Thanksgiving

We slept pretty well – we’re used to the Arch Cape Property Services mandated fleece sheets and small beds. One major drawback to this house is that the master bedroom is in the back, so you can’t here the ocean at all. That makes us sad. On the other hand it’s set much further back from the road as well, so you don’t hear giant trucks rumbling by early in the morning. On the other hand the neighbors have small children who start playing outside and making happy shrieks at 8, but that’s kind of nice to wake up to. We had a nice slow morning, including rebuilding the fire and eating cacklin’ with no milk because we forgot to get some last night.

Eventually Tim woke up and we headed in to town for our now traditional (3^rd year in a row) brunch at Pig’n’Pancake. Last night at Castaways both Dave and Tim revealed the ugly truth that they don’t love the Pig’n, that they just go because I love it so much. This is heartbreaking – how can they not love the Pig’n? It is one of the highlights of the trip! On the other hand, it’s sweet of them to be willing to go without complaining because they know how much I love it. Tim had biscuits and gravy and half of Dave’s breakfast; Dave at one of my blankets, and everybody enjoyed themselves as near as I could tell.

After brunch we stopped at the Mariner for milk and eggnog, but Tim did not want any Hogwash. I think that means he’s really growing up. Most of the restaurants in town were open, but I think Mariner is the only shop that was. The weather was light overcast, but no rain, and moderately warm as well, so when we got back to the house we rebuilt the fire and then Dave and I went for a walk. We walked all the way to the Carriage Road, which is about a mile and a half each way. I have to say again that although I’m in good shape from all that BodyFit and Nia, my legs aren’t used to just making the same motions over and over again. Fortunately there are many scenic things to stop and take pictures of, and also many streams that come across the beach that you have to stop and think about how to get across. One of them was deep enough that we had to go up to a road that parallels the beach and cross over a little bridge, which we know from past vacations has a geocache under it.

The strangest part of the walk was when we got to the area around BLH. For one thing, the sand was very high, which always makes it look different. There’s a rock that usually sticks out of the sand in the middle of the beach and it was completely buried, and the passageway to the north is level and filled with sand. But the strangest thing, of course, is that we were not staying there. We walked up the stairs a short way to get a picture of the waterfall (in the summer you can hear it, but you can’t really see it) and felt a little like we were trespassing. On the other hand we are sure the people who are staying there are having a fantastic tie (how not?) and we are enjoying Rustlewood, especially the fireplace.

At the beginning of the walk we headed south towards Arch Cape Creek, and figured out where the Oregon Coast Trail goes from here, so that was good, although not very interesting, since where it goes is up Shingle Mill Lane to where we usually pick it up at the Two Bridges trailhead. We also found a perfect log for burning in the giant fireplace, so we brought it back and left where we could pick it up on the way back. Other interesting things on the walk were the house where the front of their yard collapsed and all their stairs fell down, and the waterfall at Hug Point, which was very big and once again had the stream at the bottom flowing up towards the carriage road so that you couldn’t go there. That area seems to have very low sand, in fact the sand in the Joel Marble burping cave was so low that I think a rock was exposed that I’ve never seen before.

The other thing about the walk back is that the wind was very strongly in our faces, which made us wonder about things. There have been a couple of times that we’ve gone beach biking in the summer where the wind has gone that way, but usually it goes the other way. So we wonder if the wind is usually from the north in the winter and from the south in the summer, and if that has something to do with where the sand is high and low. This is what engineers talk about when they take long walks on the beach. It’s very romantic! (Later on we found a local weather station showing wind directions for the past year and in fact the prevailing directions are just what we said.)

When we got back Tim had let the fire go out, so I spent some time playing around with it but couldn’t get it going again. Dave eventually came over and shoved it in a tighter pile, and it took off like crazy. The stones around the fireplace have also warmed up and it’s almost too hot to sit on the swing with your feet sticking out. While I was futzing with the fire and catching up on my Words with Friends, Dave took a short nap in the recliner, and Tim went out for a run. The recliner is Dave and Tim’s favorite chair, but I love the swing. It’s very sensitive to any motion, and last night I found I could make it rock side to side by lying on it and flexing my abs. That’s the kind of ab workout I like!

 

After some texting with Josh and some phone calls it was time to shower and get ready for dinner. Last year we ate at the Nehalem River Inn and had fabulous food , so we’d made plans to meet our friends Rhonda and Tracy there for dinner. What we didn’t know is that I has changed hands (and chefs), so while the food was very good (and the ’08 Panther Creek Shea was delightful), the food was not as good as it was last year. It was still very good though, and we had fun catching up with R&T and enjoying Thanksgiving. I’m particularly grateful this year for my family, both here and far away.

The Day Before Thanksgiving

My day started early, since I am heading to the gym at 6:30 to use the vibrating platform before practicing teaching the BodyFit class. Today was especially fun because someone came in to the classroom while I was teaching and encouraging my imaginary students, and she looked pretty concerned. After BodyFit it was home to clean the fishtank (using the brand new faucet in the master bathroom sink – no leaks!), then off to Safeway and then Phil’s to pick up some subs for lunch. Dave went to work and to the gym, and Tim slept. Kenzie Backous is our housesitter this trip, so she came by to get a key, see where everything was, and practice using the alarm.

We were all packed and ready to go by 1:30, but the instructions said not to arrive at the house before 4, so Dave and I took naps. That was good because I was very sleepy and a little crabby. We left around 2:45, and traffic was mostly very light, with a few slow patches. We waved at the little house as we drove by it, then turned right on Leech (eewww!) and right on Galinsky, and our driveway was the third on the right. Rustlewood is what the house is called, and it has a lockbox, so you don’t have to stop in at the ACPS office. This saves a great deal of time since Debbie the owner likes to talk. The house is almost due east of the castle-looking rock that you can see from the little house. It’s set back from the beach about 100 yards, with a very easy path to the beach. (As I’m typing this Dave and Tim are disagreeing about how far it is. Dave has conceded that maybe it’s more like 150 feet. Tim says, “I have a pretty good idea of how far 25 yards is). We’re not very far north of Arch Cape Creek at all. The thing is when you get here at 4, and then you unload and put everything away, it’s pretty much dark. So we didn’t get to do much exploring.

The house starts with a glassed-in porch, which is a good place to leave the shoe basket and suitcases and so on. You come in from there to the living room, which has a porch swing suspended from the middle of it, in front of the fireplace which is covered by a giant piece of plywood. It has no flue, so that’s how they keep the wind from whistling in.  The master bedroom is off the living room, and the kitchen is off of it as well on the other side. The kitchen has saloon-type doors, which are somewhat out of place given the overall heavily nautical theme. It has two rooms for the bathroom – one for the tub/shower, and one for the toilet and sink, which is nice. It also has very steep stairs – more like a ladder with railings – up to the top floor, which has two small bedrooms each with two twin beds. Tim likes having a whole floor to himself, but needs to practice not walking like an elephant since it makes the whole house shake and might make me thing there’s an earthquake, which would be very scary because we are right down here in the tsunami hazard zone.

We got unpacked and explored a little, including finding the very nice swing down by the beach. Then we were all very hungry and decided to head out for an early dinner.  We figured if we got to Irish Table a little before they opened we could probably get in to the first seating. We got there at 5:20 and were first in line. Problem is they’re not open Wednesdays and Thursdays, so it would have been quite a long wait. We got back in the car and headed over to Castaways, another restaurant that doesn’t take reservations. When we got there it was doing a good business but there were open tables, so we took the same table we had this summer. Once again the food and cocktails were excellent and inventive – the thai duck breast appetizer was my absolute favorite.  Tim had the jambalaya again, and Dave had the tuna in red curry, which was superb. I had the haystack chicken which was very good, but next time I would get it without the chicken – just goat cheese, mushrooms and caramelized onions in a pastry crust. And no visit to Castaways would be complete without the triple chocolate coconut brownie and ice cream. The owner seemed to recognize us and was very glad to see us, and we were very glad to see him and eat his yummy food.

When we got back it was time to make a fire in the gigantic fireplace and sit in the porch swing and listen to Mario Bauza on the jambox. Nobody seems to have the energy to play a game or even fly helicopters. The fireplace really is giant, and it appears that they clean it out between guests, so we’re having a huge fire and trying to build up a bed of coals.

Day 7, when I win.

7:00 seems to be the time I wake up, so I did. Dave got up too – today was the best day for the walk to the Rock Wahii, so that is what he did.  Before we left we saw a wide band of tiny birds all flying north, and he said he watched them for about an hour, all going the same direction. I hung out in the house and had leftover fruit salad and English muffin. They have a real toaster here. The difference between a real toaster and a toaster oven is just amazing. Like the bird clock, a toaster may be another item that we meet at the beach and decide we can’t live without. At about 8:35 I was off for yoga, with a stop at the Mariner Market for milk on the way in. Just before I left I looked at facebook and saw that Dave was at Arcadia Beach, which was fun to know. Town was more crowded, as it was Saturday and also an hour later than when I came in for yoga yesterday, but I was still able to find on-street parking right across from Bill’s. I could have parked even closer if I’d gone past the studio, but it was certainly close enough and convenient both to Mariner and the studio.

Can you see the hole in the Rock Wahii?

It was a small class today, only 3 of us. It was also a 90 minute class, the longest I’ve ever yoga’d. We started out very slowly, stretching out backs by lying on little bolsters in various positions. I liked that. In fact the whole thing moved very slowly, with some new stretches – and also some old ones that kept getting more complicated as we went on. I felt, to use Rhonda’s term, pretty blissed out by the end of it. I did realize when I got back in the car that I’d completely miscalculated – not sure how I thought a 90 minute class that started at 9 would be done by 10, but there it was. Tim was still asleep when I got home, though, so I was not rushed getting changed.

Next up was lunch at the Bread and Ocean. Manzanita seems to have a hipper, younger, and wealthier demographic than Cannon Beach, and it was interesting to see all the toned people in their spandex coming in for lunch. While we were at Castaways on Wednesday night chatting with the chef, he talked about wanting to keep things fresh and new at his restaurant, not like the steakhouse that’s been there 40 years and never changed a thing on the menu. Cannon Beach may be becoming that steakhouse, with Manzanita the new place to be. Fortunately our house is about halfway between them, so we get the best of all possible worlds – we like a good steak now and then. Back to lunch. I had the Banh Mi, which was just yummy and what I should always get. Tim had the roast beef, and Dave had the corned beef special, both of which was good but (title notwithstanding) nothing special. Dave and I both had the half sandwich and soup (although Dave seemed to get a whole sandwich), and Tim got a whole sandwich and ate Dave’s extra half sandwich and most of my cookie. Soup was Thai coconut chicken, and it needed a little more heat and fish sauce, but it was good anyway.

After lunch we came back to the house and did napping. It was a little early for a nap and the bed wasn’t in the sun yet, so I had to wrap up in the comforter. Dave put on many layers and napped on the deck, although again the sun wasn’t quite high enough. Clearly we should have delayed our naps, except we were very sleepy. We all woke up from our naps at about the same time, and then couldn’t get motivated to do anything. The pressure of knowing it’s the last day, combined with knowing that every parking lot both in town and at every beach was full, made it hard to decide. We considered geocaching but we’ve gotten all the close in ones; we thought about going for a hike but parking would be a problem, and it was so cold that going down to the beach wasn’t that appealing. Confidential to BOS and SFO: we did not consider beach bikes because 1) it was pretty much full on high tide and 2) Dave’s not a big fan, 3) Tim hadn’t expressed a strong desire to do it and 4) nobody can keep up with Tim anyway.

Tim had expressed a desire to do more kite flying, so Dave made the command decision that it was a beach day. I changed into many layers, and gathered the things I needed to do bootcamp on the beach (2 5-pound weights, water bottle, list of exercises); Tim and Dave grabbed all the things they needed (kites, kite accessory bag, baseball, baseball gloves, chair, umbrella), and we all headed down the stairs. Actually they headed down a few minutes before I did because I decided to put in a load of laundry. When I got down they were throwing the baseball back and forth as there wasn’t quite enough beach yet for kite flying. It turned out that down there it was really quite comfortably warm, and I ended up taking off all my outer layers. I was pleased to see that many of my sticks were still there, even if the hole had been filled in by the tide. I watched the baseball throwing for a while getting up the conviction to pick up the weights and swing them around. Eventually I did, and it was not as terrible as it sometimes is because 1) I was on the beach and 2) I was watching Tim and Dave play catch and then watching Tim fly the flexi. (Later on, while we were sitting on the deck finishing the rose from the fruit salad, Dave commented that the flexi is 28 years old – the kite designer signed and dated the bag it lives in when Dave bought it in 1984. I told him not to say such things).

When I finished my workout I walked around in the water for a while – over to the starfish rock to the south, which was still in the waves, and then out to the carriage road. It turns out the workout pants I was wearing are then best walking on the beach pants ever. At first I wondered if the salt water would be bad for them, but then I remembered the picture of Ironman Ben with the salt lines (can you tell how proud I am of having an ironman for a brother by the way I keep mentioning it?) and figured they could handle a little seawater. Why they’re great: they’re black, so they soak up the sun (that water is COLD), they dry fast, and they come to just below the knee and are tight fitting so they don’t flop around all soggily around your thighs. I picked up a couple of rocks to take with me when I go back East and thought about my dad, and I thought about my thighbones and shinbones as I splashed through the water, and I generally got into a better and better mood. My sunglasses are polarized, so when water is shallow and making ripples it makes very sharp patterns that are fascinating to watch. Also they make it so you can see where the peaks and troughs are under the surface, which also is interesting. It was an excellent walk, and it ended up that we spent about two hours down on the beach. And since we’d gotten there right at high tide, we could really see the ocean receding and the beach appearing. When I headed out to the carriage road I had to splash through the water to get around the outcropping at the end of our beach; when I came back the water was at least 10 feet away from it.

When I got back Tim and Dave were ready to pack it in too, so we all gathered our things and headed back up. Here’s where it gets ugly for me – day 1 of bootcamp, which is the set of exercises I did today, is really all about thighs. Sure, there’s some work for the abs and arms, but really, it’s all about those stair climbing muscles. And I was carrying 10 pounds of hand weights. This vacation I’ve been just prancing up the stairs without stopping, but that was most definitely not the case this time. I made use of each of the landings and even paused a few times in between. It’s interesting because I’ve lost about 10 pounds since we were here last summer (more when we arrived than now, as you might have guessed from the food descriptions), and carrying that extra weight really brought home how much easier it is to move without it. Of course it’s also easier to move when you haven’t tried to kill your legs for 20 minutes and then walked through calf deep water for an hour.

When I got to the deck Tim was in the shower, and given the complete lack of water pressure I decided to sit out on the deck and write until he got out and I could rinse off my feet. (A note here that while I'm not sure I like the aesthetics of the very short haircut, it sure is convenient). Dave brought out the previously mentioned glass of rose, and we had a wonderful time sitting on the deck in the sun listening to the waves. It’s another beautiful clear day – really, I’ve never been here when it’s been sunny every day like this. It’s still about 10 degrees cooler than you’d like it to be, but given the choice between cool and sunny and warm or cool but cloudy/rainy I will take the cool anytime.  The tide had gone out more and left those very interesting pools on the beach – why do they come sometimes, but not others? They were not there any other time this week. Eventually we all had showers and I got another load of laundry started and we saw the giant flock of tiny birds flying in the other direction, and then it was time to head to Fishes.

 

Fishes is in the Osborn building, in the space that used to be JPs (of fabulous marionberry lemonade fame). We have been looking forward to eating there since we first saw the “coming in January” signs last summer, although when it turned out only to be open for dinner we weren’t sure we were going to go. But yesterday we decided it would be more interesting than the Stephanie Inn and changed our reservation. It’s a very nice looking restaurant, with the kitchen in the back part of the restaurant where you can see it. The kitchen is made to sort of look like a pagoda, and the layout and décor of the rest of the restaurant is very clean and open. I particularly liked the 3 ceramic fishes swimming in a line high up on one of the walls. Unfortunately the open floor plan and very high ceilings make it very noisy – which wasn’t helped by the table in the center with 4 adults and 4 very loud undisciplined children. The children eventually got up and stood in an open place between the tables and started trying to lift each other, which resulted (just as Drew Pearrson predicted) in falling and crying. I blame the parents. When they left the restaurant got much quieter, but also much colder as they stood holding the door open for a very long time on their way out. Are they not aware that there are other people on the planet?

Dave and Tim started out with the Miso soup, which was flavorful and good although maybe a little over salted. We got the standard tuna and salmon rolls, a vegetable roll, tempura, Hamachi nigiri and a needles roll, which was salmon, crab and shrimp in a deep-fried roll. After all that anticipating, the food was a disappointment. The sushi rice was overcooked so it was mushy, and didn’t have enough vinegar. The tempura had a very strange batter – more like a beer batter that you’d get on onion rings – and was too brown and crunchy. The fish wasn’t as fresh as you’d like, and the rolls were just uninteresting tasting. Basically a failure in every respect, although the service was attentive. So we’re probably not returning to Fishes, which is sad. The good thing about Fishes, though, is that we didn’t order too much food and it is right next to Osborn’s, so it was dessert time. I had a kid size cone (chocolate-peanut butter), Tim had a big waffle cone (cookie dough), and Dave had his favorite haystack sundae, which he hasn’t had in a couple of years and which was just as good as he remembered it and which Tim finished the last third of. It is good to have Tim to help when you eat out.

On the way to dinner I said that we needed to play trouble tonight because I felt like I was going to win. I didn’t really feel like that, but I wanted to get something started. When we got home it was just after sunset and beautiful out, so I did some laundry and some blogging and we all did some relaxing and looking out the window, but eventually it was time to play. I was pretty sure that things were not going to go my way when Tim got a 6 on his first pop (anybody’s first pop, since he went first). And I was right. Not only did I not win, I think I only had one man in home and none on the board when he won. Usually we play for second but I wasn’t in the mood, so I cleared the board and we started playing again, and again everyone else immediately got out and I didn’t. But then things turned around, and at one point I had all my men out and nobody else was out on the board at all. So it went pop, groan, pop, groan, pop, move for several turns. But then somehow they got out and the next thing I knew I had all three of my men who were on the board back in my home. Also in this game was a spectacular double honk, where Dave had two men next to each other and Tim popped a 6 and a 1 to get both of them. But the MOST amazing and spectacular part of the game was when I won. I have won two whole games this trip, one pepper and one trouble. Given how many games we play every night, that’s a pretty paltry sum, but right now I am invincible.

Now we’ll sit in the dark some more and watch the fire (either live or in the reflected in the window version) and listen to music and eat Oreos and finish our wonderful week. Thanks for riding along.

Closing list of things we wish we'd had: mostly I like to wear sweaters or sweatshirts that zip or button, so it would be good to bring more of those in a variety of weights.Also on Labor Day Dave was cleaning out the closet in the computer room and found a fanny pack which would be perfect for geocaching and short hikes.