Wildlife

I kept seeing black and white birds that I'd never seen before and didn't find out what they were until I was home again and could look through my bird books. They're magpies.

I also got us off on a side road, despite the GPS, but it was on that side road that we saw a coyote.

Central and Eastern Oregon

This was my first trip to Central and Eastern Oregon and I found the scenery beautiful, and sometimes desolate and stark. We drove almost 1,000 miles and saw old wooden snow fences on the side of the road, metal potato houses to store potatoes set against hills with the chutes on top,gorges, and barges on the Willamette River.

The photos are of the sky in Eastern Oregon, an abandoned homestead, two photos taken in Central Oregon, and a rest area in the Willamette National Forest near Sisters.

Road Trip!

On Thursday John and I will be motoring to the annual Northwest Archivists Conference being held this year in Moscow, Idaho . I recently found the Universal Packing List a terrific online application that allows users to build a customized packing list, complete with reminders and tips. I plan to use this tool again for other trips.

I've picked up maps and information from AAA and have begun a file with papers I need (a copy of the conference sessions, hotel reservations), and after we make the final determination for the route we'll follow, I'll begin looking for sightseeing stops.

Mother's Day

Mom 1922-2003

This photo of me and Mom was taken at my grandfather's lakeside cabin in the summer of 1953

Lucille's Birthday Bash!

Lucille's birthday isn't until July but as she's moving to Virginia soon we arranged to have her birthday party a little early. This time we went to Ping's, a Chinese restaurant in Albany for our party. Aimee brought red feather boas and other fun toys and, as usual for us, we all exchanged cards and presents. We ate, we laughed, we shared memories and plans, and had a wonderful evening.

Love 'ya, Lucille! We send you a kiss for luck and a teardrop for goodbye.

Our New SUV

Yesterday after work, John and I went to the dealership and bought our new Toyota RAV-4 . We'd been looking at SUVs for the past few months, test drove a few, and decided on this one. I'd originally wanted a red one but I've been driving a red van for almost ten years (you can see it the photo) and I decided to go for a dark blue this time. It has a gray leather interior and every option available including the larger engine, the deluxe stereo system (which John wanted), and a moon roof (which I wanted).

What a fun vehicle to drive!