It's also Alex's birthday--he's 20 today, which is making me feel all the usual cliches about time going by too fast, etc. We're taking him out for lunch at a conveyor belt sushi place to celebrate.

Is that the one by the movie theatre? (TWENTY?????? I mean, Squeak's nineteen in a week. So.)

Bran Flakes (on account of we're old):

Because this is one place where said child is never going to see it, she is getting a comical amount of, err, lesbian flag-themed birthday gifts. I might've gone a touch overboard, but she's trying to be somewhat more blatant about it. I mean, it's not all she's getting, but it's certainly a theme. (I've taken to calling her current core hangout group The Gay Agenda.)

Aww that’s adorable, Plei.

I cannot believe it is 330 and I am awake and just got home! No real shenanigans but was DJing until almost 1am and then hanging out with folks at the after party. This morning was rough…tomorrow (today?) morning is probably going to be worse. Oops.

Yesterday I got a haircut and then went straight to an outdoor wine tasting with some friends. It was a glorious spring day—sunny and cool. Because it was cool I probably stayed in the sun longer than I should have, but only got a little pink. Then I came home and potted up 15 jade plants from the one that fell down and became a jade plant nursery a few years ago. I’ve already given away 9 to friends and coworkers. 14 will be going out for members of the local Buy Nothing group to nab, and I’ll keep one.

Train has not moved in about 12 hours and probably at least 3 more before we can. So this is not going according to plan. Winter Park, CO is very pretty in the snow, though

What is the train like? I'd love to go on a train excursion.

My sister and other family (and my summer home) is in the path so it has been madness up there. They are predicting that many people will just have to view on the backed up routes. It is only a two lane road where they are. Big festivities planned in town, but Mona thinks she will just stay in Otter Lake because of the traffic issue.

eta: Otter Lake, NY 2m 32.9s per the website stuff

The train is nice - we’re in coach, which is more comfortable than a plane and you can wander up to the “lounge car” and have meals in the dining car and get off take a quick break from being on the train at some of the stops. Not the most comfortable sleeping, but not too bad. The scenery has been pretty spectacular whether we were looking out our window from our own seats or the observation car and the people we have been sitting near or were seated with for meals have been nice

Tim's brother and some of his adult kids (and their kids) are camping this weekend in Indiana, right in the path of totality. (Most of Cincinnati is literally 99% totality, although some very far western areas will get 1 minute or less of totality.) So we're going to drive out to brother's campsite tomorrow for the eclipse and just hope that traffic will be tolerable if we leave the house at 9 a.m. It looks like the forecast for tomorrow (at least where we're going in Indiana) is relatively clear, so we may be in luck.

I'm excited for friends and family in the path. I'll be watching on television! I could have gone up and watched with family, but it didn't make any sense. My son in Rome, NY is at 99.95% totality so I need to encourage him to visit his cousins and aunt.