Fear & Loathing in California: Part I

“This is your captain. Welcome aboard flight 1482 from Austin, Texas to Los Angeles, California. We anticipate clear skies and smooth weather for the duration of the flight. Flight time will be 3 hours 15 minutes.”

Great. I sink my head into my book hoping this signal will be acknowledged and I’ll be left to myself.

“Whatcha reading?”

It wasn’t.

Already I was regretting leaving Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds back home. She would’ve been fun on this trip, I think. Hell, I may have even taken her on the flight. Something tells me that would’ve been a bad idea. You never know how she’s gonna act and combine that with airport security, close quarters, and long flights with annoying passengers and you have a recipe for a bad trip. Still, it would’ve been better than listening to Mrs. East Texas for 3 hours.

I close my eyes and pretend to sleep until we touch down in L.A. A connecting flight takes me to Sacramento where my friend Bryan is waiting for me. I’m relieved because the last time I was supposed to pick him up from an airport there was a little miscommunication as to where he’d be and he ended up walking home. Ooops, my bad. I’m still waiting for him to get me back for that one. After a quick hug we grab my bags and get on the road. He’s already late for work and we’re an hour away from Napa.

For the next week I enjoy all that Napa has to offer. We visit a few wineries, Peju most notably, for tastings where Bryan’s employment status at one of the area’s finest restaurants (Brix) pays off. We never had to pay for a tasting, we got hella hooked up on wine discounts when we bought a bottle, and we were given personal tours of the kitchens and back house areas.

I’m happy Bryan’s coming back to Austin. We’ve all missed him. However, I can completely understand why he had such a hard time leaving it all. Everything is sooo gorgeous and green there. The air is dry, fresh, and crisp. And the views! My god the views are breathtaking. There’s nothing like sitting on top of a hill, smoking a bowl, and looking out at Napa, Yountville, Vallejo, the bay, and San Francisco 50 miles in the distance all at the same time. Wow. To think he’s leaving all this just so he can save up money to move to Costa Rica with me. Now THAT is a good friend!

——————————————————–
Tomorrow, I will blog about our road trip down the coast to Palm Springs and then to Texas. This is where the real fun begins. Stay tuned for pantsless driving, male strip shows, nude sunbathing, gambling, drinking, dancing, and all around debauchery.



This is Bryan’s friend Sara. She wants to move to Costa Rica with us.



Rose bushes and honeysuckle filled Bryan’s backyard. The morning smell was like heaven.


Ahhhh, a classic Ryan pose: passed out on someone else’s couch. LOL