Recycling ?

Sort of an ignoble end to a beautiful Christmas tree.  Canby has recycling of yard debris, but the least a person could do would be to cut it up so it takes up less room in the recycle bin and transfer better.

  They are probably the same folks that never flatten their cardboard boxes. 

The In-between Time

    How is your "in-between time" going?  In between Christmas and New Years.   Christmas has been in the forefront of our lives for more than a month. We had a great Christmas with friends on Christmas Eve and with family on Christmas Day.  The decorations have not been taken down yet.  Randa still has at least a half-dozen Holiday movies recorded for future viewing.  Remember when the day after Christmas was a big shopping day?  Doesn't seem to have the emphasis that it used to.
    For us, this is the time to be thinking about our trip south.  What clothes to take. (we will be gone 7 months so we will need clothing for all climates.  What tools, what equipment?  What to include and what to leave at home.  Weight and space are factors.  Every pound we leave here with will be pulled 1500 miles to Kartchner then 500 miles to Pecos then another 1400 miles back to Canby.
     In Arizona we will be 10 miles from Benson and in NM we will be 3 miles from the tiny town of Pecos and 30 miles from Santa Fe so shopping will not be a problem.  We have not spent much time to the Benson area and have never been to northern NM so we plan to do some exploration and shopping will be part of that experience.  Gotta have a new T-shirt or two.
     The other thing that I am doing is watching the weather.  It's always a bit foreboding driving over the mountains to this time of year.  My preferred route is Willamette Pass on Hwy 58, but there are a couple of other choices too.  I really don;t want to drive down I-5 into California and then cross if I don't have to.  I-5 is crowded, lots of hills, and California has a huge gas tax so fuel is expensive.  (about a dollar a gallon higher than it's neighboring states).
     So we move through the in-between time.  Packing we can control.  Weather ....... 

Locksmith

   Had to call the locksmith.  Needed to have a key made.  The one and only key to the shed, which was on a fob in my watch pocket, became airborne in the bathroom while I was pulling up my pants and flushing the toilet at the same time and.....
   Anyway, he came by got the door open in 3 minutes, made 2 keys and was gone 15 minutes and $80 later.  I did learn a couple of life lessons.  Have more than one key for any lock.  Don't put your keys in your watch pocket.  Don't try to do two things in the at the same time in the bathroom. 

Preparation

Yesterday afternoon the rain subsided.  Stopped actually.  So it gave me time to do some outside tasks.  I played with my truck.  😀  I swept out the box.  Wiped down the inner walls.  Loaded a few tools.  I even decided to wipe off the differential cover.  (If had been warmer, I might have painted it.) 

    As I was under there, I noticed the spare tire hanging above me.  I had forgotten about it !  I wonder when the last time the air pressure had been checked. Getting the spare down is an interesting task.  I removed the jack which from its position on top of the radiator.  It had been awhile since I had removed the spare so I looked at my owners manual in the glove box.  Sure enough I had forgotten the special tool that attaches to the end of the jack.  It is then inserted into the cone next to the rear license plate.

You can see the jack handle sticking out of the hole next to the license plate.  By turning the "crank" lowers the spare allowing access.  I pulled it out enough to check the air pressure.  40psi.     Not good.  Several minutes on the compressor got it up to 60+ psi.  Then reversing the cranking put it back underneath the box until needed.

Morning Walk

   It was a dark and rainy morning.  (Sounds like the beginning of a Edgar Allan Poe story).  It was almost 7am but still no sign of daylight.  ( today is the shortest day/longest night of the year)  I look forward to increasing light.  I would have preferred to sleep another hour, but the boys get restless.  Hunter comes around to my side of the bed to get a head rub each morning and today was no exception.  So, it was get up in the dark and dress in the dark.  Then wander out into the family room in the dark. The boys wander behind me knowing what comes next.  We go out into the garage so that I get my into my various jackets and today, a rain parka.  Hunter also has a rain "parka" to help keep him less wet.
   And so we walked.  Our morning walk is usually longer, but the wet conditions encouraged me to shorten it.  The boys know that breakfast follows the walk, so they would not complain about heading home early.

More cookies

Peanut Butter Blossoms for you.

Cookies !!!

What would Christmas be without cookies?  Decorated cookies.  On Saturday Randa and I had help from Ellie and Sofia and together we produced some artistic marvels ! ? !  See for yourself.

The Tree

I forgot to show you the tree dressed.  It definitely looks the best in the dark.

The Band

   Gus Dewey’s band is in town !  I wonder if they are still called the Jestures.  They are going to play.  In fact it is this afternoon.  I didn’t think he still played.  I didn’t think he was still alive.   And they are going to play here!  Wow.  I am definitely going to be around to enjoy the music and also can reacquaint myself with Gus.  It’s been a long time.  North Mankato.  50’s and 60’s .

   Gus was always cool.  He wasn’t a jock.  He wasn’t a brain or a nerd.  He played music. He had a band.  He was cool.   I was not.  So if you were not cool, you hung around Gus and tried to be. Teachers called him Daniel.  Everybody else called him, Gus.  He played music.   That’s what he did.  It was enough.

    So today is going to be a trip down memory lane.  A trip back to the days of my youth growing up in North Mankato, Minnesota.  So I hung around the place where Gus was going to play.  It was an outdoor area, a parking lot.  At one end was a small covered area that could be used as a food counter for a burger vendor.  In fact there were several stools in front of the counter.  That was going to be the stage for the performance.

  As time got closer, I got more excited and wandered over to the “stage” to see if the band was ready.  They were just about to begin.  I thought about sitting on one of the stools so that I would have a good seat, then remembered that rock and roll music is best when it’s loud, so I moved away.  I was so concentrating on the counter and stools that I never actually saw any of the band members clearly.  They were there but were just outlines and shadows.

   I awoke before the music started.   I bet it was awesome.

Getting the Tree

  For the first time in since we moved up to Canby, we now have a Christmas tree.  Not an artificial one.  A Real tree.  Grand Fir.  6 foot. ( Not nearly as big as Randa wanted.)

There were many to choose from so it took some time to find the right one.

Here it is in the living room waiting to be decorated.  Stay tuned.

  We drove out about 15 miles south east of Molalla to a tree farm in the foothills and cut our own.  Just like old times.  It was great fun. 

Ice Crystals

Ice crystals in the dirt.   

Thanksgiving Day

   Yesterday we went into Portland for Thanksgiving dinner.  30 folks gathered in a rather small space to partake of some traditional food, turkey, mashed potatoes, yams and some that was not so traditional, polenta, Fruit salad, and vegetarian dishes which were a total mystery to me and, therefore, not tried  Then there was desert.  Apple pie, pumpkin pie, carrot bars, a cake that contained no dairy, mincemeat pies, and whipped cream which makes everything taste better. 
    I left a little early to drive to ARC and make a blood product delivery to OHSU hospital.  It was my first time there but it turned out to be easy.  There is a booklet that drivers can take that show step-by-step instructions (with photos) on where to park, where to enter, elevators, where to put the boxes, etc.  It makes the job less stressful for the first time volunteer.
   A ARC vehicle is used for these deliveries.  Last night I drove one of the new Ram City Vans. Short, sort of tall mini vans that are ideal for city driving.  Once I figured out the unique features of the vehicle, it was fine.  It was fun to drive something different.  I delivered 4 boxes and picked up 17 so it was a short but worthwhile trip.

Fall "Spiders"

The seeds of the Clematis.  They look like spiders don't they?

Tom Turkey

A new creation of mine.  He looks harmless, but how does he taste?

During his creation.

Ready for greeting folks at our door.

Morning Fog

Early morning walks allow me early morning views.  The sky gradually lightening. The awakening of the earth.  The fog playing hide and seek games with the trees.

It's there and then it's not.

ARC

   I finally received my ARC ID Card.  It allows me access to areas of the headquarters that require a swipe of the card to get in without an escort.  I'm not fully aware of the reason for all of the security but it's there regardless.  There is a security person at the front door and but all he requires is a signature on the register to get a "Visitor" sticker.  The ARC blood donation center is located in the building so many "civilians" come through the doors every day.
   My ID card allows me to breeze right through the front door and just show my card or even go around to the doors in the back.  That's where I will go to pickup the Biomed (blood products) deliveries.  It is also where the ARC vehicles are parked. 
   Part of the learning curve with ARC is learning the various "arms" of the agency.  As far as I can tell, each one operates independently of the others.  So each has their needs for volunteers and and the job requirements vary.  I am still working out if I want to limit myself to one or "move around".
The latter sounds more interesting but requires more of a learning curve.  I have yet to make a delivery of blood but I'm trying to set up a date.  I have a super busy day tomorrow installing fire alarms.  I might need to wear my Superman suit.

More Color

It's amazing that there is still color in late November.

DAT

   Yesterday afternoon I attended a class/ training session at ARC (American Red Cross) headquarters.  ARC has many programs.  All of them are beneficial to people and all of them are free.  Blood products are the only items that ARC sells.  Everything else, assistance, counseling, blankets, etc. are all free.  So the American Red Cross depends on donations.  Nationwide 92 cents of every dollar goes toward services.  In the Pacific Northwest it's more like 95-96 cents.  It's pretty amazing and it's because of dedicated volunteers and employees who are careful with resources.
    The class yesterday was DAT (Disaster Action Team).  The DAT team goes out to homes that have had a fire or flood that has left the family with out a home.  A call comes in from the fire department and the team responds.  They meet with the family, counsel them,and determine their immediate needs.  They may need a bed for the night.  They may need food. The team can help them get through this horrible period with the resources available to ARC.  It sounds like a great and wonderful program.  I will tell you about it when I go out on one of these calls.

Autumn Color

Another photo from Rogerson Clematis Garden

Clematis

   Clematis is a vine with over 300 varieties and more being developed every year.  Randa and I visited the Rogerson Clematis Garden on Sunday and while is definitely not the right time of year, it was still interesting.  The greenhouse is manned by volunteers every Friday all year.  Wandering around the garden, we were surrounded by vines now dormant but promising lots of blooms come summer.  We are looking forward to returning here next summer. 
     We did learn several information bits while we were there.
   CLEM  a tus  is the pronunciation that this garden uses for this flower. 

   The garden captures seeds from the actual plants by putting mesh bags around the flower remains where that seeds exist.  These hairy mops are actually the seeds with their tails.

We did find a couple of blossoms.

Autumn Flowers

American Red Cross

   When someone says American Red Cross, what do you think of?   Disaster relief, maybe blood drives.  You would be right.  But ARC is much more.  As I spend more time volunteering at ARC, I discover more facets of the organization. 
    ARC does send teams to sites of major disasters.  Several teams went down to California to help fire victims.  One of the volunteers I worked with a couple of weeks ago had been on a team after Hurricane Katrina.  ARC does conduct blood drives at various locations and businesses.  Blood donors are always welcome at the Headquarters in Portland as well.  The blood is processed at the Portland lab in the building where it is tested, sometimes separated into plasma, platelets, etc.  Then it is stored until needed.  I think I mentioned that 75% of blood used in the Pacific Northwest is supplied by ARC.  This is the only service/product in which ARC charges a fee.  All other services are FREE !
     A major program that is going on right now is the installation of smoke alarms in homes throughout the country.  If you are interested in getting or replacing your smoke alarms or helping to install smoke alarms in homes of your townspeople, call your local ARC facility or Google it for further information.
    Another program that I am going to explore next week is the DAT  (Disaster Action Team).  DAT teams respond to local emergencies 24/7.  These are normally home fires but other events could be storms or floods.  The team provide a person to talk t0, a shoulder to lean on. They can fill a need for immediate shelter or supplies.  They can help the victim connect with long-term recovery services.
   There is a meeting on Tuesday evening that I will attend that will explain more about the DAT program and whether I am qualified to become a DAT volunteer.  Stay tuned.

Pepsi Art

Is this ART?    

                                          

Actually it is a faded poster in front of a convenience store in Milwaukee, Or.

Cool though isn't it?

New Home Sales

    Yesterday we took advantage of the beautiful Indian Summer weather that we have been having for the last week and drove out into the country.  Actually, because we are nearly on the edge of town, the country is close by.  There are still some trees with fall colors.  Still some fall flowers to enjoy as well.
   We stopped by the TMK Creamery, a small family-run operation that is just in it's infancy.  They have enough cows to produce milk to make a couple of types of cheese both of which were very good.  We will return another day when that cheese is in stock to purchase.  We did taste some yummy cheese curds.  Have you tried deep fried cheese curds?  Zowie !  tmkcreamery.com

   We next drove to Bauman's Farm and Garden just south of Woodburn.  Lots of flowers, decorations, and produce to enjoy.  Left with a small succulent plant to pot.  baumanfarms.com

   On the way home we decided to stop by a new housing development in Canby. The builder is Lennar Homes.  The model homes were quite nice, one was two story and one was single story.  It seemed like all the other new home areas until we meet the sales representative.  Lennar has started building homes in one corner of the prepared area and will work their way from one end to the other. The whole development has been laid out and each lot has an assigned home style.  So if you want a particular floor plan, you have to buy that house on the lot that has been assigned to it.  Also, and listen to this, you can not buy that house until it is built.  You can put your name on a list for that property and when it is ready Lennar will tell you the price.   So if you want a particular house in the far side of the area, you may have to wait for a year or two !  Can you imagine?  If that wasn't enough, the interior fittings are already decided right now.  So this is the carpet. This is the counter top.  Seems like it would be a hard to be a sales person for Lennar Homes.  They must be salaried.

Hounds Rest

Hounds Rest is a kennel facility on a farm near the Sandy River between Gresham and Sandy.  It is where the newly acquired greyhounds come to stay for a while after being picked up from greyhound breeders.  The are about 20 breeders near Abilene, Kansas.  So the group I volunteer with, Greyhound Pet Adoption Northwest, drive the 1700 miles to get retired dogs several times a year.
   When they arrive from a pick up run, they arrive at Hounds Rest.  Volunteers are there waiting to unload them from the special trailer, check to see that they are alright, feed them and put them in a assigned kennel.  That kennel will be their temporary home until they can be put in a home.  It's not fancy, but it works well for it's purpose.  During their stay the dogs are visited by volunteers in the morning and the afternoon to feed, scoop, and exercise then every day.  This time is used to get the dogs used to more human contact, assess their health, get shots and spayed or neutered.
    I love going there to be with the dogs.  They are so happy to see people, to be petted, to romp in the run area with other greyhounds.  But it is also very sad to leave them after a couple of hours knowing that they will not see anybody until the next shift.
   These dogs can be anywhere from 2 to over 5 years old depending on whether they raced and how successful their performance was.  They are generally healthy, but may have injuries usually caused by racing incidents.  Both sexes are raced.  The males run 65- 80 pounds, females, 50 - 60.  That being said they are all sleek and lean with not a pound of fat on them.  They truly are athletes.  They come with Kennel names which can be retained or not.

This is HR.  On the left is one of the "runs".  The kennels are on the right side of the building.  You can see one of the the hounds in the dog run looking at us.

Carmel has a previously broken right hind leg which he favors but it is fused and strong. 

Basher is a sweet boy that seems to have a calm disposition.

.

One yellow leaf

On my walk I found a very pretty yellow leaf.  Here it is against three different backgrounds.  Notice how each one gives a different look.

on a moss covered stone step

against a tree trunk

in the grass

Dreaming

   With the turn in the weather here in Oregon, I am dreaming of warmer climates.  Of Arizona, especially.  Several friends are down there right now.  Enjoying the warm sunshine.  I think I remember warm sunshine.  A warm day here won't happen for 6 months.
   We could be ready to go in a few days.  The rig is ready.  Not loaded with food or clothes but ready otherwise.  And it is already facing south.   The only thing that really prevents our departure is Randa's recovery which is coming along.  We have an appointment with the plastic surgeon today to check.  She will still be on light duty for 1-2 months ( limited movement, lifting, no bowling, hang gliding, pole vaulting.) the usual stuff.  I assume there will be some PT involved in the future too.
    Until then I putter around the house, doing all the house work, working on a couple of projects and volunteering.  Still going out to Hounds Rest to feed and take care of the greyhounds that are there until they are adopted, which I hope is soon.  I also am signing up with the American Red Cross to be a Blood Transportation Volunteer, either picking up blood from blood drives and taking them the  ARC office or transporting blood from the office to various hospitals in the area.  Pretty important stuff and a pretty important responsibility.

This is before the last few days of rain and wind.

Signs

   Took Randa to the plastic surgeon yesterday.  Her stitches were removed and the doctor checked her out.  I am happy to say that she is coming along well.  Next visit in two weeks.  Meanwhile she can start limited movement and limited walking next week.
    The doctor's office is in a wing of the hospital and before we left for home I visited the restroom.  This sign was posted over position that one of the urinals usually was.  I believe you might call it a statement of the obvious.

Good thing the sign was there or I might have used it.

Yellow

Fall continued

As you can see the fall colors are rapidly advancing through the school yard.

Sedum

Our Sedum is loving the fall temps.  This one is aptly named Autumn Joy Sedum

Columbia Gorge revisited.

Took a trip back to the Columbia Gorge.  We took some friends who had never been there before.  Had a great time in spite of the intermittent showers.  Returned to the dam.  Bonneville visitor center and lock reopened at Noon yesterday after being closed since September 5th.  It was fun to go back and see the place, show our friends where we worked, and see some folks that we had worked with.

We also stopped at the Bonneville Fish Hatchery.  The front half of a Sturgeon

Rear Half

Sunday morning

Clouds are back this morning, but the sky's pallet was awesome.

Fall

Yesterday was the first official day of Fall.  Actually, it had arrived right after Labor Day around here.  There was little or no transition time.  Rain and clouds, sprinkles and clouds, cool temperatures.  I turned my sprinkler system off.  Won't need that until probably June or July.
    Does that make it fall?  Well yeh.  Mother Nature thinks so too.

The sweet gum trees at the elementary school are always among the earliest to turn.

More Dahlias

More blossoms to enjoy from Swan Island Dahlia Farm in Canby.

Swan Island Dahlias

Two weekends at the end of summer are the showtimes for a farm in Canby.  Swan Island Dahlia Farm grows nearly 400 varieties of the interesting flower.  They in color and size and shape.  We had the pleasure of visiting on Labor Day. Lots of folks enjoying the warm weather and beautiful blooms. Here are a few photos

Mt Hood

My view of Mt Hood on my morning walk. 

  This was taken two weeks ago before the weather changed and Fall rushed in.

Honey Pot

This morning on my walk, I passed one of the houses under construction.  In front, was this Honey Pot.  If you look at the small sign on it, you will notice the sign on it declaring it "High Tech".   I was confused.  I looked inside.  Saw nothing unique.  Maybe I need to check more closely the next time I walk by it.

Bonneville Lock

Got a note from one of the volunteers.  The lock at Bonneville is not functioning.  The engineers have not figured out the problem yet.  Meanwhile the Visitor Center on the Oregon side is closed.  Evidently they do not want traffic to cross the bridge that crosses in front of the lock.

This photo is of the lock with out water.  You can see the manifold system that the water passes through when the lock fills and drains.  This is a view that is not seen very often. 
  I hope that they solve the problem soon.  No shipping is happening during this time.  No barges.
No commerce.

Last day at Bonneville

Today we pack up and leave.  It's been almost 4 months since we pulled in, May 6th if I remember correctly.  Wow the time passed quickly.  When we get to a new location our commitment will 2,3,or 4 months.   A long time, right?  There's a flurry of learning.  Meeting new people.  Adjusting to new time schedules.  Before you know it, you are buzzing along, you got most of it down.  Your feeling comfortable.  And then, yipes, you are almost to the end! 
    That happened again here.  We will miss this place.  A very nice facility.  Good folks to work with.  Interesting location.  LOVE to watch the barges cruise past our spot going in and out of the lock.  Those tug captains are amazing.
   And so we leave Bonneville.  To be home for four months.  At the end of September Randa has her surgery.   A new adventure begins.

The Lock

I spent time at the lock this afternoon.  An unusual barge combination came through.  You are looking at two barges lashed together.  They were loaded with equipment and a large amount of steel.  That structure you see on the barges coming into the lock is a section of a railroad bridge.  Look carefully and you will see a very tall crane as well.

We worked at the fish viewing building on the Washington side today.  This guy spent some time hanging on one of the windows of the fish ladder.  Do you feel like a dentist?

Carson Fish Hatchery

Wednesday Randa and I drove over the dam and east of Stevenson.  14 miles up the Wind River is the Carson National Fish Hatchery.  Some hatcheries are state-run.  This one is operated by the US Fish and Wildlife Dept.  Wednesday was the last day of the annual Chinook Salmon "harvest".  After being out in the ocean for 3-5 years, the salmon respond to the urge to return to the stream that they traveled down as fingerlings and spawn.  Scientists believe they can accomplish this remarkable feat using their acute sense of smell.  They can follow a scent to their original stream.
     This year 725 Spring Chinook Salmon returned to Tyee Creek, just off the Wind River to do just that.  They made their way up the fish ladder at the Carson Hatchery and milled around in the holding tanks waiting to spawn.  In the wild the female would make a nest (redd) and lay her eggs in it. The male would swim over it and release is sperm ( milt) to drift down and mix with the eggs to fertilize them.  The hatchery way is a bit more industrial.
     The holding tank is made smaller, the salmon are taken out, one at a time, euthanized and the females emptied of their eggs and the males milked of their milt.  One male, one female.  Milt and eggs and mix, fertilization occurs. eggs are stored in trays under close supervision, running water, correct temperatures and safe habitat.  18 months later the 5 inch fingerlings are released into Tyee Creek to travel down Wind River , the Columbia River, to the Pacific Ocean to do it all over again.

A female Chinook Salmon gives up her eggs, 4000 to 5000

   

  

After fertilization the milt and any blood is poured off.The fertilized eggs are poured into trays and labeled as to what fish and what date they were harvested

The Eggs are stored in the stacks of trays in this safe room where the salmon can become tiny fish.

   
 It's an amazing process, both the natural way and the hatchery way.  The natural way is, well, more natural, but the hatchery way is 10 times more successful.  Without hatcheries, Salmon would rapidly become extremely rare or probably, extinct.   Extinction is forever !