...not for me. for pete. my long time hockey/music/etc pal (he's a fuckin' bomber so...that kinda says it all) bought a car in portland - it was quite a process with more than a little back and forth - and yesterday was the day to go and grab it and bring it home. sure, he coulda taken a plane or a bus or a donkey but once i found out, i offered to drive him. fun right? two guys on a little road trip to portland to get a car.
lovely. sign me up.
and it was. lovely.
i grabbed pete at seven am yesterday morning and we were off. i'd like to regale you with stories of idiot border guards and flat tires and such, but i can't. i just can't. it all went very well. the border was easy - though there was a moment in the questioning process that i wondered how many more the guard with the lack of dental plan would ask us, but it soon ended and we were outta there.
some trader joe's snacks for the road, a quick stop in olympia for some coffee at cafe vita - that also turned into a quick visit to the local taco truck (decent, pretty decent) and we were back on the road and in portland by 1 pm. all good. more wandering around, coffee at stumptown and then - the experiment i've always wanted to try - levi's shrink to fit jeans. i finally bought myself a pair. for those who don't know, here's the deal. levi's make a jean - the 501 - that can be bought in a preshrunk or a shrink to fit. i have, for most of my life, bought the pre-shrunk. in recent years i have heard stories of people buying the shrink to fit and what it takes to make them yours - the idea being that by buying the shrink to fit you get jeans that fit you. just you. and after a while they are the best jeans you've ever worn. that's the idea. and they shrink a lot. you need to buy up in size - two sizes up in the waist and up to four sizes in the length. so i did that - i actually went a little over in the waist because the math didn't work correctly. no biggie.
and now. the process is this. you put the jeans in the bath in warm water for about an hour. after the hour you take them out and roll the jeans up trying to squeeze out as much of the excess water as you can. then you put them on until they are dry. sounds good huh? and as they dry they shrink to your uniquer body shape. also, you try and wash them as little as possible over the next six months. (if they get skanky there are a couple things you can do - wash them but do not put them in the dryer in fact maybe do the dry on you thingy again, or you can hang them outside for a day or two and some even put them in the freezer - a famous newscaster does this.
so in the next little bit i will be doing this when i have a few hours to burn. stay tuned.
we had to meet the car dude at 3 pm and then after we'd have some time to get a burrito or tacos or both. i had thought of staying over but was leaning towards just heading home, but a meal at la bonita had to be in the works before i headed back. i love that joint.
even though i didn't have a ton of time, i did want to see mishi and garb's pal, tara, who had moved there in december. (we're pals as well but i met her through them) she awesome. she lives down there with her son, max and her man kevin - he's a big wig in portland at their version of science world. i suspect he's a smarty pants. so we invited max and tara to come to la bonita with us - they accepted. it was a great time - i had a lovely shrimp chimichanga (i can't remember the last time i had one of those...and it was great.) pete loves the mexican goodness and i think his veggie burrito made the grade. max had a little of tara's food and some of his own. it was great to see her.
the car dude was perhaps the straightest man in the world and in the end, i think, just wanted us outta there. as i said, it had been a long process and he just wanted the cash in the bank and us headed north.i went to shake his hand as we were getting ready to split and he turned away and said, 'see ya...' so be it.
after we dinner we went back to tara and max's, used the facilities and we were away. well, pete was away and i was headed to trader joe's for some goods and then i would be heading north. somehow i ended up ahead of pete and had been thinking of staying in a hotel if i got tired but after mount vernon i hit a second wind and made my way to the border, through, and home. left at 6:45 am and home at 1:15 am the next day.
perfect.
pete had to stay over night in bellingham and then took care of the paperwork this morning, and now has a new car in his garage.
nice work pete. nice work.
g. xo
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