In Oregon. The Portland area. My friends’ house in the hills. I can see Mt Adams from the back window.
It’s gorgeous here. Rained off and on over the weekend, but today is sunny with high cloud. Could hit the low 60s.
Saturday was a veeeerrrrrry long day. Up at the crack of dawn. Airport. Uneventful flight. Land in Seattle on time. Then. An hour and a half to get luggage and rental car, in large part because rental car company in question had *1* person on duty on a Saturday afternoon when all the others had 2-3. Landed at 12:25 PST, but didn’t get on the road until after 2. Head pounding by this time.
I don’t think the traffic ever lets up on I-5, but the drive south was lovely and the headache gradually eased. It did rain off and on, but the sun broke through half the time and there were even a few moments when I really wished I had brought sunglasses. Had a few moments of panic as the battery for the GPS unit (brought from home) ran low and the unit conked out and I had to pull of the road and figure out where in the hell was the charger socket in a 2010 Nissan Versa. Hunted all over dash. Under dash. Finally found the socket in the space between the seats. Revived GPS, and continued on to friends’ house, which is located near the top of the twistiest, windiest road I have ever negotiated in my entire life.
Did I mention that it’s gorgeous up here? Pine forests sloping down to the Willamette valley and the Cascades in the distance. Delicious Japanese food last night at a place in nearby Hillsboro called Syun Izakaya. I had okonomiyaki, a savory pancake with shrimp and scallops. Salmon rolls. An Earl Grey pudding for dessert.
Will try to work a little and wake up. Sightseeing may be on tap for the afternoon. Coffee’s brewing, and I am sitting by a set of glass doors overlooking the deck and the forest beyond. And the valley. And the mountains.
Did I mention that it’s gorgeous up here?