hearing the sun

You wake wanting the dream

you left behind in sleep,
water washing through everything,
clearing away sediment
of years, uncovering the lost
and forgotten. You hear the sun
breaking on cold grass,
on eaves, on stone steps
outside. You see light
igniting sparks of dust
in the air. You feel for the first
time in years the world
electrified with morning.

You know something has changed
in the night, something you thought
gone from the world has come back:
shooting stars in the pasture,
sleeping beneath a field
of daisies, wisteria climbing
over fences, houses, trees.

This is a place that smells
like childhood and old age.
It is a limb you swung from,
a field you go back to.
It is a part of whatever you do.

"The Arrival of the Past" by Scott Owens from Down to Sleep. © Main Street Rag Publishing Company, 2016.

leapin' lizards

Well, not really.  Spend the day with a belated Father's Day celebration by heading to the foothills~hitting Sonora, Columbia, and Angel's Camp.

At St. Charles Saloon in Columbia, we found some excellent pizza and sarsaparilla.

While the blacksmith did not have his forge going, there were still fun horsehoe-y things to admire.

Moving along to Calaveras County, got to read all the frog stats on the sidewalks.  It would be interesting and/or alarming to see a 4-inch frog jump over 16 feet.

Penny found in the Winco parking lot~in the shade may I add?  I've learned to not pick up coins during the summer that are in full sun.

lazy hazy days of summer

Blurry building of the glow lantern.

Love breakfast al fresco.

Miss palm trees.

Oh, those innocent brown eyes that say that poor puppy is starving.  

Dime found!

'phews time

While I was expecting the usual summer fog of SF, I was hoping for a clear landing so I could take pictures of the Bay. Good to be back in the Golden State.  After a long BART ride, got to grocery shop at an Asian market and Trader's~SO nice to be back in civilization.

I am not above buying love, so had gift bags ready for the Cali nephews when they arrived. We built Lego kits and painted in the afternoon.

There is nothing, nothing, better than eating warm tomatoes straight off the vine.

Ended the day with glow stick lanterns (other child wouldn't hold still long enough to get a good pose.)

in motion, again

Escaped a bit of the heatwave by going to a community strawberry feed (in a gym with excellent a/c) and by going out for sushi.  Hadn't seen one of these fun restaurants since living in Seattle.

Penny found.  Headed out for a painfully early flight tomorrow~time for the Cali chapter of this summer of wanderings.

waking to the whirr of hummingbirds, as one does

Serenic morning.

Still hoping to catch a snap of one of the many varieties of h-birds, but they seldom hold still.

Not a bad view from my pillow!

respite & reprieve

After a leisurely morning with lots of good coffee, I arrived at the Roe Farm.  Spent some time admiring the book celebrating my uncle's 80th birthday (gorgeous and poignant essays/photos all y'all who wrote for it.)

Braving the heat wave to inspect the green house. 

A long, lazy afternoon of talking and talking.  And talking. 

Enjoyed the summer twilight and feisty hummingbirds fighting over their iced water~yes, the pets/animals around here have a very good life.

You know that you're in great hostess land when they still have your very own toothbrush from five years ago!

summer s'mores

Did you know that they now make flat and square marshmallows?  Genius.

A truly lovely evening~catching up with family.

Seattle does coffee well.

the gorgeous King Street Station

Another travel story to add to my book~disembarked the ferry, expecting to grab a taxi to the Amtrak station.  There were rows of taxis/town cars and all the drivers refused to take me.  Had no idea why until some woman started screaming and swearing at them.  She then came towards me wanting to know where I was going~said to just Jackson & 5th.  

Seems that Seattle taxi drivers (at least in that area) won't take fares unless they are going to the airport~a $40-50 ride.  The woman was a reporter from the Times and was writing a story on this practice.  

Anyway, she yelled and guilted one of the drivers to take me to Amtrak. 

Train travel is a little more elegant way to travel~plenty of leg room and a dining car with real flatware and excellent food.

Pretty sunny views.

Tacoma Narrows Bridge

Kelso.  Had a very fun lunch~the tables are all four tops, so if you aren't a party of four, they simply seat you as you come in.  I ended up dining with three gentlemen~from China, Vermont, and Seattle. Fun and rambly conversations. 

The one downside was the plus-sized woman who got on in Tacoma and oozed into my seat.  Ugh.  I truly think they ought to have a sample chair out by that suitcase measuring bin~and if you don't fit in one chair, you purchase two tickets.  This was compounded by not having an armrest between us to help block the trespassing.

Anyway!  I had another adventure and made it to the correct MAX stop to meet my Portland cousin. And while we were out for dinner, when the waiter asked the table (really asking the child with us) if we wanted balloon animals, I promptly asked for a butterfly.    It's important to keep one's inner child alive!

I'm sensing a theme

Warm berries for brekkers

 Of good food, good conversations, and sunny naps.

From what I hear, the sun hasn't really been shining here since September~so everyone (including pets) is blissed out by the warmth.

Exquisite FRESH spinach, peas, asparagus gnocchi for a sunny lunch at Port Gamble.

Lemon tart custard~oh my!

the solstice of summer

You haven't lived until you've walked one of Seattle's hills with a large suitcase trying to push you into the Sound.  As I was wrangling my luggage (I usually travel very lightly, so this lugging around my big suitcase is a novelty) through Pioneer Square, I saw a cute cafe that looked so quiet and charming that I had to go in.  SO glad that I did as I had the best grits/eggs/potatoes outside of the South that I've ever had.

 

Been five years since my last ferry ride. 

The wheel thing is a new addition to the skyline, but the rest looked familiarly grey.

Spent a delightful afternoon, wandering Poulsbo and got to toast in Summer with the Sage girls.

We then spent the evening, sitting in the loveliest backyard~all bamboo, running water, and twinkly lights. 

I did not get a photo of all of us huddled in blankets while we ate dinner~but we were determined to enjoy the sunny evening outside.

Some beautiful blossoms by my pillow tonight.