Tiny Baby

Last month I saw giant elephants walking on the access road. This month, I found a tiny baby squirrel laying in the middle of a street in my neighborhood. I wonder what animal encounter next month will bring?  Please, no snakes.  

AutoMech

Chris and I went to a car museum.  There were lots of cars, and I took my time examining them until I realized that I was on one of four levels.  The museum had A LOT of cars, and one really cool pegasus.

Chris was particularly interested in the race car, probably because race car driver is his dream job, or maybe because he was examining the wall mounting system.

After looking at so many cars, I learned that old cars have cool details - lights that resemble lamps or eyes, curves galore, and tons of chrome.  I like old cars.

I also learned that the first electric cars were invented in the early 1900's and were considered vehicles for women and doctors.  They had feminine details like lace curtains and a flower vase.  I don't know why electric cars weren't popularized until the Prius, or why doctors drove feminine cars in the early 1900's.

While in the museum, I finally found a Ferrari that I would drive.  I never really like Ferraris before visiting the museum.  I think the problem was that I never saw multiple Ferraris lined up together. 

Chris found a model of his very first car.  Unfortunately, we didn't find the car he drove when I met him.  I guess a multicolored Chevy Cavalier without heating is not classic . . . yet.

Seaside

My cousin Seth called this a pigeon brothel.   I like it, so I must like pigeon brothels. 

Family Vacation

My dad's family reunited in the Seattle area last week.   My dad's family last gathered in July of 2000.

Twelve years later, our outward appearances had changed a lot!

One highlight of the reunion was a family beach walk on Marrowstone Island.  My uncle stuck his hands into the tide pools and pulled out all kinds of sea creatures.  We saw sea anemone, star fish, crabs, sea roaches, and lots of sand dollars.

While on the beach we met a very friendly little boy who told us that he had collected over 1,000 golf balls on the beach, that his dog saved him after a bicycle accident, and that he sells marshmallow roasters that he makes out of golf clubs and forks.  While shopping downtown later that day, I found this sign next to some handsomely crafted marshmallow roasters.  Maybe that little boy wasn't telling me tall tales after all.

Another highlight of the reunion was my great grandmother's memorial service, during which family members recalled funny and heartwarming stories about my great grandmother's 99 year life.  After the memorial service, my cousins and I played dodgeball in the church gym.  My dad even joined in the game, and I saw him run for the first time in years.  I think my great grandma would be happy that her family had so much fun at her memorial service.

On Saturday night, our final evening together, my cousins and I competed in a photo scavenger hunt.  When we returned from the scavenger hunt with nothing but our cameras, my grandpa told us that people didn't return from a scavenger hunt empty-handed in his day. We had to explain that our loot was digital.  After 45 minutes of heated judging by the "adults," my grandpa retreated to his office to tally the scores with his calculator.

When grandpa returned, everyone looked at him in anticipation.  With a captive audience, Grandpa paused and then said, "Now, I have just one more question..."  Grandpa!  He finally determined that my team lost the scavenger hunt by a mere 150 points.  

Overall, it was a very good family vacation.  My cousins are cool, and I hope that we don't wait another twelve years to reunite again.