1. I am happy to report that my drive from Kellogg to Eugene was both easy and enjoyable. If not for a longish wait for a croissant at Starbucks in Ritzville where the barista forgot I ordered it and a couple of slowdowns on I 205 and I 5, I would have made the trip in nine hours. As it turned out, I arrived in Eugene almost simultaneously with the Deke and Patrick -- the Deke called me from the corner of Broadway and High and I answered the phone while at a stoplight one block back.
2. We met at 16 Tons, an almost spiritual experience for the Deke and me. This was one of three places in Eugene during the days in 2013-14 when everything was on the table and we worked out our decision to sell the house and move, eventually, to Maryland. It was always our favorite beer place and today was no different. I knew I was back on the West Coast drinking an Oregon IPA as I worked my way through a pint of Ft. George 3-Way IPA, a stunningly flavorful, intensely hoppy, hazy glass of bliss. I also had a couple of 4 oz pours of Logsdon's Kriek Vier Sour, a bourbon aged sour balanced by just the right sweetness of cherries. More bliss.
Temporary heaven? Reunion with the Deke. Reunion with Patrick. Drinking fine beer at 16 Tons and eating pizza from La Perla Pizzeria across the street.
3. We decided we wanted to go one more place before getting settled into the condo.
Billy Mac's. The refurbished Billy Mac's as it turns out. It was the Deke's and my second place to go to spread everything about our lives on the table and make decisions.
We learned from our Billy Mac's friend and server, Amber, that Cathy no longer works the floor, but we hope she might pop in and visit us when we meet with our Billy Mac's friends on Thursday.
Patrick, the Deke, and I shared a plate of pan-seared ahi with wontons and each had a drink and the Deke and I continued to revel in our return to another familiar place in this city where we lived so many years.
When it was time to go to the condo, I took the long way to 10th and Lincoln and drove by the house we once owned. Back in 2011, the Deke and I had a new yard and gardens put in and I wanted to see how it had all matured.
I also put in some roses along the side of the garage by the alley and I wondered if they had thrived.
Everything has thrived -- well, everything the people who bought the house kept in the ground -- which was almost everything.
I enjoyed seeing all those plants doing so well and will return to gawk at the plants some more.
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