Missing Radio Shack

The demise of Radio Shack created a problem for me last week.

I needed a USB cable that attached to a mini (not micro) USB plug so my camera and laptop could communicate.  In the not too recent past, that would have meant a trip to a friendly, neighborhood Radio Shack to get the appropriate cable.

No longer.

It meant that when I was in San Diego, instead of walking or taking the bus to the Radio Shack in Hillcrest, I had to trek to Fry's Electronics to get the cable, and I was glad I was consolodating the task of getting a Six Dollar Cable with three other errands and had a time constraint the justified my trekking around San Diego in a BMW X1 thanks to Zipcar.

Are you listening Hillcrest Ace Hardware?

Anyway, the camera is ready, willing and able to trek on the Grand Heritage tour with me in October.  What was on the memory card is now on a travelogue and I have room for 1,200 pictures for my Heritage Trip.

Now, if only I can get my bank on board.

I found out I am a lifetime member of the club.

Yesterday, I came back to the US after a fun filled week in Tijuana.

I am now in San Diego and yesterday on the Trolley I met a woman who was with her kids and husband.  She mentioned that he was suffering from Alzheimer's Disease.

I told her how my heart went out to her, because I had dealt with Rick's dementia for four years.  I also gave her a sympathetic ear when she mentioned how cruel the disease is for everybody involved.  It was really a sad moment hearing her tale of woe and realizing when she wheeled her husband off the Trolley the kind of hell she is going through as her husband's cognitive function fades away more and more because I have been there.

The encounter made me realize how much the experience of going through the Dementia Journey has redefined who I am, and, to an extent, what I want out of life.  I also now realize that going through it is now a part of who I am.

Now that I have done some soul searching it's time to fold laundry, work until Monday Night Football comes on.

One month later

Well, it's been a month since I left San Francisco.

Good news: I'm happier.

Bad news: I still haven't found a place.  I have decided to deal with that issue after my trip in October to San Antonio and Mazatlan.

Two things are standing out.  First, I don't miss San Francisco in the least. That was reinforced when I read a story of a cyclist participating in Critical Mass terrifying a motorist as he damaged her car.  I'm glad I am outta there!

Second, I didn't realize how much I would be reminded of Rick now that I am down south.  It's mostly along the lines of either, "Rick would love to be doing this," or, "Rick would roll his eyes in the back of his head because I am doing this, and not be at all surprised."  With regard to the latter, I now know where to get a great Philly Roll in Tijuana!  Now all I need to do is find a good Dim Sum place.

But before I do that, I need to get some water, get some work done and venture out to watch soccer all night.

Quincañera review.

So, I should give a review of the main event of last weekend.

It was fun.  I got to socialize with the family of my date and THAT gave my Spanish a much needed workout.  Everyone was all dressed up, and my friend's aunt and I amused ourselves by taking on the role of fashion police.  I know that most of those who wore fashion disasters for whatever reason thought that the outfit was flattering.  The reality was they were really bad.  However there was dinner and dancing fueled by beer and I had a good time.

In other news, I found a neighborhood I like.  The location (for me anyway) feels like I am in a sweet spot vis a vis what I do.  Now, it is time to look for a place.  I saw one place already and will look some more.  I hope to have a place lined up before I go to Texas.

And on that note, Happy 5776!

I Hate Operating System Corruptions!

A major inconvenience happened to me on the Pacific Surfliner.

I was on the way to Palm Springs and thought that I could get some work done because there was WiFi on the train.  Right?

Wrong.  I got The Blue Screen of Death!  It seems that something was corrupted with Windows 10 resulting in the inability to boot the laptop.  That meant stripping out all the apps and reloading Windows, which I was doing as the train sped toward Fullerton.  I thought I had everything straightened out once in Palm Springs.  Right?

Wrong again!  It corrupted a second time.  Which meant another reload and at thorough exam of the hard drive using a new virus scanner / disk maintainer.  So far, THAT has seemed to work and it is now back to the dual tasks of making up for a lost day and reinstalling all the apps that got deleted so that the operating system could be properly reloaded.

Let's hope I don't have to do that again.

Quincañera Prep

Remember when I said, "What the hell," on going to Tijuana last weekend?

It resulted in my being invited to a quincañera this weekend by a young man who was allowed to bring a date.  The night before the party, I got to meet his family.  I managed this because I mentioned to my date that I needed a haircut and he offered to do it.

So, I get to meet his aunt and assorted nieces and nephews and make small talk with them as he fetches the clippers.  Then the real fun began.  I got my first juried haircut.  The aunt was the lead judge and the nephews were also giving their uncle opinions on the cut as he was doing it.  Even the dog barked out an opinion or two.

It turned out to be a great haircut.  I got to meet some more of his friends at a birthday party and both the cut and the story got good reviews.

And it made this blog!

What happened in Vegas

Is that I found out it can basically be divided in three parts.

The obvious part is The Strip.  To me, it feels like an over the top monument to mass tourism.  Nothing but crowds, crowds and more crowds going through an environment that can best be described as artificial.  I guess it's fun, but I stayed at another part of Vegas - Downtown.

Downtown is much more intimate.  It actually feels like a larger version of Reno.  But the vibe of the Fremont Street Experience is actually enjoyable and the light shows and bands are something else.  Three stages with either DJs or live bands at night only add to the fun.

And there is the rest of Vegas.  I went to where the amante lived and got to see a land of desert and strip malls.  He basically lived in a little box on the desert with a bunch of others.  It was an interesting trip, and I think the only reason why I did it was because I wanted to see where he lived.

I also concluded Vegas is a nice place to visit (or change planes, but McCarran International Airport is another story for another time) but I think I could not do it alone.

One other character in my life

Dateline - Las Vegas, NV

This story started about five years ago.

At the time, I had a job in which the only reason why I was working was because I was getting a paycheck, and there was a bar called the Esta Noche in San Francisco where I had a nightcap before I got home.

I met a guy who worked in a Chinese Restaurant in Daly City who joked that he wanted to open one in his native Guatemala.  We chatted when we saw each other and exchanged phone numbers, spoke a few times on the phone and that was about it.

I then got a new job and my commute pattern changed, but I did see him on a few occasions and we even has one brief sexual encounter.

He then moved to Las Vegas.

Around Thanksgiving 2013 he was back in San Francisco at the same time Rick's dementia was advancing.

We hung out and got to know each other better and I fell in love with him.  He also introduced me to his family on New Years Eve.

He then briefly returned to Las Vegas for a court hearing and afterwards returned to San Francisco. He was toying with the idea of returning, but ultimately decided against it.  We got to spend quite a bit of time together during 2014 and, yes, there was a sexual component to the relationship.

Unfortunately for him, he lost his case to stay in the United States, and heavily medicated himself.  To make matters worse, he did not take the medications he was supposed to take and passed away in January of this year.

So, why am I writing about having an amante?

It's a long story starting with Rick saying, "You can have a boyfriend if you want to," after admitting to pulling a stunt that was extremely hurtful to myself and others.  I don't know what motivated Rick to admit to pulling said stunt, but the admission was shortly before he was initially diagnosed with dementia.  He pretty much figured out that what he did was a major dealbreaker, and was engaged in bargaining to keep the relationship going.

With the dementia diagnosis, however, I decided that the right thing to do was be the Anti - Newt Gingrich and be by Rick during a time where he ultimately was unable to take care of himself.

Don't worry, the story will probably develop.

So, why am I in Las Vegas right now.

When he talked about going back to Las Vegas, he asked if I would visit.  I always wondered what kind of tour I would get from him, and I guess I'm here to try and figure that one out on my own.

More later.