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I slept in today. I was going about 9ish today. I stayed up late making cornbread muffins and writing.

Susan’s mother, Leta, called and reminded us that ice skating was on TV. Susie got started and watched the skating all morning. We both munched on cornbread and drank coffee.

I wrote on and off all day. I am re-writing an adventure I wrote for Dungeons and Dragons back in 2004. I am revising it for publication and to the new version of D&D called 5E.

Susie read her book all day.

I needed to get outside, so I went for a walk after driving to the close by city of Hillsboro. Hillsboro sits at the end of the MAX line, our light rail that goes to Portland, and even out to PDX, our international airport. I was masked and with gloves and a coat and my hat, an Indiana Jones hat. I walked from the business section to the courthouse; Hillsboro is the Washington county seat. I then walked back to the car. I managed to resist the coffee shop and the hobby store. Most stores were closed for Sunday. Many, including the US Bank branch, are gone with for rent signs.

The courthouse is a fav walk as there are full-sized redwoods there. There is even a sign that tells you who planted them and when. I love to look at them. You can see them for miles, but they look like other trees until you see how tall the trees are and how wide the trunks are!

The courthouse has that crazy federal period look for such a small building. The lions on the roofline have no connection to Oregon!

I drove over to the gaming store, locally owned; I had not been there in months. I stopped my shopping when the Covid-19 rate exploded. This is the Rune and Board just off of the Max line. I talked to the owner, and he said the store was doing well and that, despite everything, 2020 was a good year for sales. We talked about some games that have come out and one I bought from him. He found a unique figure for me on their discount pile from 2020. It is a pile of toilet paper with a face full of teeth. In D&D, we have a mimic monster, called a mockingbeast on this figure to avoid the copyright, that changes its shape to look like a treasure chest. In 2020, the figure’s treasure was an unguarded pile of TP! I will paint it to remember 2020, the year with no gaming!

I also picked up a new game, it was a smaller one and not very expensive, The King Is Dead, 2nd Edition. I watched an excellent video on this game; they loved it. It is fast and simple. I wanted to support my local game company, and so I picked up something I always wanted. I purchased Brass: Lancashire from the same store a few months ago. The owner always has something I want! I look forward to learning The King Is Dead board game.

I stopped by Safeway and picked up makings for chili that Susie did not like. I made something extra for her. Looks like I will be freezing it and eating it for lunch alone.

I forgot in yesterday’s story that Evan and I tried out the battleship figures and started WW2 Bismarck’s duel versus the Hood. We only got a few rounds in, already the British battleship Prince of Wales was on fire, and guns not working! Lucky for me, Evan had a dinner engagement that saved the POW and the Hood! Yes, the Bismarck steamed off to get Sushi.

It is fun to get out the painted figures of these famous WW2 ships. I need to work out some better rules. I am freely mixing rules I purchased and the use of figures. The scale is not quite right, but with battleships, the ranges are so huge you could be playing in the living room and having the shells falling in the garage if you use truer scales. It is thus necessary to push everything together.

12,366 people were vaccinated yesterday, a new record for a Saturday in Oregon. This number will likely go up as it takes 72 hours to get all the data. It will likely be another two weeks before the state will include Susie and me on the list to be vaccinated. Oregon’s plan, not without controversy, is to vaccinated teachers before medically fragile people and their caregivers.

1,886 people died today in the USA from the virus.

I thought some Bach would be great, Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring.

Working backward tonight, I was just looking at the legal decisions that allowed separate but equal facilities. I was unhappy to learn that the original decision has never been formally overturned. This is the unimaginable Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) decision that allowed segregation to continue into 1999 (Topeka schools were not desegregated until 1999).

I am reading Caste: The Origin of our Discontents on my Kindle; that is where I was reminded about Plessy v. Ferguson (1896). I am learning and re-learning some of the ideas that I studied years ago. Jack Cone recommended this book, and, while painful, it is a good book to explain how we are the way we are. The main concept is the idea of caste and not race is the real origin of the problem.

Before reading more Caste: The Origin of our Discontents, I made dinner for Susie. I made her a grilled cheese, cooked in butter, with cheddar cheese. I opened a can of peaches and put that in a bowl with the sandwich, cut into fourths. She was pleased with that for dinner.

I had leftover Chinese food. Corwin found the lasagna leftovers.

This later afternoon, still going backward, Evan came over, and I managed to lose a very close game of Vindication to him. I thought I had him, but he slipped just past me. Vindication is a friendly competitive board game where you try to make yourself better and earn honor points for getting better. You explore an island finding all sorts of interesting resources you can use to better yourself. For the second time in a row, the winner, Evan, is the most efficient player at winning honor points. The board game is a fav and was designed here in the Pacific Northwest, and I was even involved in the game’s playtesting.

Vindication has new content that is on-the-way. I am hoping to play the revised game soon. Someday it will be delivered. Someday.

We were pressed for time, now moving forward in time (I hope you, dear reader, are not getting whipsawed too much), we played the board game Pandemic Cthulhu; it plays fast. The theme for the game is set in the 1920s in H.P. Lovecraft’s horror stories, and you are trying to save the world from mad cultists. It is a cooperative game, all the players versus the game itself, where you try to stop the game system from ending the game on you. This is one example of a whole family of Pandemic games, even a version to stop Rome from falling, and all contain a mechanism that creates cascading failures. These games can get a bit stressful! And we played a longish game and made it to the absolute last moment, and then we were hit by cascading failures that brought forth Cthulhu and ending the world and reality and the game; we lost.

My copy of the game has painted figures–I painted them–and some add-on bling to make it more immersive. I have little plastic brains to represent your sanity, for example. I also have blue transparent disks to show a gate closed. The picture also shows the mini-cultists that come with the game. I stained mine, so they look more 3D and well sinister.

I recommend Pandemic-styled board games.

Before and even after Evan left, I am working on my new big writing project. I am revising one of my oldest adventures for Dungeons and Dragons, written in 2004, into the newest version of D&D, 5E, and plan to publish it this summer. I have managed to get it all formatted and even have added some art (all licensed to be used if ownership is sited). It is 25,000+ words and needs work. I have not written much for 5E, and so I have to relearn Dungeons and Dragons again as some key rules have been dropped in 5E (It is so much better!). This is for actual money, but we will see how it goes.

Returning to late morning and early noon, Mariah and I met at Bethany Public House. This is outside dining. We sat in an open tent with a heater, and nobody close. Masks and cleaning were strictly followed. They even had mini-greenhouses with a small table for two locked inside. Mariah thought that sort of missed the point, so we sat in the open tent with lots of air movement. I had a red ale, the first one I think I have had in a year, and a Rueben sandwich. I got a teriyaki burger for Susie with no veggies to go. Susie loved it. Mariah had a beer and a burger.

Mariah and I talked about writing and various items, and then we headed out separate ways. We just wanted to sit outside and eat and have a drink.

I was back online and helping this morning with some issues at the shoe company. I helped resolve some outstanding issues. I was watching email all day and tonight for any new issues that they needed my help with. So far, no.

I started at about 7:30.

19,865 people in Oregon were vaccinated yesterday. This is the highest week so far for inoculations. Our county, Washington, has reached more than 6.2% vaccinated. The number may even get better as it takes 72 hours to get all the data in.

While the vaccination data is good, the USA lost 2,889 people to the virus today. The death rate appears to be going down, finally!

I went with this video as the rain and dampness appealed to my Oregon view of the world: Sing Hallelujah To The Lord.

 

The morning was a bit rushed as I had a meeting at 7AM. I started at 6ish and made coffee and got through some email and checked there was nothing I needed to do right then. I rushed getting ready and was ready just in time to get toast and breakfast as I started non-stop Zoom calls for two hours.

I had a break at 9. I had to handle Susie’s Physical Therapy appointment. I called to have it today and was told it was not booked for two. I left a message with Clare as we were expecting her.

I then ordered groceries from Safeway.com as we are starting to get a bit short, even toilet paper. I put in an order to have groceries delivered this early evening. It was three dollars cheaper.

I went for a walk. Today I managed to walk the full length of my usual walk. It is a thirty-minute walk. I was called by PT while walking. Clare is ill, so no PT today.

I noticed a lovely stream I walk by every time I make it all the way. It was time to share that.

I also noticed during my walk that the crows were not out during my walk this morning. Like me, I imagined they had status meetings and agile-style stand-up (fly-up?) meetings (or is that a murder).

I made a roast beef and cheddar sandwich for lunch. When Susie was up a little later, I got her some Eggo Waffles with peanut butter.

I started my new assignment today. I signed back into my old systems to do a bit of research. The assignment is to explain what the source is for some of the data sent from the Nike main accounting system to the data intelligence systems and planning systems. This main system is my former system, and I have to admit that I enjoy looking into it and helping someone use it, even if that is to replace my old software. Unlike most things built in this world, computer software needs to be replaced and destroyed. There should be no antique accounting systems in this world, and while my old system is not failing, it is time for it to go.

I was able to track down the source of the data for the “unknown” item and have another meeting on Monday to clarify my findings.

Mariah texted me if I wanted to have a late dinner. I have groceries coming from Safeway, I could not leave, and I offered to cook pork chops for all of us. That worked for Mariah.

I got out some frozen chops from Schwann’s and ran water over them to defrost them. I put potatoes in the oven—green beans, Schwann’s, with butter and almonds.

The potatoes ended up being finished in the microwave, and the bean’s microwave bag broke open from the bottom (!?) and dumped steaming water on the floor. I managed to get the beans in the pan with butter, almond slivers, butter, and salt without a mess. I was missed by the hot water.

Turning to the main dish, I first cook the chops in a pan on the stove in butter and olive oil. I sprinkle with good salt and generic Italian seasons. I fry and season both sides and flip often. Once about 1/2 done, I put the whole pan in the oven at 350F and cook five-six minutes on each side.

After pulling the pan from the over, I put a mitt on the handle. I take them out of the pan and make a pan gravy by adding butter and cream to the pan and stir up all the bits. I then add water and corn starch to give it some thickening. Usually, a little more water is needed to thin it out.

Note: I put an oven mitt over the handle of the pan as it is burning hot. Forget the mitt, and pain will come when you grab the pan’s handle, burning pain.

Slice up the chop and spoon the gravy over the pork.

We watched the end of the news and an old Top Gear episode. Mariah had not seen the crazy show before.

It not a bad evening.

15,811 people were vaccinated in Oregon yesterday. This number will increase as it takes 72 hours to get all the information. Our county, Washington, is just short of 6% vaccinated.

3,652 people died today in the USA from the virus. The death rate is showing signs of finally slowing.

I picked On Eagle’s Wings for today. I like this 2020 version.

 

Susie’s report came back about 27 hours later, and we learned that she had no signs of Covid-19. We knew it was unlikely that she was infected, but we still were worried. We ordered KFC for dinner to celebrate, and I have been writing while she reads from her Kindle.

My allergies are acting up, so I took some meds for that, and now I am extra sleepy. This will be short today.

I started the day at 6ish as usual for a Thursday, the messiest day of the week for me. I am double booked for much of the day in what seems like endless Zoom meetings. I listened and tried to help with any crises of the moment. It was mostly status meeting and listening to debates on how to load code, data, or configuration corrections today. I was distracted by checking on Susie and looking for test results on the Legacy Medical website.

I managed a short walk today. The crows were very loud, and I watched them drop snails from the phone lines and the now broken out snail. I have watched them drop them on cars. I think they laugh a lot.

I am careful at the crosswalks now. Yesterday a car waited for me at the 209th intersection at Reedville School, and the very impatient driver in the sporty car behind him suddenly swung around and tried to make a sudden right turn over me. I did resist anything thing inappropriate, but I did dip my hat at the driver who stopped.

We did not get the results until about 3ish. I finished my last meeting at 4ish and kept up on email until 5ish.

My old boss at Nike, Jimmy, reads the blog, and he was wondering if it was made into a movie; who do I see playing me. I like Danny DeVito’s friendly version from the movie Other People’s Money. Here is the intro I like so much: Other People’s Money Intro. Danny DeVito plays a corporate raider, but he is not evil or even dark. He also loves donuts.

Just a tranquil day with perfect results!

12,292 people received a vaccination in Oregon yesterday. The number will likely be revised up as more data will come in over 72 hours. Our county, Washington, has a 5.7% vaccinated so far.

3,908 people died from the virus today in the USA.

I went with my most fav hymn, This is My Song. This is a new 2020 version.

 

I had the phones ready for me. We were waiting for the scheduling of Susie’s Covid-19 test. Susie had a moderate fever yesterday, and they want to ensure that this is not asymptomatic Covid-19. We would be called this morning to arrange for the testing. I was up at 6ish as I had a 7AM meeting with the data migration team.

I managed to be on time and made breakfast, a bagel plus a banana, while the meeting went on. I think I drank half the pot of coffee by nine! I am feeling exhausted of late.

We got the call at about 9:15ish, and I dropped from another Zoom call and rallied Susie. We had to be in North West Portland at 10:55. So I got her going, and we were off a few minutes behind my plan, but Air Volvo delivered us early to Portland.

I used the nav in the car. I do no use the phone for this, and it got to the exact spot. I do have to update Air Volvo Nav once in a while for this to work better than a phone’s maps.

I forgot to get gas for Air Volvo. While we had 15 minutes, we found a gas station and filled up Air Volvo.

We then headed over, and Susie got the longest swab on the planet, at least that is what it looked like from her perspective, and she did not enjoy the process.

We will get results in 24-72 hours. I am logging on to Susie’s account with Legacy Medical to check about every few hours. So far, no results.

All the still surviving food places have tents to serve outside. There are also cocktails to go. We resisted that as we are being tested and need to lockdown.

I attended two more work Zoom status meetings after we stopped Burger King and got whoppers with cheese for lunch.

Being very tired, I rested and finally slept about an hour or so. We try not to be frightened by the prospect of facing the infection of Covid-19. It is hard not to be worried.

I ordered a ham and pineapple pizza thin crust for dinner (Susie’s fav) and a salad. We ate that while watching the news on PBS. Susie is feeling fine.

We saw that today is Holocaust Day on the news. People are alone today instead of meeting for this sad day. I wanted to call it out. Susie used to work at the Hebrew Home in Rockville, Maryland and many of her clients were survivors of the camps. It is important to remember.

I went back to writing my Dungeons and Dragons adventure re-write. I got a few more pages done. I am still working out the layout. I am also looking at the rules for using the open license (SRD5 for those who know these things) for this kind of writing. I have published Dungeons and Dragons adventures before (i.e., on Amazon Finding a Broken Sword), and it is all coming back to me.

I will try to get some rest and make it through the usual hectic that is my Thursday on Zoom for Nike.

We believe that we are part of Group 3 of Phase 1B in Washington County, Oregon. We should get our vaccine sometime after Valentine’s Day. The rather obscure rules are here in this hard to find website: https://covidvaccine.oregon.gov/.

10,942 people were vaccinated yesterday in Oregon. The final count is revised for 72 hours, so this number is low. We have over 5% of people vaccinated in our county: Washington.

3,912 people passed away from Covid-19 today in the USA.

I went with a hymn I could sing, and I love Johnny Cash’s version, In The Garden–Methodist Hymnal #314.