Tuesday Seeing Folks, In Brief

I have only 35 minutes to write this….

I woke in my hotel with some sleep, but I was in bed at 2 AM, and the sunrise comes early. I am back at the same Holiday Inn Express in the Detroit area, not far from Deborah’s house. I rise, shower, dress (unpack some), and have the usual industrial breakfast and coffee from the usual machines and buffet.

I invest in a new blog entry and cover the mess I made of travel the day before. With that published, I board the new rental, Air Chevy, a smaller SUV, conventional gas-powered, but still with Apple CarPlay running and the usual safety things. Off to Lansing by way of Flint; it is faster. I travel around 75 mph most of the trip. In Michigan, distances seem to be shorter by car. I have no trouble, despite years of driving in the Greater Portland, Oregon area, I can go fast.

I meet Leta, already waiting for me, at Panera Bread at the old Lansing Mall. Barb C, making the same trek from the Flint area, soon joined us, and we chatted about travel plans, Susie, Bob Wild, and other memories. Emma, Barb C’s daughter, now resides in Beaverton, and we chatted about her and upcoming visits.

It is always sad to go our separate ways, but I will be back in October and will see Barb in a few weeks in Oregon. I called Mom Wild’s facility and told them I would be there in thirty minutes. I crossed Lansing without my usual stop at Curious Bookstore (maybe I can manage another trip to Lansing). Mom was still in bed when I got there, but she soon rallied, and we were soon in the car exploring tobacco shops. It was 98°F (36°C), and we needed to run the AC full out.

I discovered that the first shop had only Zero-nicotine versions (Deborah thinks these are folks who are trying to break the habit), but we did find them at a nearby truck stop. We agreed to meet Linda (and then Jesse and Meg) at BJ’s Brewhouse at Eastwood. Mom and I headed that way, got Mom outside and sitting under a tree on grass by the parking lot, and vaped for a while. I had to stand. Mom used the roll-a-tor (a sort of walker with wheels and a seat) to sit and vape.

We got a table indoors, got some cold drinks, and soon Linda, then Jesse with Meg (Jesse is Linda’s husband and Meg his daughter). We had a later lunch or early dinner. Murphy, our server, was not very attentive, but we made it work. I had a small pizza (about two slices) and iced tea (knowing I would likely eat again with Jeanne).

We said our goodbyes (Linda’s Birthday is on the 23rd, and we plan to meet for it), and I then headed, by Nav, to Laingsburg to pick up Jeanne to join Deborah and me on our tour of Michigan. With all the construction, Apple Maps took me down back roads and along Round Lake Road to Laingsburg.

Picked up Jeanne and remembered Laingsburg from 40 years ago while driving around.

In brief, we took Air Chevy back to the Detroit area, saw Deborah, ate fast food there, and made a plan for Wednesday. I got back to the hotel at 10 and soon fell asleep.

And that is all I have time for! Thanks for reading.