last few days in WA

After Christmas and the snow, I arrived in Washington and completed the few shifts left at the end of my assignment  For my last day at work, I took a cake, (much like how elementary school kids celebrate their own birthday),  and I said my goodbyes to Good Sam and eventually Washington.

But of course, I went up to the mountains for my days off too..

One clear day midweek, I went to Crystal Mountain by myself, and Saturday I went with Matt.

The visual Saturday was poor and we skied in flat light and mediocre conditions.  But as usual, Matt hunted for the good snow and steep slopes that made my legs shake. We ended early for a beer at the bottom, for our last ski day together in Washington.

Sunday I packed up my car and left my apartment.  Matt and Cyndi let me stay at their house a few days. Monday I said goodbye to the Pacific. The cold, windy, frosty, lonely Northwest coast.

Monday evening I picked up my mom from the SeaTac airport, and Tuesday we headed into Seattle.

We explored Pike Place Market and rode the monorail to the Space Needle.  The 9th was PW's birthday, so we decided to celebrate a day before with a fancy lunch at the top. 

this is an old picture of the needle which shows the restaurant on the bottom layer, and the observation deck above it.

The view we had that day was horrible - Seattle's thick grey clouds limited our view.  But we had a great time anyway and got my mom a birthday desert called "The Lunar Orbiter". The menu lacked a thorough description, and only read, ice cream with "a unique display". 

We were both so surprised to see and hear a bubbling, steaming, bowl of ice cream arrive, with a trick sparkler candle that could not be put out.  Perfect for the science nerd that she is :) As the steam diminished, I kept scooping water up and putting it around the edge of the bowl with dry ice so the chemical reaction continued until we were ready to leave. 

We spent the evening with Cyndi, and prepared for our journey.
 That night as we slept, a winter storm developed and brewed in the Northwest, that we would soon learn was heading East along our exact route across the northern part of the country..