Rambling Update

I haven't posted anything in a few days, and there's a pretty good chance that I won't post much for another few days, so I wanted to take a second and throw out a few rambling and unconnected bits.

I'm going to see The 'Nuge tonight. That should be interesting. He's in town doing book signings and a show tonight at the Fillmore. My brother wants me to go see the Grateful Dead with him on Saturday in Alpine Valley, Wisconsin. He's sure it will be better than The 'Nuge. I tried to explian that while I'm not necessarily a fan of either band, I at least think Ted would be interesting to see from a cultural perspective. The 'Dead hold no such interest for me - even if it is their first show since Jerry died. I think my brother said he had seen the last show before Jerry died. I think that perhaps he is looking for some sense of closure. Or maybe he's just looking to get really fucked up.

The whole reason that the Dead show is a possibility is that we are headed home for my Grandfather's funeral. He died Sunday apparently after catching a cold for the first time in his life. He would have been 95 Thursday. He was on the losing end of a battle with Alzheimer's that left him unable to recognize my Grandmother for a good portion of the last year. The last time I saw him, he had no idea who I was though I seemed to remind him of someone as he kept asking if I was related to so-and-so from somewhere in Minnesota. He died in Illinois where my mother convinced the two to move about 2 or 3 years ago so that she would be able to spend more time with them and to be more of a help in their final years. But Grandpa lived his whole life (when he wasn't fighting Japs in WWII) in Minneapolis/St. Paul, so he is flying up there today and will be buried at Fort Snelling on Friday. He was the healthiest person any of my family ever knew. It's a real shame that his body outlasted his mind.

Went hiking again this weekend with Vince and Avery. Had the Sierra Club been around, we surely would have been shot at for not staying to the trail which we couldn't find after about the first quarter mile and until the last half mile. I wore a pair of old hiking boots that I hadn't worn in probably a year. Who knew they would need to be re-broken-in? I have some nasty, paniful blisters on my heels. I may post the picture later. It was a good hike though from the top of Guenella pass. At one point the sun went behind the clouds and the wind from the valley came blowing through, and I went from sweating to being quite cold. At that point we decided it would be best for the baby (and my heels at that point) to turn back down the mountain. Took a couple of great pictures too. We then stopped at Tommyknockers in Idaho Springs for lunch. Avery tried her first Spaghettios, and spent a lot of time trying to talk to us and anyone else around.

I'm off now to get ready for an interview with Grand Vin, a wine distributor. They are the one company I would most like to work for if given my choice. That feeling is based on their book and the awesome level of service they always provided me while I was running the wine bar. The job is part sales and part vendor liason. I have a bad feeling that I may be over-qualified and that the pay may be too low, but I am very hopeful that something will work out. I'll take a pay cut to get out of finance/customer service and back into wine, but it needs to be within reason, and there needs to be room for advancement. I'm excited just to be interviewing. It's now been a little over three months since my last day of work.

The trip to Minnesota will be via Sun Country, but coming home will be via Uhaul. Mom has been hoarding furniture from estate sales and neighbors moving away and redecorating La Casa Harrington that my brother and I need to haul out here. Plus, my sister has now confirmed that she'll be moving out here in two or three weeks, so we're going to haul a bunch of her stuff too. Depending on the route, we may stop for a brief visit with the Hyena on the way back to Denver. We'll ses how it all works out. Either way, I'm about to become the proud owner of a kick-ass, super-sweet, big ol' leather couch.

That's all for now. Hopefully I'll do some posting between now and next Friday when I expect to Denver, but I can make no promises.

Jonathan 7/30/2002 10:37:00 AM