Two homes?

 

The new pleasant dilemma. Now that I'm back in Seattle, I want to be in Twisp. The long drive home is usually exhausting, but I'd happily get in the car tomorrow.  

The best time of day? Early golden sunrise shining through the living room window. I head to the kitchen while John is still asleep to start the coffee, then wait for the deer to wander by the deck.

Did I die and go to heaven?  Just kidding...but it took a few days to sink in. I can't remember being so happy.

The beach changes daily as the spring run-off subsides.

A few days ago, it was running hard, as the heat wave melted most of the high mountain snow. The temperature was 90 degrees at the top of Washington Pass in the North Cascades.

Our little slice of private beach.

Well, sorta private. Shared with a family of turkeys-- mom and 8 babies on the lawn. And a beaver somewhere. And deer. And countless birds.

Our property sign, left by the previous owners. Use gently. Thank you.

In the late afternoon, a trickle of neighbors from the adjoining street cross our property to enjoy the shoreline with their dogs and inflatables. 

This was a surprise the first night. Are they going to make a fire or have a picnic? Linger? But everyone is courteous, friendly and respectful. 

We felt right at home. In fact, I think we made more neighborhood friends in Twisp in 4 days than 40 years on this block in West Seattle. The advantage of small town living, especially when you have a daughter like Amanda, who everyone knows and loves.

 

A few words about the previous owners. She left us this message in the hall which sums it all up. 

We never met them, unfortunately, but they left the house sparkling clean, move-in ready, with every thoughtful thing to be completely comfortable on the first night, including a kitchen equipped with all the basics. Such kindness. It was like checking into an airbnb but better.

They moved to their retirement home in Nevada for full time living. Who knows? We might follow them in a few years after the Methow winters sink in.  But for now, intend to enjoy every minute of this new home adventure. 

A river runs past it

 

And what's this?  Well, finally the big reveal on that project I've been hinting about, in the works for several intense weeks now. I just didn't want to jinx it. 

This is our new vacation home in Twisp on the Methow River. A river runs right past it, and hopefully never through it!  Our lot, just under a half acre, has 100 feet of private riverbank. Yes, the river is close and magnificent, especially during the spring run off. It is simply mesmerizing. 

Having a retreat from Seattle, where life becomes more and more intense, has been a long-standing dream of mine. John not so much, but when the perfect property came on the market, God bless him, he told me just go for it. Now or never. And so I did. Time will tell how this great expensive experiment works out. You never know until you try.

Best of all, we're just a few blocks from Amanda, Tom and the girls and we can walk to everything in town. So our saga of second home ownership is just getting started. 

I woke up at dawn, sat by the window with my cup of coffee, and met some of the neighbors. 

In case you need more proof, here's John assembling furniture from a box. Something he is very good at.

He is happier than he looks. In fact, we are both pretty excited. I keep thinking I'm about to wake up from a dream.  More later on this new adventure when we get the Internet up and running at the house.  

Small miracles

 

 

I was laying in bed wide awake around midnight. The upstairs of the house had reached an incredible 95 degrees when we went to bed. The air was absolutely still and suffocating. Then suddenly I felt it, the tiniest hint of cool air stirred the curtains. My imagination?

No, our "natural air conditioning" from the coast switched on and this immense high pressure system is slowly giving way to a more normal weather pattern.  At 5:30 am, it was 84 degrees inside and 64 degrees outside.

We are headed to Twisp today where it is still quite hot, but that's OK.  We have a big surprise. Pictures soon.

Washington coast

 

Amanda, Tom and the kids went on a 7-day backpack with another family at Olympic National Park. The kids are great hikers. Everyone carries their weight, and they went about 25 miles.

Some pictures of the adventure below. It looks so cool and beautiful compared to here. Seattle might hit an unbelievable, absolutely unheard of high of 110 today before cooler air finally comes in from this very coast.  Bring it on.

 

Great memories in the making.

Scenic trails along the rugged coast.

Amanda (looking relaxed) and Nova.

Perfect weather means spectacular sunsets.

Imagine carrying in a week's worth of food for 3 growing kids and 4 adults?

Rugged, steep trails.

Beach fun.

Hiking along wilderness rivers.

 

Last but not least, back in civilization. After a night in a motel bed and a shower, a restaurant breakfast for two clean girls.

Yes, hot

 

Something we never do: eat dinner outside on the deck.  It's usually too chilly, too breezy, too noisy on the street, etc.  Cold noodle salad with shrimp. White wine on ice cubes. 

Our weather made the national news for good reason.  It has simply never been this hot before in the Northwest. Well, in the era of modern record keeping. Many locals have never experienced a heat wave like this in their entire lives, and it's overwhelming.

Thank goodness for our basement bedroom where it stays quite tolerable.  When I came upstairs at 4:30 am it was 86 degrees inside. About 75 outside. I opened every window and door to try and cool things down for the day.

Another record high today close to 100, then even hotter tomorrow before this weird weather pattern finally starts to break down and marine air moves in from the coast. Our natural air conditioning is broken for now.

Strange times. My friend Betsy (a Northwest native) says it feels "apocalyptic." 

Ta-da

 

 

A long, long wait for new furniture these days.  We ordered this reclining love seat from Lazy Boy over 2 months ago, and it was finally delivered yesterday.  

No problem getting in the basement...or getting the old one out. John tipped the hefty delivery fellows, and they hauled it up and out to the curb.  Usually, when we put things out there with a free sign they're gone within the hour. This might be the exception. It is still serviceable, but rather worn and a heavy sucker to haul off.

The new one looks beautiful, although last night when we plunked down to watch TV it sure felt different. Well, after sitting in the same recliner for over 30 years, a new seat is going to feel that way at first. It just needs some breaking in. Our you-know-whats had pretty much molded to the old one.

The other news is weather. We're approaching Las Vegas temperatures over the weekend, one forecaster said a jaw-dropping 109 degrees.  Only about 33% of people in Seattle have air-conditioning. In recorded history, it has never been that hot in Seattle. Sitting here on this pleasant 64 degree morning, it's hard to imagine such a thing is bearing down on us.