Greetings from sunny Southern California! All is swell and sweltering here. We’re happy to be home from our trip to Washington. Coco, who stayed home, was happy to see us. For the first few days after our return, I could barely walk without tripping over her. But now, Winston, my daughter's westie, is visiting so our dog is distracted.
We spent the first couple of days of our trip visiting my son's family in the Bay Area. On Saturday, we went to the water park and played. Sunday, we went to church, came home, and played some more. That evening, we headed out and spent the night near Shasta. The next day, we stopped in Medford and toured the Harry and David Factory (something I’ve always wanted to do.) I loved it and the complimentary chocolates and cookies, plus it was an inspiration for my Haywood Family Farm in the Small Town Series.
We had a lovely time with my sister and her husband in Portland. They’re an inspiration! With all of their family and friends coming and going, their lives are full.
The next day, we drove up to North Bend and checked out the starting and finishing lines of our race. Throughout Washington, they’ve torn up the railroad tracks and turned them into bike trails (and marathon courses.) Near the beginning of the full marathon, there’s a two-mile-long tunnel. We couldn’t find the beginning of the half marathon because it turns out I had to walk up a mile-long hill to reach the starting line. Rude. That means my race was 14 miles instead of 13.
We arrived at my brother's that evening. We had a great time, biking, kayaking on Lake Goodwin, poking around downtown Arlington’s cute shops, eating at Jimmy’s, driving out to the Oso memorial, and playing games. Arlington is the inspiration for the town of Cascadia in my Small Town Series.
Maybe my favorite part of the trip was our visit to my dad’s house. The new owners saw us taking pictures and invited us in. They were a lovely young couple with two little boys. He’s an accountant who is turning Dad’s shop into his home office. She’s a teacher at the elementary school across the street. They’re fixing up the house and it will be lovely when they’re finished. The basement has been transformed and she got teary-eyed when she talked about it being a teenage hangout. They put the French doors leading to the patio back in (my stepmother had replaced them with bookshelves) and they’re building a giant outdoor living space in the backyard. She told me she’s “obsessed” with the house and she told her husband when she first saw it “This house is it for me.” She had even purchased Dad’s book, and she has it and a license plate she found in the shop that says Pearl Harbor on it displayed in her dining room curio cabinet. It’s fun to see someone loving our old home.
Arlington itself is super cute. They built a giant gazebo in Legionnaire’s Park in the center of town. My brother said that at Christmas time they put in a skating rink. If they’re trying to create a Hallmark atmosphere, they’re doing a good job.
The day before the race, we went to our hotel near the Snoqualmie Summit and filled up on pancakes. We tried to go to bed early because our alarms went off at 3:45 a.m. so we could make the bus at 4.
Waiting for the bus at dark o'thirty.
The weather was perfect—in the high fifties when we started and about 70 when we finished. All downhill, running through the woods past waterfalls, over trestles.
My goal was to finish—and I did in 3.5 hours. Larry had his personal best time of 3.53. Can you see how happy he is?
After our race.
The sad part of our trip was we were so crippled after our run we could barely walk. We had planned on hiking Multnomah Falls and visiting lavender fields (because I have lavender fields in the novella I'm currently working on, Christmas Letters) but we crashed at a hotel instead. On Sunday, we went to church, drove to Crater Lake (which is gorgeous), had a picnic, and (loaded up on Advil) headed home.
Now that I'm home, I'm looking for something to read. Do you have any suggestions?
I got this awesome-sauce review of my book. This reader liked it, so maybe you will, too.
5 Stars! Terrific book!
July 30, 2023
| Verified Purchase
I really enjoyed reading this book. Darby is a top-of-the-line accountant who doesn't really like her job. While waiting at the airport for her English boyfriend, a man next to her accidentally spills coffee on her, which winds up changing her entire life and career.
May all your stories have happy endings,
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