Day one (a day late)

During the warm, wet, and woebegone summer months in the city, suburbs, and exurbs of Washington, DC, a deep-seated sensation of what Thomas Pynchon described in his short story Entropy possesses many inhabitants... the months, days, hours, minutes, seconds, and nanoseconds of traffic, pollution, overpopulation, and social isolationism push a normally sane person to the brink of psychic overload. For the the politically and financially unambitious, the aggressively work-driven toilet-texting workforce armies (invariably weaving massive eight cylinder SUV's at 90mph through residential school zones...) can be a bit much. Retreat is necessary - especially for those who thrive on art, literature, and sanity.

Exodus!

As a an extremely fortunate (and grateful) recipient of the 2013 Steinbeck Institute's NEH summer scholar program grant, I have been given an amazing opportunity to escape the thermodynamic nightmare described above in a way that should prove enlightening, entertaining, and rejuvenating.

For the next three weeks, I will spend time with a group of fellow recipients, noted Steinbeck scholars, professors, and members of the Californian communities that helped forge John Steinbeck into the Nobel Prize winning author celebrated by so many Americans (and non-Americans for that matter).

In preparation for this undertaking, a relatively hefty reading workload was assigned... entirely a labor of love, it was a fairly comprehensive delving into Steinbeck's oeuvre:

A "Steinbeck Enema"

Today, I'm sitting in a small cafe (East Village Coffee Lounge - great vegan burrito!) typing / finishing a reading assignment before I head over to the hotel where the rest of the group will be staying for the duration of the trip - the Best Western Victorian Inn on Foam Street... two blocks from Cannery Row and the Monterey Bay! We will be "working" (which will be fun) Monday - Friday with our weekends off for liberty and some light reading assignments.

Had a great meal last night at Restaurant 1833 on Hartnell Street - historic building that is apparently a stop on the "Monterey Ghost Tour." Hmm... further inquiry required. Tasty fava bean pizza and a caramelized endive amuse-bouche.

On to some reading, writing, and walking! Tonight we will be enjoying a reception cocktail hour in addition to a dramatic reading of The Chrysanthemums, a story from Steinbeck's short story collection The Long Valley.