30 August 2010 by ben.

At the Big Band Jazz and Auction in May of this year, Kim and I saw a very appealing auction item:  a boating adventure with Kim and Scott Yale complete with a delicious picnic lunch and beverages.  We’ve known Scott and Kim for several years through the high school jazz program, and so we knew we’d love to spend the day with them, and getting a grand tour on their new boat would make the day a highlight of the summer for us.

Kim, Bonnie, Sandy and I met the Yale’s at their dock on the north end of Lake Union in Seattle, stepped aboard shortly before noon, and headed out.  First, Scott took us around Lake Union, which boasts the largest houseboat population of any lake in America.  Most houseboats have a considerable amount of character, including one packed with metal sculptures, another with dozens of plants and trees growing from planters, and another which was Tom Hanks’ home for the filming of Sleepless in Seattle (shown below).

Next up:   Lake Washington.  We slowly motored through the Montlake Cut and under the drawbridge, turned right and passed I-520 freeway high rise, and then  Scott then hit the gas and we jetted down to Seward Park at 45+ miles per hour.  Whee!!  After testing the breeze around Seward Park, Scott brought us to the southern, leeward side of the park (almost an island) where we anchored and devoured the delicious picnic packed by Kim — chips, nuts,melon wedges, gourmet sandwiches, drinks, and cookies.

By this time, the cloud cover finally vanished for good, so Scott and Kim Yale and then Bonnie all jumped in to cool off — Bonnie in her shorts and T-shirt!  We watched the paddleboard class paddle to the right and then paddle back, observed a juvenile bald eagle take off and head south, and generally just lazed around for a while.

Finally, the afternoon drew to a close.  Scott pulled up the anchor and treated us to a rapid circumnavigation of Mercer Island, pointing out a few landmarks along the way such as the Gates’ mansion.  A great day was had by all!

Click the photo below to access the archive:

Sleepless in Seattle houseboat

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25 August 2010 by ben.

On 18 August, Kim, Bonnie and I drove over Washington Pass to Klipchuck Campground, a few miles from Mazama and a few more from Winthrop, for a short camping trip.  Our plan was to hike every day, dine at least once on burgers and fries at the Old Schoolhouse Brewery in Winthrop, and treat ourselves to ice cream and lattes at Sherry’s in Winthrop.

Thankfully, the heat wave in eastern Washington waned the day we arrived, and we enjoyed our first hike in near perfect conditions — sunny and about 65 degrees (at 6800′ elevation).  We drove to Harts Pass, a rather tense drive through the woods often with a large sloping dropoff on one side and just a single lane of road width.  During one stretch of about 1/2 mile, the slope on the left side was steep and dropped off 800′.  But we made it to Harts Pass and then the two mile jaunt to Meadows Campground.  Our round trip to Grasshopper Pass (about 11 miles) took most of the day and afforded incredible views every step of the way.

Day 2, we drove to Winthrop and then up a road to Sun Mountain Lodge for an easier day of hiking on the hills above Winthrop with great views of the Methow River Valley in many places.  When we stopped for a light lunch, I sat on a stump and then got up with sticky sap on my shorts.

Day 3, we drove west to the Cutthroad Lake and Cutthroat Pass trail head.  Before the day was done, we’d hiked 12 miles and climbed 2400′ to the pass, which intersects with the Pacific Crest Trail.  Enroute, we stopped for a snack and happened across two white-tailed ptarmigans (approachable if you are slow and patient), lots of squirrels, mountain bikers, hikers with dogs (one named “Nathan” who posed with Bonnie), and a kajillion wild huckleberries.  On our return from the pass, we picked enough wild huckleberries for our pancakes the next morning.

To view the photo archive, click the photo below:

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13 August 2010 by ben.

In early August, 2010, Phil, Max, Bonnie and I drove to eastern Washington to a trail head about twenty miles past Cle Elum and hiked up to Esmeralda Basin.  This was Max’s longest hike ever, 7 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 1750′.  He did great, soaking his baseball cap at each opportunity to keep cool.

We packed a lunch and enjoyed the brisk cool breeze at the crest of the basin and relaxed for another half hour, posing for shots and looking for wildlife, before heading back down.  On the return to Seattle, we detoured slightly to visit Roslyn, where Northern Exposure (TV series) was filmed, and ate at Village Pizza.  Bonnie was thrilled to see a few of the Northern Exposure sets — the external of The Brick, the KHBR studio (Chris in the Morning), the general store, and Dr. JoEL Fleishmann’s (Rob Morrow) office, which is now a Northern Exposure gift shop.  Bonnie picked up a light green Northern Exposure T-shirt and wears it as often as possible.

Max, Phil, Bonnie, and Ben at Esmeralda Basin.  Click for more photos.

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30 June 2010 by ben.

Sandy and a gaggle of her friends hosted their own potluck dinner on Prom Night this past June.  After taking a few photos of the group in the back yard, two departed with other friends, and the remaining eight headed down to Dahl Field just to hang out for a while before the drive to the dance.  I tagged along and took some additional photos of the group dressed in their prom night finery.

Click the photo to see the complete set.

Prom Night at Sandy’s House

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13 June 2009 by ben.

Stuart MacDonald led Jazz Band 2 and Jazz Band 3 through their end-of-year concert last Thursday evening.  Both bands showed off their chops as they swung through a challenging pair of sets largely of compositions written by local area composers.

Jazz Band 2 entered the stage in surprise garb meant to reflect Stuart’s preference for wearing sweaters onstage.  Both band’s contributed towards a pair of stylish retro shoes for Stuart.

Stuart MacDonald and the Roosevelt High School Jazz Band II

Stuart MacDonald and the Roosevelt High School Jazz Band III 

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20 April 2009 by ben.

Kim’s grandmother, Ida “Nanna” Stabbe, turned 100 in May.  We visited a month before her actual birthday, during Sandy and Bonnie’s spring break, and enjoyed a nice visit with Nanna, Aunt Susie, Uncle Lyle and Aunt Phyllis, and many other relatives.  Here is Nanna before she cleaned our clocks at the family version of pinochle (”hunchnocle”):

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8 March 2009 by ben.

Yesterday, Bonnie competed in two music categories at the 2009 Solo and Ensemble Competition.  If a player is judged the category winner, then he or she or they win the right to compete at the statewide competition held in Ellensburg in April.

I didn’t take any photos during the performances, but I did take a few during setup.

Kevin and Bonnie warming up to play Blue Bells of Scotland

 From left, Dan, Bonnie, Tim, Jimmy, Zach, Ethan, Shandra preparing to play.

Bonnie finished tied for fourth place in the city.  Here is an excerpt from her Blue Bells of Scotland.

The ensemble won a trip to the State finals with this performance of Grand Valley Fanfare.  However, they will decline to compete at State because three members will be performing on that same day in the Reno Jazz Festival.

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2 February 2009 by ben.

Recently, my Aunt Susie sent me and Kim a newspaper clipping of a remarkable photo.  She, plus her mom (99 years old), her daughter, her grand-daughter, and her great-grand-son posed together at the wedding of grand-daughter Brandy.

Click the photo to see the newspaper clipping.

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23 January 2009 by ben.

Aunt Sallie

Last Sunday, Kim, Bonnie, Sandy and I drove to Eugene, Oregon, to help celebrate my aunt’s birthday.  Her children and grandchildren, esp. Georgi, Mike, and Margaret (and others I’m sure!) hosted a gathering of about 100 family and friends at a church meeting hall which was only a few blocks from their old family home on Park Avenue.  All seven of Aunt Sallie’s children attended, as did her two nieces and nephew of her brother George who passed away a few years ago.  I’d never met Uncle George’s children and I had not seen several of Aunt Sallie’s kids since 1971.  So in a way, this party also felt like a reunion.  Afterwards, many of us met in cousin Corey’s motel room for several more hours to get caught up on family and life in general. Read the rest of this entry »

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22 December 2008 by ben.

Snow continues.  Raffle gets a lift.  Everybody is happy!

The first day of winter brought the 2nd consecutive day of 6+ inches of snow falling in our neighborhood.  This is definitely the whitest week I’ve seen since I moved to Seattle in 1979.  Raffle (the Snow Queen) was born in northern Alberta in December, and so she only knew snow for the first five months of her life.  The snow in the backyard finally got too deep for her, so we cut channels so she wouldn’t vanish in a drift.

From left to right:  Pippin, Bonnie, Raffle, Sandy

Raffle enjoying her life as the Snow Queen, being waited on by Sandy

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