Tam’s Think Tank

IMG_0701, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

It’s the last day of March. I went outside this morning and snapped a few photos of the yard, freshly coated in a nice new dusting of snow. Who can believe it. Snow, in late March. Where’s the sun? I’m ready for it!

We had a great weekend. Busy, but good. Saturday started off with snow falling at our place. We took off and went in to take our beginners kayaking class. We had to laugh. What idiots are we, taking a kayaking class on the Columbia River when it’s freezing outside. Ah well, we had a blast… and, it didn’t snow on us while we were out there so that was a good thing. From there we hurried home, changed, and then drove over the bridge to Vancouver to have dinner with Mom and Don and Kevin at Joe’s Crab Shack. Pretty tasty, but too loud. Made for some tough conversation, especially when they blasted the Macarena. We just sat at the table and did the dance, or at least did what we could remember of the dance. It was pretty funny. We couldn’t talk but, damn it, we could dance. After dinner we all headed back out to our place for some conversation and ice cream sundaes made with mom’s famous home made fudge sauce. Oh yeah!

Sunday was busy as well. Up early. We all ate oatmeal… Mom, Don, Kev, Karen, myself, and later Weston, who got up on the table and enjoyed what was left of the oatmeal in Don’s bowl. It seems Weston likes oatmeal. Who knew. We don’t usually feed him people food, even though he thinks he’s a person. After the oatmeal we sat down and looked at Mom and Don’s pictures from their trip to Mexico and Guatemala. They got some great shots and had an amazing time.

Later, after viewing the photos, we all caravaned over to our rental house to do a bit of work there. Nothing too major or exciting, but the blinds got trimmed, the medicine cabinet got put in, the carpet got cut to size, some holes got filled, and the refrigerator and stove got cleaned. After that we went out for a bite of lunch from which Mom and Don and Kevin all took their leave of us. Karen and I then went home, picked up the boy, and headed to Home Depot, our home away from home during this remodeling process, to buy some more stuff for the rental. We were able to make it back to the rental place with our goods intact, which was a miracle considering the variety of weather we drove through to get back over there and then home. We were finally back home and able to take the shoes off at about 7:00 PM. It was a full day… a full weekend. We topped off the night by watching Michael Clayton. I can’t decide if I liked it or not. It was kind of a non-movie. I kept waiting for something more to happen and it never did. It wasn’t terrible, just not incredible.

And then this morning… snow. Makes me laugh. Right now it’s raining outside. The sky is black, again and for what seems like the hundredth time in the last week. Ah well… they’re saying sun by week’s end. I hope so, there’s more kayaking in our future as we’re going this coming Saturday with a huge group. I’m glad we took the class. At least we’ll have a better chance of not inadvertently nailing anyone with our paddles. Or, that’s what we’re hoping for anyway….

This week’s photo hunt is high. I’m a tad late, once again, posting for the week. Too much going on in our busy lives right now I guess. But, again, better late than never. This is a shot I took right near our house. We live in the forest not far from Portland and when I think of things that are high, or tall, or things that compel me to look up, I think of these beautiful trees.

If you’d like to join in the photo hunt fun, click here for all the how to info.

It’s March 28, and snowing.  Not much more to say about that other than… what the hell?  I’m looking out the window of my office and can see several fishing boats out on the Columbia River.  Those are some die hard fishermen.  My director, Stan, included.  He’s out there somewhere, braving the cold with the hope of catching the big one.  I think I’d rather be right where I am.  Warm and dry.  Even though I am at work….

We’re supposed to go kayaking tomorrow.  We’re taking a beginners lesson.  I think the phrase here is… dress warmly.  That and refusing to do the whole dump in the river thing.  I don’t think I want to get extremely wet and cold in all this cold.  Though I am still looking forward to the class.  Call me a bit crazy.  It might be sort of pretty kayaking around in the snow.  I just don’t want to get dumped into the river when it’s freezing outside.  Say no to freezing.

Tonight we’re going to an empty bowls event.  You buy your ticket, go in, choose one of a huge number of hand made bowls, take your bowl over to the soup line, and then sit down with your bowl of soup and your piece of bread.  It’s a charity event.  It’s supposed to raise money and awareness for the many hungry people locally as well as in the world.  It’s totally a great and worthwhile way to spend a few hours.  Plus, you get a cool bowl to take home with you.  We did this last year and loved it so we’re going again this year with some friends.  Should be fun.

Otherwise this weekend it’s going to be all about the rental house again.  We have a couple of little things that need to get done.  We can’t do anything major, like painting the inside, until the rest of the windows get put in, which is supposed to happen next week… we hope.  We’re getting an estimate on getting the outside painted as well.  So, we’re getting close… can’t wait.

Ah, the snow stopped… for now at least.  Wonder if it’s still snowing at our place.  We live up in the hills and always get a lot more snow than here at the office.  I should call and see….

Reflection, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Surprise, surprise… it had rained all day before we went walking in the woods near our house. There were several of these puddles, making excellent natural mirrors.

Blanket of Green, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

We only left our house yesterday for a little walk in the woods nearby. The moss on these trees is a constant reminder that we live in a rain forest. It grows everywhere and can actually be incredibly beautiful.

Signs of Spring, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

I took this one at the house yesterday as well. It’s a true sign of spring. The daffodils are blooming.   For those of you who look you probably already spied this photo over on my other blog, image – ination.  I used it as my photo of the day yesterday and love it so much I’m also posting it here.

The Little Man, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Yesterday we had a great day hanging out at home. We were busy, really busy, the day before, so just hanging out and being together as a little family was wonderful. Here’s the little man enjoying his day at home. We took his collar off so he could be naked. It gives him a break from having to wear it. Thanks, Mary, for the idea. I think he likes it.

It’s Easter Sunday. We’re both sitting here, me in the big chair, Karen on the love seat, perusing stuff on our respective laptops. It’s raining outside. Typical for Oregon this time of year. Weston is laying down on the top of the cushion behind my back and his little head is resting on my shoulder. I love when he does this. He’s such a cuddly little fellow.

Yesterday we were busy. A drive to the rental to pick up the old sinks, medicine cabinet, and hand rail we took out of the house, or should I say had taken out of the house, and then a drive to the Rebuilding Center. A truly fun and great place to hang out and look for “stuff”. It’s like treasure hunting. My grandmother would’ve loved it. We dropped off the stuff we took to them and ended up buying a 12 x 12 section of new carpet, at a cost of $20 I might add, for one of the bedroom in the rental. What a deal. After that we headed back to the rental to drop off the carpet and then picked up all the garbage, from the various construction projects we’ve had going on, and took it to the dump. From there we came home and started working on the yard here. Mowing, weeding, trimming, hoeing… it looks so much better now. Weston had a blast all day as we took him with us everywhere. He’s a very happy guy as long as he can stay with us. We were done about 6:30 last night. Still enough time left in the day to take showers, even Weston who needed one as he’d dug in many of the flower beds when we were working outside, and then watch a couple of movies.

The movies… The Hunting Party. Richard Gere and Terence Howard. Terence, I hope I just spelled your name right. Anyway… good movie. Interesting… and also true. It’s the story of how some journalists decide they are going to go and try to interview a war criminal that no one else, state departments, nato, etc. have been able to find. They find him. It’s all done in sort of a comic, I can’t believe this is happening, kind of way. It worked. I liked it. The other movie, In the Valley of Elah… Excellent. Also based on true events. Tommy Lee Jones, Susan Sarandon, and Charlize Theron. Really good. Very well acted. It’s about a soldier from Iraq who comes home and goes missing a few days after getting back. Of the two I’d say rent In the Valley of Elah, but both are pretty good.

Today… we have no real plans. How nice. We might meet a couple of friends for an Easter meal at some restaurant, but haven’t really narrowed those plans down. If not, we’re good just being at home, the three of us. Right now, as I said, Weston is sleeping up by my neck, keeping it warm. His bone, the one Karen gave him only just a little bit ago, is sitting by my feet on a towel on the ottoman. Not very attractive. But then, we’re used to bones laying around the house. He likes to hide them. We don’t really mind. This morning I thought, a little late given it was already Easter morning, that we should’ve gotten some sort of dog treats we could’ve hidden around the house. Then we could’ve had an Easter “egg” hunt for the boy. I guess giving him a bone is going to have to do it. I don’t think he minds.

To each of you out there… here’s wishing a day of joy, peace, and love for you no matter what the day brings for you. Happy Easter everyone.

Gangway, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

 Since I was so late in posting last week’s photo, scroll down and you’ll see that it’s there, I wanted to get a jump on it this week.

The theme for the week is Metal. I took this one near the end of the year last year. This gangway is fairly new and goes down to the public docks on the Columbia River. It was sunset and the pink in the sky and reflected in the water was lovely. It made a nice contrast to the metal of the gangway.

If you want to join in all the photo hunting fun, click here to find out how.

Light of the Moon, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

We got home a bit late last night and when we did the moon was full and the stars were out, sort of. It’s Oregon, it was the first day of spring, and there were clouds and rain yesterday. We just happened to catch the moon and stars peeking out for a short time. Not a bad shot, this, considering I was using the camera on my phone… no tripod.

It’s Friday now… whoo hoo! We have plans already set up for tomorrow to… yep, you guessed it, work on the rental house. We’ve had a couple of sinks replaced there, thanks Tim, and are going to pick up the old sinks and a couple of other items (a medicine cabinet we took out) and take them to the Rebuilding Center. What a great place that is. They take donations of “stuff” you’ve taken out of your house. It’s a huge place. You can also go in and buy, for very reasonable prices, parts to fix almost anything in your house. It’s all stuff that’s been recycled out of old buildings and homes. So, we’re taking them our old sinks, which are really in fairly decent shape, and we’re going to pick up some newish carpet and a pad to go in one of the bedrooms of our rental. This is the place where we bought the sinks we just put into the rental. Let me tell ya… good deals. We paid only $35 bucks for a really nice, very new, pedestal sink. And it looks great in there. Our plumber, the aforementioned Tim, was so impressed that he asked where this place was and has already been there. If you’re in need of some remodeling materials, check this place out. It’s a great concept, they have a great selection, and we want to keep it open by continuing to support them.

Otherwise for the coming weekend we will most likely try to get some work done around here. Our poor yard, due to weather and our being over at the rental a lot, has suffered and needs our attention. It think there’s some mowing, hoeing, and trimming in our future.

For those wondering about mom… Mom and Don are safely back from their backpacking travels around Mexico and Guatemala. We know they have stories and pictures to share and we can’t wait to see them, hug them, and get the full scoop.

Right now it’s 7:23 in the morning… Karen is working away, and has been since 6:30, Weston is curled up in his little bed, and I’m contemplating getting ready for work. It’s cute looking at Weston in his little bed. He’s always so funny about it. This is the bed we bought for him when we first brought him home. It’s not huge. Later, after he’d grown quite a bit, we bought him another, bigger, bed. Well… he only uses the big bed rarely to sleep on, more often to chew on, and has stuck pretty much to using the little bed. Like now. He’s a sweet little lad. Alrighty then… it’s off to work for me.

Ok folks, here’s the deal… We have been busy.  Very busy in fact.  So busy that I haven’t posted much over the last couple of weeks.  Sure, there’s been the occasional photo and yes, I’ve tried to keep up with the whole photo of the day thing over at image – ination, but otherwise… nothing.  The reason for my lack of presence is da da da dum (very serious music, that) is our rental house.  Between trips to Home Depot and Lowe’s and then back to the rental and to do work or meet with work men, it’s been a tad crazy.

I’ve re-dedicated myself try and will try to be better about it.  Stay tuned… future posts WILL be forth coming.

Water Colors, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

I’m a bit late this week posting for the hunt. Ah well, our lives have been a bit crazy and busy, what can I say.

As for the photo I’m posting… I took this one at Lake Mead, Nevada. Look for the dock. This is the closest thing I could find to something I’ve taken that had a hidden element to it.

If you want to play along and join the fun, click here.

We had a busy day today. Get up, load up the mower, weed eater, and some garbage bags and head over to the rental house to take care of the lawn, head to the recycling center to dump off the metal from the gas heater in the scrap metal pile, run home to shower and get ready to drive in, park, and then ride the streetcar to see Corteo, the latest Cirque Du Soleil show that’s in town, and get home in time so the little man doesn’t feel like he’s been totally abandoned. Whew… and that was just today.

Yesterday we drove to Newberg to watch a rugby match, went to the Dairy Queen in Newberg to get coney dogs (they still make and sell them at that particular Diary Queen, though they aren’t on the menu now, just like they did when Kev and I were kids growing up in that area… when we’re there, we have to get them. It’s required.), drive home to change, then head in to a women’s kayaking meeting to see if we one, liked the group, and two, find out about starting to kayak. Where they go, what they do, how skilled we actually have to be. That sort of thing. We liked them so I think there may just be some kayaking in our future.

As for Corteo today… we liked it. Maybe not quite as much as Varekei (I can’t remember how to spell it), the last show that came to town, but still… we liked it. Just really amazing. My favorite part… the acrobats. The part of the show that made me think of my mom… the whistling ring master. He had a good set of whistling lips on him and I kept thinking, mom would love this. Plus, she could’ve totally done his part. She’s an amazing whistler. I’m going to tell her she missed her chance at whistling stardom. If we’d only known they were looking for whistlers…. damn.

The Ball, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

I just love this shot. So much so I posted it here and also at image – ination as my photo of the day, number 301.

Watching The Game, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Here’s the boy, very interested in the game… or maybe it was that other dog nearby.

The Necessities, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Very important stuff for the kids playing rugby today. Must hydrate.

Rugby Anyone?, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

We went to see our friend’s team, he’s the coach, play a game of rugby today. Man, what a rough sport. Very fun to watch though. These kids were/are amazing. To top it off, our team won! Woo Hoo! Can’t wait to see what you guys can do next weekend.

Join the movement, participate… act. March 29, 2008 at 8:00 PM. To find out more go to the Earth Hour website. Sign up. Make a difference. Make a statement. Make history. Help shed some light.

Casa Batllo, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

The theme for the photo hunt this week is different. I looked through my recent archives and ran across some pictures I took in Barcelona, Spain of the Gaudi buildings. Nothing says different and unique in architecture like a Gaudi building. Strange, beautiful and amazing stuff. I’d never seen anything like them.

 This is Casa Batlló.  You can find out more by clicking on the official site link here and/or by going to the wikipedia link here.  Check out these sites, it’s pretty interesting stuff.

If you want to join in the photo hunt follow the link here to get all the info and then start taking some pictures!

I read this quote today in the Sierra Club’s Daily Ray of Hope e-mail. I loved it and thought I’d share.

The forests are the flags of nature. They appeal to all and awaken inspiring universal feelings. Enter the forest and the boundaries of nations are forgotten. It may be that some time an immortal pine will be the flag of a united peaceful world.

– Enos A. Mills

Handsome Birthday Boy, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Today is Weston’s first birthday. We celebrated by taking him to the natural pet store and buying him bully stix, some fancy treats, and a new toy, a stuffed hedgehog, that he picked out himself. All in all I’d say it was a good first birthday for him.