Leavenworth, and my much-needed six day vacation.

I love my job. I work for a very good grocery company that pays me pretty well. I am a 4th manager (read: store mgr, asst, 3rd, me) at a very nice store that has roughly 85% repeat customers. We do well, I love the crew I work with, and my store manager has given me a golden opportunity to rapidly ascend the management ladder, and I owe him a large debt. But, seeing as there is always another side to the coin:

I also hate my job. I am now on blood pressure medication because of the stress my job gives me. My 45-min (one way) daily commute's last ten minutes involve sudden bouts of indigestion because of the anticipation of what I'm going to be chewed out for regarding my performance the previous night. I feel like Wesley Gibson (go watch Wanted). My golden ticket became a whipping boy's post as my boss has decided that his 22-year-old backstabbing-kissass night crew lead is the best thing he's ever seen. I won't go into detail, but just suffice it to say that I run circles around this 'yes-man.' I had been waiting for the opportune time to take some time off, and......

My brother's birthday came up. Inauguration Day, as it is every four years. January 20th when it isn't. We had a blast driving out to Spokane as a family-plus-uncle/brother earlier in 2008, so when I brought it up to all parties concerned that we should take some time off and celebrate Eric's birthday in whatever manner we all deemed appropriate, the idea was well-received. Allie, Eric, Tristan, and I drove out to Leavenworth, WA (a small, Bavarian-themed town roughly between I-90 and Hwy-2 east of the Cascades) the day after his birthday to...just hang out. Allie and I rented a large suite so that after Tristan went to sleep, we could continue partying without worrying about waking him.

We hit Leavenworth about 3:45 pm, just in time to check in to our suite at the Enzian. Check it out, and when you're in town, do it. I'll explain more later. After we checked in, we walked around town a bit, though most of the shops were closed. We had dinner at Visconti's, the Italian ristorante in town. After some locally brewed beer (Eric: hefeweizen, me: IPA), we enjoyed the simple yet lovely rustic Italian bread with olive oil/balsamic vinegar dipping sauce. I don't give a shit about the fact that this is the easiest appetizer to serve, it always sets a fantastic mood for whatever is to come, be it burgers or filet mignon. In this case, Tristan chose a mini cheese pizza, and the three adults settled on fettucine - Allie had the chicken variety, and Eric and I chose to sample their seafood fett. Prices were a bit steep considering the portions and the quality of the food, but Eric and I were very pleased with the fact that the pasta was not served with your run-of-the-mill alfredo sauce, but rather the 'signature Visconti's cheese sauce,' which as best as we could discern consisted of mozzarella, parmigiano Reggiano, asiago, and either ricotta or plain Rondele to make it less thick. Needless to say, our dishes congealed to a blob within twenty minutes of serving, but regardless, they were very enjoyable.

We went back to the Enzian and suited up for some indoor swimming. They have the largest hot tub I've ever seen, as well as a very large 5' deep indoor lap pool. My brother still has his 8-letter cross-country/track body, so I was a bit embarassed to reveal my gut-heavy 200lb frame. Granted, I am a good three inches taller than he, and a six-foot frame can easily support 200+lbs in weight, but aside from my gut, I have the slender 'Watson' frame, so the gut is rather prominent. I love food and drink. Swimming was really fun, I've always been a big fan of it and move about in water very well. Mind you, I'm not Michael Phelps, I just have a way with water. By the way, Tristan does NOT like being dunked. Don't do it.

We spent about an hour in the pool/hot tub, then showered and retired to our suite. Tristan went to bed somewhat easily while Allie and Eric watched the season premiere of Lost. Afterwards we drank copiously while playing gin rummy until 2am, with the plan of waking up at 8am.

Yeah, so Tristan woke up at 6 with a poopy diaper and no intent on going back to bed, so after letting him wreak his havoc in the room for an hour and a half, Allie and I showered, woke Eric up, and went to enjoy the best part of staying at the Enzian: the breakfast buffet. Picture this on the weekend: buffet starts at 7:30, and you best get your ass there by 8 or you're standing in line for an hour. Luckily it was Thursday morning, and by the time we got there at about 9, there was only one other table. So here's the fare: made-to-order omelettes, scrambled eggs, french toast, any other kind of toast, oatmeal, Danishes, pastries, yogurt, applesauce, granola, and beverages ranging from Starbucks brewed drip to OJ, milk, water, apple juice. Again, buffet-style. Get as much as you want. Uh, yeah, we ate. Heavily. When in Leavenworth, stay at the Enzian Inn! You'll get more than your money's worth.

After breakfast, we went back, napped for an hour, packed all our shit into my Saturn, and drove the three-block slog into town to shop. Allie chose to piss and moan about Eric and I's interest in all things meat, cheese, and wine. Read her blog, you'll see. Tristan broke a bottle of port in a shop.....yeah, on their carpet. I apologized profusely and seeing as they wouldn't allow me to pay for that bottle, I bought a split of Graham's Six Grapes port that was worth more than the broken bottle. Upon reaching the checkout, I was informed that most people in my position never bother to apologize, let alone help clean up (as I did), so therefore my child's accident was truly no bother at all. I thanked/apologized profusely again, and left the store. Eric and I visited the Kestrel Winery shop, and I sampled their 2004 Lady in Red blend (as you've discerned, I'm a red blend fan). Didn't like it, but I sampled their 2005 Syrah and bought a bottle. I was really set on buying a glass of their '05 Malbec but Tristan was being mischevious, so that was out of the question. My favorite experience was at cured, Visconti's salumi/meat shop (no, that's not a typo). After sampling several salumis, sopressatas, and an all-acorn fed smoked ham called speck, I settled on a quarter-pound of a sopressata made in Utah and shared it with all my meat-devouring friends back at home. Lovely. For the record, they have a salumi seasoned with fennel and cracked peppercorn that is a must-try for all who enter the shop. It's not for everyone, but trust me, it's definitely worth at least a try. I also bought a half-pound of a porter cheese that I fell in love with last time I was there. Go to the Cheesemonger shop, seriously, and sample all you can. This porter (yes, the beer) cheese is the best cheese I've ever had, and I like me some cheese.

I might expound on the last two hours of our trip later, but you got the gist of it, and I'm fucking tired. Go to Leavenworth, preferably with us, but go whether or not that's an option. I'll spew at you later.

-Watty