It officially begins tomorrow. Not so auspiciously, I discovered yesterday that I’d jacked up my plane reservations, and was set to arrive at 12.23am, instead of 12.23pm. That’s a mistake I’ve never made before. (Doesn’t help that United’s SFO-PDX flights go at the exact same times, a.m. and p.m.)

Anyway, fixed that. Will arrive in Portland tomorrow (lord willin’) and put on a show at Land gallery, which I am very much looking forward to. And there will be plenty of eating in Portland, of course. Finally, Pok-pok!

And, as I’ve said on shorter-form communication media, it dawned on me that working as a guidebook writer has made me exceptionally well trained for a book tour. All those pansy writers who complain about having to fly to a new city every two days–big deal! Try driving to a new city every two days, in 90-degree heat, in a car with no a/c or power steering. And overscheduling–I invented that the first time I tried to visit all of New Mexico in three weeks.

Also, I’m very good at getting names spelled right. So I won’t be doing what Jeffrey Steingarten did to me when he inscribed a book to “Dora.” (Bad bookstore karma, but I sliced that page out with a razor blade and returned the book. It’s not like I shoplifted books and then returned them, like some deadbeat writers I’ve met.)

Anyhooooo… This is all to say I probably will be too harried to communicate clearly in this forum for the next couple of weeks. (Sad state of affairs when blogging seems to be too long-form.) I will, as ever, be on Facebook, where we also have a page for the cookbook. And this newfangled Twitter thing. I’m at zoraoneill and forkyeah. (And Cooking in Real Time is continuing–not to worry. Also on Twitter at cookrealtime.)

Oh! And I’m still a guidebook writer, you know. I’ll be appearing at WORD! (the best-named bookstore ever) on October 29 to talk about it. I will be totally fried. It will be awesome, and hopefully somewhat coherent.