Food

I feel better today, although my tooth still hurts when I put too much pressure on it.  Hopefully this won't last.  But it means soft foods only for the time being.  Like today - soup for lunch, pasta for dinner, and if I had any then ice cream for dessert.  The last time I went to the supermarket, I couldn't get hold of any mince - so I bought a protein-based substitute instead.  Which is what I used to make the pasta sauce this evening.  And it was weird, to say the least.  The "meat-substitute" didn't brown like normal mince, so I wasn't sure if it was cooked through properly.  And it had an entirely different texture and tasted very strange, overly seasoned.  I thought the actual pasta sauce might dominate the flavor, but nope it didn't.  I think this will be a one off.  And I am clearly never going to be a vegetarian.  As I write this, not long after finishing my meal, I feel alright - but I wouldn't be surprised if I have some sort of "digestive reaction" to it later.   

Root Canal

So.  Much.  Pain.  I don't think it's going to be a comfortable few days.  I had my root canal today - a 3 hour traumatic ordeal which involved my being strapped down to a chair, being pumped full of gas, having my jaw held open and then having my teeth attacked as I lie there helplessly.  Oh boy, those drill sounds. I'm going to have nightmares for ages.  I think the actual surgery went okay, but the work isn't complete - I still need to get a crown.  But that will have to wait until the restrictions on dentistry are lifted.  But for now, my mouth is in absolute agony.  I can't eat hard foods, it hurts too much.  Particularly where the work took place, but my whole jaw hurts from being held open for so long.  Hopefully the pain will subside in a day or two.  I don't want to go back there anytime soon.

Close Encounters of the Third Kind

I thought I might run out of topics in this blog, but a few things came to mind today.  These include taxes (I did my tax returns today), my neighborhood (since I've done so many local walks in the last few weeks, I've become quite familiar with it), Mario Kart (I think I have genuinely broken my controller playing it this morning) and how soul-destroying social distancing is.  But instead of these - which I may revisit in the week ahead - let me instead mention a film I watched last night - Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  A sci-fi classic nearly as old as me, I had surprisingly (shockingly?) never seen it before.  And it is maybe one of the very few Steven Spielberg films that I haven't seen before.  I didn't know what to expect - maybe something closer to War of the Worlds?  I also surprisingly (shockingly?) haven't seen 2001: A Space Odyssey, so I think I was expecting something more Kubrickian.  So what did I think of Close Encounters?  Well it started slowly, but the last 30 to 45 minutes is absolutely stunning.  Who cares about minimal plot and character development, when you have special effects that are so good that they hold up even 40 years later, accompanied by an amazing John Williams score.  Also good to finally put context to that iconic 5 note sequence.  I don't think it is a stone cold classic - it's not a film that I'm going to go out of my way to watch again - but I'm glad I can finally cross it off my list.  3.5 stars.

Lego Fail

For me, putting together Lego models is supposed to be calming and relaxing.  Unless you finish putting together the model and find something is horribly wrong and it doesn't do what it is supposed to do.  Then you boil over with rage and frustration, as it dawns on you that you've got to follow all the instructions in reverse to take the model apart, and then try again.  Infuriating.  And so it goes with me - I put the model car together, and then find out there is a major flaw in that the wheels on each side of the car go in opposite directions so it can't actually go anywhere.  Insane.  I could have sworn I followed the instructions in exact detail - I had to, because the model build is so complicated.  But even then, I must have missed something.  Oh well, at least I've got some time to kill to fix this. 

A Musical Interlude

One of my favorite songs from one of my favorite albums.

Background TV

In the office, I tend to listen to podcasts when I'm working.  Now I'm at home, my preference seems to be to turn on the TV and have that on in the background whilst I'm working.  I can't see the TV screen from where I work, so I don't get too distracted.  A lot of the channels have changed their schedules so that you can just binge watch one episode after another of particular shows - it seems my favorites are The Office, Star Trek: The Next Generation and South Park.

Us

Time for another brief film review - I watched the 2019 horror film Us last night.  Written and directed by Jordan Peele, the same person behind the critically acclaimed Get Out.  And this is very much in the same vein.  I'm on record as not being a big fan of Get Out, contrary to popular opinion.  And I feel similarly ambivalent about Us - had some good ideas, but tonally was all over the place and just felt too contrived.  There was probably a good movie hidden under the horror cliches, but this just wasn't for me.  2 stars.   

A New Year's Resolution Met

Well, I did something today that I haven't done in about 25 years.  Yes, I finally saw a dentist!  Even a pandemic and a stay-at-home order could not deny me.  The good news - apparently my teeth are in good shape.  I can't tell you what a relief it is to be told that after so long without seeing a dentist.  The bad news, my one bad tooth does need some urgent work.  So next week, I've got a root canal to look forward to.  With modern technology, this is probably not going to be as bad as I imagine it to be.  But glad I finally plucked up the courage to see a dentist.  And the experience wasn't as bad as I feared - yes the dentist was a bit of a dick, but I think most dentists are.  Of course, being in the US, you have to think about the cost as well.  But at least dental insurance will lessen the damage a little bit.   

Stay at Home

On the same day that the UK announces stricter restrictions on staying at home, so does Washington state.  We are supposed to stay at home for the next 2 weeks, other than for "essential" reasons.  Think grocery shopping, going to the doctors, and presumably also to pick food up from restaurants, since they are still providing take-out.  And also for exercise - but apparently we need to maintain a six-foot distance from others when walking or running, though is that really going to be enforced?  I think we can now expect the already somewhat empty supermarket shelves to quickly become very empty now.  I went this morning and there was a lot less stuff available than before - the one thing I couldn't get that I really wanted was pasta.  I might have to start eating a pasta sauce with rice.  How have we come to this?  Its insane.

Tax Day

If there is one thing that the Trump administration has finally done right during this crisis, it is to push tax day from April 15 to July 15.  Apparently they only did this due to pressure from tax professionals, I remember they previously said the deadline for filing was not going to be delayed.  I haven't filed my taxes yet, but I was printing off all the documentation I need today.  And it was scary going into my investment accounts and seeing how much money they have lost.  Scary and depressing.  But really, I shouldn't worry about it too much - I don't have any plans to withdraw this money anytime soon, and I expect the stock market to eventually rebound.  It might take a while, but hopefully I will still have a decent nest egg for when I retire.  If I don't die before then!  I really need to see a professional about my finances and preparing for retirement - I think I'm making the right choices in how and how much I'm saving, but would be good to get confirmation. 

Sacrifices

As we get used to this new world of social distancing, lockdowns and empty supermarket shelves - we all have to make sacrifices.  Whether it's working from home, not being able to go out, or having to change long ingrained habits and routines - it's tough.  I need a haircut, but I don't know when I'll be able to get one.  But a bigger concern for me is that I need to see a dentist, but I don't know when I'll be able to do that either.  I've got a damaged tooth that I think I lost a bit more enamel from in the last few days.  The problem is that I think in Washington state, the only dentistry currently allowed is for emergency use i.e. pain or infection.  Unfortunately, I'm not experiencing either of these just yet.  I'm going to contact a dentist anyway - in the hope that they can at least take a look at my tooth, even if they can't do any work on it yet.  The irony is not lost on me - so many years of not seeing a dentist, but when I finally want and need to see one I can't. 

Padilla Bay Shore

Had to get out of the house, and the weather has been good recently so went for an early evening walk by the shore. 

Sports and Supermakets

LIVE SPORTS ALERT!  LIVE SPORTS ALERT!  Yes, I've found a live sport to watch.  The Australian football season started last night, and it's on.  There may be no crowds, but its better than nothing - and about the only thing being played at the moment.  The lack of sports is one of the worst things to happen out of all this - maybe not quite as important as something like the fatalities - but watching and following sports is a big part of my life and there is definitely a big hole left behind in its absence.  Of my selected favorite channels on my cable box, 5 of them are dedicated to sport - so they're now completely unwatchable.

In the wake of panic buying at supermarkets - which seems particularly prevalent in the UK at the moment, but also in parts of the US - let me mention my trip to the supermarket yesterday morning for comparison.  I went early - about 8 am - and yes, it does seem like certain items are particularly in demand.  Almost everyone in the store seemed to be buying toilet paper and/or bottled water - there was still some on the shelves when I was there, but I don't think it will last.  The only genuinely empty shelves I saw were for hand sanitizer and similar.  Other stuff that was available but you couldn't necessarily get the brand you wanted - bread, orange juice, pasta/pasta sauce.  Otherwise, it was perfectly fine - plenty of fruit and veg, and somewhat surprisingly plenty of frozen food.  Maybe my local supermarket is better than the norm - certainly compared to some other local places (I've got a clueless friend who apparently drove down to Olympia - about 75 miles away - just to get some toilet paper) - but the earlier you shop the better.  It's kind of ridiculous that this is happening when grocery stores are remaining open during the crisis, and people can still get carryout from restaurants (as I plan to do) - almost like certain Russian bots are promoting this kind of panic buying and hysteria - but I don't think it will take too long for sanity to resume and grocery shopping to get back to something like normal.  So just hang in there!

Yesterday

Note to self - you may be stuck inside for the next 18 months, but please don't resort to watching terrible movies.  Case in point - Yesterday.  How can you make a bad movie associated with the Beatles?  I know how - Richard Curtis.  This movie was utterly insipid and absolutely sucked.  I am truly shocked that it has a Rotten Tomato score as high as 63%.  1 star.

I suspect I might be reviewing a lot of movies in this blog in the next few months, with not much else to do.

Centralized Office Waste Stations

Have I blogged about this before?  I may not have, being preoccupied with the virus and its fallout.  But work recently instituted one of the most ridiculous changes I’ve ever come across in a work environment – no more personal trash cans (bins).  This may be a “small inconvenience to some” according to the e-mail that got sent out, but it is a massive inconvenience to me as someone who often eats at their desk, writes lots of notes and generally throws away a lot of things at my desk  At the least, let us keep the bins even if we have to empty them ourselves.  But no bins at all, this is the worst decision of all – I’m either going to end up stockpiling a load of trash in my cube or I need to bring in my own bin.  Yes, I know this is all a bit of a moot point when everyone is currently working from home.  But it was quite sneaky to introduce this when nobody is around to complain about it.  And was this change really necessary just to make things a little bit easier for the janitor or to make an environmental impact?  I’m going to say no.  This is the first small step towards my total nightmare, and something they have apparently introduced to some office areas in our HQ in California, a fully open plan office with no cubicle walls.  If that happens, I'm quitting.

Impact

I need a haircut.  And with all the news about bars and restaurants being shut down here (though still doing carryout thank god), so are barbers.  So now I don't have a choice and have to grow my hair out.  And if Trump's statements are true - because nobody can trust anything he says now - then this might last until well into summer.  At least.  No wonder the stock markets tanked today.  Again.  I went out to get some lunch today, and I was literally the only customer there, with about 10 employees.  This was a chain, so they should be able to ride out the storm.  But so many other places won't - the economic impact of self-isolation and social distancing is just going to be devastating and so many businesses are going to shut down.  Permanently.  That's not to say anything about the number of people not earning and who are not going to be able to make ends meet.  This is truly going to change the world, and hopefully bring down Trump's government - I think this might even eclipse 9/11 as the biggest and most important historical moment of our lifetime.  Is this hyperbole?  I don't know, but it doesn't feel like it right now.

Weird

Although all the main sports have been suspended or postponed - an ungodly turn of events - there were still a couple of sporting events over the weekend, but held without crowds.  And it was just plain odd.  WWE without a crowd really makes "professional" wrestling look amateurish.  And a 6 hour UFC event yesterday (the only live sport I stumbled upon) was just plain strange.  And who knows how long this is going to go on for.  It's crazy.  On the upside, this is probably the best opportunity I'm ever going to have to get through all my DVR recordings and make a start on the various boxsets and blu rays that I own (some of which have been collecting dust for years).  And I've already ordered a few new Nintendo Switch games because I think I'm going to need some different things to do to pass the time when I'm stuck at home.  At least I've got an exercise bike now, which is going to start getting a lot of use - at least for as long as my back holds out.   

Outdoors

Until I actually show any flu-like symptoms, I'm not quite prepared to totally self-isolate yet.  I have to go out to get groceries, I will pop into the office every now and then (particularly since that is where I get Amazon orders delivered to), and like today I need to still get out for an occasional hike.  Otherwise I'm going to go stir crazy.  Nothing too crazy, a safe hike on a trail I've done before.  With the amount of rain we had, yes it was quite muddy but the moss-covered trees, abundant ferns and wetland habitat seemed particularly vibrant.

Meatish

I had an Impossible Whopper this week - the first time I've ever had the Impossible burger substitute, and the first time I've been to Burger King and had a Whopper for an absolute age.  So, what did I think?  Well, I suppose the good news is that I didn't have a problem with the meat substitute.  It didn't look quite the same, but it tasted absolutely fine - which is to say that it tasted just as bland as any other fast food meat.  No, my problem was with the bun of the burger - which was horrible.  And that is what made the burger extremely disappointing.  I should really have also got a normal Whopper, which would have allowed me a much better comparison.  But bottom line, I shall not be going to Burger King again anytime soon. 

Social Distancing

Well, the last 24 hours have been great!  Stocks in free fall, all sports postponed, travel restrictions imposed, Trump truly flailing, America's most beloved actor infected, people not expected to interact.  We are really living through a movie-like world health crisis.  I went into the office today - having been informed it was preferred but not mandatory to work from home - but I don't think I'll be going in too regularly.  There was hardly anyone there.  I've just ordered a computer monitor from Amazon, which should help me work from home.  And I think I'm going to need it, as I don't see things getting back to normal for quite a few more months.  At least.  I've also got to make a decision soon on whether to fly down to California for a break next month - I'm leaning towards not, but my flight is nonrefundable.  But I wouldn't be surprised if domestic travel restrictions are imposed soon as well - and the Seattle area will be one of the targets for that.  I'm also turning into a hypochondriac - every single cough I have now makes me think I've got the virus.  Not good.  Hope everyone stays safe out there.

Stress Relief

It is a stressful time.  Work is keeping me busy, I hate working from home - which I reckon I'm going to have to get used to for a very long time to come, I'm missing socialization, I'm not eating or exercising very well, and the latest coronavirus developments are very ominous.  So how do I relieve the stress?  Well for the last few years, it's been Lego.  And sure enough, I've started putting together a new Lego set.  Unfortunately, this one is increasing my stress rather than reducing it.  It's a bloody nightmare, and the most difficult Lego model I've ever tried to construct.  Just take a look at this:

It would probably be easier to put together a real car rather than this.

Belt

What do you get when you combine a fat belly, a sedentary lifestyle (made worse by working from home) and a belt with a big buckle?  You get pain and discomfort.  And a desire for a new belt. 

Clocks

So, our clocks went forward over the weekend.  And once again, it totally messes you up and puts you out of sync for at least a few days.  I could have sworn Washington state passed a law to stop this, but apparently it needs federal approval.  And that ain't coming any time soon.  And why the heck don't we change our clocks on the same day as the UK?  Now I'm not totally sure of the time difference, is it 7 hours or 9 hours?  And for how long?  Stupid.  But yes, I welcome daylight saving time - the darker the later, the better.

PS Having just watched the season (and possibly series) finale of Kidding, I've got to mention it as one of the best shows on telly.  And definitely one of the most underrated - despite a killer cast, I rarely come across any coverage of it on the internet.  Which is a shame, because it is terrific and deserves high praise.  This might be one of my sleeper picks for a spot in my top 20 shows ever.

4K

So, I was able to watch Man Utd vs Man City in 4K today.  Got to be honest, wasn't that impressed.  Although the picture looked great, it did get blocky a few times and the audio kept on cutting out.  And whereas the difference between standard definition and high definition is noticeable, the difference between high definition and 4K is barely negligible.  I think perhaps I should hold judgement - because I don't trust the quality of my cable box or cable company.  I'm definitely not getting good quality surround sound via the cable box, I think they must do something to the audio.  There are a few shows and films I can watch in 4K via Amazon Prime - but can I trust streaming?  What I really need to do is get a 4K player and watch some shows/films on 4K discs - they will have the best quality audio and video.  I think the PS5 when it comes out at the end of the year will play 4K, so that seems like the logical update from my current PS4.     

Safety

From my Feb 2nd entry:

Next games coming up are critical: Everton, Newcastle, Brighton, Watford, Bournemouth.  I would like to see 3 wins out of these if we are not going to get dragged into a relegation scrap.

When we lost to Everton, I feared the worse.  But then we rattled off 3 1-0 victories in a row, and it looks like we're going to be safe.  It ain't pretty, but Roy Hodgson deserves his one year extension.  Considering how awful Palace are at scoring, we really shouldn't have as many points as we do. 

More of the Same

It seems this blog is devolving into political or virus posts.

On the political front, sad to still see adverts airing for Michael Bloomberg and Elizabeth Warren, even though both have dropped out of the Democratic race.  All that money that must have been spent in advance, totally wasted.  At least Bloomberg is now going to spend some of his vast wealth on attack adverts against Trump - if I had $20 billion, I would probably do the same.  Clearly the Democratic race has come down to a 2 horse race, between two old men with vastly different ideologies - going to be interesting to see how it goes down, though looks like Biden has the inside track to victory now.  Our state votes next week - and I totally predict a Bernie victory here.

But with the virus cancelling all kinds of events and gatherings in the region, who knows if this election will go ahead then.  Schools are closed, offices are closed, downtown and tourist spots hardly have anyone there now.  In all honesty, probably a good time to visit if you don't mind the risk!  Today, we were finally told we were required to work from home for "the next several days" - though I suspect it will be for a lot longer than that.  Far from ideal, I am not set up to work from home at all - I don't have any monitors (I have 2 on my desk at work), so I have to rely on just a small laptop screen.  And this couldn't have come at a worse time with the amount of work that has just come in.  I've got to work over the weekend.  Fun.   

A Silver Lining

Because at least a couple of the techs that have large offices close to my office (Amazon and Facebook) decided to tell their employees to work from home today, it was perhaps the best Thursday commute I’ve ever had – traditionally the worst day of the week by far.  I think they’ve been told to not come in until at least the end of March.  No official word from our company, one way or the other – which shows a very disappointing lack of responsibility and leadership.  So I will continue coming into the office until I’m told I can’t.  But definitely strange times.  The office was quarter to half full today – and absolutely none of my Chinese colleagues were in the office.  I do expect/fear further disruption.

More Virus News

Disappointed, but not surprised, that the release date of No Time to Die has been pushed back to November.  I’m guessing that the many, many companies with various promotions, merch and collectibles released or releasing to coincide with the original release date are not happy.  But, as much as anything, this probably says a lot about how important the international box office is for these big blockbusters now, particularly the Chinese market.

Also in virus related news, I read that an Amazon employee at Seattle headquarters has tested positive for the virus.  That is not far away at all from where I work (though fortunately I haven’t been down that way for a while because they are currently replacing a bridge on the road that connects the two neighborhoods).  I haven’t heard about anyone in our office testing positive yet, but I do notice that the garage is a lot less full than it normally is – I suspect a lot of people are working from home (and I found out today that, informally, we're allowed to work from home indefinitely if we feel it is safer).  I also suspect that we might get quick access to our experimental treatment for the virus should we ever get affected.  The commute has also been somewhat better – but I can’t tell if that is due to some combination of half-term, better weather, or more people staying at home.  But considering that Amazon has about 55,000 employees in the Seattle area, with one person affected then that could quickly escalate to a lot more.  But I don’t think we’ll ever get to the extreme of Chinese cities – which are on lockdown and have drones patrolling everywhere and shouting at you to stay inside if you happen to venture outside.  Big Brother is watching you indeed. 

I’ve been feeling under the weather recently – but I don’t think it is flu-related.  However, I am more conscious than ever of just how much touching of my face I do.  I rub my eyes and pick my nose all the time – both of which are highly not recommended, especially in the current climate.  I don’t even think about it, it’s just human nature.  What am I supposed to do – wear gloves all the time?  That is not exactly going to help me do my job – which involves a lot of typing. 

I saw some video of Trump and Pence meeting with pharma executives a few days ago, including our CEO, to discuss the virus.  It was embarrassing how clear Trump was bored and didn’t understand or care about anything – just some token reading of notes that someone else had obviously prepared, feigning interest and displaying shameless self-promotion.  And the sucking up of Trump’s cronies to Trump was beyond cringeworthy.  And since this was on YouTube, I made the mistake of briefly looking at the comments on the video - and they were about as offensive and polarized as you might imagine.  My takeaway, this was a ridiculous charade for the press to make it look like the government is doing something and will have no meaningful impact to accelerating any prospective treatment or vaccine for the virus. 

Slow

An uneventful day:

I was reading online reviews of dentists, with the plan to finally book somewhere for an appointment soon – something I’ve been procrastinating about for an extremely long time.  I think I settled on somewhere that seemed to have consistently good reviews, but then found out that there is a  piece of work coming in today or tomorrow that needs a quick turnaround, is extremely high priority and is going to keep a bunch of us very, very busy for a week – so absolutely no time off work allowed then.  So the procrastination temporarily continues…

No comments on Super Tuesday.  I’m writing this before the results have really trickled down, but glad that some moderate Democratic candidates have finally withdrawn and backed Joe Biden, though fear it is too little too late to stop Bernie.  And again, that would be a disaster for the Democrats and a disaster for America.

And, my region seems to be the center of a bad outbreak of coronavirus.  Schools were shut today for cleaning and staff training on remote learning – yikes.  9 deaths so far – though they all seem to be elderly or people with preexisting conditions.  But I noticed in the supermarket yesterday that a lot of the shelves containing cleaning supplies were empty.  No surprises, we already have panic buying.  I read that apparently there is a toilet paper shortage at local supermarkets, though I didn’t go down that aisle yesterday so cannot confirm.  No disruptions to daily life yet, but I wonder how long that is going to last – because it seems like no one, particularly the American government, has any idea on how much the virus could spread and how much social/economic disruption it could cause.  And the stock market continues to be extremely volatile – which is fun for nobody.

Coinage

What do you get when you combine voracious coin collectors with voracious James Bond collectors?  A desperate scramble.  The Royal Mint released their “James Bond Collection” this morning.  I was on the e-mail list to be notified when it was available, so I got the e-mail late last night – but didn’t go onto their website until about ½ hour later.  A critical mistake.  The signs were ominous from the fact that there was a waiting queue to actually enter the Royal Mint website (about 4000 people before me when I tried).    But fortunately didn’t have to wait too long to finally get on.  But sure enough, all the decent limited edition coins and coin sets had already sold out.  Disappointing.  Though to be sure, I’m not sure I would be prepared to shell out the kind of money they were asking for some of these.  Gold proof coins starting from 500 GBP per coin – that’s a lot of money when you consider there are 3 coins in the set.  And don’t even get me started on the James Bond special issue coins – there was maybe a five-ounce silver proof coin that is my only real regret that I couldn’t get, but that still retailed for 500 GBP.  However, if anyone reading this ever wants to treat me to a ridiculous birthday or Christmas present, then please feel free to buy me a kilo gold proof coin (RRP 60,000 GBP), two-kilo gold proof coin (RRP 130,000 GBP) or the only seven-kilo gold proof coin in existence (didn’t specify an RRP, but I’m imagining we’re talking close to ¾ or a million GBP).

PS Apologies for all the GBP mentions above, this is courtesy of American keyboards and their lack of pound symbol (and, UK-US difference alert, # is called a pound sign here).  I’m sure there is a way to type it but it’s a hassle (and even though I’ve now found it – hold down the Alt key and type 0163 on the numerical keypad – I’m probably not going to remember this, and I can’t be bothered to change the paragraph above now).

Satisfaction

Felt like I achieved something this weekend.  I managed to put together an Ikea dining table by myself.  This herculean task involved emotional fortitude and superhuman feats of dexterity and strength.  The instructions were not clear, some of the pieces didn't go together like they were supposed to, I've got bruises on my leg and ass where I've been sitting uncomfortably on the ground too long, my back hurts from being crouched over so much, my hands are sore and marked from where I was trying to tighten screws that didn't want to be tightened, and I somehow managed to break some plastic bits that fortunately don't impact the structural integrity of the table.  But it looks good, seems sturdy enough, and I can add an extra leaf to extend the table if necessary.  But I'm not sure I can go through this again.