When the power returned yesterday, 11 hours after it went out, we finally opened the refrigerator to see the status of the remaining food. We had defrosted beef tenderloin and fish, which I worried about the most. The meat and fish had been defrosted the prior day.
Much to our shock, everything in the refrigerator was still very cold. Even Tom’s leftover cubed watermelon was iced cold in the metal pan. The temperature on that fridge was set low, most likely because everything stayed cold for so long. We decided to eat our leftovers.
I made another batch of chow mein for Tom using the tenderloin, leftover green peppers, celery, fresh ginger, and garlic. We had enough spices left to make it flavorful, and Tom enjoyed it last night and will again tonight and tomorrow. I ate the fish, cole slaw, and broccoli. Tonight and tomorrow, I’ll make myself a ham and cheese omelet using the eight small eggs we have left. We’ll have used up all the remaining food except for a few condiments.
When the power returned, we were thrilled to be able to entertain ourselves by streaming videos, although my “on-its-last-leg” laptop is having a sound issue where the sound cuts in and out. Last night, while Tom and I were still in the living room and he was watching football games. I ended up watching a series on Hulu on my phone.
As I write this, the power has gone out again. We aren’t complaining this time. I had our last load of laundry in the clothes dryer. Surely, we hope, it will be restored in time for us to dry this last load. If not, we’ll hang it around the house until the power returns.
As mentioned above, I purchased a new laptop at Costco yesterday using the $215 balance on the shop card (gift card) we got from cruising in August. The Acer laptop with all of my preferred features was initially priced at $799, but after a $200 holiday discount, good until December 15, and using the shop card, our out-of-pocket cost was down to $384. I couldn’t place the order quickly enough.
During the checkout process, which wouldn’t allow me to use our VPN, their system picked up that I was purchasing in Ecuador, and I couldn’t complete the purchase without calling Costco for assistance. On their end, their system suspected fraud from a foreign country. Once I called, a highly competent rep helped me complete the process. I requested the computer be sent to the closest location to Lake Las Vegas, a mere 3.4 miles from the condo.
They will notify us by email when it has arrived for pickup, which could be as late as a week from now. If I close this laptop with its broken hinge, I may never be able to open it again, or after traveling, it may finally quit working. (I’ve saved all my folders on an external hard drive). If that’s the case, I will only be able to post using my phone, which is slow since I am a lousy typist on the phone, picking at the keys one at a time.
Unlike the younger generation, we cannot hammer out a text in seconds. We are single-digit pickers. However, I will continue to post each day. Since we leave on Thursday at 8:00 am, I will write the post on my phone during the 3½ hour drive to Guayaquil airport and upload it once we are checked in and have WiFi at the airport.
It was a relief to get the purchase resolved, and now my next focus is watching for the prescription drug I need arriving from Singapore before the end of the month. I will run out of the drug one week after we arrive, around December 20. If it doesn’t come by then, I’ll head to a Minute Clinic at a CVS pharmacy. I called to confirm they’d help me out, and they will. So, no worries there.
Instead of shopping for groceries at Costco, since it’s quite a hassle during the holiday season, I will order groceries online at Albertson’s Market, which is about 12 minutes from the condo. They have a promo with a $30 credit for ordering online and picking up the groceries at the door. Since we don’t know the procedure for receiving a grocery order at the condo, we jumped all over this promo.
I downloaded their app, and in the next day or so, I will prepare the order and then submit it the day before we arrive to be able to pick up our groceries the following day, December 15. That way, we won’t have to shop in another busy store. We’ll take our food back to the condo to unload it. Tom is thrilled with this plan since he doesn’t like waiting for me while I decide on purchases at the market. It’s a win-win.
That’s it for today, folks. Although the power was out, I could still write the text and save it on the offline app, Notepad, in case the power didn’t return. It did. We are fine.
Be well.
Photo from ten years ago today, December 12, 2013:
