Wednesday, September 7, 2016

Back "Home" and WA - first two weeks 8/23 - 9/6/2016

I'm going to do a speed blog just to get this stuff down.  Gosh, first thing was breathing the air, I love it, I love it.

So good to see Robert.  So good to see so many friends in the first two weeks.  It has just been great.  It is funny when you "come home" and things have changed.  One of my very favorite restaurants closed after 44 years of cooking the best hamburgers in the world.  Many trees and shrubs seem to have grown taller in the almost year we've been gone.

So fun to be here and able to celebrate birthdays with dear friends.

Jake, Cathy & Derek, she had a nice party
at Cafe Ole'

John's BD was days before so we let him wear the birthday sombrero

Betsy, Mary and me.  Fun lunch with cake.

Robert has been very sweet and taking walks with me -- even though he doesn't like to walk.  It has been fun talking and goofing around.  Too bad we live all the way on the other side of the U.S.

Nice to enjoy hot tub

Nice early hike up into hills for a pretty view of Boise

I did much better this year getting here than last year.

So happy he went to this walk with me.


Our pizza party was a success and we got a chance to see friends and visit a little.  Hadn't seen some of these folks for quite a while.  Great evening with good pizza and great friends.













Next on our agenda was a trip to Richland, WA and then Port Townsend, WA to visit with friends.  Quite a drive over, but worth every minute.  We just had so much fun seeing Terry and Dale.  They are such fun people and we always enjoy visiting with them, but never have enough time.  We hope they will come visit us in Florida.

If there is any kitchen gadget Terry has it.  Love her huge kitchen.

She loves to decorate for Halloween and her home looks great.

Dining table and that pumpkin is huge.

Never have been to their house without each meal being a feast.

Yummy - dig in.

Set our GPS for Port Townsend and marked "no ferries", but it took us to the ferry terminal and we just ended up on the water.  Very fast trip, but it was fun.

Sitting in the rain 45 minutes waiting to get on the ferry.



Rainbow

Upon arrival there was a nice deer in their backyard.
Picture taken through a window with rain so not too clear.

Our private retreat, what a great little place to stay.

Colleen made us a fresh bouquet of flowers.

You have everything you need here.  Not a place for a pack rat for sure.

Cute bathroom sink.

Shadow, their sweet kitty cat, very soft and loveable.

Paul and Julie, love this picture.  Those are fresh flowers too.
Beautiful table with a warm glow.

The one and only, my CoCo, friends since 7th grade.

Something you don't see often, a handmade road sign.

Love all the WA ferns.

Late in the season, but there were still some blackberries to be found.
Next year I'll have to go earlier, pick some and make a blackberry pie.

Drive into their house

You can't visit WA without seeing a huge slug.

Julie made a wonderful dinner of chicken marsala, garlic mashed
potatoes, fresh beans and asparagus.

Beautiful asparagus

Always to be remembered as "the corn starch incident."

Painting Julie is working on.  She is a very talented artist.

Voted best breakfast in the city, it was amazing and SRO.  Glad we
got there when we did, so many people waiting.  Yum, yum.

John Steinbeck's boat getting much
needed repairs.  To be repurposed and used to
help students learn about the ocean.

Interesting to see inside a wooden boat refurbishing company

Paul, my friend son is a wooden boat builder.





Covered outside work area.  Lots of rain here and this helps.



Out for tea with friends.  Fun time.



Smack dab downtown Port Townsend
Official settlement was 1851.

Very busy during tourist season with many
interesting shops and excellent restaurants.  
Well known for its artist community.  We toured galleries
on Saturday.  It was the monthly Art Walk and fun.

The Madrona trees shedding its bark.  A coastal
tree found from California to British Columbia.

 This caught my eye, "be funny" and later I saw a few more with sayings like
"be smart" "be curious"

This was very different.  One doesn't normally find a marimba band.  Julie said
she's seen it before where there are 20+ marimba players out in the square.



Interesting sculpture at the water front.

Julie works here at Alchemy Bistro and Wine Bar
We had a wonderful dinner and creme brulee for dessert

Ravioli


Sunday was a drive around the area and lots of sights to see.  Always so nice to be around the water.


If there was a swing Julie was in it.

Fort Worden battery - Part of the Ring of Fire
protecting the islands and entry.




Just Julie, Paul and clouds.





Fast trip for us as we usually travel slower, but it was perfect.  Rained all the way home and we had a bit of hydroplaning, but made it safely.  Away from the greenery of Western WA heading back out of the rain into the desert hills toward home.

For Labor Day Weekend we had no traffic problems going or coming home.

Not sure what's next on the agenda, so tune in.  Happy trails to you.