For the run-down, read on. If details are of little interest to you (they're mainly for my own journal/remembrance), enjoy the pics and skip to the last paragraph. :-) Though if you ever want to take a trip to good ol' Moscow, Idaho, I have some recommendations in here you may want.
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Tuesday
Anne was visiting a friend in Utah, so I picked her up in Salt Lake, and we drove to Boise, where we stopped for the night at her mom's place after visiting her grandparents briefly.
There's something about visiting fairly elderly people that puts a few things in perspective. It makes me think about what's going to be important to me when I'm wrinkled, balding, unable to go to the bathroom by myself...what do I take with me? What will comfort me? What will I treasure? Who will I ask about? What relationships will I want to hold on to? What will I feel I'm leaving as far as a contribution or descendants? Will my life have been worth something or made a positive impact? What will help me approach death with minimal regret and loneliness? If certain things or relationships will be of little or no value to me when I'm in the dusk of life, how much focus should I even have on those now? Nothing big, just light thoughts for rainy days.
We ate dinner with Anne's mom, and I discovered that one of my fillings was suddenly ultra sensitive when I bit down on my spaghetti. Was it the change in elevation? Did I bite down on it and crack something? Don't know yet, but it's not pleasant.
Wednesday
The next morning, we finished our trek up to Moscow after sleeping in a bit and arrived in time to drive around, see what had changed over the last two or three years in Moscow (surprisingly little), talk with Brother Jenkins at the Institute (he caught us up on some happenings and the goings on of the student stake), and stop by and see Jesse at work before going to Smoky Mountain pizzeria, which was entirely edible even if nothing to write home about. After touring the Palouse Mall briefly (the big news is that they now have a Mrs. Fields, a Bed Bath & Beyond, AND an Old Navy), we went and loitered at One World Cafe (my favorite cafe to date) for a while before going to Steve's place to watch Ocean's Thirteen, which was the first time I'd seen it. Fun movie. Then it was off to Jesse's place to sleep on their couch (since I no longer have a Moscow home base...though that's surprisingly less weird than I might've expected). ...but not before staying up 'til around 3:00 chatting about life, the universe, and everything.
Thursday
Thursday, I worked out at the Rec Center, which was one thing I really missed when I moved away, so it was fun to go back.
Then Anne, Jesse, and I had lunch at Mikey's Gyros (a must-do whenever I visit Moscow--I got two of my faves: the sampler and the deluxe gyro, my other fave being the avocado gyro), and Anne and I headed to Pullman to watch Slumdog Millionaire, which is a must-see. Really. It's hard to tell why it's R and not PG-13, but I figure it's because of thematic content and intensity--it's kind of hard to watch in parts, despite the happy ending. For complete content details (language, violence, etc, in a comical level of detail), you can check out Kids In Mind.
Then, Anne and I split up to spend some time with our respective family members for the rest of the evening. I had seafood lasagna with the fam (which was quite good), and we conversed about everything from Facebook to cooking to Katz's Deli in Manhattan, which apparently is amazing. I'll have to try it sometime. Then visiting with the other clan in town was fun, with much dog- and cat-petting and chatting about whatever. It was a good evening.
Friday
By Friday, we realized we'd come to see the Jazz Festival and had yet to really do anything jazz festy except seeing the buses of students coming and going. So Anne and I met up at the UI Bookstore, our old employer, for an early lunch with Steve and Jesse at Patty's Mexican Kitchen, another Moscow standard I totally recommend (I tried the mole-smothered burrito, which was recommendable). I remember when it was naught but a trailer, and now it has all the outdoor seating and the Patty Dome on which are written the wise epithets of all who have attempted to eat their huge burrito, the two-foot "Vandal", named after the university's mascot.
Afterwards, we checked out the Ray Brown tribute workshop with Doc Skinner and Jeff Hamilton and Benny Green all sharing anecdotes and experiences from their time with Ray. That's one thing I love about the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival: the artists are available, not aloof, and it's personal and approachable.
We decided to make sure we'd be able to get into the Friday night concert, and when I asked the ticket office, we found out it was sold out. Great. We'd come all this way, and we weren't going to get to a concert. Well, we'd call around and wait it out and see what came up. Meanwhile, we walked through campus just for the heck of it, remembering the old days, seeing what's changed, etc.
It's always fun to see the energy and excitement among jazz fest attendees: middle school, high school, and college competitors as well as alumni and artists. Moscow becomes abuzz with the energy of jazz, and it was always a highlight of each year for me when I was at school, so I didn't mind the crowds.
After our brief campus walking tour, we visited with an old friend of mine from elementary and middle school, Ivy, and her little one, and she fed us some amazing date cake. Then we visited with Tracy and Brian and their little one, and it was like we hadn't missed a beat, chatting like it hadn't been years since we'd all been together. And they were generous enough to offer their evening concert tickets which they were going to be unable to use, for which we were not only grateful but basically ecstatic.
After that, I dragged Anne to the Kibbie Dome to watch the pre-show at the Winner's Concert (where the day's competition winners, in this case high school choirs, are announced and perform) to see the University of Idaho Jazz Choir I perform while the winners are prepping for their performances. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in that jazz choir, and it was fun to hear them perform variations of pieces I'd done with the choir and hear what new songs they've been working on. It was very fun to see them perform again, including an appearance by Claudio Roditi, just as he's done many times previously at the Jazz Fest.
For dinner, The Red Door was booked (as many places are during Jazz Fest), so we settled on dinner at the Thai House (I know, Thai food in Moscow, ID--go fig), which was pretty good and also serves sushi, which I tried (and liked).
Then we stopped in at the student stake's talent show at the old church building I grew up going to (presumably because the student stake buildings are jazz fest venues and therefore unavailable that weekend?). After watching a few "performances" and finally meeting up with a couple of people I'd intended to see/meet, Anne and I headed to the concert.
I snapped some shots of the Monty Alexander trio, with Jeff Hamilton and John Clayton (a couple of my faves from years past), and as we sat listening to their performance, it sunk in just how amazingly polished and crisp these musicians are. You don't get to hear music like this every day, artists so familiar and skilled that you forget the person and the instrument are separate entities. And they had fun, too. I love seeing the glimmer in their eyes as they play off of each other. There's no doubt they love what they do. The second half of the concert, photos were forbidden, but it was also amazing. Bobby McFerrin impressed me far beyond anything I'd expected. He's so low-key, kind of understated and completely non-showy, yet engaging, energetic, super talented at what he does, and quite a showman in his own right, and he did things with his voice I didn't realize were possible. So fun.
When the concert ended, Tracy's parents, who were sitting next to us, offered us backstage passes and admission tickets to the After Party. We opted for the latter and enjoyed some great food from the buffet and listened to accomplished jazz artists play in this lounge-like environment as we chatted about how great the day had been, among other topics.
Saturday
Anne headed home by plane, so I was free to loiter in Moscow a while longer. So Saturday, I worked out AGAIN (really killed my abs--good stuff) and headed, with Lynette and Jesse, to Fazzari's in Clarkston, some of my favorite pizza anywhere. I ordered the baked rigatoni and house special pizza with fresh tomatoes.
When we got back to town, we dropped in on Miles & Squeaker for a while, which was fun. Played a little Rock Band, watch their little one dance for us, discussed a little Prop 8 and business ventures, made Alli squeak a bit...good times.
Then it was off to the Chaffee home, along with Tracy and Brian. We ate David's amazing pumpkin bread, talked a lot about baby things, like spit-up and diapers, and played an intense game of Ticket to Ride. Good times, great company!
Sunday
Sunday was lazy. I actually left for Seattle, made it as far as the Institute to say good-bye to a couple of people, and realized I wanted to stay in Moscow longer since I rarely make it there. So I did. That night, we went to a game night, where I met some very fun new folks, enjoyed watching a bunch of people make up entertaining stories about their lives that weren't true (it was part of the game), and ate some really tasty brownies. Who could hate that?
Then, a few of us met up at Olivia's place, and we played Nertz and watched some Kristen Wiig and other videos online, and there was much laughter and enjoyment.
We finished the night with a mean three-way game of Ticket to Ride - Europe edition, between Jesse, "George Michael", and me. We all finished within...11 points, was it? Yeah, intense. In-tense.
Monday
On my last morning in Moscow, I stopped in at the UI Bookstore to talk about potential job openings (gotta explore the options). I don't expect much to come of it, but hey, gotta explore the options, right?
As I drove to the One World Cafe for the third and final time this trip, my last stop on my way out of town, I looked around Moscow and realized it was familiar but changed. Or it was me who had changed. It was like I was looking at the town and everyone in it through different lenses. And I was OK with that.
One World Cafe is like a little slice of Moscow, complete with families, clean-cut students, granolas, potheads, professors, live music some nights, and even the guy who was walking around straight-faced wearing jeans and a t-shirt but with fake bosoms filling it out, and nobody seemed to bat an eye. Ya gotta love Moscow, you really do. As I left the cafe, I looked back into it at the funky but pleasing decor and thought, "Y'know...living here again probably wouldn't be horrible." Then I hopped in the car and drove away before this familiar little town could seduce me any further.
Thoughts
I can't put my finger on it, but there's something about the friendships I made back home that's kind of unique. Maybe it's that my friends there are so "down to earth" and less materialistic, more "salt of the earth", more trustworthy and basically honest. Maybe it's that it's my home state, so I just identify with them more. Maybe it's because we went through our more formative years together, so we're just "tight" because of it. I recognize that there are traits that may be generally deficient or characteristic in smaller towns, but those, perhaps because I'm from there, seem far overshadowed by the simple goodness, the principle, and the general sense of community. I had forgotten this, but for LDS students in Moscow, it's important to band together, and at the game night, I was amused and impressed by the wide variety of personalities and clothing styles present, all enjoying each other's company and laughing together, which mix you would probably find in few places. But whatever the reasons, they're just good peops, and I can't help but appreciate their friendship and perspective.
So in short, I really enjoyed my time in Moscow, and I even got to eat at all the places I wanted to eat at, which is a bonus, and saw most of the people I wanted to see (I'll catch the few of you I missed next time). And something important came of it: I was reminded of qualities I appreciate about people from my home state, and it was really nice to reconnect with old friends who reminded me about the importance of having friends who really do uplift and help each other, who don't get distracted by the flashier or shallower things in life. It was good to see friends who are beginning to raise families and maybe wishing, in some way, they were less tied down or attached but who I assured I would like to be more attached in important ways. Perspective. Good times.
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