It looks like, at the very least, we'll be spending another winter in Seattle. News hit us this week that Desi wasn't going to be getting transferred anytime soon to Washington, DC. They want her out there, and we want to be out there, but things move slow and we're learning to adjust to their timeline instead of expecting them to adjust to ours.
Meanwhile, Mike is still working temp at a medical records job. He's planning on being there until August 1st at which time they can extend his contract or he could be reassigned. He's also looking into taking some art classes to strengthen his portfolio for the next round of college applications.
Additionally, we've finally started some renovations on our house. We sledgehammered the back sidewalk and turned it into a planting bed where we hope to grow vegetables and herbs. We're also putting up a side privacy fence and plan on turning the side yard into an extension of our back patio. We're really motivated now and look forward to turning our backyard into outdoor living space. We have such a nice yard, with grand old growth cedars, but we are never really out there to take advantage of the space. Hopefully, with these renovations that will change.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Bike Riding
Last year I became a bike riding enthusiast. I started by participating in the Group Health Yakima Ridges bike ride in April 2007 with my friend, Duana. It was a scenic 25 miles along the Yakima River. I did it with a mountain bike and no prior long distance bike riding experience.
Afterwards, Mike bought me a new hybrid bike and I began riding my bike to work whenever possible. Columbia City to South Lake Union isn't terrible, though getting over Capitol Hill took a few weeks to get used to. Still, the ride only took 30-45 minutes and was rather pleasant.
The season ended in September with the Group Health Wine Country Trek, which was a 60 mile bike ride through the Yakima wine country, from Yakima to Prosser, incorporating a few vineyards along the way for shopping, eating, and resting. It was fantastic! I rode with Duana again as well as her husband, Jason. It took 8-9 hours, but it was a beautiful day and the wine was good and the country was amazing.
Unfortunately, I haven't really touched my bike since September last year. But, I woke up this morning determined that today was going to be a bike riding day. Seattle does this fantastic thing every summer where they close Lake Washington Blvd to car traffic two weekend days per month, allowing bikes to own the road (http://www.seattle.gov/PARKS/Athletics/bikesatsun.htm). Coincidentally, today happened to be the Saturday in July that the road was closed to car traffic.
It's fun to see everybody spread across the entire street enjoying the day on their bikes. I think it's one of the things that makes Seattle feel so small town. Needless to say, I had a very enjoyable ride this afternoon.
This year I've signed up for only one bike riding event. The Vela Bella Bike Ride is a ladies only ride through the beautiful Wenatchee National Forest near Lake Wenatchee (http://www.athleteslounge.com/events/event.php?eventid=2264). It takes place in August and Duana will be my riding partner again. I've never really spent any time in the Wenatchee National Forest. I'm looking forward to seeing it.
Afterwards, Mike bought me a new hybrid bike and I began riding my bike to work whenever possible. Columbia City to South Lake Union isn't terrible, though getting over Capitol Hill took a few weeks to get used to. Still, the ride only took 30-45 minutes and was rather pleasant.
The season ended in September with the Group Health Wine Country Trek, which was a 60 mile bike ride through the Yakima wine country, from Yakima to Prosser, incorporating a few vineyards along the way for shopping, eating, and resting. It was fantastic! I rode with Duana again as well as her husband, Jason. It took 8-9 hours, but it was a beautiful day and the wine was good and the country was amazing.
Unfortunately, I haven't really touched my bike since September last year. But, I woke up this morning determined that today was going to be a bike riding day. Seattle does this fantastic thing every summer where they close Lake Washington Blvd to car traffic two weekend days per month, allowing bikes to own the road (http://www.seattle.gov/PARKS/Athletics/bikesatsun.htm). Coincidentally, today happened to be the Saturday in July that the road was closed to car traffic.
It's fun to see everybody spread across the entire street enjoying the day on their bikes. I think it's one of the things that makes Seattle feel so small town. Needless to say, I had a very enjoyable ride this afternoon.
This year I've signed up for only one bike riding event. The Vela Bella Bike Ride is a ladies only ride through the beautiful Wenatchee National Forest near Lake Wenatchee (http://www.athleteslounge.com/events/event.php?eventid=2264). It takes place in August and Duana will be my riding partner again. I've never really spent any time in the Wenatchee National Forest. I'm looking forward to seeing it.
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Happy Anniversary
We are heading to the San Juan Islands this July 4th weekend to celebrate both our wedding anniversary (June 25th, 9-years) as well as the anniversary of the day we met (July 3rd, 11-years). We tried to get married on the day we met to consolidate holidays but, apparently, July 3rd is a very popular wedding date and the reception area we wanted was already booked.
We haven't really ever spent any time in the San Juans. We went to Friday Harbor once a few years ago but it was just a day trip and we went more for the ferry ride than we did to explore the islands. This time we've made reservations at the Blue Heron Bed & Breakfast on Orcas Island for 3 nights. We're bringing the car, our bikes, and Meg. We should get a lot of exploring in on this trip.
We haven't really ever spent any time in the San Juans. We went to Friday Harbor once a few years ago but it was just a day trip and we went more for the ferry ride than we did to explore the islands. This time we've made reservations at the Blue Heron Bed & Breakfast on Orcas Island for 3 nights. We're bringing the car, our bikes, and Meg. We should get a lot of exploring in on this trip.
