It’s been about a month since the last time my foot was anchored in Ontario. Tripping around the island I grew up on has been a wonderful experience and I can’t help but smile every day.

I first landed in Seattle where I spent time with a few old friends. I landed in the airport and immediately found myself concerned about where to go... They have a subway inside of the airport that ships you from terminal to terminal.... I did not like that...
My bags consisted of a gigantic backpack filled to the brim with clothes, camera gear and two pairs of non practical shoes, my camera bag filled with more camera gear, a tripod slapped inside another bag and my Imac. I did not pack lightly but considering that its a month now I feel like I’ve run out of clothing options.

After lugging my things off the conveyer-belt I noticed my lovely friend Pete who is saved in my phone as “Pete! Camp Awesome!” One gigantic hug later we were off to grab some food before I would get shoved on a ferry.

We stopped in what another friend referred to as a “Luchador Bar” and grabbed some beer and burritos! Yum! It was really wonderful to see Pete and I’m glad he was the first face I saw when landing on the west coast.

After dinner he dropped me off at the ferry and I experienced a moment of nostalgia while floating above the pacific ocean. The boats going to Bremerton are slightly different than the BC Ferries but there is still something about being on a large craft with  the same sort of feel that you get when on one of the BC Ferries. 

Upon disembarking the ferry in Bremerton I noticed that there was no one there to meet me. This pissed me off a great deal because of how heavy everything I was lugging around was. I ended up finding Ian obviously drunk though he still denies this and sleeping on a bench inside hidden. Not the best start to a visit but that is the way it goes when one visits Ian it seems.

I don’t really have much to say about the visit to Bremerton other than I was glad to head back to the city after a few days. Ian is wonderful but I really just don’t have the patience more than half the time. The best part of Bremerton had to be when Ian came home from a visit to the store with a lawn gnome that I had seen a few days earlier and said I wanted.

I got to Seattle again and Pete helped me lug my stuff to his office where I ditched him and explored the city for a few hours on my own. Seattle is surprisingly friendly and I was shocked by how many people were genuinely interested in talking to a complete doe eyed stranger. I don’t tend to start conversations with strangers till I’ve had a few drinks but Seattle made a point of starting conversations with me. 

I hiked up the hills and made passing comments to new friends about how everyone in this city must have the firmest nicest bums. How it would be impossible to live in this city and be over weight. I’m sure that there are a few but for the most part the entire city or at least the parts I saw were filled with healthy looking happy people.
I personally really loved Seattle. After spending a few hours reading comics and avoiding the rain in a gigantic glass building aka the library. I decided it was time to head back to Pete’s office down by the ferry.

We went grocery shopping, wine shopping, dropped my things off at the apartment and got ready to go out to a party that was likely to be filled with those inclined to dance in the dust of Blackrock City. I was exhausted but we managed to stay out till about two am. We had a lot of plans for the next day so sleep was necessary.
Waking up at seven in the morning I tripped around the house trying to be as quiet as a mouse while Pete slept for a few more hours. When he did wake up we went out for breakfast and then jumped into the car to visit the Freemont troll. Trolling down Troll Ave past the billy goats we took a few hundred photographs of things like caterpillar mustaches, us jumping off the troll ducks with foot fetishes and pregnant pups jumping on sharp rocks. I picked up some coco nibs and a bracelet from a friendly shop owner that we thought would never stop talking. It was starting to get late and we were hoping to miss rush hour so we hopped back into the car and went to see the best view of the city. 

This was a long day but when it was all said and done we watched mad max, drank a bottle of wine and both slipped into a mild coma.

For me the next few days were a blur. I know a lot more happened but I couldn't tell what happened during what day. I remember a wonderful second hand store in a town that reminded me of southern california but I think that may have been the day we visited the troll. I remember going to the art museum and checking out the market but I think that was the day I left. It’s all a gigantic wonderful blur of smiles and hugs and just feeling great about the world.

Reconnecting with those I met on the Playa has given me a lot of Joy recently and I cant wait to see more of my Playa family. Lovely people with hearts as big as the sun and imaginations as big as the universe. 

I’m in BC now living on the island I grew up on.... I think this is the first of several chapters and maybe I should wait till next time to write about the island but just know that this experience has been nothing but wonderful. I am so happy to be here.