Memento Mori

This has been a long day. Molly has been grumpy and fidgety all day long pretty much. My back hurts.

She did sleep just long enough for me to clean up the kitchen this afternoon. It was really a Mess. But mostly I had to do a lot of holding, feeding, and wandering around with her in her BabyBjorn trying to accomplish things. *sigh*

Things are pretty much ready to go though. The house is not as tidy as I would like to leave it. But my toes are tipped with Mauve Frost, I have had a bath, and bed calls. Dan put Molly down a little bit ago and she has been quiet for a while. I'm pretty sure she was tired.

Up at five again. We said goodbye to Grandma and were out the door at 5.45 and by the time we got gas and were on the road it was 6, so we were out in a timely fashion. This was good. I was crocheting on the road, but I have nothing to cut my yarn with and since I was sick of this project I was not trying very hard to find something to cut with.

Dan getting out another layer of shirt because the Subway Cave is cold.

Sign at the cave

Dan inspecting local flora

Dan

Jael at entrance of cave

Entrance of cave. It was pretty dark.

Dan coming out the other end of the cave.

Scenery

Scenery and a husband

Smoky California

Mr Baldwin in the car.

Musings on the trip... as undemonstrative as Dan's family can be, there is a definite love and caring going on. I think the Acts of Service Love Language is spoken pretty fluently. Dan and Norman spent a long time out in the heat pruning and cleaning up Grandma's yard when they could have been comfortably relaxing in the cool house or something.

Grandma was very nice and apparently told Dan that I fit right in. This was good. She also told us she hoped we would be as happy as she and her husband were. He died nine years ago. She said she wished I could have known him.

Home is nice. The heat was intense and outside was so bright I have had this empty-headed feeling that hurts, not to mention just feeling really lethargic and faint. I did have a good time though.

Woke up and did take temperature and then went back to sleep until about 8.30 when Mr Baldwin decided to arise. Had some Cheerios to fix my low blood sugar and then Donna made fried potatoes and cantaloupe. It is ten now and we are about to go to Costco. Dan and Norman are out doing yard work.


Later...
Well, we went to Costco and came home briefly... then we went to Dollar Tree where Donna bought us some Coke glasses - the nifty green type - and then to Grocery Outlet. After we got home we sat and rested a bit before heading to the Nugget again for lunch. I had a double cheeseburger. I had more luck with Keno and won a whopping four dollars. I also had an ice cream sundae that was a tad bit messy. I suspect the chocolate syrup was heated up and caused everything to melt.


Norman spreading ketchup on crackers as an appetizer while Donna scolds him.


The ceiling was backlit stained glass and this reflected in my flatware.


Sceptical Dan is sceptical.


Messy Sundae, Inc.


I fan myself with my huge $4 winnings.

After that, we went to Virginia City. Now that was a spot I could have spent many many hours enjoying. I have to confess I had a definite fascination with the Red Light Museum, but I had a feeling no-one else would share this fascination, so we didn't go. *cackle* Grandma and Donna stayed in a casino and played while the rest of us walked around and looked at things. We saw a shop full of really neat minerals and rocks - they had some huge amethyst geodes that were like $3000 - and in another place beheld the Famous Suicide Table and the $100,000 world globe (which was actually only a $450 world globe at the time of its purchase). We went down to the Catholic Church but of course it was closed. So we took photos in front of the statue of Mary and a red door. Then we went back to meet with the others, who got kicked out of the Bonanza because it was closing time, but there was a place to sit so they were waiting for us.


I will give you nightmares.
( Heavily laden with further photos )

So, we are packed. We are going to drop off the kids plants at the Smiths' on our way so that they will remain alive until our return. It will be a hot weekend.

We are waiting for "Julia Misbehaves" to finish encoding so we can put it on iPod and go. I enjoy that I accidentally picked as my second movie "Theodora Goes Wild". It is clearly the Day of the Mischievous Woman.

It will be a hot trip down. O the joy.

We woke up later than planned. That would be at 8.00 rather than 7.30. Dan finished packing the suitcase and we went down for breakfast. Rose-Marie was the movie that morning and Dan stayed for it. It was really fun to see it again and he seemed to enjoy it.

We had lunch - I only ate a little rice and cheesecake. My stomach wasn't feeling too well. I'm not used to this kind of food anymore, I guess - although Claire also complained of having some issues as well. Visited with the Scotland lady and her sister, which was fun. Introduced the movie and hugged people goodbye and we were off after getting directions - Dan did it himself this time so we wouldn't get lost in the dark yet once more.

Stopped in Hershey on the way home because Katrina specifically requested a T-shirt from Hershey. I got an ice cream cone - mint chocolate chip. It made me feel better. My stomach was not a happy camper prior to the ice cream. It was raining and lighting on the way from there to Newark. By rain I do not mean a piddling little Portland, Oregon rain. I mean REAL rain. The kind that reduces visibility to almost nothing at all. Dan said he was really glad at that point for the large vehicle with good windshield wipers.

Rain let up by the time we got to Newark. Technically, Elizabeth, NJ. Our reservation was at Knight's Inn on Spring Street.

The best way to describe this place would be in two words: hooker haunt. It was a shady looking place in an apparently shady part of town. Dan went up to look at the room before he came back to get the stuff out of the car and said that I would find it quiiiiiiiiiiiiite interesting. He said there was a circular bed and a stock of condoms.

The room itself was clean.

I can't say the sheets really were. I found several hairs in them.

The bed was round as Dan described. The condoms turned out to actually be little packets of shampoo. I was amused. There was a roof on the bed, of sorts, with a mirror most dingy in which you could look at yourself in while you lay on the bed. (I might add we slept on top of the sheets, not between them.) The bed was upholstered in crushed velvet, burgundy, and encircled with Christmas lights. The headboard had a built-in... TAPE DECK. Dated. With speakers. And a few cigarette burns and more mirrors.

There was a jacuzzi. If it wasn't already, surprise, midnight by the time we got there, we had hoped to use that. No time. *sigh* The jacuzzi was a fresher aspect of an otherwise incomparably seedy room.

Oh man. I still can't believe that room.

( Photos )

This morning was Girl of the Golden West, and Dan didn't click with that one too well. Said the beginning was too confusing and he couldn't understand what was going on. I can't say I blame him, although I much enjoy it myself. After lunch we went walking in downtown Cambridge Springs. It was really bright outside, so we went into several shops to be out of the sun. It was fun to look around, and I found a set of the Risë Stevens love songs record at the junk shop. Yay. It's a little mildewy, but I hope that can be remedied.

We came back and took a nap, which left me really dazed when we did get up. We dressed in our tuxedo shirts because Ron and Barbara were doing a concert that night after dinner. It ended right at sundown, so we stole away. Robert had called Dan though about his server and that crisis had to be remedied. Then we went upstairs and I had my bath and we enjoyed each other's company until we decided to go to bed.

( Pho Toes )

Well, we got up at six this morning, got the rest of our stuff together, and watched the rest of "Imitation of Life" that we started yesterday. Then we walked to the bus stop, which involved yours truly pushing along her massive suitcase merrily down King Road. Thank God it has wheels. We caught the bus. It was full and fuller of fascinating personalities, including three young, pretty girls from around ten to fifteen or so. They appeared to be sisters and were quiet and well-mannered and I decided from watching their lips that they must be Russian, which turned out to be true when the middle sister sat beside me to read a Russian book.

We got off the bus and onto the Max to get the rest of the way to the airport. Dan had checked us in online so we just had our luggage to check in. Which happened quickly. Then we went to sit and wait because we were early. I proceeded to not be able to find my ID anywhere. Or my wallet. After emptying both our carry-on bags, Dan went to see if they could retrieve my suitcase.

I felt incredibly stupid when about ten minutes later I found the ID. It was in my backpack, in my wallet, in the pocket I never use except to stick used underwear in. Go figure.

So I had to hunt down my husband, which involved the shouldering of his heavier backpack as well as my own and my camera and his bag of shoes. Ouch. I felt so bad that the lady went through so much trouble to find my suitcase. At least they made the effort. Kudos, Portland Airport Personnel.

I bought myself fast food French fries at Wendy's because they smelled so good and I had heap big cravings for them. I bought the biggest size they had. Issues. Dan had some too. Finally it was time to board the plane. We so did.

The moment we took off, however, an incredible heaviness overcame my head and I gradually fell into a pretty gross stupor, complete with massive headache. We watched two Star Trek episodes on iBook while some creepy-looking in-flight movie was playing. Then some really lousy movie called "Fool's Gold" was on and we watched that, although on occasion nausea overcame me and I took out my earphones for a few minutes. It involved a bunch of really lame characters on a quest for treasure that was trying really hard to sound like a noble, worthy cause. This was intermixed with a once-married-now-divorced couple getting back together and fighting the whole time and a really stupid teenager with an elderly father. Retarded.

Anyway, so we got off the plane, collected Suitcase, and went to Avis to rent a vehicle. I pulled out the iPod while Dan stood in the [long] line and was amused that someone in the vicinity had a network named "marx-brothers-w-c-fields" or some such. It was locked. But go Marx Brothers.

We got a brand-new SUV, a Buick Enclave, as our vehicle. A little larger thing than we were really wanting or imagining to rent. However, it was nice and shiny and roomy, with comfortable seats. We got out at around - oh, ten or eleven by that time, I think. We got out on the highway. No highway, even in Newark, should have the right to be as IN-SANE as it was at that late hour. Cars appearing out of nowhere while Dan is still trying to learn to manipulate Mr Enclave. Pretty scary. Of course, we had no idea where we were going or how to find a hotel of some kind that wasn't priced out of our range, and ended up going to Jersey City before realising we should turn around. We headed in a general northwesterly direction as we had déjà-vu of our wedding night. Note for future reference: Dan and Jael need to stop trying to find places to sleep at midnight in strange places in the dark. Yeah.

Finally, in a small town called Parsippany, that had miles and miles of non-ability to turn left or make a U-turn to get to the motels on the other side of the road, we found a Red Carpet Inn. We finally found out what the natives probably find very obvious: U-Turns are provided via an exit-like turnoff that loops one around and opens the ability to make a left turn and go the other direction. We got back to said Red Carpet Inn this way, and an Eastern fellow in the lobby - couldn't tell if he was Indian or Middle Eastern - gave us a king bed room. Dan asked what the sales tax was in this area, and the man answered,"Why do you want to know?" followed by a very terse, "I don't know anything about that." The room did not, as the Inn's name suggested, actually have red carpet, and the figurative significance of the name was lost when one considered the slightly ghetto nature of the place. Still, however, I've seen dirtier places, and at least it was roomy. The headboard was not attached to the bed, but nailed to the wall over what we suspect was really a queen mattress turned sideways. Experiment to be fulfilled on our own queen at home to find out. The pillows were lumpy, and the mattress slightly caved in, which caused Dan to roll into me. Which I didn't particularly mind, mind you. I mean, it was pitch black in that room after the lights were out, and dark is scary. Besides, my headache was a nightmare, but sleep was all I needed.

( Photos )

First of all, my poll of yesterday.

Ken Grant, the artist whose site this is for, wanted a new collage for his homepage. He sent over four images.

Jael, naturally, is very taken with the hot dude in the fedora image and decides to make it the largest. As in A.

Ken Grant calls back and says he doesn't want the hot dude in the fedora bigger than the image with the chair.

Jael thinks this is travesty and grumbles and complains her way through version B.

Ken Grant calls back and says the scary mutant-faced dude is now too SMALL.

Jael pouts and whines her way through version C.

Ken Grant approves.

That is all.

I still say A was best. At least *most* of my friends agreed with me. *shifty eyes at a cricket*

Anyway, enough of that.

We are doing our last-minute packing - well, Dan is, and I'm typing. He has to make a quick run to Radio Shack and the bank at 9 and be back by ten so we can walk down to catch the bus at 10.15. I'm feeling more excited about going by this point. It will be fun to see ze folks.

Dan said he might get bored and that if it was a STAR TREK convention it might be more interesting.

Jael remembered that Bill once said, "Now, if they were having a STAR WARS convention here, it might be more interesting."

Dan said he liked Bill already.

Jael said Bill wouldn't be there. Which is sad.

I'm still sneezing. I blame my husband. I never sneezed or had runny nose until I married him.

We had a lovely morning at the bungalow. We made fried potatoes for breakfast and made a fire and s'mores while the laundry was laundering. Dan did the dishes while I started packing our stuff up, and we left Manzanita around two.

We stopped at a few art galleries in Cannon Beach, which was fun. Then we decided to check out Fort Stevens. We got there at three-thirty to see a sign proclaiming it closed at four. Joy.

Well, we made the most of our half hour. We saw most everything in the museum and halfway checked out one battery before we got shooed out by rangers. We drove out and looked for the cemetery that was supposed to be nearby. Of course it was closed. We passed another cemetery on the way back to Seaside and it was closed, too. Sad. So were they all.

We decided to stop in Seaside for dinner. Dan remembered a place he thought was called Donna's (it was Norma's), but we decided to eat at Pudgy's instead. Our waiter reminded me of someone, but I could not think who. We had halibut and rice pilaf with veggies and went wandering along the promenade and down a street or two to look at the old houses, which is always fun. On the way back to the car, we passed a Dreyer's store and Dan bought me an ice cream cone. I had strawberry cheesecake. Yummyness.

Then we headed home. I really had to go number 2. This is always a problem when your only option is a rest area. Specifically a rest area where none of the automatic sensing flushers have the sense to flush. One toilet did not have a heap of soggy toilet paper mounded up in it, so I very carefully lined the seat with paper because they didn't even provide seat covers and I went.

Oh, how I hate public bathrooms.

When we got home, Dan put his desk and chair together and we moved mine to make room for his.

( Photographic Appendages )