Kevin Standlee: Fandom Is My Way of Life

[Backdated entry: We've been very busy.]

Our final day in Iceland started with us both waking up earlier than expected.

( Final Morning Walks and Breakfast )

After our post-breakfast walk it was time to finish packing and move out. Because we got the Saga upgrade, which includes access to the IcelandAir Saga Lounge, I moved up our departure by an hour so we'd have more time in the Lounge. This was a mistake. We ended up getting to Keflavik airport an hour before they started check-in for our flight to London Heathrow, so we just spent the time standing around waiting for check-in to open.

Once we were checked in, we were able to use our Saga status to bypass the longer security queues, but with all of the stuff we were carrying, it still took us a while to get through Terrorization. Not quite as much as in the USA because we didn't have to take off our shoes. Also, there was no room to step out of line and fill up the security bins without holding up other people. However, we made it through.

I normally don't shop in Duty Free, but they had bars of the Icelandic Chocolate that I like and that I normally buy from Cost Plus World Market. They cost around half as much in Duty Free here than they do at Cost Plus, and I bought several. Fingers crossed that I can get them home. Lisa continued through and waited for me beyond. Once I'd made my purchases, Lisa and I headed for the Lounge.

( Saga Lounge and Saga Class to LHR )

The flight to Heathrow was comfortable and uneventful, and we arrived at LHR on time. Clearing UK Immigration was painless, and our bags were among the earliest off the belt, presumably due to the Saga upgrade. Then it was time to find our way to the train to London.

( Frustration at Paddington )

Transferring from the Elizabeth Line to the H&C, particularly when you're rolling a bunch of heavy luggage around Paddington Station, proves to be tricky if you're not familiar with the route. The signs seemed to be directing us to all of the other lines, but not the H&C, and we took quite a number of wrong turns before eventually ending up on the Underground train.

Exiting the Underground led to another annoyance: the lift to the St. Pancras end of the station was broken. Lisa got her bag up the stairs, and I as struggled with more than 30 kg of luggage, a nice younger man helped me get the largest of the bags up to the main level.

We got a taxi and £12 later, we were at the Crowne Plaza.

( Another day, another hotel room )

After we got into the room, we started unpacking. We discovered that we didn't have enough of the right kinds of plug adapters for both my and Lisa's stuff, given the way the room is laid out. Besides, I was too tired to do computer work. My UK-to-North American outlet went to running my CPAP and (via an extension cord) Lisa's gear.

Both of us were very thirsty but only a little bit hungry. I'd withdrawn £200 at Paddington and gave some of it to Lisa. She went downstairs and to the tiny little store across the street from the hotel, where she got us a selection of sodas, milk, and juice while I started unpacking. She then got minimally unpacked, took a bath, and we both went to bed.

Because of the plug-adapter issues and our fatigue from traveling, I put off writing about today's travel until later.

The hat that I wear most of the time is a style of Jacaru hat that I picked up on my trip to Aussiecon Four and found that I really liked. I have run through three of them so far, as I'm apparently hard on my hats, but I'd rather the hats wear out than my head, particularly now that my hair is so thin on top.

( Time for a Change )

Yesterday I got some suede leather protector spray and sprayed the new hat with several successive coats, in the hope that it will help protect the hat. Today was its first day as my main hat.

( Hat Man )

I guess sometime in the next year or so I should consider ordering two more hats. Hat #3 joins its predecessors on a hat tree in the house. Sometimes when doing yard work around the house, I use the older hats, which are pretty beat-up by now but mostly keep the sun off my head.

Oh, and the black shirt? It's a sign of the end of summer, as I switch between khaki and black as the weather cools. The hat stays on in all seasons, though, protecting me from sun and rain alike. "Cowboy" hats are easy to find in Fernley, but this Australian style suits me more than the ones available in stores around here.

During these hot summer days, I am almost exclusively dressed in my "summer uniform"

( Looks like you've got some 'splainin to do )

The broad-brimmed hat came in useful yesterday when I was caught out in a thunderstorm. Fortunately for me, the hail was before I got out in it.

It's a sign of how much working from home agrees with me that I slept in only an hour this morning, waking up before Amtrak's #5's normal pass of Fernley at 7:45. (It was two hours late this morning; I was there waving at it as it passed.) There was no reason to wake Lisa. I dealt with morning business over coffee and generally relaxed. After Amtrak's passage, I decided to walk down to the taco stand on Main Street and get one of their breakfast burritos. As I was walking back, I saw Lisa standing on the front porch. She had woke up while I was away, had noticed that one of our local rabbits was nibbling on some greenery right outside our front gate, and went to get the camera to take a picture. The rabbit had moved on by the time she came back, but she took a picture of me coming home instead.

( Photos behind cut )

Both Lisa and I are anxious to get moving to Oregon. Today we are running errands for things we need for the trip. Meanwhile, we've been making a list of things we'll purchase while we have an opportunity to stock up from stores that aren't in Nevada or the Bay Area and from the land of no sales tax.