I'm off!
I'm taking a long weekend that isn't tied to a national holiday, company mandated shutdown day or sick day. I got to choose this one all by myself! A small thing, I know, but important to some of us....
So, you're wondering, what exactly am I going to do with all this extra free time?
I'm glad you asked!
We will be spending the weekend in beautiful Oceanside, Oregon. It's a small town due west of Tillamook. Now, with luck, the weather forecast of overcast but no rain will hold. We will be staying in a cottage with a view of the ocean, I'm told. Pictures will be forth comming upon our return. There is a very nice resteraunt in Oceanside so we will have at least one good meal. I expect that we will do some exploring up and down the coast, enjoy the views and investigate the stores and shops along the way.
I hope to get a little quiet time too. I've just started Vol III of Churchills History of the English Speaking Peoples. William of Orange has just accepted the Crown (William II) and is preparing to do battle with Louis XIV. A major figure of the time is the Duke of Marlborough, one of Winston's ancestors. I want to find out how it ends.....
It is starting to dawn on us that we will be without net access for the weekend. A day without using a computer or surfing the internet? I can't remember the last time that happened. This will be different!
In other news:
The granddaughter in Washington (Tyfini) start school on Monday! The school year is spread out with larger breaks at the traditional times. High School! She has already won a spot on the Freshmen Cheerleading Squad. School Spirit!!!
The grandson (Eric) has started football practice. Flag football, but with shoulder pads, helmets and the whole works. I understand he has a few sore muscles.
So there you have it. More next week on how it went plus pictures. We will be taking the camera this time!
Thursday, August 26, 2004
Sunday, August 15, 2004
Fruits of our labor (with an assist from Ma Nature)
The sun has been doing it's magic on our tomato plants! We have had a couple of the early ones on salads this week (for quality control purposes, of course!) Just a little review for those who haven't been paying attention:
Early May
Add sun, rain and some Miracle Grow...
Early July
Lots more sun and an assist from the local water district and you get this:
And this
And some romas
And in a couple of days
Luckily squirrels and raccoons don't particularly care for tomatoes or they'd be long gone by now.
Next year we will be expanding the garden some. Some beans perhaps, some corn, a squash or two.
Sounds pretty good now, but we will see next spring when the time comes to start preparing the plot. When the work really starts...
The annual air show is at the local airport this weekend. The Blue Angles are in town, shaking the dust from everything as they go screaming by at low level. Spooked the dog the first couple of times but now he sleeps right through it. I don't know. Just something about something that powerful, that fast, that close. Makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck.
Next week Antique Roadshow is in town. Have to find something old to take to the appraisers. After that we are planning to take in the Titanic exhibit and IMAX film at Oregon Museun of Science and Industry (OMSI). I guess they give everyone a name of a passanger when they go in and at the end tell you if that person lived or died. Sounds interesting.
Gotta go to the store for some bacon. We're having BLT's for lunch, with fresh tomatoes! Care to join us?
Early May
Add sun, rain and some Miracle Grow...
Early July
Lots more sun and an assist from the local water district and you get this:
And this
And some romas
And in a couple of days
Luckily squirrels and raccoons don't particularly care for tomatoes or they'd be long gone by now.
Next year we will be expanding the garden some. Some beans perhaps, some corn, a squash or two.
Sounds pretty good now, but we will see next spring when the time comes to start preparing the plot. When the work really starts...
The annual air show is at the local airport this weekend. The Blue Angles are in town, shaking the dust from everything as they go screaming by at low level. Spooked the dog the first couple of times but now he sleeps right through it. I don't know. Just something about something that powerful, that fast, that close. Makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck.
Next week Antique Roadshow is in town. Have to find something old to take to the appraisers. After that we are planning to take in the Titanic exhibit and IMAX film at Oregon Museun of Science and Industry (OMSI). I guess they give everyone a name of a passanger when they go in and at the end tell you if that person lived or died. Sounds interesting.
Gotta go to the store for some bacon. We're having BLT's for lunch, with fresh tomatoes! Care to join us?
Thursday, August 05, 2004
The Wait is Over
I've been ISO audited!
And I survived!
Time for a celebration!
Thanks to the Freedom Monkey House for showing the way to a great way to celebrate
And I survived!
Time for a celebration!
Thanks to the Freedom Monkey House for showing the way to a great way to celebrate
Tuesday, August 03, 2004
A Dam Fish story
Had a nice time last Saturday, took a little day trip up the Columbia Gorge. Saw the falls, Multnomah Falls that is. We'd been out to see it years ago. Lots of years ago. We are happy to report that it is still quite impressive. I would post some pictures here but SOMEBODY forgot to pack the camera when we left the house. All you have is my word as to how nice and impressive all this was.... Soooooo, do you trust me? Well, do ya?????
We proceeded to the booming metropolis of Cascade Locks, location of the Bridge of the Gods, the first place to cross the Columbia into Washington outside of Portland. It's a toll bridge. We had lunch in a local resteraunt with a view of the bridge. There was a brisk wind blowing. Just like it does nearly everyday of the year we were told. A great spot for wind surfing. On our way back to Portland, we stopped at Bonneville Dam. Quite impressive. A campaign promise by FDR in the late 30's that seemed like a boon doggle at the time, but when the war rolled around turned into a pretty savvy move. It was able to provide the electricity for the Portland shipyards that were turning out a ship a day by the end of the war. The dam was built and is run by the Army Corp of Engineers. It consists of a spillway, a couple of powerhouses, a lock and a fish ladder for the salmon that need to go upstream to spawn. The fish ladders have windows where you can watch the salmon and lampreys work their way up stream, against the flow up the river. We took the mini tour of the facilities, incuding powerhouse. Impressive. LARGE scale engineering, especially to someone used to dealing in nanometers. Just outside the Dam grounds is a fish farm. A very nice park like setting with lots of fish ponds for seeing the fish up close: beautiful large rainbow trout - up to 24" long, and some 6' to 8' white sturgeon. BIG fish! Not to be confused with Sturgeons Law.
It wasn't too crowded either. That made it quite nice. The "Wilgus Luck" held: we got very good parking spaces everywhere we stopped. It was a very nice day.
We proceeded to the booming metropolis of Cascade Locks, location of the Bridge of the Gods, the first place to cross the Columbia into Washington outside of Portland. It's a toll bridge. We had lunch in a local resteraunt with a view of the bridge. There was a brisk wind blowing. Just like it does nearly everyday of the year we were told. A great spot for wind surfing. On our way back to Portland, we stopped at Bonneville Dam. Quite impressive. A campaign promise by FDR in the late 30's that seemed like a boon doggle at the time, but when the war rolled around turned into a pretty savvy move. It was able to provide the electricity for the Portland shipyards that were turning out a ship a day by the end of the war. The dam was built and is run by the Army Corp of Engineers. It consists of a spillway, a couple of powerhouses, a lock and a fish ladder for the salmon that need to go upstream to spawn. The fish ladders have windows where you can watch the salmon and lampreys work their way up stream, against the flow up the river. We took the mini tour of the facilities, incuding powerhouse. Impressive. LARGE scale engineering, especially to someone used to dealing in nanometers. Just outside the Dam grounds is a fish farm. A very nice park like setting with lots of fish ponds for seeing the fish up close: beautiful large rainbow trout - up to 24" long, and some 6' to 8' white sturgeon. BIG fish! Not to be confused with Sturgeons Law.
It wasn't too crowded either. That made it quite nice. The "Wilgus Luck" held: we got very good parking spaces everywhere we stopped. It was a very nice day.
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