But, this is Washington, it must be raining
June 7, 2002: Kathy was out in Seattle, doing a sort of final work fling; she made a boat-load of money (but earned it, with the amount and intensity of the effort). I flew out to Portland (my brother and his many-talented wife Val live just over the Washington state border in Vancouver. The weather was wonderful, most of the time. This business about it raining every day in the Portland are is a myth — actually it only rains about 300 days/year :-)

I was completely smitten by the quality, the warmth, of the sun. It was like it'd had a makeover, relative to that same sunshine here in Massachusetts. 

This was a short visit, even shorter for Kathy. I flew from Manchester, NH to the Portland, Oregon airport arriving around two in the afternoon. United (bless their little airline hearts) allowed me to upgrade to First Class; I was on a free ticket and this is a definite "no-no". Appreciated, tho'.

Kathy drove down from Seattle (about 3 hours away) and met me there Friday afternoon.  It's nice to meet up with her anywhere, but at the end of a journey just makes it that much more special.

After settling in just a bit at Mark and Val's, we headed to their boat Andante, for an overnight cruise down the Willamette and Colombia rivers. The scenery was great, and was snacked out on wine, cheese and "stuff".

Mark and Val belong to a boating organization called US Power Squadron (not to be confused with the USPS, those people who lose your mail). The destination of our trip was the town, or maybe more accurately the pier of St. Helens. Yes, that St. Helens. I don't think we actually saw the mounting (it was a bit cloudy). The town itself is basic; a few restaurants, antique shops. One horse town.

The Power Squadron (this was their get-together) seems a fun and gregarious bunch, joined together by a love of boating. The boats varied dramatically, some were multi-hundred-thousand-dollar yachts, others more modest. Boats. People. Dogs. Music.

The boat trip was the highlight of the visit; Kathy returned to Seattle on Sunday afternoon, I "hung out" mostly on Monday, and was back to Westford (where it was raining...) late on Tuesday.

Photo highlights:

(click any picture below for a full-sized version. Subjects are my brother Mark, his wife & family)

Co-Captain Val Ship's Mascot Nuclear blast (or maybe it was sunset) Many-talented Val plays kantele too. Who knew? Bridie BB Doggie Grandkids1 Grandkids2 Kid and Kidlet Along the way1 Along the way2 Along the way3 Along the way4