Author: alohawild

Time always seems to move strangely on a travel day. I woke up in room 101 and soon showered and all that. I had dreams, now forgotten, all pleasant. It was early still, but I am seldom tired in the morning. I can always nod off in a warm sunny moment in the afternoon, especially after a delicious lunch.

I managed to shove, crush, and climb on top of my luggage and close it. I also moved the travel books to my bag. My carry-on would be slightly lighter on the way back. Deborah and I were happy to spend the morning together; my original flight had me leaving in the morning. Delta rebooked me on the evening flight when something went wrong (I never learned what happened).

I checked out, with extended checkout, just after checkout time, as Deborah and I had decided on lunch and then a movie on her TV, The Italian Job. The movie features Mini Coopers.

Lunch was Chinese-style, and I had almond chicken plus egg foo young, while Deborah had lemon chicken. Much of it became leftovers after the soup, egg rolls, or crab rangoons, and then we received a large serving of chicken.

As we traveled in Ziggy, Deborah’s blue racing stripe Mini Cooper, we honked for the protesters against Trump’s policy on a busy corner. Yes, we are liberal. Deborah and I returned to her house.

We chatted with Liam and Donovan (Deborah’s sons) until they headed out. We were, as always happens, running out of time in the afternoon. We watched the movie and managed to get through about half of it.

We took my bags and loaded them into Ziggy’s trunk area. Deborah used a lint brush on me to remove the doggie glitter that her dogs Trixie and Zelda had shared with me. We stopped by to refuel Ziggy before heading to the Detroit airport.

We arrived at the airport and we both tried not to look sad. We had been together for two weeks in California, a few weeks before this latest over two-week trip; we were used to being together. Deborah dropped me off, and with a kiss, she was off in Ziggy.

I tagged my bag, but then I was confused by the signs and the process. I was in International Delta and was sent to the other side of the terminal when I got to the bag drop. Oops. There, I found another long line. I was next to a family with bags for all six of them to tag. They had not used the self-service stations to get their tags. Dad went off to do that while they were in line; I thought that was a good use of time. When he appeared with the newly printed tags, they did not know what to do. I demonstrated the process, using my ‘Dungeon Master to new players’ voice to them, and then again when one child was confused. It was fun to be the helpful tourist. I dropped off my bag, now in Domestic Delta, without issue.

Security had no lines, but it still required you to walk through a long maze and complete three empty loops. There were just two agents available to check your ID, but there was no wait. The carry-on check was easy this time. Laptop in. Shoes on. Scan showed that I still wear suspenders and that my pants bag around my boots. I wore my boots as they did not fit well in my checked bag.

I thanked the TSA officers for keeping us safe. One officer, whose break was starting, told me they were doing the best they could. He informed me that DOGE has forced a hiring freeze, and personnel have left, reducing staffing. He has worked four hours of mandated overtime (the later shift) to cover an understaffed situation at the previous midnight. He asked me to contact Kristi Noem to request assistance for the TSA officers at the airports. This was unsolicited. Yes, I was told we are running the TSA folks hard now. Fustrating!

I took the internal train from the airport to reach the distant A72 gate. I found a bar nearby and ordered a beer and a BBQ burger. I managed to get some BBQ sauce on my shirt sleeve, and June, the bartender, got me some soda water to clean up most of it. I could see my gate from my chair and took my time there.

I watched the weather as thunderstorms were headed towards us, but a break opened and we had sunbreaks in the clouds when we boarded. Before I boarded, I saw a small boy and his dad playing with a plane set that had obviously just arrived. There was an Air Force One, a Delta plane, and something else. The boy reasssembled it back into the packaging, but the planes went with him.

I found my seat without issue and was soon ready for five hours of movie watching and possibly a nap. There was an opening in the door seats, and one of the folks in my row got that seat. We then had a spare seat. I suggested that the tall woman near me take the aisle seat, which would make her more comfortable. I looked like Bilbo Baggins next to her, and older Bilbo. She agreed, and we had some spare room.

I watched One Hundred Steps, a lovely movie that Deborah suggested. It has cooking as an underlying theme. Recommended. I tried to watch an older SciFi film, Minority Report, but it was awful (I remembered being better but not great). I had coffee and ginger ale for my drinks on the plane, my go-tos for travel.

We landed early, and I was soon off the plane and enjoying the PDX long walks. My bag appeared.

Joan, who was tracking my flight and getting updates of my trip back to PDX, found me at location 5 and soon zoomed me back home. She kindly waited for me to get into the house before leaving.

The house is musty from being closed up for two weeks, but it’s nice to be home. I found my bed and soon fell asleep.

Thanks for reading!

 

Lucky’s serves excellent prime rib, and that seemed likely the best final dinner of the trip (though with the new return flight rebooked for the evening on Saturday, I will likely get something at the airport for a light dinner). Deborah and Liam (her son) joined me, and we discussed traveling, Dungeons & Dragons, and other topics. It was a nice way to end the day on Friday. Deborah then dropped me off at the hotel.

I arranged my clean clothing (thanks, Deborah, for letting me use your laundry!) into my suitcase and closed the first half. The other half is designed for suits and items on hangers. It is a marvelous piece, Briggs & Riley, but at its limits for two weeks of travel (I traveled only ten days, but with the trip to Iceland, I had extra items). I moved the travel books to the suitcase to make the carry-on gym bag lighter. It was heavy bringing it out of Iceland.

Aside: Here is my bag. It was expensive, but I am very happy and have used it over and over without problems. However, I recommend buying a sturdy tag (metal!) as it seems to get pushed around by the airlines. The bag comes with a lifetime warranty, and there are processes in place (so far, unneeded) to repair any damage. It has a serial number!

Surprised that things are fitting. I did use Deborah’s rollup and squish approach to packing. I have just the garment side of the luggage to finish with all the clean shirts and pants on hangers. I am hoping it will close. It did before, but the books are an addition, and the roll and squish seem to have worked.

Yes, Deborah was right again.

Before dinner, Deborah had taken her blue racing-striped Mini Cooper (Ziggy) to Lansing. Ziggy made good time, and we first met with Barb C, Leta, and Panera Bread near the Lansing Mall. We did have to fuel Ziggy along the way and chatted with a gas station attendant at Costco about the different laws between Michigan and Oregon. Oregon has optional full-service (meaning you can, if you wish, fill your vehicle yourself, but generally the gas station attendants handle it).

We had a nice time, and Barb C shared her experience traveling to Ireland a few times (and a farm for sale there that is sooooo tempting). We covered some of our favorite experiences in Iceland. Leta was looking well and has a birthday next week as she begins to close in on 100 years (still a few years away).

Next, Ziggy took us across Lansing to the Meridian Mall (yes, we seem to be playing connect the malls) and stopped at Schuler Books. We spent only a few minutes there. We got a message that Linda, my sister, was already at Olive Garden, and we took Ziggy across the parking lot there.

Hobbit-like, we had a second lunch (planned initially as desserts, but lunch seemed a better choice), and we enjoyed it, mostly (Linda ordered something else). Their lunch special included soup, salad, and breadsticks (unlimited). Jesse (Linda’s husband) and Meg (Jesse’s daughter) brought Mom Wild from Brookdale Meridian, only a few minutes away. Linda rangled the waiter before lunchtime was over (we were minutes inside of the time window).

We had a nice chat about travel, Linda’s adventures with horses, and our trip to Iceland, as well as our upcoming travel plans. I will be back in Michigan in October for Deborah’s 30th birthday (twice). Linda is headed to California and Lake Tahoe for her 30th birthday (twice) on Sunday.

We again forgot to take pictures.

Before this, Deborah met at the hotel and had coffee and breakfast together. Later, we headed out to Lansing in Ziggy.

Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

This was a typical day, and the blog entry is relatively brief. It was our first tranquil day together for the trip.

We finished the night at Chili’s, after 8, closer to 9 for dinner. Deborah and I were enjoying a date night after all the traveling and rushing we had in Iceland and back. Our dinner was typical industrial restaurant food, explaining in just a few plates why Americans are overweight and have high salt and sugar levels. I remember Chili’s food to be better and with more choices. And that there was actually chili at Chili’s. Still, it was nice to slow down a bit and enjoy a meal.

Before this, we went to the new Superman movie. It was bright but harsh and did not follow the easy Hollywood stories of yet another woman who needs rescuing and falls for the handsome prince, well, an alien or, as it was explained in the film, a metahuman. There was also a fascinating exploration of Journalism and how it works, as well as why it is essential. The villain was certainly too dark, and there is a moment that went too far. Still, it did show that the only alien or inhuman person in the story was Lex Luthor, an interesting way to frame him (as opposed to the mad but funny and corrupt version from Gene Hackman, which I often think about). I would recommend the movie.

Before this, Deborah worked on important work stuff that had come up, while I wrote, paid bills, and did laundry in Deborah’s excellent laundry machines. We just hung out and brought Panera Bread soup and sandwiches for lunch for us and Liam and Donovon, Deborah’s sons. I pet the dogs, but not as much as they wanted.

I rose early and had breakfast at the hotel. I wrote the blog in my room and came out later for breakfast, which was a bit picked over at that time, and the coffee was out. The kind staff brought out more coffee, and all was good in the world again. There was a banana this time, and that made up for any shortfalls.

I will take a slight detour into politics. I am seeing more attempts to grab headlines from the White House, and Trump seems to repeat tariff demands, threats to take over the Fed, and changing positions on Russia; he appears to be caught in a whirlwind that needs to control the headlines. While I cannot say anything nice about Trump, I have seen this before with other presidents: the glow of the election fades, and the grind of governing starts to take over. The campaign trail tricks, promises, and lies cannot make a government run. It is a challenging time for Trump and the White House. Again, we have seen this before as the president runs low on the political capital generated by winning an election.

The cuts, so random, are shutting down and reducing services in many ways. The state governments have relied on borrowed Federal money and centralized distribution of funds for most of the last seventy years. Deciding that the burdens of education, healthcare, weather forecasting, and emergency services are not part of the Federal government without the agreement of the states to cover these necessary functions of government seems mad to me. States will have to borrow money or raise taxes to cover these services, or forgo them. It will also take years to create these services at the local level. There will be chaos next year.

Sorry if I am dark today, but this is on my mind. It is beginning to look like a whirlwind in Washington.

Thanks for reading.

 

 

 

 

I learned that Deborah’s car’s name is Ziggy. I have tried to correct that below. And it is Jeanne, not Jean.

Wednesday was our first whole day back in the USA and Michigan. I was resting at the Holiday Inn Express, which was experiencing issues due to a broken elevator, meaning guests could not easily access the higher rooms, and the cleaning staff could not clean rooms. I heard the staff having to send guests away as they had no rooms available. All the first-floor rooms were taken.

I rose early and was soon dressed and writing the blog in the lobby, where the complimentary breakfast was served. Though it was industrial, it was not bad. I spent the morning writing, and Deborah arrived in her blue Mini Cooper (Ziggy) around 10. We headed to Lansing by the usual route of Detroit-Flint-Lansing, which is the fastest means, as there are no 70 mph highways that cross this triangle route.

We reached the Lansing Mall area a few minutes early. Deborah and I then walked through the Barnes & Noble and looked at board games. They often offer a hard-to-find or new game at a discount. Often, a hot board game will sell out at gaming stores, and I often find it at Barnes & Noble, sometimes with a special B&N version.

Next, we met with Leta at Panera Bread just after noon. I usually meet Leta when I am in the area for lunch at her faovrite Panera at the Lansing Mall not far from her house or pick her up at her house and drive her there. We had a nice chat and enjoyed lunch together.

Next, Deborah, in Ziggy, crossed Lansing to Haslett, and we had a nice meeting with Mom Wild for about an hour. We talked about a trip and just hung out for a while. Hello’s always come with goodbyes, and there were tears. We will see Mom Wild again on Friday (and Leta too).

Next, Jeanne, a high school classmate of mine and Deborah’s best friend, invited us to join them for dinner at the Watershed across from Lake Lansing Park. We had a few minutes and headed to East Lansing, parked, and soon were enjoying the smell of baked old books in the non-Air Conditioned Curious Books Store. I found some reprints and later paperbacks of pulp classics, such as Doc Savage. I also got another copy of H.P. Lovecraft’s works in a new hardback version. There was a cheap copy of a World War II story critical of the loss of the USS Langley (the USA’s first Aircraft Carrier). Deborah found a cheap guitar book.

The store owner did not remember me, but I told him I visited every six months, and he suggested I come more often. He was happy to sell me over $100 worth of books, which included shipping the ones for me to Oregon. We were hot and sticky and book scented by the time I was done buying and getting shipping info done. We got back into the Ziggy and headed to Haslett.

There, we met Jeanne and Randy and had a lovely dinner. It was strange to see, as Deborah pointed out, that drinks cost under $10. That was not what we saw in Anaheim or Iceland! They make their own smoked and specialized meats there at the Watershed; I had a terrific Reuben sandwich. It was nice to catch up and enjoy drinks and food.

Deborah was tired, and I helped drive Ziggy back to the Detroit Area. The jet lag sneaks up on you. It was fast, and the engine roared if you pressed the gas. I was used to electric cars now, but it was fun to drive.

We arrived without issue, and I was soon back at the hotel. Deborah, now feeling better, drove home.

Thanks for reading!

I lay down to rest rather than really going to bed. I would only sleep for a few hours on Monday-Tuesday night/morning. I woke before my alarm, as usual, before 2:45, and then, with the alarm going off (after I had nodded off for a few minutes). I then made coffee with the machine in the room for Deborah and me. I bring her a cup, a little ritual we have, and then I make one for myself. The room machine made espresso-like coffee, which I served in small cups provided with the machine.

(Saying goodbye to the hotel)

It was slow going as we were careful to assemble everything into our bags, carry-ons, and dress in layers. We identified that we had our passports within easy reach, and my gym bag was maxed out and heavy. Deborah was using a backpack and hoisted her items on her back.

The sun did not really set, we are too north for that, and we were in the bright light of a long-running morning. It looked like it was going to be a lovely, sunny day in Iceland. The morning was terrific, even at 4.

(A candid shot of me looking at the time on the way to the airport)

We collected everything back together for travel, rolled out bags, and checked out of our excellent hotel. They had a packed breakfast ready for us. We walked the two blocks to Bus Stop 1 and waited. There we ate some of the sandwiches and waited. There was a woman who was also waiting for the Flybus and told us they are often a few minutes late. A bus arrived, and soon we were at the BSI bus center, where we changed to the airport shuttle, another bus. By 5:50, we were at the international airport. It was packed with people. We found that Delta was not open yet (we were within the three hours of our flight); it was hard not to be frustrated.

Deborah and I got our bags checked and then headed to security. A cheerful agent stamped our passports. Both of us received special attention from the first checks. We found the gate, and it was not ready for us. We took a seat in a food area, got Americanos, and relaxed as we waited for the gate to be prepared. We watched the display of flights to see the status change.

(A mural just as you enter the gate area in the airport)

While there was a line at the gate when we saw the time came for us to move to the gate (though I never saw ‘Go To Gate’ status), we found a nearby seat and did not join the long line until the boarding started. We encountered additional security checks after entering the gate, and we were briefly separated from each other. Ugh! Finally, Deborah and I got on one more bus (the third one for the morning) to our plane. We walked up a set of stairs with our remaining bags (my gym bag and Deborah’s backpack) to get to the plane. Finally, we found our seats.

The last person to board, a gentleman, took the window seat. We had hoped it would remain empty. I had the middle and Deborah had the aisle seat. The gentleman, whose name I never learned, later told us that he resided in California but was originally from Iceland, where he had gone for his mother’s funeral. He had planes to catch in Detroit, and we last saw him walking towards the customs area.

Once the plane left Iceland, Deborah and I watched the same movie, trying to keep our separate entertainment systems, built into the seats before us, in sync. We first watched Bohemian Rhapsody, the biopic about Freddie Mercury, and loved it (I had seen it in theaters once before). We had more than 5 and a half hours to travel. We received a complimentary small snack on the flight and later enjoyed some coffee. I had the cheese board (which was quite nice and a lot of cheese), and Deborah had the turkey sandwich, which was also good. We then watched The Taste of Things, a poignant film with endless cooking scenes, all in French. I had seen it once before. Deborah enjoyed it (there were tears), and when it was done, there were only about forty minutes left to the trip. We soon repacked the few items we had taken out (Deborah was enjoying the book she had gotten in Iceland, Miss Iceland).

No more frustration with security checks, but the walk from the plane was long in plain hallways that had signage, the only thing that said you were headed the right way. My gym bag was heavy, and Deborah commented that I was a bit winded when the long corridors finally ended. A few pictures were taken with a friendly agent, grabbed our bags, and we were out of customs.

After a miscue on our location and a backed-up queue for pickup, we were picked up by Donovan, Deborah’s son. I napped in the backseat while Deborah chatted with her son. I did wake up to fill in a few details when asked.

We arrived at Deborah’s house and realized how tired we were. Deborah shared her gifts for her sons, and I petted the dogs, who were happy to see me and ecstatic to have Deborah return. Next, Deborah and I headed to Kruse and Muer for lunch. I had Michigan Pasta with chicken in a light white sauce, featuring walnuts and dried cherries, and fresh green beans. Deborah had a salad with a chicken breast. It was excellent. We were both tempted by a walleye dish, but we decided to stick to chicken, something simple, since we were so tired.

Deborah and I collected my belongings and some clothing we had washed for me on my second day of the visit (Dear Reader, you may recall that I came to Michigan two days before the flight to Reykjavik). It was a short drive to the Holiday Inn Express, and soon I was checked in. Deborah and I agreed to connect later (but later we decided to skip dinner and sleep more). I was on the first floor because the elevator was out of order, and they offered an accessible room (what was left on the first floor). I welcome extra handholds in the bathroom!

I unpacked and cleaned up. I tried to read after a relaxing shower and soon woke up hours later.

I dressed and spoke with Leta, and then my sister, Linda, and Mom, Wild. Deborah and I will travel to Lansing on Wednesday to see Leta (at noon for lunch) and then Mom Wild in the early afternoon (2ish). I then wrote this blog. That takes me to now.

Thanks for reading!

Back to Oregon on Saturday.