Almost two weeks in Port Townsend, Washington! My, how time has flown. What a glorious place this is with it's snow covered peaks, waterways and forests. We can see the Olympic range draped in it's winter coat of white from our chairs in the front room. On clear days we can see Mt. Baker, Mt. Rainer and the Cascades. This feels like home to us. We feel good in this environment.
We will be house/pet sitting here into the New Year. Our charges are one very large black dog (lab mix) - Markus and 2 cats, Suzie and Mimi. The cats are feral. Their owner, MaryAnn, has tamed them enough to be indoors. They are locked away in a bedroom while the bathroom remodel construction goes on here. They seem content enough in their room. Suzie has her leg in a cast from an injury she suffered when she escaped into the crawl space below the house. She spends most of her time securely nestled into the corner of a carpet lined box. She goes back to the vet in two weeks and has her cast removed. I am sure she'll be glad and so will we. She can't lift her bum leg into the litter box and often misses. Jay and MaryAnn have 2 horses who are boarded out in the country. We go by there once a week for a visit and to deliver a large bag of carrots.
We are camped out here but quite comfortable. The owner's have not moved their household furnishings up from California yet. We have a nice bed, camp chairs, a folding table, fridge, stove, washer and dryer. They recently installed a lovely gas fireplace, the nicest we have ever seen. The fire very much resembles the many campfires we have warmed ourselves by. We sit around the fire in the morning and evening.
This area requires exploring. No matter which road you take, it eventually reaches the water. The other day we were driving along the banks of the Dungeness Wildlife area near Sequim when we spied a bald eagle, high atop a scraggly pine. My photo doesn't do it justice. When I mention bald eagles to the locals, I get a "ho-hum" response. I hope I never get there since it is so exciting everytime we see one. The weather is grey with lots of sun breaks. The sky is constantly changing. Yesterday, as I was driving to the post office, the Cascade Mountains were awash in brilliant sunlight even though we were in the grey. The contrast was surrealistic but alas, when I grabbed for the camera, I realized that I had left it at home.
We have tried two Unity churches now, one here in Port Townsend and one in Kingston. Our plan is to go over to Sequim next Sunday, then make a decision about which one feeds our spirits best. Until the next time.
Charlotte
