Four more days....

Hello:

Sorry for not writing much here the past few weeks.  This coming week I will be traveling for three days to get to China so no posting there.

I have spent today getting books loaded to my Kindle I want to read on the trip to China and while I am in China, I got both of Charles Mann's books, 1491 and 1493.  I also got Dreams of Joy by Lisa See.  I had this latter book on reserve at the library for a few months, but today I canceled it and bought for my Kindle.

I am glad to see there is a lawsuit against Apple and the big publishers now  Hardly no ebook is priced at $9.99 anymore.  The three ebooks I got today were priced at $11.99, $14.99 and $12.99, prices all set "by the publisher." 

The picture here is the last entry in our 4th of July parade, a fire truck that spayed water over everyone there. It sure felt good to get a mist of spray on this hot day.

No more library books for me. All of my reading is now on my Kindle.

Today I read an article I put on my Kindle last month, called Where are All the Girls?   Too much sex selection by parents in India and China now.  I know some places in China the ratio of men to women is 110 to 100.  In the countryside the ratio is even higher at 130 men to every 100 women.  An entire generation of men in China and India will not be able to find wives among the native population.

Another article I read on my Kindle is the Chinese Babe Tax, a funny way for China to raise some money by taxing Americans and westerners who take Chinese women away from China.

Have a great weekend.

Labor Day is coming. What are your plans for that extended weekend?


Steven

 

13 days to go...

Hi again:

I have not been posting here very much. I will do better once I get to China in 13 days.

The picture here is wind-up Nash Rambler.  It runs on a small engine.

This picture is from the old car show during Summerfest.  Many old cars there.

I leave here on August 23.  I get to China on August 25.  I cannot sleep on the plane so I will be up from late night on August 23 until I get to China mid-day on August 25. 

I am reading Buried Secrets and I will finish it later tonight. It is page-turner now. 

I cancelled most of my book reservations at the library.  I have one other library book here, but if read it and then will read books on my Kindle. 

I am not taking many books with me to China this time.  I have over 1,300 books and magazine articles on my Kindle now. More than enough to read here, read on the plane, and read in China.

Hope your week is going well.

Steven

U today...

Hi:

Sorry for not posting as much as I want to these days. 

I am heading to China three weeks from today. So much to do here before I leave.

The picture here an older car that was at the car show at Summerfest.

I renewed my driver's license today,. I had to take 3 trips to the local DMV office.  My first trip was a bust as I forgot to take my checkbook.  My second trip there was unsuccessful due to not having my passport and Social Security card with me. My third trip there was successful in that I had everything with me.  I got my temporary license now; my permanent license comes here in about a week. 

Once I get my permanent driver's license, I will to AAA to get my International Driver's License, which China now recognizes. 

I am now reading Buried Secrets by Joseph Finder.  I am only getting into it now.  It is due the day I leave here.  But I will have it finished well before that.

Hope your week goes well.

Steven

Hot yesterday, rain today?

Hello:

The water spray means the end of parade.  Kids ran out to get wet as it was a hot day here on the 4th of July.

I am still reading Shanghai Girls, a very good novel. I will finish it in a day or two.

My next book is Moby Duck.

I am going to China in about a month.  I will post many pictures in China.

It appears it may rain here but we shall see...

Not much else happening here.

Steven

The weekend is here....

Hello:

The Shriner's entertain the crowd every year at our parade.  I am sure they partake in many parades around Oregon.

I am reading Shanghai Girls.  It is a great novel. Two beautiful Shanghai girls are going out every night to the clubs and other places, without a thought to what might happen. Of course, it happens quickly as the Japanese attack the mainland and in Shanghai.

With their mother they try to make it to the coast to go to Hong Kong.  Mom is killed by Japanese troops who found her   The two girls make to the coast and to a boat, that is soon taken over by pirates.    From Hong Kong they want to go to San Francisco to try to find their husbands that they abandoned earlier in the book.  The events in this novel take place between 1934 and 1954, so much is going to happen to these two Shanghai girls in the pages to come.

I downloaded Skype today.  I will get a camera and a microphone later today so I can start using it to make calls.

My name on Skype is steven.schwindt

Have a great weekend as it is getting warmer here...finally.

Steven

H today

Hello:

This map comes from the Weather Channel earlier today.   Click on it to see a larger picture.

Now we know why we like to live in the northwest part of the U.S.  Hot everywhere but in the upper left coast.  Again, why live anywhere else?  Plus the high humidity covering 3/4 of the U.S., again we don't have here.

In Oregon we don't tan....we rust.  As long as others in the U.S. believe we get more rain than anywhere else in the U.S. that is good for us.

We know when it is summer in Oregon...the rain is warm..

Stayton has its big one-day festival on July 30.  I will go there to take many pictures of the events.

I am finishing the James Bond novel.  Light reading, but it took me almost 3 weeks to get through this book,.  My next book is Shanghai Girls.  I have three more books waiting for me at our library.

The weekend approaches.  What are  your plans?

Steven

 

Raining Sunday here...

Hi:

We know when it is summer in Oregon...the rain is warm.  Exactly today.  I hung clothes outside early this morning, but the warm rain since then forced them in to the dyer.

Except for the warm rain, I would think it is November out here today.

The picture is from the parade.  Kids are waiting for the candy to be thrown to them.  A local grocery store passes out plastic bags for the kids to keep the candy in them. 

I saw on little girl next to me get a piece of candy and eat it right there.  She was not saving any.  It was funny watching her open every piece of candy she got and put in her mouth.

What do here on a Sunday where it raining?????  Read I guess.

I  am watching Sometimes a Great Notion, a film shot in Oregon on the Siletz River.  It  is a great movie.

Steven

F today...

Hello:

The first entry in the parade on the 4th of July was this Elvis impersonator.  Getting popular as Nolan has one too. 

I watched, very early this morning, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.  It was a terrible movie, poorly written and so quite predictable. I hated it.

My thumb is healing now, but still quite sore.  Never again will I use a hand-held can opener.  I use the electric one we have here.

I have not decided yet to give up on the new James Bond novel but will do so later today  So many more books to read than this one.

Have a great weekend.

Steven 

End of the week...

Hi again:

Parade horses in the parade.

I did finally finish the Sherlock Holmes book.  It had 120 footnotes, all with substantial information in them.

Now I am reading the new James Bond novel.  In the first 8 pages there  is train derailment and a assassination attempt.  I don't know how far I will go in this book, called Carte Blanche, is the latest attempt to keep this franchise alive.

I promise to write here more.

I cut my right thumb very badly, trying to open a can of pinto beans. My hand-held opener does not work that well.  From now on I will use the electric can opener in the future 

It amazes me how much we use our imposable thumbs.  One of our great evolution advances, our imposable thumbs. 

Have a great weekend.

Steven

Back again....

Hello again:

Sorry I am have busy the past week.  Now I will post more often.

This picture comes from our 4th of July Parade.  This is an old car in the parade. I have many more pictures here to post on this blog.

I am still reading the Sherlock Holmes book.  I need to take some time to begin reading again. 

My dad sold his car to my cousin.

Not much else new here except to say I have been busy the last week.

Steven

Tis the 4th of July

Hi:

What better to show on the 4th of July, but the snow dusting we had last winter.  Was cold enough for the snow to stick and ice to form on things.

Stayton's parade is at 4:00 pm today. I am going to find a place to put my seat around 3:30 today.  I will take many pictures to post here later.

Nolan's birthday is on Thursday, I have a twinkie left over from his last birthday. He will get that one...

I am reading my book one chapter at time. 

I am watching again 2001: A Space Odyssey.  The first 17 minutes of this show there is no dialogue.  Just a bunch of apes grunting, then discovering how to kill after touching the black thing. Plus the music is great.

Enjoy our 4th....

Steven

Saturday of the holiday....



Hi:

Yet another cartoon from AARP.  Very funny.

I went to Mass today with my dad.  I am starting to go to Mass again.

Still reading the Sherlock Holmes book, but it may take some time to read this book.

I want to read the books I got from the library.

Nice day outside.  I put some laundry outside earlier this morning and by noon it was dry.

I heard some fireworks last night.  But the fireworks around the Chinese New Year go on for nights and nights.  You can buy fireworks in China that shoot way up in the air.  It is hard to sleep at night during the week-long Chinese New Year.

The Stayton fireworks last only 30 minutes.  I may or may not go the fireworks. I will go the parade on the 4th.

Steven

the weekend is here...

Hi:

The weekend has arrived.  On the 4th at 4:00 pm there is a parade in Stayton. I will go there and take a bunch of pictures to post here.

Another funny cartoon about AARP and how they think.

I am into The Whitechapel Horrors, a Sherlock Holmes novel.  This novel is Sherlock and Jack the Ripper.  I will try to finish it this weekend.

I got hot dogs and buns to cook this weekend.

What are your plans for this long weekend?

Steven

H today

Hello:

Good vibrations is on this student's mind, not science. 

I finished Sherlock Holmes and the Shakespeare Letter.  A short book, only 185 pages long, it is a good book but not a great book.  Definitely not a page-turner.

My next book is The Whitechapel Horrors, yet another Sherlock Holmes mystery, this time with taking place in the late 19th century, the time of Sherlock.  I am looking forward to reading this book.

After that book is Shanghai Girls. I enjoy reading books on China and this is suppose to be a good novel on China.

I have four books waiting for me at the library.  I will go there tomorrow to pick up those books.

I may get some strawberries tomorrow to make strawberry shortcake.  I have to make my own biscuits here and I have what I need to do this.

The long weekend approaches.  What are your plans?

Steven

In The Dalles...

Hi:

I am in The Dalles right now. I drove my dad to the Oregon Veterans Home in The Dalles. He plans to move in the home in two weeks.  Because he is 100% disabled veteran he stays there for free.  The home has 151 beds and is quite new.

This picture is from the teachers' questions. 

Hadrian's Wall may be built around Hadrian's garden but it was built in England many, many centuries ago.

Reading on my Kindle while here. 

Hotter here than we have seen in Stayton.  I see it is raining in Stayton but hot and dry here. 

The Dalles Dam has three overflow opening sending water downstream and creating a series of rapids.  I wonder it they do this for fish movement or too much water behind the dam?

We return to Stayton later today. 

Tomorrow I take my dad to the VA hospital in Portland. 

He needs to get ready to move to the Oregon Veterans Home in two weeks. 

Steven

Sunday now...

Hi:

This is one of the nicest houses in Stayton.  It sits on the other side of the Power Canal.  You get to the garage by crossing over the creek on a bridge.

I am now reading Sherlock Holmes and the Shakespeare Letter.  Sherlock in in the 21st century.  Apparently in 1914 he got caught in a avalanche and froze.  Some years later he is found and thawed out.  He is now alive in the new century.  His companion is not Dr. Watson, but this time it is James Wilson. (not the companion of Dr. House on that TV show...)

Sherlock with cell phone and browsing the Internet.  Suspension of belief is a big part of this novel.

I have another Sherlock book here I will read next. Then on to Shanghai Girls.  I will enjoy reading both of these books.

I found my saddle shoes here.  I got these shoes in high school and I am wearing them now.

Tomorrow I will go The Dalles with my dad to look at a VA Home there.  On Wednesday I drive him to Portland to the VA hospital there. 

Hope your weekend is going well.

Steven

H today...

Hello:

You can see people fishing for trout in the North Santiam River.

Not much happening here today.  I edited the poem we read last night.  Tonight we will have the Kindle read two parts of poem to us. 

I did not finish The Last Dickens last night. I stayed up too late last night doing other things. 

I want to finish that book so I can get on to the Sherlock Holmes books. 

I made spaghetti last night and got some French bread to go with it.  I will cook two ears of corn again tonight to go with dinner.

I think the R's will nominate a jerk to run against the President.  It will make it so easy for the President to win re-election. I  do hope President Obama wins a second term.  The D's will take over the House and get a larger majority in the Senate.  I can hardly wait until all of this happens.

If you don't know it, I am a very liberal Democrat.  Liberal in every sense of the word.  Liberal Catholic too, if the that can even work in the Catholic Church. 

Cooler here today.  No rain, but I think it is coming.

Steven

Hump Day...

Hi again:

This picture shows you should never name something Titanic.  In addition there was a story on NPR a few days ago about a big boat named Titanic. Of course, it sank as it came back back to shore.  Again, why name anything Titanic?

I picked up two novels of Sherlock Holmes, but not by the usual author.  Others are now writing Sherlock Holmes novels.  One book is Sherlock Holmes and the Shakespeare Letter.  The other is The Whitechapel Horrors: A Sherlock Holmes Novel.  Both will be good reads. I found another Sherlock Holmes novel, called No Place Like Holmes.  But the library does not have it yet.

I will finish The Last Dickens tonight.  I am almost finished with it.

Hope your week is going well.

Steven

U today...

Hi:

This picture shows one of the two lakes that are near the North Santiam River. Some years ago some people tried raising trout here for general consumption.  It failed after a few years when they could not get enough fish out.  I used to fish this lake in the evening when the fish are rising. 

Been working hard today.  First, edited the poem again for a later reading tonight.  I also got a haircut.  I made a very good lunch for myself with the "San Francisco treat."  The first time I made this I did not follow the directions so the rice was very hard. This time I followed the directions and it turned out quite nice.

With me staying here longer, I have two more books waiting for me in the library. 

Still reading, The Last Dickens.  A very slow read for me.  We shall see how far I get tonight into this book.

I have not been posting here as much as I wanted to the past two months.

Hope your week is going well.

Steven 

Saturday eve here now...

Hello:

This picture shows pandas in China.  Pandas only eat bamboo, a very limited diet.  They must eat a lot to get any nutrients out of bamboo.

I have delayed my trip to China by two months in order to get some medical procedures done here.  Easier to get here than in China with the language problems.

I edited the three parts of the long poem this morning.  We will finish it early this week.  I can get in on the Kindle page in the middle of next week.  I will give you the links to all three poems on the Kindle page.  With 24 million Kindles out there now, I assume some readers have Kindles who read this blog.

I got up at 2:00 am this morning, but went back to bed by 4:00 am and slept until 7:00 am.  Yet another bifurcated night.  I hate it when I don't sleep all the way through the night. 

Still reading, quite slowly as it seems, The Last Dickens.  It is good book, but written in 19 century English.  Not exactly a page turning type of of book.

I made chicken fried steak tonight. My first effort at it.  I was suppose to use cube steak, but could not find any at Safeway. So I used sirloin tips.  Dip in flour, then in egg mixture, then in bread crumbs.  Cook for 4 minutes on each side.  I also cooked two ears of sweet corn. 

Tomorrow I am driving my father to my brother Randy's home in Wilsonville.  My dad lost his driver's license when the VA doctor told him that.  My dad drives to Church every morning, drives to the library to read the newspapers and drives for medical appointments.  He is 89 now, but drives well enough to keep his license.  If the DMV is taking away driver's licenses due only to age then they have a big problem.  My dad told me he is appealing the decision to take away his license. 

Rain again today. We can tell when it is summer in Oregon...the rain is warm.  Exactly what happened today. 

Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Happy Father's Day to all of the dads who read this blog.

Steve

H today

Hi again:

These flowers are at the a farm store just across the river from Stayton.

We will be working on Parts 1 and Part B of the long poem tonight. We will do Part III tomorrow night. I want to get it done early next week so we can put it on the Kindle page. 

Still reading The Last Dickens and I better get busy reading it. It is due June 21. 

Hope your week is going well.

Steven

W today, also Hump Day

Hello:

Another "What????"

Worked hard yesterday, both inside and outside. 

We cleaned out the garage, boxing up stuff.

I also edited the poem yet another time.

Finally we destroyed my dog house to take to the dump.  I no longer have my dog, having giving him away six months ago.

Still reading The Last Dickens.  It is a good book, and I better finish it by next week.

Continuing to pack and re-pack stuff.

Steven

M eve...

Hello:

The question about this picture is: WHAT????

I was busy this morning from 7:00 am to 1:00 pm non-stop. I finished one project.and now have just one more project to finish that I will start and finish this week.

The Last Dickens is a novel about the last story of Charles Dickens he was writing when he died.  Back in those days novelists wrote the novel in serials that showed up on certain papers.  According to this story he had six more chapters ready to go when he suddenly died.  The mystery is to figure out who stole the chapters and why.  A good book.

This will be the last library book I read before I leave.  All future reading will be on my Kindle. 

Yet another nice day. 

Steven

Sunday eve...

Hi again:

This picture shows the new Senior Center in Stayton. I have not been there. If I was staying here I would give bridge lessons but since I am leaving soon, that will not happen.

I am reading my last library book, The Last Dickens, a novel by Matthew Pearl.  I have read his other two novels, which all so very good.

The next 10 days will be busy ones for me.

I will keep this blog going when I am in China again.  This blog started in China and will continue in China.

Hope your weekend went well.

Steven

Saturday today...

Hello again:

This picture shows the Stayton sign from it southern border.  The North Santiam River is just beyond this sign. 

It is another nice day outside.   I am heading to the store soon.

I am watching 2001: A Space Odyssey.  I want to read the last book in this series, 3001, The Final Odyssey.  I see it is at our library, but the library is closed now.  I will get this book on Monday.

I have only one book on my reserve list at the library and I doubt I will get it before I leave.  That book is the latest James Bond novel, written this time by Jeffrey Deever.  I have not read a James Bond novel since high school.  The name of this new book is Carte Blanche  We shall see if it comes in next week.

My cranberry pie is wonderful to eat.  It eat one piece a day.  This is something I will miss when in China.  I am taking my recipe file with me to China.  I doubt even Walmart there has what I need to make this.

I leave on Wednesday, June 22 at 9:30 pm.  I arrive in China two days later at 11:50 am.  Two days with no sleep.  I will try to sleep on the plane, but it will be hard.

Have a great weekend.

Steven

Warm day today



Hello again:

This picture shows the North Santiam River.  You see some people fishing for trout.

This river has runs of steelhead and salmon.  I caught my first steelhead in this river.  It weighed over 15 pounds, a heavy steelhead.

The waters and rivers in China are not like this river.  They are muddy and not clear at all.  Salem gets it water from a station from this river about 3 miles upstream where this picture was taken.

There is an island where Salem gets its water. 

I finished Fire Season. It is a good book as the author goes through the summer months, but digresses throughout the chapters to interesting topics.  I highly recommend this book.

I have delayed my trip to China by one week. Instead of leaving next week, I am leaving on June 22.  I need to delay my trip in order to get the long poem finished and put on the Kindle page.  I will get it done next week. 

I am making a cranberry pie. I used to make these pies around Thanksgiving when fresh cranberries are available.  But I found two packages of frozen cranberries in the freezer so I made one now.

Have a good week and great weekend that is coming.

Steve

U today...

Hello:

This picture, again speaks for itself.  Very ironic.

I was so very busy yesterday, but not today. I am re-packing my suitcases to get more stuff into it and to take some things out, mainly books. 

I am scheduled to leave on June 15 but may have to delay that departure for a week or two, all in order to get the poem done.  Nolan is gone for a week now, attending his convention in central Oregon for tax preparers. 

I hope I do not delay my departure.  But we shall see what happens later this week.

Still reading my library book called Fire Season.  I have not been reading much the last few days but I will read more later this week.

Looks like it may rain later today.

Steve

Funny story

Hit this picture and read this story. It is so very funny.  I assume you can enlarge it. 

Been busy today but it is night now so not busy.

Hope your week is going well.

Steven

Late Sunday



Hello again:

These two pictures speak for themselves.

It is Sunday here. I took a long bike ride today around Stayton to take some pictures of places around Stayton.

I am continuing to read Fire Season, a good book on the fire watchers who live in towers.  I really like this book.

I am listening to All Things Considered on my computer as I write this.  I select the stories I want to hear.  I don't have to listen to the radio when I listen on my computer.

I read a good story on my Kindle about the longest tennis match.  It ended at the 5th set 70-68, with the American winning. Of course, he lost the next day in another singles match in 90 minutes. 

I get a weekly update from Deliverreads.com to my Kindle with a series of 3 to 5 articles in it.  I found another good site today, Longread.com which has quite  few good articles on it.

I like to read long articles on my Kindle rather than on my computer.  In fact, I prefer reading on my computer if the article is only two to three pages long.  I transfer them to my Kindle to read them there.

Hope your weekend is going well.

Steven

Warm weekend is here...

Hello:

This picture explains itself.

I have not posted here as much I wanted to. I have been very busy here getting projects done before I leave.

I am now reading Fire Season about a guy to chronicled seven months in a fire tower in New Mexico.  I am reading this book as this is the job I wanted when I was in high school.  There were no towers near here back then.  The author spent eight summers on that mountain, together with his dog, Alice.   It is a good book and I am enjoying reading it.

I am listening the NPR and now to podcasts as I write this. 

Going through the late Raymond Geraths poems, it affected me to such a degree as I want to start going back to Church. We shall see if I do this tomorrow morning. 

If you have a Kindle now, check out his poems Creation and Redemption.  Those are the first two of his epic poems.  We are now working on the third poem and we hope to have it on the Kindle page next week.

If you cannot find each of these in the Kindle store, let me know I will send you the link to each poem.

Enjoy your weekend.

Steven

W today

Hi again:

I went to bed last night at 7:00 pm and got up this morning at 5:00 am.  Ten hours is what I needed to get over this stomach flu.  I have not eaten in three days and I still not hungry. 

One good thing about this stomach bug is that I have lost 10 pounds.  Too bad I cannot keep losing weight once I am over this bug. 

This picture is from the Beijing subway.  James Fallows showed this on his email to me.  Look closely and see if you can find where you are. 

In exactly two weeks I leave for China again. 

It feels like it is well past noon as I write this but it not yet 10:00 am here. 

I am reading the latest book by James Stewart, called Tangled Webs.  Shows four people who led to the meltdown in recent years.

I am listening to Morning Edition now. There is a story about an Oregon woman who went asleep during a dental procedure.  When she woke up she had an English accent.  It is called Foreign Accent Syndrome.  What an interesting story.

I have hanged my towel and my new jeans outside today after washing them.  I wonder if they will dry in this wet atmosphere. 

Enjoy the rest of this week.

Steven

Memorial Day...

Hi again:

I am sick today.  I have not eaten at all today.  I have a stomach bug.  I have a bad stomach ache.  I apparently have a stomach bug.  As I write this it is 5:20 pm today.  Nothing eaten at all today.

The picture one of the teachers' problem.

I slept last  night and then slept again this morning.  I then slept again this afternoon.  I guess this is what being sick entails.

I am not feeling well at all.

I hopefully will be better tomorrow.  I want to mow the lawn today, but I cannot do it today.

I want to go the library tomorrow also. 

Not much happening today...obviously.

Steven



Sunday today

Hi again:

It is Sunday of the 3 day weekend.  It rained earlier today so I stayed home.

I finished reading The Jefferson Key last night. It is quite the page-turner and I may read the last 50 again to make sure I got everything. 

I am reading on my Kindle today.  I am reading articles I put on it. I finished four of them today.  I will go the library on Tuesday to pick up some books there. 

I leave for China on June 15 and it will take me 29 hours to get to Kunming. I have an eight hour layover in Beijing.  I hope I got through Customs in Beijing.  When I get to Kunming I can get off the plane without going through customs there.

I will continue this blog once I get to China.  I will take quite a pictures to post here so you can see what Kunming looks like. 

I may go to Xi'an to see some friends there. 

The two pictures here are again optical illusions. 

Tomorrow I will start up the grill to make some hamburgers.

Have a good holiday weekend.

Steven



Back here on H

Hello:

These pictures are optical illusions, obviously.

I have not written much the last few days as I could not type right with my right index finger in gauze and tape.

The cut was very bad but now it is healing.  It hurts if I touch something in the wrong manner.

I am still reading The Jefferson Key by Steve Berry.  It is a good book and I may spend the weekend reading if the rain continues. 

If we get a nice day I will mow our lawn again. 

Not much else happening here, but hope you enjoy our coming 3-day weekend.

Steven



M here

Hi:

What do students think?  More tomorrow.

I am reading The Jefferson Key.  It is a good book, a great page turner.

I cut my index finger opening a can of cream of mushroom soup. The lid would not open all of the way so I took a knife to open the lid and used my right hand. As it did not open easily so the more I pulled on it; it then bounced back, cutting my finger deeply. It happened more than two hours ago and my finger is still bleeding. The cut was not deep, more of a deep scraping into the skin.  It still hurts and makes typing problematic.

I made shrimp and rice dinner tonight.  The cream of mushroom soup was the filler for the shrimp.

Have a good week.

Steven

Sunday today...

Hi again:

The top picture is another grave marker.  The bottom picture explains itself if you look at it closer.

I am still reading The Sixth Man. It is not a page-turner like most of Baldacci books, but is a good book.

I will finish the book today, then on to another book. So much to read and so little time to do it. 

It is not raining today so I went to Starbucks to get some coffee there. I asked whether their gift cards work in Starbucks in China. The young coffee maker said yes, but I doubt it.  Starbucks in China is owned by a different company.  Plus black coffee in China costs so much more than in the U.S.  A big cup of black coffee costs over $3.00 in China but only costs me $1.50 in Stayton Starbucks.

I am taking a five pound bag of coffee beans with me in a suitcase.  I will buy a coffee grinder in China to grind my own coffee there. 

Enjoy the remainder of your weekend.

Steven

Weekend is here...





Hi again:

Yet another grave marker.  Probably in New Orleans.

I have been listening to podcasts this morning but after lunch I am going to read my book. 

Some of my clothes are outside on the cloths line. 

My Kindle has been using too much battery power, running down to next to nothing in a week. It should be lasting a month between charges.  I heard a comment on the Kindle Chronicles podcast this morning to reset my Kindle to see how that works. So I did this and now it is charging.  I hope to see my Kindle back to normal soon.

I do hope your weekend goes well.

Steven



H eve now...

Hello again:

Here are two more grave markers that explain themselves.

I have The Jefferson Key waiting for me at the library. I may go there tonight or tomorrow to pick this book and three others waiting for me. 

I want to get into The Sixth Man before going to the library.

I bought a new pair of 501 jeans today to take with me to China. I washed them today and will start wearing them tomorrow.

Tonight we go through Part B of the long poem for the seventh time.  We seem to find mistakes every time we have the Kindle read it to us.  We shall see tonight if we find more wrong words or mistakes.

Nice day again today, but I hear rain is coming back for the weekend.

Steve

Mid-week or Hump Day...



Hello:

These are actual grave markers, both you can see for yourself.

I am now reading The Sixth Man.  I am only about three to four pages into it.  I will get into it deeper tonight.

I was busy today, first editing the second part of the poem and then working with my client, who is Southern California and will not get back here until the middle of June.  He will get back just around the time I am heading to China.

I am not eating dinner these days; I am eating my lunch later in the afternoon these days.

Hope your week is going well.

Steven

U now...

Hi again:

These are pictures of the world's largest plane, made in Russia.  It certainly is big.

I am now reading a New Yorker article from 1987 on the Mississippi River.  It is about the Old River system and the Atchafalaya River that tried to capture the big river and send the water down it.  Locks were put in to keep the big river in its channel. 

I re-worked the poem again today.  We will go over it again tonight for another time.  Once we finished it I will put together with Parts 1 and Part C.  Then it will be all together.  We will listen to it again in its full form. This is the longest of the three poems, twice as long as the other two.

I went to the library today to pick up The Sixth Man, a new novel by David Baldacci. He is my favorite mystery writer. 

Hope your week is going well.

Steven

Early in the week...

Hi again:

This picture speaks for itself.  Wonder where this is?

I worked on the second part of the poem all day today, putting in periods and commas at the end of each line.  I also made corrections that Nolan made over the weekend.  I did change some words in it too.

Reading the last story in Apologies Forthcoming.  All of these stories are so interesting as some take place just after the C.R. ended, but the last three are happening during it.  Some are sad, others are not so sad. None are funny.  But it is such a good book.

I have another David Baldacci book waiting for me at the library.  I will pick it up tomorrow. 

Not much else happening here.

Steve