11 pm - Monday 10th July 2006

Ask not.

Well, it has been a little while since I wrote, but hopefully I will be able to demonstrate that I have been so busy that diary writing was not much of an option. I flew out of Montana on June 28th to visit Kadie in California. She picked me up from the airport in Reno, and we checked out a slew of stores, ate sushi for lunch, and then drove to Truckee and then Sierraville in California. We camped that night at a hot springs resort, and went skinny-dipping. We did the same thing the next day, before driving to Quincy, CA where Kadie is working this summer. Again we camped out under the pine trees, and had sausages and beer for dinner. She showed me all the places she had been, and we did a lot of cycling along the country back roads.

That weekend was also the High Sierra Music Festival, and so there were a lot of people in town to listen to the blue-grass music that was being played. We didn't go to any of that, and instead spent the time being close and enjoying each other's company. I had bought her the book "Finger Smith" for her birthday present, and we read to each other from this gothic, lesbian novel.

On Monday morning we drove up to Chester, where hordes of tourists were adding to the general mayhem of that town. We went cycling along the shores of a lake, and later swam in the clear water. Far away, the old volcanic cone looked down over us with its mid-summer frosting of snow. Kadie's stomach was unsettled, as it often seems to be when she is stressed or unhappy. I think it was because of my imminent departure, and the uncertainty about our future that contributed to this.

On Monday night we had a beer and played pool at one of the small pubs in town, with Kadie comprehensively beating the pants off of me. We ended up displacing Kadie's Xtian roommate who was none to pleased. In addition a noisy party was taking place in the bunkhouse adjacent to ours that did not help matters.

On Tuesday morning we packed everything and drove to Reno. I took lots of photos, and it was amazing to see the pine forests give way to dry saltbush country so quickly. We stayed at a hotel near the airport, and the hotel manager gave us a few dollars off because she thought we were a cute couple. We ate supermarket Chinese for dinner, and had some half-hearted sex. Kadie had to leave at 4:30 am the next morning, and I had to be at the airport at 6 am. I made it back to Bozeman by around midday Wednesday, and Kadie made it back in time to start work around 7 am.

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