Day 12-14, Friday, August 4-6, 2017
I headed out from Portland towards home on Friday morning. Along the way, I stopped off at the Tacoma Marina to meet my friend David, who had a boat moored there. We had talked about just meeting for lunch, but the timing turned out well, as my only commitment was getting back to work the next Monday. The weather was spectacular, so we ended up taking the boat out for a couple of days of relaxation and decompressing.
On our way
Our getaway
The good thing about a boat on the water is that you are a captive to the concept of relaxing. We anchored off of Vashon Island and had almost no interruptions, except for the occasional boat going by. For two days, I read my book, napped on the bow of the boat, sunned myself, fished and crabbed (both rather unsuccessfully, as an octopus kept stealing the bait from the crab pots), ate, drank red wine (Redhead Red blend – yummy!), and swam in the Sound. It was glorious! We ate well, with shish-ka bobs, strawberries, peaches, plums, assorted snacks, and Greek yogurt for breakfast. Corn on the cob and roasted potatoes were salted with sea water and cooked on the BBQ.
We jumped in the water whenever we got too hot, and bobbed on pool noodles and watched the jellyfish float by, drinking canned beer until we got too cold. Well, let’s get real, I always got too cold first. I learned that full beer cans float – I have no idea how I made it into my 40s while living right next door to the ocean without knowing this. The weekend cycle – get hot, jump in, bob, drink beer, climb out, warm up on the bow, repeat.
Jellyfish floating by
David knows I hate Modest Mouse – so every time Modest Mouse came on the Spotify station, he would skip over the song, even if it meant getting up to do it. Bless his sweet heart. We talked about life; all those deep conversations that happen with close quarters, people you cherish, and wine after dark.
The sunset from the water
These were some of the most peaceful, enjoyable days I have experienced in a long time, and the perfect end to a great vacation.
Wine and History Visited 