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Subject: Postcard from Portland
Dear Family and Friends,
Our vacation and various daily distractions delayed drafting the July
Postcard from Portland to the point that it now covers two months. So
complain to the editor... or don't renew your subscription! <grin>
In July we celebrated Liz's birthday (on the 18th, although the actual
date was the 22nd) by once again stuffing ourselves at our favorite
Portland restaurant, L'Auberge. We shared an appetizer of crayfish and
Dungeness crabcake, and main courses of potato encrusted Alaskan Halibut
with a medley of spring vegetables (Liz) and peppered and seared Salmon
ragout (Sandy) - as well as a glass (each) of Pinot Gris. We even
managed to save room for desert... white chocolate raspberry tart (Liz)
and chocolate espresso parfait with vanilla ice cream melt (Sandy).
After dinner we went for a stroll on Trendy-third street (since
L'Auberge is close by) to work off a few of the calories. What a meal!!!
On the home front, Elisha has made great strides (figuratively, not
literally) these past two months. She has progressed from sitting for
brief periods to being an accomplished posterior parker. She also stands
supported by the coffee table (for example) for prolonged durations -
during which she takes delight in "clearing the deck" of anything within
reach. We play a game I call ring-around-the-diaper which involves my
helping a diaper make its entrance onto the coffee table stage left and
Elisha helping it to exit stage right, PRN [0]. She does not tire of
this game easily - and, even more amazing, neither do Liz and I :-). Her
current project is learning to crawl, a skill she has not quite
acquired. She's got the leg motion (and the red knees to prove it), but
she hasn't yet figured out that keeping her hands anchored is braking
her forward progress. In the past couple of days we've seen her attempt
to replant a hand, only to do a face plant! We have been placing toys a
bit out of her reach to encourage her, but her frustration is evident
("unh, nnnggh"). We expect a breakthrough any day now.
Her babbling is now augmented by shrieking - sometimes for joy and
sometimes just because she can (especially in public and/or when it
causes echoes). We've taught her to understand "up". In response, she'll
extend her arms to be lifted (fully realizing just how cute she's
being). We're working on "bye-bye", accompanied by the requisite wave.
Her running commentary is sprinkled with lots of "dada" and "mama", but
sans association of any sort. It really does sound like she's trying to
communicate, though, due to the inflection and intonation. She appears
to emphasize remarks and also ask questions. It's anyone's guess what
she's on about - perhaps she should run for office!
Elisha has also begun to drink from a sippy cup - although she's not
holding it by herself yet.
Our day care provider (Sheila) took vacation the last week of July and
the first week of August. Liz stayed home with Elisha for the first
week. Unfortunately, that coincided with a hot spell (101 on the 28th, a
record) - which they took in stride by heading to... THE MALL. They were
not alone. Nordy's was overrun with mothers wheeling their charges in
navy blue strollers. The second week we all headed to Huntington Beach
to visit with Liz's mom as well as see our many SoCal friends. We
started out the week (8/1) by attending Jonathan Denney's 3rd birthday.
John and Linda put on quite a bash, replete with JD's famous smoked
turkey and a cajun sausage- stuffed ham prepared by Garrett "cordon
bleu" Hildebrand that disappeared as soon as it was carved. Many people
I had worked with at Microdata/MDIS were in attendance. It was also a
reunion for the "Friday Night Band". After chowing down, we sang Happy
Birthday to the guest of honor (who was wide-eyed from all the
attention) and then shared Jonathan's glee as he opened the many gifts.
It was wonderful to see how he has developed into such a mensch :-) The
evening was capped with a rousing concert by 'the band' (I had brought
along my fife on the trip in anticipation of some jamming). Just like
ol' times. Life simply doesn't get any better than hangin' out with
family and friends.
On the 2nd we headed out to the Wisneski's to enjoy a barbecue/potluck
which Larry and Holly graciously put together in honor of our visit.
Elisha had taken in stride the previous evening's multitude, but was
more in her element at this smaller venue. She was fascinated by Sarah
and Kristen, Larry and Holly's 5 month old twins. Liz and I marveled at
the interior touches Larry had added to the house - including the
decorations to the nursery. But most importantly, we relished the
relaxed company of our friends (including Robert & Deirdre and the
Hildebrands) - and Holly's world famous chocolate chip cheesecake, which
would have been reason in and of itself to drop by!!
Liz, Elisha and I also found time to see Joan Steiker and her darling
(and sometimes mischievous) daughter Rachel, Steve Gill, Maryann Riley,
George Williams (lookin' good, dude!) and Sharon Klotz, Hugh Stevenson
and Jan Burns. We also spent a wonderful afternoon walking around
downtown H.B. and the pier with Jan Greene (who was the bridesmaid at
our wedding) and her husband, Cliff Linton. They've recently relocated
from Chicago to LA - and just in time for our trip.
Along with Gram Pris, we made room in our busy schedule to see the
Sawdust Festival in Laguna Beach. You might say we returned to the scene
of the crime - it's where Liz and I went on our first date over five
years ago. It's also where, the next year, we found a goldsmith (Kirk
Milette) to fashion our wedding bands. We found his booth, but
unfortunately, he had taken the day off - so we left him a note.
Our trip home was a bit uncomfortable for Elisha. She fussed and refused
to take a bottle. She continued to refuse the bottle at day care, which
was quite worrisome. We finally figured out the cause - she hadn't had
to drink from one for two weeks. Next time we'll know to continue to
give a her a bottle a day. Thankfully, she readjusted at day care (hunger
will out), but still refuses to take one from her father :-(
At her nine month (NINE MONTHS!) doctor's appointment she weighed in at
16 lbs. 8 oz. and measured 27.5" tall. That keeps her on track in the
nearly 50th percentile - which is good. Liz and I were relieved that she
didn't get any shots - just a blood sample to measure her iron level
(which was within normal limits). She won't have another appointment
until she's a year old. The pediatrician said we could introduce her to
more complex foods, like Cheerios. Actually, she recommended Oatios
(which are larger and dissolve more readily). Elisha welcomed the change
to her diet with little difficulty :-) She has since added Graham
crackers.
On the 21st of August Elisha attained a milestone - she intersected the
point on her time line where she's been alfresco as long as she was in
utero!
The most important development, however, has been her personality. She
clearly has desires and dislikes, and does not hesitate to teach us the
distinction. Virtually gone are the days when we could scoop her up at
will and smother her with hugs and kisses. Now she gives me a forearm to
the neck, twists 180 degrees to face front and points in the direction
she wants to travel. The occasions when she lifts her hands in an "up"
signal just to be held and hugged are made all the more special and
precious since we know that's what _she_ wants, too!
Lastly, a couple of firsts for our daughter. On the 23rd of August she
came down with her first cold. Happily, a visit to the ped's office
showed no fever or ear infection, just congestion. And... she's cutting
her 7th tooth (upper right lateral incisor, if you must know). Poor kid.
:-(
I've included the weather stats from both July and August below. You'll
note the for once the .sig is inaccurate - August had only a trace of
rain, tying it for the record low rainfall with 1941, 1955, 1967 and
1970.
Our September agenda includes celebrating our 4th (silk) Wedding
Anniversary on the 25th! We hope you all will have occasions worthy of
celebrating this month as well.
we love and miss you all,
Sandy, Liz and Elisha
[0] Pro re nata (as the situation demands).
_________________________________________________________________
Data harvested from http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/climate/index.php?wfo=pqr
CLIMATIC SUMMARY FOR PORTLAND OREGON
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OREGON
244 AM PDT SAT AUG 01 1998
...TEMPERATURE...
HIGH YESTERDAY... 70
LOW YESTERDAY... 62
MEAN TEMP........ 66 DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL... -3
NORMAL HIGH FOR TODAY... 81
NORMAL LOW FOR TODAY... 57
RECORD HIGH FOR TODAY... 93 SET IN 1986
RECORD LOW FOR TODAY... 47 SET IN 1963
...DEGREE DAY DATA...
HEATING
YESTERDAY... 0 DEPARTURE... -1
MONTH....... 12 DEPARTURE... -16
SEASON...... 12 DEPARTURE... -16
COOLING
YESTERDAY... 1 DEPARTURE... -4
MONTH....... 206 DEPARTURE... 79
SEASON...... 254 DEPARTURE... 81
...PRECIPITATION...
YESTERDAY............. 0.01
TOTAL FOR THE MONTH... 0.59
NORMAL MONTH TO DATE.. 0.63
TOTAL FOR THE YEAR.... 25.01 TOTAL SINCE OCT 1... 38.47
NORMAL YEAR TO DATE... 19.32 NORMAL FROM OCT 1... 33.46
...WIND DATA IN MPH...
AVERAGE WIND SPEED YESTERDAY... 6.2
FASTEST 2-MIN WIND YESTERDAY... 14 FROM 340 DEGREES
PEAK WIND GUST YESTERDAY....... 17 FROM 340 DEGREES
...ASTRONOMICAL DATA...
SUNRISE TODAY...554 AM PDT
SUNSET TODAY...840 PM PDT
SUNRISE TOMORROW...555 AM PDT
SUNSET TOMORROW...838 PM PDT
JUL CLIMATOLOGICAL REPORT FOR PORTLAND OREGON...RETRANSMITTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OREGON
442 PM PDT SAT AUG 01 1998
TEMPERATURE DATA......
(DEGREES F)
AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE.... 70.9 OR 2.7 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL
AVERAGE MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE.... 80.7
AVERAGE MINIMUM TEMPERATURE.... 61.2
HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 101 ON DAY 28
LOWEST TEMPERATURE WAS 57 ON DAY 8
HEATING DEGREE DAYS (BASE 65) COOLING DEGREE DAYS
MONTHLY TOTAL ........... 12 MONTHLY TOTAL .......... 206
DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL.... -16 DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL... 79
SEASONAL TOTAL (JUL-JUN). 12 SEASONAL TOTAL (JAN-DEC) 254
DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL.... -16 DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL... 81
PRECIPITATION DATA....
..RAIN..
TOTAL FOR THE MONTH......... 0.59 OR 0.04 INCHES BELOW NORMAL
TOTAL SINCE JANUARY 1ST..... 25.01 OR 5.69 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL
GREATEST 24 HOUR RAINFALL WAS 0.27 INCHES ON DAY(S) 30-31
..SNOW..
TOTAL FOR THE MONTH......... 0.0
TOTAL FOR THE SEASON........ 0
GREATEST 24 HOUR SNOWFALL WAS INCHES ON DAY(S) __ __
..NUMBER OF DAYS..
WITH .01 INCHES OR MORE 6 HIGHS 32 DEGREES OR COLDER 0
WITH .10 INCHES OR MORE 2 HIGHS 90 DEGREES OR WARMER 6
WITH .50 INCHES OR MORE 0 LOWS 32 DEGREES OR COLDER 0
WITH 1.00 INCHES OR MORE 0 LOWS 0 DEGREES OR COLDER 0
SKY CONDITION......... SEA LEVEL PRESSURE............
NUMBER OF DAYS CLEAR .. MM HIGHEST 30.22 INCHES ON DAY 31
NUMBER OF DAYS PTCLDY .. MM LOWEST 29.75 INCHES ON DAY 28
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY .. MM
WIND DATA.............
THE AVERAGE MONTHLY WIND SPEED WAS 6.2 MPH
THE FASTEST TWO-MINUTE WIND WAS... 20 MPH FROM 330 DEGREES #
THE HIGHEST PEAK WIND GUST WAS.... 24 FROM 330 DEGREES
REMARKS...
NEW RECORD HIGH OF 99 DEGREES OCCURRED ON THE 26TH BREAKING THE OLD RECORD
WHICH WAS 98 DEGREES SET IN 1988.
NEW RECORD HIGH OF 101 DEGREES OCCURRED ON THE 28TH BREAKING THE OLD RECORD
WHICH WAS 99 SET IN 1973.
THE SECOND WARMEST MORNING EVER AT THE PORTLAND AIRPORT OCCURRED ON THE
27TH WHERE THE TEMPERATURE WAS 72 DEGREES. THE WARMEST IS 74 DEGREES
WHICH OCCURRED ON JULY 17 1941.
#-LAST OF SEVERAL OCCURRENCES
RECORD EVENT REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
9 PM PDT SUN JUL 26 1998 ...UPDATE FOR PORTLAND AIRPORT HIGH...
PORTLAND AIRPORTS HIGH OF 99 DEGREES BROKE OLD RECORD OF 98 IN 1988.
EUGENE AIRPORTS HIGH OF 102 BROKE OLD RECORD OF 101 IN 1988.
FLORENCE HIGH OF 79 BROKE OLD RECORD OF 78 IN 1988.
RECORD EVENT REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
8:15 PM PDT MON JUL 27 1998
EUGENE AIRPORT REACHED 105 DEGREES BREAKING THE OLD RECORD HIGH OF 104 SET
IN 1958.
RECORD EVENT REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
540 PM PDT TUE JUL 28 1998
...RECORD HIGHS FOR THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY...
HIGH TEMPERATURES TODAY REACHED OR EXCEEDED RECORDS IN THE FOLLOWING
LOCATIONS:
STATION TEMP OLD RECORD/YEAR
PORTLAND (AIRPORT) 101 99/1973
NORTH VANCOUVER 101 96/1985
SALEM 99 99/1960
IN ADDITION...THE LOW TEMPERATURE THIS MORNING AT THE PORTLAND
AIRPORT WAS 70 DEGREES...BREAKING THE PREVIOUS RECORD HIGH MINIMUM
FOR THE DATE. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS 67 DEGREES IN 1996.
CLIMATIC SUMMARY FOR PORTLAND OREGON
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OREGON
227 AM PDT TUE SEP 01 1998
...TEMPERATURE...
HIGH YESTERDAY... 98
LOW YESTERDAY... 60
MEAN TEMP........ 79 DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL... 12
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....... 4 DEPARTURE... -31
SEASON...... 16 DEPARTURE... -47
COOLING
YESTERDAY... 14 DEPARTURE... 10
MONTH....... 197 DEPARTURE... 50
SEASON...... 451 DEPARTURE... 131
...PRECIPITATION...
YESTERDAY............. 0.00
TOTAL FOR THE MONTH... T
NORMAL MONTH TO DATE.. 1.09
TOTAL FOR THE YEAR.... 25.01 TOTAL SINCE OCT 1... 38.47
NORMAL YEAR TO DATE... 20.41 NORMAL FROM OCT 1... 34.55
...WIND DATA IN MPH...
AVERAGE WIND SPEED YESTERDAY... 5.3
FASTEST 2-MIN WIND YESTERDAY... 14 FROM 330 DEGREES
PEAK WIND GUST YESTERDAY....... 18 FROM 330 DEGREES
...ASTRONOMICAL DATA...
SUNRISE TODAY...632 AM PDT
SUNSET TODAY...750 PM PDT
SUNRISE TOMORROW...633 AM PDT
SUNSET TOMORROW...748 PM PDT
AUG CLIMATOLOGICAL REPORT FOR PORTLAND OREGON...CORRECTION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OREGON
227 AM PDT TUE SEP 01 1998
TEMPERATURE DATA......
(DEGREES F)
AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE.... 71.0 OR 2.4 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL
AVERAGE MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE.... 82.7
AVERAGE MINIMUM TEMPERATURE.... 59.3
HIGHEST TEMPERATURE WAS 98 ON DAY 31
LOWEST TEMPERATURE WAS 51 ON DAY 17
HEATING DEGREE DAYS (BASE 65) COOLING DEGREE DAYS
MONTHLY TOTAL ........... 4 MONTHLY TOTAL .......... 197
DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL.... -31 DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL... 50
SEASONAL TOTAL (JUL-JUN). 16 SEASONAL TOTAL (JAN-DEC) 451
DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL.... -47 DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL... 131
PRECIPITATION DATA....
..RAIN..
TOTAL FOR THE MONTH......... T OR 1.09 INCHES BELOW NORMAL
TOTAL SINCE JANUARY 1ST..... 25.01 OR 4.60 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL
GREATEST 24 HOUR RAINFALL WAS T INCHES ON DAY(S) 23
..SNOW..
TOTAL FOR THE MONTH......... 0
TOTAL FOR THE SEASON........ 0
GREATEST 24 HOUR SNOWFALL WAS INCHES ON DAY(S) __ __
..NUMBER OF DAYS..
WITH .01 INCHES OR MORE 0 HIGHS 32 DEGREES OR COLDER 0
WITH .10 INCHES OR MORE 0 HIGHS 90 DEGREES OR WARMER 6
WITH .50 INCHES OR MORE 0 LOWS 32 DEGREES OR COLDER 0
WITH 1.00 INCHES OR MORE 0 LOWS 0 DEGREES OR COLDER 0
SKY CONDITION......... SEA LEVEL PRESSURE............
NUMBER OF DAYS CLEAR .. MM HIGHEST 30.30 INCHES ON DAY 01
NUMBER OF DAYS PTCLDY .. MM LOWEST 29.83 INCHES ON DAY 31
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY .. MM
WIND DATA.............
THE AVERAGE MONTHLY WIND SPEED WAS 7.2 MPH
THE FASTEST TWO-MINUTE WIND WAS... 22 MPH FROM 320 DEGREES
THE HIGHEST PEAK WIND GUST WAS.... 25 FROM 320 DEGREES
REMARKS...
NEW RECORD HIGHS...NONE.
14TH...NEW RECORD MAXIMIM MIN (HI MIN)...OLD 64 IN 1997.
DRY AUGUST...TIES WITH OTHER YEARS FOR DRIEST SINCE 1941...ALSO
IN 1998...1970...1967...AND 1955. ALL RECORDED A
TRACE OF PRECIPITATION.
RECORD EVENT REPORT CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
515 PM PDT FRI AUG 28 1998
...RECORD HIGH FOR ASTORIA...
TODAY`S HIGH TEMPERATURE IN ASTORIA WAS 78 DEGREES BREAKING THE OLD RECORD
OF 76 DEGREES SET IN 1976.
--
Sandy, Liz & Elisha Tigard, Oregon School of Herring
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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