Living Vicariously

 A beach house has always been at the top of my dream list. You know, that list you know will never have one thing crossed off of it unless you win the lottery (gotta play first) or discover a long lost distant relative has left you lots of money.  Lately my obsession with owning a beach house has intensified, fueled by scenes of Emily Thorne's beach house in the Hamptons.  Which, as it turns out, is actually in Southport, North Carolina and for sale for 1.5 million.  Like I said, lottery/unknown for now rich relative.

 The beach has always been a destination point for me, as early as high school when Paula and I would drive down in her Chevy Vega and talk about boys.  Or the lack thereof.

Once married, Craig and I spent lots of childless weekends at the beach and continued with frequent day trips once the boys came along.



 Now, the second best possible scenario has occurred:  Ross has bought a beach house.  A beautiful beach house with a loft and two story floor to ceiling windows and a view of the ocean and a wrap around deck.  I checked it out last weekend and the house is dream-worthy.  We lunched at Mo's and walked on the beach while the doggies played and the forest was dark and the stars were bright when I awoke from an afternoon nap.  Definitely dream-worthy.

Long Time Coming

It's been awhile since I actually finished a knitting project and this blankie in particular was a long time coming.  Originally intended for Brody--who turned three last week--it was frogged once in a fit of frustration and reborn into a simpler existence.

And probably for the better, for what would a boy do with a white blankie?

The blankie was hibernating when Kristine and Ian announced that The Bean would arrive in December and would be a girl. Perfect ... I already had half a blankie finished!

I abandoned my Ecuador sweater and finished the blankie, but I have to admit that I have one more skein of yarn that I could have used but didn't.  I was ready for this project to be over. 

Road Trip

The last of the OUS Fall High School Counselor workshops were held earlier this week at SOU and OSU-Cascades.  Mike and I hit the road on Monday, heading to Ashland and a fabulous dinner with Rick at Kaleidoscope Pizzeria & Pub. We finished up the NT4CM workshop promptly at 3:30 pm on Tuesday and set out for Bend, just a bit nervous about the weather and the condition of the mountain passes. The snowplows, however, had done a fine job and the pavement was wet but clear. With a recent dusting of snow, the landscape was beautiful. Mt. Thielsen simply could not be ignored so we stopped for a quick photo opportunity.

We arrived in Bend around 8:00 and--after throwing suitcases into our rooms--headed out for dinner.  The GPS was programmed for Deschutes Brewery but somehow that didn't look like the right place.  Mike indulged me (after I assured him I was trying to recreate an experience) and we walked a few blocks and found Bend Brewing Company.  Which is where Mike claimed last year he had the best beer in his life.  For the second time then, Mike had the best beer in his life (Vanilla Porter) and I confirmed that this was, indeed, the place to go in Bend.  For beer.  The Pine Tavern is still the place to go for dinner.
 

Our timing was perfect once again on Wednesday and we were on the road by 4:00.  The weather cooperated as we left Bend and the Santiam pass was clear, but turned quite nasty around Detroit and through Mill City.



Detroit Lake was showing only stumps and mud--no photo opportunities there.  And while I do enjoy this trip every other year, I was ready to be home.

DC

 

 Alaska Airlines now offers a direct flight from Portland to Washington, DC, making the trip all very civilized. And the 5:10 pm departure time for the return trip to Portland allows for some Friday afternoon exploring. I had already decided to take Metro from National Airport to the Palomar Hotel, since last year's rush hour taxi trip was expensive and not all that fun. Metro proved to be easy, inexpensive (well, compared to BART at least) and efficient, so despite all of the naysayers ("too far, too far," they cried), Alison and I set off to see the new Martin Luther King Memorial. As well as a few sites in between.  The MLK Memorial was impressive.  Very nicely done.

We continued to walk around the Tidal Basin, stopping to eat our box lunches at the FDR Memorial. From the Basin, the Washington Memorial provides a great point of reference for figuring out exactly where you are and how far you are from the Metro stop.

  As I read the quotations inscribed on the walls of the Jefferson Memorial, I was reminded of the principles upon which our nation was built ... and how far we've strayed from those principles.

"The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; It is whether we provide enough for those who have too little." --FDR

Hmmmm.  Now we have Mitt telling us that 47% of Americans need to take responsibility for their lives and pick themselves up by their bootstraps.  Hmmmmmm.

No time to walk to the Capitol, so we gazed from the distance and decided that next year we'll do the other side of the Mall, including the White House and Vietnam Memorial. We took Metro back to The Palomar, picked up our suitcases, and headed back to the Metro station once again for the trip to National. With only 80 cents remaining on my Metro pass, it was time to go home. Security lines were very long and I got to the gate just as first class passengers were boarding. Plenty of time, although I know a few people who would disagree.

So Long, September

I am not quite ready for the end of September, but it has arrived.  The days are wonderfully rain-free, warm and sunny ... quite perfect, actually.  

 Until I open my water bill.  And then, perhaps, I'll be ready for rain.  Perhaps.

40th Wedding Anniversary

We celebrated Craig's parents' 40th wedding anniversary on Saturday, August 11th.  Instead of our usual casual barbeque, I wanted to have a sit-down dinner on the deck with fresh flowers and white tablecloths.  Tables were borrowed from the neighbors, white tulle bows graced chair backs, and red roses in square glass vases provided a splash of color.  And baby's breath ... lots of baby's breath.  In little heart-shaped vases with organza ribbon bows.

I spent many evenings scouring the internet for decorating ideas.  Garden party produced the best results.  I did learn a few things:  1) Do not put floating candles in the water prior to lighting them.  The wicks get wet and don't light; 2) Do not put a chocolate fountain on a white tablecloth if children will be present at the event;  3) If you are going to have a chocolate fountain for dessert, hide the strawberries from said children and chocolate from adults until the time comes to prepare the dessert, then designate a guard to keep said children and said adults out of the preparation area; 4) Call Larry to insure that he will arrive early and provide kitchen support; 5) Don't attempt to make homemade ice cream in a Cuisinart Ice Cream maker in a 90 degree kitchen.  I guarantee it will not freeze.

Still, a very nice evening and people stayed late enough to make the white twinkle lights worth all of the effort to get each string to light in its entirety (think wire cutters and twisty connectors ... who knew Christmas lights were designed to fail when you need them the most?  Hint:  you cannot run to Target and find Christmas lights in August.)

San Diego Sunshine

My first trip to Coronado Island was over a decade ago, at The Del for one of the early Electronic Access Conferences.  Upon arrival, The Del insisted that I had cancelled my reservation and I insisted I hadn't.  I ended up in a very nice corner suite with a 180 degree view of the beach and San Diego proper.  That was a great trip and I still have very fond memories of that place, listening to the elevator attendant sing It's A Wonderful World Louie Armstrong style, early morning breakfasts in the courtyard with white linen tablecloths and propane heaters, Kay Jacks and Jeff Baker's back and forth banter.

This recent trip was planned to be short, but was made even shorter by a cracked airplane windshield and a seven hour flight delay.  The Sunday afternoon I had planned to spend exploring Loew's Coronado Bay Resort was instead spent at the Portland airport, which I know much too well already.  Arriving on Coronado Island around 9 pm, the only sights I saw were the lights of Mexico in the distance.  Meetings began at 8 am the next morning and I only escaped for a few minutes during an afternoon break for a quick walk around the property.  This was the first proper sunshine I had seen in a very long time and it was glorious.

Perhaps it was the sunshine ... or salt air ... or jostling in my briefcase ... or old age ... but the trusty Kodak decided to go all psychedelic on me.

Looks like I'll be hauling the Nikon with me on future trips.  Guess I need a bigger briefcase.

A Stroll Down Bourbon Street

In New Orleans for the first time but with very little time to explore, it was only appropriate to spend my few free minutes strolling down Bourbon Street.

My first glimpse after dinner on Wednesday night, jazz playing, beer flowing, lights twinkling, encouraged me to linger, but my colleagues were ready to return to the hotel.

 

 

With an hour to spare before the airport shuttle on Saturday morning, I found my favorite balcony ...

 and my favorite house.  I want to live in this yellow house with the blue shutters and the pink door.

First Birthday Dress

Ellie turned one in February and every girl needs a pink first birthday dress, right? Pattern sizing, as it turns out, does not exactly correspond with ready-made sizing. Ellie wears a 12 month size in store bought clothes, but this size one pattern was way too big. I'm not even sure it's going to fit by Easter ... maybe sometime this summer. Too big, however, is always preferable to too little when it comes to children's clothing.

Happy Birthday, sweet Ellie!