New Avenues

Aloha! I’m sorry I haven’t been writing as often since my return. It’s been raining daily here in Spokane and since the back porch is the only place I can get an internet signal (and I’d rather not get my laptop wet), my entries have been few and far between. I’ve also been out of town for a few days this week. I took the long drive to Winthrop, WA to see my best friend from childhood, Gracie. And what a wonderful trip it was. That area of the state is beautiful beyond words, and seeing it during the transition from fall to winter was even more spectacular. The yellows, oranges and browns of fall hung below the white capped mountaintops, which were close enough to touch. It started to snow at Gracie’s house the morning that I left; a perfect farewell to a wonderful visit.

I’m now turning a new avenue, having made that long-awaited visit and settled back into Spokane restfully. I’m registering with the Forest Service contracting office for writing/editing/analyzing related projects. It’s a new avenue, but not altogether far off from the kind of work I’m looking for. We’ll see how it all goes.

I have a feeling that as the years pass people will always comment, ‘I remember exactly where I was when I learned Obama was elected.’ I, for one, will have a rather unique story to tell. Since Grace doesn’t have a TV, we went down to the Twisp pub to get word of the election status. We arrived just as John McCain took the podium to announce his defeat. (Which, by the way, was the best speech I’ve heard in a while… I was truly impressed). Grace and I were probably the youngest in the crowd; most were middle-aged couples, and some were hippies in their 30s. But the excitement and anticipation in the room was unparalleled.

Oh, and speaking of new avenues! Guess who has a Costco card now? ME! My first proud purchases were a massive can of coco mix and a box of breakfast drink packets (supposed to be packed with vitamins and minerals – I have to get them somehow). Scott signed up earlier this week and got a second ‘household’ card for free. I was kind of surprised at how excited I got about it… Pretty silly, I know, but that’s just me, I guess.