Sandbeach

Oh Geez.... How do I even start this post? Three words- SO MUCH FUN!!! 

I had the best time hanging with my brother, his son and all his buddies this past weekend at Sand Beach, Oregon. I completely understand my brother's obsession with ATV's now. I am so thankful that he was so generous with letting me borrow his ATV especially since he had the most desirable ATV of all. I felt like I was driving the Hot Rod.  His little engine had so much get up and go that I was able to easily catch up with other ATV's on the beach.. I can't really explain how exhilarating it was to ride on the sand. I ride my motorcycle almost every day, but there was definitely something more playful and unleashed about cuttin' loose, doing donuts, sprinting up a very steep hill.... I have been at work all day and all I can think about is how to get my next ATV fix. 

I hope this urge simmers down soon. I certainly don't have the funds to be adopting new hobbies. I guess I will just look forward to next years trip. I have posted some pics from this years trip. 

Dave and Will hitting the beach on day 1. Will and his little 'mini' ATV were so cute!My first ride on the ATV.

Dave's awesome dog Lucy. She and Baby spent some quality time together in the truck. 
I love this picture! Wish I could wiggle my nose and be there right now!
My brother is the best Dad! His little boy idolizes him and it was so great to be around both of them. Words can't express how cool I think my brother is. 
Baby and Lucy- in the truck again!!
Dave taking his boy for a walk down to the water.
We had bonfires on the beach each night after dinner. It was perfect.
My brother the cook. I don't usually eat bacon and the grease that accompanies it, but this weekend I had one of the best egg, bacon and cheese sandwiches I have had in a long time. I love bacon.
I had to capture this face!
Dave taking Will for a fast ride!
One of the guys had a motocross bike that I rode for a short while. It wasn't fun though. Trying to keep it upright was a real workout. I rode it for about 10 minutes and felt successful because I DIDN'T eat sand. I'll stick with 4 wheels in the sand.
My rad brother doing pop-o-wheeley, I mean a wheeley. 
It looks like he was going to fall off here, but he got it upright again. Scary!

Will sitting on a 'big boy' ATV eating an apple next to the fire.

This was me charging up a hill.

Loved this peek-a-boo sunset!
So the three of us slept in the same tent. Can I just say that I had so much fun with these two guys! It was also kind of funny because I don't spend a ton of time with my brother, but found that we have some of the same mannerisms and preferences. For example, we brought a lot of the same beverages and snacks. We also seemed to laugh at the same time with very similar sounding laughs. I love my brother and this trip made me want to hang out with him more. He is that quiet guy in the group that everyone looks to for guidance and answers, yet he can gracefully put someone in their place when they are out of line. He is humble and consistently fair with every decision. He is an amazing human being.
On Sunday I drove 20 minutes south to Pacific City (my favorite spot on the Oregon Coast). I made a pretty sorry attempt to surf on Sunday afternoon. *** Note to self ***  ATVing and surfing do not go well together. I was SO sore from riding I could barely lift my hands above my head. Turns out you need to hold on real tight to not fall off the ATV when you are cruising on bumpy sand and this causes great discomfort in the back and arm muscles. I surfed for a little while and then found that napping on the beach in the sun was a better way to spend my time. 

I have to stop with these fun weekends. They are making my workdays inch by at a slugs pace.  Oh to be a millionaire-

Two things--

First- it is 11:30 and I just got home from the Brandi Carlile concert. She is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Did I mention that she went to Tahoma High School in Maple Valley, WA about 10 minutes from where I grew up? Yep! We are practically best friends... No, not really. But I love watching her sing. Amazing Lyrics-- Amazing Voice!

Second- I wanted to share a quote that I decided is a great motto for my life. I was at the gym earlier this week and caught about 30 minutes of Regis and Kelly while I was running on the treadmill. Alan Alda was on the show and he said this: "Life is uncertainty- so why not try to ride a board on it?" I don't know if he likes to snowboard, surf or longboard on smooth asphalt, but when he said that, my ears perked up and I felt a connection to Mr. Alan. The funny thing is that I never really had a fondness for *M*a*s*h*. Thanks for the inspiration Alan Alda!

Exhausted and ready to shut my eyes!

I really wasn't going to blog about this.........

......but, what the heck. Why not?

If you are offended by the male or female reproductive anatomy - please stop reading now. 

If you are comfortable with penises and vaginas, read on.

This post evolved from a little gag gift that Heather and I have put to good use since we moved in together. The magic gift was a baking pan in the shape of a penis. I know-- it is seems a bit childish, but we get a good laugh by creating different treats with our new bakeware. 

Our original plan was to have people over for a housewarming party with goal of using up all the food that we had both brought with us from our previous residences. You know, the boxed starchy side dishes, dried beans, ramen soup, canned vegetables, etc. We wanted our pantry back! Then we wondered which of those foods we could prepare in our new bakeware for a themed party? Heather labeled it 'the phallic foods festival of '09'. Then Erica suggest the P and V party with the idea of including the anatomy of both sexes. My goodness it got out of hand and before we knew it, we had an apartment full of people eating great food. 

I felt like I needed to post this because my roomie and her boyfriend make fantastic food with special attention given to the presentation. The following pic captures the detail Heather put into her cheese plate. 

This cheese plate included a Chevre, Colby and blue cheese. It also had olive tapenade, blueberries, dried figs and dried kiwi fruit. 

Erica and Dave brought strawberries and cream.
I prepared a veggie plate (I can't look at this pic without giggling**blush**blush**).
Heather was able to use the male inspired bakeware to make both angel food cake and a jello mold. 
We all sat around the table eating and having some good laughs.
Heather's boyfriend Matt made one of his delicious salads with dressing from scratch. He did manage to actually use something from our pantry. Hearts of Palm from a jar I bought at Costco about 2 years ago. Yay for freeing up pantry space!

So Yeah.... This post is a bit awkward, but it was all in good fun. and just so you don't think the V's were under represented at the party, we had bunt cake, red pepper vaginas, Pigs in a blanket with both body parts..... There were all kinds of human body creations. 

We should celebrate our body parts... right? I think this is part of the 30's thing. I definitely feel that I'm growing more comfortable with myself and my body as I grow older. At this rate maybe I'll be a stripper by the time I'm 50? Bad Idea.... I know.... I'll pass on the stripper thing!

Off to the beach tomorrow with my brother, his oldest boy and a ton of my brother's guy friends. Should be fun! 

Table Rock Wilderness

Yay for Backpacking! Nurse Betty (we work together with the oldies) and I embarked on a short two-day trip to Table Rock Wilderness. It is about 45 minutes south of Milwaukie and one of my new favorite outdoor destinations. Eventhough it was foggy and rainy for our ascent up to Table Rock, it was still a beautiful hike full of wonderful things to look at. Because I am obsessed with photography, I took the liberty of posting a bazillion photos..... all from a two-day one-night trip!

This was at the beginning of our hike.
The trail definitely had it's steep parts. The trailhead sign was missing, so we hiked more than we had planned- about 8 or 9 miles total and an elevation gain of 1500 feet. Not a super hard workout, but we over packed hoping to get some extra training in. There was also no water, so we packed in all our water, and wine of course!!! The trip down was MUCH lighter.
Loved these JuJu Bee Mushrooms!
I like bugs.
Baby posing at a viewpoint about half way up.
There was a huge landslide that we had to traverse across. It was full of snow and large boulders. We were happy to get passed that point....both times.

Once at the top, it was a bit disheartening. We knew there was so much to see, but the fog was just too dense.

I was imagining what my excitement would look like if Mt. Shasta was behind me in this pic. Apparently on a clear day you can see From Mt. Rainier (WA) to Mt. Shasta(CA)! We will be back on a clear day for a day hike to prove this theory.

I heart Mountain House dinners and wine from a cardboard box while camping. So does Betty.
Betty's camera takes awesome panorama photos!
Wish I could build a log cabin on this spot- What a view!
Happy Ladies about to hike down.
=-)
Say Cheese!
The trail down the begins.
Loved the fresh air.
This tree photo was taken especially for Dr. E.G.S!
Mini-pine cones.... I know I take too many pictures!
So these photos do not do this rock formation justice! The thick fog kept us from seeing the source of the major landslide we climbed over on the way up. Day two was much clearer and we were able to see the entire Table Rock. It was impressive! It is difficult to capture the magnitude of this rock. It was massive and the rocks fell so geometrically. I swear if I didn't love old people I would be a geologist. The earth is awesome!
Betty took this photo with me in it for perspective.
Another panoramic shot by Betty.

And of course, a cheesy shot to finish up with.  It was hard to go back to work today. All I could do was sit around and daydream about my next life as a forest ranger. Luckily, I'll be back outside next weekend with my Brother Dave and Nephew Will on the dunes on a 4-wheeler. Seriously- when did I get so lucky? Lovin Life right now fo' Sure!

Mom's roses

My trip to Seattle was a complete success! I had a safe and pleasant drive, after navigating through a severe wind/lightening/rain storm on my Motorcycle on Thursday night in Portland. I was able to drop off items for storage and Mom's place, do all my laundry, spend a ton of quality time with Me Madre and I was also fortunate enough to take some of Mom's roses back to PDX with me! Aren't they beautiful?!?

my new neighbors

Meet Mama bird:

There is a convenient path near my building that provides a short cut to downtown Milwaukie. I use it often when taking Baby on a walk or when I go for a jog. Lately it is impossible to walk this little nature path without getting dive bombed by Mama bird. I finally walked a little slower and found a little nest at eye level. Three cute little hungry babies.... they are getting bigger and less awkward looking everyday!
I love-love the bird life around our new place! 

I'm staying pretty busy otherwise. Today I ran errands all day. I found a discounted indoor bike rack for our bicycles. I was also on the hunt for a bedside stand..... no luck as of yet. I did buy the hardware and materials for a shelf I'm going to mount above the water heater. Buddha will literally have a throne to do his business in. I'll take pictures and post the final product.  I loaded the car with stuff to go to Mom's house. I will make a short 16 hour trip to Seattle tomorrow night. Lastly and most important-- I purchased my fishing license! Betty and I will be getting our first camping trip of the season in this weekend. A quick two day trip on Friday night! I CAN NOT WAIT TO BE UNDER THE STARS!!!!

More later-

still unpacking....

So.... not really too much to report on these days. I have been busy unpacking the last of my boxes, making space for all my stuff, having friends over that I haven't seen in a while, enjoying the sunshiney weather, listening to the bird sanctuary that is my front and backyard and of course, tormenting my pets. 

Erica has been working so hard on her dissertation! She sent it off to her committee and I insisted she come over for a celebratory meal! I made Roasted Veggies and Asparagus garlic pesto whole wheat pasta. Heather and I also had to take some time to dress up Baby and Buddha. Baby wore her Harley outfit and Buddha was lucky enough to wear a Peter Pan outfit that Heather's dog Inka outgrew long ago. 

Buddha wasn't a fan of his new digs.....   good times!