A lovely weekend

This past weekend Matt and I went to San Simeon, where we finally met Alisha, Mark's girlfriend of going on two years. It was a fun weekend. We met them on Friday at Hearst Castle, where we did the basic, first-time visitor's tour. It was actually a second-time visit for me and Matt, but it had been years since our last visits, so we didn't mind repeating the basic tour. It was nice, but soooooo hot. I had read to expect temperatures in the low 60s, and a lot of wind. I daresay it was 90 degrees out, and as still as it could possibly be. So I was kind of dragging during the tour, but mostly because I was thirsty. We stayed for the informational movie, and then went for dinner in Cambria. The next morning we met for breakfast, took a hike in the morning, and then visited four wineries in the afternoon. That was fun, but by the last one, I could hardly look at wine anymore. We had dinner at a Mexican restaurant in Paso Robles, and headed back to San Simeon, where our Motel 6 awaited. It was still relatively early, so we walked to the beach and watched the beginnings of the sunset. We then retired to our respective rooms--I was feeling pretty lousy by then, and just wanted to go to bed. On Sunday we met up for breakfast again, and Mark and Alisha departed for their trip up the coast back to Berkeley. Since it was early, and our drive home was only a couple of hours long, Matt and I decided to go back to Hearst Castle and do the Garden and Grounds tour. I liked that one a bit better than the basic tour. The group was small, only nine people, so it was easy to ask questions and see everything. After the tour, we headed back to Santa Barbara, where I took a little snooze on the couch and talked to Jess. And soon after, Helen called and asked if we'd like to join her and Buebbles for dinner at Chipotle. She needn't even have asked, in my opinion. I love Chipotle, and readily accepted the invitation. (After checking that Matt wanted to go, of course.)

And today, as I waited for the cryogens that won't be here until tomorrow, I finally completed my resume and sent it out with my transcripts to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. I hope to hear from them soon about a job. I don't know if my qualifications fit the position available exactly, but I hope they're close enough. I also finished my application for the job at the American Physical Society, so I will mail that one off tomorrow. It's nice actually to have made some progress on the job search.