It was the Best of Times, it was the Worst of Times...

A Tale of Two Cities by Tom King

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity…
(If the first lady can do it, so can I!)

Prologue 

This literary mini-epic takes place largely in and between two cities: the coastal city of Lincoln City Oregon and the inland city of Tualatin Oregon. The time period was circa - June 2017. The main characters' names have been changed to protect the innocent. Any similarity between them and real people is purely coincidental.

The first of two main characters are the good Captain Dom - a dashing (it's my story; I'll write it any way I want) yet quiet, (and some say) quixotic man, and Mendy - a beautiful, raven-haired woman, who has been reluctantly spirited away from her calm and predictable life in the hamlet of Macramento. They are joined by their trusty 2nd mate Tank - a hairy fellow with a very pronounced nose, who never seems to have much of anything to say.

Chapter One

It was the best of times...

Captain Dom and his first mate and navigator Mendy have been sailing their good ship - the HMS Winnebago, up the California and Oregon coast for the past month. Braving the occasional sprinkle and breeze but all in all, smooth sailing and very fair weather was had, all along this picturesque coastline.

it was the worst of times...

SOMEONE had the bright idea to head inland to take on supplies at the huge metropolis of Port o' Land, and then, after a few days layover, they would continue on to the fabled lands of the Gorge of Columbia. Since Port o' Land was such a big and crowded place, there was no room to dock the HMS Winnebago, so they decided to stay on the outskirts of the Port in the little borough of Tualatin. Unfortunately for the hero and heroine, their arrival to the Port coincided with a heat wave, the likes of which Dom and Mendy had never felt before... well not for at least the last month!

it was the age of wisdom

Why don't we just turn back to the coast they pondered...

it was the age of foolishness

Naw, we planned on seeing the Gorge of Columbia and BY JUMPIN JEHOSEPHATS, we're GONNA SEE IT!

it was the epoch of belief

This heatwave will be short lived, won't it? It can't last... this is Northern Oregon and Southern Washington after all.

it was the epoch of incredulity

After two days in PortLand, we've sailed on an easterly now to the Gorge of Columbia. Tomorrow they are forecasting temperatures to hit the 100 degree mark?? ARE YOU FRICKIN KIDDING ME?? 100 DEGREES?? It's not even going to be THAT hot back in Macramento! What the heck is going on here?!

... to be continued