April 13th--Scotts Valley to Santa Cruz

Today, i started out the day walking in either too-small sandals or socks around the Scotts Valley Hilton. I felt a bit embarassed. To get breakfast, i had to go to where Adrienne was teaching her class and scrounge food there. I felt a bit uncomfortable in that situation, wondering what the catering staff and the nurses thought. Aparently, at least to one nurse, what was noteworthy was my knickers. He was a cyclist himself and wondered, as many do, where to get them. He had ridden up to the Hilton and wanted to talk cycling. I wanted to finish my breakfast and be reunited with my shoes.

I left a short while afterward, on Adrienne's Cannondale in my socks. This was somewhat painful, particularly with the spiky pedals. Luckily, most of the ride is downhill, and the Cannondale is pretty light. There was only one 50-ft section approaching Simms Rd. where i had to get off and walk because it was too painful.

I finally made it downtown, but no one was at the Hub. After calling and finding out that no one would be at the Hub for some time, i went over to the compound a half-block away to see what was new. During my visit there, i unfortunately stepped in some duck poop. It could have been worse: it could have been dog doodoo.

Quentin merged shortly and we talked about this lovely trip on which i was about to embark and gave some more tips for cycling to Pinnacles and through the Carrizo Plain.

After a while, i went back to the Hub, hopped the fence and opened up my computer to do some work on invitations to the Angel Island going-away/anti-wedding party. Just then, Michael showed up, so there was no need. Elaina came soon enough and we set about getting ready for the ride to UCSC and Felton, as we'd planned the evening previous. I still didn't have a bike, so we went over to the Spokesman and borrowed Elaina's racing cross bike--perfectly suited to the task (except for being a bit small and having STI shifters, which i haven't used and have since decided i do not like).

This is, of course, one of the most treasured routes at PedX, involving delivering rice paper rolls and sushi rolls to the UCSC bookstore and New Leaf Market in Felton. The route takes one up through the Great Meadow to UCSC and then up further through upper campus and then down a steep residential road to Felton. I don't have a lot to say about this ride, other than that it was wonderful weather and a beautiful ride (except for the shifting). There was some sort of students of color rally at the bookstore, but the proliferation of acronyms made its purpose unclear to the outsider. It was wonderful to smell the smells of the chapparal in upper campus for perhaps the last time and to impart to Elaina a bit of woodsie inside knowledge.

On the ride down into Felton, Paul Holt, one of the owners of Theresa's Messenger Service, my most recent employer, called. He called to say goodbye and thank me for the work i did at Theresa's, adding, "you're a great courier." Normally, i find the idea of taking excessive pride in ones work totally wrong and pathetic, but i often can't help myself where messengering is concerned. I got almost choked up hearing this, just as i had when Maria (of Pelican Delivery, may she rest in peace) said the same thing when i left the job.

On the way back to Santa Cruz from Felton, i got another call. Not quite so touching, but nearly as pleasing. Tom Sullivan called to let me know that my frame was ready (at least the rear portion, which i'd given to him).

Back in Santa Cruz, i wasted time, doing who knows what, and went to Bay Photo to pick up some scans of slides that Adrienne had dropped off the day previous. The clerk was in the midst of calling Adrienne to let her know that they were reading when i walked in and cut the call short.The rest of the day i spent putting the bike together. Adrienne came down and we went shopping for the materials for the invitations, including some quite nice hand-made paper.

We then went to Elaina & Sam's for dinner and conversation, which was lovely. It turns out they live in the same appartment that Blaize used to live in. Elaina made some quite good Indian chick-pea something-or-other.

We left their house a bit behind schedule and rode to the Metro to catch a bus to Scotts Valley. Unfortunately, we missed the last bus and then Adrienne and i got in an unfortunate fight. I dropped my stuff off at the Hub so i wouldn't have to ride up the hill with it. We had an uncomfortable ride up to the Hilton and then had something of a resolution back at the hotel. If i were more superstitious and less willing to take responsibility for my own behavior, i might blame it all on Friday the 13th.