Oct
16
October 16, 2007
Whoorl’s comments section is making me depressed. Fall recipes! Involving squash, and pumpkin, and maybe an overabundance of things baked with cheese! Oh, and how about Swistle’s cookie tutorial, which triggered some sort of Pavlovian salivary response in me, so much so that I actually made a disgusting little slrrrrrp sound while I was reading it? Damn you, Internet.
The reason I’m all bent out of shape over reading recipes, instead of excitedly hitting Print and planning my ingredient-shopping, is because our kitchen is still out of commission. We had every indication that upon returning from vacation, all appliances would be operational, but they’ve hit a few problems. For instance, the counters need to be adjusted before the stove can be installed (thanks to our bumbling project manager accidentally moving one of counters while they were still sealing). Oh, and there’s the little matter of the refrigerator not fitting into its allotted space (thanks to the same project manager mis-measuring how tall the fridge is).
In the meantime, we had to move an enormous, rickety living room bookcase because there will be sanding/staining done to integrate old flooring with new, our front lawn is seeded with something that looks like barfed-up Astroturf, and our driveway is currently being broken up into muddy pieces to prepare for a new cement slab.
Also, Dog has become frightened of leaves. Yes, leaves. From trees. The kind that fall to the ground in gusts of October wind. Every time I put her outside she plasters herself to the door and stares moistly back in, looking like a clubbed Harbor seal. Between the leaves, the Astrobarf, and the driveway demolition, Dog’s little world is in turmoil. I feel for her, I really do. Dog needs doggy Xanax and I need to bake me some goddamn motherhumping cookies.
In other news, I suspect Smalltopus is not actually all that small, and may in fact be some sort of SuperFetus, judging by the level of movements I’ve been feeling recently. Maybe I’m not remembering when Riley’s movements became less “gassy, fluttery” and more “thrashy, sledgehammery” but I thought it was later in pregnancy, during the Trimester of the Whale Shark. This kid can poke me in the side while simultaneously kicking me, Pele-style, in a very sensitive internal organ or two, and I’m just glad we’ve had ultrasounds that confirm he does in fact have only four total appendages and not, you know, SEVENTEEN. Frankly, I’d like to know just what it is he thinks he’s doing in there, because it feels like he’s moving furniture while also performing a few hearty Irish jigs. In steel-toed Doc Martens. I wish he could be convinced to embrace some more sedentary, useful activities, such as reading up on “Sleeping Through the Night: Why Not Start Early?”.
Oct
15
October 15, 2007
Well, hey there! How are you? Man, it’s hard to believe we’ve only been gone since Thursday, it seems like we’ve been away for weeks on end. I’m typing this from the Sidney-Anacortes ferry, so I’m not technically home quite yet, but as long as I can steal a wireless signal from my dying-battery laptop I may as well foist some unwanted vacation photos on you. I know, I know, O THE EXCITEMENT.
On the drive to Tofino from Nanaimo (very pretty in spots, also very bumpy/curvy/Dramamine-y) we stopped to explore this little waterfall area. I was struck not only by the natural beauty, but also the fact that we could both just . . . unbuckle ourselves and get out of the car! At the same time! Without needing to wrangle a small child! Ah, good times.
View from Tonquin Beach in Tofino. The cabin we stayed at is next to the house that’s visible up on the hill.
This is the path to the beach from our cabin. It was like something out of a fairy tale, I expected to see a friendly forest-dwelling gnome amongst all the enormous trees and mushrooms.
We couldn’t get to the beach at the very lowest tides (these happened late enough in the evening that we would have needed flashlights and a complete disregard for the possibility of cracking an ankle on wet, slippery rocks while scrambling in the dark), but there were still a lot of tide pools revealed as the waves went out.
Hey, anyone know what these are? The giant prehistoric plants, that is, not JB (he’d like me to say he’s a Hominid Erectus Phallus Girnormous). We only saw them on the coast and they’re like nothing I’ve ever encountered in the Northwest—huge, scratchy, and did I mention huge? I think maybe they live on feral cats and the occasional missing tourist.
Receding waves at Combers Beach. The neat thing about Tofino is that there are so many different kinds of beaches, depending on where you go. Rocky, sandy, wild, serene—between the protected bays, exposed coastlines, and meandering inlets of water, you can visit all sorts of diverse environments.
JB walking out of the trees on one of the many boardwalk trails we hiked. The forests are almost as spectacular as the beaches, with thick old-growth rainforests and towering Sitka spruces.
I hoped to see a whale during this trip, but no dice. Tofino offers a plethora of whale-watching trips to choose from, including some dubious ventures involving Zodiak boats and, presumably, the ability to repel pneumonia using sheer willpower, but we gave those a pass. Next time I’d like to take a seaplane flight or rent kayaks.
Tofino has a large surfing community, and we spent part of one afternoon just watching people tackle the waves (in this picture, a dad was helping his kid ride a few feet at a time). From a few anecdotal conversations it sounds like there’s a large segment of the younger population who spend their summers surfing in Tofino and their winters skiing in Whistler, working the tourist spots as waiters or instructors. Sounds like a good way to spend your early twenties, really. Beats spending your weekends chugging Boone’s Strawberry Hill wine and making out with boys who wear eyeliner, anyway, not that I would have any experience with that.
We took this picture with the camera’s timer, on a beach so remote it felt almost eerie. The trail that wound through the trees warned of bear sightings in the area, and I was convinced there was at least one bear peering out at us from the forest while we walked the beach. I took pictures of this beach but the camera couldn’t come close to capturing how lovely it was, with black rocks the size of skyscrapers jutting from the waters and the shore sparkling with intricate shells and wave-smoothed pebbles. This is the place I’ll remember the most, I think.
On Saturday we left our cabin at Tonquin Point and moved to the Middle Beach lodge; this is the view from our room. The lodge was gorgeous but if I could go back I’d stay at the Tonquin cabin the whole time—it was much more remote, cozy, and felt like a home.
Should you ever have a chance to visit Tofino, here are my recommendations:
• Book the Tonquin Point Retreat, especially if it’s just two of you. It was comfortable, had a little kitchenette, and the bed was possibly the most wonderful thing I’ve ever slept in (add in the sound of waves crashing outside the window, and you have a real piece of heaven).
• Make sure to hike out to South Beach.
• Eat at Upstairs above Schooner’s, and order the seafood chowder.
• Stop at the Tofitian for the best goddamned latte you’ll ever have, and be sure to get a blueberry/white chocolate chip cookie while you’re at it.
• If you happen to stop in Sidney, maybe to take the Anacortes ferry back to Washington, eat dinner at The Latch restaurant, where you’ll be served unbelievably delicious food by a wonderful Italian man who spent twenty years as maître d’ on the Princess cruise line. Make sure to get the steamed clam/mussel appetizer, which comes with a broth made out of CRACK COCAINE.
I missed Riley very very much during this trip, but oh, it was nice to have a break. With a baby on the way, I don’t know when we’ll do this kind of thing again—probably not for a long, long time. I’m grateful we had the chance to make this vacation happen, and I think we owe JB’s parents an enormous favor for taking on a toddler for five long days in a house under remodel. Any ideas for what kind of thank you gift might be appropriate here, short of human sacrifice?
PS. I also owe a huge thank you to Kristin, for the suggestion to visit Tofino in the first place. K, you’re the best.
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