Matt introduced me to Watergate, where one of us worked to expose the scandal, while the other was Nixon trying to stay in office and avoid resignation.
I enjoyed the historical connection and the game didn’t take very long to explain, which is always a good sign.
I realized the day of the ceremony that my antenna doesn’t pull in the television station that was broadcasting the ceremony, but I figured I would use one of the streaming options. My friends were watching it at the Kennedy School and I could have gone to that, but I had planned for the ceremony to coincide with a block of time for cooking. If I skipped the cooking, I would have no food for the week.
It turned out all the ways I could stream the ceremony involved paying $50 for “live TV” in conjunction with YouTube, Hulu and other services. We had already blown through our free trials.
There were a few hours where I wished I could listen to a radio broadcast. But that was not an option either. Eventually I realized that while Matt had used his LiveTV free trail on YouTube, that I had not. So I signed up and watched the ceremony on my phone in the kitchen.
It was a tough nut to crack, but I did it.
I was awake and reading in bed when I heard a hubbub at the Oregon Motel. Such hubbubs aren’t unusual for that property, so I didn’t investigate. But then I smelled something. Looking out my window told me what was burning.
I woke up Matt and had him make sure the fire trucks were coming while I grabbed the cats’ carriers.
Then we watched from my bedroom window as the firefighters arrived and went to work.
Using their powerful flashlights and a chainsaw, they cut a few holes in the roof.
It was interesting to see how they used the ladder to move around on the roof. They also popped all the covers off the vents.
After that it was time to pack up and drive away.
It was early, but not so early the MAX wasn’t running.
Everyone made it safely out of their motel rooms. Two units caught fire, but the fire did not spread past those units.
I feel lucky that this was as close as we came to fire and I’m glad that no one was harmed.
I took some time over the Thanksgiving weekend to add shelves to the catio.
And now we can call that project done!
Except not, because the shelves aren’t wide enough for the cats to sit comfortably on. So I might get some boards and add them to the top. Or I might not, because the don’t seem to like to climb when out on the catio.
During the warm months, the winter quilt is folded and stored between the matress and the box spring. But once the temperature dives, I’m ready for the chilly weather.
While this quilt was the quilt I learned that I don’t like to quilt, it’s warm and heavy and will probably serve me for many more years to come. It’s already about 15 years old.
A quick check in with the cats who live at the Orange Door.
Antares is quite good at hiding his nose. It’s very cute.
Sentinel is looking more and more like an old kitty every day.
Matt’s mom offered him a great deal. He could sell his 2015 Honda Civic and keep the money, and then have her 2017 Honda Civic which she no longer drives.
Here his is with all his documents in order.
This was a great deal as his 2015 Civic was just under the 75,000-mile threshold. (Which works out to about 18,750 miles per year owned). His mom’s 2017 Civic had just under 10,000 miles on it. (Less than 5,000 miles per year.)
“Ten-thousand miles!” Matt exclaimed more than once.
The other good news is that Matt’s job that caused him to put so many miles on his car has ended. So hopefully this can stay a low-mileage car.
One of my favorite things to do when on vacation is to have a walk around the town. Here’s what I saw in Eureka.
I was interested in this bricked off area in front of this house. It would be kind of front-porch-like, if it had any furniture.
The Carson House is a gem. You can read about it in the picture of the plaque below.
It’s too bad this Map of the Movies didn’t turn up in our pre-trip research. Then again, we didn’t realize we were staying in Eureka.
I checked around to see if we could watch this 100-year-old film and the answer is no. In fact, it was thought to be lost until 2010, when Russia donated 10 silent films to the Library of Congress. Cool!
And there she is! The Carson Mansion, now home to the Ingomar Club. You can see it by googling Eureka California, or just go to Eureka and see it in person. Though only from the street. The Ingomar Club is a private club.
I looked for information about this private club and there wasn’t much. Here is a link to a 1995 newspaper story in which the articles lists a $3,500 initiation fee and $130/month dues (which includes $50 worth of food). The club at the time was males only and required formal wear.
The view from this side shows some additions, cleverly hidden from the front view.
A detail of the house.
Leaving the Carson House, here is another mural, this one giving us a view of the house it blocks.
I enjoyed the name of this shop.
Los Bagels was my favorite Eureka find. Their bagels and cream cheese were delicious!
Here’s a handy Eureka plaque.
Having purchased bagels and cream cheese for our breakfast, I headed back to the room.
After our kayak trip, we ate and then started the 90-minute drive back to Eureka. We got tired at the halfway point, so pulled off to have a nap on the beach.
Here’s the building where we are staying. I love the mural on the side. Much more than I loved our room.
The building is partially artist’s studios and there are also four rooms to stay in. I had fun wandering through the halls and I think at least one artist lived in her studio full time.
Due to the fact we were staying 90 minutes away from the place we thought we were staying, we cancelled one other planned activity, but we decided to still do the half-day kayak trip.
This meant getting out the door at six a.m. and retracing our tracks from where we had been. But we did it.
We were picked up at a gas station and taken to our launch point. First, we picked out jackets and life jackets. Matt is excited.
We kayaked for a spell. It was the first time either of us had done so. Aside from our guide, our group consisted of a father and daughter who had experience kayaking in bays. The woman was from Portland.
The day was nice and the river was low, so it was a leisurely trip. Halfway in, we got out to do a short walk through the redwoods.
Our guide grew up on the Smith River, which is the only free-flowing river in California. He showed us the rock where he got married that summer, and the house he grew up in, which overlooked the river. The next day, he was starting back as an eighth grade English teacher.
He was a great guide and gave us lots of good information about the trees.
It was very cool how the redwoods loomed.
This platform was built to protect the tree’s root structure. It’s fairly shallow.
Since Redwoods don’t have a tap root, they can keep growing even when their center rots out. Hence the ability to drive through trees.
Or stand inside a still-growing tree.
After that, it was back in the water. I enjoyed kayaking and would like to do it again someday.
