Play

It’s been a bit of  a bummer summer for me here in the Pacific Northwest. The chilly, dismal weather throughout much of June and July definitely affected my overall mood, in addition to a couple failed job searches and house drama. Now that August has brought hot, sunny weather to Olympia, I’m busy finishing teaching my summer class and frantically preparing lesson plans for the fall quarter. Throughout the upcoming academic year, I will be teaching three classes each quarter on two different campuses while still acting as the technician for the printmaking studio half time. Yes, I am crazy. However for the next 10 months, I am planning on saving  approximately 50% of my income for Future Plans, come hell or high water.

I’m also planning monthly adventures to preserve my sanity during the school year. The first adventure is a road trip to Albuquerque, New Mexico to attend Tamarind Institute’s Fabulous at Fifty Symposium and Conference. Long time readers and friends know how much I absolutely ADORE New Mexico. As excited as I am for the conference, I’m more excited to spend some time driving through the desert. I’ll be camping along the way which means stargazing galore! I hope to be on the road for a week and a half or so, and when I return to Olympia, it’ll already be advising week for the new campus gig. October, November and December’s adventures have yet to be determined, but a holiday in Buffalo with family is in the works as well as a relaxing long weekend at Breitenbush Hot Springs in Oregon. February brings the annual CAA conference in New York City, which will undoubtedly be amazing and re-energizing (couches, friends?). March is a friend’s wedding in Death Valley, California – another weekend of desert camping.

Ultimately all these mini-trips will lead up to a (hopefully) month long adventure in Peru next summer, the main destination being Machu Picchu. I have never traveled out of the country (with the exception of Canada and we all know that doesn’t count). Machu Picchu has always fascinated me; the images of the ancient Incan ruins located on an artificially terraced mountain side look like something I could only have imagined in dreams. I am currently looking for interested traveling buddies, so if you’re interested in spending time in Peru, you know where to reach me.

In the meantime, Little Wings at Northern. Man, I love Little Wings. Album recommendation of the day: Light Green Leaves.

Saturday, I drove to the coast to spend the day on my favorite sandy Washington beach, Copalis. Only in Washington is it acceptable to wrap yourself in a sleeping bag while lounging on your beach blanket. At the end of a long afternoon napping in the dunes, I went beachcombing. After stumbling across a magical abandoned sandcastle, I found the most amazing seashell along a lonely stretch of surf.

Saturday started off with Shipwreck Day, a huge outdoor junk sale that spans the streets of downtown Anacortes. I bought a cedar stump cub head that was made with a chainsaw by this fellow. I was his first sale of the day. The cub was $15 dollars. The thought of my parents opening up their gift in the mail: priceless.

In the early afternoon, a group of increasingly sunburned kids decided to visit nearby Deception Pass, the bridge that connects Whidby Island to Fidalgo Island. To say it was beautiful would be an understatement. I want to go camping here in the fall.

From there, it was a short ride to take in the view from Mt. Erie…

Washington is fucking breathtaking. But then you get weird shit like this:

That night was the final Port Warehouse show. I was mostly excited to see Karl Blau, and I was not disappointed. This was easily the most memorable set I’ve seen him play over the last few years. LAKE was his backing band.

On Sunday morning, I woke up at 6:53 AM. I was immediately awake and there was little hope of falling back asleep. Therefore, I decided to go for a lone drive, exploring Anacortes. I followed the coast line through town, ultimately ending up at jaw dropping Washington Park. The Fog was thick and the salty spray of Puget Sound gave me the distinct impression of Autumn.

View of the bluff from the beach…

The edge of the world…

The view of the ocean from the bluff…

On the way back downtown, I came across this incredible sight. Apparently, decades ago, a Croatian sailor decided to create a marina by dredging the bottom of the cove out and placing it in an old grounded cargo vessel. Birds soon inhabited the man-made island, dropping seeds into the soil, over time creating a small forest.

I was back in time for the final Sunday afternoon show in the park, then headed home to Olympia in time for a later dinner and an early bed time.

What the heck.

What The Heck? Fest 2010 marked the 9th year of the festival and my second year of attendance.  Anacortes is a beautiful, sleepy little town and this year I was able to explore the island a bit. I plan on visiting at least once more before summer ends. An extra special extended photo essay, divided in two parts:

What The Heck 2010, Part 1

The festival began with a long, meandering walk through Anacortes, stopping in front of various businesses and street corners, finally ending up at the marina. “The Friendship Trail” featured 20+ performers singing a couple songs, introducing their music to the masses.

Markly Morrison of LAKE and Skrill Meadow

Karl Blau

The crowd at the Marina

After The Friendship Trail, there was a dinner show and then, later in the evening, the first Port Warehouse Show.

D+, the ultimate Anacortes super group featuring Phil Elverum (Mt. Erie), Bret Lunsford (Beat Happening) and Karl Blau opened the warehouse show. They’re also the awesome organizers of the event. I camped on Bret’s lawn again, as far away from the goats as possible– I learned my lesson from last year! (baby goats sound like wailing babies in the morning).

Broken Water played an early set, finally chasing away the last remnants of my folk doldrums. Broken Water is probably the most exciting band in Olympia right now, for me at least. You really should give them a listen.

LAKE (featuring my housemate Andrew on bass guitar) played later that night and finally got all the kids dancing.

Phil Elverum, one of the main organizers of the festival, rounded out the night with hauntingly beautiful Mount Erie

And Friday night ended with a lovely sunset/ moon rise over the docks.

I found this drawing some time ago on the sidewalk downtown. It might have been outside of Northern. The place escapes me. I’ve had it pinned to my bulletin board for months.

Today, I share it with you.

Off to What The Heck Fest, my unofficial beginning of summer and the official start of my 11 day vacation.

oh, oh in the city…

The LDS Temple Square Information Center:

The Pioneer Museum:

The Capitol Building:

The past month and a half has left me reeling. Changes for the worse at work, heavy course loads all around, application season and other professional obligations have left me with very little personal or creative time. However, after this weekend, I am able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, at least for this quarter. Winter 2010 wraps up in a month. Evaluations week and Spring Break give some needed rest before Spring Quarter begins at the beginning of April. For the break week, which corresponds with my 31st birthday, I’m planning a solo roadtrip Salt Lake City, Utah. A few days on the road there and back, a couple days in the city, and of course, the highlight of my pilgrimage: The Spiral Jetty.

This morning I work to a dense fog descending upon the south sound. The house was quiet, the ambient light peaceful. I grabbed my camera and let the chickens out to run around the yard and eat worms…

A President’s Day Photo Essay:

This is what my experience at VSC has felt like thus far:

Our final day of park exploration began with a small walk through Fern Canyon. As Vanessa succinctly put it: “it’s a canyon… covered in ferns.” nevertheless, it was mighty purty. Then it was off to a large lagoon to rent kayaks. Though I was very pro-kayak in the weeks before our trip, when it came down to getting out in the water on a plastic injection molded floating fluorescent green boat that promised to completely soak my entire lower body, I was less than enthused. However, after a couple false starts, I finally signed my life away for the rental agency and got in the damn boat. I had a dry sack to carry my camera in, so between fumbling for photos and my innate gracelessness, Joel and Vanessa lapped me several times. Meh. On our way home, there was a herd of elk posing for an impromptu photo shoot in a perfectly designated area. One more campfire and Tasty Bite feast later and we were on the road back to Olympia, adventure achieved.

After a day and a half at the hostel, Joel, Vanessa and I continued our travels south along 101 to Trees of Mystery, a thriving roadside attraction. There, we met Paul Bunyan and Babe the Big Blue Ox (who, funnily enough, has only one giant testicle). Paul winks, shakes his hand, smiles and talks to tourists in a throaty bellow. Lumberjacks! From there we traveled to our next camping destination, the popular Gold Bluff Beach campground in Prairie Creek Redwood State Park. We went off-roading with Betty, my two door hatchback Hyundai Accent, along 6 miles of winding dirt roads down a steep ocean-side bluff. We chose an amazing campsite, pitched our tents, and meandered for several hours down an eerily socked in beach that looked like something out of the movies. We stumbled upon three male elk, bachelors all, among the dunes. They’re massive beasts and apparently unpredictable during mating season. I was sure to keep my distance. It was truly a breathtaking scene.