Monday, July 18, 2011
Auburn, WA – Muckleshoot Pow Wow
My friend Bear and I left Seattle this morning, after having breakfast at the Salmon Bay Cafe. I had an omelet with crabmeat, baby shrimp, and hollandaise sauce, with homefries, it was pretty good food!!! I was able to follow him even in traffic and on the Interstate which was a good thing, I’m pretty sure I would have found the campground using my GPS, which I have found to be handy, even though we don’t always agree on the routes.
I passed lots of firework stands, the one that caught my attention the most was called: No Fingers Neil. There were others that had catchy names too.
The pow wow doesn’t start until Friday, but we are able to park on the grounds. Two other vendors that Bear knows came here today with us so there are 4 campers and we actually have electricity and water hookups… that means if I need it, I can have heat tonight!!! That is really going to be a big treat after about a week of it being about 54 in the camper with no heat and it being damp due to the rain. The sun came out this afternoon which was really nice. So instead of the 60 degree temps all morning, about 4 today it got up to 73 degrees. This weekend and this morning, I was ready for some sunshine and warmer weather. My feet have been in shock the last month being in shoes and socks everyday, vs the sandals they are used to being in when I was in Florida. This afternoon, I was able to wear sandals for a while and actually take my jacket off. Wearing a long sleeve shirt when it was 73 made me feel really warm, it’s hard to believe I have been freezing every day for the past week.
I called my friends in Florida, Maryland, Texas, and Oklahoma and they were all telling me about the high temperatures there, and I was thinking I don’t want that heat, but just a little warmth would be nice, and I actually had some today.
Today was a relaxing day, just set up camp, hooked to electric, filled the water tank, made nachos for lunch, took a nap, made some phone calls, and am typing my updates to upload when I get Internet. I saw a McDonald’s in town, which is about 10 miles away, one way. I’m not sure I will drive there to do an update, I might just wait until I pass somewhere. It’s kind of nice just being in a place for a few days. I’m learning to just be, not to do, just be. It’s really a different concept for me. I’m learning I don’t have to always be traveling, I can just stop and relax and read a book, enjoy the fresh air, etc.
I realized today that I don’t miss any of the material possessions I left in Florida. I have pretty much everything I need with me, clothes, some food (more when I get my new fridge), water, etc. I have not watched TV, listed to the radio, read a newspaper, etc. and I don’t miss them.
We will be here in Auburn through the weekend, the pow wow starts on Friday and ends on Sunday, then it’s on to LaConner, WA to Journey which is a pow wow type event that I have wanted to attend for several years. This year it will be a reality!!!
