Tag Archives: Leavenworth Golf Course

Sep7

The Dream And The Usual

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The Dream And The Usual

The weekend was a dream that ended far too quickly. I got to hug my granddaughter live and in person. No more blowing kisses on a video call. Grandma is a real person who doesn’t live in a phone. And Maddie is no longer the baby she was when I last saw her.

It was exciting to see Leavenworth through the eyes of a child. I never realized how many “no touch” shops there are in town. Or how many candy and fudge shops there are. Or how much fun it is to run around in the gazebo or up the grassy hill. Or how a simple gingerbread butterfly could light up a child’s face so brightly.

Picnics. Maddie is a big fan of these. We had three of them on Sunday. The first was a snack picnic at Walla Walla Park in Wenatchee. The second was lunch in Cashmere at a playground. The third was dinner in my backyard at home in East Wenatchee.

I was determined not to cry when we said goodbye. But I did anyways. Maddie is four years old and I’ve only seen her three times. The first time she was only a few weeks old. The second time she was still a baby. Barring another crazy pandemic, I hope to be able to see Maddie more often.

But the weekend came and went. Labor Day found Maddie and Kimmy on their way home to Kelowna.

Back to the usual. Teaching a SAIL class in Leavenworth Tuesday morning followed by lunch at the golf club with Linda. Next was another afternoon bingeing Virgin River on Netflix. Then it was time to head back to East Wenatchee.

And now it’s another Wednesday, another humpday. The week is half over and I need to start researching flights back to Mexico. It’s almost October. The temperature is starting to drop and that means the leaves will soon begin to change color. Fall is my favorite time of year here in Washington state.

Feb21

Avalanche Warnings

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Avalanche Warnings

Here we go again. The temperatures are rising, the snow is falling and there are avalanche warnings out for the mountain passes. The passes were closed last Tuesday and there actually were a couple of avalanches in two of the areas close to the passes.

Before I came to Washington state this winter, avalanches were just something that happened in the movies. That had been my experience.

Of course hurricanes and flash flooding were all new to me as well when I moved to Mexico. In Manitoba it was always extreme cold, windchills and tornados.

Here in Leavenworth we’ve been blessed with an abundance of snow, although the locals all tell me that this winter has been unusually mild with less snow than usual. But after eleven years of winter in Mexico any snow is a lot of snow to me.

Roofs are slanted here to accommodate the melting as well as the weight of the snow. These photos of the overhang was taken yesterday.

The house where I’m staying overlooks the seventeenth hole on the golf course. It looks very different in the winter.

But I’ve been told that avalanches never happen here in town, only higher up in the mountain passes. And that’s reassuring.

Sep16

Fall Has Arrived

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Fall Has Arrived

The temperature is dropping and the leaves have begun changing color. Summer is now a memory. But it has been an eventful week.

I belong to the Bavarian Book Club at the Leavenworth Library. Once a month we get together to discuss a book we’ve read. The book we reviewed on Monday was by a Washington author and took place primarily in the San Juans on Orcas Island. It was interesting for me as I had spent some time in that area back in August so I could really relate to the places mentioned in the book.

Tuesday’s highlight was attending the memorial service at Spirit of America in Cashmere. One of the speakers recalled his 9/11 experience of boarding a flight at Pangborn in Wenatchee only to be directed off the plane moments later as the FAA had grounded all aircraft in response to the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers. I was living in Canada back then and recall that tragic day vividly.

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In addition to my regular Wednesday afternoon bridge game, the weekly children’s ministry program at church had its first gathering. Snacks and a video were followed by bible study, games and crafts. It was wonderful to have such a great turnout the first week and I look forward to sharing more with the children until I head back to Mexico in a few weeks.

Thursday morning I taught a fitness class. I had missed Tuesday’s due to the 9/11 memorial service. In the afternoon I went down to the Lions Club Park for the Farmers Market. And in the evening Becky and I went to the first meeting of the season of a BFS (Bible Study Fellowship) group.

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Saturday morning found me at Central Washington Hospital at a meeting of the Wenatchee Valley Autoimmune Network. The guest speaker presented an interesting experiential workshop on the benefits of music and sound in reducing stress and inflammation. After this presentation I went upstairs and visited with a friend recuperating from surgery in the hospital. In the evening I was at the senior enter with several others enjoying some great music. Six musicians had turned out to jam together.

This morning after church Laurel and I went out to Sleeping Lady to look at the amazing glass sculpture by Dale Chihuly. Although it was cloudy, this is still a beautiful piece. It is even more beautiful in the dark when lit up. The rain began and we then went out to the Wild Huckleberry at the golf course for lunch.

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The leaves are changing color. I will have to go and visit my tree in Cashmere this week.

May31

Memorial Day Weekend

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Memorial Day Weekend

This past weekend marked the Memorial Day Weekend here in the USA. Canada celebrated Victoria Day last week with a long weekend. But I’m in the American mode now.

A fabulous brunch at Wild Huckleberry on Friday was a great start to the weekend. This restaurant serves the most amazing eggs benedict and also boasts a magnificent view of the golf course.

Wild Huckleberry View at Golf Course

My friend Laurel and I decided to go hiking at Ohme Gardens in Wenatchee. Flowers were beginning to bloom and the views were spectacular. With the aid of walking poles, we tackled some of the more difficult trails. The steep, rocky terrain was well worth the effort. And it was definitely strenuous for yours truly with two replaced knees, although Laurel was more like a mountain goat. 

I attended an Alpine concert at Snowy Owl Theater with some friends. The music was delightful and the Alpen horns stole the show. The first time I ever saw one of these horns was decades ago at Epcot in Florida. They are 12-1/2 feet long and are quite a difficult instrument to play.

I was so entranced that I went downtown to the gazebo the following day to see them perform once again. Out at Snowy Owl there had been only three horns. Have a look at the number of horns that played at the gazebo.

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On the weekend we also went to Cashmere. The flagpole at Spirit of America as well as the one at the post office had added a second flag to commemorate Memorial Day. The black flag signigied those who were prisoners of war or who were missing in action.

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A barbecue one evening rounded out the weekend. All in all, it was a relaxing weekend enjoying good times with great friends.

Oct22

Saturday Morning

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Saturday Morning

This morning dawned cloudy and foggy. It has rained just about every single day this month, so it was no surprise to see yet another gloomy morning. The temperatures dip down perilously close to zero degrees celsius overnight before rising to the low teens throughout the day.

My friend Ann picked me up and we headed out to Wild Huckleberry at the golf course. Even on a dull day the view from the restaurant is spectacular.

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Of course the fresh coffee and delicious eggs benedict lightened the day as well.

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After breakfast we went for a drive to O’Grady’s Pantry and then on to Sleeping Lady Mountain Resort. The scenery was absolutely spectacular here, and the sun came out of hiding and was most welcome. We went for a short walk down to the river and here are some photos I snapped along the way.

We stayed by the river for a while admiring the view and listening to the sounds of the lapping of the waves.

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We also saw this amazing glass sculpture by an artist whose name I cannot even begin to spell.

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As we headed back to the car, I took one last look at the skyline. It was encouraging to see such blue sky after a dreary few weeks of rain.

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