1. I admit it. It's odd. I enjoy driving to Spokane early in the morning and having my labs done at Sacred Heart. I could have them done in Kellogg, but if I go to Spokane, the results, with one exception, are available within an hour or so -- the test that is an exception is ready in the early afternoon. No billing snafus happen. I enjoy listening to a book on audible as I drive to Spokane. I enjoy being in the Spokane metro area where things are busy, buzzing with activity and energy. Last of all, although it didn't work out today, I enjoy going to places that feel not too risky soon after 7:30 for coffee, to buy bread at Great Harvest, and do some non-necessity shopping at Trader Joe's.
Today, though, I drove straight back home. The results of my blood work I received in the morning were ready to view before I arrived in Kellogg.
As I hoped they would be, the test results are stable and encouraging.
2. Debbie arrived in Virginia on Sunday to visit Molly's family so this evening it was up to me to host this week's family dinner on my own.
Knowing this was coming, when I shopped at Trader Joe's a while back, I decided that we would have a Trader Joe's family dinner.
As it turned out, I augmented the Trader Joe's offerings with cut up plain, sesame, and everything bagels from Beach Bum Bakery, but otherwise, everything else I served this evening was a Trader Joe's product.
For appetizers, I served the bagels with an assortment of dips and other small bites: dolmas, hummus, Greek chickpeas with parsley and cumin, eggplant with tomato and onion.
Christy served gin and tonics and Carol and Molly each brought a bottle of wine. (Not Trader Joe's -- no problem!)
For our main dish, I fixed a Trader Joe's Santa Maria Tri Tip Roast along with mashed cauliflower and a rice medley. Both sides came out of frozen packages.
For dessert, I put out Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Bark with Pretzels, Sea Salt, and Almonds, a delicious combination.
I liked how my idea worked out. The Trader Joe's items were solid, pretty tasty, and it was just fun to try out a different concept, to have spent some mad money to bring it about, and to see it through tonight.
3. The other day when I went to The Well-Read Moose and purchased Timothy Egan's A Fever in the Heartland, the woman who waited on me told me how much she loved Timothy Egan's work, that she would read a phone book if Timothy Egan wrote it. I agreed with her, even though I've only read three other of his books (Breaking Blue will always be a favorite all-time book of mine). I told her I found A Fever in the Heartland a sobering book. She liked that word! She didn't see how her compliment made me smile because I had on a mask. But her delight delighted me. I liked the connection we made.
Today, as I cruised I-90, I listened, as best I could, to A Fever in the Heartland, and continued to find it sobering. And puzzling. But, my experience of being puzzled by white supremacy, by advocates of a "pure America" or who assert very restrictive ideas of what it means to be a "true American" is lifelong. I continue to read books about these ways of seeing the USA and the more I read, the more puzzled I am.
I guess I'm just not a monocultural guy, whether in a garden, a forest, or when it comes to the makeup of the USA.
Later in the day, I made another connection with a fellow reader and longtime friend, Colette Marie.
Colette let me know that she, too, had read The Cassandra and that its author, Sharma Shields, is someone she's been at Fishtrap with. Colette described Sharma Shields as a "joyful, generous teacher, facilitator, and speaker." I hope I'll be able to meet up with Colette in October when I hope to make a trip to Pendleton. I am eager to hear everything she has to say about The Cassandra. I'm thinking she has perspectives on this story that are unavailable to me and that her insights will help expand my experience with this novel.
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