Seaside

Out of nowhere, we got an invitation to share a beach house with the Van Dressers. Of course we said, "Yes and thanks!" and Friday after work hit the Sunset Highway, heading west. Seaside is a town that we haven't spent much time in, despite it being the closest coastal community to Portland. It's only maybe an hour away, if traffic is good. I did not expect traffic to be good on a Friday at 4:30, but it was by a miracle almost non-existent. Maybe everyone else heading for the beach had bugged out at noon.

We haven't spent much time in Seaside because it's kind of tacky and touristy -- gaming arcades, taffy parlours, shops selling ribald t-shirts, that kind of thing. But the house we were staying in (it belongs to a friend of Noah's), was at the south end of Seaside, which is just a lovely little beach community. The house was quirky and comfortable and only two blocks from the sand. It was equipped with a huge TV, a Mad Libs pad, and the game of Life -- all the essentials for a rainy weekend; but in fact the weather was perfect.  And for two evenings, we got to spend hours talking with other adults  -- man, I used to take that for granted!

We also went inland one day for some fishing, and the girls had great success. Elizabeth, who has always been very enthusiastic about angling, was this time a little worried about the feelings of the fish we were catching and releasing.

The Van Dresser boys are a little older than our kids -- they are 8 and 10, I think -- but they adapted to the very different energy of the Larrison girls (and vice-versa).

The ocean was so warm, that Barb and I swam in it for the first time since moving out here, in 1996.

Elizabeth, possibly exaggerating the size of the fish we were catching.

Suzanne and Noah, both on R&R. For Zeke, this is no time to relax: it's fish-catching time!

Elizabeth and Eli trying their luck off the dock.

Barb caught one!