Sunday

Cal playing in a birdbath, June 2007

Where The Sidewalk Ends

There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.

Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.

Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.

Shel Silverstein

the trail

Here's a look at some of the sights in Myrtle Edwards Park and on the Elliott Bay bike trail between Magnolia, where we live and get on the trail, and the Sculpture Park, pictured in yesterday's post. The trail is heavily used by those walking, running and biking. The winding bike and pedestrian paths parallel Elliott Bay, and offer fantastic views of the Olympic Mountains, Mount Rainier, and Puget Sound.

Grain Terminal and ship in the background

Rose Garden

Picnic at the Olympic Sculpture Park

After the fishing detour mentioned in yesterday's post, we continued down the bike path to the Olympic Sculpture Park for a picnic lunch.

Here we are resting at the halfway point of our ride on one of Louise Borgeois' Eye Benches.

Father and Son, Louise Borgeois

the trail, with Puget Sound in the background

Schubert Sonata, Mark di Suvero

Happily, this table was open for our picnic. Look carefully at this photo and the next to see how Love & Loss is spelled out.

Gone fishing part II

On a bike ride yesterday we rode past the Elliott Bay Fishing Pier. Alexi and Abbott were ahead of Cal and me, so they pulled over to check out the fishing action. Here's an excerpt from Alexi's email to his father describing the experience:

"...This afternoon we went on a bike ride and had a picnic at the sculpture park, where the trail ends. Along the way, Abbott and I detoured out to the fishing pier - see attached pics. 'Terrance' (I think that was his name) was very enthusiastic about sharing his expertise and equipment with us. He caught the big perch with a baby crab. He used raw shrimp from the store to help Abbott catch several little perch. I told him I thought perch were fresh water, and he said they were a kind of 'surf perch'. Terrence said he'd caught the ling cod 5 times this summer, until one day he saw a diver spear-fishing. No more ling cod since then. Apparently it's a $1500 fine if caught with a fish like that out of season. He whipped the picture out of his wallet. There was a similar, undated picture on the shelter bulletin board; he said the game warden had told him to take down the one with the date because the date was out of season. Anyway, I can't wait to have you and Abbott give it a whirl."

birthday questions

Cal blowing out the candle in his birthday dessert at Etta's

The past couple of years we've asked Abbott and Cal this set of questions on their birthday, and videotaped their responses. We got these questions from our friend Kathleen.

1. What is your name?
2. How old are you?
3. What is your favorite color?
4. What is your favorite food/thing to eat?
5. What is your favorite song?
6. What is your favorite book?
7. What is your favorite movie?
8. What is your favorite thing/possession?
9. What is your favorite thing to do/activity?
10. Who is your best friend?
11. What do you want to be when you grow up?
12. Where would you like to travel to?
13. What is the thing you are most proud of in the last year?
14. What is the thing that you’d most like to accomplish (learn to do) in the next year?
15. If you could invite any 5 people to a party, who would they be?
16. If you could have anything you could wish for, what would it be?
17. What was one of the best things about being X years old? (this last year)
18. What are you looking forward to being Y years old? (this year)

Many of the answers have remained consistent from last year to this, such as favorite color (pink for Cal, red and blue for Abbott) and favorite food (shrimp and corn for Cal, spaghetti and meatballs for Abbott).

island living

Last week we visited friends on lovely Lopez Island. They finished construction on their summer home August 1; we were fortunate to be some of the first visitors. I've been to Lopez Island many times before and love the beauty and the laid back culture.

Here we are leaving Anacortes on the ferry for Lopez Island.

The architecture of our friends' cabin emphasizes open, communal space, with no walls for bedrooms (two loft levels for sleeping above the main floor), and a Murphy bed on the main floor to maximize space:

Aleck Bay:

Lopez Island is home to about 2000 year round residents, many of whom make a living farming, fishing, and raising livestock, and includes a sizeable artist population. The island has a pastoral landscape with rolling green hills. Biking is popular, because the island is relatively flat. There are a number of farms - one that is so committed to sustainability that the plowing is done with a horse drawn plow. Eggs can be had at the mailboxes of many - take some, leave your money. The same goes for produce.