Memorial Day weekend snapshots

The holiday weekend got off to an oh...so...slow start. Forget Saturday. It was a wash...literally. One downpour after another. You can't lose faith in Bellingham though.

  

A hodge-podge of photos beginning with a daylong festival on Sunday, through a classic sunset on Monday to close out May.

Indoor play

Luckily Casey has a ready-made diversion on days like today...Stella.  And add a feather duster, some knick knacks, it's a party.

On rainy May days they both just seem so grateful for each other's company...indoors. 

Neighborhood lookouts

Under threatening skies, feathered lookouts - robins, starlings, thrushes - keep an eye on our evening stroll and sound out between rain showers.





The outlook for the weekend is a tease - more of the same with sun and warmer by Sunday.

We'll see.

Rhodie Rainbow

The state flower of Washington, the coast rhododendrun or "rhodie", is in all its radiant glory this week.  Check out these photo ops from when Casey was dragging us around the neighborhood today.

 

They absolutely refuse to let you take them for granted.  

Enforcing a moonlight frisbee curfew

You heard me, man.  It's getting late.

Come on, kid.  Bring that slobbery thing inside before I change my mind.

A Walk by the Bay

A favorite of ours - and most of Bellingham - on a fair weather day is to hang out at Boulevard Park and stroll along Taylor Dock (Or jog...or socialize...whatever.)

And then finish up with an espresso at Woods Coffee - that is if you're a patron without a tail.

Sorry, Case.  Wait here.  I'll be right out, dude.  I'm getting the Americano to go.

Blatantly cute

Quality time is midmorning naptime for Stella and Case.

But like any Border Collie, Casey's ready for anything. You can tell by the keen, alert expression.

Our procreating cottonwood's time has come

The "old girl" of the cul de sac is letting loose with another blizzard of seeds.

As much as we complain, we'd miss those jillions of fluffy little parachutes and the resulting drifts, putting a cap on May.

Casey seems to take this phenomena in stride.  The rest of us don't inhale too deeply when it's breezy.

(Just keep the Claritin handy until summer.)

Stress management and homemade rosemary bread

                      

                                                                                

A DSH* diva taking it one day at a time.

Decisions, decisions, decisions. Does Stella keep an eye on the Great Outdoors, or watch bread cool?

(And everyone thinks Casey's got it made.)

* Domestic short hair

Lunch at Oddfellows with a side trip to Elliott Bay Books

Lunch at Oddfellows Cafe followed by a side trip to Elliott Bay Book Company's new location in Seattle would normally have taken most of the afternoon if this "talk-of-the-day" Spring weather wasn't so memorable.

Something tells me it's all happening at the Park

The place to be today is any park in Seattle. Saturday afternoon...70 degrees, clear skies. Casey made the rounds of one of the 12 best parks in the country (forbes.com - November 2009). Go figure.

At least for Casey the fountain was the most enticing attraction.

Trail snippets

Morning on Samish Ridge

A morning walk up Samish Ridge before the temperature hits 70 degrees.  Get it while the gettin's good as far as Casey's concerned.

Hey!  You comin'?

Lunch at Old Town

Grilled marinated tofu with sauerkraut, Swiss, Dijon, dill mayonaise, lettuce and tomato on whole wheat - sounds overly veggie, maybe, but it is sooo tasty, and a popular order at our favorite breakfast and lunch cafe for over 30 years. Also on the menu today - and on Vic's plate - wildcatch sockeye burger. 

And that's just for starters...but they don't serve pups.  (For lunch, that is.)

Lunch out today was particularly satisfying because much of the proceeds went to Maple Valley Inn, an opportunity council that provides hot meals for people in need.  Old Town Cafe is one of the good guy participants. Casey had to settle for just a saved morsel though. Poor guy.