PDX-Antics

The hills are alive.....

2008-07-01T15:21:00.000-07:00

with the sound of music! I just had to say it.

The cow and I ventured on a path in the Gorge called Dog Mountain. It was three miles straight up a hill but the views were magnificent. We also had a treat waiting for us afterwards - Walking Man brewery. The best place to be!

Cabo Now!

2008-03-28T12:34:00.000-07:00

All I can say is I wish I was in Cabo right now. This morning it snowed in Portland!

Time Changes Everything

2008-03-08T18:21:00.001-08:00

As you can see by my new colors I am ready for SPRING.
I am enthralled that we are taking time into our own hands tonight and creating more daylight hours for fun.
It is often said that there are not enough hours in a a day.
I would argue that there is not enough fun in a day.
My pledge with the change in time is to add fun time into my plans.
Join me in my new quest to add enjoyment to these 24 hour periods we call a day.

Happy time change!

Mornings and Evening

2008-01-13T15:54:00.000-08:00

I just found this great blog titled: 3191. It is two friends that live 3191 miles apart: one in Portland, OR the other Portland, ME. In 2007 they embarked on a year of mornings and for 2008 it will be a year of evenings. Take a look at their cool pictures and discover how others live out their mornings and evenings.

Photography and Tea

2008-01-12T17:57:00.000-08:00

I am trying to get the cow to be a tourist in his own city. Today I talked him into going to a Photography exhibit and Tao of Tea. I had read about Newspace Center for Photography opening in the SE of Portland. I wanted to go because there was an exhibit by Hiroshi Watanabe named Ideology in Paradise with photographs from North Korea.

After the exhibit we went to Tao of Tea on SE Belmont (near HoY). Had a spot of tea and an Indian crumpet, relaxed and listened to the soothing waterfall. Make sure you click on the Tao of Tea link - there are some beautiful photos of lotus blossoms being harvested.

Burdigala- What a gala?

2008-01-12T17:49:00.000-08:00

Burdigala is a wine store about 5 blocks from our house. It is owned by a French guy named Dideret (spelling?). On Friday nights it is the place to be and gets super packed between 6 and 9 because the guy offers about 10 wines to taste.

We stumbled in last night and found Bon Vivants distributors tasting organic and biodynamic wines from France. We tried Domaine d la Bregeonnette: Muscadet, Chateau La Grolet: Bourg, Clos de l'Anhel: Corbieres and a Domaine Pierre Andre: Chateauneuf-du-Pape.

We marched down to Gino's for dinner and felt all warm and French inside.

Everything is better at the BOTTOM!

2008-01-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

Sunday afternoon outing to Oaks Bottom Pub- hence the motto, "everything is better at the bottom!"

We decided that bloody Mary's, Beer and Totchos sounded good. Walking down to the pub for a Sunday afternoon stroll made me feel less guilty about the indulgence ahead. Too bad my stomach did not think so afterwards.

New Year's Eve 2007

2008-01-04T09:18:00.000-08:00

The gang headed to lovely Northern California for a little R&R this year. We met in Oakland and zoomed off to Sonoma for a couple of days of wine tasting. We stopped at Roche and Cline before heading off to the city of Sonoma where we stayed just off the plaza at The Cottage Inn.

After laying low for a couple of days the sun came out and we moved ourselves to the city by the bay. It was beautiful-check out those blue skies. We ended up at Rogue brewery for lunch right next door to North Beach and every Italian fantasy you could have with food. Our days were spent walking or as everyone likes to call it "marching."

New Year's Eve we got dressed up and went to Cow Hollow/Union Street for dinner at Terzo. The evening actually ended rather quietly as we all headed back around 2:00am.

White Christmas

2007-12-25T12:52:00.000-08:00

As we were having lunch the cow looked up and said, "It's snowing!" It was really coming down for quite some time. Actually, it is still coming down as I look out the window and type.

Presents!

2007-12-25T09:31:00.000-08:00

December 25th - 6:30am! I was so excited to give the cow his presents that I was awake! WIDE AWAKE. I tried as hard as I could to stay quiet but I couldn't contain myself.

I placed all his presents under the tree (see above) and waited for him to get up.

He had many surprises; an immersion blender, a cool felt hat from a haberdasher and a pizza stone. Okay, I know the pizza stone and blender are for me also. The rewards of having a husband that can cook!

I received a beautiful Tiffany Bracelet. Many of you know the story of my love for this mesh bracelet - when are HoY was robbed the bracelet went with the bad guys. The cow replaced the bracelet and I will wear it always!

I also go a RUMBA! I am obsessed with floors so this is his way of saying relax!

Festivities in Portland

2007-12-21T09:17:00.000-08:00

There was so much going on in Portland that we roamed the plaza and listened to Tuba Christmas and watched the crazy Star Wars people in front of Macy's. I think they were the bell ringers for the Salvation Army!

Crab Three Ways

2007-12-20T09:09:00.000-08:00

Dinner was heavenly! After the cow worked his fingers to the bone cracken crab we had a delicious meal of crab bisque, crab cakes and crab panini's. It was absolutely exquite! When do I get to have this again?

Blue skies and buildings

2007-11-25T13:31:00.000-08:00

What a spectacular skyline? The cow and I made our way through the city of Vancouver over the Thanksgiving holiday. We were thankful for being able to travel to such an incredible city. We stayed two blocks from Yaletown and found Rodney's for Mussels and Oysters at the bar the first hour after we arrived. Yaletown is a happening place but we then made our way down to the Gas lamp district - old town area being kicked into high gear with development.
The days were sunny and cold but it allowed for great vistas of buildings and the mountains that are super close. We love the denseness of this city. It is packed with international people, great food and gorgeous architecture.
There are only two negatives to this town.....the Canadian dollar is valued higher than the US dollar and the taxes on alcohol will bankrupt an honest drunk.

Public Art Interpretation

2007-11-25T13:06:00.000-08:00

What do you think?

Library or Colosseum?

2007-11-25T12:19:00.000-08:00

The Vancouver Public library is awe inspiring. Bright and bold on the inside and ageless perfection on the outside. The is a building not to miss when you are in the city. The library is eight floors and the remainder of the building is retail space, offices and a pub. You find yourself lingering on the outside waiting for the perfect picture when you realize every picture of this building is amazing.

Keeping the local economy going...

2007-11-03T17:57:00.000-07:00

Wow! I never knew a walk through the neighborhood could result in so much economic growth. It is beautiful in Portland this fine November weekend. The cow and I rode our bikes to Trader Joes and loaded up on staples. We then walked down to the local grocer and picked up a couple of items that TJ's does not carry. We hit the hardware store so we can finish the cool panels our neighbor gave us. We then strolled into the liquor store for scotch and tequilla as well as purchasing a great piece of art at Tilde. We rounded out our afternoon stroll at BOTH of the wine stores - we got a bit sauced and purchased several bottles. We then had to figure out how to get everything home without hurting ourselves or falling down. Great Day in the ole NorthWest. Right now I can smell garlic roasting for the pizza the cow will be making in less than an hour. I am so hungry right now I could it my arm.

Walk, Wine, Eat

2007-11-03T17:46:00.000-07:00

The great outdoors. The cow and I got a late start but headed to Silver Falls for a walk in the woods on a beautiful afternoon. The hike through 10 lush waterfalls is about 7 miles and traverses up and down but really anyone with a good pair of tennis shoes could complete this beautiful walk. We stopped off in Silverton and had a glass of wines, flew home showered and changed and ended up in the NW at Basta for dinner. Great day and evening.

Oregon's Bounty

2007-10-14T16:31:00.001-07:00

Everything we ate on Saturday night was from the Farmer's Market. It was a gorgeous autumn day so we rode our Bike's down to PSU and filled our bags with various local goodies. As you can see there was quite the variety: pears, potatoes, tomatoes (like candy), corn, tomatillos, fresh pasella chiles and a fire roasted "hot mix" of chiles.

The cow created what I think are the two best pizza's he has ever made: an oregon pear with blue cheese and a fresh corn, roasted peppers, goat cheese beauty.

The entire time he was creating these masterpieces he was slurping on a super hoppy beer that is only available when the hops are fresh from the vine- Whatever that beer had in it, I will be buying six pack after six pack to keep him making glorious tasting food.

Pretending to be on vacation

2007-10-08T17:15:00.000-07:00

The cow and I roamed around on Saturday like a couple of tourists. I know the pictures are pitiful - these are the only once I remembered to take. I was having such a good time living in the moment I did not feel the need to photograph much.

We slept in, drank coffee and read the newspaper. We tried a pilates routine that works your core muscle (aka-stomach)...the cow hates this. We then showered and went downtown. We shopped at Anthropologie and Nau and went to an art opening of Matthew Picton New Works in the pearl - geography/cartography with a spin. The streetcar took us up to North 45 where we had Stout Mussels (stout, garlic, thyme and bitter cocoa), frites, beer and wine. We walked around NW23rd and then decided it was time to move to the eastside. We attempted to go to the new brewery- Green Dragon but it was packed so we walked across the street to the Morrison Hotel. The bartender whipped up a mean sidecar and they had an amazing list of beers.

Our last stop was a romantic evening at Navarre. We had not dined here before and was very satisfied with the Spanish style small plates and atmosphere of being in Madrid.

Sippping on a Sunny Sunday

2007-10-04T17:02:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh....to be there again. One of our favorite pastimes on a lazy Sunday is to drink vino. The most recent being in and around Carlton - the best place to be. The last picture is of the new wine and cheese shop (Horseradish) which offers a wide variety of tasting options. I loved it and I am ready to return. It's like oz, I want to be able to click my heels and be transported.

Super Saturday in September

2007-10-03T16:59:00.000-07:00

Where did the sunshine go? September was beautiful and dry in PDX. We had bright blue skies, the sun was bright and warm.and the cow and I ventured out every chance we got.
This day - we packed up our bike bags with leftovers from the kitchen rode down to the river and let the day float by (like the big white clouds). He fell asleep for awhile and I watched people roam around. Picnic days are over now we have had intermittent showers for the last few days. I will say the trees are looking pretty beautiful with red, yellow and purple being the dominant colors.

Home Improvement

2007-10-01T18:49:00.000-07:00

The cow has had this list of home improvements that has been driving him crazy. I am notorious for getting us outside every chance I get; therefore, ignoring home improvement. Fortunately, Sunday was a rainy day and the cow powered through some of the chores that have been bugging him.

He hung curtains! No easy task I should point out. The living room has about 14 foot ceilings and 10 foot windows (maybe higher) but we only have a 6 or 8 foot ladder. Once up - the curtain make the room cozy. I like it.

A couple of weeks ago he also purchased a larger screen television. Now don't go crazy. It is not monster big - just a 27" so that his old eyes can actually see the screen.

I have entered.....

2007-09-13T17:16:00.001-07:00

That is right folks, I am back at work. Updates to follow.

3rd Annual Great American Distillers

2007-08-26T15:10:00.000-07:00

The cow and I rode our bikes to the Gerding theater for the distillers festival on Saturday evening. The building is the old armory that has been completely re-fabricated for the theater. It was a really great venue for this event because it allowed people to roam through different sections of the theater/armory.
There was every type of booze you could imagine - the cow and I were in hog heaven. I think my favorite is the pepper infused vodka's like "Hot Monkey" from Rogue and the cow always enjoys a good grappa. We then strolled around the block to this new bar named Teardrop. They are a couple of guys from San Francisco who are making their own mixers; such as, tonic, bitters, soda, etc. I had a fabulous Aviation Gin and homemade tonic.

Cool Wood Panels

2007-08-26T15:03:00.000-07:00

I got a present and they are so very cool. Here is the story. My neighbor had these really cool panels hanging in her house. I asked, "hey neighbor where did you get those?" She said, "My dad tore apart a 1950's ranch house and these panels were part of the entryway." She took two of them and cleaned them up, painted them and hung them on her wall. They look great.

I went for a walk with her the other day and she said, "hey, I need to give you a key to our house, do you mind coming over to get it?" When she opened the garage she had the key to her place attached to my cool wood panels. She had a total of four panels so she gave me the two that have been in her garage. Love her!

Cannon Beach after a great hike

2007-08-23T10:40:00.000-07:00

After we got off the mountain and our legs were feeling a bit noodlie, the cow and I drove about 10 miles to Cannon Beach for a snack. It turned out to be a great idea. We strolled along the water. Sat on a patio and shared some vino and hung around well after the sunset. We had a great day.

Saddle Mountain Hike

2007-08-23T10:10:00.000-07:00

Rating: Difficult. Saddle Mountain was a relatively short hike of 2.5 miles to the top (5 roundtrip) but after counting 11 switchbacks we lost track and decided it probably wasn't a good idea to count. This hike did not mess around. Right at the trail head you started climbing. The beginning of the path was a steady elevation gain - not to steep; however, when we started hitting switchback after switchback the dirt gave way to rock and chainlink fencing which was hammered into the ground for traction. The elevation gain from the parking lot to the top of Saddle Mountain is 1600+feet. The last part of the climb was the most difficult as the trail fell into a deep valley and then straight up the side of the mountain. If you look closely at the last picture you will see the trail leading from one mountain to the other on the right hand side just above the rock outcropping. Take a look at this posting as the idea of the climb is a bit more clear. Roll over the camera on the map to get an idea of what it is like to ride the crazy hike of Saddle Mountain.

August is for Romance

2007-08-20T08:07:00.000-07:00

Outdoor weddings in Portland can be an ifffy option. Our friends wedding on Saturday was set in a lovely garden. I was most impressed that there were NO tents ready for assembly in case the rain showed up to the party. The sky was a bit ominous but the ceremony did not get a drop. After the nuptials they provided snacks and drinks in the garden. The reception was held at the University Club (members only). It was a fine affair. The cow and I enjoyed a drink in the "Library" prior to a fabulous (veggie friendly) dinner of Chilled sorrel soup, Halibut with oyster mushrooms and a ginger glaze and herbed polenta cakes with chevre. The wine was flowing throughout dinner and once the toasts had been made everyone headed to the dance floor downstairs. The band was fun kind of a 40's swing. The drinks were still flowing and conversation lively, the cow was talking to some chick while I was dancing. The night ended with two yummy pieces of cake, one blueberry and the other a deep dark chocolate.

Nicoise

2007-08-20T08:02:00.000-07:00

The cow makes one fabulous nicoise. The potatoes are exquisite, the green beans are delicate but the grilled tuna is the most buttery, mouth pleasing item on the plate. Bon appetit!

I wasn't fast enough!

2007-08-16T18:06:00.000-07:00

I don't have a picture because I wasn't fast enough. Let me explain. I was walking along this morning and saw a smaller car, let's say a PT Cruiser with a sign on the side of the door. You know the kind the ubiquitous business decal that makes people stop and stare and hopefully call for an appointment.
I almost fell trying to read and re-read the side of the car because I thought - what the hell? No way. We have all scene the HUGE Recreational Vehicles barreling down the freeway with the gigantic mural of the wolf painted on the back or side. Well, I saw the guy that actually does the art work. His business was call RV Mural Art!

Wildcat Mountain

2007-08-13T18:04:00.001-07:00

Took a bit of a hike on Saturday. It was classified as a moderate 6 mile hike with an elevation gain of 1200 feet, but it felt rather easy.

The cow and I got a rather late start Saturday morning due to massive amounts of partying with the neighbors the night before. I really wasn't feeling in the mood to hike but I slapped my shoes on and headed for the woods. It was cool under the canopy and some of the views would have been even better if it were not for fires burning in the area.

There is quite a bit of logging going on here and you can see some of the older, taller trees behind the young saplings. We were on the trail for about two and a half hours and only saw one other group. It was fabulously quiet and lonely at the top.

Once down we drove about 4miles to Estacada to check out Fearless Brewing Company. Enjoyed a couple of beers on the patio before heading home.

International Rose Garden

2007-08-01T09:21:00.000-07:00

What a great day to visit the Rose Garden of Portland. It was sunny, warm and the flowers were smelling so very sweet. The cow's parents were in town and he had to work so I took them on a tour of the parks.
When I arrived I thought, why are all of these people taking pirctures of flowers. But, after a few minutes I was mesmerized by the colors, textures, smells and various types of roses. The park was established in 1917 and there is not an admission fee; although, donations are greatly appreciated. Portland Parks and Recreation maintains the gardens 4.5 acres. There are over 10,000 rose bushes that are watered via an underground sprinkler systems that primarily waters the roots of the plants. It is a beautiful place to be on a lazy summer afternoon.

The Cow and his gift!

2007-07-31T12:32:00.000-07:00

I don't know if I have mentioned it before, but the cow is great at selecting gifts. This year my birthday fell during vacation. I have to admit, the vacation was plenty; however, the cow created this great map and description of the various gift certificates that he had waiting for me at home. He packed up the map/note in a nice envelope and gave it to me at dinner on my big day. It is like the gift that keeps on giving. I just made my appointment for my "Sweet Feet" treatment and in a few days will head over to the NW to do some shopping at Lucy (sportswear) and Anthropologie (girly clothes) with a cup of coffe at Peet's in between. Lastly, he has a surprise dinner location for yet another evening of enjoying my birthday and my best-friend. Thanks Mr.Cow.

Costa Rica - On the move

2007-07-29T13:06:00.000-07:00

We were on the go in Costa Rica. On any given day you can expect an encounter with a church, a place to bed down, a roadside soda for ceviche and a beer, sometype of weather pattern (usually sunny in the morning and storms by late afternoon) along with phenomenal scenery.

We put many miles on our Terio (second from left). It was not the most comfortable machine but it survived everything the cow dished out. We traversed the country starting in Alajuela, which is a suburb of the capital - San Jose, and drove north to Fortuna where Volcan Arenal looms large above the town. After two perfect days in Fortuna we drove around Lake Arenal to the small village of Junta. This village was off the beaten tourist path and had mineral hot springs which we were able to enjoy all by ourselves. We then traveled to the Nicoya Peninsula and southwest to the beach community of Samara. Great location, small village with all the amenities and an extraordinary beach. Stayed at Villa's Kalimba across the street from the beach and enjoyed a couple of wonderful nights on the coast (amazing weather, not sweltering at all). We wanted to stay another night but the hotel was fully booked so the cow drove us north to the coastal community of Nosara (many norte's here). We stayed one night at the Lagarta Lodge which had a spectacular open air restaurant on top of a hill overlooking the ocean. We partook watching a multihued sunset and a spectacual three hour lightening storm while dining on a great meal. The next morning we were up and back in the Terio for a bumpy, stormy, rainy day with mass amounts of lightening as we drove back into the highlands of San Jose.

We ended our trip in the Orosi valley which is filled with coffee finca's. It is a great small village and a wonderful place to slow down and enjoy the sounds of parrots flying overhead. Driving back to San Jose we stopped at the Irazu volcano. You actually drive up to the crater and look into the toxic water down below. It is the highest active volcano in Costa Rica.

Home at last but still wishing I was listening to the waves crash in Samara.

Costa Rica - Eating & Drinking

2007-07-27T16:08:00.000-07:00

Drinking and eating in Costa Rica proved very satisfying. Pictured are just a few examples of our favorite items. As you can see there was various types of liquors consumed. Imperial is the Costa Rican beer, the cow drank quite a bit and needed to pee quite often. The cow also took a liking to the Anejo Centenario Rum. I have to admit it was very smooth. I stepped out a bit and drank the nations moonshine. It is called Guaro. I drank Guaro sours, Guaro and pineapple, Guaro anything.

Tropical fruits were abundant! We had mango, starfruit, lychee (although they don't call them by that name), watermelon, papaya, bananas and my favorite the PINEAPPLE.

Ceviche, fish dishes and seafood are the main staple foods. We ate ceviche in every form and fashion. From fancy restaurant to cheap street vendors it is a food of choice. If you look closely at the pizza picture you will see shrimp, lobster and other crustaceans. This was a strange combination for us.

PATACONES reigned supreme! These are plantains mashed into a type of pancake form and then deep fried until firm and crispy. They are served with pureed black beans and guacamole. Fabulous simple food.

My 41st - Birthday Dinner

2007-07-26T18:17:00.001-07:00

I seemed to have confused some of you with my prior e-mail regarding my birthday. I do not want, in any way, to misrepresent my age. Therefore, I need to let you know that I turned 41. Some of you thought that I was turning 40- but I made that leap last year.
My 41st birthday dinner was fabulous. The cow and I arrived at Samara, a beach town on the Nicoya Peninsula, in the afternoon. We sat at bar on the beach and had drinks. We stayed at a property called Villa Kalimba which was right across the street from the beach. The owner was Italian, Roberto, and cooked and served dinner at his outside kitchen patio a couple of times a week. We were lucky enough that he was preparing a seafood grill the night of my birthday.
We started with a lovely bottle of Pinot Grigio. The appitezers were four types of bruschetta: smoked tuna, traditional, sundried tomato and shrimp with a nice piece of grilled eggplant in the center. Secondo, was a calamari salad that was delicious, light and fresh. Primo piatti was grilled everything - one plate was all vegetables: tomato, eggplant, peppers, squash and onions, the second plate was all seafood: lobster, marlin and tuna. Everything was grilled to perfection.
Dolce was lovely. The cow was excited because Ricardo had quite the selection of grappa's. I enjoyed a wonderfully chilled glass of limoncello to go with our carrot cake.
We dined alfresco with absolutely beautiful weather.

Costa Rica - Things

2007-07-26T15:32:00.000-07:00

1. Our new friend the gecko.

2. Alajuela Cathedral

3. Red bananas

4. Rain near El Castillo

5. Prickly tree

6. Toxic worms

7. Owl butterfly

8. Large beetle

9. Electroshock shower

10. Our mini-music player

11. Junta village store

12. Le Amistad bridge

13. Crabs

14. Game - Pachisi

15. Soccer

16. Flowers

17. Coffee and Banana plants

18. Coffee beans

19. Torrential downpour

20. Country motto: Pura Vida

21. Trash collection baskets

22. Above ground burials

23. Varmint

24. Big ass leaves

My Birthday is coming

2007-07-08T17:49:00.000-07:00

I decided to celebrate my birthday a wee bit early this year. Instead of July 19th, I am going to celebrate on July 14th. Why you ask has sinisterhaley decided to make her birthday come a few days early? Well, I don't want any of you to miss the opportunity of wishing me well on my 41st birthday and the cow and I will be wallowing on a beach in Costa Rica on my big day and trust me I will have some type of rum drink in my hand celebrating the fact that I can still hold a drink in my hand.

So, anyone who would like to wish me well - can do so on or before the 14th because at midnight I turn into a pumpkin or at least a Tico.

Fun on the 4th

2007-07-07T19:05:00.000-07:00

I hope all of you enjoyed your 4th of July as much as I did. The cow and I played all day long. We started our day with an urban hike. Started in Washington park and hiked to Council Crest (highest peak in Portland). The first picture you see a tower antanee, that is where we ended up and of course had to return. It was a beautiful day with a bit of haze in the air. Council Crest has spectacular views of the four mountains. I was actually surprised at how close all of them are; respectively Mt. Hood is about 50 miles, Mt. St. Helen's is 54 miles, Mt. Adams is 75 miles and Mt. Rainer is 104.
Once down from our urban hike and back home we hopped on our bikes and rode to the Hedge House for a beer and some nachos. We sat in the sunshine one beer too long and while riding home I was wishing for a swimming pool.
The cow then made us a lovely picnic and we through a bottle of wine and a big ass beer in the bike bags and rode to the park to eat and enjoy the fireworks.
On a side note - why the hell are so many people so stupid when it comes to fire?

Afternoon Delight

2007-07-07T18:49:00.000-07:00

I have been trying to ride my bike more! I rode towards the city on Springwater trail and had a fabulous time. It is great to be able to ride whenever you want. I like going around 10:00 in the morning because all of the commuters are at work and many of the families are not out yet.
I have passed this massive birds nest many of times and finally I stopped and took a few pictures. I asked a few people who passed if they knew what kind of bird it was but really everyone was guessing just like I was. When I got home, I decided to google "oaks bottom reserve birds nests" and I found out that it is an osprey nest. There are many of these massive nests around portland and I hope survival rates are high.
I also have to tell you about this great bike clinic I attended. It was just down the street at the Sellwood Community Center sponsored by the Transportation department. It was called "Be your own Champion" and it was a 3-hour hands-on clinic covering basic bike maintenance, flat repair and cleaning techniques. The best part - it was all women. We listened first and started to understand the basics of taking the bike appart without worrying about putting it back together. I equate this to playing on the computer. I am very comfortable pushing keys and figuring out what they do but when it comes to my bike I was a bit nervous. The second part we took our bikes outside and did a bit of deconstruction. I deflated tires, pulled tubes out, put tubes back in, slowly put the tire back on the rim, cleaned and lubed my chain, and actually rode my bike back home again without anything falling off. The two young ladies that taught the class were bike mechanics with 16 years experience between the two. They were excellent. I had a really great learning experience and truly appreciate the environment of the class.

8 Years with my best friend!

2007-07-02T09:00:00.000-07:00

July 1 was our eight year anniversary. WOW! Time flies when you are having fun. We spent the beautiful Sunday doing exactly what we love. We rode our bikes to the farmers market and picked up goodies for dinner. We walked to the store for beer and wine, we sat around and read books/paper and the cow made an absolutely amazing meal for the two of us.

We enjoyed a Spinach salad with fresh picked strawberries and blue cheese and the dressing was made from some of the same strawberries. If anyone wants the recipe I highly recommend the taste. We grilled Tuna and squash on our new gas grill with extreme skill.

The cow made fresh salsa as well as chipolte sour cream to dress our fish tacos. He devoured a Lagunitas Gnarly Wine and while drinking the big ass beer he kept saying, "this is delicious."

We dined alfresco and enjoyed our meal in each others company.

Cheers to a lifetime of fun.

Cats

2007-07-02T08:09:00.000-07:00

Tamil has such a hard life.

And do not comment on how "fluffy" she appears, the camera adds fluffiness.

OC - RIDE

2007-07-01T08:21:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning we got the road bikes out and headed towards the OC. No! Not Orange County the "other" O.C. = Oregon City.
The cow mapped out the route a week or so prior when I was in California. Much of the ride is surface streets but there were several spots that snaked along the rivers that were absolutely serene.
I must digress and tell you a bit about my riding personality. The road bikes require that I am clipped into the pedals which makes me a bit paranoid when I am on streets with cars. To make the day even more entertaining, the cow and I were riding along the river (no cars - bike path) near OC and we decided to take a little break. I started to slow down and popped my foot out of my right pedal but apparently felt the need to step down with my left foot (not unclipped from the pedal) and I landed on my left side VERY hard. The only saving grace, I was practically standing still. BOOM!
Let's add that part of the equation to the remainder of the ride. My pride was hurt as well as my ASS. We continued on and made it into Oregon City where we took the elevator to the top of the bluff. Rich guy took the land along the river from the native americans and built himself a big mansion at the top and felt the need for an elevator to get him up there. Suddenly, we are back on surface streets and the cow knows where we are going but I am a bit confused. I follow along to the best of my ability when we come upon Lake Oswego. We are riding in very close quarters to cars and there are those lovely drainage grates on the side of the road every 200 yards or so. I hate these damn things. I always think my tire is going to get caught, I am not going to get my foot out of my pedal in time, I am going to fall over, a car is going to run over me and the cow is going to have to hear me complain for a very long time.
I made it through the city to be told "the big hill is right around the corner." So I geared down for my climbing task and made it through the switchbacks and straightaways. I was happy when I saw the top of the hill but my injury to my ass was killing me. My street riding personality went straight to BITCH. I was done. I wanted to be home, have a shower and get a milkshake. The cow got me home safely but I will venture to say he was DONE with me too.

Apizza Scholls pissed me off - again!

2007-06-30T22:44:00.000-07:00

How does the saying go? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me?
That is how I felt on Saturday night when the cow and I tried a second time in recent months to eat at our favorite pizza place on Hawthorne in the SE of Portland.
Apizza Scholls has fabulous thin crust pies. We have eaten their several times but the last two we have failed to secure a spot at the coveted table. Last year the eatery was named the best pizza place of the year and was featured on Anthony Bourdain's - No reservations. Which leads me to my gripe: Apizza Scholls DOES NOT MAKE ENOUGH DOUGH TO STAY OPEN UNTIL THEIR POSTED 9:30 CLOSING HOUR. I was fooled once by the idea that a business can stay in business by not satisfying their client base but when we walked in at 8:45 on a Saturday night to be greeted by a handwritten sign that said, "we are not taking anymore names" AKA we did not make enough dough, my days being fooled were OVER.
Arrivederci, Apizza Scholls.

Spoiled?

2007-06-27T09:32:00.000-07:00

OK - so you can say I am a bit spoiled. I flew to Sacramento last week to visit mia sorella and venture on to where my parents live in Woodlake, CA. My sister and I were planning the 3 1/2 hour drive from Sac to Woodlake when the Debonair gentleman from Woodlake (AKA my Dad) offered to fly up to Rancho Murieta and pick us up - which turns a 3 1/2 hour trek into a 1 hour fly by. I have named his air service "Go-Mo!"

I am not the most stable passenger when it comes to flying but I will say that I am much better than in the past. On many occasions, I had to sit with my head between my legs and talk myself out of vomiting. The flight from Rancho to Woodlake was going quite smoothly until the tower in Fresno came on and said "you have a plane coming straight at you 2 miles ahead, Turn Left NOW." Chris made a sharp bank left and I swear every part of my insides was in my mouth.

I had a great weekend. Both sisters have pools and there was not a cloud in the sky for the entire time I was in Cali. "Just the girls" went to a great Thai lunch and off to get our toes done. We sat outside every night while my sister and her husband qued up some great salmon tacos and grilled vegetables oh yeah there was endless pitchers of mojitos also.

I am now back in beautiful Portland ready from a great summer. Temperatures here are hitting the high 80's next week just in time for 4th of July!

Solstice in Sacramento

2007-06-22T09:32:00.000-07:00

Hey all,
I am on a mini-vacation for a few days visiting family in hotter-than-hell Sacramento and Woodlake, California. Just wanted to let people know that I have spent my last two days drinking Mai Tai's by the pool, lounging in the sunshine (in the morning before it gets too hot) and drinking wine on the veranda with a bit of goat cheese brie, crackers and tampenade. Heading down to Visalia-Woodlake area today to enjoy the rest of the weekend. Pictures will follow when I get home on Monday and settled. Have a great Solstice weekend.

School's out for SUMMER!

2007-06-19T18:02:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, I have not been fully satisfied with my current teaching position at Aloha High School. Right now, on this final day of the year I am very excited. Let me give you some background so you can feel my grief.

1. AHS was built in the late 60's. The architect believed it to be an energy saving mechanism to abstain from WINDOWS. That's right - 90% of the classrooms have absolutely NO window.

2. Fake walls- Said architect also believed it to be a good idea to have classrooms hold up to 90 students (have you every seen a pack of high school thugs walking down the street - do you want 90 kids in the same location? EVER?) The answer to making the classrooms smaller were fake walls. Yes sirree. Those accordion crap walls that allows you to push them back like in a bad dance hall. This makes instruction very interesting when you have teachers/students on opposite fake walls that can't control their volume.

3. The office in which I am to do the majority of my work is filled with 12 desks. Put 12 Social Studies teachers in a room and very little work is getting accomplished. Also, I should add that these people are quite messy. Stacks of books from the 1960's still line the walls.

I just want to say HAPPY SUMMER to all of you who have listened to my grief throughout the year. I will be a much happier person and a better blogger in the months to come.

Carmel by the Sea = Cold

2007-06-01T18:24:00.000-07:00

Memorial day weekend the cow and I headed down to Carmel to meet our travel buddies from the OC. We converged from the North and South onto San Jose about an hour apart. We grabbed a rental car and headed off to the Carmel Valley for some wine tasting. The marine layer quickly burned off to expose a beautiful clear day albeit a bit chilly. We had a fabulous time at Bernardus - the wines are magnifique. We then strolled over to a place called Chateau Sinnet- this place was STRANGE. The winery had way too many varietals of wine but the most interesting aspect was the guys behind the counter. They were on DRUGS. They literally told me to "drink it like I was in college!" When one of us had not finished our tasting he just poured a different wine on top of the original and said, "drink up." We were amused and petrified at the same time. The cow and serrach had to step outside to laugh and when they did the two ladies got hit on- YUCK.
My favorite place was Georis winery. This place had a great garden setting. They serve a flight of wines for a fee and pair it with cheese, bread and crackers. We sat outside and lulled away the afternoon in the sunshine before heading off to the Cold Carmel by the Sea.
We ate and strolled the quaint beachside town and took a hike through Point Lobos where we saw Sea otter and seals having a great time along the bay.

Angels Rest Hike

2007-05-13T18:49:00.000-07:00

Saturday we loaded up for a hike in the Columbia Gorge. We have the book 100 Hikes in Northwest Oregon and found the Angels Rest hike. It was described as "Moderate" with an elevation gain of 1500 feet and a distance of 4.6 miles round trip.
We went straight up the mountain from the parking area. It was a cloudy day so the views were a little dark but the trees and bushes were lusciously green. There was many switchbacks and believe it or not lots of people. Every type of person you can imagine. Old people with leather sandals, serious people with walking poles, families with like 17 children and then us. Once at the top it was you, the sky above and the river valley below, it was lovely.
We realized that we could add a side trip to something named "Devil's Rest" so we took that trail and found an old beat up picnic table to eat our lunch right next to a babbling brook. We walked and walked and realized that we were steadily going downhill BUT we were on the wrong side of the mountain. So - needless to say our devil's rest turned into a hell of a hike out of there just to meet up with our original trail that would lead us back to the car.
After four hours of hiking we stopped at Edgefield and sat outside for a cocktail. I had a delightful Greyhound and the cow enjoyed a couple of IPA's.

Me and my shadow!

2007-05-13T18:38:00.000-07:00

Wow! Every single day last week was so beautiful that I could see my shadow. This was wonderful. Not only is it warming up but it is staying light until 9:00 pm or so and we have the ability to be warm when we take an evening stroll around the neighborhood.

The pictures are from my typical daily walk. I head out of the house and head west towards the river. I take a lap around the crazy "off leash" area for the pooches right next to the river. These hounds make me laugh and smile. Every one of them chases something. There is one terrior that actually uses his mouth like a baseball mitt and catches the damn thing in mid-air. My favorite part of the walk is when I circle around the old church - dating back to the 1900's or so. I just love all the trees and folige that is bursting with color. I then head through the woodsy park. This is where the cow and I go play frisbee or paddle ball. There is a ton of picnic tables and open spaces for fun!

I love my shadow and my shadow loves me.

Indie Wine Fest

2007-05-06T14:34:00.000-07:00

The cow and I joined approximately 200+ other enthusiasts at the Indie Wine Festival. We spent the afternoon sipping wine from small scale producers that create less than 2000 cases per year. It was held at Urban Wine Works in the NW area of Portland.
We sampled many Pinot Noir's but the surprise of the day were the Rose’s and Viognier’s which are being grown in Eastern Oregon near Hood River and Yakima Washington.
Many restaurants were offering various small bites. We sampled a chilled asparagus soup with crab that was delicious. There was an artisan pizza maker that brought his own brick oven to the event. My favorite foodie was the Cheese lady. She is opening a cheese store in the wine city of Carlton (super cute town - this is where the cow and I spent his birthday) called Horse Radish. She was offering various styles of blue cheese for sampling. My favorite was a very, very soft/liquidy blue that simply melted in my mouth. As I am writing about this little slice of goodness my mouth is watering.
We purchased a few bottles and after three hours of sampling we decided it was time for a cocktail and food.

Roaming the streets

2007-04-29T10:25:00.000-07:00

The cow and I had to take his bike rim to get fixed again so we strolled through the streets of NW on a great afternoon. We sat and had a cup of joe in Jamieson square park and went downtown and stumbled upon the Poets at Work in from of the Central Library. We had a glass of wine and Nicoise salad in the sunlight as I was thinking I wanted a second glass, we headed home, sat out on the deck, I drank wine and graded papers and got a bit of sun on my pale skin. Lovely.

FREE Stuff

2007-04-29T10:18:00.000-07:00

Hanging on my door the other day was a present from Trimet, our local transportation people here in Portland. I had mailed in a request for FREE items and voile there they were hanging on my door. Later I found out they delivered by bike messanger.

I received a nifty umbrella - good quality - keeps me walking in the rain, a couple of coupon books to use in my local area as well as one for a bit farther when I am on my bicycle, I got many new maps, a nozzle for the water hose, some seeds for herbs, a great bag that my school binders fit perfectly into and the best gift in the package was a PEDOMETER. It is not in the picture because I was wearing it at the time of the shot.

Eugene - Go Ducks!

2007-04-22T19:38:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I had the delightful opportunity of taking ten Aloha High School students to a Model United Nations conference in Eugene, Oregon. I want to point out that the U of O is thought of as the Chico State of Oregon.

The campus is beautiful. It is a blend of old and new. Some of the buildings - Gerling Hall - reminded me of an old Enlish lodge where men with big cigars would be sipping cognac. There are miles of bike trails along the Willamette river with sports venues everywhere. I was amazed at the amount of money and prestige that sports brings to a school (remember I went to Sacramento State). This is the alma mater of Bill Bowerman, Steve Prefontaine and, of course, Phil Knight.

The city of Eugene has a vital downtown on the opposite side of the campus. It has wine bars, bookstores, independent clothing stores, etc. I also found Steelhead Brewery (there is one in Irvine if your interested els) and brought a little treat back for the cow. He loves beer so I picked out the hoppiest one they had and he loved it.

Hood River Ride

2007-04-15T19:43:00.000-07:00

The cow and I took our bikes near Hood River for a ride on the Historic Scenic highway between the town of Hood River and Mosier. It was gorgeous. You climb high above the Columbia river and follow the switchbacks and up and downs all the way to Mosier. During the ride you also go through what is called "the twin tunnels." It is very scary and very dark.

Picnic in the park

2007-04-14T19:46:00.000-07:00

I know I am a bit behind but I am trying! A couple of Friday's ago the temperature was 70 degrees. The cow created a little picnic, we went down to the "french" guys wine store bought some vin and meandered down to the river. We watched dogs and people socialize, the river roar by and a cop patrol the area (no picture - I was trying not to get caught drinking, down by the river).

Oh yeah, the picture at the top is of a glass wine cork...has anyone seen these yet? They work rather well - it just pops right back into the bottle.

Birthday No. 38

2007-04-01T16:38:00.000-07:00

The cow turned another year older and I hope he enjoyed the weekend spent in the Willamette Valley Wine (WVW) country. He left work early on Friday and we drove about an hour into the valley between Carlton and Newburg for a sampling of grapes. The day was warm, warm, warm!

We used the WVW map to guide our path of afternoon tasting. First stop, Adelsheim Vineyards. Very well known in the area as being one of the first families in the valley.

I know we stopped at a few on the first day but my NEW favorite place is Penner Ash. The view from this hilltop winery is fantastic. They have built a brilliant wood focused tasting room and also have a massive dining area for wine makers dinners with a state of the art kitchen. They had four wines offered we purchased the Roseo and Rubio, both fabulous.

Late afternoon on Friday we found our hacienda for the weekend - Abbey Road Farms. The proprietors have taken an old horse farm and turned it into a small goat farm. They make a variety of mild goat cheeses which were offered at breakfast with homemade bread. The owners, John and Judy. seemed to have "cashed out" of Vegas and have built the lodgings on the farm out of old grain silos. There custom built house on the same property was quite impressive. I would say that John likes to hear himself talk about the successes he has created and Judy really loves animals and is very excited and proud of their adventures. The lamb (Shadow) being fed by Judy is only a week old. Shadow was abandoned at birth by mom after a stressful delivery.

Saturday we awoke to a cloudy cool morning but by the afternoon we found ourselves parked on a winery patio enjoying the sun on our skin and closing the place down. I will not go into great detail but the town of Carlton is where to be if you are young, have energy and are willing to work to make wine. It is a quaint, cute walkable town and we enjoyed four wineries within a three block radius. We drank great wine all day: R. Stuart (BigFire), Panther Creek, Solena cellars, Scott Paul, The Tasting Room, Zena and lastly Cuneo Cellars (great patio).

The big birthday dinner was a drive to Dayton for the historic Joel Palmer House Restaurant (think antebellum mansion with a porch that screams MINT JULEP). This is the mushroom forager of the Northwest. I was looking forward to this dinner for a very long time. We ordered the Mushroom Madness Five-course dinner. All mushroom all night long.

Menu: Wild Mushroom soup, Three mushroom tart, Portobello/Onion,Gouda and Red Pepper Puree, Truffles, crab, scallops, and shrimp in creamy Riesling sauce, Crab Cakes with porcini duxelles and mustard vinaigrette, Salmon with chimichuri sauce over quinoa, desserts were strange with candied mushrooms on top. What a great way to spend a weekend, we were very happy driving home under a full moon that lit the farm land like it was daylight.

Half Century Bike Ride

2007-03-26T21:41:00.000-07:00

That is correct.

You read it right, although it is a bit deceiving.

On Sunday the cow and I jumped on the bikes and rode a half century. Oh- hell no, not kilometers we took the half century beer drinking bike tour.

Our goals:

1. ride to every quadrant of city: therefore, we needed a brewery in the North,Northwest, Southwest, Northeast and Sourtheast.

2. Drink at least 50 ounces of beer (get it? a half century).

We surpassed the total number of ounces, but I don't believe we made it to every quadrant exactly.

After leaving home on a partially sunny afternoon we headed to the south waterfront area (SW). Non descript beer but pretty good service. We then meandered up waterfront park and rode into the Pearl (NW) where Bridgeport brewery awaited our every desire. The cow ordered a barley wine named Old KnuckleHead (that is fitting). Both of these establishments are in great locations but neither of them had their outside seating set up (disappointment).

We jumped back in the saddle and crossed the Broadway bridge to our 3rd destination - 5th Quandrant. Technically I think this brewery is considered NORTH portland but it seems like NE to me, so that is what I am going to categorize it as. This was by far my favorite place. We sat outside, the sun on my face, drank beautifully fragrant beer and watched the clouds drift in and out.

Next brewerey was just around the corner. I didn't have time to ride my buzz off - so the brewery known as Amnesia (N) was a fitting place to stop. They have newly installed bike parking that will hold up to 30 or so bikes! Love it! Thanks! This place is known for their outside seating because that is pretty much all they have. The beer is great and the weather fantastic but the SMOKERS SUCK! (RANT: I have decided instead of lighting the cancer stick these people should EAT THEM. That's right put the damn things in your mouth and chew. Go ahead enjoy it. Hold the flavor on your tongue for as long as you want. Swallow that shit and leave me out of your death race).

Lucky Lab (SE) to the rescue. This patio is so large that you can sit as far away from the smokers as you want. They have really great beer and awesome dog friendly clientele. The dogs are actually hilarious to watch. There was a big bull dog with only three legs and he seemed to bounce instead of walk. He loved all the other dogs and wanted attention from every person that walked by.

Last stop, just down the street from our house: Oaks Bottom (SE). As we pulled into the last brewery of the day and locked up the bikes the sun was just going down (it was about 7:45). I don't know how far we had ridden but we sat down to a salad, hot damn garden burger and of course, our last beer of the ride.

Insult of a Lifetime

2007-03-09T16:22:00.000-08:00

I joined a couple of co-workers for a drink on a lovely Thursday evening. We had made our rounds: a couple of martini's at one place, a bottle of wine at another and lastly we decided on a coffee drink before returning home. We took a seat and a young (STUPID) bartender says: "Hey, you two have really young faces, can I see your I.D.?"
He was not looking at me.
I called him out and said, "You did NOT just say that!" He looked up like a deer in the headlights and I think finally realized what I meant. I gave him a piece of advice: "If you want to keep tips falling into your lap you might want to ask the WHOLE table for their ID instead of just calling out the 'young' looking faces.
Son of a bitch!

Shit Sandwich

2007-03-09T16:04:00.000-08:00

I read this very fabulous quote on the door of a dive bar bathroom stall:
"Life is like a shit sandwich,
the more bread you have,
the less shit you have to eat."

True?

Kronos Quartet

2007-02-12T17:47:00.000-08:00

You would probably never expect me to attend an event put on by the group: Friends of Chamber Music, but that is exactly what the cow and I did on Sunday afternoon at Kaul Auditorium on the Reed College campus.

The dark and rainy afternoon was made for the tumultuous music experience created by four men and their instruments of two violins, one viola and one cello. Much of the audience was our age or older but we were told after the performance that the audience ranged in age from ten to ninety (the chamber society was very excited about these numbers).

It is difficult to describe the music Kronos creates. The Quartet is nonconventional in the manner that they create music. They are not only composers of their own music, but they also commission work and often have various types of music arranged for their instruments of choice. The program for Sunday afternoon follows with the name of the piece, the composer and the country of origin.

Mugam Sayagi - Franghiz Ali-Zadeh - Azerbaijan
Oh Mother, the Handsome Man Tortures Me - Unknown - Iraq
Three Selections from John's Book of Alleged Dances - John Adams - United States
Love Bleeds Radiant - Dan Visconti - Very interesting because Kronos has a commission of composer under 30 years of age (this guy is 25).

Last Adualusian Sky - Osvaldo Golijov - Argentina
Raga Mishra Bhairavi - Ram Narayan - India
Cercle du Nord III - Derek Charke - Canada

After the quartet had completed their program they returned for two encores. The first encore was the piece they created for the Golden Globe nominated movie "The Fountain." It was tumultuous, haunting and LOUD! Once again they attempted to leave but the audience was not allowing such an act. They returned again and played a piece by the Icelandic group - Sigur Ros . It was beautiful and a perfect end to a great day of music.

Lucky for us the performance was not finished. There was a question and answer session moderated by NPR correspondent Ketzel Levine. The best question asked was, "Are you ever criticized for amplifying your instruments?" The answer was basic, "you are damned if you do and you are damned if you don't."

Boring Beige

2007-01-27T17:35:00.000-08:00

Finally! The boring beige is gone. Painting took place last week and we went from beige to a khaki green (it is called horsehair). It has made such a huge difference in the appearance of our casa that I want to paint every nook and cranny that is beige to some color. I know some of you are probably thinking - they just went from one neutral color to another. Not exactly. Beige has no life or vibrancy at least the green/khaki makes you think of a season. I love the new color and we finally started hanging art on the walls too....it has almost been a year since we moved into this place. I guess it is about time.

Everything is better at the bottom

2007-01-27T16:24:00.000-08:00

A visit to our local brew pub, Oaks Bottom, last night was yummy goodness. The cow is in love with a beer called LSD. The napkins were pinned to the wall from thankful patrons from the past. This place has a garden burger called the "hot damn." It is DAMN good with quite a bit of HOT.

Glorious oranges

2007-01-27T16:01:00.000-08:00

My parents were kind enough to send me a 40 lb. box of California oranges. They actually picked them the day before the big freeze. I am so grateful for these bright, round beauties. They are sweet and delicious - so unlike what I have been buying at the market. As you can tell by the box I am getting down to the last few.

Why am I the only one who is appalled?

2007-01-18T07:27:00.000-08:00

Following is an e-mail that was sent out to the entire Beaverton school district in which I am employeed. I am apprehensive to post this SELF-PROMOTING, DEGRADING TO WOMEN CRAP but I wanted to point out that the administration and the staff at the high school in which this person works believes that it is fine for her to promote her life long dream of becoming an "all-star" dancer to students, staff and anyone who will vote.
(Everyday this person sends an e-mail to "ALL STAFF" to remind you to vote for her)
PLEASE DO NOT VOTE!

"Aloha BSD employees,
My name is Marlene and I'm a Health/PE teacher at X HighSchool. On my free time I coach the dance team here and I also dance forthe Blazers. I've been a Blazer Dancer for 10 wonderful years and havehad the privilege of dancing with other Beaverton School district employee's.
A wonderful opportunity has come up in my last year as a Blazer Dancer. I was nominated to be a part of the 1st ever All Star Dance Team for the NBA-All Star Game. I am 1 of 3 dancers nominated. The person with the most votes will get to attend and perform at the All Star Game February16th-18th. Here is how YOU can help me!! Go to the following website and vote everyday until January 19th for Marlene. You can vote from home and from school on every browser (safari, firefox and mozilla) as staff and then as student making you vote 6 times from each computer. Your votes will be greatly appreciated.
If chosen I will represent all TEACHERS,especially teachers of the Beaverton school district!! Thank you andVOTE!!VOTE: http://www.nba.com/allstar2007/dance/por.html

Thank you!!!
Marlene
Health/PE Teacher
Warrior Crew Advisor
Analani Dance Team Coach
"Children are like wet cement. Whatever falls on them makes animpression" Haim Ginott"

Bright,Blue,White

2007-01-17T11:53:00.000-08:00

The cow and I joined a couple of friends for a snowshoe hike on the east side of Mt.Hood on a sunny Sunday afternoon. We hiked for four hours up and down a loop path that led us past some amazing scenery. It was cold (about 20degrees) but I was sweating. There was some major elevation changes over our the 5-or-so mile course. Tired, really tired when we got home but had a great evening eating bad food from Trader Joe's and watching the movie: House of Sand.

People of Madrid

2007-01-17T11:17:00.000-08:00

They are Madrillenos! I witnessed them eat, protest, perform, wait and SING!

Vista della Cuidad

2007-01-17T11:12:00.000-08:00

A view of Madrid from my point of view....it is GRAND!

The city is compact enough to walk but the Metro is superb. The pictures represent various neighborhoods. I prefer Old Madrid and Malasana over the richy area of Salamanca.

We strolled the Parque del Retiro (monument with water) and found ourselves one night in Plaza del Sol (Tio Pepe) with about a million others.

The days were crisp with blue skies and when the sun went down and it got cold we just slipped into a Taberna.

Outdoor Art- Madrid style

2007-01-17T11:08:00.000-08:00

We didn't see as much amazing graffitti as in Barcelona but some of the shops paint their rolldown doors in very unique ways. The picture of the three men was a candy shop. I think they represent the bakers. The others? I really have no clue but I thought they were interesting....especially the last one.

Snow Day

2007-01-16T12:00:00.000-08:00

The cow and I are on a snow day! It is a winter wonderland in Portland. It started snowing at 5:30am and stopped about noon. We went out for a walk to enjoy the winter festivities. We saw parents pulling their kids on sleds, die hard bicycle riders (I counted 8 different riders) and many cross-country skiers. Everyone was out playing. Hope your day is equally as enjoyable as ours has been.

Madrid Food

2007-01-09T19:12:00.000-08:00

Booze Bazaar

2006-12-10T18:24:00.000-08:00

House Spirits opened their distilling doors on Saturday between 12-5. It was quite packed when we arrived to sample the libations. House Spirits is the brainchild of Lee Medoff and Christian Krogstad. Their focus is on whiskey but their cash cow has been the Medoyeff vodka and Aviation Gin. Their newest addition is the Aquavit. We had Christian mix us up a couple of drinks as we sampled the choclate and ports around the distillery. Watching the two owners hobnob and drink was great fun....I am here to say - these boys can drink. They were recently written up in GQ and they are always in the papers around town. Read this WW article to learn more.

Pictures speak a thousand words....

2006-12-10T18:21:00.000-08:00

this one screams - YUM!

Sock Puppet Party

2006-12-03T16:10:00.000-08:00

The cow received an invitation to a holiday party being hosted by a client he met through work. The company does Public Relations for companies like Kettle Chips and Gold Toe Socks. I just want to say ...these people know how to plan a party. They had a great three piece band, a full bar (free) and great food.

We picked up a glass of Evolution wine to start and made our way around the room. The sock puppet wall was beginning to fill up. The invitation was sent in a tube with all of the ingredients to create a sock puppet for the competition. The cow created Henrietta which for some reason he kept referring to her as a fish. As you can see from the really bad picture, there are several people a bit more creative than the cow. By the time we finished our first glass of wine we realized we had to choose between wine and pear brandy cocktails. I think both of us chose I nice glass of Pinot Noir. We found the room where the Kettle Chip tasting was in full swing. There were five flavors and voting cards. All of the flavors were from the new campaign so we felt we were adding our input. The five flavors were: Aztec Chocolate, Chili-lime, Island Jerk, Indian Curry and Five-Spice. When I first sat down I wanted to like the Aztec chocolate the best. It was a tie between the Indian curry and the Island jerk. We finished our wine, listened to the music and chatted with people who were waiting for the Tarot card reader. We skipped on over to Oaks Bottom pub and had a Hot Damn burger to top off a midweek extravaganza.

Bakery in the middle of nowhere

2006-11-27T17:58:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned in my last update, while visiting the Beran winery we happen to sample some interesting bread from a local artisan german bread maker. The wine pourer told us to head down to the bakery and purchase some of the various offerings.
We actually thought we were in the wrong location when we pulled into the driveway. There was a house in front and what appeared to be a barn in the back. We found the small sign pointing to the entrance on the side of the building (see above for pictures). Once inside we realized this was a serious venture; large ovens, huge flour containers and the smell of artisan bread. My sister purchased several different varieties for the low price of $7.00 and the cow and I sampled many.

Sun and wine

2006-11-26T12:52:00.000-08:00

A day in the sun enjoying the product of the vine. The Portland Metro area has accumulated over 11" of rain for the month of November. So, you can understand when I say how WoNdErFuL it was to have sunshine the day of wine tasting. My sister and her husband, joined the cow and I exploring new wineries that are generally not open to the public. We started at Cooper Mountain which is a biodynamic producer. Ponzi was second, they had a really good red table wine - Tavola. We ventured down the road a bit and found Beran Vineyard. This is a very small producer, but I thought they had created the BEST Pinot Noir we had all day. This winery was also featuring a local bakeries products-Fressen Artisan Bakery (I am dedicating an entire blog to this so stay tuned). Many of the breads were very good but a couple just plain strange tasting. We then found Freja Cellars. Very nice Pinot Noir - both estate and limited bottling. We purchased a couple of bottles here. I don't have much to say about Oak Knoll winery other than they had a singer with a very powerful bose speaker. Our last stop was David Hill- the cats are the hill cats. This is my all-time favorite winery. We have been here multiple times and the wine keeps getting better and better.

What are you doing with those bricks?

2006-11-24T14:36:00.000-08:00

One evening last week I was looking for the cow. He was outside with the garage door up staring at a pile of bricks. I asked, "what the hell are you doing?" He replied, "looking for bricks." I stood and stared and decided not to ask why. A couple of days later he had created a brick vase with what I thought were twigs, turned out to be wire, neatly deposited inside. Creative!

Thanksgiving dinner

2006-11-24T14:25:00.000-08:00

The cow can cook a mean Paella! The cow and I drank a dark rose while preparing for guests. He made fresh bread while I prepped (washed) asparagus, green beans, mache and many other items. We nibbled on smoked mozzerlla, fromage fort, cashews and olives while the Paella simmered on the stove. My sister and her husband drove all the way from Sacramento for a taste of the seafood medley. We also had a couple of friends join the party. We all shared what we were thankful for during the past year. I, of course, am sincerely thankful to have such a fun, supportive person beside me on this journey called life. Thanks cow for another great memory.

While other were driving...

2006-11-23T14:02:00.000-08:00

the cow and I met and shot a few rounds of pool. The weather and the traffic were frightful in and around PDX last night. We met at Touche and enjoyed a very empty bar, free pool and happy hour. We then wandered over to Olea to have a glass of wine and listen to a band (the band director from the school in which I work plays with said band). While chatting a server showed up with a plate of nibbles. We informed her that we had not ordered anything to eat. She wondered off confused. Our original server came back with the tasty morsels and said they were compliments of the chef from the band. Life is sweet!
The above picture are from our last stop. Masu! A well regarded sushi joint in an upstairs converted factory building. It was super quiet as we sat at the sushi bar chatting with the chefs. We enjoyed the SOUTHSIDE: yellowtail, jalapenos, asparagus and cucumbers rolled with tempura crisps and topped with avocado and black tobiko; The ST. HELEN'S VOLCANO: whitefish, crab, scallops, shrimp and avocado baked with our volcano cream sauce; AND SEARED SCALLOPS. The chefs were very active getting ready for their busy - post thanksgiving rush on Friday. They were hackin the hell out of some really large fish.

Glorious smell of bread

2006-11-19T10:26:00.000-08:00

The cow made this glorious loaf! The house was filled with that glorious smell of bread. It tasted even better than it looks. I LOVE BREAD.

Bakery Bar

2006-11-19T10:18:00.000-08:00

Out doing a bit of shopping and stopped by the Bakery Bar for a snack and a pick me up. I ordered the Brandy-carmel latte and it had a homemade marshmellow on top (i don't really care for marshmellows but it was very tasty - not too sweet). We also enjoyed a savory scone.

bettie ford anyone?

2006-11-19T10:14:00.000-08:00

The cow sat me down and gave me a "lecture" about how I needed to clean up my act. He suggested I check into the local bettie ford clinic. I would invite anyone who believes they have an issue to join me at the PDX bettie ford center and we can get some real therapy for our drinking issues.

Pictures at an exposition

2006-11-05T17:12:00.000-08:00

Sunday afternoon at the symphony. The cow and I attended Oregon symphony series called "Inside the Score" at the Schnitzer concert hall . The composition performed was, Pictures at an Exposition originally created in 1874 by Modest Mussorgsky for piano. Mussorgsky created the suite for piano after his artist friend Viktor Harman died suddenly at age 39. Mussorgsky had gone to an exposition of Harmans work and created the music as a homage to his friends paintings. The most famous part of the music is the promenade piece that is played as a transition to each of the pieces of art - like you are promenading through a gallery. Moving on to the next piece of art.

The conductor actually talked the audience through the history of Pictures at an exposition. Not about the Paintings but the "SCORE" that was created based on the original Piano suite. It was fabulous to have the conductor talk about the variations of the piece from Ravel's famous interpretation in 1922 to Leopold Stokowski in 1938 to Carl Simpson in 1997. The orchestra played an example from each conductor so the audience could hear the difference of creative interpretation. After the discussion was over, they played Ravel's piece in it entirety.

My favorite night

2006-11-05T09:39:00.000-08:00

Pizza and movie nights are my favorite. The cow mentioned during the week that he thought we should have a P&M night. I had actually been looking forward to it all week. I sat with my wine glass in hand and watched and smelled the production of the pizza assembly line. The cow created two masterpieces last night. The first, at my request, a pesto, tomato and fresh mozzerlla. The second, carmelized onions and mushrooms - mouth watering. I sat in the kitchen as he kneaded the dough, sliced onions and made pesto. Once the pies were out of the oven we watched, The Fastest Indian - a movie KP would like due to the fact it is about an old man with a passion for motorcycles and speed.
I think at some point- els and the cow should get together for a pizza contest because I think the cow's pies are the best in the world! Challenge on?

Excuses, Excuses

2006-10-29T13:46:00.000-08:00

I have been on hiatus for a week or two. Not that I haven't thought about blogging every single day and the cow keeps putting pressure on me saying, "haven't seen a new post in a while." I came up with a list of excuses why I haven't been bloggin' on a regular basis.
Here goes:

1. My camera took a nose dive. The lcd screen on my pocket size camera busted. Luckily, it was under warranty but I had to mail it to Illinois for repairs. Hopefully I will have it back by next week.
2. The cow and I have been super busy doing nothing. Last weekend went by so fast that the cow had to go in late on Monday because he was so tired from the weekend. We had a neighbor over for drinks on Friday night (very nice and engaging). Then on Saturday a co-worker from school and his wife came over for dinner. They moved to Oregon from South Dakota and let's just say that they did not appreciate the homemade hummus, pear salad and seared scallop atop risotto that was served.
3. The two of us took Thursday off to paint our bathrooms. We have had the paint for over two months. It was a constant thorn in my mind. We worked from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm. Don't ask why because painting a bathroom is tedious. You have to take everything out of the shower, the cow had to dismantle toilets not to mention putting them back together. On a side note- he broke the tank on mine during reassembly. I can't tell you how but we found another tank lying around the house to be able to fix the problem by 9:00pm.
The colors are great - think Tiffany blue for my bathroom and Mustard for the cow's.
4. I feel like every weekend I am planning for the following week of school. I just spent a good two hours of my morning trying to figure out what those little buggers will be doing all week so they are not bugging ME!

MY LAST EXCUSE FOR NOT BLOGGING IS:
I have just been too drunk to log-on and tell you about the craziness.

Stay tuned for the funny things I've witnessed in the last week. Trailer= commuter flipping off a cop on the side of the road.

el serrach - kitchen color

2006-10-29T05:09:00.000-08:00

This is for el s!

He asked if I could find the color of his kitchen in nature. I believe somewhere in this leaf is the beautiful green in your kitchen. Enjoy!

Nature is wonderful.

Fancy Red Shoes

2006-10-29T04:12:00.000-08:00

The cow got a new pair of shoes. Bright RED Puma leather. He is so stylish!

Colors of PDX

2006-10-22T10:06:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Saturday morning in Sellwood. The cow and I took a three-mile walk around the neighborhood and found inspiring colors within nature. The trees are brilliant right now. It makes me wonder why Americans don't copy nature in their housing colors. Many people love the color of the leaves but they would never paint their kitchen majenta.
Vivid reds, yellows, greens, blues - the color of nature.

Guest Commentary

2006-10-10T08:16:00.000-07:00

Saturday evening at the EvanSmith household is yummy pizza goodness lately. This week we hit the farmers market near PSU and came home with fresh arugula (to make arugula pesto), beautiful mushrooms and lovely yellow tomatoes.
The evening was extremely relaxing. We were in absolutely no hurry - I was doing a bit of work for school and the cow was dancing around the kitchen to his favorite music of the moment.
As you can see from the pictures he spent some time in the kitchen preparing my feast. He starts the dough early in the day so it has time to rise. He then works on the toppings and rolls out the dough just before production time. this week we ended up with a Shitaki mushroom, carmelized onion and lovely cheese ensemble, as well as, a yellow tomato, fresh mozzarella and anchovy pizza. The argula pesto was for spreading on either but it was the best with the mushrooms.

Siam Society

2006-10-08T07:40:00.000-07:00

Dinner on Friday night led the cow and I to NE Alberta. We have been wanting to try Siam Society since they opened last summer. Friday was the perfect evening because Adam Hurst an electro cello guru was playing in the bar.
The owners transformed an old power station into an industrial beauty of a restaurant. I like that they left the concrete walls and steel girders in place and simply added beautiful tables, an eye catching bar, some fabric for noise reduction and great lighting.
We arrived at about 8:30 and the place was packed - but we only had to wait (with a cocktail in hand) for about 10 minutes. The cow ordered a jalepeno/pear combo and when it arrived a woman waiting next to us asked him how it was. He offered her a drink and she gladly took the glass and had a sample. She didn't seem to impressed and said thanks and walked away.
The food was very good. We had the tranquil salad rolls for a starter and then shared the succulent tiger prawns and panang curry.
We enjoyed the music, food and drinks. It was a lovely way to end a busy week.

Improv

2006-10-02T20:46:00.000-07:00

Saturday night equalled improv pizza night. The cow and I spent the day doing chores around the house. He cleaned the garage while I cleaned the house. We went grocery shopping, picked up laundry and went down to the wine store to drink with the French guys.
That evening the cow made his beautiful pizza. It was great - because while he was creating the toppings he would say, "Oh crap, I forgot pine nuts for the pesto." Then he would mutter, "oh well, I will use walnuts." He created two IMPROV masterpieces. The first was a fresh basil (I grew the basil on the back porch - GoS you would be impressed with my plant) and walnut pesto, delicious! The second was a pear - blue cheese sinfully good pie. The pear took the show on this one. It was soooooo good. We sat around and drank our last bottle of Dillian from Amador county. Man that is good wine. If any of you are near the Amador area east of Sacramento stop by and see those guys. In fact buy us a case of whatever they are selling.

The Cow's Enamored......

2006-09-30T06:57:00.000-07:00

.......with Astoria! Can you tell why?

Beach Scene

2006-09-29T18:51:00.000-07:00

For some reason I never get tired of seeing the ocean. The cow and I have had discussions about people that can't get to the ocean in a day or those who have never seen the ocean - we really appreciate the fact that it is so close.
It was the perfect day for beach walking. The temperature was 80 degrees. The waves were roaring. The blue, beige and green of nature was shining bright. The smell is the hard part to explain. It was one of wet sand with perfect clean pine/green in the air.
The pictures were taken at Manzanita Beach- the cow and I are trying to rent a place here for Thanksgiving, maybe have a little seafood instead of tofurky.

The Tillamook Curse is BROKEN

2006-09-25T18:00:00.000-07:00

On our way to the beach we passed through the Tillamook State Park, otherwise known as Tillamook Burn. The story about this forest is impressive. The first burn occurred in 1933 and every six years a devastating fire occurred until 1951. Click here to get a picture of the area during those years. The state of Oregon stepped to the plate and decided to try and reforest the area. Oregon voters passed a constitutional amendment in 1948 authorizing $12 million in bonds to rehabilitate the land. Forestry personal, state officials, adults and school kids all turned out to help plant over 72 million seedling. WOW! This area is gorgeous now. There is a great information center at the summit. There are hiking trails throughout the park and best of all there are beautiful, large trees everywhere.

Favorites from the weekend...more to come

2006-09-25T17:49:00.000-07:00

A few of my favorite pictures from the weekend. The cow and I were joined by his parents for a brief weekend on the Oregon coast. I will fill you in on all the fun in a few more posts but I wanted to share with you a view of what I encountered.

First, the beach town of Manzanita is my kind of place. There is a coffee shop, bakery, brewery and mexican joint. It also has a fabulous beach. The weather was perfect - almost hot!

Second, Astoria sits at the mouth of the Columbia river. There is a great promenade that follows the waterfront. The cow and I walked for a few miles on this route. We actually wore out the in-laws.

Lastly, a pieceful moment with a view from Pier 39 without the hussle and bussle of San Francisco. The pier was home to BumbleBee tuna. Did you know that prior to tuna being packed in tin cans it was salmon?

Night

2006-09-17T22:56:00.000-07:00

I wanted pizza. Our fun filled Saturday turned into an all day extravaganza. After vinideus we headed to Ken's Pizza joint. It is traditional and GOOD. The menu is simple - Pizza and salad. We watched the cooks stare into the huge wood fired pizza oven and our mouths watered as our pizza was delivered. We enjoyed the anchoive pizza with a spalsh of Moscato to wash it down.
After dinner we went to Buffalo Gap to listen to music. We got there a bit late and do not know if we were actually listening to the person we had gone there for but we still had a good time so it really doesn't matter.

Vinideus

2006-09-17T22:43:00.000-07:00

The cow and I were walking home after our beer and wine at Oaks Bottom and noticed the new wine store (Vinideus) down the street was offering a few wines for tasting. As we entered I heard a strong french accent say, "Would you like to taste some wines today?" Apparently this guy did not know who he was talking to.
We were given the opportunity to taste 5 French wines, 2 Italian and 1 from Oregon. We met some neighbors and chatted with them as well as the owners. We took a tour of the "private tasting" room. It was explained as bring your own food and a minimum of six people - pay the owners 10 dollars per person and the wine will start flowing. We finally left at dusk with a couple of bottles of the good French stuff.

Oaks Bottom Century?

2006-09-17T20:29:00.000-07:00

Our inpirational walk led us to an outside table at Oaks Bottom Public House. The cow and I were feeling a little thirsty and we decided to have a drink. As I looked down the sidewalk I saw a guy with a beer mug strapped to his bike helmet coming at us. I said, "this is going to be good!" After a few minutes a group of "Century" riders decended on the Pub. They explained there quest for the day: 100 ounces of beer from FIVE different local breweries. Hence, the reason it is a CENTURY ride.
The group of riders were quite eclectic. After the Southeast engineer filled up the cow's empty beer mug (thanks again) we learned more about our neighbors at the next table. The "pheedo" dude explained that I should have advertising on my blog. The artist discussed the theory of work and the theory of art. His goal is to be an artist but everyone has to have enough money for a few beers. Gato Negro told us that Madrid would be a great place for New Year's and that he is planning to open a Tapa's restaurant near south waterfront.
The team of riders left as fast as they arrived. Onto their last stop of the day. I hope they achieved their goal of 100 ounces.

Inspiration

2006-09-17T10:57:00.000-07:00

Inspiration abounds walking from Sellwood to Moreland on a lazy Saturday afternoon. As you already know I have a fascination with the horse project. I caught the Moreland horse getting ready for a gallop while still tied to her post. I will refer to her as Thunder from here forward.
Looking over Oaks Bottom Park on SE 13th and Bybee was a young, energetic artist. He was painting a lovely rendition of the west hills in the darkness of puffy white and gray clouds. He was a very physical painter - bending and moving to get the right stroke.
Lastly, the beautiful red sunflowers are reaching for the sky as the sun breaks in the early afternoon. They are deep red with tiny yellow seeds in the center. I hope they last awhile because they make me smile when I see them.

Portland Sunday

2006-09-12T18:41:00.000-07:00

The sun was shining through all the windows this morning. We sat outside and read the paper while taking in our coffee. Decided a ride around town on bikes was in order. We stumbled across a street fair that looked like it hadn't kicked into high gear - but they had the Road Closed signs out blocking a major street in old town. We rode from Sellwood to downtown, around Overlook to Alberta then back down to Mississippi for taco's at por que no? Winding our way back home to have a beer on the veranda. Great weekend but MAN I do NOT want to face reality and go to work- EVER.