out with the old, in with the new

the original stove we purchased with the home for $150 in 1994

and the new one from Sears, March 2011, $482.

It sure is nice to have something brand new, isn't it? We'd been searching for several years for a stainless steel facade range, with electric burners. They didn't seem to exist. All had glass/ceramic cooktops only. That wouldn't work with our sturdy iron skillets, we were told (something about the iron scratching the heat surface). So we gave up the dream until hubby spotted several online at Sears. Armed with the model numbers I went to Sears on my way to the dentist. The only model (stainless) on the floor happened to be this one. So, we got it. It took a week to arrive, and we picked it up ourselves to save the delivery charge. We wrestled it out of the van and up the front steps. Took the cardboard box off and brought it in the house. I bought a three wire range cord at the local True Value for $16 (Sears wanted $22 for theirs) and David hooked it up. I made popcorn last night and was amazed at the speed the burner heated up. Wow. 

We sold the old one on Craigslist within 24 hours, for $65.

Spring Break III: Border Crossing, Brian Doerkson, The Puddy's

Karen and Tom, good buddies!

Tom is a natural ham, kids love him

Love Dave's new hairdo~

good times

lovely living room, Tom built the house







We spent Thursday through Sunday traveling up to British Columbia and back. Our points of interest were La Connor, Washington, a Steve Bell concert in Richmond, BC, a Brian Doerkson concert in Tacoma, Washington, and visiting good friends in Olympia, Washington. We spent 10 minutes crossing the border into Canada, and our border guard's wife happened to be Steve  Bell's cousin! You know, they always ask the question "where are you from and where are you going?" He lit up when we told him about the concert. He said his wife would be there. We met Steve after the concert and relayed our story to him, and he said, yes, his cousin had been there. Steve is from Winnepeg, 50 years old, and already a grandfather of two. I appreciated his thoughtful songs and his stories. He is a good songwriter and musician. He brought with him 3 excellent musicians.

Our border crossing back to the US was a different story....

We left our hotel in Richond BC approximately 9am, and decided to take an alternate border crossing (other than the Peach Arch) when we read a board with average wait times: Peace Arch 2+ hours......Blaine: 80 minutes. We chose the Blaine route and waited for 2 1/2 hours. We finally crossed into Washington state at 12:20pm

but how do you really feel about this wait, Dave?

this car tries to take cuts....we are not happy

waiting endlessly...feels like we are in a surreal reality

oh look, we have arrived at these signs!

the ice cream man ducks when he sees my camera come out!

We drive to Seattle and take the exit nearest to the Fremont/University district. We wind our way through neighborhoods to Fremont. We park the car (in our usual spot, 2 hour free parking) and walk past the Greek restaurant into Dusty Strings music store. Dave plays a variety of guitars, I play a few harps, a resonator guitar, some djembes, percussive fruits, and a few guitars. Then we check out the used CD/Record store. Dave finds a few CD's for himself and David. I duck into the Flying Apron to check out the the baked goods (to see what the items in my cookbook look like in real life). The place is a bit crowded so I leave and go back to the CD store. Eventually we get a bite to eat at a middle eastern food place that used to be Taco Del Mar. Oh YUM! The young man who took our order and cooked our food was lovingly trained. Our food was delicious.

our dinner is prepared by this young man

very delicious!

Dave's gyros sandwich...most tasty!

Seattle skyline heading south on I-5

We drove on to Tacoma for a concert at Our Savior's Lutheran church, located on 112th E. and Bingham.
We had a bit of a detour looking for the place, but weren't delayed by this in the end. After the concert (9pm) we drove to our friends home in Olympia to spend the night. They were waiting up for us with snacks and drinks. We talked until midnight. Had a leisurely morning with breakfast cooked by the men! Then a 3 hour drive home in some sloshy wind and rain. It helped that Jocelyn called us on her magic jack phone line from their new (temporary) apartment in Heidelberg. They had a smooth trip yesterday from Shreveport to Frankfurt. All luggage is safe, and they are happy to be 'home'!

Brian Doerkson in concert in Tacoma