we'll dance off time to the songs we've never liked

Erik and I went to the coast this weekend as a late celebration of our wedding anniversary. It's also close enough to the rather unclear time that we started dating that it acts as a double anniversary.

We took his parents out for dinner on Friday night, to the fanciest Indian restaurant in town: Plainfield's Mayur. It was decent as far as food goes, but the service is old school, which makes for a pleasant experience.

Saturday morning I went for a ten mile run with Erica and Bob, around the waterfront loop. It was surprisingly warm and beautiful out, clearing up to be a golden fall day.

When I got home I cut Erik's hair, then packed up to leave for the coast. We stopped at Pratt & Larson before heading out of town to look at tile for our kitchen backsplash. We actually found something we both liked, but at $64 per square foot, it's not likely what we'll end up with.

I think we got to Lincoln City around 3:30pm. Our motel, the Ester Lee, had the most magnificent view of waves crashing on rocky outcroppings on the wide, sandy beach. After walking along the beach til dark, taking photos, we went back to our room to enjoy the fireplace. For dinner we went to Aunt Mary's, a vegetarian restaurant in the Central Coast Vibrator Museum/ adult store. You had to be 18 to even eat there, and a group of kids got kicked out while we were hanging out waiting for the cook/owner to return. After chatting while the owner cooked our food, petting her dog, and poking around the shop, we ate what would be our best meal on the coast.

Our next stop was the Chinook Winds Casino, which Erik wanted to see. We thought we'd have a drink, play a few slots, and have a look around, but it turned out to be so smoky and bright and crowded and intense that we zipped through and left right away, giving us time to go see a movie. Dan in Real Life was the only thing of any interest playing, and it was okay. Back in our room, I turned up the fire and read for quite some time while keeping half-tabs on a wild, windy storm that battered the window in shifts.

Sunday morning we read the paper for a while in bed, then tried to find a place to eat. Sadly, the doughnut shop was closed, and we ended up snagging odd bits of food before heading to the Drift Creek Falls trailhead. South of Lincoln City, we wound up ten miles of single-lane logging road, dodging large salamanders (for which, sadly, we never got to stop to get a closer look). The hike was amazing, ending at a suspension bridge and surprising, sudden waterfall.

We had to rush back from the hike and hightail it down to Yachats for the spa appointments I made. I hadn't realized that the place I booked was 45 miles south of Lincoln City, so the extra trek really put a strain on our time. Facials have been our anniversary tradition, though, and the Overleaf Lodge was perched on a lovely rocky beach for wandering while we took turns with our treatments.

As dusk settled, we drove through Newport to finally have a meal-- and the word only applies loosely-- at Taco Bell, before the three hour drive home.