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GARDEN PARTY REMINISCING

Remember your first garden party when you invited people over to the house to see what you planted, what you’ve grown? It’s a touching moment to behold after years of planning. You build a raised bed like the picture here, and buy plants you just know will grow. And they did.

NATURE SIGNS TO WATCH FOR

When you make a plan to see nature up close, expect nature signs. Follow the message of the signs for best results. Do that and you’ll return home with sweet memories and solid experiences with exciting pictures to share. If it’s your first time out in the wild, pay extra attention. You can thank me […]

OFF GRID, NO PHONE SERVICE, BUT . . .

I’ve had mixed results with off grid peace and quiet. Once I stayed in a place the had no telephones in the rooms for just that purpose, peace and quiet. Sounded very thoughtful until a road grader started grinding across the parking lot pavement the next morning. It couldn’t have been any closer if it […]

TIME TRAVEL INSIDE A LUMBER BARN

It’s just a barn, a lumber barn in the middle of nowhere, but so much more. It’s an historical record, an archive of sawdust, splinters, slivers, and work. Hard work. The main attraction is a train engine used to move big logs out of the woods, along with other man-killing machinery. For me the big […]

OLD GROWTH LOGS FOR KNOT HEADS

Old growth trees are a time capsule, capturing events in each ring of growth. Look at any standing tree and it carries the same message of time. The mystery in old growth shows the good, the bad, and the ugly. Want to take a look inside? Sure, you do. Let’s go:

NEW YORK, NEW YORK? COME ON NEW YORK

    Doing the right thing in New York is the same as doing the right thing in Oregon:   Stay home, keep a social distance.   My social distance from NYC is 3000 miles away, but it wasn’t always that way.   Frank said it best:

CLEAN DRINKING WATER? I’LL HAVE ANOTHER

This is the Tualatin River water, not drinking water. With this river running through Washington County to the lake in Lake Oswego, then out to the Willamette, why isn’t it tapped for drinking water in Tigard and LO? This warning from the Tualatin Riverkeepers lays it out:

ARMY ENLISTMENT? HAPPY ANNIVERSARY

Me: Today is my Army enlistment anniversary. Did you remember. Wife: It’s also the day my Mom died. Me: It is? I mean, yes, it is, and also my anniversary. Wife: I’m glad you remember it. Me: And there’s another thing to celebrate on the same date. Wife: What?

WANTED MAN vs NEEDED. THERE’S A DIFFERENCE?

If you’re waiting for a wanted man to make life better, you’ll be waiting a minute. This man was a one-float parade around Silverton during my last visit. You could hear him from blocks away with his booming sound system blasting AC/DC. When I left, he followed my car out of town, then turned back […]

PORTLAND BRIDGES – 1971

Every city with a river have one thing in common: bridges. Portland bridges crisscross the Willamette River over and over to keep traffic moving. There’s more of them today than 1971, not to mention upgrades. The 405 is more of river of cars, and like every river it needs bridges to keep the city moving.