Orcas Island - A piece of Heaven

Disclaimer: Please forgive any typos in this post. Friday night as I was checking the doors of my newscar, the piece of glass on the back door flipped up and slammed my ring finger on my right hand. The tip of my finger is completely purple. This is disrupting my typing, which for all of you who know me well realize this is incredibly frustrating, cuase i can't type 100 words per minute with a bum finger. That glass really took me by surprise. I'll be suing Ford now, j/k.

Orcas Island is incredible. It's probably twice as big as Bainbridge Island, but contains so much variety. There are small towns, open prairies, mountain lakes, a 2500 foot peak, camping, hiking trails, kayaking, horseback riding, and its all within close proximity.

We barely made the ferry to Keystone, then rode the motorcycle up Whidbey Island, through Deception Pass, and made the Anacortes ferry exactly when they started boarding the bikes. We love to cut it close for the adrenaline rush.

The day was perfect. We sat outside and watched the islands go by. I can't believe this magical place is only a few hours drive from my house. People come from all over the world to see the San Juan Islands. We camped at a place called West Beach Resort, which isn't good if you want privacy. They really pack them in, but we were lucky to be near trees and not out in the field across the street where tents were 10 feet apart.

You can rent yurts at the resort, and there is a general store, boat rentals, and a beautiful boardwalk.

We headed to Eastsound to explore, which reminds me of Cannon Beach, Oregon. and found a waterfront restaurant to have crab cakes and appetizers. After our snack we drove up a windy 5 mile road to the top of Mount Constitution. Usually you have to hike for hours to get a view like this.

David's sister and brother in law, Grace and Prasad.
Twin Lakes.


The sun and breeze felt heavenly. This place is truly spectacular, with views of Mount Baker, Canada, and the Islands.

We then went up to the lookout tower, which is even higher.

It was one of the best views I've ever seen. By that time, the day was running out, and we headed back to the campsite to make dinner and hang out. I love this coffee pot we put on the fire the next morning, which is a percolater.

And a bald eagle visited.

We spent Sunday at Mountain Lake in Moran State Park.

We took turns boating and hiking, and it was a blast. The day went by all too quickly, and once again, David and I were on the motorbike home. We stopped at Deception Pass at sunset, which was spectacular.

The Keystone ferry was full until 11pm, so David and I tried to take an alternate route that took 5 hours, but it was an adventure. We took the ferry from Clinto to Mukilteo, drove to Edmonds, took the ferry to Kingston, then drove home. We finally got home at 1am!! It was a freezing, but exciting motorcycle ride, and I can't wait to go to Orcas again. Next time for a week.

Scoot Scoot Scootin' Around

David and I have found the holy grail of riding the ferry: a motorcycle (scooter). We are renting a Honda Silverwing from his sister in Bellingham so he can easily get to work at Boeing. Not only does a motorcycle cost less than half of taking a car on the boat, you also get to the front of the line. This morning was frantic, like normal.

"Which helmet should I wear?" I said, putting on a black helmet that looked like half of a ping pong ball. Meanwhile, the clock was ticking. We are used to driving like a bat out of hell to get on the ferry with the car, since the lot fills up so quickly.

"This doesn't fit!!" I shook my head around as the hellmet wobbled loosely.

"Then put on the full face one."

I slammed it over my hair and makeup, stuffing my glasses and greasy breakfast sandwich in my purse. We were off!

The wind buffeted David and I as we sped down the rural highways, me gripping him tightly. I love the way the motorcycle (scooter) leans to the side around the curves. It's exhilirating. I imagined us racing down the coastal highways of the San Juan Islands, which is exactly what we're planning on doing this weekend.

The ferry lot was full, as usual, but we were able to bypass all the cars, "merge" into the traffic, and immediately got on the boat. No waiting involved. This was like a dream come true. We're used to missing the ferry if we get there at the last minute, with the motorcycle, you are always first. It feels like the first class of ferry riding.

David owned a motorcycle for 10 years, so is very good at riding. This motorcycle (scooter) is an automatic, and a piece of cake. David has said many times that it's not for the overly masculine man. It's no Harley, or crotchrocket, but it fits us just fine. I want to learn how to ride it someday.

My favorite place in the world

David first introduced me to Jazz Alley in 2006 when we saw Steve Tyrell. The singer was back again last night, so we bought tickets in a hurry. It's a shame we forgot our camera, since we were both dressed up for once. This is a rare occurence these days, ever since David became unemployed. We had a reason to celebrate last night, though, because David has gotten a 6 to 8-week contract working for Boeing. In Everett. Yes, Everett. From Bainbridge Island. The commute is going to be horrendous, via car, ferry and train, but its okay for a short period of time.

The sun was bright last night as we stepped into the dark abyss of Jazz Alley. It's hidden on a side street near 6th and Lenora, and stairs lead you down into a dark and romantic setting. People sit smiling and chatting around small round tables, or packed into booths. A balcony skims the ceiling. Every seat in the house has a great view of the stage, a very intimate setting for a terrific artist.

For the second time in as many weeks, I felt like I was back in the 1950's. Steve Tyrell is a crooner, with a deep, husky voice. He sang standards, hits from the 70's, and talked affectionally about his FRIEND Rod Stewart. We heard "The Way you Look Tonight," as we sipped a delicious bottle of red wine. I had penne with marinara and sausage, David had lamb curry. Dessert was flourless chocolate cake with berry dressing and vanilla ice cream. Heaven.

Whenever I visit a place like this, I feel nostalgic, as though I remember and miss the 1940's and 1950's. My dream is to open a similar place, with dancing. Imagine a classy venue with a wooden dance floor, a curve of round tables, waiters in tuxedos,red wine and martinis. Even though nowhere like that exists in Seattle, I'm so glad Jazz Alley does.

In which we are binars

There is one clue that will tell you whether you are a nerd, a dork, a Trekkie and everything in between: when you understand what Binars are, and take it as a compliment when used to describe your relationship.

Last Sunday David and I celebrated my stepmom's 50th birthday with a Sternwheeler cruise up the Columbia River Gorge, and afterward stopped to see some beautiful waterfalls. We both have a very quirky sense of humor, and were practicing karate moves to celebrate the force of the Horsetail waterfall. We often do the same odd things without saying anything out loud.

"They're like Binars," my stepmom said, chuckling to my Dad.

I completely agree. Binars were in an episode of Star Trek the Next Generation, and were two people (aliens) that communicated nonverbally, and mostly with binary numbers and computers. They spoke at a frequency nobody else understood. David and I definately march to the beat of a different drummer, but that drummer plays for both of us.

That is a normal picture of us on the Sternwheeler, and below is another normal picture of us at Multnomah Falls.

Then, David decided his head looked too big relative to mine (Cabezon!), so we took a picture to put it all in perspective.

And a great time was had by all.By the way, I think I should use this as the picture on my press pass, or license, or passport.

Or....maybe not. Next I will become a Klingon.