Visiting the Eastside - Monday

Monday morning the kids and I set out for the Kingston/Edmonds ferry. My purpose for this day was two fold. First, I wanted to meet two old friends for lunch in Edmonds. Second, wanted to return to my hometown and see the house I grew up in and the schools I attended.

I failed to take pictures of the house and the schools. I don't know what I was thinking! Sorry. But it was very strange for me to go see them. It was like visiting the ghosts of my childhood self. I knocked on the door of the house, hoping someone would be there to talk to. No luck. The house was painted differently, the yard was overgrown. The front entry deck Dad built should have been replaced many years ago... it was dangerous to even walk on it because it was so rotted away! Yet, in my mind I could see it how it used to be.

It was the same for the schools. Big changes made it feel like a different place, but the old bones of memories were still there, beckoning me to remember.

Helena and Will followed me around under protest. I think they were embarrassed a lot that day. I went to the office at each school, telling them who we were and why we were there. They were happy to welcome us and encouraged us to wander to our (or my) heart's content. At A.G. Bell Elementary I showed the kids where my kindergarten classroom was, where I was sitting when I got tricked into be Grumpy for the school's production of "Snow White", where the 'marble field' was (remember filling one of Dad's old socks with marbles and tying a knot in the end?), and, of course, the woods.

I am amazed now that the school administration and teachers turned us all loose at lunch recess to roam and ramble through those woods! The office secretary was amazed, too, when I told her. That is simply not allowed now. The 70's were part of a different era, I think.

At Lake Washington High School it was much the same. There were additions to the building that made it look unrecognizable to me, yet once we were inside the hallways were the same. We even found a photo in the trophy display case of the 86-87 basketball team, including Jeff! The kids were surprised to see a picture of their uncle in this strange place. They had forgotten that Trina and Jeff met in high school physics class.

I am glad I went back to see them when I did. There is a new high school being built right behind the current one. Once completed, the old building will come down. If I hadn't gone this time, I would have never seen it again. It is the same with the elementary school. They are slated for a new building in two years, at which time the old school will be demolished. I feel a little nostalgically sad, but truthfully, it is time. Especially for the high school. That place looked run down, tacky, and was smelly! Oh well. Out with the old! In with the new!

It was wonderful to meet with Sara and Teresa for lunch! I'd say time has done the same number on all of us. We all look like time has been kind to us, but it hasn't stood still. We had a yummy lunch at a local cafe next to the marina and beach in Edmonds. We talked over old times and new. It was good, good to see them! I hope they had fun, too!

Just a shot of the inside of the ferry car deck. The ferry system in Washington is pretty amazing! The ferries are basically giant water buses that transport vehicles and passengers across the Puget Sound and into the islands (and Canada) at key crossing points. We calculated that we would be crossing on a ferry with &/or without the car 14 times on this vacation! Here is an impressive fact for you... We were standing outside the Starbucks on Lake Washington Blvd. in Kirkland at 5:00 p.m. and made it onto the Edmonds/Kingston 5:50 p.m. boat!

Oh yeah! I am GOOD! (Thank heaven for the commuter lane on I-405)