days of wine and roses

I'm slightly more intoxicated than I might have expected today -- this was supposed to be the quiet night before the madness of the conference, but I'll just have to hope that tomorrow is the quiet night instead. I made it down to LA in really good time today -- I had intended to leave around 9:30, and instead got on the road at 11:15 (oops). As I so smugly mentioned yesterday, I packed almost everything and had loaded my car already, and so thought all I would have to do today was roll out of bed, shower, and put my laptop in the car before heading off into the distance. Instead, even though I got up at eight, I kept remembering things I needed to do and emails I needed to send. I'm sure I wouldn't have had such a lackadaisical approach if I were flying instead of driving, but it all turned out totally fine.

So, I stopped at Philz on the way out of the city to caffeinate, then drove all the way to Harris Ranch before stopping again. I should have tried to hold out for In and Out at Kettleman City, but I just couldn't wait any longer. I also stopped just before the Grapevine with the intention of getting Starbucks, but the line was ridiculous, so I contented myself with an oh-so-trashy diet mountain dew before going over the pass to the great bowl-shaped dump that is Los Angeles.

I kid, I kid. And anyway, I'm staying with Terry's parents, who live near Pasadena, which is v. much like my beloved Palo Alto and v. unlike whatever you may picture of LA (either Hollywood or the Rodney King riots). I'm driving to Anaheim and the conference tomorrow, but I'm spending the night in Pasadena to a) socialize with the 'rents, b) save on hotel, and c) avoid having to drive through LA at rush hour. I arrived right at six p.m. and gave Terry's mom a tasty bottle of chardonnay, which we immediately opened and had a glass of (yay). When Terry's dad got home, they took me out for dinner, and I have to give two thumbs up to the choice -- it was a steakhouse, which meant I got prime rib AND a baked potato AND an amazing salad, which is a recipe for happiness. And Terry's dad and I split a bottle of pinot noir, so I left both full and happy. And even if they had taken me to Taco Bell (which I will never turn my nose up to), I would have had a good time - I probably know Terry's parents better than any friend's parents (other than Katie, but then, I grew up with her), so we had a v. lovely meal and an entertaining conversation.

Now, though, even though it's only ten p.m., I think I may go to bed -- I need to be on when I get to the conference tomorrow, so sleep tonight would be smart. The conference doesn't start tomorrow, but I have plans to meet up with various people and have dinner plans with a fellow author, so I should at least be awake for them. Goodnight!