Busy Week

Due to weather conditions beyond our control, J decided that it would be best to drive our car home on Monday instead of Sunday this week. Apparently, I was still pretty stressed from the drive down and freaked out at the prospect of returning home on Tuesday -- I had a scheduled site visit in Salem Monday morning. We talked it over and decided that I should fly home on Sunday and J would drive back to Portland with his dad.

I got home on Sunday afternoon, prepared for my site visit, and cleaned up in the apartment like a mad woman. We have pretty much been living out of our suitcases since Thanksgiving, so the apartment looked like it exploded with stuff. It felt good to clean up and get ready for the new year. I went on my site visit on Monday (it was successful, but rainy and cold) and J and Bob arrived in Portland that evening just in time for dinner. We were all pretty exhausted and went to bed.

Yesterday, we decided to take care of work in the early morning and then headed out to Multnomah Falls for a hike. The falls were roaring and sent out a fine mist that felt like rain. I knew the hike was probably a bad idea when I saw people coming off the hill with red faces and soaked heads, and then there were two ladies thawing their feet and hands in the ladies bathroom under the hand dryers.

We walked on, though, and found that the path up to the bridge was solid snow. However, it didn't look too treacherous, so we charged on. We hadn't prepared for these conditions, so I was wearing sneakers (which were already soaking wet by this point) and neither J or Bob had brought along a hat. We made it up to the bridge with a bit of slipping and sliding, looked at the falls for a couple of minutes and then headed back for relief from the soaking mist hanging over our heads.

Even though our hike was short-lived, I'm glad we tried. The snow along the trail was really pretty and the falls looked amazing. I can't wait to go back when the snow has melted away and make the hike all the way up to the top of the falls.

We returned home, had some lunch, and J had to go downtown for a late afternoon meeting. After his meeting we all went out for dinner at a nearby Indian restaurant and gorged on their spicy fare. I have to say it was really tasty, but I haven't had food that hot in quite a while. I think I felt so full from all the water I drank along with the naan soaked in raita to cool my palate. There was so much food that I barely had enough room to finish my tandoori chicken, so we are going to make a delicious salad for dinner this week with the leftovers.

It was great to have Bob stay with us for a couple of days. It was fun showing him around our neighborhood and walking around the city. However, we tried not to have too much fun (we wanted to save the best parts for when J's mom comes along next time)!

Christmas in Santa Cruz

I seriously need to get my butt in gear to bring our icy Christmas story to a close. Luckily, it all ended well. Since we were all up way past midnight on Christmas Eve, we all slept in a bit on Christmas morning. I think things got going around 11am as we all slowly migrated towards the living room around the Christmas tree. We spent a couple of hours opening presents and watching Jesse and his two brothers fall right back into their regular routines of horsing around and creating general chaos with their playful teasing.

After presents we had a delicious apple pancake breakfast (as warranted by tradition) and lounged around in our slippers into the afternoon. J pitched in and set the table for the Christmas dinner, coming up with this utensil teepee for our enjoyment.

Friday and Saturday were spent here and there at home and downtown. It was so nice to relax and enjoy spending time with J's brothers and parents. Saturday night we had family friends over for dinner and drinks and were able to catch up on all the days that have flown by in 2008.

Following dinner (and a few drinks) J and Larson started reminiscing about one of their favorite childhood games, Marble Run. They set up the game in the living room and we (nine grown adults) were screaming and jumping as our marbles raced down the track. Luckily, J's brother E knew how to set up sports brackets and we played for at least an hour or two.

I have a couple of videos of the action that I took with my camera, but I can't figure out how to rotate them. I thought about posting the video sideways, but it's kind of annoying. Maybe someday I'll figure it out!

Christmas Eve

About 20 minutes after this post, I crawled in bed and passed out. I think it was a combination of the beer, stress, and constant squeezing of my butt cheeks for nearly eight hours on the drive down to Grants Pass. Even after we had cleared the snow and ice, I was still on the edge of my seat. I didn't have the strength to think about what we were going to do next. I just wanted sleep.

Then, at 3am I woke up and my brain started spinning. I thought about our ride the previous day and what we might have to go through again to get over the Siskiyou Pass. The thought of driving for another 4 hours in ice and snow terrified me. I woke up J (after rolling around) and told him that I didn't think I could do it. We agreed then and there that we wouldn't go through the pass unless it was relatively clear and realized that we might not make it to California after all. Then, I realized that I was starving (probably why I woke up in the first place), so we had snacks in bed and went back to sleep around 5am.

J woke up around 8am and went to get a new tires and to call his parents to tell them the bad news. The worst part of all was that we couldn't make it to California, but we also couldn't go back home to Portland because of another front that was dumping snow on the city again. The thought of spending Christmas in Grants Pass, Oregon made me cry, but the alternative (driving over the pass) made me cry even harder.

We had to check out at 11am, so we nibbled at breakfast, did a lot of sighing, and decided to drive around town a bit before making our final decision. While I was checking out, the lady at the front desk asked where we were headed and tears welled up in my eyes. (I'm sure I looked like death since I had only slept about 4 hours the night before and spent most of my morning in tears.) I told her our situation and she immediately started searching on the internet for alternate routes and weather conditions. She found that U.S. Route 199 was pretty clear and a little warmer and travels through the valley so was relatively flat. I thanked her profusely and ran out to the parking lot to tell J that we might have a chance.

He was on the phone with his mom and told her he had to go because we were going to try once again. We hopped in the car and were on the road again, this time heading west towards the coast. US 199 didn't feel unsafe at all and was quite a beautiful drive. The area had gotten snow overnight, but the temperatures were high enough to prevent it from sticking on the road.

Once we reached California, the snow vanished and we were feeling pretty good. I had never really seen giant Redwood trees before, so when we entered into the Redwood State Park I made J pull over. They probably come close to some of the most glorious things I have ever seen (or ever will see). Given our day with the snow, it was also amazing to finally see grass, and dirt, and pools of water! We took a brief moment to walk around and have a mini celebration for making it out of Grants Pass. At that point, I knew we would make it to Santa Cruz in time for Christmas, and even if we didn't, I was so glad that we wouldn't spend another night in the snow.

The rest of the drive was long and tedious. The sky dumped rain all the way from Eureka to Ukiah, which consisted of nearly all two-lane winding roads. Past Ukiah, the rain didn't really let up, but at least we hit the freeway and had a buffer from the oncoming traffic's lights. At least we didn't have to think once about having to use our "ice scraper" or the rest of the kitty litter in our back seat at any point on the second half of our journey. We arrived in Santa Cruz around 11:30pm on Christmas Eve, bringing our total driving time to around 17 hours over the course of two harrowing days. However, we were greeted by the whole family with smiles and a warm fire and delicious crab cakes made fresh for our hungry bellies.

Icy Hell

Today we decided to make a break for it. We had approximately one day of dry weather to get through Oregon before another snowstorm ruined the city again. Before leaving, we checked all of the necessary websites, walked over to the interstate, and talked over our options. We both agreed that the road looked a lot better than yesterday and if we could make it past Salem before dusk we'd be in the clear.

The 44 miles between Portland and Salem was a nightmare. We drove an average of 3 mph in ruts created by cars over the course of two days. In between the ruts were 6" mounds of ice and snow that were impassible unless you were driving a dump truck or a Hummer. Turning around was not really an option, given that we were stuck in the rut and the thought of driving in it again to get home made me want to die.

Literally 3 minutes south of Salem the roads were bone dry and there was not a spot of snow in sight. It was smooth sailing to Eugene where we stopped for dinner and picked up beer for a toast later -- a toast to making it through and to remember that we never want to do this again. We were feeling so good about the conditions that we decided to push ahead until Medford and make the Siskiyou Pass in the morning after sunrise. Perhaps our celebration was a little premature.

Exactly 3 miles north of Grants Pass we got a flat tire. We immediately called AAA, but J was able to put on our spare and we didn't need to be towed. Good thing too, because we would have waited at least 90 minutes for a truck. AAA was great and gave us the name of a tire shop in Grants Pass and a list of hotels just down the street. So now, we're kicking up our feet at a Comfort Inn with our beer. I'm glad to be on firm ground and the free wi-fi is a bonus.

Actually, I'm not really feeling like getting in a car ever again, so we might just live at the Comfort Inn until the March thaw. I mean, Grants Pass is not nearly as hip as Portland, but they have a McDonalds and a local motel/grill/bar. What more could a young couple want from a home? The hotel room has a mini-fridge and continental breakfast, so we're set. I'm sure I could learn to cook with the iron and hairdryer.

Too bad they don't serve sedatives in the morning with the stale bagels.

Monday: Buried Car Edition

This weekend it snowed like Portland is supposed to rain in the winter -- steadily and for days. We are just lucky to have gobs of the stuff because of the freakishly low temperatures. It hasn't gotten above 25 in three days. This morning I looked out our living room window and saw a lot of cars that have been partially buried from the the weather over the course of two days. In the case of Irving Street, this particular car has been covered by fallen snow, not snow pushed over from a plow. Plows have not touched the side streets.

As far as snow accumulation goes, we had 6 inches by Saturday and freezing rain dropped all night, so by Sunday there was about a 1/2 inch of ice on top of everything. Yesterday afternoon it snowed pretty hard, adding another 2 inches or so, and judging from the trees and our windowsills, I'd say we got another 2-3 inches last night. So that puts us in the neighborhood of 9-12 inches over the course of the weekend.

The snow crunches when you walk on it and shoots out giant icebergs wherever you step. Both Jesse and I were pretty tired of staring at each other yesterday afternoon and decided to go take a walk and check out the rest of the city. In my experience last week, our neighborhood tended to be a little worse (snow-wise) than the rest of the city. We stopped at the car first to ogle the accumulation and played around a bit with the giant sheets of ice.

I was wrong, the rest of the city looked pretty much like our neighborhood. However, we weren't the only ones walking around. The Pearl district had quite a few people out and about, shopping in the stores that decided to open in the afternoon. I think everyone was outside to witness this freak weather. Also, for many people, I think they woke up and thought "Oh Shit!" realizing that Christmas is a mere 3 days away. The snow falling was quite pretty on our walk.

Interstate-405, on the other hand, was very not pretty. It was caked with just about as much snow as the rest of the streets in town. Let's hope that they got some plows and salt trucks out there last night. There were definitely cars driving down the highway, but it was pretty slow going -- even for the giant 4-wheel drive trucks.

Last night we decided that if there was any hope of us getting out of here to drive down to Santa Cruz for Christmas that we'd have to clean off the car and shovel out the wheels. We borrowed a snow shovel from our apartment building and went to work after dinner. It took about an hour, but I feel pretty confident that it gave us a fighting chance of getting our car out of it's parking spot should a patch of good weather permit us to leave.

Saturday Snow Day

It snowed again today, but this time we at least have something to show for the hype -- six inches to be exact, as of 10pm this evening. It pretty much snowed steadily all day, which meant we stayed inside except to take a walk to the grocery store. J felt a little stir crazy and decided to take a run in the snow. I think photos best describe the afternoon:
















This was on our first walk of the afternoon. We stopped by the car to see the accumulation (only an inch or two at that point) and headed to Trader Joes for a few odds and ends to complete dinner.






































J brought our camera on his snow run up the hill. He was gone for about an hour and came back caked in ice. With icicles hanging off my eyebrows, I think I would have been miserable, but he seemed to love it.

















We took another walk around 10pm (after a round of Trivial Pursuit and a movie) to check up on the snow accumulation. I was pretty surprised at how much had actually fallen. It was well over my ankles standing on the sidewalk.

















Yep, six inches exactly.






























J (always the romantic) scribbled his and my name in the snow.

Friday Snow Day

Today's snow wasn't nearly as bad as earlier in the week, but we woke up again to white streets, covered trees, and big puffy flakes. The Oregon Historical Society was closed again for inclement weather and driving to Salem for research didn't seem like a very good idea. So, we both worked a little this morning, made a list of errands we needed to run, and headed downtown. We stopped by the library to drop off a few books and picked up another audiobook for our drive to Santa Cruz next week. George Pelecanos (writer of The Wire) has been a favorite so far, not only because he writes great stories, but also because they're mostly set in D.C. I also picked up a book on gift wrapping with fabric and can't wait to try out my skills with the Christmas presents we picked up yesterday.

After the library we both decided that we were starving. Luckily, we were right around the corner from Pioneer Square where there are at least a dozen food carts with just about any type of cuisine you could imagine. They have Vietnamese food, Russian, German, lots of Asian noodle places, taco/burrito carts, a Greek food place, etc. We have passed the carts several times since we moved here and they always smell really delicious. Apparently, there are food carts all over Portland with an even larger variety of food selection than what's found downtown. I'm pretty excited to sample them all!

Jesse initially thought he'd get a Vietnamese soup, but then saw the Euro Dish cart that is best described as Polish soul food. Today, I had my heart set on noodles and decided to try out Pad Thai from the cart next door. My Pad Thai was tasty, but not the best ever. However, I think I got about 4 pounds of food for $5 and it totally hit the noodles spot in my belly.

Jesse got the Kopytka plate, which is beef goulash with potato dumplings and two side salads. He also got a slice of Vienna-style chocolate cheese cake, which was fabulous. The goulash was incredibly tasty and it was one of those stick-to-your-ribs meals that are totally necessary on a cold, grey, snowy day. We're definitly going back to the food carts downtown, but next time we're going to order the Polish Plate with hunter's stew (Bigos), beef stuffed cabbage (Golabki), three pierogis, and a Kielbasa sausage. I also want to try the pork schnitzel sandwich and the Chicken Paprikash.

After lunch, we shopped around a bit for Christmas gifts and stopped home to kick up our feet. Now, with bellies full, we're off to purchase a set of tire chains (required when driving through most of Oregon during the winter), and a few groceries to get us through the weekend. I can hardly believe that December is almost over -- I think 2008 has been the quickest year ever.

Beating the Snow Day Blues

I wasn't the only one on 19th Avenue who was feeling a little blue yesterday. Jesse's meetings in Portland were all cancelled and he didn't have a lot of actual work to do either. Instead of moping around the house all day, we got dressed and decided to take a walk in the snow. In the late morning the snowflakes were giant and puffy and with the temperature just hovering at freezing, it wasn't nearly as cold as earlier this week. Our walk was really nice, especially since it's the most exercise we've gotten in quite a few days. Between travelling and the icy sidewalks around Portland, running has not been in the cards.

I also had an ulterior motive for our late-morning walk. This past weekend I finally finished that secret sewing project that involved many circles and a little bourbon. The mystery project was a baby quilt for our friends Anna and Brian who are expecting an addition to their household in February. I finished a bulk of the quilt when Jesse was in Florida for three days in November, but didn't get around to the binding until Sunday. As with every project that I complete, I have been itching to give it to them the moment it was completed. Yesterday was Anna's birthday, and unfortunately she had to spend the morning working at the coffee shop. So, we decided to stop by for a hot drink, a chat, and drop it off to her then.

While trying to come up with ideas for a design, I was initially going to do a patchwork quilt similar to the one I made for Ava. However, I decided that I wanted to do something a little different and this was the perfect excuse to start a mini test project. I have been excited about incorporating circles into future designs and wanted to see if a) I could handle curved piecing and b) whether they would turn out looking anything like circles. I have to say, I'm pretty happy -- it's not perfect, but really, no quilt ever is.

This is the fourth quilt that I've completed and I'm still not sure whether it's more fun accomplishing another design, or giving the final product away. It feels pretty darn good to take a step back and think about the quilt from the beginning pieces to that final stitch. However, since I've only kept one for myself, I suppose it's the latter.

Congratulations, Anna and Brian!

Snow Day Blues

When I was a kid, the prospect of a snow day was the best thing in the world. It was better than spring break and even better than fresh cookies after school. Why? I have no clue. I guess the prospect of getting to skip school was thrilling to me -- even though I knew very well that we'd have to make up the skipped days at the end of the year, thus cutting into my precious summer vacation. We didn't get very many snow days in Georgia or North Carolina, but in New Jersey there were snow days aplenty (especially around my birthday).

Sunday night we experienced our first winter storm in Portland. It was beautiful, but really cold (with the high this week not even reaching 30 degrees). I also learned on Sunday that Portland is not really prepared for snow, as they didn't really salt any of the streets until after they had turned into continuous sheets of ice. Most of the sidewalks are pretty treacherous too. Monday evening Jesse and I went out for a walk and were amazed at how many cars were zipping around town without chains on their tires and skidding and swerving whenever they tried to slow down.

(The video above is from a snowstorm last year, but is a pretty accurate depiction of how crazy people are in this city for driving on roads that are covered in a 1/4" of ice.)

As an adult, the prospect of a snow day should be even cooler. You get a day off from work, but don't have to make it up at the end of the year. Of course, the work you had to do on the snow day still has to be completed, but for one day you can kick back and enjoy the white fluffy stuff with a cup of hot tea and a good movie. That is, except when you are a part-time employee and time is precious. I would be absolutely thrilled about the snow if I didn't have so much work to do before Christmas! So far, the snow has prevented me from going to Salem for a much-needed site visit and all of the libraries that contain things that I need are closed again today. I'm ready to pull out my hair.

Jesse encouraged me to treat today as a "weekend" and take care of personal tasks before we head down to California for Christmas (like making a packing list and gathering together our presents and wrapping them). It's going to be difficult, but I have been pretty excited about the fabrics I purchased to wrap Christmas gifts this year. We're going to try and make it a "no disposable wrapping" holiday, so I have a few things to sew this week!

Our Tree

During the five past Christmases that Jesse and I have been a couple, we've never had a tree. Every year we usually get an ornament or two from family or friends and never really know what to do with them. I feel that Christmas 2008 follows a pretty eventful year and warrants a little more effort; we moved to Portland, celebrated our first wedding anniversary, and have finally (almost) gotten new jobs. Since we haven't yet hung photos (New Years resolution #1) I decided that I wanted to do something seasonal to spruce up the apartment.

I picked up this spindly little metal tree from Ikea a few weeks ago and stashed it away in the closet. The snow on Sunday really made it feel like winter and finally like Christmas, so we pulled out the tree and gathered all of the ornaments we own (minus the cool glass snowflake one that somehow was not packed with the other ornaments -- I'll find it in May for sure). It's not much, but it does feel festive. And there's no chance of it catching on fire while we're out of town (unless the pig somehow figures out how to light our grenade lamp).

To continue the festive spirit, tonight we were supposed to go to a holiday party given by Jesse's new office in Portland. Even though he's only working part-time, they have been really great including him in all of the non-work related activities. Unfortunately, the party was postponed until January due to the fact that most streets in the city resemble an ice skating rink. We both nearly wiped out last night running some errands on foot, so I can't say that I'm surprised. In lieu of the holiday party, I think this evening I will make Jesse turn on some Christmas tunes (the Muppet's Christmas with John Denver), pour me a festive drink, and enjoy a blustery evening at our toasty apartment.

Ahh Home Again

Friday night, we all decorated gingerbread houses (we've been doing it for over 10 years) and it finally started to feel like Christmas. It's hard to feel festive when the weather is 60 degrees and sunny. This year, since my parents are in an apartment until their house is finished, they didn't get a Christmas tree, so the gingerbread houses were the only decoration.

We also picked up our dog, Coco, from the vet where she was boarded while we were in Charleston and Savannah. It was great to spend some time with her before we left. She's and old lady now, so all of the excitement of other dogs wore her out. She mostly slept and hung out on the sidelines on Friday and Saturday morning.

We travelled back to Portland on Saturday from my parent's place in Florida and breathed a huge sigh when we walked in the door. Although we had a wonderful vacation with my family, it was nice to come home and sit in my chair, sleep in our bed, and eat at our table. We also came home to an arctic blast that has caused the temperatures here in Portland to linger in the mid 20s -- I was pretty much assured by numerous people that it never gets this cold in Portland, and snow is a rarity. Yesterday, we were pleasantly surprised to wake up to big puffy flakes. Finally, it feels like the holidays.

We took a walk yesterday just before sunset to pick up some basic food items -- our milk went sour while we were gone, so I was forced to put ice cream in my coffee for breakfast Sunday morning. Our walk was cold and very, very icy. I was shocked that the streets hadn't been salted at all. This morning the roads look like a nightmare, all of the black that you see (that looks like melted snow) is really just a giant sheet of ice. It certainly is pretty, though.

I'm glad I made a giant pot of chili to keep us warm for the next couple of days. I think the cold will linger for a little while.

1852 Rowhouse

Our apartment in Savannah was located in a 1852 row house that's listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The exterior is impeccable and has been well-kept. The inside, while clean and spacious, is crammed with knick-knacks, do-dads, and lots of lace. The master bathroom had a tub that was large enough for our entire family and there was a baby grand piano in the parlor.


The walls were clad in red damask wall paper that was punctuated by an array of prints ranging from classic impressionist paintings and rather strange posters from a bygone era. If we had chosen to soak in the family-sized tub, we could have set our sights on this scantily clad butt during our soak.

The lady (with clothes that somehow were run through a paper shredder) greeted us every day when we came home from touring the city. The shredded lady was sandwiched between a 1920s ad and a movie poster for Gone with the Wind. I'm not sure if Scarlett O'Hara would approve.

Unlike Charleston, Savannah was warm and balmy. The temperature hovered right around 65 degrees during the day, but the humidity hung in the air and made our hair unruly and our shirts damp -- even while just strolling along the streets. Despite the fact that it was the middle of December, the city was still beautiful. The fountain in Forsythe Park was still running and the trees hadn't yet lost all of their leaves.

We didn't tour any of the houses in Savannah, instead choosing to take a trolley tour. Our legs were tired after all of the walking around Charleston and we decided it would be a lot more fun to see all of the city and just hop on and off the trolley when we found a site that looked interesting. Of course we walked by the Mercer-Williams house that was a prominent setting in the book, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Even without the history behind it, I think the house is pretty amazing.

One benefit of the accoutrement in our row house was the opportunity to channel our inner child. Katie and I had lots of fun on our last night in Savannah playing dress up with items we pulled off the walls, mantles (from the 5 fireplaces scattered throughout), as well as our bedrooms and the parlor. Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls in the dining room? Heck, why not?!

Jesse opted to watch rather than play along -- especially since the only thing left for him to wear was the undergarment to my lacy negligee. The woman who owns this house must be seriously out of her mind, but the lacy bedstead, flowery towels, and bizarre sense of style made for a pretty good time in Savannah. I don't think I've giggled this much in a very long time!

Christmas Vacation

In the wee hours of the morning on Saturday (4:15 am to be exact), J and I walked to the Max Red train bound for the airport. We had a very non-direct flight to Jacksonville, FL, first stopping in Minnesota (14 degrees), then Cincinnati (23 degrees and snowing) before landing at our destination. We took a puddle hopper from Cincinnati to Florida and because the plane was so short we had to board on the ground. It was cold.

Sunday morning J, my mom, dad, sister and I piled in our rented minivan and set out on I-95 toward Charleston, S.C. After stopping for breakfast, we were ready for the near 4-hour drive. The trip was relatively uneventful, except for J picking on my sister (like a true member of the family) and the traditional game of finding as many different license plates and yellow cars as possible.

From there, Charleston was literally a series of walks and meals. We took a night tour of the historic district that focused on crime (promising pirates, prostitution, and murder). I was pretty excited about the pirates. However, we mostly learned about ladies of the night, "Marys," prohibition, and Charleston's most hated serial killers. Apparently, Charleston didn't take prohibition very seriously and you could get your doctor to prescribe "weekend medicine" in case you couldn't possibly go Saturday and Sunday without your whiskey or gin. It's funny, we have a bunch of weekend medicine at home. Also, we learned the roots of the phrase "tap the admiral". I think that one has to be an urban legend.

On Monday, J had to sit in on a conference call for work, so my mom, sister and I walked down to the Charleston Market and checked out the local artisans. I found this cool basket and decided that it would look great in our apartment. (Disclaimer, it wasn't made in Charleston, but rather a group of women in Uganda.) Merry Christmas to me! It has been several years since I visited Charleston, so I was happy to just soak in the atmosphere and partake in the delicious cuisine. That leads me to the three highlights of our stay in Charleston:

1) Lunch at Magnolia's. J had the Low Country Bouillabaisse, which was out of this world, and I had Parmesan crusted flounder over Carolina rice cooked in a shrimp stock. This was the meal that displayed the pinnacle of southern cooking -- fresh ingredients, slow cooking, and delicious sauces. Also, rice isn't just a side dish here in South Carolina, it's a state of mind -- someday I hope to perfect my technique.

2) Lunch at Hominy Grill. On our way out of town on Tuesday, we stopped in to have lunch. The Hominy Grill is a little more "down home" cooking than Magnolia's, but no less tasty. I had a sesame-crusted catfish over fried cheese grits with sauteed okra and a geechee peanut sauce. J had a low country purloo, which is a rice casserole with sausage, shrimp and chicken. MMM!

3) Our stop at Middleton Place, which was an 18th-century plantation. We learned about the plantation through brochures found in various places in Charleston, but also when we visited the Old Slave Mart and learned that the beautiful French-inspired landscape was largely executed by slaves over the course of a decade. The skill required to create the terracing, the ponds and gardens was incredible. We spent over two hours walking around the grounds. Even in the middle of December, the landscape was breathtaking and I can only imagine how it must look when all of the trees and flowers are in bloom. I took tons of photos, but they'll have to wait until later.

No Time for Blogging, Dr. Jones!

I never got around to blogging about our Thanksgiving in Santa Cruz. We spent a wonderful week with J's family and I stuffed myself on delicious food and desserts. It was great to catch up with friends and share a holiday that I have yet to spend with his family. However, the details will have to wait until another time. Today is an unbelievably busy Friday that will only continue to get more hectic.

We leave for Florida to visit my parents tomorrow morning at 4:30am (so we can take the Max to the airport). Once we reach Florida, we will celebrate an early Christmas with my mom, dad and sister in Charleston, SC and Savannah, GA. There we will also stuff ourselves silly on delicious food and desserts. In another stroke of brilliance, I have yet to pack my things. In fact, I haven't even thought about packing my things. There really isn't any reason other than the thought of taking my clothes out of our suitcase, refolding and then putting them right back in has been physically painful. Ok, I exaggerate -- it's mostly because lately I have honed my procrastination skills in the absence of a real job. Now that I've left the packing to the last minute, the task will literally be physically painful. The whole right side of my body feels like it's been steamrolled from my little bike mishap yesterday. I groan when I sit and can't really lift my arm past my waist.

Oh and the reason this week was sucked into a black hole? Both of my contracting jobs decided they wanted to start on the same day, STAT! This week has engulfed me with mounds of paperwork, multiple security forms and background checks, as well as planning and scheduling with two different companies. I have a meeting this afternoon at 3pm, so this morning has been preparing (or rather refreshing my memory) to talk about stuff I knew really well 3 months ago. I'm not complaining. It's really exciting, but also poorly timed. I had more free time than any human being should be allowed all through September, October and November. December, however, is already jammed with travel.

J is also starting up a new job (just part time) with a company here in Portland. Even though he's only working a small amount of hours, they've been very welcoming and included him in the office holiday celebrations. I'm happy that we have a holiday party to attend this year! It's a pretty exciting time for us both. Things that we hoped would happen right after we moved are finally starting to materialize.

Bike vs. Erin 1:0

Today I ate pavement on my bike, or rather, my bike threw me onto the pavement. Don't worry, I'm alive and relatively unharmed. I protected my face with nearly every other part of my body, so my knee, elbow and palms hurt, but not nearly as much as my pride. My Electra Townie is certainly an ungrateful wretch, given that just minutes before launching me onto 10th Avenue, I had installed blinky lights for riding at dusk and filled up its tires for maximum coasting potential.

The real culprit? It's one of the things that I fear most, which is riding next to the streetcar rails. I tried to cross over the track and my wheel got caught in the groove. Instead of my bike heading to the right, it stayed put. Unfortunately, my body didn't get the message and kept going in the intended direction. The whole thing happened in slow motion -- I know this because I had an entire monologue in my head:

Dear god, not my face! We're taking family photos in just a couple of days -- not that I haven't taken plenty of photos with visible bruises and scrapes, but as an adult it would be embarrassing -- will I never outgrow my insane clumsiness?! Oh shit, flying to Florida with a concussion is going to suck, especially if I have to wear bandages on my head. Son of a @!$%^ I have a meeting tomorrow afternoon! How do you accessorize a head injury? Oh well, at least I didn't wear my good jeans and we didn't stop by the grocery store to get eggs. Shut up! Protect the face!

Now my bike looks a little worse for the wear (like someone unleashed a large dog in the basement and it found comfort gnawing on my seat and right handlebar).

Oh, and also, I ripped a hole in the toe of my 14-day-old shoes and nearly tore through my jeans. Now that I think about it, my big toe hurts as well. Overall? Shitty outing. However, I'm oddly not terrified of going back out again. Just pissed at myself for being a dumbass. Next time, though, I will insist on taking a different route.

Gnome Sweet Gnome

***This post was initially written in August, 2008***

As I have learned from numerous giggle-filled stories, Jesse and his college roommates, Ian and Larson take practical jokes and general spleening very seriously. Now that they no longer live together, or even in the same cities, they have to find new and creative ways to keep the romance alive.

For the past few years, Ian and Larson have traded possession of a rather disturbing Ann Geddes baby doll that is dressed like a ladybug. I can't recall the details of how the baby doll trade began, but at this point in the game it doesn't really matter. Apparently, the doll was stowed away in Ian's luggage on his last visit to Santa Cruz and has been living in Sacramento for about a year. This past weekend we went to Sacramento to visit Ian and his wife, Mary, and were charged with a very important mission -- to transport the baby doll to Santa Cruz. In order to up the ante, we were also given a hideous, yet charming, gnome cookie jar (from Mary's grandparents' house) in which to stash the doll.

After waiting for just the right time to plant the gnome, an opportunity presented itself today (Saturday, August 30th, 2008). Jesse and I stopped by Larson and Serena's this afternoon to scope out potential hiding places. When we arrived, Larson, Serena, and their friends Tex and Rain, were all elbow-deep in gardening in the back yard. At that point, I knew we had to strike -- and quick! I poked around the living room and found that they have quite an ample fire place. Perfect, in my opinion, for gnomes.

I ran out to the car (where we had kept the gnome for about a week) and Jesse guarded the hallway to make sure I wouldn't get caught in the act of "decorating." I was so stealth that I was also able to snap a few photos to send to Ian and marvel at my brilliance before putting everything back in its place. We stayed for a little while to chat and it took all of my strength to not blurt out "Wow, it's kind of chilly! Maybe we should start a fire."

**Flash forward to November **

But I waited. And waited. Still, no word on the gnome. I determined that they found the ceramic jar and were waiting for just the right time to tell us -- like on Candid Camera. Now, almost exactly three months after our brilliant plant job, I cracked. I had been counting the weeks and days until we could finally stop by their house and have a hearty chuckle over their new beautiful cookie jar. Upon our arrival this evening, I scanned the shelves and tables to see where they had (prominently) displayed the treasure. I was disappointed to find that it was nowhere in sight. Being the skeptical person that I am, I immediately assumed that they found it and were hiding it just to torment my poor soul.

Apparently, the joke was on me because Larson and Serena never use the fireplace. The gnome was still hanging out in the ashes where I left it in August. Even though I ruined the surprise (that might never have even happened) I think they were still stunned. And stoked. It was a good night indeed.