I absolutely love summer!

This is what happens when you wait 8 weeks between posts: 
A.  4th of July parade - No Coal!
B.  Jury Duty in Seattle
C.  Harry visits from Colorado
D.  Leif's memorial in Federal Way/family gathering
E.  Encampment/Dan Hicks
F.  Ken and Lisa visit after 25 years
G.  Weaving Weekend/Darby and Jennifer
H.  Granddaughter Lenora comes for a week
I.  County Fair/gang visits

Throw in a terrible cold and sewing up two quilts for the twins and is it any wonder I haven't had time to post anything?

So people not into reading blogs can stop here.  My Table of Contents lists it all.  Maybe a few photos:
A.
Fourth of July--No More Coal - click on this link to see Roger and I parade down Spring Street with 80 of our closest friends to protest the possibility of Coal shipments through our pristine Salish Sea.

C.  Roger's cousin Harry is a retired elementary school principal from Grand Junction, Colorado.  He travels on his bike around the country each summer and is something of a troubadour.   Roger's dad Al invited him to play at the Retirement Home and he put on a nice concert.

D.  Celebration of Life for Roger's brother Leif who passed away last month.  Spent the weekend with family and had two nice get-togethers at Lil's and at Guy and Brenda's.

Lenora, Ethel, Corbin, Audrey, Bjorn, Iliana
 

E.  Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks played town the same weekend as Encampment.  We went to both.  I Scare Myself
F.  Ken and Lisa visit Thornbush for first time.  Good friends in college, have not seen Ken since Roger and my wedding twenty-five years ago.  Great visit, long overdue.  Here's a pix at the Lavender Farm.

G.  Weaving Weekend was the first weekend in August.  Roger and I did our usual shtick with sticks.  I was already feeling poorly then, but managed to get through it and join Peggy Sue at a lovely dinner with our sailing friends Gene and Jennifer as well.

Note cedar hat that won a blue ribbon at the Fair a month later

H.  I Absolutely Loved the week I spent with my granddaughter, Lenora.  I think she had a pretty good time, too, reading, coloring, watching movies, and play dates with other seven-year olds.  It's your turn next year, Iliana!

Lenora in the corn with the sun in her eyes
 

Also, I gave the twins their birthday presents four months late.  The quilts and a major cold were two of several reasons I didn't get my Fair Challenge "Sheep Happens" finished in time.

 

 

 

I.  Everyone loves the County Fair and the gang participates in the Zucchini 500 races.  At first I was going to enter one of my cardoons.  They are pretty impressive this year.  But then I thought, been there, done that.

Barry measures Cardoon height
 

Another highlight was when Diane won the Throne of Games at the art raffle.

 

 

But the biggest thrill came at the end of the Zucchini 500 when The Romney Bus and Flower Power joined in a mass suicide on the Ramp of Death:

  You are probably used to me adding a bit of sad news at the end of my posts.  Unfortunately, this post is no exception.  Last Saturday, the Downrigger restaurant burned down.  At least no one was hurt.  We all have memories of the Downrigger and before that "The Mariner".  No telling at this point if it will be rebuilt or not.

The end

Life is Good and Missouri Loves Company

Trashion Fashion entry-Tin Woman

Today is the last day of Summer.  I am at my computer recovering from yesterday's oral surgery placing a titanium toggle bolt in my upper jaw to get ready for a new crown.  Right now there are at least a dozen sparrows taking a bath in my new fountain bowl.  (see last post).  Looks like there are some juncos and a redheaded finch of some kind mixed in with them.  The tyranny of the harvest has begun.  Roger is picking the last of the fava plants that I will need to shell.  We haven't planted the overwintering garlic yet but it hasn't rained for a long, long time so there's no hurry on that.

 

 

But I should start where I left off mid-August.  The picture above shows my entry in the Trashion Fashion show for the first year.  I won a prize for best use of recycled materials, namely, deer fencing, an aluminum air duct, dog and horse feed bags among other things.  Note my beautiful silver slippers courtesy of my neighbor Lunnette.

 

That was the first night of the San Juan County Fair.  Later that week, our friends joined us.

 

The "Conundrum" vs. "George Simpson Memorial Truck"

They took part in the Zucchini 500, picnicked at Jacksons Beach and other wise enjoyed themselves.



Life is Good



The week after the Fair, my brother Marc and his friend Nancy visited.  Then it was off to Missouri with my friend Liz to visit family and see the sights.  We started off in Kansas City, staying with Liz’s cousin Fred.  I was able to visit my Aunt Ruth who turns 96 this Fall.  I hadn’t seen my cousins Donald or Dannie since childhood and I got to meet their children and grandchildren for the first time.

 

 

After Kansas City we drove to St. Louis and stayed with my Aunt Sallie.  Ann and Melanie drove us all over and introduced us to St. Louis neighborhoods such as “The Hill” and “The Loop”.  We saw the Missouri Botanical Gardens and spent a day at The City Museum (a must see).  Leaving St. Louis we dropped down on old Route 66 to visit my cousin Steve and his family.  Then we hit a hellacious storm outside of Springfield but the next day temperatures dropped from the mid 90’s to a comfortable 75 degrees. 

 

 

We stopped in Branson long enough to see the Shanghai Circus and then dropped into Arkansas at Eureka Springs, (the little Switzerland of the Ozarks).  The next day we visited Chrystal Bridges, a fabulous museum of American Art in Bentonville, AR.  Finishing our loop of the state back in Kansas City we flew back to Seattle on September 10^th.

 

I thought I would miss all the good weather the N.W. was having while we were gone, but the last ten days have been very pleasant and a relaxing wrap up to the summer.  Life is indeed, Good.

 

Late Summer 2011

Canoers greeted by Lummi Nation in Friday Harbor Marina

Oh Wow, it is already September and I haven't updated since mid-July.  Don't you love late Summer?  The hot days, the cool nights, all the ripe fruit!  It feels like I was racing from one event to another over these last six weeks.  But now I can see a break just ahead as summer winds down.

Summer 2011 included the usual Shakespeare (Winters Tale) and live music (Abbie Road Live) and visits from friends.  This year the Canoe Journey brought 12 tribal canoes from around the Salish Sea to our island before they joined scores of other canoes landing at Swinomish on the Skagit.



Karen Haas of Hudson Bay, Fort Nisqually



Hair and Clothing Styles of 1859 demonstrated

We squeezed in an afternoon at the Encampment at English Camp.  I wandered around in 1850's garb and had my picture taken by Japanese tourists.

 Bjorn's family visited in early August.  Always a pleasure to have the grandchildren around.  Audrey has to do everything her big sisters are doing.

Soil Fertility - Four Approaches

Lunnette resplendent in Drug Store packaging

Roger and I got very busy the following week getting ready for the fair.  The garlic was picked and sorted, I had some textile projects to finish, Roger had to buy a brand new chainsaw to take down the tree we will need to mill for carport rafters.  The tree is down and cut up but we still haven't dragged it to the mill yet.

And then the week of the Fair.  Surprisingly, no guests this year, but we were still mighty busy with our various booth duties.   The Trashion Fashion show was a highlight, as well as Roger's panel discussion on agricultural techniques for the Ag Resource Committee.  Oh yes, we earned some red and blue ribbons as well.  And ate more than our share of elephant ears.

Lynn kayaks with Don as an escort

We had to rush off-island on the early ferry Fair Saturday to our next adventure.  Across the state on Highway 20 to Kettle Falls where we joined five good friends on a houseboat on Lake Roosevelt. Four days on the boat.  We had a hot tub, ukuleles, good food, kayaks and floaties, waterfalls and a little trouble with the battery.  Bookending the trip we got to stay with my brother Joe and his wife Cheryl, play more music and see the Colville Fair.  Stayed overnight in Seattle area to help celebrate my brother Jeff's 60th birthday/10th anniversary in Woodland Park.

Summer was late coming, but we're managing to pack as much into it as one of any regular length.  School started for island kids on August 31st and now it is Labor Day Weekend.  I'm skipping a lot of details, about captured foxes and feral kittens.  Crops that succeeded and crops that failed.  Potlucks and visitors, books we've read and plays we've seen.  And an admission--I didn't get one project started that wasn't already started before summer began.  The mosaics didn't get made but the waterlilies did bloom.  No sewing got started but I did organize the craft room.  And the beach gate is finished but I haven't spent much time at the pond.  I guess I've got a few more things to cram into the last three weeks of summer.

Late Summer into Autumn

It's been awhile and I feel like I've been around the world since last I wrote.  Wait!  I have!

But let me start where I left off.  The San Juan County Fair.  Great, as usual.  Roger won several ribbons for his garlic, chard, apples, and runner beans.  I won some lesser ribbons for a couple baskets.  Our friends came up and the band Clumsy Lovers from Canada were really hot.

The week after the Fair,We attended my brother Marc's investiture as a Federal Bankruptcy Judge.  Most of the family came for the ceremony and the party afterwards.  Highlights were Dad placing the judicial robe on Marc and Emily's tribute to her dad.

 We left for Twisp in the Methow Valley directly from Seattle.  Here we visited with friends of our friend Liz who promised us that we had much in common.  She was right.  The trip over North Cascades Pass was beautiful in both directions.  Cascadian Farms had great blueberries and raspberry ice cream.  We hiked near Sun Mountain, attended the farmers market, windowshopped in Twisp and Winthrop.  Meanwhile, Suzie got to play with their dog Frida.  Fun was had by all. 

Meanwhile, Roger's brother Eric brought Al back up to stay with us for another week.  I spent the time packing and preparing for my trip back to Sicily, this time with my dad, brother Joe, and his wife Cheryl.  We took Al back to Auburn on Monday, and I left for Italy on Tuesday.

We stayed the whole time in Castelbuono, the ancestral town of my grandparents. We were met by relatives I had come to know a year ago when I was there visiting with my sister Jeannette. They wined and dined us, and showed us the villa and orchards where my grandfather worked before he shipped out to America at the start of the last century. We also visited Mt. Etna and saw the sights along the Tyrrhenian Coast.

For more, click this link:  Pictures from trip to Sicily 2010

The trip back was long and arduous.  (hint, don't believe Travelocity and never travel through Chicago if you can help it)  We had a great time and I'm very glad to be home.  Time to settle in for a cozy Autumn.

August Visitors

Sharon's visit started off the month of visitors. The weather was a little glum that weekend, but we had one wonderful walk on Mt. Finlayson and met up with two huge bucks and saw a fox or two.

End of an Era: All year long I'd been anticipating entering my art car in the Seascare Porchlight Parade in Brier http://seascare.com August 12th. "Starry Night" Art Car paraded down the Avenue for the last time. Shotgun Lynn and friends Barry and David helped throw candy to the hordes lining the road. Ten days later, I donated the car to Island Stage Left, a theatre company here on San Juan that produces fabulous Shakespearean plays every summer.http://islandstageleft.org/ We went to see a great performance of As You Like It earlier this month. Good-bye art car. It's been fun!

When I returned to the island with my friends Barry and David, the San Juan Co Fair was in full swing. Roger and I won one blue ribbon and two red ribbons a piece for our vegetables and baskets. But the big excitement was the Zucchini 500. Here's a picture of Barry racing his entry--
in the first heat--which he won! The Fair is always lots of fun--always good food, good music, and great company. This year was no exception.

The following weekend was the annual "Weaving Weekend" at English Camp. This year we were again joined by historical reenactors and basketweavers Karen, Patrick, and Judith. There were also lavender wands being made, wool and stories being spun. We made our usual assortment of wattle fences, hurdles, an obelisk, and a couple plant teepees--all out of indigenous alder and willow.

Immediately after weaving weekend more friends, Tabitha and Brigitte, showed up. They hadn't been here since 2002 so much had changed. We got to see dozens of whales at Lime Kiln Park, walked South Beach at Sunset, and they slept each night under the stars to watch the Milky Way and whatever meteors they could spy. Jay lay outside and watched the stars, too, when he arrived for a week of work and play. He helped haul in the firewood, harvest the potatoes, and weed the kitchen garden among other chores. (we did also have some great meals and played some music, too--it wasn't all work.)

Throw in a couple potlucks and other social gatherings with friends and that about wraps up August.

If it weren't for my visiting friends, I'd never go out and experience what a beautiful island I live on. I'd just sit on my deck and enjoy it from here.