Cheap Fuel

Writing is a difficult task for me. I struggled with each literature, grammar or english class from elementary through college. I find it fascinating how people effortlessly sail through school while others (myself) struggle to make it. The truth is that I was never good at writing and my years at Walla Walla College proved that. I retook English 101 and passed Research Writing after my 4th attempt. It's rather embarrassing and I'm not proud of it. As a matter of fact, just last week I had the recurring dream where I am back in school and having the worst time finishing my research paper before the quarter ends. My heart beat increases and I tense up while laying in bed. It's fairly evident that I had miserable time in College which is why it intrigues me that I make an effort to write on this blog. So why do I write? The truth is that I don't have much record of my family history and just as I make an effort to link all the pieces together of my history, perhaps someone down the road will want to know about me. Maybe a grand kid or a great grand kid. If so... "Hello future generation, How are you doing?"

Three weekends ago we made an afternoon trip to Wallowa Lake since gas prices were so low and we have had a warm winter. We had no intentions on making the excursion in the morning yet after realizing that staying home during a warm winter day is dull and boring, we decided to fire up the Chief and hit the road. We arrived at Wallowa Lake at 3:30 and immediately began throwing rock and sticks at the lake while pretending we were mad at it. Since Ben has no concept that water is wet, we had to detained him from jumping into the lake with his clothes on. It's always nice to visit Wallowa Lake especially in the winter when it's desolate and free from tourist. Anyhow, after relaxing from beating the water with sticks and stones we headed into town to grab some ice cream from our favorite soda shop except that the business had been sold and a bistro restaurant has replaced it. The new owners were nice and made us a veggie sandwich yet despite their delightful service there is something about ice cream that can't be replaced, just ask any ice cream aficionado. We proceeded to the liquor store to obtain ice cream, Traci got a cookie sandwich and I got an ice cream sandwich. Since there is no place to sit inside a liquor store, we went outside and found ourselves a bench to enjoy our chilly treats with a chilly evening.

The round trip cost us a mere $15 and that's driving the Chief which gets about 11 mpg. :) As we drove back home, Ben sneezed a couple of times and exclaimed, "Oops! Sorry Daddy." Of course, there is no apology needed so I replied, "That's OK Benny, I love you." Somehow he seemed to enjoy my response and continued repeating, "Oops! Sorry Daddy." as I followed with my response. A few repetitions later, he began to say, "I love you." after my response. This continued for 15 or 20 minutes and although it's not the first time he said the phrase, it's moments like these that I realize how blessed I am. A beautiful wife, a wonderful kid, a Cherokee Chief and a stomach full of ice cream.

3rd Anniversary

I honestly have good intentions to update my blog but it has become clear that I have lost motivation to take pictures on my random trips and update it. However, three years ago I made a promise to never overlook or forget our anniversary. The past 3 summers Traci and I had made trips to the Oregon Coast yet taking time from work in the middle of the week is quite challenging. The decision was then made to spend our anniversary back at Wallowa Lake where it all started.

I'm sure by now you are well aware that we love our automobiles. Part of our dreams are to enjoy and drive them, so we made the effort to get the 57 Chevy running in top condition for the 2 hour trip. Originally our plan was to leave around 6 in the afternoon but due to a few delays, we were able to leave the Walla Walla Valley around 8 pm. It was dark by the time we began climbing the mountain on our way to Tolgate but it was a clear night and the moon was full. I must point out that the lights on the Chevy are quite dim and we were fortunate to not encounter any deers along the way as our visibility was poor. The lack of insulation in the Chevy did leave us appreciating the commodities of newer automobiles. Nevertheless, the heat from engine radiating from the firewall was able to assist as the heater was not able to keep us fully warm.

Driving through each town gave us a strange feeling as there was not one living soul to be seen. The empty streets with the old buildings glowing from the flickering lamppost gave us a glimpse of the past as we drove our 54 year old car. Eventually we made it to our cabin at the Eagle Camp Chalet a little bit after 10:00 pm, where we enjoyed a good night rest.

We began our day on Tuesday by eating at the Old Town Cafe, Traci had the largest breakfast burrito that I have ever witness and I enjoyed a veggie omelet. We had hoped to eat at the Mountain Air Cafe as we had with her family on the Friday before our wedding, but unfortunately it had closed its doors (perhaps because of the economy). Once we were able to plow our way through breakfast, it was time to begin our day. We walked down the street for some good ol' window shopping and then proceeded to drive the 6 miles to Enterprise and see what is there. Our visit to the local antique store was rewarding as we were able to find an old Christmas record album of Bing Crosby (Someone at some point wrote the date of 12-12-47 on the cover). Later we walked down to the Old Ford Dealership building. In the show room, there were 3 cars for sale, a Willys cj2a, a Plymouth Fury and a well restored 1940 Dodge truck. Each had been nicely restored and although I had no intentions to by any, I gave the owner a call to maybe get a closer look at the Jeep. The owner was a nice retired man who at one time had ran both the Chrysler and Ford dealership. We talked about the cars he had owned in the past, including 40 model A's, and the cars we are restoring. He seemed to be quite excited about the new hospital there in Enterprise so once we were done at the dealership, we followed him to the hospital were we both went our separate ways.

On our way back to Wallowa Lake, we made sure to make a stop by Mad Mary's. Traci had a slice of Berry Pie and I enjoyed a slice of raspberry cheesecake. Since cheesecake always snatches the energy out of me, I was ready for a nice nap when we arrived back to our Cabin. It had not been more than 5 minutes when Traci reminded me that 3 years ago at this exact hour, we were surrounded by our friends and families at the wedding ceremony. Sure enough, it was 4 o'clock so there was no way I would allow myself to spend the next hour laying in bed... I was determine to have fun. Since we weren't able to enjoy the Salmon run during our wedding weekend, we decided this would be a great time to go see them as they journey up the river. I must have taken over 100 pictures just to get a few good ones as they quickly jumped out of the river. A few of them even splashed us as we sat motionless waiting for that picture perfect moment.

After witnessing the circle of life, we decided it was time to enjoy a small game of mini golf. It sure helps that Traci and I are not competitive since our scores rivaled that of Basketball game. Since the Eagle Cap Chalets offers a warm jacuzzi for its visitors, we decided it was time to enjoy and take advantage of the opportunity to end our day. Getting in was calm and soothing, yet getting out left us wondering who's idea was this as we shivered our way back to our cabin in the cool evening. Since it was a full moon that night, Traci and I drove to the boat ramp and took a few pictures of the Chevy at night to conclude our 3rd Anniversary.

One of my hopes for our wedding was to have the Chevy as our get away vehicle. Yet due to a few issues with my dad, that was not able to happen. Three years later after obtaining the car and making repairs, the car finally made it to Wallowa Lake without coughing once. It still feels foreign to be approached by complete strangers as they admire the Chevy; I suppose I would be a horrible celebrity if I ever become famous.

We both felt terrible starting up the Chevy before sunrise on Wednesday morning as the Chevy's loud exhaust rivals that of a John Deer Tractor. It sure is a loud car but we both had to make it back to continue working. On our drive back, we were able to see the sunrise over the hills and watching Traci drive the Chevy back... reassured me that life is good.

A Stagnate Blog

A stagnate blog is a boring blog. In fact, I'm not even sure why you are still checking this thing. But now that summer is here, I feel inspired to update my blog.

Perhaps visiting the Oregon Coast for Thanksgiving was a great idea despite that we were more bundled up at the coast than we were back in Walla Walla. This past Thanksgiving we spent it with Traci's family at Lincoln City. We went shopping at the midnight sales for Black Friday and we also got a chance to visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium. Doesn't it sound like much fun? Well it was tons of fun so you missed out.

Each year Janelle, Traci and I make a valiant effort to meet in Seattle before Christmas. This year Janelle brought along her latest boyfriend. We didn't end up spending too much time in the city where me must fight to survive, but instead traveled up north near Mt. Vernon and Deception Pass. While we were standing over the bridge there was a Kayak race that so happened to pass under the bridge. It was perfect timing as we threw rocks at them... just kidding, it was Janelle's idea and appropriate action was taken to stop her before things got out of hand. We also got a chance to visit Rosario Beach where we found out that Jeff (Janelle's Boyfriend) is a world class 'Rock Skipper'. As it is the tradition, we once again caught a ferry ride and wondered why we don't live in the Puget Sound area.

For New Year's we headed south for what turned out to be an episode of "Ice-Road Truckers." While in the past the weather reports along Highway 97 had proved to be very much exaggerated, this year the conditions were truly icy. The new trailer we pulled down with the Jeep was aged at least 20 years by the time we hit warmer weather. Fortunately it isn't as old as the engined that we picked up. Traci's uncle found a rebuild Plymouth engine near Modesto and we bought it for more than it was worth. But that's a different story for a different time.

Perhaps the trips that stand out the most from this past winter are the two trips to Montana. The first for a Bluegrass Concert/My Birthday and the other for Mother's Day. Jimmy actually ventured out to Montana with us for the Concert and although I enjoyed the music, the drunken hippies raving to banjo music was less than appreciated. Mother's day was also an adventure as well as we surprised Traci's mom about our visit. Both Traci and I are getting too old to be driving at 2:30 in the morning, but spending time with her parents is always a great time.

There are two other events that I must point out. This past February Traci and I celebrated 3 years since I asked her the famous "Why would you marry me?" question. We went back to Wallula Junction where I asked her to marry me and walked along the footsteps of our younger selves. Also, my brother finally asked Ashley for her hand in marriage a few months ago.

Congratulations Juan Francisco and Ashley!

I'm almost forgetting the most exciting trip this past winter. I finally got a chance to drive a Willys MB. Traci mentioned that she has never seen me as excited as I was that day and it's true. To be able to ride in the car of my dreams is exciting, but to drive the vehicle is an amazing story that I will forever remember. I want one Traci!