The folks remaining here after the snowbirds have left still know how to have a good time. It doesn’t take much of an excuse and it sure doesn’t need to be in Port Ludlow.

My friend and boss Mike Kenna took me to lunch at Doc’s in Port Townsend last week to celebrate my birthday, and we had no sooner sat down than a procession of folks from Port Ludlow came in.

It turns out there is a Port Ludlow Senior Singles group that gathers once each month for lunch somewhere. There were 19 of them taking over one end of the restaurant. There was everybody from Shirley Peck to Cheryl Wheeler, with Aggie Gage right in the middle. I met Aggie’s husband, Keith, when I joined the poker group and was serious when I told the other players that the only reason I came was because of Aggie’s cookies. Keith passed away seven months ago, so Aggie’s cookies have been absent from the game for quite some time.

When I saw her at Doc’s, she committed to bake some for us last week, and they were great. I mean, what is not to like about fresh rum balls? I just wish my poker skills came somewhere close Aggie’s baking skills.

BJ joined Fran Bodman and a group of six others on an adventure to the Seattle Art Museum to celebrate Fran’s birthday last week. They survived the rain without drowning on the wettest day of the year so far. Fran is an active member of the Port Ludlow Artists’ League, so visiting the museum during the last few days of the “Andrew Wyeth – In Retrospect” exhibit was a natural thing to do. The very next day, there was another birthday celebration that included not only Fran but also Cheryl Wheeler at The Beach Club after the regular Friday-morning “Aquasize” class. Some of the attendees get together for coffee after swimming in the Gazebo, but Beach Club hostess/office manager Kim Bond shepherded them into the Gallery Room, given the larger group and the big chocolate cake. Hey, there is new furniture and carpet in the Gazebo anyway.

All this talk about birthdays reminds me that it seems people my age are so much older than I am.

About a month ago, the oversize spring on our overly heavy garage door failed. Given the weight of the door, we have had operational problems over the past several years. The good folks at Kitsap Garage Door came and put a temporary fix on it whilst we considered putting up a new door with a better fit, better insulation and lighter construction. We ultimately decided we needed to make this move, not the least because of the danger we have avoided when it does fail. For example, the temporary fix did fail.

BJ was gone with her car and I was in the street in my car when I hit the remote’s “close” button. The door dropped like a guillotine. We are thankful no cars or people were in the way. In addition, we were still able to use our cars until the new door was installed, since they were outside and there was no way I could lift that door!

All these door problems bring to mind a quote from Dr. Laura Schlessinger. “Don’t spend your time beating on a wall hoping to transform it into a door.” Or, just get a new door.

Love a curmudgeon and have a great week.

Contact Port Ludlow resident Ned Luce at nedluce@sbcglobal.net.