It’s day five of unpleasant unpacking, with more than 30 boxes still sitting in the garage. Fortunately, one of our cars has been in the shop all this time for repairs. The Lexus is patiently waiting in the driveway for the space to open up. I borrowed my son’s massive SUV last night to haul boxes and packing materials to the dumpsters. He also installed our living room TV and hung a few brackets, hooks, and racks. He’s been handy to have in the neighborhood.

The Cubs and Sox both lost yesterday, as I also watched the first day of Indy 500 qualifications. These were rare moments of relaxation, as stiff and sore muscles continue to cause discomfort. At least the chilly pool water gives them temporary relief. All the boxes are now open but only digging down will reveal their true contents. The descriptions written on each one have proven to be both vague and deceptive. I’m guessing we have at least three more days of sorting through everything before we get to the actual picture hanging process. That will take another week.

We are taking a travel break in mid-June to celebrate my wife’s birthday. We’ll fly into Oakland for a few days and then head to Portland. This will give her a chance to visit with both daughters. I’m still not sure if we’ll get tickets to the Olympic Track & Field Trials in Eugene, Oregon that was one of my original intents of the trip. We’ve held tickets for two years now, following the rescheduling of the event, but with limited seating capacity they started the process over again. We still haven’t been notified of the results – do we have tickets or not?

The state of Oregon still seems to be in a different world when it comes to Covid planning. First, it was the unavailability of vaccines, followed by indecisiveness regarding occupancy rates, and now mask usage protocol when it comes to those already vaccinated. Their ultra conservative approach does not seem to be generating results any different than those states that are fully open and functioning. I’m glad to be out of there, but am looking forward to the upcoming visit with family and friends.