sleepybadger

I received my $300 from SoFi today and immediately applied it to my Google store so now I've only got a couple of months to pay off the interest free loan. I could have easily put that money into an interest bearing account and paid off Google slowly but I do so love not having any debt at all and will be back there shortly.

My PC will be insecure in a couple of months so I finally did what I've been thinking about for years and moved to a Chromebook. Actually a Chrome ASUS mini computer. It came today and in typical Google fashion I was fully up, updated and signed in as I am now in about 20 minutes. Longest thing was the initial download and getting my Jelly KB and mouse to connect. I did get that to work but may end up moving back to the logitec. The Jelly is OK but once I went ergonomic all the other keyboards seem so tiny and cramped. The Jelly is a backup and will still work and be here for me but I think I'll go back to Logitec.

Rather than ask for a password and user my new computer said, 'hey, I see you've got a pixel, you can just scan this code and we'll set everything up based on that authentication. DONE!! The coolest ever set up.

I've got a friend in the computer biz still who is going to give me a nice used monitor to replace my secondary VGA monitor (not compatible with the mini computer). He's got a monitor and HDMI cable he's giving me for free. So I'll be fully operational and shutting down Microsoft forever by Wednesday. It frees up a bunch of room and wires once I pull the PC so I'll be rearranging things and will have more room in my office now. Actually will now have room for a couch. Thinking about it.

Meanwhile, I found out today about a new pickleball facility with four indoor courts being built near us. I signed up as a founding member. Air conditioned indoor courts close by. I am ready.

Off to cook supper.

alierak posting in

dw_maintenance

We're having to rebuild the search server again (previously, previously). It will take a few days to reindex all the content.

Meanwhile search services should be running, but probably returning no results or incomplete results for most queries.

maju

I've had a fairly busy morning but now it's time to relax. I started the morning with a walk which included taking a few photos for my family's next photo challenge, starting tomorrow. The first prompt is "imbibe" so I walked over to a pub/brewery near Safeway to take a photo of their signage, and discovered that there are two other shops just around the corner from the brewery where you can also drink alcohol, so I took photos of their signs as well. Tomorrow's prompt is "independence" and I intended to take a photo of my car for that but I forgot. I'll do it tomorrow. I did, however, get a photo of a cat (the only cat in this whole area who seems to be an outside cat).

I intended to go to Goodwill and Friends of the Library to drop off donations and then do some grocery shopping, but I discovered neither Goodwill or Friends of the Library opens before 10 am, so I only did grocery shopping (at MOMs, which opens at 9) and took the car through the car wash. I plan to drop off the donations tomorrow, possibly. When I got back I chopped some vegetables ready for cooking tomorrow. (Today's dinner came from the freezer.)

maju

27. What is your favorite song and why? I have too many favourite songs to be able to choose just one as my all-time favourite. The songs I like tend to have a good beat and a catchy tune, but they can be 50s/60s rock and roll, country-western, boogie-woogie, ragtime, or even classical. I like listening to music that makes me feel good.

28. With the resources you have right now, what can you do to bring yourself closer to your goal? Nothing, because my goal is to move to Connecticut to be closer to my daughter and family, but I'm dependent on other people getting things done before I can move.

29. What are your top three priorities? My main priority right now is keeping myself healthy, and to do that I try to eat well, get enough exercise, and get enough sleep. Getting enough sleep is the hard part, because my body and brain don't always cooperate.

30. Why do we idolize sports players? I don't really understand this phenomenon, but in my case I admire people who are able to recognise that they have a talent (for anything, not just sports) and work hard to be the best they can be at whatever it is.

susandennis

Bonny popped in yesterday. She had some spam email she wanted to check but mainly she was bored and she was killing time til 5 pm when she could have her cocktail. Bonny is an odd duck but a nice, odd duck. I had been out in the elbow working on the puzzle and met 'new girl' Jackie's son. He's large but his hands are massive. He reached out to shake mine and I just wanted to hold and study his - never seen anything like it. Also Hazel and John came out to chat. So I got all my neighborness done with very little effort on my part which is how I like it.

Today I have nothing. Next Monday, aqua yoga starts up again. But, today is free. USPS sent me an email of my coming postal mail and there is a letter/bill/something from the company that manages the condo. Maybe it's a refund check - hahahaha. I will need to go down and see when the mail comes.

I quit taking the allergy pills because they quit working but that was a month ago and I am so tired of my nose running so I started up again today. Fingers are crossed but I did add more Kleenex to my subscribe and save order. My ankles are being weird. They are fine right now but this weekend they were very swollen. Not my feet. Not my legs. Just my ankles. They looked like they had a tractor tire around each one. Dr. Google was baffled. Even Dr. AI was scratching his silicone on that one.

I haven't used my feet like I did last week and they are grateful. And they do not hurt. And I am happy about that. I am taking them to the podiatrist tomorrow. Along with all my shoes.

I spent way way way too much money last week. Last month. So July is going to see some cutbacks. I have the money but I don't need any more shit. I really don't and I don't have any place to put it. Even groceries. I'm working hard on eating out of the freezer this week. I'm nearly out of bread and eggs. Maybe a grocery run tomorrow after the podiatrist.

bill_schubert

maju

I felt tired and headachey when I got up this morning, but after I'd been for a long walk I felt better, even though I was dripping with sweat because the humidity /was so high. (It was probably over 90% at that time of day - 7am-ish.)

I didn't feel like doing anything in particular so I decided today would be a movie-watching day. I watched one movie, "I Don't Know How She Does It" (Prime), based on a book I'd read a few years ago, but I didn't find it particularly compelling (the book was better, as I remember it) and when it ended I didn't feel like watching another one even though Prime was showing me a couple of others which look interesting. I did spend the movie-watching time working on a sample flower granny square, so it wasn't completely wasted time.

Later in the afternoon I finished watching "Motherland" (Britbox). Last week sometime I started another Britbox show, "Until I Kill You", based on a true story, but I've only watched a couple of episodes so far. Also last week I started watching "Waterloo Road" on Prime and after one episode I'm enjoying it.

The heat has kicked in again. I did enjoy the day and a half of cooler weather.

susandennis

Baseball starts at 10:30 this morning with the Phillies game. The Mariners game is about 11:30. Yesterday, the Mariners game was on Fox with Fox broadcasters so it was the first time I have gotten to see a Mariners game all season. They lost. But, I enjoyed it.

The guy who sold me the blinds has now had plenty of time to respond to my email even if only to say there's nothing he can do. So far, I have heard crickets. He requested a review and I gave him a glowing one just after installation. Dude, I can edit that sucker. And will. I'll give him until Tuesday. The reality is, if you had told me at the first decision point that I could have these shades but I'll never be able to open my window OR I can live without shades, I would have picked what I have now. BUT I would have sure liked that discussion. Plenty of people here have shades and can open windows. Of course, I've never seen any I like as well as these but still...

It's a hot, sunny morning and I'm thanking those very shades.

Scott and Julie were very surprised that they were going to sleep in daylight and waking up in daylight. They've been to Alaska so it's not a totally foreign concept but they had not experienced it here in the lower 48.

At elbow coffee yesterday, we learned that David (Noelle's husband) is not doing well and John (Hazel's husband) has issues that sound like heart related. Joan is also, I think, deteriorating pretty quickly. She is still mentally sharp but her 93 year old body seems to be checking out. I suspect that this time next year, my neighborhood will look very different.

My friend, Martha, said she ran into Dick and Jen, who are moving into Myrna's apartment. They were actually moving some stuff in! They said they had tried to find me but I wasn't home. This was last week when we were out boosting the economy.

Today will be baseball and knitting and a great appreciation of my life. There's nothing like having people you know and trust come and see what you have and how you live and be so admiring of it all to nail down your gratitude for everything. It's the greatest thing.

I think I'll put some clothes on now and go get yesterday's mail before anyone else gets awake.

maju

Finally, LJ seems to be back to normal.

It was still pleasantly cool(ish) this morning although the humidity was very high; it felt like it was close to 100%. We'd had a small amount of rain overnight, but not enough to create large puddles on the parkrun course so I went to parkrun. There was a woman there wearing a Monash University running shirt; Monash University is in Melbourne, Australia, so I asked her if she was Australian and she was. We didn't really get to talk because parkrun was about to start, and she finished well ahead of me so I didn't see her afterwards either. I'm hoping she shows up again sometime because I'd like to chat more. (To hear the accent :)

susandennis

Volleyball was wild this morning. We had more players than we have had in a long time. One of our regulars who stopped coming about a year ago, was back. Apparently his doctor, in front of his wife, asked him if he was still playing volleyball and when they said 'no', his doctor told him to get back at it and his wife saw that he did. It was fun.

The on to Elbow Coffee. Not that much fun. Two of my favorite guys are not doing well medically. The daughter of one of my neighbors was there and she is a teacher with many many many complaints about how poorly teachers are paid and treated. Elbow Coffee, she thinks, is an appropriate place to share all of her feelings. (It's not.)

BUT now all of that is over. I got one of the three new pairs of shoes that I ordered and I think they might be good. I should have all three of them here before my appointment with the podiatrist and I'm taking them all with me. I want to find out which to keep and what I need to be looking for.

I have no reason to leave my apartment now today or tomorrow or really even Monday. I probably will but knowing I don't have to is luxurious.

susandennis

We had a lovely breakfast and a visit and a chat about their next trip here and then they got into the car and headed out.

It was really fun to have them here. They have a short list of places in the US they still want to see and those they want to revisit. And then I showed them, on the map, the route western from Charlotte through Asheville, over the mountains and then to Memphis and beyond. It's section of the country they have never seen that is very different from what they have seen. They think 2 years and that that might be their last trip.

It is 11:15 and the Pride parade is downstairs at 11:30 and I'm not going. Martha will shame me for it but I'm peopled out. I did my Pride bit for the year with the dolls.

I just want to put my feet up and knit and not talk to anyone for about a week. Or at least a day.

I do need to do a load of laundry.

Oh one interesting bit to note. Years ago, before Kripy Kreme donuts even had retail shops, you could get them in any grocery store always. Then they opened stores. I'm pretty sure, in the south, you could still get them at grocery stores, out here they have always been a shop only donut. Until now. We first found them at Walmart. I bought a box of 6. They were fabulously fresh! Then, yesterday, we were in a Target and they had them! I bought a box of 6. They were fabulously fresh! I told Scott and Julie that I have to buy a box everywhere I see them to let them know how much I approve of this third party retail scheme.

Also of note, TJ Max has some lovely clothes for fat girls. I did not know this until this week. I am now over clothed but not unhappy about it.

Julie pronounces Minneapolis Minini-apolis. It's very cute.

maju

We've had a sudden and unexpected cool change - it's only about 21°C/70°F today, cloudy and overcast and occasionally drizzly. I'm loving having all the windows open even though I'm slightly too cold! Unfortunately the forecast says it will be back up to 34°C/93°F tomorrow, so the respite is extremely brief.

I thought I'd decided on a pattern to use for my crochet flower granny square blanket, but I've found several other interesting free patterns so I'm undecided. I think I'll make sample squares of the most appealing ones and then decide. If more than one of them turn out to be the same size, I'll mix it up and use more than one design. The one I was planning to use is huge (12 inches by 12 inches) and I think I'd prefer to have more smaller squares rather than fewer large ones.

LJ is still being weird today, taking ages to load pages.

bill_schubert

I've never known what to say to AI chat. There is one that you can pay $19/month for that will keep you happy and safe as a senior. Or something like that. In the past month or two I've asked a few questions but nothing that would qualify as a conversation.

But I thought I'd do a quick experiment and I input a kind of didactic statement to ChatGPT regarding man and God to see what it would say. I brought out my inner Archibald MacLeash. The AI told me how inciteful was my observation and proceeded to give me a nicely referenced discussion of my assertion. It was fun. I added some more information, another observation, and again was complemented on my discerning intellect. We went back and forth some and the AI was generally very supportive and encouraging. It was the nicest kind of place to be. Like my teacher finally realized I deserved an A+. I kept a copy of the exchange.

And, of course, my bullshit meter went off. Clearly I'm brilliant but not THAT brilliant.

So I thought I'd reverse my arguement in another session. I opened an incognito window so the AI would not know who I was and compare the two and took the oposing view of my same statement. This time with religion at the core of everything that might happen good in the country's future.

And got a kind of pat on the head. The answer was more 'Yes, but' as compared to the previous 'YES AND'.

If Chatbot is essentially a compendium of all of the Internet and much of the written word it is an interesting thought that the result skews towards rationalism over theology or whatever the two opposites are.

Oh, yeah, the reason I went down this path had been lost in my subconscious until I just wrote that last. There is an AI that specilaizes in the Bible (presumably the Christain Bible but no idea which one). My thought was that this is the ultimate echo chamber. Using an AI to bolster arguments that allow all the ridiculous contradictions that are inherent in humanity.

That is only allowed if I do it.

susandennis

TL;DR My friends came. They loved Timber Ridge. We shopped and shopped and shopped and shopped. And had a great visit. My feet are broken. I have an appointment with a new (to me) podiatrist on Tuesday. The Pride monsters were a huge hit and now it's back to dolls. My new window shades have a fatal error. Regular life resumes this afternoon.

The details.

Julie and Scott live on the South Island of New Zealand in a beautiful tiny town. They have been all over the United States in all the big cities. This tour - two months - is driving around - first Canada and then the western United States (except California).

Even in the biggest town in New Zealand, they shopping opportunities are not what they are here in the US. They just don't have the selection and they have the add on of 'shipped to small island far away' tax. So here, particularly Julie, wallows in all the choices available. The last time they were here, two years ago, they wanted to shop and, for some reason, we ended up down in Federal Way where we discovered chain shop heaven. Lovely stores of Old Navy, Skeechers, Walmart, Target, etc.

This time they wanted to go back to all those places plus they found North Bend Outlets on Google and wanted to go there.

So we started at North Bend which is not too far up the road. And a lovely drive. But the outlet mall there is a bust and a half. The stores were sparse and empty. But, they drive was lovely. And we saw other stuff.

So we came back here and toured Timber Ridge and Issaquah. They are pretty impressed with Timber Ridge. and Issaquah always presents nicely.

Tuesday we went back to Federal Way and did not miss any stores. Julie had a ball and Scott got new shoes and it was a huge hit. Wednesday, there was more shopping and we found the Issaquah troll which was way more impressive than I expected.

Yesterday, Thursday, it was into Bellevue to that huge, lovely, downtown mall. And then to the conveyor belt sushi place for lunch. Fun and delicious.

In between, we've been enjoying Timber Ridge. We've eaten in all the dining rooms and tried all the various serving options except lunch. All have been pretty impressive.

Today they leave. They are taking the next few weeks to drive from here via Salt Lake City and Yellowstone and Mt. Rushmore to Chicago where they will fly to San Francisco and then home. It's such a wonderful trip.

Meanwhile, my feet are just screaming at me. Finally, on Wednesday, I sent a note to my doctor asking for referral to a podiatrist or any other suggestion. She got right back to me with a couple of podiatrist options and I was able to get an appointment here in Issaquah for this coming Tuesday! Yeah.

Oh and it's window washing time at Timber Ridge. I have a panel of three windows. The middle one opens. They use it to hang out and wash the outside of all three panels. It's a good system. Except. When the shade guy designed and the installer guy installed, none of us realized that the scheme will completely bar me from ever opening that window again. So no cleaning. Ever. I have now sent him a note asking what he can do about it. I'm guessing nothing. And it's not fatal. But they should not have been installed that way. Weird and a little annoying.

Today is the Timber Ridge Pride parade which is just about the same time Scott and Julie were planning on leaving and will block in their car. I suspect it will be a short parade and not interrupt the leaving for long.

And now I think I'm caught up. I should get dressed and ready. They will text me when they are up and we'll meet in the dining room for breakfast.

bill_schubert

I've found a system to cook brisket that is not too complicated. It is smoking in the outside cooker for a few hours then into the oven to finish. The oven has a controllable temperature so I can ensure it is evenly finished off and not dried out. It is kind of a chore to do it especially in this heat but the payoff is huge. I end up with a lot of brisket that I slice and vacuum seal in half a dozen bags and freeze. It freezes well and we can pull out a bag of it to cook with eggs or add bbq sauce to and make sandwiches or just finger food.

Big bonus. Zoe has to take pills two or three times a day and is resisting the standard rolled into cheese slices. I discoverd that if I chop up the brisket really finely and mix it with flour and peanut butter and a little beef broth I can make pill pockets that she loves. It is not expensive, not too difficult and she loves it.

I'm off to buy a brisket tomorrow to cook this weekend.

maju

22. What have you done in the last year that makes you proud? Survived.

23. What did you learn recently that changed the way you live? Nothing comes to mind.

24. What is your fondest memory from the past three years? My trip to Niagara Falls with S in November 2022.

25. What are the primary components of a happy life? Safe housing, enough food and other requirements for life, good friends and family.

26. How would the world be different if you were never born? My children and grandchildren wouldn't exist.

bill_schubert

It's 85 and humid right now so I'm done outside (at 10:51). I walked the dogs and worked on the chicken coop a bit. I cut the metal panels for the coop roof, something I've been putting off for weeks. It was a PIA but it is done and I'm down to half a dozen things needed to finish, none of them too hard. I'll take pictures when it is completely done. And get the chicks.

Today and tomorrow are rest days. I'll cut the grass tomorrow morning and do some groceries today but that's it. I was playing pickleball yesterday and tired out quickly. I think I was still tired from working at the shelter on Tuesday. So I decided that today and tomorrow would be recovery days with no real exercise and minimal physical projects. Cutting the grass takes about half an hour so it hardly counts.

I'm going to shower and go to the store and then just rest and watch Whitechapel.

One of the perks of moving to SoFi is that they offer up to $300 once you start direct deposits. I think I'll end up qualifying for the maximum $300 so I'll apply that to Google Store and between that and my phone trade in of $140 that just cleared, the phone is about $90. It is a much better phone in ways I can't much describe. The battery charge is obviously much better than its 3 year old predecessor. It is also quicker and better at recognizing my face and finger print. It is nearly an identical phone feature wise. I can hardly find anything of significance that has changed. But it was a good time to upgrade. My trade in was maximized and my old phone will go to a good home and not be trash sitting in my drawer.

As long as I'm upgrading I decided not to wait for Microsoft to declare my PC unsafe, which will happen in October. My now seven year old computer is still going fine but the Win 10 is done and the security of Win 11 requires hardware that I don't have. I'd upgrade and stay in the MS family but for that. Much as I hate to lose the PC I'm moving to a Chrome mini Asus. It has a ton of outputs that will support local USB drives and my two monitors with ease. And will sit under my main monitor or mount on it or something. Not sure how I'm doing that but it will free up a lot of space.

The only thing I lose, the only thing I use MS for really, is the ability to play Halo. I've got a one game collection that has a half dozen Halo versions in it that I've been playing for years. I will not like losing that but will figure out something else. Maybe save up for an Xbox.

Right now, though, I'm going to have a sandwich and a shower.

maju

My eldest daughter turned 45 today. I really don't feel old enough to have a child that old.

It was marginally cooler this morning (2 degrees F/~1 degree C lower than yesterday) and I had slept well last night, so I went for a run just after 6:30 am. I ended up fairly sweaty but the run felt relatively easy. I wanted to run today because the forecast is for rain for the next couple of days and I don't like running in the rain, although I will walk with an umbrella if the rain isn't too heavy. When I got back I decided to cut the grass in the front yard (I had considered doing it yesterday but I couldn't be bothered). It only took me about 15 or 20 minutes but I was literally dripping with sweat before I finished. It still looks not great around the edges but the overall appearance is somewhat better than before I cut it. (I use a push mower.) I'm hoping not to have to do it for another month or so. The grass/weeds/etc grow really quickly in spring and early summer but then usually slow down by July.

My sorting task for today was looking through photos, specifically a shoebox full of photos I'd sent to S in the early 2000s before I started to use a digital camera and when we were still getting to know each other. It took me at least 15 minutes if not longer to work my way through them. I ended up keeping a few and just throwing most of them away, but looking at some of them took me instantly back to my life 20 years ago. Most of them were unlabelled (of course!) and either unidentifiable places or not especially significant to me at all. I've still got a box of my own old photos to look through, and I think that will be harder to do because many of those photos are from when my children were young.

Live Journal seems to be working okay for me now, but it has forced me into using the new editor and I don't particularly like it. I especially don't like the fact that it hides anything more than a couple of paragraphs behind a cut, although I suppose it doesn't really matter.

maju

I'm annoyed with myself about the loaf of sourdough bread I made yesterday. I knew it was rising fairly quickly because of the hot weather (and I don't keep my house super cold - the thermostat is set at 78°F/25.5°C), so when I put it into the loaf pan I made a mental note to put it in the fridge as soon as it had risen to level with the top of the pan; I would then take it out this morning and bake it and be able to have fresh bread for sandwiches for lunch today. Unfortunately I completely forgot about it and only remembered when I went to the kitchen to get some dinner, when I found the bread already risen well above the top of the pan. I had to bake it immediately rather than putting it in the fridge overnight, and therefore missed out on my fresh bread sandwich today. If I'd put it in the fridge at that point, by morning it would have deflated again. With yeast bread you can rescue an over risen loaf by punching it down and letting it rise for a third time (or so I've read), but with sourdough that doesn't work because the bread deflates when it has "eaten" all the yeast and no amount of punching down is going to produce more yeast to be eaten.

I had yet another bad night last night and I'm feeling very tired today, not helped of course by yet another hot day. Last night I fell asleep reasonably quickly but I kept waking up about every half hour, and then around 11:30 pm my left arm started feeling uncomfortable and keeping me awake because I couldn't find a way to lie that was comfortable. Eventually I got up and read for a while, but I missed out on a couple of hours sleep. I would probably fall asleep if I lay down now, but I'm afraid of messing up my sleep tonight so I'm resisting temptation.

Up until 2023 I used to go out running very early in the mornings in summer in spite of the warm humid early morning weather, but last year other things got in the way and this year I feel totally unmotivated to run when it's so warm when I get up. I've been walking every morning, as I also did last year during the heatwave I lived through in Connecticut in July and August, but I'm hoping for some slightly cooler mornings so I can feel like running again.

For a few weeks I've been thinking about crocheting a throw/lap rug for donation, using flower granny squares. Looking online, there are scores if not hundreds of patterns for granny squares with flower or other designs, and just like with quilting, about the hardest part of a new project is settling on a design and colours. I made some experimental flower granny squares, and have settled on making identically patterned squares but in different colours. I ordered a package of 12 balls of yarn in 12 colours which arrived on Monday, and now I'm itching to get started, but while I was waiting for the yarn I started another pair of fingerless mitts, and I'm making myself finish those before I start on the throw. It only takes a day or two to knit a fingerless mitt, depending on how much time I spend watching shows, so I should have finished the pair fairly quickly.

susandennis

no time to post. I am collecting notes and will catch up. promise.

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sleepybadger

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