Disconnected

Josh and I are experiencing technical difficulties. We will up and running soon. [Troubles with Comcast & wiring.] I'll be sure to update you as soon as we have a fix in place.

P.S. My previous post was via my iPhone and may have some formatting issues.

P.P.S. No Internet, what do do? Ugh!

Play-By-Play

Reader Warning: Some of the below times are approximate and contain mundane, boring details that you may never want to know.

Minute-to-Minute Log on the Big Move

7:30am: Wake-up time. Roll out of the air-mattress and get going.

8:45am: One last breakfast at Full City for a pumpkin muffin and chai tea latte. Not to mention a pumpkin cookie for the road later on.

8:30am: Continue packing up all the remaining stuff small (and let me tell you it was all small stuff and we sweated the small stuff - that is a reference to a book for those of you who didn't catch on).

9:05am: Finish loading my car.

9:30am: I leave our Shasta home and heads for the open road with two quick stops at Bank of America and Cheverin.

10:00am: Josh heads to Comcast to drop off our cable stuff. (Meanwhile, I'm on the 5).

11:00am: Saint Vincent de Paul's comes to our Shasta home to pick-up items we decided to donate instead of bring with us.

11:15am: Josh finishes packing random, small stuff. (Meanwhile, I'm is on the 5).

11:55am: I reach Portland and decide it's the best opportunity for lunch. I drive indecisively when I happen upon a pizza by the slice joint called Sparky's. Actually, I was quite impressed. They even had a $3.75 lunch special. Score. And the best part is (drumroll please), Active Culture Frozen Yogurt was right next door. I don't mind if I do. Yum.

12:30pm: Josh finally puts the last items into his jam-packed car and heads out leaving our Shasta home for good.

12:45pm: Josh stops at the Eugene Post Office to mail our Shasta keys. (Meanwhile, I'm on the 5).
12:55pm: Josh is on the 5 and calls me.

1:15pm: I get a call from the movers. The weight is over the estimate.

1:20pm: I call Josh to relay the information.

1:30pm-3:00pm: Josh is on-and-off the phone with the movers and the truck driver.

1:45pm: I reach Olympia, the Evergreen State capital (that there is little factoid secretly inserted for your educational purposes). I hit traffic.

2:30pm: I reach Tacoma. I hit more traffic.

2:45pm: I realize I'm not going to make it to the leasing office for the 3:30pm appointment and call to let them know.

3:30pm: I reach the outskirts of Seattle. And more traffic.

3:35pm: My GPS decides to go on roads that don't exist. I find myself going in circles, and end up going directly through downtown Seattle where I find more traffic. (Meanwhile, Josh is on the 5 and hitting traffic).

3:57pm: I reach the leasing office with minutes to spare until the 4pm signing (yes, that call at 2:45pm was successful).

4:15pm: The leasing lady was late, but arrived and I signed my life away on to papers committing us for a year in West Queen Anne.

4:30pm: I open the door to our new home. (Meantime, Josh is on the 5 in heavy traffic and still dealing with movers and such on the phone).

4:45pm: I venture out for the first time to find a bank so we can pay the movers.

6:00pm: Josh calls and says the moving truck is not going to arrive until 9pm (there are lots of other complications which is too long, boring to retell - plus, I am trying to forget).

6:30pm: Josh and I decide that I should pick-up food so we can shove it in before the movers arrive. I then venture out again to Thaiku in Ballard (the tried and trusty Thai food option).

7:45pm: Josh reaches Seattle outskirts.

7:48pm: Josh calls and is lost in downtown Seattle.

7:48-8:15pm: I talk Josh through the city using my iPhone's speaker function and Map app.

8:16pm: Josh arrives to our new home. He comes inside and vents about the movers (and makes some calls). We also shovel the food in quickly.

9:03pm: The movers arrive. They hustle to get everything in the home (the guy did actually run at times - the moved much faster this time and on the pick-up).

11:02pm: The movers are finally done and on their merry way. Josh and I put the sheets on the bed and crash.

That concludes our big moving day. Whewee!

Power Pack

Today was power pack day. As I type, the movers are taking our boxes into the truck. We were supposed to get 24 hours notice on when the movers would arrive. This morning the phone ringers and the truck is arriving this very afternoon. Some 24 hours. Must. Pack. Fast. Go, go, go. Now, it's 7:30pm and We're pooped. Almost done though.

If all goes according to plan, the movers will be dropping our stuff off tomorrow evening. The big drive up is tomorrow morning. Then it's Hello Seattle.

Boxes

Packing, Packing, and more Packing. Did I say packing? Yes, we're packing. Icky packing. Our home is now boxes and boxes. Today, we moved the boxes to the garage now too so the place is empty (almost). Yuck boxes. And also, a farewell to the rocking chair. It's going to good hands. Bye Bye childhood rocking chair. I'll miss you (but not your space-eating ways).

Bittersweet

Bittersweet. I used this when saying goodbye to a customer yesterday. I thought it very clever and witty, not mention perfect. In fact, the exact wording was, "...it's bittersweet, just like our chocolate." Great, right? Not just in the happy-sad context, but in the bittersweet chocolate. This chocolate relates to Starbucks, and my goodbye is to my customers and friends at Starbucks. Ha!

Enough of my cleverness, this post is about my last day at Valley River Center (VRC) Starbucks. Like I said, it was bittersweet. I've really grown to enjoy all of our regular customers. They all said such nice farewells. I even got a few hugs and promises of visits to my new store. On a side note, it's funny about there is a Pacific Northwest connection between Seattle, Portland, and Eugene. If you live in one, you generally have work, family, or friends in the other two. Many of my customers said they go up quite frequently. This made me smile because I've really enjoyed having regulars. Over the months, I've come to bond with them about early mornings, having to work, or other random stuff. They are like friends now!

The customers are great, but my co-worker are who I'll really miss. These guys are not just my co-workers, but my friends. They were patient training me, to work with everyday, and fun to hang out outside of work. Kim is my froyo buddy, Melinda is the Starbucks guru, I talk books with Julia, talk Germany with Justin, wedding with Sara, traveling with Ali, and Seattle with Colin. Lindsey is a rock-star singer. Annan started the same day as me (remember, I'm one number ahead of you!). And I have faith Jeri will find her younger, tall, fit man. These are just a few of the friends I've made at my time at VRC.

I was touched at the number of coworker friends that showed up for my happy hour shin-dig at the Rabbit Bistro yesterday evening too. I had such a great time hanging out with everyone one last time before my big move. Thanks guys (if it's you that is reading this right now).

Farewell VRC, Heather McHeatherington.



Picture 1: Kim, Ali, Me, Lindsey, and Jeri // Picture 2: Zia, Me, and Colin (the boss man) // And more pictures on my Flickr site too!

Useless and Weird

I was going though the "fun stuff" folder of my email last night and realized I have a lot of weird emails full of did you knows, poems, jokes, surveys, etc. I like to look at these occasionally because they make me laugh. I thought I'd share one of them with you today. Who knows how accurate these are - I don't know the source; just who sent it to me.

Useless and weird facts to add to your wealth of knowledge....

• Butterflies taste with their feet.


• A duck's quack doesn't echo, and no one knows why.


• In 10 minutes, a hurricane releases more energy than all the world's nuclear weapons combined.


• On average, 100 people choke to death on ballpoint pens every year.


• On average people fear spiders more than they do death.


• Ninety percent of New York City cabbies are recently arrived immigrants.


• Thirty-five percent of the people who use personal ads for dating are already married.


• Elephants are the only animals that can't jump.


• Only one person in two billion will live to be 116 or older.


• It's possible to lead a cow upstairs...but not downstairs.


• Women blink nearly twice as much as men.


• The Main Library at Indiana University sinks over an inch every year because when it was built, engineers failed to take into account the weight of all the books that would occupy the building.


• A snail can sleep for three years.


• No word in the English language rhymes with MONTH.


• Average life span of a major league baseball: 7 pitches.


• Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.


• The electric chair was invented by a dentist.


• All polar bears are left handed.


• In ancient Egypt, priests plucked EVERY hair from their bodies, including their eyebrows and eyelashes.


• An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.


• TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.


• "Go." is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.


• If Barbie were life-size, her measurements would be 39-23-33. She would stand seven feet, two inches tall.


• A crocodile cannot stick its tongue out.


• The cigarette lighter was invented before the match.


• Americans on average eat 18 acres of pizza every day.

Searching Seattle

I know, I know it's been a while since I wrote a post. I'm sorry. I apologize. Life has been busy. Very busy. And I will probably continue be delinquent in mu posts over the next several weeks. I'll return though. I promise.

Why am I not writing blog posts lately? I can tell you. I am preparing for our big move. Have you not heard? Well, Josh and I are headed to Seattle. Law school is over and we're headed to the big city. Since Josh was deep in study land, I headed up to Seattle last week to start the process by looking for an apartment. That trip is the story of this post...

Last Monday I worked in the morning as usual, but while I was working my mom flew into EUG (FYI - EUG is the Eugene Airport code). When I was done working, I sped home (not over the speed limit of course), showered, and ate lunch. Then my mom and I took off for Seattle. We drove up and it took about 5-1/2 hours with only one stop since we got hungry along the way. We finally arrived to the Emerald City that evening and crashed at the hotel. I was pooped!

Tuesday started the apartment quest. The morning started out rough. We slept in accidentally and had a later-than-desired start time. After a delicious breakfast at Macrina Bakery, we found a parking cop lady at my car. Eccckk! I'd forgotten to place my mom's handicap sign in my rush to get going (and crazy hunger pangs - I get hungry as soon as I wake up). We talked to the cop lady and she didn't give us a parking ticket after showing the sign. Whew! "Just keep that sign up at all times," she said.

With that resolved, we started the search. We were having no luck at first and we were getting a bit discouraged. Nobody was responding to my calls and there were not many on-site managers. Ugh. However, hope sprung with my first appointment in the afternoon (I organized a few appts before the trip). It ended up too pricey, but it encouraged us. The two last appointments also turned out to be promsing. In fact, one was on my "if I don't find anything else, I'll take this place" list.

Day two came around, and we decided to search different areas than the day before. The first day was mainly going around Capitol Hill, so we headed to Fremont, Ballard, and Queen Anne. More promising places were discovered as well as the one we ended up getting.

Yes, we found a place - the trip was a success! One check mark on the Move-To-Seattle checklist. It's a lovey apartment in a quad-plex in West Queen Anne. Nicely located between downtown (were my new store is) and cool areas like Ballard (where there's a Trader Joes). It's two bedrooms and we got it at a great price. I have a picture below alongside a Seattle photo (to make you jealous).

Now on to more moving fun! Stay tuned for another post sometime...

To the Top

Before I hiked to the top of Spencer's Butte, I almost wimped out. I read a blog to find how to get there just in case my GPS didn't know where it was located. I did find out the location, but I also found out there were...rattle snacks, poison oak, dead trees, and car theft. Eck! I imagined myself bitten and itchy with a tree on top of me. I started to worry about this park. Should I actually go on this hike? But the blog also said, "If you live in Eugene and have never hiked the Butte..well, I'm sorry but I'm a little disgusted with you." Oh no, I'm disgusting someone! I can't do that. Plus I've heard others talk about this butte. I must find out.

My courage won and off I went. I had my trusty Teva sandals on - the same ones that took me all over Italy back in college days. Once I arrived, I felt reassured with seeing people and even a dad and younger son. A little kid can do this hike, so I should too. On that cue, I took a peek at the map and was ready to go.

The plan was to go the long way up and the shorter route back (see the green and red lines on the blogger's map). That'd didn't quite happen. I ended up taking the long way there, and the long way back. After I got to the top, I tried to find the short trail back with no luck. I asked a friend later the next day, and apparently you don't really do the short way back because it's too steep!

It was a pleasant hike. The final ascent was a bit scary with large rocks. Actually, I take that back, the rocks were scarier to walk down than up. I kept sliding on the way down (no falls though, no bruises either).  The weather was perfect. At the top, there was a cool breeze and beautiful, clear skies. I sat up there and watched the butterflies, took some photos (of course!), and just enjoyed nature.

As I was up there, I saw Oregon's beauty. I guess all that rain paid off. It's really quite breath taking here. The sea of trees and green, the mountains in the distance, the tweeting birds. I would definitely recommend this hike. And the lady blogger was right - I'd be ashamed not to have visited this place before I left!

Blood, Sweat, and Tears

Blood. Vampires. Entertainment. It's true, I find much entertainment on this topic lately. I'm definitely not a Twihard or anything; however, I do really enjoy the Twilight films and books. In fact, you may know from the news that the third book, Eclipse, was released as a movie last week and was breaking 4th of July weekend records. I'd been waiting for it to be released and saw it with some co-worker friends (the theater is in the center across from our store & we were all excited dorks). We even made plans and bought tickets days in advance. The insanity doesn't stop there. I'll admit it, I was the first person in the movie line. This wasn't intentional though, I swear. I was there early just to save seats for my friends since we all thought it'd be a long line and super crowded. I mean it was the first night it opened and everything (no, I didn't go to the opening Tuesday midnight showing...it was Wednesday). To top it off, behind me in line were two teenage girls wearing Edward shirts. Hmm, maybe I shouldn't be sharing this on my blog - you might get the wrong impression. Oh well, too late. Luckily, that was the extent of my dorkiness. In the end, I'm happy to report that it although it's not the best film, it was fun and entertaining.

Twilight isn't the only blood I watch. True Blood Season 2 came available on Netflix last week. I lined it up in the queue and now we're going through the season. It's bloody, and more adult than Twilight. I have to cover my eyes at parts when it gets too bloody-ish. This includes fast forwarding the intro because there are some flashes of pictures I can't stand (bla!). Still, it's a good show and more vampire fun.

Sweat. Yes, sweat. Sweaty just sitting writing this post. It's hot here this week. I know I've been complaining about rain, but I was really just hoping for something in between. Not straight to hot. It's been in the 90's the past few days. It's the worst trying to sleep when it's hot. My feet get so hot, I get squirmy and irritable. Is it too much to ask for some pleasant 70 degree weather? Sigh. I think next week. Working is good though because that means air conditioning! And frappuccinos! (I like to drink them at least, but making a bazillion can be hard work).

Tears. Tears of farewell to Eugene. I'm busy trying to search for a Seattle apartment. It's tough from afar. I'm driving up there with my mom Monday and taking a day and a half to look around (and perhaps get something settled...I hope, hope hope). I've really come to like Eugene and got the chance to make some good friends. Luckily Seattle and Eugene aren't too far away. And I'm sure Seattle will be a blast. I just want to get the move part of it over and done with. Man, I wish it were the end of August and this was all behind us. Patience. I need to find it.

Okay, those are my blood, sweat, and tears. I'll be sure to post again soon. I didn't know what pictures would go with this one...

Red, Woof, and Blue

Happy belated 4th of July! Josh and I had a nice weekend here in Eugene. We opted to stay locally for the holiday weekend because of work and studying. We lucked out and finally had some sun shiny weather. Although Josh had some intense allergies because of the dang high pollen - poor guy.

Even though we stayed around town, we did feel like we were on a mini vacation of sorts. Our friends went up to Washington for the weekend and asked if we'd watch their dog, Ryder. To help Ryder feel comfortable, we stayed at their home (yes, a house, an actual house). They live on the other side of town in West Eugene (fyi - we live in South Eugene). It's closer to the TCBY and Target - some of my favorites. It's funny out a different area of the same city can seem totally new. I really felt like I was away for the weekend except when I forgot something, I was able to pick it up in 30 minutes.

It was a great semi-escape. We got to play with the dog (my arm hurts now from throwing the ball so much), play on their Wii (Josh's legs hurt from snowboarding), watch streaming Netflix and Blu Ray, and enjoy air conditioning. The Wii was a big hit for us. I got to practice some yoga, beat Josh at some tennis, and Josh got to feel like Shaun White snowboarding. I also enjoyed some films too. For instance, the Iron Man on their Blu Ray - such clarity! I want one.

Being 4th of July weekend, I cooked up some all American foods and treats. I made moist and delicious banana bread (the second time using this recipe in two weeks - yum). I cooked up some cheeseburgers. Then to top it off, chicken with potatoes (all with veggies, of course).

Fireworks were on the list as well. We thought about going out to see them, but wanted to be sure Ryder didn't freak out. Fireworks, small ones at least, are legal here in Oregon. We didn't get any fireworks of our own, but all the neighbors in the area sure did. They had some crazy fireworks display. Josh and I stood outside in the driveway at saw the fireworks going off in all directions. It was crazy all the fireworks people had going. I had to drive home since I worked early the next day, and on the way there were fireworks all over town. It was fun to see.

This weekend was a fun change of pace for us. Plus we got to play with a dog, which we'd love to have if only we had the right living situation. Sigh, some day. Maybe a Bernese Mountain Dog or Swissy.

Happy 4th! God Bless the USA - I'm Proud! Relive some fireworks with my videos and photos - below and here. {Note, Cheese You Tube, but good 4th of July song. It was that, or my sister's favorite, 1776

Pleasure and Passion

It's summer! We've had a few sunny days here in Eugene and it's great. The summer was late to show, but now that's it's here, we're all thrilled. We've been waiting all winter for this (except for those with allergies - that's not so fun). Since it's warmer, I like to drink cold drinks. Honestly, I prefer iced tea. You may recall my favorite tea, Vanilla Roobios. I do this whenever I have time to self-brew. However, on the go, I enjoy the always-available passion tea. I add my own twist to it though. Instead of the traditional classic syrup for sweetener, I add sugar-free vanilla. So refreshing. If you'd like, there is a passion tea lemonade as well. The black and green teas aren't too bad either. By the way, I get venti size when it comes to iced tea beverages. How to “call it” (order it)? Iced Venti, Sugar-free Vanilla, Passion Tea.

This Time Last Year

Apparently this is the happenin' month - birthday, 100 posts celebration, and now today. Today marks my official one year in Eugene (that's 365 days). Looking back, I can say that it's been a great year. For one (and the best), I am so glad to be here with Josh. Plus the change has been good for me in so many ways too. I'm experiencing all sorts of new things since living here. To name a few, I've experienced life ...

• In a small town (one big on their college sports)


• Outside of California (born and raised Cali girl)


• Working at a non-desk job and on my feet (no computers all-day)


• Without Yumi Yogurt (<- that's my froyo)


• With green all around and rain (and wildlife in the front yard)


• With tons of coffee (not just SBux, but coffee life in the Pacific NW in general)


• Where you can get across the city in 20 minutes (or less)


• With some  wonderful new friends!

As for the flip side, there are a few things I will be glad to see return with a bigger city. These include...

• A bigger Mall (one that includes Nordstroms and an Apple store)


• More dining out options (starting to get tired of just the small choices here)


• An airport with more, and cheaper flights


• People that don't stop before turning right (or drive a bit faster)

On an ending note, let's recall a photo from my first day here...

100th Post

I just realized that my birthday post yesterday was my 100th post! Wow, thanks to all my readers to staying interested (at least, I think people are still somewhat interested since I get some visits yet).

To celebrate the 100th post, I'll give you a little factoid: Did you know I track traffic onto my post? I can't track exactly who, but I can see if it was visited each day and which state (or country) the visit came from. Yesterday there were 7 visits! After these 100 random posts, people are still visiting. Awesome!

Oh, and I realized I had a video for my birthday on my phone. Here's the link or watch it now...

Another Notch on the Belt

The 18th of June marks the annual celebration of my birth. I had a great day and really appreciated all the efforts from my family and friends.

I started my day with ultimate relaxation. I slept in to my favorite 9am hour. Then I packed up a magazine and got myself a coffee and muffin at Full City (Josh had to study). Thanks to Josh, I headed of to The Pearl Spa for an 1-1/2 aromatherapy massage. It was incredibly nice. They even gave me a bottle of aroma oil to take home. She offers me 1 of 3 scents. She held them up and I ended up choosing basil.  I read somewhere that basil is good for stress (or something like along those lines).

After this heavenly morning, I headed home. I thought Josh would be at school studying all day, but he came home to study instead. Before it got to late, I popped online and chatted with my friend Caroline (in Germany) over iChat. Remember she's my twin - my German equivalent.

Josh and I decided to enjoy lunch out, so we tried out a new Italian restaurant in town called Osteriz Sfizio. I had some tasty chard-ricotta ravioli. It was a decent day out, so it was perfect sitting next to the window (a bit too chilly for outsides yet).

Fret not, I did get my wonderfully delicious frozen yogurt in the afternoon. I met up with my friend Kim at TCBY. Sadly they don't carry my favorite cookies 'n cream flavor, but I liked the chocolate peanut brittle flavor blended with some oreos (they call it a shiver).

I also got some fabulous gifts. I received a cute Timbuk2 messenger bag that fits my iPad perfectly. It will be great for Seattle when I commute around town in the rain. Not only that, but i also got some gift certificates to froyo (believe-it-or-not), movies, and Ann Taylor. This mean some more fun times ahead. Oh and got a cute top and a Seattle book. I feel so loved.

I ended the night with Josh and some friends at Chao Pra Ya Thai - Thai is the best!! And a pumpkin cookie for dessert at SweetLife.

What a day! And what a way to start my 28th year!

Thanks everyone for a great birthday!

(Sorry no pictures! Que horror! I'll try to get some somehow, someway).

A Miracle...Rice Saves the Day

The main definition of a miracle according to my computer's dictionary is, "a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency." Perhaps, with this definition, I should say this week's rice miracle wasn't really a miracle. There is explanation. However, the second definition listed is, "a highly improbable or extraordinary event, development, or accomplishment that brings very welcome consequences. " I like the very welcome consequences part, so I think it's okay to stick with the word miracle. Do I have you wondering what rice and miracle are doing in the same sentence yet? (BTW, I was going for The Onion type of post title with this one).

I'll leave you in suspense no longer. Rice saved Josh's iPhone this week. Josh dropped his iPhone in water earlier this week. I was at work and I got an email that his phone would might be "out of commission." I emailed back saying RICE! I had read an article awhile ago (I can't remember the source - probably some blog I follow) saying how rice will save a phone from water damage. Josh also remembered this trick from an article last week. We are geeks, okay. Anyway, he was at school and I was at work. Upon our return home, we investigated the phone. There was moisture in the lens and it definitely wasn't turning on.

We started to plan for what to do? Buy a new iPhone 4? Get an older phone? Hmm. Tough call and bad timing. We decided to hold off for the night and try this rice trick. Apparently, the rice is dry and draws out the moisture from the phone. So we submerged the phone in rice overnight and waited.

The next morning during my break I got a text message from Josh...his phone was alive! A miracle - one with an explanation (something scientific), but one with that brought welcome consequences.

Here's a photo of Josh using his phone just a week ago...

Two for Dad

My dad has two special days this month - his birthday and Father's Day. A double whammy on gift giving - he's the hardest guy when it comes to presents. Usually he buys something and gives it to you to return back to him on the special days (Birthday, Father's day, Christmas, etc). Either that, or he gives specific instructions on what to buy. For instance, a polo shirt, tan pants, or wine. Actually it's one of those three things that he tends to get - ha!

Lately, I've tried to venture away and do a little surprising lately. For his birthday he got the Smithsonian Rick Steves special edition (and a subscription). I thought this clever. I scored points too (at least it appears that way). I won't say what he's getting for Father Day since that is yet to come, but it's another surprise. I love my dad, he's so predictable; it's cute.

I love the below picture because it reminds me of playing catch with him after dinner on week days when I was a kid. The other picture was his 60th birthday in Chicago (oh, and my b-day two...their close together). [Oh and get it...2 days and 2 pictures.]

Before it Begins

This past weekend (my "weekend" being Friday and Saturday - a schedule thing), Josh and I headed out of town to get some one-on-one time together. Josh is starting to take the prep classes for the Washington Bar exam. The classes and studying for the bar is super intense - i.e. imagine finals time but extended for about 7-8 weeks. With all this starting Monday, 6/7 we thought we'd go on a mini-trip before it all begins (okay, technically it's started already. Sorry I lagged getting this post written).

It was actually a last minute deal for us. We thought about going on a trip, but didn't have any specific plans until the night before heading out - very spontaneous for us. We had specific criteria and sorted through a few ideas, but we ended up deciding on The Dalles area. Basically, eastern Oregon. We found a cute hotel online in Dufur (eh hem, not dufus).

Before leaving, Josh setup a system where we could upload photos to my Flickr site, which then updated a website all using our iPhone cameras as well as my fabulous iPad (tech geeks!). We vowed to take pictures every hour on the hour so our trip was documented in photos. You can see this at our Hours in the Dalles website, thedalles.joshwbrown.com. Note the copyright line - that's all Josh. See what law school does to people!

By 1pm Friday we were on the road with iPhones in hand. As we reached the Gorge area, we started to make random stops whenever we saw something beautiful or cool. This started at the Lewis and Clark park and then some following viewpoints. We made a stop in Hood River for a walk around town and for some grub. We ate at a nice placed called Brian's Pourhouse where we shared some tasty pizza and salad. Then we headed back on to the road toward our final destination of the day, Dufur.

As we reached the road from The Dalles to Dufur, we were gifted with some incredible lighting. The sun came out, but the night clouds were out in the distance. Not to sound too British, but it was quite lovely. Once we reached our hotel, The Balch Hotel, I ran out to take photos of the nearby silos and farm stuff (tractors 'n stuff). In anticipation to your question: No, we didn't stay on an actual farm. We actually stayed in a historic hotel. In fact, it's in the National Register of Historic Places - totally true...there is a placard on the front near the door to verify this fact. However, this meant no television or phones. Not to fret though, there was wireless Internet and with our iPhones and my iPad we were covered.

The hotel owners were quite delightful people - Samantha and Jeff. To start, they hooked me us up with a discount (always a plus in my book). They were the most hospital people offering us cookies, giving a whole hotel tour, etc. There weren't a bunch of other guests, but they were all very pleasant. It was interesting to talk to the other guests and hear all their stories and whatnot.

Included in our stay was a full three-course breakfast. Before eating, Josh and I headed outdoors since it was the annual Tour de Hood bicycle ride. There was a rest stop at the hotel for the bikers. These were the recreational bikers, but the pros turned up the road. Some of the guests at the hotel had a daughter that was running the tour (not running literally, but manage it, etc). Apparently she was a very talents biker and was runner up for the Olympics - cool stuff.

Anyway, fast forward to breakfast. We started with some fruit-nut parfaits, followed by a potato-spinach-feta frittata and a toffee nut coffeecake. All the guests were served and we sat and chatted it up. With full tummies, we took a few more pictures and headed out.

On the return route, we took a brief detour to the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. As we neared lunchtime, we opted for a meal in Hood River again. This time we ate at a British Pub called Horse and Hound.

After lunch we continued back on the Oregon side. I was driving and made a few random stops including the Bridge of Gods. I also make an impulse stop at the Horsetail Falls. Then I persuaded Josh to go with me on the upper trail hike. At the top, we saw the...wait for it...the back side of water (Disneyland, I miss you). There is a quick video on my Flickr site as well.

The final, and not any less important stop, was YoCream. Oh yea, that's right; can't miss the froyo. To top it off, there was my favorite cookies 'n cream. Heaven. In. A. Cup. I contemplated trying to transport it home, but decided it sadly wouldn't survive the 2 something hour drive.

That's about it. A one-night outing, but a fabulous time. I think the great weather really helped too. We've had some unusually late rain here in Eugene (makes me feel better to here the locals say this is unusual). It seems like this weekend may have been the turning point in the weather and we'll be getting some better weather now.

Don't forget to browse my photo album on Flickr. I took the site pro this weekend just so you could see more pictures. Enjoy!

On the Job

You might be curious about my job these days. I was just checking out my calendar and realized I've been a barista for about 8 months now - shocking. I feel like I know the ropes pretty well now, although there is always room for growth (nobody's perfect I suppose - I keep try though!). Here's some random stuff about life as a barista:

Customers - We have a ton of regulars - no joke. I'm horrible with estimating numbers (i.e. don't ask me the population of Eugene), but it's gotta be something like 50 something regulars many that come everyday. Some of them get something as simple as a cup of coffee (or maybe a grande in a venti Pikes) to more complicated like a decaf venti vanilla soy with whip latte. Some get crazy amounts of shots or flavor, and some get straight up shots. I think my favorite is the grande breve, 3 sugar, with whip and chocolate drizzle mocha. We see lots of crazy drinks folks, but it sure makes it interesting. I actually love our regulars since you get to know them and it's fun to be like "hey so-and-so, want your such-and-such today?"

SBux 7 Dwarfs - Speaking of regulars, I was coming up with Starbucks dwarf alternative names. Doppio, Breve, Starry, Frappie. Still thinking of others. Maybe something with VIA or beans.

AM Stuff - The past few weeks I've been working more open shifts. Our store opens 5:30am on weekdays and 6am on weekends. This means we need to be there at 5am and 5:30am respectively. And that translates to a 4-something wake-up time. It's rough, but then you have the whole day to run errands, appointments, nap. Right now I'm tired because I opened, but I've already done the laundry and had froyo with a friend (work-friend haha). Not bad for a day's work, ehh?

Cheers - Some customer (not a regular) thought I looked like a character from Cheers. Apparently I have a striking resemblance and personality to Shelly. I really can't say since I didn't watch the series except for a few times as a kid and that was just passing through channels, so I don't recall any of it.

Team - Tuesday we had a team outing to Putters. Alright my Cali friends, get this, it's an indoor mini-golf place. Yes, inside. There are indoor tennis courts here too. It also doubles as a lazer tag place and restaurant. You might recall previous posts about lazer tag - this is that place. The whole team enjoyed some pizza, pepsi and mini golf. It was a good time (Sorry, I forgot about picture taking. Okay, I'll be honest, I felt funny asking people for photos - I hate that). Good times though. We have a few new people joining the team, so it was good to get to know them a bit more.

Signs - I'm still of the official store sign maker. I made a new one this week about how to use your VIA. I also made a hiring management sign. On the latter, I did the ultimate challenge: the Starbucks logo. I think I did pretty well except that our white marker paint pen was dry so it was in yellow.

The End. (But Starbuck's life continues).

P.S. You'll see photos of me on the job at my Flickr album. You'll also see some girls I've become friends with at work.

The Graduate

Josh wasn't Dustin Hoffman this past weekend, but he was a graduate. An official graduate of the University of Oregon Law School. Three cheers! Hip Hip Hurray! Hip Hip Hurray! Hip Hip Hurray! For he's a jolly good fellow! And all that jazz.

Yes, we are all excited. Josh even got excited once finals were over. Graduation called for big time celebration. All the families convened to make this one dang special event. My parents and Josh's parents all flew up for the ceremonies and festivities. Although it rained, it did not rain on our parade (I really need to stop these pop culture references, huh? I think I'm so clever sometimes).

My mom was the first to arrive on Thursday late afternoon. Before we did the Josh-centric weekend, we took a few hours to have mother-daughter bonding time. Although my mom's flight was a few hours delayed, we managed to get our mani/pedi time. While we were indulging a bit, Josh's parents arrived. While my mom and I were bonding, Josh spent some parent-bonding time as well. Thursday dinner I took my mom on a Heather favorites spree - Yi Shen for dinner and TCBY for dessert. Then we did mini / pseudo shopping at the Dollar Tree. Thursday was just the beginning of the fun though.

Friday I had to work in the morning until 10:30am. That's no biggie though (plus I still have to bring in the big bucks - I refrained for saying SBux). We all gathered at our little place and headed out to a lunch in the wine country. I had made some lovely reservations at King Estate Winery. I had been there previously and it was quite enjoyable. This time wasn't quite the same. We look back and laugh, but our food took forever and it wasn't that tasty. However, we did get a free bottle of wine - not too shabby (and make some of us happier). The view was also nice.

After a ehh-lunch experience, we headed to Prince Puckler's to get ice cream (this place was revealed to Don Thursday night apparently and it was love at first bite). We breaked afterwards for some R&R (I have been getting up early a bunch lately and needing nap time). During nap time, my dad arrived too.

Friday dinner things continued and we headed to Humble Beagle. We all enjoyed our first celebratory meal (meaning everyone had now arrived). And this was also the first meal that both sets of parents were together and it went splendidly. Afterwards it was gift time. Josh got to open cards and gifts. I have to say my gift a hit. I just asked Josh as I was typing what his response was and he replied, "overjoyed!" The gift was a Fossil leather laptop briefcase. I also got it a set of ampersand bookends - very artsy and Josh loves ampersands. In addition, the parents got some generous gift certificates and the like. I think Josh felt very happy - see picture.

Saturday was the big day. We started with a hearty breakfast together at Midtown. Josh had to be at the ceremony location, The Hult Center, by 11:30am. We had a bit of time, so we did some roaming at the 5th Street Market. The ceremony began at 1pm. Nada took the lead and I was her trusty right-hand man on getting prime seating in the orchestra area. As the graduates progress to their designated seating, they walked right past our row. Josh almost tripped as we  yelled his name while passing us. Then he got mixed in the sea of jester-like hats below. I spend a large portion of the beginning seeking him out. I found in about the fourth from the right and 2-3 row up - Brown last name you know. A then B (yes, I can spell).

Yada yada yada at the ceremony. Some speaking and reasons why to love law and "go get the world" type stuff, then cheers and progression out. It was blur of photos and smiles, then we were off to the reception. We met some more law friends and ate the small cheese and fruits. Once the formalities were over, we headed to dinner at Red Agave.

It turned out that Josh's two law friends, Katherine and Anne, also reserved tables at Red Agave. We basically took over the restaurant. We all sung Happy Graduation to each of them (think the Birthday song but insert Graduation instead). Dinner was delicious and the drinks tasty - all very much enjoyed.

Saturday concludes the graduation celebration. Don and Nada headed back to Portland airport Sunday morning to head home. However, before driving up they stopped for a fabulous breakast at a place with superb servings: Valley River Starbucks. I'll write a post next on the photos and visits. My parents also joined the fun.

My parents weren't headed out until Monday morning, so Sunday was a low-key but fun day exploring Eugene. I had to work again that morning, but I was able to finish by noon. We ate some lunch, did a tiny hike with views and trees (classic Oregon), and then ended it all with a lovely dinner at Marche.

Oh, I surprised Josh with a graduation banner, balloons, and outside sign with "congrats grad" written everywhere. Cute, right?

Now that graduation is over, it's on the the next phase: the bar. Dun dun dun. Josh has a few days of freedom, but then it's back to the grind. Finishing the bar will require more celebrations, stay tuned.

For you to live some of the celebrations, I have some videos and pictures to share...

The Progression:



JW Brown JD from Nada Brown on Vimeo.

Getting the Degree:



Josh Law Graduation from Heather O'Neill on Vimeo.

And check out some pictures on Flickr.

The Critic Returns

You may recall that I review stuff every now and again. It started with my first review, The Critic. I realized in this original post I said I'd spring "Heather, the critic" on you occasionally. I've been neglecting my critic obligations, so I thought I'd give you some reviews on recent things in my life. These are quite random, but that's just how I roll (get used to it - wink wink).

• The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane - I finished this book shortly after my visit to Chicago (boy, you sure get lots of reading time when you fly!). I had a good feeling about this book from the start considering it was historical in nature and had a fictional twist - love that historical fiction. Plus it was about the Salem Witch Trials which I've always found intriguing. The first two chapters made me re-think whether I'd really like the book, but I charged on. As happens with some books, you just need to get past the first chapter or so to get into the follow. By the end, I couldn't put it down. I thought it was an interesting perspective and a clever way to reveal the tale. I would recommend this book for those who like the historical fiction slash supernatural stuff (note: supernatural not quite the right word, but it's the best I can come up with for it - read it, you'll see). Since we're talking books, these are two sites I've checked out recently: Good Reads and the Book Seer.


• Simplenote - This is an app for the iPhone and/or iPad. It's probably my favorite app. Josh, my tech dude, found it for me and downloaded it. However, if I inspire you to download it for yourself, then I wanted to also let you know that it's free! Best part, right?!? Anyway, it's sooo cool and incredibly useful. Seriously. It totally fits my note taking needs / obsession. I can access a note from any of my electronic gadgets -- iMac, iPhone, or iPad. If you update a note in one, you update them all. It's simple too (hence the name) - creating a note is quick and managing an exciting one is a synch. The power of the list unleashed!


• Swifer Duster - Yes, I'm talking about a cleaning product. A girl at work mentioned it to me when I was complaining about house cleaning. I saw it on sale at Target, so I grabbed one. Now, let me tell you, I dislike cleaning.  Like most folks, you probably assumed I like to clean considering how I like cleanliness; however, I don't actually like doing the physical cleaning part. Not to mention, I now clean at work. This intensifies the home cleaning dislike. The Swifer Duster changed that experience for me (just a bit mind you). I enjoyed seeing the dust magically disappear - visible results (okay, that's probably more visible because dusting was highly necessary). The Duster, though, it really did it's duty - dust clung to it and didn't create a tornado of dust bunnies. With one sweep, the dust was gone. Loved it. Yea for stuff to make cleaning easier!


• Whole-Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies - These were "healthy" cookies in disguise. My co-workers didn't even realize they were whole wheat. I even put in a tad bit of wheatgerm. All totally unnoticed until I brought it up (not sure why I even brought it up). Anyway, these were delicate and scrumptious; a definite crowd-pleaser. I think they made a nice sweet tooth treat after dinner, too. Caveat: This never out-beats froyo.


• Open-Face Turkey Burgers with Gruyère, Mushrooms, and Arugula Salad - I made this tasty dinner a few weeks ago and it turned out great. I used par-baked potato bread (obviously I baked the rest at home and got it nice and crispy). Since it was raining, I ended up cooked the burgers on the stove top inside. This method didn't prevent them from jaw-dropping awesomeness. They were fast and easy to make - a 30 minute meal (take that Rachel). I found the recipe on Epicurious as I was exploring the app on my iPad and planning the week's meals out. To end, I'd like to make a quick call tech out: Epicurious is another fav app.


• Florence + The Machine - I'm not talking construction in Italy, rather a music group. Their songs are very mellow and nice for chilling out - i.e. while you are napping or cruising the Internet. I guess this would go under the Indie genre. Josh actually got the Lung album on iTunes and I used iTunes home-sharing feature to download it for myself. If you need something pleasant, I highly recommend this one.

Alright, I covered a plethora of topics there - cleaning, cooking, and more. I have another blog topic in mind, but I need to find the time to write. I'm busy these days since [A] I'm getting more hours at work, and [B] Josh's graduation is this weekend and the parents are both going to be in town soon (now you understand the Swifer topic).

I'll end with a picture since it's my "blog thing" and I enjoy photos (plus I hear adding visuals to your blogs make it more interesting for the audience - and I'll do anything for my fan club).

P.S. I like to think this is Josh laughing at my clever, and witty post above. Rather, he's just laughing at a cupcake (he's gone a bit crazy with finals).