Of Trains and Bears
Nov. 26th, 2008 09:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kevin_standleeAs my train arrived (about 40 minutes late due to the late start, the open drawbridge, and the double-stopping at most stations), I switched my radio from the railroad band back to Lisa and my standard simplex 2m frequency and gave her a call. She answered, saying that she was parked across from the train station and that I should go to the front of the station where she would pick me up. Bad idea. I waited for most people to exit first so I could put my stuff together in peace, then headed out to the front, briefly stopping to say a good word to Eugene K. Skoropowski, the Capitol Corridor Managing Director, who was, following his normal practice, standing in the Sacramento Amtrak station waiting room with a big ASK ME sign around his neck.
As I came out to the curb, Lisa called me back to tell me she'd given up on trying to drive into the station and had parked along another street. Seeing the monster line of cars trying to get into the station, I can't say as I blame her. I walked out toward where she was parked and she met me halfway. After someone finally let her pull out of her curbside parking space, we eventually managed to make it up onto I-5 and escaped from Sacramento with only brief periods of Heavy Traffic.
We made for Yuba City and checked in to my usual haunts at the Holiday Inn Express, then decided to go over to Bel Air foods, where we planned to get some take-out Chinese food from the hot counter. They were out of chow mein and fried rice. The woman at the counter said to come back in 40 minutes. We went for a walk, and when we came back, we found that not only had they not made any more as promised, but that they were closing early instead! Phooey! Lisa had some sandwich bread she'd bought in Mt. Shasta City, so we got some lunchmeat and cheese and went back to the hotel for a light supper.
I booted my computer, uploaded the Train Trip story I'd composed during the trip, and checked my e-mail. My mother is not going to be able to come out to my grandfather's place tomorrow, but she was there yesterday and cooked a Thanksgiving dinner early; we'll have lunch there tomorrow. She suggested that I pick up a pumpkin pie, which my grandfather likes (so do I!), so after Lisa and I had eaten our fill of sandwiches and cheese, we walked up to Raley's and got one of the last two pumpkin pies on the shelf.
Returning to the hotel, Lisa gave me a collection of Kuma Bear's Halloween and Train Photos, including Kuma and his pumpkin (Lisa says Kuma Bear always insists on a pumpkin) and of his Halloween cosplay (Lisa took him around to the malls in Portland on Halloween), and also of him operating model trains. She suggested I pick out the best ones and upload them, but I said, "why not just upload them all" and did so.
Kuma Bear had to make way for me as we drove up from Sacramento. He normally sits in his special car seat on the passenger side, but there's not enough room for that and for me at the same time, so Kuma had to instead sit in the middle of the pickup's bench seat. Lisa buckled him up safely, though.
Now I'm mostly caught up and hope to get some sleep tonight after having been up very late last night wrestling with an optimization model from work. We have a noon checkout tomorrow, and we're not in any rush, thank goodness. We eventually have to get up to Reno tomorrow night, but we're not going to hurry if we can avoid it.
As I came out to the curb, Lisa called me back to tell me she'd given up on trying to drive into the station and had parked along another street. Seeing the monster line of cars trying to get into the station, I can't say as I blame her. I walked out toward where she was parked and she met me halfway. After someone finally let her pull out of her curbside parking space, we eventually managed to make it up onto I-5 and escaped from Sacramento with only brief periods of Heavy Traffic.
We made for Yuba City and checked in to my usual haunts at the Holiday Inn Express, then decided to go over to Bel Air foods, where we planned to get some take-out Chinese food from the hot counter. They were out of chow mein and fried rice. The woman at the counter said to come back in 40 minutes. We went for a walk, and when we came back, we found that not only had they not made any more as promised, but that they were closing early instead! Phooey! Lisa had some sandwich bread she'd bought in Mt. Shasta City, so we got some lunchmeat and cheese and went back to the hotel for a light supper.
I booted my computer, uploaded the Train Trip story I'd composed during the trip, and checked my e-mail. My mother is not going to be able to come out to my grandfather's place tomorrow, but she was there yesterday and cooked a Thanksgiving dinner early; we'll have lunch there tomorrow. She suggested that I pick up a pumpkin pie, which my grandfather likes (so do I!), so after Lisa and I had eaten our fill of sandwiches and cheese, we walked up to Raley's and got one of the last two pumpkin pies on the shelf.
Returning to the hotel, Lisa gave me a collection of Kuma Bear's Halloween and Train Photos, including Kuma and his pumpkin (Lisa says Kuma Bear always insists on a pumpkin) and of his Halloween cosplay (Lisa took him around to the malls in Portland on Halloween), and also of him operating model trains. She suggested I pick out the best ones and upload them, but I said, "why not just upload them all" and did so.
Kuma Bear had to make way for me as we drove up from Sacramento. He normally sits in his special car seat on the passenger side, but there's not enough room for that and for me at the same time, so Kuma had to instead sit in the middle of the pickup's bench seat. Lisa buckled him up safely, though.
Now I'm mostly caught up and hope to get some sleep tonight after having been up very late last night wrestling with an optimization model from work. We have a noon checkout tomorrow, and we're not in any rush, thank goodness. We eventually have to get up to Reno tomorrow night, but we're not going to hurry if we can avoid it.
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Date: 2008-11-27 09:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-11-27 06:24 pm (UTC)We have to admit, thought, that Kuma does sometime show some of his age (he turned 18 last August).
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Date: 2008-11-27 06:34 pm (UTC)(I should explain that Softly - in the icon, as posed by a chambermaid at the Ritz in Taipei - will be, um, 48 come next March...)