First stop, off the apartment to pick up packages and Swanda’s mail, arrange to get his carpets cleaned on Tuesday, then off to the hospital to deliver said mail.

Swanda was in a deep coma when I arrived. OK, it was really a nap, but he was definitely out. He didn’t even budge when the nurse attached the blood pressure cuff. No sense in hanging around, and that got me out of the hospital garage in under 30 minutes, so it was a freebie.

Off to bank to make a deposit, which turned out to be more of an adventure than I’d planned with streets closed off with the fixing of the “Mercer Mess”. Actually had to pay for parking, but combined it with a walk through a massive antique store which seems to have gone more furniture than it used to be.

Next stop, back to the apartment to fix an “esthetically unpleasing” remodel in Swanda’s bathroom:

Before: After:

Why Ken put the support the way he did is curious, but now it’s ready for paint by MoonSong on Sunday.

After dinner the projects continue. I added an elastic band to my Dr. Suess Ken Doll cover:

Nice to have leftover materials from the Boltage project to accomplish the task.

Only other news is that guts of the Faerie Directory are now printed, and an announcement for the fold and stich and bitch tomorrow night sent out.

[207.7]

Once again my quest to find “thrifting” spots in Vancouver is not accomplished, though I now do have one place to check out on Granville and Davie (courtesy of Epick). Maybe next time, and only a couple of blocks from the condo.

Out of the unit at eleven, at the border a little after noon for a $15 liter of Plymouth Gin, no line at the border, next stop Mount Vernon for groceries, thrifting for wine glasses for the shop, gas.

My favorite is that where I purchased the three champagne glasses and the two wine glasses, no paper to wrap them in, so they gave me a Fred Meyer six bottle holder. Maybe we should put a “thophy case” in the shop of other shop’s bags.

Returned home to restart the printer, it seems MoonSong was feeding it paper and clearing jams while he cleaned on Wednesday. That was a nice welcome home.

And then there was the “artist reception, wine tasting” a couple of stores down from the shop that was from 5-7, then 6-8, then 6-9. I signed up when it was 6-8pm. As it turned out, it was more of a drunken art party where we supplied the wine but we got great goodwill from the neighborhood. In the end I was out of there at 7:30 as NO customers were coming to purchase wine.

Home to restart the printer (again), have a drink, and work on dinner.

Cole Slaw (I’m in a winter cabbage frame of mind) and cornmeal-breaded pan-fried tilapia.

Apparently I haven’t lost my love of fish.

[? ? ?]

Helene had the rice flour tempura battered fish and chips deep fried in duck fat. I went for the roasted baby beet salad and a cup of the lobster stock based seafood chowder that was heavy on the Thai influence with coconut milk and curry.

Looks (and was) damn yummy, as was the Clover Honey Old Fashioned with an inch wide peel of orange (in place of a slice) and a whiskey marinated Bing cherry instead of the standard died red cherry.

Tonight’s dinner was with Epick the KiltMaker. After the PuPu platter it was time for the Kilt Fitting.

It’s a subtle pattern, and unfortunately the picture just reminds me that I need to lose more wait.

Marmot (yet another Episcopal priest) joined us after dinner for a glass or two of wine, and to show off his new “hair piece”:

Another late night in the city playing with the boys.

{? ? ?]

Left the house a little before noon, hit the apartment to drop off Swanda’s car, and pick up the mail and drop off 3 dead toner cartridges (good thing I got more at UW last week) and then to the shop to drop off a 6×6 dishwasher rack to hold our champagne glasses, and then onto the highway with the top down all the way to CanadaLand.

So rare for an early February, reasonably warm and very sunny. Having pulled the temperature at Breitenbush Hot Springs for next week, I’m guessing no snow on the ground.

No line at the border, but it was past 3 when I hit the outskirts of the city, meaning northbound was down to one lane under the river (reversible lanes). I’ll remember that for the next time. Grabbed groceries at Safeway and was checked in with cocktail in hand at 4:20.

BamBam and Hummingbird for dinner tonight. Totally spaced getting a picture. Oh well.

After the PuPu platter, it was a Sunday Roast on Tuesday. Seasoned pork blade roast over a bed of potatoes and onions with a salad. Only a little of the pork left when all was said and done.

Nice to be back in Vancouver and seeing the boys who are just back from a month in Yelapa (just down the coast from Puerto Vallarta).

Helene for lunch tomorrow, Epick for dinner, and Marmot for drinks after.

And now to bed.

[211.2]

So, here is the best guess on what’s going to change on June 1^st:

• Nothing changes in the beer world. No discounts, no central warehouse.

For wine, a couple of changes:

• Discounts allowed, but must be offered to everyone
• If you have more than one location, you can now have an off-site warehouse
• Possible broken case fees from distributors (currently those fees are not allowed)
• Still Cash on Delivery, no 30 day terms

The real changes are in the spirits end:

• Basically, liquor prices are going up
• Two new “royalties” (think the mining business) of 10% charged by the Distributor and 17% charged by the retailer… on top of the sales tax
• Big firms (Costco, Safeway) can save the Distributor Royalty by purchasing direct from US distillers (think cheaper Bourbon), but not from foreign distillers (no cheap Grey Goose)
• And the odd thing about the Retailer Royalty (17%) is that it won’t show up on the shelf price, but will be added at the cash register. Talk about sticker shock. $38.44 on the shelf, and at the register with all the different royalties and sales tax: $47.39

Washington State already has the highest liquor taxes in the US, now add 27%.

In other news, late afternoon saw the start of printing the directory for the Faerie Gathering next week. 180 copies, 7 interior 8.5×14 pages, 90 second per duplexed page = days of printing.

Timmy and Anne came over for a lovely corned beef dinner. The dish went into the oven at 2pm (sautéed half an onion, deglazed the pan with some red wine, added half a dozen juniper berries and a bunch of whole green peppercorn) and came out at 7pm. Fresh grated horseradish, sauerkraut marinated in dry vermouth, roasted asparagus and a salad accompanied.

Damn fine meal if I don’t say so myself.

[210.8]

After being on the road so long he has some major repairs needed:

• Major crack in skull
• Both elbows broken
• Two fingers missing

And I haven’t even checked his legs yet, though one did fall off in transit (but popped back in).

I’ve been need a nice quiet, low-maintenance roommate.

As for my day, just the standard Sunday at the shop. Light business, but I got all the wine description cards updated with all the typos fixed.

[209.0]

So, in the picture below we have several “printer” related bargains. The printer (top two thirds of the printer) from Greg (who bought it from me YEARS ago). The duplexer and extra paper tray from Floating Bridge Press via Wonderful (who bought it from my YEARS ago), and the pile of toner and drums courtesy of UW Surplus (University of Washington Surplus Store) at $5-$10 each.

The downside is that at the moment the printer is in my KITCHEN and will probably remain there until the directory is printed. Oh, and the downside of getting it down the stairs at Greg’s house and into the back of the SwandaSleigh. Greg was there (sick with a cold) to help me get it in, but at my house it was up to me (I brought the trolley from the garage).

Basically it took me all night to get it tuned up to get good copies in preparation for the directory printing.

That and a chunk of lamb was my evening.

[210.0]

Or maybe that look is the Russian Brandy that my friend Natasha gave me for my birthday, though it was only a shot.

My day was spent tracking down photographs of 171 faeries attending the Winter Gathering and arranging the Photo Directory (cover posted a couple of days ago). A beautiful sunny winter day in Seattle (great top down day) was in front of a computer for the betterment of my faerie brothers.

The evening is a blur, yet again in front of the computer after being in front of the plate for dinner.

Tomorrow more of the same, and work.

[210.0]

Nothing like weaving in animals having sex. It is going to my faux-nephew in Portland on the way to the winter gathering.

Lots of work on the gathering directory and a quiet/sane dinner.

[210.3]

This one should be an interesting on to see on and eReader as the photos are approximately where they were in the print issue. You can click on the cover and go to the Libboo site and read it for free.

I finished that project right at five and switched to the living room to start working on tracking down all the mug shots for the winter gathering directory. Here is the front and back over:

At six, the boys showed up (Wonderful and Marc) for cocktails and a 7pm dinner of slaw, Frenched rack of lamb, sautéed mushrooms, onions, zucchini. Damned yummy.

Then it was back to work for me.

Damn, too many projects in the hopper and none of them paying.

[206.8]