November 28, 2024 - Salem, Thanksgiving Day

 

 Title: November 28, 2024 - Salem, Thanksgiving Day

Hike Info : Description : Extra Photo's 

Hike Info:

Type:Thanksgiving Activities

Description:

 

Corn Man Lawrence

 

Today is Thanksgiving Day. Which means the two F’s-Food and Family. I got up a bit before 7. David was already out for a walk. The rest of the clan, the record, is: Andrea, Lawrence, Steven,Rachel, Sherri, Gary, Friday and Korra. 

Anyway, the reason why we are all up is that we will be taking part in the Salem Run’occopia. All humans in our group, except for David, will be participating in this, but at different lengths and different methods. Andrea, Lawrence, Steven and Rachel will be running-at least most of the way. Sherri and I are walkers. Poor Korra and Friday were not invited.

The Event People

 

The longer runs start first around 9:15. Sherri, Steven and I wait around in the cold for the other two runs to start. Steven starts off running. Sherri and I walk together about 50 yards, but I feel I need to pick up the pace. Off I go at a little faster pace. Later on Sherri told me she really was not feeling energetic at the start, but picked up later on. 

 

 

 

 

Going towards Minto-Brown

I have brought along a GPS and see that I am doing a reasonable 3.5mph pace. The route goes along the Willamette River, leading us out of Riverfront Park. The way is around the Giant Globe and over the Peter Courtney Minto Island Bicycle and Pedestrian Bridge. This has us going about a third of a mile in a wildlife refuge area. Then we entered Minto-Brown Island Park. We have walked the first part before, it is about where we would stop. Instead at a junction, we take a right which takes me around a large field and back close to the River. There is a water station, but I have my own bottle and I go on. Now it is time to start the return trip. This takes us along an embankment and back to the original trail. By this time, my legs are feeling a bit leaden.

Andrea Finish

As I get close to the Finish line, Rachel joins me and my legs do not feel as heavy. I come under the Finish Line at an hour and 12 minutes at an average of 3.4 mph. The official results has me at an 18:55 pace-I am happy with this. I am glad I downgraded my event to 6K instead of 10k. I would have been a lot slower. My leg and hip did not feel bad.

Rachel helping her Dad finish

But did Sherri come in? Yes! She remembered what I have preached: it does not matter how badly you have done throughout a time, when you come in, come in strong. She came in right at my pace and 21:50 pace over all. I think we all are happy.

Back to the car we go and back to the house. We rested for a while. At least for those of us who do not have turkey making responsibilities. David and I make a trip over to Jason’s house to pick up some tables. This rest time is a couple of hours, until the Thanksgiving Festivities start.

 

 

 

 

 

Cooks

That is when Sue, Jason, his fiance Lisen, and kids come by and the chaos starts. The chaos is the result of the combination of four active kids, two active dogs, nine mostly sluggish adults and Thanksgiving dinner preparation. That is the recipe, if you ever want to recreate it. That is also the time of love coming together as a family. And I? I just try not to add to the chaos and enjoy the energy.

Desert

Chief Wizard

Dinner is turkey and potatoes and stuffing, and string beans and onion, and a whole bunch of other stuff. Topped off with dessert of pies and cheesecakes and good stuff. We are all content, celebrating a year passed and times years ago when the gatherings were larger and the people seemed older. It is a time of remembrance.

And then there are the games. Lawrence plays wizards with the children in the basement. I am not sure who is the biggest child. And then there is a pseudo card game with adults and just plain old talking.

Several hours later and much fun under the bridge, Jason’s group left. We help clean things up. And then it is back to jigsaw puzzles until bedtime. As the poem said, not a creature stirred, not even a mouse-I guess that is for Christmas-we are practicing.

 

 

Extra Photo's

More of Rachel and Gary

Andrea close to finish line

Sisters-Rachel and Andrea

Going back towards Riverfront Park

Rachel, Lawrence and Andrea

Lawrence, the Corn Man, and Andrea

Gary at the Finish-Rachel had already crossed it once

Sherri and Gary

Lawrence, the Cook

Steven the Cook

Games

Pre-Thanksgiving Meal Food

Thanksgiving Food

Thanksgiving Food

And still more food

Any of that for me?

Korra saying, where is my food?

Games

June 27, 2024 - Go To Salem

 Title:  June 27, 2024 - Go To Salem

Hike Info : Description : Background :  Animals : Flowers and Plants

Hike Info:

Type: Car

Mileage: 223 miles
Time:  4 hours

Description:

I got up early. Well, maybe not as early as usual, but around 5:30. My lightning report, unlike the previous two days, only showed one event, and that was a cloud to cloud close to Evolution Valley. After completing the report, I had breakfast while Steven and Sherri were getting up. Then Korra and I went for a short walk.

By 830, we were packed and on the road with me driving the first segment. Nothing eventful happening. About an hour and a half later, I traded driving responsibilities with Steven. He takes us into Salem and to Lawrence and Andrea’s house. We get there a few minutes before Andrea comes in-she had made a Costco run for the incoming locusts.

Korra and Sherri going to Salem

The first order of business is to give us a tour of their new house. Pictures from Zillow are good, but there is nothing like seeing something in person. There are dual thoughts which go through my mind. The first is that the pictures do not do justice. There is a basement and second story, so the house is bigger than the footprint shows. Also the feeling is that the house is basically solid and will serve Andrea and Lawrence well. The second is how Lawrence and Andrea will be able to shape the house into their own. Already they are redoing the insulation. There are other areas which they are working on, or will be taking care of, such as the crack in the driveway. To be young and energetic!

We unload the car. Andrea’s sewing machine cabinet will wait until Lawrence comes home as there is a need for more muscle in it. My brother David built it solid.

 

Korra, Steven and Gary returning to RiverFront

I think the drive took more out of me than I thought it did. I am mostly content to lounge around. Still I would like to get a bit of their landscape irrigation taken care of. But we are enjoying ourselves.

Lawrence comes home, we move the cabinet into the house and Andrea makes us dinner. Lawrence has a Thursday night gym time, so it is just the four of us for dinner. Then we went to the RiverFront Park for Andrea’s Dragon Boat practice. While she practices, we do an evening walk over the Willamette Bridge to Minto-Brown Park, at least the edge of it. It is good to stretch the legs. We also enjoy seeing the flowers along the path’s edge and the bird life along the River. At the boundary, we turn around and return in time to meet Andrea and her team as they break up from their practice.

By the time we get back to the house, Lawrence is home. A bit more conversation before we turn in to go to bed.

Background

La Quinta-Medford. We are on our way to our daughters with our son and his dog. La Quinta has dog friendly rooms. My only reservation with the hotel is that it is right on I-5. How much noise will there be? The room we were given was dog-friendly, meaning other dogs had stayed there before. It looked and felt like any other hotel room. Comfortable beds and the usual amenities. We did not hear the highway noise-we were on the far side of the hotel in room 122. We all slept well. The breakfast was standard stuff-waffles, eggs, cereal. The only knock I had was that there was not much there in the way of diabetic choices, such as a no-sugar syrup nor any peanut butter. Still I was able to deal with that. On the whole, a good place to stay.

Animals

 
Flowers and Plants

Oregon Grape

Japanese Tree Lilac

Preforte St John's Wart

 

June 5, 2022 - Salem

Title: June 5, 2022 - Salem
Hike Info : Description :  Animals : Flowers and Plants

Hike Info:

Type: Hiking

Mileage: 1.5 miles walking

Description:

I woke up around 5 and laid in bed for about an hour. Got up and then looked at the laptop I am using during our travels. Yesterday, the keyboard and the touchpad stopped working. After multiple reboots and trying to change some of the startup settings, the keyboard started working again. But the touchpad, not so. Fortunately, I have an external mouse with me.So I work on a blog from last week.

Lawrence and Andrea fixed us a bacon, egg and potato breakfast. Oh yeah, let's not forget the cheese. Enjoyable meal. Then Andrea needs to take off for work at REI. After lounging around for a while. Lawrence suggests going out for a walk. Sherri and I are up to that.

So he took us to the Minto-Brown Island Park. We get there about 11:10 and walked for about an hour and a half. There is so much more there to explore. I would say we need to go there about ten more times to get a feel. What we saw was a nice lagoon area, with a lot of greenery. Flowers poked their heads around most everywhere. We had a choice to walk on pavement as well as dirt. We ended up doing about half and half. The final stretch was along the Willamete River. So wide and flowing so well. Nothing like it around our place in Fresno.

We got back to Andrea and Lawrence’s place just before 1. We all had a sandwich. I then read for a bit. Lawrence went off to a rock climbing gym. After Friday’s hike, I decided that I should be looking for some replacement boots. The soles are wearing out. So I went to Andrea’s REI store. The lady who waited on me tried her best to find shoes I could try on, but there was nothing in my size.Oh well. I did see Andrea there. So it made the trip worthwhile. Also got an idea about boots.

The rest of the afternoon I read and relaxed. So not much there. Lawrence fixed us dinner and then we watched Jurassic Park II, ending at 11. Then off to bed.

Animals

 
Flowers and Plants