Fun in Seattle

After the Chef's school, I definitely needed R&R. My friends Trini and Jesus de la Cruz, from Madrid were planning to be in Seattle for 5 days the first week in July so I decided it would be fun to go up there and meet them. I quickly called Marilyn and Rowland to see if I could hang out with them for a few days, and their son Scott offered to let me use his son Derek's car (he is at BYU for the summer.), so I found a good price on airfare and I was off and running....well actually flying.

Trini and Jesus arrived the same day I did, so I planned to pick them up the next day for a tour of Seattle's underground city. They were suffering from jet lag, and the guide's jokes were so subtle that they went right over their heads, but we had a lovely tour and then headed off to go shopping.

Trini and Jesus were staying with members of our travel club (that is how I met them...I stayed in their home for 6 nights in Madrid in 2006)so I dropped them back off at the house and got acquainted with the Egans. He is a retired physician (former doc to all the Fords, the Clintons, Colin Powell and the elder Bush family.) She is from Germany, so we had lots of interesting things to talk about.

When we first got back to their house I asked Joe to check the oil in my nephew's car, because it smelled hot to me. Sure enough...no oil, so we went to the store and got a couple of quarts. I mentioned to him that the brakes kept getting softer and softer throughout the afternoon, but the brake shop had already closed.

I headed back to Marilyn and Rowland's house, but I missed the turn that would take me onto the freeway. I ended up on Main Street in Bothell, and when I realized where I had gone wrong, I turned up a side street to turn around. When I was coming back down, I put on the brakes and there was NOTHING. I coasted to a stop...fortunately no cars were coming on that side street. I called Rowland and he came and rescued me. He managed to drive the car home by continually pumping, but he said he could hear brake shoes dragging and main cylinders doing something...I know not what. I feel like I experienced a tiny miracle. Had I NOT missed the turn, the next time I would have braked would have either been in heavy traffic on the missed road or on the freeway....I am so grateful.

The next day I drove Rowland's car....much better. We did a tour of Pike's market where I was the one who kept stopping to buy things. We then went on a lovely Lake Washington Cruise, after which I dropped them off and went back to cook the same marinated pork chops for Marilyn and Rowland.

The next day I had a chance to visit Megan and Michael and their adorable son, Lucas. We all went to the movies, Wall-e, where I promptly fell asleep and only saw the first ten minutes and the last 5. What a waste of money.

I then went to the Egan's for a BBQ....NOT! We started with a very formal table setting with a first course of gaspacho made by Trini, salad, and a chicken dish with fresh spaetzle. We did have corn on the cob...which was actually cooked on the grill. Dessert was an Irish trifle....most unusal 4th BBQ I have attended, but delicious. The Egan's house is on Lake Washington, so we watched gorgeous fireworks for almost an hour from their patio. What a show.

The rest of the week I just hung out with Marilyn and Rowland and on Sunday we had a family dinner at Scott's house, with his family and Jon and Charlotte and Riley. I so enjoyed myself.

It is always good to return home, however, and when I did, I was greeted by La Mar's crew who were here the rest of the week before going on their annual Leo Carillo campout yesterday. On Saturday night we had an additional 8 people sleeping here...Wayne Sanders and his family always spend the pre-camping night with us.