This was from August 2012 (I think)

I get a note from Jack & Roberta a little while back to come up for their anniversary BBQ.  Now Jack's place looks like a darn museum and the grounds are like a well sculpted park.  You know park benches, perfect bushes in a row, gazebo, large koi pond, waterfalls, the list goes on an on.  I gotta get the wife up there to see this yard of beauty.

The BBQ starts at 2 on Sat (18th) and I'm nursing my dawg and wife who have both had surgeries this past week.  The wife gives me a kitchen pass and I'm jazzed.  This will be the 2nd longest ride I've had all summer which is about time.

I check the tires as they have been feeling squirrely a little lately and yes the back is down to 29 so I break out the compressor and get to town.  Get my side bags down and fill with tools n stuff, put in my extra shoes and the liners of both my jacket and pants, ya never know if it will be raining or a cold front come in while I'm there and the temp was hoovering around 70, so one of those just in case kinda things.

Of course Friday night I got about zippo sleep, dogs barking at stuff, phones ringing, I'm on the couch and lazy boy and could just not get comfy so it started out slow.  After getting everyone situated and gotten my passport I was finally ready to head off.  (1:30 PM or so)  I get out to the freeway and its a stinkin parking lot!  WTHeck is goin on???  We slowly make our way north and of course near the stanwood exit the Highway Patrol boys are making sure their lights still flash and were pulling people over like nobodies business.  (a known speed trap BTW).  Traffic was thick all the way past Bellingham and I wanted to get gas somewhere up there but everytime I was going to take the next exit a bazillion others were doing the same or the exit looked like it would be difficult to zip off and back on so I ended up getting it right at the border where I usually do.  Regular was something like 4.03 or 4.13 or summat - way more than it should but that's the way it is.

The actual border crossing into Canada went fairly well, no big deal, the usual questions and of course the angle of the license plate is such that the cameras can't get a shot so the guard tells me to move forward to read it, then keeps talking and of course I can't hear with the motor running and ear plugs but all in all a pretty typical crossing with no big deal.

Now I bring my GPS so I know how fast I'm going as it can show Kph and Mph and my bike speedo (cop unit) only shows in MPH and is dead accurate with the gps.  Well I forgot to change the gps and just road with the locals.  When I got to Cloverdale I asked a guy in a Jeep where the local pharmacy was, he pointed up ahead so I zipped up and got my special acedomyiphin (sp) and kept on going up to Jacks.

I got lost just once and had to look at the map again but arrived, parked changed in the culdesac and headed on towards the back.  Jack was showing off his Honda Gold Wing and BMW 1200 GS but on the inside of the garage was a 2000 Magna in very good shape.