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I rose late, after 8, and found the kitchen. I have been tired these last couple of days. The shorter days may be affecting me or the cold. We have had three unusual days of clear skies, which means cold nights with frost and some ice each morning. December is the month we often get snow, and I have failed to make a couple flights when it snowed and stayed at the airport overnight in the snow once in January 2024. Let us hope for a good day on the 19th when I return to Michigan with a noon flight to Detroit, which is at least non-stop on Delta.

I decided to try to finish the pumpkin spice with pecans oatmeal from Trader Joe’s.  That went well with liberal coffee, but I was out of bananas and decided to save my other veggies, pumpkin pie, for later. The coffee is an Equal Exchange brand and was purchased at fair prices from distant farmers. Every taste makes the world a little better with my favorite flavors of Justice, Compassion, and love of Community. At the bottom of the cup, I find Hope ready to jump into the world. I never criticize other coffee drinkers, but I just remind you, dear readers, that we can do better by finding some liberal coffee and enjoying it. It makes the world better for you and the growers. No pressure, dear readers; just know I love my coffee, which helps me start my day with joy, and I will say it liberally.

Deborah is always a joy to chat with in the morning, but it is a work day for her; instead, I try for joy from Volvo. Maybe I dreamed, or perhaps I was just delusional, that the technician discovered a loose wire (it has happened before) or a bad battery (also a previous experience). I could get the car for a minor, for a Volvo, charge, and pick up Air Volvo. My hopes were dashed as I reached Zak, my agent of Volvo purgatory, on the phone, and he told me that Air Volvo, being an unexpected repair and unscheduled, is assigned as in-between work and will not be worked on except with spare resources. He implies it is my fault that I have disturbed their schedule, but I recounted this yesterday…and no reason to raise my blood pressure.

Zak suggested I get a rental as the car will not be ready, possibly for weeks. I am sure I will not return to the local dealership again, nor will a new Volvo be in my future. Mariah suggested that my next car should be a $71K new EV Dodge Charger. I did look at it. My mind returns to that excellent Ford I drove in Michigan. I am done with Volvo. I could buy a late-model gas-powered Charger for the bill I will likely get from Volvo, and likely a six-pack of them for the cost of a new Volvo, and have money left over for the repairs. I may ask the dealership if they want to buy Air Volvo from me. I am trying to be rational–but…

I sent various texts to friends describing the irony I was facing and expecting to be told that there were now rentals and that I only reserved one week ago, but no. I finished and published the blog, recalling Monday’s events more quickly than the previous day. I also wrote with some flare (likely trying to forget the frustration, and I got a sense of control by writing).

Today’s writing is more of a retelling and has fewer author fireworks.

Enterprise, within walking distance, surprised me by offering me Air Enterprise for under $200 a week. That got my inner Finance nerd working: At $200 a week, $800 a month, or $9,600 a year, it might be cheaper than buying one when you include no repairs or maintenance and a new one when you want one. I wonder if they have a reduced monthly rate! F**k!

I walked to the local rental place but had not done this walk in years; I always went the other way. It was nice, but the number of angry large dogs slamming into the fences did not make me feel safe. But still, most of the dogs were just barking and small, and I suspect they would bark, be friendly, and want pets. I like dogs, but folks use them here to guard, and their dogs are often poorly trained and vicious.

I walk around the former parking lot with a lovely tree that is now a storage place, and the tree is gone. I soon find the one sign for Enterprise. A young gal, Sienna, looks at her computer after taking my ID, and I am worried that my expectations will be reached and told there are no cars for the next two weeks. My mind goes on a little movie:

I should have planned my emergency better. Sienna will tell me there are no cars in Oregon, but there are cars in Spokane. “Can you get there?”

But, I am told that your reservation starts tomorrow with a knowing look, “I will correct that,” she says as I make excuses. Retired people often get the day mixed up, I offer. I am surprised as she smiles, grabs a computer screen device, and offers me a jeep, but then I tell her I liked the Ford I drove last month, and she smiles and points at the Ford Escape out front. We checked it out, and there were only a few minor scratches. Soon, I will be on my way. Irony was done with me, and it headed this morning to Korea (the President of South Korea declared Martial Law and then undeclared it hours later), which left me alone.

ApplePlay and my iPhone connected without issue to the Air Ford (Escape), and I thought the model name was apropos. I escaped. I can drive again. It drives better than the Volvo, has all the same safety equipment, and is well rated for safety. Hmmm.

But irony had one less gift for me. Sienna warned me the car was almost out of gas. Air Ford (Escape) traveled to the (soon-to-be renamed) Volvo Cave. I put games in the cargo hold. It is a smaller SUV but drives like a Ford truck. I then headed to the gas station, planning to use my reduced price of a dollar using Chevron’s app. I arrived and had to reverse it as the gas access was on the driver’s side. And then irony has one more laugh.

I cannot open the gas access. This explains why there was no gas. F**k. I look through the car to unlock it. There is nothing. The gas people are flummoxed. I explained that it was a rental and did not know how to fuel it. I looked it up online, and it says the gas door opens when pressed. I try and then pull it open. Someone had slammed it too hard. The gas attendant tries not to laugh. By now, the app has expired for my discount, and I pay the full rate as I want to get this over now. I will use up that non-discounted gas, I promise myself! F**k, U Irony, and the four horses you rode in on!

Next, I stopped by the house, found the extra flag pole and my spare Pride Celebration flag (more are on order), assembled them, rolled them up, and put them in the cargo hold of Air Ford (Escape). I crossed Beaverton and got back to one-foot driving. At First United Methodist Church near Old Town Beaverton and across from the fountain and the library, I found the flag post holder intact but jammed with a bit of broken pole. Someone grabbed it and broke it out of the holder (there is a small screw to hold the flag in so weather events don’t suck the flag out and then drop it somewhere else–yes, that has happened too). Instead of politely undoing the screw, the people just pulled on it until it broke and left it on the grass. This might be someone trying to do a pull-up on the pole instead of actual violence. The poles are white pine, not fur or hard oak, and will break. Jack recovered the flag.

I just replaced it after getting the screw loose and releasing the broken bit. I will tighten the screw later. It looked good. I then met with Jack and Wendy in the church and helped Jack try to find a breaker for the sign. The electrical panels and wiring in the church are a mystery that was not solved Tuesday. I then reboarded Air Ford (Escape), looking for lunch.

Pastrini in Cedar Hills Crossing, next to Office Depot and Powell’s, seemed like a good place to wind down after the shock-and-awe moments about the vehicle once known as Air Volvo. I had their lunch special, spaghetti piccata, and a large glass of excellent wine that cost as much as the meal; I did not f**king care. The piccata sauce was more industrial than good, but I was willing to cut some slack after my day. The wine helped.

Next, I stopped at Office Depot and got some paper for my printer ($8 a ream, but you have to buy two), a set of padded envelopes, and some wrapping paper for Christmas (with Disney princesses). That was added to the cargo hold, and then I headed to Powell’s. This is not Powell’s City of Books but the Beaverton location. Yes, we have our own, which is not far from our Salt and Straw. Beaverton is slowly becoming trendy, like Portland.

In the cheap used book section, I rediscovered a discounted copy of Hillary Clinton’s fictional story written with my favorite crime/mystery writer, Lousie Penny. I get that with some chocolate and read it in Air Ford (Escape). The story appears to be drawn from Ms. Clinton’s experiences in Washington and enclosed in Louise Penny’s excellent writing; I read almost twenty pages and found it an excellent book. A brain cookie! Recommended.

I finally did the dishes after chatting with Deborah until after her bedtime and letting her sleep. Deborah works for a living and starts early. The pile was deeper, and the dishwasher was full of dirty items. Yikes. The house elves are falling behind! I made a small stir fry of frozen chicken fried rice from Trader Joe’s. It was more of a snack than dinner. I almost burned it, but that seemed to make it better.

I downloaded the old game Masters of Orion, the last version that runs on my Apple, into my local Steam and played a few turns. I bought it for about $25. I played it, but the controls were confusing, and I could not do much. I survived an attack from pirates on my homeworld. Still, it reminded me of the old PC version, and I liked it. I watched an eight-year-old video that explained the setup and the right click I am missing (this is hard to do with a trackpad Apple). I will try again when I need a brake. I am resisting picking up my writing or other hobbies and just trying to enjoy being retired. I also like the model of the game and have seen this turn-based 4X system in board games and other shared computer games. It appeals to my AI and coding mind.

My pants kept trying to fall off today. I was surprised to lose four pounds, dropping to 220. It looks like size 38 is next. I have one pair of pants ready for that size, which I bought years ago by mistake. I am hopeful.

I had issues with hives, but I got out the Benadryl cream after my shower, which stopped it. I read in bed. I soon slept with the music covering the creaks of the house.

Sleep was interrupted by dreams of pain that ended with leg and foot pain and cramps. I regretted the glass of wine and the lack of water. I planned an early start on Wednesday, but that failed as I slept in.

Thanks for reading!

 

I was slow to rise after waking at 4AM to send a ‘good morning’ to Deborah, who started her work week early in Michigan and with a three-hour time difference. I then went back to sleep and rose late. Next, I heard from Dondrea that there was a Rainbow Incident at our church, First United Methodist, near Old Town Beaverton, and that the flag pole needs to be replaced. That was the story first in a lengthy blog I wrote on Monday.

I did not publish that until 1ish, as I was not rushing and had not heard from the Volvo mothership. I called twice and got no information. Finally, in mid-afternoon, I was told the technician was off on Monday, so no work was done. F**k. At that moment, I should have called Enterprise to rent a car, but soon the chance passed. Later, Richard reminded me I had a Tuesday morning game, f**k, that I would miss. I am unhappy with the dealership.

I made breakfast of eggs, overeasy, and bacon. I figured I should have something nice while I waited to hear from Volvo. I also did the usual things: paid all my bills, read the new stories, and watched some YouTube videos. I found another interesting channel, Maxinomics. The video explaining Chipotle’s business plan and why so many people are betting on it was an excellent story. Though I think it is BS, it is interesting to see the math. I believe you cannot be fresh (safe), fast, high quality, and well-priced (not necessarily cheap) simultaneously, but others differ. I also believe that the mix of complex food processes and minimum or just above-minimum-wage workers cannot work–failures will be ongoing. But…I am drifting…

I was running late and was dressing when Corwin stopped by to pick up some socks I had bought for him—he needed socks. It was late afternoon, and I had no lunch, but an early dinner sounded good. Corwin’s pickup was an engaging experience. It reminded me of all the old trucks Dad and Mom used to drive, with the shaking and noise. It is a manual shift with an engine for racing that is now just dreaming of going fast. Corwin was surprised that the ABS brakes started working when he replaced the thermostat in the radiator. It would surprise many that Ford was one of the first companies to offer ABS brakes. Before artificial intelligence, there were fuzzy logic and expert systems that allowed for handling real-world problems. ABS would now be sold as AI.

Dinner was with our new waiter, Mercedes, and she was happy to get Corwin an excellent steak (better than what I saw in Michigan when I last tried BJ’s Brewhouse’s version of a ribeye). I was still feeling off and tried a pasta and chicken item. Sadly, I could make better (even with sauce from a jar). My favorite is their pork chop, which is only available on Sundays now. But the beer was good, and it was nice to chat. Having been to the ER recently, Corwin was following a new food plan with close attention to detail. Better.

Aside: After two average meals from BJ’s Brewhouse (one here and one in Michigan), this moved it down on my list of places to eat. The ticket price is high. The one here is better than anyone I have tried, but as a chain, I will not start there when traveling. It is the way of corporate things.

Corwin returned me to the place once called The Volvo Cave, but at the moment (Tuesday), the ETA for Air Volvo is a week or more. F**k. I am thinking about Muscle Car Cave. I was told Air Volvo was unscheduled work and could not be done except as fill-in work. I need, I was told (and I have heard this from Health Care Insurance before–no, really) that I should schedule my emergencies in advance, provide estimates, and provide them insight into what types of work are needed so they can have the correct technicians available. No, they have no loaner cars available (see above). Yes, they recommend a rental car as they have no ETA. No, we don’t do that (see above). My expectation is that there will be no rental cars available, as I should have scheduled that ahead of time. I have been through this before in medical stuff: “It might be cancer, but as it is not known to be cancer, you will need to schedule, and our next appointment is in three months.” But at least my 401K (based on corporate profit earnings) is up. I could buy a six-pack of late-model muscle cars for the price of a replacement Volvo and just abandon them when broken. Leave them running with the keys in Portland.

I practice my irony-based wiring and deep breathing when the universe turns towards me and says, “Hold my beer.” Nicely done, and I have no real options but to experience it. I remember that I am on a raft in a river, and I have no control; I can only control my reaction. I laugh, jump up and down, and scream, “Bring it!”

I had a nice chat with Deborah in the evening, which made me forget the corporate mysteries. We plan on seeing each other in mid-December, and hopefully, the irony will be spent by then. After a text, “Good Night,” Deborah sleeps.

However, the corporate entities are not done with me yet; I got a letter from HealthEquity with a bill that says I owe zero for my December health insurance payment. I am told I can pay my zero bills on their website, which is suspicious. I tried it, and all the passwords that once worked. No. There is an offer to create an account, and I tried it, though I have doubts I should create yet-another-account (YAA). All my health care coverage is now available to me in this YAA account (with various codes to email and phone). Now I learn that I owe $782.34 for January and every month next year. I pay my bill for COBRA coverage with my Air Alaska Miles card (it seems so wrong and yet good) and then set up automatic payments from my checking account. I am disappointed that it will be paid at the start of the month, overlapping the mortgage payment. I will have to ensure I have a higher balance now. But all this is in place, including three security questions and answers.

I remembered to send Mom Wild flowers for her birthday on 3 Dec. They will arrive on Wednesday, but often, they come sooner. Given all the challenges with Air Volvo, her birthday slipped my mind this year, but I’m glad Linda, my sister, reminded me.

I took a stress break and looked at some video games and the history of an old one I liked, Masters of Orion. I found it on Steam and ordered a copy of the old game, but it runs only on PCs. I learned that Steam lets you buy games you can run because the account can be shared on different machines. Excellent, but I did not get a chance to play the new game. I return to Darkest Dungeon and spend a few hours playing this old-school adventuring game. I managed to lose one of my better adventurers, but it was still fun.

I soon showered, put on my PJs, and read until I started to fall asleep. I turned off the light and went to sleep without an alarm. Irony was not in my dreams!

Thanks for reading.

I am writing this late on Monday. Mondays are my weekend-like days, as I have little to do on Monday morning as all the working folks are back to work. I sleep in and go slow. I did hear this morning that someone took the pride flag that hangs on the side of First United Methodist Church here in Beaverton and, from what I can tell, broke the pole. I have more. While the violence is disturbing and makes you want to react, I just supply a new flag and pole. This abused pole and flag Z and I put up as the old Pride flag was worn out (a fantastic moment that one lasted that long). Apparently, the pole needs to be replaced. I have more. I ordered more.

This is a “turn the cheek” moment and a time to remember to check your reaction. We don’t call the police or put up cameras, and I try to convince my fellow churchgoers not to glue the pole in or make it harder to take the flag. The folks who plan to do violence will just do it; it’s best to let them get it over with quickly and not frustrate them.

I tell people it was not stolen, but someone needed it. We are happy to help them; we are a church anyway. I will continue to buy flags (poles, mounts, and so on), replace the lost ones, and smile when I see our Pride Celebration flag (the rainbow flag with the check) when I visit or drive by First United Methodist Church in Beaverton next to the park and fountain across from the library—a very public space.

The flags disappear primarily on holidays. The flags seem to fade from people’s consciousness during the months after I replace them. A holiday visitor, I believe, points them out to a local, and (with the help of various booze and other substances) the angry people find the courage to rob a church and commit violence in a public place.

I am ready to replace the flag. I ordered more; I suspect we will need a few for the holiday season. I usually put a set in Air Volvo to quickly get them in place for the services. I will be out of town and give them to Dondrea or Jack to prepare. There will be a Pride Celebration flag for the holidays.

So far, the violence has not escalated. I can afford lots of flags.

Starting the blog about Sunday very late this Monday, I rose early to write the blog. I was a bit staggered because I had done the Cindy Lauper concert the night before with Joan. We had a great time, and the music was terrific. I am learning that Gayle, the opening band and singer, is well known for her ABCEFU song. Waking tired made the morning more difficult, but soon, I found coffee, a banana, and a slice of pumpkin pie (my mind claimed this was a veggie side for breakfast). The spices of the pie and the bitterness of the liberal coffee gave me hope that the world will soon focus on Justice, Compassion, and the love of Community. Maybe it is a strange or impossible dream in such a divided country with a new President who promises chaos, but I am always hopeful that a new President will find a way to bring Peace and success to us, We The People. More a prayer with fingers crossed this time, but it is still there with a brave smile and another sip of liberal coffee. It has to get better! Drink deep!

I wrote for two hours and found it easy. The investment produced the required blog that discovered what happened on Saturday. This time, I often had to go back to a previous section and add more as my non-linear memory assembled the bag of events I recall for Saturday. It was an unusually messy process for me this time. The music, I think, made a lovely hash of my memories—excellent.

I dressed in my sweater vest, grey button-down dress shirt, and pride tie and ordered a Lyft ride for more than $20 bucks to get me to the church on time (there is a song there). I was waiting for the ride but canceled it when it was five minutes late, and there were no takers. Four minutes later, Uber had me on my way for $12.

The driver, a gal (I assume a gender for the ease of writing, but I could use ‘they’ instead of ‘she/her’) who told me she was 53, wanted to know how to invest and get comfortable in her 60s like me. Somehow, I am sure you, dear reader, are not surprised we got on the topic of money. I warned her the advice was worth the price she was paying, zero dollars, and would not be anything she had not heard before. I suggested removing all the expenses that seem to creep in with modern life. For example, the extra cable bill that you don’t know what it is and to look at cash flow and try to increase it by reducing all monthly expenses. While evident, most folks have not done it, and if she could get her bills into Quicken or balance her checking account, this would get her attention on the little expenses she can avoid. I told her that modern life means big business is trying to extract money from her, and she needs to resist. Then, invest the money saved in simple things like a CD to get interest. Avoid the schemes and Wall Street, but simple things will work and are simple to understand. But, in contrast, I told her to travel and do the things she always wanted to do now. You will soon be “f**king old,” and you can’t do them. Don’t save them up, but do them now. I told her now I look back to my early fifties as my good health days! Who would imagine that! Go before you are “f**king old.” She seemed to agree, smiled, and waved when she dropped me off. I gave her, later, when I noticed I had not finished the rating and tip, a good rating and a tip.

Church folks were happy to see me, and Jack offered me a ride home. I found a seat and listened. Today, Pastor Ken was covering one of the most hopeful texts in the Hebrew text of the Bible, Micah 4:

And he shall judge between many peoples and reprove mighty nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nations shall not lift the sword against nation; neither shall they learn war anymore.

http://www.chabad.org translation

Our sermons have been on Micah for weeks now. By this time, I am mightily tired of it, as the first three sections are convictions and punishment. Finally, I am happy to get to the lovely parts, Micah 4.

Pastor Ken dwelled on the text, and that is not talking about geography or a map of the end times, as some Hollywood and other groups would suggest, but about the Word of God finally reaching humankind, being accepted, war ending, and folks restored to their rightful homes. The high place mentioned in the text Ken tells us is about respect given to the Word, not a physical location.

Pastor Ken points out that we are captive to our self-defined weapons and must beat our faults into something useful. He calls out gossip. He says we must put our ‘sword’ down and discard things like privilege. We, too, need to accept the instruction from Zion. The lovely Hebrew words of Micah 4 come with a lesson.

I remember a 1970s sci-fi story in which the Bionic Women, I think, faced a Doomsday machine and failed to stop it. The death machine tripped, but instead of some super-hero-like solution, the computer rolled out a large stone with the words of Micah on it. In this story, the peace-loving man who built it, who the world believed had built a world-ending nuclear weapon, only wanted to scare mankind into finding peace before it was too late. A forgotten Cold War story, but how I learned the words of Micah. I also saw the words on a brass plate on the Lebanon border in 1994. The words are important to me.

I had coffee at the church and suddenly had an eye aura, the hallmark of a massive migraine. F**k. I need to rest in the dark, possibly throw up, and sleep. Jack gets me home while I can see using half my vision. I get some water and lie down, expecting a terrible couple of hours. The water worked, and the aura faded, but the other side is now painful (over-correction and the brain surgery likely made things different).

I figure baked beans with some bacon will either stay in or leave quickly, so I make that on the stove. The beans are heated in a pan, and the bacon is fried. I am surprised by how hungry I am and that it remains settled. The headache is still there, but it is small. I start watching the Christmas movie Die Hard. The headache gets worse.

I need more rest. Deborah is free for a while, and we chat, but I freeze. I rest more, climb in warm covers, and turn up the heat. I am finally able to function. I did laundry: two loads in The Machine. Dishes are done. Dinner is a salad with me chopping veggies, a chicken thigh from yesterday, and some bacon.

Deborah booked her flight to Oregon in February. Exciting! We have no travel plans in January, but NOLA has early parades with the local krewes in mid-January. Maybe. March is booked for Deborah’s work trip to California, with an extra week for visiting. I updated my calendar for all these trips. Exciting. The headache fades.

I read at 10, showered, put on my PJs, and slept. I set an alarm for 4 and sent Deborah a ‘good morning’ for her busy Monday morning. She is happy to get the text but tells me to go back to sleep. I do. Thanks for reading!

Going backward, I was home before midnight. Cindy Lauper, somehow 71 now, sang, danced, and jammed for just under two hours with only resting for fast costume changes in what is billed as her farewell tour. She spoke often and seemed humbled and even overwhelmed by the crowd and the machinery of her concert, “I don’t do too many stadium tours.” There was a video of one costume change, in which she tried to talk to the audience while being changed and make-up being updated. And saying, “No thank you” to a plate of fruit handed to her. It was funny and also touching truth.

The Moda Center Suite 15 was our home. Joan had free tickets and parking, and we had chairs in the second row with a near-perfect distance view of the stage. It was very comfortable, but the suite ran out of water and Diet Coke. We toured the building and walked the length of the Moda Center 100-level vendor floor. There were fantastic food options with reasonable lines (some very excellent stalls were empty of customers!), but the line for the two concert T-shirt locations was wrapped around and down the walkway! We tried the club level and found limited food options, and the recommended ice cream place was closed. We surmised that many places are closed for a concert but open for game nights. The suite was wonderful.

Going further back, we arrived early in Portland with only a few mistakes. Finding the Garden Garage took a short journey, but the signs helped, and we were happy to avoid the $35 parking fee once we entered. Joan was driving, and Air Joan was soon arranged in a nearly perfect space. Next, we walked a short distance to the elevator. We were too early and later learned that had we arrived around 7, we could have walked to our suite from the garage. Instead, we took the elevator down, left the Moda Center, and spoke to a cheerful security person (again, having such a high minimum wage makes everyone helpful and smiling–think about those readers in those red states) who pointed us to Jack’s for food and drinks.

We arrived in the chaos that is Dr. Jack’s on a concert night, a location of many previous places I had eaten before a show that failed or was replaced, and soon found the bar. The mobile ordering at your table was down. Extra crazy for a busy night. Joan shared a table with a friendly couple at a four-seater; the place was already full. While Dr. Jack’s had a “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” drink, they seemed overwhelmed by the crowd. It took me twenty minutes to get through the line (just two groups ahead of me). Water for Joan, the drink of the day for me, and nachos to share. While overwhelmed, the staff was friendly and helpful, and the wait for the food was not long. My tie, Pride stripes, and red vest got many positive comments. The Lauper celebrating drink was dangerous as it had cheap vodka in it and pink but not too sugary. Delicious, but three of those would make standing difficult–you cannot taste the booze! I had one. I saw other food, and I think the menu was excellent at Dr. Jacks.

We finished just before the Moda Center opened for the show. We had been warned and had no bags. If you have a bag (including a purse), it is a thirty-minute odyssey of security. Joan had a friend who got trapped in the security line; that is how we got the timing. We arrived, with a few missteps, at Suite 15 and put our coats and chairs on the end of the row. The view was good and nearly straight onto the stage. We toured the place but decided the food at Dr. Jack’s was enough.

The show was brilliant, colorful, and ‘pretty,’ as Cindy told us she wanted it to be. I did not know Cindy Lauper’s song catalog, but she has tried many styles, and we were treated to her singing them all and even playing the guitar. I have always enjoyed her music and will have to listen to more. She started the show with a familiar song and waited for the encore to play her well-known songs. The show ended with “Girls Just Want To Have Fun,” with her opening band lead singer, Gayle, punching out the song with her.

Gayle, also the lead singer’s name, opened for the show, as I said, and her music was excellent but unknown to me. ‘F**k’ was in most of the songs, and I thought the music was good, but the words meant she was excluded from radio play. The crowd loved her ABCDEFU and sang along, knowing all the words. It was a fun song, and she had the audience yell out F**k U as a chorus. Most excellent.

Having been re-introduced to Cindy Lauper and learning new rhymes for F**K from Gayle, it was a great night. Joan drove, and Air Joan found its way to the now-empty Volvo Cave without issue. The fog had started, and the stagnant air had me coughing, but we arrived intact.

Joan waited until I turned on a light and headed home, a familiar tract. I was soon showered and in bed reading. I listened again to “Time and Tide” by Ms. Lauper before changing to sleeping background music on the Amazon Echo and slept. I dreamed of rhyming more profanities with Gayle singing along and her band blasting guitar rifts for good matching words. It’s not quite the Silver Key dreams of Lovecraft, but it’s still strangely bizarre.

Returning to the start of Saturday, I rose again and found that Air Volvo was not there–I kept forgetting. I did hear from the mothership with a video of them showing me the Volvo engine (I have seen it maybe five times) and explaining I needed to authorize another $500 to take apart the cowl; they pointed at it so I would know that it was in the video while explaining they needed to reach something called a VDD (so many jokes). Impressed that I had already paid $750 for a video (I was hoping for a repair or an estimate for that money), and I agreed by signing something at their website connected to the video. I expect to be impressed with more wonders of the modern Volvo repair process. Maybe they will have Gayle make me a song about car repairs (thinking of shouting WTF, as a perfect chorus).

Blessed with me financing multi-media Volvo repairs, the rest of my day was quiet. I spent much of my time writing the morning blog, having liberal coffee, and forgetting to do laundry. I had veggies for breakfast. The night before, I made a pumpkin pie using Mom Wild’s recipe (found on older Eagle Condensed Milk cans) (I forgot to mention it in the previous blog) and had a slice with a banana. It seemed perfect.

Aside: This is all can-based pie, but the secret is the condensed milk as it cooks to caramel. I find milk and evaporated milk make a more custard pie. This version is silky and not overly sweet. To be direct, for those who scoff (I know who you are), I will cook some pumpkin someday and try it as a replacement, but I am not doing the custard thing.

Lunch consisted of another pie-like item, a quiche I made a few days ago, which was excellent. I heated it three times (once for three minutes, then again ten minutes later for a minute, and again later when I finally remembered it), and that made it hot through. I often heat something, let it sit until almost room temperature, and heat it again. With the cold gone, the second heating makes it even in temperature and excellent. This is the best way for Italian items and think items.

I chatted with Deborah for a while, and we talked about many of the things we plan to do when I am in Michigan and when she makes her first visit to the Volvo Cave (assuming I will not buy a six-pack of cheap muscle cars for less than the cost of one Volvo replacement and have not renamed the house to Chevy/Ford Cave). After that, I dressed and started the day. I read, did dishes, paid bills, and did all the mundane tasks that accumulated in life.

I was happy to see my 401K investments rise to make up for losses in October. I update the valuation only once a month and try to ignore it most of the month. I will not try to time the market. “No, I won’t,” I think. It is a mantra as a retired person like me is a perfect victim of various investment schemes. No day trading (or drinking). No chasing ephemeral stocks that are flying up (only to tank). Again, Gayle could sing a song about that for us older fans, rhyming “No F**king Way!”

Aside: F**k could cause various scanners to react poorly to my content, meaning it remains asterisked. I do not want to be banned by various purity AI systems now attached to multiple corporate media. From what I have read, it is without recourse. Best to, quoting some from long ago, stoop to conquer.

I dressed in my new black shoes and white dress shirt and put out my gold-colored pocket watch and vest later. After some more Christmas shopping online, time approached, and I dressed, and soon, Air Joan arrived.

And that takes this story without a profane chorus full circle. Thanks for reading, and I hope you, dear reader, are inspired to look for Gayle and Cindy Lauper and think about all the rhymes.

 

 

 

 

Friday continues for me as a pedestrian. Air Volvo is at the mothership with the parking brake failure, shutting down the Volvo for safety reasons. Thus, I will not visit IKEA, the various tree-lighting celebrations, or the Chinese Garden today. I will stay home, and that is good as I am not feeling quite right anyway.

It was cold on Friday, with a stagnant air warning, but the air quality was good (no small particulates).  I was coughing, and my nose ran, meaning the poor air quality (humid with extra CO2) impacted me.  I stay inside and let the air filter help as much as possible.

The blog was short as Thanksgiving filled the day before. As usual, I spent time downloading and updating all the transactions from my bank accounts, reading all my emails and news updates, and making liberal coffee. The coffee, Equal Exchange brand, reminded me of Justice, Compassion, and love for Community. Hope is always in the cup when one focuses on these three things. I had reheated quiche for breakfast that I made the day before. It was good reheated.

I spent hours ordering fruit cakes from the monks at Gethesemani Farms in Kentucky. The prices are higher, and shipping is very high—I once paid $27 for shipping for one gift! I got a few address checks by email and messenger and made the updates on my list to ensure the bounty would arrive soon. I had one broken cart and one that was addressed to me (I sent one to myself for high shipping costs–Kentucky is not near Oregon), but with one exception: the cakes and fudge are outbound. Yes, ‘Release the Fruit Cakes!’ followed by evil laughter was running through my mind.

Deborah and Barb are not fruit cake folks (and likely others are too polite to tell me), so I will arrange other mailings for them. Some younger folks (who would find a fruit cake a strange and likely unloved mystery) would get cash instead, but I worry about that as it is now weird to hold US currency and is not taken in all places (even in the USA). Until I get a better option, Dead Presidents and Dead Postmasters portraits (college and post-college get Franklins) get sent. I will also send gifts to the Heffer Project to honor various folks who need nothing more and resist fruit cakes. More to come.

I kept thinking I should go somewhere, only to remember that Air Volvo was in the shop, so I chatted on the phone and did laundry instead. I made dinner of baked chicken with a microwaved (and then baked) potato with sour cream and some green beans I managed to overcook. I also overcooked the chicken. I was watching the long Director’s Cut of the movie Napoleon and let some things drift. The chicken was well done, 175F, and not great, but I accepted it as the movie was good, and I was enjoying the film on my Apple computer for free on my Apple+ account instead of paying attention to the cooking.

I used a curry spice for chicken I brought back from Morocco, which was good on the overcooked chicken thighs. I have always been worried about undercooked chicken and successfully avoided that mistake today!

Returning to the story, I decided to read. I changed books. While Graham Greene’s The Penguin Book of Victorian Villainies was fascinating, I think shorter works would be better. I found this book in The Curious Books store in East Lansing and thought it would be intriguing. Three hundred pages for one complete story is too much for me, with each chapter obviously being a section of a series, and the writer paid to keep going. The story moves, as would be expected, at a glacial pace. However, the language and word usage are unfamiliar. It would be interesting to try to use the words and sentence structure. More to come. I will likely return to the serial.

I nodded off and soon slept for hours. It was a nightmare. Something was chasing me in the house. I heard it tell its master it would search the bedroom for me. In my dream, I jumped out of bed and quietly walked down the hall, trying to hide in the kitchen, which seemed safe to me, following the illogic of dreams. It jumped out of the bathroom, and it got me. The arms grabbed my legs. I shouted for help.

I woke, and my leg was in a cramp where it had grabbed me. The cramp soon passed. I decided on some lighter to read.

The new book is a translation from the Greek of a fictional story about three girls growing up in pre-WW2 Greece, Three Summers. The English is modern, and the story, told in the first person, is idyllic. It is a good break from murder mysteries and Victorian writing. I read about ten pages before sleep started to overtake me.

I had to use some Benadryl cream as the lousy air had me breaking out in hives. I was soon comfortable again. Soon, I was falling asleep, and I thought I had left the music to sleep by running on the Amazon Echo device, but when I woke up this morning, it had stopped. I slept into a dreamless sleep, and nothing chased me.

Thanks for reading.