Feels like it's raining all over the world...

I arrived in Portland today after a nice, non-rushed packing and walking Max to school day. The flight was uneventful, the Portland Airport is very easy to navigate, and now I'm here.

And it's raining.

Perhaps it's because I spent the flight editing blog posts - several of which I've put together as part of my lecture tonight - but I'm feeling sad. And I can't get the Blogger photos to work (I'll post them later...)

I have NO reason to be sad, really! I'm staying in an amazingly cool bed & breakfast (it's an old elementary school!) and I scammed a PT Cruiser at the car rental place. But I'm blue. Just a very slight violet blue.

I have more trepidation about teaching in Portland than I've had when I've taught at other places. Don't get me wrong - I'm PSYCHED to be here - and I get a LOT of email from Oregon. I can't wait to see Stevanie's shop, an Darcy's shop, and I've already been contacted about an interview for a local blogger.

But it's such untried territory for me - I have no Portland experience.

My big fear? I'll show up tonight and there will be 6 people, including yarn shop staff, who are there to hear me speak. My recurring nightmare is not that I'll speak in front of folks in my underwear. MY NIGHTMARE is that when I'm up there IN my underwear, there won't be anyone in the audience. Figure THAT out, Mr. Freud...

I've had this nagging, haunting, sense that this will happen - a sense of doom (Doom, DOOOOOOM!) that is NOT justified in any way. But this is what haunts the minds of folks who talk to groups of people.

And - totally unknown to me, because I'm so non-plugged in that I could be a hand-crank ice cream maker - Stephanie Pearl McPhee was here LAST NIGHT. Yikes. Way to sweep up after the circus, Annie...

I've gone to hear Steph and she's REMARKABLE. Oy. Me, I'm an acquired taste. And I have the feeling the Knitters in this area are probably still digesting their banquet from last night.

If there's ONE knitter in this area who has the desire to come out and hear me on this rainy day after seeing the YARN HARLOT last night, I'll give them five bucks. No I won't. But I'd like to.

Now I'm reduced to papering the house. Ni-ice.