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I am still trying to get used to my Tuesdays. These were busy days at the shoe company. It was the first day back in the office after the pandemic (starting with three-day in-office weeks) and the day nobody took off. All the status meetings were more intense on Tuesdays (I felt). I noticed that deadlines were usually missed on Tuesdays, and emergency moves of software fixes always hit on this day (the testing of the fixes, installed on Thursday, took the weekend and Monday). Traffic was always heavier.

Thus, rising at 6:30, I will soon return to Easter Time. I got some coffee after starting the new coffee maker. Deborah was right; having it set up and running automatically is a great boon to wake to. I load it with liberal coffee every night and spill water to fill it. I clean the counter every evening now. It is becoming a ritual.

With coffee at hand, I started the blog, grabbing banana and lemon poppy muffins I made a few nights ago to munch as I wrote. I managed to pound out 3/4 of the day and resist much of the nonsense that Grammarly tried to insert. I then jumped into the shower, shaved, dressed, and was soon aboard Air VW the Gray. And that is when I hit Tuesday traffic.

Beaverton was crawling, and traffic lights were often two sets of lights to pass. Though the traffic suddenly lightened, I hit Highway 217, which was fast. But then Highway 26 (also known as the Sunset Highway as it points directly at the sunset) was more parking lot than highway. It took me 45 minutes to reach Richard’s place from there. I was thirty minutes late. Richard and James waited, and we soon returned to the board game Mansion of Maddess 2nd edition, playing a mostly cooperative game. ‘Mostly,’ as when you go insane, you get a card that may have you take action to ‘win,’ which includes sacrificing another player’s character!

This was a new, recently purchased scenario. Though the game is older, it is still being supported, and an excellent app runs it for you. I had the original manual version and junked it, keeping the figures and rooms for use in playing the role-playing game (RPG) Call of Cthulhu. While still clunky, and I like the RPG better, Richard and James make this fun. Also, the newer scenarios are better assembled and more immersive. This was a haunted house and Mythos combined, which is a favorite story of mine. I found it quite immersive. I went insane but did not become a crazed killer. When James took the sacrificial dagger from me, Richard (his character still sane) and I (my character was insane but collecting six items to win) ran from James, and soon the Mythos creatures took out James. Richard and I finished in time and won (James technically lost as he did not sacrifice my character). It was fun, and I was out by noon.

The rest of my day was spent with my colon. I had a lot of visits to the restroom as it emptied, and I was amazed by how much could be stuffed in there. Sorry to be graphic, but I would be surprised each time when I returned for another round. Yikes! This finally stopped in the early evening.

The colon cancer surgery removed 25 cm of my colon, the section that connected to the rectum, so most of the hints that I have to go are gone as my deeper colon is now the end-of-the-line. It is best to pick times and keep things regular. But I forget as I get busy, and now that I am retired, I have a less regular schedule. One CT scan got a lot of comments as I was fully loaded (constipated). I’m not sure they get to see that often. It is an educational shot I try not to repeat!

On returning home (the trip was easy in the EV with no traffic), I talked to Deborah and made a taco salad out of the leftovers of my tacos. I had acquired more lettuce at the veggie place at 185th and TV Highway. I cleaned the kitchen, sprayed the shower with cleaner, got more packing done, powered up my Kindle, and started another mystery. I like to have a story to read on planes and in airports. I find it best to start the day before so you are ready to start back in. Kindles use electronic ink and thus do not emit light into your eyes like laptops and phones. This is better for me when travelling and resting. I also ordered an Uber car to take me to the MAX station at 6:45 on Thursday. I will take the MAX to my 10AM flight.

Deborah texted me about the blog. I forgot to finish it! I returned to the laptop, finished it, and got it published late. I have also done more packing and laundry. Deborah calls, and she talks until she starts to fall asleep. It is good to start and end our days together.

I head out, thinking my colon is finished with me, to the local sushi place only five minutes away in Air VW the Gray. I sit there in a space at the track. It is after 7, and the evening rush is over (and the track is sparse), but still, I find my favorites (except for smoked eel). I read on my Kindle and slowly eat and drink hot tea. I have miso soup and then grab my dinner from the track.

I am a regular, and the waiter/cashier remembers me. I tell her about my upcoming trips. She seemed to want to hear about them (I hate to be that guy) and was interested in the California trips and Iceland. I am brief in my descriptions and head out.

I return home, charge the EV, vacuum the carpet, and collect more items to pack. I am tired, put on my PJs, climb into bed, and read more of A Better Man: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel (A Chief Inspector Gamache Mystery Book 15). I cannot recommend these books more.

I soon am sleepy, and I turn off the light and sleep. I only remember one waking dream when I rose at 1 to prove hydration and again at 4. It was about the EV being stolen and the typical oh-my-God-what-will-I-do dreams I get. I apparently drove to Michigan in this dream. If the rental is stolen, I call and get another one. Not an issue. 

The stock market is back up a bit, but individual stocks (Ford, for example) are still down. It still feels like a trip to see Niagara Falls by barrel!

Thanks for reading!

 

 

I had little sleep the night before, so Monday was unusually challenging; most weeks, it is more like a Saturday, with sleeping in and chores. I rose at 6 and manually started the coffee I had assembled the day before. It is loaded with liberal coffee.

The first apple blossom.

I began to write, but I was time boxed with a medical appointment at 9:45 in Portland. The blog is always a set of competing goals of telling stories using formulas to make transitions effortless, stream of conscious capture, trying to remember what happened the day before, and editing (deleting) unneeded items (other people’s stories, political statements, and repeated items).  I sit in my chair, the same place I sat through the pandemic and worked and wrote. I have worn out two chairs and broken the tile in this space. More than five years now of writing here.

I rush and get 3/4 done when I see that I am at my stopping point. I hop into the shower, shave, etc., and soon board Air VW the Gray. The traffic through Beaverton creeps, but the Monday morning rush hour is light in Portland, and I arrive at the Good Samaritan Campus in Portland, park, and head to the Knight Cancer folks.

Aside: Knight, as in the family that controls Nike. For example, they gave over $100 million for cancer work at OHSU in 2008. The family has given away more than a billion dollars to programs in Oregon.

I park on C level near the place where I once took an ambulance from a reaction from chemo. I remember how hard it was to get help; I had to lie down on the cement to get attention while I could not breathe. The reaction is strange as it feels like you are dying, but you can breathe. I knew this, but I could not stop the reaction, and I had no way to tell if it was real or not. I could not speak. I was trying to get back to the chemo people but could not make it. Eventually, I was taken across the street in the shortest ambulance ride of my life, treated, and released. We skipped the drug next time.

With that memory, I put on my mask and headed to the appointment. They took blood, and I was reading the results before the doctor showed up. He also brought the same doctor-in-training. Everything was normal. I have a slightly enlarged spleen, as shown on my CT scan, but there are no signs of an issue. It’s something to monitor. I covered my travel since we last spoke and that I was headed to Iceland in July. With that, another CT scan and a visit are planned in six months. It is all boring, and that is what you want in oncology: to be a boring patient.

I stopped on my way home from Portland at Elephants Delicatessen, which was nearby. They were between breakfast and lunch; I had a bowl of their freshly made clam chowder (with Pacific Northwest clams) and a breadstick. I sat in their Garden Room with a blazing fire. I wrote more of the blog but did not finish it. I headed home as I had only three days to pack and prepare for a week in Michigan.

I arrived at home in the EV without issue. The traffic inbound to Portland looked messy. I started to pack but felt very tired. I had not gotten much sleep the night before. Soon, I was snuggled up on the bed with the pillows and fell into a deep slumber.

I dreamed pleasant dreams, but I cannot recall the details. I woke a few times but did not rise until after 3. Soon I shook off the sleep and returned to the kitchen. I reheated some coffee.

Somewhere in here, I finished and published the blog.

I drove to US Bank. I received two checks from the City of Portland, including tax refunds. I have found these checks do not easily deposit electronically and carried the checks to the bank office. But I discovered I had only one. F**k. I waited in line and soon deposited the check. I return home by way of the veggie place at the corner of TV Highway and 185th.

I got just a few items as I am traveling soon: lettuce, a small bunch of green beans, asparagus, and some garlic. It was only $12 there. The folks there remember me and ask about my next trip. Michigan on Thursday. I return home, find the missed check, and put away the veggies.

Next, I ate the last of my homemade pickles. I emptied and washed out the jar. I found another jar. I found another cucumber, peeled (waxed skin), cut into spears, added garlic and dill to the jar, and got the cucumber bits to fill the jar. I heated dried garlic from New Orleans, salt, pepper, more dill, salt, and vinegar with some water in a pan to a boil. I poured that into the jar. I had much left. I quickly cut some asparagus to fit in the smaller jar and fill it. I am short, so I had some cider vinegar (all I have left) and hot water to fill the extra jar. Both jars cool and then the lids are replaced and set in the frig. I will get more distilled (clear) vinegar on Tuesday and do the last cucumber.

I read more about the Battle of Jutland 1916 from a book by an American Naval officer in the 1930s. It is frustrating as the author did not footnote the text, even when quoting other sources. Today, I finally hit his analysis of the fleet strengths, war plans, and distribution of forces and the impact of geography. All of this is interesting to me, and I have not read a matching analysis in the ten or more books I have read on the battle, nor have I read this in the various wargame versions of the fight, except in the oldest game, Jutland 2nd Edition(1972) by Avalon Hill. The author states that the Germans are outgunned 2-1, hampered by geography, and will lose an all-out fight. The British fleet is large and split into multiple forces and locations. This could allow the Germans to cut off and damage/destroy a part of the British fleet. Interesting as the Battle of Jutland 1916 provides a version of all these options simultaneously.

Next, I made dinner. I had set out a pork chop to defrost, and it was mostly defrosted when I fried it in a pan on high heat to get it brown. I also heated the contents of a jar of couscous sauce, a North African flavor. I made couscous with spices, almond slices, and raisins. I had a few servings of the couscous with the spicy and lemony sauce. Excellent.

I start packing and organizing for a trip. I talk to Deborah for a while until she rings off sleepy. I head next to Wildwood and have a few beers. It is quiet there and I manage to write more of my story (book) and reach 5,400 words and start to assemble a direction for the story. I had only a vague idea but it is now forming up in my mind.

I close the place at 10PM and take the EV home. There, I assemble the coffee for the next day, decide to leave the dishes for Tuesday, and soon am in bed reading. I am tired and soon sleep. Thanks for reading.

Sunday means church at 11. I am not rushed, but if I rise around 7, I have enough time to finish the blog. No luxuriating in bed, reading the news slowly (or doom scrolling, as we liberal call reading the politics-flooded news), and drinking a comfortable cup of coffee. Instead, I rise, put on my slippers (my feet have some numbness from the chemo and diabetes, and thus it is essential to not slam my toes into things), and find the kitchen. The coffee, assembled the night before, is waiting for me. Excellent, and I add a muffin and a banana to my start.

I enjoy the coffee (three cups!) while I write the blog and update the second chapter of my story (book). I am using Scrivener to capture my work and notes. I believe I will need notes and organizing software to write the 300,000 words I am targeting, and this tool, Scrivener, comes well rated. It also plays well with Grammarly. So far, I have found it helpful and have written my notes and some of the text. I already feel comfortable with the process and have 4,700 words; yes, 1% done.

I have left some of the boilerplates behind of late, but I stick to a narrative of my experience day-by-day, never telling someone’s story (they should tell it) and trying to focus on my emotions and the day’s events rather than politics or other easy but less fulfilling writing.

Pastor Ken’s book, The Myth of Equality: Uncovering the Roots of Injustice and Privilege, was pulled from the US Naval Academy library by order of the Secretary of Defense. Wow! I did not think I was living in the 1930s. Ken was shocked to see his name listed in the NYT as one of the impacted authors. Over 300 books were pulled by order of the Secretary of Defense; the NYT published the list. 

I have seen justification, of a sort, by folks supporting this. “You liberals pulled out religious texts and history books from libraries,” kind of statement. No, we did not (you can check with the Naval Academy–books were not banned by the Secretary of Defense in the previous administration, including the previous Trump and Bush presidencies). Liberals don’t ban books; instead, we don’t buy ’em or read ’em if we don’t like ’em.

While writing the blog, I went on Amazon, pushed a few buttons, and sent Pastor Ken’s book to the President. The gift card message was direct. I will try to get a letter out.

This is not a political statement but a real emotional moment for me. Hurting people I know is terrible. You don’t have to agree with the book, Pastor Ken, or read it, but banning it with fanfare to get headlines. Hard to imagine.

Books (and games) mean a lot to me.

After the blog is done, I shower, shave, and put on a sweater vest over my pride tie. I pick my wool brown hat as it pouring. The sunny, dry weather is gone for the next ten days, with rain most of the week. I took Air VW, the Gray, to church and was there just as the service started. I had talked to Deborah in the morning and cut my time to the limit. It is always nice to start and end my day talking to Deborah.

I sat in the pews and filled in as an usher, helping with communion and the offering. Today was an altar call for new members, and people were shocked when ten people stood up and professed their faith. Ken gave the sermon before that call and pointed out that the letter to Sardis, often used to beat up churchgoers with its “you are dead” text, suggests that anyone can be saved by repenting. As stated in the letter, those white robes will go to all who repent. He offered the altar call to anyone who felt they needed to remake their vows to the church.

After church, I headed to Red Robin for lunch. I had a Blue Moon beer and a chicken breast plater with salad. I did spoil the perfectly healthy meal with a side of French fries. I read the news mostly while eating. The bartender was a young person I did not know. I did my own checkout using the device and wished the bartender the best (with a 20% tip).

At home, I did the dishes and rested a bit. I am tired lately. I read through the new Dungeons and Dragons 2024 rules (5E is now supplanted by the 2024-5 version). I put my 5E 20th level cleric in the EV, thus avoiding leaving it and having to drive back to get it. I read more about Jutland, and I am almost at the battle of 1916. The author from 1930 is explaining his understanding and version of the events, and I did learn some new things, but without footnotes to provide sources, all is speculative. I see he is more and more often referring to another source. I found it online and ordered a copy from Amazon. I will see if I can combine these to create a better account.

Air VW the Gray gets me to M@ across Beaverton and into western Portland without issue. Deborah and I chatted for a while as I was early. Yes, I am one of those folks that sit in their car and talk.

I soon joined M@ and Nicky and had a burger supplied by M@. Matt is wearing his DM shirt, as this was supposed to be the last battle. Instead, we spend considerable time on small quests to get to the final battle. In one, we let our very charismatic bard just talk the vampire into letting us win. We tried to sneak past the guardian monsters, but at least fought them one at a time.

The big bad refused to play fair (M@ playing it) and would not stay in one place to let us finish it. This is the way it should be. As a cleric, it is my job not to bring on the damage but to heal and dispel, and I was very busy. We chased it through its maze until we began smashing the labyrinth, and this is where a super power woke, and we started over by moving back to our starting point. We were also out of time, so we will pick up the battle, likely short now that we know what to do, in May.

We also discussed our plans for the new campaign, starting after this one. Now, back to the new characters. I am leaning (now) toward playing a sorcerer, as I had never done that before. Karen will be playing a warlock. Scott, a monk (2024 Monk class is a major revision). Betsy is going for a rogue. Mackers is back to ranger class.

I put on my PJs and read more rules and some Jutland. Soon, I was falling asleep. A nightmare woke me up at 4ish, and then I remembered I had a doctor’s appointment today (it is now Monday). I texted and called Deborah (she was driving into work). It is 5ish when she rings off, reaching work. I managed to sleep again just before the 6:30 alarm. 

The dream is a jumble of my usual travel visions. I can’t get home, and everything has changed. When I found my car, it was wrecked. I am lost in the same city I often dream about. It is nowhere but a strange mix of Baltimore and Amsterdam. I wake troubled that I can’t get home in time. I am home and safe. 

Thanks for reading.

I find myself sad again. This sadness makes it hard to enjoy a sunny, warm day in April in Oregon, even though the weather would have been unimaginable ten years ago. I look at the blooming flowers, red tulips, planted a few years ago. I bought them with Glenda when we visited the tulip fields when she was helping with Susie. I remember showing Susie a picture of them. I am pleased to see them again. A good memory, though with tears, and, to me, a manifestation of what is good in this world. A wood bee, a huge non-dangerous yellow and black insect, has moved into the backyard. It buzzed by. I remember one at Dad’s house and his concern that we let it alone. While eating my dinner on the deck, I see another small bee, maybe a mason bee, crawling on my new, yet to be planted pomegranted tree. Later, I get a text that Corwin planted the tree (I leave a $20 in the frig, cold cash, for the work). I used a light to see it at 10. Perfect. The sadness fades a little bit at a time. The tears, though, will always be part of me.

I rose with my alarm and a text from Deborah. It is always good to start the morning with a text and later call from Deborah. I had assembled the coffee machine before going to bed, and a pot of coffee was waiting for me. There was a banana and recently baked lemon poppy muffins to add to the coffee for breakfast.

I write the blog and publish it. I know there are protests in Portland, but I am not willing to breathe tear gas today. I am happy to report that my friend that went had a lovely time, and the bad guys and the tear gas stayed away. I think that also created some of my sadness. Maybe next time. I stay home and make tacos for dinner, not wanting to blow another $30+ on lunch today. I cook a green pepper and 1/2 an onion in oil and then add hamburger, but I fail to drain the fat, and the mix is a bit oily for my taste. I make the shells from a box but put the cheese in the shells to melt it. I did not have lettuce, but I felt that it was OK this time. I added a packet of low-salt seasoning. I had too many, but I put some away as leftovers.

I am in the transition part of a chapter in my story (book), taking the characters from bucolic to horror. It is a fantasy world-based story. It is hard for me to make it work, and I will add a few words here and there. I have 1,300 words so far in a 3,000+ chapter.

Deborah called me while I was reading (more Jutland) and resting (still feeling both at loose ends and sad). She picked up on the call that I was not my usual ‘Energizer Bunny’ (her words) but quiet. After talking to her, I realized I was moping. I got going on packing and preparing. I empty my gym bag (Deborah has suggested that I remove the items from my previous trips and lighten my load) and remove various papers and unneeded and repeated items. I am short on a few items, and some need replacing. I also tour the backyard and enjoy the flowers and the roses that are all bush-like, promising great things in May. The dawn redwood, a gift from the park next to the hummingbird house planted while Susie was with us, has returned to green and looks happy in its wet spot (it is actually a cedar). The wood bee flies nearby. It is a good day!

I take Air VW the Gray to the pharmacy and get some travel items and easter chocolate eggs for Richard, Lauren, and Kathleen, a small bag each. I am wearing my straw hat, and everyone is smiling both at the hat and the sunny weather. I stop by the carts, and the India-style place is open. They welcomed me back by name (it has been months), and I ordered a veggie curry, and they added naan for free. It is an excellent day!

I take my order home and eat it on my deck with the bees, the flowers, and the promises of my roses. I make a few more edits on my story, finding my way through some of the darkness. I rush a bit as I need to get to Richard’s at 6 for a board game.

I board the EV and remember that Kathleen has acquired a car; I will not take her home today. We meet and play the game I requested, Wonderland Wars, which incorporates engine building, push-your-luck (draw chips from a bag), and an efficiency race into one mad game based on Alice and Wonderland’s tea party. I ask to play this game each year around April 1st. Richard explains the game, and Lauren and I are soon fifty points behind and remain there. We have spread out too much while Richard and Kathleen focus on a few battles. I am playing the Queen of Hearts and get to say “Off with their heads” often, as that is one of my powers for my character in the game.

I like the game, but I am crushed point-wise. Like many race games, once you start slow, you remain behind. I did land lots of points in the last round, but a few unlucky draws from my bag took away my chance to make up for the lost chances. It is part of the mad theme. It is hard to recommend this game as it is around $200 for a copy, and the figures need to be painted. My copy is out to be played, but I have not started the painting process. Luckily, the game comes with paper standees to fill in for the figures.

I return home, reaching home before 11, and soon am in bed. This time, with no coffee at Richard’s, I am able to sleep after reading more Jutland. I see that the author constantly refers to another book without footnotes. I see that copies of this book are priced from $50 for a single volume to $250 for a set. I have seldom seen this book referred to in later books; I resist buying it. Interesting. I do rise before sleeping and look all this up.

And that is the end, dear reader. I sleep until the sunrise and remember no dreams, no trip to Wonderland that I remember.

 

 

The morning started with waking early, proving hydration, crawling back into my blankets, and being woken by my alarm a few hours later. Coffee was assembled, and the timer was set. With my slippers on, I walked the short distance to the kitchen and found a pot of liberal joy (coffee) waiting for me. I sliced the last croissant and included a banana on my plate.

I did remember to put out the recycling and trash. I hear the trucks picking it up. Yay!

I doom scrolled the latest financial and political disaster launched from the White House. Now, it is more like watching a demolition derby but with the cars from the spectators. Nobody is happy.

I also watch the tariffs with wonder as I see my Air VW the Gray likely to be worth 30% more in two years than anyone expected. What strange times we live in. Pass the popcorn.

I am considering starting the ‘Western Greenland’ movement to give Denmark the Pacific Coast of the US. We can be Danes! This is part of Denmark’s encirclement plan to limit US aggression.

But I digress…

Like most, I spent the morning enjoying the sunrise, chatting with Deborah, and writing the blog. It was a cloudy day with some sky visible, but this would improve all day to blue skies. This is unusual for the Greater Portland Area in April. But there were rain, tornados, and messy weather in the center and midwest USA.

I had dinner plans with Dondrea and Z, but other than that, I had little planned for Friday. Since the pandemic, when the shoe company had us working from home on Mondays and Fridays, those days have been my laundry days. I stripped the bed and loaded the sheets into The Machine. Staff meetings were held on Friday mornings and often set at 6:30 (after our time change) to include our Indian-based staff. I would frequently stuff the laundry into the machines while listening. It is still my habit to do laundry on these days.

After the blog was done, and after enjoying some fresh air outside, I showered, shaved, etc. I finished the salad I had made a few days ago and opened and heated a can of baked beans for dinner. I was surprised to see my weight increase to nearly 240. It is a relief, as I thought that I should see an increase after all the food and lack of activity (driving). I will be more careful with meals and get more exercise now. But I am headed to Michigan next week and often walk 10,000 steps a day on the trip (and eat lots of good food, too).

After lunch, I loaded the dishes in the dishwasher and ran them. The sheets were not dry (bunched together), and I put them in for another hour. I headed to Big River Coffee with my laptop to write. There was no parking, so I slipped into the chicken sandwich place’s parking and walked over to the coffee place. I got a coffee and a cookie and then returned to my story. I use Scrivener to organize my story and chapters and use Grammarly to check things, but I do not let either tool push me into sentence structures I don’t want. In the second chapter, I introduce the central conflict of the story. I managed to add another five hundred words.

I ordered some Easter flowers, a bulb arrangement, to be sent to Mom Wild and some Easter stuff to Linda and family. Most of it should arrive before Easter and maybe before Palm Sunday.

I took the EV home, read about Jutland, and continued laundry. I pulled the board game Scythe from the VW cargo hold. I got some glue and found all the loose laser-cut wood part holders, emptied them, and reglued the bits. I went to the website for the maker of the inserts to see if I could replace a broken part. Games with so many tiny parts need organizers or at least bags. I was in the original Kickstarter for the game (2016) and checked some of the cards and other parts for wear; it is the oldest of my new games. There are some eBay folks selling replacement parts. I also check that I have all the extras. I only miss a roll-out mat and the $99 large box to hold everything in one box (I don’t need that; the game is currently spread out into four boxes, most of which I don’t need for basic games). I read the solo and auto rules. You can play the game with auto-controlled factions; I have wanted to try that.

Soon, I met Dondrea and Z for dinner at the local Mexican place, and we had good food. Dondrea and I stick to Diet Cokes. We talk about travel, politics, and Z’s math homework. I helped, but I was later told my answer was wrong. F**k, nasty exponent simplification I have not done since college pre-calculus (1983).

After dinner, we say our goodnights. I return home and do more writing, laundry, dishes, and bed-making. It is not a very exciting Friday night. I get to talk to Deborah before she falls asleep. It is always nice to start and finish with Deborah. I watched last year’s Doctor Who about war (it was excellent), “Boom,” read Scythe rules (and checked some game iconography online I was not following), baked some muffins, and put Scythe away with all its pieces back in place with the repairs done (though a replacement piece would help keep one item from spilling). I put on my PJs and soon fall into a deep sleep. I wake cold a few times, but it is only 45F (7.2C) outside, and I should not be cold. This is a leftover from chemo. I feel cold sometimes when I am fine. I return to sleep and dream, now just a vague mist of a memory, about my story and Scythe.

Thanks for reading.