FATIGUE!

3:15am EST. Wake up, shower, finish packing.

4:04am EST. WAWA! Because you can't leave for a journey/come home from a journey without first going to Wawa. PHILLY LAW.

4:43am EST. My dearest most wonderfullest husband drops me off at Philadelphia International Airport.

4:51am EST. An airport worker tries to convince me that my rolly suitcase is too large for the overhead compartment, and that I need to check the bag. I freeze her with my super-terrifying Death Glare, remove a sweater from the rolly suitcase, put it in my other bag, and go on my merry way through security.

5:01am EST. I get through security and put the sweater back in the rolly suitcase.

6:03am EST. The rolly suitcase, with the super-puffy sweater, fits into the overhead compartment JUST FINE.

6:15am EST to 9:15am PST. Flight from Philly to San Francisco.

After landing, I picked up my Big White SUV, which I have named Moby D, and used the Abrams GPS to drive up to Book Passages in Marin County. The GPS has two names--

Name for when the GPS is behaving: Buddy

"Okay, I turned left, where to now Buddy? Drive 1.9 miles? Okay Buddy!"

Name for when the GPS is not behaving: Señor Poopypants.

"What do you mean, you've lost satellite feed? Do not make me throw you into the San Francisco Bay, Señor Poopypants!"

After a massive salad at the Book Passages cafe (so good to eat something green after my breakfast of pita, cheese, and leftover hamentashen) (I don't miss airplane food, but I do miss the days when it was free) I met up with two women named Susan and Sue. They have last names. I am really, really tired and don't quite remember them. But I slurped down a mocha and Sue took me to the Marin Elementary School.

I'm not exactly sure what I said to the kids, but I was powered by mocha and adrenaline and it seemed to go pretty well. The kids were great and asked terrific questions, and I think that I answered them with words.

Back in Moby D, I drove into San Francisco and found the hotel. In order to get into the garage the receptionist, Hester (also known as AWESOME HESTER) measured Moby D and then guided me, airport tarmac employee-style, into the narrow entrance of the underground garage.

7:39pm PST. Begged the Spirit of Jet Lag to let me stay awake until at least 8 so that I could sleep through the night.

2:02am PST. AWAKE!!! Oh Spirit of Jet Lag, please oh please be merciful to me today?

I'll be at Books Inc. in the Marina at 4:30 today--come on down if you're in the San Francisco area and you want to hear me say some words!