Weather and Booze: a song of saturday

What is up with that post title? I have no idea.  Except that the things that have dominated today have indeed been weather things and booze-related things.  But still.  Weird.  No songs will be involved in the proceeding post, so fear not mine elegant readers.
So.  Last night it rained crazy loud and long.  Like, it was midnight and I finished my gorgeous gothic novel (which I am NOT going to spoil for you guys, you have to go read it yourselves to find out who is CRAZY and who is EVIL and who is CRAZY EVIL.  Well, actually I think there's just one crazy dude and one in fact crazy evil dude...but you know whatever.  Things that are involved in the thrilling conclusion: commandeered gondolas, capsizing gondolas, Irishmen (don't worry, they don't let the Irishman near any gondolas), hired thugs with lead pipes, people named Bernardino, flaming spears, deceit, letter writing, and DEATH.  You guys it was SO GOOD.  All day I have been sad that it is already over.  SO, to cheer myself up in the morning I decided to go on a walk along that stream again but going in the other direction, which eventually leads out of the canyon and through a national forest.  It was really nice and I sauntered along for probably like half an hour, enjoying the scenery and thinking deep impressive thoughts.  Eventually I came to a sign saying that I was entering the Uncognweirdunpronouncableword National Forest, and I paused wondering if I should turn back or not, and then I noticed that the clouds were crazy dark and heavy looking up ahead so I thought, I will turn around and cleverly avoid walking into a rain storm.  Do you think it worked?  I tell you, it did not.  Within a couple minutes the rain had caught up with me, so I started walking faster in the drizzle.  It kept raining harder and harder until it was like, DANG this is a lot of rain, and I stepped off to the side of the trail and sought shelter under a pine tree.  I sort of huddled there until it seemed like the rain was easing off a bit, and then I scurried along to the next big branchy tree.  This happened like THREE TIMES as I made my way back home!  I had originally intended on just walking back on the path all the way across town so I could go work in the studio and maybe hang out in the library and find book to sit and read.  By the time I came near home though it had started SNOWING, but like the slushy pre-snow snow? so I changed my plan.  Instead I went home, turned on the gas fire, made some hot chocolate, and watched trashy tv for an hour while my shoes dried out.  Frankly, it was a pretty stupendous way to spend an afternoon. After a while though I started feeling like a waste of space so I determined to brave the weather again and head to the studio.  I dashed across the road to the covered bus stop, waited forever for the bus, did the drive across town in under five minutes, and by the time I got out of the bus all rain and snow had stopped and it was SUNNY.  You guys, this is what we call INCONVENIENT TIMING.  Ridiculous.

Anyway, I got a bit of work done in the studio but I wasn't really feeling it at that point, so I finished my headbands and went to the library, where I read the first 2 chapters of Stephen King's It (because I'm an IDIOT who is NOT as brave as I think I am) and I am now afraid of water, drainage systems, clowns, paper boats, rain, bridges, rivers, cellars, ....and ok that might be all.  Seriously, I do not know why I do this to myself.  I'm an idiot.

Okay and then the booze happened!  So, yesterday one of the youngish girls in my class announced that they were going to have a potluck party at the house where 5 of the ladies are staying.  Remembering from May how these parties sort of go, I brought my own pack of fancypants IBC rootbeer so I wouldn't feel too left out.  It ended up being pretty fun actually--I found out that I like a lot of these people a lot better when they're slightly tipsy! On the walk home tonight though I was just thinking about how weird it is, because really I have like zero experience with situations where other people are drinking; it just rarely-or-never has come up in my life. It's weird thinking about it like when I'm sitting there in the room with everyone talking, and having to factor that in to my view of the social situation--like, oh wait yeah, what that person is drinking is altering their mental state, which accounts for this that and the other behavior.  Not like anyway was crazy drunk or anything, just kind of more relaxed and laughy.  Anyway.  I guess social lubricants are great for those as have them.

And now, pictures of this morning's walk!  WOO!!

a view up into the tree that was my little shelter from the storm.  I felt like a hobbit, probably because I'd been reading Fellowship of the Ring before I went off walking.