Afterwards, M'ris and I were finally able to get lunch. I was a super starvin' Marvin. We had the "not good-bye" chat. It was good. I met her through her journal. We became friends that way. We got better friends once we met face to face and I'm sure we will stay friends. Who knows, maybe I'll visit her after she and her family move.
After that, I went to Rich's place where we had the "not good-bye" talk. This one was a little sadder than the one with M'ris. It's amazing to me how close Rich and I have become over the last couple of years. He really is a brother of the heart to me. But, I won't be sad for long. He and Cil are seriously pondering a move to Seattle, like Ben is.
Finally, the evening was rounded out with the "not good-bye" dinner with Johanna and Alex. Good pub food but, I was a big incoherent due the lack of sleep. The topics were particularly mundane. I think that, unconsciously, we all decided that was the safest thing to do.
It's not good-bye. It's just a longer commute. 14.5 hours by car. 3 hours by plane (including the airports on both sides).