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12 August 2011

Grandma & Papa Visit - August 2011

Arrival:



Silliness on the way to Junior's for breakfast.



Getting some reprieve from the heat with the pool & some shade on the deck:



An Oregon book the boys & the little one read while the ladies were shopping 'til they were dropping:



Another:



S strikes a striking pose with a pink hat:



Enjoying the shade of Peninsula Park after a cancelled ballet lesson:



A Playground Monitor:



A delighter in slides:



Uhh... (Note both facial expressions--click image to view larger version)



*Whoosh!*



Artful refreshments for the playground goers. Though not as artful as Oba!, apparently. Probably also not as good as K's superbly sliced fruit-art spread earlier that morn:



The rose garden. A friend of mine recently mentioned these might be modeled after similar leisure gardens in France:



Enjoying a sit after an amazingly aromatic amble through the roses:



5th Quadrant coloring:



Did a crayon drop on the floor? What are you getting?



Exploring the inner workings of Pedalounge:



Grandma sure delights in watching otters eat! (And getting swooped upon by predator birds and other winged creatures!)



Someone does NOT like that goat.



Sitting in the grass enjoying the sunshine...wait, do you see that bald eagle in the background soaring toward you?!?



A typical backseat scene for the week:



Good-byes are never easy, but at least they can be smiley!



Hanging out at Broughton Beach on the Colombia River, waiting for the plane to pass overheard. Woody sez: "Roll on, Colombia, roll on! /
Roll on, Colombia, roll on! / Your power is turning our darkness to dawn! / Roll on, Colombia, roll on!"





Departure.
Up, up, over Mount Hood:



Past the Moon and the Kite:



Into the sunset:

Pedalounge

Apparently the Beer Bike (the drinking or bar version of Pedalounge) is already a huge hit on The Continent. "The Germans (two links) can't buy them up fast enough and the Dutch [Belgians?] can't produce them fast enough." (paraphrase of Pedalounge owner/operator we met.)

Pedalounge seems to have run into legal and/or insurance problems here in Portland, at least in order to serve alcohol while riding, even though the operator remains sober, the designated driver. As of now, tourists pedal together to make stops at various places. Establishment hopping. I found some German Beer Bike websites which offer non-alcoholic tours and all-ages group bike parties as well, which is great. They also have the round BBQ Bike and the Oval BBQ Bike! Pedalounge (photos below) was sighted last Thursday the 4th of August in NoPo next to 5th Quadrant and Pix on Failing & Williams.





http://pedalounge.com/

http://sightseeingbike.com/

A Portion of the Harvest

The first handful of green beans of the year. They were delicious!



Some stolen strawberries. I might be inclined to feel bad, but there were many other strawberries on the verge of being perfectly ripe (but not quite yet) so i figure i was lending the harvest a helping hand by helping these strawberries into Choate tummies. The plants are replete with flowers & green berries too, which are sure to "go like gangbusters" in the coming weeks.


10 August 2011

Ein roter Baum im Hochsommer

On SE Belmont St.

This summer beauty is shining a stunning red!

30 July 2011

26 July 2011

The Big Busk


I was fortunate enough to have heard about The Big Busk this year before it happened and got on board. Apparently this is the 3rd annual celebration of it in Portland. I later found out about a similar event in New Zealand this year, though it's unclear whether theirs was the 1st annual or not.

I have some great memories of playing on the streets of Salzburg, Munich with Dillon & Chris, the streets of Spain with Kyle, and I'm glad to finally get around to playing in the US. It's quite a different experience! One of my favorite parts of playing on the street are the interesting people you meet and the interactions that result. Each time it seems like fate has a hand in making something magical happen, or having someone toss a buck or some coins into your bag right when you're about to pack it in.

This time I was just about to call it a day and head home when I was approached by a gentleman who very rhythmically tossed five or so coins--one at a time--into my guitar bag. He had an offbeat manner about him, and was walking pretty slowly. Much more slowly than most of the other passersby who were often on their way to something else, or listening to something through their earbuds. He asked me a question, which I sort of nodded to, but I got the feeling it was sort of a rhetorical question, so I just kept listening. After we talked (well, he mostly talked) he reached into his pocket and handed me a dollar, I thanked him, and he went on his way. I don't know if his slower pace was what caused him to stop and listen, but he did listen for a bit and this is what he said:

I don't know if I'm wrong here, because I don't know that much about popular music, but has anyone ever told you you sound like James Taylor? Your music brings back memories. I had this girlfriend who suffered from bipolar disorder. Your music brings back memories of her. Yes, music has a strong way of bringing back memories. Whether it's of the 1960s, of Vietnam, or the memory of a loved one. Thank you for your music.

I had been playing Dishwalla's "Counting Blue Cars"...

25 July 2011

07 July 2011

DSaP Stadttour 2011

Offensichtlich erzähle ich der Gruppe etwas sehr witziges und interessantes.

Jesus ist auch mitgekommen!

I recently watched some old video footage of our time in Europe & noticed the directional signposts all over London. Remembering this is just one thing to add to the list of things that make me feel like a world citizen right here in Portland.

Spaß mit POD.

Im Riverview Friedhof, wo Henry Weinhard auch begraben ist. Ich muss irgendwann bald eine Tour dorthinführen. "Tichner" ist fast "Tischner" oder "Tischler" und ich frage mich ob der Typ die Rechtschreibung seines Names im 1. oder im 2. Weltkrieg geändert hat oder so. Konnte er wirklich Tische bauen oder war er kein tatsächlicher Schreiner?

05 July 2011

Neighborhood Greenway Changes

Beautifying crews from the city's neighborhood greenways project added these types of things up & down Clinton:



These are in addition to traffic calming measures such as speed bumps, circular traffic islands in intersections, and lots of sharrows. The art looks great, though I'm still waiting for some TRUE neighborhood greenways, where several streets are closed to vehicle traffic entirely. These changes are a step in the right direction.

04 July 2011

Meeting the 2nd Midwife

The view of Mt. Tabor out of Vivante Midwifery's main meeting room window.

An intersection of life activities (A selection from Gustav Klimt's Die Drei Lebensalter der Frau):


Kirsten and ?

30 June 2011

DSaP 1,35 oder so

Jetzt geht's wieder los!

Ort:


Inhalt:


Mehr oder weniger...

06 June 2011

Yes, we have no bananas!

Sighted in Orange, CA. I circulated this image among my co-workers because the text at the top essentially is a mirror-image of a dialogue in Kontext 14 on the 1st year German CD/Text. Plus it is just choc full of excellence.

03 June 2011

Garden Antics

Amazingly, this comic survived the Portland winter and is still taped to the side of the house near the garden where we've planted some more vegetables this year. This is our pest control plan.

30 May 2011

Der Bohnentwist

The Bean Twist

Click link to watch the video and then start dancing.

01 May 2011

Ricky Point / Tomahawk Island

Thanks Jim & Patricia for the great adventure leading to breathtaking views at RICKY POINT. I'll have to make a return trip and bring a camera along for some better photographs. Here is an idea of what it looks like, but doesn't even come close to comparing with how excellent the hidden spot is.