kandas-adventures

Happy Birthday Dad

My dad recently celebrated his 75th Birthday.  He arranged his own party, at a local Indian restaurant.  My husband suggested we get him this t-shirt from a local brewpub, featuring "Bhagwan's Best" pale ale.  If you've been following my blog for a while, you may recall that my dad was a pioneer on the controversial Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh commune in Oregon in the early 1980's.  Even though that ended badly, and my dad has obviously moved on, he still looks back fondly on his time there, and will always have a soft spot in his heart for Bhagwan.  If you want to read more about those crazy times, click here.

Anyhow, about a dozen of us joined Dad for his birthday celebration.  Pictured above from left to right is his 5th ex-wife's boyfriend, his French girlfriend looking on, on old friend from the commune (obscured by the shirt), and of course my dad in his orange paisley shirt.

Here's my dad with some of his hippie friends.

Before the party my dad told me he had a big announcement to make.  What could it be?  A 4th half sibling that my dad never told me about?  He's getting married for the 6th time?  He's starting his own commune?  He's finally reached enlightenment and will be moving to India?  Nope, nothing that exciting.  He just bought himself a used car, an old diesel Mercedes that he hopped a plane to Vegas to purchase off a Craigslist posting.  It could be a Katrina car -- the history is sketchy -- but he's always wanted a car like this, and figured it will be the last car he buys in his life, so here it is.  

My dad is very proud of the fact that he is healthy and takes no pharmaceuticals, but one never knows what the future holds.  Both of his brothers are gone -- one dropped dead of a heart attack at age 65, and the other died at age 60 of cancer.

His sister is still going strong at 80.  You can see just how strong here:

 

 

Happy Birthday, Dad.  You better start practicing your headstand now, so you can celebrate 80 the way your sister does.

Seattle's New Museum of History and Industry (MOHAI)

Because of a proposed highway expansion, the Museum of History and Industry in Seattle has moved from its old location near the University of Washington to the old Naval Reserve Armory on the shore of Lake Union near downtown Seattle.

Since they opened less than a month ago, I've gone 3 times: once with each of my parents, and once with my husband and friends.   It was fun to hear my parents' recollections about Seattle history prompted by the wonderful exhibits.  My dad graduated from high school in Seattle in the 1950's, and my mom came to Seattle in 1964.  

When I first entered the museum I felt there "wasn't much to see" because it appeared to be just a big open space.  Looks can be deceiving...  

The second level contains the main exhibit in a maze of rooms connected to a circular balcony.  The MOHAI website best describes what can be found there:

"True Northwest: The Seattle Journey explores some of the trials and tribulations of Seattle on its long and bumpy journey from wilderness to world city.

"Visitors stroll through twenty five different "snapshots" of the city through the years, each with a unique display of artifacts, images, and multimedia. Interspersed througout the exhibit are one-of-a-kind interactive experiences, such as the Great Fire Theater and the Canwell Trials reenactment, that let visitors truly immerse themselves in the lives and stories of our past." 

 

The fourth floor contains one room dedicated to local maritime history.  I was grateful that the popular periscope made the move from the old location to this new one.  

Look out the windows and you might see...

A Native American paddling a hand-carved canoe...

Or the more typical boat and float-plane traffic.

Little K looks down from the 4th floor Maritime History room.

The girls and me in front of a beautiful photo-mural of Mt. Rainier on the 2nd floor.


My dad and the girls on the stairs.  After my dad's visit he said he "needed a nap."  My mom needed a wheelchair.  And my husband could hardly walk the next couple days after his visit (well, he did just have knee replacement surgery).  The girls and me?  We didn't get enough, and can't wait to go back for more!

If you live in Seattle, or are visiting Seattle, I highly recommend a visit to MOHAI.  It's an amazing place, with something for everyone, including the very young (there's even a great playroom for the littlest ones).

An Afternoon with Grandpa

During spring break I had errands to run in the city, so we stopped by the place where Grandpa is staying temporarily to say hello.

 

We had a lunch of tomato soup, celery sticks with cream cheese, and crackers in the back garden.

Since everyone ate a good lunch, we stopped by Mighty-O donut for a few vegan mini doughnuts and a coffee to fuel us up for a walk at Greenlake.

 

The ornamental cherry trees were in full bloom and just stunning. Daffodils were still around and tulips were just popping. It really felt like spring.

 

During our walk along the lake Little K grumbled that she wished it weren't just spring, but summer, so she could go swimming. Grandpa didn't hesitate. He swept her off her feet and was ready to toss her in...

 

Of course with Grandpa one never knows what he'll really do. He's just crazy enough to follow through! However on this day he just gave little K a good scare.

By the time our afternoon with Grandpa came to a close, the clouds had rolled in and the temperature had dropped. Soon Grandpa would be on the train headed back to rural Minnesota for the summer, where he lives in an airstream trailer in a trailer park. By spending his summers in the midwest, he is actually able to live off his meager Social Security payments. When he has to come to the city in October, when the trailer park shuts down for the winter, his cost of living goes up, even though he rents a room from friends. Part of it is that in the city he has a girlfriend or two, which requires flowers and the occasional dinner out. Then there is the lure of coffee shops on every corner in Seattle. He takes odd carpentry and interior painting jobs to bolster his income during the winter.

I never pictured my hippie dad in a trailer park surrounded by retired midwest conservative republicans, but he says they treat him like a harmless curiosity, and there is always an open dinner invitation for him at one trailer or another because people feel sorry for him being alone. He claims the home-cooked meals are worth the proselytizing he sometimes gets.

We won't see him again until the fall. The girls and I will miss him.

 

 

Multi-Media Slide Show: Best of Spring 2008

You can watch here:

 

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Salmon Days 2006

Hatchery Worker explains Salmon life cycle

The girls are rapt with attention as the hatchery worker shows them early stages of a Salmon's life, while in the background a mature Salmon can be seen ready to jump the fish ladder.

Getting a handful of fish food to feed the fish

 

The Issaquah hatchery has lots of lovely hands-on exhibits

The educational exhibits are gorgeous. I'd love to have such a mural in my home, wouldn't you?

Grandpa and the girls with a real owl

A was ecstatic to see a real, live owl, and have her photo taken with it for $10. She adores owls and this was a dream come true for her.

 

Inside the inflatable salmon

There is a Native American style salmon inflatable that the kids can run inside. This year they also had an inflatable turtle, and inside that there were costumes to wear and a native elder telling stories about the salmon.

The girls love the Geico Gecko ads on TV, but of course have no idea what Geico is selling. (Insurance Coverage) Upon rounding a corner and seeing this inflatable in the distance, the girls immediately started shrieking, "GEICO!" The people working the booth were overjoyed by the free advertising my girls provided as they continued to chant "GEICO! GEICO!" as they raced past all the other booths and hurled their little selves at the inflatable gecko.

Spine

I used to always be annoyed by the multitude of Chiropractors set up at farmer's markets and craft fairs. I don't have anything against chiropractic, I've certainly had my share of adjustments, but I feel a FARMER's market and a CRAFT fair is not the place to accost people with a sales pitch for 10 Chiropractic sessions for the low price of $499.99.

But now I have a 6 year old daughter who wants to be a doctor. So that dangling spine prop is irresistable. Into their booth we go. Count the bones, trace the nerves, oh how exciting for her!

Michael of Hatterdashery

And yes, he really does make hats using that old treadle Singer machine. My dad bought me my first hat from Michael at a street fair in the 1970's. I still have it, but it doesn't fit me anymore as it's a child size.

 

The girls watch as Michael sews a hat

First time for the girls to see a treadle sewing machine in action.

 

Hats from Hatterdashery

 

Crazy Grandpa loves lots of mustard on his Costco Polish Dog