Tomorrow Diane will be 74-years-old for the first time in this life. She has devoted all but 22 of those years to the feeding and caring of me. I’m profoundly grateful that she’s done that and do my best to reciprocate but, sadly, I know I fall short most of the time. Still, I try.

Her one wish to celebrate this event was to have lunch at Norma’s Seafood & Steak in Seaside. So, that’s where we went yesterday. It’s just an 83 mile jaunt to get there, but that’s OK because she drove. I never drive when we go places unless the weather is incredibly bad.

It was supposed to rain a lot yesterday but God helped the celebration by holding off until the day was done. We had clear sailing all the way and, thankfully, pretty much everyone else stayed home like they were supposed to. That made the drive very relaxing for both of us.

We were pretty hungry when we got to Norma’s and were only a little upset that they weren’t allowed to have inside dinners. They did have take out, though, so we placed our orders knowing exactly where we would go to eat.

That would be at the southern end of Seaside Beach, where all the seagulls go for fun. If you want to look it up on Google Maps go to Seaside OR and change the view to Satellite and find Sunset Blvd. There’s a small stretch of the blvd where you can park and watch the ocean. In the summer there are always lots of surfers doing their best to dodge the occasional shark. Just a few days ago a shark caught one of them. The surfboard was DOA but the surfer only suffered a few puncture wounds.

If, after browsing Google Maps, you can return here and see what we saw …

This is the view from the car looking north. You can see some of the residents scrambling to get a good seat in case something fell out of the car that needed their attention.

This was the view through the windshield. It wasn’t raining, but the wind was blowing making it more than a little chilly. Beside, we had food in our laps that needed our attention.

Diane got the 4-piece halibut fish and chips and I got the crab salad. Mine was a step down from crab louie – it didn’t have a boiled egg or tomatoes, just lots of crab and lettuce. I also had a cup of Norma’s chowder. So far hers is my favorite of all the places we’ve eaten on the Pacific Coast.

I’m sorry I failed to capture a photo of our eating arrangements. All I got was one of a local citizen who chose to keep an eye on us in case we needed anything, or if we came across something we didn’t want …

He looks like a Nigel. He never looked directly at us with both eyes but we knew he never missed a move, and he got really excited when Diane rolled down the windows a bit so we could enjoy the sound of the ocean.

After lunch we made our way north along Highway 101 to Astoria. On the way we stopped at Costco to get a few essentials. That stop brought the cost of Diane’s lunch trip up to around $400. That’s not a complaint, just a casual observation. We absolutely needed everything we bought, especially the toilet paper. Really, we did.

While at Costco this caught my eye …

… I couldn’t get my head wrapped around the picture of a beef patty in a field eating grass. Still can’t. However, now that I’ve shared it with you, I can let it go and reclaim that memory space for something equally confusing. Thank you.

From Costco we stopped at the Warrenton DQ for dessert. Diane wanted a slushi but the slushi machine was broken so she settled for root beer. I got my standard chocolate malt. That’s pretty much the only thing I ever get when we visit DQ. I love those things!

My malt was all gone by the time we got through Astoria. From there it was a relaxing drive home, past all the familiar places we’ve seen a hundred times before. It never gets dull.

The rain held off until just before we got to St. Helens. This ensured I would get wet because Diane makes me get out of the car before she parks in the garage. Thankfully I only got a little bit wet so it was OK. It would have been OK had I been drenched, too.

Diane and I both agreed that it was a really good day. But, isn’t any day at the beach a good day? Yes, it is.

I hope you are all well and staying safe.

Wear you mask everywhere whether or not you think they work.