Crows cawing and stellar jays screeching by 5:30 am
Gloria, the 9 year old neighborhood playing scales and simple tunes over and over on the piano by 9:00 and again in the evening
Neighbors talking on their decks; not all of them in English
The "BOING!!!" of the diving board from the nearby Arbor Heights Pool and the early AM coach yelling, "Pull, pull!" in a measured cadence
Parents cheering and lots of loud happy shouting at evening swim meets
So what do you hear in YOUR neighborhood?
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Monday, July 23, 2007
Hydrangea Bouquet
Hydrangea Bouquet
Originally uploaded by mtnester.
I have 7 hydrangea bushes. This is a hastily made bouquet from two of them. "Come for a walk ?" my husband asked as I was clipping the blooms. "Sure!" I responded and I plopped the bouquet into the wheelbarrow. Upon our return I realized that the composition made a pretty picture. So there you go!
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Seaside, Oregon
Seaside, Oregon
Originally uploaded by mtnester.
Thank you so much to Donna at Quiet Life for encouraging me to try new blogging tricks like this! Just click on the photos if you want to see them larger and you can also look at my photo stream on Flickr. We went to Seaside Wed. through Fri. of last week. We stayed at a condo/motel at the very end of the promenade in Seaside called The Tides By The Sea. We have stayed at The Tides several times over the years, it is our favorite accommodation there. It is nice to be at the end of the 'prom' because all you have is beach in front of you (unless you get a court side room). We had planned on skating on the 'prom' but it was too rainy and windy; I guess it was the end of the typhoon that hit Japan. We had a relaxing time just the same. I had a couple good runs, beach walks are nice even in the rain, and I read the book Water For Elephants (which is an engrossing and fast read).
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Our Hotel on Robson
We have been staying at the Tropicana on our visits to Vancouver since 1985 or there abouts and only once have we been disappointed. It has gone through various owners and at least two remodels but they have kept the funky old sign and I like that! It is, I am sure, the cheapest hotel in North Vancouver and it is in a great location: close to Stanley Park where we skate and I go OOH and AAH over all the plant life. There is plenty of trendy shopping on Robson (but sadly enough to me, nary a German establishment remains) and lots of people watching. It is also close to lots of great restaurants, especially if you like Asian food (Korean seems to be the most common). And if you like to see how the really rich spend their extra cash in Vancouver, it is only a few short blocks to the Coal Coast marina. I have many photos of Vancouver and I am sure you can do an online search and find photos that show this fine city through a far more sophisticated eye than I have.
Our Hotel on Robson
Originally uploaded by mtnester
Destination
OK folks,
Read the sign closely. It does NOT say air conditioned, so don't expect it! After all, this is Canada, The Great White North, needing an air conditioner is not usually a concern.
Destination
Originally uploaded by mtnester
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
#8 Refreshing!
Another 50 minutes and we were back at the lake ready for a refreshing dip. It was COLD and the bottom was rocky, but it was a welcome relief from the heat.
#8
There were about a dozen hikers photo shooting and picnicking at this lovely vista. As I mentioned earlier there are huge boulders at the top. There are plenty of cracks and crevices to fall into if you are not careful. While lunching at the top we saw a middle aged Asian woman do very nearly just that! She stumbled and fell across this gaping crevice. She was very alarmed, as were all of us other hikers. She got up with the help of her husband and she was relatively unhurt. But what a scare!
That teensy bit of water in the distance is the Cedar River watershed.
Rattlesnake Lake, lovely!
#7
Can you see that tiny squiggle of switchbacks and the words: "You are here." That's where we are, that's a 2 mile hike, that's 50 minutes of up, up, up.
Yes, there is a shadow on my face but I was not about to take my hat off and expose my 'hat hair'!
#5
I'm pretty sure this is Bitter Cherry; prunus emarginata. Interesting tidbit: the bark of the cherry tree could be cut into strips and polished to a rich red, adding color into baskets woven by the Indians.
This 'nurse log' has an unusual number of salal (gaultheria shallon) bushes growing from it's top and sides.
#3
Devil's Club: tall, with exotic, maple-like leaves, and crowned with beautiful red berries, but beware of the stalks which are coated with wicked thorns.
Rattlesnake Trail #1
It is a little bit rocky on this trail, mostly in the last 1/4 mile. There are plenty of boulders like this one on the sides of the trail and at the top.
See the flock of geese to right of the bush?
A Pleasant Hike
We hit the trail head at 10:30. It took us only 50 minutes (including dinking around taking pictures) to get to the Ledge. While the temp was about 83 degrees, we were in shade untill we reached the top AND there was a cooling breeze and no humidity. Don't ask me why it is called Rattlesnake Lake/Ledge/Mount. As far as I have been informed there are no rattlesnakes west of the mountains and this place is a mere 45 minute drive east of Seattle on I 90. I certainly didn't see any snakes, only a flock of Canada geese. Ah ha! I just investigated the origins of the lake's name and I found my answer here.Monday, July 09, 2007
Pared Away
Well, What do you think? I actually removed about 20 wheelbarrows full. But looking at this photo, I don't see much of a dent. Tomorrow Chris and I are going on a hike on Rattlesnake Trail (sounds inviting, huh?). It is across from Mount Si and he says it is not as rocky/ boring as Mt. Si. Keep watching my weather Pixie (thanks Ms. Booshay!). It is supposed to get up to 100 by Wednesday. Then you're gonna really hear me whine. I don't live in Seattle for those kind of temperatures!
A Heap 'O Work
Just look at what is in store for me today! No, I don't plan on moving it all in one day. It steams in the early morning sun. When you turn over a shovelful, the inner chips are toasty warm, doing their decomposing 'thing'. All these chips for free from the city tree trimmers arrived, appropriately enough, on my birthday. Alright, time to get off this computer and start shoveling!
Carefree Sedums
The sedums in my dry garden rockery are blooming between ornamental grasses that grow lush with very little water.
Sunday, July 08, 2007
Snap, Crackle, POP!
Chris' camera has a fireworks feature. We think it did a pretty good job capturing some of the fireworks in our neighborhood. We went to bed by 10:15 but I don't really know why. There was constant noise until 11:00, making sleep a certain impossibility.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Cake Update
It is delicious and decadent. I do not know what the three milks are in the ingredients but the frosting is definitely whipped cream. The cake is heavily moist and tastes intensely of RUM! For a while I was a bit disconcerted as I associate rum with Christmas drinks and desserts. But at the second bite my seasonal confusion was gone and I was thoroughly enjoying this scrumptious treat.
Above Us
Blue skies, Mount Rainier still cloaked in snowy white, and an American flag, flapping crisply in the front yard of a patriotic Seattlite. It is going to be a lovely Fourth of July here! Summer has taken it's own sweet time in arriving (as it often does) and now we get bragging rights to possibly the finest weather in the entire country.
Monday, July 02, 2007
Mmmm....
Guess who celebrated her birthday today! This is a Tres Leches cake I bought for myself at the Salvadorean Bakery in White Center. People at work have gone on and on about how delicious they are. I decided my own birthday was the perfect time to sample one. Those strawberries are too lovely to push aside for candles and there looks to be almost enough strawberries to represent my age, so let's just leave it at that! I'll tell you how it tasted, tomorrow.
Mmmm....
Originally uploaded by mtnester
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