It’s Tuesday, so we went to the chiropractor as usual this morning. It was raining off and on during our drive, but nothing particularly serious, so we expected to take our usual after-adjustment walk on the Los Gatos Creek Trail – we were wearing raingear, and I’d even brought along my Makanyi hat to keep me warm.

But when we got to the parking lot, we couldn’t park in our usual space.

The chiropractor told us that people come and hang out in the parking lot in the evenings and party in their vehicles; his best guess was that whoever was in the truck heard the tree crack and tried to back away, but couldn’t get far enough before the tree fell on their truck. He also mentioned that he’d been awakened about 2:10am by lighting, thunder, and strong winds (he lives about a mile from us); we hadn’t noticed anything.

While we were chatting, a notification popped up on my phone about strong thunderstorms in the area. Diane and I decided that this was a perfect opportunity to fulfill my resolution to visit Valley Fair and walk inside.

There were quite a few traffic lights out along our way. And when we got to the mall, the power was out to about half of the stores, including the new section that had opened in early 2020. We were still able to walk through that part of the mall, but actually visiting Eataly or Bloomingdales or even Macy’s will have to wait – they were all locked down tight.

Our next stop was Lunardi’s; they were operating on generator power and had been since about 2:10am. We picked up our food and went home; we still had power, but much of Los Gatos had lost power in the storm, as had a lot of people in the mountains.

We stayed home the rest of the day. Maybe more of Valley Fair will be open on our next visit.

One of the high points of our trip to Africa earlier this year was the time we spent at [Makanyi Private Game Lodge] near Kruger National Park. The animals were amazing, the guides were excellent and informative, the food was tasty, the accommodations were comfortable, and the sundowners were a wonderful way to wind down from a day of game drives.

I liked the place so much that I bought a scarf and a knit cap with their logo as souvenirs. I put them away when we got home, planning to wear them when the weather got cold; I didn’t want them to get lost in the closet, so I put them in a Good Safe Place.

Months passed, and winter arrived. I knew where the scarf was, but I couldn’t find the cap. I pulled out all the luggage we’d taken to Africa – no cap. I cleaned out the closet where I stash my headgear – no cap. I was beginning to think that I’d only thought about buying the cap and hadn’t. I was even considering calling or emailing them to see how much it would cost to get a cap shipped to the US.

Tonight, while I was in a Toastmasters meeting, Diane found the missing cap. It was in the same chest of drawers as the scarf, just two drawers lower. I had not one, but two Good Safe Places; it’s a shame I didn’t remember to look in both of them!

Thanks, Diane!