Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Here Comes The Sun

Finally! A nice sunny day, with no wind! Only one, though. Still, I enjoyed it very much, and even on the overcast days, it isn't quite as cold as long as it isn't windy.

Last night we went out. I had on two pairs of socks under my shoes, and Ava was wearing sandals with bare feet! I guess it's all about the weather that one is used to.

There is a girl from Spain staying at the house for a year while she works on her English studies. She is very nice, her name is Andrea and she has been helping me practice my Spanish. Yay!

It is so funny how other countries see us from the outside. I have two little anecdotes...

I was reading Andrea' s English textbook. It has little blurbs in it about what to expect when you arrive in the United States. One of the blurbs says that the people in public areas here do not always say hello or acknowledge you, so you should not be offended if that happens. I guess we are seen as more 'stand-offish' than other countries?

We were driving in the car today and we pulled up behind one of those yellow public school buses. Andrea says "I love those buses. They are such a typical American thing." (like hot dogs and apple pie?) She said in Spain, the kids just take a regular public transit bus to school. It just seemed funny to me, a school bus being Americana.

We have attended two of our Halloween parties so far. I think I have eaten enough food to last me the whole time I am here. And we still have trick-or-treating tomorrow. Which Andrea is very excited about, by the way. She has never observed that particular custom before. Both Ava and I are going to be black kitties. I'm sure we will have fun.

Cat

Friday, October 25, 2013

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Haven't written in a while. Mostly my life has been all beads and (new)grandbabies, which is a good thing.

The good: I'm in Seattle right now, visiting with my oldest grand-daughter.

The bad: I'm in Seattle. I love this town for many reasons, but the weather isn't one of them. It is cold and rainy. We have had one nice day during the week I've been here, so there is that.

The ugly: eeeeek!!!! Raccoons attacked our trash last night, and now it is strewn all over the deck. Raccoons=cute; the mess they create=ugly.

Ava is in school during the week, so I've had the daytime to "do my own thing". I've gotten lots of beading done (what? you think I travel without my beads?) and explored more of downtown Seattle. Found a great place for lunch! Tiny deli, so small I think you couldn't fit more than 10 people in there, and they had a line out the door for lunch. They were fast though, so it took only a few minutes to get to the front of the line and order the same thing everyone else was ordering - teriyaki chicken with pot stickers and rice, regular or spicy. One of the best meals I've ever had here in Seattle!

We were driving home one evening when we saw a thick fog rolling in over Puget Sound. We stopped and took a ton of pictures. I'll see if any of them look any good when I get home. I'm sure none of them will capture the feeling of being there. About 15 other cars were stopped there taking pictures also.

I have a friend here, and I left her a message asking if we can get together for lunch, but she hasn't called back. Maybe she (like my daughter) doesn't check her voice mails? I'll have to send her a message, I really want to see her.

We have a big week planned - three Halloween parties coming up!

Cat