…and forgot to tell you all. Sorry about that. I bundled up my two kids and we drove from Central Oregon to Central Colorado on Monday, Aug. 4. It was interesting from my perspective, having been interested in geology since I was a wee nipper, but the kids were less impressed than I was. While I found the endless monotony and rolling desert of Wyoming to speak of Ice Age glacial turmoil, melt and flow, they just saw… blah. Two day’s worth of blah.

Once we hit Boulder and Denver, things got more interesting. Having survived being eaten alive by mosquitoes in Utah, the climate in Colorado was much more pleasant. We were given a tour of Shoyeido’s US office by the very lovely Maryanne, then joined her and her husband for tea and dinner at Dushanabe Tea House, which I highly recommend. The farmer’s market was in full swing, and my daughter bought peaches for our dessert. We sat outside and enjoyed the cool evening breeze until dark storm clouds rolled in, the winds picked up, and it started to rain. Inside the Tea House was stifling hot, but ever so beautiful. The food was delicious and elegantly prepared, not to mention quite reasonably priced.

Today we returned, after an almost 20 hour drive. It would have been shorter, but I missed a highway turnoff and ended up driving an hour in the wrong direction just after we re-entered Oregon. Thanks to my son and his quick thinking (“Mom? could I see the map for a minute?”) we turned around and headed back before we ended up in Portland. I had an 8 hour nap (bliss!) and will likely hit the pillows again soon. I have a lot of sleep and dreaming to catch up on.