Mukilteo Musings

Part 2--Anniversary Weekend

We can't seem to escape the phone calls from the children. Always in the past, we have traveled with them to places all over the world. I have visions of them running and jumping in the Grande Place in Brussels, playing in the grass in Hyde Park in London, stepping on fountains in Lyon, throwing snowballs along the Seine in Paris, and dancing in the rain in BudaPest. But leaving them for a weekend while we went to San Juan Island a few miles north made them feel like we had driven off and left them alone at the Rye Grass Rest Area in Eastern Washington.

Phone call #1: "Mom, I hate to bug you guys when you are all off on your own and stuff but I can't find my purse---the new one with the bow?!"

"Kaley, I saw it this morning on the kitchen table. It might be under some of the newpspapers?"

"I looked there. It's not there; it's not anywhere."

"I know it was there just a few hours ago. Have you been anywhere?"

"NO! How could I go anywhere without my purse? My wallet, credit card, keys--everything is in there."

"Well, we didn't bring it with us and I am absolutely certain it was there this morning, sweetie. Look for it again."

"[grunt] It's not HERE. BYE! Click."

I knew the purse was there so I did not panic. She never did call us back which meant she found it.

Phone call #2: "Dad, where's the machete? I'm mad at Kaley and want to kill her!"

"Ah, excuse me?!"

"Nah, just kidding. But I do want the machete. I want to cut some more blackberry bushes down behind our fence."

"Are you in the garage? Ok! It's right there on the work bench. Lucas! It has to be right in front of your face. Lucas, look straight ahead. There you go. I told you it was right there."

At that moment, Dave shut off his cell phone and so did I. We figured they wouldn't die for the couple of hours we had for a lovely anniversary dinner. And lovely it was. Our first course was a steamer pot with oysters, mussels, clams and spotted local giant shrimp caught right there in the San Juans. Dave had prime rib and the same shrimp for his entree and I had cedar planked Copper River King.

Phone call #3: I didn't realize until Sunday afternoon that our phones had been off since the night before. Oh well. They knew where we were staying and if anyone had died, we would have heard so I made this phone call home. "Hey, Lucas!"

"Hey, Mom."

"We just got back from whale watching and we saw the J Pod. It was so cool! (silence) Is everything going ok?"

"NO! Kaley is so annoying and I can't find anything. You KNOW I don't live here anymore. Where do you keep all of your cleaning stuff? She won't help me find anything!"

"Ah, what do you need....and why?"

"Apolo threw up."

"Ah, where? Is he ok?"

"Yes, he's fine--his usual Apolo throw up. But I had to clean it up and I couldn't find anything."

"What did he throw up on?"

"The rug by the door."

"Look, use some paper towels and get it up the best you can. That rug can just be washed in the washing machine--no big deal."

"Oh! OK! Good."

"Bye, Lucas."

Yea, I turned my phone off again after that. We were headed to Friday Harbor for another nice evening but there was still one more phone call. This one I eavesdropped.

Phone call #4: Man in Friday Harbor with a drawl from somewhere that is not here, "Hey....yea...Ahm standin' here just a few steps from the OCEAN. Yea, we've been havin' an awfully good time. Yea, we're lookin' for a place to eat. Yea, we're gonna eat fish agin. Yea....yea.....Yep, this is fish country. I guess you gotta eat fish every night. Yea...."

And the following photos were taken between phone calls.


The Chapel next to our room as viewed from the whale watching boat.


Ah. Peace. The view of Roche Harbor from the Chapel.


J-33 photo taken the same day we saw the J-Pod only two hours later. Photo taken by the Center for Whale Research on San Juan Island.


The little restaurant where we had our Sunday evening dinner. And, yea, we had fish for the second night in a row. Imagine. Dave had scallops and I had halibut that was half as expensive as my salmon from the night before and it was to die for. Oh my gosh, I am still thinking about it.

Ah Peace.