As Tommy said... the people have spoken.

I will use this as an opportunity to get off Facebook and other social media. It's insidious how they invade your consciousness. Even after deleting Facebook, I catch myself pulling out the cell phone and thumbing over to where the app once was. 

This blog doesn't count. It's slower. Contemplative. One must put effort into speaking and listening. 

This election is different. My acquaintances are donating more and volunteering more than past elections.  Right now, my husband is participating in call bank to encourage people to get out and vote.

The Halloween decorations are away. The Christmas (Yes Christmas) decorations are out. My husband's argument for this is that we will be traveling over end-of-year holidays, so he wants a few extra weeks beforehand to enjoy them.

Over the weekend I was discussing the situation with SJ, an old friend. She observed that my husband always has to have a project-- always has to have a plan and something to do. SJ and I, on the other hand, love having an empty schedule with no commitments, no plans. So my husband and I can balance each other out, we are a good ying and yang for each other. Yet we will drive each other nuts. 

Sunday night we had dinner with an old friend. In the past, he was my boss when I worked at the big-tech company. We both left that company at about the same time. He started his own business. I got a job at a smaller tech company. 

It's been five years since those transitions.  What an amazing about of time. We are both veterans in our current jobs. Yet it feels like yesterday that we worked together. 

By and large things are going well for him. His business is growing. His children are off to post-high school education, are close to landing full time jobs. His wife has a bad knee, but will undergo surgery to replace it. 

Today it's windy and raining hard in Seattle. Perfectly normal November weather. Our new house takes the weather different than the old. The old house had a fantastic HVAC system with vents in every room. During inclement weather, you closed the windows, set the temperature, and that was that. The new house isn't vented. Every floor has separate mini-split heating and cooling. Rooms will get a little stuffy. You must open the window a crack and hope that the driving rain won't come in. 

Halloween. We only had one child stop by-- a neighbors. We blame the rain and the fact that we live on a quiet street. The streets a few blocks away were very busy.

Three of the Husband's old friends flew into town for the weekend. It was a big social weekend.

Friday we went to the Can Can-- a great dinner & burlesque show.

Saturday we threw a large, combination Birthday and Halloween party-- my mother-in-law and one of our guests are both Halloween babies.

Sunday we visited other friends. In the evening, we tried to visit a Haunted House, but that turned into a nightmare. We purchased our tickets and then waited in an outdoor line for about an hour. Then as it started to rain, we realized that we were going to be in the line for at least another hour. We bailed. Very frustrating. 

On our drive home we became trapped between trains-- a train blocked our route home. I did a U turn to take another way. That route was also blocked by train. We sat there for at least 30 minutes.

Modern problems.

This blog has been up for 24 years.

It's a little strange reading the oldest entries. I hadn't lived long in Seattle. I was struggling to date. Honestly I was a bit of a jerk to those that I did. 

My career in the tech industry was just staring to grow. I avoided the dot com bubble and didn't fully realizing how special that was. 

Cheers to the next 24 years. 

Andy was up for the weekend. I haven’t seen him since the month before Covid.  Covid was hard on Andy.  He got it early on. He had long Covid. It dragged his energy down so he retired early. In the past six months he has had heart and lung issues and has been in and out of the hospital. 

Mentally and emotionally, he is all there. He is more focused and curious than I’ve seen in years. I wish him well. 

Saturday we had dinner with our AA friends who live west of the sound. 

Sunday, the weather was wonderful. Windy but warm, with a beautiful sunset. 

We are back in Seattle. Back to work. Back to Pacific Northwest Weather.

New Mexico was hot and dry. I enjoy the cool weather. My body is happy when the temperature is in the fifties or sixties and there is some humidity in the air. 

Our New Mexican host is a great tour guide. He has been showing off the beautiful parts of NM plus adding color commentary to the ugly. NM is indeed a state of breath taking beauty and fine arts with occasional hints of Breaking Bad. 

We’ve visited Ojo Calliente, Taos, Tesuques and Santa Fe. Our host is dedicated to not using a GPS or map apps. This frustrates my husband and I as we are efficient drivers who prefer to travel straight from point A to point B. 

We have been eating and drinking too much. Our host is a foodie. He has brought us to many fantastic restaurants. He also drinks heavily in the evenings. It’s hard for me to say ‘No’ when he offers one more glass of fine wine.

More New Mexico

 

Hiking in New Mexico…

We are in New Mexico for the week. The husband has an old friend in Albuquerque who is giving us a tour of northern New Mexico.

This friend is an interesting character. In the past year, he fully recovered from a tough cancer. One of the consequences from the treatment is that his allergies and his tastes in food have greatly changed. Old favorite dishes now taste weird to him. So, he is rediscovering himself, so to speak.

While in NM we ran across two friends from Seattle— the artist who helped my husband build his stained glass window, as well as Clem, my old neighbor. 

We hung out with Clem on the first morning of the hot air balloon festival. The festival is magical. It’s awe inspiring to watch that many hot air balloons rise. 

Albuquerque NM

 

We are in New Mexico for a week visiting an old friend. He’s giving us a tour of his home state. 

We continue to have near perfect fall weather. Sunny, but cooling.

Sunday, the husband and I did a fundraiser called Base 2 Space. The task is to walk the 848 steps up the Space Needle. I did it in 10 minutes and 14 seconds. I'm writing this down so that I can look up my time next year.

Sunday evening we invited Behr, Fireman, QJ, C6 & Tye over for dinner. We have known this crowd for decades and seen each other go through so much. Three of our dinner's attendees are in recovery programs. One is on a disability pension. One has had a heart transplant. 

For all of our conundrums, my husband and I have a wonderful life. 

There but for the grace of God go I. 

 

Quiet weekend. The weather has been wonderful. 

We've been planning out our travel for the next year. A couple of big trips are happening for us, and and so we are digging into the details.

I find that I am developing an allergy to the word "luxury." Some of our travel companions are very excited by such experiences. I am less enthusiastic. I'm trying to clearly explain to myself why, but the words are not coming easily. 

Our trips--

Mid October to New Mexico to visit a friend, see the balloon festival, and tour other New Mexican sights.

February-- probably a trip to Thailand with Evan and Allen to celebrate Allen's sixtieth birthday. 

August next year--- a trip to France and then the Azores. Some old college friends have invited us along and I really want to spend time with them. 

I Expected It To Not Have Pieces

For years, the ashes of my husband's brother and father have sat in boxes in our closet. While I'm uncertain of why we kept his brother's ashes for so long, my husband's father died during the Covid lockdown, preventing us from holding a proper funeral.

Recently, my husband's niece was in town for a visit. This was a rare occasion- the first time in years that my husband's entire family was in the same city. Seizing this moment, they decided to fulfill the long-delayed task of spreading the ashes of both my husband's father and brother.

My husband's niece bought a small urn to keep a some of her father's ashes. As she and my husband carefully transferred some ashes, she suddenly exclaimed, "I expected it to not have pieces." Her words brought the reality of the situation into focus, stirring emotions amongst the two. 

Deciding where to spread the ashes sparked lengthy discussions. My husband's father had expressed only one wish: that his ashes were to be scattered in the Sierra Nevadas. However, we faced practical challenges. My husband's mother, being disabled, can't travel or walk long distances. Instead of the Sierras, we settled on a public park atop of a local mountain in Seattle's eastern suburbs.

Sunday morning, my husband's family gathered at our home for breakfast, a moment of togetherness before the solemn task ahead. We then drove to the chosen location.

We were high enough up the mountain that clouds shrouded the park. Even though there were a few hikers, we managed to find a quiet spot. Each family member shared personal stories and heartfelt words. Finally, when the hikers were gone and we were alone, my husband stepped forward and poured the ashes over a cliff edge. With heavy hearts but a sense of fulfillment, we said our final goodbyes and made our way back home.