Epilogue

I survived my reunion. I think the verb "survived" is apt. It wasn't horrible but not extremely enjoyable either.

My two days in L.A. were enjoyable. I became convinced a family vacation to Disneyland & the beach will occur when J&S are older. The thought of taking them to Rat Beach and building sand castles makes me smile. My imagined looks on their faces as we walk down Disney Main Street makes me giddy with excitement. The ability to share something Shannon and I find special with J&S is a neat feeling.

From a practical point of view, my remembered familiarity with L.A. will make the vacation that much more enjoyable. I can find a clean, inexpensive hotel near the South Bay. I know where the beaches with free parking are located. I know how to drive to from South Bay to Disneyland and other attractions without getting lost. If I didn't, the entire vacation would be very stressful and/or expensive.

As for my last day on vacation, I spent Sunday in the Redondo Beach area. There was a reunion event at the high school, but the idea of hanging out someplace fun sounded more enjoyable. I found a coffee shop in the little commercial area off PV Boulevard (behind the Vons). It also happened to be next door to the Redondo Beach Brewing Company, the brewery I wanted to visit on Saturday. How lucky could I be? After getting jazzed on a couple cups of joe, I wandered next door to mix in some relaxants.

The coffee was fantastic! The beer was mixed.

The pale ale was like watery hops. I could imagine one brewer saying "we need to reduce cost....let's cut back on the barely." The second brewer responded "sounds great, but let's add some more hops to scald the customer's taste buds. they'll never know the difference." Well, starch & bitter flavors are tasted on differed parts of the tongue. You can tell the difference.

The porter was more enjoyable. It was served too cold, so I watched football while it warmed some. Nice malted chocolate undertones with clean sweetness. A touch thin in the middle, but porters are difficult to balance perfectly. Overall, a nice beer.

Eventually, I headed to Pasadena for the opening session of the conference I was attending.