Time with Francie

After our visit to Mount Hood and the Columbia River Gorge.  The weather was rainy.  How rainy you ask? Well, to quote Darrell, Francie's neighbor at Friendsview, who read in the newspaper, "It rained 6.4 in. the most rain in September since 1872."  So you are asking, "What did we do?"  Well, we stayed inside and read, visited and took naps in the afternoon.  Well, I must be honest I think it was just Francie and me taking naps.  Dick and Vivian watched football.  Francie took me to a Quaker church service on Sunday and it was very inspiritational.  They had some wonderful musicians and the sermon was very thought provoking.  I was moved by the time we spent in silent reflection and the sharing from the congregation.  This was a really special experience for me.  I had not been able to get to church the previous weeks and am not sure if I will get to go again before I go home.  We also went to the bookstore owned by the mother of Francie's nephew's wife.  It was very cozy and served delicious Stumphouse coffee and flavorful loose teas.  I had some of both.  I must also confess that I bought a book that I thoroughly enjoyed.  

Then on Monday we traveled to Lincoln City, OR, where Francie's cousin Jack and his wife Heidi have a beautiful beach home.  It is right on the beach, but sits up on a cliff that looks down on the Pacific.  The accommodations were prefect. Our first night we went to a wonderful restaurant called the Tidal Rave.  The food was superb and the view was totally breathtaking.  After that we ate at the house at a long table that looked out on the ocean.  What a way to enjoy a meal.  That is except at dinner when I had to keep hoping up to take pictures of the sunset.  We also had rain some of the time at the beach, but we each found very pleasant ways to pass the day.  I for one read the book I had purchsed, Viv did crosswords, Dick edited his photographs, and Francie read or worked on her art project.  We did have some time the rain wasn't falling and we had an opportunity to walk the beach.

Here is a piece of driftwood that looked like a dead fish.

This is a piece of giant kelp. The bulb part is the top and allows the plant to float on the surface while the long steam rests on the bottom.  I was told by a resident that stepping on the bulb and making it pop was addictive.  I found that it was so.

This is a giant piece of drift wood.  At first I was sure someone had brought it down to burn.  I later learned there were giant pieces all over the beach and some were burned.  They are remnants of giant redwood trees that have washed onto the beach.  

At the end of the visit Francie had decided that she would not be coming with us due to some medical concerns.  She learned that it is nothing serious, but this was not right time for her to travel for three weeks.  We were sad, but couldn't be more grateful for the wonderful time we spent together.  We all agreed that Dick was a saint to put up with the three of us.  We had many great laughs, deep conversations and fun experiences that we will never forget.  I know I feel like a rich woman to have two such wonderful friends.