A day with George
Sunday, Aunt Mary and I went hiking and got just a little lost. There were plenty of beautiful flowers, most of which we took pictures of too close for them to show up well. We did get to chase some Wood Ducks for a while, but also, pictures of them were impossible. Such is life. Here are a few pictures to give you a sense of the scene.
Monday night, after picking Melinda up from the airport, I went to stay the night at her place in Newberg. I'm loath to call it an apartment since it's two stories and stands alone, but it's not a house or cabin either. The most accurate term would be stable or carriage house, but those imply too untoward things about Melinda (and Daisy, Simon, and Garfunkle). It certainly has some trappings of elegance, particularly the bathroom which has not one but two ways to flush the toilet. Luxury. She also has lots of storage space, but my kitchen is better (as if there ever were a contest). In the morning we listened to some of her music collection that would haunt us the rest of the day and I got Melinda to model for a couple pictures.
Here she is as the spokeswoman for Quaker Instant Oatmeal.
And her she's selling that hairdryer.
I also got a couple pictures of the cats, but strangely enough the one that hid the most, Daisy, was the one I got the best photo of.
While Melinda did a little laundry, I got a tour of her land lady's home. Amazing. It dates back to the 1890s and is considered a historic site. She has decorated it with antiques that reinforce the history of the place. Plus, they have a servant's staircase, which I think is an enviable discussion piece. I want to get one for my apartment. Daniel and I have neither an upstairs nor a servant, but I still want one. I did not, however, think to take any pictures of the place, so you'll just have to trust me on it's pink and blue coolness.
When the jeans finally dried, Melinda gave me a tour of two recycling facilities and the mail room at George Fox University. Now that I think of it, maybe the "tour" was actually running errands, but we did have fun. Herbert Hoover, about whom I recently wrote a poem, moved to Newberg after his parent's had finished dying in Iowa and attended George Fox. We drove by the Hoover/Minthorn house and saw a little display about Herbert and Lou. I really do love that old Quaker, despite my poetry. He still hasn't replaced Millard Fillmore as my favorite president though.
I also have no photos from this part of the trip. However, when we stopped by the falls at Oregon City, I did take a few snapshots there. These falls once stretched all the way across the Willamette River, forcing anyone traveling by boat to portage here, but then they destroyed about half the falls and put in a loch system. Ah, progress.
The reason we were in Oregon City was to see the End of the Oregon Trail Museum. Since I don't live too far from the trail, I can now say I've made it all the way to the end. Melinda and I were the only visitors, so the tour guide was very informal and let us play with the pioneer's artifacts. Since Scott's Bluff was a major resting spot on the trail, they had the name in their steps and I had to get a picture with it.
Also, Melinda took a picture of our feet at the End of the Oregon Trail Museum, which is her favorite picture of the day, so I suppose it should be included.
Then we were off to Powell's, which is one of the largest book stores in the world. I couldn't help drooling just a little. I think if I were ever given three wishes, one would be the ability to consume (i.e. read and analyze) a book instantly simply by touching it. I would run through the isles of Powell's with both arms outstretched again and again, grazing every book on every shelf. Melinda may be even more of a bibliophile than me though, so this is a dangerous destination for the both of us. The rare book room and the foreign language sections captivated me the most. Both of us bought two books, mine were both poetry: a collection poems by Ахматова in both English and Russian and Hilda Raz's Trans. Hilda is one of my professors at UNL.
And of course, I got Melinda to model again.
The next stop was Lebanese food. We picked up one of Melinda's classmates and met three more (plus Kaylie, the daughter of one who seems to have been adopted by all). The food was great and Melinda's friends all seem like pleasant and interesting people. Kaylie was the center of attention (NO, I was NOT jealous . . . ) as she was practicing her cursive and spelling. Apparently they're starting kids off with cursive rather than print these days. Half of us graduate students had forgotten the art of cursive writing, which leads me to wonder how much use the skill is anyway. There were also a few games of hangman, though Kaylie generally needed help remembering which letters were in her words.
After saying good-bye to everyone, we went back to Vancouver so I could spend the night there since Melinda has class today and I have to get to the airport. I'll be home tonight at eight. It's been a good trip, but I could use some vegetative time.
Oh, and one last thing. Uncle Bruce and I have a word. It's together with a lot of words that seem to make no sense as part of the narration at the end of a documentary (Gizmo). We've rather taken to the word, but are still not sure what it might, should, or could mean. So, if you have any suggestions for the proper usage of craminate, please, post comments on that subject. Of course, if you want to post comments on non-craminating topics, feel free as well.
Post a Comment