And now, we return to Wood Village Nite Out, July 17, 2009

Here's the start of the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office SWAT demonstration. The smoke is from a device they set off, with a rather loud bang and then the smoke. The announcer said it's often used to hide their approach.


The "bad guy" driver is quickly dealt with by two team members. Notice the Coast Guard helicopter pilots in the background? They certainly had a neat perspective.


And the K9 deputy and his handler take care of the "bad guy" passenger.


We'd just been told to watch for a demonstration of two sorts of guns, thus the tarp to be placed beneath the derelict automobile. Love the responsibility--no glass in the grass for this guy!


This first gun shot rubber bullets, I believe. I don't know if that was just for the demonstration or if that's all it ever shoots.


Flying glass!


Hey, y'all SWAT out there! What is that blue sphere? Did I get a rubber bullet in flight?


The second gun--I think it's shooting bean bags. Must not be very large ones. I wonder the same thing about this gun, too. Does it only shoot bean bags?


Did the job, though!


I know, enough already with the shattering glass. I can't help it, I like to see what action the camera caught.

Bentley, Bentley, what happened to your glasses?

I photographed this gorgeous automobile at almost the end of the detailing process, hence the missing headlight glass so that the deed could be completed professionally.


Thanks to Details by Mark, next door to Bright Auto Upholstery on SE 6th Avenue!


See what I mean? What a shine!


Sweet whitewalls!

Would that I could imbibe a second Pimms Centre Court.

"Prepare me one, oh 3 Doors Down bartender," I exhort!
"Surely the Pimms, cucumber vodka, cane syrup, lemon & a splash of soda libation
"Would do much to ease my mind and cure this heat-induced perspiration!"

Ain't that a gorgeous-looking drink?

3 Doors Down Cafe co-owner Kay Bergin said, "Summer on a plate," when she placed the potato gnocchi with succotash on my table--she was oh, so right!

I'm here to tell you that the Pimms Centre Court is pure-T summer in a glass!

Oh, by the way, it was 106 degrees in Portland on Tuesday, one degree off the record. And Wednesday's predicted to be even hotter. We persevere!

Would that I could lose myself in the water drop...

...'cause here in Portland it's so dart hot!


We've got an excessive heat warning from noon Monday through 10 p.m. Wednesday. It's the real thing.

Special, created with skill, precision, and love

Grilled, house-made, boudin blanc sausage, creamed corn & sweet onions, from 3 Doors Down Cafe, SE 37th and SE Hawthorne, which is right where I headed last Friday after leaving Wood Village Nite Out.

Surely this photo ought to be in Webster's beside the definition for succulent, the adjective: full of juice, juicy; moist and tasty, toothsome; as in a succulent meal.

Amen. Boudin blanc created by Dave Marth, chef/owner of 3DD.

Hi, Dave.




Leland carved these spoons! He gave them to Mama and me for Mother's Day. Sweet.

Potato gnocchi with Fava bean succotash, my other appetizer, prepared by none other than Flash, line cook, situated right beside my New Old Fashioned--house-made dried maraschino cherries, muddles orange, Angostura bitters, sugar and bourbon.

I made sure I had several glasses of water before ordering the alcoholic beverage, plus I knew Leland would be driving me on home.

What a perfect night!

By the numbers, Wood Village Nite Out, No. 2

For the next part of my Friday night fun, I'll share some of the K-9 demonstrations. I used Google to try to find out facts about each dog, using their photos to help me. Plus I remember that the deputy sheriff announcing called the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office dogs deputies and the Lake Oswego Police Department's dog officer. While I found photos and names for both of the Sheriff's dogs, I couldn't find one of the Lake Oswego dog. I did remember that his name started with a C, so I think he's Charger. The solid black dog is Varro and the dog with the fluffy coat is Ryker.

Here's each dog. I had a time deciding which ones to show of each one. Those I picked show the dogs doing different things to accomplish the task, find and stop the deputy playing the bad guy.

I can't remember what this was called, but I think it was for Varro to close-in on the deputy/bad guy and keep him stopped in his tracks. Varro stealthily approaches.


Wouldn't you like to know what he's saying to his partner?


The deputy/bad guy decided to move. Bad idea.


Ryker had stared down the deputy/bad guy and had him standing with his hands up right before this photo. You can tell that the deputy/bad guy has decided to step between the K9 deputy and his handler. Ryker reacted instantly.




Charger, Lake Oswego Police Department, takes off after a deputy/bad guy who was hiding in a refrigerator box, completely out of sight.



From that first photo of Charger, you can tell he's fast! The second time he came off the lead, he quickly caught the deputy/bad guy.

By the numbers, Wood Village Nite Out, No. 1

Known across the country as National Night Out, America's Night Out Against Crime arrives on August 4. However, I learned through the newspaper that nearby Wood Village, Oregon, a city that covers .9 square miles and is way out east from my usual Portland haunts--past Gresham and Fairview and before Troutdale--would celebrate on Friday, July 17, 2009. An impressive list of planned activities beckoned me and my camera to venture east in Multnomah County.

After 530 photos taken of activities at Wood Village Nite Out, four hours walking about and/or standing in the sun-filled, mid-90s evening, three memory cards filled, three bites of a hot dog, two bottles of water consumed, two Multnomah County Sheriff's Office K-9 demonstrations, two Lake Oswego K-9 Demonstrations, one bottle of kiwi-strawberry Propel consumed, one Shasta orange soda consumed, one Multnomah County Sheriff's Office SWAT demonstration, one US Coast Guard helicopter landing, one emergency vehicle parade--as you well know I could go on and on and on--I sat myself down in the Buick and drove away from fun-filled Wood Village, Oregon.

To say that I felt hot, sweaty and satisfied would be the truth. To say that I didn't care that I would get to 3 Doors Down Cafe an hour earlier than I had planned would be the truth. That meant I could relax, drink some water and eat some tasty food. And that's exactly what I did, plus I added one new-fangled Old Fashioned for good measure. After all, Leland drove me on home.

Let's begin with some vehicles from the parade.


The Multnomah County Sheriff is in the first car. His name, Sheriff Skipper, is on the back door.




How about this vintage Multnomah County Sheriff's vehicle? A Ford--I don't know the year, but I love this car!


Unfortunately, this piece of equipment probably gets way too much use.


With the Willamette and Columbia Rivers surrounding Portland, we often hear on the news that a dive team has been called out. The van must be how they get wherever they are needed.


Here's the Gresham Fire Department truck, complete with a clown waving to people along the street. I love a parade!




Well-used, heavily-forested mountains are in every direction you can go from Portland. We hear even more often about Search and Rescue operations on the TV news.


I Googled AMR Reach and Treat Portland Oregon and found out this is a very busy rescue branch, too.


I didn't know the Sheriff had motorcycles. I've only seen Portland Police on motorcycles. Well, to tell you the truth, I've only seen a motorcycle policeman in line at the Burger King, getting his lunch, still wearing his rather large white helmet. I bet he's got to be ready to go on a moment's notice. Wonder if there's a radio in the helmet?

That's it for the parade--not all that was there but all I'm posting.

The Yellow Impala, 1964, 4-door, seen on NE Glisan

I circled the block, well a couple of blocks, to get this photo. I used Picnik to auto-fix the color, crop and resize it. How do you think it turned out?

I wasn't the only one who enjoyed Wood Village, Oregon's Nite Out, Friday, July 17, 2009

You know how it is. You take picture after picture, yet you know not what you've got. Until.

She circled and circled the fountain ...

... joyously sprayed by the Salmon Springs Fountain.







... joyously spreading smiles.

In honor of "So You Think You Can Dance" and "America's Got Talent," here's our Kailey ...

... at Dancesation at Milwaukie High School, last January. As part of a fund raiser for the elementary and junior high school dance teams, alumni came back to perform. Mama, Leland, Marsha and I, plus Kailey's family and friends thoroughly enjoyed their dance.

If you're new to the blog, Kailey is my younger son Leland's sweetheart.

Romance, seen from our living room windows, an unusual sight on NW 22nd

Yep, it's a TriMet bus, the 15 to be exact, as you can tell from the sign atop its windshield--Belmont/23rd means it's the bus that goes from NW 23rd across the river to SE Belmont.

Back story. We heard a news story on KGW Channel 8, explaining that from at least 7 p.m. on until we knew not when NW 23rd would be closed between Hoyt and Irving for a street event centered around Escape from New York Pizza.

Hence we soon began to hear the distinctive, memory-inducing squwish, whoosh, sound signaling the release of brakes and the diesel-infused acceleration of a 12-ton bus heading north, first right outside the living room windows above NW 22nd. Then we heard the deceleration of the southbound bus, the squeak of the engaging brakes, followed by the beep-beep-beep of the kneeling bus. Kneeling? At the corner of NW 22nd and NW Everett? I quickly looked down from our 4th floor window and saw an older woman walking west, away from the stopped bus. Yep, the driver had pushed the button that makes the door-side of the bus lower itself a few inches which makes for an easier exit--or entrance--for older persons, disabled persons. Oh, and there's a ramp that folds out and sits itself onto the sidewalk for wheelchairs, scooters, walkers, and those wire baskets you can fill up with groceries, etc.

So, why in the world you're wondering would I get a photo of one of the buses that went south over the next few hours? Why would I be so excited about having buses outside our windows? Believe me, Mama was wondering about it, especially as we kept hearing the squeak, the squwish, the whoosh, and the acceleration and deceleration. She said more than once, "I'm glad we don't have this outside every day."

Here's what excited me, the fact that changing from one street to another parallel one causes not a single ripple in the functioning of TriMet. I didn't go out on NW 23rd to look, but I can just about guarantee that TriMet had signs and/or employees at the regular bus stops on NW 23rd, telling folks to go east one block to board their bus.

It's so Portland to be able to adapt to changing circumstances like this, like when the bridges have to lift for river traffic, like the upcoming Providence Bridge Pedal when folks can choose to ride their bikes on 11 bridges that cross the Willamette in Portland because lanes will be closed to vehicle traffic--you could ride across fewer bridges or walk across two of them, I could go on and on.

These changes are not your run-of-the-mill construction-induced changes. Don't get me wrong, those are here just like everywhere else. But to me these so-Portland-changes brim with romance and make me fall even more for this city I've now called home for three years.

Meet Ginger, Kailey's Pomeranian

She came with Leland in the Buick one day, to pick me up after work. We went to the apartment so that Ginger could stay with Duncan and Mama while we shopped at Fred Meyer.


Ginger's favorite place to ride in the car when Leland's driving.

Or when Leland's a passenger--I pointed the camera over my shoulder and got this photo. Neat!



She's a precious, tiny, ball of fluff and energy. Duncan's not too sure what to make of her energy.

Smooth

Taken through the closed door, on May 6, 2009, of John Helmer's, Haberdasher in downtown Portland.



Taken through the open door on June 13, 2009.

Which perspective do you like best?

Soft

One of many blossoms on several hydrangea bushes around the corner, right beside the sidewalk.

Would that the sky were true blue ...

In order to show the trees' true hue.

Still and all, I wanted to show you the contrast between the deep wine-colored tree on the left and the green one on the right. That's my bus peeking out of the wine-colored leaves. The little triangle is Portland Firefighters Park. Click on the link for more about the park and for a photo of the wine-colored tree in bloom. I'm waiting on West Burnside to catch that 15, on the way home from tour-guide volunteering at the PCPA.

Hot Dog! PBR Serendipity

My camera around my neck to make room in the tote bag for two half gallons of milk, I exited Fred Meyer on NW 20th and walked south, towards Burnside and the bus stop on the corner.

"Oh," I thought, "I'd better turn the camera on. Never know what I'll see."

I looked up as I got closer to the corner. "Like that!" Click. One chance to get the photo before he disappeared on the sidewalk.

"Yes!" I thought when I checked the view screen. "Got it!"


Uncropped.

Popularly known as The Car Wash

Untitled fountain SW 5th and Ankeny


This tubular fountain designed by Carter, Hull, Nishita, McCulley and Baxter was installed in 1977. A wind gauge shuts off its water on gusty days to prevent hazards for motorists.


Not to mention the pedestrians. I get to walk by this fountain every weekday morning when I change from the 17 to the 4 bus. And, yes, I have seen no water spraying on windy days.


It was turned completely off for a little over two years while the bus mall was being revamped--lots of construction to make the mall better and to add another light rail line.


When the mall re-opened and bus lines returned to SW 5th and SW 6th, the fountain came back to life.

Our short Ester Lee interlude, there on Monday and heading home

A product of the USA.

Breakfast Monday morning, along with toast.



Mama's half, still juicy.


But not for long.


Mama's dressed and raring to go. We'd decided to head to the Chinook Winds Casino for a few hours of the penny machines. Doesn't she look great?


Not before I took a few morning photos of the grand Pacific.





Then we went to the casino and played for an hour before Mama began to feel bad. Look at the post for Saturday, July 4, for the details. Since the ER doctor wanted her to head home in an ambulance with lights and siren, I had to drive back alone. Well, it was just me and Duncan in Buick. In order to relieve that highway hypnosis that goes with a lengthy drive, I turned off twice at shopping centers for some stop-and-go, turn left, turn right driving.


At the second one, in Sherwood, Oregon, I came across this beautiful sight, glimpsed at a car wash that turned out to be behind a garage.

My joy at getting the chance to take the photo jolted me really good. I made it on home just fine and went from there for the next two days, as you can read on the July 4th post.

Our short Ester Lee interlude, there on Sunday

I'm settled, on the concrete patio in front of our cottage, my rear in one plastic Adirondack, my feet in the other. It didn't take too long to let Mama out at the office end of the row to make her way to our door on her walker, then get Duncan and our stuff out of the Buick and down the 17 stairs to our door. It did take four trips, thus shortly thereafter I'm settled as you see here. In the background,the white is foam from waves, the lower blue is the Pacific Ocean, and the rest of the blue is the huge sky. You can tell from this photo that our cottage is atop a bluff.


Yep, that's my gray hair despite the fact that along my forehead it surely resembles someone's hairpiece. As I took this photo, the wind whipped around the chair, making me think any minute I'd have to zip the sweatshirt.


I'm smiling because I have zipped the sweatshirt and pulled up the hood, blocking some of the chilly wind so that I can remain outside in the glorious sun.


Gave up and tied the hood tightly. I managed to stay outside a total of 22 minutes.


Mama's settled inside the cottage, her walker doing duty as the leg-extension part of a make-shift recliner. She's got her crossword puzzle in her lap and her pencil in her left hand. With the bright sunlight streaming through the windows, she decided to keep her sunglasses on--otherwise she'd have had to shut the blinds and then miss the view. Can't do that when one is at the coast!


Duncan's settled on the fold-out couch.


Hours later at sunset.


The moon, high above the Pacific--lovely.

Our short Ester Lee interlude, going

How about this pickup truck? Gorgeous, well-loved ride sighted in McMinnville, Oregon, on Highway 18.


Outside McMinnville, at the corner of Highway 18 and Oldsville Road. Look at that sky!


We stopped for strawberry shortcake. Oops! Duncan got a lick of whipped cream. I saw him through the camera and hollered. See my Goodwill Kate Spade, $9.99. I hope it's a real one, but even if it isn't, it's a great red leather bag.


A lovely harvested field on a rolling hillside, on Highway 18 outside Sheridan, Oregon.


Where we ended up on Sunday, June 28, on Highway 101 in Lincoln City, Oregon.


The office at the Ester Lee. Our cottage was due north, at the other end of the row. See the man with the dog? That's the dog park area, with plenty of grass and a rocky path, plus the fake fire hydrants and the narrow building with bags and a trash can. All quite civilized and efficient, except when Duncan and I made our way there after registering, the blustery cold wind caused me to zip my sweatshirt and tie the hood tightly around my face, on the last Sunday in June!

Happy 4th of July, Y'all!

Been closed, sort of, but we're open again here at Portland Oregon Daily Photo.

The closure came about when our trip to Lincoln City didn't go like we planned, not at all.

First change, Mama and I decided to go on over on Sunday--the cottage at the Ester Lee in Lincoln City was available for Sunday and Monday nights. Lamont and Leland planned to drive to a campground at Cape Lookout, north of us by some miles, and spend the night, get up real early and hike the cape. They left after Lamont got off work and got to the campground around 1 a.m. Glad they're young. Mama and I stopped at Spirit Mountain on the way to Lincoln City and played the penny machines for a couple of hours, got to the Ester Lee and checked in, rested up and went to the Chinook Winds to play their penny machines for a couple of hours. She loves to sit there and push that button, wondering all the while if she'll win. I enjoy it, too, for some totally unknown reason. I had enjoyed sitting outside our cottage for a while, but it was extremely windy, cold even, so I didn't miss the actual beach.

Monday after Mama and I got up, spent some time looking out our many windows, eating watermelon for breakfast, we decided to go play the penny machines for an hour or so at the Chinook Winds Casino in Lincoln City. Not a surprise, right.

Second change. About noon she said she couldn't see right, she could see me but things didn't feel right. So I said, "Let's go and eat a hot meal at the Pig and Pancake, a nearly place several people had told us to try. She agreed but accidentally pushed the maximum bet on her machine, $1.80. It went to a bonus and when she played, she won $45! So I said, "We're really going now." So we got up and walked over to the cashier's window to cash in our tickets from the machines. I asked her to stand at a nearby counter while I went to the window. I looked over at her once I had her money and she was leaning on the counter with her elbows, her feet out from the counter like when someone is stretching their calves. For a split second I wondered if she was having a cramp and trying to get rid of it. I asked, "Mama, can you come over here?" "No!" she said. I immediately realized something was wrong and asked for Security. A man nearby helped me get her into a chair to wait. She said she thought she was OK but didn't understand what had happened.

They came and took her in a wheelchair to their first aid room, checked her out and said we really ought to go to the hospital to get her checked there. She didn't want to ride in an ambulance, so they gave me a map and we went there--it wasn't very far at all. The staff there at the Lincoln City, Oregon, hospital was great. The doctor read two different EKGs and compared them with some from January 2008 when she was in the hospital in Portland. He told us that there was a radical difference in the new ones and the old ones, that it seemed that there was a part of her heart that was not getting enough oxygen. He went on to say that he wanted to send her to Portland in an ambulance, straight to her hospital and to the care of a cardiologist. She asked, "Do I have to go in an ambulance?" He replied, "No, but if you don't go in an ambulance, I have to release you as against medical advice." I said, "Mama, we're not doing any AMA, Mama," so she signed the paperwork and they got busy setting it up.

I had talked to Lamont--the guys were still hiking--around 2:30 p.m. and told them what was going on. They decided to just go back to Portland once they had returned to the car. I decided to go on back to the Ester Lee, pack up and head to the apartment so that I could put Duncan in his kennel and head to the hospital. Mama agreed that would be best, that she could wait for the ambulance by herself. The staff didn't know how long it would take anyway, that they couldn't order the ambulance until they knew that she had a room at the hospital in Portland. One of them told me that she'd be going with lights and the siren, so there was probably no way I could get there before her.

So I drove back to the cottage, ate a peanut butter sandwich, some Pringles and a few Oreos, drank some milk, took a shower and washed my hair, packed our stuff and made five trips up and down the 17 steps to the car. All in an hour and 15 minutes. I went to the office to turn in the keys--Mama called from the ambulance to tell me she was on her way. I could hear the siren.

Duncan and I made the 86 mile drive OK(which takes much longer than you would think--most of it was 55 mph max, some 45, some as slow as 25 mph, up as high as 760 feet and then back down to a valley floor, through several small towns--some with a four-lane, some with just a two-lane highway). Twice I turned off into shopping centers to drive at a different pace, to sort of get myself out of that highway trance that can come on after a while. I had the radio on and three windows down, too. Lamont called at some point, after I'd called and he didn't answer so I hung up, not sure if they were on a highway or not--we really shouldn't talk and drive, should we? When he called he said they were home. I told him approximately what time I thought she'd be at the hospital, between 6-6:30 p.m. Leland called when I was only a few miles from home to tell me what room she was in. That made me feel good, to know that they were there.

I parked at apartment's front sidewalk, put on the flashers, grabbed Duncan and the few frig items we had and came up. I put him in his kennel with his food and water and put the cold stuff in the frig. As I got into the elevator, Leland called again and said that Mama wanted her shoes. Her stuff was still in the car, in the bag the Lincoln City ER had given me, so I told him that I would be there in a few minutes.

She looks OK, lying in the bed, with her two tired grandsons beside her, and her tired daughter on the other side of the bed. We didn't get to see a doctor before we had to leave--all three of us were yawning some, so Mama told us to go on home. Leland came with me and helped get our stuff into the apartment, then drove off in the car. Thank goodness I didn't have to try to find somewhere to park the thing!

I called Mama to tell her that Duncan was fine, that he'd poured out his water and somehow had food in both bowls, now, not just his original food only bowl! She laughed, then told me that Dr. L (I can't spell is whole name) had come about 20 minutes after we left and said nothing by mouth after midnight and that he'd see her in the morning to let her know what they'll do to try to figure out what's going on. All three of us will be there tomorrow, off and on.

Duncan has been walking around, looking for her. Bless the little guy. We're off to bed now--I'm too tired to proofread this.

I'll let y'all know more when I know more.

Update #2
Tuesday she had two tests in nuclear medicine involving a radioactive isotope and an ultrasound in her room, plus several EKGs. None of these tests provided a definitive answer as to what had happened on Monday. It was a long, long day, waiting for the doctor to come give us the results--Mama had left for the first test at 7:10 a.m., and we finally saw the doctor at 7:35 p.m. The doctor, cardiologist Dr. Ratkovec, looked over all of the results, asked some questions and decided that the electrical impulses in her heart were not quite right and that at some point in the future she might be a candidate for a pacemaker. In the meantime, Dr. Ratkovec wants her to wear an event monitor for a month. All we know about that is that Mama's to push a button on it when she feels a spell coming on so that it can record what's happening which can then be sent to the doctor using our land line phone. We're supposed to find out all about it this afternoon at 3:30 p.m., if the referral from her primary care doctor gets processed quickly enough. You see, her Medicare supplement will not pay if the primary care doctor hasn't done the referral. It doesn't matter that the cardiologist wants it and has referred her for it. Plus, her primary care doctor hasn't even seen her through this. Ah, the joys of bureaucracy.

About her spells--the one Monday was not like the others that she has had and will have again, I imagine. At those times, she'll look over at me from her recliner, put both hands up by her ears and say, "My head feels crazy." I haven't been able to get a clearer explanation from her about that, but Dr. Ratkovec mentioned "shadow coming over you," and Mama said, "Yes! That's sort of what it is." This happens probably twice a month, thus the event monitor for a month.

We got home last night around 9 p.m., tired and ready for bed. Duncan was so glad to see us! All of slept until around 8 a.m. this morning--well not real sleep for me after 4:45 a.m. when I started wondering what was next, etc. I did go back to sleep several times, thank goodness!

I ought to be able to go to work tomorrow and then the office is closed Friday for July 4, so I'll have a three-day weekend to keep an eye on her. I think she's fine, but I'm glad the doctor is still looking for answers.

Mama says thanks to everyone who sent her their prayers and well-wishes. Me, too!

Update #3
We made it to the appointment at 3:30 p.m. The approval came through at 2:30 p.m. which gave us plenty of time to get Leland back home after he came over with the car and then to the doctor's office. Mama is now wearing her event monitor, a device named King of Hearts. It's always looking, the technician said, at her heart and then will record what's going on if Mama pushes the button which she should do if she feels that my-head-is-crazy feeling or something like what happened to her on Monday. While I hate to think of such happening to her again, I want it to so that it can be recorded and then looked at by the doctors. It might provide them with a next step in Mama's care. What I really like about it is that when she pushes the button, it captures the 50 seconds prior to the push and the 50 seconds after the push, therefore hopefully capturing the event and the recovery form the event.
I will have to change the two leads on her chest every day--in the evenings. We have to return the device by July 31.

Mama once again thanks everyone who has sent their prayers and best wishes for her health and well-being. So do I, for hers and mine.

We've spent a very good almost two hours watching "So You Think You Can Dance." Each year we've fallen even farther under it's spell. Y'all should take a look at it, honest. And think about supporting The Dizzy Feet Foundation, a way to keep dance available for the talented without their own resources. Look at http://www.dizzyfeetfoundation.org/ and donate if you can.

OK, I'm off my high-horse.

Last update.

Mama's tired, weak, but mostly herself, thank goodness. We're about to watch the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona--what a stupid name for a race. It ought to still be called the Firecracker 400, for Pete's sake. It's on the 4th of July!

Sorry, I got back on the high horse for a minute.

Hope your 4th has gone well so far. Ours is uneventful which is fine with the two of us. The guys finally have some neighbors who are entertaining, so they're going over there. Good for them, to be guests for a change!

Update! Important Update! Where is our blogger? A special message before the end of the Tour Guide Perk: Downtown Walking Tour with Peter Chausse

I copied and pasted this from Amir's Web site.
"I gotback Home
•29 June, 2009 • 79 Comments

I gotback home.
I am Amir…
I am FREE.

Thank you All friends around the world for your prayers, activities and helps. LOVE you ALL.

2009/6/29 – TEHRAN"

Curious to learn more? Go to Tehran 24, Daily Photos from Tehran.


Members of the City Daily Photo community take a stand with a special theme day on Sunday, June 28. From the CDP Web site: This is a special 'blog day' in order to help spread the images and stories coming out of Iran, and raise awareness of the issues that the people are protesting currently. I can connect you with everyone participating around the world. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants. You might want to click on the link every few hours because as time passes, I feel sure that more and more CDP bloggers will participate. From Paris Daily Photo, I learned that Amir, a City Daily Photo blogger from Tehran, has at the very least stopped posting as of June 17, 2009. Hilda at My Manila says this on her blog, "Freedom of expression—that was all our fellow City Daily Photo blogger from Tehran was exercising before he was arrested with hundreds of his countrymen."

For the first time ever, I have used Picnik to alter my photo of the marquee at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in order to open the post with the all encompassing question, "Where is our blogger?"

And now for the end of our walking tour. Thanks for coming along!

Our tour leader Peter Chausse shared interesting information with us at every stop. I just can't remember some of it, so I've found bits and pieces to give you by looking all over the Internet. And I oh so badly wanted a map to share with you for this next part, especially when I heard Peter tell us that the South Park Blocks aren't really "blocks," as in the same square footage as the rest of Portland's "blocks." They're 100 feet wide while regular blocks are 200 feet wide. So I've searched and searched for a map to put here that would give you that dynamic visual. I found it at Travel Portland Dot Com's Self-guided Tour: Portland, Oregon. However, you'll have to scroll down a ways to see it. I thought it only proper to lead off with a photo I took while on our walk. It's a single yellow rose, one of many in the gardens between the Portland Art Museum and the Oregon History Center.



Please use this link to match the numbered circles on the map with information about each one of them, available at Travel Portland Dot Com's Self-guided Tour: Portland, Oregon

From Travel Portland Dot Com: The Park Blocks (the narrow, teal green blocks on the map)

The original intention of a group of Portland pioneers was to set aside a long promenade park that would traverse the entire town site, from the Willamette River to the base of the West Hills. But their good intentions were only partly realized. The results were the 12 South Park Blocks, from Jackson to Salmon Street, and the six North Park Blocks, from Ankeny to Glisan Street.

The South Park Blocks form the center of Portland’s Cultural District. They were donated to the City in 1852 by Daniel H. Lownsdale and William W. Chapman, who both have downtown squares named for them. Around the same time, numerous lots surrounding the South Park Blocks were deeded to churches and fraternal organizations.

The South Park Blocks then were known as “The Boulevard.” Early photographs show it as a narrow clearing, cutting through the town like a flat ribbon. But in 1877 the City Council authorized the planting of 104 poplar and elm trees. By the turn of the century, homes and churches bordering the park blocks enjoyed the shade of those trees, as they still do.

As we walked southward on the slightly inclining sidewalk towards the Simon Benson House, Peter stopped and explained about the beautiful trees running parallel toward the outer edges of the South Park Blocks.

While I listened, I took this close-up shot of the elm we stood near.


Here's a photo that I took on Saturday, May 9, right after I left the Portland Streetcar and made my way towards the Portland Farmers Market that you can see in the distance.


That's Peter in the red hat, in front of the Benson House.
From Travel Portland Dot Com: You can see Simon Benson’s house several blocks north, on the Portland State University campus, facing the Park Blocks at Montgomery Street. Originally on a lot facing The Old Church, Benson’s abode was moved in early 2000 to house the offices of the PSU Alumni Association. The two-story, green, Queen Anne-style house was built in 1900 and was the Benson family home until 1912.


Here are more photos from the rose gardens.




That's the Portland Art Museum in the background.


From Travel Portland Dot Com: If you go directly across the park blocks to the Portland Art Museum (map #6), pause and admire the rose and flower gardens surrounding the statue of Teddy Roosevelt, wearing a Spanish-American war uniform and riding a horse. Its title is Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider. (My photo of this is coming up soon.)

The Portland Art Museum, built in 1933, was designed by noted Portland architect Pietro Belluschi. The brick modern-style building was renovated in 1995, in time for the blockbuster “Imperial Tombs of China” exhibit. Since then the museum has been an important stop for numerous other large exhibits. The museum has an impressive collection of its own. A new wing, opened in August 2000, houses its large Native American and Northwest art collection.

Administrative offices for the museum are next door, in what is now known as the North Wing, but originally was the Portland Masonic Temple. The monumental 1927 structure is also home to the Northwest Film Center, the museum’s rental sales gallery, the Portland Youth Philharmonic, Northwest Print Council, Oregon Ballet Theatre and Main Street Theatre. The two buildings are linked by an outdoor sculpture garden, featuring works by Barbara Hepworth and Pierre Auguste Renoir.

I took a few photos of a few sculptures back on October 18.

Roy Lichenstein's Brushstrokes, 1996


Desert Harvest, 1982, by Allan Houser


Coyote VI, 1999, by Gwynn Murrill

I took this photo last October 18. The blue and gold banners are on some of the Oregon History Center buildings.

From Portland Online: Between Jefferson and Madison stands an 18-foot-tall bronze equestrian statue of Theodore Roosevelt by New York sculptor Alexander Phimister Proctor (1860-1950), who was known for his western art. Mounted on a 14-foot tall base of California granite, the statue entitled Theodore Roosevelt - Rough Rider portrays the colonel in the actual uniform and accoutrements he wore in his famous ascent of San Juan Hill during the Spanish-American War.

It was presented to the city by Dr. Henry Waldo Coe. When Dr. Coe was just beginning his medical practice in 1884 in North Dakota, he met the young Roosevelt, who was there trying to regain his health. Their friendship lasted until Roosevelt's death in 1919. Aside from his personal friendship, Coe (who moved to Portland in 1891) admired Roosevelt's politics. It was mostly for this reason that he decided to express his admiration in the form of a public statue. Calvin Coolidge broke ground for the statue in August 1922 and it was unveiled on November 11 of that year. The block on which it stands was named Roosevelt Square.

Here's another shot from October 18, the vista of the South Park Blocks in the fall. The gray basalt building on the right is the First Congregational Church, organized in 1851. From Travel Portland Dot Com: Two blocks north is First Congregational United Church of Christ (map #13) (1126 S.W. Park Ave.; 503.228.7219), at Madison Street. The stone building with the dramatic 175-foot, cream-and-red-latticed bell tower was dedicated in 1895. In Venetian Gothic style, it was modeled after Boston’s Old South Church. About the South Park Blocks, from Portland Online: In 1852 Daniel H. Lownsdale designated eleven narrow blocks of his plat at the western edge of town for public park space. Between 1852-75 the park was an unimproved roadway on the outskirts of the city center; the southern portion up to Jefferson was part of the Great Plank Road. In 1877 the first landscaping of these blocks occurred when the city council authorized florist and landscape designer Louis G. Pfunder to plant 104 Lombardy poplars and elms between Salmon and Hall Streets. Over the years, much has been added to the park, but there seems to be a consensus that the blocks should remain "a cathedral of trees with a simple floor of grass."

The bell tower at the church--I took this one while on our walk.


Oregon History Center
From Travel Portland Dot Com: Across Madison Street is the Oregon History Center (map #5). Be sure to look up when you’re at the main entrance, off a courtyard facing the South Park Blocks. The eight-story-high mural was painted in 1989 by Richard Haas on the 1923 building, originally the Sovereign Hotel. The mural’s trompe l’oeil perspective depicts members of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Another mural, on the building’s south side, illustrates the early development of Oregon. The Oregon History Center, established in 1873, has exhibits, photo archives, historical collections and a research library.

From Emporis: Companies involved in this Building* Architect: Wolff & Zimmer Associates, Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership. Other companies: Pietro Belluschi, consultant during the 1967 remodeling.



Close-up of the mural.


Peter led us to the exact spot to look up and see the wall and the trompe l'oeil from the side, so that we could see the actual painting, without the perspective.


Once we left this corner, we continued north. Peter stopped on Broadway, opened his well-used copy of "Portland Then and Now (Then & Now)" by Linda Dodds, Carolyn Buan, and showed us a 1930's photo of the Portland Theatre, next to a modern photo of the same building, now known as the Arlene Schnitzer Hall. From Travel Portland Dot Com: From Pioneer Courthouse Square, walk south on Broadway, using the huge “Portland” sign as your beacon. Lit up at night with 6,000 brilliant bulbs, the sign marks the location of the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall (map #2), part of the Portland Center for the Performing Arts (PCPA).

In this photo, Peter's pointing to the location of the PCPA. In this photo that I took in the bright sunshine on May 14, the brick building is the PCPA. You can barely see the Portland sign at the right of the photo--such a glare that particular day.


Here's the Portland sign on a blue-sky February 28.


We were back at the start, finished with our walk. I had a splendid time, as did everyone. I walked a few more blocks, caught the MAX, then the 15 home.