Seen on June 18, downtown Portland

The red caught my eye as they crossed SW Park at SW Madison in front of the Oregon History Museum at the Oregon Historical Society. I thought how lucky they are to have each other, at their age. I couldn't resist following their progress for a few moments.


The street barricades stood guard over a row of Chevrolets outside the Portland Art Museum's The Allure of the Automobile and the Cars in the Park display, this particular Saturday it's All Chevrolets. The barricades didn't slow down either one of these pedestrians holding their bags--his from Rite-Aid, hers from Macy's--which mean they've been walking for at least eight blocks with those bags, her with her umbrella open the whole way maybe because it had been raining off and on for several hours; neither one of them even seemed winded, and they've been slowly increasing their elevation the whole way. I'm guessing that they live somewhere along the Park Blocks, don't have a car, and walk everywhere they possibly can. Wonderful.


Here's where their paths part, just a bit. Why not? The allure of the automobile and all that.


He's drawn to stop and gaze at the vintage Chevrolet.


Not for long, though. Drawn by what is surely a connection honed over their years together, he knows it is time to move on, following closely the woman as she heads home without missing a beat.

Now for a few photos of the car that stopped the man, a 1932 Chevrolet four-door special sedan. The placard in the windshield also included this poignant statement of History: Bought in 1972, restoration completed in 2005. Our oldest son wanted to restore it but died in 1999. We wanted to finish it in his honor.


I took all of these earlier in the afternoon, well before the couple and their red highlights caught my eye.

Friends, Food, Fun--my Saturday!

FRIENDS: Casey, my friend from Mississippi, and Ryan, her friend and now my friend. I ran into them, well, actually, I walked up to them at the Farmers' Market at Portland State located in the tree-lined South Park Blocks early Saturday morning. Here's the back story: Having been alerted by Casey's Facebook post about the availability of Unger Farms Hood strawberries, I got myself downtown to the market early on. After buying two pints of the luscious-looking red ones, I grabbed my phone and called Casey, as promised. As I was leaving her a message along the lines of, "I'm at Unger's. I just bought my strawberries. Are you here yet? Oh, there you are ..." something like that because I cannot remember the exact words, but there, walking together about 10 feet from me, were Casey and Ryan! Later on, I took this photo of them near the main Information Booth for the market. Ryan's holding one of his pints of Hood strawberries! I'm using my strawberries in my milk and soy protein morning drink!


FOOD: Here's the busy Unger Farms booth.


FOOD: Something l love to buy at this particular market is a packet of Farmhouse pate from Chop. Yummy. I usually eat a little bit of it every week day for lunch, along with some chevre, Mango Madness Pepper Jelly, all on Triscuits. This week I'll have my fresh cherries, too! I forgot to take a photo at Baird Family Orchards, where I bought them.


FOOD: I didn't mean to make her mad when I said, "Could you move back? Your shadow's on the plate." But I did make the woman at Spring Hill Farm's market stall mad, and I apologized then and I continue to apologize now. I stopped her from being able to quickly enjoy her plate of food when she had a break from helping customers like me. Shame on me! Gotta love the photo, though!


FUN: This balloon guy's smile peeks through between the little girl and her daddy. See her mother and little sister looking on? The mom's smiling, the little sister appears at least to be very curious. I wonder about her big sister. Do you think there's a smile on her face?


FUN: Yes, she's smiling! Looks like her balloon creation is a monkey with its very own banana.

Friday night at 3 Doors Down Cafe

The salad special: fresh cucumber, red onion, French radish, red wine vinaigrette, sweet onion, herbs. What can I say? If you read those words and think summertime, crunch and crispy, tender and savory, and refreshing, then you know how this tasted and felt in my mouth.


Entree: summer squash, basil, parmesan risotto. Perfect combination of textures and flavors.


Cocktail: Italian Lemon Drop--I completely forgot to get a list of the ingredients. Sorry! It tasted great, lemony tart which combined very well with the sugar around the rim.

Cruisin' Sherwood #2

Who needs a big ol' precious stone ring
When you have seen this shiny, shiny bling!
It's Emerald, surely worth a lotta bucks
And truly one fine '66 Chevrolet C-10 Pickup Truck.








Fine words.




I love that teensy cowboy hat hanging from the rearview mirror! The shifter! The gas tank cap! The chrome trim! The font used for Custom!

Cast Iron Colonnade in Skidmore/Old Town

The Saturday that I rode the MAX to shop at the Dress Barn, I took this photo from the window. As I looked at it closely, deciding if/where to crop it, I noticed that gaggle of guys to the left beside the lamp post. Immediately I wondered, "Just what are the three of them looking at the one on his knees doing?" Then I noticed the women looking over their right shoulders towards the guys. Surely those two women are wondering, "Just what are they doing over there?"

The canopies which you see between the arches are a small bit of the western most part of the Saturday/Sunday Market. And that's an even tinier bit of the crowd out on a sunny day!


I love that guy's black and gray checkerboard shirt and pants! Now that I look at the photo again, I'm wondering, "Is the man in navy blue angry, or did I catch him at the moment of pushing his glasses up on his nose which made him look angry?" So I've cropped it closer. What do you think? Is he on one of those hands' free phones?

I found this information, and lots more about the area here, to share with you: In 1984 a colonnade consisting of cast-iron components salvaged from the North Wing of the New Market Theater by the Portland Friends of Cast Iron Architecture was erected on the site of the original building.

I found a note about found objects--all due to Good Samaritan serendipity.

Saturday I got off the MAX Red Line at the wrong place in downtown Portland and ended up catching a Blue Line so that I could then catch a Green Line to make it closer to my ultimate destination, the Park Blocks in front of the Portland Art Museum. More about that tomorrow. If I had not made that mistake, I would have missed this amazing note, taped to one of the benches at the MAX shelter.


The wide shot of the bench, altered in Picnik to zoom in on the note.

Cruisin' Sherwood, a nearby Oregon town which hosts a whole lotta vintage vehicles once a year

On June 11, I rode the #12 bus for well over an hour from my apartment to Sherwood, determined to experience a car show I'd been hearing about probably since 2007. I made it, even with having to wait for another 20-30 minutes for a shuttle bus to take me to Old Town Sherwood where reportedly 550 vehicles awaited. What a good time I had, walking the streets with thousands of other car lovers! Now, I realize that loads of car lovers are men of all ages and that men understand and appreciate what engines look like because they can visualize the result of stepping on the accelerator with such and such an engine under the hood. While I adore the sound made by such and such engines, I would much rather see the car as it was designed to be appreciated, hood down and ready to roll. So, I decided to forego photographing some of the beauties with hoods up, although I couldn't pass up all of them. Anyway, here goes--the first photos. I hope you find them as exciting and pleasing as I do.


1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Nomad Station Wagon

The Willamette River runs high right now.

I took these photos on June 9 when I lucked out and got to ride with a friend on his boat during the arrival of the fleet, which happens every year during the Rose Festival.


We slowly passed beneath the Steel Bridge.


As the antenna touched first one cross piece, then another, it serenaded us with a rhythmic tlang-a-lang-a-tlang. An eerie sound.


Here's a better view of the cross pieces. Shining bright, the sun changed the color of much of what I photographed, depending upon which way I faced.


We've crossed to the other side of the bridge.


I like this perspective.


We're south of the bridge now, heading downriver. Here you can see the Steel Bridge in the foreground with its upper level for vehicles, MAX, pedestrians and bicyclists. The lower level is for trains. The orange bridge you can just see is the Broadway Bridge, while the barely visible one beyond it is the arch of the Fremont Bridge.

I'm back. Here are Friday's 3 Doors Down Cafe delicious dining and drinking delights.

Since Thursday, June 9, I've been either taking lots of photos, uploading lots of photos, and/or having a time with Flickr with lots of photos, not a totally horrible time with Flickr, but not the most fun I've ever had either. Now things appear to have come around to where I want and need them. Thank goodness.

I was hungry, thirsty, tired when I arrived. I left mellow, satisfied, ready to make it through shopping at Freddy's and then riding the bus on home with my rolling black bag stuffed with necessities like milk and saltines and such.

Here you can see why I left in grand state of existence.

Rhubarb Rita: Blue Agave Tequila, LIme, Lemon Juices, Rhubarb Syrup & Orange Liqueur. This was SO good that I really, really wanted a second one, but I knew I needed, above all desire, to be sure-footed while shopping. I only drank the one.


First appetizer: fromage de chevre mini pyramid, roasted beets, toast points. I smelled the toast when the plate was set down on the table, that's how quick the appetizer made it to me. Imminently spreadable cheese, which is, according to the menu, a classic French crumbly ash-covered goat cheese. Ash-covered? Didn't taste anything but smooth, creamy goat cheese. Thank goodness for goats and their milk and folks willing to make cheese with it. That cheese, combined with the sweetness of the roasted beets and the crispy, easily bitten and chewed toast--my, my. I am a blessed woman. Still wondering about the ash, though, so here's what I found at artisanalcheese dot com: Ash-Coated Cheese--Many goat cheeses, or chevres, are coated with a sprinkle of ash. Originally, the ash often came from oak charcoal, as was the tradition of cheeses from France's Loire Valley. Today, a recognized food grade activated charcoal ash is used which is sometimes salted and generally tasteless. The ash is helpful in mellowing the acidity to promote the affinage and produce a more delectable cheese. It also helps make the cheese surface more hospitable to the growth of molds that add to the complexity of the overall flavor.


Second appetizer: Potato gnocchi, Fava beans, duck confit, chicken stock with olive oil, and sauteed spring onion. Here's the back story: At lunch I called my older son Lamont who is sous chef at 3DD and asked, "Is duck confit on the menu tonight?" Since he is off on Thursdays, he wasn't sure but said there was a good chance that it would be since it had been part of a "3 for $21" special currently running at 3DD. (More about that below--don't miss it.) Oh, joy! Oh, boy! He was right. Suffice it to say that by the time I had finished, that bread to the left of the photo had helped me completely clean the entire bowl. Crunchy skin, meaty flesh, combined with the plump gnocchi and the dense Fava beans. Every morsel satisfied me more than the one before. To tell you the truth, I wasn't one bit sad when I had finished because it was perfect in proportion. Oh, and you can see there in the background that I didn't leave any of my first appetizer, either.

Here's the promised info about the "3 for $21"

Serendipity No. 2, a beaut

I've seen this gorgeous vintage pickup truck before, near where I work; I couldn't get my camera out in time to get a shot. So when I was in the park across the river one day last week eating my lunch, seeing it again while I had my camera hanging around my neck thrilled me. SW Main was across the park from where I sat on a bench in the sun, but I still managed to get this photo before it turned right and continued northward up SW 4th Avenue. The blue thing that looks like it is in the bed of the pickup is actually a phone booth on the corner. I finished my lunch and rode the bus back across the river.


When I got off and walked south on SE Grand Avenue, I waited to cross the street with my camera still around my neck. Seconds later the signal changed. About halfway through the block, I looked at the next corner and, lo and behold, there was the same gorgeous vintage pickup truck, just crossing SE Grand. You can even see the red and white dice hanging from the rear view mirror and the raccoon tail on the antenna as it begins to move! Serendipity.

Festival of Flowers, Pioneer Courthouse Square, downtown Portland

From the Pioneer Courthouse Square Web site:
6/3 - 6/17
Festival of Flowers

This year’s design, You Are Here, created by local artist Bill Will, will encourage visitors to look beyond our own geographic borders with the installation of a colossal map of the world using more than 20,000 colorful potted flowers. The two-week display at the Square will culminate with the annual flower sale kicking off June 15th offering a wide variety of plants including salvia, impatiens, lobelia, begonias, vegetables, herbs, grasses and more starting at only $.83 a piece! (To view a rendering of this year's installation, see it below. I found it when I followed a link on their Web site.)

In partnership with Portland Mall Management, Inc., this year’s Festival of Flowers will also include two satellite displays along the Portland Transit Mall at Unico Plaza and the Congress Center. In addition to providing bright spots along the transit mall, these sites will also serve as backdrop to the weekly Monday on the Mall event series. For additional information on the free events and activities taking place along the transit mall every Monday visit portlandmall.org.

More tomorrow!

Four of the more than 250,000 who eventually lined streets in downtown Portland for Saturday night's Rose Festival Starlight Parade & Serendipity #1

Saturday before I rode the MAX Red Line to shop, I rode the bus to Pioneer Courthouse Square. Walking from corner to corner, searching for the best place to stand to take the photo(s) I plan to share with you tomorrow, I noticed across Broadway people in folding chairs staking out their spot for that night's parade. I stooped over and took this photo through the scaffolding which held an array of spotlights.


At the other end of the same block, a teenager enjoys a slice of pizza seated in the shade of his tent. Next to him two women, who surely must be related, attempt to settle in with their blanket and chairs. The one in the pink top appears to be on her cell phone--note how she has her left shoulder pressed up to her ear. The one in the turquoise top appears to be answering questions from the two children. I wonder where the barricades on the right ended up. in front of them, street level or blocking the intersection to the pizza eater's right?


You know me, I always want to know more, so I Googled to see if I could find a photo that showed where street barricades were set up. Now for the serendipity photo that I found online at the KGW, Channel 8, NBC affiliate's Web page, in their slideshow of the parade--they also broadcast it live. Anyway, I know it's small, but if you look closely, you'll see all sorts of neat-o stuff. There on the left you see the teen with the short black hair holding his left arm parallel with the street? That is the young man who is eating the slice of pizza in my photo. The little boy in the green T-shirt, sitting on the man's lap, is the little boy standing talking to the woman in the turquoise top in my photo. The blonde in the pink top is the woman who was on the cell phone in my photo. She's sitting in the red short chair; and the lady in the turquoise top is sitting in another one of their short chairs that you see in my photo. The girl in my photo is sitting on the curb, wearing a pink and white bunny ears headband in the KGW photo. Plus, if you look just to the right of the boy who ate the slice of pizza, you see part of a barricade, right where I figured they would be, blocking the intersection. And how about, on the right, that wonderful black and white dog with the smiling woman? Calmly enjoying the night. What fun!

I didn't go to the parade, but I thoroughly enjoyed watching it on KGW. Maybe I'll go one of these years when I have a companion, you know, someone to save my spot while I search for somewhere that will let me come in and use the facilities. More than 250,000--whew--I'll bet those facilities were few and far between.

Friday Night Delights, a la 3 Doors Down Cafe

Cardamaro Soda (Cardamaro soda & twist of orange)--a light, summery cocktail. There to the cocktail's left you see a bit of the Pugliese bread and the White Bean Spread, a 3 Doors Down favorite.




Appetizer: prawns, baby artichokes, basil, lemon, white wine--so delectable that I had to post two photos, trying to do it justice.

Suffice it to say that when I was done, the only thing left in the glass was ice and the twist of orange--there was nothing left in the bowl because I used all of the bread to clean it out, well, except for what I ate slathered in White Bean Spread. Yummy, through and through.

If you are new to my blog, please know that my older son Lamont is sous chef at 3 Doors Down Cafe.

And here's the recipe for the White Bean Spread, for you from the 3 Doors Down Cafe Web site:

What you'll need:

2 Cups Cannellini Beans
1 Medium Onion, Finely Diced
4 Tbl Butter
1 Tbl Fresh Rosemary, Finely Chopped
2 Tbl Fresh Garlic, Finely Chopped
2 Pinches Red Chili Flake
2 Tbl Parsley, Finely Chopped
2 Tbl Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Italian Bread With A Nice, Crunchy Crust

Instructions:

Cover beans with water by two inches. Soak for 4 hours. Drain beans. Put beans into saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook beans until tender. Drain. In separate saucepan melt butter and add all remaining ingredients. Cook until onion is translucent. Add cooked beans. Mash. Add salt and pepper to taste. This can be reheated, just add a little more olive oil. Makes four cups.

No. 5, May 16, 2011

I am convinced these two people are father and daughter--look at their profiles here and here. Rain continued splattering as these two continued to walk. I stood quietly across the street with my water-repellant coat zipped to my chin, thankful for the narrow roof over my head. As I snapped photo after photo, another part of my brain occupied itself wondering, "Where's the bus? I need to get back to work. I found myself a new curling iron in Freddie's at lunch, but I need to get back to work." It's a good thing I didn't say any of that out loud, although, come to think of it, plenty of people talk to themselves here on a regular basis. I would have fit in, just like I believe I do every time I am walking along in the rain. I am a Portlander.

Flickr; Picnik; Create; Orton-ish with Bloom and Brightness changed from default; Fancy Focus with Focal Size, Edge Hardness and Intensity all changed from default; cropped and resized.

No. 4, May 16, 2011

Plenty of rain led to an open umbrella. It brought back memories of the 1970s for me, in that it reminded me of one that I had, though it did have white band around the border and a white plastic handle that curled upward at its end. I also had white, lace-up go-go boots and several outfits which incorporated hot pants. I was something else!

Some who have left comments have praised my photo manipulation skills. While I would love to take all the credit for making the changes I've been making in these photos, I'm here to tell you that anyone who subscribes to Picnik Premium will be able to do the same things, and way, way more, with their very own photos. It is a whole lotta fun!

Flickr, Picnik, Create, Effects, Gritty with the Darkness increased.

By the way, Tuesday night I was too give out, as we say back home in Jackson, Mississippi, to blog. I'd been on a date with Lamont and Leland--burgers and fries and Barq's Root Beer at Killer Burger, followed by the Shaw Brothers Studio 1982 Kung Fu film "Buddha's Palm" at the Hollywood Theatre, the first of their Kung Fu Theater offerings. You see, the three of us have a history with an earlier Kung Fu Theater, back when those two sons of mine were little boys. Saturdays back in Jackson some network or other broadcast a different movie each week, filled with whirling, swirling folks bent on mayhem and destruction. When I found out about the movie, I immediately e-mailed the guys right away. We just might make it to the next offering on June 28, "Shaolin vs Wu-Tang" because we had a fun night.