Double Nickels

I turned 55 last week. To me, that's the "speed limit" birthday, but others have suggested that it also stands for "double nickels" - as you can see in the card I received from David:

On the morning of my birthday, Maribeth came over for a walk on "her" beach, and lunch in one of our favorite haunts...

...and then back to our house for a little "chill time" on the deck, and a quick visit with David and Gregg. Maribeth was the perfect "birthday presence," and I'm so grateful that she was able to spend it with me!

Late in the afternoon, our friend Linda arrived from Vienna. She was on her way to visit her family in California, and stayed with us for five days of fun.

Here we are at Burrata Bistro during my incredibly delicious (and oh-so-filling) birthday dinner...

 

...and this is the dessert tray which Burrata Bistro provided: blueberry tart, mocha creme caramel and tiramisu - with complementary glasses of port for everyone at the table!

Thank you, Kim and Alfonso!

Linda travels all over the world singing (her specialty is the operas of Richard Wagner). She was nominated for a Grammy award this year, and we enjoyed hearing all about her experiences at the ceremonies, parties and events surrounding the award show. Though she didn't win this time, it is quite an honor to be nominated at all - not to mention the privilege of attending the live concert, meeting and mingling with other artists.

We have a good time reminiscing about things we've done in the past, such as the time we went to the last concert given by the Commodores, before Lionel Richie went out on his own. We heard them perform in a small nightclub outside of Boston, with seats very close to the stage, and we were perhaps the only people not of African heritage in the club. And then there was the time I went to the church where Linda was a soloist, donning a choir robe, and standing next to her on the altar. I lip-synched along with hymns I didn't know, trying to be invisible. Not easy, standing next to the soloist, who happens to be about a foot taller than I.

On this visit, we went shopping for clothes and gifts, to the Pike Place Market in Seattle and to Port Townsend. We had our morning coffee together in the sun on the deck, barbecued dinners at home, and just relaxed. Linda had just come from an engagement in Seville, so it was good to be able to offer her a peaceful retreat by the sea.

You can tell that she and Gregg get along well...

 ...and share a sense of humor. 

She has known our kids since 2003, so she and David get on famously, as well.

My parents also love her, and took all of us to their club for dinner, after cocktail hour in their home.

On Monday, we went with my parents to Seattle to have a traditional (delicious) German dinner with a lovely couple whom Linda met when she sang in the Seattle Opera's production of Parsifal in 2003. Heidi and Hans are from Germany, adore Wagner's music and Linda's interpretation of it, and have become dear friends of hers - even traveling to Europe to hear her sing.

Here are Heidi and Hans with Linda on our deck in 2012 (my photos of the dinner at their house did not turn out well). We had a wonderful evening, and are so thankful to have met them through Linda. Music has the power to unite hearts across history, cultures, time zones and many miles.

All in all, a very happy birthday week, for which I'm grateful!

There Are No Coincidences

Borrowed from Flora Bowley's Brave Intuitive You message

I have a friend who believes "there are no coincidences" (some people read this as, "there are no mistakes"). I love that idea - perhaps because, from a certain perspective, I have made so many mistakes in my life! What a relief, to be able to see some logic, and in some cases, even blessings and wisdom, in what appeared at one time to be an awful error of judgment or action.

This doesn't take away my responsibility for my actions and their results; it just puts them in a larger field of vision, and allows me to find value in them, rather than condemnation. I'll take value over condemnation any day!

Yesterday, I took a leap of faith and traveled to Canada to meet Elizabeth Aquino, a friend I have known through our blogs for several years. Her blog, a moon, worn as if it had been a shell, is one of my favorites. Elizabeth is a gifted writer, a hilarious woman, a kind and loyal friend, a devoted, compassionate caregiver and an insightful human being. I've wanted to meet her, but since she lives in California and I live up here, the opportunity has not presented itself...until this week.

Elizabeth won a week of respite from the wonderful organization Caregifted. She chose to spend it in Victoria, B.C., and if you're a regular reader here, you know how I feel about that city. I sent a packet of information to her about things to see and places to go, and she invited me to visit her. I took her up on that offer, left my home at 6:00 A.M., caught a ferry across the Strait of Juan de Fuca and arrived around 10:00 A.M. in that inviting, breathtakingly beautiful city.

Before I write about our visit, can you suspend disbelief for a few moments while I tell you what happened on the boat on the way over? Because it is a crazy "coincidence," - only there are no coincidences.

A couple of years ago, we were invited by friends to the All Academy Military Ball in Seattle. Their daughter has been a classmate of David's since the 1st grade, and I love her. She is a student at West Point Military Academy, and the ball is an event they share with other military academies. It was a privilege to attend.

The speaker at the ball was a retired Colonel named James Wilhite. He is the author of a book called "We Answered the Call: Building the Crown Jewel of Afghanistan." If you haven't seen the book, I recommend that you take a look at it - it's an inspiring, fascinating and unforgettable story. I bought two copies of his book - one for my dad, and one for our friend Fred (both veterans of WWII).

Yesterday, as I packed for the day, I was moved to bring a copy of my book and card. When I boarded the MV Coho (ferry), I sat down at a table and started to read some articles I had packed. Two ladies and a gentleman approached and asked if they could join me. I said, Yes, and returned to my reading. I tried to mind my own business, but I noticed their southern accents. I also heard the man speaking about Sandhurst and then heard him say something about founding a military academy in Afghanistan.

My head snapped up, and I looked across the table at the ladies. "Excuse me; did he write a book? Did he speak in Seattle a couple of years ago?" Yes, he did...Col. James and Mrs. Wilhite were sitting with me, along with their good friend, Ann.

Colonel Wilhite with me on the MV Coho

You can imagine that we talked for the entire crossing. We talked about the Colonel's mission in Afghanistan, updates on that story and his work. A number of other overlapping "coincidences" in our lives were revealed in the conversation. They asked me why I was traveling; asked about my book, and what I do, so I spoke that, and gave them the copy of my book which I had packed in my bag. By the time we parted after going through Customs, we all hugged.

I knew that I was in the right place at the right time yesterday...it was no coincidence.

After leaving the Wilhites, I met Elizabeth in front of the Empress Hotel. We went to have coffee and a snack, and talked without stopping for two hours. Then we walked to meet another blogger, the talented artist Kim of Art in Red Wagons, who had come to see Elizabeth from another part of Washington. We walked to a pub, ate lunch, and talked more.

Kim and Elizabeth with me at the Irish Times pub in Victoria, B.C.

Those four hours of conversation and sharing snapshots of our lives passed in a flash. Part of me wished we could have continued all day, and into the night over glasses of wine, but when meeting bloggers from far away, I have learned (there are no mistakes!) to be a bit careful and (as Gregg often says), "go.in.slowly."

I am thankful for the encounters of the day - a couple of miracles, if you consider the odds of both - and look forward to whatever the future holds.

Birthday dinner with my parents at Marche on Bainbridge Island (Greg & Betsy Atkinson's gem of a restaurant)

Birthday flowers from the SFDWG

The Best Presents (Presence)

On Thursday night, I had the privilege of being a listener on a conference call with one of my care-giving role models: Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.  Her talk was about making medicine whole again, through re-claiming healing elements of care-giving. Chief among those elements is attention, or presence - the practice of simply being with what is another person's experience in an open, non-judging, courageous way.

Dr. Remen's book, "My Grandfather's Blessings" is on my list of books to read over and over again. In it, her view of how medicine can be practiced as a healing art comes clearly through her words and stories. The conference call was full of such stories and lessons. You can download a recording of it here.

With the first days of summer, the "super-moon" has been visible here. According to the Farmer's Almanac blog,

"A supermoon is when a full or new Moon phase coincides with the Moon’s perigee, or closest point in its orbit to the Earth. A full supermoon can look up to 14% larger and be up to 30% brighter than a normal full moon...Even though the Moon won’t officially be full...waxing gibbous Moon will look full, and will also be exceptionally big and bright."

This event coincides with very low tides - one of my favorite things to enjoy in summer. Gregg and I took a walk on our beach Saturday morning in the sunshine. It was a perfect day.

Gregg with our neighbor's dogs on the sandspit

There were dozens of starfish and varieties of seaweed on the beach, in many shapes, textures and colors

This is the actual color - Mother Nature is astonishing!

Moon snails were digging in the sand and laying their eggs. I don't know if this starfish is trying to escape the sun, or eating a snail, but it doesn't quite fit into the shell it has chosen

The Evergreen State with blue sky is incomparably lovely

There is no place like home - especially in summertime

The best present, for me, is time spent together - preferably in nature, particularly on a beach. Every year around my birthday, for some time now, the gift I've requested from my family is a day hiking on the beach, followed by dinner at a favorite restaurant.

My sister-in-law, Caroline and I share the same birthday month. Though our birthdays are only one day (and eight years) apart, neither one of us makes a big deal of marking it, so we have never initiated a shared celebration. This year, I invited Jim (my brother) & Caroline to join us; they accepted, and David was able to take the day off from work.

As Jim & Cara live about an hour and a half to the east of us, they spent Saturday night in our home so that we could get an early start on Sunday. I made breakfast wraps and smoothies for us to eat in the car on the way to Port Townsend, and Gregg made sandwiches for our picnic lunch.

The weather changed overnight, so we were hiking under cloudy (but warm) skies. There were a few sprinkles of rain, but they served to cool us off, and actually felt good. Washingtonians know how to dress in layers.

Taking a little break during the 9+ mile hike

Gregg, me, David, Jim & Cara topping the day off with excellent Thai food and dessert

I'm thankful for a happy weekend filled with my favorite activities, and the best present of all - the presence of those I love!

P.S.: thank you for the sweet wishes - 

my birthday isn't until the 26th. 

We celebrated early due to work & tide schedules.

Grateful

Today I received my favorite kind of gift: a day spent with my son, at the beach. It was my belated birthday gift (David was busy when Gregg gave me a similar present, in June). David is working 5 to 6 days a week and taking a summer school class, so days with him are a rare gift, indeed. I am very thankful that he chose to spend this day with me; it means so much!

It was misty the entire time we walked, but we didn't mind. Four miles out and four miles back, with a picnic in the middle and a lot of conversation. Heaven on earth.

We even saw a red poppy; I often see orange poppies, but rarely the red ones!

Thank you, David!

Birthday Week

I turned 53 this week. It's been a lovely time of fun activities, not all centered around me (thank goodness!), but a week of things which I've enjoyed immensely.

On Friday, Mom and I went shopping and out to lunch. She & Dad had given me birthday funds for shopping, so we went to TJ Maxx (one of my favorite stores) and had a blast. After that, we drove through the rain to the General Store at Port Gamble (our first time there) for lunch. It is a great place - a real, old, country store, converted into gift shop & restaurant. The food was excellent. If you haven't been to Port Gamble, you might want to look it up. It's a charming old mill town, situated on a bluff overlooking Hood Canal, and has been very well-preserved.

Friday night, Gregg and I went out on a date to one of our favorite places, the Harbour House Pub on Bainbridge Island.

Gregg perusing the menu, which is designed like a newspaper. The pub's yam fries are the best!

Roses bloom outside the pub in June - one of my favorite patches of garden in town

Interior of the pub - yes, a bicycle is always on that beam over the bar.

The pub is in an historic house on the harbor in the little town of Winslow. We love the atmosphere and the food. We had planned to meet friends afterward for an evening of live music at the coffee house nearby, but Gregg was exhausted after two intense weeks at work, so we went home after dinner.

On Saturday, Gregg gave me the best birthday gift: a card and a day at the beach, followed by dinner out. We went to my favorite beach and hiked eight miles. David was invited to join us, but had another invitation to hike on Mount Rainier, so he spent the night with family and went with them. He and I will make the beach hike later in the summer.

Thanks for the cute sweatshirt, Laura!

We ate the picnic lunch we had packed around the halfway point, picked up some beach glass, and were caught in a downpour on the way home. Eight miles of beach walking = heaven on earth!

We visited a couple of thrift stores, and decided to change our dinner plans to escape the rain. We drove back to Bainbridge and went to a wonderful little Japanese restaurant for tea, miso soup and sushi.

Meanwhile, David's group decided that the weather wasn't good enough to go to Rainier, so they went to Cle Elum instead. They were still caught in a lightning-and-hail storm, when the temperature suddenly dropped at least 20 degrees, so I'm grateful they decided to forgo Mt. Rainier! Fortunately, he was with my brother, sister-in-law and nephew, who have mountaineering experience, so they had everything they needed - and came home safely.

On Sunday, we picked up my parents, drove to the ferry and rode to Seattle to see our nephew, Phil, who was visiting from the Bay Area, and my brother and sister-in-law. Some of the group played tennis, while others went for a walk. Afterward, we gathered for lunch together. It was great to see Phil and hear more about their hike.

On my birthday, David worked on the Argosy Camp Goodtimes Cruise (a.k.a. "Da Boata"), so I had a quiet day at home and a massage - a perfect birthday luxury. Tonight, my parents took Gregg and me to Burrata Bistro for dinner. They are so generous!

Kim (the owner) had a bottle of wine waiting for us at the table. The dinner was excellent. Three of us had the special (osso buco with baby carrots and pea greens on garlic polenta). My dad loves the roasted chicken so much that he ordered that instead.

Burrata Bistro's Osso Buco

Kim also sent two desserts for us to share: a lemon tart and tiramisu, both home-made and delicious, beyond my powers of description. Thank you, Kim & Alfonso! Thank you, Mom & Dad!

I bought this top (on sale, 50% off) when Maribeth was here. It's not a style I usually wear, but I like it!

Gregg has been teasing me that this week has reminded him of my grandmother's 90th birthday, when she had two parties given for her (one a private dinner for 35 at the Four Seasons hotel) and decided it wasn't quite enough, so she threw a third party for herself. What a character she was! The difference is that I didn't organize the week this way - it just happened!

Tomorrow, I'm off to volunteer at Camp Goodtimes West in the Arts and Crafts department, and I can't wait! It's also Carnival Day at camp, and it's going to be so much fun for the kids & staff. I hope your week is going well, too.

Belated Birthday Gift

Today, I received my birthday gift from Gregg & David: a day spent on the beach in Port Townsend. The tides were just right today for a long hike.

When David returned from Arizona, he revealed to me that Alaska Airlines had "outed" my favorite beach in their in-flight magazine. I am a fan of Alaska Air - my sister-in-law works there; we fly with them as often as possible; we admire their safety record, service and work ethic. But I am NOT happy that they divulged the location of this place of peace, beauty and serenity to the masses. Today, there were a LOT of people there (compared to normal days).

We walked at least 4 miles each way, in the long-awaited (much-appreciated) sunshine, and enjoyed every bit. Around mile 3.5, we started to lose some of the others. We sat down for a picnic lunch, prepared by Gregg, and then walked some more. It was the perfect gift: a day of togetherness. I am thankful.

Showing off my "Spike" t-shirt (Spike is Gonzaga's mascot), a gift from David, against the backdrop of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Olympic Mountains.

A Good Weekend

 On Saturday, David and I took the ferry to Vashon Island, where we spent part of the day helping with set-up at Camp Goodtimes West. We had the pleasure of working in the craft shed, assisting the staff in getting the supplies ready.

The staff at camp are all kind, compassionate and fun. The craft ladies are a SCREAM. I laughed and had a great time as we chatted, cut ribbon into lengths and assembled blank leather nametags for staff and campers to use in creating their own. Campers use their real names, while staff all have "camp names." Staff names like Beef, Daffy, Mooselips, Pineapple, Jiffy, Watermelon, Puck, Sparkle, etc. are the sort of thing you might hear at camp.

Everything looked great, calm, happy and ready for the campers to arrive today.

When we were walking to a building in the south area of camp, I noticed this beautiful butterfly lighting on a gorgeous flower:

You may know that I see butterflies as signs of Katie's love and presence. It was deeply moving to see this huge, luminous creature at camp, exactly a year after we scattered Katie's ashes there on the bay (according to her wishes).

While we were at camp, Gregg was helping his siblings move their parents into an assisted-living facility in our town. Everyone then gathered at the family home for dinner, before Grandma and Grandpa spent their first night in their new place. Now, the house will be put on the market for sale. It's a big change, but as Grandma and Grandpa are both turning 90 in the upcoming months, it was a decision to support their health and safety.

Today is my birthday. We had originally planned to go to my favorite beach, but the tide calendar shows that the tides will be much lower next weekend, so we postponed our beach day. We walked on Bainbridge Island instead, had a great lunch in the sunshine on our deck, relaxed, and then went to a terrific Mexican restaurant for dinner. We dined in the sun on their deck, and for dessert, the restaurant provided a dish of locally-made ice cream with a candle - a birthday treat to share.

Spending the day with my guys is the best present in the world. I feel blessed and grateful for family, friends and love.

This week, David and I will volunteer on "DA BOATA," the Camp Goodtimes cruise which is donated by Argosy Cruises for every camp session. More fun is on the way...

Birthday Gifts

You may know that I turned 50 this summer, in Europe. I awoke in Switzerland, went to bed in Italy, and in between, enjoyed the day as I travelled through the mountains with my guys.

We saw many beautiful sights during the course of our drive that day from the Berner Oberland to Lake Como; for 17 kilometers, we saw almost nothing at all, because we were in a tunnel. Being slightly claustrophobic, that tunnel was NOT my favorite part of the day. But this, too, passed.

The trip with Gregg and David was itself enough of a "gift" for me. But some extra special things came with my 50th birthday.

When we arrived at our little hotel in Loveno, we got settled in our rooms, and then walked through the old fortifications into town to find a good place in which to eat dinner.

We chose the Osteria Il Pozzo, where the food was so good that we went back again, two nights later.

After dinner, we stopped at a gelato shop and each of us got a cone, walked through the town square, and back up to our hotel. We got used to saying "Bueno Sera" to the locals who we passed each evening, as we made our way up the hill.

On the night of my birthday, while we were getting ready for bed, we heard loud noises outside of the hotel. Looking out of our window,

we were greeted by this sight.

I turned to Gregg and said, "Honey, you called ahead and ordered this for me? Thank you; you're so thoughtful!" He smiled and said something like, "Sure, I did."

What a great coincidence for us, that the Italians were celebrating something on June 26th. Grazie, bella Italia!

My parents are very kind and thoughtful, too. Before we left home, they gave each of us some spending money. We all enjoyed browsing during our travels.

Gregg bought ONE THING for himself:  a hat. Typical of him.

David bought many things, mainly t-shirts that showed where he had been.

I spent a little of my money here and there, especially in the street markets of France. I bought a beautiful dress, a pashmina, a cute skirt and top in the south of France, and three tops (on sale) in Paris, in a shop on the Champs-Elysees. I bought my favorite perfume & some lotion (on the Riviera, at Fragonard), and some gifts for others. I was more than happy.

Before we left Paris, David wanted to see some of the great couture boutiques. I was happy to go to those stores and see the beautifully made clothes. We spent some hours browsing, discussing the great quality and style of the items in the windows, but only going inside a few of the stores. We saw Brioni, Gucci, Chanel, Tod's, and many others. We went into the flagship Hermes store, where I showed Gregg & David the custom-made saddles and the most beautiful scarves in the world...and then, David found the place he had been seeking all along:  Loro Piana, the great Italian clothier, which specializes in cashmere. We had told David many times that it was out of his budget, but he wanted to see it for himself, so we went inside. The most handsome man we had encountered in three weeks of travel (I wish I had a photo to illustrate!) assisted David as he looked at the scarves, sweaters and shirts.

What do you think happened next? David found the SALE RACK! Yes, even Loro Piana has markdowns, my friends. And David found a sweater there, that fit as if it had been tailor-made for him. He tried it on, fell in love and bought it from the best-looking and most courteous salesman in all of western Europe, who treated David as if he were a millionaire. The sweater was wrapped in a gift box, with two cedar balls (to prevent moth damage), and placed in a beautiful gift bag with a catalog. David was very, very happy with his Paris shopping experience. We started to walk back to our hotel to get ready for dinner.

David stopped me on the street corner. "Just a minute," he said. "Why didn't you get a scarf at Hermes?" I told him it was too expensive, that I had inherited a couple of them from my grandmother, and that those were enough. "It's your 50th birthday; you have birthday money. How long has it been since you've been in Paris?" I told him it had been a little over 30 years. "How long since you've been in Europe?" Ten years. "When do you think you'll be back here?" I didn't know. "I think you should go back and get a scarf at Hermes."

So  I did. They are all so beautiful that it wasn't easy to choose which one to buy. Here it is:

Thanks, Mom & Dad, for the beautiful gift! Thank you, David, for encouraging me! I wouldn't have done it without you.