After our signings in the Washington, DC, area Brian and I left for our next stop, Pittsburgh.  Early morning, I headed off to the airport for the short flight, while the car came to pick up Brian for the drive (in such short distances, the timing was about the same).  We both arrived in Pittsburgh, PA, a surprisingly beautiful city with far more than its share of bridges.  The Allegheny and Menonghela Rivers converge here into the Ohio River; most of the steel mills have shut down, and Pittsburgh has some of the greenest, hilliest landscape of any urban complex I have seen.

With a little time to kill, I went over the bridge, walked along the river path, and saw some of the city, but the heat and humidity were oppressive, so I headed back to the hotel room and spent the rest of the free time watching the remake of “The Taking of Pelham 123” on the in-room TV.  Good enough, with John Travolta and Denzel Washington, but not great.  Most memorable part, as the plan begins to go wrong, someone asks Travolta if he has a Plan B.  “Plan B is to *enforce* Plan A!”

That evening our driver Margo picked us up at the hotel and drove us out to the Mystery Lovers’ Bookshop, about 30 miles away.  With the highway blocked, Margo expertly maneuvered around to alternate routes, and we arrived at the bookstore only a few minutes late.  The crowd had been promised only a signing, but we offered to do a talk, which they enthusiastically accepted.  We chatted about our work, and Brian talked about growing up with his father. 

That afternoon, while out walking, I was wearing my LAST DAYS OF KRYPTON t-shirt.  From a block away, someone shouted at me, “Hey, I’m reading that book!”  I stopped and chatted with the reader, who introduced himself.  He wanted to know where the t-shirt had come from, and was surprised to learn I had written the novel.  He promised to come to that evening’s signing, and he did.  After Brian and I gave our talk, we signed books for the audience, and headed back to our hotel.

Next morning I was awakened before 7 AM with loud motorcycle engines as an enormous biker rally set up on the street in front of our hotel.  I got up, made my way to the Starbucks a few blocks away, then caught my ride to the Pittsburgh airport, while Brian caught his car to Cleveland, OH.

For Saturday, we had a signing at Joseph-Beth in the early afternoon.  I got to the hotel with an hour to spare, but Brian and his car encountered severe delays because of an accident, and they had to divert to the bookstore directly, bypassing the hotel.  I met up with Brian in the store’s coffee shop, where he grabbed a quick bite to eat.  Then we gave our talk to the audience.

Our friends Geoff Landis and Mary Turzillo met us at the signing.  We had a brief conversation in the coffee shop, and then Brian had to head back to the hotel to check in and decompress.  I went out to dinner with Geoff and Mary at a local Cleveland microbrewery (fish & chips and a good IPA), then got back to my room.  Met Brian for a quick drink in the hotel, then retired to our rooms to pack up and get ready for tomorrow’s appearance in Buffalo, NY.  Currently watching the Nicholas Cage movie “Knowing” as I check e-mail and write this blog.