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Monday was a later start at 7ish, and me trying to find my way in the morning. I was a bit confused at first as I had a ‘Walk Thru Nike’ meeting at 7:30, but that was a review of software design with our friends in India working on a complex interface. But for a moment, I thought I was supposed to be on a tour of the world headquarters campus (it is stellar), but no, this meeting was a strangely worded review meeting invitation. Nevertheless, I managed to get coffee and breakfast ready before the meeting.

I also read the Technical Design (TD) document before the meeting. It was a mad rush. Many points were raised, and, as usual, that birthed another early morning meeting on Tuesday. I did review the TD in the afternoon and supplied some off-line feedback as the folks are from India, and the scheduling is tricky.

The regular status meetings happened, and I did my stretching exercises and then spent five minutes on the stationary bike with the Nike laptop next to me, listening to the meetings. All these help unlock the muscles in my back and other places.

I had to stop attending the usual Monday morning status meetings, clean up, and dress, and instead, attend Physical Therapy in Bethany. I took Air Volvo and was just a few minutes early. Colin was my therapist today, and he went over my experiences so far and can register some improvements–I am less frozen when I walk.

He was doing some stretching which involved a belt across my legs. I said deadpan, “I usually pay extra for this,” which did get a laugh. Colin then misspoke and said the next part would be painful instead of his usual painless. I told him he was getting into the Addam Family PT theme (he is also watching the new show Wednesday on Netflix). Next, we discussed staying in Addams family theme, that Uncle Fester was getting the bone saw to help me be more flexible. Better to release the locked muscles. Colin suggested that Uncle Fester was “rusting” the saw, which was why he was delayed in my therapy.

I have new exercises and had quite a workout. I headed home as it was still morning when I finished after 10AM. I was back to work, trying to reschedule some items and working on a few crises.

Next, I put aside the Nike laptop for a few minutes, took Air Volvo to the local strip mall, and got a chicken bowl and a side of shrimp. I ate that while watching a YouTube video on one of my favorite channels, The Battleship New Jersey. They had a video of the one known hull leak they had with the museum ship. It was in a steam condenser, usually made of non-ferrous metal (this one was steel, surprisingly), and the dissimilar metals were causing corrosion. One of the issues old warship wrecks have is people cutting them open illegally and stealing the condensers. I have read about that for the wrecks from WW1 Jutland. So it was interesting to see one, even a WW2-styled one.

Next, I headed to see Susie and forgot to do the Advent Calendar when I got there. Susie was finishing her lunch when I got there. She was finished, actually pushing her wheelchair out. We then got Susie’s coat and headed outside to the park. I wanted to get Susie out of the hummingbird house, and I had no meetings left, so I could spend extra time doing the park.

The park is well cared for but still looks sleepy as it changes to winter and the rains. One of the cedars is brown, and I think it is a Bald Cyprus and suppose to lose its needles (leaves). There were a few dogs, as dogs are welcome (on a leash).

We found a place with some sun and called Susie’s mother, Leta. Leta and Susie chatted for a while, with me adding a few comments here and there. Today, as Susie was all bundled up, I held the phone for Susie. I had to put on my gloves as it was 47F (8C), but there was no wind, and the sun was out–so a good day to be outside in Oregon. Soon Susie was cold, and we rang off. I got Susie back, stopping at the car as Susie recognized Air Volvo, and then got a kiss goodbye.

Aside: Ensure is now being delivered by the pharmacy. I will not have to buy it and deliver it. Also, it is now part of the pharmacy bill, and the doctor’s order to use it makes it likely that I could write off the expense next year.

I returned to the Volvo Cave without issue. I was feeling exhausted from all the workouts and travel. I got home, checked in on the Nike laptop, and crashed for an hour. After that, I was back up, checked in, and then made dinner.

I reheated the tacos and taco meat left from a few days ago. I cut up lettuce and added olives, cheese, and sour cream to the leftover to make a killer taco salad. I watched episode 5 of Wednesday on Netflix, and this one disappointed me, but I am hoping this was just building more storyline. I still love the show. Recommended.

After that, I rested again and was out at 6PM to the Wildwood Taphouse to write the blog and maybe work on my Dungeons and Dragon Adventure. I need to adjust to let it end at the next gaming session. Next year we will be changing to Spell Jammer, so just one more session for my stuff. Cutting it to a short one or two sessions adventure is fun. Seldom have I written a short adventure–a challenge.

Thanks for reading.

Today’s Advent song is The Carol of the Bells. This version is as if this song was played in a war zone, a very dark version: Carol of the Bells. I think of the folks in Ukraine who are living this.

I am back home from playing Dungeons and Dragons and DM-ing an entire session for the first time in years, running an adventure I wrote. I even painted some of the figures, some custom revisions to fit the adventure. I plan to play it more than once and may publish it someday.

I could set up my iPad for one player, Mackers, who could not come as he was exposed to Covid-19 but could still play with us using the iPad now. He could join in a Zoom meeting, and the iPad camera gave him a good view. I had my Mac with the adventure in MS Word and also running Zoom, so Mackers could see me while I DM’d. It worked well (we used a box with a rubber band to hold the iPad. It worked well.

Karyn joined us, she was out for health issues, and this was her first time with people, not her family. So it was good to see her join us again.

The adventure went well, with me scaring the players a few times. I did knock two characters unconscious. Some of my other encounters did not last long, as the adventures with their hired help could put out a lot of damage. I had given them a choice to hire some non-player characters (NPC) to help them. I also missed some saving throws for the creatures, which cost me–just bad rolls. I will make a few changes to toughing up a few things, but I am pleased with it. Matt and the players liked my mix of puzzles with combat and unique creatures. This is old-school Dungeons and Dragons, and I was happy to bring back some good ideas.

We play at Cory’s house, and I have one more DM session before Matt takes over for another long-running campaign. After that, I will add a few more encounters to the tomb I have built and make it a stand-alone adventure. A two-session adventure is something I have seldom done, but I think a reduced scope fits with my current complex life. And that would be easier to publish.

When I got home tonight, I watched another Episode of Wednesday on Netflix and still love the show. I rode the exercise bike while enjoying the show.

Going backward, I spent the afternoon painting figures and building some unique ones. It was nice to return to old hobbies, and I quickly turned out some decent-looking figures for tonight. I also found my iPad and sent out a Zoom link for the game after learning that Mackers was exposed to Covid-10.

I finished a lunch of fried chicken from Popeyes after talking to my neighbor Chris. As a favor and to help me, Chris agreed to put up some lights for me. So he did that while I was out, and when I returned, the house was all lighted up. It looks great.

I also met Joan at the post-church Zoom meeting to discuss the sermon and share our thoughts. Only Joan was in the meeting when I connected twenty minutes late, but we had a friendly chat.

Before this, I was with Susie at the Humminbird house. Susie was not feeling well today after eating breakfast. She decided to skip church and take it slow. But, as she was already in her coat and bundled up, I got her to agree to go out and see the snow. It was snowing big white flakes, and I wanted her to get some time out of the hummingbird house. We were outside for fifteen minutes.

Susie was tired and uncomfortable. Anassa got Susie comfy in her bed, and I rented one of her favorite movies, Love Actually. Susie stayed awake for most of the movie, singing along a bit here and there. I stayed with Susie until the movie was over, and Susie looked like she needed a nap. We did call her mother, Leta, to chat for a while.

I called later, and Susie was still tired but had gotten up for a while. So we are all watchful and hope she will be better on Monday.

Before all of this, I was up at 7AM, having slept strangely, and gave up sleeping later. However, I did start on some figures in the morning. I had cereal for breakfast with liberal coffee made from my French Press. I watched the snow start and get heavier as the morning went on.

Well, that is all for a snowy Sunday. Thanks for reading.

Advent’s fourth-day song is from Love Actually: All I Want for Christmas is You. And here is another version of the same song, which is my fav: Carpool Version.

Today, like most days, I have too many things to do. The addition of stretching and exercises, while not a lot of time, requires focus. So I felt a bit rushed and pressured yesterday, and I am pressed for time this Sunday morning while writing the story for Saturday.

Today I will write by events and then explore before and after.

The first event was writing my Dungeons and Dragons Adventure. I finally finished most of the editing of the entry text and started on the encounters. The first text describes the adventure and what is happening, and I needed to realign it to what I wrote in the encounters. Some of my ideas changed, and earlier ideas were best forgotten.

I started editing, revising, making it harder, and better connecting the themes of the adventure. Encounters are the part we play in Role Playing Games. Imaging your adventurers walking down a hallway in some lost complex is interesting, and we used to map all this out, often spending hours of time mapping and drawing. But the encounters are where the action happens and are most of the adventure. For the in-between events, I minimize as they use the time that is better used on encounters. We only get so much time to play games, so we should use the time for fun things.

The encounters are primarily rooms in last tombs with horrid traps and undead protectors, trying to convince a librarian at an arcane fantasy library to let you “borrow” an ancient tomb in exchange for a pile of gold, or sneaking in to rob a sleeping dragons favorite cup. It is the part we play and usually involves a conflict and often combat with all the sword swinging and blasting magic one comes to expect in Dungeons and Dragons.

I managed to finish all the encounters I needed on Sunday. I also started on a special figure I need. I used my Dremel to make a few adjustments and glued the McDonald’s Happy Meal figure to a Dungeons and Dragons large creature base. I also got some cloth glued to the new figure to see if that would work. I think it will be good. Just have to finish it on Sunday (this Sunday morning, I finished the rest of the application, and the work is drying now).

The adventure is 33 pages long, over 21,000 words and about 1/3 done and edited. Another 1/3 needs to be edited more, and the last third remains to be written. However, it writes faster now that I have much of the story finished and aligned.

The next event is seeing Susie. I dressed and was ready in the mid-morning. I had cereal with milk and liberal coffee from my French Press. I got into Air Volvo, adding the board game Brass: Lancashire to the collection already in the car. I planned to play games Saturday evening at Richard’s house, and he might want to try the other Brass.

I reached the hummingbird house without incident, avoiding the traffic in Old Town Beaverton; today is the tree lighting and Christmas Festival. It was still morning, so the traffic was not building yet, and I was quickly and without losing any paint at Susie’s place.

Susie was comfortable in her recliner in the shared living room. Susie had already had breakfast. Susie decided that she would stay inside today. I got out the Advent Calendar, and we opened day three. Inside the small door was some small hard candy–not safe for Susie. I had one and decided I could not give one to Susie–perfect for choking!

Next, we moved to the social room, and I set up the screen and plugged my Mac into the screen. Then, we watched two Christmas shows: Rudolf and The Year Without a Santa Claus. Susie stayed awake for all the shows and sang along to some of the songs.

Susie was feeling better but still having some tummy issues. Likely that was breakfast settling now that Susie is eating more. Evan, who joined us in the second show, told me he thought Susie was more awake, and her speech seemed better.

I paused one show, and we called Leta, Susie’s mother, on my iPhone using FaceTime. We all chatted for a while. I try to connect Susie and her mother daily using FaceTime so they can see each other.

Soon the shows were over, and Susie was looking tired also; it was time for lunch (we did two fifty minutes shows). So I kissed Susie goodbye, and Anassa took over, the nurse aide for the weekends, and was getting Susie ready for lunch when I left.

The next event was getting a birthday dinner for my mother, Barb Wild, in East Lansing. Unfortunately, my sister is ill with the stuff going around, so she could not take mama to dinner at her favorite, Bravo. Linda sent me a text with mom’s usual selections and suggested that Uber Eats could handle this. Thus, I ordered dinner for Barb Wild while with Susie (Susie got to wish Barb a happy birthday) between movies.

Evan and I had food and drinks and played a board game, Architects of the West Kingdom, at the taphouse, The 649, one of our usual haunts on Saturday. I connected to their WiFi and watched the status of the food on my Mac. The driver got lost.

Chris, the Uber driver in East Lansing, called me. I then proceeded to give directions to the unit in East Lansing. I managed to remember the way; it has been years since I have been there. Success! The food was delivered. More surprisingly, I ordered the right stuff. Excellent. Mom has a nice dinner.

After playing two games of Architects (I have described the game in the last few blogs, so I will forgo covering the game here) and beating Evan both times (just lucky in the first one), I headed to Portland.

The last event was playing with Richard and Shawn. Shawn and Richard are good game players; I would be crushed–as usual. We played again, the third time in a row, Weather Maker, a new game from a Kickstarter (again, I have described this game in last Saturday’s blogs and will pass on explaining it here). I made a few mistakes and could not find my grove, and I did not improve my best score. This time we played semi-cooperative, and Richard got the Nobel Prize and ended the game. I felt we had found the heart of the game, and everyone had a lovely time. Shawn, his first time, had a great score.

We did not take up the board game Brass this time.

I headed home and was back at the Volvo Cave without incident, except for me passing a semi on an on-ramp to a bridge on the tallest ramp in Portland! The ramp was two lanes, then reduced to one land; the semi started to pass me on the ramp! I was going fast after that and got in front of him instead of being crushed or knocked off the bridge! I don’t like bridges, and the ramp, I call it the Space Shuttle Launch Ramp, is higher than the bridge and is tilted. So a bit exciting trip home.

At the Volvo Cave, I had a bagel-like product with cream cheese and some capers I added. I need to take food with my pills. So I turned on the next episode of Wednesday on Netflix, did my stretching, and then took six minutes on the stationary bike. The next episode was fun; the teenager angst is something I don’t need but fits the show (and the audience). I still recommend it.

I went to bed after that and fell asleep. I had a terrible nightmare and was awake at 1AM–I can’t remember what was in the dream. After that, I managed to sleep again. I woke at 4AM and was about to get up and write this blog when I woke at 5:45. I was about to get up, and then it was 6:45, and I did get up.

Thank you for reading.

For the third day of Advent, I will pick these silly songs: Miser Songs.

I started Friday as usual with me, sleeping in a bit and doing all my meetings, hours of Zoom meetings, in my robe. I woke at 5AM and had trouble falling back to sleep a few times. I had vivid non-scaring dreams that I can not remember and started before 7AM.

I finished the cottage cheese for breakfast with some peaches from a can. I made French Press liberal coffee, Equal Exchange Organic Breakfast Blend. I had ordered another case, but I now have found four more bags in the pantry–I am supplied for 2023, I think. Oops.

Friday focuses less on the status and more on getting things done to get to our weekend. I helped with some technical issues. I also helped with some crises of the moment. It was nice to get back to designing some software.

I did my stretching exercises and showered and dressed. I then walked for twenty minutes to get my exercises done. I walked past Reedville Elementary and a few blocks and then turned around. I saw a gal putting up a wreath, and we exchanged pleasantries. This year, as the pandemic’s impact on the economy wains, folks are using more holiday decorations, almost like we are demanding it to be a good holiday. A bit manic, but it looks nice.

Next, I drove to Beaverton to Top Burmese in Old Town. I had the veggy-only lunch with okra–it was beautiful. I have had it before, and with the okra sliced, it is more like green beans than slimy veggies. There is strange parking in Beaverton, and I had to park three blocks away. Top Burmese uses robots to deliver drinks and food, but the bar is still manual. I did have to avoid one of the robots getting into a seat on the bar–they track just behind the bar seats to the kitchen.

After leaving Beaverton, I headed to see Susie at the hummingbird house. Susie was in her recliner in the living room, not really watching the reruns of Friends. Jennifer planned to have the residents help her decorate their Christmas tree later in the day. I got out Susie’s Micky and Mini Mouse Advent calendar, and we together opened day two. Susie had a bit of chocolate, and as there were two chocolates, I had one too.

Next, we called Leta, and Susie and her mother chatted on my iPhone using FaceTime. Leta had decorated her tree and shared a view of it. Susie was happy that I could come by, and I stayed a bit, but it was a work day, and I needed to get back to the house and connect back to work. So Susie gave me a kiss goodbye.

I reached the house and reconnected to work on my Nike laptop. Next, I contacted the service that supplies cigarettes in East Lansing, yes, there is one, and I then paid their fees and had them take some smokes to Barb Wild. Next, my sister sent me a place to order chicken wings. I connected with that place in Lansing and sent plain chicken wings and a chef salad to Mrs. Wild, Sr.

I continued following along at work, but it soon quieted down. The food and smokes arrived, and mama was quite pleased.

Now for dinner for me, I cooked hamburger meat from the freezer, defrosted it in the microwave, and made tacos. I found all the packets of spices and shells in the pantry. I had cheese slices that I cut into thin pieces. I put the cheese in the shells and added the cooked meat and spices. I did add a 1/2 a sliced onion to the beef and a can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes to the meat and spice pack. I baked the shells until crunchy with the meat and cheese in them so they would not break apart when stuffed. Next, I cut some lettuce and added sour cream. It was good, and I had too many.

While cooking, I finished watching The Man from UNCLE movie that I liked so much but is not likely to get a second film. It was a zany film, and I wish they would make another.

After this, I went back to writing my Dungeons and Dragons adventure. I also worked on the figures for the adventure. I need some specially made items. I was working with my Dremel on one gigantic item I hope to use later. I took a last minutes trip to Rainy Day Games before they closed and purchased some figures I needed. I will not have time to 3D print them. I sometimes close a bar, but today I closed the gaming store!

Aside: I also received today a set of Feather microcontrollers from AdaFruit in New York City. I tried to connect one to my Apple. I could not make it work. The new M1 is not as flexible as my previous Intel-based Apple. I have a Windows machine for this work, and I will try it on the weekend.

Returning home, I set Susie’s exercise bike to fit me and used it for six minutes. This is more exercise for me. I am to walk and/or bike. I have decided to do both.

I decided it was time to slow down, and I watched the new show Wednesday on Netflicks. It was kooky and a bit spooky–yes, an Addams show. I watched the first episode and loved it. The actress, Jenna Ortega, who plays Wednesday, is perfect–a morose teenager Wednesday. Recommended.

I then wrote the blog tonight to give me more time for writing and watching the USA soccer game on Saturday morning. I am headed to Susie in the late morning and taking her to the mall. After that, I plan to play games at Richard’s in Portland at 6PM. A busy Saturday.

Thanks for reading.

Today’s Advent song is Mary, Did You Know?

 

The snowstorm and snowmageddon did not happen this Thursday morning. It was a letdown as that would have been an excellent way to start December, but I did not miss the messy commute. We also have the Nike Emergency contact system to keep us informed. It did not send out a message last night, so I know it was unlikely we would be facing snow.

My rushed morning includes exercises to stretch my lower back and help me be more flexible. So I was on the floor this morning trying that out. Afterward, I read my emails, texts, and messages for work and from my personal accounts. I got showered and dressed after a breakfast of a bagel-like bread product with cream cheese and a banana with liberal coffee.

Another case of coffee was delivered today, liberal equal exchange coffee. I sent Barb, Susie’s sister, some for Christmas–not much more expensive than sending some myself.

I arrived at work before 8 and then embarked on a voyage in Zoom of hours of status meetings. I asked some questions here and there, and unfortunately, I just made the meetings longer without helping much. But I have been told that folks like my questions, so I carry on.

I slipped out after the meetings and headed off to see Susie at the hummingbird house. I had no meetings left in the early afternoon; I would not have to rush off. Traffic for a Thursday was lighter than I expected. The thought of snow had apparently driven people to work from home and stay off the roads. The road electronic status sign threatened an $880 fine for not having chains–Beaverton Finest was ready to enforce the law. I put the socks in the cargo area, the only traction devices allowed on my SUV XC60 Volvo 2018. It is against the law to travel without traction devices, at least in a vehicle in light snow. If the state announces a snow emergency, the Volvo must wear socks; they cost $220 to cover all four wheels.

Without wearing socks, I arrived safely at the hummingbird house in Air Volvo (that is, none on the Volvo). Susie was in her chair and festive with a Christmas sweatshirt keeping her warm. We got her Micky and Mini Mouse advent calendar and opened the first door, a chocolate star. I broke off a tiny piece and let her eat that. Susie complained that her tummy hurt–Jennifer told me Susie ate her oatmeal, fried potatoes, and Ensure. Susie was full!

On my iPhone, we called Susie’s mother, Leta, on FaceTime and had a lovely chat. Leta was starting to decorate the inside of her house with Christmas stuff. I stayed for forty-five minutes and then left with a kiss. Susie was happy I was able to stay longer.

I headed to Bethany, not far, for lunch and then my Physical Therapy appointment. I went to the Bethany Public House, sat in the bar, and connected to Nike’s network. I had lunch, choosing their cowboy chili and a diet coke (beer is for after work and weekends) while watching the second half of the World Cup games. Japan pulled off an impossible task, I thought, of beating Spain. Germany won its game but failed to make the knock-out 16. It was a good lunch, and I followed along at work and answered some questions.

Off to PT. I had a new guy, Michael, and also Leo. They worked me over and are working on making me more flexible. They recommended a go-slow plan as I had trouble with pain after the exercises, and some of their stretching of my back was uncomfortable. I did ride their bike for five minutes. I had more pain later, so I decided to go slow and not do any more exercises today. It is not supposed to hurt.

I drove home from Bethany without incident or the need for socks (but I have them). I reconnected with Nike and followed along for a while. I rested a few times to bring the pain, which got worse an hour after the exercises (sneaky pain is what Michael called that).

I made a ham and cheese sandwich with a pickle and coleslaw leftover from Popeyes (I got the large amount as it is not more expensive than their small size). I then worked on my Dungeons and Dragons adventure, finishing the start-up text and working on encounters. I am improving the text, making it a bit harder, and using all those tricks I used before.

The way to write good encounters for Dungeons and Dragons and role-playing games is to break the rules–not what you would do in a board game! In this case, I have created my own version of creatures, and some are actually puzzles for the players to work out–nothing standard. Just how do you get rid of this horror is their challenge. Some don’t go away easily. Next, I create great adventurers by using themes, usually three themes. They guide the way I assemble the monsters, traps, and treasures to be found. The players typically work out a few of these patterns and enjoy decoding what is happening.

Previously, I wrote an adventure that broke the rules by having the whole adventure be a dream and that characters could not die, but when they would have, they started over at the start with all their equipment. This was an advantage–it created strange dynamics. I could use overpowered traps and monsters, and they would get multiple tries (deaths) to find the best way to beat the trap or monster.

I decided at 8ish to head to Wildwood to write the blog. I wanted a beer and some social interaction after all the writing. So I had a dark beer and wrote this blog. I also put out the recycling and trash. My back hurt. Yes, time to go slow.

Thanks for reading.

For Advent, I will pick out a song as an Advent Calendar:

Christine McVie, the singer and songwriter, passed away–so it seems fitting to give her the first slot. Happy Holidays!