Day 6–Seattle to Boston on Alaska Airline

on Monday, June 15, 2015

Our flight wasn’t scheduled until 3;45 pm so we were able to sleep in. I printed our boarding passes from home  and to our surprise Ron and I were both exempted from taking off our shoes or having  our bags checked for electronics. Yeah, getting through security  and leaving our shoes on it cool.

At the airport I did remember to tell the TSA guy that I had a knee replacement so I was diverted to an x-ray machine instead. Yuck!  We arrived at the airport two hours before our flight so we settled in for the wait.

Our plane left on time and was pretty uneventful arriving in Boston at 11:55 pm. Alaska has a guarantee that your bags will be on the carousel within 20 minutes of debarking the plane or they will pay you $25.00 for any delay.

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-800 Wood Desktop Airplane Model

Sounds good – not so much. Instead they make you sit on the plane at the gate until all the luggage is unloaded. After a 6 hour flight one does not want to sit on the plane unnecessarily. People were not happy.

Finally we were allowed to leave. We arrived in baggage claim and our friend Wes was there to meet us. It was now 12:25 am. We waited and waited for our bag and once again (remember our return from South America) and no bag. We only checked one bag and we had left it with the ground crew at 2:20 pm Seattle time.

The baggage claim rep asked if we were on the Seattle flight and if we were waiting for our bag. Yes!!!! Well, it never made it on the plane and now it is 1 AM and no bag. They told us TSA was responsible and our bag was not arriving in Boston until the 7:30 am flight from Seattle arrives.

... Revis...and it looks like Terminal C's Baggage Claim at Logan

Everyone is gone and our luggage is not here!

 

They gave us a $100.00  voucher for another flight but we have not received it as yet and then sent us on our way. I’ll just add that I called Alaska Air at 9 am to see if my bag had arrived. It had, and I was told it was being put on a truck for delivery and I should receive it in two hours. By 3 pm I called again  and was told by someone different it was not put on the delivery truck but they would expedite it so my bag would arrive shortly. Shortly never happened and at 6:30 pm I called again. The dispatcher told me my bag was on the truck but not to expect it before 4 am and where could they leave it.

HMMM- too many stories – but the bag was finally delivered and the note from TSA stated they did not open my bag until 4:10 pm – 15 minutes after my flight left. So what were they doing with my bag for two hours?????

We will be heading to Maine to visit our northern family then on to The Moorings CG for a week overlooking the ocean. More blog to come.

 

Day 5–Auburn, WA–Graduation Celebration

on Sunday, June 14, 2015

After a restful sleep we awoke to another beautiful day here in Washington. Patrick cooked a hearty, delicious  breakfast for us. We spent the morning lounging and chatting. Later in the afternoon Kelly and I picked up the food for Megan’s party.

She had an early afternoon party given to her by her Dad and she got to Kelly & Patrick’s around 4:30 pm. She opened her gifts and then we had some really good barbecue and ribs from The Caveman.

 

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Loving her supply of paper towels and toilet paper! LOL

After opening  her gifts we dug into the food. It was a fun afternoon with lots of laughs.

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Megan and Toby had to leave – both had to work in the morning and faced a 90 minute drive  back to Ellensburg. It was another fun day and so very happy we were able to be here to be part of Megan’s accomplishments.Tomorrow it is back on a plane to MA. It has been a whirlwind week to say the least!

Day 4 – Graduation Day, Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA

on Saturday, June 13, 2015

                                Central Washington University

We were up and out the door by 7 am. The graduating class is so big and the venue too small to handle all the people so the college held three separate graduations! Megan’s graduation  was at 9:30 AM with first come first serve seating.

<b>Central</b> <b>Washington</b> <b>University</b> Wendell Hill Hall

 

 After dropping Kelly off at Megan’s apartment Patrick, Ron and I went  to the stadium to secure our seats. We were first in line waiting for the gates to open.

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The morning started out cool but quickly heated up so we found ourselves sitting in the bleachers in the hot sun. We were sitting in the same spot  that we sat in at the West Point Graduation with the sun in front of us – enhancing our tans! LOL

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As it turned out we were sittting in a great spot because Megan’s seat was at the beginning of the row directly in front of us.

 

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Ellensburg native and alumnus Doug Wood, president and COO of Tommy Bahama,  delivered the keynote commencement speech.  Interestingly, we noticed that most of the  graduates had their cell phones out. Some were snapping pictures, others texting. Boy the world has sure changed.

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Megan is receiving a Bachelor of Science Degree with  a Major in Sociology and a Minor in Psychology. Way to go Megan!

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The graduation was very long (3.5 hours) and hot in the bright sun. Everyone was happy when it was over especially the graduates who had to sit in the direct sunlight with their cap and gowns on.

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Megan with her very proud Grandparent’s,  the Levesque’s and the  Tremblay’s !

 

 

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After graduation Megan went to lunch with Toby and the Levesque’s. We headed back to the house to grab a bite, pack  and make the trip back to Auburn to Kelly’s. By the time we arrived home it was close to 7 pm and we were all tired from a very,very busy and happy day. Tomorrow there will be a small get together to celebrate Megan’s graduation at Kelly & Patrick’s.  Looking forward to seeing Megan again before we return to Massachusetts on Monday.

Day 3 - Leavenworth, WA

on Friday, June 12, 2015

I felt really good this morning so did partake in a fairly decent  size breakfast. Not the best thing I have ever done since the rest of the day was a challenge for me.

The ride to Leavenworth is quite pretty. This part of the country is spectacular with the lush greenery and beautiful mountains.

We arrived at Leavenworth just in time for lunch. We stopped at a great little restaurant and enjoyed our meals.

The town is very quaint with Bavarian architecture throughout.

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Trying on Hats in the Hat Shop!

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We walked around the town taking in the grand  views of the mountains all around us and the very beautiful weather.

 

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It was a very nice day with the family. So glad Megan didn’t have to work and could spend the day with us.

 

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Back in Ellensburg we met Toby and had a light dinner at a local pub. Then it was off to too meet Toby’s parents. They are very nice people and we were served a delicious home made chocolate mousse.

 

Tomorrow will be another busy day. Megan’s graduation is at 9:30 AM so we will be up and out the door early. Cannot believe she is graduating from college already. Feeling very old! LOL

 

Day 2–Driving to the rental house in Cle Elun WA–visit with Megan and Toby

on Thursday, June 11, 2015

I got a good night's rest and felt a little better this morning. Kelly had rented a house not too far from Ellensburg and the plan was to drive up in the afternoon. Kelly is working from home and planned her day to end around 2 pm.

On the way to Cle Elun we stopped to visit Carol, Kelly’s friend. She lives in a very nice place  on a lakefront. What a beautiful view and when you walk down to the boat launch you can see the majestic Mount Rainier.

Mt Rainier National Park…   

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We met her dog Ronex and he immediately became by friend.

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They also have a cat like Ron’s sister Linda only she had a haircut.

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We enjoyed our visit with Carol and especially enjoyed the beautiful view from her lovely home – not to mention her great dog Ronex. Then we were back on the road again to Cle Elun.

The house that Kelly rented was very nice, secluded in the woods with a river about 500 feet away. The interior , quite stunning with high ceilings  and great décor.

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While Patrick was grocery shopping we to took a stroll to the river.

                              

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Later that evening Megan came by with her boyfriend Toby. Patrick cooked burgers and hot dogs on the grille and we sat around talking for a while. Unfortunately Megan had to leave early because she had a paper to finish and Toby had to work at 6 am in the morning.

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Tomorrow we will be picking Megan up in Ellensburg and taking a ride to Leavenworth, WA a Bavarian village. Ron and I have never been there so it will be a new place to explore. 

 

 

 

Day 1–Flying to Seattle for Megan’s Graduation

on Wednesday, June 10, 2015

After three weeks of being under the weather with the last two days being even more difficult we got up at  3 am to catch our 6:55 am flight out of Boston to Seattle. I was feeling lousy but determined to get on that dam plane.

Our friends Ginny and Wes picked us up and brought us to the airport. We are so lucky to have such good friends.

Going through security I forgot about my knee replacement and set off the alarm which resulted in me being frisked. UGH! Just what I needed – some strange woman  feeling me up. All I wanted to do was get on the plane and get to Kelly’s so I could lay down.

The flight was uneventful and I did OK eating dry bread and sipping hot tea.

The skies were clear so we were able to get some nice shots of the mountains. The Northwest has been in a drought and didn’t get much snow this past winter  so not as much snow as we have seen in the past on the mountain peaks.

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We finally landed (yeah!) and were greeted at baggage claim by Kelly and Patrick. Tomorrow we will be heading to Ellensburg where Central Washington University is located and where Megan lives.

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I had to throw in the towel at 6:30 pm and went to bed hoping to feel better in the morning. Ron, Kelly and Patrick stayed up and chatted enjoying the good weather on the deck.

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