Today was another "not-quite-what-I-expected" day. I soaked in the hot tub again while Dianna had an online meeting this morning. (She's been working in Winnipeg, and I just lucked out that she was home in Portland to help her husband with some medical things. So, in Winnipeg, the meeting was at 8:30 a.m., but for Dianna, it was at 6:30 a.m.) I applied some Arnica to my sore muscles after the soak and a subsequent shower. By the time I was done with that, Dianna was done with her meeting, and we had some breakfast together.
She had lots of work to do, so I packed up and went on my way. I headed to I-5, which goes pretty much straight south to Portland. First, there was the rain -- spitty rain, drizzly rain, showering rain, and drenching downpour rain, with periods of no rain and even a ray of sun or two. This continued for most of the trip.
For those of you who know the area, after at least 45 minutes of stop and go traffic we encountered a semi lying on its side (plus strobes, tow truck, and road trucks with flashing arrows on them) just north of exit 82. It finally occurred to me that, since we were moving so slowly, this might be a good time to call the Healthcare Marketplace and take care of some business. The phone call was easily sandwiched into the stalled time, and I even had time to get bored after it was finished.
As I got closer to Portland I thought, "I'm really not seeing very much of the beautiful countryside. Perhaps I should get off the expressway." I exited to Main Street at Vancouver and kept going south. Remy and I took a break in downtown Vancouver and had a burger at Old Ivy. There were few people but the food was good, and the server was very personable. I only had 30 minutes on the meter, though, so we didn't hang out for long.
After lunch, we continued south, but when Google was sending us back onto I-5, the voice said, "There is an accident in .6 miles." I didn't want to just sit in traffic again, so I took a different road, stopped at a coffee place and read my book for a while.
I noticed that I was becoming more and more irritable with Remy and with just stuff that was happening. That was when I remembered that I had gone to bed without my CPAP last night. I was so tired and sore, and I was reading in bed. When I was about to turn off the light, I realized I hadn't brought my CPAP in from the car. I didn't want to wake Dianna and Bob, and I was ready to simply tumble into sleep, so I decided it would be okay for one night. It wasn't. I'm exhausted. And I felt like I had a sore throat when I woke up this morning, too, because of the snoring I undoubtedly did all night.
After coffee, Remy and I stopped at a Petco -- still looking for a replacement for the bike basket, which they didn't have -- and at Target to replace the bike lock I left hanging on the rack on the back of the car till it fell off, apparently. In the meantime, I had made a reservation at a local hotel, The Chestnut Tree, and we headed there, crossing back over the Columbia River to the north and driving alongside it, then recrossing the Columbia further east.
The hotel isn't in a really cool neighborhood. Those hotels were $200 and up per night. But they upgraded me to a suite with a kitchenette and lots of space (that we don't really need). Also, the kitchenette doesn't have any dishes or a microwave, so I can't really use it without buying a bunch of stuff.
When I left Tacoma this morning, I thought I'd arrive in Portland in the mid to late morning and spend some time walking around the town, but as the day progressed I realized that maybe my legs weren't yet ready for a big day of walking. I'm still recovering from Mount Walker, and while today was better than yesterday, I'm still pretty sore.
I guess that means that I'll see what I see tomorrow, and then I'll continue south toward Penn Valley. For tonight, I don't know if I'll go out again. I'm almost finished with the last Harry Dresden novel -- there's still a book of short stories I'll probably read -- and I'm bushed. I hate to spend an evening in a hotel room when there's an interesting city out there to check out. We'll see how it goes. Perhaps a hot bath and a little nap, and then maybe I'll have some energy for sightseeing.
She had lots of work to do, so I packed up and went on my way. I headed to I-5, which goes pretty much straight south to Portland. First, there was the rain -- spitty rain, drizzly rain, showering rain, and drenching downpour rain, with periods of no rain and even a ray of sun or two. This continued for most of the trip.
For those of you who know the area, after at least 45 minutes of stop and go traffic we encountered a semi lying on its side (plus strobes, tow truck, and road trucks with flashing arrows on them) just north of exit 82. It finally occurred to me that, since we were moving so slowly, this might be a good time to call the Healthcare Marketplace and take care of some business. The phone call was easily sandwiched into the stalled time, and I even had time to get bored after it was finished.
As I got closer to Portland I thought, "I'm really not seeing very much of the beautiful countryside. Perhaps I should get off the expressway." I exited to Main Street at Vancouver and kept going south. Remy and I took a break in downtown Vancouver and had a burger at Old Ivy. There were few people but the food was good, and the server was very personable. I only had 30 minutes on the meter, though, so we didn't hang out for long.
After lunch, we continued south, but when Google was sending us back onto I-5, the voice said, "There is an accident in .6 miles." I didn't want to just sit in traffic again, so I took a different road, stopped at a coffee place and read my book for a while.
I noticed that I was becoming more and more irritable with Remy and with just stuff that was happening. That was when I remembered that I had gone to bed without my CPAP last night. I was so tired and sore, and I was reading in bed. When I was about to turn off the light, I realized I hadn't brought my CPAP in from the car. I didn't want to wake Dianna and Bob, and I was ready to simply tumble into sleep, so I decided it would be okay for one night. It wasn't. I'm exhausted. And I felt like I had a sore throat when I woke up this morning, too, because of the snoring I undoubtedly did all night.
After coffee, Remy and I stopped at a Petco -- still looking for a replacement for the bike basket, which they didn't have -- and at Target to replace the bike lock I left hanging on the rack on the back of the car till it fell off, apparently. In the meantime, I had made a reservation at a local hotel, The Chestnut Tree, and we headed there, crossing back over the Columbia River to the north and driving alongside it, then recrossing the Columbia further east.
The hotel isn't in a really cool neighborhood. Those hotels were $200 and up per night. But they upgraded me to a suite with a kitchenette and lots of space (that we don't really need). Also, the kitchenette doesn't have any dishes or a microwave, so I can't really use it without buying a bunch of stuff.
When I left Tacoma this morning, I thought I'd arrive in Portland in the mid to late morning and spend some time walking around the town, but as the day progressed I realized that maybe my legs weren't yet ready for a big day of walking. I'm still recovering from Mount Walker, and while today was better than yesterday, I'm still pretty sore.
I guess that means that I'll see what I see tomorrow, and then I'll continue south toward Penn Valley. For tonight, I don't know if I'll go out again. I'm almost finished with the last Harry Dresden novel -- there's still a book of short stories I'll probably read -- and I'm bushed. I hate to spend an evening in a hotel room when there's an interesting city out there to check out. We'll see how it goes. Perhaps a hot bath and a little nap, and then maybe I'll have some energy for sightseeing.
No comments:
Post a Comment