Hello from Washington

Our weather has been so weird the past week. Some days have been dreary, one morning we woke to snow, and then Friday it was absolutely sunny and beautiful. Today it's dreary and cold again. The temperatures continue to drop to freezing or below almost every night. Friday I wanted to take a drive out to our Point Defiance Park and make a squished penny for Robin's daughter, Gabby. It was a beautiful day and would have loved to visit the entire Zoo & Aquarium but by the time we got there it was almost 3pm and the place closed at 4pm. So seeing the animals, etc will have to wait for another day.

this pagoda style building is on the main road just after you enter the park.

this is the newest entrance to the zoo and aquarium~very different from when I was a kid or even when my kids were kids. You can actually see Puget Sound and the Cascade Mountains in the background.

Our next stop was at a friend of Bob's. They recently acquired a Basset Hound puppy. They've had Basset's before and are thrilled with 8 week old Susie. She is really a cutie~little short legs and long soft ears.

And last but not least we stopped on the street behind the Russ Dunmire Oldsmobile building. It's empty now and the sign has been removed from the front of the building but I discovered it was still across the back. Oldsmobiles, of course are a thing of the past but they switched over to Mazda's and have moved to a newer more modern building. I worked here from September 1964 thru April of 1968 as their Parts & Service cashier. It was a great place to work and I'm still friends with a couple of the other gals that worked in the office.

I was happy to get a squished penny for Gabby. I started getting them for my son in law when I found out he had a collection. And now I'm hooked on them, too. I know I had some when I was a kid but of course I have no clue what happened to them. I have a Penny Collector Book that's almost full. And will begin to look for them at yard sales, etc. The one below, I got in Alaska in 2007.

Bob has been talking about going to Sandpoint, Idaho to ski at Scheitzer Mountain but he's been getting some skiing in locally so I don't think we'll be going there at this point. I'd rather wait until the winter weather is over and head east to Yellowstone and maybe even Mt Rushmore. I've never been to either place and think it would be great fun. For now, I'm content to just stay home and get some things done around the house. Although I do wish it would warm up just a little.

This coming Monday, I'm hosting another potluck up at the Clubhouse for the gals from my high school graduating class. I'm really looking forward to getting together again. Several are snowbirds and are in Arizona, so they won't be able to attend but we can have another one when they get home in a couple months.

That's about all for now...I hope everyone is having a good weekend. Until next time, Linda

FOOD FRIDAY

My mom made this version of meatloaf during my growing up years. I've been making it for the last 45 or so years. Mom got it off the side of the Quaker Oatmeal container but I call it.........

Mama's Meatloaf
1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1 cup tomato juice (I use one of the little 5.5 fl oz cans that comes in a 6 pak)
3/4 cup Quaker Oats (quick or old fashioned)
1 egg beaten
1/4 cup chopped onion
pinch of salt and pepper and a little garlic powder

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients, mixing lightly but thoroughly. Press into a loaf pan. Drizzle catsup over the top of the meatloaf before baking 1 hour at 350* letting stand at least 5 minutes after that hour. Drain any grease and serve.

Watched An Old Movie Last Night

Last night we watched "Paint Your Wagon." I love the music from that film. Here's one song from that great movie.

Tuesday is Movie Day

Tuesday is the normal 'go to the movie day' for my friend Barbara and myself. We are both looking forward to tomorrow....we'll be seeing the new Tyler Perry movie "Madea Goes To Jail." I love Tyler Perry and I love his movies. A friend of mine has already seen it and she said "be prepared to laugh yourself silly." I'm prepared !

IS EVERYONE AWARE OF THIS BLOG?

I'm sure I heard about this at the time but had forgotten. Just found the link so wanted to share it with others who may not be aware of it.
http://jlandhub.blogspot.com/

Titled 'J-Land Central' it contains; " Information about blogging for bloggers by bloggers of the J-land community." I've added it to my list of 'Blogs I Follow.'

"Slumdog Millionaire"

Well, this very interesting movie got many awards at the Oscars tonight. I did see it last Tuesday and it is a good movie. It is however very sad in a way, the horrible poverty and living conditions of India are not glossed over in this movie. I was pleased to hear that they were bringing the cast of young kids that played the two brothers and the girl through the years to America and to the awards ceremony in Los Angeles. These kids were pretty much chosen off the streets of Mumbai for their roles in this movie.

It was good to see their sweet little faces, all scrubbed clean and dressed in fine clothes, on the podium tonight as this wonderful movie won the award for 'Best Movie.'

If you get a chance to... go...see it...you'll be glad you did. And when you leave the theater you'll have a new appreciation for all that we have.

A word of warning...this movie is not for children, especially under the age of 15 or so.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ROBIN !!!!

Today is her 42nd birthday. Please stop by and leave your birthday wishes to a sweet lady. She's been talking about her birthday for months, so we can't let it go by unnoticed. You can find Robin at; http://yellowbrickroadtwo.blogspot.com/

Hope This Brings A Laugh To You

I am so bummed tonight...I took some great pictures while I was out & around today and I can't get them off the stupid memory card. I should have known better to even use it because it's an old card that I found in a purse and when I plugged it into my printer only about half of the 'old' pictures would download. But I grabbed it in haste today and now I'm disappointed.

I got this video in an email the other day (I think it was Robin that sent it to me) so decided to share it since I don't have pictures to share. Have a good weekend. Linda

FOOD FRIDAY

Salmon With Ginger Glaze

4 six ounce salmon fillets about 1 inch think, skinned

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon grated fresh or 1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Preheat broiler. Coat rack or broiler pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, whisk sugar, mustard and ginger. Season both sides of fillets with salt & pepper. Place salmon on broiler rack and brush glaze on top.

Broil 10-12 minutes or until fish is lightly browned.

Serve with rice or baked potato and fresh green salad.

Blogger's Community Photo Challenge~Winter

Blogger's Community Photo Challenge~Winter

SPONSOR AN EXECUTIVE~GIVE ALL YOU CAN

Wow these Canadians really let you drive fast !

When we first saw the '90' sign I thought "Wow, you can really go fast here on this Canadian highway." And Bob stepped on the gas a little and then it dawned on us "It's kilometers." 90 kilometers is the equivalent to 55 miles per hour. He slowed down. Thankfully our cars here in the U.S. have both MPH and KM on our speedometers.

President's Day

(Thanks to Sugar for this President's Day graphic)

Today, February 16th we celebrate the birthday's of two of our great President's ~ George Washington who was born February 22, 1732 and died December 14, 1799 & Abrham Lincoln who was born February 12, 1809 and died April 15, 1865. It's a bank holiday and also a postal department holiday. So kick back and enjoy the last day of your 3 day weekend.

Canadian Mini Vacation

I was so excited to go on this little trip. I haven't been up Vancouver way for years and never to Whistler. The last time Bob skied at Whistler was about 25 years ago. I was really amazed at the distances we had to travel. From here to Blaine, WA (near the border crossing) it's 152 miles north on Interstate 5. Then from Blaine to Vancouver, BC it's 31 miles and from Vancouver to Whistler it's 78 miles. And that last 78 miles is very rough in some places. They have a ton of work to do before the 2010 Olympics begin next February. In some places it's a very bumpy two lane road. There are also places where they are having huge problems with rock slides, etc. Actually some of that road is sort of scary. I understand the opening & closing ceremonies as well as most of the award ceremonies will be held in Vancouver. And the some of athletes that participate in snow competitions will be bussed back & forth between Whistler & Vancouver. That's a 156 round mile trip.

We crossed thru the border in a manner of minutes...with our Passports. There's a highway that by-passes downtown Vancouver and we took that to save time. So we didn't actually ever get into Vancouver proper. (I wanted to go to Stanley Park so bad~but as Bob pointed out it's winter it wouldn't be that fun right now.)

We actually arrived in Whistler at the Trendwest/Worldmark resort (Cascade Lodge) about 4:30pm. Check in time is not until 4pm so we timed it just right.

Below are some pictures that I took during our 3 days up there in that beautiful northern part of British Columbia.

Blaine, Washington actually has two border crossing locations. We did not use the Peace Arch crossing~the sign said the wait time there was longer. Approaching the Horseshoe Bay Terminal.

We're next. Here's a section of the highway where the conditions are fairly bad, but they are working on it. Lots of snow piled up along the side of the road. They do a great job of keeping the road clear. But whatever they use turned my black car, a grayish white. It was horrible by the time we got back.

This is the road we want to get to Whistler

Yeah !!!!!!! We're here!

Driving around looking for Cascade Lodge

Little people getting ready for a ski lesson. I saw little ones no older than two or three years old learning to ski.

One of the free shuttle buses that will take you from the place you're staying to the ski area. They have a wonderful transit system.

I loved the name of this shop~ Knicknacks Paddywacks (give a dog a bone)
There's at least two Starbucks in the Village~maybe more

There's a gondola heading up the slope.

This one was running at night too~we thought people were taking it up to a restaurant/pub.

Looking down the one of the many streets of Whistler Village

Some really colorful ski/snowboard outfits~this was 2 guys wearing this outfits
Our home away from home for 3 nights. See header picture for the view of the lodge.

Living room with slider going out to a balcony

Gee it's messy with our junk

This kitchen was nicer than mine at home, for one thing this place had a dishwasher & I don't have one. There was also a stacked washer/dryer unit over to the right of the kitchen area. We brought all our food & cooked dinner Wednesday & Thursday evenings.

The pool and one of the two hot tubs at the back of the lodge

Night view of the pool & hot tubs

Back to the village

Yup there's even a McDonald's there. With outside racks for skis and snowboards.

I took this picture as we were heading down towards Vancouver on our way home.

A beautiful sunset Friday about 5pm as we headed south. The water is a salt water inlet coming from the Strait of Georgia that runs between the mainland and Vancouver Island. Vancouver Island is the location of British Columbia's capital city of Victoria (one of my favorite places to go).

We tried to use our debit or credit cards for purchases there because I quickly discovered that if you handed over U.S. money they gave you change in Canadian money. I cashed in some Canadian bills but brought home the coins and I gave each of my grand kids a "Toonie" (a two dollar coin). The exchange rate flucuated even in the few days we were there. It's really strange how that works.

We didn't leave Whistler until about 3:30pm Friday so that had us going thru Vancouver during the evening rush hour. Then it took us about 30 minutes to get thru the border....the cars were really backed up. So we got here about 9:45pm Friday night. We got the car unloaded and then yesterday I got all the stuff put away, picked up Gabi and got my filthy car washed, so things are back to normal now.

I think it will be really fun to watch the 2010 Winter Olympics next February now that we've been up there and have seen the beginning stages of Canada getting ready for the big event. The Olympic torch was lit Thursday morning (February 12th) but we missed it because we didn't realize it was going to happen. Then that evening Bob went into town and saw some more events celebrating the day (1 year to the day of the start of the 2010 Olympics) but I missed those things because I was so tired and my knee hurt from walking around the Village all day so I stayed back at the condo and watched TV. But I did get some "Official" Olympics stuff (pins, postcards, etc). Hope you enjoyed this little mini vacation into cold, snowy Canada. Until next time, Linda

Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing you love, joy and peace on this Valentine's Day!

(Remember Valentine candy will be on sale tomorrow)

Honey, I'm Home

After what seemed like a very long 6 hour drive, we arrived safe and sound in Tacoma tonight at about 9:30pm. By the time we packed up and loaded the car we didn't check out of the condo until the appointed time of 12 noon. We then drove within a few blocks of Whistler Village and wandered around so Bob could find some new ski gloves. We'd gone to one of those time share presentation's yesterday and for our trouble, they gave us each a $50 gift card good at a few stores and restaurants there at Whistler. He found the gloves, on sale at The Columbia Sportswear store and with my gift card, we had a very nice lunch and got a pizza to go, so we'd have something to eat later tonight or after we got home.

The weather was perfect for the long drive, no fog, rain or snow. Dry pavement all the way. There was about a 25 minute delay going thru the border but other than that it was smooth sailing.

It's good to be home and all unpacked. Now I'm off to bed with my book and my kitty.........oh that's right my kitty isn't here. I'll get her Saturday from my grand daughter.