Waiting for the third shoe to drop...

Words Written: ~750 in the airport, more to come

Ugh. I didn’t sleep well, got to the airport late, and managed to leave my credit card in the check-in machine—and this time, when I went back, it was gone. (You never get a reminder to remove your card nor does the machine spit it out for you at the end. And when you’re juggling your new boarding passes and your carry-on and you have to haul your suitcase back off the scale and drag it across the airport to the security screeners…) I miss Ken. It’s a full flight. (I offered to give up my seat, but they didn’t want me, because of the difficulty of ensuring I made my connecting flight. Since my massage therapist canceled on me tonight due to an emergency, I really had given up caring just how long I sat at LAX. And I could’ve really used that free flight. Oh well.)

But I just spent about an hour and a half writing up my Styxfest wrap-up report, which is overdue anyway. I’ve got three hours at LAX, so I’ll get some lunch, hang out next to the one working outlet in the 80s gate area, and get some writing done.

<>-<>-<>

And because my day apparently could get more thrilling, I arrived home to discover that my car had been towed. (This would be my old car, which had been parked in front of my house for the nearly three years that we’ve lived here. My new car is in the shop getting that dent repaired. Apparently there’s a law here that you can’t park on the street for more than three days. Apparently it goes into effect after two years and nine months, the day you’re getting home from a vacation. That’s right, they towed it this morning. My heartfelt thanks to our tenant and the guy across the street, both of whom tried to reason with the cop. So anyway, that’s approximately $200 I owe to the police, and who knows how much the towing place will charge. Hopefully it’s not too much, because I had to cancel my damn credit card.)

Is it too early to start drinking?

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Currently Reading: Perdido Street Station, China Miéville
Lately Listened To: An Ancient Muse, Loreena McKennitt
Recently Watched: the empty space where my goddamned car should be

Oregone and back again

So, how’re ya’ll doing? You never comment anymore. Are you still reading? Or have I gotten so sporadic and/or boring that you’ve wandered off to greener pastures? Do I need some sheep to fertilize the place (and provide fleeces for my spinning friends)?

Anyway. I’m in Oregon having a marvelous time. (If I manage to post this before I get home, don’t break into my house and scare the kitties, okay? Besides, Eostre’s an attack cat—don’t be fooled by her missing leg—because she will shed on you to death.) I arrived Thursday afternoon, and Ken and I eventually took a walk down to an area of frou-frou shops and restaurants because there was a Swagath, which is owned by the same people who run Swagat in Beaverton, which we always go to with Lev and Gayle because the food is awesome. This place was slightly less awesome, but still fantastic. I adore their shrimp biryani. On the way back we stopped in a market Ken had been meaning to check out, and it was also fantastic. We picked up a bunch of organic frozen meals, and found—wait for it—Green & Black’s dark chocolate ice cream. (For the non-chocolate snobs reading, Green & Black’s is a British chocolate, and my snobby chocolate of choice. Better than Ghirardelli, yes. Many flavors, including ones we found at the market that we didn’t even know existed. Espresso! Mint! Caramel!) Alas, we later discovered that it had semi-melted as some point and refrozen with water crystals in it, so while the flavor was awesome, the texture was saddening. Eventually we drilled down to find an inner core that was still pristine. How does it compare to Godiva Belgian chocolate ice cream? I’d say the Godiva has a darker taste, but the G&B has a creamier taste.

Friday we mostly refinanced the house on the phone (I heart USAA) and then hopped on the bike for the trip south to Grants Pass to meet up with a bunch of other BMW riders for the annual West Coast Rendezvous.

The highlight of WCR this year was the four-hour jet boat tour down the Rogue River, complete with champagne brunch. The highlight of that, for me, anyway, was seeing a bald eagle in the wild for the first time. (I got a picture, but it’s mostly of a bird up in the sky, so don’t get too excited. At any rate, I’ll try to post pictures after I get home. Not that I’ve had the chance to post pictures of the Shaw/Blades shows from April or Styxfest last month…) Gorgeous thing. There were also ospreys, turkey vultures, and I swear a fourth type of raptor that our guide (the fabulous and hilarious Donny) didn’t identify. Alas, we saw no otters, although we were assured they were there. We also saw places where they filmed quite a few movies, including The River Wild. Breathtaking scenery the entire time, and they were generous with the champagne; can’t ask for much more than that.

Ken and I had a lazy afternoon, napping and lounging and wandering around antique shops in town, after which we went to the banquet, where I had an amazing crab-stuffed chicken mornay and won Harry & David’s truffles. We came home yesterday via Crater Lake, which I’d never been to before. I was somehow unprepared for the elevation and the snow. Stunningly beautiful. How can water be that blue, and that still? We had lunch at the lodge, then took a bunch of windy twisty roads through amazing woods on our way home, stopping for pizza on the way. (Note to Phaedra and Loren: at Pietro’s!) That ride was longer than was comfortable for me on Ken’s new bike, so I took a hot shower, downed some Ibuprofen, ate the above-mentioned ice cream, and curled up with my beloved and a glass of wine.

Today I’ve been cleaning up a little e-mail, doing laundry, petting the kitties, drinking too much tea, etc., while Ken’s at work. I need to get a little writing done as well, before he gets back. We’d hoped to have dinner with Lev and Gayle, but because I was a lame-ass and didn’t call them until today, they’d already made plans. I will remember to contact them before I come up here next time, dammit. So perhaps we’ll go back to Swagath tonight, because we haven’t found a good Indian restaurant in Ventura County and I’m already pining for shrimp biryani and garlic naan again.

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Currently Reading: Ghost of a Chance, Yasmine Galenorn (a cozy mystery about a witch who runs a china shop in a small Washington town); All U Can Eat, Emma Holly (just finished)
Lately Listened To: the gentle hum of the dryer; Lullagoodbye, Taylor Mills
Recently Watched: You, Me, and Dupree