Driving into History!

I started out this morning with no idea where I was going, but I knew that I couldn't get there from where I was. The road north was blocked by the Mother of all Landslides, so I had to go south to get north, but where north I had no idea.

On the way, it hit me: The Computer History Museum in Mountain View, CA. I have always wanted to tour the museum because I have lived so much of computer history, it would be good to see if they got it right. Another reason: I have donated a lot of my software stuff to this museum, and I would like to see if they are keeping it in good condition in their archives.

Another thing in Mountain View is Shoreline Billiards, the site of my undefeated victory in the California tournament for the US Amateur championships, in 2004.

Heading south on Highway 1 to 86, then east to 101, then north, I stopped at Salinas and ate a light lunch at the Salinas airport. A magnificent soup of artichoke and various spices, watching only one plane take off into a strong headwind, and I was back on the road.

When I got to Mountain View, I pulled over in the Museum lot to check some hotels where I might want to stay. They all looked good and were only a few miles away, but I was dog tired and figured I'd shoot a few racks at Shoreline Billiards, just for old time's sake.

But NOoooooo! The pool hall is history, as in Gone, no mas, finito, no esta aqui, it has ceased to be. The scene of my great triumph is history. This is just so wrong. Who will sing my praises now?  Sad.

Nothing left to do but to choose a hotel and get back into rush hour traffic, an unspeakable thing for a Ferrari to choose, but if I didn't do it I would fall asleep in the parking lot of the Museum.

I chose well. Roberto, the front desk man and concierge, took splendid care of me, helping with laundry, and a reference for getting my car detailed in the morning. When I asked if there were any special parking arrangements, in a ding-free zone, he suggested the handicapped spots, since there were no people checked in who needed them. What a guy! But I figured I'd just park close to the blue zone and not take up the spot. Although, after all that driving, I was barely able to walk, but I didn't have the blue sticker...

Roberto fixed me up with laundry/dry cleaning overnight, and directed me to Lupe's Mexican restaurant, which was absolutely outstanding. I still a bit buzzed with a Cadillac margarita, which did the trick to release the tight muscles from all those hours in the saddle.

Buenas noches...