Rowan's Round of Days

Saturday morning we got up bright and early and met my parents and sister at The Valley House restaurant, home of the Iowa Porker. An Iowa Porker is basically chicken-fried pork tenderloin served with country gravy, potatoes, and a homemade biscuit. Can you say Rowan food? It was better than any chicken-fried steak I have ever had and I am having very mixed feelings - oooh, I wish it was near me.... ooooh, I'm really glad it isn't near me! They evidently also serve it in a sandwich at lunch and with mashed potatoes for dinner. I promise you that if I find mysel fin Santee, CA again I am eating there for sure!

When we drove up to the Valley House my mother and sister were in the back parking lot looking for a cache. We weren't finding it, so we went to breakfast. But it was a quick find once our minds weren't clouded with hunger and we decided to spend the morning caching. My brother and his bride were off getting licenses and it was a nice chance to play hookey. Dad went back to the house in case he could help. Boy, Santee has an amazingly boring lot of park & grabs on fire hydrants. Good for the numbers (I'm now at 753 caches found) but the only place amongst them that I felt it was worth visiting was a virtual at an aerospace museum... which was closed. But we could get the info from the outside and were able to log it.

We dropped off my family and Russell and I went back to our hotel so I could participate in the Isle of Wyrms Final fishing tournament. My family, though a bit bemused by its virtuality are totally down with the idea that fishing tournaments are important. *LOL* I tied for first, which means I came in second. I won a hedgehog avatar and two riding snails! (I have put a picture of Lemmy just for illustrative purposes. I haven't tinted my hedgie yet (or even unpacked it) and I already have that snail so I won a different one. A real picture soon, I promise.)

Yesterday at lunch, mr_kurt got called away to stand by ocean_song's partner as she entered the hospital to birth baby Mer. (Who is now with us as an air breather as of last night but I don't have details.) saffronrose was stuck at home with a sick Arthur and so spikeiowa and I decided that instead of going to La Bodeguita del Medio for lunch we'd go caching (her first time). We DNF'd the one in Cornelius Bols Park... to many kids and moms and a nasty anagram hint. But we did find Arastradero Walk which was a little farther along than my GPS thought last time I tried. It was my 209th find and I am on the board now. I'm in the top 1200 in California. Go me.

I zoomed home, shopped and cooked Swedish meatballs for dinner. Corteo had an 8pm curtaIn but because there is no parking nearby we were going to park a Adobe and take the lightrail. The show is amazing. One of the best Cirque du Soleil traveling shows in awhile. The first half in particular was just spectacular. "Corteo" is evidently a funeral cortege. We see a man on his death bed and then the strange Otherworld which he moves through bardo-like. I loved the women in bra and tap pants doing acrobatics with chandeliers. It was just so evocative and yummy. The angels as psychopomps and prop people was a charming touch and I loved the variation in wings throughout the show. The juggling was amazing, the Cyr wheel looks like fun, the sheer athleticism always impressive. I liked the music and I liked that there were occasional actual phrases in English/French/Italian from time to time to keep you better in tune with the story. I recommend the show but am concerned that the location will keep people from attending because of the extra step of figuring out transit. I think it was the first Cirque show I've attended that didn't seem to be totally sold out.

Happy Imbolc. Beanachtanní na Feile Bríde
Lighting the Perpetual Flame of Brigid (in Kildare)