After the Cannon Beach portion of my recent trip west, my husband and I spent a few days in Seattle with our daughter. For these days also we had lovely weather, and Mount Rainier appeared on the horizon most days. I always marvel at this mountain, which looms thousands of […]
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Hospitalized for Homesickness
I wrote in my last post about my son’s first experience at summer camp. When I was eleven, I went to summer camp myself for the first and last time. It was 1967, the summer after my sixth grade year. Three fellow classmates and I—girls I liked, but not close […]
Continue readingHanford Reach: History Preserved by Accident
In January 1943, the U.S. Army selected the town of Hanford, Washington, as the site for plutonium production on the Manhattan Project. Beginning in February 1943, the Army acquired vast amounts of land around Hanford pursuant to the Second War Powers Act. The three hundred residents of Hanford were evacuated […]
Continue readingThe State of Washington Lied To Me When I Was in High School
Sometime during my sophomore or junior year of high school, I was required to take the Washington Pre-College Test. This test was necessary to apply to universities in the state. I intended to apply to both Washington State University and the University of Washington, so I dutifully signed up for […]
Continue readingWestern Heads Cool As Gold Fever Begins in the East
When autumn came to 1848, San Francisco was already a boom town and coping with the influx of gold. At the same time, rumors of the gold rush were just reaching Washington, D.C. By late September, more than 6000 men were mining in California. Wealth from the gold fields flooded into […]
Continue readingA Rest at Lake Chelan, Washington
In August, my husband and I were fortunate enough to take a couple of days after my mother’s funeral for a respite at Lake Chelan, Washington. There’s something so calming about staying on the lake shore, as I’ve written before (see here and here) Maybe because when I am by a […]
Continue readingA Picture I Wish I Had: A Baby and Huckleberries
A friend of mine in Washington State recently posted a picture of huckleberries she had picked. Now those of you who don’t live in the West may not even know what huckleberries are. You’ve heard of Huckleberry Finn, but did you ever wonder where the Huckleberry in his name came […]
Continue readingA Summer Short: Sights on the Olympic Peninsula
I recently returned from another visit to see family on the Olympic Peninsula. It’s a place: Where picturesque villages line ocean inlets Where mountains vie with evergreens for majesty Where Mount Rainier can be seen from the Wal-Mart parking lot (look through the cart rack) Where wildflowers grow as profusely […]
Continue readingThe Tao of Writing, of Geography, and of Clutter
While browsing in my local library recently, I saw the book, The Tao of Writing, by Ralph L. Wahlstrom. I don’t know much about Taoist principles or philosophy, but I thumbed through the pages, and it looked interesting. Anything that might immerse me more deeply in the writing life I […]
Continue readingWhich Ugliest Town in America?
I first visited Missouri in early June 1977, before my now-husband and I were married. I’ve described that visit—the trip to Fort Osage and the making of gooseberry pie. But what I didn’t say in that post was that I thought his hometown of Marshall, Missouri, was the ugliest town […]
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