It is 10:08 AM on Saturday July 22nd, 2023. The jet-lag has been terrible and I’ve just gotten out of bed. I woke up at 8:30 but then drifted in and out of sleep for the next hour and a half.
My first thought after getting out of bed was the noise. We are inundated with noise and I’d argue it is making us somewhat mad. My neighbors have a company come every Saturday to clean up their yard and they always use a leaf blower which is maximum noise. To add to this someone down the street is using a grinder. Adding to this mind wracking symphony is the SFO airport which is only 15 minutes away so there is always airplane noise.
Being frugal I’ve always resisted buying expensive noise-cancelling headphones but just placed the order for a top of the line Bose. I’m still too frugal to pay $230 but was able to do so using points in the company rewards program. I had a slight heart attack as I noticed they’ve updated the store and was afraid the Bose wouldn’t be available anymore. Luckily they were and I quickly placed the order. At midlife there is just too much noise and I find I enjoy silence or perhaps soft classical music with no words. Thus after two years I find I need those headphones to help keep a bit of sanity.
Jet lag aside I’m still exhausted from the Japan trip. It was nonstop activity and often in very hot weather. I should be going to karate practice today and am very aware the adult class starts in 35 minutes. However, I just cannot do it today. My body is too drained and other activities which do not involve a shred of exercise are much more appealing. Thus I’m starting today off with a blog post followed by reading. I’ll also be working my way through a Netflix show/documentary I’ve been meaning to watch. So far The Ottomans has not disappointed and I’m learning a lot about Vlad III, the real Dracula. I never learned that he was a prince from Wallachia who fought against ‘The Great Sultan’ Mehemet.
I have a little under a week before the family returns from Japan. I know my oldest is ready to return especially because the temperature has reached 100 degrees there. It is a nice 65 degrees at maximum here in Pacifica. This is very welcome as a large part of the country is going through a climate changed induced heatwave. I’m reading article after article about Phoenix baking in 120 degrees as well as an ocean that feels like “thick syrup” in Florida and thousands of fish dying. Every time I do I blame the Republicans and recall the signs during a snowy winter a decade ago asking “Where is the climate change?’ Well, here it is. The Republicans and their followers are so far gone that even though they bake, even though they cannot step foot outside for more than an hour without a break I’m sure they will use their warped minds to deny anything is wrong. These certainly are strange and sad times we are living in.
Here in Pacifica there is no fog today and although I had planned to go metal detecting on the beach my body is telling me no. So I’ll put out the cushions on the porch swing and try to make it through some more of the book I’ve been reading – The Indigenous Continent. It is book about the reality of European colonialism here in the USA and their relationship with the Native Americans. We were always taught that Europeans came over and wiped out the natives on a continual march westward. Although this did happen it isn’t as simple as that and it is here the book goes into great detail.
Well, that is all I have for this post. Perhaps I’ll write more as the day goes on.
