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Driving HomeI see it all perfectly; there are two possible situations -- one can either do this or that. My honest opinion and my friendly advice is this: do it or do not do it -- you will regret both. Monday, May 31, 1999
Eegad! I really must, must keep the rule of writing here before reading other journals, especially during this busy time of the festival. Even if I come home relatively early in the evening, if I start trying to catch up with other folks before catching myself up, I find that it gets too late, too soon, and I'm building up a sleep debt before I know it.
We rolled out of bed at a reasonable hour, availed ourselves of the continental breakfast included with the room, and started driving around town, looking at possible places that Jack might live in Bellingham. We looked at the places listed below, and a few more that we found from classified ads. Too bad we'd lost the beautiful weather! It was drizzling and dripping on us all morning, which was annoying when we were hopping in and out of the car, but didn't dampen (ha!) our spirits. There were two likely candidates: an older house (from the fifties, maybe), with carports, workshops, and lots of parking, in town; and a newer house, out in a planned community some distance from town, with a two-car garage. Both have factors in their favor, and disadvantages as well. I think Jack was tempted by the beautiful skylights in the newer house, but the yard, while small, is sloped and wouldn't be easy to mow. It's in the country, but in a subdivision and the other houses are close (that's a disadvantage for Jack, who likes his space). Jack would be able to go walking in the woods there, which he would really like. I was concerned about how I would drive up all those steep roads in the winter time, if I came to visit. In some ways, he'd have more privacy in the older in-town house! There is open space in back that probably won't be built on in the time he'll be living there. The two neighbors are a reasonable distance away. There's a large lawn in front, but it's flat, so it would be easy to mow. The house is funky and some of the rooms are dark, because of the way it's been added on to over the years, but it's livable. His third choice is one we didn't go see -- a cheap apartment in a neighborhood where college students live. He'd be able to save money here, for his long term goal of buying land. (This always reminds me of the scene in Woody Allen's Love and Death, where the old Russian peasant grandfather grants Woody a piece of land -- about one square foot of land, on a tray!)
We drove south from Sudden Valley (where the newer house is located) so I could see where one would get off the Interstate highway when driving north. I found myself getting drowsy on the way back south, but I didn't fall all the way asleep. I did get into that half-sleep state, where the topics they were talking about on all-news radio kept mutating into my dreams. Weird! We stopped for lunch at Taco del Mar. Jack really likes the taco salads here, but has hopes of finding a good equivalent in Bellingham. I took off after we returned to Jack's house. Jack expressed concern that the trip wasn't exciting enough, but I had a very good time.
My movie buddy A--- and I had made arrangements for my sister M---- to join us for a movie today. It's a responsibility, choosing the only festival movie she's going to see! I bought her ticket Saturday afternoon, between movies. She was waiting in front of the Egyptian when I stepped off the bus, and stood in line with me until the passholders were admitted. We got caught up on what I've been up to. When we were inside, she described how my brother-in-law is finally using the computer! Apparently the fact that she's paying a monthly fee for internet access prompted him to try it, so they'd be sure to get their money's worth. He's reading the New York Times and other online news sources, and sending them letters to the editor. This is funny, because it's exactly what he does, not online, with our local paper.
My sister took off for home, and A--- and I went over to the Chinese carryout place above the QFC for some chow fun. D'oh! After we'd ordered and paid, the woman at the counter came over to tell us that they were out of the wide rice noodles that are the basis of the dish (that's what chow fun means!). We settled for lo mein, but it's just not the same.
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