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I started the morning going slow. I woke for my 6:15 alarm and then closed my eyes for just a second, and it was 7:15! So I got going after that. I made liberal French press coffee, realized I had lots of eggs still (two more dozen), and made poached eggs for breakfast. I put each egg, I had two, on a separate piece of toast, buttered and seasoned with pepper and a dash of sea salt. Thus, I was ready for the 8:05 status meeting for the shoe company on Zoom.

I was not prepared for Rick to call me, at 8:15, from Providence and tell me he would like to have an appointment with Susie today; he offered his only slot he still had today, at 9AM. I had to finish the meeting. Next, I showered and dressed with focus, but I did not skip any steps. I managed to get to the hummingbird house at 9:50. Rick had some paperwork for me, and we discussed lowering Susie’s wheelchair and his likely return next week. He promised he would try to give us a day’s warning next time.

Jennifer, today’s nurse at hummingbird house, had gotten Susie up after I called her about the ad hoc meeting and managed to get Susie breakfast. Susie managed to eat all her oatmeal and had some milk. According to Jennifer, Rick did some basic exercises and other movements with Susie.

Generally, Rick was optimistic when I spoke to him after rushing across Beaverton that Susie might be able to stand and pivot with some therapy. The hope is that she could travel a bit and get in and out of any vehicle with minimal help. For example, I could take Susie to medical appointments, make short trips, and visit using Air Volvo. We have an ambitious goal.

I spent an hour or so more with Susie. She sat in her recliner and fell asleep a few times. The events of the morning had worn her out. The events were unexpected and confused her morning agenda. We did call her mother, Leta, and chatted for a while using FaceTime. It was 65F (18.3C) this morning; it did heat up in the afternoon after the clouds burned off, so we skipped the park.

While there with Susie, I had to keep checking my phone as I was working on some crises of the moment for Nike IT. One did surface that I thought I had already handled, and I sent a reply to resolve that issue. Before noon, I kissed Susie goodbye and headed back home in Air Volvo. Jennifer took Susie to her room to rest a bit.

Reaching home without issue, I finished a load of laundry I started when the 8:05 meeting started. I usually slip in a load of laundry during the meetings on Friday. I put it all away. I made lunch from leftovers, the last of the Jambalaya I made earlier in the week. I had that with the cake I made a few days ago.

I found the new vacuum that I bought when Glenda was here. I had not used it before. My first attempt to use it faltered when I, instead of releasing the vacuum head, pulled out the handle and then pulled out the dust bucket. Not an auspicious start. I reassembled all the parks of the Stark machine and managed to use it. Next, I vacuumed the room that used to be Corwin’s bedroom (he moved out last month). I then vacuumed most of the carpet.

Next, I cleaned all the toilets, two of them, in the two bathrooms. That was an excellent place to stop and read.

After getting going again, I drove to our local Ace Hardware a few minutes away on 185th, returning for my wallet once, and purchased some new white electric wall sockets and switches. I have been replacing all the plugs and switches in the house (built in 1978) and changing the color to white to match the wall colors. I have only some of the less used switches and sockets not replaced. I used to do a few a month but had got out of the habit.

I had not realized that none of the plugs in the bedroom had been replaced and one was clearly broken! So I turned off the power and replaced the switch first, primarily for practice as I have not done this for a while. I managed to install the new one up-side-down (‘NO’ showing not ‘ON’) and had to take it out and correct that. The plug took me a while. It is a pass-through and has two wires on each side plus a ground wire. Don’t cross the colors! I was successful, and my plug tester gave me two yellow lights meaning it is good when the power is back on.

I was sweating after that and the cleaning. I will do more on Saturday.

With the 5:05 status meeting at Nike nearing, I ordered dinner from GrubHub to be delivered for about $6 extra. I am still worried about getting Covid-19 or other severe flu going around. I ordered a large Ceasar salad and chicken parmesan with a side of spaghetti with sauce.

I ate a bowl of salad and chicken parmesan for dinner while listening for an hour to status. I will reserve the rest of the salad and the spaghetti for another meal. I read email, text, and Slack channel messages, but I was not needed.

I read some more and then did not fall asleep. I got going again before 7 and started to write this blog.

Thank you for reading!

 

 

Working backward, I went for a drive. My original plan was to try to play the solo board game Nemo’s War, but all the tap houses were full of people and standing room only. I also saw that I missed the time for movies by an hour. So I returned home and started on the blog.

Dinner was during the 5:05 status meeting that went on to 6. I reheated the last of the sausage and pasta I made a few days ago. I also had a cupcake and even some cake as a dessert.

Work was a dizzy repeat of yesterday, with me rushing from meeting to meeting. Free moments I spent reading and evaluating documents. In between busy moments, my boss, Brad, gave me my 2022 Pay Statement. I received a raise and a bonus for 2022, aligned with company policy and my expectations. I will have to celebrate and buy myself something frivolous.

Lunch was picking up an Italian Night sub at Jimmy John’s. This is an old-school grinder on fresh white bread. Surprisingly good. I made my noon (over lunch) meeting by just a few minutes. Again, a rushing day.

Before lunch and eating my sub while on a Zoom meeting, the camera off, I was at hummingbird house visiting with Susie. I was a bit later than usual, almost lunchtime, but it was what I could manage on this crazy busy Thursday. Traffic was light, so I could spend extra time with Susie. Thus, Jennifer, the nurse today, placed Susie in her wheelchair, and we hit the part next door: Metzger Park.

Susie was happy to get outside again, and we stopped at the bleachers on the basketball court and called Leta, Susie’s mother. We had an excellent talk. The air was warm and dry, and the birds sang and flew everywhere. Mostly robins and flinches of some sort. Butterflies floated here and there. Dragon and damsel flies rushed by, hunting for whatever they found in the air. It was a typical summer day here in Oregon.

Soon my time was spent. I did take Susie for a longer spin to the middle of the park but then had to head back. Jennifer was surprised when we got back; Susie’s congested from her allergies. I had no time and so left with a few kisses.

Before this, I was in the office before 8. I then did the command center meeting at 8:05. The morning was a rush to be ready and out to make the 8. The alarm got me started at 6:15; I had gone to bed earlier on Wednesday night, so the start was not as brutal as the days before.

Mister Lincoln roses are looking lovely today. The other roses are cut back or are faded from the hot sun. Mister Lincoln seems to love the hot and dry.

Thanking you for reading.

The morning started at 5:30AM with me jumping in the shower first off, getting dressed, and then making coffee and having a bagel and fruit, peaches from a can, for breakfast. I was rushed the whole time as I had a 7AM meeting in the office.

I left with twenty minutes to make it and was still a few minutes early. My boss, Brad, was already there and in a conference room. We met with folks on software developed in Germany and India we use to do data conversions. The Germans talked about the heat wave, 40C (104F)!

The day was busy with me having many crises of the moment and being called ad hoc into various issues. I also followed up on some issues. It was nice to be busy again.

I managed to head out early to see Susie at 9:45AM and reached the hummingbird house at about 10AM. Susie was not up yet, and Jennifer got her ready; Susie wanted a walk outside.

Having had no traffic so early in the morning, I had arrived with plenty of time, so I took Susie through the whole park today. We stopped at a bench and called her mother, who was waiting for a medical test. So that was a short conversation using FaceTime. Next, I call Dr. Peter Koper, a retired professor we have kept in contact with from Central Michigan University, where both Susie and I graduated. We had not connected for a while, and Susie was happy to chat with Pete. After that, we spent time in the park, slowly crossed Metzger Park, and returned to the hummingbird house.

Susie resides at:

Allegiance Senior Care
Adult Foster Care Home
9925 SW 82nd. Ave.
Portland, Oregon 97223

The house phone number: 503 246-4116

Susie had not had breakfast, and now it was brunch. We had made a large circle, and I was a bit winded, but I needed more exercise, so I did not mind it. I kissed Susie goodbye as she was getting ready for brunch made by today’s nurse, Jennifer.

Traffic was still light, but I did have to steer once into the shoulder as cars stopped unexpectedly; even the Volvo Collision avoidance did not see that one! Cars changed lanes suddenly to avoid the slow car leaving with me having to dive out of the way in Air Volvo–had I just slammed the brakes, the paint on the back of Air Volvo would have been scratched from the rear-ending!

Arriving back at work with the paint intact on Air Volvo, lunch was free today, and I had a small sushi roll. I was then called into more issues during lunch. I was working on crises of the moment all afternoon. I drove home at 4PM and then took the status meeting at 5:05 and commented on some of the crises of the moment in progress.

Today’s Sushi supplying truck.

I made a ham and cheese sandwich with a few cupcakes I made yesterday. They are starting to age but are still delicious. After that, I ate dinner, as usual, while listening to the meeting that ran to 6.

I then took a nap; well, I tried to read and got a few pages before I fell asleep, and the Kindle fell and woke me. I dreamt of the book’s story until the Kindle fell and woke me up.

I restarted again at about 7:15 and started on the blog soon.

I continue to use Quicken to manage all my expenses, income, and investment and to have visibility of retirement numbers. It is helpful to know what is happening.

Today one of the Kickstarter projects, The Darkest Dungeon Board Game, announced that all supporters would have to kick in another shipping fee, about the same as the original, to get their game shipped from China. The game designers made it clear in their statements and math they presented that they didn’t have another million dollars to cover the shipping of the board games. So I just paid the additional fee. The game is now over $500 for me! It is one of the last figure-based board games I will buy this way. I had the same issue with Cthulhu Wars. I am looking towards 2nd Editions and reprints being more successful for me: Grand Hotel Austria (Let’s Waltz), War of Whispers (Deluxe Edition), Pax Pamar, and endless Root versions.

Darkest Dungeon is a video game I helped fund on another Kickstarter, so I felt I should also support this board game. However, I just like the figures and expect the game will disappoint me. I was first in for a few hundred dollars. Then I added on the add-ons. Now, I have paid the shipping cost twice. I hope it gets here soon–not sure I could be convinced to spend any more on it. It is still an extensive collection of figures I like from Darkest Dungeon–I like the look of some French-designed figures.

Thank you for reading.

Today I did back up all the text of my blogs to a file on my laptop–I want to ensure I may access my own words. I use WordPress for my website to retain ownership of my writing and photos. I am unsure of the ownership and fate of my entries on Facebook and Twitter. I use WordPress and their original editor, which works with my other technology, Grammarly. Grammarly helps me get all those silly commas in their correct place (and forces me to use the Oxford comma-Bah!) and finds all the mistakes I can never find. See, I discovered that I have dyslexia, undiagnosed and that many of my challenging ways of doing things are just normal survival skills for someone like me. For example, I still add numbers by counting how close to fives–a dyslexia survival skill. I also drop negative signs in complex math, which I love, but seldom do now. Often shocking my friends with my B’s in high math–even when I know the subject better than the A students. Someday I will return to Calculus and Modern Algebra (which I never learned). I did graduate from Central Michigan with honors in mathematics, even with dyslexia!

Aside: Deborah Hills, I still owe you a tour of how I do this blog. Maybe a Zoom meeting someday?

Returning to the story, but beware, I am in a mood for going sideways in my writing. It must be re-reading the book The Club Dumas; that book makes my mind wander. Recommended!

Again trying to return today’s story, I started at 6:15 with me awaking before my alarm, just a few minutes. Then, I fell utterly and profoundly asleep, and the alarm went off and scared me. Not very nice. I sat up, fell asleep again, and was woken when I nearly fell out of bed. Not good.

Coffee was more First Aid than a drink of choice and enthusiastically applied. Breakfast was the last of the large containers of strawberry yogurt. I will not comment that a large container looks precisely the same, to me, on the Safeway website as a small one-serving container–but I was happy that my buyer found only two of the five I ordered! I have only one more large one left now. I had this with some fruit I had leftover.

I eyed the cupcakes. After I finished the blog last night, I baked cupcakes: German Chocolate Duncan Hines (old fashion) mix. I frosted them with pecan and coconut frosting (premade and Duncan Hines). They are delicious.

I also started making replacement masts for the 1/1200 (four-inch long) RMS Titanic model I built years ago for a class I taught on Machine Learning. It was damaged last year, and I need to replace the plastic masts. I made new masts from brass tubing and wire. I managed to fix everything else. It is a neat little model and helps visualize the disaster. The original build was fun; It took one weekend, unrushed.

Back to the story–yes, I keep making side trips; I was rushed as this was Tuesday and was the first back-to-the-office day of the week. My first meeting is at 8:05, and I like to be a bit early to clean the desk. I wear a mask at work, except when eating or drinking. I do not want Covid-19, colds, or the flu.

Air Volvo got me to Nike’s Clubhouse building, just off the WHQ campus, without incident. I was early, and I was busy all morning. I had a few crises of the moment and meetings on some work. The first time I felt very busy in a while as work starts to heat up.

I was late to see Susie, so I called ahead, and Jennifer, the nurse for today, agreed that she would have Susie ready in a wheelchair when I got there if Susie wanted a spin outside. So Susie was waiting by the door in her wheelchair when I arrived.

Susie was tired, and her eyes were red from allergies. So we headed out, getting some tissues from Air Volvo on the way to Metzger Park. We spun around the park and even did a bit of cross-country through the grass to reach a bench for me.

We called Leta, Susie’s mother, and had a friendly chat. Susie is having therapy coming on Friday, and we also chatted about that. Susie was getting sleepy in the sun in the just reaching 80F (26.67C) heat.

I headed back to work after a kiss goodbye. Jennifer was setting Susie in her recliner when I left. Lunch was in an hour for Susie.

I had a 1 and 3 meeting this afternoon and thus needed to get a fast lunch. After mistakingly missing Jimmy Johns and other good sandwich places, I ended up in Burger King and, despite swearing I would not be back, I had another average burger there. It was just OK.

I was only a few minutes late for my 1PM meeting in a small room, and on Zoom–I projected onto the larger screen. It is sometimes maddening that we come to the office to spend every meeting on Zoom. Even in a conference room still on Zoom with few in the conference room.

More Zooming, and then I headed home about 4ish and then to Zoom for the 5:05 status meeting at home. I make and eat dinner during this meeting. So today, after the burger, I had cottage cheese with olives and peaches from a can (no sugar added). I like cottage cheese with pepper, sea salt, and smoked paprika, and the olive fits this mix, just four as olives are full of oil. I did have some cake.

After the meeting, I sat around the house and read some more. I did fall asleep and managed to restart at 7:45. A cupcake might have been sacrificed to get me going again. So good!

I will work on the RMS Titanic some more after publishing the blog. I am also thinking about republishing the blog as a book of my experiences in the pandemic, Cancer, and my adventures in New York City.

I am also thinking about publishing my Howard stories.

I also have a church story on my mind, but that will have to wait.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed my blog today and that my side trips did not feel like a maze or Alice-like. Thanks for reading!

Is that a “eat me” note on that cupcake…

Monday started with a cold (65F 18.3C), an overcast morning in the greater Portland area. I was not rushed as this was a work-from-home day (Monday and Friday). I had yogurt and a banana for breakfast, which went well with the French press liberal coffee. Next, I read the emails, text, and Slack messages to prepare for the first meeting at 8:05.

I received a request to help with a crisis of the moment and was busy with the extended crises all day. Nevertheless, I managed, once briefed and after attending a few meetings, to head to Susie’s place at 11ish in Air Volvo, the hummingbird house.

Susie resides at:

Allegiance Senior Care
Adult Foster Care Home
9925 SW 82nd. Ave.
Portland, Oregon 97223

The house phone number: 503 246-4116

The auto-braking system of Air Volvo triggered twice today, once there and once on the way back, with my fellow drivers suddenly slowing. I do not know if the sudden change to cold or the depression that having Summer ended after three sunny days (it is coming back on Tuesday) caused all the slow driving. The traffic was heavy and slow, with me taking three times to get through some traffic lights!

Without scratching the paint on Air Volvo, I finally reached Allegiance Senior Care’s home in Tigard (a Portland address). It is one of two homes run by Allegiance, and the one on 82nd is called the hummingbird house, with its feeder well stocked for the local birds.

Aside: Here in Oregon, there is a healthy population of hummingbirds, with at least two regularly in my backyard.

When I entered, Susie was in her recliner and looked quite tired. Her eyes were red from pollen that was slowly poisoning everyone in Oregon today. We did call her mother on the iPhone using FaceTime. They chatted for a while.

Sorry, I forgot again to take pics!

I stayed for a while holding her hand; it was too cool to head to the park on Monday. I left with a kiss, and Susie was sad to see me go so soon. I spend an hour on travel and visiting Susie on work days. I visit every day.

Back at the Volvo Cave, I had leftover Jambalaya for lunch, reheating it in the microwave. The crises of the moment went on until about 7ish. I attended more working meetings and status meetings during the afternoon.

I microwaved two moderate-sized potatoes for dinner while listening to a status meeting. I added two slices of bacon, cheese, butter, sour cream, and some olives (remembering the potato bars in Instanbul). I read The Club Dumas on my Kindle for a bit and fell asleep and was awoken suddenly with the Kindle falling out of my hand and hitting me. I got going again at 8PM.

I paid some bills using physical checks but entered the checks into Quicken. I am still updating Quicken with all the transactions. I am tracking every dollar. Another $170 to yet another pharmacy for Susie and $90 for her life insurance policy’s annual cost. Her monthly expenses run about $8,000 (including room and board).

The Home Health people finally called and will start working with Susie on Friday. I had asked Susie’s doc in our last video conference to get Susie some therapy to help with transfers. I would love to get her strong enough to transfer to Air Volvo. I could then take her to church and maybe some short drives. Let’s hope for a positive result.

I wrote the blog this afternoon a bit early.

Thank you for reading.