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Leftover pasta thrown into the pot and boiled to perfection.
Divertente! I do not think that's right...

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^{aggressive squirrel!}

We kept groceries and a few belongings at Birch Bay yesterday morning, as we had to leave early in the morning for the Mariner's game in Seattle. Back up to the Bay to clean up our messes and say goodbye to the cabin.

Turkey burgers and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. We hadn't seen the movie, but Morgan bought the Criterion version of it anyway, trusting that it would be worth it. It was. As much as I loved every second of the film, it is one of the saddest things I have ever watched. Damn, Benjamin Button - I love it so!

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Mariners vs. Rangers today!

Morgan's parents had four tickets to the game but were unable to go, so they offered them to us. Sweet!. The phrase, "free baseball tickets," is music to my ears.
I love baseball games, everything about them - the crack of the bat against the ball, watching the way the athletes move, the flat beer, cold hot dogs, and in this city, watching the retractable roof enclose the stadium when it starts to rain. I don't care much about what happens during the season, but I thoroughly enjoy each game that I am able to go to.

Had some trouble finding people to take the two extra tickets. That was a first. Went with Gus, and had a free ticket. I suggested scalping it but any bad experience would probably go back to the purchaser, Morgan's dad - I'd feel horrible about that! After the game, had a drink at this bar which kept on hand more booze than I have ever seen in any liquor store. The drink sucked, and they were out of the one thing I wanted on the menu.

Walked around Pioneer Square and explored this amazing bookstore. I can see how someone could spend hours in there - there are tens of thousands of books, the entire establishment is made up of wood floors/bookshelves/staircases, and it is built like a labyrinth. Stairs and lofts and tall wooden bookshelves were everywhere, and I got lost. I had skimmed through a few sections and promised to make a trip back here just for this. Settled in the cookbook section as I waited for Morgan and Gus to find me.

Gus crashed as soon as we got on the road, and I followed shortly afterward. Car naps are wonderful. I got pretty nauseous by the end of the night - garlic fries and beer don't go together, which I was told after the game. Thanks. Was the taste worth it? I think maybe. Morgan and I hit up a Denny's, but I couldn't finish my meal. Damn you garlic fries!

Crawling into my own bed for the first time in days was...kind of sad. Missing Birch Bay already, but there will be another time for that. All in all, a great day.

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^{This guy was hanging out, enjoying the ocean view.}

Best day ever!

Woke up to a clear sky and more sunshine than I could have asked for. Bought a rainbow parrot kite! Headed out to the Bay, where the tide level was low enough to go wading through to find marine life. We spent a few hours moving further out to the last (and barely visible) sandbar. I get a little freaked out by the ocean floor if I can't see it, but I got over it quickly enough when I saw how fast the crab's run away from you once you are in their space. I got this, no problem.

Slowly made our way back, had lunch, and went back out to the sandbars with my parrot kite (with "realistic flapping motion"). It caught the wind, and floated up to the length of the string. Explored for more sea life.

At the end of the day we I was tan and freckley, Morgan was slightly sunburned. Barbecue dinner, then s'mores for dessert.

____ + ____

This is the life, by the sea.

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I must have over a hundred photos of this boat from multiple trips to Birch Bay, but this is my first photo of it on land :)

We bought a tide-guide the other day to check for negative tides during our stay in Birch Bay.

Morgan had us wake up at 8:00am to be out to the bay by 9. From the cabin, the shore is literally a stone's throw away so I pushed it back to 8:30 by refusing to get out of bed. Made waffles and headed out. The little book said -.07 at 9:30am. WRONG. We walked the thin sliver of shore along the public section of beach, but gave up after half an hour. This tide-guide is lame. Back to badminton.

Played around, had lunch, checked the tide after noon. Perfect! Tomorrow we shall try this again. :)

Here is a chiton Morgan found!

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Two days ago, Morgan and I got off work, finished packing our bags and went to Birch Bay, WA to celebrate our 4th anniversary together. WOAH!

Yesterday (7/8/09) was our anniversary. We woke up, played plenty of badminton, went on a six-mile bikeride, then walked the length of the shore of Birch Bay before coming back home for more badminton. Is this my anniversary celebration, or bootcamp? :)

As we already live less than half an hour from the Canada-United States border, we made a special trip to Vancouver today (7/9/09). We were stopped at the border and told to get out of the car and go inside the customs building - Morgan figures it was because my passport was a few weeks old and here I was trying to leave the country. :)

Made it to Vancouver - what a beautiful city! I have never been to a more culturally diverse urban area. Made it to Stanley Park first for the Vancouver Aquarium.

Then to Chinatown...which was pretty disappointing, but I still had fun. We decided to stick to debit/credit and about $5.50 in Canadian coin for the trip. This was great until we made it to Chinatown around 2:30pm with visions of Siopao and Red-bean cakes dancing around in our heads. No one took plastic, and the one ATM we found wouldn't accept our American cards! Stopped at a bakery for a quick snack.

Then on to what I thought would be super awesome but was not, Tilford Center. :P It was described as a shopping center surrounded by different types of gardens. It turned out ot be an L-shaped strip mall with a garden of mixed plants at the joint. :P

Made a pit-stop at this enormous mall (four levels high with over 450 stores!). Right now they are featuring a dinosaur exhibit.

This photo is a model of what is believed what a baby Tyrannosaurus looked like. Also, I touched an Allosaurus skull that is over 150 million years old - AWESOME!

We were getting hungry, thirsty and a bit worn out by the late afternoon and got stuck in heavy traffic trying to get out of the city. After deciding to try the first restaurant we see (other than the four A&Ws- they are as prevalent there as McDonalds is in the US), we spotted a large, dark blue building with BMWs, Mercedes, Rolls Royces, etc. parked in the lot. Sure, we'll try it! Turns out this place, Earl's, is a classy Hooters. Why didn't I get a photo? The food was to-die-for and we will definitely want to go back. The waitstaff were all gorgeous and friendly, so all in all it was a great experience.

Made it home and crashed hard.

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07.08.09

Sonnet XVII

I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that never blooms
but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,
risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way

than this: where I does not exist, nor you,
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.

Pablo Neruda

^{Translated by Stephen Tapscott}