Tag Archives: Wenatchee WA

Aug24

Where I Live

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Where I Live

Seeing as I first discovered Washington State back in 2016, here’s a little more info about where I spend the six months when I’m not in Mexico.

Leavenworth has a population of roughly 2000. However on the weekends when all the tourists bombard this quaint little Bavarian village, it feels more like 2 million. Highway 2 splits the town in half and traffic is a nightmare.

I’m living in East Wenatchee in Douglas County. The population here is approximately 14,000. This area is home to Costco and several restaurants. The Wenatchee Valley Mall is here and shopping also includes Safeway and Grocery Outlet. Pangborn Airport is also on the outskirts.

On the other side of the river, Wenatchee is in Chelan County and has a population of 34,000. Walmart and Valley North Mall are here as well as restaurants, theaters, a senior center and the YMCA.

Also this week, a haircut at Shears, watching more of the new season of Virgin River and The Sound of Music up at the amphitheater in Leavenworth.

Feliz Miercoles!

Aug6

Nomad On The Move Soon

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Nomad On The Move Soon

Yes my flights are finally booked. Hopefully next Sunday my post will be coming from East Wenatchee. This is my last Sunday post from Winnipeg.

I had a nice relaxing time out at the lake. And I have been busy since I got back into the city. I have been sorting through hundreds of photos that were backed up on my Seagate and trying to remember where and when they were taken. My old laptop had died and finally gone to hell at some point during the early days of Covid. Gone to hell…………I hated that ASUS!!!!!

I finally booked my flights. I am taking my chances with a Canadian airline. Please keep me in your prayers that Air Canada actually has a crew to get me to SeaTac via Vancouver on Thursday. I still have to book the Wenatchee Valley Shuttle and buy my travel health insurance, but I know that is minor in comparison. I also know that Christina and Danny will be waiting with bells on for me to get back home.

Of course it is now crunch time and that means saying goodbye to my friends here. I hope they understand when I say I have no plans to come back here anytime soon. Six weeks was way too long for a visit this summer when I had planned on being here only three.

I have been texting Annie back in East Wenatchee. I have new classes to teach at Bonaventure the week of the 15th. And of course I will be back in Leavenworth teaching that week as well. I am looking forward to getting back to those fitness classes.

I also have tickets for Leavenworth Summer Theater productions of The Music Man and The Sound of Music. Performances always include an outstanding cast and the Amphitheatre up in the mountains is the perfect venue.

Almost time for internet church from Sage Hills in Wenatchee. Next Sunday I hope to be there in person.

Have a great Sunday!

Jun8

Let’s Go

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Let’s Go

Ok. I’ve been in areas and experienced tornados, hurricanes,thunderstorms and blizzards. I’ve seen hail the size of golf balls and have been caught up in flash flooding. But on Sunday I added mud slides to the list. From sunshine to rain to flooding to mud slides in a matter of minutes. Power outages affecting traffic lights and even shutting down Walmart and the movie theaters. Wenatchee was a mess!

Yesterday I was in Ellensburg. It was a gorgeous, hot and sunny day. The drive over Blewett from Leavenworth was beautiful. I never tire of driving through the mountains in Washington. The scenery is spectacular.

When I write I always have music on in the background. The latest added to my playlist is some Marianas Trench from about ten years ago. Don’t ask me why but Celebrity Status has always been one of my faves by this Canadian rock band.

The other day we went exploring at a Coastal store. My friend is an avid equestrian and showed me all kinds of saddles, chaps and other paraphernalia associated with horses. My favorite area was all the cute baby chicks in cages. Coastal also has clothing, kayaks, wood burning stoves,cowboy boots, toys, feed, outdoor furniture and so much more.

I’ve started researching my travel to Canada. Winnipeg is not the easiest city to get to from East Wenatchee. By the way, East Wenatchee and Wenatchee are two completely different cities. The former is where I live and is in Douglas County. The latter is in Chelan County.

Back to travel. Shuttle to SeaTac and two flights or an Amtrak out if Wenatchee and hope someone wants to pick me up in Grand Forks and drive me across the border. Like I told Lise the other day, maybe I should just fly there on my broom! LOL!

Jun5

On My Mind

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On My Mind

My blog post on Wednesday had more than a few of you wondering WTF was going on in my life. It was a short post and I sounded kind of down.

About three weeks ago I saw my doctor in Leavenworth to get a prescription refill. I hadn’t seen her in almost two years. In Mexico I don’t need a script. However this past year there were still shortages so I wasn’t able to bring my meds with me to Washington.

She noticed a mole on my ear and was concerned. I consented to a biopsy. The results that came back were inconclusive. I had her book me in with a specialist in Wenatchee. He removed the mole on Tuesday and phoned me on Thursday with the results of the second biopsy. Malignant. But he was confident that he got it all and that the tissue surrounding it was healthy and cancer free.

I was relieved. But at the back of my mind is that nagging thought. What if I had waited until next month when I got back to Canada? I would never have gotten an appointment with my PCP and then seen a specialist within three weeks. Instead it would have been several months. Yes, the precarious nature of the Canadian medical system scares me. Socialized medicine is not all it’s cracked up to be.

I have nothing but praise for Cascade Medical Center and Confluence Health. The medical staff were attentive and caring, as well as efficient. Canada can learn a lesson from their neighbors to the south.

May18

After Plan B Comes C, D, Etc.

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After Plan B Comes C, D, Etc.

Life. A sequence of events where unplanned by far outnumber the planned. And when you get to Plan Z, you start over with Plan AA, Plan BB, Etc.

March was when I arrived back in Washington. I expected to go to Kelowna in March but Canada still had too many Covid restrictions. The next plan was May but that isn’t working out either due to my daughter’s work schedule. Another plan was May in Winnipeg but a minor health issue got in the way. I thought maybe June but there’s some fitness training all month that I really want to do here in Wenatchee. So now it looks like July in Winnipeg. There is always another plan.

https://youtu.be/M7wYyVi1ugo

I hope you check out the above link. It’s an old John Denver song I came across the other night. And I can’t get it out of my head. It really takes me back in time and I realize now that none of my plans back then have ever come into fruition. And that’s okay because there is always another plan.

So…….why make plans at all if they never seem to work out? I’ve come to the conclusion that long range plans don’t work for me. Even short range plans don’t always come about. But I still continue to make plans because I have learned to become extremely flexible. I don’t stress out when plans fall through.

To quote John Lennon, “Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.”

My plan for today is, hmmm, that isn’t going to work out either. Oh well!

May11

Guns and Pot

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Guns and Pot

In Mexico when I watch TV the programs are all in Spanish. When I’m up here in Washington, not only do I watch TV in English, I enjoy watching old westerns. I’ve been watching episodes of The High Chapparal lately. Lots of guns and violence. The same is true of The Rifleman and Gunsmoke. We all grew up watching those shows back in the 60s. I even had a cap gun when I was a child and we all played Cowboys and Indians.

Back then school shootings were unheard of. We didn’t have guns or rifles in our homes. It was a safer time.

Living in the state of Washington it’s very different. Many people I know here have at least one gun or rifle in their homes. They’re not always secured in gun cabinets. They’re often loaded and kept in nightstands or other drawers. I have female friends who carry them in purses or in glove compartments of their vehicles. They marvel at the fact that I don’t have one of my own yet.

Apple Blossom Festival was held last weekend here in Wenatchee. Just before the Grand Parade, a somewhat enraged man opened fire resulting in an officer being shot before he himself was shot and killed. Shootings are becoming all too common.

Then there’s pot, something we used back in the 60s to enhance our enjoyment of everything from rock concerts to sex. But we’ve all aged and now use it more for pain control. My philosophy remains the same now as it was in the 60s—– everything in moderation.

I recall flying in to Kelowna, Canada from Seattle a couple of years ago. Going through Customs, I was asked if I was carrying guns or had any pot. When I replied in the negative, the officer’s comment was “Are you sure you’re coming from Washington?”

I spend six months of the year in Mexico. When my friends ask me why I want to live in such a dangerous country, I shake my head and tell them to look around at their own neighborhoods.

It was great being a teenager in the 60s. It was a unique decade of flower power and hippies promoting peace and love. What a contrast to the decade we are currently in!

Times have changed.

Apr20

Typical

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Typical

Wenatchee Valley Crime and News is a group I belong to on Facebook. I am amazed at all the crime reported just about daily on this site. Everything from stolen bicycles to hit and runs to sexual assaults. Lots of videos posted too. The following event was Monday’s highlight.

To get to East Wenatchee from Wenatchee there is a bridge that crosses the Columbia River. There was a shooting in Wenatchee and the suspects led police on a chase over the bridge and then abandoned their vehicle. The chase continued by foot throughout our neighborhood. Schools were locked down and school buses were temporarily grounded. Two men were finally apprehended.

Tuesday’s highlight….Someone jumped off the bridge. He was rescued. Seems to be a popular place for jumpers. I recall reading about a couple when I was still in Mexico during the winter.

But the posts on this site are not all bad. Occasionally someone finds keys, glasses, phones or credit cards and they’re returned to their rightful owners. This kind of restores your faith in humanity.

On a high note, the mask mandate on public transit has been lifted. No violence or protests about that. Instead we’re all celebrating.

Here’s a pic of the snow on the mountains on the weekend. Most of it is gone now. Temperatures are rising and the streets are clear and dry again. No snow on the grass or trees.

Charlene and I were out for lunch at Sleeping Lady yesterday and were joined by this delightful robin.

I’m planning a trip to Winnipeg soon and am just waiting a while longer until the snow disappears and it warms up.

In the meantime, I’m enjoying spring here in Washington. It’s exciting to see bushes and trees budding and tulips growing.

Apr17

Happy Easter! Happy Passover!

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Three important celebrations were held on the evening of Friday, April 15th, 2022.

I attended a very moving service at Sage Hills Church in Wenatchee. It was in English and I was there live and in person. For the past several years I have always done a Good Friday service in English online as I’ve been in Mexico.

Back at home in Aguascalientes the occasion was the beginning of the Feria, the first one since 2019 because of Covid. This usually annual festivity takes place over a number of weeks and spans an area from Centro all the way to La Isla.

Friday also marked the first seder of Passover for those of the Jewish faith around the globe.

Whatever holiday you are celebrating this weekend, blessings to you for health and happiness.

Happy Passover!

Happy Easter!

Feliz Pascua!

Mar13

I’m Back!

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I’m Back!

First week back in Washington has flown by quickly. I’m trying to adapt to the cold up here. Very different from Mexico and Arizona. So very glad I left a warm ski jacket here. And happy that I don’t need the boots.

I’m living out in Dryden for a few days and it’s always cooler along the river. But I spent yesterday in Leavenworth. I had a CPR course in the morning and went out for lunch with friends after. Then we got some apple cider and visited downtown by the gazebo. The sunshine was most welcome and I think we hit a balmy 50 degrees.

This morning we’re off to Sage Hills in Wenatchee. Can’t wait to actually be with people again and not just do church online.

SAIL fitness classes have started again for me and I really enjoy teaching them. The program was developed here in Washington state and is geared for seniors and aimed at fall prevention. Minnesota and a few other states are now offering this as well.

This coming week I’ll be in Wenatchee for more fitness training. And on Wednesday I’m moving again. Where? Maybe next blog post……..

Feb20

It’s The Last Week

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It’s The Last Week

Spring has arrived in Aguascalientes. Temperatures are back up in the low 80s. The rain has been replaced by warm sunshine. Different flowers and trees are blossoming. And it feels strange to leave here at this time of year. I usually leave in April. But Covid threw all that out of whack so I came to Mexico earlier this year and have to leave earlier. Friends in Washington tell me they still have snow, so I’m not too anxious to head up there anytime soon.

So what am I doing this last week in Aguascalientes? Definitely spending time with friends. That’s the part I hate about leaving. All the goodbyes. But there is always next winter to look forward to. Las Flores has become home and I’ve told Raul I want my room on Begonias back again.

Yesterday I took one last walk to Las Americas. I picked up a few things at Farmicia Guadalajara and at one of my favorite bakeries, La Flor. As I made my way home down the familiar side streets, I realized just how much I love this neighborhood.

And then last night I walked around Expoplaza. I will miss the people, the music, the bars and restaurants, the street stands………there’s nothing like this up north. There was even a concert going on, complete with fireworks.

I will do my usual Sunday internet church this morning with Sage Hills in Wenatchee. This afternoon I’m meeting a friend in the Jardin de San Marcos. I will miss this park. Not only is it a beautiful park, but there’s always a lot of different things going on such as zumba and salsa in addition to all the vendors displaying their wares in stands or on the sidewalk.

I also plan on taking last walks along Carranza, Nieto and in Centro. And of course I will spend time in the park near my house. I will stroll through the tianguis on Las Laureles one last time. I will also visit my favorite restaurants for one last gordita, enchilada, chaskas, burger, jamaica, horchata and Negro Modelo. Will also find some churros.

I will need some clean clothes when I start traveling. So I will say goodbye to Fatima at the lavenderia, who always does a fabulous job with my clothes. Near the lavenderia is Paulina, my hair stylist, so that will be another goodbye.

PACKING! You think by now I’d be used to it with all the traveling I do. It’s always a hassle. It doesn’t matter how organized I try to be.

And somewhere I need to find time for writing and Duolingo.

It’s the last week and it’s going to be a busy one.