Escape to CA – day 7!

Soooo… where were we? Is anyone tired yet, reading how jam-packed my vacation was? Anyone feeling like a vacation to recover from my vacation? Funny – me TOO! By day seven, otherwise known as ‘Tuesday’, I was glad to have a day to kind of relax and take it easy, and curl up with Scooter where the coffee flows free! See, at the Coffee Cantina, they have free Wi-Fi, and thus while TBF was at work, I could get some work of my own done, catching up on email, my 451 Press blogs, and generally putz around online and stuff.

So, round 11:30 or 11:45 or so (Or, perhaps as late as 11:50… hah!), as TBF had to be at work at noon, we stumbled out of the house, me with Scooter in hand, and both of us with Coffee in our sights. You know, I remember a time when TBF scoffed at my love of the caffeinated delights, but now he can OH SO OFTEN be found with an Iced Latte with caramel drizzled along the inside of the cup in hand. Hah! That is, of course, what he ordered, as I settled myself into a window seat, and got connected. My coffee was also gotten (a simple large IV bag of mocha, of course, and keep it coming…) we said our goodbyes, promised to meet up for dinner (easily done as hello – he was my RIDE…) and I settled into playing catch up.

Now, about an hour in, I realized that the sun, coming in that window? was VERY FUCKING HOT… and moved back into the small dining area, where there were more tables and less direct sunlight. The nice thing about both areas of seating, was that I had a good view of all the people as they came in, wandered around, chatted, sat for a bit, some working some not, and then disappeared again. Now, there was one table in the back that I instantly WANTED to sit at – and no, not because of the BBM sitting there and not hitting on me at all. No, it had the COMFY chairs. I determined right then and there, that THAT table would be MINE the next day, as I sat at a tiny table in the corner, and wriggled about on uncomfortable chairs.

  So, working and what not isn’t all that interesting a tale to tell, bu there were some amusing moments. The first came when I bought my first bottle of water. I was DYING of heat, of course, and so hit the water cooler, only to find “Alaska Glacier Water” one of the three brands offered. This, of course, amused me to no end, and I “bought local” by getting a taste of home in a bottle. Or two. Or three. I shared a chuckle with the handsome guy behind the counter and told him “You know, back home? We just call this tap water!” I also had some lovely potato chips that I munched on to stave away the starvation when I realized that I needed to hit the ATM for some cash, and they started baking something – I have NO IDEA WHAT – in the back that smelled FANTASTIC. Later on, they added COOKIE BAKING To the deal and my belly chastised me for forgetting the ATM… LOUDLY.  During this time, TBF and I made plans to meet up for lunch/dinner, whenever he got a break at work.

Now, the people provided entertainment, and in one case it wasn’t exactly DESIRED entertainment. In the case of the BBM who wasn’t hitting on me (that bears noting again, as clearly in CA, that is not the way it usually happens!) he did not do as I did, and bring headphones to save the masses from his chosen listening fare. I’m not sure what the hell he was doing, but he was watching/listening to something Over and Over again – at a volume high enough that I heard it WITH my headphones on. I did look around at him once and got a ‘shrug an smile’ of the ‘deal with it’ or ‘whatever’ persuasion, and I just chuckled and went about my business.

So, hours later, and caught up on work and messages and people around the bloggasphere, and even an episode of Pushing Daisies, and I was just dinking around online when in sauntered TBF. Now, we had said that we’d get food there, but the cantina was going to be closing in an hour or so, and he had to return to work, so instead I packed up, we hit the ATM and I finally got to taste something TBF has been BRAGGING about for weeks: Buffalo Burgers from Killer Ribs.

He’s so well known he called ahead…  and they knew the order by name. He doubled it, of course, and we swung by the ATM and then picked up our burgers. TBF does indeed know everyone in his town, as I was introduced to several, and was going to get to carve my name in The Table, but the tool they’d been using didn’t work, so TBF will have to put a “Lessa was here” message on there for me later. Our burgers in hand, as well as a scratch ‘n’ sniff business card that amuses the pup to no end…

… and we were off, and headed back to let TBF finish up his work for the night. He was trying to get caught up/ahead so that we’d get an early start out to Pismo Beach and meet the SIL at a decent hour, but… well. THAT story is for tomorrow. They did have wifi at the paper, so I was able to connect and dink around while eating my burger (Every bit as fantastic as promised! If you’re ever in Frazier Park, stop by and tell them I sent ya!).

Eventually, TBF got to a point where he could work no longer, and we headed back home. We filled up the gas tank in preparation for tomorrow’s trip (And because we were making that E mean Enough by coasting down the hills in the morning…) as well as picked up some Jack in the Box where we were helped by the “Happy Asian Guy!” who was, indeed Happy! and even packed up our food with Flair and Flamboyant Joy and made everyone want to smile right back at him, even when he told us what we ordered first was unavailable! How could we be upset? We couldn’t! Not at Happy Asian Guy!

So, back home it was, where we, once again, assured the pets that We Love Them Best Of All, and listened to the wife cuss and crow happily at the Xbox, and ate our late night dinners. Then it was time to pack – I had to fit all the stuff I’d already gotten, plus the things that TBF wanted to send home to the kids, and have it all ready by the next morning, so that after work, we could grab the suitcase, the wife, and go. We separated shells that TBF had picked up in Mexico for the kids, and got them tucked away, discovered the fuzzy leopard print case that was genuine Fredericks of Hollywood for the girl, and also, the jacket. This jacket was a well loved jacket by TBF, but it shrank in the wash, and was being handed down to the pup. Since getting it home, I have not gotten it OFF her. She sleeps in it. (I won’t let her wear it to church or school – not until clearing it with the teacher.) She sheds her clothing when she hits the door just like she always has (Stripper!) and pulls on the jacket. See?

(The other kids love the things sent to them as well (‘the box! is FUZZY! and PRETTY! and WHOO!’ and also ‘WHOO! this bionacle is AWESOME’) )

So, after packing, and talking and discovering that TBF had to be at work at 9 (…in the MORNING?!), I agreed to head in with him again, and set up shop at the Cantina at the GOOD table – and then, we went to sleep.

Tomorrow’s tale, that will include a chatty visitor to my table, late night starts, windy “mountain” roads, missed lefts at Albuquerque, Pismo Beach, drug dealers, AND of course, my SIL.