Well, I’ve picked up a little side work for the next couple of days. It seems a friend has a recurring case of scabies – never pleasant. In an effort to keep from reinfecting himself he’s asked for the following:
(7) Pants (33 or 34×31 or so)
(7) Sweatshirts/sweaters (L)
(14) T-shirts
(7) Briefs or Boxers (32″ classic Jockey/L boxers)
(2) pairs flip flops
set bedding (queen fitted, top, light blanket)
towels (wash cloth/bath towel)
pillow and case
(7) lengths of cotton rope 48″ long (for a Jethro style belt)
Each of these items sealed in Ziploc bags, two bags for each day: day clothes, night clothes. Seems that the little buggers die in 7 days without a host.
$132.07 later (Goodwill) all I have left is the rope, flip flops, pillow and bags.
Oh, did I mention that all this stuff has to be washed in scent free detergent. Good thing I’m having dinner with Jill and Murphy (the Wonder Dog) tonight – that’s one more washing machine to coopt for the big load of jeans and sweaters. Add the load I have in my machine and the load in Swanda’s machine, I should be done tomorrow afternoon.
Great dinner: steaks on the grill (brought back to life with fresh propane), asparagus, eggplant – yum.
And the last project of the day, sanding and oiling a section of Black Locust to see if Bliss wants these slabs for a hallway table.
They ask, I visit – when I can. This trip started with a random text three or four weeks ago. The questions was: “When are you coming back through?” My answer was, probably winter, but let me look at fares. And the fare was $237 round-trip Seattle to Boston. Off to the Lounge go I:
And it nicely started with an upgrade!
At least it’s an aisle near the front for the long red-eye flight.
And I learned something new on the Alaska First Class Menu:
The unit of measure called an IBU which stands for International Bitterness Unit (though it also is a medical abbreviation for Ibuprofen). People who like really hoppy IPA (India Pale Ale) want a higher score. Check out the Wikipedia article HERE.
It’s a redeye, so the food is going to be minimal, but it starts with a little berry smoothie….
And then usually, it’s veggies and hummus….but this was a small hot sandwich thing, which I was grateful for:
The problem with red eye flights is that they are red eye flights – my arrival in Boston was around 6am, and with checked luggage I couldn’t even go sleep it off in the lounge one terminal over, so it was:
Baggage claim
Silver Line to South Station (Free)
Red Line to Alewife (Free)
Uber to Pucci’s place ($15)
As also is my way when getting into Boston (actually Belmont) is to head straight to bed for a nap – which is what I did in my lovely guest bedroom:
After my nap, we were out the door to Total Wine & Beverage (which isn’t close, but it’s cheap), and then back to the house for a lovely Pucci lunch. Plans to get together with Jill were thwarted by UPS deliveries at her place. Sadly, I didn’t get a pic, so you’ll have to take it from me, it was a stunning lunch.
When I visit midweek, I basically get to see Pucci around his teaching/performing schedule, so it’s catch as catch can. Left me time to wander up the street to The Spirited Gourmet to grab a sandwich for dinner – and to check out the wine selection and look for a favorite Gin of Pucci’s.
I got back just in time to miss the rain storm dumping!
While Pucci was off teaching – I ACTUALLY tuned to TV to watch the first game of the World Series:
Much cocktails and conversation at the end of the game when he returned from teaching and watched them win. Almost felt like I was with Dad watching football!
The following day’s lunch was at The Red House in Cambridge where during the day they feature ½ price oysters for the first dozen – I decided to tag mine with a couple of Maine Crab Cake sliders (and a Manhattan!)
I should have had our server get a picture of all four of us – Jill, Norma (Jill’s mother and wonderful woman), Pucci and I. Seems like I’m missing a lot of “photo ops” on this trip.
Pucci had the entire day off – he rearranged his schedule to move students to Friday and Saturday. THANKS!
This is actually the back of the building – had to borrow a shot of the front from their site:
Pucci had never been, and I hadn’t either – and they gave up a grizzled mobility challenged docent who was a font of knowledge about not only the equipment in the museum, but the whole Boston area water system. I was glad Pucci was there with his knowledge of some of the public reservoirs. Amazing old pumping equipment in the building, that was only shut down in 1974.
Serious “Steam Pump” at this place.
Jill was back at the house for dinner (after Pucci and I had afternoon naps!), and what a dinner it was, Beef Tenderloin, green beans, sautéed mushrooms, mashed potatoes – what a meal!
And I can’t forget the special guest, Jill’s dog, Murphy (aka, Murphy, The Wonder Dog):
It was a wonderful quick trip.
The return trip was as cruel, timing-wise, and the incoming – a 7am flight (basically getting on the same plane that brought me here). I was out of the house, in an Uber (under $30) to the airport at 5am.
Spent the day running around town getting some hardware for next week’s Weenie Wagon run – spring clips for holding up fabric, a flag pole holder and plastic pipe for the hot dog flag, chili for the steam table (and peanut butter for Paul and Gail for the Kansas City run on Monday).
Then it was home to start prepping for dinner with Jill (and Murphy The Wonderdog).
Once Jill arrived it was time to transfer the Tito’s Vodka she brought into two wine bottles for her cruise next week, and transfer a little into a glass with a marinated carrot as a swizzle stick.
A simple dinner of pan-fried pork chops and a big salad. Murphy was VERY happy to get the bones at the end of the meal and promptly chewed them into bits and swallowed in seconds.
With it being Mayfair in Madrona today, the wine tasting started at 1pm instead of 2pm… which for me is handy since it’s Opera night and I have a room booked at the Camlin. Means I get to check in at a little before 4 rather than a little before 5.
This is the shot of the room AFTER I completely rearranged it so you could actually open and use the Murphy bed. They had the couch backed up against Murphy bed and the kitchen table was where I moved the couch to.
Dinner with WonderFool at Dragon Fish – small Asian plate meal type place. With the 20% off coupon we got out of there for $60.00 + tip, which included a lot of sake for both of us.
Off to the Opera next, via the monorail:
WonderFool wearing my old sport coat that he had retailored (when he was 20 pounds heavier).
This is our last season of tickets – giving up my truly wonderful seats, but at a grand for the pair, it’s become too much.
I spent the evening wanting to slit my wrists. Here is the summary:
In this exciting pair of Seattle Opera premieres two very different composers explore the fates of women who must come to grips with grave disappointment. In Poulenc’s sensual, captivating 40-minute monodrama, a desperate woman is shunned by her lover over the telephone and stumbles through a minefield of emotions towards an unknown fate. In Puccini’s sentimental one act, a noble-born woman who has joined a convent is disowned by her family, takes poison in despair, and miraculously passes into a state of grace.
Sister Angelica (Suor Angelica) Music by Giacomo Puccini In Italian with English Captions
The Human Voice (La Voix Humaine) Music by Francis Poulenc In French with English Captions
Luckily it has only one more performance – the matinee tomorrow.
We should have taken the monorail home – got stuff in a traffic mess of Mercer AND 99 being closed. We could have walked home quicker.
If it’s Sunday, I must be in the shop – well, most Sundays.
Sales wise, not too bad, and we had a Sauternes and There Satellites tasting starting at 5:30 – thinking we might want to move future tastings to 5, right after the shop normally closes.
After the tasting it was off to Jill and Murphy’s place for latkes and brisket washed down with some Jameson – she was out of the traditional Tequila. Sweat Lucas (Prince of Lightness, a turn of the phrase Prince of Darkness just for Lucas Electrics) along with a couple of their other UW classmates.
And here is the scene after murphy opened one of his new presents:
Yes, everyone had a good time – includeing me who slept on the couch.
Open the shop at 11 and the big event for the work day is the Artist Reception for Nadia Hakki from 3-5pm. Unlike other artist receptions this was mostly low-key with not much wine swilling. Odd mix of characters including these two little old ladies with a passion for Italian aperitifs who ended up buying some of our vermouth and a couple of bottles of port after much conversation.
With the artist reception that means we (Jim and I) were both there for the end of the day which enabled me do duck out a little before 5 to head home to make dinner for Jill and her mother.
The menu:
Salad
Roasted bell peppers on the grill
Hunks of salmon
Hunks of boneless pork ribs
The guests:
Me
Jill
Murphy
Mom
Bliss (last minute invitee)
Nice meal – ladies (and Murphy) left early leaving Bliss and I to look at calendar for possible summer adventures. After Bliss left Missy came over for her check (helped us set up QuickBooks) and to sample the two different Vermouths from the shop.
Covid takes its toll on another getaway. Well, I still went, but the guest of honor had to cancel his flight (well, I cancelled and rebooked) because of a possible Covid-19 Exposure. He learned two days later that is was most likely TWO different exposures. Better safe than sorry.
I’d mention names here, but because of medical privacy concerns, I won’t.
The getaway was supposed to be in the Two-bedroom Penthouse at The Camlin, in downtown Seattle, part of the WorldMark timeshare system. Here is a link to the WikiPdedia entry. Swiped this photo from their web site:
Memories was why I booked it – the guest of honor (aka disease vector) and I used to occasionally go drink in the bar called The Cloud Room. Sadly, I couldn’t find any photos of the interior, but here is a great poster:
Normally, I’d check in right at 4PM, but I was waiting for a new computer and monitor – don’t want to leave THOSE things lying around the front door. It was about 5:30 when I was checked in, and popped the door open to MY assigned room, to find a guy lounging on the couch. Needless to say, we were BOTH surprised. He called down, I went back down, seriously annoyed. They said they had miss assigned rooms, and they would put in in 1105 (rather than 1104). Fine. Went back up to find that 1104 is a Two-bedroom DELUXE, not a Two-bedroom PENTHOUSE. Penthouse has a DECK, the Deluxe does not.
Many calls down to resolve the situation since the other people were completely unpacked, and there were at least four of them.
After waiting for them to fix it – called down and said, “60,000 Wyndham Rewards Points in my account and I’ll stay where I am.” Fortunately, I know the value of points. 60,000 points is enough for two nights in the Wyndham Grand, say Puerto Rico (where I had a reservation at one point last May, cancelled but should have gone), or 4 nights in the Wyndham Shanghai (I had a reservation for May that I cancelled because of Covid), or a whopping 8 nights at your basic Days Inn.
So, no video of the Penthouse (though you can find a post about it here with a video tour), but instead, you will get a video of the Two-bedroom Deluxe:
Besides the points they also gave us exclusive access to the current Terrace Lounge, the private dining room for the Cloud Room Restaurant. Normally, it is open to all the guests, but with Covid it is closed (and clean).
And a little Bonny Doon Le Cigar Volant – and the fine company of Jonathan. And then joined by Bliss for after dinner drinks which turned into him using the Murphy bed in the living room. Social distancing!
Lovely evening, sadly, without a deck. And the morning was annoying when housekeeping walked in on my naked ass (they saw the other side), which resulted in the front desk calling me with serious apologies. Seems the room move triggered something in their system. The call came from the General Manager of the property.
By the time I was ready to check out, Pedro (the General Manager) requested a meeting to further apologize. There would be some additional training about taking special attention to penthouse reservations and how to respond to a housekeeping request that is 19 hours overdue. Turns out he has been there for years, and even worked at The Camlin before it was a WorldMark.
When the points arrived in my InBox – they got deposited and I sent a note to Pedro. In a couple back/fourths, seems that he collects Camlin ephemera – you know, the stuff from a property that usually gets thrown out. I mentioned that on one of visits many years ago that I’d left a champagne flute for management to add to the museum that is in the basement. Never saw it displayed, but when I mentioned it, he sent me a picture of it – IT’S IN HIS OFFICE!
That is pretty much the logo that is on the poster that is in this post.
Josh called this morning — might get some work out of him this week, which would be good. The done by the end of Sunday deadline is looming. Chris gets back while I’m in Canada, and then his maid/painter is here while he is in Europe, so I need a place to start sleeping SOON.
Once again headed up to the island — this time to sell the large format printer, laminator, a scanner and computer to BlueToad Designs (on the island), and take some photos for the guy interested in the bus, and as usual, fill the car up with more crap from the church.
Took the gas lawnmower up, will bring the electric on back down along with more boxes, the warming oven (to see if it fits, or if I have to sell it to Anita), and miscellaneous boxes from the attic.
Moved stuff around in the closet in the kitchen — the rolling Murphy bed now fits in there! With the equipment gone in the living room, it’s starting to look a little more cleared out as well — just three printers and a router in the corner — means the couch is closer to a wall. Another dozen trips and the place will look like it’s “staged”.
Didn’t make the 5:30 ferry, so had dinner with Terry at the Galley — and offered the owner $30K off if his parents are still interested in the church. Of course, it being the last ferry of the day — the 8:40 — was really the 9:20 which means I didn’t get back to the apartment until midnight. Ick.
Had a BUNCH of 10 cent off Safeway Rewards. They only let me use 10 of them.
We left on Sunday after I got off work – fortunately Mags lives close to the shop. Was only able to grab a one-bedroom at Birch Bay – Mags was on the Murphy Bed.
Since we had a grill, we grilled, we ate, we slept.
Morning brought an early “Owner Re-education Camp” at 8:30am – which I shouldn’t do, and won’t, ever again. Here was my “breakfast”:
Got out of the meeting, packed up, and headed north over the border, to have lunch with Solus+ at Two Lions Public House….Burger and cocktail special…$8.50 doubles
And Larry’s Poutine….
We were in Whistler by 3, and our room was even ready. Dumped our shit and headed into the village to get our lift tickets.
And our lovely dinner that evening…
In the morning, up the mountain we go!
And across to Whistler Mountain…
Onto a bus…
And up further and further – on the 7th Heaven Express…
To see Glacier skiing…
And to film a birthday video for one of my vendors from my Microsoft days…
Before heading back down Blackcomb Mountain…
To have lunch in Blackcomb Village at Milestones, which used to have a great Old Fashioned, but now it’s a Peach Bellini…
Here is the list of lifts that are open this visit:
We decided to walk back to Whistler and the condo….
And hang out by the pool since the sun was out…
The next day Larry went up early, but I was rewarded with the first bear sighting (for me) of the season!
It’s early in the season, so they are still at the lower elevations. It was a pretty clear day on the mountains:
And I was rewarded with two more bears in the afternoon!
Days were spent on the mountain during the day and cooking our meals at night. The car didn’t move once for the four nights we were there.
The final day, saw the final bear of the trip (other than me):
This was trip number of either three or four…last one in August is up in the air as it isn’t in Whistler, but Creekside and the lifts are running for sightseeing this year
Another week, another flight, another breakfast in the Alaska Lounge…
This picture is for my sister…while that plane is at my gate, it’s the departure before mine:
Got the upgrade to first days ago, so that means lots of pictures of the new Alaska First Class menu that they are rolling out, starting with the hot sweaty nuts:
Continuing with the salad (that would be Murder on the Orient Express in the background):
Onto the Cod in Miso:
Followed by what may be the best gelato I’ve had in years!
My flight arrived a little early, grabbed my luggage, struggled with surge pricing on Uber before abandoning Uber to grab the last train to Alewife – free as opposed to $50-60 door to door. I have time, I’ve been drinking and on holiday. Who cares if I don’t get to Pucci’s until 2am – he left the door open, and he sleeps soundly. Grabbed an Uber from Alewife that was $10. Much more reasonable!
When I visit Pucci, we have a system. He gets up in the morning and goes to the gym, I sleep in until eleven or so, then get up for my breakfast/his lunch:
Crab and arugula omelets. Yum. Pucci has students today, though not as many as usual since half are on break, so after a liquor store run, Jill picks me up and we are off to check out Pucci’s favorite local wine store, The Spirited Gourmet:
Well over twice the size of my shop, it includes a deli counter for sandwiches, sliced cheeses and meats, imported food goods. We probably have the same size wine collection.
Next up is the Red House, which is turning into a ritual. They have 2 for $1 oysters from 12-5pm. Yep, that’s $6 a dozen, so Jill and I both got a dozen:
And then we added the mussels and frites ($9) before we headed out.
Pucci taught until 7PM (usually 9PM), so we had a nice rack of lamb off the grill for our dinner:
The following day, it was Pucci’s Homemade Chili, with a lovely Garzon Pinot Noir Rosé (also from Uruguay):
Before we headed to the Red House for cocktails (me) and oysters for dessert. Yes, oysters almost immediately after chili.
The last supper, sadly, I was having too much fun and forgot photos…here’s the appetizer spread:
With this amazing Greek Caviar Spread:
No pictures of the guests (Pucci, Jill, Netta, Joel, Susan), but I did get one of Murphy the Wonder Dog patiently waiting for something to hit the floor.
I was up at 6am the next morning so Pucci could run me to Alewife before his run to the gym.
An hour+ later I was at the airport, settled into the Admirals Club, one terminal over from mine:
And soon I was on the plane home – I’d gotten a 1am notice that I’d been upgraded…NICE.
Today’s menu was a beef in mole which was “interesting” – like they were trying too hard, unlike the flight attendant who on a 6-hour flight, served it all at once, rather than in courses (well, the nuts and gelato came out separately).
I returned to my house to find a riot of color in my front yard. What a nice welcome:
Another week, another trip – wonder where next week will be?
My East Coast contingent has been begging for a visit so off I go (it doesn’t take much convincing, just a decent fare and hopefully an upgrade or two).
Paid more than I’d like (close to $500), but I was able to use my last two MVP Gold Upgrades for a guaranteed First Class on the Monday night red-eye to Boston, coming back through Portland on the dinner flight.
Uber’d to the airport since who knows what state I’ll be in on my return.
One of the things I really like about Alaska Airlines is their on-time rate (and best in the US for fuel efficiency):
That would be (clockwise): green leaf salad with ranch and cheese cubes, molasses cookies (which I packed away for later – actually had a spare zip-lock bag courtesy of the TSA), chili, Yankee pot roast soup, whiskey/diet. On the red-eye, it’s always a crap shoot of what you will get served on-board, definitely not a full meal.
And no, that isn’t a potato, that’s a dark roll to go with the Caesar Salad.
For the first couple of hours the service up front was great, even with just one attendant working the section, but as three quarters of the cabin went to sleep – service quality died. Snack basket make a quick trip down the aisle missing me (had to go ask – and I’m in the first row aisle with the light on. Forget more drinks without asking even though there were several of us waiting TV. It seemed that the Fall Fashion issue of Elle was more important than customer service. And yes, I know flight attendant’s main duty is to protect our safety.
That said, I did log on and leave comments after I returned home about the flights going and coming, and the STARK difference in service levels in the same cabin. I’m used to the crew at American, United, Delta on the red-eyes and long international flights being happier sitting there with their reading material, but not on Alaska (usually). The return crew were all 20 year plus at Alaska and were fantastic on the dinner run from Boston to Portland. In less than 24 hours after my comments were submitted (on a weekend!) I got this response back:
Good Morning Mr. Souder,
Thank you for completing our survey regarding your flight. As a valued passenger, I sincerely apologize that you didn’t receive customer service that met or exceeded your expectations while seated in first class. Being unhelpful or unfriendly, even if it is on a “Red Eye”, is certainly not our norm or something we condone at Alaska Airlines. We strive to provide exemplary service on each and every flight to all of our passengers and it sounds like we fell short.
By taking the time to contact us and giving us your feedback, you have not only given me the opportunity to hear your concerns, but also an opportunity to be proactive in preventing a similar situation from occurring again. I would like to offer you the following compensation of a $50.00 e-certificate which you should expect via email within the next 10 business days.
I am confident that on a future flight you will enjoy the high level of service that Alaska Airlines is known for and that you deserve.
Saint Jill picked me up at the airport in Boston on my very early arrival – hence the name, “Saint Jill“.
After a long nap it was out for “loooobsterrrr”….Belle Isle Seafood here we come. Not cheap, but a ton of lobster (could have used just a tiny bit more mayo):
Then toss in spinach and cheese for a one skillet meal:
Served over spaghetti… not a bad meal, all and all:
Hooked up with Pucci after he got off work – staying there because Saint Jill’s place is small, I snore, and Murphy sheds. Aisling is out of town so it’s a long night of drinking and catching up.
Breakfast/Lunch at Strip T’s – I opted for the Turkey Rubin with Pucci opting for the buttermilk fried chicken:
GREAT pickles – but a seriously non-OSHA bathroom in the basement, labeled with a sign saying, “Use Extreme Caution Using This Restroom” – certainly worthy of a picture:
Yep – the toilet is up several steps.
Pucci needed to go back to work so he dropped me off in Harvard Square where Jill was to meet me for a little culture. Kind of fun hanging out on Harvard Square – under the watchful eyes of Dewey, Cheetham, & Howe right about the Curious George store:
Lovely fall day…
Turns out Netta was also floating around after a doctor’s appointment (same thing as Jill was doing) so we all met up at Starbucks…
Great to hang out and catch up, but soon Jill and I were walking across the quad to the museum:
The Harvard Art Museum was having a showing of a pop artist that Jill likes. Name is Corita Kent…no photos of the exhibition (forbidden) but one of the inside:
All that culture made us want a little snack at The Russell House….
After culture and cuisine, it was time to walk over to Jill’s Mom’s place for cocktails and dinner…forgot to take a shot of her view of The Charles from her 3-bedroom condo, but I did get some food shots!
By the third bottle we finally found an old white that wasn’t off…
Amazingly it was the oldest (2000 Cheverny) that was OK, while the 2004 Pouilly Fume and the 2001 Latour Pouilly Fuse were both off but in different ways. The Cheverny went quite nicely with the Oysters (yes, more oysters) on the half shell:
Followed by some appetizers (grave lox, salamis):
Followed by the salad course (greens, pears, beets, Blue Cheese dressing):
Then the main: (swordfish, roasted potatoes, asparagus):
Back to Pucci’s after dinner – and in the morning Jill swung by to take me lunch and then to the airport – lunch Greek at Demos. This would be the lamb shish kebab salad.
Yes, I drank be, 4 different 4 ounce samples. Then it was off to the airport.
Contrary to rumors, terminal C for Alaska isn’t too great – they are off in a little wing with its own TSA checkpoint and little in the way of food/drink:
I had to walk to Terminal B to use the American Admirals Club – which is huge and the food good:
But, it’s a 15 minute walk in each direction. Oh well, walking is good for me. And there was also good food on the dinner flight home starting with a nice salad:
Then the main course:
And ending with dessert:
Not a direct flight home – I connected in Portland. Good thing I took a cab home!
Out of the house at noon headed to Birch Bay. Stopped in Mount Vernon for a little thrift shopping – found two logod champagne glasses for a quarter a piece for the shop.
By 3 I had SeasideBoy in tow and off the WorldMark Birch Bay. The plan was for an overnight stay, but alas, it wasn’t to be.
They have completely redone in the inside and outside of this WorldMark since I was last through. It went from being a tatty (it was one of their first resorts after all) to the usual high standards of the WorldMark system. One odd thing in the studio was the placement of the Murphy bed – you couldn’t walk around the bed with it down as it dropped right next to the kitchen counter. Guess I should have sprung for the one-bedroom.
Basically SeasideBoy is standing right where the bed comes down. Bad design.
After a beef flank steak dinner called the front desk to cancel my “owner reeducation” for tomorrow morning at 10:30… only to have them up the offer from $75 to $100. Sold.
Opened the shop this morning, looked at the sales for the week up to this point. Slow. Not unexpected for January, but still.
There were people through and we were into the low four digits left of the zero, but still.
Jill and Murphy stopped in, Greg and Patsy arrived just as I was leaving… the joys of having friends drop by.
It being just after the first of the month – and that means wine club shipments, it also means lots of dinner invitations so that they get free delivery of their six bottle selections. Well, two dinner invitations. DancingBear tonight and Swanda tomorrow night. Interested in joining the wine club? CLICK HERE. You can find out what shipped this month HERE.
Left the shop a little after 4:30, and was to DancingBear’s place by five. Thankfully he’d restocked the Maker’s Mark since I couldn’t find any olives or a lemon twist for the Bombay Sapphire.
DB had to go pick up BM (BreticusMaximus) at work on First Hill, then get him home, fed, and back to work in an hour. A little crazy, but at least he could drive himself back to work.
Omaha Steaks®, baked potatoes (yes, I ate mine, but not the skin), steamed broccoli, and a bottle of the wine that I delivered – I need to get more friends into the wine club, I’m liking the perks!
Home relatively early, but that doesn’t mean early to bed. After Saturday Night Live, there was the premier of The 206, from the creators of Almost Live that ran for 4 or 5 years and has been repeating ever since. Both a local content comedy shows.
Steak and eggs for breakfast (I may be spoiling him for his regular diet) and we were out of the condo at 10:30 to drop him home.
I continued up the coast on 101 to Astoria, then across the top of Oregon on US 30, swinging over the bridge to Longview to connect back up with I-5. It’s my preferred route as it has what I believe is the furthest north Burgerville – which makes a damn fine burger using peppered bacon and Tillamook cheese. They also have sweet potato fries and amazing milkshakes, both of which I passed on for the volume of carbs they both contain. And yes, I did eat the bun because they are so tasty.
Made it home a little after 2:30 and rushed around doing some necessary errands (to Jim’s for meat for tomorrow BBQ sauce tasting at the shop, the apartment for package, the post office to mail some urgent documents) and then home to get a few more pictures of the car (my mother’s Miata) that I need to sell as they only have one parking space at El Castillo (the “old folks” – their words, home) – that an my mother is going to fail her vision test next month and there goes the daylight only driver’s license. At 85, it’s time. At 89 my father’s driving is even worse, even though his vision is better – it’s time for him to stop as well. With El Castillo providing transportation to doctor’s appointments, art events, grocery store runs – why drive.
So, here is the car:
And here are the details:
1999 Mazda Miata MX-5
83,500 (approx.) miles, always garaged in New Mexico
British Racing Green with Aero Accent package, Tan Roof, Tan Leather Interior
Glass back window with defrost heater
AM/FM/Cassette/CD Player with Bose Sound System (really good bass notes)
Nardi leather wrapped steering wheel
Power locks, windows, mirrors
Cruise Control
Fog Lights
New Tires at 75,000
Full Tune-up (including plugs) and Oil Change at 80,000
And here is the price:
$5600
Add 3% if you want to use PayPal to cover the fees – but that means you could put it on your Visa or MasterCard and get the airline mile
Includes jumper-cables, sun shade and an insulated cooler the fits behind the seats in the roof well.
Here is a link to the Kelly Blue Book estimate of sales price.
Although cosmetically the car falls into the Very Good range (it will be detailed next week), it is priced $100 over Very Good since this is the real deal “little old ladies sports car” – though my mother isn’t that little. My father is anal-retentive about keeping his cars in tip-top shape.
Might have one of my friends who is looking at upgrading his Miata to a newer vintage, but until he pulls the trigger, it’s up for grabs. Plates expire at the end of the month, so time is short as I don’t want to register it in my name.
A quiet dinner at home, well, not that quiet, Jill and Murphy The Wonder Dog were here for a lamb and slaw dinner – I seem to be on a lamb streak.
And now I have someone to send to the opera with Jeff since I can’t use the seat since I’m working the late shift that night.
Another work Sunday for both me (the shop) and Jill (the orchard – well, two trees). While I worked the shop and hosted an Artist Reception for Tom Hoffmann (watercolors), Jill we busy clean up the droppings from her two Asian pear trees.
Here is a shot from the reception:
That would be Tom in the yellow shirt.
After work Jill came over with her two bins of dropped fruit and proceeded to start chopping and grinding fruit in Suze’s juicer while I started working on dinner. A lot of work and it didn’t all get done tonight – so I’m guessing that will be my chore. All this for “cider”.
The “cider” finisher broken apart waiting for its next run.
And “Murphy The Wonder Dog”:
Off to bed, apparently I have chores in the morning.
NeonBender, Hummingbird, and BamBam arrived a little after 4 and promptly set to work folding and binding all the directories for the faerie gathering. Light work with many hands while I worked on prepping an evening meal and getting the artwork together for towelettes to be handed out at the gathering. Here is the basic jist of what they look like:
While the other side has the phrases:
Better Than Bacon
Bordeauxing On The Insane
Whine A Little
Liquid Pleasure
Jillar and Murphy showed up a little after six and they were quickly added to the dinner table. Two roast chickens, a big salad, and some baguettes that looked more like Klingon weapons than bread.
A fun evening, but again, the packing fell a little short.
I was a little worried when it was a one customer day from opening at 11 to about the 3pm start of the tasting. Yesterday was a good day at the shop, but Saturday is out big day of the week. By the time I left a little after 4:30, my worries were gone, it looked like a strong afternoon. I’ll have to see what the numbers were tomorrow.
Headed home to get ready for dinner with Jill. Ribs and salad from me, fine wine from Jill (from her last France trip):
Jill brought along Murphy the Wonder Dog, but no bones for the mutt:
Really should have started packing for next week’s trip… but I didn’t.
The snow has arrived. At times a little, at times a lot:
It’s a little washed out, but you get the idea. Let me tell you one thing, that fur coat is plenty warm:
Spent a little more time in the lodge today, though I still had someone come up and ask me when I’d gotten to the gathering. They were a little shocked by the answer of Wednesday as they hadn’t seen in all that time.
At least we have the liquor cabinet to keep us feeling warm:
Tonight after dinner is the talent show which is often the highlight of the gathering. I’ve heard musicians on the stage that have gone onto become national touring acts. (Holcombe Waller [even had an NPR Song-Of-The-Day], Charlie Murphy). I guess when you’ve been coming to gatherings for over 30 years; you are bound to see a little talent.
Our favorite sick, twisted clown (Mirabelle) is our Master of Ceremonies this evening. Just imagine a deep gravelly voice saying, “ever had sex with a clown?” followed by a leer:
A late evening — before I knew it I it was after 1:30 in the morning when I got back to the cabin.
I’m sensing a slow morning tomorrow.
It’s not like I have anything to do or anywhere to go.
Cold is still lingering, and not really looking forward to lingering in a cold shop all day. The area by the desk we keep a little warmer with a space heater, but generally the shop is about 60 degrees which is good for the wine, but not so good for a cold.
Slow day at the shop, but with Sundays, it’s expected. We still had samples open from yesterday’s bottles (vacuum sealed) and I managed to sell a few more bottles. We were pouring:
2010 Northwest Wine Academy Riesling $12
2009 Northwest Wine Academy Zinfandel $12
2009 Northwest Wine Academy Cabernet Sauvignon $12
2009 Robert Ramsay, McKinley Springs Syrah $25
2010 Airfield Estates Late Harvest Riesling 375ml. $13
The Northwest Wine Academy is the wine making program at South Seattle Community College with grapes donated by growers in Eastern Washington at pressed and fermented under the direction of a professional winemaker. The Ramsey is a Woodinville Winery and the Airfield Estates is a Prosser winery that got 92 points for the Late Harvest Riesling, which makes it a steal at $13… assuming you like dessert wines.
After shop duty it was off to the Camlin to check in before heading off to dinner. This is one of my favorite postcard shots of the Camlin:
Dinner at Swanda’s tonight is DancingBear, Misha, Wonderful, and myself. Though not on either Swanda and I’s low carb diet, the main course is a homemade deep dish chicken pot pie (Swanda picks out the potatoes and leaves the crust, I just leave the crust) preceded by a wedge salad with bacon crumbles. Damn fine meal. Damn fine company.
By 9:30 or so I’m back at the condo ensconced in my little studio unit (murphy bed pulls down from wall), but for $40 it keeps me from driving after drinking at dinner, and puts me close to the light rail line for the morning trip to the airport.
Morning fire drill – get Javier awake (dynamite required), get Dan and Lisa to the rental car center – get lost leaving town, lose 20 minutes.
Fast food lunch in Boulder City… Hoover Dam next stop… new highway, security stops, big dam fun….
And during the long ($30) tour, where we were in on of the inspection tunnels – the tour guide suggested we stick our cameras out the ventilation shaft and shoot UP. Stunning.
I rafted down the Colorado through Grand Canyon a couple of years ago – from Glenn Canyon Dam to almost Lake Mead (which was formed by the Hoover Dam). Massive beast this dam… this will be the third tour, always learning or seeing something new.
And then there is the new bridge….
Longest of its kind in the US… stunningly beautiful, and still under construction when I was last here… now, you can go across the dam, but not reconnect with the highway. Sad.
Dinner tonight was in the condo – yesterday’s chili sauce cut 50% with chicken stock and nice hunks of pork baked in the oven… by my estimate, everyone had at least half a pound of pork in that sauce… Yummy.
Leave a passing comment »