Disneyland for Drunks!

The Edgefield "Poor Farm" is the Disneyland for Drunks. It was built in 1911, served for many years as the Multnomah County Poor Farm. "Residents operated a self-sufficient environment, raising hogs, poultry, growing a variety of fruits and vegetables, operating a dairy, cannery and meat packing plant as well as working in the laundry, kitchen and hospital.
In 1947, it was renamed the Multnomah County Home and Farm and in the late fifties the farm operation was eliminated. In 1962, the facility was renamed Edgefield Manor and for the last two decades of operation, functioned as a nursing home and eventually closed in 1982." The McMenamin brothers bought the property and transformed it from a poor farm to a drinking farm.
With seven bars, a winery, a brewery and a distillery you can get drunk and then spend the night in one of the many hotel rooms on the property. The day the cow and I journeyed (it wasn't really a journey it is 10 miles from HoY) to Edgefield it was kind of misty -which gave the experience a "sit back and relax" atmosphere.
We stopped and got a map of the complex to figure out where to belly up first. We decided the winery was a good start. The server -Josh- was great. You can basically try any type of liquor at Edgefield for a buck. The buck you hand over does not get you those wimpy pours you see in Napa - You get about a 1/2 a glass of wine (albeit the glass is rather small). The cow tried six of the reds while I tried 6 of their whites. After talking to Josh, we decided that a stop at the distillery was in order. "Whiskies, brandies and gins are created here and specialties of the house include the rich, amber-hued Hogshead Whiskey, fragrant Edgefield Brandy and popular Vintner's Gin, as well as Longshot Brandy and Pear Brandy." NO-We did not try them all but again for 1-buck you can try any of them. After watching the bar patrons ebb and flow, we settled down in front of the pot-belly stove for a cocktail and watched the golfers come in for a shot.
Our last stop was the "Hobbit sized Little Red Shack" it was charming. It was dark and only lit by candles and the fire. There were four tables total and they would barely seat two people. So, needless to say it is truly Hobbit sized. We settled in for a glass of wine and discussed the other options that Edgefield has to offer.

Cats!

OK - We know that our cat is brilliant but she is also mean spirited. This is the progression of her thoughts. She wants to get a drink of water at the bathroom sink faucet (she has conquered this move in every location we have lived in less than a day of being there). At HoY she simply goes in the bathroom and sits on the toilet (yes, we have to keep the lid closed but she will jump up even if the lid is open). She will meow a couple of times and wait patiently for us to come in and say "jump up" - Here is where she gets mean spiritied. Sometimes she sits in there and doesn't meow or we can't hear her because of music or what not. She then will tear, eat, claw the toilet paper beyond recognition. There have been several BRAND NEW Toilet paper rolls that had to be laid to rest because of this cruel and unusual punishment handed down from the claws of TAM. Cats - They are so cute!

If you have been wondering where SH has been lately - Well, this is it. Grover Cleveland High School just celebrated 90 years in service. It is amazing how well the school has stood the test of time. As you walk into the school there is another staircase. It is 4 stories but only looks like 2. Sometime during the 50's an east wing was attached and does not have the same enduring design element as the original building. The room where I am housed is part of the new wing but as you can see still needs a bit of work to bring it into the 21st Century. For a Californian, the enclosed hall ways are a bit strange. Everything echo's! Doesn't make for a quiet learning environment.

Dinner Anyone?

On this ghoulish day, I would love to cook dinner for all of the witches and worlocks in my life. I chose this new stove for a very special dinner. I was told that whatever is created on this demonic machine would certainly be deadly delicious.
Dinner anyone?
Happy Halloween!

Walking to work...

I thought about writing commentary to go with this fabulous array of photographs, but decided you should just take a walk in my shoes. Pretend it is 8:30 am and you have just walked out the front door. It is a brisk morning but not cold. These would be the images you see as you stroll from Belmont to Powell walking down 26th and 27th. Enjoy the sights!

Bold & Blue

I was asked recently - What is fall like in PDX? Well - these pictures should tell some of the story. Unfortunately, on Yahoo Weather people from around the world get the idea that it ONLY rains in Portland. These pictures were taken when the weather forecast said "chance of rain." I think all weather people should be deducted pay everytime they are wrong. And they are wrong a lot in PDX. The first picture, I was sitting outside with the cat (obviously with a glass of wine) when I looked up to grab the glass I saw all of the fall colors in the background. It was picturesque! The next picture I was strolling to my newly discovered area NE 28th (this where Noble Rot and Second Thoughts are) and saw these trees trying to reach the sun shine. See it is not just humans that like the sun!

Wonderful Way to Spend a Day!

I know it has been awhile since you've had a good fix of PDX antics so here is your daily dose. The cow returned from a business class in Tempe early last Saturday morning, so we decided to leave the house a mess a wonder to a few wineries about 1/2 an hour from Portland.
The first was called David Hill and to find this winery you have to be a bit persistent. It is nestled against a hill (like the name says) and it is on a gravel road that is a bit further than what you would expect (see 1st picture). But once you arrive it is beautiful. You have grapevines and cedar trees and the smells are clean and crisp. The house was built around 1893 and has been restored to preserve the exterior but create a modern interior to serve as the tasting room.
We then ventured on to Tualatin Vineyards - they have an awesome Chardonnay and then to Shaffer Vineyards - they have a ton of different wines and a Christmas store at their winery (do I need to say more?).
We headed home and parked the car and decided to have a snack. What better idea than to carry on the wine buzz than to go to a wine bar and have some cheese! We wanted to try a new place about a 5 minute walk from us so we headed north to Navarre. Low and behold it did not open till 6:00 and it was only 5:00. We walked back south a few blocks to Noble Rot - we have been there but it is worth repeating....over, and over, and over! We wore out our stay and headed back home for an evening with a movie and some burritos from Laughing Planet.
All in all a great way to spend a day!

Would you like to taste some Vodka today?

We are back in business!
The cow and I have been extemely busy. We are moved into Hoy and spending money buying new items for the home. WE LOVE the neighborhood. Walking to EVERYTHING. I will just give you a list because I have enough material for this blog for a year already.
1. Imbibe - Drinks/appetizers - live music.
2. Cafe Castagana - Great simple food.
3. The Italian Joint - Exactly what you think. $9.00 carafe of wine!
4. Zuppans - Local grocery store chain
5. The Bagdad - drinks, movie, hummus plater.
6. Wine shop - tastings on Friday nights.
7. Grand Central Bakery - the best scones and Irish bread (not a bad cup o joe either)
8. Second Thoughts - second hand clothing store with awesome items.
9. Noble Rot - Wine bar and great cheese plate!
10. Stumptown Coffee Roasters - every cup of joe is French Pressed

The Quote: "Would you like to taste some Vodka today"?
We walked into the state controlled liquor store and there stood a gentlemen who makes his own vodka offering for tastings. We just laughed at the question and held out our hands. The cow liked the lemongrass infused vodka the best.
That is a great line....need to work it into a book someday. "Would you like to taste some vodka today?"

HoY as Home! Soon!

You could say the HoY is starting to be home! The cow and I have spent many of hours there trying to make our move this weekend (OCT 8th) a bit more smooth. As you can see from the pictures the flooring in the two bedrooms was finally completed. The Orange room went from dark blue/brown shaggy carpet to light bamboo that we love very much. The bamboo helped turn a dark room into a bright spot in the house. The other bedroom went from a dark brown shag to a light, soft berber. Again I can't explain how much lighter and brigher the room became.
The new mattress and bed were set up by the cow in record time and he was quite handy with cutting and hanging the doors in the bedroom (Once the bamboo went in it raised the floor level so the doors need to be shaved a bit to fit and close). He also got the washer and dryer ready in the basement so laundry will be a snap once we are there. We are transferring the same phone number but it may not work until Sunday so do not fret if you call and there is no response....keep trying - we will be available soon.