and was intense. We tried to use the new machine, but Susie’s wheelchair was narrow and tall, and the elliptical pedals hit the chair. Tracy finally got an arrangement that worked, sort of, and Susie got to work out. Next, Susie got to practice standing while being carefully guarded by Tracy. Susie was able to stand much better today.

After that, I headed out with a kiss from Susie. Then, Susie headed for a snack and a nap.

On the way back to the office, I stopped by Carl Jr’s and had a Western Burger with fries and a diet drink. It was not very good. Back at the office, a few issues returned, and a few new ones surfaced. Brad, my boss, surprised me by not being at a desk but at the tire place–his tires were shredded by some rubble on our local roads, ugh.

I left the office at 4PM and headed to the house office to enjoy the 5:05 status meeting. I had already done my out-of-office message, timesheet, and other rituals to be off for a day. I had a muffin for dinner and a bowl of chicken soup from a can. I ate this while that status meeting went on to just before 6PM.

I was tired and feeling down. The chaos that is my life with the endless medical expenses and the short-sighted career goals was depressing me. I like to travel, learn new things, and be in the middle of software development–now, I am shuffled to the side. But, that is right for me, and frankly for Nike, as I am a recovering cancer survivor and experiencing a medical disaster with my wife.

I see the world like a horse fighting against the ropes and gates of ignorance, war, Covid-19 real risks, greed, and constraint against using the new cutting-edge computer technology. The world wants, like a young horse, to run and discover how fast it can run and how far it can go, but it is stuck in a halter of racism, unfair practices, insane tax policies, and just old-fashioned human stupidity. I want to release this. But, I wait.

Back to the narrative, I found one of the new things in the world, The Sandman, on Netflicks. An amazing SciFi story from a writer that I sort of like, Neil Gaiman, who also did a bizarre Doctor Who and does a mix of horror and SciFi. I could not stop watching it. I watched five or six episodes on Thursday night. I use my Amazon Fire for this, which should still work after the new cable is installed. My boss, Brad, suggests just a rabbit ears antenna for local news–no need for cable for local news.

While watching The Sandman, I did not initially recognize Jenna Coleman, also from Doctor Who, who plays an exciting part. The show has collected the best folks from Doctor Who and Games of Thrones. The special effects, acting, and writing is good and does not turn away from complex subjects. Recommended!

I stayed up late talking to Archana in India. She is one of my fellow employees at the shoe company and got to present to leadership for a few minutes. Archana wanted to share that and get my perspective on what we will be doing next. Our data conversions are out in the future, a best. I asked her to hook up with the MDG team in India working on the upgrade–it is unusual and exciting work. Even software upgrades are now cutting edge.

It was nearing 1AM when I went to bed, I was feeling better, and it is always good to chat with Archana.

I hope that the blog is interesting. Thanks for reading.

 

Going backward, I just called hummingbird house and left a message that Tracy from Physical Therapy (PT) will be there on Thursday at 12:30. Tracy texted me at 8:45PM with the time. I had her penciled in for 1PM, so that still works.

Before that, I played board games with Zophia, Dondrea’s girl, while the choir practice/jam session went on at First United Methodist Church in Beaverton. I taught Zophia the board game Vindication. It is a lot to take in, but she was starting to get it at the end. She smoked me. Next, we played the tile game, Azul, and I had my revenge as I slowly built up points and won. Last, we went for the cooperative game Forbidden Island–a fav. We survived it.

That is Vindication with Zophia in mid-arm-pump for winning.

Before that, I was at the house having leftover sausage I had grilled a few days ago with the end of the potato and macaroni salad. I ate this while participating in the 5:05 status meeting. I was surprised when I disconnected from the meeting, and my Xfinity Internet went out at the house. Ziply Fiber is coming on Friday to install–it could not be too soon!

I had to hard boot the modem to have lousy Internet again.

I left the office after 4ish and took Air Volvo home to Clarion Street. I like to make a quick dinner on Wednesdays just before the meeting at 5:05 and eat it during the meeting. Choir practice starts at 6PM. Unfortunately, the ants are back, and I will have to commit insecticide in the kitchen soon. I kept them out of dinner, almost microwaving one ant that reached my sausages–ick!

Even earlier, I was at work for most of the day. I had some crises of the moment and had to help out on a few items. No details should be shared here, but I was busy.

Going back more, I reached the hummingbird house after 10ish, stayed until 11ish, and got lunch on the way back at Burger King. I love their burger with cheese, and this time it was not too salty, back to normal.

I managed to take Susie for a short trip in her wheelchair through Metzger Park and a short chat with her mother, Leta, on FaceTime.

It was a rushed visit as usual for a work day.

Before that, I worked on a few existing items.

Starting the day, I was rushed as usual for the morning working from the office day. It is strange to have to leave and drive to work to mostly be online talking to people on Zoom, especially after just working from home for more than two years. But, I understand that the shoe company values the interpersonal relationships that develop in person, which is why I have to drive in.

I was again awake before my alarm and fell deep asleep fifteen minutes before it blasted me out of bed.

Thanks for reading, and sorry if it seems rushed.

 

I woke before my alarm and tried to roll over and fall asleep. Only to awaken 15 minutes later to recheck the time. This went on for a while. As often happens, I was sound asleep when the iPhone alarm announced it was time to be awake. I was not really sharp but jumped into the shower and got started. I found breakfast and put ground coffee in the French Press. I never returned to it! I had a banana and cottage cheese for breakfast. I read my emails, loaded Susie’s new pedal device delivered last night (a day late) in the car, and took Air Volvo to Nike World Headquarters.

It is hard to describe how lovely the WHQ is; I miss working there. We are assigned Clubhouse, which is an office building not on WHQ. Boring. I believe that many of the old folks are retiring early from Nike in the computer groups as we feel disconnected from Nike. I also think the newer computer folks that have never worked from campus see Nike as an exciting job but never feel part of Team Nike. So the computer folks exit for money or a new challenge.

Nonetheless, it was nice to park in a parking structure and then walk on the campus. I picked the furthest new garage to walk by all the new buildings. I have not had the chance before with the pandemic and the construction. My, they are huge buildings and have a completely different color and design scheme from the older buildings. The buildings no longer seem to be a college campus–the previous theme, but a dream from LA and the Pacific Northwest. Black, orange, gray, and folded designs shout LA with water and plants that give a calming PNW feel. I love it.

Parking garage.

The photo does not really show the scale of this building.

The photo is a bit dark on such a bright day. Another huge building.

It was a thirty-minute walk and many stairs that I would prefer to avoid, but I managed. The stairs were never too high like in Clubhouse. I use the elevator always in Clubhouse after nearly falling. I felt safe on campus.

I reached the Tiger Woods Center, Nike’s event center on campus, and found my favorite working spot. TWC has hotel spots to email and make calls, and I had two hours of meeting before the two-hour All-hands meeting. My first one in person in years.

I handled my meetings and even turned on my video as I had a window seat in TWC. This was not my first time stuck for hours between sessions in TWC!

The discussions cover more crises of the moment and other knowledge sharing and planning chats. Of course, the details cannot be shared, but it was mostly the usual computer stuff–not interesting for most.

The All-hands was hosted for the first time live in TWC with our new Irish newest leader and VP, Hilda (not Heidi–Thanks Kate). While much of the content was the usual corporate stuff you see at any company, with the standard Nike amazing videos (even the computer group’s videos are great), it surprised me by starting on time, running to schedule, and finishing on time. A first for me–giving me more insight into Hilda., I think, than anything she said. This gal does her homework and expects adherence to schedules.

I left TWC and had to skip lunch and hanging out with Heidi to see Susie today. I reversed my walk and was proud that I did not get lost on the trails in the woods and grass. I soon found the parking garage and connected Air Volvo with 26 and then 217 to hummingbird house at 9925 SW 82nd in Portland (really Tigard).

Aside: I do not capitalize hummingbird house as it is not a formal name. This is Alliegence Senior Care, LCC formally, and the house name allows distinction from the other home (I forgot its name).

Susie was in her chair, and one of the other residents was already outside enjoying the near-perfect weather. On my iPhone, we called Susie’s mother, Leta, from inside the hummingbird house, letting Susie and Leta see each other. They chatted for some time while I rested a bit; I was exhausted yesterday, and I was also tired today.

After completing the call, Jennifer moved Susie into her wheelchair, and we traveled to Metzger Park next door. It was busy today as school was starting soon–or had begun, and the kids and adults seemed to want one last time in the park. We saw one high school-aged gal with her younger brother, whom I recognized. She was again in the park practicing her dance routines with a hula hoop while her brother ran around the park, and her little dog enjoyed the grass.

I saw the swallowtail butterfly named Elrond by Susie, but when we got closer, it had found somewhere else to flutter.

I could only stay a short time, and I had had no lunch and was sleepy in the hot sun. Not a good situation! So I pushed Susie back to the hummingbird house and said goodbye with a kiss.

I stopped by Jimmy John’s and tried the East Coast Spicy Italian as I was hungry and fading. It was good, but I need to ask them to cut it into thirds so it will not fall apart. I love the freshly made bread and the speed. The wait is always short.

Air Volvo, reversing my previous course of 26 and 217, got me to Clubhouse. A sign on the door, ‘Welcome Back!’ and ‘Rest and Recovery are not just time off,’ provided more options online. I said hello, as always, to the desk team and took the elevator to the second floor. Someone had finally cleaned the elevator–the footprints on the wall (?!) were gone.

Some of my teams were in and sitting at the usual shared desks–even though it is open seating, we generally all sit at one spot (very human). I worked on a few escalating items and on the critical path. I then, tiring, left early. I took Air Volvo home without incident except for suddenly stopping cars. Going slow is a sort of driving sport in the Beaverton area, and one must be ready to stop.

I logged back into the shoe company at the Volvo Cave. The 5:05 meeting was a bit disorganized, and our escalating issue was questioned for being de-escalated. We were a bit surprised and found ourselves having to explain why it was escalated (even when we thought it should not be escalated) and suggested it needs to be left as an item we review every day. How strange things sometimes get in the corporate world!

After that, I was free. I made dinner of leftover salad and bratwursts I had grilled a few days ago. I then wrote some more Dungeons and Dragon 5E adventure. I am starting to bring the first part to a close. I have to find a way to transition to the next part. It is nice to write again, especially an adventure in D&D style.

Next, I decided I was still a bit stressed out and went for a drink and dessert at Stanford’s. Susie and I used to hang out at the bar there sometimes. I had coffee and a shot of almond liqueur, and a chocolate mouse cake. I felt better, but the sadness does sometimes overwhelm me. Dessert and writing help.

After that, I realized I would be late starting my blog and hurried home. The local cat was sitting in the center of the road and took its time to finally get up and let me use the road. Cats!

I hope you enjoyed my writing tonight. The coffee helped.

It was challenging to start today, and by the early evening, I was dragging. As usual for a workday, I awoke at 6:15 to my alarm and was up and making breakfast only after a short struggle resisting a few hugs from my blankets. My pillow was willing to let me stay another thirty minutes, but I demurred. I had cereal with a banana sliced in it. I had a nectarine with the bowl; I love nectarines. Coffee was soon ready, and I regretted not making a pot of liberal coffee to drink all day.

As my friend Joe C said, “a rough re-entry.”

It was my first time using my new office to work from home. My two computers fit nicely in my new workspace, and I did concentrate better. I have lowered my chair, and the back pain is receding. Better.

I did my usual read email and tried to manage my re-entry to work. It was nine days of time off, and I had a backlog for the first two days. Still, most Nike WHQ and other locations (including India and other development centers) were closed for Rest and Recovery Week, so I had no emails or missed meetings (except the 5PM yesterday), making the re-entry not so bad.

My first status meeting and some other crises of the moment surfaced, and one issue from before the long break returned and started again to escalate. However, I think we were able to tamp it down for now.

I had the spaghetti with meat sauce I picked up on Saturday from Olive Garden for lunch. I microwaved it. I also got two pieces of Texas Toast (garlic bread with some cheese) from the freezer, lighted a few burners on the grill on the deck, and roasted the toast on tin foil on the gas grill. No reason to use the oven.

Lunch was pleasant, but the Cubii JR1 or JR2, Under Desk Elliptical, Bike Pedal Exerciser was not delivered. I had to be headed to hummingbird house as Susie had Tracy for PT at 1PM, and Tracy is a bit intense. I wanted to be there with the new excellent device, but that will have to wait until Thursday, Tracy’s next appointment with Susie.

I was there 15 minutes early, with no events from my careful trek through Beaverton, avoiding the Old Town 20 mph sections. Tracy was there only a few minutes after 1.

Tracy had Susie standing and balancing and even got Susie into the wheelchair, mostly doing it herself using the strength of her legs. Susie was finding standing difficult as her muscles seemed a bit locked up. I think all of us are feeling this from the pandemic. Susie was also having trouble with her left side, and Tracy, for future exercises, asked me to cover Susie’s right eye and then have her left hand give me things. This will help her cross-brain actions work better.

We then watched Susie’s ice skating video on my Mac. This is Susie’s 1980 long and short program. Tracy then headed out. Susie was disappointed I was out of time and could not take her to the park. Unfortunately, it was a work day, and I had a 2PM Zoom call and then a 3:30 call.

I was that guy on the phone driving in a Zoom meeting. After that adventure, talking in the driveway for ten minutes, I had a crisis-of-the-moment meeting and filled in for the director too. That one went fine.

I then was tired again. I rested and fell asleep but somehow managed to wake in time for the 5:05 status meetings.

The mail came, and the pedal thingee showed. It was delivered, and it is heavy, by the mailman! I will take it to Susie on Tuesday, and we can unbox it at hummingbird house.

After that, I was free for the moment. I was also dragging and was not going to make dinner today. Instead, I ordered spicy Italian food with a big salad and watched the new Game of Thrones prequel House of Dragons. Eating dinner while enjoying the new show. Of Doctor Who fame, Matt Smith was one of the bad guys. I thought House of Dragons’s first episode was a bit predictable, and the actors, with Matt Smith’s exception, were still trying to find their voices and become the characters in the story; they seemed stiff and looking distant.

Aside: I had to increase the volume as I had trouble with the accents. I have hearing issues, but I think it was the show’s sound.

Later, I started to write some more Dungeons and Dragons 5E to distract me. I get sad and lonely sometimes, but work, coding, writing, and reading are always my escape. Next, I started on the blog and hope you enjoyed it.

For those who wonder, I discovered that I can remember what happened by blogging each day. I think the events in the pandemic and the medical challenges Susie and I have faced are important stories. I want to remember, and when I return to the previous entries, I can find the memories of that day. For example, before the pandemic, I was leading games at the Game Storm convention 30March2019, and there is an excellent description of the games I played that day. Though the memory is fading, I can remember the games and the players. So for each blog, I try to find a story to tell and some detail that I can remember later. It might be gas prices or some creative driving on TV highway.

Again, thanks for reading and letting me create a story to remember later.