Doing Our Part: Staying Safe in Bellingham, WA

A reverse selfie with my new face mask.

If you're a regular visitor to this blog, you may wonder why we aren't posting very often.

Like many Canadians, we were caught away from home while Snowbirding in warmer locales. Starting north we ran into the COVID-19 pandemic.

A city-folk condo with a natural "backyard."

We are isolating in our part-time condo in Bellingham. Border and BC Ferries restrictions make returning home to Powell River difficult.  Wayne and I are healthy, but we don't want to bring anything to our small town with limited medical resources.

When Mom passed, we kept her U.S. condo. Having her sewing machine, ironing board and sewing supplies helped me make face masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 

I picked Billettes Baubles Eco Alternatives's video to follow and one about washing them.

Mom here in her Bellingham condo in 2008.

As children, both my mom and dad survived the 1918 Influenza Pandemic in Los Angeles. This account by the University of Michigan Center for the History of Medicine has parallels to our current Pandemic.

Strong mitigation including bans on gatherings, and school and business closures resulted in a lower death rate in Los Angeles than similar cities. And there was controversy about face masks.

To make our face masks, I first laundered the fabric. I cut two 7x9" rectangles from the sheet and one 5X7" of T-shirt knit. The knit took more ironing to keep it flat. The video called for flannel, but I didn't have any and I trimmed wide elastic narrower for my two 7" ear loops. 

1. Cut 7" sheet strip. 2. Then cut 7X9" rectangles. 3-4. Cut 5X7" T-shirt rectangle.

Here are the steps I used to assemble the mask. Watch the video to see it even better.

Stitch a smaller piece in the middle.

• Pin and sew the 5X7" knit piece in the middle of one7X9" cotton cloth piece. I made my knit piece 5" wide to cover a larger portion of my face.

• Pin and sew the two 7x9" pieces together leaving an inch and a half opening at the top. Make sure the front sides (if your fabric has a print pattern) are facing each other and the extra stitched on center piece is facing outwards. 

Turn it right side out through the hole.

• Double stitch one end of elastic in each corner between the two pieces of fabric. Watch the video. It's easier to see than describe. The two elastic strips will create the loops that go behind your ears to keep the mask in place.

• Trim the corners. Use the hole you left open at the top to turn the mask right side out. Iron the seams flat. Double stitch around the sides of the mask to close the hole and secure the edges.

Make two horizontal pleats.

• Create two horizontal pleats and pin in place. These pleats will allow the mask to shape around your nose and chin.

• Double stitch along the sides of the mask to hold the pleats firmly together.

• Your mask is ready to wear.

Stitching the sides to hold the pleats in place.

This type of mask will not protect you from the coronavirus. They can penetrate even three layers of cloth. However, a mask like this can help reduce spreading the virus if you are infected but asymptomatic. Wearing a face mask cannot replace social distancing. Stay home. If you must go out, always stay at least six feet (two metres) away from others.

Are you wearing and/or making face masks? What about the people in your community?

p.s. After I wrote this post (and made my masks) I read an article about preferred fabrics for homemade masks. It said that T-shirt material was less desirable because holes in knits are larger than woven flannel and cotton cloth. If you have these materials available, I would recommend using them instead. Also, this style of mask made with a soft fabric rides close to your nose, making it hard to breathe while walking or exercising. -- Margy 

Exploring Bellingham, Washington

Euclid Park near Lake Whatcom in Bellingham.

Wayne and I are practicing social distancing. If we cross the Canadian border to return to Powell River, self-isolation for fourteen days is required.  We don't have COVID-19 symptoms, so we are staying in Bellingham where we can still go out responsibly.

Life has changed a lot. I order groceries and supplies online from Fred Meyer and pick them up in the parking lot already bagged. We stay away from crowds, but do go out once a day for a drive, to walk or visit an uncrowded park.

Well maintained and uncrowded trails through a wooded city park.

While the Coronavirus pandemic is happening and we are staying in Bellingham, I will not be writing new posts for the Powell River Books Blog. There's lots of existing content to enjoy. Use the list in the sidebar to get caught up on your favourite topics.

We discovered a beautiful beach on Lake Whatcom at the end of a trail.

I also invite you to join me at the Margy Meanders Blog. I will be sharing some of the places Wayne and I visit here in Bellingham while using social distancing and safe health practices.

Seeing signs of new spring growth was uplifting, especially right now,

I highly recommending getting out in nature right now. Our minds and bodies need the soothing respite it offers.  What other things have you been doing to help you cope at this difficult time? - Margy

Good-bye Mom, I Love You!

You may have noticed for the last two and a half years I've written about Bellingham where Mom lived.

Mom became paralyzed and needed 24-hour care. Thanks to caregivers like Bonita, I could go home to my float cabin once a month. Caring for Mom at home wasn't easy, but the right thing. She stayed in familiar surroundings with the ones she loved.

Last week Mom passed in her own home, in her own bed. While I miss her terribly, I can't think of a better way to leave this stage of life and begin the next.

Mom loved a party (with her pretties), so we've chosen to celebrate her life by remembering the good times. I'd like to share some with you.

Mom was born in 1916 and just celebrated her 97th birthday. She was proud of her natural brown hair (flecked with gray), and her own strong teeth. She said she had strong genes, but getting old wasn't for the weak. She was always a trooper, never gave up, and always had a positive attitude. She worried more about others than herself.

Mom grew up in Compton, California, when it was farm land, not a suburb of Los Angeles. She wished she had a nickel for every ear of corn she packed on her father's truck farm.  She went to Compton High/Community College (when it was one campus), and UCLA to become a teacher. It was at Compton CC that she met my dad, Art Leeming. Mom made him wait for marriage because she wanted to teach. In those days teaching jobs were reserved for family bread winners. They finally married before Dad's military service in WWII.

I came along in 1949, an only child spoiled by both parents. But I learned about caring for families when my grandparents came to live with us. Then it was time to take care of her brother Bill.

Mom and Dad retired from education and enjoyed travel, cooking, gardening, jewelry and furniture making.  They always worked and played together as a team. Daddy passed early with cancer. Mom met and married Jack Agnew later in life. Both had lost their spouses and shared a special kind of love and companionship. And I got two sisters and a brother that I'd never had.

After Jack passed, Mom moved to Bellingham to be near Wayne and me. It was the closest city with good senior services to the Canadian border and our new home in Powell River, BC, where Mom enjoyed vacations with us at our cabin and condo in town. And wherever she went, her beloved Kitty Cat followed behind.

At first Mom lived alone, then I stayed with her. Wayne was a huge help, taking care of things in Powell River and coming to be with me as much as he could.  After a few months of recovery after back surgery in 2010, Mom was back in good health and able to travel, but now in a wheelchair. In Powell River we arranged for caregivers to stay with Mom overnight to let Wayne and me enjoy cabin life. And I know Mom enjoyed the change of scenery even though she could no longer go with us up the lake.

These last six months Mom's health didn't allow us to travel any more, but her spirits were good and she enjoyed dinner visits next door to our good friend Jeanne's. A glass of red wine before dinner was her favorite. Chin-chin, Mom. After a good meal, there was plenty of time for the Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy.

It was only in the last two weeks that Mom's health really declined. We knew we didn't want any more hospital visits, so were getting ready to start Hospice, but there wasn't time for that. In a way, we created our own hospice-like environment.

Mom was a wonderful woman, a strong woman, even though she didn't see herself that way. She loved us with her big heart and generous ways. Kitty Cat misses her too. He looks for her in all the usual places, her living room recliner and the bed where they slept together each night.

You were the best Mom in the world. I love you and miss you. I'm so glad those were the last words I said and you heard. Mom is on her way to be reunited with Daddy in California for her final rest here on earth. Good-bye for now, Mom.

Louise Leeming Agnew

Beloved Wife and Mother

Lots of Love (she always said that at the end of a phone call),
Margy, Wayne, and Jeanne

Bellingham International Airport

Our airplane 997 is home based at Bellingham International Airport (BLI).  BLI is located in northwest Washington near the Canadian border. This places it in an excellent position for border crossings. Customs and Immigration services are available on the field. It is also a good jumping off point for the San Juan Islands in the nearby Puget Sound (see San Juan Island Flying Adventure).

There's plenty of transient parking on the ramp and services include fuel (Bellingham Aviation Services and Bellingham Fuel Services), maintenance and avionics. Whatcom Territory Aero Service (360-647-2376) is our maintenance facility.

Bellingham International is expanding. In addition to private aviation, it has major carrier service provided by Alaska Airlines to destinations like Seattle, Hawaii, Las Vegas, and Portland. Allegiant takes travelers direct to Hawaii, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Palm Springs, San Diego, and Phoenix.  San Juan Airlines will get you to the nearby San Juan Islands, Anacortes, Seattle, and British Columbia.

Whether you are looking for an excellent home base for your airplane, a great place to visit, or a handy departure point for a vacation or business trip, take a base turn to final and join us at Bellingham International.
 

Even on a wet winter day there's lots to see and do. -- Margy

Boulevard Park Boardwalk to Fairhaven

This popular post about Boulevard Park in Bellingham, Washington, has been updated and moved to Margy Meanders.

Come on over and take a look. - Margy

Coal Train

There has been a lot of controversy in Bellingham about the building of a coal shipping terminal at Cherry Point. Even is this never comes to pass, there are still coal trains traveling the rails heading for British Columbia's Westshore Terminal at Robert's Bank.

The primary destination for all that coal is China.

Here's the train passing Chuckanut Bay on a sunny September day. It's actually heading south empty. The triple engine in the front is pulling. I assume the single at the end is either pushing or going along for the ride. -- Margy

BNSF Caboose 12622

There's something very nostalgic about a caboose. I love to watch trains and miss those unique final cars. The caboose was a required for safety until the 1980s. It provided shelter for the crew, gave easy access to the rails for switching, and was a place for the conductor to complete travel records.

With the advent of modern technology, companies convinced officials that cabooses were non-essential. Their elimination was mainly for cost savings.

I've seen two old Burlington Northern Santa Fe cabooses here in Bellingham. The first was BNSF 10792 on September 10, 2011. It's been sitting on a side rail for quite some time. On July 24, 2012, I saw BNSF Caboose 12622 on a siding along Marine Drive just north of Downtown Bellingham.

Online I've been able to research a bit of her history. She was built in 1969 for the Great Northern Railway as caboose GN X-142. After the merger in 1970 to create Burlington Northern, she became BN 10062, and with the creation Burlington Northern Santa Fe in 1996, she became BNSF 12622. Here's some of her rolling history.

1/1981 in St. Louis MO as BN 10062.
3/1972 in Auburn WA as BN 10062.
8/1996 in La Crosee WI looking fresh and clean.
9/2006 in Spokane WA with, only a little graffiti.
12/2007 in Tacoma WA with history info.
5/2008 in Tacoma WA with new paint.
6/2008 in Seattle WA still working.
11/2008 in Martin WA still working, more graffiti.

The history of Bellingham is linked with trains. At the end of the 19th Century, regional lines were built to encourage economic development and to transport natural resources to market. Head on over to the Bellingham Railway Museum for more information. -- Margy

Inati Bay Rest Stop

Friday, Wayne and I took the Bellingham Boat (our Bayliner 2452) out for a spin. The weather was partly sunny with an early northwest wind of about 10 knots. The boating conditions on Bellingham Bay can get pretty choppy even in a light wind because there's such a long reach between shores. It was safe, but a bit bouncy.

We crossed the bay to a favourite location of local boaters, Inati Bay. It's a protected anchorage on Lummi Island that is maintained by the Bellingham Yacht Club. Beach access, however, is restricted to Bellingham Yacht Club members. Today the water was somewhat "lumpy" with the northwest swells splashing in. On the east side, you can see a log skid, evidence of historic logging. The property is private, part of the Lummi tribal lands.

From inside Inati Bay, you can see across the water to Bellingham. I bet this is a beautiful spot at night with all the flickering lights of civilization far away, and the restful lap of water on your hull up close. We'll have to return another day. -- Margy

Stick Speaks Out

Hi. My name is Stick Tail, but Mommy calls me Kitty Cat and sometimes Pepper. I came to live with her in 2007 when we all moved from Los Angeles to Bellingham, Washington. My relocation was touted as "retirement," but I've been on the job ever since. You can read more about it here.

One year ago this coming week, Mommy was rushed to the hospital for back surgery. For the week she was in the hospital and the following three weeks of inpatient rehab, I bunked in with Wayne and Margy. But I sent this picture to go on the wall next to Mommy's bed, begging her to get well soon. I really missed her!

I was so glad when I heard she was finally coming home to live with me again. Little did I know that things were going to be very different. Instead of walking through the door, she came in a big, black, scary chair with wheels. I didn't want my already shortened tail (thanks to a coyote in LA) to get stuck in that! But when Mommy got in her regular chair in the living room, I felt like she was really home to stay.

My "furby" kind of love has been crucial in Mommy's recovery. Recently she gave up the hospital bed and bought us a larger one so we can cuddle like the old days.

And I've gotten better about welcoming guests into our home. First came the visiting nurses and therapists, and now Home Attendant Care assistants regularly join us. And Wayne and Margy are around more often to make sure I get my "three squares" plus snacks a day.

Mommy leaves me home alone somethings to go to rehab with Kenny at the St. Joseph Medical Center South Campus. He's helping her to learn how to stand and walk again, so I'm OK with that. Mommy sure is a trooper for being 95 years young. I hope I'm as determined at that age.

Do you have a working critter in your home? I'd love to hear his or her story. -- Stick Tail (Kitty Cat)

Burlington Northern Caboose 10792

The history of Bellingham is linked with trains. At the end of the 19th Century, regional lines were built to encourage economic development and to transport natural resources to market. Head on over to the Bellingham Train Museum for more information.

Today, tracks run through downtown along the shoreline carrying passengers and freight from Canada to destinations south and east. If I leave my window open at night, I can hear their haunting whistles.

Last weekend when I spent the night on our boat in Squalicum Harbor, I saw an interesting sight. It was an old caboose on a siding. You don't see many of those any more. And this one had seen better days.

This is caboose number 10792 from the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railway. As you can see, she is in quite a state of disrepair. It made me curious to find out a bit about her history. Doesn't she look like she has lots of stories to tell?

I went online and found this picture of her in 1983 from the Burlington Northern photo archive. As you can see, she has changed a lot in 28 years. Her side windows have been welded over for some reason. And obviously the paint has been changed and patched over and over.

I also found a picture taken of her on the job in 1989. At that time she was seen passing through Greenland, Colorado. This was on the Colorado Joint Line that runs north and south between Denver and Pueblo. I found this picture at theBlueComet.com website. The next reference I found has her in located Vancouver, WA, in 1998.

The final reference I found was at www.RailcarPhotos.com. By 2009, Caboose 10792 was in the Balmer Yard in Seattle looking basically like she does today. At this site I learned she was built in 1973, is 41 feet 8 inches long outside, and 30 feet long inside.

As I walked past I wondered what it would be like to convert her into a home. Maybe living in a float cabin has made me think a little bit out of the "boxcar." Couldn't you just imagine making the cupola into a bedroom loft? Of course, it would be the best to find an old siding where you could set her up and be able to hear and feel the trains as they rumble past. What do you think? -- Margy

Atchison, Topeka and Chuckanut Bay

Now what do trains and boats have in common? If you anchor overnight in Chuckanut Bay you'll know. When we went there in the afternoon, it peaked our curiosity. So for our final night on our shakedown cruise, Wayne and I picked the trestle in Chuckanut to drop our anchor.

Before going, Wayne looked up the Amtrac passenger train schedule. You may like to know, both trains were right on time. In addition, there were several freight trains. It was so much fun to wave at the engineers and have they toot the horn as they passed by.

But the 1:30 a.m. freight train gave me quite a start. It woke me as it exited the tunnel to the north. It's bright light made me briefly think we'd dragged anchor and were on the tracks. A quick look proved we were in place, but in the dark, the rattling cars seemed so much closer.

Brightly covered with graffiti, the many cars were heading north to Canada to get another load of natural resources and products, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is action.

The shakedown cruise and good weather came to an end the following morning, waking up to pelting rain and increased winds. We pulled anchor at dawn and returned to nearby Squalicum Harbor. We had lots of fun and hope you did too.

Are you a Pacific Northwest boater? Where are some of your favourite destinations? -- Margy

Chuckanut Day Cruise

Wayne and I have a new "toy" here in Bellingham. Well, it's a bit big to call a toy, it's a 24.5' Bayliner we got at the Bellingham location of Lake Union Sea Ray.

We took possession over a week ago, but the weather had other plans. But over the weekend, we got our first good weather window.

The wind still had the bay churned up so we slept on The Bellingham Boat (she came without a name) in her slip at Squalicum Harbor.

The morning dawned clearer than forecast, but there was still a breeze. We decided to get some breakfast at the Bayside Cafe then Wayne did a few onboard chores while I read in the sun on the back deck. By afternoon, the wind calmed so we took The Bellingham Boat out for her first day cruise to nearby Chuckanut Bay we read about in A Dreamspeaker Cruising Guide: The San Juan Islands.

We entered Chuckanut Bay on the south side of Chuckanut Island. We wanted to check out Pleasant Bay listed as a good overnight anchorage. While it was a beautiful spot, nearby waterfront homes made it less desirable for us. There was one less populated section by the point, but we decided to head up to the north end of the large open bay.

Here the train trestle cuts off the deeper water of the outer bay from the shallow inner bay where Chuckanut Creek enters the sea. This is the main north-south rail for passenger and freight trains. I'm sure the sound of the train whistles at night could be a distraction, but they also have an intriguing quality. I want to go back to see a train as it exits the tunnel and lumbers across the trestle.

Today's trip was also a test of our new anchor system. This boat came without one. Wayne installed a roller and purchased an anchor, chain and rode at West Marine. We dropped a day hook to sit and read in the last of the warm(ish) afternoon sunshine.

Then it was back to Squalicum Harbor just before sunset. What a wonderful first day cruise for us in our new boat. -- Margy