Summer Solstice

You'd never know it's the first day of summer as I sit here in jeans, long sleeved shirt and fleece vest. I think the Big Chill my body is suffering began last night, at Stonehenge. Not THE Stonehenge (though I did see it once), but the Stonehenge Memorial built as the country's first WWI memorial on the site of the original town of Maryhill.

The planets were in alignment, so to speak, for the summer solstice presentation of King Lear by the Portland Actors Ensemble who brought their traveling Shakespeare Show from the Big City to Klickitat County. It's a bit of a drive from our little burg (almost 50 miles and still in the same county), so we left about 5:15 for the 7:30 show. We picked up Randy and Lisa on the way, and met up with Skip and Jan for our picnic on the grounds before the show. Good thing we got there early, and spread blankets and sleeping bags on some chairs near the front. It wasn't even 6:30 and we were about 5 rows back. Good sign for the actors, looked like it would be a full house.

We enjoyed fine dining and wining overlooking the Columbia River from our perch high on the bluff. We found a spot with a wind break, which was helpful. I'd roasted Peruvian Chicken on our BBQ rotisserie, and whipped up a quinoa salad with mango, black beans, peppers, green onions and a lime cilantro dressing. Jan had deviled eggs, baked beans and coleslaw, and Lisa made a fantastic bean dip (lots of avocado) with chips. Everyone brought wine. We were stoked and ready by 'curtain time'.

The place was packed. At intermission we found out that attendance was 380 people! I don't think they expected that. The acting was superb, as was the setting of course. The sun was down by intermission, so we returned for Act 2 to find coleman lanterns glowing atop three or four of the stone pillars. We'd refueled during the break with Lisa's fabulous chocolate pudding dessert (I was tempted to start doing Bill Cosby impersonations). We needed the extra calories, because it was COLD and WINDY. We also grabbed an extra blanket from the car to put over the fleece one I already had. I was concerned for the young woman who played Regan...she had on a beautiful green gown with lots of back and shoulder exposed. Thank goodness she had a few scenes where she wore a cloak.

It was a happy carfull that joined the parade west on winding HWY 14 after the show. For my Portland area readers, try to catch the show under the St. John's Bridge (Willamette Valley's only suspension bridge, a little bit of trivia) at Cathedral Park June 25-26, July 2, 3, and 9-11. Or in Beaverton at Autumn Ridge Park on June 27th. It's a real treat. And it's FREE. But I guarantee you'll want to drop a little something in the donation box by the end of the show.

Happy Father's Day

It's all my fault. I was the reason for your first Father's Day (of 57 so far). It must have been good, because I have six fantastic siblings. This was obviously taken well after Father's Day, because I was only a week or so old on Father's Day in 1952. We made a fine couple, if I must say so myself. Photo credit goes to my mom.

Have a great day, Dad, and enjoy having my girls there in my stead. How great is that!

Of Tall Ships, Sushi, Cake and Yankee Slayers

It's been a dandy birthday week. We kicked it off on Sunday. After a lovely drive into Portland, we strolled around the Saturday Market and their new digs under the covered pavilion, then moseyed over to Chinatown, where we caught a dragon dance for the moon festival.



The smells of the food vendors at the Market and in Chinatown drove us to Stumptown Coffee so we could distract ourselves from the growling in our stomachs. We were saving ourselves for dinner at Red Hills Provincial Dining in Dundee. We drove out to Mac and saw Mary and Matt's remodel project, then we all headed to Red Hills for a feast.

Nancy and Richard outdid themselves, and started us off with a bottle of Argyle Brut and crabcakes. Mom had called in an order for a bottle of Richard's Pinot Noir as a surprise. We drank lots of coffee with our homemade ice cream dessert so we could make it back to the Gorge in one piece.

Tuesday, Alina and I got our hair done, and had a lovely dinner of swordfish and salad (with some Wind River Cellars Pinot Gris, the official wine of my birthday 2009) out on the deck. Keara sent a big bunch of sunflowers, AND a packet of seeds so I could grow my own.


Wednesday we returned to Today's Chalet for pedicures. Such a guilty pleasure. Lloyd joined us in an expedition across the bridge to tour the Hawaiian Chieftain and The Lady Washington, two tall ships docked in Hood River for the night.


You might recognize The Lady Washington as the HMS Interceptor from Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, or as the brig Enterprise in Star Trek Generations.

The two ships have been on a tour of the Columbia River for the last month, doing dockside tours, evening sails and battle cruises to raise funds and awareness for the foundation.


Lloyd had to get back to White Salmon for an arts council meeting, so we skipped the battle sail. Alina and I got sushi to go from Sushi Okalani instead. Lloyd's not a big sushi fan, so he bolted for the taco stand and got a big carne asada burrito, which he devoured while we waited for our sushi to be constructed. It was beautiful. And delicious. And it went great with the official wine of my birthday 2009.


After his meeting, we all had dessert, courtesy of chef Alina. She's been a cooking junkie since she got here. Here she is with her Chocolate Genoise Cake with Raspberry Filling and Chocolate Ganache, from Emeril and the Food Network website. It tasted as good as it looks, especially with a scoop of Tillamook Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.


Then it was early to bed, because we had to get Alina to PDX by 6 am for her 7:20 flight back to Boston. She texted that she'd boarded when we got to Hood River, and we were home by the time the flight took off. We were moving rather slowly yesterday, and it took me three tries to get the Sudoku puzzle, my brain was so fuzzy. Another helping of that cake did the trick and we're back to normal today. As normal as we can be, that is.

Now, I'm not one to gloat, but I just can't help myself...the Sox swept the Yankees (again) just for me. I was hoping for a win for my birthday, and I knew Tim Wakefield would be up to the task, but to have all three games this week was almost too much. Almost.

A New Extreme

I like the fringes. I've been to the far northeast (W. Quoddy Pt. Maine). I've been to the far south points of the US (Key West FL, and Ka Lae HI. I've been to the Cape of Good Hope (Africa). Now I can add the most northwestern point of the contiguous US, Point Flattery, WA.


Last week we took a couple days off of chores around the homestead. With a clear forecast for the WA coast, we headed to the Olympic Peninsula, and stopped for the night at South Beach, an Olympic National Park campground about 35 miles south of Forks. Flush toilets but no potable water. Hand sanitizer dispenser conveniently mounted on the bathroom door. No showers. Alina was NOT happy about that. By the second night, neither was I. Note to self, no more than two nights at campgrounds with no showers. We ladies like showers. And even more importantly, we like our menfolk to have them. And I won't mention salty dogs.

But, it was a peaceful, beautiful, clear day at the coast. No wind. This was the view from our site.


We had a big picnic table, and a fire ring.


Cooked us up some New Braunfels smoked sausages for dinner, with a big salad and a bottle of wine. And contemplated the meaning of life.


The short trail to the water was right next to our site. You had to climb over some big wood to get to the beach. That is not a rock to the left, it's a LOG!

Remember, Beach Logs Kill.

As the sun went down, the moon came up.

The sunset was spectacular.

Pictures don't come close to how beautiful it was.


Thursday morning, after the sun opened all the buttercups in front of the tent, we set out for Forks, where we picked up info on how to get to our desination. The Chamber of Commerce info place was full of tween Twilight fans and their parents, looking for maps to sites described in the books. I've never read them. No one was going where we were going. Whew.


We passed through Neah Bay and picked up our pass to use the Makah tribe roads and land. The parking lot at the trailhead was pretty empty. We headed out through the thick woods, and the path turned to boardwalk.


At the end of the trail there were several observation decks to fully appreciate the view.

As we stood on the point, a bald eagle flew by us. That's Victoria Island, Canada in the background. You can't see Russia from here.


As we turned to head back, a mob of 200 eighth graders and their teachers on an end of year field trip from Port Angeles descended on the decks. Five busloads. We high tailed it back up to the car to get out ahead of the bus parade. I made Lloyd stop in Sekiu so I could get a picture of Rosie. I had to. She reminded me of the giant shrimp just across the Brazos River in Richmond. I thought Susan would get a kick out of Rosie.

Rosie's got a great view.

So then it was back to the campground for dinner (chicken with Trader Joe's Green Thai Chili sauce, jasmine rice, and salad, oh, and another bottle of wine). A mighty wind came up and I thought we were in for a rough night, but it stopped after an hour or so. We were on the edge of a front that blasted through Portland and the Gorge all night. I'm not sure the camper would have held up, so it was good that we were spared.

Four hours home on Friday to the shower. Alina beat everyone to it. And loved every second.

The Prodigal Daughter

I've been remiss in my posting lately. I think it might have something to do with the fantastic weather we've been having. And with daughter Alina's visit, post-finals and pre-summer camp job. And with our temporary border, Andrea, aka The Prodigal Daughter.

Andrea is the daughter of our friends Tom and Leila, who are living and working in Bangkok right now. Tom and Lloyd worked together in CA, and we've enjoyed adventures with them over the years. Work brought Tom, and sometimes Leila with him, to visit us in our various locations. But the last time we actually saw the girls was on a Disneyworld trip in 1997 after we'd been transferred to Louisiana. Andrea was in 6th grade. Now she's a SDSU nursing school graduate looking for her first job. After her December graduation, she spent 3 months traveling with a friend in Brazil rather than jump right into a job in San Diego. Hence her father's reference to The Prodigal Daughter.

She'd had enough of the beach, I guess, and needed a change of scenery (ie more green) so she decided Portland was a good place to start the next chapter of her life. She set out from CA with all her earthly goods packed into her Honda, her surfboard tied to the roof through the windows, heading for her friend Elise's apartment in Portland. After a few days' stop in the Bay Area, she drove all day to Portland. One hitch in the plan, Elise was gone on a trip home for Mother's Day. Modern communication is a wonderful thing. Her dad called her with some phone numbers of people who might be of some help. Ours was one of them, and we're delighted she used it!

Arriving at 11 pm after driving through the gorge in the rain, she exited her car via the driver's door window (remember, the surfboard tied on top?) and happily fell into a real bed, grateful she didn't have to sleep in her car.

She attacked her job and apartment search with great focus and purpose immediately the next morning. Entry nursing jobs are not easy to come by in these economic times, but she's been on several interviews and is casting a wide net...all the way to Anchorage, actually, which is a little further north than she bargained for, but is still on the plan B list.

We introduced her to some favorite hiking spots, and to Hooba's deck dining on a day when Mt. Adams was basking in blue sky. Alina loved getting reaquainted with someone she hadn't seen since she was in grade school. They had a great time rafting the White Salmon River one day last week on a Wet Planet trip. We had a relaxing afternoon watching kite boarders and wind surfers in Hood River. I think she's addicted to our hot tub. And, of course, Andrea enjoyed the crawfish boil with her usual gusto. Her friend Elise, back from Mom's, joined her and Alina for that adventure.

She's moving in to her new place this week, so we won't be seeing much of her any more. But we sure hope she calls again, whenever she needs to escape the city for some place a little more green.

Back to the Bayou

I thought my days of crawfish boils were gone forever. I was wrong. Who'd have thought anyone in Husum, Washington would know about crawfish boils?

Last summer there was a wedding at the winery. The happy couple live in southern California, but had a thing for Wind River Cellars and wanted to celebrate their nuptials there. The groom, being a Louisiana native, was thinking crawfish boil for the reception. A tradition was launched. Everyone had such a good time at this reception, apparently, that Joel felt it was worth having 250 pounds of mudbugs FedEx'd in from Cajun Country and inviting all the friends of Wind River Cellars to what promises to be an annual par-tay.

The crawfish were so excited to be dumped from those confining blue mesh bags, and they did provide entertainment to the younger kids in the crowd. There was at least one crawfish race witnessed. But they were all on the fast track to the 'hot tub', where they joined potatoes, corn, onions, andouille and lots of Zatarains spice pouches.

Alina was VERY excited that her visit coincided with the crawfish boil. Spending her formative years (8-12) in Louisiana gave her an appreciation of such fine cuisine. She hadn't lost her technique, and instructed Andrea and Elise in the fine art of crawfish consumption. Andrea impressed everyone with her stamina at the table.

Mr and Mrs Ragin Cajun came up from CA to officiate, and make sure everything was prepared and presented properly. It was, though the spice level was definitely geared to introductory level participants. The last batch was more 'normal', ie so hot your lips hurt!

A fine time was had by all and we will look forward to the second anniversary party. I'm willing to bet that Andrea will be back, now that she's moving to Portland. And just maybe it will entice Alina to make a return trip when she's done with finals next spring.

Field Trip: John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

A group of Oregon Nordic Club Columbia Gorge Chapter members decided to take a mid week excursion to John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, because we could. Actually, we've planned a number of hiking expeditions to tide us over until the next Nordic season begins. The website for the national monument, linked above, is pretty good for those who want more info. The National Monument is actually three separate units, about an hour's drive apart from each other. We planned to see one on Wednesday, one on Thursday, and if time permitted, one on the way home Friday.

Our band of 13 included Cindy and Tom in their Subaru, Jan and Skip in their pick up, Linda and Tom in their truck/fifth wheel, Jan and Fred in their campervan, Ray and Shelley in their Toyota camper, us with our pop-up tent camper and Ole in his Forester. We had quite a parade!

We took a leisurely route through The Dalles to Highway 19, south through Fossil and a number of very small towns, to our first main stop at the Sheep Rock Unit. There was a great visitor center with the usual educational displays, a rock lab where the technician was casting replicas of some fossils, and a video presentation that the ranger was delighted to show to the 13 of us, the most people she'd seen all week I think. We got our bearings, some of us headed out for some short hikes, a few others went fossil hunting in a public hunting area.


My first stop was the Thomas Condon Overlook Trail with Brindle, who had been waiting patiently for us to emerge from the Visitor Center. Lloyd and a few others were still immersing themselves in the geology and paleontology within. I took a few pictures, Brinnie got relief, and we made our way back down to the gang. The peak on the right is Sheep Rock.


We then rolled over to the Island in Time Trail into the Blue Basin. It was so pretty, the pictures don't do it justice. You will notice this picture has an ominous sky...on our way back to the car, with about a quarter mile to go, it began to rain and hail on us. For a minute there, I thought we'd gone through a time warp back to Texas. I believe it was my fault. I left my rain jacket in the car. Had I taken it along, I would not have needed it!

We made it to the Clyde Holliday campground, between Mt. Vernon and John Day. As we pulled in, it began to rain, hail, thunder and lightning. We waited for the deluge to pass before attempting to set up the tent. Several of our party rented the two teepees by the river rather than tent camp on soggy ground. For about $10 more a night than a camp site, you get a teepee, 4 sleeping cushions, a heater (key this time of year), and a load of firewood for the big campfire ring on the patio. And a huge picnic table. This was excellent, because we had a great gathering place for our communal dinners.



First night's dinner menu included happy hour cheese, crackers, pate, dips and chips, followed by spaghetti, sauce and meatballs, salad, garlic bread, ending up with assorted goodies for dessert. Also lots of wine and beer, of course.

We had a roaring campfire, Ole brought his guitar, and yes, I brought my ukelele. Having been fueled appropriately, I made it through my entire repertoire and then some, with Ole's help. The weather cooperated, the skies stayed clear and the moon was nearly full. We all sang our way to 'quiet time' at 10 pm, then moseyed back to our respective abodes to rest up for the next day.

After I made coffee and cleaned the dishes from the night before, we returned to the scene of the crime for breakfast. Jan made pancakes in the well ventilated teepee.


Jan Stewart brought bacon she'd cooked up in her van, others brought assorted fruits and I'd made several batches of muffins. We would not be starving on this trip.


Our agenda for Thursday included visiting the Painted Hill Unit. We condensed the group into four vehicles and hit the road. The views were spectacular.



We hiked the Painted Hills Overlook Trail


the Leaf Hill Trail, where thousands of leaf fossils have been found


and the Painted Cove, where a boardwalk allows you to get close up to the colorful claystone mounds.


Here is some nice contrast with the red and some sage.


The views were incredible, and colors changed with the light and passing clouds. In these next two pictures, look at how the greenish mound just left of center turns bright whe the cloud passes.

Everyone's cameras got good workouts! On the way out we saw antelope playing (no deer), so that called for a quick pull over!


Our last stop was the view area of Mascall Formation Overlook, and the Picture Gorge. Notice the road goes right into the gorge.


Before we knew it, we were back at the campground and hungry for dinner. We finished off the munchies, then dined on grilled chicken, sausages, salmon burgers, salad, beans, bread...Whatever everyone had left, basically. And the marshmallows I forgot to bring out the night before. I saved a bottle of Northshore Cellars Cherry Wine for the campfire, and let Ole have the solo stage with his fine guitar playing under a completely full moon. Didn't want to overdo the uke thing...

Even though the birds woke us up around 5 am Friday, our leisurely breakfast and pack up meant not enough time for us to hit the third unit, so we'll have to get that one next time. It would be a great place to bring a fishing pole and maybe go rafting as well...

Anyway, John Day Fossil Beds is a highly recommended destination. Go in the next month or so, before it gets too hot in the daytime, and while you can still see some pretty wildflowers along the way!