Feast

 It was a feast in mid-winter, the food was real good,

We had turkey and fixin's in a house build of wood,

Our builder has kindly done way more the he should,

With great thanks we feasted him, so down in his belly he understood.

Sue Cook back cooking on The Pilchuck. Isn't that gravy?

We were dedicated to the task of giving a home-cooked feast of thanks to our general contractor, Phil. In the six years since the house burned to the ground, Phil has tirelessly watched the property, replaced the gate and its locks numerous times, chased off malicious trespassers and fought with the county permitting bureaucracies to get this rebuild off the ground.

I happen to know his favorite meal is a roasted turkey. Sue and I planned to honor Phil's efforts above and beyond what any other contractor would have done for us with a feast. It would be like Thanksgiving, only in January.

We shopped all over Arlington looking for a post-holiday turkey. We eventually
found 3 at Safeway. Entre secured, we had an easier time with the sweet potatoes, breaded stuffing, green bean casserole, cranberries and of course, Sue's exceptional home-baked pumpkin pie (with a dollop of whipped cream).

One of Phil's recent tales of woe; he cooked a recent Thanksgiving dinner and had his bitchy ex-wife crash the event with her boyfriend and when she left his table, she took all of the leftovers which Phil was looking forward to savoring in the coming days. For some justice and compensation, we sent Phil home with more than plenty of the leftovers this time. 

Phil deserves some good. And without a doubt, Sue served up some good home cooking in our new kitchen (installed by Phil).

DIY By the Cedar Your Planks

 Susan comes to town for Christmas. Oh by golly, it's a holly jolly holiday. It's the best time of the year. I take her to our new home, it is a phoenix home. 

On this spot was her home where she was born and raised. 

On this spot rises a new home from the ashes of her former home that was torched by arsonist in 2016.

On this spot, we still have a construction site, but we do have a decent and habitable dwelling. It is a good place to spend Christmas 2022 together and it is a good place to ring in the New Year for 2023 together.

The cold and snowy weather and the restful holidays keep the contractors at bay as we try out living together in a new space with limited interruptions from workmen on the premises. Yet, there are touches and additions still to be done in 2023 before our house is a home and we are granted the coveted Certificate of Occupancy by the county inspector.

In the spirit of building our home together, there are sixty-six raw, cedar planks  sitting in the basement in need of a finishing stain before they are mounted on the vaulted ceiling in the master bedroom. 

Susan dons, if not not gay apparel (fa-la-la, la la-la-la-la-la!); some of my most undistinguished clothes, and with brush in hand, administers a coat of stain to the cedar planks as she hums a yule tide carol... Fa-la-la La-la-la-la-la-la!

An elf in Santa's Basement Workshop, staining cedar lath to be mounted on the Master BR ceiling

Santa checks his list, then he's back checking it twice. Santa wants to know if these are nice cedar planks?

The elf in the workshop replies, "Why no Santa, these are knotty cedar planks."

Dazzle Me!

December's snow has turned to water, 

Christmas Days have come and gone; 

memories and dazzling colors are all that's left to linger on. 

[John Prine - sort of]

Sue and I paid a visit to dad, a two hour drive south to Tumwater, caught up with him in person and picked up a bedroom dresser that was mom's and mirror to haul back and put in the new house. We had supper with Sheri and Tony before driving back north on I-5.

The Tulalip Tribe has a large casino on I-5 in Marysville, just 12 miles from The Pilchuck. The Indians do have a flare for celebrating, 4th of July with the Swinomish Tribe in La Conner is spectacular and the Tulalip casino at Christmas is arrestingly dazzling in its own right.

Almost home, driving north at 9 PM on a frigid early January evening, to our left the winter's darkness is magically dispelled around the casino by light-wrapped trees. One can not help but be favorably impressed by the sight. One of the wonderful little things about having my wife with me is the opportunity to dash into a spontaneous adventure. I likely would not have deviated from my route home if I were traveling alone. It's different when you are traveling as a couple. It is fun to be married and to still look for chances to dazzle my sweetheart.

We sped past the display of a myriad holiday lights and some comments were made, something like, "I wonder how many lights are out there? How long does it take to put them up? They sure are pretty..."

I exited the interstate and made a U-turn across the overpass. My passenger shot a gleeful look at me, "Are we going to the casino?" 

I executed my U-turn, "I'm going to attempt to dazzle you, my love. Are you prepared to be dazzled?" 

She just beamed as we pulled into the parking lot. This was going to be a fun detour. We didn't have the warmest of coats for this 25 F night, but we could link arms and huddle close together as we strolled among the Tulalip Christmas Lights.

Beaming wife Dazzled by casino Christmas lights

Wandering the grounds was a bit of fun, post-holiday magic. I always liked taking a girl out at night to go look at the lights. It is still magic to do it with this girl.

I think I was told there are over 3,000,000 LED lights wrapped out to the tips of all of these thin tree branches. Impressive. We ducked into the casino, but didn't drop any coin there, just took a gander at the lighted slot machine rows and all of the players. Then it was back up the road to a warm, post-holiday bed. Impressive.

We were indeed dazzled.

New Year's Day on Camano Island

 

A beautiful New Year's Day on Camano Island, looking north across peaceful waters

The snow of mid-December had melted. 

The rain had stopped. 

The winds had been spent.

The top of 2023 was looking pretty fine. It was a calm, sunny New Year's Day and it was a great time to visit one of our favorite shores for strolling and holding hands. It was a great day for the two of us to walk along the edge of salt water, stepping over surf-rounded stones as some sea birds flew above and some others dove below the placid waters. 

We spent the short hours of light allotted to this latitude hopping from one topic to another, often we swung back to ponder geologic coastal depositional strata or the mineral assemblage of a curious, wave-swept boulder. We are a good pair when we are among our solid friends, the rocks and stones of Camano Island.

She lives and works in Texas. She lives a normal life. 

I have left a normal life life in Texas behind. I have left her in Texas as I chase a dream. 

I seek a quiet house among the trees along the bank of Pilchuck Creek, and there I long to live with my wife as we  host friends and family at our table and welcome the wash of the coming years in tranquility. I may yet have my myth emerge from the shadows, and stride into the light of reality. Chasing a dream has a high toll to take from me in time away from Susan and the neglect of the Texas home. 

She tells me this is my Odyssey; I am Odysseus and like him, the fates have kept me away from making a home with her. She is Penelope, Odysseus' wife, weaving everyday at her loom to await the fulfillment of our dream together. If so, finding myself in the middle of myth is difficult to endure.

I savor the minutes together. I have always found her most alluring when she has the wind in her hair and she is settled against a weathered log, or perched like a siren atop a large rock. I ask her to pause, lean against that log and to look at me. I want to remember this, I want to take a photograph.

Susan cooperates and the shutter clicks. We wander off down the beach. I love our moments together.

Kelp of the sea is stranded upon the salt-and-pepper texture of a Canadian granite.

I seldom see myself in a mirror, but I feel I have gone feral.

Every rock tells a story

Roots of a once towering tree rise on the beach and turn to the setting sun. It is a fine day. May all of 2023 be so.

We Put Out the Welcome Mat - Inga & Sean

Welcome mat gift from Grant & Kaileen sits on the gneiss foyer entry ready for Inga and Sean's arrival

We literally rolled out the welcome mat, awaiting the arrival of our daughter and her steadfast boyfriend, Sean at The Pilchuck. Inga had plans to come up and greet her mother on Christmas Day, but I waived her off, saying I'd like a few days with her mother all to myself before the kids came along. 

But once the kids got here on December 30th, it was grand!

Mom bakes for the kids

We used the kitchen as a kitchen should be used; cooking for a family, cooking for visitors, visiting while cooking for family. It is all good. We ate, we slept, we talked, we lounged by the wood fire. We enjoyed the holiday and one another before they returned to Portland on New Year's Day. 

Texas Pecan Pie - One of Sue's Greatest Recipes

In early December, Inga's Subaru had been stolen for the second time this year in the lawless city of Portland. It had been recovered and reported by a citizen's group who helps victims of auto theft find their stolen vehicles. Under trying circumstances, Inga and Sean cleaned out the dirty drug needles and dope paraphernalia strewn around the slashed upholstery. They dumped the stolen clothing and electronics that were of no interest to the Police. Then Inga had Suby Suneson towed to the repair shop and let them and her insurance settle on the course of action.  While being repaired, they drove the four hours north in Sean's car for a relaxing few days on the Pilchuck.  *Post Script: Once repaired and street legal, Inga, tired of hyper vigilance while leaving her car parked on a public street sold it for a modest price and uses public transportation. 

Sean and Inga rolled through the gate in mid-afternoon and proceeded to make themselves at home in the sparse, but functional house. They had the guest bedroom upstairs, her parents took the downstairs bedroom and bath. No doors until March 1, 2023, but we four made it work quite well.

Inga & Sean arrive at the Pilchuck, a 4 hour drive north of Portland.

They demand a tour, and their wish is my enjoyable command. Off we go to check on the building progress of the house. 

We tour the loft/sunrise tearoom/studio - sewing room, above the office. This will be the last portion of the house to get finished. It has a granite exterior façade that faces east and catches the morning sun. Great for a quite loft above the rest of the house to start the day with a warm cup between your palms. I have painted it in warm, ombre colors at the top to invoke the sunrise. The lower part is in lightening shade of ombre blues to invoke the lifting of the Pacific Northwest morning fog. 

Downstairs large, forest glade bedroom

Next stop, we descend into the basement bedroom, the largest of the three bedrooms in the house. I am working to make this room a thematic one that brings to mind the peaceful ambiance of a green, forest glade. 

The downstairs bedroom also has a luxurious bathroom with a large soaking tub, tiled walls, double vanity and a pebbled floor that swirls around the tub and into the shower and also branches off and flows into the private water closet.

Tour complete, let's eat. 

Mom does mangoes

Inga loves her red meat. As do I. Her visit is a wonderful occasion to buy a rib roast and cook it medium rare. Open a bottle of wine and enjoy life and family. And so it was done. Phil, my general contractor is kind of sweet on my wife. He wanted to make sure that I didn't mess up my chance when Sue came up for the holidays. He brought a couple of bottles of wine for us to celebrate. I thanked him and told him that the Moscato was a favorite of Sue's. He noticed that I had some mangoes in the fridge, and then returned with a bottle of mango Moscato. She does like the bubbly sweetness and can handle maybe two glasses before she gets into giggly drinking bubbles. She can be fun. 

A bottle of Mango Moscato, a gift from Phil Jubie, our General Contractor

Fine dining on the Pilchuck

Sean works on scripting a YouTube gamer's presentation for his channel. Mother and daughter talk.