Tag Archives: Sammamish River Trail

Reflections on the River Trail…

On Wednesday early afternoon daughter and I went to the river trail to get some exercise. Along the way I had some reflections.

#1. Why don’t I take more advantage of this lovely trail close by? Answer: I do not like to walk alone.

#2. If I had a dog I wouldn’t have to walk alone but for me the benefits don’t outweigh the negatives in my mind about owning a pet. Before you judge me too harshly I do appreciate the camaraderie between this row boater and his dog. I can appreciate the fact that you might love owning a pet.

#3. The Pacific Northwest is afforded so much green lush beauty. For some of you who might be envious right about now you also need to consider that we get our fair share of rain and gloom to achieve this beauty. For the record…I’m staying here as long as God sees fit to allow that.

#4. There are a lot of plants out there that I have no clue about.

#5. No matter how bad my hips feel right about now I praise God that I can still walk 3 miles or 6 miles. I won’t be joining any 20 mile a day walks, though.

#6. I really appreciate shade on a sunny day and enjoy the light that breaks through. Did you know that God refers to himself as Light?

#7. How can these wonderful blackberries be noxious? They are if they threaten native growth in protected areas because they just overwhelm the land wherever they grow. They spread like weeds…

#8. Herons seem so lonely to me…

#9. I enjoy bridges…

I’m thrilled my daughter had the time and the ambition to take this 3 mile walk with me today. Not only did we get some exercise that we really need, and some vitamin D which has been lacking in the Pacific Northwest but I got an R post for Alphabet-Thursday! My reflections might not be too deep but they R what they R….

I’m linking up with Jenny for Alphabe-Thursday

 

Ode to Summer ~

 

Summer, oh summer

You skipped in quite late

and left us in haste

and now we are left to ponder

Will you reappear

when winter is near

and cause us once more to wonder….

Summer, oh summer.

Hint: Read this ode as if you are a Beatnik giving a reading at the local coffee house…or as Mike Meyers in So I Married An Axe Murderer…

I’ll see you all in the Fall!

The River Flows to the Lake…

These are the last of my photos from when our family was visiting.

 

My sister Kathy, her granddaughter Avery, and I took a little stroll along the Sammamish River.

 

 

We saw a snake and picked some wild Sweet Peas along the trail. I can think of two of my nieces that would not have been pleased to see this little harmless snake!

 

On another walk we went to Juanita Bay Park which is along the shore of Lake Washington in Kirkland.

 

We saw wild life of the flying and floating variety.

 

 

Some not so wild creatures were spotted on the boardwalk, too.

 

 

 

 

Our temps were nice and cool while our company was visiting but this weekend we are sizzling here in Seattle and breaking some heat records. It’s OK because we know that cooler days will follow and the dry will turn to wet soon enough.

Photobucket replaced all my photos with ugly black and grey boxes and they are holding my photos hostage until I pay them lots of money. I’m slowly going through all my posts and trying to clean them up and replacing some photos. Such a bother.

FFF ~ Psalms

It’s time to think back over the week and consider your favorites for Friday’s Fave Five.

Please visit Susanne at Living to Tell the Story to join in.

I’ve been motivated to get out and walk more this week and here are 5 passages from Psalms I have on 3 x 5 cards to enjoy while I walk.

 

Psalm 36: 5-6

Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the skies.

Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
your justice like the great deep.
O LORD, you preserve both man and beast.

 

Psalm 66: 1-4

Shout with joy to God, all the earth!

Sing the glory of his name;
make his praise glorious!

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!
So great is your power
that your enemies cringe before you.

All the earth bows down to you;
they sing praise to you,
they sing praise to your name.”
Selah

 

Psalm 103: 1-5

Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-

who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,

who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Psalm 105: 1-4

Praise the LORD, O my soul.
O LORD my God, you are very great;
you are clothed with splendor and majesty.

He wraps himself in light as with a garment;
he stretches out the heavens like a tent

and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters.
He makes the clouds his chariot
and rides on the wings of the wind.

He makes winds his messengers,
flames of fire his servants.

 

Psalm 89: 1-2

I will sing of the LORD’s great love forever;
with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations.

I will declare that your love stands firm forever,
that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself.

Hope you are all having time to relax and enjoy your summer. I’m contemplating taking a break for a couple of weeks from blogging while I enjoy some summer company and anticipate a short trip to Sacramento for a funeral. Thanks for stopping by!

***I’m headed out on a little adventure so I won’t be around to visit till later this evening or tomorrow!

The Herons of Bothell…

The Herons of Elmwood

Warm and still is the summer night,
As here by the river’s brink I wander;
White overhead are the stars, and white
The glimmering lamps on the hillside yonder.

Silent are all the sounds of day;
Nothing I hear but the chirp of crickets,
And the cry of the herons winging their way
O’er the poet’s house in the Elmwood thickets.

Call to him, herons, as slowly you pass
To your roosts in the haunts of the exiled thrushes,
Sing him the song of the green morass;
And the tides that water the reeds and rushes.

Sing him the mystical Song of the Hern,
And the secret that baffles our utmost seeking;
For only a sound of lament we discern,
And cannot interpret the words you are speaking.

Sing of the air, and the wild delight
Of wings that uplift and winds that uphold you,
The joy of freedom, the rapture of flight
Through the drift of the floating mists that infold you.

Of the landscape lying so far below,
With its towns and rivers and desert places;
And the splendor of light above, and the glow
Of the limitless, blue, ethereal spaces.

Ask him if songs of the Troubadours,
Or of Minnesingers in old black-letter,
Sound in his ears more sweet than yours,
And if yours are not sweeter and wilder and better.

Sing to him, say to him, here at his gate,
Where the boughs of the stately elms are meeting,
Some one hath lingered to meditate,
And send him unseen this friendly greeting;

That many another hath done the same,
Though not by a sound was the silence broken;
The surest pledge of a deathless name
Is the silent homage of thoughts unspoken.

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Today I’ll be looking for a cool spot to escape to like this Heron. My sister Lana and I spotted him on the Sammamish River Trail last weekend.  We are suppose to have the hottest temperatures of the year today and break some more records in the Pacific Northwest. I’ll do my running around early and then move as little as possible the rest of the day. I’ll be waiting for temps in the low 80’s and high 70’s before I plan some summer adventures. How about you? Is it cool enough for an adventure where you are?

Through Sunshine After Rain…

 

My friend Beth and I walked along the Sammamish River Wednesday morning after a rainy blustery night and before a rainy blustery afternoon and evening. We felt blessed to have this window of time to walk in the sun and enjoy some remaining fall color while catching up a bit on our lives. The sun cast some beautiful reflections on the water. God truly has created wonderful things for us to see and enjoy.

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

Portal to Hogwarts?

I think we’ve found a way to reach Hogwarts from the Northwest. I love this mile marker on the Sammamish River Trail. I rushed towards it but nothing happened… but I think I’m way too old for Hogwarts.

So at 12:01 a.m. July 15th  you can go see the latest Harry Potter Movie to hit the big screen. I’ll be in bed. I choose to go to theaters when I am awake. My daughter and a few of my nieces, nephews, and SIL will be in the theater tonight in Washington and California. Only one more book that is being made into two films after this one…(thanks for correcting me, Sara) :0)

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

Round Robin Photo Challenge ~ Silence…

Greetings Robins! Time for your next photo challenge. This challenge was suggested by Monica and it’s more of a concept than a subject. Take a photo that depicts:

Silence

 

A quiet place, a sign, something lonely, a subject that evokes silence. Lots of possibilities to capture silence in a photo. Look about and listen, you will see silence.

This last week I’ve had some early morning quiet walks along the Sammamish River/Burke Gilman Trail north east of Seattle. My photos are from the trail and of the reading room in Suzzallo Library at the University of Washington where it is silent.

 

Scenes along the Sammamish River Trail

 

Suzzallo Library Reading Room at the University of Washington

For more Silent Photo themed entries visit the Round Robin Photo Challenge blog.

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

Friday’s Fave Five ~ NW

This past week has been filled with activity and adventures and fun. It’s time to narrow it down to my 5 favorites and join in with Susanne at Living to Tell the Story and share. Thank you Susanne for hosting this great weekly event!

 

1. It was great to have family and friends over for a 4th of July barbecue!

2. My niece Debbee arrived on Sunday afternoon and the adventures began. On Monday my kids and I went to Happy Hour in downtown Seattle for dinner before the Mariners game at Safeco field. It was “Salute to Japanese Baseball night so that’s why we are saluting! :0)

3. On Tuesday the girls went shopping in the University District and walked around the University of Washington campus then we met the guys for dinner on the waterfront in Kirkland.

4. 3 mornings this week I walked along our beautiful Sammamish River/Burke Gilman Trail while my niece Debbee ran for an hour. She’s in training for her cross country high school coaching job and the Boston Marathon. Her main job at the high school is teaching math.

 

5. Having a nice day out with my daughter shopping in Bellevue and discovering this great Irish Pub for lunch!

6. I’m adding a favorite this week!! I really enjoyed this great wine ad in a Thai Restaurant my niece and I had lunch in. If you can’t read it too well it says “I finally remembered…red with hunter, white with fisherman. Too cute!

Looking forward to seeing your favorites this week.

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

She Qualified for the Boston Marathon!

And she’s visiting me and I’m trying to keep up with her. My niece Debbee will be here till Wednesday. You probably won’t be hearing much from me till later in the week.

We are all so happy that Debbee gets to run in the Boston Marathon next April. It sure would be fun to go and cheer her on.

Debbee is gluten intolerant and was so excited when we found this gluten free bakery in Seattle. She has treats stored up in the refrigerator for her time here. She said it was like Christmas looking at all the gluten free baked goods in this shop!

We’re off to Downtown Seattle for Happy Hour at Boka’s on our way to the Mariners Baseball game. Blessings!

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.