mom's here

i picked her up from the airport yesterday afternoon. we drove to a cafe in the neighborhood for lunch. yummy paninis. then we swooped by the station so she could see the joint and meet everybody. she became smitten with one of my coworkers, and i think there may actually be some sort of date before she leaves town. the lady works fast.

we made a quick dinner at home, then headed downtown for the free oregon symphony concert on waterfront park. we met up with my friend todd, and about a half-dozen of his friends. one of which was a classical guitarist in town, and we hit it off right away. he and his wife have invited me to a party at their place next weekend.

the concert ended with actual national guard cannonfire and fireworks (the 1812 overture, natch), and we headed back home on the train after saying a fond farewell to everyone.

this morning got off to a leisurely start. we did some casual real estate investigation... internet searches combined with some driving around town. i got to know the st. john's area of town a little better, and we stopped at a local pub for lunch.

on the way home we popped into a little local gourmet grocery store that i'd been wanting to visit. i was *so happy* to find they carried the vosges bacon chocolate bar! there's a little gelato shop next store to the grocery, and we both had a scoop.

we're now back home, resting for a minute before we head out again. maybe a walk around the neighborhood, perhaps a quick jaunt to the mall. anything's possible.