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i finally uploaded our pictures from our trip to chicago in 2004. (long story, they were in iPhoto on carrie’s computer). anyway, here’s the whole collection:

Chicago 2004 it includes pictures of Oak Park, IL, the Unity Temple, and from the Skydeck of the Sears Tower. (my, how touristy of us!)

here’s a sampling of images from oak park:

this weekend, in addition to the usual home improvement and homework activities, we decided we needed a break from everything, and took a quick 1/2 day jaunt up to Bellingham, WA.

we first set out to go straight to Re Store, but they up and moved on us! given our limited knowledge of the local area, we decided to turn the trip around, and instead go first to Boundary Bay Brewery & Bistro, our perennial favorite spot in b-ham.

there we enjoyed a few schooners (half-pints) of their house brews - specifically, Cabin Fever, Dry Irish Stout, and Amber. lunch was great — carrie had Curry Chicken Salad Sandwich and i enjoyed a Falafel.

the BB folks helped us find the new location of Re-Store, and thankfully they now close at 5pm on sundays. we picked up a few random things (as we always do) and then before heading home, we stopped at The Community Food Coop for random hippie food and whatnot.

that’s what counts for excitement nowadays, since i’m in school and carrie’s doing taxes feverishly. more activity on both the home improvement, and the fun & travel topics, to come this summer, i’m sure!

yes, we’re back in the Pacific Northwest, after a week in the Northeast for Thanksgiving, 2006.

it was a good trip, although it started out on a sad note. read on for details about driving, hotels, nostalgia, and mundane details that only i’m really interested in. part 1 of 2, or 3, depending on how chatty i get.

plans for our trip were originally for both of us to fly to boston, rent a car, drive to manchester to visit carrie’s folks. after a few days, drive to buffalo, visit my folks, then return the car and fly out of buffalo. if you need to do something similar, search for a “multi-city” round trip ticket — i hadn’t known about multi-city tickets before that.

the week we were set to leave, i learned that my uncle had passed away. when i found out about the services, i changed my tickets to go buffalo first. i rented a Ford Five Hundred from buffalo and carrie got a Taurus in boston. i made the first day of the wake on saturday, then set out for boston, stopping in albany for the night.

in albany, i stayed at the hampton inn near the airport. the hotel was undergoing renovations, but the room was very nice. it felt like it should have cost more than it did. that’s good in a hotel — usually it’s the other way around. i was very pleasantly surprised. unfortunately, it was about 8.5 hours from when i checked in, to when i left.

sunday morning, i woke up and immediately realized that every minute i spent dawdling, was a minute i wasn’t on the road, and a minute i wasn’t in boston. i got some cash, i stopped at starbucks (forgive me, DD, but sometimes i need the high octane fuel), then gassed up the rental, too, and i was on the mass pike in no time.

that’s it for part 1, next installment will include my nostalgic visit to the city i haven’t prowled in 6 years.

last weekend we decided to take a “fun day” out from working on the house (and it was raining anyway) so we planned a trip to leavenworth, wa and on to ellensburg, wa to go to Central Washington University.

read on for details — this was the last run through the mountains on my summer tires and rims, so i had a bit of fun along the way.

left everett at 9:30, right on schedule (which is good for us — usually “up and at ‘em” on the weekends is tough to come by). heading east on highway 2. light rain in everett. stopped in monroe, wa at a starbucks for breakfasty things and coffee. moderately heavy rain in monroe.

back on hwy 2, through the cascade foothills towards Stevens Pass. rain getting heavier. traffic is somewhat frustrating. lots of people in big vehicles who can’t go fast in the turns, but speed up to around 80 in the straights (passing zones). got past them, usually in 4th at around 4000-4500rpm. (gosh i need a little more top end).

ended up in 4th for most of the trip, it was pouring pretty consistently so i needed to power through it. this was where the tires were worth their weight in gold — this summer i picked up a set of Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 tires from the Tire Rack. if you look at the tread pattern, you’d guess that they do well in the wet, and they certainly did not disappoint me. faster, harder cornering, they never lost grip, my confidence continued to build as the trip went along.

i was passing all-wheel-drive vehicles, large SUVs, pretty much everything we encountered. you want good summer tires that do amazingly in the rain, check them out. </advertisement> pull them off before winter, however. down in the 30’s i hear they lose grip because they’re summer compound.

after we stopped for cookies in leavenworth, it was route 97 southbound towards ellensburg, other side of the mountains. more of a desert climate in the summer, but it pours in the winter. kinda weird. the trees are different than we’re used to in the northeast, they actually do turn colors but it’s all generally one color — they were all a really beautiful, almost glowing, golden color. very pretty. definitely not new england oaks and maples in bright red/orange/yellow, but still pretty.

had lunch in ellensburg at “The TAV,” total college bar but the only one in town we could find on short notice with at least a few good micros on tap. went on to CWU, hit the bookstore for aforementioned swag. i have to say, CWU seemed pretty cool, but they pointed us to “visitor parking” that we never could seem to find.

we had planned to take US-90 back home, but we onramped directly into stop-and-go traffic. via cell phone browser we deciphered that said traffic continued for 16 miles ahead; we jumped back off the highway and went to retrace our route back up 97 to 2. stopped at leavenworth again at yet another starbucks, and through the pass just after dark. pouring rain, dark, steep grades, standing water. again, the F1s led the day. actually, i was setting the pace for the large SUVs again.

home just before 9. was a fun trip. next time we’ll probably stick closer; i think we put around 500 miles round trip. going to shoot for 2-300 next time - we’ll be in the Escape anyway so not so much fun on the drive itself.

we went to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival yesterday, April 8th 2006. below you can find a link to a Flickr photoset with 115 images.

the big fields immediately surrounding Roozengaarde weren’t planted, so they don’t have them open to go wander around in. but the presentation gardens were full of variety as always and it was an absolute mob scene.

mikeyboy.com’s skagit valley tulip festival 2006 photoset

i’ve put some of my photo galleries back online, courtesy of flickr. these were popular when i first put them up, now you can all use flickr’s interface (and bandwidth) to see them again.

Portland International Rose Test Garden, 2003

Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, 2003

enjoy!