Summer

I do believe summer has arrived. A good 3 days in a row of sunshine, and I do believe we broke 75 today. Yesterday I kayaked almost 12 miles -- all the way across Useless Bay, from Maxwelton to Double Bluff and back -- and not in terribly smooth water either. In fact, I was sorta surfing on the way back. I had to take a nap as soon as I got home, but my arms seem to be fully functional again today.

Saw a pod (school? herd?) of dolphin, many osprey, pigeon guillemots, herons, eagles, and one seal who seemed to be taking a nap out in the middle of the bay. Did not really intend to get that close but I was trying to figure out what that "thing" was floating there and I was only about 5 feet from him when he woke up and disappeared under the waves in a somewhat panicked huff.

Spring at last

A beautiful wreath of iridescent red seaweed

Every one of these tubes houses a feather-duster worm. When the water comes in,

they do look like colorful red and purple feather dusters

A shaggy-mouse nudibranch.

A very colorful purple seastar

Moonglow anemone

Geoducks, cleaned

A bouquet of geoducks, still in the shell

Spring on Ebey's Prairie

Cormorants on the Snohomish river

I am cautiously, very cautiously optimistic that perhaps the weather has turned the corner to actual springtime now. After the coldest March and April on record, we are completing our 2nd day in a row of sunshine with two more in the forecast. "Temperatures May Hit 70" made the front page of the paper today. If this holds, my lawn may actually dry out enough that I will no longer have an excuse not to mow....

The Swainson's Thrushes are here, but not singing yet. My usual due date for Swainson's song is May 20th, so they'd better get with the program.

Meanwhile, here are a bunch of pictures I've taken this spring on the few non-rainy days we've had.

Cleaning out my project room...

Here's what I've been doing this winter... well for the past several winters, actually. I am finally starting to sell some of these...proceeds mostly going to charity, plus a bit to restock my supplies!

Spice Train

Snowball

Red White and Blue

Original (My design!)

Spring

Cattails

Blue Bargello

Asian

Dancing the Night Away!

Last night Kim, Gerry, and I went down to Third Place Books to see "Two Scoops", a boogie-woogie piano player and band.

Picture this: Third Place Books has an area known as "the commons", which is basically a food court with a stage and dance floor. The minute the music started, the dance floor was full. Every variety of person you can imagine, and from 3 to 83. Little girls in their dress up princess clothes and shoes with flashing pink lights. Old couples two-stepping, reminiscent of "RFD TV". Teenagers jitterbugging. A gray-haired ponytail guy with a dance style I can only describe as "semi-spastic swing". A very elegant 70-ish woman with long, curly, platinum blonde hair and 4-inch spike heels. A couple easily in their 80's, the man with jaunty beret. What a hoot, and the music was great too!

We stayed only for the first set, as we wanted to get to Big Daddy's in Woodinville to see Dr. Funk, my very favorite dance band. By the time we got there, there appeared to be not an empty seat in the house. There was a birthday party going on that took up at least 40 seats, and as it was just beginning to break up we managed to snatch seats right next to the dance floor.

Dr. Funk plays the best dance music ever written, 70's and 80's funk (as you might expect). Once again, as soon as the band started, the dance floor was full. This is a slightly different crowd from the previous... no 3 year olds. Mostly 30's to 50's, I would say, dressed in everything from blue jeans and sneakers (me) to little black dresses and high heels. One woman in a yellow minidress with black polka dots dancing wildly by herself for most of the night. I mean, wildly enough that people were leaving a space around her so as not to get injured. Reminded me a bit of Elaine's dancing style on Seinfeld.

We were on the dance floor at least half the time until just after midnight, me grinning so hard my face hurt. Gerry and I caught the 1am ferry home (last boat). I could not quite get myself up to make it to my 10:30am class in Coupeville this morning. But it was sooo worth it!

FOMS

In mid-January, I did the trains, planes and automobiles trip to Michigan: 3 buses, 2 trains, 2 planes, and a 3 hour drive each way. I really sort of enjoy the adventure of that, but it means 4 days out of my life every trip, as it takes me at least a day to recover from the travel day.

I delayed my return trip by a day because of forecasted freezing rain, then ran into it on the drive to Detroit the next day anyway. The defroster in the rental car was only able to keep the bottom half of the windshield clear, and the one time I tried to use the windshield washer the fluid froze, briefly blinding me on the freeway. It was an interesting drive.

Then, a bad case of FOMS! (Fear of Missing Something):

Just a day or two to recover at home, and then up to the Skagit flats for a very nice bike ride with the Rainbow Riders. Followed the next days by cat sitting for a friend, a class in Coupeville (more on that later), forage fish egg sampling with Beachwatchers, a half-day volunteer stint at the reception desk for WSU extension, another day of bike riding, interviews for 2 volunteer positions, and a card party in Seattle which put me on the 1am ferry going home.

I was actually supposed to go to the Coupeville class again the next day, but could not rouse myself for that. In fact, I've had to cancel out on one appointment this week due to FOMS recovery. But now I'm about to start all over again with: volunteering at the thrift store today, noon to 5. Then I will try to make it to Seattle by 7 (with a catsitting visit squeezed inbetween) for dinner and a blues show, possibly putting me on the 1am ferry again tonight. All day tomorrow is Sound Waters (one-day Beachwatchers "university" in all things related to marine ecology), and Sunday is the Coupeville class again.

It's all good!

Kitchen Remodel is DONE

Done, finished, finite, at an end, complete! Well, except that I will probably still get a new light fixture. Anyway, here are some pictures with the new paint, plus a bonus very nice sunset which I caught on the way back from Camano Island.

Sunset from the bridge to Camano Island

My office, with new paint and flooring

New Kitchen

More new Kitchen