Walking to work from the last bus stop. I have a big suitcase and am rolling it behind me. There’s another group of people going the same way to the building. We cross the street and I switch to rolling it in front of me. We all make the turn into the condo, and there’s a resident walking in front of us.
December 29th, 2018
Walking towards a train station. Get on, and the train is going into town on a freight line. Some people are very close to the track, and we sound the horn. Two don’t get off, and I yell move just as we run over them. We stop and walk back, and the people have the remains covered up. The driver expresses his condolences.
December 26th, 2018
At work, trying to finish a project, start downstairs, get called to stop and look at something. Look at it, change a setting and forget what it was originally. Move it back and forth to try to recall it-the setting names are odd. Go back to the server and push in one of the removable drives. It shocks me, and the whole system restarts. Walk over to someone working by the mini.
December 21st, 2018
On a river, controlling a small plane. It has trouble taking off, and doesn’t climb at all. I finally turn around and set it back down
Walk down a hill to a party. Bob H is there, and I talk to him. I pull out a pack of smokes, but they keep falling apart. The pack does too, and I try to gather up the cigarettes. I go back up, and someone brings the rest wrapped in paper.
Ordering coffee at a window. I pull out bills to pay, and the person talks to me about old handheld electronics. I feel old and look disheveled.
Happy solstice!
Please tip the writer. Whatever amount you like-every little bit helps, and I’ll do a shoutout. We are always short of cash, especially with a big mortgage. Let me know if you or someone you know needs web design/development-my rates aren’t bad, and I’m more than pretty good at it. Java/database/AWS/UI too. ThankYouVeryMuch!
First full post since the new WP version. We’ll see how much this changes things-I already dislike the lack of header images and the auto-excerpting in the 2019 theme. And I reverted the theme until I can get stuff looking right. The new editor is pretty cool, though there are some layout issues.
And it’s the week before Christmas. My oldest hates this time of year. I don’t disagree. The short days, cold, forced cheerfulness, etc. Add to that the massive dysfunction in politics, and all the rest, this is a particularly bad holiday season. And that’s that. I don’t have much else to say: here’s the recap.
Sun. am, sitting at the kitchen table. E isn’t up for church, but binz. Good w/o Fri., we’re making mulled wine, a lot. E is actually able to drink it without all the ill effects of alcohol showing up. Shop, drive around, Whole Bowl, E getting church ready, watched Black Panther last night. I need to clean. And the cleaning didn’t happen.
Mon., at work. No cleaning or laundry got done. Did get kitchen tidy. Skipped church, shop, binz-got a bluetooth keyboard for the tablet. W/o-some guy was blasting shitty music the whole time. No t’ai chi-we need quiet for that. Restless sleep-part was the essential relief oil heating up my knee-not relaxing… Cold and rainy. Time to break out winter work shirts, and Christmas decorations.
Tues., trying to untangle disabling that shouldn’t-and it was a setting plus a missing image-bug submitted. Listening to “No World Order” My copy is really badly recorded-need to redo. Did 2 loads of laundry last night, 2 more to go.
Next day, again. Looks like I’m adding a paragraph a day. W/o late-change of pace, running, late dinner, left leg is sore. Working out is def. making a difference to my belly-I need to go to the doc to see if I’m losing weight, though. Doubtful-the weight I lose is getting offset by muscle mass-it may take a few years to reduce my belly. Knee seems OK, except going down stairs. E did laundry! I sorted and distributed. Watched Dr. Strange. To bed late, tired today. My sleep app says I got 6 hours. I’ll def. be sleeping on the train home. Need sugarrrrr.
And I didn’t sleep on the way home-nodded off once or twice, but that’s normal. So, home, chill, dinner, TV, tidy, the usual. Got to bed earlyish. Sleep app says I woke up for a long time around 2, but I don’t remember it. Day is progressing-found an issue, resolved it by redeploying the correct build. Delivered 2 more, need to run it.
Sat. evening, watching downhill, writing this on the tablet. Nice having the mini keyboard. No cleaning today-M did some, shop instead. W/o-the usual, slept in a bit, breakfast, got ankle weights for cheap, Fubonn, etc. Dinner, have to work.
Tuesday, at work. Messed my back up Sun. night, but it’s better now. One of the pluses of being in better shape. So, did the work thing Sat. night, up ’til 3:30. No church Sun., tidy, tidy, kitchen, laundry, vacuum. The house is picked up, hopefully it will stay that way over the holidays. W/o with the ankle weights-better, but not quite heavy enough-need to double. And then my back went out-impossible to sleep Sun. night, 2 aspirin helped. Work, home, tidy, dinner, bed, up and out. Rainy. Reading Lord of the Rings.
Weds., a week at home is beckoning. Such a nice change of pace. I dislike the cash shortfall, but it’s only 2 days in 2 weeks, rather than a whole week of no pay. My back got better quickly, but my right shoulder and left knee are acting up, so no w/o last night. M didn’t either. Not much else. No music digest-stops at 10/24, and iTunes is acting up. I might have a fix-maybe next post.
Getting to the end of Lord of the Rings. Work lunch-pizza and Indian food. Starting on a new program to generate pdfs. Keeping the house tidy.
And Friday-I think I’ll finish this off. It’s pretty quiet. Fam sleeps in during holidays, so I leave for work to a quiet house. Working from home next week. M is still sick, my soreness is improving-skipping workouts helps.
Links. brighter side: kitten’s pacifier . Not so bright: everything else.
Page 23, sentence 5.“Under ordinary circumstances, air resistance would greatly slow the fall of the feather, while the hammer would be largely unaffected.”, The Big Picture.
December 18th, 2018
Going up the hill to ski. It’s really snowy on the road, and chains are required. I don’t have them. Decide to turn around, go into the wrong lane to turn around. A car is coming and I go around quick. Go back home to get the chains. Walk in, look outside and see a big explosion down in Santa Monica. The shockwave gets here, then another explosion. No broken windows, walk back into the living room and talk about it.
December 17th, 2018
Driving S to a thing at the library. There’s another thing going on, and guys are driving fast. One goes halfway through the intersection looking for cross traffic, then guns it, running over another guy who got out of a stopped car. His friends pull him into his car and take off. He’s hurt bad. We pass, and get to the library. S starts walking around, and there’s lots to do.
December 13th, 2018
In a recording studio with Veruca Salt. I walk through to the tracking room, and it’s sort of a maze that you have to go through. They’re having trouble with a vocal, because the lyrics are on multiple pages. I have them lay it out. Steve is having trouble getting his lyrics right. We go out and talk about how the studio is laid out and how to improve it. I talk about Jabbz.
Walk into a small store, they’re emptying it out. I get into a car and put stuff into a can underneath the seat. It lights on fire and I get out of there. We clean up the mess, and Nina Gordon is putting change into a jar.
December 12th, 2018
Walking by a river, looking for the path. I find it, and M, S & I take it. C goes on another path by the river. Walk through the woods a bit and come to a building. Climb the stairs, go in and it’s an interpretive center. Walk around. I light a cigarette and leave the way we came.
December 11th, 2018
Walking down a street in Santa Monica? Brian May leans out the window to say hi. I shake his hand and ask him how he’s doing.
In an elevator with Earl T and a few others. We go up, I want to go to our floor, but Earl wants to go to each floor on the playlist. We go to the top floor (it’s the Sears Tower), and the elevator is rolling back and forth as the building sways. One of the others is scared, but I say it’s expected and the car won’t roll off. It rolls back and forth a few times. I get out and go over to the door leading onto the roof.
December 10th, 2018
Coming back from something. We walk through a field and up a hill by OHS?, I realize my jacket is missing. M thinks it’s on the train. I walk back and it’s in the car. Pick it up and walk back through a field and up a hill. It starts raining, M starts to run-I say it’s moving too fast, and get under a tree. It’s dripping a lot, and I run for it too, down the drive to Brady Middle School. We look into some of the rooms along the drive.
December 9th, 2018
At work, sitting outside in my car. Try to make it so I can work there. Sit in the back seat, open up the roof.
In an office, someone is dropping stuff on my head. I get really mad.
December 8th, 2018
Driving down a country road, someone is trying to pass. I get scared, and pull over. They get in front of us and slow down.
Onstage setting up for a gig. I have a second effects mike I’m trying to set up. I have a few pedals to put on it and lots of compression. Go back to the board to get the channel set up, need a mike to test. Got to the fallback, then back on stage. Unpack a super fancy mike with all sorts of stuff on it. They want to save it, so it sort of pack it back up.
At church, watching a PBS program. Someone calls in and sits there waiting to hear their voice. I yell at them to talk. Someone else does it. I go back to watching the program.
Which flies faster, time or money?
Please tip the writer. Whatever amount you like-every little bit helps, and I’ll do a shoutout. We are always short of cash, especially with a big mortgage. Let me know if you or someone you know needs web design/development-my rates aren’t bad, and I’m more than pretty good at it. Java/database/AWS/UI too. ThankYouVeryMuch!
Time flies, especially around the holidays. Money flies too, and we don’t have much to spare. Other than that, life goes on. Again, things are odd, so much vitriol, and my day-to-day seems pretty peaceful. I don’t know when this will change-something will shift, and all hell will break loose. When? Who knows? I don’t.
Black Friday. Up late, slept in. Did the same thing yesterday. Pretty quiet-lazed around, read, tidied up, got more food, cooked, ate, more of the same. Left work earlyish Weds., missed the bus.
Monday, back at work. Feel disconnected today, like something’s wrong, but I’m not sure what it is. Pretty mellow weekend, up late, slept in. Kept the house sort of tidy. Playing a lot of paper.io 2. Met with S’s teacher Sat. Skipped church Sun., took S to musical rehearsal, drove around downtown and close SE, watched the musical, S had a tiny part, but enjoyed singing in the chorus. W/o-first time since 11/16…lost a little edge, but that’s it-had to dial things back a bit on the bike, 1 or 2 less reps on a few of the weights.
Weds., E & S are going to Breitenbush tomorrow, we have a ton of wreaths on our back porch, and we are seriously short of $$$, depending on how I get paid for Thanksgiving. W/o last night was negatives-M is getting better at pushing hard.
Thurs., everyone loves the wreaths. Not much else-what’s for dinner? No E or S, so just 3 guys-should we go high end? Finally got access to the VSB website-new logos and stuff to do, we’ll see-now I can earn my keep.
Friday! We are unbelievably short of $$$. Like unable to pay even half of the bills due. Including rent. At least I’m going to get to work over Christmas.
Tues., on the train home. Busy at work, the house is tidy. Usual weekend, tidy, shop, w/o, prod deployment Sat. night-a service was down, so I panicked until it came back up. Bush the Elder died, and the praise rolled in, but his legacy is mixed at best. And then there’s individual 1. Enough. W/o tonight, gamelan tomorrow, plus laundry, dishes, and tidy. It never ends.
Thurs., on the bus. Payday tonight-so much still to pay on bills. No gamelan-drove there, no one, drove back. Good w/o Tues., negs, no M, noisy with kids running around, but I pushed hard and my chest is still sore.
Still Thurs. I think I’ll call this post-the every 2 weeks/when I finish the next book is here. Upgraded the site to WordPress 5-not much change, except the editor. Also changed to the new theme, which sucks. Or at least is different-no big header image that rotates randomly. I liked that a lot. Plus the header CSS is a mismatch, at least for the senior page.
Links. brighter side: gotta find some cute kittens and puppies, stat! Surfing Orca, marble maze. Not so bright: everything else, especially all the naked power grabs by outgoing pols and climate change. And individual 1.
Page 23, sentence 5.“Germs multiply in the lungs.”, Homo Deus.
December 5th, 2018
On Mars, trying to figure out why plants didn’t grow. Go outside and talk to the researcher about it. Go right to the cliff, and it’s only 10 feet down. Go back inside, then out the other way. There are several steps back up to the house.
November 25th, 2018
On a helicopter, trying to get away from someone chasing us. We lose power and crash land. We get out and go home (30700). The pilot is treating another guy who’s hurt. His boss comes and takes pictures of everything, including a topless girl by the TV. The other girls are mad about that. I talk to one about what I’m reading (UK LeGuin) and whether I like having a comfy chair here instead of my stuff. I say it’s OK, and start rubbing her back and thinking about having her.
November 22nd, 2018
Drive to Orange High School and park, looking for a way in without getting seen. I walk up and Lynsey Vonn is there signing autographs. I find a piece of paper and she signs it. I walk in through to door by the pool, and they’re doing some sort of play rehearsal. I walk back out.
Walk up a chairlift slope-it’s deep, but has steps. I think about how hard it would be to ski because it goes down and up. Neet Linsey Vonn’s publicist at the top, mention how much he travels, and he says he’s leaving for Australia.
November 21st, 2018
Parked by a park close to work, an ambulance pulls up and they roll someone out on a gurney. They’re giving him CPR, and he’s barfing. We watch them work, and then drive away.
November 20th, 2018
At 30700, looking at a big fish tank in the family room. Someone in a white van drives into the garage. I don’t want to see him, so I run upstairs and get some laundry. Go back downstairs and he’s in the basement. I look at the tank again and my dog is in there. I go downstairs to get him to help me get her out. He’s looking at a smaller tank there. We come back up and she’s on top of it.
November 19th, 2018
In a room, go to pop a zit on my leg. It pops loudly. It gets bigger, like a tube, and a huge solid thing comes out. I walk over to the kitchen.