This was my first Christmas where I didn't go home (since the parents are out of the country), so some friends and I went to a cabin on the coast. We stayed at the Kalaloch Lodge (pronounced Klay-lok, which continues the Olympic Peninsula's meme of not pronouncing vowels - like Sequim pronounced as squim), and were a mere staircase away from the ocean.

The first night we had a fulfilling ham dinner, followed by a trip to the emergency room (because my eye was acting up, due to the soccer incident during which I was kicked in the eye with a soccer ball - yes, I've seen a doctor, and yes, I'm going to go see an opthamologist tomorrow). The ER in Forks was a little lacking in both doctors and equipment, and the only thing I got was - you can go to Port Angeles, which is another hour drive away. I decided against it, and we went back to the cabin.

I had an uneventful second day, as I mostly stayed inside, but my eye was better. The other kids went for a hike along the ocean. But after another giant meal of chickens, veggies, salad, and beer, we started a fire on the beach, and made some smores. Eating melting chocolate with marshmallows in between graham crackers with the sound of the ocean 100 yards away was a pretty satisfying experience. Unfortunately the weather wasn't exactly cooperating, and it started to rain, so we went inside and played games instead.

And now we're home. I cooked up the left over ham into a big pot of soup, and it's very savory.

So everyone knows now that there was a gigantic storm that hit the Pacific Northwest last week. So far, there are still 250 000 people in the greater Seattle area that are without power.

But there's something I find more depressing (aside from the fact that a 1st world country cannot restore power in almost a week), one of the biggest killers in this storm has been ... carbon monoxide poisoning, from people running generators, bbq's, coal burning stoves, etc, INSIDE their houses!

Use some common sense people.

I remember seeing this commercial a while ago, which pokes fun at the origins of the lighter phenomenon during power ballads. But these days, since smoking is banned at most public places, lighters are becoming less common, and ubiquity of cellphones means that they're taking over as the emotional emphasizer.

Last night, I went to a Death Cab concert, and was amazed at the number of florescent screens that were eerily glowing during the slow songs. Alas, my cameraphone could not capture the sight, so you'll just have to imagine it in your head. More pics if you click on the image.

I recently moved into a big house with a great view, lots of storage, and still in the same neighbourhood. We just got internet today, so I can finally check email at home again. While preparing for the move, I realized that I have a ton of stuff. I have no idea how I acquired so much crap, but packing and unpacking them was a lot of work.



I've also uploaded some pictures from the recent Whistler trip.