SUMMER OF LORI - A BLISSFUL ENDING

My Dad, Athene and I headed to the Olympic Pennisula for a  few days at Lake Crescent.  Did you know that Lake Crescent is the second deepest lake in washington? It was so beautiful.  The water there is extra clear because there isn't enough nitrogen in the soil to allow plant life.  That means no algae or milfoil. So you can see the bottom of lake even when you are far away from the shoreline.   We wanted to go on a paddleboat (no, I wasn't worried after my Greenlake event) but they were only 2-seaters.  Our second choice was to go out on a canoe.  We have a lot of canoe experience since I grew up with one but they were also 2-seaters. So, we went on a rowboat.  Dad did a great job of getting us out and around the lake. And us ladies just sat there enjoying the view.

This place is loaded with fun hiking trails and after the desserts we had at lunch - walking is a necessity.  Check out the fresh, local, Peach Cobbler and Mud Pie at the lodge.  Wow!!!

We drove around the area and found a great beach on the Strait of Juan de Fuca side and spent a significant amount of time looking for a miniature golf park in a small town named Joyce.  We never did find it but we did find some funny, creatively named elements like a ranch named "Notso Grande Ranch", "Itsa Creek", "Bytheway" street and so forth. I guess when you live in a small town like Joyce, you have to make your own entertainment.

Technically summer doesn't end until next Friday but I'm saying so long to summer now and Hello! to fall.  In fact, this time next week - the first day of fall for the USA anyway - I will be leaving London and heading for the countryside.

What a treat it was to have the whole summer off.  I really had a great time, I will always remember this summer fondly and with no regrets about life changes.  Tootles Summer!  

HAVING FUN IN THE SUN: THE DOG DAYS OF SUMMER

My Dad & Stepmom are visiting from New Mexico and we are making the most of this great weather.  We had a blast at the Museum of Flight. Did you know that airplanes were first used to transport mail?  There was an extra seat in the plane and there always seemed to be a passanger who needed a ride so the guy who started Boeing decided that maybe they should make mail planes bigger and sell seats to more people.  It grew from there.  The original Airline Attendants were nurses: they felt it was necessary to keep passengers calm and to handle health issues since the cabins weren't pressurized and people did faint. We also learned all about the last B-17 in existance - see below - the plane that basically won WWII on the Europe front.

Learned a lot about the history of the world and Washington state at the Burke Museum. This is a Giant Brazilian Terror Bird.

This is the skeleton of a Mastadon not a Wolly Mammoth. You see the tusks grow differently.  Just so you know...for the next time you see one.

Spent some time at Golden Gardens playing with the dog - Mandy.  She loves the water. 

Check out the 3 turtles sunning themselves on this log. 

Minature golf - a Schumacher tradition.  Everyone else got a hole-in-one except me.  WHATEVER!

WHAT I'M NOT DOING THESE DAYS

I love having the summer off and it's been such a memorable experience.  As you can read my extensive lists of what I HAVE done, it seems time to list the things I'm NOT doing.  For those the know me well and/or worked with me, this list will have more meaning.  Here we go, see below.

1. NOT planning the 3-day, Young Investigators Workshop that included a bunch of big-wigs.
2. NOT taking minutes at the Board of Directors Meeting.
3. NOT planning for the fall Group Meeting: no travel planning, no hotel reservations for large groups.
4. NOT working extra hours for the fall events that are scheduled back to back. 
5. NOT missing out on vacation time in August & September.  This is the first time in 13 years that I've been able to have time of in August and September and it feels great.

LET THE COUNT DOWN BEGIN!!!

It's time AGAIN. Don't resist. Don't act like you don't want to know. It happens at the exact time every year. YES - it's time to begin the Christmas Count Down.

It is 112 Days Until Christmas!  Now that you know - go out there and spread the word.