Fam.

Tyson's family was in Seattle for nearly a week over Thanksgiving I must say it was nothing short of crazy. I say that with the utmost of love and affection though, considering the following is a list of all who stayed under one roof for at least one evening, and a combination of this list for all subsequent evenings: Two grandmothers, four brothers + three wives and a girlfriend (me), a sister and her hubby, and three little babies, ranging in age from 5 months to 15 months. Complete and total madness really, in the best way possible. And lots of babies, babies, babies time.



Thursday marked the Thanksgiving holiday with so much to be thankful for. Twelve adults and three babies crammed into Tracy and Scott's house in Woodinville. After a bountiful table of yummy food, it was all banter, laughter, wine, wine, wine, beer, beer and heaps of games on their Xbox plus lastly a rivieting game of Apples to Apples. After two naps and twice rallying to come back for more, I finally crashed somewhere around the 3am mark.


We rolled around on Friday, our stomachs still full and our heads a little cloudy -I'm guessing from all that amazing beer and wine, but hey, I'm not pointing any fingers. Still in sweats around noon, we licked our fingers clean of the still-warm icing from the morning's fresh cinnamon rolls while babies crawled around the floor and sipped from sippy cups.

Friday evening was designated "Grandma's babysit night" which meant that those who were interested could head out on the Seattle scene.


In a sea of endless options we chose the conveyor belt sushi route and then of course, in true Goep form, good beer = Brouwer's in Fremont, home of 64 different beers on tap and over 300 different bottled beers. Goodness gracious. All the Goep brothers together in one establishment!






With the Thanksgiving holiday behind us it seemed totally fair to be psyched about Christmas including a trip to the Pike Place Market and pictures with Santa! The Market is the greatest holiday vibe of all time and even the pigs were decorated with antlers.


Overall the Goep family visit was chaotic at times but totally worth every late night party and every early morning crawling around on the floor with the wee people. When the last brother, Tom, and his wife, Meg, headed to the airport on Tuesday I felt a mixed pang of sadness and excitement for a long and satisfying sleep. I feel so lucky to know such a dynamic and loving family and I look forward to more Geop family madness in the future!

P.S. I love how Tyson and his nephew, Dylan, have the same haircut. Shag buddies!

Hearts breaking all over the world.

First things first, Jora at the beginning of the night:


My oldest friend of 20+ year, Jora - who also happens to be one of my best friends still - is getting married on New Year's Eve. What I can never fully convey in a blog post is the love for which most of the planet has for this woman. Jora is truly a remarkable person and someone I can easily label as, "One of the nicest people I've ever met." She is dynamic and full of life, and if I can possess even an ounce of her goodness I'll be set. The fact that she will soon be off the market is going to set off a chain reaction of loss for so many who have held out hope for their chance to win her heart. Or for those who have tried and failed. If you don't know Jora or haven't heard me talk about her, I'll just say that her love life resembles that of a Seinfeld episode in that its completely ridiculous and hilarious. She's had stalkers. She's broken hearts. In high school, a lesbian softball player from an opposing school actually called our school, lied so that Jora would be called to the office to answer the phone, only to then ask her out. And I'm pretty sure I actually heard someone quote, "I think Jora ruined him. He was never the same after he fell in love with her." -and that was about someone who never even dated her!

We celebrated Jora and her final weeks before marriage a few weekends ago. The theme: Bride of Frankenstein and her zombie bridesmaids. And it was not difficult to find 35 women who would get dressed up, paint their faces and act crazy for an evening.

The bachelorette party started off in the same way girls have gotten ready for centuries: Music, drink in-hand, and a steady flow of chatter, laughter and people doing other peoples' make-up. As the transformations from Girl to Zombie rolled out, it was like a surprise and delight with each new person's unveiled appearance. The outcome was nothing short of scary: Bloody necks, dead-looking faces, old prom and bridesmaid dresses, and crazy hair. It was spectacular!

We then sipped beer and champagne as Jora opened all of the "personal shower" gifts i.e. vibrators and naughty lingerie. The evening out portion commenced when a green school bus scooped us up for a night of Townie bar heaven. Growing up in rural MN, I guess I made the assumption that everyone knows what a Townie bar is. Apparently not.

Townie Bar: A semi-rundown, pub-like establishment in a small town. Typically, each Townie bar is within a stone's throw of another Townie bar and its a matter of personal preference and comfort as to which Townie picks their respective Townie Bar. Upon visiting, one may find a scene somewhat like Ground Hog's Day (the movie) in that the clientelle usually remains saddled up to the same seats day after day. Townie Bars though, unlike any other type of bar, hold a special and familiar quality of goodness. A charm, per say. A comfort. A Townie bar is quite simply the best kind.

Imagine though, 35 zombie chicks rolling into your Townie Bar after years of the same people streaming in on a daily basis. We definitely rocked their worlds! The reactions were great and the explatives a plenty.

We zipped around in our green bus with the tunes blasting and cooler full-O-brews. We stopped at each Townie Bar just long enough to have one drink - or frankly, bring it with you if you hadn't yet finished it before the bus was taking off. And the final stop - The Stanchion - was a climax of people, dancing, music/karaoke and celebration.

When I stepped back to look around the bar as 30+ women dressed as zombie dead people shouted the lyrics to the song, "Don't Stop Believe'in!" only one thought possessed me: This is nothing short of awesome.

I think it is safe to say that Jora had one of the best nights of her life. The best part though, is that she so deserves it. Jora is one of the greatest people on this planet. I actually get a little choked up when I write this because my happiness for her touches a place in my heart. She has successfully found the man who not only sees all of her goodness, but appreciates everything about her. Adam and Jora are a great team and I am thrilled for them. I love you, friend!

And I'm Sorry, world, for the several hundreds of men who were holding out hope. As of NYE 2010, Jora will be officially off the market.

Finally, Jora by the end of the night:

Not so much.

Well, as if I need to say it. Here goes: I don't really feel like blogging.

Lately its all, throw a few photos up and call it a day. No thought. No writing. No reflection or message or real creativity.

In my free time or rather, in the time I have designated for writing, I do not have the time to write on my blog at the moment. Or the creative energy. I AM writing. Just not here. And though it actually makes me really sad, I am excited about my other project.

I look forward to a day when I am struck by a little nugget for which I feel inspired to plop onto this space. Let the happy little pecks of the keyboard flow.

Half.

My friend, Anita, and I signed up for a half marathon a few months back. Its safe to say that she is my best pal at work thus far. I really like her as a person, and I really like that she likes to run as much as I do, meaning several times a week over the lunch hour. Its also fun to hear stories about her daughter, Hannah, who has officially entered high school as a ninth grader. Who Hannah is going to ask to the upcoming dance. How she is doing having joined the cross-country team and finally started to make some friends within the group. Ah, so fun.

I signed Tyson up for the half marathon too, without even asking him. We had been talking about doing a race and when the price to enter was $5, I figured if he didn't want to do it I would not be out more than the cost of a latte. And this picture of us came out all weird in the ways of lighting and color, so, I guess I decided to make it sepia or something. This was not an artistic attempt. Sweet flexing. And sweet Forrest Gump long locks, Tyson.

In any case, it was the fastest half I have ever completed. Without really training I decided on race day to attempt to run a 1:50 = exactly half the time required to qualify for Boston (3:40 for a full 26.2 miles). As I rounded the pool signaling that it was the half-way point, and started to run back the way I came, I began to nearly sprint. I continued what felt like a sprint for the duration of the race and after 55-ish pretty uncomfortable minutes, I finished in 1:55:35. Definitely pushed myself. But I'm happy with my time. That Boston Marathon keeps tugging at the corner of my brain and we'll see, maybe next year I will give'r an official go.

Congrats to Anita and Tyson, too!
Happy November!

Weekend bits.

Smith Tower, Seattle.

People actually live in this place. High atop the Smith Tower in downtown Seattle. Wow.

Mt. Rainier

We went on a hike for work the other day - a perk of the job. The fall colors, and of course Mt. Rainier, were amazing.




We ran into this gentleman on the trail. His name is Gary and he was the SIXTH employee of REI. The sixth person ever to work for REI back when it was a teeny company located on Capitol Hill. He went on to work for REI for 36 years. There he was just hiking along the same trail as us! A legend.

punkins.

I'm cheesy. I'll just say it.
Its Fall and we made sure we celebrated accordingly last weekend.

+ Tailgating before the UW football game.

+ An 11-mile run with Tyson kicking crispy leaves in the sunshine.

+ Brunch and Sunday morning football complete with Top Pot donuts and mimosas.

+ A trip to Fall City Farms for a carving pumpkin.

+ Carving said pumpkin all while making butternut squash soup AND apple crisp to the sound of tunes circling on a record player and the visuals of yet another football game (on mute).