Back in Oregon

"Is this the first time you've flown alone?" a woman asked me. Another said, "Does it bother you to fly alone?"

I'm afraid I looked at them both like they were crazy. I have done lots of flying, and I think 90% of it is alone.

But now I am at home! Home, where Jenny hugs me and won't let go, where Hansie looks at me like I am something divine sent from the heavens. Home in Oregon, where the tulips I planted along the sidewalk are popping out of the ground like play-doh hairs out of the little people in the the kids' old barbershop set, and where things are green and beautiful.

Unlike Ohio.

I am sure Ohio has its beautiful times, but March is not one of them. And around Plain City everything is mowed short, across the fields and down the ditches and right up to the road. No wild flowers, no teasels, no fences, no fencerows with wild tangles of blackberry bushes and old apple trees and wild roses.

So the sequence was: I flew to Ohio last week and had a lunch event on Friday and a ladies' retreat on Friday and Saturday, then hung out with Brendan and Ruby on Sunday. Paul flew in Monday and we drove up to Leonard and Sharon's house. And Paul had two of his week of meetings and I had a ladies' brunch. And today I flew home.

Paul texted me at one airport or another today and asked if I took his comb. Oops. I had forgotten mine so I used his. And tossed it into my bag with all my other stuff. Not good for the Preacher not to have a comb.

Then I got to the airport and took the shuttle out to the red parking lot and found the Kia where Paul had left it on Monday. So far so good. but then the battery was absolutely stone dead. And the interior light was on "On."

The lady doing maintenance work on the ticket machines called for help and I waited about half an hour and then the truck came. Thankfully the weather was nice and I was soon on my way after that, but still I felt like the comb episode had been a hundred pence and the battery ten thousand talents in terms of relative things to forgive.

But of course we forgave each other without keeping such scores.

And now it's time to go to bed because Jenny is going to sleep with me and because I just told her, regarding this post:

Quote of the Day:
"I'm gonna finish it up before I'm done."