An (cough) Update (cough)

Cars and computers. Most of the time, they’re good friends of mine, but on occasion, either is very capable of becoming the bane of my existence, often at the most inopportune time. Sure, maybe I’m not the best caregiver in the world, but I give both plenty of attention – they never have a chance to feel forgotten, that’s for sure.

Last week, it was my car that decided to betray our friendship. I noticed the battery light flicker mysteriously a couple times as I drove to Portland to pick up Corrin, but everything seemed fine so I wasn’t too concerned. However, on the way home, it stayed. I began to feel a little nervous – dreading the thought of becoming one of those poor souls I’ve pitied in the past whose car leaves them stranded on the freeway in the middle of rush hour. When my stereo shut off and my headlights began to dim, I knew I was in trouble. I took the next exit, hoping to find a convenient place to park before my battery died entirely. Thankfully, we made it to a Shell station. Then I called Dad. He arrived within an hour and switched out my battery (what a guy!). The warning light continued to flash, but I had plenty of battery to get me home.

A new alternator and a day of donated Dad-labor later, my car and I are on good terms once again. I gave it a good test this weekend with a drive to Seattle. Joined by my cousin Audrey and good friend and Europe travel buddy Katie, I drove up Sunday afternoon to visit cousin Ruth, who conveniently works for Rick Steves (the Europe travel guru). Ruth made Italian-style pizza (rolled thin, topped with tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, artichoke hearts, roasted garlic, olive oil and other forms of tastiness and baked at 55O F on a pizza stone) for dinner – the best ever (definitely beats the boxed stuff with those annoying cardboard bases). We spent the evening chatting, flipping through Europe guidebooks, picking Ruth's brain about Europe travel, watching a few episodes of Rick Steves' show and enjoying Ruth and Michael’s six-month-old black lab puppy, Lucy.

The next morning, we drove Ruth to her job at the Europe Through the Back Door office and stayed a couple hours to browse their travel library. After lunch at The Walnut coffee shop, we headed back down I-5 to Oregon, stopping in Portland to see Erin (yet another of my many cousins) and ate dinner at a new place called “Noodle” something – I forgot the name, but my pasta was good. We got back to my house around 9 and I spent the rest of the night coughing (and, unfortunately, not sleeping). Around 7:30 a.m., I decided that with little sleep or voice and a constant cough, I’d be little use at work and called in sick. So my day has been rather uneventful and unproductive – but hey, at least I had a chance to update my blog, right?