kevin_standlee (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kevin_standlee) wrote2017-07-16 09:03 pm
kevin_standlee) wrote2017-07-16 09:03 pm
Entry tags:
My Trip to Sacramento (Again)
I needed to go see my sister at the nursing facility in Sacramento as I continue to sort out things on her behalf. In addition, there are some things Lisa and I want for the Worldcon trip that can't be easily had in Reno. So this morning, we set off for Sacramento. Neither of us had had a good night's sleep, in part because of the heat. Until we got near Truckee, there was a whole lot of smoke in the air, mostly I think from the Long Valley Fire north of Reno. The Farad Fire that closed I-80 for quite a while last week is reported as 100% contained, and the areas near the freeway are burned out by now.
We went to the Roseville Galleria (nearest Lush store) for the after-shave ointment I use and some "toothy tab" substitutes for toothpaste I prefer to use on long trips because it's neater than tubes of toothpaste. Then it was on to Fry's for some bits of electronics that Lisa and I wanted. By then we were already wilting from the heat, which wasn't more than a degree or two hotter than Fernley, but significantly more humid. I suggested lunch, but neither of us was very hungry. So we went to the nursing facility, which at least was cooler.
For reasons I would prefer not to discuss in depth here, my sister's smartphone — which she did not want in the first place and she found difficult to use — was disconnected. She needed a new phone. Fortunately, the same carrier as I use (and for which I bought and I pay for a basic mobile phone for my mother) has a store not far from the hospital. So Lisa and I went over there, I showed them my "dumb phone," and they sold me the closest to that model, which is the same form factor and user interface, so I can work Kelli through it if necessary. I set it up to charge to a simple unlimited plan to me, programmed it with the numbers I expect she wanted (my, our mother, her son, and a couple of others) and took it back to her. I showed her how to use it and how to charge it. She's happy with that. It's a new phone number, but that's okay.
Kelli can't deal with voice mail, so I needed to record a message saying, "Don't leave messages here; call Kevin Standlee at [my number]." But for some reason, These Verizon phones generate a beep partway through recording the message that cuts out a bit of what you say. It took me a dozen tries until I was able to anticipate that beep and leave a space for it, then finish recording the greeting.
After spending time with my sister, Lisa and I were hungry, despite the heat, so we set off east, stopping at In-N-Out in Rocklin (we've given up on the Auburn location because it seems to always be over-crowded), ate burgers, and turned for home. We stopped only at Donner Summit for a rest break and just before home to get some milk and yogurt for my breakfast tomorrow.
This is the view out the back of the eastbound I-80 rest area at Donner Summit. Not too many weeks ago, there was a four-meter wall of snow here.
There are still pockets of snow on the higher elevations above the rest area. I don't know if it will last all summer. Probably not if this heat continues.
It was pretty comfortable at the summit, but we needed to get home, so we pressed on. The house was, as expected, very hot and stuffy, but the overnight low is supposed to get down to 18°C tonight and once the sun went down it started cooling nicely. We have the fans and coolers running full-tilt. Once it's cool enough to do so, I must get some sleep. It's another busy week at the Day Jobbe, and a number of both Westercon and WSFS tasks, plus personal preparations for the Helsinki trip, are looming.
We went to the Roseville Galleria (nearest Lush store) for the after-shave ointment I use and some "toothy tab" substitutes for toothpaste I prefer to use on long trips because it's neater than tubes of toothpaste. Then it was on to Fry's for some bits of electronics that Lisa and I wanted. By then we were already wilting from the heat, which wasn't more than a degree or two hotter than Fernley, but significantly more humid. I suggested lunch, but neither of us was very hungry. So we went to the nursing facility, which at least was cooler.
For reasons I would prefer not to discuss in depth here, my sister's smartphone — which she did not want in the first place and she found difficult to use — was disconnected. She needed a new phone. Fortunately, the same carrier as I use (and for which I bought and I pay for a basic mobile phone for my mother) has a store not far from the hospital. So Lisa and I went over there, I showed them my "dumb phone," and they sold me the closest to that model, which is the same form factor and user interface, so I can work Kelli through it if necessary. I set it up to charge to a simple unlimited plan to me, programmed it with the numbers I expect she wanted (my, our mother, her son, and a couple of others) and took it back to her. I showed her how to use it and how to charge it. She's happy with that. It's a new phone number, but that's okay.
Kelli can't deal with voice mail, so I needed to record a message saying, "Don't leave messages here; call Kevin Standlee at [my number]." But for some reason, These Verizon phones generate a beep partway through recording the message that cuts out a bit of what you say. It took me a dozen tries until I was able to anticipate that beep and leave a space for it, then finish recording the greeting.
After spending time with my sister, Lisa and I were hungry, despite the heat, so we set off east, stopping at In-N-Out in Rocklin (we've given up on the Auburn location because it seems to always be over-crowded), ate burgers, and turned for home. We stopped only at Donner Summit for a rest break and just before home to get some milk and yogurt for my breakfast tomorrow.
This is the view out the back of the eastbound I-80 rest area at Donner Summit. Not too many weeks ago, there was a four-meter wall of snow here.
There are still pockets of snow on the higher elevations above the rest area. I don't know if it will last all summer. Probably not if this heat continues.
It was pretty comfortable at the summit, but we needed to get home, so we pressed on. The house was, as expected, very hot and stuffy, but the overnight low is supposed to get down to 18°C tonight and once the sun went down it started cooling nicely. We have the fans and coolers running full-tilt. Once it's cool enough to do so, I must get some sleep. It's another busy week at the Day Jobbe, and a number of both Westercon and WSFS tasks, plus personal preparations for the Helsinki trip, are looming.