If you don't want your child to have an espresso or a puppy, don't take them here...

So, there was this time I went to Washington. And by "this time" I mean in August. At the end. But not the very end. I should have written about this blessed event pretty soon after coming home so you'd get all the hilarious details...but...I didn't. Yeah, that's the only excuse I have for my abysmal behavior. :)

I did, however, learn some valuable life lessons from this road trip.
I will now proceed to enlighten you:

1. It is entirely possible to get pulled over, multiple times, in one night, and never get a ticket. This, of course, happens only when someone else, not me, is driving. :) Carla has gifts beyond my vocabulary's ability to express.
   
2. I hate driving all night long. Which is why Carla pretty much did most of the driving back.
3. The grounds-men at the Seattle Temple are very kind, indeed. Also, one should probably check the temple schedule to make sure it's open before going. Good thing we just drove there to take pictures. :)
   
4. I wish to live in Gig Harbor, or a little town like it on the water someday. In a house with a balcony that wraps around the back...but this has to face the water. Also, I will need to marry a sailor who has a sailboat and promises to take me out on it at least once a...month. Also, I'll need to buy a gnome for the front yard. Yeah. That'll do.
   
5. Pine Trees are the best of all the trees. Thus, Washington wins for having the most I've seen in a very long time. * happy sigh *
   
6. I wish I could ride the ferry to and from work every day. No, I really do. It's way better than a bus, cheaper than car payement + gas + car insurance, and I can read, sleep, listen to music, or stand out on the deck and get wind-blown. :) All my choice.
   
7. If I lived next to Pike Place Market, I'm not sure if I would save money or spend it all there...and I'd spend it on vegetables, fish, and flowers. Yep. You'd do the same thing...check out those flowers! $5?! $3?! Yes, thank you. Someday I'll learn how to say "thank you" to you in your own language. First I have to figure out what it is, though...
   
8. I sort of wish I had dreds and read random novels/political reform books as I sat by my booth on the sidewalk, selling my expensive, yet beautiful-and-I'll-make-you-think-it's-worth-every-penny art to passers-by.
   
9. I never had this experience, but I kept looking for the crazy homeless lady with the tray of brownies. She chased my brother down when he went to Seattle a while ago, and I really wanted to give her a piece of my mind. Also, I would not buy a brownie from her.
10. I found the most perfect pillow in Gig Harbor. Peruse picture collage for the answer. The winner gets knowledge.
11. Avoid at all costs the small French boy playing chess in the Pacific Science Center. He's very serious about his game, and has no patience for silly older girls getting in his way.
    
12. Even though the guy taking our picture at the top of the space needle was most definitely wearing makeup and a clip-in hairbow, he took a very nice picture of us. And even though it was nice, I didn't buy it. Getting a picture of myself should never cost more than my jeans + my jacket + my shirt + my shoes.
    
13. I still regret not buying the dark chocolate pasta from Pike Place. No, really. That's a real thing.
    
14. I'd like to sing a thank you song to the person who decided there should never be an age-limit on merry-go-rounds. Best $2 I've ever spent. :)
15. Life vests work when you wear them. (Please see picture evidence above.)
16. Seagulls are just as annoying in Washington as they are in Utah. Although I do give these ones credit for living next to the Ocean.
    
17. Patrick Dempsey is a dreamy mcdreamy. Even in cardboard cut-out form. If he'd been for sale in that form, I would have bought him and carted him around with me the entire day. It would mean that much to me. (And yes I know Greys is filmed mostly in L.A.)
    
18. But the helicopter pad from episode...I have no idea...is definitely just across from the Space Needle. Yep. We asked. And by "we," I mean I whispered it to Aubs in the elevator as we saw it on the way down, and she asked the question out loud to the...do we call him a tour guide if he was only on the elevator and it doesn't really require a tour?....yeah, him. And he confirmed. Thank you, Aubs.
19. I believe art sculptures left in the middle of public parks should be played on.
    
20. Great wisdom can be found in coffee shops. "Where's the nearest gelato shop?" "What should I do with this random child?" And so on and so forth..

I could go on, but since you're already splitting at the seams from laughter, I'll let you finish your ab workout for the day on your own. Go forth in greater wisdom now you have partaken of a bit of my world.

Sincerely,
Dee