Congratulations Mrs. and Mrs. W!!!

I am so happy to celebrate the marriage of a very dear friend who I will call Mrs TW. Married recently at the San Diego Pride Festival. In the midst of the mayhem and carnival atmosphere that the Pride Festival brings with it, was a solemn and important ceremony that would finally make this loving and committed couple a real family in the eyes of the state of California and the Federal Government. Mrs. TW and her new wife Mrs. LW have been together for seven years and have a beautiful daughter together. I have known Mrs TW for many years and am pleased to say that she was a part of my own wedding ceremony and it thrills me completely that she has been able to consecrate her own relationship in the state of California. My most heartfelt congratulation T and L!

Thanks to the Supreme Court rulings of the recent past, now all loving families in California can experience the security and joy of marriage.  Not only does marriage give a family legal and financial security, but it also endows an emotional security that unmarried couples do not have. I lived with my husband for a number of years before we were married and although we have always had a strong bond and loving relationship, my feelings since we tied the knot are a much deeper and secure kind of love.  I feel a much greater peace in my heart now and am glad that my dear friends can now experience that peace as well.

Many naysayers claim that same sex marriage devalues the institution of traditional marriage. I for one think that is brainwashing BS and think that the opposite is true.  I know of many heterosexual married folks that do not respect the bonds and vows of marriage and their behavior and attitudes do not impact my marriage one bit. Other than to feel a sadness that they don't enjoy what I have, a lifelong love and commitment.  Then there are the celebrities that get married and divorced at the drop of a hat.  Todays hetero society views marriage as a more formal way to go steady for a little while and then break up and split up the assets. 

My LGBT friends on the other hand have fought long and hard for this basic human right and don't take marriage lightly. These families have a deep commitment to each other and their families that I truly admire.  Does it lessen my relationship?  On the contrary, seeing such loving families being made whole under the laws of the land strengthens my views of "traditional marriage".  Having this beautiful little girl grow up knowing the security of a whole family is a beautiful thing.  She now has the legal protection of her parents marriage and the emotional well being of legitimacy of family. I couldn't be happier for her and her Mommys. I hope that all of my loved ones in different states will get to know that same security in the near future!

Life in a Small Town

We have the best of both worlds here in B-Town. Only ten minutes from downtown Seattle, yet a world away.  Nestled on the shores of Puget Sound you will find Burien.  With its quaint main street and shopping area, it is like stepping into the past. We happen to live in Olde Burien, just a half block away from the popular eateries and pubs that line 152nd Street.

Summertime is by far the best time of year for small town living.  Especially in the cold and drizzly Pacific Northwest.  There are festivals and street fairs. The weekly farmers markets. And just about everyone is out walking and enjoying the sunshine. Trying to store up on vitamin D before the rain and gray come back in the fall. Not too many weeks ago we had our annual Wild Strawberry Festival and the Fathers Day car show in Downtown B-Town.  It includes a carnival and bazaar, live entertainment and events up and down the street.

 

Street Blocked off for the day

Git Hoan Native Dancers

 

Today is the Fourth of July and that means that B-Town is alive.  The most exciting day of the year in Burien, we have a full day of festivities on the slate. And although I miss living on Three Tree Point and the festivities we enjoyed there on the Fourth, the town is jammed packed with action on the holiday. The streets are blocked off starting at 6AM for a morning full of cycling races.  Then at 3PM it is time for the big 4th of July Parade through downtown Burien.  What a fun day to walk around town and enjoy the sunshine. We took Charlie out with us on the first stroll we took around town to see the races. And we made a trip through the weekly Farmers market, it's shaping up to be a glorious day!

Then it was back home for some brunch before we headed out for the afternoons festivities. Our plan was to stroll long the parade route in the opposite direction of the parade, stopping in for a cold beverage at the establishments along the way. Well that turned into a daylong pub crawl through every dive bar in Burien. I will give my reviews of the respective establishments in another blog post. We did happen to see the parade however in between beers from one place to the next.

The street was crowded with folks waiting for the big Parade!

An outstanding opportunity to experience NW Tribal Culture

News releases from the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission

Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
1111 Israel Road S.W., P.O. Box 42650, Olympia, WA 98504-2650, (360) 902-8500
Don Hoch, Director

Media contact:
Jack Hartt, Deception Pass State Park, (360) 675-3767
Leslie Eastwood, Samish Indian Nation, (360) 293-6404
Virginia Painter, State Parks Public Affairs Office (360) 902-8562

Celebrate Native American culture and 100 years of state parks at Deception Pass June 8
OLYMPIA – May 13, 2013 – The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission invites the public to attend the Eighth Annual Salish Sea Native American Culture Celebration with the Samish and Swinomish tribes.

The celebration runs from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 8, at the Bowman Bay picnic area on the Fidalgo Island side of Deception Pass State Park, 41020 State Route 20, Oak Harbor. The event celebrates the maritime heritage of the two participating Coast Salish tribes. This year’s event also commemorates the 100th birthday of the Washington state park system, which was created by the Legislature in 1913.

The June 8 event will feature canoe rides and native singers, drummers and storytellers. Artists from the two tribes will demonstrate traditional weaving, cedar work and woodcarving. A salmon and frybread lunch also will be available for purchase. The Discover Pass is not required to attend the event. In recognition of National Get Outdoors Day, Saturday, June 8 is a State Parks “free day,” when visitors to state parks are not required to display a Discover Pass.

Cultural event activities are presented by the Samish Indian Nation, the Samish Canoe Family, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community and the Swinomish Canoe Family. Proceeds from food sales at the Salish Sea Native American Culture Celebration support the Samish and Swinomish canoe families’ participation in the annual intertribal canoe journey; each year, tribes and nations from the Pacific Northwest travel by canoe to different host communities along the Salish Sea. This year, the Quinault Tribe plays host to the intertribal canoe journey, which lands in Taholah on August 1. For more information about this year’s canoe journey, visit www.paddletoquinault.org.

The event is accessible to persons with disabilities. If special accommodations are required in order to attend the event, please call (360) 902-8626 or (360) 675-3767 or the Washington Telecommunications Relay Service at (800) 833-6388. Requests must be made in advance.

The Salish Sea Native American Culture Celebration is part of a broader series of events celebrating Washington’s diverse cultures and presented by the Folk and Traditional Arts in the Parks Program. The program is a partnership between the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission, the Washington State Arts Commission and Northwest Heritage Resources with funding provided by National Endowment for the Arts and the Washington State Parks Foundation.

Deception Pass State Park is a 4,134-acre marine and camping park with 77,000 feet of saltwater of shoreline, and 33,900 feet of freshwater shoreline on three lakes. The park is best known for views of Deception Pass and Bowman Bay, old-growth forests, abundant wildlife and the historic Deception Pass Bridge.

Stay connected to your state parks by following Washington State Parks at www.facebook.com/WashingtonStateParks, www.twitter.com/WaStatePks_NEWS and www.youtube.com/WashingtonStateParks. Share your favorite state park adventure on the new State Parks’ blog site at www.AdventureAwaits.com.

-30-

Roger Dodger, you old Codger, how does your garden grow? Sorry honey but it rhymes.

Well it's springtime in Washington.  The geese are back to Lake Burien. The flowers are blooming and the cherry tree in the front yard is raining blossoms all over my car.  The weather has been downright weird this spring. A couple of weeks ago we had a hot spell and tied with Phoenix one day as the hottest city in the country at 86 degrees. It was a beautiful and sunny Easter.  Last week it was in the fifties and rainy and still is.  Right now it is forty six degrees and getting ready to rain. Maybe some hail too according to the weatherman. Yay! I just love the forty five minute commute in the rain every day!

This spring we have decided to join the growing population of urban farmers.  Roger has spent a good deal of time digging up the back yard and we now have a nice sized garden.  With all of the chemicals and pesticides used on our food we are looking forward to fresh and organic fruits and veggies.  There is nothing like picking something from the garden and serving it for dinner. And there is certainly no GMO in our garden!

Lots of little plants starting to grow!

Tomato Plants

Break time!

New Bar B Que grill.

In addition to planting a garden we have supplied the yard with a new picnic table and fire pit.  As well as some new outdoor furniture and a Barbeque.  We plan on enjoying the outdoors much more this summer, should it ever arrive. 

Getting ready for our first Barbeque on the new grill.

The flowers are making a comeback

Peas are popping up

Got the fire pit going and the wine poured!

Blackberries along the side fence.

Charlie on patrol!

This is going to be a great summer and I look forward to all of our fruits and veggies growing. Aside from the garden which contains everything from lettuces and tomatoes to peas and beans, broccoli and cauliflower, peppers ,cucumbers, carrots, radishes, leeks, watermelon and corn. We also have blackberry and raspberry bushes, apple trees, a pear tree, a cherry tree and an herb garden.  Should be lots to eat later in the summer. All we need now is a bacon bush and we're all set!

Sunny SoCal Adventures Part 1- San Diego

It was a much milder than normal winter in B-Town this year.  We had one day of light snow flurries and some cold and windy days, but overall it was pretty pleasant and dry.  The start of this year is the 6th driest in history so far.  It is still not San Diego though.  So it was with great joy that we touched down at San Diego International Airport . One night in San Diego and then off to Palm Springs for a week of sunshine and relaxation.

After arriving we went to pick up the rental car and headed off to our hotel.  Lucky for us the hotel was right next door to one of our favorite eateries, Anthonys Fish Grotto.  The perfect place for a nice relaxing lunch after trudging around the airports all morning.  Flying is not nearly as fun as it used to be!  And really, can they make the seats just a little bit smaller and closer together?

Since we have such a short amount of time in SD and a bunch of people we wanted to see, we arranged two different ways to accomplish that.  First up a trip to Hacienda Casa Blanca in El Cajon, our home town before moving north to Burien.  I put out an invite to all of our friends that we would be there from 6PM until 10PM and would love to see anyone that wanted to drop by.  Much to our surprise and glee our group took up most of the bar portion of the place.  We got to visit with most of our dearest friends, some of which we have not seen in almost four years. The last time that we had so many friends in one place was at my 50th birthday party.  What a great evening to see everyone.  Especially my very best girlfriends Stephanie and Alisa.  Also great to see Bev, Ramona and the Johns, our Belize traveling friends.

Roger with Alisa and her husband Russ at Hacienda

Then Saturday morning, Roger was off to play golf with his Mens Club at Mission Trails Golf Course. A great chance for him to catch up with his golf buddies, while I went out to brunch with my cousin Candace. I enjoyed some quiet family time chatting with her and getting all of the gossip! After brunch at the Omelette factory we went to join Roger at the golf course for cocktails and to visit with everyone at the club.

Candace and I at Mission Trails Golf Course

 

Roger and his good friend John

 

All in all a great 24 hours in our home town. Just enough time to get really homesick for our old life in San Diego.  However after three plus years of living in the Pacific Northwest, it felt less like home than it used to.  That was a really melancholy realization to feel less at home there than I feel now in B-Town .  You expect that everything will be just the same as it was when you left and some things are, but peoples lives move forward and you are much more disconnected from that movement than you knew you would be.  That in itself is eye opening on several levels.  Some people you greet and it's just like you saw them yesterday and you pick right up where you left off. Those are your best and lifelong friends.  Some people feel much more distant from you than before and seem almost like strangers to you.  That my friends is a very sad occurrence and something that we weren't prepared for.  The closeness that you used to share was no longer there.  I guess the old expression, "You can't go home again." is really true.

So we are off to the desert early in the afternoon and we will begin our Palm Spring adventures.  That however is a story for another day.....

If You are in Pittsburgh on November 9th and can use a little Luv.....

This blog is going to be a little different than the usual.  I am going to shamelessly plug an event put on by my sister Jami to benefit the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank,  

   Jami Luv Fest- in memory of Billie Marlowe

The following is from the official LUV FEST page. You can use the link above to get there.

Jami Luvfest “Enough for ALL”

In my childhood, when money was very tight, we still had enough.  If someone happened by the house during dinnertime, Billie jumped up and grabbed a place setting, because she had made enough for all.  In our adulthood, we kids have scratched our heads trying to figure out how she did it.  But the formula was simple:  She had enough LUV in her to stretch out food or clothes or presents or anything.
So the question I pose to you is simple:  Do you have Enough for ALL?  If your answer is the affirmative, I want to see you on Friday, November 9.

A typical Thanksgiving dinner with my family. That's a much younger me third from the right, with Billie at the head of the table. 

I could go on and on about my mothers generosity and the way she brought people together with food and fellowship, but my dear sister Jami who has picked up the mantle of feeding the world with her open heart and tireless spirit has done it so much better than I could.  So I will just steal her words with rampant plagiarism, what are sisters for!

About Jami Luvfest by Jami Marlowe

November is a significant month in my life — the day of my birth and the anniversary of my mother’s death.

In 2007, after agreeing to meet to celebrate my birthday, my friends also agreed to donate the cost of a beer ($5) to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank. All the donations were handed over in memory of my mom, Billie Marlowe.
The next year, the event was spontaneously named when someone mentioned not missing the “Jami Luvfest.” Also in 2008, people I had never met showed up, but they were happy to donate and eat some garlic fries and chat.

So last year, we decided to get a bigger place. Once again, my friends came through in a big way. We had entertainment and raffles and great food and music. The next day, it dawned on me that a tradition had quickly come into being and would continue to grow every year — or until hunger is abolished and there’s no longer a need for the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.
Until then, every year at the end of fall, we’ll have Jami Luvfest. We’ll eat, drink, laugh, dance, donate, and honor all moms by remembering one.

About Billie Marlowe

Every time I think I’m giving to you, I realize how much more you are giving me.– Billie Marlowe

Invoke the name Billie Marlowe and food is the first word that pops into mind. She usually spent most of a holiday in the kitchen, then lounging at the table after dinner enjoying a cigarette, a cup of coffee, and any good yarns being told. That table was large enough to welcome all, including numerous friends throughout my life. Not enough were not words in her vocabulary. There was always enough — enough room at the table, enough food on the table, and enough love around the table.

At Billie’s Purple Fork in Brownsville, PA, customers were loyal to her down-home cooking and creative desserts. However, Thanksgiving was special. From 1992-1997, Billie opened her doors on Thanksgiving to everyone for a free meal of salad, turkey, potatoes, stuffing, corn, and her homemade pumpkin pie. She didn't accept financial help for the day and none of her employees were required to work. The meal was prepared with the help of her son and daughter and served by her other daughters, grandson, and granddaughter. Her son-in-law delivered meals to men working at police, fire, and ambulance stations in Brownsville and West Brownsville. When the last plates had been washed and restaurant’s kitchen tidied up, her family would sit and eat.

By the final year, that late-eating table would include a few customers who volunteered their time so that they may earn a place at Billie’s Thanksgiving.

After retiring and moving to a senior independent-living apartment, Billie continued to use food as a way to bring people together. She organized a “Souper Sunday” where people were encouraged to make soup and bring it to the recreational room in an effort to break bread with each other. She delivered soup to anyone unable to make it because of health or other issues. Again, she incorporated her children the celebration including having her son grill at summer picnics and cookouts and her son-in-law dress as Santa to visit the other tenants during the holidays.

Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in October 2006, Billie Marlowe spent as much of the next four weeks as she could creating memories for her friends and family. She couldn’t cook, but food was still at the center of gatherings. This time it was her friends or her kids preparing the food. Her final Thanksgiving (actually held in October) was small with only immediate family in attendance but it was not short of food and love.

In celebration of your mother’s memory and generosity. Jenn Novak, dear friend.
This was the very first GPCFB donation made in memory of Billie Marlowe and the catalyst for Jami Luvfest and all the subsequent volunteerism.  Luvfest, Bagelfest, and all the other crazy ideas I come up with for the Food Bank is in celebration of Billie.

When

• Friday, November 9, 2012
• 7:00 - 10:00 pm

Where

• the ToonSeum
• 945 Liberty Avenue
• Downtown Pittsburgh, PA 15222
  
  

  

  My siblings, Elizabeth, Jami and Wally at a past Luv Fest
  

  
  

  
  

  I was lucky enough to attend last years event and wish that I could make it this year as it keeps getting bigger and bigger.  This years party will be held at the Toonseum in the cultural district of Pittsburgh, a very unique venue. There will be food, beverages and entertainment and of course, Lots of Luv.  Please support my family in our goal of honoring our Mother and feeding Pittsburgh.  You can donate at this link if you are unable to attend in person.....

  
  

  Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank

Falling into Autumn

Ahh rainy Seattle, how I missed thee.  The normal rainfall in the Seattle area in August and September is 2.68 inches.  These are normally our driest months and we still get almost three inches of rain.  However this year we have only received .03 inches of rain this last two months.  That's three hundredths of an inch in more than sixty days.  An all time record for dryness in this area. The old record is .19 of an inch in the early 1900's.  Now I know that I spend a lot of time bitching about the rain.  The irony has not escaped me on this one folks. We went 82 days without any rainfall.  You would think that we were in Southern California with all of the sunshine.  However, all of this dryness brought something else that I was used to seeing in SoCal that I did not miss, wildfires.  It was a very long and disastrous fire season in Washington state.  Tens of thousand of acres burned and thousands of homes lost.

But it is October now and the rain has returned.  Fall is in the air and the leaves are changing colors.  Within the span of about a week we went from sunny and dry to cold and wet.  Today is rainy and 45 degrees at 2pm, so I guess that our long, hot summer is officially over.

I have to admit that at some point in the past year, we turned from temporary San Diego transplants into resident Washingtonians.  More acclimated to the weather by far.  We actually hit ninety degrees one day and I thought I would die from heat prostration.  I am most happy at about seventy five these days.  I am thrilled to be in the clutches of autumn.  This is my favorite season here in the Pacific Northwest. The crispness is in the air and the light has an almost golden glow to it.  The trees changing from a thousand shades of green, to red and orange and amber gold.  The pumpkin patches and neighbor hood carnivals are in full swing.  Unlike San Diego, the pumpkin patches here are not fenced off portions of the Safeway parking lot, they are actual farms and you really pick your pumpkins.  And they all seem to have a corn maze.   This one is off of highway 167 and I drive by it each day on the way to work.

A huge farm with all kinds of fresh produce for sale, including one of our favorite Washington fall traditions, APPLES!!!  You have never had a great apple if you haven't eaten one fresh in Washington. I know, you are saying that you have had Washington apples before and yes they're ok. But yours has probably spent some time on the road for at least a few days and then holed up at some wholesale warehouse until they were sold to your local supermarket and dipped in wax to preserve that shiny look that make it more appealing to the eye. And we only send you the rejects anyway, we keep the good ones here. At the farmers market or on the farm at the roadside stand, right off the tree the same day that we buy them.  And the varieties are endless.  Pink Ladys and Black Arkansas, Ambrosia and Jazz.  Not your garden variety Red Delicious. Although they are really delicious here!  Crisp and tart or tender and sweet, yummy. I never knew that so many varieties existed until we moved here.

Another fall tradition is the Burien Brattrot and Bavarian Fest each October. We had a great time at this fundraiser 5k race and festival in Olde Burien.  Conveniently, it was held only a block from the homestead so that there was no driving involved.  The day was sunny and beautiful for the entire festival and brought hundreds of runners. (I was not one of those)  The beneficiaries were the Highline Schools Foundation and SafeKids King County .  The street was blocked off on the main street and there were beer gardens and other tents set up with vendors.  A stage hosted the Three Tree Point blues band.  One of the band members lives right below our old house and we used to hear them practice all the time. As well as on the 4th of July each year at the neighborhood celebrations.  Ran into our old neighbors Jean and Mike and Charlies best friends Lucy and Bebe. So all in all a splendid day and a great start to the fall season, next up Boo in Burien, the Halloween festival.

Here are some pix from the BratTrot----enjoy.

Lining up at the starting line.

And they're off! 

The guy in the maroon t-shirt with the Lab and Golden retriever is our old neighbor Mike and the dogs are Charlies girlfriends, Lucy and Bebe, we were thrilled to see them.

Runners coming across the finish line. Vantage point-Beer garden.

Danny House, the owner of the Tin Room Bar and Theater, presenting the winners with their jackets and prizes.