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It was a strange feeling to get up early and not go to work. I did my normal steps, including making coffee and reading my email and then reading the news. I then cleaned up and dressed and sat down and logged on to work. There were a few items left from last week, so I was busy for a bit. It felt strange that this was the start of two weeks or more at home.

I have two laptop computers in use at one time. One is a PC for work, and the other is my own Apple. My network, Comcast, is fast and easily able to handle multiple fast high bandwidth connections. I did hours of phone meetings on the work PC, often using the video to be seen. I noticed that the other folks did not use video. As I present online and in-person at conferences for a national and international audience, I am comfortable now with public speaking by a PC camera or with a mic live. Not everyone apparently is comfortable with video.

While all of the work stuff was going, my Apple computer tracked the outside world. I can say that the poo was being expelled by the fan. The stock market found new ways to reduce my retirement. The USA and other places are locking-down even more. More folks passed away. World banks were promising to rescue us and the markets–I was trying to feel better about that, but I just watched The Big Short movie and had so little faith now in bankers and central banks. So it was just a terrible swirl of bad news. I tried to not look.

I kind of felt like this song about the news and markets: 50 Ways to Say Goodbye.

But, I got an email from the Golden Valley Brewery (GVB) to join them for St. Patrick’s Day by either coming to dinner or getting it to go with beer to go too. I have the making for dinner already, but the beer list was looking good.

Old Chicago Pizza could order on-line. Other offers appeared in my email, and kind notes appeared on Facebook and email from friends.

It is in the 50Fs and sunny in March. The kids were playing kickball–no school. So despite the new lows on the market, it seemed a great day.

So once work was over, Corwin and I got in the Volvo to get some beer from GVB for St. Patrick’s Day tomorrow. We found a massive power failure! The street lights were out, and GVB closed not by a virus but a tree on the powerlines somewhere! It took a while to get back to where traffic lights worked again.

Home and Corwin made dinner. New York strip steaks with corn and mac and cheese as side dishes. Our first locked-down dinner. We had stopped by Rite Aid to get some beer and some various supplies. They had paper towel rolls! Even paper products were re-appearing. Maybe it was not so bad.

At 6:30 is Dungeons and Dragons on Roll20 with four players. Everyone was ready, and we played two hours of gaming tonight. That was fun with all the software and game working.

(Roll20 screen for Dungeons and Dragons, 5E).

I received an email from Australia. I was supposed to be there at a computer conference today, Mastering SAP Conference 2020. It postponed and my trip canceled. I am invited back in October when they relaunch it. I am ready for a relaunch!

So a day of terrible news, sun, nice notes and ideas, games, and powerful weather.

 

Today was my first day getting ready to work from home and living more inside than out. The Shoe Company has asked us to work from home when we can until April. Also, today, our church was closed. From what I have seen, everything is closing or moving to restricted schedules. I talked to the church folks, and maybe some kind of electronic solution may be found to have church service or at least to connect up. For those who need a church song, the Methodist Anthem: 1000 Tongues. This is the best version I found.

(The sign at our church)

I was surprised yesterday when my Saturday night trip to Portland to play boardgames was quick. No traffic at all. Beaverton, usually humming on Saturday night with traffic, was not busy. The roadways on my trip home after midnight were shockingly empty of cars. Actually, traffic was so light that we missed our turn and traveled the wrong way on a one-way street in Portland–nobody was on the road, and there is no sign! I then took a wrong way U-turn to get a place to drop off my fellow gamer (I having a car often play Uber for them–no charge). Why not?

Preparing dinner today, my previous load of Safeway.com groceries included two corned-beef briskets. I did not know their size, so I ordered two. They are huge. So we had a boiled dinner today to get in early on St. Patrick’s Day. I started early boiling the brisket. After about four hours, I then use the water to boil potatoes and carrots and bake the brisket.

Safeway.com had no red potatoes, so I bought some when I was in Portland a bit early for the game at Zupon’s. They had plenty. Shortages, I believe, will be a bit random.

(no TP!)

Today I prepared my order for Safeway after starting to boil the corned beef. I have purchased groceries online for two weeks. It runs about ten bucks fee plus I give the drivers a 5 buck tip. Susie has a reduced immune system, so I thought it better to get the groceries delivered with minimal handling. Today I discovered that I could get delivery next weekend at best. Well, it was good while it lasted! I got into my Volvo and drove. The Safeway, five minutes away, had little bread, no toilet paper, and plenty of coffee. Very PNW! Other items here and there were out. Dried beans, for example, could not be purchased. Oddly, canned beans were plentiful. Realizing that I could not expect this to get better, I loaded up the cart and bought what may be the end of the no-fat milk supply, two half gallons.

There are no bananas. Corwin and his friend made banana daiquiris–possibly drinking the last banana! I was humming “The Last Banana in Paradise” after a Parrot-Head song: Cheese Burger in Paradise while shopping. Everyone at Safeway, customers and the staff, was friendly and looked a bit worried, and some folks looked like they had never been shopping before. 

The deli counter was happy to keep the social distance high. The butcher was pleased to come out and find some good steaks for me. We agreed that New York Strips marinated in teriyaki sauce and grilled was a good idea. I thanked all the Safeway staff I saw for being there. They said they were happy to help us. Here is the PNW we are used to floods, earthquakes, volcanoes, and now viruses. We are always polite and happy to see each other. One older man was wearing a mask.

I have dried milk and a quart of pre-beaten eggs, just in case.

(Oddly, Safeway brand 5-seed bread is one of the loaves they still had in stock–which is Susie’s fav)

(Plenty of coffee)

I have Baby-wipes if our week supply, previously delivered, of toilet paper runs out. I have bleach if we need to make our own cleaning supplies. I made Michigan Chili (Mid-West styled chili with beans and very little spice and stewed tomatoes) on Saturday afternoon, and there is chili left, as I planned, for Monday.

Today I baked some scones. My order of a case of scones mixes from King Arthur Flour came in on Saturday. We have Cinnamon Pecan now–I have to cut in 1/2 stick of butter and some milk and an egg for each mix. My friends asked me online if I had enough jam? I have now ordered that online. Soon we will be safe from a being awash in baked good, but without jam! I have some limited supply of jam that should last us.

Here is my inventory picture. Corwin was concerned that my displaying this picture, we would attract raiders. With the deficit of jam, at this time, I believe we are safe.

I have important gaming items ready. The website Roll20, a site to play Dungeons and Dragons and Call of Cthulhu role-playing games (RPG), is advertising itself as a way to safely play games. I have my regular Roll20 twenty game this Monday. We did not know we were leading the way!

I just started on Call of Cthulhu and bought the content for the RPG. Players get it free if I buy it. So looks like we will be playing some CoC as it is known. So we are ready for RPGs too for the start of lock-down. Anyone for an RPG?

Turning to the sad, more than four hundred people passed today from the virus according to the news. This includes one death here in Oregon. We will remember them with a song: Lift Every Voice.

We will be here until April, at least. See you again soon, online.

 

 

 

 

It has been a few months since we left Amsterdam, and the usual chaos that is life has taken over. I feel like I never really finished the blog as it needed that last true story that would finish it.

(Our local volcanos)

(The photo of your foot on the carpet at PDX–a unique carpet pattern used only in PDX–is how you say “happy to return to PNW.”)

What do I remember about the trip now a few months ago? Very little of the flight back other than the crew helped Susie get off of the plan and waited for us before leaving. That was very kind of them. We had an Eastern European driver that took us home. He was pleasant and happy to get a long trip as a Lyft driver, PDX to Aloha. I then did the washing and unpacked us. Back to work!

The night before we left I remember that Corwin convinced me that we could use a car to the airport instead of getting up an hour early (4AM) to roll Susie to the train station, get tickets, and then get on a train (with luggage) and then get off of a train and get Susie and luggage. The hotel took care of the arrangements and the wake-up call. To my defense, I thought that we should try to experience more of the public part of Holland. I was not influenced by the intoxicants that are always in the air in Amsterdam, I think.

Thinking back, I plan to spend another Christmas in a few years there again. The art we saw was magnificent, but we missed the history and much of the culture. Maybe a bus tour of Holland or some other day trip. The painting we saw will stay with me, but the view of the master’s tools will always be with me (I later learned that we were not to take photos of this).

And the plain silliness of a tourist town…

So we all remember Amsterdam with happiness!

It is recommended as an adult place (just not for kids) and a place to learn and enjoy. We do not miss it–we will return soon.

 

 

Today I had no big plans for us. We just got up, early again, and had breakfast and then headed out into the city.

Susie and Corwin wanted to try out various intoxicants at a Cafe known as The Bulldog Mack and to get various branded items. This is the rough part of the Redlight district near the old church. A short ten minutes or about twenty pushing Susie on her walker. Susie’s walker doubles as a wheelchair. We get Susie to walk about 100 feet to 200 feet.

While they went to The Bulldog Mack, filled with smoke and not that good for me, I went off to the second-hand shops and especially the bookshops.

It is a sunny but cold day in Amsterdam. The wind cuts. I was able to take a few shots of the area. It all looks quaint until you look closer and see all the headshops and sex shops signs on all the old-style brick buildings.

I found the English Book Exchange. I purchased a Fritz Leiber fantasy book, Swords in the Mist, for the plane. I left my finished book in the hotel books, The Other End Of The Line. Some other traveler will take the book I leave here in Amsterdam and it will travel even further.

I checked on Susie and Corwin after I made my purchase and Susie was surprising the others, she was no light-weight. Again, the air is not good for me, so off to more stores and trying to not window shop at the rough trade places. It is hard not to be fascinated by such oddity.

Susie and Corwin decamped to the brand store for The Bulldog and there I find them. We buy some shirts and hats.

I suggest beer and snacks. We return to the De Wildeman and they remember us and ask us about our stay and are sad to learn we are leaving on Saturday. But beer is gotten and local cheese and fresh meats are provided. It is a good time.

After that, it is nap time for me.

We gather with Corwin for one last dinner in Amsterdam. Simsit Sarayı provides sandwiches at a reasonable price. Interestingly the place is poorly rated. There are no prices, names of food items, and the crew seems to expect you to know this, know what you want, and pay what they say. I checked and this store had as many five stars and one stars ratings. For us, the food was good, the people helpful, and the place a bit confusing.

We have our boarding passes. I have been exchanging emails with KLM all day trying to ensure that Susie has a wheelchair booked. The KLM website because we are through Air France and Delta is not working right. I do have a wheelchair booked on Delta’s site. It looks like we will have to just deal with it when we get to the airport.

Susie and Corwin have loved Amsterdam–Susie being reacquainted with Amsterdam and Corwin’s first visit. I finally got to spend some time here and see the Museums I have always wished I had time to see. Having a whole day for each was a real treat.

But…as usual, I am looking forward to being at the Volvo Cave soon…We have talked to the hotel and will take a taxi and be at Schipol three hours early. Two hours they think would be enough, but with the wheelchair, they think we should go for three.

Off soon to home!

Michael Wild

Still @ Inntel Hotel, Room 2266, Amsterdam

I expected that the jetlag would accrue and today I am tired. I did what you are not supposed to do, I went and slept at about 3PM and now it is 11PM. I have walked miles every day and have been up from early morning to past midnight every day so a half-day of rest I think is alright and it is a vacation.

I finished today by having a large beer, too large, at The Bottle which is a tiny bar with the smoking of whatever next to the packed Cafe 420. Corwin had some intoxicants to smoke and we thought it nice to play another game of chess at Cafe 420 there while Corwin finishes up his purchased products–but the crowds are returning to Amsterdam for the New Years–which I guess is a smoking paradise–and we could not get in. I also did not wish to breathe that much smoke. I had hoped that it would be a little less busy on Boxing Day. So Corwin enjoyed his smoking (stepping slightly away from me) and me a plate of cheese and salami to go with the beer. After that, I walked with Corwin back to the hotel, a bit unsteadily from exhaustion, beer, contact effects of various smoked products, and so on.

This morning we slept in for the first time to 7AM. I did the normal things and got to the  Europe style hotel breakfast. We have found the Inntel Hotel to work out perfect for what we need to do which is to get a taxi and to be in the middle of some food place and in the center of the more tame part of the Red-light district. The rough trade is three canals east and North of here. The rough stuff can hear the bells of the Old Church which is oddly the center of the rough stuff. Just head towards the church to find the girls and guys performing in the windows.

Today after breakfast we headed to Rembrandt House and there we had our first issue on the trip for Susie. The house is left almost unchanged and so Susie cannot climb the narrow with a rope to hold to steps. So I make a quick dash through the house, we already had purchased tickets, and find that top is reachable by elevator and take Susie up to see the roof work area for Rembrandt’s students and a little exhibit on restoring and understand the science of Rembrandt work and how they authenticate painting and engraving.

While doing my quick tour, I did speak to the staff in Rembrandt’s working room. There are lots of do-no-touch items in the room so it requires staff. The room is lighted by LED white lights. I told the staff I was thinking that was a shame as I would have liked to see it with the light of Rembrandt’s time. It was explained to me that the windows in the room all face North and the light is very bright later in the day. They also had the shutters closed on some of the windows. The room is bright they told me and the LED lights are not noticed when the sun is bright and the windows not shuttered. On the book I bought at the shop, not picking the English version by accident, the photo of the same room appears to have the LED turned off. I think I would like to have seen the room without the LED and the shutters open. Rembrandt’s paintings are so much about light.

I still enjoyed seeing the house and Susie got to see a bit of the house.

The shop sold me a few items I wanted. They gave us directions to a taxi stand and a place to eat lunch, which was closed for Boxing Day when we got there, and we also found out that the flea market was closed too. So we found a place for food which is best forgotten and then traveled back.

That is about all we managed today. Corwin and I did walk to the train station and look at the trains to the airport running on Saturday. It looks like we can get one every 1/2 hour. We need to catch the 5:30AM on Saturday with 6AM being our back-up plan.

Time to start thinking about coming home!

Michael R Wild

Inntel Hotel, Room 2266, Amsterdam.