Get Hitched!

"Get Hitched!" said the calendar on my phone, so casually. As if it were just reminding me of some movie I was looking forward to. "Get Hitched!" it said without a hint of stress, nervousness, or worry. And why not? This is the day I've been looking forward to for years, to get married to my best friend!

And yet, as the day approached, stress began to set in. "How's the wedding planning coming?" Thoughtful friends and family would ask of us and we would share a nervous smile as thoughts of all the things that still needed to be done were brought again to the forefront of our minds. The cake, a photographer, flowers, drinks, food, who is doing what, how to get the sound system to play our music at the right time... and so on. But these worries were easily tempered by supportive family who reminded us that everything would be great, weddings are what you make of it, and the most important thing is to relax and have fun. They couldn't have been more right.

January 25th, 2014, I married Erinn, my best friend, and our wedding was truly wonderful. The weather was a perfect 70 degrees with sunny skies, we were surrounded by loving friends and family, and we definitely did not do that thing with the cake where you're supposed to feed each other, but really you just smash your cake in their face and for some reason that's still a funny thing for people to do. We didn't do that. Instead, we cut the cake, fed each other, danced with each other, sang Country Roads, and had fun. We didn't have a big wedding, a fancy wedding, one with rituals, or one with seven courses for dinner. While these are all great kinds of weddings (and I've been to some great ones), it would have been strange for us. We wanted a simple, fun, beautiful wedding where we could relax and spend time with people we love and that's exactly what we got.

I am so thankful for all the people who made it up to Aptos for the wedding and for everyone who helped put it all together. Now if only we could get married again. Wouldn't that be fun!

Uncle Richard

(Some of) My Family

Erinn's Family

(Some of) My Seattle Family

A Wonderful Toast from a Wonderful Friend

My Wife

Movies That Move Us to Travel

A few days ago, we finally saw The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, a movie we had been looking forward to seeing for quite a while, but hadn't yet found the time to see. We made our way to the movie theater, got our popcorn and Cherry Coke, turned our phones on silent, and settled in.

I had a friend once describe movies as two-hour vacations and I always loved that description. You pop in a movie and you're off to Paris with Owen Wilson and Ernest Hemingway for a while. Or maybe take in the afternoon fighting mummies in the Egyptian desert with Brendan Fraser. If there's an overarching theme of the movies I like to watch, it's that they're usually set in some far-off or otherwise exotic location, usually someplace I hope to visit. But my favorite movies are always the ones that get me excited to get up off my butt and travel!

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was just that. One of those wonderful and exciting movies that teases you with beautiful landscapes and the fun of life on the go and leaves you at the credits wanting to trade the drive home for an Airstream and the open road or maybe a backpack and a hiking trail. For me, the movie is about remembering that life is moving very quickly whether I spend it sitting in front of a TV or camping in Yosemite, so I really should make every effort to live my life fully instead of regretting the things I didn't do. To quote Richard Dahlstrom, "there's a glorious life in each of us that’s waiting to be lived.  It’s the crises we face that will either fan it to flame or kill it." I might not spend my life travelling constantly like I sometimes dream, but I shouldn't settle for life in a place I don't love or jobs that leave me with no free time to do the things I enjoy. Walter Mitty reminded me that I need to make more time for the things that enrich my life.

Into The Wild is another favorite of mine. An idealistic traveler who roams the western United States, trying to have a real, genuine life experience is exactly the kind of movie that inspires me to travel. Although the tone of the movie is sometimes sad and the ending is not one I'd envision for myself, the main character's longing for a life lived fully coupled with some beautiful music by Eddie Veddar touched at the part of me which wants to get rid of everything and travel.



Amelie was one of the first movies that made me want to see France. The music, the love story, the cinematography, and the beautiful city are just so much fun to see on screen. Amelie, herself, is adorable and sweet, but is living her own restrained, inhibited life. She is shy and sometimes dreams of doing things, but mostly keeps to herself. She's no recluse or social idiot, just a realistic rendition of what it can be like to be shy. This is all challenged through love, neighbors-turned-friends, and her own desire to do something with her life and it's all beautiful and wonderful to see.

Paris je t'aime is another fun movie about France's great city. Less about wanderlust and more about the many different ways one can enjoy Paris, as an American living in a desert valley of California, it certainly tugs at my desire to travel. One great bit about Paris je t'aime is that it's essentially 18 short movies tied together by Paris. So, if you get bored with one story, just wait a few minutes for the next one. For me, they're all good. One of my favorites is the segment on a middle-aged American woman who visits Paris alone, speaking with a very American accent, trying her best to get a true Parisian experience, taking in the food, gardens, and museums, and realizing that while she loves her time in Paris, she longs for home. Travel can be a good reminder of the wonderful things we have at home.

Olympic

One of my favorite memories from visiting Seattle as a kid was taking the ferry across the Puget Sound. I don't remember specifically why we needed to take the ferry, just that I loved sitting on the boat, watching the waves as I drank a cup of hot chocolate. So, in the spirit of reliving happy memories, I was eager to find a reason to hop on a ferry to anywhere while we were up in Washington and I jumped at my aunt and uncle's suggestion to take the Coupeville ferry to Port Townsend on our way to Olympic National Park. It's funny because it's probably one of the shortest ferry routes available in the whole area, but I was still very excited to do it.

After Port Townsend, we drove through sunny Sequim, which sits in a rain shadow next to the Olympic mountains and gets a Los Angeles-like 16 inches of rain a year. True to reputation, Sequim was bright and sunny while a few more miles down the road, at the entrance to the Olympic National Park, it predictably began to rain.

The Olympic mountains are amazing. We stopped at Hurricane Ridge, about half an hour up the road from Port Angeles. From the visitor's center up there, you can see mountains everywhere. It's a completely panoramic viewpoint.

Vancouver, BC

Despite travelling over a thousand miles, our journey north had not yet reached its pinnacle. Last year, the big loop we made in our travels went as far north and east as South Dakota before turning back to the west. This year, we'd leave the country, struggling for words to describe our jobs and where we lived to an impatient border security official who seemed a teensy bit confused when we said we were visiting Vancouver just to visit Vancouver.

"Who are you visiting in Vancouver?" she asked.

"No one. We're just going to visit Vancouver and see the city" I replied, a little worried that I might say something idiotic and have to answer more questions in an even more intimidating setting.

After a bit of brow-furrowing, she returned our passports and welcomed us to Canada, our minor bit of anxiety turning into excitement and then back to anxiety as we realized the speed signs used kilometers per hour, not miles per hour. The Prius, unlike many other cars, doesn't have an analog speedometer with both mph and kph, but just digital numbers on their own. After a bit of fidgeting with the controls, Erinn switched it to kph and we were back to being excited.

Canada!

As with Seattle, our visit to Vancouver was much too short to do anything but skim the surface. We made the most of it by eating some bangers and mash at The Irish Heather, wandering around for miles inside beautiful Stanley Park, and trying some unique sushi at The Eatery.

The Irish Heather is a very cool pub on the edge of Gastown that has super tasty British/Irish food and specializes in good whiskey. My flank steak was delicious, but Erinn's bangers and mash was so good we still talk about it. I definitely recommend a stroll around Gastown, a quick hello to Gassy Jack, and some bangers and mash at The Irish Heather.

Gassy Jack

We started our second day with Stanley Park, the 1,000 acre park which sits right next to downtown Vancouver and which you have to drive through to pass over the Lionsgate Bridge to get to North Vancouver. It's a massive park to simply have sitting on such a prime piece of real estate, but it's wonderful that they've kept it like that. It's a beautiful park with cool trails all throughout it. We walked up and down it and went to the Vancouver Aquarium, also inside Stanley Park.

Other highlights from Vancouver were the Capilano Suspension Bridge and Granville Island, which is this tiny little island south of downtown Vancouver and sits, almost hidden, underneath the Granville St. Bridge. It's really this whole market of stuff, with a public market full of food, nice restaurants, a park, a brewery, wine tasting, a comedy club, art studios, and probably lots of other stuff we missed and yet it's all on this small, hidden island tucked away under a bridge.

Well, after a couple of days in beautiful Vancouver, we went back to America. There were a few things I wish we'd been able to do. I wish we'd gone up to Whistler, just to say we'd done it. I wish I'd gotten some french fries and gravy. And I wish we'd been able to stay a couple nights in Victoria.

Guess we'll just have to go north again!

My Seattle Family

I love Seattle for many reasons. It's a beautiful city with lots to do, music is everywhere, and you can't beat Mt. Rainier as a backdrop. Seattle is so much different than my home town of Bakersfield. At home, nature is a few hours away, not part of our every day lives. We travel to nature, whether it's to the beach at Morro Bay or up to the mountains for Yosemite. Seattle is a big city, like many others, but nature seems to be all around. Whether it's heard in casual conversation or experienced as a walk at a nearby lake, nature is part of life here. Yet the best part of Seattle for me is being able to visit my family.

Waffles Caffe

We rarely make it all the way up to that corner of the world, but I am so thankful we made it on this trip. It had been way too long since I'd been to Seattle. Growing up, we'd make the long drive up north for long family vacations. A few times during Christmas break and once or twice during summer. But for Erinn, this was her first visit to Seattle and I was very eager to make a good impression.

After a quick breakfast of gluten-free waffles at the Waffles Caffe in Yakima, we took highway 90 through the cascades, stopping at Snoqualmie Falls for a beautiful view. For travelers driving through the mountains, Snoqualmie Falls is only a few minutes from the highway. For visitors to Seattle, it's only about a half an hour. Well worth the trip.

Snoqualmie Falls

That morning started a bit chilly, with a covering of clouds typical of the Pacific Northwest, but soon after leaving Snoqualmie, we were fortunate enough to have the clouds part and the sun shine through, brightening up the city as we drove in. We took advantage of the clear skies and rode the elevator to the top of the Space Needle, quickly crossing one item off our Seattle to-do list. Not long after, we made it to my Aunt and Uncle's house for a mini family reunion dinner.

That night we caught up around a dinner of salmon, talking about travel, all the cool things there are to do in Seattle, rock climbing, concerts, wine, Bainbridge Island, how badly Portland wishes it was Seattle, and how Erinn and I belong in Washington. We followed dinner with a walk along Green Lake, joining the hundreds of like-minded people who were also enjoying the beautiful weather, taking strolls of their own. Our own walk took us to the southern end of the lake where the bleachers sit, perfectly situated for kicking up your feet and watching the sun set. Everywhere I looked, people were outside, enjoying being outside. Running up the bleachers, jogging along the path, lawn bowling at the park, relaxing by the lake.

The next day we did a little more sightseeing. We rode the Great Wheel, got a crepe at a little shop in the back of Pike Place Market, saw the Fremont Troll, checked out some Daleks and Princess Bride costumes at the EMP, and spent the afternoon with my cousins at Bitterroot BBQ.

The Great Wheel

Fremont Troll

The Iron Throne

You've got red on you.

Exterminate!

We barely scratched the surface in Seattle. More than anything, our two days there made me wish we could just stay. I know we'll go back again soon, but until then, I'll miss the mountains, the music, the clean air, and my Seattle family.


Recommended:


Around Seattle:

• Pike Place Market
• The EMP Museum
• The Space Needle

Outside Seattle:

• Snoqualmie Falls - 1/2 hour drive from Seattle

The Ballard area:

• Ballard Ave and the surrounding area
• Sonic Boom
• Bitterroot BBQ
• The Noble Fir