Weekend-in-Progress

I didn't see cheshcat at all today. And, actually, this is a good thing. The fact that we both had enough separate things to spend our weekend time on is a strong indication that our lives here are beginning to be fleshed out and substantial. By the time I woke up this morning, she had already left Skullcrusher Mountain. By the time she came back home, I had gone off to my evening plans. By the time I returned again, not long ago, she was asleep.

I will leave cheshcat to describe what she has been up to in her own journal, but here is what I have been doing this weekend:

Friday evening, C&M came over to play games. Before cheshcat arrived, we played two games of Ra... and M won both of them. In fact, of the six games of Ra played under this roof, she has won the last four of them. After cheshcat arrived, we broke out the Puerto Rico set. It was a very close game, but I won with fifty-five points (C came in a close second with fifty-two).

This morning, I lay in until 10:30am. Then I walked into town to pick up a rental car for the weekend. Afterward, I headed to the sports centre and swam another mile. Then I used the rest of the afternoon productively, taking the car to pick up cat food from the vet and make a large grocery run.

In the evening, I drove to Milton Keynes to meet parallelgirl. Bruce Cockburn and Billy Joel kept me company on the drive out. It was the first time this spring that I have gone driving in England; so I only now noticed that the large yellow meadows of the rapeseed fields are once again in their glory. With the car windows down, the directions blew away... but, thankfully, I remembered them well enough from writing them down to make it there sans incident.

I had never been to MK before, but she suggested that we connect at a place called Xscape. Milton Keynes itself appears to be a drab and soul-less city... but Xscape is somewhat mind-boggling. In addition to the standard assortment of shops, pubs, restaurants, an arcade, a movie theatre and a bowling alley, the place has indoor rock climbing, indoor flying / skydiving, and an indoor ski slope (!).

We started off by riding a ferris wheel. Which, unlike everything else, was actually outside. Then we swung by the viewing room to watch people fly, driven by giant fans. I will to try it at some point, but it costs between thirty-five and forty quid for two minutes of flying time. Just a bit more than I wanted to pay tonight! Keeping up with the voyeuristic approach for a little longer, we went to go watch the indoor skiers make their way up and down the slopes. Eventually, we started getting hungry and made dinner our next stop: We each enjoyed a delicious aubergine and goat cheese burger! Then we played a couple of rounds of air hockey and bowled one game. The bowling alley was filled with funky lighting and loud music, which was both amusing and distracting. I also did not have my bowling ball or bowling shoes, which are far from here at the Event Horizon. With all these factors in play, I did not have much hope of reaching my 150 average and, as such, went into the game without much thought to the score. In the end, I reached 116... so it could have been far worse. Next, we rode a virtual simulation of a fighter plane flight. Cute. Then, thirsty from dinner and the heat of Xscape, we popped into a very loud pub to procure drinks and attempt conversation. My voice is still recovering. Finally, realizing that it had become quite late, I explained the physics of supernova relic neutrinos and then we went our separate ways. Roger Waters kept me company for the drive back; in fact, he very nearly amused me to death.

Overall, quite a good evening. Good food, good company, good conversation, and good activities. My mind is still unboggling itself from the spectacle that is Xscape, but it will recover in time.

Now time to go climb into bed and join cheshcat. No doubt, she will be gone before I wake up in the morning, but we do have plans together for the afternoon.

Weekend-in-Progress

I didn't see cheshcat at all today. And, actually, this is a good thing. The fact that we both had enough separate things to spend our weekend time on is a strong indication that our lives here are beginning to be fleshed out and substantial. By the time I woke up this morning, she had already left Skullcrusher Mountain. By the time she came back home, I had gone off to my evening plans. By the time I returned again, not long ago, she was asleep.

I will leave cheshcat to describe what she has been up to in her own journal, but here is what I have been doing this weekend:

Friday evening, C&M came over to play games. Before cheshcat arrived, we played two games of Ra... and M won both of them. In fact, of the six games of Ra played under this roof, she has won the last four of them. After cheshcat arrived, we broke out the Puerto Rico set. It was a very close game, but I won with fifty-five points (C came in a close second with fifty-two).

This morning, I lay in until 10:30am. Then I walked into town to pick up a rental car for the weekend. Afterward, I headed to the sports centre and swam another mile. Then I used the rest of the afternoon productively, taking the car to pick up cat food from the vet and make a large grocery run.

In the evening, I drove to Milton Keynes to meet parallelgirl. Bruce Cockburn and Billy Joel kept me company on the drive out. It was the first time this spring that I have gone driving in England; so I only now noticed that the large yellow meadows of the rapeseed fields are once again in their glory. With the car windows down, the directions blew away... but, thankfully, I remembered them well enough from writing them down to make it there sans incident.

I had never been to MK before, but she suggested that we connect at a place called Xscape. Milton Keynes itself appears to be a drab and soul-less city... but Xscape is somewhat mind-boggling. In addition to the standard assortment of shops, pubs, restaurants, an arcade, a movie theatre and a bowling alley, the place has indoor rock climbing, indoor flying / skydiving, and an indoor ski slope (!).

We started off by riding a ferris wheel. Which, unlike everything else, was actually outside. Then we swung by the viewing room to watch people fly, driven by giant fans. I will to try it at some point, but it costs between thirty-five and forty quid for two minutes of flying time. Just a bit more than I wanted to pay tonight! Keeping up with the voyeuristic approach for a little longer, we went to go watch the indoor skiers make their way up and down the slopes. Eventually, we started getting hungry and made dinner our next stop: We each enjoyed a delicious aubergine and goat cheese burger! Then we played a couple of rounds of air hockey and bowled one game. The bowling alley was filled with funky lighting and loud music, which was both amusing and distracting. I also did not have my bowling ball or bowling shoes, which are far from here at the Event Horizon. With all these factors in play, I did not have much hope of reaching my 150 average and, as such, went into the game without much thought to the score. In the end, I reached 116... so it could have been far worse. Next, we rode a virtual simulation of a fighter plane flight. Cute. Then, thirsty from dinner and the heat of Xscape, we popped into a very loud pub to procure drinks and attempt conversation. My voice is still recovering. Finally, realizing that it had become quite late, I explained the physics of supernova relic neutrinos and then we went our separate ways. Roger Waters kept me company for the drive back; in fact, he very nearly amused me to death.

Overall, quite a good evening. Good food, good company, good conversation, and good activities. My mind is still unboggling itself from the spectacle that is Xscape, but it will recover in time.

Now time to go climb into bed and join cheshcat. No doubt, she will be gone before I wake up in the morning, but we do have plans together for the afternoon.