Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
Farewell Tour
I wrote this post a few days ago, but am now finally uploading it, so it's a little out of date but at least it has pictures!!!
For those of you who have never been to Eastern Washington, spring is probably the time to go. The wheat is coming up, it’s sunnier than in Western Washington, you can see the stars at nighttime, and it just smells better there.
Last week I kicked off my “farewell tour” in Eastern Washington with a trip to Dayton. The 4½ hour drive from Seattle was beautiful, and I was lucky to see both Mt. Rainier and Mt.
Adams from just outside the Palm Springs of Washington (Yakima) for what seems like the first time since at least one mountain usually eludes me on that drive. I continued on toward the Tri-Cities, noticing that more and more vineyards are going in and more and more wineries are sprouting up everywhere in the Columbia Valley.
Since Davenport had had such a hard winter I assumed all of Eastern Washington had and I was a little worried that I’d be driving by stubble fields instead of wheat fields. To my surprise, though, by the time I got to Burbank the winter wheat was already 6 inches high, if not higher. It got shorter and shorter the closer I got to Dayton, but at least it was green in Eastern Washington so I couldn’t complain.
I rolled into Dayton and was greeted by Granny and Gramps, who I haven’t seen since Christmas. They both looked really good, although Gramps has leukemia and he didn’t have a lot of energy while I was there. We had a good visit and then my Uncle Dave and Aunt Sandy came up for dinner. Both of their kids, Ryan and Sarah, have traveled pretty extensively, so we had a good conversation about a lot of the countries I’m going to and – of course – politics.
Granny, Gramps, and I went to church on Sunday and I got to see my Uncle Steve and Aunt Phyllis, which was awesome since if I hadn’t gone to church I probably wouldn’t have seen them. Uncle Steve was antsy to get back out into the field since the spring wheat hadn’t been planted yet and farmers were running about 1 ½ to 2 weeks behind. Our visit was short but good.
From Dayton I drove down to Walla Walla, where it was about 85 degrees, and was able to see the new home my cousin Ryan and his wife, Murphy, just moved into. I got a tour of the house, had a short visit, then drove back up through Dayton to say one more goodbye to Dave and Sandy and Granny and Gramps before I took off for Uniontown to see Grandma and Grandpa.
The drive to Lewiston was really pretty since a lot of the fields from Dayton to the Palouse are terraced and the fields are all different colors this time of year. The hills on the Palouse are also a lot taller than they are in the Davenport area, so the drive has a different feel to it than when I go home and everything is flat. The Snake River was gorgeous, and I wished I could go fishing while I was driving by. One of the things I’m going to have to do when I get back from my trip is go on a trip up Hell’s Canyon.
I arrived in Uniontown safe and sound, just in time for dinner. Grandma and Grandpa and I ate dinner and caught up while we waited for my cousin Ian and his 2-month-old son, Callahan, to show up. We played with Cal and talked with Ian about fatherhood for a few hours, then Ian took off to pick up his wife, Julie, who had gone to the Elton John concert in Pullman. I’ve heard from several people that it was awesome.
(Uniontown barn with wheel fence)
On Monday Grandma, Grandpa, and I had a leisurely morning, talking about Germany and looking up all the countries I’m going to in an atlas. We said goodbye after lunch, but not until I had secured 2 jars of Grandma’s famous canned raspberries, which I am on a mission to eat before I take off (mission accomplished).
I headed north through the Palouse to Pullman, the “Greatest City in the World”, in a snow storm. It was quite the contrast to the beautiful weather we’d had over the weekend, and I was bummed that I didn’t get to see Pullman on a crisp, clear day. I did, however, catch up with my cousin Heather at the Daily Grind downtown and felt like I had never left Pullman. Heather and her husband, Roger, are expecting a baby girl in June, and they just bought a house, so we had a lot to talk about.
(My Great Uncle Bob's farm - where my grandpa grew up, and where we used to make sausage every year)
Usually my favorite part of the drive through Eastern Washington is the drive from Spangle through St. John to Davenport, but since it was so early in the spring and it was grey out (at least it had stopped snowing) it wasn’t quite as pretty as I had hoped it would be. Since the farmers couldn’t get out to plant the spring wheat yet there wasn’t a contrast between new green and old green wheat like there usually is, but it was still a nice drive. Shockingly, I didn’t see any pheasants on the drive and I was a little disappointed. At least everyone in St. John still waved to me as they drove by. I love that about small towns.
(Round barn outside of St. John)
My timing was impeccable yet again, and I arrived in Davenport just in time for dinner. Mom and Dad just had the kitchen remodeled and the house looks amazing. They took out half of the wall separating the kitchen from the living room and it opened the whole house up.
On Tuesday, Mom and I drove into Spokane to have lunch with my Aunt Lisa and my cousin Ashley. We had a great time chatting about my upcoming adventure and Ashley’s job prospects, then went off in search of paint for the kitchen only to discover the samples she had picked up were from a guy in Davenport, so we came home empty-handed.
The next two days I spent hanging out at home with Mom, getting my final plane tickets booked, and napping. We took a really long walk on Tuesday and I had a good visit with my neighbors Ken Deal and Lee and Debbie Swain, Cindy’s parents. On Wednesday Gunn took me out to see Boris the buffalo and his herd, then out to where he’s thinking about building a house. We ended up at my friends Matt and Sydney Schneider’s house so I could meet their new baby, Addisyn, who cried as soon as I picked her up. While I was out at Matt and Sydney’s, Aaron Jacobsen showed up with his son, Jarrett, and Matt and Sydney’s son, Sam, who are both about 3 years old. They’re both all boy and I think the Schneiders and the Jacobsens are going to have their hands full in a few years. For that matter, so is Mr. Gunning when they get into third grade.
On Thursday my friend Angie brought her 4-year-old twins, Denton and Tanner, over to the house and we had a little scare when Tanner tipped over in his wheel chair. I think Angie said it was the first time he’d ever fallen. He scraped his forehead, which we all felt bad about, but he made a great recovery and didn’t cry for too long. He was probably more scared than anything. Angie and her boys stayed for dinner, and we all ate when Matt and Gunn got to the house. Matt, Gunn, and I stayed up until only God knows when before they had to take off since we were out of beer and they had to work in the morning.
Tired, but not hung over, I headed down to Davenport Grade School to visit Mr. Gunning’s 3rd graders and participate in the big trash pick-up for Earth Day on Friday. I spent some time reading with the “Bunniculas” and ate a Gorilla Burger for lunch before we headed to the gym for an Earth Day assembly, where I got to say hi to a few of my old teachers and coaches as well as my neighbor, Daryl Parsons, who was also participating in the Earth Day event since he’s a retired teacher.
At the end of the day, I pointed out all the countries I’ll be visiting on a globe and several kids drew me pictures and made me cards. Thanks to Mr. Gunning’s 3rd graders for a great day in Davenport!
And finally, Friday night I booked my ticket to South Africa and Botswana so I’m all set to go. Now I just have to plan, plan, plan!
I got to hang out with mom for a few more hours Saturday morning, which was really nice since I’m really going to miss her while I’m gone. Dad came home from work at noon and I only got to see him for about another hour before I took off for Seattle, which was too bad since I really didn’t get to spend much quality time with him while I was home.
Goodbye was really hard, but I’ll see them before we all know it.
The drive over to Lynnwood (AKA Canada, or my new home) was once again gorgeous. I decided to take Highway 2 and go over Stevens Pass instead of taking Snoqualmie because the drive is so much prettier. I started off with blue skies and got to take in the scenery through Creston, Wilbur, and across Banks Lake. I stopped at Dry Falls
for a few snapshots, and then headed toward Waterville, which reminds me a lot of Waitsburg. Wenatchee was, of course, beautiful since there was snow on the mountains all around, the cherry trees were blooming, and the water was crystal clear without any boats on Lake Entiat or Lake Wenatchee.
(Dry Falls)
It started snowing in Leavenworth, but the pass was bare and dry most of the way. All of the trees were covered with snow, and the sun was out so it was really beautiful up there. I was wishing it didn’t take me so much longer to drive Highway 2 than it does to take I-90 because it’s so much prettier.
(Stevens Pass)
By the time I got over Stevens the road was steaming since the sun was shining. That all changed, however, when I got to Monroe and a rain/snow mixture greeted me for the last few miles of my drive. I took Highway 9 through Snohomish, which I don’t think I’ve ever done before, then turned onto 96 to cut over to I-5. It was really nice out there, and it made me realize why someone would make that horrible commute into Seattle every day if it meant they could live somewhere where people actually have big back yards and animals.
Back at “home”, I met my sister, Katie, grabbed a quite bite to eat, and headed to Ballard for my going-away party. I had a great time with all the friends who were there and felt a little sad to be leaving even though I know I’ll see them all again soon. I really can’t believe I’m going to miss summer in Seattle. Too bad I wasn’t gone last summer when I only got to go out on Alan and Lindsey’s boat a handful of times since the weather was so crappy.
(Andy and Janie's back yard with snow)
Now I’m at the Seattle Public Library, which people think is really ugly, but I love. I’m about to head out for lunch/coffee after I do some research, but haven’t gotten anything done. I guess that’s what happens when you’re trying to start a blog. I have to at least get one post in before I take off, right?
For those of you who have never been to Eastern Washington, spring is probably the time to go. The wheat is coming up, it’s sunnier than in Western Washington, you can see the stars at nighttime, and it just smells better there.
Last week I kicked off my “farewell tour” in Eastern Washington with a trip to Dayton. The 4½ hour drive from Seattle was beautiful, and I was lucky to see both Mt. Rainier and Mt.
Adams from just outside the Palm Springs of Washington (Yakima) for what seems like the first time since at least one mountain usually eludes me on that drive. I continued on toward the Tri-Cities, noticing that more and more vineyards are going in and more and more wineries are sprouting up everywhere in the Columbia Valley.Since Davenport had had such a hard winter I assumed all of Eastern Washington had and I was a little worried that I’d be driving by stubble fields instead of wheat fields. To my surprise, though, by the time I got to Burbank the winter wheat was already 6 inches high, if not higher. It got shorter and shorter the closer I got to Dayton, but at least it was green in Eastern Washington so I couldn’t complain.
I rolled into Dayton and was greeted by Granny and Gramps, who I haven’t seen since Christmas. They both looked really good, although Gramps has leukemia and he didn’t have a lot of energy while I was there. We had a good visit and then my Uncle Dave and Aunt Sandy came up for dinner. Both of their kids, Ryan and Sarah, have traveled pretty extensively, so we had a good conversation about a lot of the countries I’m going to and – of course – politics.
Granny, Gramps, and I went to church on Sunday and I got to see my Uncle Steve and Aunt Phyllis, which was awesome since if I hadn’t gone to church I probably wouldn’t have seen them. Uncle Steve was antsy to get back out into the field since the spring wheat hadn’t been planted yet and farmers were running about 1 ½ to 2 weeks behind. Our visit was short but good.
From Dayton I drove down to Walla Walla, where it was about 85 degrees, and was able to see the new home my cousin Ryan and his wife, Murphy, just moved into. I got a tour of the house, had a short visit, then drove back up through Dayton to say one more goodbye to Dave and Sandy and Granny and Gramps before I took off for Uniontown to see Grandma and Grandpa.
The drive to Lewiston was really pretty since a lot of the fields from Dayton to the Palouse are terraced and the fields are all different colors this time of year. The hills on the Palouse are also a lot taller than they are in the Davenport area, so the drive has a different feel to it than when I go home and everything is flat. The Snake River was gorgeous, and I wished I could go fishing while I was driving by. One of the things I’m going to have to do when I get back from my trip is go on a trip up Hell’s Canyon.
I arrived in Uniontown safe and sound, just in time for dinner. Grandma and Grandpa and I ate dinner and caught up while we waited for my cousin Ian and his 2-month-old son, Callahan, to show up. We played with Cal and talked with Ian about fatherhood for a few hours, then Ian took off to pick up his wife, Julie, who had gone to the Elton John concert in Pullman. I’ve heard from several people that it was awesome.
(Uniontown barn with wheel fence)
On Monday Grandma, Grandpa, and I had a leisurely morning, talking about Germany and looking up all the countries I’m going to in an atlas. We said goodbye after lunch, but not until I had secured 2 jars of Grandma’s famous canned raspberries, which I am on a mission to eat before I take off (mission accomplished).
I headed north through the Palouse to Pullman, the “Greatest City in the World”, in a snow storm. It was quite the contrast to the beautiful weather we’d had over the weekend, and I was bummed that I didn’t get to see Pullman on a crisp, clear day. I did, however, catch up with my cousin Heather at the Daily Grind downtown and felt like I had never left Pullman. Heather and her husband, Roger, are expecting a baby girl in June, and they just bought a house, so we had a lot to talk about.
(My Great Uncle Bob's farm - where my grandpa grew up, and where we used to make sausage every year)Usually my favorite part of the drive through Eastern Washington is the drive from Spangle through St. John to Davenport, but since it was so early in the spring and it was grey out (at least it had stopped snowing) it wasn’t quite as pretty as I had hoped it would be. Since the farmers couldn’t get out to plant the spring wheat yet there wasn’t a contrast between new green and old green wheat like there usually is, but it was still a nice drive. Shockingly, I didn’t see any pheasants on the drive and I was a little disappointed. At least everyone in St. John still waved to me as they drove by. I love that about small towns.
(Round barn outside of St. John)My timing was impeccable yet again, and I arrived in Davenport just in time for dinner. Mom and Dad just had the kitchen remodeled and the house looks amazing. They took out half of the wall separating the kitchen from the living room and it opened the whole house up.
On Tuesday, Mom and I drove into Spokane to have lunch with my Aunt Lisa and my cousin Ashley. We had a great time chatting about my upcoming adventure and Ashley’s job prospects, then went off in search of paint for the kitchen only to discover the samples she had picked up were from a guy in Davenport, so we came home empty-handed.
The next two days I spent hanging out at home with Mom, getting my final plane tickets booked, and napping. We took a really long walk on Tuesday and I had a good visit with my neighbors Ken Deal and Lee and Debbie Swain, Cindy’s parents. On Wednesday Gunn took me out to see Boris the buffalo and his herd, then out to where he’s thinking about building a house. We ended up at my friends Matt and Sydney Schneider’s house so I could meet their new baby, Addisyn, who cried as soon as I picked her up. While I was out at Matt and Sydney’s, Aaron Jacobsen showed up with his son, Jarrett, and Matt and Sydney’s son, Sam, who are both about 3 years old. They’re both all boy and I think the Schneiders and the Jacobsens are going to have their hands full in a few years. For that matter, so is Mr. Gunning when they get into third grade.
On Thursday my friend Angie brought her 4-year-old twins, Denton and Tanner, over to the house and we had a little scare when Tanner tipped over in his wheel chair. I think Angie said it was the first time he’d ever fallen. He scraped his forehead, which we all felt bad about, but he made a great recovery and didn’t cry for too long. He was probably more scared than anything. Angie and her boys stayed for dinner, and we all ate when Matt and Gunn got to the house. Matt, Gunn, and I stayed up until only God knows when before they had to take off since we were out of beer and they had to work in the morning.
Tired, but not hung over, I headed down to Davenport Grade School to visit Mr. Gunning’s 3rd graders and participate in the big trash pick-up for Earth Day on Friday. I spent some time reading with the “Bunniculas” and ate a Gorilla Burger for lunch before we headed to the gym for an Earth Day assembly, where I got to say hi to a few of my old teachers and coaches as well as my neighbor, Daryl Parsons, who was also participating in the Earth Day event since he’s a retired teacher.As windy as it was, we were lucky to pick up any garbage at all. It was pretty difficult to pick up anything that was light since it blew away just about as fast as you reached for it, and the bags we were putting the trash in were blowing around like crazy. All in all, Mr. Gunning’s 3rd graders did a good job in their part for Earth Day, and we were happy to get inside out of the wind.
At the end of the day, I pointed out all the countries I’ll be visiting on a globe and several kids drew me pictures and made me cards. Thanks to Mr. Gunning’s 3rd graders for a great day in Davenport!
And finally, Friday night I booked my ticket to South Africa and Botswana so I’m all set to go. Now I just have to plan, plan, plan!
I got to hang out with mom for a few more hours Saturday morning, which was really nice since I’m really going to miss her while I’m gone. Dad came home from work at noon and I only got to see him for about another hour before I took off for Seattle, which was too bad since I really didn’t get to spend much quality time with him while I was home.
Goodbye was really hard, but I’ll see them before we all know it.
The drive over to Lynnwood (AKA Canada, or my new home) was once again gorgeous. I decided to take Highway 2 and go over Stevens Pass instead of taking Snoqualmie because the drive is so much prettier. I started off with blue skies and got to take in the scenery through Creston, Wilbur, and across Banks Lake. I stopped at Dry Falls
for a few snapshots, and then headed toward Waterville, which reminds me a lot of Waitsburg. Wenatchee was, of course, beautiful since there was snow on the mountains all around, the cherry trees were blooming, and the water was crystal clear without any boats on Lake Entiat or Lake Wenatchee.(Dry Falls)
It started snowing in Leavenworth, but the pass was bare and dry most of the way. All of the trees were covered with snow, and the sun was out so it was really beautiful up there. I was wishing it didn’t take me so much longer to drive Highway 2 than it does to take I-90 because it’s so much prettier.
(Stevens Pass)
By the time I got over Stevens the road was steaming since the sun was shining. That all changed, however, when I got to Monroe and a rain/snow mixture greeted me for the last few miles of my drive. I took Highway 9 through Snohomish, which I don’t think I’ve ever done before, then turned onto 96 to cut over to I-5. It was really nice out there, and it made me realize why someone would make that horrible commute into Seattle every day if it meant they could live somewhere where people actually have big back yards and animals.
Back at “home”, I met my sister, Katie, grabbed a quite bite to eat, and headed to Ballard for my going-away party. I had a great time with all the friends who were there and felt a little sad to be leaving even though I know I’ll see them all again soon. I really can’t believe I’m going to miss summer in Seattle. Too bad I wasn’t gone last summer when I only got to go out on Alan and Lindsey’s boat a handful of times since the weather was so crappy.
(Andy and Janie's back yard with snow)
Now I’m at the Seattle Public Library, which people think is really ugly, but I love. I’m about to head out for lunch/coffee after I do some research, but haven’t gotten anything done. I guess that’s what happens when you’re trying to start a blog. I have to at least get one post in before I take off, right?
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