NASA has just had a very successful landing on Mars. There as a sort of thing that entered the Martian atmosphere going about 13 gazillion miles an hour, that then popped it parachute and became a "sky crane" that gently lowered the new wheeled thingie that's going to roll around and explore stuff. It's kind of catarpillar-shaped with an upward curve at one end. This thing will poop out a little helicopter that will fly around and explore stuff. Pretty neat.
Covid numbers seem to be coming down. It will be a departure from the 1918 model if we don't have a massive number of deaths this year with over a million dead, but I'll be very happy if that model turns out not to fit. The vaccinations seem to be helping especially in places like nursing homes.
Having an actual adult in the White House sure makes a difference. He's not Sanders or Dean but he's a huge improvement over what we had before.
I was up around noon and had a bank appointment for 4. I packed the things that had to go out today and then took off for downtown at 3:30. The bank appointment went fine and they're always happy to see me. I told him how it was a combination of warm and cool outside, with the sunlight warm and the wind cool. Lots of dramatic clouds.
After the bank visit I went to Dai Thanh and looked to see if they have large strainers and they do. But I need to make some measurements. I want to make a thing I can put wet laundry in, that even if I've wrung it still ends up sopping at the bottom, and have that excess water drain off. I settled for buying a bag of raw peanuts.
Next was the Amazon hub for my posture-corrector brace thing that I don't need now but I might want to try wearing anyway. And bubble mailers.
Next I locked the bike up by Nijiya and went into Kogura's and bought a pair of chop sticks I'd planned to buy, for $2 and mentioned to the lady that I don't like the ones with grooves in them because food can get stuck in there. She said she liked that kind because she can "grip" things better. I started to say it's a matter of traditions (I never saw ones with grooves when I was a kid) but then another customer came in who needed attention.
I walked over to The Arsenal and got a brush pen. It was the same guy there I talked to before and I said I wanted to learn to transcribe music in the Kinko notation that's used in shakuhachi playing and we had fun talking about that when an oddball old guy came in, asked to use some hand sanitizer and used it, rushed out, rushed back in, then his oddball old wife came in. They were dashing all over looking at stuff so I made my exit.
Then to Nijiya for shopping and they charged me $12 for the sake again but I caught 'em and the guy (this is the guy who learned Japanese by taking it in college, skipping all his classes, and watching tons of anime instead) said, "I just scanned it" and I said, "I'll show you" and we went over where the sake was, and sure enough, $8.99. It was all very friendly; he's a nice guy.
I got back here at about 20 after 5 which gave me time to pack 4 more small things, then I rode up to the post office and FedEx and did my drop-offs. And picked up packing stuff on the way back, the usual. I have 3 large things in the queue and I want to get at least 2 of them to FedEx tomorrow.
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