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Subject: Postcard from Portland
Dear Family and Friends,
One down, one to go... Labor Days, that is! ;-)
August bustled with activity. As foretold in last month's PfP, first on
the agenda was a visit from my Mom. We were certain her sojourn would
coincide with torrid temperatures, which generally accompany her
arrival. But thankfully, we were spared this time. This was her first
stay in Portland since Liz and I moved into our new home, and we
delighted in showing it to her. We had hoped the back yard would have
been sod before her arrival, but the landscaper was running behind
schedule. Mom came bearing goodies - TastyKake and homemade cookies and
strudel. But with it came strict orders that it was ALL for Liz and lil'
"E". Hey! What am I? Chopped liver?! *harrumph* Well, what she doesn't
know won't hurt her %^P
We spent the all-too-short weekend chatting and dining out. On Sunday
morning we all went out for breakfast to La Provençal with our
neighbors, Joe and Leah. They're an interesting and lively retired
couple, and we relished both the meal and each other's company. Later
that day we took Mother to see the baby furniture that we had picked out
and which we've since ordered. Baby furniture! I'm still pinching myself
at the notion I'll be a daddy in a scant two months! Oh, that reminds
me... not only does Lil' "E" have her own home page...
http://www.herring.org/elisha.html
...but she now has her own guess book...
http://www.herring.org/guessbk.html
That's right, guess book - it's not a typo. Check it out :-)
The following weekend Liz and I attended the wedding of one of her
friends. It was the first Greek Orthodox wedding I've witnessed and was
definitely a new experience. The service was very formal and lasted
nearly an hour. During that entire time, the bride and groom didn't
speak three words. No vows, nothing. The only utterance from the
newlyweds was near the end of the ceremony when the priest asked the
groom, "Do you feel married?" I couldn't hear his reply, but I assume it
was affirmative. ;-) Part of the service I knew involved wearing and
swapping crowns, which I previsualized as ornate golden coronets. I was
surprised to find out they're made of white lace. The reception was held
at Lewis and Clark College, which has beautiful grounds and commands one
of the best views of Mount Hood in Portland. It was a gorgeous day, but
a bit too warm given that the facilities had _no_ air conditioning
*gasp*.
The following Friday (the fifteenth), Liz and I joined the festivities
at the ADP picnic. The event was held at Oaks Park, which is just across
the Sellwood Bridge on the east bank of the Willamette River. There were
amusement rides available, but they were contraindicated for Liz - and I
skipped them, too. The fare consisted of the expected array of barbecued
burgers and franks, salads, etc. Mostly, it was an opportunity for me to
introduce Liz to associates whom she had not yet met, and for her to
renew acquaintances with others. We spent most of the time there
enjoying the company of my cubicle mate, Ron Finley, his wife, also
named Liz, and their six month old daughter, Kaela. What a cutie!
The next day we went to the Street of Dreams, which was better than the
previous year but not quite as good as the first one we went to two
years ago. We were surprised to see three cookie cutter houses in this
year's show. Usually, the homes are all unique. The site this year was
on the east side of the Willamette on a west facing slope that offered
incredible views of the city of Portland. There was one house in
particular, "Alderwood", that captured our fancy. It was built mostly of
stone and wood and had a distinctly American West hacienda flavor.
The weekend following that gave us our first opportunity in a month to
just hang out and enjoy some solitude... ahhhh. Life in American society
offers far too few chances to plotz and ponder. It was a most welcome
respite from the race and haste.
We do now have grass in the back yard, and it is a far more pleasant
sight than the dirt and weeds which preceded it. But it also requires
more care. A chunk of each weekend is now devoted to mowing and edging.
Liz and I spent the Labor Day weekend planting ground cover and readying
the beds which will soon be home to over two dozen irises - some of
which Liz received as a birthday gift from my Mom. The compost and
fertilizer needs a few weeks to be absorbed before planting the
rhizomes. We'll also be putting in some tulips. Eventually, we will
round out the garden with rose bushes.
The other home improvement Liz and I had done last month was getting our
west facing windows tinted with a film that reflects two thirds of the
heat and nearly all of the UV. This keeps the house cooler in the
summer, warmer in the winter, and prevents the sun from fading the
carpets and furniture. It does not, however, appreciably affect the
view. It's made a big difference - especially in the bonus room which
tended to be an oven due to the high half-round window.
After an uncharacteristically long dry spell, we received some much
needed rain. But fair weather is again with us, with highs in the 70s.
We're gonna enjoy this while it lasts!
I hate to end this PfP on an uncheerful note, but life doesn't always
deal us the cards we'd like. Liz is in California this weekend visiting
her parents. Her Dad has been battling cancer for three years, and it
has taken its toll on him and all of us who love him. Since Liz is in
her 31st week and will not be allowed to fly soon, she is taking
advantage of the opportunity to spend some quality time with her folks.
Those of you who are given to prayer are invited to join us in asking
for God's help.
we love and miss you all,
Sandy, Liz and lil' E_Max
_________________________________________________________________
CLIMATIC SUMMARY FOR PORTLAND OREGON
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OREGON
301 AM PDT MON SEP 01 1997
...TEMPERATURE...
HIGH YESTERDAY... 80
LOW YESTERDAY... 56
MEAN TEMP........ 68 DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL... 1
NORMAL HIGH FOR TODAY... 78
NORMAL LOW FOR TODAY... 55
RECORD HIGH FOR TODAY... 98 SET IN 1988
RECORD LOW FOR TODAY... 44 SET IN 1973
...DEGREE DAY DATA...
HEATING
YESTERDAY... 0 DEPARTURE... -2
MONTH....... 0 DEPARTURE... -35
SEASON...... 7 DEPARTURE... -56
COOLING
YESTERDAY... 3 DEPARTURE... -1
MONTH....... 210 DEPARTURE... 63
SEASON...... 397 DEPARTURE... 77
...PRECIPITATION...
YESTERDAY............. 0.00
TOTAL FOR THE MONTH... 1.58
NORMAL MONTH TO DATE.. 1.09
TOTAL FOR THE YEAR.... 28.51 TOTAL SINCE OCT 1... 56.97
NORMAL YEAR TO DATE... 20.41 NORMAL FROM OCT 1... 34.55
...WIND DATA IN MPH...
AVERAGE WIND SPEED YESTERDAY... 4.0
FASTEST 2-MIN WIND YESTERDAY... 10 FROM 320 DEGREES
PEAK WIND GUST YESTERDAY....... 13 FROM 320 DEGREES
...ASTRONOMICAL DATA...
SUNRISE TODAY...632 AM PDT
SUNSET TODAY...750 PM PDT
SUNRISE TOMORROW...633 AM PDT
SUNSET TOMORROW...748 PM PDT
--
Sandy & Liz Herring Tigard, Oregon Peck of Pickled Pisces
webfeet@herring.org bigfish@sns-access.com http://www.herring.org/
And that's the news from Portland
where everything is green, rolling stones gather moss,
and the rainfall is always above average.
Most Recent Update: Thursday, 14-Oct-2004 17:16:34 PDT
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