They take their traffic reporting very seriously in the big city.. As we were about to disembark from the ferry in Tsawwassen last week they announced that the weather was wreaking havoc on the roads ahead. We tuned to the all news radio station for an accurate traffic report and they advised that there were white out conditions on the highway, dangerous. A snow storm had hit hard south of the tunnel and the 99 was a nightmare. jackknifed semi, the overpass closed, Arthur Drive closed.. We opted for the back roads through the farms, took us an hour and a half to get to the pub, usually a 15 minute drive.

We had tried to leave the island before the snow hit, and our sequined finery and gold lam’e bib and tucker were all packed and loaded into the truck. Then the engine died and we had to wait for a ride from my sister-in-law…. By the time we were on the water it was blizzardy and just plain freezing…. We were pretty happy to be heading to the desert.

We left behind a broken truck, a dead washing machine and a broken well water pump. We managed to forget about them while we had four days of hilarity and childishness…. But we are back to reality.

Our friends puttered with the truck while we were gone and were able to get it moving.. It’s going to take some parts and thought and work to keep it moving but not first. First we had to get the new washing machine installed.

It is the most basic of machines, on-off, hot-cold. We don’t need fancy settings. No delicate cycle. I’m sixty, I have no delicates. E installed it yesterday and it works like a hot damn…

E bought a new meter in town to check the wiring on the well pump.. We bought this pump and installed it the first spring we were here, 2012. It should last twenty years. One of the tests came back with a flaw so two of our friends have come over this morning to help E pull the pump (300 feet) and see if he can find and fix the wiring problem. Then we can get back to our other chores.

Living here, we don’t need the all news radio station very often. Not much going on, few traffic problems. But a couple of weeks ago, the phone rang at 2 AM. My sister living 7 hours ahead on the east coast was calling to tell me there was a Tsunami warning for our area and to get to higher ground. We got up and turned on the radio. Not a time for rock & roll we tuned to the all news radio station. We heard the reporter announce…

“And now for the news. An earthquake has hit off Alaska and there is a Tsunami warning for the entire West Coast……………………

But first traffic”