Although they usually left for their next town in the mornings, they left immediately for Portland Oregon for engagement rings, cool music, outrageous writers, and one event in particular that Nick was giddy over: CthulhuCon.  Portland is the home to the world`s only H.P. Lovecraft film festival, and Nick had been a huge fan since he and his father used to read his books and short stories and debate of the pronunciation of the name "Cthulhu" and "Yog-Sothoth".

"Are you so excited for NerdFest?" Sarah asked as she flipped through the online brochure she had printed.

Nick reached over and flicked her arm.  "It is not a NerdFest.  H.P. Lovecraft is the grandfather of all modern horror.  Ask anyone."

Sarah looked at him.  "You mean, ask nerds?"

"For that, I might not bring you to the performance by Darkest of Hillside Thickets," Nick told her.

"And that`s the nerd band that dresses up like Star Wars characters?" Sarah was now just egging Nick on.

"They are," Nick began, sighing, "a band that is dedicating to promoting the works of H.P. Lovecraft.  And they don`t always dress up like Star Wars characters.  Sometimes they dress as Lovecraft characters or superheroes or whatever they feel like."

"And all I have to do to not see them is call you a nerd?" Sarah asked.

"Beer will be served at the show," Nick advised her.

"I`m in.  Do I have to dress up?  Maybe I can strap some cinnamon rolls to the side of my head and go as Princess Leia."  She continued to read some things about H.P. Lovecraft she had found on the internet while Nick steered the Jeep north toward Portland.  "Did you know that your hero was a raging racist?"

"He married a Jewish woman," Nick told her.

"That you know that off the top of your head," Sarah said, "terrifies me.  Plus, she had to keep reminding him when he would say anti-Semitic things."

Nick started fiddling with the radio.  He liked finding local stations.  "You have no right to mock my love of horror, anyway," he told her.  "Who`s your favorite author again?"

"Tom Robbins," she said.

"Okay, second favorite, then," he went on.

"Christopher Moore.  Duh.  You know this."

"FINE," he said, not bothering to veil his frustration. "Third?"

"Chuck Palahniuk." Sarah responded.   "I get it.  He`s from Portland."

"And," Nick continued, "You can`t tell me he`s not writing horror."

"Yes, I can."

"How?" Nick asked.  "I`ve read a few of his books.  They`re horror."

"They are not horror," Sarah explained, "because I love his books, and I don`t like horror.  Therefore, he is not writing horror."

Nick shoved her a little.  "I truly never stop learning about you," he said.

They arrived at the hotel, which they had to book way in advance if they wanted to be anywhere near the Hollywood Theatre, where the CthulhuCon was being held.  After arriving, they showered and got ready to go experience classic Portland nightlife: Exotica-Go-Go at Dante`s Bar.  Sarah wore all tight black things with black boots, and Nick wore black pants, a red shirt, and skull-and-crossbones suspenders.  This was their club gear.

Grabbing a taxi, Sarah told the driver: "1 South West 3rd Ave., Portland, OR 97204", which she read directly from the MapQuest printout. 

They jumped out and went into the former brothel/speakeasy/Mongolian restaurant, which was now a totally insane club, and Exotica-Go-Go was the perfect night to go dance their tails off.  Forgoing beer, since Sarah felt it `weighed her down` when she danced, they drank Grey Goose and ginger ale instead.  After tasting hers and commenting that they `must have forgotten the ginger ale`, she took Nick by the hand and led him to the dance floor.  They danced most of the night, befriended a bartender, and promised to try to come back for the Sunday night "Sinferno".

When they got up the next morning, they grabbed coffee from Peet`s and then went to the Hollywood Theatre at 4122 NE Sandy Blvd., Portland, OR 97212 to check out the festivities.  Sarah had gotten most of her mocking out of her system and was ready to see what was so compelling about an octopus-like sea-monster who somehow drove people to insanity by showing them how terrifying reality is.  Nick tried to explain it, but it never got through.

They first checked out the Mall of Cthulhu, where Sarah had to stifle a laugh or two.  There were some people in costumes, and others not.  Nick picked up a few things from Dagon Industries, Inc., makers of Lovecraft memorabilia.  He even bought a figure of Cthulhu to present to Sarah.  She promised to treasure it forever, no matter how creepy it was.  Then they went to listen to a reading of "The House of Cthulhu", during which Sarah actually found herself getting swept up in the notion that full knowledge of reality might actually drive someone mad. 
"They kinda make madness sound appealing, don`t they?" she whispered to Nick.

He smiled.  After they watched the movie "In Search of Lovecraft", Nick bought her a few of his books and collections.  That night she thoroughly enjoyed the performance by Darkest of Hillside Thickets, and bought a round of drinks for the band afterwards.  Nick had to drag her away from their intense discussion about reality and insanity and the craft of Lovecraft. 

Walking back to the hotel, Sarah took Nick`s hand and kissed it.  "I`m sorry I called you a nerd." She said.  "I mean, you are one, but now I realize that I am, too."

Holding up the t-shirt he had bought her, he pointed to what it said.  It was a cartoonish image of the creepy sea-monster/deity-thing and it said "Smile.  Cthulhu Loves You."

The next day was back to business, for the most part.  They wanted to check out as much of Portland as they could. They started the day by running at Tom McCall Waterfront Park along the Willamette River.  Then, having sweated out pure Grey Goose, they went back to the hotel to shower.  Since Portland was such a funky city, they decided to check out one of the more off-beat jewelers.  They headed downtown, to SW Broadway, where they found themselves in a shop that had jewelry that looked more like art. 

Since they were there fairly early, they had the place to themselves.  A flamboyant man came from behind the counter and introduced himself as the owner of the store. 

"We`re looking for an engagement ring, Greg," Nick told him.  "But we want something that no one has ever seen before."

"Do you have any ideas?" Greg asked as he reached over the counter and got a sketch pad.

"Well," Sarah started, "I have big hands, so I can handle a big ring.  But that doesn`t necessarily mean a big diamond.  I want a diamond somewhere in there, but I also want my birth stone and Nick`s as well—so ruby and sapphire."

"Do any shapes or configurations come to mind?" he asked as he began sketching.

Sarah thought for a second. "Can you make the symbol for `om` somehow circular, and incorporating those three stones?"

Greg smiled and kept sketching.  Nick and Sarah looked at the display cases while he worked.  He had some pieces that were so unusual and beautiful, and some that were unusual and hideous—but jewelry is all in the eye of the beholder, they reminded each other.

After 20 minutes or so, Greg called them over and said he had some ideas.  "I`ve worked with the `om` symbol before.  Portland, as you know, is the greenest city in the country, so we have more than our share of happy hippies and people into yoga.  I`m guessing you`re into yoga," he said as he smiled and winked at Sarah.  The sketch was beautiful, making the diamond central to a shape without much of a center.

"Of course, the diamond can be as big or as small as you want it to," Greg said. "But keep in mind that the size of the other two stones, while they will be smaller than the diamond, will have to be larger if the diamond is, or they`ll get lost in the design."

Sarah put her hand on her chest.  "I am without words," she said.

"And that never happens," Nick told Greg.

"If you tell me the size of the gems, I can have a rendering of the ring done in a week."

"That is incredibly awesome," Sarah said.  "But I have to think about it before I commit to a design.  Of course, my family would rather see something more traditional."

"But it`s your ring," Greg reminded her.

"I know.  I just can`t decide this today.  I didn`t expect to be so blown away." She said.

"Maybe you strike while the iron is hot?" Greg was going into his deal-closing techniques.

Sarah pulled Nick a few feet away.  They bumped fists and used their normal extrication-without-offense skills and left the store.

"We totally have to find a way to be able to do that, Nicky," Sarah said.  Nick wrote it down when they got into the Jeep.

They headed for Portland`s famous rose gardens, from which the city earned its nickname "The City of Roses".  The city had another nickname that Sarah liked better.  Evidently, during a visit by President Bush Senior`s in the early 1990s, such violent protests against him broke out that he called it "Little Beirut".  Although the city was peaceful by nature, they protests were against what the citizens saw as the federal government`s failure to take care of the environment, raise the minimum wage, and deal with Iraq.  Sarah enjoyed the irony of violent hippie protests. 

Nick and Sarah started in the International Rose Test Garden, which was an amazing, tiered garden with 550 varieties of roses.  While Sarah thought of roses as a cheesy way to say `I love you`, she found the gardens to be gorgeous.  The day was so clear that they could see Mount Hood from there.  They spent an hour just looking around and, literally, stopping to smell the flowers.  Then they got back into the Jeep to see the Ladd`s Addition neighborhood so they could tour the four diamond-shaped parks that had been planned and cared for by a community of volunteers. 

"This is city is so…green," Sarah said as she lightly ran her fingers over a bright pink rose.  "Citizen volunteers?"

"I know," Nick responded.  "Can`t see that happening in every city we go to, can you?"

They went back to the Hollywood Theatre in time to catch a series of short films based on the work of H.P. Lovecraft, then go to a reading by an author heavily influenced by Lovecraft.  After that was the wrap-up party at Tony Starlight`s, featuring the same band they heard before, but a few others as well.  This time, the freaks were out in force, finishing off their Cthulhu experience by getting into costumes and partying like crazy people. 

"I`m sorry, baby," Sarah said, "but this totally reminds me of the bar scene with Han Solo and Greedo in Star Wars."

Nick kissed her.  "You are such a nerd for making that observation."

"I know, right?"