we’re goin’ yngwie to the malmsteen!

Well, we’ve got this circus all but packed up. Today was my last day at the shop, and tomorrow will be devoted to loading the trailer.

Assuming I can get a trailer. I’m a bit cheesed off at U-Haul right now, because they were supposed to call me today to set up a time and location for picking up my trailer tomorrow. They promised to call by 5pm, so as that hour came and passed I paid them a call… only to have a recording tell me that their normal working hours end at 5pm, and that everyone had since vacated the regional office and was attending a rave in an abandoned Portland warehouse. Lucky.

Also assuming the wind doesn’t blow. We’ve been promised wind for the last three days in a row, but haven’t seen anything since last Wednesday. They’re predicting wind tomorrow (the same as they predicted for Friday, Saturday and Sunday), and if it blows I’ll probably be out on the water. I have all my kiteboarding gear in my car, locked, stocked and ready to rock at a moment’s notice.

I’m sure I’ll have time to do both. I’ve already packed that trailer a million times in my head, and I’ve fit those boxes together eleven ways from Sunday, striving for the absolute most efficient use of space. In the past I swear I’ve packed more stuff into a Ford Tempo than I need to pack into this 4′ x 8′ trailer, so this project is going to be total cake.

Total cake, assuming I don’t do something stupid and leave the trailer to roll down the hill and careen into the woods. I was looking out the window today and realized for the first time how steep 9th Street really is. I was examining the angle using the window frame as a perpendicular to horizonal, and geez, that street has a pretty darn good pitch. I’ve been parking my car on 9th for four months now, and only today do I appreciate how dependable my parking break really is.

Tomorrow night we’re partying at 6th Street Bistro, 8pm if it’s windy, 7pm if not. I know when I’m leaving this town but I don’t know when I’m coming back, so we best make this a good one. I need a rockin’ send-off if I am to make my long and magical journey back to The ‘Soter. I’m taking the scenic route, so the radio will be playing nothing but static for the next few days. Wish me luck, and busy yourselves until my return!