Spring Celebrations

Four ex-Metroids gather in Anacortes to celebrate retirement
 

This month’s blog entry will include Roger and my trip to Canada to celebrate our 25^th wedding anniversary, a visit by brother John and Marilyn, a Family open house in memory of Roger’s uncle Don who died in February. A trip to Olympia to stay at a friend’s cabin on Henderson Inlet, a visit to see my great nephew James, a visit to celebrate Bjorn’s birthday and take the grandkids to Red Robin, a potluck dinner with visits by two more brothers, their significant others, and my girlfriend Liz, a trip to Lopez for the Third Annual Lamb, Wool, and Goat Festival, and a host of related events in honor of moi’s 60^thbirthday.

VanDusen Botanical Garden, Vancouver, B.C.

Roger with another Taurus
 

Canada

Twenty-five years ago, Roger and I flew into Victoria Harbour from Lake Union. Then we rented a car and drove all over Vancouver Island for our honeymoon. In honor of that event, we went to Victoria again. But this time, we drove to Vancouver,BC, took a ferry to Salt Spring Island,took a ferry to Vancouver Island at Swartz Bay, and from Victoria Harbour, took the Black Ball Ferry to Port Angeles, drove to Port Townsend, took a ferry to Whidbey Island, drove across DeceptionPass, and took the ferry home from Anacortes. That’s six ferry rides if you’re counting. I always wanted to do that.

Black Ball to Port Angeles
 

One of the many highlights of our trip was staying at The Beaconfield Inn, a B&B that we stayed in the first night of our honeymoon.  Gary and Warren have only owned it for the last nine years, but were more than accommodating by giving us the same garden suite, champagne, directing us to Cafe Brio for dinner and being excellent hosts.



Beaconsfield 1988
 

Beaconsfield 2013

Another highlight was Salt Spring Island, one of the Gulf Islands.  Here is a picture of Roger on the top of Mt Maxwell looking South toward Orcas and San Juan Island.

Once we got to Port Angeles, we had a look at what used to be the Elwha Dam, which was removed a year ago.  Lots of old stumps remain.

Elwha River Restoration

At theTextile Guild Quarterly meeting on Orcas, Lola Deane talked about living in Pakistan and brought examples of the textiles she collected among her many journeys abroad.

 

Green Ghost or Anita in a Burka

Frere Jaques and Souer Marilyn

 

We are always happy to have a visit from John and Marilyn from far off Richland.  They got in on some unseasonably good weather here on the island.  And we took advantage of it with a trip to South Beach and American Camp.  Unfortunately, we had to run out on them to go to Roger's family event in Renton.  Hopefully, they have some fond memories of wildflowers and Cafe Demeter.

 

Olympia                                                                                              

Hard to describe how nice it was on Henderson Inlet on May 5^th:  The people, the setting, the weather, the food . There was music and laughter and tons of clams at low tide on Monday morning.  I loved it.  Thanks to all who contributed.

Roger and I (and Suzie) were able to stop in and visit April and her new baby on that trip.  They live one inlet over from Henderson.  What a pleasant afternoon.

 

 

 

Tired yet?

We got home from Olympia, after stopping in Everett to take Bjorn and the kids to Red Robin for lunch.

This gave us two whole days to prepare for the big celebration, Anita’s 60^th and Christina’s 70^th birthday potluck at Thornbush.  The weather was still great!  Would it hold?  Tension was mounting.  People were coming, then they weren’t, then they were.  Would there be enough food?  Do I know how to grill a whole salmon?  Would there be enough musicians?  Was there enough time?  Only time would tell. . .

     Success!

 

The weather held, the food was great, people came, and the musicians played on and on until almost midnight.  Early the next morning Jeff, Kathy, Liz and I boarded a ferry to Lopez for the third annual

Lopez Lamb Wool and Goat Festival

 

When we weren't admiring the little goats, the smart herding dogs, and the beautiful fiber and fiber arts, we drove around Lopez and beachcombed.  here's a picture of my sister-in-law Kathy skipping stones at Spencer Spit State Park.

And so the celebration continued, dinner at "The Place" with Marc, Nancy, and Liz, and the next day at the spa with Liz.   Ahhhh.  As one of the many birthday cards I received quoted, "To be rich in friends is to be poor in nothing".

Retreat

Sometimes you just have to get away from it all.  Do something entirely different from your usual routine.  Take time out for yourself.  This is the theme that resonated with me this month.
About a week after Corbin was born and the twins were returned to their parents, my yoga teacher held a day-long retreat here on the island, including lunch, a trip to the Sculpture garden, a lovely dinner at her restaurant, and of course, lots of yoga.  By the end of the day, I swear, it felt like I'd had five massages in a row.  The effects lasted several days. 

The very next week, a different kind of retreat--this one a basket making class held on Shaw Island for 2 and a half days.  So the nine people in our class stayed at the guest house of one of our members.  A big, three day slumber party on one of the quietest locales in the San Juan Archipelago.  The Tahitian Market Basket was difficult, but satisfying.

Anita and Monique make bling to decorate our baskets

The very next weekend, we went farther afield for our R&R.  This time to Seaside, Oregon, to join friends in a big house a stone's throw from the boardwalk.  This was the first time since August, that Roger has ventured off-island for anything other than business.  Roger got to hold his grandson for the first time.

We got to stay one night with our friends in Raymond and take in an interesting exhibit at the museum in Astoria called "Envisioning the World"  The First Printed Maps, 1472-1700.  Columbia River Maritime Museum  Check it out if you have the chance.

The Mighty Columbia



My last example of retreats from the past month is a little more obscure. Burying myself in a book for a few days is a way of retreating from my day to day cares. My new book club (that I will now refer to as the Rock Island Readers) just read the first book in the Maisie Dobbs series.  This mystery set in post World War I London dealt with shell-shocked veterans who were mysteriously disappearing from their place of refuge called "The Retreat".  The book was surprisingly relevant as we hear more and more of Afghanistan and Iraq veterans returning to their lives with their own battle scars.  

Now the retreats are in the past and its back to the hustle and bustle of Springtime in the San Juans.  I feel like I've jumped on the merry-go-round which is accelerating toward the June reunion.  I'm already looking forward to a "Spa Day" in May--and perhaps another yoga retreat.

Arcade ride at Seaside

Bluebirds and Books

Today I spent five hours hauling fir branches and digging out thistles with my hori-hori.  But this time the work was not on my own property.  I was with a bunch of Soroptimists doing community service for the Land Bank on Cady Mountain.  The project is a restoration of Garry Oaks which is where the bluebirds come in.  I must admit, part of the reason I signed up for this activity was that I had never been up Cady Mountain before and I was curious.  So I was delighted to see all the wildflowers in bloom:  avalance lily, fritallarias, camas, shooting star all over the place.  And a fabulous view across San Juan Valley to the Salish Sea.

Another plus was a guest lecturer who came to describe the ongoing bluebird project here on the island.  A few hundred feet away from our worksite sat an aviary with a nesting pair of bluebirds due to be released tonight.  It turns out that bluebirds LOVE Garry Oaks.  But as many of you know, the oak population has been overshadowed (literally) by Douglas Fir.  Bluebirds like wide open spaces and hollow trees to nest in.  They like places that are burned frequently.  That used to be the situation here before white men came and the Indians stopped burning the camas fields.  But even as late as 1960's, bluebirds were much more prevalent on the island.  So--restore the Garry Oak, restore the bluebird as well.blue bird project

Speaking of fires, and especially, wilderness fires, I read a great book a while ago by Timothy Egan called The Big Burn.  It is about a huge forest fire in 1910 that burned Northern Idaho and parts of Washington and Montana.  But it is also about Teddy Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot, and the beginnings of the National Forest Service.  It could be considered the beginning of conservancy movement here in the United States.  I recommend it.

Another good book I am reading currently is Winter Brothers A Season at the Edge of America by Ivan Doig.  It was written 30 years ago about a pioneer by the name of James Gilchrist Swan who settle with the Makaw Indians for a few years in the 1850's and later moved to Port Townsend.  But it is so much more than that.  It is history/anthropology/philosopy all rolled into one.  People familiar with the area around Cape Flattery and Lake Ozette will be fascinated.

And coincidentally, the book I read just prior to the Doig book was a memoir written by a friend and neighbor who starts his story off with a misadventure canoeing down the Ozette River.  This would have been in the early 70's just about the time my brothers and I rafted down the Ozette.  I'm feeling all wrapped up in this Pacific Northwest History, from Missoula to Neah Bay.  My friend Jim Lawrence's book is called Callous Hands, Hungry Heart.  He was raised on Mercer Island and came to San Juan Island as a back to the lander.  But he had so many adventures and problems to overcome, I'd use up all the space in this blog just listing them. 

The last book I'd like to review here was set in Upper Wisconsin, not the Northwest.  It is the The Story of Edgar Sawtelle: a novel by David Wroblewski.  It is a fabulous retelling of Hamlet, only the hero is a 14 year old mute dog trainer and Ophelia is his companion dog Almandine.  Oh, it makes me weepy, just thinking of poor Almandine. video discussing Almandine  This was a very good read.

So now you know what I've been doing this wet, cold April, although much of this reading was done in late March on planes coming and going from Hawaii.  It is just me and my companion dog, Suzie, here at Thornbush for the next few days as Roger is at a "Food Forest Workshop" at  Wild Thyme Farm near Olympia.  Tomorrow is MayDay and I plan on celebrating at the bonfire/potluck of friends down the road aways.  I made a pie using the first of this season's rhubarb yesterday.  Goodbye to April, the cruelest month and on to the merry month of May!

Feb, March and April Foolishness

I went to Hawaii, specifically Kihei on Maui, with my friend Lynn for a week.  It was very nice.  It was 83 degrees every day.  I got to snorkel and see humpback whales.  I ate a half of a papaya everyday for breakfast.  Lynn and her parents were excellent hosts. 



Anita and Lynn on a Dinner Cruise near Lahaina



Then I came home and it was still cold here.  But there were a few more daffodils and all of the grape hyacinths are in bloom.  Roger hung the bamboo gate and he repaired the pond boat (scow?) while I was gone.



Lenora showing off the Plumeria hairclip she got from Hawaii

The twins turned five on April 1st.  Roger, his dad, and I met up with the family at a Red Robin in Everett to celebrate.  We bid on and won pony rides for the twins at the Soroptimists' St Pat's Day Fundraising Dinner.  We anticipate a vist in May when they will be able to redeem their prize.



Audrey has two little plumeria clips in her hair.



Four days after my last blog entry in which I was pointing out all the evidence of Spring, it snowed four inches.  HaHa on me.  It seemed like nature was held in suspended animation after that.  There are signs of Spring, the peepers are peeping.  But it just feels way behind schedule.

On a rare unrainy day, I took a walk and watched the eagles.  Our own nesting pair had one fledgling this year.  I think I witnessed its maiden flight one afternoon when it took several slow circles around our pond, supervised by its very vocal mother

One nice adventure between snowfall and Maui was a trip to Orcas to celebrate Peggy Sue's birthday.  Four of us visited the spa at Rosario Resort, lunched in Olga, and went sightseeing at Moran State Park.  We tried to drive up to Mt. Constitution, but the road was still closed due to snow.

I usually organize chronologically, but this month's entry is a melange of events.  One last event to note is that Roger's father Al came to stay with us this past week.  Although the visit was planned, two days prior he had fallen from his bed and was not able to get himself up for many hours.  Therefore, we were very concerned and have had him under close observation these past few days.  For the time being, we will be subscribing to an emergency response system with a medical alert necklace.  But more hard decisions will be forthcoming.

Birthdays, Anniversaries, and other things

On the Sunday of our anniversary weekend, we took the boat to Orcas Island.  Close in miles but  neither of us have been there in years.  We visited the Bullock Brothers farm, where we took our first permaculture classes maybe sixteen years ago.  They have a standing Sunday potluck lunch invitation to the whole island which we crashed and got a tour of the place to boot.  Came home with a truckload full of plants from their nursery.  http://www.permacultureportal.com/

After that we cruised the island and drove up Mt Constitution for the view.The very next week I went to Orcas again, this time with members of the San Juan Textile Guild for our quarterly meeting.  Orcas was having a Sustainable Living Fair that weekend as well.  Orcas has it going on!

Suzie and I have been walking quite a bit.  One trip up Mt. Young, we came upon a fox who was very surprised to see us.  What's that in its mouth?We went up Mt. Young to look for wildflowers and saw lots of avalanche lilies and shooting stars and some camas.My birthday week was great.  I met friends Lynn and Diane in Anacortes for lunch one day, my friend Linda (from Montana) visited another day, and then I got to go to Henry and Pearl Island with my friend Kathy on her monthly rounds to check the meters.  Here is a picture of the lovely meter reader near a teepee on Henry Island.

 I walked to my sister Rosalie's place on my birthday.  The weather was perfect.  And that night Roger took me to dinner and "My Fair Lady" at San Juan Community Theatre.  The next day, two basketry friends came over and learned to make willow baskets with me.   I showed them my living bench which is coming along nicely near the r.v.

 All and all, it has been a pleasant and eventful Spring.  Tomorrow, we are opening our place up for a tour of our chicken coop operation.  It is part of a "Islands Farm and Feast" weekend.  http://www.sjcarc.org/  Good excuse to get the place shipshape!

Think Spring!

When I last posted, I was on my way to a Basketry Retreat in Port Orchard.  Here is a picture of one of the baskets I wove.  It is made of reed and I've filled it with Easter knickknacks;  it is supposed to be a market basket.  It's a little different from the willow with which I usually work. 

Now it is April and everything is green, green, green.  We went down to Seattle one weekend and brought back a pick-up truck load of plants for Roger's clients.  But I got some of the leftovers (privilege of being a landscaper's wife).  So besides weeding, I've planted ajuga, daylilies, cala lily, asters, etc, etc.  Roger is planting seeds in the greenhouses, but we've yet to plant vegetables outside--even the potatoes beds are prepped but not planted.  I got to try out the riding mower Roger bought from our neighbor Ron.  So the pasture be the pond is newly mown.

We went to see a friend's concert in Seattle--the real reason for our trip.  http://waywardmusic.blogspot.com/2010/04/jay-hamilton-fred.html

And since we were there we were able to help celebrate some friends' April birthdays.  Suzie loved riding in the pick-up truck, like a grownup dog.

This past weekend, Bjorn and his family came to visit.  April is a very big month in their family as the First was the twins' Fourth birthday! 

 And Ethel's birthday was the 12th, and Bjorn's is the 30th.  Little Audrey will be 3 months old tomorrow!  http://www.flickr.com/photos/8374500@N06/4536476464/  The weather was great and we got to play on the beach at Eagle Cove, the girls visited Uncle Eric's ducks and bunnies.  And the grandparents babysat one night so Bjorn and Ethel could go out for the evening! 

This Friday is our 22nd wedding anniversary.  I'd like to go to Orcas for the day.  More on that in my next post.