A brief hello

It is a beautiful Seattle morning, and my fuzzy head is starting to wake up. We are well taken care of at Mom Bob's place, where the coffee is dark and the view is tranquil. If I peek through the trees, I can see a bit of Lake Washington, but I am happily distracted by the bird traffic that is lining up at the feeders. This is only a moment of quiet in a speech week-end, so I will appreciate it to the full.

We have been on the road since Tuesday, driving first to see our moved away pals in Oregon. It was a too quick, heavenly hello and then back on the road to Seattle. After traffic and parking challenges that brought back my early driving attempts in San Francisco, we made a stop at Dusty Strings music store. Two-and-a-half years ago, we visited the store and our daughter played every harp in the place. Now, as the happy owner of her own harp, she was able to find some music and an electronic tuner. Across the street is Peet's Coffee, so we found our way there, drank their dark elixir, and somehow found our way to our tournament location.

Since arriving, "blur" is the word. The camaraderie is delightful, the competition is intense, and the sleep is less-than-enough. We are now in the semi-final rounds, and son #1 is preparing to deliver his speech again; we are very excited that he has gotten to the next level. Fortunately, the companionship of dear friends, the compelling content of many of the speeches and the ever-present Seattle coffee will keep us going.

Tomorrow, we hit the road for a marathon drive south. Fortunately, my husband has joined us this weekend, and we will be able to switch off the driving.

More soon. Off to the races. GO SON, GO!