life in the old lane

Looking out my window about 5 minutes ago. Waning gibbous moon. I wonder what a gibbous is?

Interesting. They just turned the lights off in DC. On purpose? An accident? Or an ordinary power failure?

My big event today was getting all of my lamps and coffee pot connected to the new Echo. Computer Start Coffee. Computer Lights On. Going to redo the routines for all the lights out to add a delay so they don’t all snap off at once but sort of turn out like they would if I were going around the room turning them off.  That is tomorrow’s project. Have to parcel this fun out.

The plugs are all repeaters on “my” mesh net – so – with enough plugs – I could cover the entire building.

Think I’ll just settle in for a bit of fretting.

It was a cold and windy day. But the crows had a great time soaring around. My camera was handy. So, I had fun too. Taking my fun where ever and whenever I find it these days.

The Asylum is not very Mexican, so Day of the Dead isn’t on the radar here. Couldn’t even make it to the barrio for skull candy. But, that’s on me. I am sure that Amazon has Día de los Muertos candy! I’ll do better next year. Because, I don’t doubt for an instant that I’ll still be here more or less locked up next November 2. On the other hand, you could be remembering me.

Gratitude

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Grateful to have a real live in-person yoga class with a real live in-person yoga instructor today. But still grateful for Zoom yoga.

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Well it is almost tomorrow. Most of the votes have been cast. The stores are boarded up. The White House is barricaded. Bermuda is praying for us. Churches are having vigils. And The Asylum is having an Elvis Impersonator.

Mālama pono

The Halloween “Blue Moon” a night late. The moonrise was better last night. But, I was not in good photographer mode. So, I tried again tonight. Much better. I was using the correct camera, with the correct lens and the correct settings. And I braced my not too steady old hands on the window frame.

We are supposed to get new windows next year. And, I will be seriously pissed if I can not open my window and move the screen so I can get my camera outside.

Gratitude

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Grateful for apples. You can eat them right off the tree. Or with cheese. Or peanut butter. They make great pies. Also apple sauce. And apple butter. And, apple cider which becomes apple brandy or applejack. I made apple sauce today.

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Next week might be the most “interesting” week of my life. (Well, except maybe for my very first week and perhaps my very last.) I hope I am not leaning out my window taking pictures of DC burning.

Mālama pono

7am from the Old Bat Cave in exciting downtown Bailey’s Crossroads. A good crack of dawn shot.

And this is the scariest thing I saw today.

I looked at The Royal Gazette to check on Bermuda and Covid. Only to discover that they are praying for their large neighbor to the west.  As well they should be. As well they should be.

Gratitude

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Grateful that I am able to walk a couple of miles every day just because I should.

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Report on the new Echo and its alleged Zigbee mesh net abilities. So far so good. I sprung for the simplest device I could imagine – a plug. It arrived this morning. I plugged the plug in and plugged in a lamp. “Computer Discover New Devices”. The blue light goes round and round and my plug was discovered. So, the automation of the Old Bat’s Cave is underway. She who dies with the most toys wins.

Mālama pono

They celebrated Halloween at The Asylum today. I went and took some pictures for the resident run website. (I have nothing to do with the website or it’s operation. I just send 576×360 images to the correct person.)

Not much going on today in my world. But, important events are on the calendar:

• • • October 31, Halloween
    • November 1, Turn the clocks back
    • November 2, Día de los Muertos
    • November 3, Take the country back

Gratitude

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One of The Asylum Sisters had a “little” cardiac procedure today. Sorry, there are no “little” cardiac procedures as I see it. But she sent a text that she is fine and was eating a brownie. She should be back here soon. Grateful. Really. Each dear friend is a treasure.

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Mālama pono

A seriously cold bleak rainy day today. Extra bleak because 2 staff members on our skilled nursing unit have tested positive for Covid. Extra extra bleak because “my hotel” in Kona closed today until Xmas at least.

The only light that I found was the blue light under the new Echo. It is all connected to our Wifi and has been renamed “computer”. A Zigbee plug is on order.  The voice is noticeably different. And the sound is slightly better. I also moved it away from the wall that I share with my neighbors to the north. They are young enough to still be able to hear. But, our walls are very sound proof.

Some serious “head work” is in order if I am to survive here at The Asylum without becoming a total asshole bitch this winter. A friend says that it is practice for when she “old” and can no longer travel around to country to visit family for the holidays. So, this is practice for when I am “old” and can no longer migrate to a friendlier clime.

Carlton’s last winter, 2013-2014, we had to stay in Arlington until mid-January because he was having radiation. I survived that time by just adding a base layer to my fall and spring wardrobe. So, for now, at least, I have resisted the temptation to do therapeutic clothes shopping. And, it’s not like I am going anywhere except for a walk.

Gratitude

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Going to have to kick my gratitude game up to the next level to make it. Through the election. Through 2020. Through winter. Through Covid. Through life.

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Think I will be very busy with work tomorrow. And that will be a good thing.

Mālama pono

A little retail therapy arrived today. My new Alexa Echo. I was getting ready to plug it in and extract it’s MAC address when I was notified that the Saloon was serving “Sex on the Beach” as the Happy Hour Special. I have become a fan of umbrella drinks since Covid. Not all umbrella drinks, but some. I had to go drink. Life is uncertain. Drink.

We can not connect “things” to our WiFi. We have to submit the MAC address to IT and hope that they add it to their list. I got this new Echo because it is supposed to generate its own Zigbee mesh net.  Without having to be connected to a router by a RJ45 wire. We will see. First, get connected to in house “hotel” wifi.  Next, acquire a Zigbee device. Try to connect it. If that works… Then I can automate my tiny apartment. Already thinking about some cool lighting. But, first things first.

Gratitude

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Grateful for technology. When it works.

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I seem to have cajoled Time Machine into working again.

A week from today will be “interesting”.  I should have a plan for “what if the good guys don’t win”. But, I don’t. And no matter who wins. Covid will still be here. So will science.

Mālama pono

Today’s big adventure was a 5-mile (total not each way) walk to get a blood draw at 7 AM this morning. That would be before breakfast or coffee. Google said it would take 57 minutes to get there.  I didn’t believe Google. I left home at 5:45 AM  Well, Google was correct. I arrived 15 minutes early. Hanging out in a family practice doctor’s office is never a good idea. So, I sat myself down on a bench and enjoyed 15 mask free minutes. In and out of the doctor’s office in less than 15 minutes and back home in the Old Bat Cave with coffee in hand by 8:15.

And, by 3:15 this afternoon all of the results were available online. I checked them. Nothing alarming. Everything “normal”.

I decided to ignore my problems with Time Machine today.

Gratitude

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Normal lab results. Of course, I am grateful for that.

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Mālama pono

Forbin, the MacBook Pro, and I are having a little disagreement at the moment. Time Machine has ground to a complete halt. First, I thought that the external drive was full. Nope. So, I restarted the computer. Nope. I turned the computer off. Nope. I restarted it in safe mode. Nope. For an hour or so, I suspected my VMWare. But, I don’t think that is the issue. A couple of days ago, Lightroom rebuilt its 40gig catalog. At this instant Forbin is trying unsuccessfully to backup everything except the Lightroom catalog in safe mode. And I am using the little iPad. I am really too old for this shit. Time to get more Dropbox space and let that be my backup ?  I sure don’t need another cloud storage account  iCloud, Google and Dropbox.   My iPads use iCloud, my phone and email use Google and I use Dropbox .

And, I am really tired of this COVID-19. Today it’s just oppressive. I have gotten so boring heck, I even bore myself. Now, I understand, there are worse things then being bored. But being boring is an entire different thing. I just want it over. And I know that’s not happening any time soon. Hope for the best and plan for the worst. That’s about all any of us can do.

Today I wished that Mr C was here to share this miserable year with me. That’s not very nice of me. Because, I really am glad that he missed it.

Gratitude

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Coffee. That’s about all for gratitude today. Well and chocolate. And indoor plumbing. Alexa, the kindle, elevators, central heat.

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Mālama pono

A little Halloween humor at the Asylum Front Desk. The pumpkin says “Your phone is off the hook”. Years ago, the Asylum decided to save money. Instead of installing a “help I have fallen and can not get up” system, they decided to just tell the residents to knock your phone off the hook if you were having a heart attack. Last year the Front Desk people responded to more than 1,600 off-hook incidents. As I recall one was a real emergency.

Gratitude

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Grateful for cold rainy days that make the warm sunny ones all the sweeter.

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Mālama pono

Our weed patch is still attracting bees. And, it is very cheery in an unkempt way.

Gratitude

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Grateful that it takes the fingers of two hands to count my real friends.

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The Asylum must be trying to limit unlawful assembly by turning the chairs over. Most of our residents aren’t strong enough to right a teak chair.

Glorious warm sunny days seem to be coming to an end. Hawai’i? Bermuda? or be sensible and hunker in the bunker? Time will tell.

Mālama pono

PS: the picture up top – that was late last October. We wear masks in Northern Virginia.

Went to the “far away” grocery this morning. The weather was nice. Some exercise was in order. So I went to the grocery that is 1.5 miles away. It also has pretty good grocery store sushi.

I was also picking up some coffee (hoarding?) and I needed eggs. Noticed that they had quail eggs and duck eggs. In addition to the usual selection of brown, white, organic, free-range,  factory, eggs in 6, 12, or 18 packs. Except for the price, the egg department is pretty much pre-pandemic. I guess this is a good sign.

 

This amused me way too much. Had to steal it. Don’t know who to credit.

Gratitude

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Grateful that good sushi is within (long) walking distance.

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On the not good news front. Another resident of The Asylum died of COVID this week. It’s not all duck and quail eggs if you are old.

Mālama pono