ropes & air mattresses

Friday:

Big brothers graduation day! Hurray! Grandma and Grandpa Spencer came over bright and early and we were out the door at 8:10am. I munched on cheerios and had a juice box. We left to arrive at the Tacoma Dome at 9:10ish, but we arrived in traffic a mile from the Tacoma Dome at 9 and were totally stuck, inching along for a long long while. There were some people with caps and gowns that ran past our car. I'm pretty sure they made it.

Grandpa accidentally bumped the person in front of him, so they pulled out of traffic. Mom and I decided to walk the rest of the way, so we could grab seats with Celia as we didn't know how long it would be.

Mom and I clambered into our seats on the far right just in time to see Nathan and Rubie walk into the seating area. We whooed and hollared and they saw us and waved.

Then it was a long time sitting. The student speeches were quite good. No crap about making a speech about making a speech. It was a three hour commencement. And about six seconds of that was Nate and Rubie. Nathan walked with ropes for being magnum cum laude. Go smarty pants!

Dad and the Grandparents found a spot up above. We left after Nate and Rubie so that we could avoid the traffic.

We were set to congregate at Peanut Sauce Thai Food. I left with Celia. It was a little bit of a wait to wait for Rubie, Nate, Rubie's Mom and Micky (Miki?), but that was okay. Appetizers! Whoo! Then I got filled up on giant spring rolls and chicken satay. Oh well. Left overs. It was a nice meal. Really good food. Thai, when done right, is really yummy even if I can't stand spicy.

I went home with Nate and Rubie because they were having dinner with Brynne and I needed to see my Auntie. There was time between that was spent playing Wii. Wi is so much fun, one day I will have one.

Lunch was at Two Koi. Not hungry, I just had a little plate of shrimp tempura. Auntie Brynne bought three of my bandanas and Dave Olson really wanted one, so I really need to print up more. Enough to fill the boxes left over and then just sell the individual bandanas for like, seven bucks. It was a lovely dinner. Lots of chat and food and celebrations. Dan, who is graduating on Sunday, was there with his parents.

After dinner, Nate, Rubie and I went to a little party at Nate's classmate Chad's house. Computer nerds galore! I had a beer and danced a little with Rubie, who was teaching a couple some possibly moves for the wedding. We played a few rounds of Chad's Android phone game. Looked at Andrea and Chad's wedding album. And just hung about and chatted. Rubie drove us back and rolled out the inflatable mattress for me and then it was nighty night.

Saturday:

Had my first Eggo waffle with Eggo syrup and a glass of chocolate milk. Mmm! Played more Wii as well. Then it was a drive to the other side. Out of Tacoma, back to Seabeck. Unfortunately I missed Dad leaving for work. He won't be gone for long, still it is nice to have him around.

Nate dropped Rubie off at her parents. It was a beautiful and warm day. Nathan wanted the hot tub, I wanted the sprinkler, so we did both. We ran through the sprinkler to cool off and then got in the hot tub to warm up. A good combination, except now I need to siphon some grass out of the hot tub.

Nathan left and then it was just mommy and me. Watched the rather lack luster new Doctor Who episode (it was just off and all over the place and what was with the head butting?) and made rice krispy treats with mom. Then we watched Up In The Air. It had a weird start but the characters really developed. Ended up liking it quite a bunch. Tomorrow, mom and I plan to go see Sound of Music at the Rhododendron Theater aka the Mountaineers Theater. That will be nice. I've never actually seen the movie.

sands of time are really hard to get out of swimsuits

Youtube just refuses to not have a lag on my videos. Maybe I should switch to Vimeo or something.

Had to get up bright and early for a dentist appointment. First one in three years. Not that I was too worried, I try to take good care of my teeth. Mom drove me to Kingston. Sue Sharp was the hygienist. Cleaned and X-Rayed my teeth. And guess what: no cavities! With the exception of some tartar buildup, I got a good report. Wisdom teeth might need to come out eventually, but no hurry. Hurrah!

Got some chicken and macaroni salad afterwards and then back to Seabeck.

Read on the lawn for an hour or so. Dad came back with a new haircut, and joined us in our reading. We decided to catch a matinee of Prince of Persia and then grab dinner. Prince of Persia, I liked it fine. Some of it was a bit jumpy and felt like a video game to me, but still had some good sequences. Gemma Arterton had a good fake tan. Afterwards we went to dinner at Fiesta. I had this enchilada that I didn't like all that much, and I wasn't that hungry.

Dad helped me rewire the jack on my headphones. It got damaged on the trip. The sound is pretty good. The soldering worked for now, only time will tell. We watched the one hour special performance only episode of So You Think You Can Dance. Then time to go to bed.

Earlier day tomorrow. Nate's graduation. Going to stay in Tacoma overnight. See auntie Brynne and uncle Dan.

Changed the layout on my blog. I like having a wider text box. Still playing with the colors.

vacation pictures - one

east of the cascades, west of the border - part two

TUESDAY

Mom talked us into another dip in the soap lake. I got in to my stomach. I wasn’t so inclined to take a full dip. Apparently the way to activate the soap lake powers is to just soak in it till you feel lighter. The mud makes a good exfoliate as well, even though it reeks of sulphur. I bought a slush puppy from the little store.

Then at 11:30 we set out to go further east. Or was it north. Whichever direction Grand Coulee Dam is from Soap Lake.

Lake Lenore was a nice little stop over. It was a very alkaline lake with lots of dragonflies. There was a path that branched out a kagillon times up the hills. The path was a nice little hike to the Lost Lenore Caves. The people who titled it need to look up cave in the dictionary. More Alcove than cave. Still, interesting. A beautiful view accompanied the walk.

Next was a stop at the Dry Falls Visitor Center. I bought a Junior Ranger badge and some wicked dinosaur and mammoth rings. We three sat and watched a little film about the forming of the area around here. During the ice age this huge lake, Lake Missoula, formed and it burst and carved out the landscape. And it did this multiple times. The guy who first came up with the theory was dismissed, even though no better solution was provided.

We continued on to our camp ground, Steam Boat Rock State Park. It was a nice little spot. Near the lake. A lot of the other motorhomers had dogs and cats. I petted one, a Pomeranian puppy named Pitch. A fluffy hyper little thing. Dad and I went out in the kayak. We went through some all grass and paddled around. Then I traded with mom and read some of Year of the Flood.

They returned and we ate salmon on crème cheese on rice crackers. This poor Tern was being attacked by a black bird. Its tail feathers kept getting yanked at. Then we played a round of Skip-Bo. Dad took the early lead, I remained steady, but mom ultimately won.

Then it was fire and s’mores time. I constructed a great little fire. I had three s’mores, dad had two, and mom had one.

At the Grand Coulee Dam, there is a light show projected on it almost every night. So we took off to see it. It was a history of the water and America and the building of the dam and the power of its energy. Too bad most of the energy now goes to a private seller and he sells it to damned California. That is our energy!

Anyway, we got back a little late and went straight to sleep. I had a hard time sleeping because so many bugs congregated around my light and there were spiders and little bitey bugs. Uhg. I felt like they were crawling all over my skin, so I moved down to sleep at the table.

WEDNESDAY

Rough night sleep. When mom and dad got up, I moved to their bed. Had a juice box and a cookie and some antihistamine and went to sleep for a few more hours. It rained all through the night, but the weather picked up again.

It was a long drive back to Kitsap. We hit a point of interest spot with a gorgeous view for lunch. There was an antique shop in Ephrata that we checked out, but it wasn’t priced all that well. Nice kitty named Maggie in it, though.

But it was mostly driving. Nearly seven hours of it. Took about an hour to unload. Twenty minutes in the hot tub. Then two hours of So You Think You Can Dance! Kent got through! Yay! Glee was good as well. Totally called that Quinn was going into labor.

It was a good vacation. Now back to the rest of it.

east of the cascades, west of the border - part one

SUNDAY

Got up. Got packing. Slept through most of the heavy duty stuff. Mom and Dad were fine doing that on their own. Packed a lot of shorts and my swim suit, but put on pants and a sweater just in case. I’ve almost learned my camping lesson: always bring coats. Mom brought extra jackets as well.

At 11ish we took off. Noon we left Silverdale. It was a mellow trip. I don’t quite remember the last time I crossed the Rockies. It was a long and winding road. Lots of pretty trees and chunks of ice. Mom and I played Go Fish and tried to figure out Five Alive.

We stopped by the Leavenworth Safeway for some missing items. Leavenworth is this Bavarian inspired town. Everything has the same font and it is cute in a tourist sort of way. Mom bought me pudding cups! One thing I love about camping is the food. It is just a great excuse to eat a little worse than usual and in beautiful settings.

Our camping spot on Lake Wenatchee is pretty nice. It is a wood view, not a lake view. I ran to the top of the little hill and there were some deer on the other side. They ran in the other direction, as deer do.

I made a fire in the fire pit. A nice fire too. Dinner was these turkey medallions with steamed veggies and corn and potatoes and salad. Mmmm! Lots of food. I accidentally poured too much dressing on the salad. Thought it had a small hole instead of just an open bottle, you know.

After dinner we went on a bike ride. I’m not a fan of mom’s electric bikes. The seats at their lowest are still too high, and they are so heavy you have to rely on the motor to go uphill. Also, when the terrain isn’t good, it wears down the battery really fast. We did a little lake loop. There was mulch all over the trail so it was very hard to push through. Still, the lake was pretty.

I spun a little too fast on a tire at a playground.

We all returned to the camper as it started to lightly rain. I made a couple s’mores. Mmm. Time to go to bed. We might move farther East in search of warmth.

MONDAY

Took me a while to get started, as per usual. Pancakes and bacon and hot cocoa for breakfast! We sat outside for a bit, enjoying the morning sun. Mom and I took a little hike to gather some plant samples. After a little bike ride, it was time to pack up and drive further east.

My job was to fill the water tank with the hose. Probably the best job as all I had to do was stand there with the hose. No heavy lifting or anything. Got my pants rather wet though. Oh well.

We went back to Leavenworth. Took a hike along a path, which ended up taking us further out that we expected. It wasn’t that much of a trek back into town, but we complained none the less. I had some fun on a play ground. We decided to get a bratwurst for lunch. The guy at the place was brand new and it took about 20 minutes to get us our food. As my yoga teacher Fawn says, when we are being inconvenienced, most of the time we are just being asked to slow down. It was a big good sausage that made for a good meal. We wandered around the tourist traps. There were some goats on the side of the path, in a fenced hill area next to a golf course. I picked up a wedding present for Harmony and Peter. And some taffy! There was a great hat shop as well. Tired of that, we got in our camper and road out into the sun.

Smallwood’s was a destination of mom’s picking and it had an amazing friendly kitty named Katie. It was big and fluffy and infinitely friendly. Mom picked up some food and honey and other things. There was a folder holder thing with tons of old fruit labels; you know the kind that go on boxes? But they were loose and a buck a piece, so we picked up a few. I really liked the Triton Washington Evaporated Pears one. Too bad we couldn’t buy the cat. Ma and I posed with some of the face hole boards.

Then another two or so hours on the road. I napped a little bit. It was quite warm. The scenery is quite beautiful. Lots of hills and trees but dry and snug warm. We arrived at Soap Lake. The first place was a tiny RV lot with nothing special. We drove on to the other RV spot, which had a pool and hot tub and minigolf and better lake access. So we pulled into a spot and set up. Not yet hungry, we swam in the pool and then the hot tub. The wind died down so we took a chance on the lake. It was quite muddy, but apparently the lake is known for its healing mud. We swum about a little bit and tried to float. We scrubbed our limbs with sulphur smelling mud and then washed it off. Shower time! Finally washed my hair. It was getting gross.

Dinner was tortellini and burger and broccoli. Yum!

This place has wifi; the next place might not, so again: see you Wednesday!

sun!!

Finally some 70 degree weather! I got up a little earlier, but no one was around. Mom was working and Dad was at the motor home. So I made myself a sandwich. Mmm!

When mom came back, we all lounged in the sun. I adjusted several times to keep in the sun. Sometimes I was cold, sometimes warm. I was leaning back in the recliner and it tipped backwards and I fell and it sort of collapsed on me, trapping me. It took mom and dad a while to come and get me out. I crushed some flowers.

We took Holly to the kennel. She was a good sport about it.

So more packing. Ate some ravioli. More packing. I jabbed myself on this rod in the camper.

Watched Doctor Who. After a dinner of salmon, beans, bread, and pasta, Ma, Pa, and I watched District 9. It is weird the difference between watching a film in theaters with friends familiar with the movie and at home with parents who are not. It is quite the upsetting movie at times. But they both said they thought it was good after. I was worried for a second.

Tomorrow we finish packing and head out to Eastern Washington. Lake Wenatchee specifically. Probably won't have internet, but I'll have my computer so I will still write what I'm up to.

See you Wednesday!

lets get some shoes

Well, once I go camping I'll be up earlier and all that. Get all the sleep while I can.

Dad made scrambled eggs and bacon for me for breakfast. Yum! Pulled up Rivers and Tides on Netflix Instant Watch and watched it while I ate. Andy Goldsworthy is pretty cool.

I finished up the clock Dad and I have been working on. He cut the grooves in the pieces of dowel, and I painted them to make them stand out. The clock looks pretty awesome. We put it in the Girl Cave. I sort of worry if people might think the notches correspond to time, instead of the quadrants, but because if the spacing on the clock, it might make for a more effective second read. Worked a little bit on my quilt, but not much.

Mom made toasted Havarti and lettuce sandwiches for a late lunch/early dinner.

Then we went into town. Checked out the mouse traps that the feed store has. Then mall time! Bought some digestive biscuits and nutella at World Market, then went shoe shopping. There was this really nice pair of yellow Madden heels with a sassy ruffle on the toe, but they just didn't fit right. I'm not good with heels. But Payless had a cute pair at half the cost. Yellow, fit well. Hurrah! Wedding shoes (and not black) heels purchased! We got home at around 8:45. Finished Rivers and Tides, and then bed time.

Poor Holly the doggy is all wet from the persistent rain. Well, just damp on the outside. No fun. But she does have an indoors dog bed. She doesn't have to be a pathetic outdoor animal.

splitsville

Did I mention we are going to be taking a little four day trip to Eastern Washington? Headed to the sun! And lack of rain land! Whooo!

Good news on the apartment search front. Kristen and I have all but confirmed that I am going to be living with her starting in August. She is out of town so I might have to move my stuff in when her apartment sitter (Tabitha) is there, but I won't unpack and live there till July runs out. Still, that is quite good. Kristen is awesome and hella responsible. If only I can get up to her standards. It is a nice place in the Nob Hill district. Sticking to the West Side of Portland. Whoo!

Need to work on actually getting out of bed when I first wake up. I'm almost always awake at 10, but always doze off. This twelve hours in, twelve hours out thing is really counter productive.

Helped dad split wood. He has a nice log splitter now. All I had to do was flip the switch.

Hot tubbed, but I got really warm really quick and wasn't up for it.

Mum and I went in to Costco. I have a dentist appointment (the first in over three years) in a week so I needed to fill my antibiotic prescription. I have a heart murmur yo, but that hasn't stopped me. So we filled that and went on a road trip snack buying spree. Snacks, drinks, some underwear for me, some gummy vitamins, some face lotion. Yup, good old Costco. It was weird how the pharmacy gave us a look when we said we would pay for the prescription out of pocket. It was a cheap one, only $5.90, but they still wanted us to sign up for their discount program.

Mum gave me money to get a hot dog and then we headed back.

Another dream dinner. Chicken tortilla stuff. Then So You Think You Can Dance! Then finished up their auditions and went to Vegas. Lots of intense routines. I like SYTYCD because they give dancers second chances. And the girls are so fit. I really need to pick up a third form of regular exercise. Especially since the amount I'll be biking has decreased so much. Oh, I wonder if bike messenger services are hiring? I'm a reliable biker. I have rain pants and need a job.

Watched the first episode of the BBC series Luther. It stars Idris Elba and it was intense! Police procedural.

time is whatever you say it is

Mum was at work. Dad was doing garage work.

Dad worked on the body of a clock to go with a kit we got at Joann's. The kit has the mechanism and the hands, you build the rest of it. So dad made a nice flat panel with some wood leftover from his lampshades and made a little frame to go around it. I helped do the constructive geometry required to map out the 12 spaces for the numbers. We put it together but haven't come up with a solution for the numbers yet.

Dinner was this shrimp thing. I liked the shrimp but wasn't fond of the sauce.

Then it was time for So You Think You Can Dance! Some good performers got through. Rooting for Kent though I have the feeling he will get bumped during Vegas week. I made a couple little bead bracelets while watching. Mmm.

Lots of Fringe.

Carmen asked if I wanted to do a second Odd Owl tour poster. I tentatively said yes. Need access to studios. And need to do another piece. Last one won awards so the bar is pretty high. Hmmm.

ankle deep in it (cold water that is)

Back to the same old same old.

Sleeping in, in my large bed. Cheerios and tea.

Helped clean out the hot tub. They emptied out the water because lots of little pieces of grit were in it and it was strangely soapy. I used a sponge to get the left over water and dirt out of the tub, and when it seemed like all the dirt was out, I turned on the hose to fill it. Lots of little bits of dirt showed up, so dad helped me siphon them out using gravity. Really cold to stand in a hot tub partially filled with water fresh from the hose. Really really cold. It took about 40 minutes to fill back up. Dumped a bunch of the salts in it (it isn't chlorine based) and turned it on. Now just to wait a day for 51 degrees to become 103.

Dad went into town so I spent the rest of the day by myself. Watched Fringe. Read a little. Didn't do much. It is so quiet here and all the moments blend together.

Dinner was potstickers, salmon, and rice. Mmmm! I scarfed down the potstickers. I was a member of the clean plate club.

We turned on the TV at 8pm expecting Glee (don't know why, as it has always held the 9pm spot) and when we found Hell's Kitchen, we watched an episode of Northern Exposure instead.

Then Glee! I wasn't so fond of the musical numbers, except for the cover of Beck's Loser. I bet Quinn is going to go into labor during regionals.

Tomorrow I think I'm going to assemble a clock with dad.

Once I wake up that is.

the land of no internet connection

Off to the land of no Internet: Pulali Point! Amazing how the world doesn't stop if you can't access your email.

Saturday:

Woke up at noon to find out it was time to get ready and go. Hand a quick breakfast of oatmeal and an egg. Nathan left to pick up Rubie and I waited for the updates on my computer to configure. Looks like I’ll have to wait till Monday to watch the new Doctor Who. Boo!

Eventually Ma, Pa, and I crammed into the truck and headed off. Mom worked on her sock monkey on the way. Another cold, wet day. Mom and Dad said they packed their swim suits. I highly doubt it will pick up enough for any of us to dare to swim in the canal.

This visit is a repair and modification one. Curtains, shed, and some other stuff. I worked on hemming the curtains. The rings have clips on them, so you don’t have to sew holes in the fabric. Where I sleep in Pulali has a large window right next to the bed, and that does not make it fun to sleep when you have the big moon RIGHT THERE. Anyway, now there are pretty curtains blocking that out.

We five went to the Shrimp Fest. There was only a little bit of shrimp representation. Mostly a lot of pop up displays and people selling their various wares. We bought some mugs and fudge and frozen shrimp, and then some corn and fried shrimp and shrimp cocktail. Mmm!

Nate, Rubie and I solved a cocker spaniel puzzle. The face on the dog was a little scary.

Celia came over for dinner. She brought a delicious pot of soup that featured shrimp. There was some garlic bread and a dream dinner. Dessert was fudge. Mmm!

Rubie brought out the karaoke. I sang Bohemian Rhapsody, and it reminded me how totally tone deaf I am. I can’t carry a tune. Oh well. Then Nate brought out his computer and I played the Portal game. I did pretty well and only needed a couple hints from Nathan. Played till mom yelled us to turn off the computer. Celia stopped by again with her cat Lulu. She should loan us a cat to kill the mice in this house.

Sunday:

I was looking at my watch upside down, so when I got up at what I thought was 8, it was actually 10. Still, way early for me. In the night I heard the mouse trap snap and catch a mouth. I heard its death rattle and a few seconds of clawing, and then silence.

Cold cinnamon rolls for breakfast and some tea. Eventually I wandered out to find the family members. Mum and dad were in the garden, so I joined them in their efforts. Mostly used a ho to dig out some grass.

Got bored of that. Nathan and Rubie came back from Kirie’s. We went inside for lunch. I played a few more levels of Portal. Nathan made chili and emptied out a bag of Fritos into it.

Nate and Rubie had to leave to Tacoma to finish up homework.

I brought down Grandpa’s typewriter. Still works, except for the 1 and ! key. Pretty cool when you can turn on a thing after years of use and it is still functional.

Ma, Pa, and I worked together to make a trellis. I screwed in screws and measured and cut planks of wood. It looks quite nice, and no one fell down or got hurt.

I took a nap. Dad took a nap. Mmmm nap. The bed upstairs is ideal for napping.

I made a sandwich and watched some Treme. Then mom made dinner. Shrimp, rice, and chicken! I was full up before the chicken course. Then we played Settlers of Catan. Mom pulled a decisive lead and I was pretty much behind the whole game. Boo.

Celia stopped by and we watched the family movies that Uncle Rolfe and Aunt Alison switched over to DVD. Pretty much all was new to us. The reels we are familiar with are elsewhere. We fast forwarded through school trips and many many Victoria trips. I got some good screen captures of everyone when they were younger. It is amazing how readily identifiable the family members are, even when the picture is not so great. Dad had silly hair.

Monday:

Woke up. Finally washed my hair. I was snuffly so I took an antihistamine, which promptly knocked me out for two hours, which ended up being all of Rolfe and Alison's visit. Oh well. Then it was time to pack up and get the planer from Celia.

The sun finally came out. Not warm enough for swimming, but warm enough to not need a sweater. The ride back slowed to a crawl for about ten minutes.

Unpacked. Queued up Doctor Who. Hot tub time! The day passed by quite quick. Before we knew it, it was dinner time. Then 9pm. Then sleepy time. It is good to be back, but it was good to be away. But mostly good to be in a comfy bed with no mice.

cream and the waitresses

Slept way way in. Mmm. I'm looking less tired day by day.

Another day filled with quilting and records. I did another section on my quilt to make it a lot larger. A lap quilt instead of a place mat. I just did another 2 blocks by 3 blocks section using the same technique. I'm a lot better at it now though, so it came together in greater speed and better craftsmanship.

Dad cooked up burgers and brought them up to us. Sat on the futon and had a lovely lunch together.

Mom worked on this sock monkey and pillow making.

I'm working on borders and the fabric to fill in the spaces right now. It is a long weekend, so once I get it finished, I will upload pictures.

Mum and I took another trip to Joann's to take advantage of the sales. I picked out a shirt pattern and some flannel to make a shirt. Also purchased was a set of embroidery thread, curtain rods, a clock kit, curtain hangers, and some miscellaneous stuff. It is so fun to be productive and sewing and getting my skill level up. Hurray!

Nathan came over tonight. Family hot tub time! Then we watched the first 30 minutes of Brigadoon. It didn't catch our interest that much.

Tomorrow we go up to Pulali!

the quilting begins

Woke up to mom knocking on my door. She dug out her wedding dress. Her little hat and veil was so cute! I want to try on the dress, but not today.

Quilting! I didn't get on the computer till 8pm today! Hurray! Small victories. Dad scrambled me some eggs with bacon for breakfast. Totally awesome eggs. Then mum and I went up to her mini barn and listened to records and quilted for a few hours.

Mum's little minibarn studio space is so cozy. There is a large table to lay out fabric on, and three sewing machine work spaces. Plus lots of fabric and thread and all that. Totally positive work environment. Even Holly came and joined us. Listened to Abbey Road, Thriller, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Pointer Sisters... it was awesome! I just sewed a little thing of quilt chunk. Just narrow strips cut and sewed together in rows of three, and then cut into blocks, and sewn into squares with different directions of facing stripes. There are some mistakes, but for a first try I am pretty pleased. Needs to be finished but still. Yay!

After I got my 3x4 blocks thing sewed together, we three went into town! Origami Sushi for dinner! Yay! I just ordered sushi and a soda, mom and dad both got entrees. I was well stuffed with good sushi. Probably some of the best I've had. I'm glad the restaurant is still in good business.

Then we went to Joanne's. Mom really needs to see Fabric Depot. I picked up a nice fabric to go on the back of my mini quilt, and some fat quarters to play with.

We got home just in time for the season premier of So You Think You Can Dance. Some good auditions. And some bad, bad, bad ones.

Good day. Lots of activity.

scary dreams

I'm not as congested in Washington as I am in Portland. I wonder what it is about Portland that I'm allergic to.

Last night, I started having nightmares and I woke up at about 3:30 in quite a fright. I couldn't get back to sleep for a bit, so I just watched some Fringe to take my mind off things.

Continued along that vein for the rest of the day. Another mom at work, dad at garage sort of day. Didn't have the family dinner till around 8. Dad fell asleep, mom and I hot tubed. It was sleepy time before the day even seemed to start.

Tomorrow mom is home all day, so we can finally start quilting! Her little mini barn is quite cozy now. Has three sewing machines, a futon, a record player, and lots of space. Hurray!

I wish it wasn't so rainy. I want sun!

RAA RAA AH AH AH AH

Getting into a better rhythm with my sleeping. And I don't fuss and fidget as much as I used to, now that I sleep with pillows under my back and legs.

Mum was gone all day. Booo! Dad was working in the garage.

So I just watched Fringe. Pretty good show. Lots of "science". I'm on episode 9 already. I'm two episodes being in Treme. Also a good show, but it isn't as fun as other shows. And these days I am looking for fun.

Dad and I made leftover latka soup. We used this soup base he got in Singapore and we tossed leftovers and thawed scallops and shrimp into it. Wait. Not latka. Uhh. Lashka? I don't know. Coconut and spicy. Anyway, it was really good. Potato, salmon, noodles, chicken, shrimp, scallops, assorted veggies. Lots of tid bits. I was skeptical, but it all turned out. Mmmm!

Then we all watched Glee. The Lady Gaga episode! Wonderful costumes. Then it was get over heated in the hot tub time.

Now to watch another episode of Fringe, and go to sleep. Or maybe watch another one after that.

Also looked through mom's quilting books. Maybe tomorrow night she'll show me how to get started on quilting.

mm sunflower seeds

Okay, I'm not so emotional over Lost anymore. I haven't had a talk with my good friend Madeline about the plot yet.

Anyway, got up before noon. Had French toast with dad. Looked at the sewing set up at the mini barn. Can't wait to get started! But not today. Mom has clogging so she didn't have time to find her pattern books.

Can't quite remember what I did with the day...television I guess. Steak and potatoes and beans and broccoli for dinner! Watched the last half of Pirate Radio with parents. No hot tub.

It is still cold. I want warm weather!

I miss having the company of some of my Portland friends. It is nice being home, but I'm isolated here...

six years later...

Ahh oh my god I'm watching the Lost series finale right now and I can't stop crying. Every time the people make connections to their past and present life I start bawling. Six years I've spent avidly watching this show. Six major years in my life. Such a connection to this weird show, and now it is ending. Ahhhh!! Damn, didn't think I'd be so emotional. Sure it is just a show. I think my favorite part was Charlie and Claire.

*****

Normally I wake up at 10ish and drift off back to sleep. Today, because we were doing stuff, I decided to get up at 10 instead of sleeping in.

Poached egg on toast with melted cheese for breakfast! Then a shower, then getting dressed, and off to town!

First stop: Old Navy. I severely under packed so I was in need of some sweaters. Hit the athletic rack and clearance section. Got an over sized sweater, a cozy blue sort of track jacket, and a shirt. Very happy with the jacket. Dad got a shirt as well.

Second, and final, stop: Starbucks. Mom drinks coffee now. I went for tea. Ran into a friend from 4th and 5th grade: Stephanie Punt! We run into one another every couple years. She is applying to med schools and all that. I'm drawing pictures of stuff.

Then it was off to Mats Mats for dinner with the grandparents. Grandma let me have a looksie and a take-sy from her magnificent fabric collection. I kept to things that would be good shirt material. I also took a little box of things to try my hand at quilting. It would make a good project. I might be a little stir crazy. Maybe. But yeah, got my hands on a lot of great fabric. Whoo!

Dinner was shrimp with sauce over rice and a salad. We five polished it all off, and still had room for delicious apple pie and ice cream. What a great meal. Had to rest on the couch for a while after. Star Wars was on television. The last half of Return of the Jedi, specifically.

After the movie, we parted ways. Didn't go straight home though. We swung by Target. Mom and I ended up dress shopping for Harmony's wedding. The first dress I tried on was perfect. Fit wonderfully, and is just my style. I tried on some others but really, this was perfect. We lost dad in the shopping process. But we found him again.

We relaxed a little at home, then lounged in the hot tub for half an hour or so.

Then I watched Breaking Bad. Very tense episode. They filled a lot with just Walt and Jesse interacting.

Then Lost. Oh Lost.

rocking the boat

Had trouble sleeping. My shoulder really hurt. Eventually, I had to assume a yoga layout. I stuck a pillow under my ankles and back, so that my chest was elevated. Started feeling better immediately.

Slept in long time. It was good. Doctor Who, toaster strudel, eggs and potatoes for breakfast. Cliffhanger Doctor Who. Next one looks good. There have been a lot of cliffhangers. Wonder where this series with Matt Smith will go.

Ma and Pa worked outside. I stayed inside.

At 4pm we went into the hot tub! Yay! Hot tub!

At 5pm we went to a Chinese restaurant. They brought out our food in a weird order. I got served first, then mom, then the appetizer, then dad's chow mein. I didn't like the noodles. The best part were the sesame balls that came at the end. All in all, the food tasted bland to me. I wouldn't go back there.

We had some time to kill between dinner and the show. The show being Guys and Dolls. There was a little driving around, but we decided to just arrive early and wait for the performance to begin. It was so cold in the theater for a while, but it warmed up.

The show was quite fun. There were some good singers. The two female leads were quite strong, and the man who played Sky was superb. The Martinelli family had three family members in the performance. I went to high school with Chante Martinelli, who wasn't in it. Kind of fun seeing these names surface time and time again.

It was another soggy day. Tomorrow we are headed to Mats Mats!

troll boogers

Spent a lot of the day dozing in the car. I think I was in the car more than out of it, actually.

I thought I had slept in, when actually I got up at 8am. Hard to tell how much you have been sleeping when the bed is uncomfortable. Hot cocoa while I looked at Sister Wendy. Mum and Deanne picked up garbage from the shore.

Left Pulali Point at 9:30am. Napped a little bit on the way home. Showered. Put a pretty face on.

Then out the door, towards, Bainbridge, and off to Seattle to see Nathan's whatever thingy at the symposium for under graduate stuff at University of Washington. We missed the ferry my minutes, so I put my feet up and took a nap. The ferry ride went quick, as I pretty much slept through it all and woke up on the way to the parking garage. Mom and Dad bickered about parking. Their bickering puts me on edge and that doesn't make me the warmest person to be around.

Nathan didn't tell us his presentation was at noon, right when it started. We thought any old time would be good. So we missed the main meat. His board was impressive. Well it had impressive words and a long two line title. Didn't have much to add to the matter, so I wandered around looking at the bad, poorly labeled art on the walls. I saw a classmate from Olympic College. He grew a mustache.

Nathan, Rubie, and Chad went off to Tacoma to meet about the Italy whatever, and Ma, Pa, and myself went to Dick's Drive In! Burgers, fries, and milk shake oh my! Then we went to the Fremont Bridge Troll. Whoo! Never been before.

Dad insisted we try to find the Scandinavian Bakery. Unfortunately it was closed for business. Got to the ferry and parked for the 5:30 to Bremerton. I stuck around in the car, and mom and dad went out and about. They came back with Averie! Who was headed out on the other ferry. Wonderful to see my cousin. Whooo!

Then we got on the ferry, and I dozed for the ride, and continued napping all the way back to Seabeck. Had some dinner. Watched the season finale of Community. Now to get a good night sleep, and do something tomorrow. Maybe.

nugget of love

Actually did something today!

Got up bright and early at 9:30 to go to Pulali with mom and her buddy Deanne. I packed a little heavy because there was the possibility I might stay an extra night with Celia.

It was a nice ride over. Read bits of Sister Wendy’s 1000 Masterpieces. What an adorable little art loving nun she is. We three stopped for snacks and candy at the Quilcine general store. I got Gobstoppers, Nerds, Now & Laters, and sunflower seeds.

It was windy and cold at Pulali. Right after arriving, I went to Celia’s to borrow some socks. She got her swimsuits from Zappos. Nice looking suits. Totally flattering. Borrowed wooly socks and a nice tank that provided a surprisingly warm layer. So bloomin’ cold and windy. Not fun at all. Where is summer? I had all these delusions of swimsuits and swimming. Not happening.

Nice to see Celia. Been so long. The cabin is looking awesome and her garden is coming along.

Saw auntie Kirie and Uncle Mark as well. Caught up over tea. It was nice to talk about the stresses of this semester with two aunts who have been there. It has been really rough and I’ve been trucking along pretty well. The trials of these past couple months have really enabled me to appreciate the wonderful friends and support base that I have. I’ve never felt less alone in my life.

Anyway. After Kirie’s I went out with Ma and Deanne. We went to Whitney’s Nursery. Checked out the rhododendrons and the plants. Mom picked out a couple and bought some soil. We visited Grandma and Grandpa Pedersen’s gravestone, which has a garden planted on top of it. The soil was added to the plants mom has planted. It is a nice graveyard. Small, with lots of random decorations and plants.

The Bunnell gravesites caught our eye.

Next was a minihike to the Rocky Something Waterfall. Really beautiful.

Returning home I took a long long nap. Just got really tired. I don’t have the energy that I used to.

Upon waking, I found it was dinner time! Celia brought over rice and chicken, and we also had chicken. And a wide assortment of vegetables, like corn and a medley of stuff, and this steamed green thing. Such a lovely healthy meal to get totally stuffed on. And Celia made cookies! Her basmati rice was perfection.

After dinner, we looked through this Brinnon history book to find out about the Bunnell’s. There were tons of interesting people in the book. One daughter was named Nugget Bell, not a Bunnell girl, just an interesting name. There were tales of Ma Hjelvik and various shenanigans. It wasn’t the best written of books, but dang there is a lot of history.

We settled in for some Uno and PBS. We caught the last fifteen minutes of Doc Martin and a choppy signal episode of Poirot. Good ol’ Belgian detective. So smart. And now it is time to lounge in bed, read a little, and get up bright and early. The weather is no good, so I’m not staying an extra night. I’ll be back.