We're Here

It's been a long road separating my last post from this one.

Thursday: Jason, Phil, Gavin, Maria, and Ben arrived to start loading the truck at 10:30am. Our sweet neighbor Jihee helped clean the blinds and the bathroom with her infant Joan on her back. Sandy came in as fresh horses at 7:30pm. Somewhere between 9:00 - 9:30pm we got on the road in a caravan headed for Redding. When you drive north to visit (wink wink), the GAIA HOTEL IN ANDERSON is a little less than half way from San Francisco to Bend. The rates are low (see the deals tab here) and hotel is new and somewhat chic with comfortable rooms and a good breakfast buffet (again, at a great price = $7.00 for 2 people.)

Friday: We all (Dustin, Jason, Gavin, Maria, Ben, Tristan, and me) met for breakfast in the hotel restaurant at about 9:00. The guys drove off early while Maria, Tristan, and I took a more leisurely pace. We stopped for lunch in Klamath Falls. (Don't go past Klamath if you are driving north and need food or gas. This is the last major outpost before Bend.) As the sun was setting the guys finished unloading the truck and Maria, Tristan, and I arrived with groceries.

I can't explain exactly how I felt as we walked up and down the aisles of Safeway looking for food to stock the shelves in our new home. I'm not usually a Safeway shopper anyhow. (I prefer Whole Foods, Costco, the Farmer's Market, etc.) Strolling Bend's Safeway felt surreal. The people seemed like characters in a dream. I felt like I was drifting aimlessly around, ineffective and somewhat confused. I couldn't believe that this is my life.

When we arrived to the house, I showed Tristan around. We've lived in a small 2 bedroom, 1 bath apartment for his entire life. Our downstairs now dwarfs that former living space. The best part was taking him out into the back yard. He toddled off the deck onto the grass and peered at the neighbors play structure and pool through the slats of the fence. "Open the park," he requested.

"It's not a park. It's a back yard." I tried to explain in a couple of ways that this was his back yard. That was their back yard. But neither is a park. It took a couple of days, but I think he understands now.

Saturday: After breakfast, the caravan reconvened. Dustin and Ben made stops to pick up the remnants of my father's belongings from his old house, a mere two blocks from where we now live. Then they headed over to the storage space that I employed to hold more of his stuff, and things that I wanted to keep.

Meanwhile, the rest of us went to check out the Habitat for Humanity store to see if they had a good deal on a washer and dryer. They did not. So the caravan continued on to Lowe's in search of major appliances.

Ben, Maria, Gavin, and Jason kept Tristan occupied as Dustin and I searched for and purchased our new washer/dryer. I haven't lived with a washer/dryer in my house for more than 10 years. San Francisco isn't known for such luxuries in rental situations. Now we have a great front loader washer and fancy dryer 20 feet from where I'm sitting. I've been washing our comforters and pillows in addition to our laundry and linens. I'm sure I'll soon fall into the, "How did I ever live without this convenience" that is prevalent in suburban America.

Our needs from Lowe's are great. There are MANY things that need to be seen to in this house. We took long enough that we had to say goodbye to Ben in the store because his flight time was getting close and we weren't done shopping for immediate necessities yet. There was so much going on it was a pretty brief goodbye. No tears. More of a, "Ok. See you later."

That night we went to McMenamins for dinner. This hotel used to be a Catholic School. The classrooms are guest rooms. The chapel is a movie theater. The Turkish soaking pool now inhabits the space where an alter once stood. The chain of hotels and pubs brews beer and distills spirits. If you're in Bend, or any other city that boasts a McMenamins: GO.

Sunday: We said goodbye to Gavin in the morning. He drove back to Sacramento alone. Then Maria, Jason, Dustin, Tristan, and I had brunch at the Victorian Cafe. This place has GREAT food. It's mostly local and sustainably raised. And it's TASTY. When you come to visit, it's likely we'll take you there. It's been our favorite place here since the first visit to Bend.

After brunch, we went to Drake Park. Jason and Dustin fed ducks with Tristan and took him for a walk. Maria and I sprawled on a blanket and fell asleep in the shade. It was 91F. Between the hard work from the days before, the good meal in our bellies, and the warmth of the day, it was a perfect time for a snooze.

That evening we took Jason to the airport. We had a teary goodbye. Tristan kept saying, "Bye Pops. See you soon." It's probably best that he doesn't really understand how far away everyone is going, or how long it might be until we see them again. Dustin and I were both pretty shaken by saying goodbye to Jason. We've had dinner with him almost every Wednesday for the past three years. It's going to be a big adjustment not having him over each week. It's sad to think about the gaps in time between visits. It's hard to think of how much Tristan will grow without seeing his extended family and how much less everyone will see his development. Again, it makes me sad.

Tristan's awake now and demanding Thomas while trying to drive trucks and cars on my laptop. More later...