By this time next year . . .

Hello all! I'm back from Oregon. Aah, it was a very nice and relaxing break from my favorite state with gambling and legal prostitution. :) It was actually quite a lovely mini-break with the added bonus of the Oregonian scenery. Imagine living in a place that is green all year round. Quite beautiful. And the mountains, and the river, and the forests . . . It was also a pleasant surprise that it sprinkled some, but no real rain until I left this morning. Wonderful!

So, my trip up was what some may call an adventure. Some may call it a fiasco. I called it frustrating, but never dull. The drive from Carson City to Lebanon is supposed to be (according to mapquest) a bit over 9 hours. Ha ha! Try closer to 12 for the way up. Icky indeed. The weather posed a problem with some snow and such, but driving slowly and cautiously (The cautious part I've actually had down pat for the whole of my life.) proved to work.

I stopped in Mt. Shasta for some much needed gas and lunch. I took off, only to have the driver's side windshield wiper fly off of the hook! EEK! Due to the nature of this particular traffic, it was impossible for me to pull over, pick it off of my car, and put it back on. Drat. It appeared to have completely flown away. I was forced to drive leaning over to the passenger side in order to see. Then the hook began to scrape the windshield. I was convinced it was scratching it, and really not to keen on the thought. I began to run the wiper and a half less frequently to prevent at least some of the damage which I knew would be present. I finally was able to pull off, into a town called Yreka, CA. I prayed to find a Wal-Mart or something to that extent, but finding none in my frantic search, I decided to pull off at a gas station and ask inside. I got out of my car, and first went to the windshield. I rubbed the scratch I feared was there. It was just a mark, though my rubbing of it proved futile in an attempt to remove it. I looked down, and there was the fly away wiper! Huzzah!!!!!!! I reattached it, and went about my way. It flew off again, but I was able to pull over and fix it. Not a problem with it since!

The next part of the story may actually shock some of you, so I will get that out of the way now. Despite the fact that I was born in Bishop, CA, have lived in Colorado, Idaho, and now Nevada, I have never once owned snow chains, nor have I ever actually had to put them on or take them off. I've never actually looked forward to the day I knew would come when I had to partake in this seemingly miserable chore. Well, guess what folks? I was actually not allowed to enter the state of Oregon without them! The guy who was checking for them at the border told me I could drive back to certain points on the highways called Chain Installation Stations (I'll explain in a bit), or I could return in half an hour, when it was very likely that they would be lifting this warning. GRR! I opted to go back, just in case I couldn't get through in half an hour.

I had to turn around and drive back. I drove for a bit and thought I saw a Chain Station, so I pulled off the side returning to CA, and returned to my original side. Either the guy moved, or it was purely a figment of my imagination. So, I looped again and went farther this time, making absolutely certain I had seen more than one before I backtracked again! I pulled around and was able to pull up to a Chain Installation Station without a wait. These stations were actually trucks that some people had been employed to drive. The bed of the trucks were filled with boxes and boxes of chains for all tire sizes. For a fee, they would sell them, and an additional fee they would put them on for you. Seeing no other real option at the moment, I paid for the works (much more than it would've cost otherwise). This process of driving around and getting chains ended up taking about an hour. I drove through the border, and the guys were not checking anymore!!!!!!!!!!!

So, I was on my way to Ashland, and ultimately Lebanon. The thing about chains is that you are actually not supposed to drive very fast. I've heard all different speeds, but my Chain Installation Man claimed that 25 mph would be ideal. I think I drove about 15 minutes past the border before getting so frustrated with a slow speed with no need of it, I pulled over to take them off. The guy gave me no instructions. So, the determined and independent parts of my character which are very strong forces in me worked together. I had to remove my coat and gloves--it was soooooooooo cold! I figured out about 2/3 of the removal process. I had to call my dad for the last part, and since he wasn't there, he told me what his supposition was. It took FOREVER to find the blasted last clasp for both tires, but I eventually did it (with lots of prayer, probably more for comforting myself than anything). After about40 minutes of this icky process I got back into my car--shivering, wet, muddy and tearstained. I returned to my mission of getting to Devon's, that is, after a brief visit to a convenience store in Ashland for washing the cold mud off of my hands and arms.

I did have a grand time at Devon's. We talked. I got to read. I got to journal. I helped out in the cuttings room of the Nursery her parents own and have now developed a new trade skill in case teaching doesn't work out. :) I got to meet Steph and her baby daughter Sydney, which was very fun. We watched some episodes of Monk. We watched a Mystery Science Theater 3000 (The Girl in Gold Boots--not very typical of their movies, but a completely wretched one! It was very funny). I got to visit Devon's very cute apartment, and the Springfield Public Library. We went to the outlet mall in Woodburn, and I was able to get my calendar for the 2005 year. Yeah! I got to hear what some of our mutual friends were up to, as did she. I got a more in depth description as to what Grad school was like for her this first term. Very interesting. I was able to share with her some of the wonderful music in Wicked. We spent some time in the hot tub, but the cloudy night allowed us no satisfying view of the stars. :( Her youngest sister, Brenna, thought it fun to chuck a couple of ice cubes at us from the upstairs window, though this did come to a quick end. Good food, fellowship, friends, and fun. I'd consider this trip a success!

So, I've settled on a New Year's Resolution for the year. I used to think they were silly, but now I kind of like the challenge. In 2005, I am going to make a much stronger effort to keep in touch with friends. I want to devote at least a portion of time (at the very least) two weekends a month to call friends--what is a cell phone really for if one does not take advantage of the enormous amounts of weekend minutes and long distance friends? I've been getting better about it, but I could be even better. I will write and respond more often to friends in e-mail and real mail. I also have decided that I need to read at least one new book a month. I have this nasty habit of going through spurts of reading new books, and then going back to my reliable favorites. Really, and I call myself an English teacher? Tsk tsk tsk. So, if anyone would like to help me out with these goals, I would appreciate it. Phone numbers, or e-mail changes/home address changes. Recommended readings. Etc.

Kara, I loved your Christmas letter this year! All that traveling? Ugh, I'm so jealous! How wonderful. But, I think my favorite part was the small print at the end. So, I can get mentioned if I come out and visit (and as we know, I am always up for a cheap opera!), or do something which deplores you, huh? Okay, another resolution for the year is to be mentioned in your letter next year. A visit would be a blast. But what if I went to Vegas and married a dancer whom I'd known approximately 12 minutes? Or, I could straighten my hair and dye it platinum blonde, get blue contacts, work out, and change my name to Barbie (whose sole goal is to get married to a rich man and drive a pink convertible). I could write a book revealing the horrible person you really are, get it published, and have it sold in Kansas City, particularly at NTS (I could title it "Cow Tipping and Ugs are NOT Terms of Endearment"). I could say John Calvin is my new favorite historical figure, wallpaper my room with pictures of the attractive Mr. Calvin, and find a way to blend our faces together digitally for you. I could . . . oh the possibilties are endless. As fun as a visit would be, this could prove to be more fun! :)

Oh, and for those of you wondering about the blind date, well, it didn't happen. I was not in the least bit crushed, either. Que Sera Sera. I really wasn't even looking forward to it, so I was pleased that it didn't.

The title of this post is from a song called "By This Time Next Year," from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard. It is based on the film from 1950 (I love it, but then I like drama more than comedy). The song is performed by characters who want to be big names in Hollywood and such. Lots o' fun.