Flying Fish, Fresh Cut Flowers, and a Space Needle

Okay, business first. I have a little over a week and a half left here in Oregon and I am anticipating my return home. I will be heading to New Bern, North Carolina for my next assignment. It's not as close to home as I would have like to have been, but at least it is on the same coast.

Now on to the fun stuff. In my quest to see every state in the US, I knew that I was too close to Washington to not take the opportunity to visit. Even thought it is only about an 8 hour drive, I chose to fly...I will reserve the driving for the 3,000 miles it will take to get back home. Seattle was just as I had imagined it from the movies and pictures that I have seen...wet, rainy, windy, with the sun breaking through the clouds occasionally. My overall impression of Seattle: beautiful and charming with a bunch of grumpy people. Not that everyone was this way, but it seemed the majority of people that I passed all had sour looks on their faces. Is it the rain and climate? Maybe. One place though, that seemed to have happy people was Pike Place Market. Immediately you see beautiful, over-sized flower arrangements being diligently made by the SE Asian Hmong women. Walk a little farther and mounds of colorful fruits and veggies abound. Vendors were every where displaying their crafts. The main attraction though, was the entertaining fishmongers at Pike Fish Market hurling fish high over customers to the countertops to be weighed and wrapped for travel. Much to my dismay, you had to purchase a fish to be able to catch it. Honestly, I didn't want to bother with flying back with a large fish that I wouldn't know how to cook. I was also disappointed to learn that I would not see a geoduck in person (you will have to look this up yourself). Anyway, did get to see some flying fish and purchase some smoked salmon. I can't leave out the gum wall. It is located in an alley near the market. You guessed it...already chewed gum stuck to the side of a wall. Quite interesting. Across from Pike Place Market was the original Starbucks' which started back in 1971. Not a big thrill for me. Being as Seattle is known for its coffee, I made it my mission to sample all the local brands. My winner- Tully's. What it lacked in atmosphere, it made up in flavor. I think I stayed jacked up on caffeine all weekend long.

The view from the hotel was spacey. Seattle's architectural icon, the Space Needle, was framed perfectly by the window and was a short walk away. At about 600 ft, the ride up the vintage, external elevators to the top was enjoyable, but the 360 degree panoramic view while dining at the revolving Space City restaraunt was awesome. I quickly got over my motion sickness and enjoy the great food. Another great view of the city was from the top of the Smith's Tower, built in 1914. It was once the tallest building west of New York. The history of this building is fascinating, especially the Chinese Room with its antique carvings and inlaid porcelain ceiling.

One final point of interest and probably my favorite of the whole trip was the Hiram C. Chittenden Locks and the adjacent salmon ladders. The Locks are like the Panama Canal but on a much smaller scale. I still marveled at the engineering it took to raise and lower the ships and boats allowing them to pass. The salmon ladder was equally exciting. You could go below and actually view the salmon jumping and moving upstream through the large glass windows. I found myself cheering for the little guys (and extremely large guys). "Go, go, swim, swim!"

Although a cab would have seemed like the sensible option for maneuvering around the city, I got plenty of exercise by exploring on foot. I am glad I did though because I really got a flavor for the city and its many different areas. From Freemont with its trendy and artsy boutiques and restaurants, to Queen Anne with its elaborate houses on the hill; From Ballard with its enduring charm and small town feel , to Downtown with its business district and what seemed like a large homeless population; From Lake Union with its boat houses and Center for Wooden Boats, to Pioneer Square and its underground city, I was satisfied that I had seen most of Seattle and had done this in only 2 days.

Boot Camp, Chemistry, and Hiking

Started off the weekend with a little bowling with friends. Not being the best bowler in the world, I finally broke 100 and was satisfied. Perhaps I was more concerned about the young mom who was bowling with her premature infant. Yep, baby in one arm, bowling with the other. Don't worry, she took an occasional cigarette break and sang a few karaoke songs...rednecks do exist every where.


Saturday started off in a fog. Literally, there were fog clouds hanging low in the sky of the Applegate Valley. This did not deter me from Harvest Boot Camp though and the clouds would soon clear. Now I am sure that you are wondering, "what is harvest boot camp?" To be honest, I didn't really know what I had signed up for. All I knew was that I was suppose to wear something that I did not mind getting dirty. Hum? I was glad to find out there was no drill sergeant, no cadences or no push-ups. Just Chris, the owner, there to welcome us. I was given a pair of shears, a few five gallon buckets and sent out into the vineyard with "master picker" Dustin to remove the bunches of grapes from the young Cabernet Sauvignon vines. I would take clipping grapes from vines over picking tomatoes any day...sorry Dad. Thank goodness I was able to go at a leisurely rate. If I were on the clock, I would have been expected to pick 1 ton of grapes by the end of the day (that's one person). It was quite pleasant and relaxing clipping the clusters of grapes, and I soon forgot about the propane cannon that blasted frequently to scare the birds away.


Next we went back up to the processing area and removed the MOG (material other than grapes) as the "fruits of my labored" passed before me on the conveyor belt. The pressure was on. Not only because the belt was moving so quickly, but if the small green grapes (immature grapes) and jacks (AKA stems) were not removed, they could completely alter the taste of the wine. I could not be responsible for botching a batch. Next, I was able to spend some time with Herb, the "winemaker" for a little chemistry 101. He removed samples from the large vats and taught me how to measure the sugar, temperature and describe the taste sensation I was experiencing. This is logged daily and alterations are made as needed to achieve the final product. I soon realized, that Herb was the genius behind a good bottle wine. The day ended with a little wine tasting and lunch outside with all the staff and fellow boot campers. What an amazing day. I received a certificate and t-shirt for my efforts and a greater appreciation for a good bottle of wine. In 2 years or more, I will be long gone from southern Oregon, but the grapes that I helped pick will be bottled and ready to consume. I will be on the look out for Troon's Cabernet Sauvignon 2007.

Ended the day with a sunset hike up to Lower Table Rock. What an amazing view of the Valley and what a great way to end a perfect day. Don't worry mom, I went with someone this time.

Sunday was a lazy day to begin with. It was beautiful. Played a tiring game of tennis, rested on a blanket in the park, and finished the day off with a little tossing of the Frisbee. Can't wait for next weekend. Flying to Seattle. Hopefully, I will have some great pictures and fun stories to share.

Purging, Painting and Productivity

While my past weekend was uneventful, it was productive. I have begun the count down and thus the purging process has been initiated. The goal-it will all fit into the trunk. Finished a book, completed a few errands, and tried to figure out how to work my new camera. I see a photography class in my future. I also drove to Grants Pass and went to the street painting festival. They blocked off a whole street and local artists from the area, on hand and knees, created these amazing paintings from chalk on the black asphalt. They also had a section for kids to create their own paintings. Grants Pass' downtown is very historical and lined with cute little shops, restaurants and pubs. I took a back road home and enjoyed the view of the Applegate Valley with kaleidoscope of colors emerging from the side of the mountains. Fall is really beautiful here.

Still hoping for an assignment close to home but not ruling out other possibilities. Have a few fun things planned before I head home. Going to a vineyard to help harvest grapes this weekend. I know...a little crazy. I am volunteering for manual labor. Should be a fun experience though. Also have a trip to Seattle planned. I figure I am this close, I should go visit. Hope to catch a fish at Pike's Market. Hope you are all doing well. Looking forward to visiting soon.

Snow in the East, Rain in the West, and Sunshine in Between

When I first started traveling, my family all said, "Great, we will come visit you wherever you are." A year and a half later and they finally followed through on their promise. My mom and sister arrived last week both looking a little green. I had warned them that flying into the valley was rough but from the looks on their faces they had figured that out. I only had one remedy for them...chocolate. We strolled through Harry and David's and made a few selections before I gave them a quick tour of the valley. Needless to say they were both exhausted from their journey, so we retired for the night but stayed up long enough to catch up with each other.

Our first day of travel was cold and dreary and led us to historic Jacksonville. We shopped in the many stores and I showed them the manicured downtown and the somewhat freaky "Pleasantville"-like neighborhoods. We warmed up with a cup of chowder at Bella Union before driving into the Applegate Valley for a little wine tasting. Well, maybe I should clarify...Melissa and I did a little wine tasting. We walked through the rows of grape vines. Who knew that Cabernet Sauvignon grapes actually look like big blueberries. Even though there was light mist, it was a beautiful sight to view the vineyard with the cloud-covered mountains in the background. Having felt satisfied that they had a true wine tasting experience we drove to Ashland. I wanted them to really get a feel for the unique populous that is Ashland. From the hippie, to the alternative trendy; from the gender confused to the hoity toity, they saw it all. We enjoyed visiting with a friend and touring an Ashland home before we went to eat at Dragonfly. We completed the night by watching a chick flick.

Saturday had to be one of the highlights of our trip. While it was a bit chilly, it was very fitting for the scenery that we were about to view. The road leading up to Crater Lake had a fresh blanket of snow covering the ground and the trees. As we were driving through this winter (actually fall) wonderland, snow was falling from the tree limbs, giving the illusion that it was falling from the sky. While Crater Lake is still amazing and doesn't seem to get old, the snow covered mountains were absolutely beautiful. We got in a few snowball fights enjoyed the powdery snow before driving back down the mountain. We stopped on the way home and viewed a lava tub and hiked to two waterfalls. After daring my sister to crawl out on a rock for an action shot, my mom turned away and stated, "Daphne, she has two kids." I guess I will have to be the one to stick to the wild adventures. We climbed over boulders to get a better view of the river. Mom watched from afar and just shook her head. I suppose I am rubbing off on my sister. We were all tired from our hike, so we had dinner on the river and headed home.

While it seemed that our final day of travel would be spoiled by the rainy weather, we still had a great time. The drive through the National Redwood Forest was beautiful, as it meandered along the Smith River and offered amazing views of the gorges. We all felt small and insignificant compared to the redwoods and also to Paul and his blue ox. I won't explain...just refer to the picture. The view of the Oregon coast was somewhat limited due to the heavy rain, but that didn't stop us from searching for the best view points. I think we were successful and Mom and Melissa were impressed by rugged and spectacular coastline. We spent the rest of the night reviewing our photos, recalling funny moments, and watching the season premiere of Desperate Housewives.

It was a great girls weekend. Thanks again Mom and Melissa. Maybe you will inspire others to come visit too. Love ya!