I'm published

I am a huge fan of Wikipedia and use it as a reference tool almost daily. Last week when I was researching information for my posting on Bear Camp Road I noted that there was no Wikipedia article on Dewitt Finley, so I wrote one. It was really rough at the beginning and just two days later one of Wikipedia's finest had marked it for deletion. So, I cleaned it up a bit more but struggled to get the links to work. Then a wonderful Wikipedia user by the name of Crossmr came in and fixed the things that couldn't and it's perfect now. You can check out the article here.

I am going to continue to work on figuring out the coding etc and hopefully contribute some additional entries.

What Christmas Ornament Are You?

You Are a Tree

You love every part of the holidays, down to the candy canes and stockings. And you're goofy enough to put a Christmas tree ornament on your tree!

What Christmas Ornament Are You?

Idiot of the Day

My commute took 94 minutes this morning. I first encountered fallen trees at the junction of Hwy 99 and Hwy 599 and then I sat on I-5 on South Center hill for an eternity. It turns out that at 5:30 a.m. a truck carrying an oversize load hit an overpass at the top of the hill and partially destroyed an overpass. They had the freeway narrowed down to 2 lanes. I took this picture as I was getting closer to the overpass. When I passed underneath the overpass the highway was covered with little chunks of concrete. The truck was sitting on the right hand shoulder and the state police were inspecting it and talking to the driver as I passed.

One would think that this type of accident isn't likely to happen this day in age with signage and information plastered all over bridges and overpasses, but it did. Hence the Idiot of the Day award is given to the truck driver. Ugh!

Candy Cane Lane

One of the numerous brightly lit homes on this famous Seattle street.

Quote of the Day

"Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired."

--Robert Frost

Seattle among the worst?

I saw a story on the evening news Friday about a new book titled The Absolute Worst Places to Live in America by Dave Gilmartin. Two Washington cities, Aberdeen and Seattle, made the list. I have only driven through Aberdeen so I don’t feel that I am well versed enough to render a fair opinion. However, I have very strong feeling about Seattle. Gilmartin describes Seattle as overrated, overcast and overcaffeinated. I could agree on the overcaffeinated part especially on a day when I have spent several hours parked in a chair at Starbucks but Seattle is not overrated. I was immediately hot around the collar about the idea that this dip shit would write a book about the worst places in America and include Seattle in the same category as Barstow, CA, Camden, N.J. and Carson City, Skid Row, Los Angeles. That was until I found out that this guy is s 30-year-old New York advertising copywriter who was raised in South Jersey (talk about worst places in America) and admits to never setting foot in many of the cities and towns included in the book.

He goes on to say, “When one of your leading citizens rose to prominence for convincing people to pay $2.50 for a 50-cent cup of coffee, earning a modest, honest living loses quite a bit of appeal. The city begins to rot at the core. … Then there’s the price of housing. … Real people can’t afford to live in Seattle yet the biggest newspaper is so stunningly tone-deaf to the Aspenization that it published a how-to section on becoming emotionally attached to your new home.”

I am the first to admit that the housing prices in Seattle are astronomical but there are so many wonderful things about Seattle including the people, the coffee, the breweries, ferry boats, Pike Place Market, the Space Needle, the lakes, beautiful parks and beaches and the rain ensures that it's beautifully green everywhere!

Two additional Washington cities made the dishonorable mention list including Forks which the author described as a "festering wound of a town,” and Vancouver described as a “a run-down methamphetamine junkie haven.”

Let Gilmartin think what he wants. Those of us who love Seattle don't want to share the Emerald City with jerks like him anyway!

And in case you are curious about the other cities that made the list, here they are in alphabetical order: Aberdeen, Albuquerque, N.M., Allston, Mass., Atlantic City, N.J., Baltimore, Md., Barstow, Calif., Beloit, Wis., Birmingham, Ala., Camden, N.J., Campton, Ky., Carson City, Nev., Centralia, Penn., Cincinnati, Ohio, College Park, Ga., Cranston, R.I., Detroit, Mich., Dillon, S.C., Dodge City, Kan., El Paso, Texas, Fairbanks, Alaska, Fitchburg, Mass., Gary, Ind., Gatlinburg, Tenn., Glens Falls, N.Y., Granite City, Ill., Greeley, Colo., Greenville, Miss., Harrison, Ark., Helena, Mont., Houston, Texas, Jacksonville, Fla., Lake Placid, Fla., Lorain, Ohio, Manchester, N.H., Mitchell, S.D., Nampa, Idaho, North Platte, Neb., Philadelphia, Quartzsite, Ariz., Rock Springs, Wyo., Salt Lake City, Seattle, Skid Row, Los Angeles, Springfield, Mo., St. Cloud, Minn., Tulsa, Okla., Virginia Beach, Va., Washington, D.C., Yuba City, Calif.

My Elf Name

Your Elf Name Is...

Spicy Snow Bunny

What's Your Elf Name?

Snow!

Just passed Steven's Pass on the way to Leavenworth.

The deadly history of Bear Camp Road

The water cooler story of the week seems to be the search and rescue of the Kim family. I was elated on Monday to hear about the rescue of part of the family and then devastated on Wednesday with the discovery of the body of James Kim.

I have had several discussions with friend and co-workers about the unfolding events and in one particular conversation we were recalling a story that we had both heard years ago about a man that had survived in his car for several months before finally dying of starvation. We both remembered details of the story but not the entire story. I did an initial google search and did not find anything. Today I was reading a follow-up story about the Kim family ordeal from the LA Times (article titled, Vandalized gate led family astray) and the final paragraph of the story contained the information that I had been looking for. I did a further google search and pieced together the following from multiple sources (see below).

Dewitt Finley, 56, a traveling salesman from Montana decided to travel over the Coast Range when headed from the Oregon coast to Grants Pass on November 14, 1995. Mr. Finley had spent most of his life in the Los Angeles area and was not accustomed to late-season driving in the mountains and did not have much knowledge about the outdoors. His pickup truck with camper kept sliding off the road, despite the 4-wheel drive, and he finally decided to stop on the shoulder and camp for the night. However the storm continued for 3 days and when it was finished the pickup truck was surrounded by six-feet of snow. Mr. Finley passed the time by checking days off his calendar and writing letters to his sons, his fiancee and his boss. According to the letters that were left behind in the truck, Finley decided to trust God for a rescue, waiting in his truck. He wrote, “I have no control over my life. It’s all in His hands. His will be done. Death here in another month or so, so He sends someone to save me. Yet knowing His will, I’m at peace and His grace will prevail. If I’m save to finish my life here, please know I’ll always be thankful to you and remain your servant. If not – I’ll see you in Glory.” The final date check off his calendar was January 19, 1996. His body was found in the cab of his pickup truck by teenagers in late May.

A poem titled “The End of DeWitt Finley” was written by Joseph Harrison and included in his book Someone Else’s Name. An except of the poem:

They found the salesman's body the following spring.
Something struck the observers about the scene
Of the man's death: there wasn't the slightest sign
Of struggle, anguish, or delirium,
No broken glass, no torn upholstery.
All seemed composed, contemplative, serene,
As poised as steady penmanship,
The thoughtful phrasing of his calm farewell,
His mild acceptance of his lonely end.

It wouldn't be correct to call it fate:
Rescue in the form of a ploughed road, remained
Throughout a makable hike away. And though
He didn't know this, did he want to know?
He wanted someone to come, that was the point.
Call it foolishness, or call it faith,
The patience to wait in silence for a sign
That life has something like meaning, and that yours
Has something like meaning, meaning that is yours.

The irony in this tale – The entire nine weeks Finley was waiting and praying, he was no more than a few hundred feet from a clear, paved road which was only a 16-mile walk to a store and safety.

It turns out that the Kim family and Finley were both stranded on Bear Camp Road near Merlin, Oregon. It is horribly sad that the road was not better closed off since it has now claimed 3 lives in the past 12 years. I hope that in the future is is better marked and blocked when impassable.

I am just glad that I was able to find some details on the Finley story, it was driving me nuts.

Links to sources:

Nothing Fails Like Prayer
Theistwatch
Tough choices for stuck winter travelers

Christmas Meme

I was tagged by Don on this one. It took me a couple of days to complete it but I got it done. I would love to pass it along to a blogging friend but I have no friends that have blogs besides Don, so if you are randomly reading this entry and care to put up the baton, feel free.

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Egg nog or hot chocolate?
Egg Nog! I have a great deal of difficulty this time of year keeping my consumption of Egg Nog lattes at a reasonable level. I like an occasional hot chocolate and my other holiday favorite is Peppermint Tea.

Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
Santa is a class act and he always wraps the gifts. When I was a child, along with the gifts he always left a handwritten note. I knew that the handwriting in the cards didn't belong to either of my parents and I was sure the notes were from Santa.

Colored lights on tree/house or white?
When I was a kid, we had the giant multi-colored bulbs on the tree (and only 4 - 6 strands of them). For the last 10 years we have used the clear twinkle lights and I am a firm believer in the policy that the more lights you have on the tree the better it is. This year the tree has 21 strands.

Do you hang mistletoe?
We always hung a gigantic ball of plastic mistletoe when I was a kid. When I moved to Oregon in the early 90's I learned that mistletoe grows in the trees there and saw real mistletoe for the first time and decided that plastic mistletoe is totally unacceptable. Then while working with the campus programming council I started a tradition of handing out small sprigs of mistletoe in the quad on campus to students passing by. I love mistletoe and like to have it as part of my decorating but only if it's real. I have thought about it this year but haven't purchased or hung any yet.

When do you put your decorations up?
Customarily Thanksgiving weekend because I am so excited that I can't wait.

What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?
There are a few side dishes that Mom always made for Christmas dinner when we were kids that I love including Baked Corn and Spinach casserole, I still love them but as an adult it's not so much the specific dishes that I look forward to as I do the experience of creating, preparing, serving and enjoying a meal with my loved ones.

Favorite holiday memory as a child?
Oh, where do I begin?

When I was about 7 years old I really wanted one of those music boxes with the ballerina inside that twirls around to the music when you open the lid. I didn't say anything about it. I didn't mention it to my parents, didn't mention it to Santa yet on Christmas morning my music box was waiting underneath the tree. I was at that age when I started to question the reality of Santa and that assured me of his authenticity for many more years.

My family performed at the family service on Christmas Eve in 1980 or 1981. My father had taught us the 4-part harmony to Glorious Kingdom and we worked on it daily for weeks. We never got all of our parts right at the same time (after all I think we were 9, 7 and 4 years old) which my father found unbelievably frustrating. When Christmas Eve rolled around we went to the front of the church and took our places. The presentation was perfect and at the finale the entire congregation clapped (the first time I had ever seen clapping at church). Every time I hear the song I get chills and my memory is flooded with love I felt that night.

When and how did you learn the truth about Santa?
What do you mean the truth about Santa? ;-) I was eleven years old and was beginning to doubt but really wanted to keep believing. My mom told me the truth and then included me in the plans to ensure that my little brothers had a great Christmas.

Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
We begged every year but just could not convince our parents that opening a gift on Christmas Eve was a good idea. A few times in the last few years my mother has instructed that a package is to be opened on Christmas Eve and it's usually Christmas pj's or a Christmas sweater.

How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
With lots of lights! And plaid bows, ornaments and sparkly twirly things. I love my collection of ornaments which consist of ornaments that I have received to honor milestones or special events in my life and many that I have collected over the years. I always worry that I don't have enough but then have trouble finding places on the tree for all of them.

Snow! Love it or dread it?
Absolutely LOVE IT! The world looks so crisp and clean with a blanket of snow covering it. I love everything about playing in the snow. I love snow balls, snow angels, snow men, hats, mittens, coats and boots. With all that said, I am not so nuts about snow in Seattle. It was amazing to see the city covered in snow last month, but the "freak-out" attitude of my fellow Seattleite’s was more than annoying.

Can you ice skate?
I think I have put skates on my feet three times in my life. When I was younger (and shorter) falling on my butt on the ice wasn't so bad. I was 28 years old last time I went ice skating and it ended very, very badly. So although I enjoy the beauty of an ice rink covered in skaters, for me ice skating is truly a spectator sport.

Do you remember your favorite gift?
As a kid my favorite gifts were always the things that I had wanted very badly like the Cabbage Patch doll and a yellow terrycloth robe. The past few years my favorite gifts have been little things like my favorite coffee beans, framed photographs and jewelry. I also love the gifts that I deem extravagant (a.k.a. things that I would never buy for myself) like a set of new knives, an espresso maker and fancy sheets.

What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you?
Making the season special for others; I try and donate some time or goods to a worthy cause and I also try to create experiences and share gifts with my family and friends that enrich their lives. I also make an effort to create time for myself to sit back and really take in everything around me. I treasure relaxing time, curled up on the couch with Christmas music on and only the Christmas tree lighting the room.

What is your favorite holiday dessert?
Christmas is all about the pie. I love pumpkin pie (homemade, of course) but I also love the homemade Egg Nog Pie that my Mom made for Christmas every year. In recent years it has been renamed *Custard Pie with lotsa rum* but regardless it's all good.

What is your favorite holiday tradition?
When I lived in Salt Lake I used to spend some time alone after evening plans on Christmas Eve. I would sometimes walk around Temple Square or drive past the homes on "Christmas Street" one more time.

Since I have only spent one Christmas season in Seattle I don’t have any real traditions yet. But I like to spend an evening walking around downtown with all the lights shining brightly.

I also have a tradition that no one know about and I am not going to spill the beans here!

What tops your tree?
A beautiful lighted angel.

Which do you prefer, giving or receiving?
Hands down winner, giving gifts; I love watching someone open a gift that I have given them. Especially when it is something that I know they will love. I don't have a good poker face and get extremely nervous when opening gifts in front of others. I feel pressured that if my reaction to the gift isn't perfect that the giver will assume that I don't like it.

What is your favorite Christmas song?
As the self professed Queen of Christmas music that is a question that I have already given a great deal of thought to. I love "Sleigh Ride" especially versions by symphony orchestras. My all time favorite version would be by the Boston Pops with Arthur Fielder conducting.

Candy canes: yuck or yum?
I use them as part of my holiday decoration but haven't actually eaten one in years. I do like to melt them in a cup of tea to make peppermint tea.

Favorite Christmas movie?
It’s a Wonderful Life would be the overall winner for the lesson it teaches and it's sentimental, warm and fuzzy nature. But when I need a movie to crack me up and help me cope with the stress of the holiday season there is nothing like Christmas Vacation.

What do you leave for Santa?
Cookies and milk.