Pacific Northwest - Seeing the Sunlight Behind the Raindrops

Kee Kee and Janine at Seattle's original Starbucks

Okay.  I confess.  There was a small (fine, big) part of me that was initially using this road trip as a way to run away from the crumbled mess that my life has become.  Everything in my life seemed broken and I didn't know how to fix any part of it, so it just seemed easier to leave it all behind.  Not only has my career fallen to pieces, but I've also been nursing wounds from misleading and broken promises from "friends."  The latter is commonplace in LA.  It's a city that breeds a certain "bright shiny object" mentality.  Many people are BFFs with whomever can get them somewhere.  One minute they profess undying loyalty FOREVER to you, but then when it is clear that someone else (aka the new bright shiny object) can actually get them further ahead, that promise of loyalty is conveniently forgotten.  It's these types of broken promises that stab the deepest and leave the most permanent scars on my back.  I've never been able to wear the necessary armor to protect myself.  Nor do I really want to because the hometown Wisconsin girl in me still wants to believe there is an innate goodness in people. 

Blackberries at freeway rest stop

My time in the Pacific Northwest really helped to begin to center me again.  Despite the fact that it rained every day but one the entire time I was there, people are genuinely nice, helpful and optimistic. 

Picnic tables & hiking at freeway rest stop

Seriously, even the freeway rest stops are happy places.  My standard routine at the rest stops was to grab a free coffee, snack on a handful of wild blackberries, and then have a short hike with Yoda on the well groomed trails through the pines.



Portland street:  I love fall colors!

Portland in particular really stole my heart.  I've never seen so many people on bikes in a city - and they are doing it in the rain!  If it rains in Southern California things pretty much shut down.  Southern Californians don't know how to deal with weather because we never have it.  Portland was also a dog's paradise. It seems that everyone and his uncle carries dog treats in their pockets.  Yoda was constantly having his fill of everything from smoked salmon, to leftover filet mignon to Milk-Bone dog biscuits.

Kee Kee & Josh - it's been over 20 years!

I had my fill too - of friends old and new.  And with that, a bit of travel serendipity came into play.  My Monday lunch with Josh, a high school friend whom is now a professor at Portland State, led to a meeting with a headhunter, which led to a meet and greet interview with a cutting edge company that may be hiring in January.

Ted & his dog Jack

Portland's food trucks

Time was also spent with my friend Ted, with whom I've worked on too many movies to count.  Ted has figured out the winning formula for survival in the film business:  live in Portland and work on location when producing movies.  Ted gave me a mini tour of the city, ending with a snack at one of the many food truck pods for which Portland is famous. 

Sweet Pea's Brulee food truck

We chose Sweet Pea's Brulee and ordered tiny, melt-in-your-mouth creme brulees.  It turns out we were their very first customers.  So, not only did I take a picture of them to commemorate the occasion, but they also took a picture of us for the same reason.  Perhaps my favorite part of Portland were my new friends Alison and Thomas, who generously opened up their home to Yoda and me for two nights.  Alison and Thomas are lovely, warm, interesting, athletic and grounded.  They make me want to move to Portland just to be able to hang out with them all the time. 

Alison & Thomas with traveling bottle of wine

Yoda and I also spent a couple days in Seattle with my friend Janine, with whom I formed a sisterly connection this past summer while backpacking through Italy.  The wet drive from Portland to Seattle was terrifying white knuckle driving.  The rain at times was pounding so hard that I couldn't see the car in front of me.  At several points I pulled off at those magnificently friendly rest stops just to collect myself before continuing the drive.  The mentally exhausting drive was worth it because the next day we were blessed with one of those few and far between crystal clear Seattle autumn days.  We had sparkling views of snow capped Mount Rainer, the volcanic Cascade range, and the Olympic mountain range.

 

Pike Place throwing of fish

  After a photo opp at the original Starbucks (which opened its doors in 1971), we wandered around Pike Place Market, the nation's oldest farmers market.  Pike Place offers everything from fresh seafood (make sure you see the throwing of the fish at Pike Place Fish), to produce and cheese to fine arts and crafts. 

 

Flowers at Pike Place Market

A bit of a fish and chips junkie, I squealed with delight when I discovered Spud Fish and Chips, which offers freshly caught fish with fast food service and prices.  Yum. 



Seattle's Spud Fish & Chips

Now that I've left the Pacific Northwest to continue on my road trip, I'm beginning to realize I'm no longer running away from my life. More often than not I'm hit with a powerful feeling that I'm running towards something.  I'm not sure what that something is, but it's whispering my name and I'm beginning to listen.





Janine with traveling bottle of wine

Pike Place Market



Pike Place produce



Circle of Friends - San Francisco

Travelling bottle of wine

There is something about being a transplant in a big city that makes a select few of one's friendships very deep and meaningful.  Since many of us don't have family living in these cities, our friends become our surrogate local families.  We spend holidays with them, they collect our mail when we are out of town, they are our emergency contacts, they watch our dogs, they know our house alarm codes and have spare keys to our front doors.  I've been blessed with a large handful of these friends.  The week before I left on my road trip was such a whirlwind of packing and planning that I regrettably wasn't able to say goodbye to most of my Los Angeles "family" before leaving for almost 3 months.  I hope they realize how much they mean to me, despite the fact that I wasn't able to tell each of them in person.  When Yoda and I reached the San Francisco Bay area I was reminded again how lucky I am.  We arrived at my high school friend Aaron's house in Oakland on Sunday night, dirty and tired after a night of camping in Big Sur. 

Aaron making Pumpkin Pear Soup

Our mutual friend Jake met us there for dinner.  As I made an immediate beeline for a much needed shower, Aaron performed his culinary magic in the kitchen while Jake gave Yoda some very appreciated play time.  Yoda has missed his Uncle Jake!

Jake & Aaron eating our scrumptious first course

As a thank you for the hospitality, I brought Aaron a bottle of V.Sattui Angelica, a mix of Muscat and 19 year-old pot-still Carneros brandy.  It tastes like a fine bourbon and the 3 of us savored a glass over dessert.

Travelling bottle of wine

The Angelica will keep for at least 3 weeks, so Aaron insisted I take it with me to share with all the friends I see on this leg of my trip.

Eugenia in the Redwoods of Fairfax

On Monday Yoda and I headed to Marin County to visit my friend Eugenia, a former comrade in the film industry who worked up the courage years ago to move her family from, in her words, the vacuum of Los Angeles.  She's never looked back.  I'm inspired!

Holly and Krista

Yoda finds a new friend

After spending the after-noon writing my last blog post while
sipping latte at the charming, warm and inviting Piccolo Teatro in Sausalito, Yoda and I headed back to San Francisco to spend the next night on Jake's sofa in the Mission District.  An impromptu dinner party ensued, the guests of which are all close friends of mine.  I can't tell you how much joy it gave me to gather together 4 friends and see them all laughing, talking, and getting to know each other.  As the 5 of us toasted with cups of my travelling bottle of Angelica (thank you Aaron for the suggestion!), I quietly felt my heart swell as I looked around the table.  Here I am, jobless, homeless, broke, lost and confused, yet these friends still love and accept me.  I don't need the glamorous Hollywood job, fancy title or thick wallet in order to be accepted.  They are here for me, supporting me on my crazy journey to find myself, opening their homes and sharing their food, and loving me just because I'm me.  In this first week of travels, I realize that thought alone will probably be my favorite and most valuable  lesson of the road.