Autumn

Remember me? 

Hi There.

Been awhile.

Sorry.
I got a couple of nudges lately that I haven't been keeping my blog up and that I should do so.

Life was busy there for a moment. But here I am, writing to you from my own time and space. Same me, same house, same sweet husband. All is well with us. Life has just been really, really busy.

Some family stuff came up recently. Mostly I've been concerned about my brother-in-law, who suffered a stroke a few months back. That same week, my "little" sister-in-law had her baby entirely too early. We weren't sure what was going to happen with such a little micro-preemie and both my SIL and niecelet were sick, sick, sick.

But they are tough, tough, tough.

You know what? Everyone is fine.

It makes me a little happy-weepy to say that. Weeks in the hospital for everyone. ICU, NICU, FYI... And they're all home from the hospital.  My niece "Little G", is up to 5 pounds thanks to her very persistent mom and dad, a saint of a doctor, and (probably) a highly dedicated team of nurses.
When all this was going down, G thought he might pop on out to either Atlanta or Louisiana to help out. We just didn't know what to do. This is the price we pay for living so far from Gs family; there's  no easy way to head on over to the right coast. His dad went to my BILs side and his mom took my older niece while everyone was hospitalized.

If you're reading this and you're of the spiritual, religious, or praying sort, please send up a big "thank you". I know I am really glad, really grateful and really relieved.

So that's the big thing on my end. I guess it takes a lot of energy to hold your breath.

Work is good. I do love it. I've gotten to meet some interesting characters. Hopefully, someone somewhere says "She's an interesting character".  And I feel more "normal" in my job. I began the way anyone should: by listening to the administrative assistant. Our office has three secretarial types. They are fantastic and know what they're doing. You never, ever want to ignore your admin. And I knew this going in. She sometimes makes a gentle suggestion and I always take that advice.

Ok, enough updates. Let me throw in a few photos to catch you up, and I promise I'll write sooner rather than later.

Lucy is a snuggler. Her favorite snuggle time is 4 a.m. The rest of the time, she's a little spooky. 

Yes, we're at a RODEO! 

This is the "before" of one of the night stands I am rehabbing. 

Here is an "in progress" photo of the same night stands. The color isn't this dark. It's deep blue. 

My buddy Rich and I on "National Coming Out Day". My shirt says "Ally".

Today we went to our first powwow in Washington state. Met some really nice people! 

2015

Friends, enemies, people I love and people who tolerate me in their lives...2015 is here. And with that comes my annual review of what the heck I've been doing with my life.  I like to use the time between quarters to take stock and decide what works and what doesn't and what needs to go. I think about my health, spiritual life, relationships, career, and life goals. I also like to pay attention to what I do for fun and relaxation. I'm a real type A personality, so it's also helpful for me to think of what I need to just let go of and what I need to give myself a break on. With that in mind, here are a few things I've come up with.

1. I need to practice more emotional self control. Last year, I decided to stop cussing people out when they drove improperly.  I switched instead to reminding myself that not everyone can pay attention all the time and perhaps that text message or phone call is really important. Instead of cussing out loud, I would say "I hope you make better choices!". Of course, nobody can hear you when you're in another car but it was good for me. My next chore to tackle is to pay attention to my attitude when others behave poorly in public.  I know there is a line and that it's easy to cross and hard to know when to speak up.  For example, I felt comfortable speaking up at the Musee D'Orsay in Paris- the signs clearly show that there is no photography of the art, but two people were repeatedly taking photos. It made other people uncomfortable and frankly, it made me mad. I wish I could have taken pictures of some of the most beautiful paintings I have ever seen. So did the other 300 people around us. Apparently the rules didn't apply to these two people so I did plainly say "there is no photography in the museum" loud enough to catch a docent's attention.

However, it was perhaps not nice of me to intentionally step on the back of a man's shoes at the Eiffel Tower. He did shove me out of the way in line, but perhaps that's no reason to let me temper get the better of me. It did feel good though, because those were nice shoes.

Clearly, I have some work to do here. And I need to be more patient in waiting at restaurants.

2. Cutting out junk. I love junk food. Not typical junk food like pizza or candy or soda. Junk food as in I don't eat very many regular meals. I'm a snacker. I think it would be better to eat a meal than to eat the pieces of a meal. I will just eat a few pieces of cheese, then later a tomato. Then later a piece of bread. Shouldn't I just make a sandwich in the first place?

Having said that, I am also cutting out all soda pop. That's an easy one for me. They are really, really bad for you. Soda often has carbonic acid, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, aspartame in the diet stuff, and all sorts of shit you just don't need to put into your body. Coke is great for cleaning your toilet, just not your insides. Pretty easy; I don't remember the last time I had a soda (like 6 months ago?) and am much more likely to reach for a Monster energy drink- which I will also stop drinking. I think I had three or four last year.

Then there is sugar and additives. I don't eat much sugar on purpose and I like cooking my own food instead of buying prepared stuff. Processed food just isn't good for me and I don't really like chocolate. Here's the real challenge, and try not to laugh: I like to take my daily multivitamins in gummy form.  Yes, I'm a gummy-aholic. If you want me to take medicine, make it something I like and I'm more likely to take it. I take a multivitamin, vitamin D, and a pro-biotic. That's 6 gummies a day. I'm less likely to take a pill, so if you all have suggestions, I'd love to hear them.  Now, those vitamins are in addition to not in place of eating a diet filled with as many vitamins and minerals as I can get.

My other addiction is cheese. I can't get enough of that stuff.  G and I buy three or four packages at Costco every month.

So, more greens, less cheese. And I think I'm going to try adding in more meat into my diet this year. It's kind of yucky to cook and it doesn't taste really good, but I'm going to try for more lean meats. Here's my problem though: I hate chicken, especially chicken legs and stuff with tendons and ligaments and stuff. Barf. May I'll try chicken breast sometime. I'll keep you posted and let you know if that pans out. My favorite local Mexican food place serves a good carnitas platter, which I get from time to time.

In case you just read that last paragraph and thought "I thought she was a vegetarian?!" Yes, I am. I'm a vegetarian because meat tastes yucky and factory farming is an awful, inhumane practice. Actually, we're pescetarians, though I think we eat fish maybe once a month.  There are two stores here in Ellensburg who sell locally grown, humanely treated animal bits. I'd feel ok trying that. No weird growth hormones, no crazy antibiotics shoved into a cow. Whenever possible, we get eggs from my friend Joy, who has lots of happy chicken-pets.

So that means no fast food, which is not a problem. I haven't ordered at a drive-through in a long, long time. No sodas, no pre-packaged stuff from the grocery.  I don't think I'm going to commit to getting away from buying bread. Seriously, I have to have a life. I'm not baking my own damn bread. I think I can do this.

3. Letting it go. G and I don't often disagree but I do like to keep track of what I can do better to listen in tense situations.  One thing I hear is "you need to let things go more".  Now, I am as tenacious as a bulldog. When I get my teeth into something, academically speaking, I see it through to the end. In this way, that's a character asset. In my personal life, I don't let many people close to me so I don't like secrets and I tend to not stuff slide- I get a little too confrontational at times. I know this; I'm working on it. I did a good job a couple of years ago in learning to cut my significant other some slack in relationships. To be clear, I don't think I'm horrible or a control freak (too much). I just think I could do better than I currently am. In practicing, I also give myself a break sometimes and try not to hold my own feet to the fire so much.

4. Sleep. Funny you should mention sleep. I've got insomnia, which I've developed in the last two years. It's stress related, and coffee related and age related. Right now, I can get to sleep just fine, but wake up about 3-4 hours in. Then I'm awake for 3-4 hours, then I sleep again for a bit if I can. There are a few things I absolutely lose sleep over and I plan to knock both of them out in the next few months. With less stress, hopefully I'll be able to be more productive, more happy, and more able to give it a rest (literally).

5. Miles.  This one is fairly easy for me. I want to make sure I get in 35 miles a week for 2015. That's about 1,800 miles for the year. I think I came in at about 1,400 this year. Two miles per day are just walking to and from work, so the rest is about intentionality. One thing that will help is my other resolution: to get a 10 minute mile at least once every month. I'd like to also get at least a couple 9:30 miles, but that depends a lot on air quality and my poor, failing lungs.  I have seen a huge decline in my lungs since I taught at an inner-city middle school which was remodeling while we were in session. They had posted mold and asbestos and I had bronchitis for 10 straight months. It was "not happy". But I'll do the best I can.

6. Speaking of my physical health, I'm going to find it in me to go to a massage therapist from time to time. I always think of this as a major luxury rather than a necessity. I broke down (metaphorically, not literally though it was close) and went to a chiropractor here in town. After 5 or so visits he said I don't really need him anymore but that I'd benefit from massage. I'm doing yoga twice a week right now and that helps, but maybe a massage a few times this year would be nice.

7. Relationships. I always think I have this dialed in, but relationships take effort and work. I'm hoping to do a little better at visiting friends this year, so if you want me to come visit, please invite me. I'll practice saying yes more than no, even though I'm a total homebody introvert lazy bum. I've done a better job of enforcing boundaries with loved ones and at school, but it's hard for me to say "no" when something is easy to say yes to. So, more authentic connections, less overcommitting, and more awesome conversations with people I care about.

Ok, that's it. Seven is a lucky number. I do welcome input, of course.  What are your goals for this year? Do you even make resolutions? I find them helpful but try not to become too attached. Let me know.....

The author in her natural, confused state

50 Random Questions

So I haven't read through these questions. I'm going to just paste them into the blog and answer as I go along.
Fun, right? No guarantees!

1. Would you rather be twice as smart or twice as happy?

Neither. I'm pretty smart. I'm also just as happy as I make up my mind to be, so we'll call my life the blessing of "enough". 

2. What's your worst habit?

My worst habit? I'm so self-critical. 

Take off glasses. Brush hair. Put on a shirt with sleeves. Maybe get a tan.... maybe some make up.

When I see pictures of myself, I just see what can be improved or how old I am getting. I have to remember that life is for living, not for being so damn vain. 

3. Are you dating?

As a matter of fact, yes. My husband and I have a date night each week- cliche, I know, but it works. It breaks up the week and lets us connect with each other. We don't do much; a movie, appetizers out, stuff like that. And we reserve that time for each other.

4. Do you take shampoo and conditioner bottles from hotels?

 No. I used to but it dries out my hair and my hair is already dry (see Q2). 

5. What is the one thing you'll never do again?

I'll most thankfully never have another first date. I'll do lots of things again, or at least I am willing. I'll paraglide, get more tattoos, eat weird foods. But I'd never give up on G. 

6. Do you collect anything?

Books. pictures of my adventures, memories, electronics, and apparently, clothing. And shoes. I'm a shoe hog.

7. Worst injury you ever had?

It's not something I talk about much. I've broken bones and I've wrecked my feet, I've got some arthritis in my hip and knee. But what hurt, hurt, was when my ex-husband and I were taking martial arts classes and he overdid it on a joint lock. It was a belt test, and he did it wrong the first time. On the second and last try, he ripped the tendons in my right wrist. It made a huge popping sound. That's not what hurt. What hurt is that he blamed me for it. Because I hadn't pretended he did the lock correctly the first time. I still have to be careful with my right wrist. The other students at dojo never got over that though. They didn't trust him anymore. 

I hadn't planned on telling that story. I don't really talk about my martial arts days, but I was a third degree black belt in Kempo Karate. I taught and took lessons for the greater part of a decade. I loved it and I was really good at it. 

8. What is your favourite pet/ animal?

I love most pets. And I've had a few. Dogs, cats, sheep, and a guinea pig.  I'd like to get a few pygmy goats for pets, but that's going to have to wait awhile. I do get along well with most animals immediately. Heck, I was once accepted into vet school. 

Right now, my favorite pet is Eleanor. She's something. And the only cat my husband isn't allergic to. They've grown fond of each other these last three years. 

Best pals

I have more pictures of my cat than of my family. 

In the way of adorable animal pictures, my nephew Joe has the CUTEST pit bull. She is happy all the time. Her name is Leia.

9. What's your dream vacation?

 I'd like to do parts of Western Europe. Or all of it. Maybe a series of vacations. Lots of people want tropics or sun and sand. I don't. I want culture and people and cold weather. Maybe mild weather, but cold is good. I want to spend Christmas in Germany or Austria just once. I want to spend enough time in these places to learn language and get jokes. 

10. Honestly, are things going the way you planned?

Depends on the when you're talking about the planning.  Very little of my life has gone as planned. I have an idea of the direction I'm going. That's about it for now. There is an old man under a mountain and every time I plan my life, he chuckles. 

11. Do you have any tattoos?

Yes, I do. I love them and they have meaning. I contemplated each of them for a long time before I got them. And I've been contemplating a third for some time now. 

One of two tatts

12. What's your secret to lure in the opposite sex?

I don't have one. Although, to lure G, I found that blueberry pancakes work pretty well. And homemade blueberry jam. And a little blueberry behind each ear does the trick too.  And being myself.

Back when I was "luring" men, I wasn't very good at it anyway. 

13. Any phobias?

I worked in a prison for almost a year. As a result, I usually find myself in any room with my back to a wall, just in case. I don't like crowds anymore either. My experiences changed me in some difficult ways. And I have always disliked man-made heights. Weird though, because I don't mind large cliffs in the least. I used to have hyper vigilance, but it's subsided and I feel safe more often than not. 

14.  Do you bite your nails?

No. They are usually too long and I need to trim them. 

15. Do you ever count your steps when you walk? 

I usually record my steps with a fitbit. Mine recently died and I haven't replaced it. I hate guessing. I like to keep around 12,000-15,000 steps a day.

16. Heels or flats?

Sneakers, boots, and flip flops, thanks. 

17.Have you ever stolen a street sign before?

No. Is that a thing?

18. Do you always smile for pictures?

I don't like my smile much.

19. Do you ever dance even if there's no music playing?

No, is that also a thing? 

20.  Do you miss anyone right now?

Yes. Old friends in Oklahoma and my sweet old dog who lives a very happy life back in OK with some friends and their 4 kids.

21. What's your favourite colour?

Probably black. Maybe red.

22. Do you want kids?

Yes.  

23. Are you patient?

No. My brain tends to go a million miles an hour and I have a hard time slowing down for others. 

24. Can you swim?

Yes, I am a strong swimmer. Or at least I was. I haven't been swimming for a few years. I both love and hate swimming in the ocean. I love the salt water; hate the yucky jellyfish. 

25. Tea or coffee

Both.  Coffee- hot strong black- in the morning and tea in the afternoons and evening. 

26. What do you wear to bed?

27. Ever used a gun? 

Yes. I'm a pretty good shot with a .22 open site rifle. And I've used a thirty ought six for hunting. I've shot pistols. I'm better with a rifle. But I don't enjoy it. One of my acquaintances had her home broken into a few years back. She had two little babies in the house under the age of 5. She killed one of the people and injured a second. The third ran and was caught. It was the worst experience of her life. She wasn't charged or anything. It was just awful for her and her family. They moved out of state and sold the house. I can't bring myself to own a gun for that reason. But make no mistake; I have every other kind of weapon and know how to use it. I have them stashed about the house. 

28. Do you sing in the shower?

No

29. Are you stubborn?

About some things. I'm a good compromiser. 

30. Are you lazy?

No.  Too much time being inactive makes me depressed. I have to do stuff.

31. Can you change the oil in a car

I have done it before, but not on Gs car. On an older Ford truck, probably. 

32. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper?

A couple months ago. I have a friend who is incarcerated. I like to write him letters. I'm good that way.

33. Would you ever strip or pose nude in a magazine?

Not that anyone would want to see this, but how much money are we talking? 

34.What is your favourite food?

Po-tay-toes. 

Or maybe fresh crab pulled from the bay. Or tomatoes from the garden. Or stuff with cheese on it. 

I like food.

35. Do you still watch cartoons?

Sorry, I don't have time for that.

36. What movie(s) can you watch over and over again and not get bored?

Constantine, I think. And perhaps a few Sandra Bullock movies.

37. What superpower would you have for one day?

I would like to read people's minds. Probably for one day only. 

38. Whats been your favourite age so far? 

Every day I wake up. I didn't like my youth. I didn't get to be much of a child and our house was often angry and traumatic. I liked my 30s and I like my 40s so far. I'm 41. So I guess maybe I like today.

39. How old are you?

41

40. If you could go back in time, what advice would you give your younger self?

I've made so many mistakes. I would save myself so much heartbreak and so much pain. I would say "Go find examples of unconditional love. Copy them." I would tell myself that in the future, I would learn to accept who I am and what I am and that these things are not just enough, they are good. And that I am good too. It took me far too long to figure that out. Maybe some people never do. 

41. If you knew you would die in one week, what would you do?

I'm not sure. Maybe visit my family. Visit the ocean. See some friends and dance with them. Kiss my husband more. Write out the story of my life. 

42. What celebrity would you trade lives with?

Oh good lord, no. Just no. You couldn't pay me to be a celebrity.

43. Do people ever take you seriously?

Yes. It's the perks of being me, of being a professor. 

44. What happened the last time you cried?

It was about six months after my grandma died, so a few years ago. I hadn't cried about her death. She was close to all of my sister and me. I had a dream about her and told it to my friend V who was also my roommate at the time. She simply told me that my grandma is gone and there was nothing I could do about it. It was one of those great heaving sobs that you can't stop. V always seems to know just what to say. I have a sniffle from time to time, but I'm not really a crier.

45. Who knows you best?

My sister.

46.  Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed?

Door closed. It's a small bedroom, and it's my husband's closet.  I actually have a dressing room. Yes, I'm that person!

47. What is your song of the week?

Scarborough Faire

48. Last person you kissed?

49. Best thing to eat for breakfast?

I don't eat much breakfast right now. Probably my Saturday thing with G: sliced cheese and fruit. Then some physical exercise outside.

50. Does anyone know the password to your email?

G does. You never know what might happen. 

Summer Hike at Umtanum Ridge

Today is a stay-at-home, take care of myself day.  It started wonderfully, with a short walk with my friend Kim to get some coffee.  We're going to a movie later.  And of course, G is invited. He's friends with Kim too. She's been so busy lately that it's a welcome surprise to find she can hang out and just have some down time. I miss her!

First, gentle face washing, then I put on some Elmer's glue for about 5 minutes. Doesn't take long to dry in this heat/0 humidity. When you peel it off, the junk stuck in your face comes off too.
Then I got out this beauty:

Collagen is good. 

The mask itself is white and looks like Hannibal Lector when you put it on.  Fifteen minutes later, my face is wrinkle free. I took a picture of the right side of my face, which has a few dark patches.  The women in my family get blotchy dark skin when we get out in the sun.  You can barely tell. No makeup, no filter. It's so dry here that when my skin isn't dry, it's cause for celebration.

I took the 15 minutes to put on lotion, put super softening gunk on my feet and meditate. I went bounding in to see G, who was listening to some smooth jazz.
"Oh my gosh. Look at my skin." He barely glances.
"You look nice."
"No, no. I just got done with an AMAZING mask."
"Yeah, I saw it."
"No. You saw the Elmer's glue. Touch my face!"
"Kinda feels soft and fishy. But you're beautiful. I love you." He gently wipes his fingers off on his jeans.

Men don't understand beauty at all.

I really needed a bit of time to take care of myself.  I'm sore! Between working out at the gym and all the hiking and moving around G and I do, I'm a little pooped.

WARNING: LOADS OF PICTURES AHEAD

Anyway, it was a great weekend. We went hiking up at Untamum Ridge. You can learn more about the ridge here and here.

If you click on the topomap, you will see that Umtanum is south and west of Manastash Ridge, which is the other steep altitude hike we've taken. We drove out a ways on Canyon Road in Ellensburg and parked on Bureau of Land Management land.  Since it was the 4th of July, lots of floaters and flotillas were passing lazy time going down the Yakima River. That's the river snaking North/South through the topopmap.  It wasn't actually a long hike, but we originally took the right fork through the canyon floor.  We saw a cleared area that's been overgrown for 50+ years with apple trees growing wild now. Obviously, someone homesteaded this canyon and/or cultivated it.  Good apples, just small. There were also the remains of a livestock fence.

It's overgrown, but it's an apple tree.  And Gs butt.

And another- only with reddish apples

And another

Love those high canyon walls

A little creek meandered down to the Yakima

They'll get bigger, later in summer

I was wearing shorts, so about a mile in we had to turn around.  The grass was really high and some brush kept scratching my legs.  Also, we encountered a couple of snakes. I am still training myself not to have a jumpy fear response, but every once in awhile I do sort of dance backwards.  I didn't get any pictures of the snakes. I fear that my readers might give up on reading if I did. Here are some flower pictures instead.

I altered this a little, but not much. 

And a little video.

On the way in, we saw a couple of big horn sheep, and on the way out, I got video of them.

And a couple of good photos.

They knew we were there, and at times moved off a bit. They weren't scared so probably they know that BLM land is closed to hunters.

We went back to the trailhead and began the ascent.
This part of the ridge went south, whereas the other canyon went west. It went up and up and up.  Here's a couple of those photos. I had to stop every 25 yards to catch my breath.  Asthma sucks.

Steep and rocky.  Joy.

Glad I did all those squats this week. 

This is a natural little bridge between the canton walls. Wildlife use it frequently from what I can tell of the trails.

Another view of the land bridge 

I think this looks like a French impressionist painting.

We didn't go much farther after I shot this video:

Think I'm going to need another hit from the inhaler.

We saw an outcropping with what looks like a small wild animal's den.  Being as many of those little critters, bobcats, skunks, cougars, and the like are nocturnal, we decided to turn around.  Besides, we hit a brushy patch and my legs were getting scratched.

On the way back down, G fell off the mountain.  That sounds way better than that he lost his footing and fell onto the mountain.  Guess it depends on how you look at it.  He's ok, but he is taking it easy.  I thought for sure he'd break his wrist or his tailbone because he hit hard and because I'm really sympathetic to people getting hurt.  A little limping down the mountain- we still had a mile to go- and he made it to the car.  Still limping two days later but this could have been much worse.  I had joked earlier in the day about having to shoot him if he broke his leg.  I shouldn't make jokes. There must be a thing called karma. We were cooling out tootsies in the Yakima river on the way back to the car.  It's nice to step into 12 degree water after a hot couple of hours tromping around in the bush.  I leaned over to move a river rock and PLUNK! My phone hit the water.  And sunk.
I put in rice, and the pictures and video transferred over to the iCloud. That's how I have access to them. Woohoo! But booooooo for my phone. I'm not sure if it's alright. We'll give it a few days.

G is really an optimist though, and the rest of the day was spent resting, popping ibuprofen, and watching distant fireworks as our nation celebrated so many years of independence from English rule by lighting things and watching them explode.

More adventures soon- where shall we go hike next? I'm open to suggestions!

Westside Story

I had a one-week break between spring quarter and summer.  My summer class is online and the Writing Center has graciously let me stay working for them through summer. I really do like them; it's not their fault that things fell apart.  So I wanted to use my time wisely but G didn't have the week off. Poo.

My mom and her husband, John, were going to be in the area, so G and I invited them to stay with us for 2 nights.  As a bonus, my nephew Dustin was with them.  They also had a little dog named Cheechee.

Eleanor helped me make the bed in the guest room. Can't you see that she loves that a dog is coming to visit?!

Oh, yes, that's why I went to the trouble of rehabbing this table... *awkward pause*

This kid here- he's one of my favorite people. What a wonderful young man!

John and Cheechee. Yes, D is reading one of my books. Yup.

There is no mistaking that this is my mom. We look so much alike.

I like John.  He earned three purple hearts in Vietnam.  He probably wouldn't tell you that though. 

Seriously. I'm his Mom #2. 

One remarkable part of this visit is that I got to spend time with John.  I like visiting with my mom and with my nephew. Don't get me wrong!  It was just that she married John when I was like 31 and living in Oklahoma. So it turns out that just he and I are the morning people (G was at work). So I made coffee and breakfast and we talked about literature and war and PTSD. I have had many, many vets in my classes and I enjoyed his perspective. He offered a few books that might be beneficial.  

After we packed them off to the next leg of their journey (They were making 5 stops on their vacation!), I threw some stuff in a bag and headed West.  My niece Niqui invited me to stay a night with her, so we did dinner and hung out on her porch for the evening and talked Aunt/Niece or Friend/Friend stuff.  She's 25 now so it's a different relationship than when she was 6 months old and I rocked her to sleep with her twisting my hair with her fingers as she nodded off.  

Love driving on the West side.

Tacoma Narrows Bridge

Jeez, I guess I'm fond of the black tank top.

See that? I'm going to cross a huge bridge called the Hood Canal Bridge. 

This is the Hood Canal Bridge

Can you see the sign? It says "Egg&I Road".  Yeah, from the book.

Us at dinner.  She did my hair.

These puppies are so sweet!

This is Jazmyn- she's the biggest puppy of all.

This puppy is rotten, but only 6 weeks old.  She's a good cuddler.

Cute house, huh? I love A frames.

Then I spent a few nights at my sister Patti's house- same sister from my wedding.  She's also one of my very dearest friends.  We dug around in the garden and went berry picking.  Ok, berry eating. We didn't bring any home and they have just acres and acres of blackberries to scavenge. Her husband Brian - who I also count in my friends- is the crew chief on a sprint car, so we went to support them.  JJ Hinkle won. It was a pretty exciting night. 

I always feel like I'm driving to Narnia when I go to my sister's house. 

Kia is the greeter

This is Leia and Lacy

Lacy is Dustin's puppy.  She's a snuggler.

Brian. We also call him "Grumpaw" instead of Grandpa. He's not that grumpy.

See that apple tree to the left of my car? I once ran that thing over.

Got my hair cut when I was there too.

This is Leia. She's saying "CHEEEEEEEZE!" She's precious.

I'm not photographing and driving, promise.

Sisters!

We are such goofballs!

JJ Hinkle.

You wouldn't think that rocks would fly up and hit me, but they did. I got a huge bruise on my right knee. 

Neat car

This is the crew after their big win

I did spent a bit of time in Port Angeles.  I do love that place above most others.  It's way out on the peninsula.  The beaches are rocky and cold, even in this summer.  But I love it.  My soul always feels,  Oh, I don't know, rejuvenated there.  

I had to stop by here.  Great college- I love the campus

Outside the long house at Peninsula College

Happy!

Ediz Hook 1

Looking towards Canada from Ediz Hook

Serenity

Sea Monster?

Looking at Port Angeles

I just love the view

Well, it had to come to an end.  I was missing G, so I went home.  Good times, but I'm glad to get to where I wanted to be- my house with my husband and one very cranky cat.  She didn't talk to me for two days, but this morning it was all snuggles. 

It was a beautiful drive home.  This is Mt. Rainier

So happy to see this guy!

You didn't want to wash DIS laundry, did you? Too bad!