Say Goodbye to January...

Hard to write about living in the Pacific Northwest when I have been absent the area most of last week. I left last Tuesday for a conference in Miami, Florida. It's about as far away from Poulsbo as can be found in the U.S. and I say that on many levels. I love to travel and I enjoy experiencing new cultures and places. And as the actual logistics of getting there go, I have to appreciate that I had good flights with no delays. But Miami is a long way away! I had to connect in Chicago on my way out, so I had two long flights. My day started at 3:30am so I could catch the 5am transport to the airport (I could not do that to John....a 3 hour round trip to the airport at 0'dark thirty is no fun). Then waiting and flying and sitting (lots of sitting) all day until I finally arrived in my hotel room at 9:30pm Miami time (6:30 to me). Then it was reading until I  could reasonably go to sleep in order to be down at the conference for a 7:30am start (4:30 to my little brain). Why anyone thinks that attending a conference is laden with "fun", some kind of boondoggle away from work, is beyond me. Maybe they haven't had the pleasure of attending one. I find them interesting, sometimes uplifting, and always worthwhile, but rarely have I ever had "fun" as the main feature. If I am attending with a work associate, there's usually a dinner somewhere and, depending on the associate, it can be relaxed (which translates to some amount of "fun") or it can be one of those socially stifled occasions where you are making nice with a "work associate". I traveled on my own this time, so aside from the actual event that started early and finished at 5 or 5:30, I enjoyed my own company. Fortunately, I enjoy that company. I flew back on Saturday, once again starting my day at 5am Miami time. It was a direct flight home (6+ hours) where John did in fact pick me up from the airport. We enjoyed lunch at Dave's Diner near the airport and then back to the absolute peace and beauty of the place we live. It might take us an hour and a half to get there from the airport, but it's worlds away from the city.

John and I didn't have much time to catch up as he left Sunday midday for a conference in Las Vegas and then on to the Bay Area per our usual routine. He'll return tomorrow evening. While he was in LV, he had a chance to visit with son Gareth which made the trip much more enjoyable. It's that face-to-face time that we have precious little of these days. Meanwhile, it's turned sunny here but quite chilly (the 20's overnight). I can't complain about that given the state the rest of the country is in at the moment. Spring isn't far off up here as we notice the trees have buds waiting to open. And the light is coming earlier and staying later day by day. I don't even need to leave the gate lights on for my post-work arrival now.

John will be home tomorrow and we'll have time to settle in and enjoy the routines that make up our days. Saturday is the monthly Farm Breakfast. And Sunday we will watch my Packers (yes, with my Cheese head hat on for that added support) win the Super Bowl! Welcome February....

Here and There, This and That...

I'll be off to Miami on Tuesday for a conference. I've never been there and it seems about as diametrically opposed to my current surroundings as it could be and certainly as far a trip as one could find from here in the continental U.S. It will be "interesting" but not really a trip for seeing much of the sights. John will keep the home fires burning and when I return it will be his turn to travel. He'll be going to Las Vegas for a conference and then on to his regular beat in California before we have real face time. Truth be told, we'd both prefer to stay here and goof off, but a mortgage is a strict task master.

The rain came as promised this week but we had some sun in there as well. The snow-covered mountains are fabulous this time of year. There is just so much "eye candy" up here. We've also turned the corner on winter as it is getting light earlier and staying later. Not too much just yet, but at least I'm not driving to and from work in what son Jake describes as "camping-dark". That makes the commute much less tiresome. We bought a ramp for our brown dog to make getting in and out of the vehicles a bit easier. She'll turn 13 in another couple months which translates to about 91 in human years if the 7:1 ratio holds true. She's much younger in spirit (aren't we all?) but the jumping in and out, up and down, was taking a bit longer with more effort. I took her with me to retrieve John from the pick-up place when he returned home Thursday night and, while she needed some encouragement to use the ramp, she was able to ride in the new (and significantly higher) vehicle. Prior to the ramp, I would have had to lift her into this car so the ramp is good for both of us older ladies :-)

John is ramping up (no pun intended) for the garden this year. We'll add a couple more fruit trees to our "orchard" and try to get an earlier jump on planting this year. I am nearly at the end of our potatoes from last year and am using the last bag of frozen blackberries in my morning smoothies. I'd like to get a little freezer this year to store some things but I'll have to balance that with the potential for power outages and potential loss. We're considering putting concrete down on the garage side of the house where it gets very wet in the winter. The grading and reseeding effort didn't seem to make much difference to the amount of sloppy, wet puddles there. If we do that, a small greenhouse might just be a good addition to that space. A few dry days now and then and he will begin to work on creating a level foundation for the shed that will be priority #1 this year.

So, the weekend brings groceries, homework, housework, and football. But first a shower and then off to dig my Cheesehead "hat" out of the closet. Go Packers! Priorities.....

Grab Bag....

It's been kind of a mixed bag this past week. Weather has varied from 5 inches of snow on Monday night followed by slush (new boots very helpful there) which, in turn, has been followed by warm temperatures (mid 50s) and rain straight from Hawaii. Steady, drenching rain. Being the near-local that I am now (insert smugness here), I don't even use an umbrella anymore. Just put the hood up and go. This week suggests that lower temperatures will return as well as lower snow levels which lessens the  chances of flooding in areas. We haven't been threatened by any of that but the stream is flowing heartily.

John and Zoe have been up to their usual routines this week; a few trips out to run some errands or just to get out of the house. Nice as it is to work at home and commute up the stairs, a trip to the 'burg now and then is a welcome distraction. John will be off to California this next week and we will be in "counting the days mode". My schedule has been busy this week and it has been nice to come home to dinner being readied. One of the perks of having a work-at-home husband.

Last weekend I did not get to my quilt project as first thought. Instead, we had a football weekend! We don't usually watch much "American football", but the playoffs are on and the Seattle Seahawks (i.e. our home team) are unexpectedly playing. We settled in and watched them beat the more highly-rated, defending champions New Orleans Saints and it was great fun. And we're tuned in again this weekend. We watched the Green Bay Packers trounce the Atlanta Falcons yesterday. If our Seahawks win today, I will have a difficult choice to make next week as I am a Cheese Head (even have the head gear). But I'm also a Pete Carroll fan. Football fans will understand those last few sentences.

I received the most delightful communication this week. I have been researching my family tree for several years and I had reached a dead end on my father's side; couldn't seem to find information about my grandfather's family. So, a long while back, I placed a query on the bulletin board there. This week, a "family member" replied. And she didn't only reply, she has reams of information and shares it readily! The daughter of my second cousin lives in Cambridge, UK. This is like finding a treasure that has been buried and the map lost. I love having the information; it feels like something is being completed. But, having a connection in the form of a real person who shares a lineage is very special. I'm sure one day we will meet in person on one of our trips over there.

I'll be off to get a massage this morning. Finding a massage practitioner (they don't call them therapists up here) fills in yet another box in my "establishing life in a new place" list. I will enjoy every moment and will surely benefit. My job is largely the sedentary kind; hours spent at a computer. Not the best conditions for staying in condition. So, like a car that benefits from an oil change, I will appreciate my tune-up. And my second quarter has started in my online program at UW (University of Washington). It promises to be a heavy one and, wouldn't ya know it, I have buggered up my log-in account. It's a long story and it's my fault. Just hope they can get me back in before I "show up late for class" too many times. Meanwhile, it's all good....

Quietude...

Not much to report this week. It came. It went. There were bits and pieces in there as with any week. I started and finished a book, John traveled to and from California, work went along well enough, and here we are at the weekend. We had supper in Kingston last night at our "local" to smooth the way. I'll get a haircut and do a few errands in town this morning.

John reports that he went out to his car yesterday to take some packages to post and found his car dead as a doornail. Further inspection revealed that mice had chewed through his battery wires. He remedied that and will do a more permanent fix today. To the battery that is; not the mice. If only.

Sewing machine is set up very nicely in the new cabinet. Maybe I'll work on that wall hanging. That would be very satisfying. It's that quiet time of the year when the house and garden aren't demanding much attention. That will pass soon enough. The seed catalogs are arriving daily :-)

1-1-11

Welcome 2011! It's 18 degrees outside, frosty but no rain. Clear as a bell. Still dark. We'll be off to the monthly Farm Breakfast this morning.

We enjoyed a visit last week with son Jacob who arrived on Christmas Day and left on Thursday. It's a quiet (rainy) time of the year so the visit was low-key. The only "adventure" was the mouse reported in the last entry. After that, it was movies, dinners out, conversation and such. Very nice. I like face time with my "kids".

Lots of folks are on vacation at work and the hospital has been quiet. I worked from home a few days as well. And John had an extra week at home between California trips. Things will get back to "normal" now.

On the home front, since it has been so cold we have been using our alternate heat; the all electric source. The heat pump has little heat to pump and struggles to keep up. So, there's this "emergency heat source" function on the thermostat that we figured out this year. Nice...

I'd like to get my sewing machine and cabinet set up this weekend so I can grab the right moments to work on a wall-hanging that's been in the queue. I won't have to rely on the dining room table to have the machine at the ready and collect all the bits and pieces of a project when I can work on it. They will be waiting for me! In my new-found lingo, that's a much Leaner process :-)

Forgetting Lean for a moment, we are off to breakfast and then I will watch the Rose Parade as usual and John will tape soccer matches for watching later. Happy New Year to us all...

About that Long Winter's Nap...

"When downstairs in the house there arose such a clatter, I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter. And what to my wondering eyes did appear, but the cat and from its mouth a set of ears!"

So, I was up for the 4am duty (letting the hard-headed brown dog out for a morning constitutional), waiting serenely on the couch when cat Roosevelt came in from the garage in high spirits. As he bopped around in the darkened room, it was soon obvious that his "toy" was self-propelled. Adrenalin kicked in, I jumped on to the couch, and yelled for the resident naturalist to get his backside out of bed and come to my aid immediately. Obviously not prepared for early morning maneuvers, it took a lifetime for him to get down the stairs. After that there was a fair amount of commotion since the cat was trying to get his treasure to a safe place, the dog had come in, and John was trying heartily to be the ringmaster in this circus. Herding cats is difficult, but herding one with a mouse is an even greater challenge. As it happened, I convinced the dog to come upstairs with me (actually it was not so much convincing as grabbing her by the collar and pulling), while John located the cat with the mouthful of mouse. Finally, face-to-face with the creature, he had a thought to get some gloves! However health-conscious that thought was, it was a tactical error because as any mouse-phobic person will tell you, if you take your eyes off the offending critter, it won't be there when you look the next time. And sadly that is exactly what happened. When he returned, the mouse was absent his corner. The only thing worse than having a mouse in the house is having a mouse that is running about unseen in the house! John and Roosevelt did a thorough search (I know because I watched from the stairway) but couldn't locate the mouse. So, back to bed we went (as if either of us would/could sleep). John went back down shortly and I followed after a time. It wasn't too long after that the mouse made his appearance and then all hell broke loose. Both Roosevelt and Zoe were on the case and while Roosevelt is quicker, Zoe can move furniture in her single-minded quest. Finally the mouse was escorted outside. So, another year of mouse vigilantism begins. It's not nice, but there it is.

On more positive notes, our Christmas was very nice. We picked Jake up from the airport for a week's visit and the other "kids" called with good wishes. We had fun opening gifts and fixed a lovely dinner with the annual banoffi pie to finish. We ended the night watching a movie. I will go to work this week, but John will work from home and can transfer Jake to the ferry if he needs to breathe some urban air. We have some dinners-out planned and will just enjoy the company. So, I'm off to the shower and then a Skype session.

And I heard him exclaim as he rode out of sight, Merry Christmas to All! (and to all a good night....)

Visions of Sugarplums Dancing...

All the packages that need to be mailed have been mailed. That's always a satisfying box ticked on the list of things to get done. Now we can settle down and softly anticipate the holidays. Solstice is just over the horizon (literally) and will bring the light with it. And Christmas will bring connections reconnecting (although some of that is done through Skype these days). Son Jacob will arrive on Christmas Day for a week's visit and we're looking forward to that.

John is assembling my Christmas gift! I'll restrain myself from identifying it until after the official unwrap date. But since he was away when it arrived and I was charged with bringing it in from it's resting place by the gate, there wasn't much he could do about hiding it. I'll just say that it's heavy, has several parts, requires lots of grumbling apparently to assemble properly, and will reside in "my space" upstairs. It will be put to good use.

Work is becoming more defined in my new role. I'm in that stage where ideas are forming into actual plans and from there are taking shape and form by way of presentations and movement from the abstract to the concrete. The next year should be quite interesting and stimulating in a way that work has not been for a while. John has jumped on the LeanSixSigma wagon and is learning the methodology to see how he might use it in the business.

On the home front, we have not lost power recently and the high winds that came through yesterday overlooked our little patch. They call it "nature's tree-trimming" and there was evidence of that just down the road and beyond as we went on our several errands yesterday. It has been raining most of the days since last weekend. Picking John up on Thursday from his trip down south was the first time I did not use my windshield wipers all week. However, Friday was sunny and clear and the mountains were just stunning with all the snow on them. I will never get tired of seeing them. No snow on the ground here either, but I have added some new items to my car: an extendable shovel, an emergency kit, and a few more "just in case" items should I find myself off the road unexpectedly.

Today we will finish up the weekend loose ends with grocery-shopping, etc. The big elf will continue his battle with my gift construction. All in all, just plain good times. Wishing you a holiday filled with peace...

Decking the Halls and all that jazz...

The snow has been replaced by the Pineapple Express this weekend. That's rain that has been pushed up from the warmer climes and is falling in great amounts here is Washington. We've stayed dry and had power throughout. Most of it fell during the night and they're watching for flooding throughout the county. The week is predicted to stay wet but temperatures (58 today) will fall throughout the coming days. So, I won't have to paddle to work and John will appreciate the Bay Area weather all the more.

We're off soon to attend a Celtic Harp Christmas program. What a find. And right in our backyard (or nearly). It's in Kingston, about 2 miles away. The tree went up last weekend, so the season really is upon us.

The week went along quietly enough. John was home and I attended a LEAN Six Sigma week-long training that made work a little different. Today I submitted the final assignments for the first quarter of the eLearning design and development program. Big sigh of relief. Next quarter begins about mid-January, so it feels like I have some found time.

Not much news this week. Sometimes it's like that...

Winter Deliciousness

This is what the Cascades look like from Kingston, about two miles from our house. Very pretty this time of year. It was beautifully clear yesterday and we could see not only the Cascades in the east, but also Mt. Rainier and in the west the Olympics.

Last week was a "John is in California" week; he arrived back on Thursday. I continue to settle into a new role at work and the time flew. It gets dark now around 4:30 which might contribute to the feeling that the days go by quickly. The hard-headed brown dog has had some difficulties this past week and after paying a hefty sum of money to find out nothing very serious is wrong, she seems to be feeling like herself again. That's good. We have found some very good vets now as well; ones with common sense and genuine caring. Finding the right services and people whom you trust is an important part of settling into a new place. That takes a little time and sometimes an attempt or two to get it right.

The holiday season is upon us and closing in rapidly. The Thanksgiving decoration (all three of them) have been replaced now with artifacts of Christmas. Red, green, and golds are adding their own cheer to the house. Today the tree will go up and I'll play Christmas music while I decorate it. It's my own personal ritual as I unwrap and hang ornaments which each have their own story. Sort of my annual homage to the journey. It's funny how a tree can lend such a comforting feeling to the house.

We went to the monthly Farm Breakfast yesterday. That provided lots of energy to do the usual list of weekend errands and chores and we didn't need to eat again until dinner! John finished planting the remaining daffodil and tulip bulbs and added some more food stations for the many birds which share our space outside. Dinner was shared with friends at our favorite restaurant in the 'burg, so it was a great day all around. Today will bring a wee bit of shopping in real stores and, of course, the tree will go up. I'll make a pot of turkey soup that will simmer all day. And we'll call that a wrap...

Winter sunset through the woods at home

Blessings and Thanksgiving...

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. It's just about appreciating this life and those who share it with you. We enjoyed the usual dinner with friends this year. Family had come earlier this month; a Thanksgiving of its own. The day was peaceful and the company was convivial. The dinner was one of my best efforts, if I do say so. We brined the turkey this year and it was juicy and tasty. And all the sides (I say "all" the sides because there couldn't be any more!) were yummy. Best of all, there was power all day which meant warmth and lights and an oven to prepare the food. Bless those workmen who stayed out all night working on power lines, cutting trees, and those who helped others get to where they were going on treacherous roadways. The snow is largely gone now and our friends say this was the worst storm they have witnessed since moving here 6 years ago. Certainly it is the earliest. The road conditions, however, were pretty standard for snow up here. Unlike states where snow is serious and lasts for months, they don't invest in heavy snow plows or de-ice the roads with chemicals. So it's pretty slow going on the packed stuff. We bought some tire cables for that new 4WD yesterday so I feel we are ready for the worst Mother Nature can throw at us this winter. Life returns to a more normal routine this week. And for that we are thankful...

DId somebody order snow???

As if I thought I'd talked enough about this new life, Mother Nature has introduced whole new topics for discussion. We had our first real snow here this week. Last year was just a quick dusting in December; almost as if to say that yes, it could snow here, but not very much. There's a different message this year. It began snowing on Sunday. First tiny flakes, then big fluffy flakes. The dog was enchanted, running around with her nose up looking and feeling the cold fluffy wetness. We were enchanted as well though our way of showing it was to grab cameras and take photos before it disappeared. Boy were we naive. It didn't disappear. It hasn't disappeared. It kept coming. Not much was sticking Sunday. Our power had gone out on Saturday. We had plans to go into the burg for dinner with friends so we were warm, well-fed, and comfortable as we crawled into bed under extra blankets. It hadn't come back by Sunday morning so we went to a local Starbucks for hot liquids and free wifi. When we returned the snow began. The power returned about noon but we were off to look at a vehicle with 4WD. Everyone around us keeps saying that last year's winter was unusual and that La Nina will pack a bigger punch this year. So, we drove in the light fluffy flakes to the dealership and returned home in a Honda CRV with 4WD as the snow started to accumulate. As I drove to an off-site meeting Monday morning, drivers were carefully proceeding down the highway at reduced speeds since the snow was still coming and the surface was wet. No real accumulation on the roads at that time. But as we sat in our meeting right next to the Hood Canal, the snow picked up and piled up. It looks like a solid white shower, and it accumulated everywhere. We packed up early amid reports of school and road closures and left the site at 2:30. Four hours later I arrived at the house. It's normally about a 45 minute drive. I can't recall being in this kind of snow weather for a very long time. Drive speeds were under 20 mph on the highway, and only reached 12 mph on the other main roads. I was thankful for the new car as many vehicles (mostly pick-ups and vans) were unable to get any traction and slid off the road or just simply stopped, unable to move.

Morning Afte

I worked from home yesterday. We had about 6 inches accumulate at the house. The temperatures have not reached 30 degrees and the roads are largely ice. Seems they don't use salt on the roads much here. Sand doesn't melt the ice. So,I opted to work out of the house. Then we lost power again. It was out from 8:30 until 3:30. We felt relieved when it returned as reports (garnered from the car radio) indicated that parts of our county might not have power until Thanksgiving. But it did return and lights and heat are wonderful commodities.

We had devised a back-up plan to prepare Thanksgiving dinner on the grill, ala camping style in 30 degree weather. I hope we don't need it and that the power stays on. We also gave our visitors who were flying in the option of staying away and, to no one's surprise, they opted to visit another time. So, we'll have Thanksgiving dinner with local friends and count our blessings tomorrow. The snow is still here and we'll see how long it lasts as the weather is predicted to return to more seasonal 40 degrees and rain by Friday. We'll look into those permanent generators that auto-start and move that to the top of the wish list. We hear that this storm is unlike any in the past 25 years and highly unusual for this early in the season. Definitely an adventure...

Starting to Snow!

Blog Post #101!: Family and Friends...

As I go to post this entry, I see that I have written 100 posts so far. That's pretty amazing as I never intended that this would serve any purpose other than to let people-who-were- interested know what we were up to in our "new" place. I was avoiding repeating a lot of information in emails and letters by posting it here. So, it's a revelation to me that I found that much stuff to write about and that it has gone on that long! And I'll continue to post because I enjoy journaling this trivia that passes for life. So, read or not.The place is not so new anymore and the activities are becoming more routine. But inside that routine are some surprises and a life-being-lived...

Treats-only allowed here...

Saturday. We have lots to do before our houseful of visitors arrive next Friday. First we'll go out for breakfast to make sure we are properly fortified for the tasks ahead :-) John will finish the raised beds today and maybe even got a small area prepped for tulips. There are also a host of small jobs to do; change the furnace filter, tend to some squeaky doors, and help me with some errands. I have to get in most of the groceries we need for hosting four times the number of people who usually inhabit this house, go to the pet store for supplies, and do some of the mundane weekend chores that always wait for Saturday. Tomorrow I need to be a student and knock out 2 weeks worth of work in advance to allow adequate play time next weekend. And I need to find something purple and formal-ish to wear to an event in 2 weeks. John has the easy task there. All he has to do is locate a tux. They always come in black and there are always places that sell/rent them. It's a charity event and we'll go, but purple? Really?

Zoe had a golf ball size lump removed from her right hindquarter on Tuesday. She's recovering nicely and will have her staples removed in another week. Apparently the lump was cancerous but the vet reassured us that it was entirely removed. For a 12 year old dog, she's hardly changed except for some white fur on her muzzle. She enjoys life with a gusto. We enjoy sharing that with her.

The past week also brought snow back to the mountains. By Wednesday, the Olympics were delightfully white. The landscape is in Autumn palette mode, lots of gold, yellow, reds against the green conifers. Despite a few days of rain, it is beautiful this time of year. The days are getting shorter quickly though. It's not getting light until 7:30-ish and by 6:30 in the evening it's dark.

Well, I'm off to start the day. Wishing you only treats and no tricks this Halloween....

Small Things Inside a Big Life...

It looks like we're in for some rain. Real Pacific Northwest rain; the kind that stays around for a while. By all predictions, this one's here all week and maybe then some. So, today might be the day to clear the garage space for the car. At least I can start the day in a dry state when I head out somewhere.

Today I will  post an assignment for my online course and this afternoon I will have a too-short visit with a friend who's in the area briefly. The rain has squashed John's plans for completing the raised garden beds today. An indoor day might allow for watching some soccer, though. Last night we met up with some friends for dinner and dancing. I think *maybe* we are learning something in those classes we've been taking for the past few years! Mind you, we always take the beginner class, but maybe it's starting to stick. Last night we did some (recognizable) fox trot, waltz, lots of swing, and then some free-form stuff to a Rolling Stones tune. We had a good time.

I've collected all the potatoes that John dug up last weekend and have them in storage in the garage. I don't know how long you can store potatoes. The lesson learned is that potatoes grow very well here. I had no idea. Our other successes were beets, beans, peas, leeks, and the swede (or rutabagas). We didn't do so well with our carrots, winter squash, cucumbers, or broccoli, and the verdict is still out on the brussel sprouts. We had moderate success with kale and lettuce. It was a learning year though and a very late start to planting. The seed catalogs are arriving already. 

Zoe goes to her new vet on Tuesday to have a lump removed from one of her back legs. While she's under she'll also have her teeth cleaned and get her nails trimmed. The last item will save all of us a lot of anxiety. I won't have to do it and she won't know it's being done!

The humans in the house will spend the week at work (though John's commute will be a stair climb this week). Unless we go looking for it, Halloween will be quiet. And November is right around the corner and picking up speed....

Attention! Autumn's Here!

Well, those two weeks of summer that made their way up here (and not all at once, mind) are history. Autumn has "officially" arrived (in an unofficial but clearly evident way) and appears to be staying. Fine with me as Autumn is my favorite season. And a summer that was almost fall-like wasn't too bad either. But leaves are tumbling to the ground as if in a hurry to be free now. No occasionally leaf delicately drifting to the ground. It's more like a spray of leaves coming from some big hose in the tree tops.  And the weather is sunny, but with a crispness that wasn't there last weekend. The temperature in the house this morning was 62 degrees and I'm thankful that I don't have to stoke a fire to warm the house as I once did in California. A few pokes on the thermostat and warm air is coming out of the registers. Fall is cozy but lively :-)

I'll make some butternut squash soup (roasted with shallots and ginger) later today. Tomorrow we are having our monthly department lunch get-together at work and the theme is "family favorites". I'll be taking the soup. John will be flying off to Cali in the morning and the week will take its usual shape. I'm up to my ears in a project at work with a deadline that is looming large. That will occupy much of my time while he's away.

We had dinner in the 'burg last night with some friends. They suggested a place we have had on our "we should check that out" list for some time; Tizley's Europub. You enter from a small alley and immedicately go up some stairs to the restaurant. It's not very large. There's a small outside eating area when the weather is nice and since it sits right over Front Street, it's probably a nice way to have dinner. We sat inside last evening what with Autumn arriving like it did. The place serves "European" fare: A few Italian dishes, Shepherd's Pie, but primarily it's German and Austrian. And their other claim to fame are the 100 or so beers that they carry. John had his beloved wienerschnitzel (which is not a wiener at all, but a thinly pounded and breaded veal cutlet) as did our friends, so I ordered corned beef and sauerkraut wrapped in a potato crepe to expand the experience a little. I am not a stranger to German food as some of my family roots are there. John was not as comfortable with the warm, slightly vinegary potato salad, but my expert "comfort food" palate found it quite tasty :-) We ended the evening back at our friends' home for dessert and conversation. Lovely.

Since the weather cooperated, John was able to work on the raised garden beds yesterday. He discovered that he is missing one 12-foot piece of wood (his error, not the lumber yard's) and so he will have to get one before he can finish the project. With a bit of luck, next weekend we might be able to get some horse manure from our friends so it can overwinter in the beds. My task as gardener's mate was to throw stones. Literally. It reminded me of a scene in the movie "Cool Hand Luke". Not the one with the eggs. Or the one where he says that oft-quoted line about communicating. It's the scene where he's part of a chain gang whose "job" it is to shovel out the ditch and then fill in the ditch. Yes boss. Before we had the shiny red tractor and trailer, as John dug out the four garden beds earlier this spring he encountered A LOT of stones. The stones ended up in a pile. Some ended up in the wheel barrow which was then too heavy to move (for months). So yesterday the stones were removed. Many were thrown into the bramble nearby. Many more were thrown into the trailer and the shiny red tractor took them into the woods a little ways and set them free. There were, by my conservative estimate, about 100,000 stones. Maybe. It felt like that anyway. I'm pretty certain there were at least 1,000 in some multiple of 10 :-). At any rate, I started as a gardener's mate and ended up as project manager. The plan for future digging and rock harvesting is that the shiny red tractor and trailer will be present at the job site where the stones will be immediately thrown into the trailer and taken to the woods. No more piles. None.

Today I will be a student. I'll get my homework submitted for this week (right after I do it) and I'll get the reading done for next week and think about that assignment. I don't have much (any) time to delve into it during the week, so Sunday is the designated "get the lead out" day to satisfy my overachieving personality defect. That, and our weekly visit to Starbuck's. Yup, a busy day...

"Are You Okay?"

That's what no fewer than 6 people asked me as I waited on the side of the road last evening for a tow truck to arrive. I think that's pretty remarkable. And it's consistent with what we have found in this area. People are generally "nice". Well, it turns out I was/am okay. After hearing a "funny noise" (isn't that the professional term for the event which precedes most problems with autos?), and after pulling off the road to do my cursory inspection of the wheel wells and even lifting the hood where all seemed to be in place, I started off again only to feel a moment of relief when the noise stopped. That was followed by a moment of "oh..this is not good...*expletive*" as I realized that the steering had gone. I managed to muscle it over and park it safely off the side of the road, called John (no answer!), called AAA, called the local dealer to alert them I was coming in, called John (he answered), arranged to meet him at the dealer, and waited for the tow truck to appear. It wasn't raining and it wasn't dark so, yes, I was okay. But I really appreciated the concern those strangers showed. Turns out the noise I heard was the steering belt shredding and eventually coming off. They promise to have it repaired this morning.

John returned from California Thursday night. Hopefully he'll have a chance to work on the remaining two garden beds this weekend although the forecast is for rain. Today I will ride along with him to Lakewood for a photo class he is attending. I'll take my laptop, find a Starbuck's, and work on my homework. I am needing to develop some study habits quickly. The course in eLearning Design and Development is off to a brisk start. I'd much prefer to start on a quilt project I have in the wings, but that will have to wait.

Our weather is cooling off. Mornings are frequently around 45 degrees, daytime highs might get to upper 60s. It's dark until just after 7am and the sun sets just before 7pm. It's starting to get "cozy". The long-time residents keep mentioning that it's going to be a more serious winter this year ("worse than the one in '53" is the latest prediction). We;re having discussions at the house about the best alternate route for my commute should it get serious. Trying to avoid the hilly roads. I say the best way to do that is via the Internet. Fortunately, much of my work could be accomplished via telecommuting if needed. My bigger concern is not the conditions outside the house as much as inside. Maintaining power might be a problem. So, we'll just have to see how it goes. It would add to our credibility as real residents if we could say we were here for the one in 2010. Meanwhile, I'll show you some sunrise photos. I actually prefer sunrise to sunset. So, here you go...

Sunrise from Kingston (about 2 miles from home)

 Sunrise from Princeville, HI (about 2700 miles from home)

Viva Las Vegas?

So, we went to the local casino last night for dinner. It expanded our knowledge of the "territory" a bit. It was like a little bit of Vegas right here in our back yard! Bright lights and valet parking outside. LOTS of slot machines going inside. And there were people filling those seats. Amazing! Where do they all find the time? Or the money? Well, we made our way through the casino to the restaurant only to find that the reservation John made "wasn't". They only take reservations from "Diamond Club members" which we certainly aren't (even if I knew what that is). So we waited. We had hoped that the restaurant would have a nice view of the Sound since it sits on the water, but casino strategy dictates that they actually use as little real estate as possible for a restaurant and not encourage people to linger because they want you back out in the shiny lights, staring at those slot machines while you hemorrhage your last bit of money. (Someday I'll tell you how I really feel about gambling). So, the restaurant was pretty small (hence the wait), and absolutely no windows to be found. Like a dark box. The water views are reserved for the guest rooms. There is also a buffet per standard casino culture, but, hey, this was John's birthday and we like a real sit-down, wait-staff service meal. The food wasn't bad. I had a nice fillet of sea bass on lentils with braised leeks and John had a mushroom crusted bit of halibut with roasted potatoes and asparagus, We shared some mint cheesecake for dessert. But it wasn't enough to make us want to go back. And did I mention the smoking? While there is no smoking anywhere else in the 'burg (or in WA state), the Reservation is exempt from that. So there's smoke. They try to extract it, but that never works. I can't remember the last time I saw an ashtray publicly. So, we'll leave that little bit of Vegas to the slot machine groupies and I'll get my coat dry-cleaned.

John is building the raised garden beds this weekend. It'll be good to have them done and ready when spring comes. He'll also dig up most of the rutabagas. The leeks and the potatoes can stay in a little longer. I plan to tackle the weeds along the driveway today. Our weather is quite nice this time of year. Next weekend he is scheduled to take a photography class in Lakewood for a couple hours. I'll go along for the ride and see what I can see in Lakewood. I don't even know where that is yet :-)

I begin a certificate program through UW on Tuesday. It's for eLearning design and development. The program will take 9 months. Most of my knowledge and skill in eLearning comes from some good mentors so I'm looking forward to a more formalized understanding. I've got my textbooks for this first quarter and like the look of them. So, the week is taking shape and will probably fly by as they often do.

I'll leave with a photo of a Pileated Woodpecker in our woods. He's about 12 inches long (maybe longer) and I'm relieved he's not the one that attacks the house. Wood chips were flying as he worked on that tree!

Enough about nothing in particular...

It was a work week. I'm still holding on to that aloha feeling, trying to feel the breeze on my face, but work wanted my full attention this week. John was back on a plane Monday morning and off to California for his own brand of vacation testing. I retrieved him Thursday night per our usual bi-monthly routine. The dog was none too happy to get her pack back together after our week away only to see 1/2 of it go out the door with that dreaded traveling bag on Monday. But the week went along as it does and the weekend has had its own rewards.

A good friend of ours has been kayak camping with his son in the San Juan Islands and they stayed at our place Friday night before returning home on Saturday. We enjoyed a good visit with them. I'm so pleased they included us in their journey. We had a good chat (several actually) about life. They left yesterday morning for a look around Seattle before going to the airport.

Last evening we went out to dinner with friends and intended to stay for dancing, but found that we were just plain tired and left earlier than we planned. Still, we enjoyed a couple of turns on the dance floor and the company was uplifting. We have missed out on a couple of our scheduled dance classes due to vacation and our unexpected, but welcome, overnight guests. I'm hoping that with repeated efforts, muscle memory will one day set in and we will remember the steps that will let us simply glide across that dance floor. Right now, there isn't so much gliding as some curious kind of contact sport happening :-) John's birthday is next Friday and we will try visiting the local casino for dinner. We've heard they have good food and we discovered that there is also dancing next weekend. We don't know what kind of dancing, but we'll have a look. And we'll be thinking of the rest of my family who will be in Florida for the wedding of one of my nieces. Wish we could be there too, but until cloning and/or hyper-molecular transport (ala Star Trek) is perfected, we have to hope our good wishes will travel in our place. All the best Krista and Chris :-)

We are enjoying a little weather that should have been here in July or August, but it got lost and is only now showing up. Yesterday was brilliant; clear skies, 70s, and sunshine all day. Today looks to be a little showery, but the forecast is to have several more of those summer-like days during the week. Some are calling it "Septaugust" for the late summer. That being said, I ordered a new raincoat today as I know now what the coming months have in store. Sunrise and sunset have already moved closer together and it won't be long before I'll be going to and from work in darkness (and rain).

The resident builder says the much-planned shed will likely wait until Spring now. So, I am making plans in my head to reconfigure the things in the garage to accommodate both a garden tractor and my car. And with the shed no longer at the top of the honey-do list, I'll be re-ordering the remaining items for maximal benefit! Meanwhile, the "Old Mill Days" event is happening this weekend in Port Gamble. If the rain lets up and the sun comes out, maybe we'll go watch some Lumberjack competitions. And with that said, I'll let Monty Python take it from here, bidding you farewell.....(ready and..."I'm a lumberjack and I'm okay....")

Walkin' Loose

Aloha! We've just spent the last week in Kauai. While we were waiting in the airport in Lihue yesterday, I think I finally put my finger on the effect Hawaii has on folks. They "walk loose". Yep. That's it. I noticed it in myself and in our fellow travelers. There's a difference in the way one walks after a visit to these islands. The stride is a little longer, definitely less hurried, the hips a little looser, and the shoulders definitely lower. It's got relaxation written all over it. Maybe it's the consistently warm temperatures or the sunshine or the startling colors of it all. It's just a big "aaahhhhh" from the time you get there and for a while after returning. At least that's what I'm going to hope for.
We stayed at the Westin Princeville resort on the north side and enjoyed watching the sunrise and hearing the wake-up call of the roosters that have free run on the island. One fellow stood on our lanai and crowed proudly. Chickens, chicks, and roosters run wild all over the island and have no predators. Since I happen to seriously like chickens, this was a treat. Kauai is a quiet island compared to Maui. But it is absolutely beautiful. We did a little snorkeling on He'e Beach and at the beach at the St. Regis Hotel nearby. We also saw a beautiful sunset from that beach and John took many photos. I'll post some as he gets them sorted. Probably my favorite town environment is Hanalei. It's got a surfer feel and an eclectic bunch of small shops and some eateries. We picked up our snorkel gear there.
We did the requisite visit to Spouting Horn and the Waimea Canyon as well as the Kilohana Plantation (rum tasting room was closed), and we visited a couple waterfalls. The luau that we booked was disappointing after our spectacular evening on Maui last year. We'll skip that next time. And we agree there will be "next time". This visit was a scouting expedition; get the lay of the land and plan for the future. There are many places to discover, whether by hiking, snorkeling, maybe even kayaking.
For now, I'll just settle for walkin' loose a  while longer. A hui hou! (See ya later!)...

Having a Long Weekend...

I've been having a long weekend (in the holiday sense of extra days off work). Actually the days have flown so "long" seems "short". Today is Labor Day and the last of the 4 days. I took a personal day on Friday to create the mini-break while son Jake was visiting for the first time. There are many things to show new folks and only a few days (usually) to do it. So we have our introductory tour down. We usually spend a day around the burg, showing the local "stuff" and then, weather permitting, we do a walk around Seattle. The travel days have their own demands.

So, we collected Jake from the airport Friday and ferried across the Sound to the quiet side. The ferry is such a nice introduction and a transition from the hectic day of traveling that it's a must-do for visitors (and we are pretty fond of it as well). Once settled in at the house, we went up to our "local" in Kingston for those burgers and fries we like and a chance to chat and look at that community.

Saturday we finally got our chance to take someone to the Farm Breakfast. Since it's only held on the first Saturday each month, the timing of our visitors hasn't coincided until now. It was well-received and, as usual, well worth it. And we even brought back some freshly baked Orange Rolls for Sunday's breakfast. The rest of the day was spent locally at the Farmers Market, Central Market, and a wander around "downtown". We also visited the Point-No-Point lighthouse in Hansville (better weather this time) and stopped in at Port Gamble too. Someone has bought the General Store there that was previously up for sale and it was doing a good business on this holiday weekend. They've even put in a little cafe that was full. Later,we ended up at  Casa Luna for dinner, but that was not the experience we were anticipating. The food was bland and less interesting than we have had in the past. We gave it a 2. It was, after all, food.

Sunday, we were treated to breakfast at the house. Jake made a full breakfast of eggs, bacon, and sliced grainy bread pan-toasted with some huckleberry creamed honey on top, and we had those yummy orange rolls. One thing about having visitors is that we definitely eat more! It was worth it though as we spent the day on foot trekking around Seattle. We walked along the waterfront after arriving on the ferry. How is it that we never took that walk before? It was interesting and very pleasant. We didn't stop in at any of the venues there as we were on a mission to get to the Space Needle (also a new experience). We arrived after a 45 minute walk. There was a music and arts festival in the surrounding park, but tickets were pricey so we found the Monorail, headed back downtown and walked to Pike's Market. As you know, I'm not a fan of the Market only because everyone and their brother is there and it's a noisy, crowded place. But Jake is more of an urbanite, and he would happily visit the Market weekly if he lived here (or, more accurately, lived in Seattle) with fellow urbanites. As it is, he gathers his foodstuffs at local shops where he lives in Oakland, CA. I like hearing him talk about "his" butcher, and the Farmers Market where he shops now. We had lunch before leaving the Market and then visited the Seattle Art Museum. I was grateful for the ferry ride back to the quiet side of the Sound. Once home, we enjoyed a little smoked salmon while preparing dinner and we spent a relaxing evening with a James Bond movie. All good fun.

Today, we will shuttle Jake to the airport  for his all-too-soon trip back home this afternoon. We may get one more wander into the burg before then for lunch. He has enjoyed some rest time and has commented on the freshness of the air and the beauty of the surroundings here and if he got nothing more out of his too-short visit, those would be sufficient for me. It's those things that matter to us. And it's those things I want to share most with our visitors. He'll be back before too long. It has been great to spend time with Jacob, as it is when any of our "children" visit. It's not such a long way away, but I do miss the easy access to their faces since moving. Here's to more long weekends spent with friends and family! Enjoy...