I haven’t gotten around to writing since I put my mom’s memorial up. Nothing seemed quite worth taking its place. But, while I still miss her, life does go on. And, as the title of the blog indicates, one never quite knows where it’s going to go.
Back when I was still on Pohnpei, one of my students, a young man by the name of Denero, found himself facing academic probation. The policy there is that, if a student of sophomore standing or higher gets a D average or lower two quarters in a row, they’re on probation for a year. Denero was actually one of my more interested students, but his grades weren’t very good. He came to me for help, and I did what I could, but I wasn’t able to keep him in school.
Not long after I returned to Pohnpei, I got a note from Denero, delivered by one of his cousins, asking me to take him with me when I left, so he could go to school. I met with him and his family, and told them that, if he was able to figure out how to get to the States, he could stay with me, and I’d help him get enrolled in school here. As it turned out, he wasn’t able to raise the funds, but I found someone willing to sponsor him, if he was willing to put in the work. After rather a lot of back-and-forth, it happened. On Friday evening, Denero arrived in Seattle.
He was, understandably, rather tired after the long trip, so we didn’t do much Friday evening. But Saturday, we got a fairly early start.
First, we loaded up clothes donations to take to Value Village. On the way there, I asked Denero if he wanted to see the high school he’d be attending. He did, so we stopped by and walked around the outside. He was impressed with the size of the place, and he’s looking forward to becoming a Rebel.
After delivering the donations, we browsed the selection at Value Village, The only thing I figured Denero might want right away (before he sees what the kids at school are wearing) would be a pair of shoes suitable for hiking. They had a pretty cool pair there, and we got them. Unfortunately, it turns out that they’re a bit small for him, so we need to try again sometime soon.
Next, we headed to T-Mobile to get him a cell phone. No teenager can survive without one around here (and besides, I wanted to be able to reach him). They had a pretty good deal going, and we got him a Galaxy On5. The extra promotion was supposed to get him a pair of wireless headphones, a case and a screen protector for the cost of the sales tax. They were out of cases, though, so the salesman upgraded the headphones. When he told me they were $28, I was staggered. “That’s the sales tax?” I choked. “What do they normally cost?” As it turns out, around $300. Denero is ridiculously pleased with them (and I ordered him a case on Amazon for less than $10).
We grabbed a Discover pass from REI while we were in the area, and headed home to grab a bite to eat, and pack a backpack for a little hike. Next stop: St. Edward State Park. We did the loop, and I introduced Denero to our forests and the lake at the same time. He was impressed…but still pretty attached to the phone and headphones.
That was enough for one day, though I did pick some of my plums and apples, and make some applesauce and baked plums.
Sunday, we had some major plans going. Geli and Brendan were planning to head to the Fremont Market to do some busking, and we caught a ride with them. They dropped us off at the Troll, which seemed like a fun place to start.
From there, we walked over to the Market, stopping to visit Lenin and the Center of the Universe. We browsed the stalls, and then visited the topiary dinosaurs. From there, we decided to walk along the Burke-Gilman trail to the Ballard Locks. We wandered through the Ballard market on the way there. I was impressed that it was even bigger than the one at Freemont (and also that it had better samples).
At the Locks, we watched the boats being raised, and then went to visit the salmon at the fish ladder. We could see a few fish when we looked down into the water, but the best view was in the underwater section.
When we’d had enough of watching fish, we wandered back to the other side of the locks, and checked out the visitor center. I’d been to the locks and the ladder before, but I didn’t remember ever seeing the exhibits at the visitor center. They were actually pretty cool. On our way out, we wandered through the botanical garden for a bit, and admired the blooming flowers.
Just as we were leaving the parking lot, I got a text from Geli that they were headed our way, so we parked under some cedars to watch the guys across the street climb the wall.
Back home, Denero rested, while I picked some more plums to bake. I’m glad the tree produced so many this year – last year there were only 3! Then we headed back out with Geli and Brendan, this time to Columbia City, for Jean Mann‘s CD release party. It didn’t turn out to be Denero’s cup of tea, but I enjoyed it. I told him to consider it to be English practice.
Back at the car, we had an unfortunate run-in with a guy who was probably a drug dealer. He came toward us as we approached, asking us for a light. None of us had one. Then he tried to accuse us of hitting his car, despite the fact that his car hadn’t been there when we parked. He was very vocal, and a bit confrontational, but there were four of us (including Brendan, who is not a small guy) and only one of him, so we got out of there safely. An unfortunate incident to expose anyone to, but perhaps reinforces the idea that not every place is safe.
Today, I was up bright and early, but that meant I got to enjoy a beautiful sunrise.
After a bit, I woke Denero, and we headed to the school with his paperwork. All we were able to do was submit it, and now we have to wait for them to get back to us.
Back at the house, I asked Geli if she wanted to go for a morning hike. She liked the idea, and Denero went for it, as well. We headed to the Redmond Watershed. We started on the Tree Frog loop, where I found a geocache, to introduce that idea to Denero. I’m not sure he got it, but I like it as an excuse to explore (these days, I suppose people are using Pokemon Go for that.) At the pond, we saw lots of creatures, including damsel flies, frogs and a turtle.
From there, we went to the Trillium Trail. Close to the start, we were surprised by Smiley the Stump. It was a fun start to a beautiful walk through the wood, with many highlights!
Now, we’re back at home. Denero’s playing X-Box, while I decided to get this blog up and running again. Now, time to make dinner!
Randomness & Life 