Coupeville

There aren't many rules by which I live my life, and as I get older they become fewer. But at least one certainly remains. If I come across a decent travel article about Whidbey Island, I share it. Today's Seattle Times has a day trip planner about how to be Kicking Back in Coupeville, a quaint little town in the center of Whidbey Island, Washington. Although it is a lovely day here in New Hampshire, I bet a few of you grizzled staffers and journalists are starting to feel like you've been "couped" up in the Granite State for a few days too long. Well, let Coupeville hold your thoughts for a moment.

If you're over 21 and up for some fun, try Toby's Tavern, 8 N.W. Front, a local hangout in an 1890s-era former beer parlor. Grab a window table or a seat at the mirrored bar and order a pint of the Parrot Red ale brewed in Anacortes. Mussels are $11 for a pound including garlic bread. The goldfish crackers are free.

Oh, and the mussels are divine. The beer ain't bad, either. But if the halibut fish and chips are in season, they are not to be missed.

Looking up the bluff and down the beach. Ebey's Landing, Coupeville, Washington, February 2007

Thanks again to link guru CBT for the heads up.


P.S. While we are on the subject of the PNW, any Sonics fan has got to be psyched about this article. Durant at SG? As PJ Carlesimo circumloquaciously puts it: "He's like -- he's not like Magic Johnson at all -- but he's like Magic in that you can play him probably any of four positions, if not five." Hot. Go Supes!