Monthly Archives: April 2011

Wednesday was my last day on Orcas.  My step-sister Joan and I were going to attend the Senior Center’s monthly High Tea with Faith, my step-mother.  I was going to pick them up at the house about 1:30, for the … Continue reading →

I just finished Sarah  Vowell’s new book Unfamiliar Fishes. Once again, Vowell reads a lot of books so that we don’t have to.  She is  master at synthesizing massive amounts of research into short, clear, readable books that teach a … Continue reading →

The ferry pulled into the Orcas landing shortly before noon.  The Coast Guard boat slowed to a stop.  It looked like the guy in the cabin was talking on the radio.  Then the guy in the back (with the gun) … Continue reading →

  They came on the intecom and reassured all the ferry passengers that having a Coast Guard boat pace us was not cause for concern. This was just a random, routine escort because we are in a waterway that’s an international … Continue reading →

  I get lost a lot.  Once I got lost on a straight stretch of road with no cross streets.  True story. I get lost so frequently that I’ve decided it’s a weird kind of gift.  A knack.  I have … Continue reading →

Deception Pass is about 20 miles south of Anacortes.  George Vancouver named the pass out of his disappointment.  He thought he had an inland passage, but the currents were so treacherous that a ship couldn’t get through it.   The … Continue reading →

Saturday, 4/16/2011  The drive from Eugene to Anacortes, Washington, was half-hellish.  The first stretch, to Portland, was fine.  Then it went downhill.  Portland is called the City of Bridges.  Heading northbound on I-5, you cross a bridge to enter the … Continue reading →

Friday, April 15, 2011 The elk were out by Highway 20.   This part of California reminds me of Ursula LeGuin’s book Always Coming Home. * From Northbound Interstate 5, Southern Weed looks like a science fiction forest, a surreal … Continue reading →