Hello from Seattle!
My travels have ended, for now, and I've decided to keep my blog for awhile. After all, my life is pretty exciting even though I am no longer co-habitating with snakes, rain forest, and ticos. (That's a lie.) Here's an update on all those quasi-exciting weeks you, my reader, have missed.
June 6th-9th
Sheila flew in from Scotland and met me in Atlanta, Georgia, where we spent the night in a stunning hotel. It had hot water and a complimentary (and oh-so-american) breakfast. A day of indulgence, and processed foods. Very decadent.
We drove up to North Carolina together after getting a rental car hook-up from Pape, an african working at the rental place. It was sweet. The guy in the office, Arthur, was snide and snotty (oooh, alliteration). When Sheila turned down a 90 dollar upgrad to a larger vehicle, he told her "you people (europeans) never upgrade to the bigger car". Normally I would think this a compliment, but the way our dear friend Arthur said it, it sounded like Sheila was one of those cruel and unusual terrifiers of small children or something. I actually think that he sneered after smirking over her oddness.
Out in the parking lot, we wandered around looking as if we knew exactly what we were doing. I had my complete collection of 'I've been away for 3 months and bought too many presents' luggage with me, and Sheila had a packed bag that is normally used for holding enough gear to take you up a mountain (poofy jackets galore). At some point we dropped our bags and Sheila went looking for help.
That's when we met Pape! There weren't any miniscule cars ready, so he told us to take one of the jumbo fancy cars, and then preceded to hang out. He spoke about how important it was to help people out, and bonded with Sheila over her travels in Africa. Then he insisted that we take his phone number 'just in case', and especially if we wanted to stay with his family while in Africa.
Personally, I think it was a great welcome back to the U.S. One snarky guy to remind you how ridiculous people can be, and one generous person to keep you from tossing in the towel.
The rest of the trip Sheila and I spent finding a hotel with a pool, enjoying Asheville, and relaxing. I was really tired, and wanted to sit around and dry out-which sounds odd, but my favorite part of returning was having dry sheets. Wet sheets are horrible. Just plain wrong. Dry sheets are delicious, so crisp and cozy! I also got to wash my clothes, which was much needed. I spent a lot of time in Sheila's clothes, mainly because it felt good to be out of the two shorts and tank tops I'd been wearing for the larger part of three months.
Asheville is a cool town. Lots of artsy things and people, cute streets and shops, and yummy food. The place had a great vibe.
After our time alone, we headed out to a beautiful house near Asheville for our time with the family.
June 9-16th
My family spent the week hanging out and adoring the little guys. It was great for the aunties, we got to have a lot of play time with our nephews and neice, which is priceless!
Quinlan is active and precocious, he's intense and gives you a run for your money. He asked searing questions like, "Why?" and "But, why?" I never realized how hard that question is to answer! Myla Rose seemed more tentative at first, but warmed up to the plethora of adoring Aunties. She walks like a little sumo wrestler, and has a well-loved blanket and stuffed puppy dog. Understanding attachments to things like this, I feel like we'll have a lot in common. Atticus Zane dislikes sleeping. He seems to adore eating, being held while someone runs in circles, and keeping his mom up whenever possible.
Much time was spent making ridiculous faces and dancing in order to make the babies laugh. (Yes, you did read that right, our dancing is *good* enough to entertain babies.) They are a tough crowd! You really have to work for those smiles.
The best part of the trip was getting to know these guys. They are growing up so quickly, and have such amazing personalities. Each time I see them, I learn something new. I'm looking forwards to learning more about who they are, and seeing who they'll become.
June 16-17th
By the time the 16th rolled around, I was ready to get back to Seattle and unpack (ohhh so ready). I was also pretty excited to see Brian (understatement). Sadly, fate had a little lesson in patience in store for me.
Sheila and I drove back together, and then hung out a little before she hopped on a plane back to Scotland. After that, I had about 6 hours to kill before my flight, so I headed to downtown Atlanta via their fantastic train system. I caught the Annie Lebowitz exibit at the art museum, which was fantastic. I really enjoy her photography, and it was a great way to spend some time.
My travels have ended, for now, and I've decided to keep my blog for awhile. After all, my life is pretty exciting even though I am no longer co-habitating with snakes, rain forest, and ticos. (That's a lie.) Here's an update on all those quasi-exciting weeks you, my reader, have missed.
June 6th-9th
Sheila flew in from Scotland and met me in Atlanta, Georgia, where we spent the night in a stunning hotel. It had hot water and a complimentary (and oh-so-american) breakfast. A day of indulgence, and processed foods. Very decadent.
We drove up to North Carolina together after getting a rental car hook-up from Pape, an african working at the rental place. It was sweet. The guy in the office, Arthur, was snide and snotty (oooh, alliteration). When Sheila turned down a 90 dollar upgrad to a larger vehicle, he told her "you people (europeans) never upgrade to the bigger car". Normally I would think this a compliment, but the way our dear friend Arthur said it, it sounded like Sheila was one of those cruel and unusual terrifiers of small children or something. I actually think that he sneered after smirking over her oddness.
Out in the parking lot, we wandered around looking as if we knew exactly what we were doing. I had my complete collection of 'I've been away for 3 months and bought too many presents' luggage with me, and Sheila had a packed bag that is normally used for holding enough gear to take you up a mountain (poofy jackets galore). At some point we dropped our bags and Sheila went looking for help.
That's when we met Pape! There weren't any miniscule cars ready, so he told us to take one of the jumbo fancy cars, and then preceded to hang out. He spoke about how important it was to help people out, and bonded with Sheila over her travels in Africa. Then he insisted that we take his phone number 'just in case', and especially if we wanted to stay with his family while in Africa.
Personally, I think it was a great welcome back to the U.S. One snarky guy to remind you how ridiculous people can be, and one generous person to keep you from tossing in the towel.
The rest of the trip Sheila and I spent finding a hotel with a pool, enjoying Asheville, and relaxing. I was really tired, and wanted to sit around and dry out-which sounds odd, but my favorite part of returning was having dry sheets. Wet sheets are horrible. Just plain wrong. Dry sheets are delicious, so crisp and cozy! I also got to wash my clothes, which was much needed. I spent a lot of time in Sheila's clothes, mainly because it felt good to be out of the two shorts and tank tops I'd been wearing for the larger part of three months.
Asheville is a cool town. Lots of artsy things and people, cute streets and shops, and yummy food. The place had a great vibe.
After our time alone, we headed out to a beautiful house near Asheville for our time with the family.
June 9-16th
My family spent the week hanging out and adoring the little guys. It was great for the aunties, we got to have a lot of play time with our nephews and neice, which is priceless!
Quinlan is active and precocious, he's intense and gives you a run for your money. He asked searing questions like, "Why?" and "But, why?" I never realized how hard that question is to answer! Myla Rose seemed more tentative at first, but warmed up to the plethora of adoring Aunties. She walks like a little sumo wrestler, and has a well-loved blanket and stuffed puppy dog. Understanding attachments to things like this, I feel like we'll have a lot in common. Atticus Zane dislikes sleeping. He seems to adore eating, being held while someone runs in circles, and keeping his mom up whenever possible.
Much time was spent making ridiculous faces and dancing in order to make the babies laugh. (Yes, you did read that right, our dancing is *good* enough to entertain babies.) They are a tough crowd! You really have to work for those smiles.
The best part of the trip was getting to know these guys. They are growing up so quickly, and have such amazing personalities. Each time I see them, I learn something new. I'm looking forwards to learning more about who they are, and seeing who they'll become.
June 16-17th
By the time the 16th rolled around, I was ready to get back to Seattle and unpack (ohhh so ready). I was also pretty excited to see Brian (understatement). Sadly, fate had a little lesson in patience in store for me.
Sheila and I drove back together, and then hung out a little before she hopped on a plane back to Scotland. After that, I had about 6 hours to kill before my flight, so I headed to downtown Atlanta via their fantastic train system. I caught the Annie Lebowitz exibit at the art museum, which was fantastic. I really enjoy her photography, and it was a great way to spend some time.
I also checked out Underground Atlanta, but I'm not a huge fan. It's basically a bunch of shops underground, but it looks like a street. A cool idea, but it wasn't something I'm in to. There were a lot of left over and slightly sad looking Olympic Games paraphinelia, which was kind of cool and kind of depressing. It gave the area that feeling of-the parade was yesterday and you missed it.
Back at the airport, I learned that my flight was delayed (after checking in of course) three hours. This would not normally be a problem, but it caused me to miss my connecting flight to Seattle. When I arrived in Houston, Texas at 1 am, I was rushed to a line outside of the security check. They put me on a flight at 730 the next morning, and told me that I would not get a voucher for a hotel since I was on a domestic flight and the cause was 'natural'. Umm...Right. So since I had left the secured area and it was now too late to get back in, I would be lucky enough to spend the night on one of the two chairs provided. Not my idea of fun. I argued, which did nothing except make them annoyed.
It sucked. I was tired (Sheila and I left at 8am and it was now 130am) and had been so looking forwards to finally being home.
So! After wandering around and looking bereft for a while, I called the hotels to find that most are booked and the rest are really expensive, and nearly had a hissy fit. Just not my night.
More wandering around looking bereft ensued before I found another ticket counter. A wonderful man, whose name I meant to remember but didn't, hooked me up with a hotel room. I think it's because I looked so pitiful. He also got a church group to take me under their wing for the ride to the hotel-which was awesome because they sprung for a taxi (I didn't have any cash on me, I know, very smart).
You would think that I would be rearing to go for that early morning flight. I had set my alarm, asked for a wake-up call, and Brian was going to call. This may seem extreme, but I really wanted to get out of there, and would only be getting 3 1/2 hours of sleep. I barely had enough time to admire the dryness of the sheets before passing out.
I woke up at 9am.
What's that they say about the best laid plans?
The airport was chaos, but I managed to get on a 3pm flight. Then, I found another flight and was put on stand by. It left at 12pm. Both flights were delayed, but I managed to leave Houston at some point. I'm not even sure when.
When we flew into Seattle, I felt good. I felt like I was home.
June 17th-July 2nd
Once back in Seattle, Brian and I hung out for a few days before heading to the Sierras (woo hoo!). His truck sprung an oil leak right before we were supposed to leave so our plans changed slightly. One of our roomates works for Mountain Madness, a guide company, and he was due to guide someone up the nose of El Capitan. He offered us a ride, so Brian and I condensed our climbing and camping gear into two packs and joined him for the long drive to Yosemite.
Luckily, they were both more into driving in the middle of the night than I am.
They dropped us off in Tuolome Meadows, where we climbed Lumbert's Dome and Cathedral Peak and did some mellow front-country camping and hiking. Climbing Cathedral Peak was a memorable experience. It's a beautiful peak and a very popular climb, which meant that there were crowds even though we hiked a few miles just to get there. We left around 530 am and got back to our campsite around 730 pm. Needless to say, it was a long day.
Back at the airport, I learned that my flight was delayed (after checking in of course) three hours. This would not normally be a problem, but it caused me to miss my connecting flight to Seattle. When I arrived in Houston, Texas at 1 am, I was rushed to a line outside of the security check. They put me on a flight at 730 the next morning, and told me that I would not get a voucher for a hotel since I was on a domestic flight and the cause was 'natural'. Umm...Right. So since I had left the secured area and it was now too late to get back in, I would be lucky enough to spend the night on one of the two chairs provided. Not my idea of fun. I argued, which did nothing except make them annoyed.
It sucked. I was tired (Sheila and I left at 8am and it was now 130am) and had been so looking forwards to finally being home.
So! After wandering around and looking bereft for a while, I called the hotels to find that most are booked and the rest are really expensive, and nearly had a hissy fit. Just not my night.
More wandering around looking bereft ensued before I found another ticket counter. A wonderful man, whose name I meant to remember but didn't, hooked me up with a hotel room. I think it's because I looked so pitiful. He also got a church group to take me under their wing for the ride to the hotel-which was awesome because they sprung for a taxi (I didn't have any cash on me, I know, very smart).
You would think that I would be rearing to go for that early morning flight. I had set my alarm, asked for a wake-up call, and Brian was going to call. This may seem extreme, but I really wanted to get out of there, and would only be getting 3 1/2 hours of sleep. I barely had enough time to admire the dryness of the sheets before passing out.
I woke up at 9am.
What's that they say about the best laid plans?
The airport was chaos, but I managed to get on a 3pm flight. Then, I found another flight and was put on stand by. It left at 12pm. Both flights were delayed, but I managed to leave Houston at some point. I'm not even sure when.
When we flew into Seattle, I felt good. I felt like I was home.
June 17th-July 2nd
Once back in Seattle, Brian and I hung out for a few days before heading to the Sierras (woo hoo!). His truck sprung an oil leak right before we were supposed to leave so our plans changed slightly. One of our roomates works for Mountain Madness, a guide company, and he was due to guide someone up the nose of El Capitan. He offered us a ride, so Brian and I condensed our climbing and camping gear into two packs and joined him for the long drive to Yosemite.
Luckily, they were both more into driving in the middle of the night than I am.
They dropped us off in Tuolome Meadows, where we climbed Lumbert's Dome and Cathedral Peak and did some mellow front-country camping and hiking. Climbing Cathedral Peak was a memorable experience. It's a beautiful peak and a very popular climb, which meant that there were crowds even though we hiked a few miles just to get there. We left around 530 am and got back to our campsite around 730 pm. Needless to say, it was a long day.
Cathedral Peak
Lembert DomeAfter a rest day, we hiked from Tuolome Meadows to Yosemite Valley in 5 days. We were going to take 6, but I burned out-just ready to sleep in a bed and eat food that isn't dehydrated. The hike is relatively short, around 30 miles, so we took our time and enjoyed the many lakes along the trail. I wish I could say the same of the mosquitos...(Didn't I leave those in Costa Rica? Apparantly not.) I had fun preparing meals for the trip, using the cookbook that Devon gave me-Lipsmakin' Vegetarian Backpacking. Some of the meals were horrible, and some of them were great. Our favorite is the Pine Valley Couscous. Basically couscous with tons of spices, pine nuts, mushrooms, and tomatoes. Mmm...Gourmet camping food! One of the worst was an oatmeal dish that turned out to be flavorless goo. Ugh. Very wrong. I couldn't eat it.
Then back to Seattle.
July 2nd-July18th
We've been house and dog sitting in Kirkland, which is very close to where I have my new job. Betsy's office needed a temporary receptionist, and decided that I fit the bill. It's great, I owe her one (maybe ten).
This past weekend we spent moving into a beautiful apartment in Fremont-the artsy/funky neighborhood. It's closer to a food co-op, and still close to the bike trail that takes me to school and Brian to work-which is great. And we're done moving-which is fabulous.
That's my news!
If I haven't heard from you in awhile, send me an email! Let me know how you're doing, I now have actual internet access so I will even return your email. Amazing, I know.
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