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since garden refuse pickup was tomorrow, i spent an hour this morning raking the pile of oak leaves that suddenly seemed to have covered all of the backyard plus the alleyway. i set up my new action camera and managed to get two short timelapse clips of me raking the leaves.

i didn't have lunch before leaving for my 12pm gastroenterology appointment at mass general hospital, figuring i'd get some takeout in chinatown on my way back. today was a grey day but warm (70's), and it felt like it might rain but that wouldn't arrive until the evening. i wore shorts again, which i feel is probably the last time this year i can get away with wearing it outdoors.

it took a long time to finally get this appointment. the original time (made a year ago) had to be rescheduled, and when i didn't respond when they wanted me to reschedule a second time, they cancelled the appointment entirely. when i called to confirm that's when i found out the bad news, and the next appointment wouldn't be until months away. when i finally went to that appointment last month, they made a mistake and had be scheduled for 2021, so i had to reschedule to today. my GI doctor didn't tell me anything i didn't already know. using my last lab work which was from april (when i got my tests done at the waltham MGH branch) and my weight log dating back to july, he said he wants me to lose 10 lbs. he did add that because of the pandemic, it might not be a realistic goal, but it was definitely something to strive for. like my primary care doctor, my GI doctor was optimistic we'd have a working vaccine soon and life would go back to some semblance of normality by next year.

after MGH i went to ming's market. there was no browsing this time around, i knew exactly what i wanted. i could only buy enough to fit inside my mountainsmith lumbar bag, because i was going to c-mart after this, and didn't want to carry anything in my hands while i'm there. at ming's market i picked up some duck feet, two daikon radishes, a bunch of scallions, and a box of candied tamarinds. at c-mart they had the rose brand sweet rice my father wanted. i also picked up 3 large heads of napa cabbage (i decided to make some more korean kimchi, especially since the cabbages were on sale for 33¢/lbs.) and some carrots.

my original plan was to get some salt and pepper porkchops with rice. but it was already 1:40pm, and if i wanted to get these supplies to my parents, i didn't have time to order take out, eat it back at home, then go to the cafe. plus i still have plenty of food in the house, so i decided to take a raincheck on the porkchops and go straight home instead.

i got back home by 2:15pm. i picked up some stuff i bought yesterday and then continued to the cafe, arriving there around 3pm. in my haste to grab things from two different asian supermarkets, i forgot to get the suancai my mother had asked for (so it looks like i'm making another trip tomorrow). since i didn't eat yet, my mother packed me a box lunch and i ate it as soon as i got home.

steve and paul came back from wherever it was they went (i think they went to the island, to pick up some more stuff because i saw paul wheel his bike into the basement). with their return came the loud television noise. i borrowed a wireless bose speaker and put it on top of my bookshelf, as close to the ceiling as possible. i've discovered that when i have my audio coming from near the ceiling, it drowns out whatever noise is coming from their upstairs. i'm also curious if they hear it but i really don't care if it can masks their noise. the bose speaker is really amazing, i wonder if i should get one of my own. when it's playing, the sound seems like it's coming from everywhere, i can't really tell where it's originating.

in anticipation of getting a DJI mini 2 drone in a few weeks (looking for that black friday and cybermonday sales), i installed the DJI fly app onto my phone. there's a feature that can show you on the map no fly zones or height restrictions. my house luckily sits outside of the altitude restricted area. i'm still trying to think of ways i can use the drone. it'll definitely make inspecting the solar panels during the wintertime a lot easier. i can also use it to check my gutters. really boring stuff, not like i'm going to someplace exotic and want to capture some cool landscapes, especially not during the pandemic.

i found a new show to watch, wayne on amazon prime. it's set in brockton, MA, and a bunch of characters speak with a boston accent, so it sounds like home. i discovered it was originally a youtube premium show, before youtube decided to cancel it and sell the rights to amazon, which stirred up rumors that maybe there might be a 2nd season if it does well on prime.

since i had such a big and late lunch, i wasn't very hungry came evening. i didn't eat dinner until well past 10pm, made some indomie mi goreng noodles. i tried poaching an egg but it turned out to be a mess as most of the egg white washed water in the boiling water. the noodles portion is simply too small, it's more of a snack than a whole meal.