• 08:17 I forgot that PDX’s security lines suck. #
• 09:09 On a direct flight to NYC. I plan on sleeping on the plane. What’s in your plan for today? #
• 14:49 Have arrived at JFK but there’s a helicopter parked in our spot. I would like to deplane please. #
• 15:36 Finally. Off the plane. Have my luggage now to the subway. I’m already annoyed at tourists. #
• 17:06 Finally back in the apartment. #

And lo! I have returned to NYC and yet I have not slain any of the tourists who insist on stopping at the top of the stairs.

The cats are very needy because Rob has been working long hours at the winery.  He got home around 8:30 tonight and smelled like grape juice.  The grapes arrived today, so harvest has begun.  He says that it was very strange to be sorting fruit and see cabs going by.

I’m not sure how I feel about being a wine widow in NYC.  I mean, we’ve got this routine down around harvest that involves spending time in a winery surrounded by vineyards.  That can at least pretend to be romantic, if you ignore all the plumbing involved in making wine.  But the sound of taxis honking?  Not so much.

I’m sitting at the very civilized PDX airport, waiting for my flight. ¹

The trip to Portland has made me a little melancholy, wishing we still lived here. I had breakfast with David Levine and Katy Yule yesterday morning at Milo’s, which is one of my favorite breakfast spots. In the afternoon, I hung out with -e- on her porch while she worked on a lamp and I edited stories.

I took a walk up 15th, past our house, and then down Alberta. I didn’t go into the house, but just seeing it from the outside made me a little homesick. BUT on Alberta, I ran into a couple of friends that I hadn’t managed to get in touch with. So that was lovely. I went over to their house and hung out for a bit before trotting down to have an early dinner with Sam Mowry and Cindy McGean. It was so good to see them.

From there, I went to Sue McBerry’s, my voice coach, and we just sat in her living room and chatted for not long enough.

I miss all of these people.

1. Actually, the security is some of the most ridiculous in terms of number and length of lines, but once you’re past that there’s free wi-fi and outlets galore. [↩]

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I’m in the airport in Cincinatti waiting for my connection to Portland.  I’ll spend the day in town and then head down to Lincoln City for a writing workshop hosted by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch.  Their guest instructor is Sheila Williams.  As you might imagine, I’m excited about this.

Even more exciting, I’ll get to see lots of old friends.

The workshop rules say that we can’t blog about it while there, so expect scanty entries from me until at least Monday.  I’ll be in Portland until the 18th and then back to NYC.  At the moment, my plan is to do a get-together at one of the McMennamins once I have a better idea of my post-workshop schedule.  I’ll keep you posted.