Monday Things, 12/29

A few snapshots to sum up our holiday season....

Coffee in Seattle @ Voula's Offshore Cafe

tree decorating went well!

Unwelcome Christmas guest....the flu!

DRU BRU, our new LOCAL brewery has opened!!

We had a "big storm" forecasted for this past weekend, up to 22 new inches....well, we ended up with a bit of slush. We got maybe one inch here at the bottom of Hyak.  The ski area has partially opened despite the ruts, rocks, brush and bare spots.  You won't find me up there until the coverage is WAY better!!  It's very disappointing....but nothing a little post-holiday shopping didn't help....

New socks, a foam roller, and margarita bloks!

Enjoy the rest of the Holiday week!!  If you've got snow?  Ride for me!!

Four-Letter Word Thursday?

So as an alternative to "wordless Wednesday", I'm offering up 4-letter word Thursday.  And here is my photo .  Caption it RAIN.  What did you think I was going to say?  That's right, I took that today, December 11th.  The Magic Carpet isn't looking very magical, the chairs are stuck in a wan, weary place. My snowboard sits lonely in the garage.  My new snowboard jacket is hanging itself in the closet.  There is NO snow, no snow in the forecast for the next few days at least.  Got another 4-letter word you want to offer up to me?  

Summit at Snoqualmie, December 11 , 2014

Songs In The Key Of Life

Snow Rain Sleet, Repeat

For color, part of our vintage snowboard collection

And don't forget the fog.....I think that is the recipe for November.  We always remark every year that November is the worst month on the mountain.  There is not enough snow to go full out in winter activities, but just enough to make running, cycling, dirt biking, hiking, even walking the dog just a miserable or impossible task.  Though this week twice now I have risen to the occasion and gone out for two adventures.

You've seen this before?  Ya, I think I need new running clothes!

The first was a hike up my usual route to the beer can and then along the road and eventually just going straight up the ski slope through the area that slid a few years ago.  By then it was foggy .  The footing was about two inches of crusty snow which honestly, provided some traction.  Except for the spot that looked good but turned out to be a snow covered, ice covered boulder!  I fell down, like a clown....But it was fun! I made my way back through the slide , bushwhacking for a bit to the access road and managed to have some sort of workout for over an hour.

Yesterday, I kept waiting for the rain to end or change over but finally just went out.  I headed down the rail trail, which in winter is a groomed xc ski trail.  Once I got past the section where the local kids had been driving their lifted trucks the night before, it evened out and wasn't too bad.  No, I wasn't on skis.  I was running, like I was wearing army boots in sand....It was a blast!  So tiring though that I had to only run part of every minute, counting off the steps, lifting my legs high and then stepping where the snow crust was smooth.  I saw Bobcat tracks.  LOVE to see animal tracks....as long as they are small.

Anyway, that's November.  You have to either fly to Hawaii and forget the month or go out and make the best of it.

Finally, it's here!

It's a little late, but finally, we have SNOW!  Ok, ok , it's really 1/4 inch of snow with frozen crust on top and as I write it's turning to freezing rain.  We call this....A BASE.  

We have more "base building" in the forecast, unfortunately it's just above us at about 4,000 feet.  At least the tops of the mountains will get some!  Yay!!   I know you look at this photo and think it's LAME, but in my eyes, it's just the start of snowboarding, xc skiing, sledding,  snowshoeing season!  Not to mention the dog rolling in snow, snowball fights, snow forts and cocoa! yeah baby!!

Mid November....

Well, here it is mid-November, where's the snow?  It's not here.   It's not on the ground. It's not in the forecast, not a flake.  Even all the way out through next week.  There's a chance of rain but the freezing level is going up to 9000 feet!  It's mid-November. 9000 feet?  Come on!

This past week the skies have been crystal clear, but temps have been in the teens and a windstorm left us without power for 24 hrs.  We even dragged out the generator so we could watch a movie on the laptop.  Romantic?  No, not really.  The only upside of clear skies is that the crew working on the new chair lift has had some great days to get cracking on that.  It's not every day you see a new chairlift being built and it's been pretty cool!  I wish I could show you the shiny new towers but the day I hiked up I forgot my camera (duh, right?).  That's okay, I will be able to show you them in action this winter.  In the mean time, here's a picture of the Chinook that was helping the crew place the towers and remove logs from the slope.  It was here in the neighborhood for 3 or 4 days and even flew on the day with 40 mph wind gusts.  It was a lot of fun to watch!

As you can see, some of those logs were really, really big!  That one in the bottom picture in particular was probably hundreds of years old.  Coincidentally, we had just watched the X-Files episode about the loggers ....the ones who went missing...the ones hunted down by insects hatched out of old growth timber?  And Scully and Mulder end up trapped in giant cocoons.....??  Remember??   Well, I believe. :)

Trip to the Coast

Late summer, the final week, and we finally got a mini vacation.  My husband, son and I went to Pacific City / Cape Kiwanda Oregon.  Now, I have to admit that I hate the drive down there.  I-5 South from Seattle is a bland trip no matter what they make it look like in movies!  Heavy traffic in Portland prevented a quick stop to see a new friend.  It's a 6 hour drive and almost every time we do it I complain about how we could fly to Hawaii in that time!  But when you arrive?  Well, Pacific City has just what you need, Pelican Pub and Brewery, a coffee shop of course, a surf shop and a stand with super yummy fish tacos. 

It also has some amazing scenery....

My husband did a lot of surfing but I was left ashore....the waves were several feet overhead.  Too formidable for my beginner surf skills.  We did a lot of beach walking and took in the views.  So wonderful!  

sea stack off the beach in Pacific City

the huge dune on Cape Kiwanda

My son and I exploring below Proposal Rock

The curve of beach at Pacific City from  halfway up the dune

Buh-Bye

Monday morning when I took the dog out it was 42 degrees.  I actually put on my puffy down jacket.  The leaves are changing in the hills.  We had had a few days of rain, mist and clouds.  It's that comfy grey blanket that many of us in the NW like to pull up over ourselves!  It's a "relief", so "relaxing" and we "love it".  Yes, those are the things I heard, this is what we say about the rain.... And just like that, snap!, summer is over.  I'm gonna say, here's your hat, what's your hurry?....Don't let the door hit you on the way out!...It wasn't my favorite summer, that's for sure.  

A few final images of the season , and then?  On to Fall!  I am looking forward to pleasant temps for running, some trips to the coast, flannels and hoodies, just enough sunny days and pumpkin ales!

1956 23-window VW Micro Bus @ Lucky Car Collector Fall Auction

You need rain for rainbows!

Scout, one more stick.  I'm so glad he had this season of fetching sticks in the lake!

No more waiting....they are here!

   

Think Snow

Yeah, yeah, I know it's only August but it's been HOT and smokey and the neighbors are getting restless.  We are all starting to THINK SNOW!

Too early?

Goodbye July

31 years ago today, my mom, who was 57 at the time, passed away.  31 years, that's over 11,315 days, and I have thought about her and missed her on nearly every single one.  Excessive?  No, not really.  If you've lost someone you love, you know that's just the way it is.  You also know that Kubler-Ross has ca-ca stains in her underwear.  Seriously, those stages?  They certainly aren't linear.  They are more like a big Rubik's cube, ever shifting, rising and falling, a force that you carry around.  Anger, sadness, happy memories, regrets, all there in one awkward bundle.  31 years, I've been holding my bundle.  Acceptance?  Did she really use that word?  HA.  Well, you get used to it.  Perhaps that is all you can hope for, and in this life, we can get used to a hell of a lot.  Meh.  I'm going to go get a massage.  Later in the day I will probably have a shot and a beer, listen to Eddy Arnold and cry like a baby.  It will feel good.  Let it all out.  Tomorrow?  Well that's day 11,316.  I will get up, the sun will shine, I'll make coffee and maybe paddle the lake, move along.   We all still miss you Mom. 

July, what a month.  There were some good times, in the mountains there are always some good times.  Here, a few scenes.....

Blueberry field with a view

Picking?  or eating?

Lovely bus

It's not an ocean but it will do

Goodbye July!

Let's Catch Up....Over Coffee

I did try to give up coffee.  Really I did try.  I made it almost a month but honestly, I never popped out of that zombie stage and went through my days feeling like a grouchy sleepwalker.  Then I ran into a woman I know, an older and much wiser woman.  She told me she had had to give up coffee a few times and found the thing to do was to have "a little bit of coffee every day".  Sounded so simple.  Sounded so Yoda-like.  Coffee, little bit you must have.  My brain latched on to it and I turned it over and over in my mind. I decided that if I was going to have coffee it would be really good coffee. And that I would make it at home.  So, I went back to my old coffee snob ways of grinding my own beans and paying attention to the details.  I got help online, of course, at stumptown.  The result has been some damn fine coffee.

So, let's catch up....June was a month that brought a lot of sadness to our lives.  We took it in, moved along.   July opened with the promise of blue skies, warm sunny days, trips to the lake and summer plans.  We got to the raceway to watch some vintage auto racing.  We celebrated our 24th anniversary with a Dwight Yoakam concert and a Twin Peaks themed date night.  It was lovely.

But, on July 10, we learned the tragic news that a close friend of my son had passed away.  It has left all of us so saddened and heart broken.  I know that my son will always miss him.  It has become a part of him.  And it grieves me as a parent both to think that other parents are hurting (fathomless hurt) and that my own son and daughter have known such sorrow in their young lives.  I couldn't keep it from them.  I couldn't shield their eyes during that part of the movie or whisper so they wouldn't hear.  We talk about it, grieve and move along.  

One thing that I will say about finding peace in a tough time, is that the mountains seem to soothe all wounds.  I have walked out, to the top of the "hill", many times, to seek answers to life's sad questions.   I don't really find an answer, but I do find some solace.  I find the larger picture and while it often makes no sense, I find beauty and peace, and that gives me the strength to go back down the mountain and face life's sorrows and challenges. Stay strong, do not weaken...lace up your shoes, pull on your pack and move along. 

Magic Summer Glitter

I've been thinking a lot about what summer means and what makes summer feel like SUMMER.  So here's my list of things, sort of the magic ingredients, the magic glitter if you will, that makes it all come together and feel like the season of our dreams and memories .  What makes your summer SUMMER?  Here's my current list....

1. Eating ice cream outside.  Even more magic glitter if you wait in line for it and it drips down your arm as you eat it. 
2. Berry picking.  You know, a big hot field , cobwebs in your face, a bucket, eating while you pick.  Overhearing dumb conversations and moms yelling at their kids.  Taking the berries home for waffles, jam, muffins, pies, shortcake, tarts, pancakes, syrup, eating.  
3. River wading.  Cold water, rocks, the sound of water moving along, sunlight dappling the pebbles, a wet dog or two.
4. Cooking hot dogs on sticks. a campfire. smoke in your face.  Bun, what bun?
5. Road trips.  anywhere. Cooler full of drinks, bags of food.  Traffic.  windows down.
6. Reading list. Books all over.  sand and food crumbs between the pages. Reading one more hour 'til you finish even though it's after midnight.
7. Summer fruits.  Peaches, plums, cherries, melons.  Waffles , jam, muffins, pies, shortcake, tarts, pancakes, syrup, eating.
8. Flowers.  Sunflowers in particular, all over in big vases.  The little bugs that come in with them. Petals on the counter tops.
9. Fireworks.  not just on July 4th.  But that box of left over ones from every year you've ever bought them.  On a Tuesday, or a Sunday.  Just because you have fireworks and a lighter. 
10. My birthday. August.  presents, cake, beer, candles, fireworks, flowers, eating ice cream outside.  watching JAWS.    

    

    My favorite flowers

    
    

    

    a previous road trip to Portland OR

    
    

    

    Fireworks and a mountain view

Summer Reading

Every summer I pick a pile of books and get reading.  I give myself a guideline of choosing one book from 5 different categories:  bestseller, nonfiction, classic literature, a random title and a sci fi book.  In the past I chose books that often only met one requirement....easy reading on a coast to coast airplane trip.  (I've read every single one of Daniel Silva's spy novels because of that!)  Some of the non-fiction have been biographies, Agassi's Open, or Alberto Salazar's life story, 14 Minutes.  And I also like history so Nathaniel Philbrick's books have been a lot of fun. In the Heart of the Sea,  the tragedy of the whaleship Essex, was my favorite!  I am a big fan of Haruki Murakami, (1Q84 wasn't a book as much as a place I visited, LOVED it) and I also have read the entire Virga series by Karl Schroeder.  I have two standbys that I usually drag out and reread again and again, Melville's Moby Dick and Kate Chopin's The Awakening. I've got my books ready, in fact have already read 3 books and here it is only June 25!  I've got the perfect place to read too....

This pile of books

that hammock

current read

Do you like to curl up with a good book?  Got a favorite beach read?  Summer reading, it's one of my "summer magic glitter" ingredients.....Cheers!

Linger a Little

We needed to run into Seattle on Tuesday and it was an overcast, blurry day.  Perfect for some Ivar's fish and chips and chowder.  It was a good break in our day, a chance to linger over a local favorite and slow things down a bit.

That was Tuesday and here it is, already Friday.  I've been asked a few times today if I have plans for the weekend?  Well, no, no I don't.  I seem to be caught in a limbo between wanting to plan every day and make sure I get "things" done and absolutely wanting a completely free calendar, every day open, no plans, just time to linger.  

Tomorrow is the first day of summer and I am excited that it's finally here!  But summer feels completely different to me at 50 something , than it did at 20 something, or even 30 or 40 something.  It's lost that spark, that spontaneity that makes it so fabulous.  It also has become incredibly short!!  In decades past it used to stretch out before me like a dream, warm days, road trips, the kids playing in the yard and swimming in the river.  Now it feels like summer lasts about a week or two, 3 days maybe.  How do you slow it down?  How do you make it last?  I'm going to try to wave a magic wand over it and weave some sort of dreamlike glitter into July and August.  If I find the magic mix to slow down the season and linger a little I will let you know!  Do you have anything planned for the weekend summer?  

Monday Things

My two favorite dads....

me with my dad, November 2010

my son on left and my husband, hands in air, having some coaster fun

Hope you all had a fabulous Father's day!

Monday, June 9

Awesome little run today.  I have this workout I call "up/down".  Basically it's leaving the house, hiking up past the beer can on the ski slope, then running down on the dirt access roads.  It's short and sweet, about 30 minutes.  Today I cut back on another dirt road to loop around to the house and added  10 mins.  Perfect!  Best thing about it, besides the view?  After the first 15- 20 minutes it's all downhill!

 

Subie Lovers

We just bought our 5th Subaru (this one for our daughter) and I feel the need to profess my Subie love and pay homage to these great cars!  A photo tour....

My husband's last XT

The latest addition, '07 Impreza RS

What?  you need a snow car? 

the current daily driver, '04 wrx

Seriously, we love these cars!  Have a great weekend.  Take a drive in the sun, and may all your miles be safe and happy!

June 3, 2014

It's JUNE!  Isn't that exciting?  I am making summer plans, the weather has been gorgeous!! And I am very happy to be enjoying sunshine in the mountains.  Some scenes from last summer....

Hubby and Me 

My usual summer gym

My boy Scout

Lake Keechelus from the back of Hyak