Marilyn, the girls, and my dad flew west on Wednesday, and I've been a bachelor since then. “They” have been discovering I'm around at work (and can write quickly and cogently) and more and more stuff has been thrown my way to deal with; I've gone from bored to close to overwhelmed in about a week. So not too much to report from the working days when I mostly come home and eat and try to get some sleep.
But Thursday while making a Starbucks run (my colleague Ralph has a reoccurring back injury, he was pretty immobile this week, and so I was getting him iced venti black tea unsweetened [note the correct ordering of the words --- we are trying to teach Marilyn so she stops confusing the poor clerks and holding up the line!!]) I stopped at the Air&Space Museum and picked up a ticket to see Superman Returns in the IMax theater Friday night. And then Friday after work I grabbed a bite of dinner at a sandwich shop, and then went to the movies. It wasn't 3D, it was just on a big big screen with a sound system that shakes the seats. So-so movie, made better by the giganticness of the screen, so that was fun. As I left the Museum, there was a spectacular orange pink red sunset backlighting the Washington Monument with its red eyes lit up, very pretty.
Saturday I drove the Bermuda err Rossyln Triangle. “Arlington” is a large area: it is all the Virginia part of the original square District of Columbia minus the old city of Alexandria. So there are many parts of “Arlington” that could be considered “towns” or at least “neighborhoods” of their own. “Downtown” Arlington, at least where the largest high rises are, is known as Rosslyn. That is where the Key Bridge crosses to Georgetown, the Teddy Roosevelt bridge goes towards the Kennedy Center, I-66 and U.S. 50 and I-395 all kind of meet up just north of the Arlington Cemetery and the Memorial bridge where the George Washington Parkway meanders around trying to stay beautiful and torment the tourists. So far, I've gotten lost every time I've gone into Rosslyn. Marilyn or the girls can tell you of the intense swearing that accompanied trying to find how to get out of there on the GW Parkway north (and instead ending up more and more south each time). They can relate how we tried to get to the Kennedy Center and ended up crossing the I-395 bridge instead. Historically from the other side, I have never driven within 100 meters of the Lincoln Memorial without being gravitationally (or some other strange force) pulled across to Virginia against my will.
So I decided to take the car and just drive around for a couple hours and not care if I got lost or forced across the river against my will for I would have no will. I did load the back of the car up with my three boxes of stuff for my office at work (personal items and the like) and took my DOE badge with the plan to drop stuff off if I found myself over by DOE. I was describing this insane plan to Ralph earlier in the week, and a new colleague Craig came out of his office and said he was so happy to hear me talk, he had felt exactly the same about the poorly marked roads with the National Park signs that are about 1 foot high off the ground in dark brown so you can't read them, and he too had once spent two hours driving around and learning all the roads. So now he knew he wasn't crazy (or at least he wasn't alone).
I learned where Spout Run Parkway goes. I found the left turn well away from the river that if you take it you are committed across the Roosevelt Bridge whether you want to or not (but I didn't care, so no frustration). I learned how to “stay straight on Independence” even as the road snakes around and around. I learned the difference between U.S. 50 and State-110. I think I learned how to exit I-66 well in advance of going around the corner of the Triangle and getting on Lee Highway in order to open up options. Most importantly, I learned how you MUST turn left onto Lynn off of Wilson to set up either the Key or Roosevelt bridges --- in my next life I will petition the Arlington city government to put a sign at Wilson and Lynn saying “Turn Left for Bridges” and receive a Nobel Peace Prize the the idea. Amazing how simple ideas can be so powerful; of course, probably somebody in city government has a nasty sense of humor and loves to frustrate the non-locals.
Can I still get lost, or at least end up in the wrong place? Sure, especially coming from the D.C. side. I got bored with the game too soon, and didn't drive all permutations and combinations. But I'm better. I did drive around DOE twice and finally found the only entrance to the garage open on weekends (nobody who told me I could come in on weekends had bothered to tell me only one entrance was open...) and delivered my boxes to my office. Of course, on Friday just as I officially announced in my weekly report I was fully moved in, I learned they will make me move to a different office this next week. Your federal bureaucrats at work. The new office is more centrally located and better in general, but I was hoping to be done moving.
On my way back I tried to learn more about the roads in “Westover - East Falls Church” (I'm not quite sure what to call the area between us and Ballston). I did figure out the Washington Boulevard - George Mason Drive - Yorktown Boulevard - Sycamore “triangle” Marilyn will be able to drive the girls to school on (didn't actually drive GM Drive and so didn't yet identify the Starbucks for them to stop at in the morning...). Did figure out that Harrison (where our Harris Teeter is located) does go through to “Yorktown” (it is actually called something else, and turns into Williamsburg soon) which, if you don't swing left onto Sycamore, will take you to West and hence to Broad where the Trader's Joe is. Along the way I did a bagel for lunch, and then shopped at Marilyn's Harris Teeter. I agree, nice grocery store, and not too busy on an early Saturday afternoon.
I got home, paid the bills, added them to the mail already put out, and then vegged. I watched (some in the morning while riding the stationary bike) “Howl's Moving Castle” and “Elizabethtown” both of which I really liked. (No mention of the Coca-Cola museum in the latter flick, which if you actually go to Elizabethtown is a must see.) There was a real downpour, and series of heavy cloudbursts in the evening, but I was snug.
I made pesto with some fresh basil for dinner, and today I marinated a steak and grilled it with mozzerella and tomatoes and fried onions, peppers, and mushrooms. After fixing my stationary bike with new batteries (so it now has some resistance and I really work up a sweat) I took the Metro to Court House and finally found the movie theater there and just slid in as the previews ended and the movie started. “A Scanner Darkly,” a Phillip K. Dick story done using the rotoscope to make it sort of animated. A really good movie to make you never want to be a junkie on anything. Some plot issues though, so not great. I walked from there all the way to Ballston, stopping for a Jamba Juice for lunch at the Whole Foods. I have a better feel for Clarendon now, but not sure I saw any restaurants I must go to other than the Caribbean Breeze possibly for Sunday brunch. We are finding the weather warm, but in the shade and with a bit of a breeze quite pleasant actually. Have to watch the summer colds going in and out of A.C., and it is unpleasant in the direct sun, but nothing like the South for true heat and humidity.
I have tried to clean up the house -- the kitchen is clean, I vacuumed, I did the laundry and made the girls' beds with clean sheets, and the bathrooms have been scrubbed. So hopefully when the owner and building come tomorrow it will look satisfactory. Hopefully they will find the message I will leave for them with the problems we have found so they can fix them.
Sean kept his letter short this week since the Baumgartner Clan is gathered and they have no time to read this. But they can read it, and hopefully laugh along, at their leisure later. Hope my week of work goes well, and I'll see some of you in Oregon starting next Friday or so.
Cris drove us down to the metro stop at East Falls Church and then ran back put the car away and walked back to the metro stop and made it to work on time for his meeting. I was pushing Dad in his chariot and so the kids each had 2 big suitcases to start out adventure of 27 days. About half way through the whole thing Elizebeth threw a fit. She showed her western genes to the max. People drive in CARS to an airport. No one has to shove suitcases in and out of train cars, take escalators, lose their Mom and Poohbah because the elevator didn't go to the same place etc. I suggested that we saw lots of people on the blue line with a suitcase. She was sure they were only going to NYC for the afternoon and real people on real vacations were brought to the airport in a nice big car. After we got through security etc, we had plenty of time for ice cream at 10 am. (It's fun traveling with PoohBah) and had great flights to Atlanta and then onto Portland. Atlanta didn't really get us any closer to Portland and again when E was told she had a 5 hour flight, she wondered why we hadn't gone to Paris and brought Grandma with us, a much better solution to her than traveling all this way to get to the farm. We did well and they had a movie so the time went well.
We got our rental car and made it to Bob and Alice Anne's with no problems. She had a beautiful dinner for us and we had a delightful visit. The girls are so wonderful and we had lots of fun hearing about their vacation and the girl's summer activities. I realize now that Bob went and got their lovely BIG new camper from their camping spot so we would have a comfortable place to stay and then I think he took it over to Dorothy's for the same reason. Thanks you all. You are awesome hosts.
Thursday, we drove over to Grandma's in Idaho. We had a book on tape which took up the time very nicely. I don't know what Bill thought of this kind of traveling. There is hardly any kind of talking and potty breaks are very short and to the point so you can jump back in the car and listen to the book. This time we are reading My Sister's Keeper. It is a fascinating book about a child who was conceived to save her older sister's life. The older sister had leukemia.
Teresa and Lance had just arrived from Boise. We had a great meal and caught up. Friday Poohbah and the girls and I went shopping for Teresa and Mom's birthday gifts. We also visited my brother Dave's new office for his job at the University of Idaho. I dropped Bill off at the Best Western and I was really worried about him. He didn't have anyone lined up to dine with and he couldn't see to turn the air conditioner off. He did fine however and by the time I picked him up the next day he had his dance card full of lunches and dinners with many old friends.
We had a great party on Saturday. Mary, Dave (my older brother) and their daughter and boyfriend Julie and Ryan---Jim and Rhonda ( my middle Brother) and her daughter husband and new baby Joni, Jerry and Sarah---Teresa and her oldest son Benjamin over from Seattle---Annie (my youngest sister) and her hubby Gar---Don (my youngest brother) Kathi and their 4 children Jessica, Lucas. Lance and Lauren were all there. We were missing Cris and Sean. Jim's oldest son Ryan and his wife Crystal and their 3 children Ashley, Melody and Hanna visited on Sunday afternoon. So my Mom gathered in her big family and we were all together again.
Sunday morning some of us made it to Mass and we were talking to one of our renting farmers Gary Esser about how important the Matriarch is to keep a family together. I surely appreciate it. I certainly couldn't see everyone on less than a week's time if they didn't all come to visit Grandma. We also visited the new Baptist church recently completed under the direction of my brother Dave.
We played lots of games and ate a lot of yummy food. I've been jogging over to the next farm in the hopes of keeping my weight which is already up at least stable. Being over 50 is the pits!
I ran up to Moscow Sunday night to visit with all of Bill and Dot's music friends. That was great to catch up and to visit about the fun of Washington DC and all of the music I hope to hear this year.
Monday night the kids and I met Bill at the BW to meet up with Cris' Aunt Ruth and Uncle Rex to have dinner and visit. They are taking the train to Florida so will stop off and see us on their way to see their granddaughter.
Tuesday we got some clothes exchanged for Mom and then buzzed back just in time to get Teresa and myself to Lewiston for an oil change for her car. Annie met us and we did some shopping and then went out for a birthday dinner for Teresa whose birthday is actually August 1st. We had a great time. Drank some huge mugs of Fat Tire and had yummy hamburgers and talked a blue streak. We ended the evening with a great walk on the river path and got home about 10:30.
Today, we are doing vast quantities of laundry and I have promised the kids a trip to the fun pool in Moscow this afternoon. This evening Bill is taking a whole raft of Baumgartners out for dinner in Lewiston and then we will stop by Annie's house and see her new scrapbooking room.
That brings you up to date and tomorrow we head off to Mt. Angel to visit my favorite Aunt Dorothy (also my godmother) and see all of my Dad's relatives and Cris will join us on Friday evening. We are planning to go to the coast just the two of us for a couple of nights.
Hope this finds all of you very happy and enjoying the summer.
Marilyn and her aunt Dorothy picked me up from Portland Airport when I arrived late Friday night and brought me back to Mount Angel. She and Uncle Bob were very nice hosts, and Bob and my dad Bill really hit it off. Bob has two electric scooters, and he and Dad went out on errands some mornings (to the bakery, the post office, etc.) I called them "Hells Angles on Wheels."
The centerpiece of our Oregon trip was Susie, Elizebeth and their best friend Selina Martinez going to the Silver Creek Falls YMCA camp for a week. The parents were a bit worried whether they'd like it, but they had a blast, horrible experiences and all.
Meanwhile, Marilyn and I escaped for a couple nights for ourselves to the Inn at Spanish Head in Lincoln City, Oregon on the coast. We did what we like to do best, a day hike up Cascade Head through the big forest. It had been logged about 80-100 years ago, but has grown back spectacularly. We did the trail up the interior with no views of the ocean, but also hardly any people until we turned around to leave.
We also visited all my Oregon cousins. In addition to staying with Lisa and Jim in Salem and seeing Rich and Diane in Portland, we went down to Springfield / Eugene and stayed with Steve and Marcia and their three-plus dogs. They have a garden running amok: our favorite part was the "blackberry tree". The trees just over the fence next door have become infested with blackberry bushes throughout them, and the berries hang over the fence. They were so sweet when just picked! Marilyn had to get a ladder and try to pick them all so more would grow back (the German in her) even though there were too many berries to begin with!
Steve also took us to his favorite place, an antique store that does a wonderful high tea. You are also supposed to "dress up" in some of their costume wear for the tea (or maybe that is just Steve's idea). I thought my Dad and I looked good.
Though the girls were camping within a couple miles of the falls, they never got to see them. But Marilyn and I did a long day hike around 8 of the 10 or so falls in the two canyons in the Silver Creek area. Highly recommended for all ages: you get to go behind several of the falls, or even under them!
My cousin Lisa also took us to Oregon Gardens, a horticultural garden outside Silverton. Boy you can sure grow stuff in Oregon!
Not much of a letter, but at least some description of our trip to go with the pictures.