Bloomsday - Tim's Truck - Sailing - Soccer - Big Fix
Happy Sunday! I hope that everyone is Happy, Healthy, and able to enjoy the spring.
Last weekend, Alex and his Buddy Carter took the boat on a double-handed race up to Port Townsend on Saturday, spent the night there with the rest of the fleet, and then raced back on Sunday. They had a wonderful time, finishing fifth out of 10 J105's and 23rd out of 105 boats overall.
We are currently doing very well in both the Monday night and Wednesday night series. There are five of us sailing together on any given evening, and we have settled into our roles, our boat handling is getting quite good, communications are going well, and we are getting pretty smooth in our operations.
Last Friday, I headed over to Spokane, where I met up with my sister Sue and participated in the 50th running of Bloomsday. This was the first time that I have done it, and it was a blast. Sue came up from Cuenca and had a room at the Davenport. I drove over. Mom was up from Arizona, and Judy and Balin flew in for a wedding, and we had a chance to see them as well!
Friday night, I hung out with Mom, Sue, and Aunt Do at Aunt Do's place and spent the night there. It sure was nice to just sit and catch up with everyone. Saturday, Sue and I drove into town, and had a super pleasant time hanging out and walking in the City. We went up to the house we grew up in on the South Hill, parked, and walked to Hutton Elementary, then down to the Rockwood Bakery, then headed downtown to park, check into the hotel, and pick up our packets before meeting my cousin Kim and her partner, Chad, at the Spaghetti Factory for dinner. On the way there, we bumped into my Cousin once removed, Monica and her husband, Donny, as well as their friend.
After dinner, Sue and I had a super pleasant walk along the river, which was in full force. All the years I have lived in Spokane, and all the times I have visited, this was the first time I walked along that part of the river and the falls, and it was so nice.
Sunday, we got up, had a slow breakfast, and then had a leisurely two-block walk to the staging area for the event. My original plan had been to run the Bloomsday event, but I had not been training for it, so when we ran into my second cousin Kelly and his wife Kirsten, Sue and I decided to walk with them, and that turned out for the best :) The weather was perfect, and it was just so enjoyable to catch up with Kelly and get to know his wife better. After the event, we went out and grabbed a quick bite with Kelly and Kirsten, before heading to the other side of the river to see Judy, Balin, and Sam for a bit before the wedding. Sue and I thought about crashing the wedding (we know the bride from the Bike \ Barge tour we did last year), but we decided to just say hello and be on our way. We grabbed a quick nap before heading down to the AMC theatres to watch Project Hail Mary. It was an OK movie, but I enjoyed the book more. It is just hard to get the subtleties of a book like this into a movie. I then headed back to Aunt Do's. Monday morning, Mom, Aunt Do, and I had a short visit, and then I headed for home, as I had sailing on Monday night.
These past two Thursdays, I have been heading over to my buddy Tim's house to help him reinstall the engine in his 1993 GMC pickup that he bought new after college. Tim was my very first college roommate at the orientation weekend between my senior year of high school and my freshman year of college. We have been buddies ever since.
On Friday, Victoria came over in the afternoon to make an absolutely wonderful Thai Duck Soup for Catherine's Mother's Day dinner. While she was preparing, we had a wonderful chat and opportunity to get to know each other a bit better, and I will say that every opportunity I get to know her better, I appreciate her more.
Yesterday, I headed out to Magnolia to watch Luke and Freya play in their baseball games. Luke is still in Coach Pitch baseball, and Freya just started T-Ball. While I was there, Victoria and Alex asked Catherine and me to meet them at a house that they found that they are excited about. So after the game, I got on my bike, met Catherine, and then we went up there to check out the house and give it a critical look. After walking through the house, we went over to Greenwood Ave (only two blocks away) and had lunch.
I told them the good news: they are in a win-win situation. They win if their offer on this house is the winning one; if they don't get the house, they win because the house they do end up with will be even better. 😄
In the evening, Catherine and I got on the bus and headed down to the Stadiums, where we met up with Victoria and Alex for a Sounders game (which ended in a tie).
Catherine is heading out to Omak later this morning and will be there all week volunteering for "The Big Fix". I think this is her Fourth, maybe Fifth, time doing this, and she really enjoys it and has become a key part of the team, helping them streamline their warehouse operations. I'll be heading over there to help for the first time on Thursday morning and come back on Sunday.
Love you all and hope you have a wonderful week!
Dan W
