I ended the day reading more of Hail Mary and really enjoyed the story. I am about 3/4 of the way through the novel and can recommend it. I set the alarm for 1:30 and soon fell asleep. I woke with my alarm, and sent Deborah a text, and she replied. She was dressed, and the Uber had arrived. All good. Later, I got a note telling me I should be asleep, and I did fall back asleep (though my skin rash, which was improving, kept me awake for a while). I dreamed of traveling and making connections.
Before this, I was home after 6 from watching the Bollywood spectacular RRR at the Hollywood Theater in Portland, Oregon. Though sold out, there were some seats left on the edges. The center and all good seats were taken. RRR is loud, full of dance moves, and incredible special effects with CG animals. It is amazing, three hours long, with a break before the story swings onto a different arc. It is a brain cookie, more like a whole dozen brain cookies. The huge screen, sound system, and padded chairs made it all work.
After we said good night, there were seven of us, and I headed to Happy Planet and had their Thai-style tofu for dinner with an iced tea. I had popcorn and a beer at the Hollywood Theater; I kept dinner light. After that, I walk a cold four blocks to Air VW the Gray, parked in a neighborhood on the street. The sidewalk was blocked in two places by groups of less fortunate people who seemed to be waiting for a shelter to open. Other people and I respectfully walked along the street, leaving them their space.
Deborah and I texted and talked as she packed and finished up her family events that had delayed her visit until Monday. She was happy now; it was over, and now it was back to her winter break from school. She is a teacher. Everything was set for her to catch a Delta flight on Monday morning to Portland via a connection in Seattle.
Note: Connections are easy from Seattle, with hourly flights to Portland (and back). If I cannot do Seattle, Salt Lake City is another good choice, as it gets you 1/3 of the way across the country before you connect. When stopping at SLC, flights take three hours each to cross the entire USA. I prefer a direct four-hour flight to Detroit.
Before RRR (so amazing), I was at church. I arrived about 10:45, and the tables and chairs were already out. I carried in sandwiches and wraps from Costco for folks before RRR (there is no time for lunch as traffic is often messy inbound to Portland on Sunday for reasons I cannot understand), and anyone else who wants a sandwich/wrap. No homeless folks appear today, but we were ready with extra sandwiches. Something I think we should offer every morning, but it would create more work for the hospitality team, who already have a lot to do in the morning. With more volunteers, maybe. Our church’s local vision: “Here at the Heart of Beaverton: Christ Calls Us to Feed Our Community: Body, Mind, and Spirit.” Being Methodists, it is no surprise that food is part of our vision. Maybe we can get to sandwiches with the coffee. Maybe offer them before the service, as needed. No reason to listen to our message and be hungry.
The sermon was by Ken, our pastor, and he called it “Broken Courts, Broken People.” The focus was on the arrest and trial of Jesus (Luke’s account, 23:13-25) and how an innocent man was sent to his death. The focus was on the system and its failures, and when we imagine the story, we can see ourselves as the good guys, but when the system of justice is broken, there are no good guys. Are you the officials, the Romans, the people shouting to free an agitator and condemn an innocent man? Do you deny your association with an innocent man as you are afraid (Peter). We are headed into Lent, and it is time for contemplation for churchgoers. But it is also Mardi Gras on Tuesday, and I am missing the Big Easy.
After the service, we had cake, coffee, juice, and sandwiches.
Before this, I rose with the sunrise. I had pumpkin pie with my banana for breakfast. I wrote the blog and tried to organize a few more things at the house.
And that takes us to the start and end of the blog for today. Thanks for reading!
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