Thanksgiving 2024

 

After getting the pies baked Wednesday morning, we sailed away to Whidbey Island for an island Thanksgiving.

Jill and Isaac and Irene had for many years flown to Colorado to be with her inlaws, the other grandparents, and related cousins. A move to Nebraska made travel too distant and Jill and the kids needed a replacement. They chose Whidbey.

We assembled at tne cabin and a rented house annex, took walks as the sun set, had a mac and cheese super, and played games.

Thanksgiving morning was cold and clear.

Jill was used to doing most of the cooking in Colorado and announced that she would be doing the same now, with just a little help. I had made the pies, Jan was in charge of the yams and some of the hors d' oeuvres, and Tom was in charge of cooking/smoking the turkey.

We had time to go for walks and have a cribbage tournament. 

Then it was time to get serious about eating. Tom carved the turkey.

The sunset filled the sky with atumnal colors. 

The table was set and ready.

There was a warm glow both outside and inside, as we shared good food and thoughts of thankfulness. 

Tom, Seila, Isaac, Jill, Irene, Jake, Jan, and me behind the camera. 

Jill did a wonderful job of cooking and coordinating everything. It was a very good Thanksgiving, which continued into Friday with a little local shopping, more eating, and sharing.

Tom and I are home now on this Friday evening, content and ready to make lists of what's next. 

Cleaning Up

 Tomorrow it will be a week since the bomb cyclone hit us. While California got the floods, we here in the Puget Sound area got the wind. With so many trees here, about 50,000 homes are still without power. We were very fortunate, but our neighbors on the next street just got power yesterday. 

We have done a great deal of cleaning up. I raked and Tom mowed and we both used the leaf blower to put things back to normal.

Inside, I cleared all of the pottery collection off the shelves

and stored the pottery in tubs in the garage. I have to make room for the Santa collection, of course.

Jake came over to help Tom get the Christmas lights on the house while we had a dry day. We will probably wait until after Thanksgiving to turn them on. 

Saturday night our Sounders played a Los Angeles team, won and now advance to the soccer conference final next weekend, against the other LA team, both powerhouses. If they win they play for the MLS Cup. On Sunday our Seahawks won their football game against rival Arizona Cardinals. It was a good sports weekend and a chance to rest. 

Now we prepare for Thanksgiving, which we will celebrate with our family this year at the cabin on Whidbey Island. I'm in charge of pies. 

All is well for this thankful family.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

I'm Back

 We got bombed by the cyclone. Here by the airport the highest wind gust was 59 MPH, enough to make trees come down or shed major limbs, take out lots of power lines and cable service.

We lost power for 13 hours, dusk or 4:40 Tuesday evening until dawn, or 6:50 Wednesday morning. We were fortunate. Some of our neighbors, and many thousands in the general area are still out on this Friday afternoon. 

Cable service was out until this morning, so no internet, no TV, no phone land line. We did have cellular data and cell phones. I missed not having TV in the evenings. Since I still don't have my glasses, making do with inadequate reading glasses is giving me headaches. 

However we have spent a lot of time outside, cleaning up.

Tuesday evening we stayed cozy with a fire in the fireplace and candle light.

When the candles burned down, about 10:30, we went to bed, with extra blankets. 

This is how it looked Wednesday morning when I walked out to the street to get the newspaper. There wasn't one. 

I laughed at this.  This grinning face on our greenhouse had caught a little twig decoration. 

No real damage was done except that our old dogwood tree came down in the neighbor's yard and took out part of their fence. 

And a fir tree branch speared a corner of our garage roof. 

Tom and I were out in the morning to begin clean up. We got the driveway cleared. Jill and Jake came over about noon. Jill got on the roof to put a temporary patch on the hole in the roof. 

Tom had stored a glass birdbath in the attic. Turns out it was right under the hole. No water damage. Now there is a bucket under it. 

Jill and Jake used power tools to cut up the dogwood and get the neighbor's yard cleaned up. Tom borrowed a pickup the next day and hauled piles to the transfer station yard waste dump, where it will eventually become compost. 

Tom and I did more clean up and hauling on Thursday. I did a lot of raking  and picking up. Now today, Friday, we are resting. Mostly. We went to our usual breakfast, took our 97 year old friend to the Dollar Store, and did our weekly Safeway shopping. 

It has been an adventure. There will be more clean up to do. The insurance company has been notified. We have another small shopping trip to make. And then, we will settle in, warm and safe, and WATCH TV AND SCROLL ON OUR TABLET AND LAP TOP. 

Ah, the modern conveniences. I don't think I would have been a very good pioneer. 

Get Ready For A Blast

 A blast of wind, that is. And rain.

The west coast is on alert for severe weather starting this afternoon, as we are in the path of a "Bomb Cyclone".

Meterologists call it a bombogenesis, which occurs when there is a rapid pressure drop. It will bring high winds and heavy rainfall to the coastal areas and snow in the mountains. Power outages are expected. 

The initial blast will be followed by a days long "Atmospheric River" which will dump rain and may cause flooding, especially in northern California and southwest Oregon. 

I'm not sure what the impact will be here in Puget Sound Country. We won't be comfortable if we have a long power outage, but we can manage. 

I do know that it will be the last of the pretty leaves still on branches.

The leaves will all be on the ground, turning to mush in the rain. 

There will be more clean up to do after Thanksgiving.

We'll say farewell to the golden season.