Bend was awesome. I love that town! Lots of fun little restaurants and wine bars. The hotel was incredibly cushy in its greeness (don't even get me started on the awesomeness of the bed and pillows), with excellent exercise facilities, including a steam room, sauna, and hot tub. The Boyfriend did a good job meeting the family. He got the thumbs up from the 'rents. He very sweetly took over my driving duties when I had meltdowns over traffic. It turns out that I really don't like driving long distances all that much, but I make an excellent passenger. The Boyfriend also scored major points by surprising me with a bottle of Veuve! He, Mols, and I enjoyed drinking that before heading out for a delicious sushi dinner our last night in Bend. And, both the Long Winters and Rad Snafu were fantastic as always. It was so good to see those boys and hear their music live again. JRod (as Em likes to call him) is no longer missing a tooth, but he is now sporting Adult Braces which is arguably just as distracting. He was hilarious as always, and Mols even got a Super Fan pic with him.

It was really great to see the family and just hang out. I definitely want to return to Bend again. Now, the BF and I are on to planning a long weekend away for the Lavender Festival in Sequim (something I really want to do) and a couple of days just relaxing on the beach.

I'm also in search of a cheap flight to Minneapolis in early August! If anyone notices good airfares, let me know.

Curses! I found out that Linda Carter is making an appearance at a casino in Spokane one week before I'll be there! Rotten timing, Wonder Woman.

Have I mentioned the autism super conference happening here in July? I'm getting really excited to attend. It turns out I'm over my starry-eyed obsession with rock stars, and now I just want a book signed by...Temple Grandin.

Oh, but wait, have you seen the Capitol Hill Block Party line-up? Dead Weather! MGMT! Yeasayer! Blue Scholars!