Suddenly last Saturday,

Dang near missed it. Just like they said. A one-story building squished in between two six story buildings. Rasty part 'a town.
Or used to was. Some mega-bazillion dollar brand new place -huge- exactly out the
back parking lot. Urban contrasts. What's that sign say ? Trade and Convention Center ?
Limos pulling up ?
What a paradox.
This must be the place.
___________________

Found a parking spot half a block south with more confusers. Don't park here: Towaway. Park here: Mac's Smokehouse customers only. Parking $20 a day, except Saturdays: $10. Event Parking $8.
Excuse me ? Could we reach a visitor
safe consensus please ? How I'd love
to finish this dinner gathering and still have a car to drive home with.
What the hey. Park it.

_________________

Hustle back on foot for that seamy looking spot now a million blocks or two north. Bonus and Miracle: it IS Seattle, and it AIN'T rainin'....
Yup: Mac's Smokehouse. I'll
just nip in this here side door.
Nasty. Yuck.

_________________

Broken mismatched lino square tile floors. Uneven floor grades. Smoke EVERYwhere, and I don't mean barbeque. Tiny little moist back bar room crammed
with standup drinkers that seem to really know and LIKE each other.
Could that be us ?!
Where's the identifying burgee?

___________________

But no, thank God. There's Gentlemen Per way across the room with another civilized looking fellow. At another sub-bar. I'll be safe now.
Man, this place is a bar with bars.
No tradewinds or palm tress here, folks, sorry. You lucky Cal-nadians.

__________________

I greet Per and David Wilkie Owen, just a very fine fellow, and discuss alternate venues, and my being semi-scandalized.
Per assures me this is "just perfect".
What does he know ?
Many rounds of parking quarterbacking. Per, gloomily, concludes he got the most $crewed on his spot, wherever that is, somewhere across the street.
I decide to repark to the back lot behind the Smokehouse, amidst the construction debris, dumpsters, and lord knows what else.

It implies - is this a revenue raising tow company ruse (?) - that it's free to Mac's Smokehouse customers. But so did the last spot. Hmm. Oh well. Party's inside.

__________________

And then the fun began. Per and David ("Wilkie") hoisted my burgee for the first time on a mahogany runabout staff I'd scrounged from an estate sale last summer.
We flew it there at sub-bar #2 for awhile until the legions of faithful grew. Attracted by Roy's great burgee work, no doubt. Thank you again, Mr. Reynolds!
Fun sitting there watching that rasty side entrance for new tentative faces peering in, looking for us.
(Turned out, that is the ONLY door though, not the side door.) Guess that also makes it Mac's Main Entrance ?

___________________________

Despite the physical facilities, human hospitality at Mac's was great. Very genuine and welcoming.
We were well cared for, and eventually, about.
Especially by a nice guy named "AC", who manager Nick had posted to be on the lookout for us all.
The food was great and there were lots of micro-brews on draft fer them as needs 'em. Per was right. This dive (oops, spot) was perfect. Good call birthday Bob Frangooles !

____________________________

We also got to meet Victoria Lessley of Victoria! (no Timm, still stuck in Singapore), Roy Hays, McKie Campbell (jetting through from Denver to Juneau via this Seattle detour), Pamela Benson, Chris Pittack and his lovely wife Anne Fitzpatrick, (sp?), Rick Nordby who has a 1972 Cal 33 and may have convinced Per they exist at last, a neat fella who crews with Timm and Victoria named Dean, but he goes by the handle of Dr. Brkt (?) for "bracket", and sez he may sign on-list soon, and at last, Jordan.
Delightful Jordan. Who arrived looking endearingly outrageous, in semi-costume.
And Per obliged him, by dropping his (own) jaw, ever so slightly, and looking astonished. It took Per a good half an hour I think to get his lower lip back in contact with his upper lip.
Hope it registers in the pix that Wilkie will post later. The open-mouthed Per. It was precious.

___________________

Please pardon me if I've forgotten anyone. I'm doin' what I can here. We had a great several hours in very fine company.
Many other people kept asking us if it was really true that we didn't know each other. Guess we became sommat of a restaurant curiousity while there. And rumors will carry quickly.
Us, our flag, and lots of warmth.

Of course, they never could sandwich us into that humid little backroom, after all. And good sport AC had the courage to seat us at several comandeered tables right smack in the middle of the restaurant.
We never claimed to be unnoticeable.
If Jordan had had a parrot, it would have been the finishing touch.....

_______________________

So many folk came over and asked us if it was true, we really DIDN'T know each other (guess we give a grand impression of old friends having much fun at reunion), that one professorly-looking chap began to take his own pictures of us.

Particularly of Jordan. This fellow and his wife powerboaters, just in for a quick post- boat show bite before going off to a birthday party for the august Mr.Tolly (?). He who created Tolly Craft.
Older gentleman begins lecturing us on the movie "Waterworld", which I haven't seen. Sez something about the fact that we sailors will end up prevailing...
I ask him if he's a film prof up at UW ? But no, Biblical Studies. Ah, Seattle. He sure did find Jordan photogenic. His wife finally had to drag him away to the Tolly-party.

________________

And so it went. A few of us pealed out a little early. McKie (which is pronounced to rhyme with "sky") off to have dinner with his college daughter who lives in Seattle. Per and I steered him toward Assagio, of course, don't know if he made it. Rick back to family, me up the long road north to Bellingham.

_________________

Yes, I still had a car. Yes, there is free parking in Seattle if you are willing to have an (excellent) BBQ sandwich inside a smoky place called Mac's.

__________________

Last seen, Hospitable Pamela, she of the many cameras, had just roused the troops for an impromptu second round: member boat crawls.

Those still standing were heading first toward Pam's boat, nearby, then on to Shilshole to see Chris and Anne's "Wings." All were enthused. Do not know how far they actually got. Perhaps one will write the saga on from here.

_________________

It was a great time with instant best friends.
So palpably vital, that spectators had trouble believing we were strangers earlier in the same afternoon.

This list IS magic.

Cal-list rendezvous. Large or small.
We recommend them.

-scribe