On Thursday, Mr. Daroga and I took the day off and drove up to Bellingham. It's about an hour and a half away, which meant it was easily doable in a day without being snowed in. I didn't take many photos, but there was a beautiful park (Whatcom Falls Park) in the middle of town and, as a bonus, a totally awesome sign.

But most of the day was spent at the American Museum of Radio and Electricity and another museum around the corner called Mindport. It cost a total of $14 for the both of us, and were two of the most interesting museums I've seen in awhile. The Radio and Electricity museum is, at heart, an amazing collection spanning the history of electricity from before Franklin through the 50's. They had all sorts of gadgets and exhibits and some of the most enthusiastic docents I've ever met. They had two theremins and countless radios and I was used as a subject to make my hair stand on end. The museum could use some more organization: it's chronological and comprehensive, but there wasn't enough (without an interpreter) to connect one development to the next. But they seem to be growing all the time, and very dedicated to what appears to be a totally unique experience.

Mindport, too, was totally unique. Basically it's two rooms of what are, essentially, toys. They encourage you to play with everything, to read the instructions or ignore them. There were musical instruments and experiments that allowed you to witness various scientific phenomena. There are things with marbles and music made by waves of water and, my personal favorite, a fake stream with plenty of rocks and bits of wood you can play in. That sounds silly, but it's exactly what I spent a lot of my childhood doing, and I could have stayed longer.

We had some lovely pizza at a wood-fired place (they listed "tap water" on the menu for $0.00) and enjoyed awesome weather and great views of mountains and the San Juan islands. It was a great trip, though we had to hurry home for a production of "A Doll's House" which I had never seen and loved.

( on to the photos! )

Yes, this deserves a separate post.

If any of you have ever wondered "why SHATNER?", this GQ article, I feel, wholly outlines my great love for the most ridiculous man alive.

Shatner! The Long. Strange. Never-Boring Journey of a National Treasure (and yes, we know he's Canadian)

"Soft, Andrew. And sweet! And of the ocean. Briny and free. Unsullied by rice or lemon. Or 'soy.' The jelly of it, Andrew—" now rising again—"the JELLY! No, wait! More like a CLOUD. Something you wouldn't believe could sustain a set shape! A sweet cloud of meat, Andrew. A SWEET CLOUD OF MEAT!"