Field Trips Revisited...

So I owe you all a huge apology...

All this time...

We've been venturing out, exploring the city, documenting our travels, yet I've been depriving all y'all of our exploits.

I come to you now for both forgiveness and redemption.

Thus this post: a catch-up on all of our undocumented summer ventures (and yes, I understand this is probably a lame attempt at some sunshine in this dark, rainy night...but such is Seattle.... ) So I can't guarantee these pics to be timely, fully explained, or even sequential.....yet here it goes y'all....

In the past I've taken you all to pike place market at least half a dozen times, exposed you all to the friendly fremont troll, the beauty that is Lake Union and its hundreds of sail boats...brought you along to nearby waterfalls and train depots and ferries... a fire festival, a display of freedom represented mostly by naked peeps, and last but not least....the county hospital.

... and I know what you're all thinking: "what else could possibly be left, our fearless leader"???

Just you wait, kids. Just you wait.

Ok, so I'm sure that's entirely too much of a build-up, but surely it beats sitting at a desk pretending to work like you are surely all doing right this second... (ha! caught you turkeys!!!)

And so begins my first trip down memory lane - and I can promise you all (good or bad) that there will be several more to follow. (But don't worry - I promise to break them up so as not to cause you to read too much at once)

#1 on my agenda is most assuredly Leavenworth, WA:

Enter into evidence our tubin' trip of the NW. You see, Vanessa and I had been planning a get-together of sorts for awhile, and seeing as how it was merely June or July - we knew we had to take advantage of the rare summer weather. So which is it: tubin' down a lazy river or a battle with the rapids in white-water rafting?? Hmmm..... Erika had her vote - and I know you're all surprised - but it did NOT involve lots of hard work or a price tag of over $25. And so I bring you............ (drum roll, please) ........... Tubin' down the Wenatchee.

Now as much as I hate to say it - no pics of the tubes or the four of us lounging in said tubes were officially documented. But don't worry - I'm pretty sure you're much better off in this scenario than you would be in witnessing the not-always-pretty sight of our trip.

And such it begins: typical men that Clay and Bill are, it was left up to the chicaritas to do all planning (I know, such a surprise, right?). And for that I'd say we did pretty well. We had a plan: a destination, a tubin' company, and an approximate timeline. Bill and Clay, on the other hand, just might disagree.

So I admit that we took a little long getting loaded up and headed out of Seattle (the hordes of people in town for the annual weed festival didn't help...no lie.) but we were on the road at a decent hour. One stop at the world's s-l-o-w-e-s-t sub shop and we were getting closer...slowly, but surely. Then comes the mountain drives - curvy and slow, sure. What we had not factored into the time equation was the driver: you see Clay was gracious enough to drive us all, but you have to remember that Clay has probably only driven a total of 15 hours in the 5 months since he moved out to Washington. Needless to say, we had a grandma on our hands. (Insert flashback here to high school when I was driving on a back road and I was stuck behind a slow car... "Let's go, grandpa" I say before whipping around the car in my responsible, yet non-senior citizen like pace.....only to see that - swear to the good Lord above - in the car was really my grandma and grandpa. Doh!)

But I digress...3 hours later we finally made it to Leavenworth. A few phone calls and many, many circles driving around downtown later and we find it! Tube Leavenworth. Let's just say that thank goodness they stayed open an extra hour that day due to the crowds and great weather - lucky for us!!

I have to say this experience was far different from any back home, this was no Hooch folks! For starters the tubes were somethin' way fancier than down south - no simple black tires for us! They were double stuffed, had a bottom and a hammock seat - a cup holder, and even a pillow! Add to that a cooler tube and hooks on each tube to stay close to each other (and more importantly the cooler float) if you wanted to, and some FRIGGIN COLD water, and it was quite a different experience - but it was GREAT.

Once we all thawed out and started to adjust to the non-GA/FL water, we were really starting to enjoy it. A few tee-tiny waterfalls here and there, a deer - no! two, three! - deer later and I was truly feeling relaxed. Ahhhh!! a tee-tiny rapid or three just added a little fun and splash.

But quickly Bill and Clay have made some headway and are a good bit ahead of me and V. "Boys!" "Boys!!" "Where are you going?? That's not the path!!!" Fine. Whatever - V. and I are good sports - so we quickly paddle (with the frisbees provided for the task - and quite handy might I add) toward their detour. Fine... Guys 1, Girls 0.

Ok, this isn't funny kids - this is getting a little shallow. Are you sure we shouldn't have followed the teenagers that are so obviously local kids using the day as an excuse to see each other in their skivies and sneak and hide some beer on the "reeve-er"?? I really think they know what they're doing - unlike us! Ok fine. Fine! No. Really. The rocks are starting to scrape my dragging arse... This is getting un-funnier by the rock boys, but fine I promise I'll be a good girlfriend and play along...

"Ok. SERIOUSLY." Not only is my arse dragging at this point - there are times when I am really STUCK. So up I stand - to literally walk to a deeper point hobbling over the sharp rocks looking to determine which side of the river will be the most forgiving... Ahhh. Finally. The deeper waters are back and the rocks have disappeared... Or so I THOUGHT!!! Gosh darn it here they come again - "Owwww!!!!! This isn't funny!!!"

But no matter how hard I try to convince them otherwise - the boys are laughing hysterically downstream where they've pulled off and parked to watch the spectacle. "Thanks guys!" I holler, "as if I didn't have enough body image issues already!!" This is ridiculous. Quickly visions of a beached whale finally slipping back into the current after a very long 30 day fast quickly flood my brain in a panic... At that thought I quickly stand up, pick up my fancy huge tube, drag it along next to me, and WALK /RUN the rest of their "detour". PUNKS!!!

Ahhhhh finally back in the REAL river - safe from my impending doom and lonely beached life - phew. I see the local teenagers ahead. We must be safe now. And slowly I begin to relax again, this time appreciating the deep water much more than before. A few floaters cruise past, others linger as we lap them at the speed of the tortoise. "This is what I was looking forward to" I say to myself as I lazily drift down the peaceful river...

Another half hour or so and I'm still doing great, but at this point the liquid I've been sipping on has made it's way through my peaceful (yet narrowly-escaped-from-a-very-ill fate) bod. "Uh-oh" you might think...but silly you, you forgot about one of the many thrills of tubing - the lack of a need to actually find a bathroom! Ever wonder why none of your friends have to stop and tinkle on your 3 hour long tubing session?? I don't. And I'm ok to admit it kids. (Sorry!!)

So I strategically make my way ahead of the gang, pull of to a slightly shallower area (but not TOO shallow!!!), let my river flow, and hop back into my tube - the gang none-the-wiser. Back they join me, and sure enough mr. bill has my same concern....but alas, Mr. bill lacked a bit of planning that ms. management major had....

No worries right away - a hop off the tube and although cold - definitely still perfectly within tubing norms. that is....until re-boarding time.

Now to this day I'm quite convinced the upcoming show was for no one but me, but regardless (or shall I say for those less versed in vocabulary and those wanting to chap my hide just a bit more - IRregardless - look it up folks, it's not a real world!!!!) I love him that much more for putting on the show...

Let's just suffice it to say that it can be quite difficult to hop up on a double decker tube with your swimmin' trunks below your crack and no shallow riverbed on which to boost oneself up on!!! For the next 10 minutes I worked off every bit of weight I had felt in shallow waters as I watched Jesus try unsuccessfully to pull himself up on his raft. Oh - the pictures forever burned into all of our brains... I'm not gonna lie to you - it just about made up for the shallow waters they dragged me through just to see cheek after cheek try to flop up on the tire time and time again while the inner-plumber grinned at me in between attempts at launching itself up on the float - all the while arms and legs flailing in the splashes.....

Approximately 8 or 9 minutes later Bill was back up on his tube and we were unable to breathe through the laughter, but were all the happier for having witnessed the spectacle of flailing crackdom....

Thanks Bill!

So alas we were nearing the end and sadly enough the drop off point was inevitable... At that point leave it to Erika to miss the drop off, have to leap out of my double-wide, and swim panic-y against the current to make it back to the exit spot. (Note to those the current gets really strong at the end!!) It was so bad I had to actually dunk my whole body into the frigid water in a moment of survival, but don't worry kids - i also managed to save my drink which stayed above water the entire under-water doggie paddle time, all the while keeping my glasses on my face, so all in all I'd say a successful trip!!! What a blast.

We all made it safely out of the ree-ver, all managed to (gracefully or not so much so) get changed into our dry clothes in the parking lot, and drove back into town. The town is basically like Helen, GA so we ventured to a German Restaurant (Clay's favorite - not!) and proceeded to refuel after the long, long day...

What a fantastic day and a fantastic way to enjoy the Washington outdoors!

So start planning your next trip kids, and remember to request a trip to Leavenworth ;)