I was looking for some yarn to travel with so looked up a yarn shop half way up the road. The Knotty Ladies in Roseburg opened right at 10:00 when we arrived, some ladies sitting around a couch knitting with their coffees. They encouraged us to touch everything. I needed to resupply some pink or magenta chunky yarn, having knit and given away another few hats. When they asked what my project was, I said pussy hats and they all cheered. Judd was particularly interested in the contraption that rolls your skein into a ball right before your eyes. No more hours of husbands with their hands in the air
When I told folks at work that I was going to Eugene, McMenamins on the North Bank was highly recommended. We lunched at McMenamins with a seat right on the bank of the Willamette River, signs of spring abounding, such as runners and bikers and tulips 6 inches out of the ground. I overheard two similar-to-our-age couples at the table next to us talking about their upcoming trip: fly to Luxor--boat to Aswan. Judd and I did that trip 37 years ago (1981) when we departed Peace Corps- Kenya. Except we took a train from Cairo to Luxor and we went 3rd class on the boat up the Nile to Aswan, sleeping on the deck of the boat for 3 nights. We arrived in Egypt on Christmas eve and I recall a banner over the hostel lobby that said, "Happy Birthday Jesus." We had joked about being killed by Egyptian pillows if there were ever a pillow fight because they were so solid--we were sure they were filled with sawdust. And the boat trip to Aswan was most memorable for me for trying to sleep through the noise at night, which we assumed was rats playing soccer til the wee hours: THUMP, scuttle, scuttle, scuttle, THUMP, scuttle....repeat.
We were in Egypt just 2 months after Anwar Sadat was assassinated. My parents were none too happy to hear I was spending a month in Egypt (but then they weren't particularly thrilled that I went to Kenya for 2 years either.)The reason to go to Aswan is not just to see the dam but to view the ruins of Abu Simbel. These national treasures were unearthed and moved to higher ground in 1964 due to rising waters of Lake Nasser. I can't put my finger on it at the moment, but I have a pic of Judd and I at the bottom of the monument, just like the person below in the doorway with a hand extended. Read more here:
http://www.traveladvisortips.com/7-interesting-abu-simbel-temple-facts-to-know/
But I digress. It was a blast to the past, but we moved on to our hotel to get dressed for dinner. Having done our hour of walking to and from the local 5th Street Market mall, we thought we'd splurge on a taxi since it had been rainy/drippy all day. But the taxi said it would be a 40 min wait so we decided to walk the 20 minutes to the Unitarian Church venue. Judd looked dapper in his kilt and knee socks. Many dudes were dressed in their Scottish finest, fewer women were. But there was certainly plaid decor, live music, and Scotch tasting.
By the time we tasted hors d'oeuvres and chatted up a couple people at our table, when I went back for ur Scotch flight all the beautiful, wooden planks were used up. The barmaid offered I could come back one at a time for the 5 flavors. I found a plate at the appetizer table and labeled 1:00 with a swatch of garnish lettuce. I told her to put number one at 1:00 and go around the clock in order. I had two plated flights in no time and portaged them back to our table. Real bagpipers did pipe in the Haggis but the evening was light on Ode to the Haggis or Toast for Lassies or Laddies and only one poem was analyzed more than read. By the time I found the nice Irish lady-table mate was bashing Hillary CLiniton, we left., walking back through the neighborhood. Judd turned more heads as he beer-shopped in the local mini-mart. The cashier asked "something going on?" and Judd said, "not that I know of, why?"
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