08 July

12:34:56 July 8, 2009


(Above, Gus and I at Hurricane Ridge) While record temps are being set in Anchorage, AK, various members of our family are at different points in the North. Gus and I, along with my Dad, sister and niece hiked up Hurricane Ridge (where we saw lots of deer) in the Olympic Forest. Derek and Willie are experiencing a new meaning of "Baked Alaska" by surviving the record heat at home in Anchorage. Kristen is aboard the research vessel T/S Oshoro-Maru in the Bering Sea, some 800+ air miles from Anchorage. We were thinking of her last night as we watched the new episodes of the Discovery Channel's Alaska's Deadliest Catch which features extreme crews of crabbing boats out of Dutch Harbor, AK. I was so relieved to hear from her via an on-board Japanese e-mail account. While her UAF research team was docked in Dutch Harbor this weekend, she was able to send us a few incredible photos of her research adventures on the high seas. Kristen and I tried to i-Chat (video conferencing) but we had a bandwidth issue and ended up just calling each other and talking on the phone the old-fashion way. She has some great stories.

While the hubby is holding down the fort back home and taking Tauzer on her daily "walkies," Gus and I have a fun-filled slate of family activities scheduled the next few days here on the Olympic Peninsula. Other family members are arriving this week in preparation for my parents 50th Anniversary celebration on Saturday. Tough duty, but my Grandma made a pedicure and massage appointment for my sister and I today! I have never had a pedicure and it's been years since I treated myself to a massage. Our mom is taking our kids shopping and with the kids in good hands and our really cool Ford Edge rental car, I'm not sure my sister and I will come home, we're feeling a bit youthful -ha! Well, we'll want to come back because after our spa-spoil we're going to Graysmarsh Farm and take the kids to do the U-
Pick berries and Lavender. I'm really looking forward to going to the exhibit in Port Townsend this coming Sunday to see my Dad's assemblage pieces that were accepted in a juried show. I'll be sure to post pictures of PT and all of the great galleries there. Port Townsend is quite the artists town. There are also a couple of openings on Friday night here in Sequim I want to check out as well. We took a tour of the wonderful public sculptures yesterday in Port Angeles and then went beach combing. I had every member of my family gathering
driftwood for my Salmon Wind Sculptures! 

My dad told me that this afternoon there will be an unusual time and date sequence, 12:34:56 7-8-09. Cool huh? He's in a golf tournament and was trying to figure out how he can be on the right hole at the right time to enhance his score... maybe at 12:34:56 he should be on the 10th hole or be riding in the #10 cart?!

The bottom three photos are from Kristen, in Dutch Harbor.

4 comments:

cookingwithgas said...

Gosh! It looks wonderful there!
Enjoy and after our 8th of July from last year I hope you dad bestows good luck on us all with his numbers!

cindy shake said...

Hi Meredith! Thanks for the post -yes, it is really pretty here. The pines are so much larger here than in AK. Though all of us are laughing at the fact that it is hotter up in AK than here in Sequim!! The Lavender Festival is next week and is supposed to be lot sunnier :o) Yeah, Dad is also into convergences (sp?) special places with latitude and longitudinal qualities -fun talk especially fun with a few cold beverages...

Linda Starr said...

You and Gus look like you are on top of the world have fun, love Gus' hat.

cindy shake said...

Hi Linda! That is his "Indiana Jones Hat!" It goes with him everywhere. After hiking up, my legs sure felt like we were on top of the world! -HA!