Blog

Layoffs were the news at Nike today. Not my organization but all over the shoe company with re-organizations. This was all announced at 2 PM after the company entered the summer hours.  I was back online reading all the emails and looking at the very vague diagrams trying to understand the meaning of the organizational changes and a hint of what was philosophy underlying the changes. There are always explanations, but ambiguous words never satisfy. In the end, I was sad and unhappy–the usual for layoffs.

My day started at 6:15ish this morning, making coffee and reading all the emails and getting ready for hours of Zoom meetings. The meetings and emails and text were about real issues and trying to solve real computer problems or me covering some of the histories of why the computer systems work the way they do for new employees. Resolving issues and recalling why things are the way they are made it a happy day for me, and with the day ending at noon, it was a good Friday.

I finished my last meetings and then got in Air Volvo and headed to Portland. My mother, I called her to check in, was concerned that I would be injured or arrest by some crazy Federal person. I told her that I would go with the Portland approach and just strip down and pose for the police if things got complicated. My mother was sure that my plan was flawed, but I explained it had worked a few nights ago for others–how could it fail for me. She rang off, still worried, but reassured that I was not headed to the Federal Court House in Portland.

Instead, I drove over the Burnside and the new Gaming store, Mox Boarding House. Mox opened just a few weeks ago, and I wanted to support my local gaming store and have lunch. They have a bar, and Sydney and Tatyana served me lunch.

(the bar with Tatyana)

I had the lamb with pasta and a sour beer. It was great.

They stamped my parking, you get 90 minutes of complimentary parking. I parked in the garage they share with the soccer stadium.

I then drove further on Burnside and the bridge to get to Guardian Games and picked up an older book on Lankhmar for the Savage Worlds system. I did not have this one, Savage Seas of Nehwon, so I picked it up. Someday I will play a Lankhmar based role-playing campaign. Some day without a virus…

Next, I drove back, avoiding the Federal Court House and City Hall area, and went to the very local Rainy-day Games here in Aloha and bought the April edition of Wargames Illustrated magazine. I use to buy it when it came out at the bookstore for something to read at lunch when working in the office. I completely forgot about it as I no longer have those habits and all the places I usually buy it are closed. I am shocked that I completely forgot about it and wondered what else I am missing.

Wargames Illustrated is a UK publication that covers miniatures mostly 28mm (used in Dungeons and Dragons) and 15mm used in tabletop gaming. It reviews all the cool miniatures and some games and rules to use miniatures. It also has a good section on books too—all in glossy color to make me want to try again to paint figures that good.

I got home, and Corwin and Susie had scrambled eggs and cold steak leftover from my cooking yesterday. I just had a bagel as I had a large lunch, and breakfast was a bagel and banana.

I got out Brass: Lancashire again. Brass is my newest board game purchase, and I am still trying to learn it. I managed to play a two-player game without that many errors, all minor and fixable. I know I am getting the rules down as I find myself wondering how to play instead of trying to remember the rules or actions. I also had trouble with my choices and how best to do the play. The whole design of Brass is to make you decide and face the results of those choices. Decisions are hard, and the results are to follow the paths from those choices. Do I increase my network, or maybe build a mill, or sell some cotton? Brass: Lancashire plays 2-4 players in just a few hours or less. I think I like it, but it is much harder than most games I play.

While I was moving over to the next epoch in Brass, a friend of mine just bought a car and need a lift. So I headed out and helped out.

I will finish the Brass game after I write this.

Tomorrow is Free RPG Game Day and looks for me in-line to get into Rainy-day Games in the morning.

The USA stock market went down again and is down for the week. I have sold most of my short term holdings. I decided to settle for what I could get than hope for higher.

Reports show another eleven-hundred Americans’ lives with cut short today by the virus.

Today’s hymn to remember all we have lost today is Abide with Me.

 

A sad day for me.

Today started a bit late as it was hard to start. I had problems sleeping last night, and so I was not feeling up to facing the world. The world started anyway, and Nike announced layoffs of all the teachers and people from the day school. Nike will no longer have service at WHQ. One of my favorite things, when I worked on campus at WHQ Nike, was to see the little people marching around the lake and the little carts full of the smaller folks. I cannot believe that day-care and all the kids will now be gone from WHQ. We will never see the little folks again, and I am very sad about that change.

Work went on, and I did many tasks while listening on Zoom calls. Today was a lot of status and planning as we start the next work increment. I was responding to technical items while in the Zoom calls. I try to remember to go on mute and take down the video when I am busy with other tasks.

I had DoorDash deliver Einstein Bagles lox bagels and a dozen more bagels for later. I had another bagel for lunch and for a snack later.

Unrelated to the news about the loss of childcare at Nike, I liquidated much of my remaining holding of options and stock today. I have been selling most of my stock holdings over the last couple of weeks. I feel that the recovering is not happening and we are headed to deeper bad times. People are not working in many industries.

With the money, I plan to pay off the car and other items and hunker-down even a bit more. My 401K is still in the market but even that is making me nervous. I am not quite ready to join the gold bugs and coin hoarders, but I am concerned, and this way, I am reducing my personal exposure to risk for shorter-term assets.

Do have to admit that reducing the money spent on books (even Kindle) and board games may require more strength of will than I have: Mr. Wick. I will try to have a focus.

Dinner was ribeye steaks done on the gas grill with just salt and pepper. I made steamed carrots. I made egg-noodles with butter and a touch of Herb de Provence and salt. As usual, I did not put enough salt on everything, but I have high blood pressure and salt is “white-death” to me so I use it lightly (I use unsalted butter).

Impacting my decision to sell everything today was the US market fall of more than three-hundred fifty points. I felt I should get out while I still can (I still have Virgin Galactic and Ford just for emotional reasons). I will know by the year-end if I was right.

No comment on the protesting as all that is in the international news.

I hope to head to Mox on Friday afternoon, Nike closes at noon on Fridays. I want to see how they are doing after a few weeks of being open. Have to support the local gaming company.

The reports show that more than eleven-hundred Americans’ lives were cut short today by the virus.

I found this choir for today’s song: How Excellent.

Here is the sunset looking from my deck in the back.

(the comet Neowise is the other direction and is obscured by all the trees)

We just got home tonight, and after a short rest, I started to write this.

A short story today as most of the day was working.

We previously stopped at the gas station to get gas for Air Volvo, the name of my car. Air Volvo was showing a warning light and counting down until it runs out of gas. It starts at fifty miles and lets you know how many miles you have left. I have filled the car four times now since the emergency.

Before gassing up and making Air Volvo stop warning about having only fifty miles left, we went to the Rockcreek Tavern McMenamin for a beer with a friend. Susie had a plain cheeseburger with bacon on the side, I had a Portland Dip (instead of beef it has turkey), and the same for our friend. We had masks as did most folks. Everything was served correctly, timely, and with a mask.

Before we headed to dinner, I worked until 6PM approving various documents and reviewing designs all afternoon. It is the last day of the current work increment, and I discovered as Technical Architect, I am the approver all of the work. All of which I helped design and agreed too. Thus, it was not challenging to accept it all–it just took all day.

An aside, on one of the calls we talked about NFL and I, thought a picture of the award we got for making all the emergency changes to Nike computer years ago for the NFL contract would be fun. We get just one shoe, and this one was in bright colors and a metal tag.

(Getting NFL right was critical to Nike. The shoe means a lot to me)

One of my favorite parts of watching an NFL game on TV is when the camera pans, and I see the crowd wearing all Nike t-shirts and jerseys. We made that all work, and it took multiple enhancements and some “pixie dust” I invented. It is a thrill for me when I see the crowds at a game in our bright sportswear.

Returning to our story, lunch was Burger King drive-thru, I love their burgers and a McDonald Happy Meal for Susie.

I started at about 7AM and was busy answering emails and being part of Zoom meetings. Most I had to say something, so I was working much of the morning.

The market was headed up again. I was so busy I did not catch much of the news. It appears that the market is still happy about a vaccine for the virus and some form of stimulus coming from Washington, D.C.

On the protesting, Portland found a new way to be annoying to the Federal troops. Apparently, leafblowers work to send the tear gas canisters back into the Federal police forces. I read that this is genuinely unexpected and frustrating to the Fed cops. I also read a report that Mayor Wheeler is fed-up and has joined the protestors–a unique Portland solution, but not likely to be true**. And, acting Secretary Wolf was quoted that the Federal forces are making “pre-emptive” arrests for protesting–which is a head-scratching comment.

The reports show that more than twelve-hundred Americans perished from the virus today.

With no attempt at irony, I found this song and thought this lockdown version was nice: Pass it On.

**Update: Mayor Wheeler was at the protest to talk to people when he was tear-gassed.

Yesterday was actually 128th and not 127th day. A standard mistake of off-by-one-error from a computer person.

Today started at 6ish, and I got to enjoy problems all morning and part of the afternoon that required frequent trips to the restroom. Not the kind of day I wanted!

Work was filled with more Zoom calls and many questions. I applied a fix to some software and then sent it to the next environment. With sudden brakes and rushing off to the loo.

So work was Zoom and talking and applying fixes.

I then had to stop for a while and enjoy the discomfiture of intestinal issues. This is a side effect of one of my drugs, and I must have had too much masked (mashed) potatoes and got me out of sorts.

Lunch was from Gyro House and a bit heavy. I figured I might need some food with the other issues.

I took a nap or two and then helped with a fix at Nike again.

I made dinner of pork chops fried in butter with Herbs de Provence and then baked in the pan for twenty minutes to finish them (and it goes without saying that one must not grab the metal handle of a pan that was in a 350F oven). I made couscous with almonds, cranberries, and raisins cooked in butter with cinnamon, and a touch of cardamom finished with chicken broth. I did run my hand under cold water–no damage just a reminder. Canned peaches were also served.

So just a dull day.

I thought I should show the Volvo Cave without protestors, teargas, or naked people. We are not sure if there are any secret Federals agents–the squirrels do look a bit guilty. The crows are watchful.

So far, the only protestors we have at the house are very small. The problem is that ant-man came and sprayed, and now we have twice as many pissed off ants in the house. Our pests are running around very fast and look very unhappy.

One of my favorite figure companies, Antideluvioan miniatures, they still only do metal, has the old Dungeon and Dragon Cartoon characters as grown-ups in 28mm metal back in stock. I got the figures in a Kickstarter, which included Dungeon Master (I am currently using the DM figure as I am playing a gnome wizard in the currently on-hold Sunday game) and others.

(here are a few)

The market was up again in hopes of a solution to the virus, and maybe Washington D.C. might do another stimulus package. The EU managed to settle on a stimulus package that is long term. Also, Elon of Telsa got a multi-billion dollar bonus. My 401K has again entered positive territory for the year.

The reports show, and this saddens me, that the deaths in the USA for today broke above one-thousand one-hundred.

I found the author of the hymn singing: Soon and Very Soon. I think we need a happy song about things getting better.

 

Today I returned to the original number count, I changed to the new numbers thinking that phase 1 would actually be followed by phase 2, and we would unlock. As we are now under a Federal siege too, it is time to believe we will do this lockdown thing until next year, and thus I have returned to the total count.

Out naked protestors are at least making international news. Portland, and the greater area where I reside, is not just weird. It is hot! The medieval reenactor protester photos also got some play.

Please understand here in Oregon, we believe in publishing all the bad news. It stops people from moving here. Remember, in the 1980s, the unofficial motto of Oregon was, “Come, Enjoy the Great Pacific Northwest, GO HOME.”

I should also point out there is at least one End-of-the-World book set here in Portland (In the story, Portland vegans are left fighting the last battle against the meat-eating zombies, are you not surprised). I even wrote a Call of Cthulhu adventure in Portland, where the players are trying to stop the End-of-the-World Mayan Calendar (remember that). Portland is where to be at the End-of-the-World.

Now, the Federal End-of-the-World style intervention starts here. This is not really a surprise as Oregon has legalized weed, used only by-mail elections, and is part of the liberal triangle (Washington and California being the other states) where Federal authority disappears like a lost plane in a SciFi picture. I like it here.

Leaving our dystopian holiday and turning to my day, it was hot today, and this Monday, I slept in until just before 7. I started with emails and text and just helping and listening all day. It seemed to be an endless status day on Zoom calls. I just did work while I heard the status reports.

I once again forgot it was Monday, and Susie has an appointment for hair, fingers, toes, and various other items at Zerida. Her driver called, and we had 15 minutes. My colleagues on a Zoom call got to watch me, there were a few laughs, run past the Nike laptop a few times while we got Susie ready. We made it, and Susie was whisked off for her appointment taken by her driver. All masked and careful.

After Susie headed out and I cleared a few more Zoom items, I ordered some Vietnamese soup to be delivered. Taking a short break for soup (extra meat) and then back to enjoying more Zoom, emails, and texts.

I made dinner tonight. Schwan’s Chicken Cordon Blu with freshly masked potatoes and canned peaches. I made Hollandaise sauce to put on the chicken. It seemed good.

Returning to the dystopian bad movie we seem to be in here in the PNW, so far Arnold has not appeared at my front door saying, “Come with me if you want to live.” Or Bruce Campbell showing up naked with a chain saw. We do dystopian weird here and all those actors do live on this coast. I have high hopes for more weird.

Obviously, it is time to find some non-political or upsetting news or weird. Lets look at some pictures from the backyard.

My apple tree is huge with fruit. It is a bumper crop. Usually, I give the apples to a friend to change them into wine. If things continue on the dystopian track, I will be buying fermenting and distilling supplies from Amazon!

My leeks and onions, I let go to seed. I discovered too late that I like leeks, and they grow here in the winter. Hmmm maybe.

And a view of the deck is not too bad. It is currently Corwin’s blacksmithing lab.

Not in the photo are blackberry bushes that are massive. I suspect I will have to get rid of them someday.

I fell asleep as I am still tired from some lost sleep, but woke in time to write.

The market was up. The virus inoculation companies flying high. Much of the discussion on Bloomberg, I listen to Bloomberg between calls, and while I work from home, it was about new stimulus packages and going-back-to-school issues.

The reports are that more than five-hundred forty Americans fell to the virus today.

I am repeating some of my favorites: In the Garden. It is a good match for all the news today and the pictures.