1. I dropped off Maggie and Charly at the vet so they could get a couple of vaccinations and have their nails clipped. I drop them off rather than have an office visit because the dogs don't mind and leaving off the dogs guarantees me about three to four hours of silence in our apartment home. Moreover, in the dogs' absence, I can vacuum our humble abode without the dogs attacking the vacuum cleaner or scream barking in their crate. I never dreamed, when I was young, of a future where I would so fully enjoy vacuuming the carpeting of an apartment, but, ha!, I do, and I especially enjoy vacuuming when I can do it without protest from the dogs.
2. I had a quick dinner in mind to fix tonight -- a red curry rice noodle soup -- so I was going to fix it when the Deke and I arrived back at our apartment home after school. But, before we even got out of the school parking lot, we decided to go to the Old Line Bistro for a couple of beers and to split a burger and fries. Upon arriving, two servers we really enjoy a lot, Kristi and Laura, bounded out to our table to greet us and to report that they'd been "fighting" in the back to see who got to serve us! We were there a little early, before the place got busy, so we had a good visit with Laura while Kristi, the apparent winner of the fight, took our orders and cheerfully served us for the rest of our stay. We had a great time. The Deke relaxed after another trying day at work and we had a fun conversation, reflecting, as we often do, about how very different from anything we've ever known life in Maryland is, especially in contrast to life in Eugene, and talked about the sweet nostalgia we often feel for life in Eugene.
3. A couple of months ago, we bought these chintzy 6 oz. glasses at IKEA. We use them often to split 12 oz beers. Often, neither of us wants a whole bottle or can of beer. Splitting a beer works perfectly. Tonight, our nightcap was flawless. It gave me the same fundamental pleasure as a cup of hot chocolate. We split a can of DC Brau/Cigar City's The Wise and the Lovely, an Imperial Stout. It packs a boozy punch with its 10% ABV. It's a smooth chocolate nut candy bar, and, as a milk stout, it's like drinking a glass of cold milk to chase down the candy bar, only the chocolate and the nut and the milk are all combined into a single rush of goodness on the tongue. It's the perfect beer to drink from a 6 oz glass, almost like having a brandy to top off the night, and it left me feeling warm and happy as I gazed upon the freshly vacuumed carpet, enjoyed the sound of easy breathing as the corgis slept, and thought about how I never dreamed I'd be sitting in a basement apartment in a D. C. suburb, living close to grandchildren and making my way around a part of the USA I'd rarely even thought about before. You just never know. . . .
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