Sand Between My Toes

Craig and I finally got away to the beach over the weekend. For the first time this summer ... can that be right? We usually head to the beach the day after school's out, but events conspired to keep us away. Summer school schedules, College Board meetings, driving practice (for the 15 year old) ... and all of the sudden you realize it's the end of July and you haven't felt sand between your toes for a very long time. It seems life was less complicated when the boys were small and we headed to the beach nearly every weekend during the summer.

While we have many traditions that can't be skipped when we go to Lincoln City, we haven't developed those traditions in Seaside (other than, of course, setting up camp at Del Rey Beach). But we're working on it. We lunched at Bagels by the Sea (visited for the first time last summer), bought a half dozen bagels to go for afternoon snacks and picked up a chocolate dipped vanilla cone at the Gearhart DQ on the way home. I consider that to be a fine start. Oh, and I should mention, I finished one sleeve on Craig's sweater. Knitting at the beach is one tradition that transcends location.

Backyard Happiness

Bambi's mother wandered through our backyard this morning while I was making Belgian waffles. Sometimes I think I should just leave the tripod set up on the deck to catch these wildlife moments.

German Graffiti

Really? On a college campus? This young graffiti artist needs a spell-checker. Or is this a commentary on the strength of the German department on this particular campus?

Ja, ich spreche Deutsch. Vielleicht ein wenig besser als du. Vielleicht.

Spring in San Francisco

I just returned from Sungard's Summit in San Francisco and, as the saying goes, I don't need to do that again. Attend Summit, that is. I'll go to San Francisco any day. Brian picked me up at the SF airport on Saturday afternoon and we went to dinner that evening at Catch, which was fabulous. When I checked into the St. Francis, I wasn't paying attention and ended up on the fifth floor of the new tower. Sarah, however, lucked out and got a room on the eleventh floor of the original building and graciously invited me over to take a picture of her view.

I got home from San Francisco just in time to catch the Canadian redbuds in full bloom. The deck is pink with the waxy blossoms that will soon find their way into the house and grind themselves into the hardwood floors but, at the moment, it's all very lovely.

Summer Shirt I

I presented a workshop at the Student Success and Retention Conference at the airport Sheraton a few weeks back and my reward was a stop at Fabric Depot on the way home. I really do not like speaking in front of crowds, so to counter the stress I treat myself afterward. Usually the treat is a milkshake at Burgerville on the way home from a high school FA night. The thing is, there is a Burgerville across the street from Fabric Depot. Life doesn't get much better than that. I certainly didn't need to add to my fabric stash, but this cotton was 50% off and called to me. A couple of yards was just under $12.00. A few days later, this pattern called to me from the Vogue website. Luckily, patterns that day were on sale for $5.99. It took me a few more days to picture the two together and it turned out to be a good match.

The tucks are a bit tedious, but once they are done the rest of the shirt goes together fast and easy.

San Diego Weekend

I was in San Diego for a College Board Council meeting and the view from my balcony at the Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines was ... well ... fabulous. I allocated Thursday's travel time to finish up a work project, but once I arrived in La Jolla, the day was just too perfect to sit in front of a computer.

Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve is just a couple of miles from the hotel and a number of trails lead to the beach. I took the Razor Point Trail, which promised dramatic views of the gorge and picturesque trees. I was not disappointed.


I met Peter Rabbit on the trail and we chatted for a bit. I asked him where he had left his blue jacket this time. He found the question rude and hopped off to find his cousin, Benjamin Bunny.

Being a Northerner, cacti always surprise and fascinate me.


As I walked back to the hotel, the smell of eucalyptus made me stop and linger for a bit. I contemplated how cool it would be to pitch a tent and camp in a grove of eucalyptus trees.


One of my favorite pictures that I often use as wallpaper on my work computer came with my Mac. The picture is of a field of lavender, and when I came across this scene I tried to duplicate that picture. I was not entirely successful. There was a bit of a breeze and the sun was setting so I didn't have much choice with shutter speed and focal length. And I wasn't interested in using a flash. And I didn't have a tripod.


And then I came across these flowers, backlit by the setting sun.

There's no question in my mind why so many people live in San Diego. Nice place.

A Sure Sign of Spring

Daffodils are always a sure sign that spring has arrived. I can't think of many things that are as beautiful as fields of daffodils. Tulips, maybe. Perhaps irises. Perhaps.

But daffodils just happen. Year after year. Carelessly coexisting with blackberry brambles and English ivy.

Spring has arrived in Oregon.