As promised, we looked up a used video game store in the area and, after another day of pool fun for a few hours, we all hopped in the car and headed to see what games Rudy may have wanted at Level 7 Games. Unfortunately (but fortunately for us), Tacoma has some of the best used and retro game suppliers to offer, so Rudes has already accumulated quite a nice collection for the systems he has and the games he likes. He was a little disappointed when there was nothing “new” to add to his stash. He did, however, find this plush of one of his favorite South Park characters, playing another character. He died! We didn’t buy it because it was too pricey, but it was really fun to find.
While the boys geeked out over systems and games and such, Marianne and I headed down the strip to the Mexican restaurant we both had spotted to do a quality assurance check on their tequila. Yes, this will work just fine. But, just in case you’ve slipped poison into a different bottle, we should probably check that one too. Definitely alright. You pass the test this time. We’ll be back another day to do some more “testing”…
By the time we got back to the game store, Rudy was frustrated and Nate and Marianne were getting hungry. We all knew that the sushi we were about to go to was going to be delicious and our patience for a ten-year-old with a case of the “undecideds” was waning. I had to think quickly. I asked the guy behind the counter to hand us the box of $5 games. I told rudy to choose four games. At the least, we were out twenty or so bucks, at best, he’d find some silly or fun games to try out that he may never have gravitated towards. We laughed a lot and it was a huge success. Plus, we were through in less than ten minutes.
There are no pictures of our sushi night, or of all five of us together, for that matter. I’m not sure what happened, except we were all in the moment and enjoying our last night together. Marianne and I shared a weird, berry-flavored, jello sake shot, in a can… I give it a three out of ten. Would not recommend. (Jared here: I would!) Flavor was ok. Jello in a can was not. (Jared here again: You lack a sense of adventure!) There was nary a piece of rice to be seen when we were through with dinner. Rudy was already getting a bit weepy at the thought of leaving for camp, especially since his time with us and Nate and Marianne had been so lovely. We went home and played a game of “Sequence”, finished our laundry, packed up and, after many hugs and dog snuggles, we crawled into bed. Not “Good bye”, just “See ya later”, as Nate reminded us all.
The next morning came quickly, but the re-load of our trailer took forever. With each trip back into the house to get luggage, guitars, merchandise, swim bags, fans, toys, electronics, etc, we all felt the “Good bye” taking it’s toll, so we were relieved to be in the truck, in motion, headed toward Durango. Rudy still had a six-hour drive to process his feelings about the upcoming “being gone for a month”, and we wanted to keep moving to distract him as much as possible.
We grabbed coffee and a scone at Lynn’s Whistle Stop, right outside of Littleton, CO. Located in it’s direct competition town: Tiny Town. I half hoped to see a “Minuscule Town” down the road, available to see only through a giant microscope with people lined up for miles. Alas, we had to settle for “Tiny Town”. Although we didn’t actually go in, I’ll admit, I really wanted to.
It was a really cute place with “tiny” everything: banks, libraries, schools, hair salons, grocery stores, everything! You could just walk through, like a giant, looking down on all the buildings. Well, maybe not me so much. But a taller person perhaps…hahahahaha.
Onward! Rudy requested a burger for lunch, so we found this little gem. There were a bunch of colorfully painted boulders outside. They made me smile so I snapped some pics. One in particular really hit me hard…
This one. “You Are Here”. I needed to be reminded of this today. The constant leaving behind, saying “good bye”, looking ahead, planning for the next place… sometimes it’s really important to just be wherever it is that you are. For now, we’re right here at “Bolt. Burgers and Shakes” and I am here for it. Especially at this exact time, soaking up as many moments as we can with our boy. Feeling the warm wind on our air-conditioned skin, licking the burger sauce from our fingers, laughing at each other’s stupid jokes. It’s all so important. You. Are. Here. Thank you, giant rock for the reminder.
Reaching our final destination for this leg of tour with Rudy, we pulled into Durango, CO. Our accommodations the Durango Lodge, courtesy of our dear friends, Bonnie and Phil, who sensed a cool hotel room to snuggle close in on our last night together would provide a bit more comfort than the stuffy back of a truck, crammed together like sardines. Thank you, Bonnie for your generous gift.
We checked into our room, unloaded our overnight items, and walked through the town a bit to a familiar restaurant we’ve grown to enjoy on our trips to Durango, Steamworks. We enjoyed a beautiful view on the back patio and danced in our seats to whatever music that was being pumped through the speakers. You. Are. Here. Dinner was great, and we all worked on a kid’s menu word search to round out our time there.
After dinner, Rudyard found a piano to play on the sidewalk outside Maria’s Bookshop. He overheard a small group of college guys who had been haphazardly poking the dissonant keys pondering outloud, “I wonder if someone could play this thing.” Young but confident, ten-year-old Rudy stepped up and proclaimed “I can”. “Oh yeah? Let’s hear it!”
He ripped into “Fallen Down” from the video game “Undertale”, and the guys stopped everything they were doing to watch and listen in astonishment. As I came outside the bookstore to witness the interaction, I first smiled at his openness to sit and effortlessly entertain strangers. Then, as I watched, I really began to admire his tenacity. Every time he flubbed or stumbled, he never let it derail him. He just started from where he screwed up and continued. These small achievements are locked away in my heart as I view our son, continuously unlocking levels in his maturity. Quietly sitting at the piano, working through imperfections, no concern to impress anyone, in competition with no one, just diligently plodding along to get through to the end. You. Are. Here. (The guys even tipped him a dollar!)
Son, you are so loved and your dad and I will miss you beyond words on the next leg of our journey. Nothing is ever the same without you.
