The beginning of change

It’s been an overwhelming week. We announced we were selling the restaurant, and also moving the bakery storefront back up to the production bakery (not by choice, but to make a long story short we listened to what the universe was telling us).

The amount of support we’ve received from the community is humbling. I knew that people would understand, but I didn’t realize how many people would take the time to write emails to us, or send messages through social media. It makes me cry, but not because I’m sad. There’s just so many things bubbling under the surface, that my body just doesn’t know what to do, so it lets the tears flow. 

Growing together

 We celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary this week - if you're counting all the years we've been together, it'd be sixteen. That's a while to be with someone. Not as long as other people, but still a fair amount of time. What we have been able to do is grow together, and separately. Obviously we're not the same people were were in our early 20s, but we still want to have fun, build a life together, and fight for that. Yes, we've had some hard times where one of us has slept in the guest room from time to time, but ultimately I think we are stronger than we've ever been as a couple. I am thankful for that.

And now we've entered into the next phase of our lives: planning a life without a restaurant at its center. Navigating what that looks like for both of us is going to take some time, but day by day we're beginning to look at what that really means. Tyler already seems to have a plan for where he is headed, while I'm trying to bumble around and figure things out. I know I will, and he is supportive of it, but right now I feel a little lost. But I am hopeful, and I have a lot of support from everyone around me. 

Thinking about our anniversary next year is weird, but in a good way. So much is up in the air right now, but for the first time I feel like we have a bit more control over the direction we want our lives to take. We both have a lot of soul searching to do, as a couple and as individuals. I am excited to see where we end up. I know big life changes take a while, but I hope a year from now I'll be able to look at this and smile fondly about the first steps being taking toward something - whatever that something may be. 

Crystal Lake & Circle Peak

We went backpacking for the first time in five years. It has been a goal of ours this year. Because we’re older and wiser, we are easing ourselves back into it, trip by trip. 

Our route was 4.5 miles into Crystal Lake where we'd set up camp, then continue to Circle Peak without our packs. The whole trip was 18 miles, with only half of it actually backpacking.

Before we set foot on the trail head, we knew that it was overgrown. Tyler had looked up the recent trail reviews, and even our hiking book said it was overgrown. He even sharpened the machete his sister had given him as a present from Tanzania years ago to use if necessary. We were ready for the brush that lay before us.

Well, for the most part. We accidentally slept a little later than we wanted, so we didn’t get started until 9 a.m. and by then, it was already plenty warm. And our shorts and short sleeves were not optimal for the overgrown path. He tried swinging the machete for a bit, but we got into a patch of young alders and there wasn’t much the blade could do besides bounce off the wood. We forged ahead, made it out and up to the lake. After cooling off in the shade, we made camp and relaxed for the rest of the day.

The next morning we set off early for Circle Peak. It’s now one of my favorite hikes because of the the changing terrain; old growth forest, meadow wetlands, alpine forest, mountain wildflowers and the view of the mountain range from the top. You could see Mount Baker, Glacier Peak, the Three Matterhorns and all the other peaks in between.

When we got back to camp we had hammock time. We watched the world just go on it’s merry way. The birds, an occasional trout jumping, spiders’ building their webs high up between the trees, bees collecting pollen from the berry bushes, and a dragon fly darting around like a World War II attach plane. For how busy it was, it was incredibly still. Sometimes it’s nice to sit and just be for our last night there.

In the morning, we had to head back to it all. The hike out wasn’t hard physically, but I wasn’t ready to leave yet.

I can’t wait for the next adventure.

Seven years late

 This is something I used to love. I would make a post once a week about something I found noteworthy in our lives. But after taking on a business, I started to let some things go. Then we kept growing, adding a bakery, and all of the sudden it felt like things were out of control. 

After getting the business through two years of a pandemic, and a lot of internal work on myself, I think I need to get back to the things that brought me joy, and made me feel like me. Now that I've taken steps away from both businesses, I feel a little adrift and lost. So I'm attempting to anchor myself to things I used to do, in hopes of finding my footing again. I know, it's all very cliché, but sometimes that's what you need to back on track - a cheesy power ballad that makes you want to grab your friends and head on to the dance floor.

So this is my attempt to make that happen, to hold on to that feeling, give ourselves one more chance, cause I can't fight this feeling anymore. I'll see you all on that dance floor.

Boycotting the Super Bowl

We decided to close the restaurant on Sunday, Feb. 1 because the Seahawks were playing in their second straight Super Bowl. The Legion of Boom had taken over the island, and we embraced the fan dome by taking an extra day off.

Since we actually had a Sunday off, we called up our friends Eric and Kate to see what their game-day plans were. Would we meet at the Coconut Grove in Bellingham? The Brown Lantern in Anacortes and Tyler and Eric would bike there like the used to? Was someone hosting a party we could crash? But they said something rather odd:

“Why don’t we blow off the game and head out to the islands?”

The thought had never occurred to me that watching the Super Bowl was optional. If you don’t have to work on that day, you plan on eating your weight in chips and dips, and consuming all of your liquids through beer.

But to boycott the event that sums up the entire football season? It seemed strange.

I’m a 49ers’ fan, Ty loves his Broncos, and Eric was still upset over the Packers’ loss to the Seachickens two weeks earlier. To hell with America’s day — we were heading to the Anacortes ferry first thing Sunday morning.

We caught the 9 a.m. ferry over to Friday Harbor where we feasted on a wonderful spread provided by Kate. As we savored our breakfast, you could tell all the other passengers were anxious to get to their game-day destinations. Some were pacing around in their Seattle jerseys, while others just sported team colors and sat patiently waiting for the ferry to dock. But us? We had no such plans.

If you get a chance, I recommend having an adventure on Super Bowl Sunday. No ferry lines, all the hiking trails are empty, and you can enjoy a bottle of Pouilly Fuisse with your friends on a beach without any intruders. 

And I think magical things happen. I got to stand in Spongebob Squarepants' house (yes, a pineapple, but not under the sea), and I saw a camel. What more could a girl ask for?

As the day went on it felt like we were survivors of a zombie apocalypse wandering around. The streets were deserted; all business had posted the same type of 12^th man signs on their front doors; and only the strange odd-balls were out roaming the streets. 

We didn’t boycott the championship altogether. We stopped in for a beer and caught the last half of the game. I guess there is something to be said for being sporting addicts. Even though we set out to have a football free day, we couldn’t rid ourselves of the innate desire to watch watch the culmination on the season. 

But it didn’t hijack our entire day.