who needs t.v. anyway?

As I was hiking the Appalachian Trail, I often heard folks say that a camp fire is a hiker's t.v. The reference was to the fact that you can sit there and stare at a fire for hours, losing track of time, watching the flames diminish the existence of wood. Kind of mesmerizing, I guess. Well, I haven't been hiking much at all since I moved to Whidbey, but I do sit in the dining room where there is a nice view of the water and I watch the ships go by. Kind of the same as a hiker's t.v., except I'm watching the water instead of a camp fire. And I'm not camping, just hanging out inside.

Anyway...I thought I'd share some pictures of some ships that I see. I often see the same ships go by throughout the week. They port in Seattle and then head out through the Straits of Juan de Fuca to get to the Pacific. I see lots of Japanese and Chinese ships, as well as Canadian ships. And I'm seeing cruise ships more and more each week. They are like moving condominiums, all lit up at night. Crazy.

Tugboat pulling two barges of sawdust to the paper mill in Port Townsend

Cruise ship heading to Seattle to pick up the vacationers

Barge full of smashed car bodies heading to the smelter, I think
This ship closest to the bottom of the picture is the Victoria Clipper. It goes from Seattle to Victoria Island a few times a day ferrying people and their cars. I see it all the time. Behind it is a Submarine. The clipper was forced closer to the land than usual because the sub was in the shipping lane. Fortunate picture.