Well, we're here in Houston! Deanna and I left this morning from Downeast Maine in separate vehicles. We traveled to Sew Portland where we unloaded my car with another 13 bolts of Mark Lipinski's Elements and some of the new Moda Evening Mist (don't worry Sewing by the Sea patrons - we left some in Trenton, too). Deb had just opened up the store and was in a quandary as where she could put the fabric - I'm sure she located some space. My very good friend Mary Jane from Portland came over and ferried Deanna and I to the Portland Jet Port. Thanks, Mary Jane! We checked our bags for $25 each and then went through the screening. When I sent mine through, the agent said "I guess you didn't read my note." I was perplexed, but then he pulled out a full bottle of water! I was quite surprised until Deanna fessed up that it was her water and unbeknowst to us, Mary Jane had put it in my bag! She donated it to his cause and all was well. We had about an hour or so to wait, so we chatted and chatted. While we were waiting, fellow seamstress Carol ventured by on her way to Baltimore for the weekend. We finally boarded for an uneventful flight to Charlotte, NC. We deboarded there and then reboarded onto a larger plane to Houston. There were vacant seats, so we shuffled around so as to have more room. As luck would have it, I ended up in a row with one other person - a young man with curly black, yet graying hair! He was carefully typing on some handheld device; I got out my new book to read, Julie and Julia, and he asked "Have you seen the movie?" I had not and said so, then we discussed the pros and cons of reading before vs after seeing the movie. The conversation finally came around to why he was heading to Houston, etc. and it turns out that he is an opera singer with the Met! He was returning to his high school to give a speech for a dedicaton ceremony. I asked him what he had done for roles and he told me he had the lead on Broadway in La Boheme, for which he won a Tony! How cool is that! I googled him and found he was called "opera's rising star, heart throb Jesus Garcia, tenor." Well, we shared stories and my homemade chocolate chip cookies (what else could a chunky, gray haired Gramma figure use to impress this young man?) After we arrived in Houston and got off the plane, Deanna was a bit annoyed that I had "ditched her for a good looking young man." Little did she know the whole story! (She's actually gone to bed now and doesn't know about his "googled" reputation!) Well, our Houston host and hostess, Philippe and Brigitte, met us at the airport and brought us to their lovely home on Malone Street! We dined on sumptuous pasta and peach compote! And now to bed! We will be heading out to Market in the morning.
