I started writing this post shortly after I arrived in Mpls but haven’t had the time to continue it until now. Since Will has been diligent in keeping the blog going, it’s only fair that I do the same. I’ll start with an update on Chuck who is doing much better since he left the hospital two weeks ago.
He’s now at Sholom, a nursing home next to his senior apartment and is receiving hospice care. He’s generally been sleeping well, although sometimes wakes up in the night and can’t get back to sleep. He’s been eating a bit more and also, attending some activities including a weekly current events discussion. Mentally, he’s doing fine and is interested to know what’s happening with the family and has lots of questions about his condition. Also, he’s not in any pain or discomfort although his eye bothers him from time to time.
The trip to Edinburgh was a lot of fun although not at all restful. I arrived on Thursday the 4th after a 12 hour journey. Many of the other guests came from the east coast of the States and made it there in less time. We went out to dinner that night at restaurant down the street from Gerald’s flat, which is in the centre of town in an area with lots of bars, restaurants etc. This place mainly did steaks, although as it turns out, so do most of the restaurants in town.
I was going to give the day by day events of my trip but it’s been over two weeks since I was there and probably can’t remember everything. I’ll just give you the highlights instead. I got to see two friends from my SF days, Albert and Stuart. It had been well over ten years since I’d seen either of them but we picked up right where we left off and it was good to catch up with them. Stuart had a new boyfriend since the last time I saw him. He’s named Ryan and is a Cordon Bleu chef who is hoping to open his own restaurant in SF. Albert is living in LA but hopes to escape one day. He’s hoping to join us in Portugal for my 50th bday trip.
Most other guests arrived on Friday including Avery, an old friend of Gerald’s whom we used to visit in NYC. I didn’t know any of the other guests, most of whom Gerald had met during the 20 years that we’ve not lived in the same city. I really hit it off with two of them, Valerie and Jessica. The former lives in Oakland CA and she and Gerald worked together a while ago. They have been to Comic Con together a few years running and she’s also into fiction and tv. The latter is from Boston and runs the 826 charity there, the organisation that Gerald used to run. She’s a big foodie so we passed a lot of ton sharing recipes etc. She also likes to drink and is a closet smoker so we got along fine.
Many of the other visitors came with their spouses, children, extended families etc so they spent a lot of time sightseeing. This was my 4th time in Edinburgh so I didn’t feel the need. The boys and I did some shopping on Friday where I wasn’t successful in finding shoes. On Saturday, we climbed Arthur’s Seat, a very large rocky hill on the edge of the city, with great views over it and the Firth of Forth (estuary). We were all hungover (some more than others) but managed to make it up and back in 2 hours. My only other tourist activity was a visit to the National Portrait Gallery which is in a beautiful building.
I managed not to eat any haggis this trip, but had just about every other delicacy on offer in Edinburgh including steak, pulled pork sandwich, fish and chips and more steak. We also ate at Wagamama and Pizza Express, two of my favourite UK chains. There were a couple of special meals: a seafood feast at lovely place on the Royal Mile which would have been Will’s nightmare meal; and a French restaurant on the night of Gerald’s birthday that he hosted. I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of having French food but it was surprisingly good. The staff were all French and presumably the kitchen staff as well and despite it being packed with people, the service was top notch. Jessica and I split a charcuterie platter that was so big, it circulated around the entire table of 20+ people and still made it back with plenty of stuff on it.
A couple other events of note were a cocktail party at Gerald’s place on Sat night comprising all the out of towners plus a bunch of locals whom Gerald has met since moving there. There were around 30 people in his living room at the high point of the evening although it thinned out a bit after that. We drank a fair bit that night, as well as most of the other nights and we were often up until 3:30 when it started to turn light. I slept with the shutters closed most nights so the light wasn’t too bothersome. Gerald and I spent the day together on his birthday including seeing the new Spiderman movie, one of his favourite activities. On Sunday night, we all met up at a local gay bar that had a karaoke night, a tradition of Gerald’s and mine. We each did a few numbers and one duet of which there exists video evidence, although I won’t subject you to it here.
Gerald is doing really well in Edinburgh. He always wanted to live overseas and is happy to have finally found the opportunity. His job is going well, and isn’t as stressful as his previous one in SF. In addition, he and a friend in London have recently started a consulting business, advising UK-based non-profits. He’s met some new people including a Scottish woman who has helped him get acclimated. He’s met someone in Berlin and they see each other from time to time. I stayed at his place so the two of us spent a lot of time together and had plenty of time to catch-up and discuss the future.
Originally, I had planned to return from Scotland on Tuesday but with Dad’s condition worsening, I decided to go to Mpls instead. I ended up staying until Wed and then getting a flight from Glasgow to Mpls, which was mostly painless. After being here a few days, I decided to extend my stay for a couple of weeks to spend time with Dad and help to clear out his apartment. And that’s what I’ve been doing since I arrived here over two weeks ago. I was a bit partied-out by the time I arrived so had a few dry days and lots of veggies and salads to make up for it. Since then, I’ve had a lot of my US favourites including bbq ribs, pizza (twice) and sushi (twice). I’ve also had a couple of margaritas and an occasional vodka or two. It’s no surprise that I’ve put on 4 lbs. since I left France.
I had only packed appropriate clothes for Edinburgh where the high temp was around 17 with showers from time to time. Also, I only had my UK passport and enough of my daily medication to last for six days, so Will overnighted them to me. I went shopping a couple times after arriving and bought a pair of shoes, t-shirts and managed to find one pair of shorts. They sell my daily medication here over the counter, so I’ve stocked up on that too.
The extended visit has allowed me time to catch up with a few people I don’t usually get to see. This includes John Mirviss who lived on the same street and I’ve known since we were 11. I also saw Carolyn a few times so it’s been good to really catch-up with her. I had dinner with Mike’s family one night including his dad and two sisters but not his mom who is on a cruise around Iceland. We went out for Keli’s (Mike’s wife) bday along with a few friends and had lovely thin crust pizza, followed by ice cream cake. I’ve also got to spend a fair bit of time with Suzy, Steve and the girls which has been great. Mom and I are off to see Evie perform in the Little Mermaid tonight. Ben and I spent some extended time together yesterday at Dad’s apartment, then mini-golf and dinner. Mom and I have been hanging out including a visit to a wildflower garden and lunch today. I also joined her at her French discussion group a couple of times to stay in practice.
I spent a fair bit of time with Dad over the course of the visit. We spent time in the courtyard where it’s warm and I read the paper to him. I visited Dad on Saturday, and we both acknowleged that it may be the last time we see each other. We’ll still talk on the phone and see each other virtually via Facetime, but it’s not quite the same. So although it wasn’t goodbye, it sure felt like it. I’m very glad I got the opportunity to spend time with him and help with the apartment clear out.
I’m now back in France after a largely uneventful trip. I managed to get a few hours sleep here and there so haven’t been too jetlagged. I’ve spent yesterday and today getting caught up on work, which I’ve largely managed to do. We’re going out for pizza with Francoise tonight, which you’ll have to wait to hear about until next time.