4:20 pm. Here I sit on the newest, coolest houseboat on Shasta Lake - except that it isn't all that cool. It's hot-damn-hot, as they say, but not the least bit unpleasant. It's hottest now, in the middle of the day, which is why people do little more than sit around (or the next level, lie around). For example, take me. I just woke up from an hour's nap, and now here I sit. (Wait. That's where you came in.)

Eric and I got to the marina about 2:15 am last night. We met at Tammy and David's about 10 pm, made faces at Aiden for fifteen minutes or so, and were on our way. I followed him all the way, which took any potential risk in the guise of "thinking" out of my driving. It's better that way, but there was very little traffic to contend with at that time anyway, especially in I-5.

At the marina I had to follow him along a twisty dirt road, sometimes precipitously steep and sometimes ridiculously narrow. And very, very dark. I had to hang back because I couldn't see through his dust swirling around in my headlight beams. Parking just next to a drop-off cliff in the dark is an adventure, but I made it.

There have been only five of us on the houseboat all day, because John is on a one-day business trip to San Francisco. He's due back in a couple of hours. More people will be coming in for the weekend, but not too many more. I don't think I'll feel crowded on this big boat. We've been here all day, mostly lounging and swimming. We took the ski boat out for one quick run, but since I don't ski it was only a mini-cruise for me. That's okay. It's what I like to do.

10:30 pm. It actually seems much later than 10:30 pm. Maybe that's because I've had short nights' sleep the last two nights. Or maybe it's because I spent the day in the sun and fresh air. Probably part of the reason is that my bed is set up on the roof, under the stars. It's been a year since the last time I slept under the stars. I'm ready to do it again, right now.