1. After a morning of coffee, Kansas City bacon, and scrambled eggs, the Deke, Vickie, Alan, and I piled into Alan and Vickie's SUV and headed up the North Fork of the CdA River and deep into the Idaho Panhandle Forest up Eagle Creek for a visit to the Settler's Grove of Ancient Cedars. A wildfire had swept through this area about three years ago and it was impressive to see how the giant cedars had survived, even as the charred remains of lesser trees surrounded them. The conditions on the trail reminded me of the capacity of trees, especially ancient ones like these, to keep the forest from becoming scorching hot. Even though the temperatures outside the grove were climbing into the 80s, inside the grove the air ranged between cool and warm and was very comfortable.
2. After some time in the forest, we pulled into the parking lot at the Prichard Tavern. It's a rustic place, clean, and comfortable. I enjoyed my elk burger and fries. I'm getting more and more accustomed to some aspects of life in North Idaho that I am experiencing again, but that were not a part of my life either in Eugene or in Maryland. The stuffed heads of several wild animals decorated the walls. A guy at the bar wore a holstered gun, unconcealed. Country music from the 80s and 90s played at a low volume through the house's cable or satellite television service. Everywhere I've lived, I've enjoyed the differences between places and this is true being back in North Idaho again. I'm feeling more and more a part of things here after my long absence.
3. Vickie, Alan, the Deke, and I sat at our table on the deck and enjoyed the pork chops I fried and the salad the Deke made. Toward the end of dinner, Ed texted me wondering if I were uptown, at the Lounge. I said I wasn't, but I could be and so we decided to go see Cas and Tracy. The Deke, Vickie, and Alan were comfortable in the cool evening air of the deck, were planning on having some ice cream and raspberries, and had wine sipping plans. So they stayed put while I went up to the Inland Lounge. Tonight Cas schooled me regarding the deep flaws in the abilities of former Pittsburgh Pirate Dick "Dr. Strangeglove" Stuart and how a buddy of ours might have made it to the majors had he not idolized Dick "Stone Fingers" Stuart and emulated "Iron Glove"'s habit of running the bases with his head down, oblivious to the location of struck balls and the base running signals of base coaches. Ed was doing pretty well after a fairly restful day and he and Cas swapped some great work stories.
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