The plan

A ridge of High Pressure over northern Washington is keeping the weather away from the west coast this weekend and into next week. It is super sunny here right now, and looks to be that way for my whole drive.

I’m going to California tomorrow, on a long drive to see my oldest/longest held friend. It’s been a little over three years since I saw her last; I drove down there for New Year’s 2008/9.

A month ago, my cat died; I don’t have to be here all the time anymore. He had diabetes , and I had to give him shots twice a day; I couldn’t go away overnight (although I did twice, in three years, but Blacky Cat only missed one shot those times. He did not die of diabetes).

I can’t really afford this trip, but I’m going to go anyway. It will be good for me to have a complete change of scenery. It’s a thousand miles down and a thousand back.

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The Plan

I will leave about ten tomorrow morning; the building has a "café" downstairs, a resident-run breakfast three times a week. For $2.50, I can get three eggs, hash brown potatoes, bacon or sausage, toast, coffee, and juice. It’s a wicked good deal – it’s not about profit, it’s about helping the residents of this building. Most of us are poor.

Breakfast runs from 8 to 10; I’ll get up at 8 and go down and have breakfast and plan to be on I-5 south by 10. The GPS gives me over 17 hours of driving time for the distance. Last time I did it, it took me 25 hours, total, although once, my wife and I drove from Portland to LA non-stop and did it in 18 hours.

I don’t have any real time pressure on me; I figure to be in Big Bear, where my friend lives, in the late afternoon on Saturday. I’ll stay three nights and leave to drive north on Tuesday. I’m going to stop in Bakersfield to meet someone I never have before; I’ll write about it next week.

Today, the plan is to go to my friend A’s house and wash my car – I’m gonna go "clean", and see what the car looks like after two thousand miles of driving.

Last night was the first night since Blacky died that I didn’t use anything to sleep; I couldn’t, and was up until 5:30 and got up at 11:30. It will work out, since I plan to drive all day tomorrow, and into the night. A couple of cat-nap stops, maybe, and I’ll be there. Coffee and Cliff Bars and stops for gas, non-stop if I can.

On the way home, the only real time pressure is the apartment inspection I have on the 9th – I want to get home to finish cleaning before the inspection.

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Next, wash the car.

Charge my camera batteries, Pack up, load the stuff into the car, get some sleep, eat breakfast, and I’m on the road again.

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