Month: January 2008

Did I mention that when we left Loveland the rental car started flashing every possible indicator light? Oh – and it refused to shift out of first gear. The choice was to remain at a closed ski lodge, wait in a sketchy turnout, or…. coast.

From the Continental Divide all the way to Georgetown. Not knowing if the brakes would hold. Um. Fun!

After the scary road part it wouldn’t have been so bad. Except the folks were waiting for us to do a belated xmas dinner. But hey, these things happen – and I have long held a place in my heart for the home of the real life Charlie Utter!

We took shelter in a restaurant for awhile then returned to wait in the vehicle for the rental car company to issue a replacement, something they promised to do within the hour. Four hours later we were still sitting in a broken car – in subzero weather.

Though it was worth it because guess what the replacement was? A Durango! Can you imagine? I can’t, and I got to ride around sitting on the seat heater for five whole days!

In the end the escapade was doubly lucky because, if we’d gone the day originally planned, we would have been trapped by a whiteout that shut I-70 and left two thousand people in emergency shelters. From the safety of the city, the whole thing was beautiful:

The other night I was driven to yonder far distant land (translation: an unincorporated area of Aurora County that literally did not exist the last time I was in Colorado) and picked up the always amazing Ade. At the home of his stepmother. Where I wheedled an introduction to at least one sister.

Can you believe it? People who know Ade from Seattle probably suspect he hatched fully formed, but I now have proof otherwise!

We backtracked countless miles in search of a drinking establishment and ended up at the Night Shift Saloon, where Byron fed quarters to the juke box and befriended the locals.

Ade and I got all silly on cocktails and wine, talking fast and furious about love and sex and doomsday cults and all manner of oddity. As one does. Why are so many of my most cherished confidantes Bus Stop refugees? I don’t know, but I am endlessly thankful for their friendship:

I do not make New Year resolutions but yesterday I arrived at a momentous decision. Brace yourself.

Over the last four years I have given up coffee, red wine, and hair dye. Now I am repudiating the one remaining addiction I revel in. After all, if my friends can kick heroin or crack, I can certainly take the withdrawal of my daily bubble fix. Right? So I did it. I made the choice. I’m now twenty-four hours into my seltzer sobriety.

Who knows how long it will last – I may weaken and succumb even later tonight. But at least I am making the attempt. For those who do not know me in real life, this is a huge thing. I’ve dragged bottles of sparkling water on public transportation in a dozen different countries. Carried such heavy bags my arms were bruised on long brutal hikes across all manner of terrain no matter what the weather. Six liters every single day!

In Portland I used an ancient VW van as my recycling center, and it was always full to bursting. In all other houses my residence has been declared by the extraordinary amount of recycling in the bins.

Nowadays no matter how hard I work to haul it away, every storage cupboard on the boat is stuffed with empty bottles. I love the stuff. More than any food, or cinnamon jelly beans, or cute fluffy kittens. When I don’t drink it my skin cracks and bleeds, but hey – maybe I can switch to plain? Cause who knows what the carbonation is rendering to my innards, would be the logic. Or something. I think I need to go drink some more tap water now.

Happy New Year!