Wes Giesbrecht makes beautiful wooden mosaics that hang like tapestry. Another great find from the trip to Granville Island in Vancouver, British Columbia. We found his work at The Wood Co-op and it is composed of small wood tiles, about 1-inch sq. and 0.25-inch thick. The tiles are stained but not varnished or painted, so the color comes from the variety of woods used. They are then glued to a fabric substrate, though not to each other. As a result, the mosaic can be rolled up like a tapestry or thick rug.

Having always been more recluse than reveler, long stretches of solitude never seemed that bad. It made my freshman year at university much easier in a sense, but it also weakened ties that I really rather would have kept strong. With that in mind, a bit of trepidation had wormed its way into my mind about this particular visit.

How silly of me. Everyone put on their most authentic smiles, and extended hugs and firm handshakes. KMOB even made me lunch in the midst of his new kitchen with Dirtbike, his sweet dog, fretting over every last morsel. A certain Reagan Baby fed me scrambled eggs and cheese at Babette’s Feast and made me grin at the tales of his travels. Bre-bre made me feel well missed and the Monkey Pit finally demolished, may it rest in peace, seemed like home as much as ever in its new fresh faced layout.

The SCC reunion, while 99.9% faces I have never met, was fun as well. Though I must say, having risen at 4 AM, an after party that lasted until 2 AM featuring bad 90’s hip-hop, dancing and the strange sight of cash-monies floating in the air was not what my oh-so-sleepy self needed. Thankfully, our now one-year-old niece has mastered the art of letting old folks sleep in, so I managed to slowly recover on Sunday.

Another sweet revisit was the food. How it is I became so addicted to restaurants is beyond me. A Jerry’s Dog Smokey Joe Kielbasa was the perfect taste to start a four-hour chat with Gruber & Krammes. Revisiting the hilariously cranky barman Chris at Market Broiler and discovering he had been raised in Mapleton, Oregon was quite fun. And a hearty bowl of wedding soup along with pasta tombrello from Roman Cucina was a taste sorely missed. The special bonus that evening was a visit from the Champion. Perhaps in time for Christmas I will be able to promote her web store full of bitingly witty cards from this “paper twisted mindâ€?.

And that was it. A few swift days, then back on the plane. Happily greeted by the MAX and milder weather we returned to Cascadia. I still don’t feel quite settled here. A few friends even half as good as those left behind, with just the right mix of smiles and hugs, is what we need.

(The “Chandelier Tree” in Legget, California. This 2400-year-old tree is 315-feet high and 21-feet around according to the sign.)

We had great fun, and stayed at a variety of hotels, motels, inns, and bed & breakfasts. The photos will arrive soon (probably via flickr) For those who are interested in ocean vistas and funny faces.