People Are Strange When You're a Stranger

You all probably recognize the title as a verse from "People Are Strange", one of The Doors' many hits. As Jim Morrison eloquently vocalizes, it is disconcerting to feel alone in a city of unfamiliar places and strange faces. A city that may be beautiful and vibrant feels depressing and empty until you begin to get settled and have time to focus on getting involved with the town.

As we pulled into Olympia in the rain, we could not yet see the majestic peak of Mt. Rainier or the towering Olympic Cascade mountains. All the downtown storefronts were dark, and the steely water of Puget sound seemed oppressive. Hoodies, jeans, and sneakers seemed to be the uniform of choice for the locals, and not a single person returned our greetings. Couple this depressing reception with the warmth of our farewell party in Palo Alto and the sunny weather we had forsaken for our new home, and it is easy to see why reality was not meeting our expectations. Before we left, I spent three straight days packing and trying to trim down our posessions to only what would fit in the car, Ted spent his last three nights at work, and then we both spent a harrowing day packing and debating over exactly what "necessities" we could afford to leave behind. After our day of packing, we went straight to our farewell party, stayed for an hour, then left the party to drive through the night to Washington.

Thirteen hours and a brief hotel stay later, we pulled into our new home. On the up side, we were thrilled to have a woodburning fireplace, and the apartment is the biggest one bedroom I have ever seen! I have my own office space now, and we have a walk in closet big enough to sleep in, which is a nice change. The first rainy night was spent finding food, restocking essential supplies, and locating Ted's hospital. But the apartment is quiet and well insulated, and we spent a warm, restful night together before Ted had to work the next day.

Exploring the town and continuously quizzing locals about resident hot spots is the only way to defeat the depression that accompanies any move, so we set out yesterday to do just that. The sun was shining for the first time in days, and we awoke early enough to enjoy a cup of locally brewed coffee and breakfast delights at Darby's Cafe downtown. After a leisurely breakfast, we wandered in and out of downtown shops where we successfully started a few conversations with local residents. From the woman at the Scarlett Empress, a scrapbook and stationary store, I learned of a scrapbooking club which I plan to attend next Friday. The owner of Hoopla!, a hip clothing boutique, clued me in to the best shopping sites, and the librarian told me about a parade coming up in less than a month. Tammy at Ace Hardware wrote down her favorite hiking spots, and Dave the cable man mapped out his favorite beach for us. The cashier at the pizzeria told us about the local music scene, and the grocer suggested weekly cooking classes we might be interested in. So over the course of a day, through careful research and gregarious questioning, we learned about ways to get involved in the fabric of the community.

In addition to these local tips, we've planned weekend trips to Portland and Seattle, outings to the local farmer's market, which Jane Goodall praised in her new book Harvest for Hope, sailing lessons, and hikes in the local state parks. Seeing everything this area has to offer will take up three months and more, and we are beginning to see that the people here aren't so strange after all!

P.S. February went by so quickly with last minute trips with friends and frenzied touring of some of the sites we had not yet seen, that I didn't have time to update. I apologize for the delay, but I do plan to update daily now that we are settled in to our new home. Each posting will not be as detailed as this one, but I want to write daily to let you all know what we are up to, which is the mission of this blog. Until tomorrow, then . . . . .

Posted By: Rebecca
Photo of Mt. Rainier By: Ted (taken on 03-03)
Mt. Rainier, at over 14,000 feet is the second tallest mountain in North America, and, along with the Cascade Range, provides the backdrop for Olympia and the surrounding towns.