Portland (OR) Daily Photo

Quirky find of mine, NW Everett, the old Meier and Frank Warehouse Building

2012-01-27T04:00:00.000-08:00

I saw this from the bus at some point prior to June 3, 2009. I know it was before that date because on that date I walked part way to work so that I could stop and take these photos of Andy Warhol himself, as paper graffiti.

In this close-up, you can see that an additional upstanding citizen has added a speech bubble. Do you know who I was? That's what is written in the speech bubble. I have marked out the other words written on Andy's head and the accompanying paper graffiti because I considered it objectionable.

The only children I would ever want to see in the bed of a pickup truck.

2012-01-26T04:00:00.000-08:00

A couple of those plastic children, "Slow Down, Children at Play" sort of signs.

A close-up of said plastic children.

Quirky find of mine, on SE Powell

2012-01-25T04:00:00.000-08:00

I took this photo as Leland drove by in our old 1996 Buick, on October 23, 2010. I'd noticed the mannequin and the hubcap structure on another west-bound trip on SE Powell, so I had my camera out. Leland couldn't slow down much, too much traffic on SE Powell, even mid-day Saturday. The mannequin's sort of blurry, but I like how the photo turned out anyway. As best I can determine from Google and Google Maps, this business is at 7057 SE Powell and is known as Hubcap Headquarters. I can't say for sure because the building which is to the right of the hubcap structure in my photos is red, the one at Google Maps is tan. And the hubcap structure is not in the Google Maps Street View.

Quirky find of mine, at the east end of the Morrison Bridge

2012-01-24T04:00:00.000-08:00

I took this photo on November 20, 2010. SPF 100, 768,000 FL OZ. I can't remember how long the water tower was painted like this, but I do remember hearing something about its decoration being illegal, according to city guidelines. I thought it matched the hideously large signs about flying to Hawaii. If I were to remove anything from this intersection, it would be those signs, not the decoration on the water tower. I altered the photo with the HDR-ish special effect at Picnik.

Quirky find of mine, from October 30, 2010

2012-01-23T04:00:00.000-08:00

While waiting at the TriMet bus stop, I noticed a strange sight at the bottom of the window on the adjacent apartment building. When I realized that it was a a Halloween mask wedged between a closed window and its window screen, I knew that I had to take a photo to make a record of one more quirky find of mine in my beloved Portland.

Streetcar architecture from days of yore, on East Burnside between NE Grand and NE 12th Avenue

2012-01-22T19:14:00.000-08:00

It's my understanding that streetcar architecture refers to businesses on the first floor and living quarters on the second floor and above. I'm not sure if these recessed areas existed when the buildings were first constructed or if they happened at some point later. I do like the looks of them. And I've seen plenty of evidence in the windows above, on both sides of Burnside, to lead me to believe that folks live upstairs--lamps, fans, kitchen-window sort of stuff.

Paulsen's Pharmacy, Hollywood District--they've got a soda fountain!

2012-01-21T08:11:00.000-08:00

I took these photos on October 15, 2011. I just found these hours on Yelp: Hours: Mon-Fri 9 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. Sat 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Found on the Internet at a site about the Hollywood District: Paulsen's Pharmacy has continued to operate out of its original 1918 location at 4246 NE Sandy Blvd. Famous for operating a 1920s style soda fountain, Paulsen's offers old fashioned customer service along with the latest products.

An online review of Paulsen's Pharamacy: Dec 12, 2008
First-class service! Don't automatically bring your prescriptions to a chain store! Paulsen's has been in the neighborhood for years, and it is small enough that you can pretty much always find Mr. Paulsen himself working in there to answer questions. When my toddler was having a meltdown while we waited, they gave her a free treat. They have helped us out with various problems, including doctors' office communications. Highly recommended!

And one more online review: 7/28/2010
I've been filling my prescriptions here as long as I've lived in the neighborhood, and there is something wonderful about getting to know the people who own a local business and that they remember your name when you come in. I've been carrying on a month to month conversation with one of the clerks where we swap notes on board games. Bonus points for the ability to get a mint chip shake at the fountain while I wait for my prescription. I love that there are still "Mom & Pop" businesses like this in my neighborhood.

A piece about Paulsen's Pharmacy at Neighborhood Notes dot com, posted June 17, 2010: Surprisingly, yet another blast from Portland’s past can be found less than two miles down the road at Paulsen’s Pharmacy, which will be celebrating its 92nd anniversary this July. These days, a modern-style Coke dispenser does a lot of the work (customers can add cherry, chocolate or vanilla flavoring to their soft drink of choice), but vintage soda taps are still kept on-hand just in case a traditional flavored soda or sweet cherry phosphate is ordered up. It was these taps that first spawned the moniker “soda jerk,” which described the action of pulling back on the soda tap to add carbonated water to the flavored syrup.

Paulson’s can also fix you up with a shake, malt, float or sundae while you wait for your prescription, and in true vintage form, will pour you a hot cuppa joe for just 85 cents.

I took this photo on August 24, 2011.

And here’s an interesting article about the drugstore and its pharmacist, in the Catholic Sentinel.

Seen on the Walk to Work, September 30, 2011

2012-01-21T04:00:00.000-08:00

A new, modern building on the corner of SE 6th Avenue and East Burnside. I cannot explain why, but it appeals to me, so much so that I always look up when I walk or ride by (if I'm on the correct side of the bus to able to see it out of the window). As near as I can tell, businesses occupy or will occupy all of the space.

Here are three versions of much the same cropped photo. This one is merely cropped at Picnik. The grays and rectangles are a gray flannel suit. The windows are the shiny tie paired with it by a stylist with personal flair.

This one is cropped and altered for clarity at Picnik. Clarity makes the grays pop which brings into greater focus the architectural details--those various rectangular shapes extended from the main structure. I don't know architectural terms, sorry.

This is the second photo, further enhanced with the HDR-ish special effect at Picnik. This version is just plain fun to me. Moving the Strength slider and the Radius slider, I came up with this combo which I like, mostly because of the glowing on the gray rectangles and the details become better visible in the clouds.

So far as I know, this sign works.

2012-01-20T04:00:00.000-08:00

And here's why.

Cripes on a wall.

2012-01-19T04:00:00.000-08:00

Found in industrial SE Portland on a wall along the railroad tracks.

Snow, before bedtime Tuesday night.

2012-01-18T04:00:00.000-08:00

I went to the building's front door and side door to take a few photos. There's the possibility that the snow won't be this pretty in the morning because it could turn to rain around 3 a.m., maybe later. Let me tell you what. It's cold out there!

A collage I made at Picnik.

Here's one of the photos which is in the collage. I like how the headlights and the snow work together.

I'm off to bed now!

5:45 AM Wednesday Update - Rain began during the night at my elevation. It's still raining. At higher elevations, snow continues to fall. Trees have fallen onto power lines all around the metropolitan area, TV news is reporting. I should leave for work in a little over an hour. Wonder what I'll see? Lots of standing water is my guess.

Quirky, found on the parking lot, March 13, 2009

2012-01-17T04:00:00.000-08:00

Walk to Work, September 29, 2011, #1

2012-01-16T04:00:00.000-08:00

One of two triangular-shaped buildings I walk by on the way to work when the weather is walking-good.

I found the building just now on Google Maps, looking a bit different paint-wise, plus there was a round sign over the door that said Rebel Skates. And later on after I took this photo, I'm pretty sure that the painted sign on the right wall was gone, too. Anyway, this is the southwest corner of the intersection of SE Ankeny, the cross street, and SE Sandy Blvd., the one disappearing out of sight on the left of the photo.

Do triangular-shaped buildings fascinate you? They do me. In fact, I'd like to live in one, some day. How about you?

At the Rose Garden Arena, January 5, 2012, before the Trail Blazers' game against the Los Angeles Lakers

2012-01-15T04:00:00.000-08:00

Before every home game members of the Blazers Stunt Team head for a pre-selected section of seats (always one in the 300-numbered section) and wait until the need for a basketball down on the court is announced--so that the game can begin on time and all that.

Spotlights mark the section and one of the stunt team members hands the basketball to a fan at the top of the section in what is known as "the upper bowl." Fans pass the ball along until it reaches the front row of the section and is handed back to a guy on the stunt team. He semi-dramatically drops it down into the 200 section to another guy on the stunt team who hands it off to a fan in that section. Finally, with some prodding into action by other stunt team members, the ball makes it to the court. There usually some little kid waits to carry it to center court where it is given to the officials and the kid is escorted off the court by stunt team members.

I sit on the front row of "the upper bowl" in section 312. The night I took this photo, ball delivery began in the section to the right of mine. One of these days my section get to do ball delivery. I believe I will then get a chance to have my hands on the game ball--hooray!

Architectural Details: A Photography Workshop, Image No. 4

2012-01-14T16:29:00.000-08:00

Brickwork on the Patagonia clothing store, 907 NW Irving, Pearl District, Portland, Oregon. Naturally you're aware that he wanted us to pay attention to architectural details like these various brick patterns, especially in conjunction with the concrete blocks and the metal piece. This particular images has been changed at Picnik, an online photo-altering site, with Focal Zoom, then CinemaScope. I also checked Letterbox my photo.

Here it is, HDR-ish, courtesy of Picnik. You can see the concrete blocks and the metal piece much better in this version of the photo.

And here it is, merely straightened at Picnik.

Architectural Details: A Photography Workshop, Site of Image No. 3

2012-01-13T04:00:00.000-08:00

First, I had fun at Picnik with one of the photos that I took standing in a vacant lot at the intersection of NW 10th and NW Hoyt, looking southwest. I especially enjoying seeing items inside the windows revealed as I applied the various effects.

At this site, we were asked to look at the shorter, older brick building juxtaposed with the taller, modern one and to notice the textures, angles, and lines. This the photo that I had altered in the Effects section of Picnik--first I clicked on Invert, then Lomo-ish, and finally HDR-ish.

Here is how each effect looks if done alone to the image. Invert. Lomo-ish. HDR-ish. With no additional tinkering with the slider bars. If you click on each photo, you can get a better look at each effect's impact on the image.

Then we were asked to line up the corner of the brick building with the line beneath the outer edge of the rust-colored section which held the balconies on the newer building. It's easy to tell that there is some distance between the two buildings in this photo.

Architectural Details: A Photography Workshop, Image No. 2

2012-01-12T04:00:00.000-08:00

Above the front entrance of The Gregory Lofts in the Pearl District. Our instructor wanted us to look for details to photograph, using light and shadow and angles and shapes. I took the photo you see below and then when I uploaded it, I decided to rotate it using Picnik, hoping to enhance the architectural details.

Interesting what changing directions can accomplish.

And here's a photo of the entrance that I took from across the street as I waited to go into the meeting site for the workshop. I felt pretty good about noticing the architectural details all by myself, especially when the instructor pointed it out to us as a subject for our photographs.

Architectural Details: A Photography Workshop, Image No. 1

2012-01-11T04:00:00.000-08:00

When I read this information online about an event in conjunction with the 2011 Portland Architecture and Design Festival----Architectural Details: A Photography Workshop, Saturday, October 15, 1:00 PM----naturally I felt compelled to read the rest of the information:

"Explore Portland’s striking building facades and architectural details through your camera lens with local photographer Josh Partee. This two-hour walking tour will commence at the Center for Architecture with coffee and introductions, and will then lead you to the most photo-friendly structures around NW Portland. The instructor will provide professional guidance on how anyone can take better snapshots of their built environment, with a special focus on unique building details. These lessons will come in handy whether you’re walking around the neighborhood or sightseeing in far-away locales.

Josh Partee is a Portland, Oregon based professional photographer. Formally trained as an architect, his love for the building process and architecture have kept him working alongside designers, making sure their projects look their best in print and on-screen."

I clicked to register myself. The workshop was full. So sad. Then I checked back a day or so later to see if I could find a waiting list. Lo and behold, due to interest a second workshop had been added for October 22, same time! I got in! Hooray!

Here is the first of the photos I took that day which I have decided to post--they will come to you not in the order that I took them but in the order that they appeal to me.

This is the Joanne Lilley Grand Staircase inside the Gerding Theater's lobby. Here's some information about the building that houses the theater. You’ll be glad you’ve clicked on the link because not only will you get info, you’ll find both historic photos and construction/renovation photos, courtesy of my beloved Architectural Heritage Center.

Two of the reasons why I have successfully made it through the last 365 days. My sons.

2012-01-10T04:00:00.000-08:00

Saturday, January 7, was the one year anniversary of Mama's death. Naturally I wondered how I would feel, how I would act.

So, in order to insulate myself in what I consider to be a healthy manner, I stopped by The Circuit NE Tuesday after work. No, I did not join Lamont and Leland in bouldering. Instead I said to them, "Let's go to lunch on Saturday after you've finished bouldering. You know it has been one year on that day." "Yes," and "Yes," they both said.

They came and got me around 1 p.m. I pulled a Grandma on them and was waiting in my apartment when they came to the door, purse in hand, my coat already on! We went to Cha! Cha! Cha! on SE Hawthorne. Good, inexpensive food. Then we went to JaCiva’s, also on SE Hawthorne, for some handmade chocolates. While I believe Mexican food and chocolate go hand in hand and made me feel pretty good on Saturday, it was being with Lamont (left) and Leland (right) that made me feel best of all.

Don't get me wrong, having the thoughts and prayers and love from y'all all over the USA and over in England has helped me endure and heal and go forth, but being able to see these two young men on a regular basis, to hug them and get hugs from them, to see their sparkling eyes and smiles, to be able to tell them face to face, thank you so much for the big part you played in making Grandma's last years on earth so special for her (and for me with her)--those things have taken me over the top.

I woke up on Saturday, wondering how it would go. By the time I had spent time on the phone with Milton and Kay and Howard, had been with Lamont and Leland and with Casey (who came over for while late afternoon), then had watched the Saints take care of Detroit on TV while I ate the supper I had cooked, I went to bed knowing I had made it one whole year. I feel stronger and more at peace than I thought possible. Now I am on my way into the next 365 days. Thank you, everyone.

Portland Trail Blazers, 3-0. OK, we've got 63 more games to play until the play-offs begin. But I'm a happy season-ticket-holder!

2011-12-30T13:10:00.000-08:00

Thursday night after the game I waited for the 70 bus across the street from the Rose Garden Arena. First time I noticed this light-show-sort-of-sign on the building. Cheers! That's what we'd been doing inside that great big building!

By the way, those two police cars and their officers are always outside the arena, before and after the games. I think it's a good idea in a crowd of around 20,000, some of whom have been drinking beer for several hours, to have them visible; most of the 20,000 had already made their way far from the building. The flashing light bars help folks find their way once they've exited the arena--people like me because I'm still learning my way around the place.

The story of two photos, pure amazement and serendipity for me!

2011-12-29T04:00:00.000-08:00

Monday night, December 26, the Trail Blazers played Philadelphia in our season opener. Fans and those whose employment depend upon the games taking place, as well as the players and coaches, feel pretty good about basketball being back in Portland.

Lots of Trail Blazer fans count #12, LaMarcus Aldridge, as their favorite player.

One of the photos in this short, short story is this one that I took from clean across the entire arena of LaMarcus Aldridge as he scored. Totally excited to get it!

When I decided to post the photo, I searched on Google for trail blazers philadelphia december 26, 2011. And I come across photos from the game taken by the Oregonian, Portland's daily newspaper. Lo and behold, the very first photo I saw is of the same instant of action, taken by the photographer (Bruce Ely) sitting on the floor at the baseline--you can barely see him on the right edge of my photo because I cropped close to LaMarcus and the basket. (More about that at the bottom of the post.)

If you click on the link, you'll see the second photo in this short, short story. And be amazed.

To tell you the truth, I did the search hoping to find the photo and a word or two about who had passed the ball to LaMarcus and if this was one of those lob passes like I'm pretty sure I remember it was. Anyway, the caption beneath Ely's photo was no help, but I was very excited to see the action from his perspective, let me tell you! Please click on the link above or here to see Ely's photo. I would have tried to copy and paste it onto the blog, but I didn't feel that would be the right thing to do. One of these days maybe I'll contact him for permission, if this happens again!

Here I've I cropped the photo differently so you could see Bruce Ely. Look at that other camera and lens standing in front of him!

A scene you won't see in Portland today

2011-12-28T05:57:00.000-08:00

On a September Saturday, these two women stood talking on SW Broadway. The woman on the left had been to the PSU Farmers Market, filling her navy blue bag with untold fresh goodies. Maybe the woman on the right had been there, too, and had stored her goodies somewhere in the scooter. Can you guess the reason that scenes like this won't be repeated today? It's pouring rain and blowing, blowing, blowing wind. I can hear it hitting the windows of my apartment right now. And after work yesterday I had to hold my hood shut, or it would have blown right off my head! On my way to the basketball game and hours later after the game!

Here's what KGW Channel 8's meteorologist Nick Allard has to say about the weather online: This morning it is mild, wet, breezy and will be all day. Another round of heavy rain is moving in to the area and later today it will be really wet again. The winds are staying pretty active this morning and also will for the rest of the day. There is a High Wind Warning in effect for the central Oregon Coast until this evening. Winds will be sustained between 30-40 mph with gusts that may approach 50-70 mph especially right at the coast line. The rest of the area will be breezy at times with moderate to heavy rain. In fact anywhere from half an inch to an inch is possible all over the place. Highs will top out in the mid-50s. The snow level will stay high today in the 7-8,000' range.
Tomorrow another round of rain will push in, but the heaviest rain will stay south of our area. So overall the rain will be much lighter. However into Friday another wet and breezy system will move in for rain during the day and some decent mountain snow by Friday night.

Last Regiment of Syncopated Drummers Outside the Rose Garden Arena

2011-12-27T06:35:00.000-08:00

I got off the bus to walk to the STH door at the Rose Garden Arena on Monday night and heard drumming. I love drumming. And the Last Regiment of Syncopated Drummers can really drum! Even in the cold.

Curves, similar shapes, dissimiliar substances

2011-12-26T10:35:00.000-08:00

Today's title refers to the brim of the top hat and the curve of bell on the CG Conn Grand Jumbo 46K Sousaphone. I suppose the top hat is made of wool felt. And the tuba is made of silver-colored sheet brass. I know, I know. You thought I was going to point out that it refers to the top of the head and the curve of the bell on the golden CG Conn 20K. A toss up, which one to mention first!

I got the name of the tuba from two commenters on a previous post, one named Anonymous, one named Ian. Turns out that Ian is playing the CG Conn Grand Jumbo 46K Sousaphone! And Anonymous, actually Fred Williams is his name according to Ian, was playing a CG Conn 20K in the other post, standing between the two tubas you see here but facing towards them-- the one Ian is playing and to the golden one played by Johnny Quirarte of Los Culpables de la Sierra, according to Ian who is a veritable fount of information. Thanks, Ian!

Look what I found in my neighborhood.

2011-12-25T04:00:00.000-08:00

I'm of two minds about Christmas lights. First, I'm always happy to see them because they are so beautiful. Second, I'm always happy that putting them up and taking them down is someone else's chore because it's a tremendous amount of work.

When my husband was alive, we decorated our tree and around the living room windows. After he died and my sons were still little boys, I decorated the tree and around the windows. Several years after my Daddy died, I moved back in with my Mama (widows together enjoying the life left to us), and we decorated several different trees over the years and around our windows. My sons are out on their own, decorating as their lives lead them. Now I'm on my own, too. I have a little Department 56 tree, the sweetest item I've ever been fortunate enough to purchase at Goodwill, and a string of lights glowing on the cabinet top around it. Merry Christmas decorating, ol' 64-year-old-me style.

Merry. Christmas. Y'all!

2011-12-24T11:47:00.001-08:00

I like what's going on in this photo so much that I had to divide it into three pieces so that you could have fun seeing it all, too. And then it's put together again at the bottom of the post.

Merry.

Christmas.

Y'all.

Merry Christmas, Y'all! Took this photo in the northeast corner of Pioneer Courthouse Square as the tubas warmed up to my right, getting ready for Christmas carols and Tuba Christmas, December 10, 2011.

This duo got the stamp of approval from everyone at Tuba Christmas, ...

2011-12-23T04:00:00.000-08:00

... well, everyone who had the opportunity to see the Gingerbread (Wo)Man and the Christmas Tree and get a candy cane from the basket. I imagine the two of them were quite happy to be encased in decorative costumes, as long as they had on some longhandles to keep them warm. You can tell from the children's winter wear, as well as everyone else in the crowd behind the holiday duo, just how cold it was on Saturday, December 10, in downtown Portland at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

It's all in how you look at it.

2011-12-22T04:00:00.000-08:00

Big Pink and a parking lot sign. The sign is on the southeast corner of SW Broadway and West Burnside. Big Pink is exactly one block east of the sign. I used the tilt feature of my camera so that I could take a satisfactory look from this unusual angle. I've cropped the photo and used the HDR-ish special effect at Picnik. By the way, Big Pink is either 536 or 546 feet tall and is the second tallest building in Portland. I found both heights on the Internet, so who knows. I do know I've been on the 30th floor, which is not the top floor, to the Portland City Grill. See views from the PCG here and here.

Random pedestrians, downtown Portland

2011-12-21T04:00:00.000-08:00

I took this photo after work on November 3 as I waited for the 12 or the 19 bus home. I'd been to have a check up on the floaters in my right eye, rode the Yellow Line MAX to Kaiser Interstate and then back downtown to the Transit Mall so I could transfer to a bus. I like watching folks walk across SW 6th Avenue while I wait. They are heading north towards the intersection with SW Yamhill which is the south side of Pioneer Courthouse Square. I'm very pleased with how this photo turned out. All I've done is crop it to better showcase these two random pedestrians, or should I say three since the man's reflection is so clear in the window? The big X is inside a branch of Chase Bank. Oh, and the floaters in my eye have diminished--hooray!

Up, with Nolan Smith, Portland Trail Blazers Rookie

2011-12-20T04:00:00.000-08:00

I'm as up in the air as rookie guard Nolan Smith is here. Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Utah Jazz 110-90.

You can see what a great seat I have for this season! No one can stand or walk in front of me because I am on the front row of the highest ring around the arena!

On the sports just now, I saw the replay of the shot that Nolan took--he scored!

The wait is over!

2011-12-19T04:00:00.000-08:00

Yep, this photo of a rack weights in the Trail Blazers work out room fits just fine with my announcement at the top of this post. The wait is over! Our one-and-only-home-preseason-game takes place at 7 p.m. Monday in the Rose Garden Arena. The opposing team is the Utah Jazz. The home team is the Portland Trail Blazers! Go, Blazers! The best fans in the NBA will be in the house!

In my neighborhood, at ReRack

2011-12-16T04:00:00.000-08:00

Sunday, October 16, on our way back after a trip to Freddie's for groceries, Lamont and I noticed something going on at ReRack, a nearby business. Couple hours later I went for a walk and figured it out. They'd shoveled snow onto hay, added a couple of ramps and adventurous snowboarders complete with fans. I especially like this photo because so much is going on. There's the 1920s automobile comes into view on the left, the snowboarder just left of center slides on the rail--his board is purple and white, three people take photos and/or videos, and others just watch as they face the action. The two people on the left with their backs to me wait in line to climb up onto the ramp out of view to the left so that they can take their turn. And see what looks like a speaker on the right, near the front of that van? Loud music, but not obnoxiously so. Looks like at least one watcher arrived on a bicycle--I believe I see a basket and a brake. Some may have arrived on TriMet--there's a bus shelter in the background to the left of the guy in the olive green cap taking a photo with his phone. The green and blue building is not for sale, to my knowledge. There's an empty lot just beyond it with that giant sign standing near the street, sort of a parking area I think. At ReRack's Facebook page, there are lots of splendid photos in an album called Rad Ruckus Rail Jam 2011, taken by GEE-Photo.

A cute, but cold, Tuba Christmas fan

2011-12-15T04:00:00.000-08:00

Look at her pink nose. The cold made it match the color of her jacket and hat perfectly. Cropped and altered at Picnik.

Lownsdale Square, oh to able to stand in the park again

2011-12-14T04:00:00.000-08:00

This photo was taken Oct. 16, 2007, as I stood in Lownsdale Square, looking south towards the Thompson Elk and Chapman Square. The TriMet bus heading west on SW Main hides the elk's legs as it makes the curve around the statue's base. You can tell how the ground rises as you walk west through the park. Today on the bus before and after work, I saw the fences around both parks. The only evidence I noticed of any restoration progress was the complete absence of lots of park benches. The original estimate I read in the Oregonian and posted on here on December 3 mentioned "Replace two park benches, repair seven benches: $16,500." It was not mentioned which park or if these benches were spread between both parks. The missing benches I noticed were all in Chapman Square. The bus stopped at the intersection is on SW 4th Avenue. At the time that this photo was taken, the downtown Transit Mall had been moved to SW 3rd and SW 4th while SW 5th and SW 6th underwent extensive renovation, part of which was the addition of the MAX Green Line.

Tuba Christmas, Pioneer Courthouse Square, December 10, 2011

2011-12-13T04:00:00.000-08:00

I arrived on scene about 10 minutes before Tuba Christmas began, all 225 tubas would play to a standing room only crowd, one Christmas carol after another. Realizing I would not find anywhere to sit and that I wouldn't care because it was so doggone cold, I walked close to these two bass tubas--is that what you call these humongous instruments? Aren't they heavy? I don't know. But I do know that the man on the left played a beat on his tuba that had everyone getting their groove on. Then the man on the right and he challenged each other, vibrating the air around us magnificently, bringing smiles to nearby faces.

It's my birthday today. A present to myself!

2011-12-12T04:00:00.000-08:00

Sunday, December 11, 2011, found me at my first event as a Portland Trail Blazers' season ticket holder. Holiday on Ice lasted from 2-5 p.m. I stayed almost the entire time, first going on the locker room tour, then wandering around on the concourse, decorating cookies, making crafts. I talked with the radio announcer, nicknamed Wheels, and one of the TV announcers, Mike Barrett. I met Scott, my Season Ticket Services Account Representative. By 3 p.m. Blazers were walking here and walking there, smiling at all of us, stopping for photographs or autographs as time allowed. I took lots of photos and talked to about half of the team, getting a few autographs.

Next I decided to go back to the locker room to see in any others were there. Lo and behold, there stood Coach Nate McMillan. I moved down the line from player to player and then I was in front of him. I couldn't help myself, when I started to talk, saying "I can't believe I'm standing in front of you. My Mama would be so excited. She became a basketball fan after we moved here in 2006 ... I'm sorry, I'm crying. She died in January."

I can't remember exactly what happened after that, somewhere in there I explained that I was a first-time season ticket holder. I know I felt good when Coach McMillan signed my piece of paper and took me seriously when I handed to him the PTB lanyard I had purchased in the Fan Shop, rubbing it for good luck over and over because I explained that I was going from player to player, collecting good luck for the team ever since I bought it and Gerald Wallace touched it first before putting it into the shopping bag. Coach handed me the lanyard, we shook hands and smiled at each other as I told him what a good time I was having here. Coach McMillan smiled some more when I looked to his right and said, "That's Buck Williams, right there." I patted my heart and sort of swooned. Coach Williams grinned and said, "I wish my wife could see some of this around here." The three of us laughed together for a moment. I might not be able to remember every single thing that happened, but I will always remember standing there in front of those gracious, tall men.

I rode the elevator up with them and several players. Then on the concourse Coach McMillan sat down by himself at the coloring table, waiting for folks to come see him. I sat down in front of him and he asked me what was Mama's health problem, so we talked for a few minutes about what had gone on with her health and what had happened to her on January 7. I even explained that I hoped she had just left her phone in the bedroom and was sitting in front of the TV watching the Blazers play and couldn't hear her phone. Instead she had laid down for a nap and didn't wake up. He listened and smiled kindly. I went on to say that Mama had been so impressed with the kind of young men the Trail Blazers he was leading the players to be, individuals who care about themselves and the team and Portland. He said that's what he was trying to do and shook my hand again, saying he was glad I was a season ticket holder. I said that I was so happy about it because, while I didn't want to be one while I had Mama to watch games with at home, that I had missed basketball in person after having spent six years keeping score for the boys and girls' high school teams, both at the scorer's table for home games and on the bench for away games where i used to teach English and be a librarian down in Mississippi. He grinned. I stopped rambling. Then I got up so that someone else could spend some time with him.

Later on I sat talking with Scott my account rep and asked him if he would go with me and take a photo of me with the coach. By the time we got close to the front of the line, Coach and the players had to leave the coloring table and head somewhere else on the concourse. After I had walked around in the concourse for a while, it dawned on me that I might find Coach McMillan at a different table and maybe I could get someone to take the photo I wanted. You can see the result at the top of the post.

I am so looking forward to attending our home games. I'll be able to do that on mass transit, too!

Happy 64th birthday to me!

Sunday Bridges: Hawthorne Bridge, the towers in the sunrise

2011-12-11T07:41:00.001-08:00

See more Sunday Bridges at San Francisco Bay Daily Photo.

February 20, 2009, the sun provided a golden background for the Hawthorne Bridge towers. There really are two towers here--the large rectangles you see are the counterweights which, when lowered, raise the center section to the bridge. The higher one was closer to me when I took this photo. The Hawthorne Bridge is special to me for several reasons--it's the first bridge I road a bus over, in June, 2004, when we first visited my sons here; it's the first bridge I walked over, in January, 2007, through a thick snowstorm; it's the bridge I cross most often.

Here's what I found at Wikipedia: The Hawthorne Bridge is a truss bridge with a vertical lift that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, joining Hawthorne Boulevard and Madison Street. It is the oldest vertical-lift bridge in operation in the United States and the oldest highway bridge in Portland. It is also the busiest bicycle and transit bridge in Oregon, with over 4,800 cyclists and 800 TriMet buses (carrying about 17,400 riders) daily.

Size

The bridge consists of five fixed spans and one 244 ft (74 m) long vertical-lift span. It is 1,382 feet (421 m) in total length. The 880,000 pound (400,000 kg) counterweights are suspended from the two 165 ft (50 m) tall towers. While the river is at low level the bridge is 49 feet (15 m) above the water, causing it to be raised an average of 200 times per month. As of 2001, the average daily traffic was 30,500 vehicles. The bridge was designed by John Waddell, inventor of the vertical-lift bridge and also designer of the Steel and Interstate bridges.

History

The current bridge was built to replace Madison Bridge No. 1 (1891) and Madison Bridge No. 2 (1900), which was destroyed by a fire in 1902. It cost $511,000 to build and was opened on December 19, 1910. Hawthorne Boulevard (and thus the bridge) was named after Dr. J.C. Hawthorne, the cofounder of Oregon's first mental hospital and early proponent for the first Morrison Bridge.

The deck was changed from wood to steel grating in 1945. In 1985 the lift span sheaves, the grooved wheels that guide the counterweight cables, were replaced. The bridge went through a $22 million restoration from 1998–99, which included replacing the steel grated deck and repainting. The original lead-based paint was completely removed and replaced with 3 layers of new paint that is estimated to last 30 years. During this upgrade the sidewalks were widened to 10 feet (3 m), making it a thoroughfare for bicycle commuters. Due to the replacement of the steel deck during this project, the channels which used to carry the rails for streetcars and interurban trains were also removed. In 2001 the sidewalks were connected to the Eastbank Esplanade. The estimated cost to replace the bridge is $189.3 million.

The original color of the bridge was black, lasting until 1964, when it was repainted yellow ochre.[7] During the 1998-99 renovation, the color was changed to green with red trim.

The 2003 film, The Hunted, included a scene set on MAX on the Hawthorne Bridge. Since MAX does not cross the bridge, the movie company connected two articulated buses remodeled to resemble a MAX train, complete with fake overhead lines and a sprinkler system to simulate rain. Light-rail (interurban) service did cross the Hawthorne Bridge until 1956. The new deck put in place in the outer lanes during the 1998–99 renovation was designed to be strong enough for possible use by modern, heavier streetcars or light rail trains in the future, which was proposed at that time, and TriMet was still considering a Hawthorne Bridge routing for its future MAX Orange Line, to Milwaukie, in 2002. However, following the transit agency's later decision to build a new bridge for the Milwaukie MAX line, which bridge could also be used by the Portland Streetcar, it became unlikely that rail cars will ever again cross the Hawthorne Bridge.

Carries vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists
Crosses Willamette River
Locale Portland, Oregon
Maintained by Multnomah County
Design truss with a vertical-lift span
Total length 1,382 ft (421 m)
Width 72 ft (22 m)
Longest span 244 ft (74 m)
Clearance below 49 ft (15 m) closed, 159 ft (48 m) open
Opened December 19, 1910

Chapman Square, two walkers in the park

2011-12-10T04:00:00.000-08:00

November 6, 2008, found a guy on the sidewalk and a crow on the golden-leaf covered grass. The TriMet bus and the red car are driving west on SW Main. The silver-looking cylinders in the background stand guard over the first floor of the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse.

Lownsdale Square, a couple of walkers

2011-12-09T04:00:00.000-08:00

Enjoying the sunshine on May 1, 2009, a couple heads toward the center of Lownsdale Park. Children play on the base of the Soldiers' Monument, Douglas Tilden’s monument to the Oregonians killed in the Spanish-American War. Found on the Internet about the monument: "Dedicated on May 31, 1906, the tall granite obelisk is topped with a bronze replica of an infantryman of the Second Oregon U.S. Volunteer Infantry, part of the first large American fighting force ever sent overseas. At least two people sit side-by-side on a park bench in the sun. At the base of this monument are two small cannons from Fort Sumter (misspelled on the plaque) brought here by Colonel Henry E. Dosch. Because the cannons were used by both Union and Confederate troops, it was Dosch's idea to face one north and one south." You can see one of the black cannons beneath the left elbow of the man in the blue jacket.

At some point in 2012, various groups of people will once again enjoy the sunshine in Lownsdale Square.

Chapman Square, photograph-taking in the sunshine

2011-12-08T04:00:00.000-08:00

This group of children and two adults paused for a photo opportunity at the statue on the east side of Chapman Square on May 29, 2009. I know by next year, people will be able to enjoy good times like this in the park again.

Here's what I found out about the statue online:

In Chapman Square is a bronze statue commissioned by the Oregon Trail Coordinating Council to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Oregon Trail in 1993. The Promised Land, by Oregon artist David Manuel, depicts a pioneer family - father, mother, and son - at the end of their journey. The red granite slab upon which the statue is mounted is inscribed with a quote by Thomas Jefferson. The plaza in front of the statue is sandblasted with footprints reminiscent of pre-settlement days: jackrabbit, black bear, porcupine, grouse, coyote, elk, and moccasin prints.

Lownsdale Square, downtown Portland, live saxophone

2011-12-07T04:00:00.000-08:00

August 26, 2008, I heard this man playing his saxophone while I was in the park at lunch time. Such a pleasant experience, one that I want to enjoy again once the parks are restored. Those park benches are a whole lotta fun, too. Comfortable to sit on, and you can usually take your pick of sunshine or shade, on sunny days at least.

Chapman Square, lady walking in the sunshine, vintage pickup truck driving by

2011-12-06T04:00:00.000-08:00

Took this photo during lunch hour, June 3, 2011. The lady is walking northwest towards the intersection of SW Main with SW 4th Avenue. The pickup truck is going west on SE Main, having just driven around the Thompson Elk which stands in the center of the street, between Lownsdale Square and Chapman Square. The white truck in the distance is going east on SW Salmon which is the street at the northern end of Lowndale Square. It looks to me like this lady is walking for exercise and/or enjoyment of the sunshine, two activities I believe we all hope that we shall enjoy again next June.

Chapman Square, photo shoot, July 27, 2009, taken during my lunch hour

2011-12-05T04:00:00.000-08:00

These photos give you an idea of one way people used Chapman Square and an idea of its grand trees, lush plantings and grass, all beautiful in the summer sun.

The woman standing on the boulder caught my eye. Immediately I notice the woman leaning on the boulder, and my eye continued to the left. Photo shoot, I surmised. The woman on the boulder appears to be holding a little black dress, used here to block incoming sunlight. The photographer stands to the left of the tree trunk, wearing a long-sleeved pale yellow shirt and a brimmed, black hat. I think the man farther left is the hair/make-up guy--I can see brushes and spray bottles and such in the pouched, black bag hanging across his chest.

Another shot on the other side of the tree trunk, which along with the boulder, stands inside the sidewalk on SW 3rd Avenue, on the eastern edge of Chapman Square.

A fresh-air closet on the sidewalk that diagonally intersects Chapman Square from SW 3rd and SW Madison to SW 4th and SW Main consisted of a rack of hanging garments, a hanging bag and a suitcase. Surely the woman on the bench was a member of the creative party, too; why else would the rack and the suitcase be so close to her?

The model and the dresser walk toward the Women's Restroom at Chapman Square. The glass block window is in its brick walls. I love those ferns you see along its walls. I don't know whose bags you see partially visible; no one else was nearby.

The last photo I took before I headed off to catch the bus back to work. They are headed off to take the next series of photos.

Sunday Bridges: St. Johns Bridge

2011-12-04T00:00:00.000-08:00

See lots of Sunday Bridges here.

A US Navy ship crossed underneath the St. Johns Bridge on the Willamette River, June 9, 2011, during Rose Festival Fleet Week.

Carries U.S. Route 30 Bypass
Crosses Willamette River
Locale Portland, Oregon
Maintained by Oregon DOT
Design Suspension bridge, Art Deco
Total length 2,067 ft (630 m)
Longest span 1,207 ft (369 m)
Clearance below 205 ft (62 m)
Opened June 13, 1931

From Wikipedia:

The St. Johns Bridge is a steel suspension bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, USA, between the St. Johns neighborhood and the northwest industrial area around Linnton. It is the only suspension bridge in the Willamette Valley and one of three public highway suspension bridges in Oregon. It is also the farthest north of any bridge on the Willamette.

The bridge has two 408 ft (124 m) tall Gothic towers, a 1,207 ft (368 m) center span and a total length of 2,067 ft (630 m). The adjacent park and neighborhood of Cathedral Park, Portland, Oregon are named after the Gothic Cathedral-like appearance of the bridge towers. It is the tallest bridge in Portland, with 400 ft (122 m) tall towers and a 205 ft (62 m) navigational clearance.
By 2001, average traffic on the bridge was 23,800 vehicles/day.

History:

Designed by internationally renowned engineer David B. Steinman (1886-1960) and Holton D. Robinson, of New York, the St. Johns was the longest suspension-type bridge west of the Mississippi River at the time of construction. It is the only major highway suspension bridge in the Willamette Valley and one of only three major highway suspension bridges in Oregon.

At the time of the proposal to build the bridge, the area was served by a ferry that carried 1000 vehicles a day. The proposal for a bridge was initially met with skepticism in Multnomah County, since St. Johns and Linnton were over five miles (8 km) from the heart of the city, and local business owners had minimal political clout. But after a lobbying effort that included a vaudeville-style show performed at grange halls and schools throughout the county, voters approved a $4.25 million bond for the bridge in the November 1928 elections. Initially a cantilever bridge was proposed, but a suspension bridge was selected due to an estimated $640,000 savings in construction costs.

The construction of the bridge began a month before the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and provided many county residents with employment during the Great Depression. Because of its proximity to the Swan Island Municipal Airport, some government officials wanted the bridge painted yellow with black stripes. County officials waited until St. Patrick's Day 1931 to announce that it would be painted green.

Dedication of the bridge was put off for one month in order to make it the centerpiece of the 23rd annual Rose Festival. It was dedicated on June 13, 1931, and during the ceremony, the bridge engineer, David B. Steinman said: "A challenge and an opportunity to create a structure of enduring beauty in the God-given wondrous background was offered us when were asked to design the bridge. It is the most beautiful bridge in the world we feel.”

The bridge was built within 21 months and one million dollars under budget. At the time of its completion, the bridge had:
the highest clearance in the nation, the longest prefabricated steel cable rope strands, the tallest steel frame piers of reinforced concrete, the first application of aviation clearance lights to the towers, and longest suspension span west of Detroit, Michigan.

In the summer of 1949, 15-year-old high school student Thelma Taylor was abducted and held by her captor, Morris Leland, under the east side of the bridge (which was undeveloped at the time, now the location of Cathedral Park, Portland, Oregon), and was eventually murdered there. The crime shocked the city and her killer was apprehended and put to death.

It was not until the Marquam Bridge in 1966 that another non-movable bridge would be built in Portland.

By the 1970s, the bridge had been allowed to deteriorate, and cash-strapped Multnomah County asked the state to take over maintenance. Initially, the state declined, since it was also suffering from a lack of funds. But pressure from an association of county governments forced the state government to take it over on August 31, 1975. A county official estimated the move saved them $10 million during the first ten years of state maintenance.

In summer 1987, General Motors filmed the introductory commercial for the 1988 Buick Regal in Portland, Oregon and vicinity, including the St. John's bridge, the Astoria-Megler Bridge, and on the Columbia Gorge.

Portions of the east approaches and east span were repainted beginning in 1987 and completed in 1994. In 1999 the Oregon Department of Transportation announced a $27 million rehabilitation project that began in March 2003 and was completed in the fall of 2005. Included in the project was replacement of the deck, repainting of the towers, water-proofing the main cables, lighting upgrades, and improving access for bicycle and pedestrian traffic. By November 2004, renovation costs soared to $38 million, due mostly to the need to replace nearly half of the 210 vertical suspender cables. During the project, the bridge sidewalks were closed at all times. In addition, the entire bridge was closed at night and continuously for a month. The newly refurbished bridge was rededicated on September 17, 2006.

In Pop Culture

In the film Pay It Forward, Jerry (James Caviezel), a homeless man who was the first person helped by Trevor (Haley Joel Osment), talks a woman out of jumping off the St. Johns Bridge.

A citizen and citizens who occupied Portland going in opposite directions. Who will ultimately pay the price for Occupy Portland?

2011-12-03T04:00:00.000-08:00

Starting Monday I will share with you various photos I've taken over the years of both Lownsdale and Chapman Squares. I need to see the parks as they were. I need to see people enjoying all sorts of activities in two of my favorite downtown places.

Monday morning on the way to work, November 14, 2011. I waited on the corner across the street from Lownsdale and Chapman Squares to the north and Terry Schrunk Plaza across the street, east of where I stood. The three parks occupied headlines because someone or someones in Occupy Portland decided to put up tents and take away these glorious outdoor spaces in the heart of downtown Portland, to take them away from more than 99% of Portland's citizens. The woman walks east on SW Madison; the other two are heading west. It is the intersection of SW 4th and SW Madison. The trees of Chapman Square are in the background.

In another photo of the same intersection which I took that morning, across the street you see Chapman Square glowing in the street lights and in the giant temporary lights brought in Saturday night by authorities. The golden leaves on the ground are beautiful but are an allusion. Nothing is as it was.

The day before I took the two photos, after midnight and during Sunday, police and protesters managed to make the Occupy Portland exit from the parks relatively peaceful. I sat up all night Saturday watching events unfold on TV--the mayor had announced that the parks would be officially closed at midnight. Hours passed with tension building and waning. Finally I couldn't stay awake in the recliner in front of the television. But I did wake up now and then to see fewer and fewer people and police on the streets. Then I went grocery shopping with Lamont and came back home to put it all away and fall asleep some more in the recliner. By the time I woke up for good, both parks were cleared and lots and lots of trash and garbage was being tossed into huge city dump trucks. Each park was enclosed in extra-tall cyclone fence segments. The damage done to Terry Schrunk Plaza, a federal park, was minimal compared to the two city parks. Nevertheless, it is also fenced.

Now all citizens have learned the expected costs to restore Chapman and Lownsdale Parks. Here is an article about it from the November 30, 2011, Oregonian:

Headline: Occupy Portland: Costs to fix parks now more than $85,000, city says

Restoring Chapman and Lownsdale squares after the 38-day encampment of Occupy Portland will cost more than $85,000, with much of that going toward repairs in the bathrooms at the northern and southern ends of the squares.

Portland Parks & Recreation also estimated that it spent an additional $45,000 for labor and materials during the political demonstration that began Oct. 6 and ended with a police sweep Nov. 13. At its height, the encampment sheltered and fed about 500 people living in tents.

"City professional staff in ecology, turf, and structural engineering assessed the damages and needs for repairs," a city statement said. Also on the survey were arborists, plumbing contractors, electricians, risk management employees and other experts.

"Workers did not encounter any evidence of obvious soil contamination," the statement said. The impacts on the squares' trees will not be known until the spring or later.

The item of greatest cost is repair of the Lownsdale Square restroom – removal or replacement of three destroyed toilets, one pedastal sink, plumbing in the walls, wall-mounted braces and floor attachments. The city estimates that task alone will cost about $28,000.

A yet-to-be-determined cost is a possible sewer repair in the Chapman Square restroom.

The Regional Arts & Culture Council is still assessing the damage to the public art and war memorial and has not put in a cost estimate yet.

The bureau now will work on a timeline for repairs. The squares have been fenced since Occupy's eviction and will stay that way for now. Once the parks are reopened, grass areas will remain fenced until the turf has recovered.

The bureau says it is eager for volunteers to help. A planned leaf-raking last week had to be postponed due to heavy rain, but the bureau had more than 60 people signed up – about a third of them former campers – to help.

The nonprofit Portland Parks Foundation has set up the Restore Our Historic Squares Fund to help defray costs.

Umpqua Bank has contributed $25,000, and nearly 100 private donors have given $8,000.

Here's the city's itemized list:

Repaint restroom interiors, exterior trim at Chapman and Lownsdale: $2,200

Steam clean surfaces - restroom interiors, benches, poles: $3,000

Replace two park benches, repair seven benches: $16,500

Replace five chain stands, one chain section: $4,000

Power wash paths: $1,600

Soda blast exteriors of bathrooms to remove graffiti: $1,100

Rake turf to remove leaves and debris: $600

Install erosion control for turf: $1,000

Winter turf care: fill low areas, hydro mulch, lime, fertilize, seed, enzymes: $8,100

Spring turf care: fine grade, slice seed, top-dress: $3,800

Prune shrub beds to correct damage, replace damaged plants, fertilize, mulch: $4,000

Inspect, monitor trees: to be determined

Place soil to cover exposed tree roots: $750

Chapman restroom, clean sewer, inspect, repair as needed: $600

Chapman restroom, repair sewer as needed: to be determined, potentially up to $7,000

Chapman restroom, tile and grout repair: $700

Chapman restroom, reinstall door, jamb and frame: $2,500

Both restrooms, refurbish octagonal windows, includes frames, reglaze: $2,300

Lownsdale restroom: remove or replace three destroyed toilets, one pedestal sink, repair plumbing in walls, wall-mounted braces, floor attachments: $28,000

Lownsdale restroom, repair door lock: $100

Lownsdale restroom, tile and grout repairs: $1,800

Temporary fencing: $3,200

-- Anne Saker

A view of the same intersection five days after the occupiers took over the parks, taken on October 11.

And here it is again, in a photo that I took on November 3.

To answer my own question, I believe it will be the citizens who pay the price. Whether or not the various occupy events around the country make an economic and/or cultural difference remains to be seen. After all, change takes time.

#9, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the eastbound & the westbound ramps and/or the intersections of the ramps with the surface streets

2011-12-02T04:00:00.000-08:00

I took these photos on Thursday, December 1, about 7:30 a.m.

A close view of the finished sidewalk around the edge of the circle. This sidewalk is a massive improvement over what used to be there. I imagine its being there will encourage people to walk on that side of southbound MLK. The trees next to the sidewalk were planted early this week--the holes were dug last Wednesday, a day of high wind and rain. No one worked on Thanksgiving Day, plus I noticed that the trees were still lying on their sides, just like they'd been left on Wednesday. The street that goes out of sight beneath the westbound ramp of the Hawthorne Bridge is SE MLK. If you look closely, you can see the Big Pink rising in the distance at the left side of the photo.

Another edge of the circle where you can see three of the built-into-the-curb drains, the rock placed between the plantings strip and the curb. That angled strip of gray is the rock-filled run-off from the drain you can see in Wednesday, 11/30/2011's post, the third of three photos. In this photo the cars and the truck with Milky Way written on it are stopped at the light at SE Grand Avenue and SE Madison. The traffic goes one way north on SE Grand.

And here we have the completed sidewalk across from the circle. The crosswalk is completely new, the handicapped ramps, the truncated domes matts, and the stripes on the street. The Hawthorne Bridge with the arrow pointing left takes drivers around the circle and onto the westbound ramp--that's where the white car is headed. The white tractor is headed south on SE MLK. By the time the streetcar is operational next September 21, the traffic signal will be functional so that people who exit the streetcar on the far side of SE MLK will be able to cross safely. The streetcar stop is just out of sight to the right edge of the photo.

Now, the posts about this transformation are finished. Until something else major happens, we'll say good-bye to this subject which totally intrigued me throughout.

#8, CDP Theme Day, Action Shot(s) related to the work on the circle at the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge ramps

2011-12-01T04:00:00.001-08:00

It's Theme Day at lots and lots of City Daily Photo Blogs. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants who have posted an Action Shot for your enjoyment and/or edification.

A - Angle of the raised dump truck bed.
C - Circle being reworked for to the fall, 2012 arrival of the Portland Streetcar Eastside Loop.
T -Tamp Tightly like the man with the shovel in the top photo.
I - Interest I have taken in these goings on.
O - One of these days this series of posts will be complete.
N - Not a moment too soon, I'm sure some frequent visitors will testify.

S - Smoothing accomplished by that wheeled contraption in the bottom photo.
H - Hot asphalt.
O - One more sidewalk to finish; take a close look at the bottom photo.
T - Tell me what you think of my ACTION SHOT, please and thank you!

The person closest to the back of the dump truck operated some sort of latch which opens some sort of chute and allows the hot asphalt to stream out onto the street, in a narrow, elongated hump-like shape. Looks to me like the next man is tamping it down with a shovel, tight as he can get it against the new curb on the new sidewalk on the inside of the circle.

Next thing I know, the first-laid asphalt has been rolled over by that wheeled contraption the man is riding and driving. See how smooth it looks up against the curb? You can sort of see the slight dip for the truncated domes matt at the handicap section of the sidewalk, too. Now the wheeled contraption is flattening the asphalt up against the newly formed curb across the street. And asphalt is being dropped out of the dump truck to complete the entire surrounding of that point of curb. There is still no concreted sidewalk completed there, though. Up on the eastbound Hawthorne Bridge ramp you can see two men working with a traffic diversion sign of some sort, so you know that work surely continues at or close to the intersection of SE Hawthorne and SE Grand.

#7, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the eastbound & the westbound ramps and/or the intersections of the ramps with the surface streets

2011-11-30T04:00:00.000-08:00

I look outside on November 17.

At first I didn't see anything other than lots and lots of black cylinders, tossed everywhere on the green grass in the circle.

Then I saw these three men, working at gathering what turned out to be black pots. It makes sense to plant as much as possible on a slope, in addition to the trees which had been planted days before. Hopefully the roots will soon grab hold of the freshly placed dirt and remove the chance that it will erode during Portland's wet winter. You can see the gray-colored path the men made, walking back and forth from their white trailer parked on SE MLK to the bottom of the slope. It says Valley Growers on the side of the trailer.

They or some other nurserymen returned at some other point and planted even more on the slope which goes up to the westbound bridge ramp, on the right of the photo where the dirt is bare. Notice the puddle beside the pile of rocks near the bottom edge of the fall foliage? There is a pretty-good-size pipe resting on the rocks. Your view of it is blocked by the man stacking black pots together, but you can see it in the photo above this one. I am assuming that is the drain for at least one of the several small-box-culvert-looking drain devices built at intervals into the curb--you can see one at the bottom right corner. I believe that bale of hay helps slow down the flow of water which enters through oval-shaped hole in the curb.

#6, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the eastbound & the westbound ramps and/or the intersections of the ramps with the surface streets

2011-11-29T04:00:00.000-08:00

On such a sunny day, working outside with a task one could accomplish must have been a rewarding activity.

I took this photo later in the day from when I took the photo on Monday's post, a little over four hours later. A crew poured the rest of the sidewalk on the inner edge of the circle. The white truck is pulled to the curb on SE MLK, which is a one-way street, southbound. The bridge ramp above it is the eastbound exit ramp of the Hawthorne Bridge. The Ross Island Sand & Gravel truck is pulled to a stop on the circle. The man on his knees is creating a recess for the installation of the yellow vinyl section of truncated domes, that rectangle that looks sort of like permanent, wide-spaced, opaque, yellow bubble wrap which you see along the edges of subway stops and in the handicapped ramps from sidewalks down to street level. Truncated domes, which meet ADA requirements, serve as a detectable, tactile warning surface for the visually impaired. I myself like to stand on them at corners while I wait for the light to change, unless there is a visually impaired person there, too. My feet enjoy the massage. You can see what looks like two pieces of yellow, one on each side of him as he scrapes and smooths. I for one am glad to see that the sidewalk is as high off the surface of the circle as it is--I doubt that rain will stand on that sidewalk, ever.

The truncated domes matt has been installed, near the end of the plank the man is standing on near the bottom center of the photo. Now these men are continuing to finish the sidewalk's surface. The man on the left is using a pad attached to the extended-length handle. The other two men are on their knees, smoothing by hand.

In this photo you see more finishing work in progress. The man walking on the plank is crossing back to the street because he has finished using the extended-length handle and pad on the concrete. And you can see the slightly different colored rectangle to the left of where steps, there in the gray concrete. That is the truncated dome matt. The planks that cross from one side of the sidewalk to the other were moved to the right a few feet, and the work continued.

#5, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the eastbound & the westbound ramps and/or the intersections of the ramps with the surface streets

2011-11-28T04:00:00.000-08:00

I took Saturday and Sunday off, chilled and painted with acrylics on canvas board and such. I'm back now.

On November 10, the view from SE MLK, looking east. I was so taken with the BUMP sign that I failed to notice the area to its right, ready to become the rest of a new section of sidewalk. You see, previously along the edge of the circle, no sidewalk existed, just a narrow paved path with a handicapped ramp to street level, but no crosswalk or signal for the handicapped to use in crossing the circle, however. You can see the ramp and the no crosswalk clearly here.

This photo illustrates what I had said here about the circle reminding me of a tilted bowl. See how much higher the circle looks where the pavement disappears into the leaves on the tree? And see the traffic through the guardrail? That traffic is heading north on SE Grand Avenue. The traffic signal with the One Way sign at the right edge of the photo is the second photo in this post.

#4, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the eastbound & the westbound ramps and/or the intersections of the ramps with the surface streets

2011-11-25T04:00:00.000-08:00

First, I have to share this exciting comment which appeared on Wednesday's post: This is part of the Streetcar Eastside Loop project. The circles (here and at the Morrison Bridge ramps) are being rebuilt to serve as stormwater treatment facilities for street runoff. In addition, at Hawthorne/Madison, and at Belmont/Morrison, there will be a sidewalk added on the west side of Grand Avenue, to make access to and between streetcar stops and bus stops easier. This includes restricting some of the free-flowing on- and off-ramps onto Grand Ave. New signals are also being added so walkers can cross M.L.King Blvd. easier. The one at Morrison is now working. Find out more at an open house Dec. 1 at the Arch. Heritage Center, 701 SE Grand from 5:00 to 7:30.

Now. We're back to the series of photos which I am sharing about the changes in the intersection at the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge, either as part of the curve between the eastbound and westbound ramps at SE Grand or as the circle of earth between them, which is also bordered on the west by what is now SE MLK.

There's a whole lot going on in this photo. I love it. So, these two morning commuters on SE Madison are heading west towards the Hawthorne Bridge proper. Once they cross SE Grand Avenue, running left to right on the photo, they will soon go over the Willamette River and be in downtown Portland. Between them you see dug-up pavement, some sort of heavy equipment which surely moves and/or digs, the orange-and-white traffic bollards, and the workers' port-a-potty. Notice the white plastic on the pavement, almost hidden by the bicyclist? It is covering concrete-filled forms which now extend south from this westbound ramp to the eastbound ramp, creating a curb which prevents vehicles from driving hell-bent-for-leather around the curve, coming east and going west in a loop. You can see one of those vehicles, a white SUV, here in Monday’s photo. Now in order to make that loop, drivers will actually make two left turns. The curve has been obliterated, redesigned as part of the Streetcar Eastside Loop project. One more really neat thing. See the bit of turquoise and white, just about in the low center of the photo, in the opening between the trees? That is the roof of a TriMet bus, the #6. It has just come off one-way, southbound SE MLK, and will either stop at the bus stop there beside the Hawthorne Bridge, or it will just continue around the loop and head up onto the westbound ramp and take its passengers over the bridge into downtown. You can see it's route on Monday’s photo, too. It tightly curves closest to the snowy evergreen shrubs. Those shrubs are now removed. Knowing that the roof of the bus is just about even with the roadway gives you an idea of the difference in elevation between the two parallel streets, SE MLK and SE Grand.

Quite a bit going on in this photo, too. The TriMet bus is stopped at the traffic signal, heading east off the bridge ramp onto SE Hawthorne Blvd., after it crosses SE Grand, the street going left to right across the bottom of the photo. The last white car on the right in the stopped traffic is at the spot where vehicles used to be able to curve left to make the loop back west. Now you can see black plastic covering the forms-and-concrete curb that has been installed to prevent traffic from flowing that way. And you can see the rest of the white plastic covering the southmost end of that new curb. I have to tell you, that I couldn't figure out what would come next because there has never been any pedestrian traffic allowed on that west side of SE Grand. Curious over here.

Happy Thanksgiving from Portland, Oregon

2011-11-24T07:23:00.001-08:00

I count my blessings, past and current. I count them every day. I thank the Lord for them every day.

I am thankful to live in Portland, Oregon, where I am with my two sons, where Mama and I thoroughly enjoyed the years between June, 2006, and January, 2011.

While I don't have actual photographs of all of the special people for whom I am thankful, I do have some, so I'm sharing them with you today, Thanksgiving Day 2011.

Mama and Duncan, Kailey and Ginger and Leland, Lamont--Christmas, 2008

My brother Howard, my sister-in-law Vanessa, my older son Lamont, my younger son Leland, his sweetheart Kailey, my friend-as-sister Kay, my friend-as-brother Milton, me, and my friend-as-daughter Casey--August, 2011.

Photos from our trip back home, October, 2009.

Lucy, our sweetheart-of-a-friend. Kay, Mama, Milton, and my beloved Aunt Baker who joined Mama and lots more loved ones in Heaven on April 17, 2011. Aunt Baker had given me a ride to meet Kay and Milton on I-20, eastbound, so that we could be on our way to Talladega for the fall NASCAR race. She and Mama rode on back to Aunt Baker's house where they had a good time together until I got back several days later. Then Mama and I flew back to Portland.

Good friends: Jamae, Libby, and Jean. Fran, Yvonne, and Janet.

Good friends: Barbara, Renee, and Libby. Eve, Rusty, and Peggy. Sorry, y'all, the rest of the photos I took that night are blurry--I was just too tickled to see everyone that I couldn't be still!

#3, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the east-bound ramp and the west-bound ramp

2011-11-23T04:00:00.000-08:00

The CAT dumps dirt from its bucket into the second truck bed of a dual-dump-truck rig. I don't know the official name of the rig. Do you? By the time a few days had passed, the earth-movers had the ground sloped smoothly from the circle down towards SE MLK, the street you see with the crosswalk. The circle reminds me of a tilted bowl, low rim down by MLK. And on the left of this photo you can see the east-bound exit ramp of the Hawthorne Bridge.

#2, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the east-bound ramp and the west-bound ramp

2011-11-22T04:00:00.000-08:00

Here's the same circle from yesterday's photo--no snow because I took the photo on September 14, 2011,standing on SE MLK which is the street where the UPS truck was located in yesterday's photo. I couldn't imagine the purpose of digging up everything. The west-bound approach ramp for the Hawthorne Bridge is just beyond the tree beside the CAT. You can see a bit of the structure between the two green trees on the left of the photo. And those narrow horizontal rectangles to the right of the CAT are guard rails on the ramp. Notice that all of the shrubs from yesterday's photo have been removed.

#1, Hawthorne Bridge, focus on the circle between the east-bound ramp and the west-bound ramp

2011-11-21T04:00:00.000-08:00

No, it's not snowing like this in Portland right now--thank goodness. I needed to set the stage, to give you the big picture, of what this circle used to looked like. I figured I'd really get your attention with this snowy photo, especially after I altered it with the Picnik special effect HDR-ish.

You're looking at a spot between the exit and approach ramps which go east and west at the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge. I took this photo January 27, 2009.

You can't see the east-bound ramp which exits the bridge--it's on the left, just out of the photo. The white SUV on the curve is either turning left off it and heading back west-bound on that circle, or it's going to head for the north-bound street you can see a bit of at the bottom right corner of the photo. The west-bound ramp to the Hawthorne Bridge can also be reached by driving on the lower circle, closest to the trees and shrubs. You curve onto it from southbound SE MLK which is the street where you see the UPS truck through the snowflakes. The west-bound ramp disappears out of sight between the roofs of buildings on each side of itself.

Sunday Bridges: Marquam Bridge over the Willamette River

2011-11-20T15:16:00.001-08:00

Sunday Bridges at San Francisco Bay Daily Photo

June 4, 2008, during the Rose Festival, I took this photo standing on the west side of the Willamette River beneath the Marquam Bridge. The upper deck is I-5 North, the lower deck is I-5 South. The lowest ramp must be for either entering or exiting the bridge from nearby surface streets. Due to its height and the fact that it also curves, I stay away from this bridge when driving, if at all possible. Too scary for me, although I have been south once and north once, talking to myself the entire time about staying on the bridge. You see, I not only have a fear of heights, I have a getting-better-all-the-time fear of bridges.

Lamont's new old Volvo station wagon.

2011-11-19T07:10:00.000-08:00

Lamont came over Sunday to take me to the grocery store and to show the new old Volvo station wagon to me. He told me he parked here in particular because he knew I would want to take a few pictures of the car, so he figured the fall foliage should be in the photos, too.

The car came with that Thule pod and the rack! Wow! How cool! Well, he said that maybe all of the decals made him look more like a soccer mom than ever. Somehow I don't think anyone's going to mistake my son for that, just his car. Ha, ha.

One last photo to share with you. It better shows the actual color of the car. He's now the third owner of this vehicle, which I think is super.

Now for the story of why Lamont has a new old Volvo station wagon. (After the story, see photos of the old old Volvo station wagon.)

For the past few years, Lamont has enjoyed driving a 1989 Volvo station wagon, when he didn't walk to wherever he was going. He bought it from Kailey, Leland's girlfriend. The Saturday night before Halloween, three weeks ago today, he drove along a shadowy, curved road on the way home from a friend's apartment--I think it is a two-lane road, too. In front of him, a Ford Econoline van stopped all of a sudden. He stopped. It started again. He started again, wondering what was going on. The van stopped again; he stopped again. Just as he was about to blow his horn, the van's driver put it into reverse and rammed the front end of his Volvo. Alarmed, he locked the doors and rolled up his windows. Who would get out of the van? Turned out it was a woman who admitted that she was trying to find somewhere and thought she'd driven past it, so she backed up! Ruined his car is what she did. Totaled his car is what she did, $3000 to fix it, which of course didn't make any sense due to its age. She does not want to ever meet me.

That Volvo station wagon had been the car that Lamont drove to take Mama to all sorts of doctor and physical therapy appointments. It was the vehicle we picked up and dropped off my brother at the airport when he came to town to help move me to my new place after she had died, early January this year. In November, 2008, it was the car that took Lamont, Leland, and me to the woods, mushrooming. Earlier that same month it had taken Lamont, Mama, our friend Lucy (visiting from Mississippi), and me on a great tour of the Columbia River Gorge and over to Hood River, Oregon, then south around Mt. Hood and back to Portland. And since then he's driven it out of town several times camping and/or bouldering, having fun with his brother and/or friends. For his 36th birthday I had given Lamont a repair of the passenger window motor and a general tune-up of that car. All of that for naught now--blast that irresponsible woman. Good memories remain, however, and serve to dim the aggravation.

Also dimming the aggravation. The woman's insurance put him in a rental car and paid him $75 less than he needed to get the new old Volvo station wagon. Serendipitously a woman where Lamont works had the car for sale. By the end of the second week of dealing with an insurance company in a different time zone while working 40-hour weeks, Lamont got that money from Farmers and sold his old car to this wonderful repair place just east of where I live, Atomic Auto, for a fair price. He ended up with the new old Volvo station wagon and $25.

The new old Volvo station wagon checked out fine with the Atomic Auto guys (they were the ones who fixed that window, etc.), has half the mileage on it that the old old Volvo station wagon had on it. For all of us, this entire event turned out so much better than we could have ever hoped. Prayers answered.

Now for some photos of the old old Volvo station wagon and our mushrooming trip. If they make you hungry for all of the trip which was quite a lot of fun and very successful, the posts are on November 26, 2008; November 28, 2008; and November 30, 2008. You won't believe the forest and the mushrooms and the ferns and the trees and the guys.

Lamont and Leland arrive at our old apartment--I was waiting out front, excited about our pending adventure.

Lamont and Leland in the old old Volvo station wagon, as we pulled away from the curb.

Lamont and Leland getting ready to hunt chanterelles.

Just before we started the hunt, the guys posed for me.

Once we got back to the old old Volvo station wagon, hours later, the guys posed for me again. Look at our mushrooms!

We got wet, but who cares? I didn't fall down once, thanks to my wonderful sons. And I found the very first golden mushroom, too!

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 7

2011-11-18T04:00:00.000-08:00

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

At first I thought, "Don't know which veterans are riding in this vintage Cadillac." Then, "Oh, yes, I do. Lucky veterans to get to ride in such a beauty!" Then I found this online at the Oregonian about the folks and the vehicle: "Supporters of JOIN, a group created to help homeless veterans, ride in a 1958 Cadillac automobile during the Veteran's Day Parade Friday in the Hollywood District." Cool.

More lucky veterans in this vintage Ford Fairlane. Flickr friend Terry says it is a 1957. That was what I figured, but it's nice to have back up. While I love two-tone vintage vehicles, this one is actually a three-tone vehicle because the roof is a lighter version of the sort of steel blue gray on the lower portion of the side of the car. Very exciting to see for me, someone always head-over-heels where vintage vehicles are concerned.

AMVets Post 66, AMVets Riders Chapter 66, Portland, Oregon, in a vintage Dodge Coronet.

AMVets Post 66, AMVets Riders Chapter 66, Portland, Oregon, in a vintage Studebaker. This is the happiest car I think I've ever seen. It seems to be smiling broadly, proud of being included in the parade.

Here it looks like a little Frenchman to me, complete with a silver mustache.

1st Cavalry Division Association, Columbia Willamette Chapter. Gotta love this Chevrolet Apache pickup truck.

It's a two-tone beaut.

Picture perfect vintage Ford pickup.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 6

2011-11-17T04:00:00.000-08:00

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

Several vehicles had banners or signs that identified their riders.

Military Order of the Purple Heart, Portland, Oregon chapter. I adore that smile.

American Legion members on a trailer. The woman on the right is so lovely to me.

Women Marines Association. Another special smile.

USMC, the United States Marine Corps. This wonderful vintage vehicle, which Flickr friend Terry has identified as a 1940 Deluxe Ford panel truck, is the perfect lead-in to tomorrow's post, the last of the ones which feature veterans on wheels.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 5

2011-11-16T04:00:00.000-08:00

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

Vets on some sort of tracked vehicle. I certainly don't know for sure, but it looks like an Army tank of some sort to me. Does anyone know? I'll bet that little guy in the middle had a great time riding up there. Don't miss the driver. The concentration on his face is impressive.

The sign on this Jeep reads, "25th Infantry Division: Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, New Georgia, Luzon, Japan, Korea, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Bosnia, Haiti, Afghanistan, Iraq."

This Jeep followed the tank. Definitely Army.

Here's the motorcyclist shaking hands with a vet in the Jeep.

One more vintage Army vehicle.

Is this a Jeep, too? Next to the tank, it's my favorite of these Army vehicles. Something about it just appeals to me.

I like the flags on this one.

Definitely some sort of truck. Troop carrier?

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 4

2011-11-15T04:00:00.000-08:00

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

I’m on the TV news, at the parade! Watch the video here! My friend Diane, who is the mother of an active duty serviceman, and I had a great time, waving at everyone and thanking those veterans within earshot. We're right after Art, the reporter, says, "It's an honor everyone says is well-deserved." I put my camera down, she waves and I clap. It's a hoot!

I thoroughly enjoyed the rumble of many motorcycles at the start of the parade.

The only motorcyclist I could identify as a woman. She looks like she's having a blast! And she must ride quite a bit because you can see those patches there beneath her right elbow--the bottom one reads "10,000 Miles." At the top of the that column of patches is one that reads "HOG Mileage Est. 1995." HOG stands for Harley Owners Group. On the back of her jacket is a huge patch that reads "Sunset Chapter Tigard Oregon HOG Harley Owners Group." Way cool.

Obviously veterans are among this group of motorcyclists. Many had decals on their windshields and patches on their jackets in support of their service and other veterans.

How about the coonskin cap? I think from this angle you really get an idea of how it looks stretched over a motorcycle helmet.

Super cool flags. He swerved back and forth for several hundred feet before he reached the intersection that represented the end of the parade route.

Then a group of motorcycles appeared at the end of the parade. I don't know if they're the same people, though. I surmise that they are.

Here's the motorcyclist flashing a thumbs up to parade participants on motorcycles. Neat!

This patriotic motorcycle with a sidecar looks so cool.

A couple of nice smiles on those last two motorcyclists.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 3

2011-11-14T04:00:00.000-08:00

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

Periodically this motorcyclist walked out to a parade participant or vehicle, paused at attention and/or saluted the veterans. Brought a tear to my eye and a catch in my breath every single time he did it. Brought a smile to every single person he saluted. I felt very good to see such respect in action.

He always made sure there was a stoppage in the parade's motion before approaching a vehicle.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 2

2011-11-13T04:00:00.000-08:00

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

This veteran's hat reads Special Forces across the front.

Gotta love his furry passenger.

Veterans Day Parade, 11/11/11, No. 1

2011-11-12T19:23:00.000-08:00

37th Annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade

Look closely and you can see through the windshield, Dr. George Timmons, Grand Marshall of the 37th annual Ross Hollywood Veterans Day Parade. Found this on the Internet about Dr. Timmons: Army veteran Dr. George Timmons, 91, of Portland, will serve as this year’s Grand Marshal. Timmons was originally sent to the Pacific Ocean Theater of WWII as a member of a military band. However, he soon traded his trombone for a rifle and became part of the Army’s 41st Division’s fight with the Japanese on Biak Island off New Guinea’s Papua coast. Following his military service he served as assistant dean of education at Portland State University and led a swing orchestra for several years.

Hard to believe Dr. Timmons is 91 years old! Note the six-shooter door handle on the Cadillac El Dorado. Accentuated on the trunk lid, the car's nickname, El Moo, a la the steer horns mounted on the hood, no doubt.

A night of firsts

2011-11-11T04:00:00.000-08:00

Today is Veterans Day. Support those who served and their families, plus those currently serving. Thank you.

Last night, I went to the Laurelhurst Theater for the first time. I saw Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 classic film, "Rear Window," on the big screen for the first time. I walked home from the movie theater, a total of 10 blocks, for the first time since I was a little girl in Norco, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans.

Back then, the movie theater was a couple of blocks away, and I remember going several Saturdays to watch episodes of a serial. Don't remember which one, but I vividly remember walking down the shell road in the trailer park where we lived, walking toward the street perpendicular to the road between two rows of trailers, walking toward the levee that enclosed the Mississippi River. That levee soared above me, it seemed. I remember once seeing the smokestack of some sort of ship moving slowly by. I was in elementary school, maybe eight years old. I was short which added to my impression of the height of the levee. I remember that the smokestack was blue and white and yellow; there might have been a star on it. And here's why I only saw several episodes--my Daddy's job, building water cooling towers for industrial purposes, took us from place to place all across the country. The longest we lived anywhere was three months, the shortest overnight in Enid, Oklahoma--the supplies to build the cooling tower were not on site, so we were sent back to Borger, Texas, to work on another one there.

I don't have any trouble remembering scenes and the setting and the plot of "Rear Window." It is my favorite film, probably seen it on TV a dozen times. I feel blessed to have been able to see it tonight on the big screen. I never get tired of watching Jimmy Stewart act, seemingly without effort. I never get tired of watching Grace Kelly glow on screen. The characters played by Thelma Ritter, Wendall Corey and Raymond Burr-all so well done. And let's not forget the folks who lived in the other apartments overlooking the courtyard. Intriguing to be sure. No wonder Jimmy Stewart's character couldn't stop watching. He could go no where else, so he found the perfect way to spend time.

The lobby, looking toward the box office.

The theater where I watched "Rear Window." There are narrow, rectangular tables in part of the seating area, on every other row, I think. Until everyone ate their slices of pizza they'd bought in the lobby, I have to admit to sensory confusion--smelling pizza in a movie theater struck me as weird.

And the icing on the cake, this delicious neon all over the marquee.

Music moves.

2011-11-10T04:00:00.000-08:00

Early. Meandering? Hardly. Focused. Ready. Drum. Tambourine. Somewhere. Music!

Red hat, red hat, where you at?

2011-11-09T04:00:00.000-08:00

On her head, on her head, red hat said.

Red sunglasses, red sunglasses,
Who dat reflecting in the door, passing?

Why it's a pretty woman, blonde
And slender, hon.

Backpack on and steppin' out
Ready for the day, there's no doubt.

Street-level matching accessories

2011-11-08T04:00:00.000-08:00

Couldn't resist taking this photo after work last Friday. I got off the bus at the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge for the express purpose of photographing fall foliage. I walked south, then west on the bridge approach to take a few photos. As I traced my path back to the bus stop to catch one home, she popped up, a street-level matching accessory to Nature's paint brush. You see them, don't you? The red jacket, green bag, and rust-colored purse. They match the foliage, fall and otherwise.

I kept walking towards the corner, going the same direction she did, once the light changed. The view to the right. These cars are coming off the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge. More street-level matching accessories.

The view as I stopped for the traffic signal on the corner of SW 1st and Main. All except for the man's cigarette, it's a great photo. I thought about cloning it out at Picnik, but decided to just not take the time. I guess I could stretch and say that the sidewalk sign matches the fall foliage, but it's too wimpy-colored. I like how the green leaves beneath the autumn leaves accentuates the colors. Cool.

#1, Cyclocross at Alpenrose, Sunday, October 2, 2011

2011-11-07T04:00:00.000-08:00

A friend of my sons' rides and carries her bicycle in cyclocross events. Lamont took me to see one on a recent cool, rainy, muddy afternoon. From the moment we turned into the paved road that led to the non-paved parking area, I knew we were at a major event. The place was packed with vehicles of all sorts. Finally we found a spot which Lamont assured me he would remember and walked to stand on a sidewalk in the middle of what must usually be a paved parking area beside the Alpenrose Velodrome. Lamont texted his friends so that we could find them so that we could watch together. I had my rain poncho on, my camera hanging around my neck beneath it. Ready. Set. Go.

We ended up waiting at an opening in the tape that delineated the race path until competitors had passed so that we could get a good view spot. I had a real good time. Here are a few favorite photos.

Here she comes, on the left riding the bike with the pink front fork.

There she goes, around a curve that quickly changes into a straight away on a steep slope.

This shot gives you a pretty good idea of the angle involved in this section of the race.

Lots of riders, men and women slid onto their left sides and then had to get up and walk their bikes on this slope. Other decided just before getting to the slope to hop off and carry their bikes.

She's up and about to walk until she can get on her bike again. I want to find out where that man in the black shirt got his copper-colored cowbell!

However, I do not want to find out where this man in black got his teensy black cowbell. The other man's reminds me of my cowbell-ringing days as an undergraduate at Mississippi State University. Love the sound of thousands of clanking, clanging cowbells on a Saturday afternoon. Love it!

Sunday Bridges: Fremont Bridge over the Willamette River

2011-11-06T12:26:00.000-08:00

Click here to see more Sunday Bridges for November 6, 2011.

The Fremont Bridge as seen from Interstate Avenue, northward bound on the Yellow Line MAX train. I'm looking toward the Northwest Hills. I have cropped and altered it with Picnik's HDR-ish special effect.

Found on the Internet:

The Fremont Bridge is a steel tied arch bridge over the Willamette River located in Portland, Oregon. It carries Interstate 405 and US 30 traffic between downtown and North Portland where it intersects with I-5. It has the longest main span of any bridge in Oregon and is the second longest tied arch bridge in the world (after Caiyuanba Bridge across the Yangtze River, China). The bridge was named for John Charles Frémont, though a nearby street was previously named Fremont Street in honor of the same individual.

The bridge has two decks carrying vehicular traffic, each with four lanes. The upper deck is signed westbound on US 30 and southbound on I-405. The lower deck is signed eastbound on US 30 and northbound on I-405. The upper deck is closed to vehicular traffic annually for the Providence Bridge Pedal, a fundraiser which, in 2011, benefited the Providence (Hospital) Heart and Vascular Institute and the Bicycle Transportation Alliance. (One of these days I'm going to get brave enough to walk the bridges included in this event.)

The Fremont Bridge is 2,154 feet long, with its longest span at 1,255 feet. The clearance below the bridge is 175 feet, while the vertical clearance is 18.3 feet--I assume that means clearance between the two decks. It crosses the Willamette River and surface streets in Portland.

Due to the public's dissatisfaction with the appearance of the Marquam Bridge, the Portland Art Commission was invited to participate in the design process of the Fremont. The improvement in visual quality resulted in a bridge that was nearly six times as expensive as the purposely-economical Marquam Bridge. Designers modeled the bridge after the Port Mann Bridge in Vancouver, British Columbia.

In October of 1971, while still under construction, a crack was found on the west span girder that required a $5.5 million redesign and repair. The main span of the bridge was built in California then assembled at Swan Island, 1.7 miles (2.7 km) downstream. After completion it was floated into place on a barge.

On March 16, 1973 the 6,000 ton steel arch span was lifted 170 ft (52 m) using 32 hydraulic jacks. At the time, it was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the heaviest lift ever completed. The bridge was opened on November 15, 1973 at a final cost of $82 million, most of which was financed by the Federal Highway Administration.

In 1976, an American flag and an Oregon flag were added atop the structure as part of the bicentennial celebration for the United States.[4] The 15 feet (4.6 m) by 25 feet (7.6 m) flags are attached to 50-foot (15 m) tall flagpoles at the crest of the arches.

The Fremont Bridge was also the 26th Peregrine falcon nest site designated in Oregon after the raptor was placed on the U.S. Threatened and Endangered Species list in 1970.

Seen on West Burnside after work Friday, November 4, 2011

2011-11-05T16:29:00.000-07:00

I am waiting for the bus home. I took a side trip to Pioneer Courthouse Square for a few minutes, then rode the MAX down to the Big Pink, got off and walked to the bus stop at SW 6th and West Burnside. Plenty of action all around, vehicles going east and west, pedestrians crossing at intersections. Fun for a person who loves to take photos.

I saw the little dog, remembered by darling miniature dachshund Duncan, put the camera to my eye. Click. Captured the taut leash that represents one aspect of a dachshund on a walk--full tilt boogie. The other aspect, meandering and smelling everything invisible to the human eye. Love those personable little dogs!

#4, Blastolene Brothers--wildness on wheels--at Cars in the Park, Portland Art Museum, September 3, 2011

2011-11-04T04:00:00.000-07:00

A very big hot rod with a powerful engine. Very big.

A very big hot rod with a powerful engine. You can see how tall it is, in comparison to the nearby people.

This photo also gives you an idea just how tall this thing is!

And this one gives you an idea just how long this thing is, even with part of it not in the shot!

A close-up of the brakes on the very big hot rod with the powerful engine.

The view along the side of the very big hot rod with the powerful engine.

The front end of the very big hot rod with the powerful engine. To me, the wheels look like they belong on an 18-wheeler.

One more view of the very big hot rod with the powerful engine. It was something to see, let me tell you!

One more view of the back end of the very big hot rod with the powerful engine.

I really like the streamlined design of the very big hot rod with the powerful engine.

#3, Blastolene Brothers--wildness on wheels--at Cars in the Park, Portland Art Museum, September 3, 2011

2011-11-03T04:00:00.000-07:00

I think this just might be the vehicle that I found on the Blastolene Brothers' Web site, listed as Michael's new 1942 Ranger v-12 airplane engine.

Needle nose, this photo ought to be in the dictionary by the definition of needle nose. And one has to wonder, just how long does it take to make some sort of adjustment to raise the chassis high enough for the vehicle to the correct clearance for travel on the streets? I am assuming that something like that has to happen before anyone ought to even start the engine.

A pair of bucket seats?

Looks to me like those buckets are in a wash tub.

I couldn't figure out why that blue cloth seems attached to the engine. And are those things with the yellow cables a distributors? Anyone? Anyone?

The brakes and the back tires. And what's that big silver shape to the left? For some reason I don't totally understand, I think it's the differential. Y'all who know, please tell me I'm right. Or tell me I'm wrong. Please and thank you.

#2, Blastolene Brothers--wildness on wheels--at Cars in the Park, Portland Art Museum, September 3, 2011

2011-11-02T04:00:00.000-07:00

I found this on the Blastolene Brothers' Web site. I think it is about this vehicle: Rocket II by Michael Leeds. Debut at 2009 Grand National Roaster Show where it won best Engineered. Features blown Hemi, Stainless Kulgul independent Rear end.

Can you tell what this one is? I couldn't, at first, because there was just so much to notice.

I walked up to the front for a look from a different angle. It's a motorcycle!

The seat looks comfortable, but do you put your foot in those recesses that look sort of like ice cream scoops?

This is a hoot!

Wonder what that silver loop is? And the black cloth-covered box? Wonder if it's a parachute? You know, to help it slow down.

Wings on the motorcycle!

Does anyone know which engine this seems to be?

#1, Blastolene Brothers--wildness on wheels--at Cars in the Park, Portland Art Museum, September 3, 2011

2011-11-01T04:00:00.000-07:00

I found this one online, identified as The Decoliner. Randy's Vision: Flash Gordon's Motorhome! This 26' polished aluminum beauty features a flying bridge, complete with driving station and room for 5 passengers on the roof.

Oh, how I wish I could have seen the Blast-o-liner on the move! Not that I'm not happy to have seen this and several other Blastolene Brothers outlandishly wonderful vehicles. I couldn't resist using the Picnik special effect HDR-ish.

Another view of the Blast-o-liner, as I took it, no special effects so that you can see how it really looked.

Stairway to heaven? Yes, it is. If you're someone consumed with the desire to drive a vehicle from on high.

These convex windows fit perfect/y, don't you think? The Picnik special effect here is Orton-ish.

Looks like it ought to have wings to me.

I'm not sure how these two mirrors help with a side view if you're driving from on top of the Blast-o-Liner. Maybe since you're so high up, you've got great sight lines for safe driving. Speaking of sight lines, that's me in the hat reflected in the top mirror!

I know from looking at their Web site and the Works in Progress photos that there was a steering wheel originally on the lower level, where steering wheels usually are located. You can see from this photo that it is not there now, though.

It's just too cute!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T04:00:00.000-07:00

The tree with the sign on it which inspired my altering the photo for Halloween! Picnik is so much fun! The tree is in the backyard at the Zimmerman House Museum in Gresham, Oregon.

Happy birthday to my younger son, Leland!

Part 6, our last fun day together, Sunday, August 28, 2011

2011-10-28T04:00:00.000-07:00

We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves at 3 Doors Down Café, SE 37th and Hawthorne--a family dinner for the seven of us, plus Lamont manned the kitchen as sous chef.

We were all pretty hungry, so I didn't take many photos--we just got down to it.

Fresh fettucini with heirloom tomatoes, sent to our table by Lamont. We shared like the grown ups that we are, enjoying every bite. Lamont got to come out and talk with us for a few minutes. Sweet.

Spaghetti and meatballs. Vanessa, Kay and I ordered this Sunday night special. I can't remember what anyone else ate, and I didn't write it down either. Having too much fun with my own dinner.

Kay and I got this for dessert, the banana cream pie. It is so fabulous, just looking at the photo floods me with fond memories of the taste and texture. One of the things that makes it even better is the consistent cool temperature that it is when served.

Dinner over, I took Howard and Vanessa to their hotel. They had to be at the airport about 5 a.m. Then I dropped off Milton and Kay at my apartment and headed for where the SUV lives. That's what you do with a Zipcar. You take it back where it lives when your reservation is over. Leland and Kailey met me there and brought me home.

Milton, Kay and I called it a night pretty early. We were to be picked up by Lamont the next day for brunch at the Bijou Cafe and then to Union Station so that they could board the train for the long ride home.

What a splendid time everyone had. I can't thank all of them enough for coming up here to visit us, to enjoy Portland and Oregon with us. Blessed, truly blessed. All of us.

Part 5, our last fun day together, Sunday, August 28, 2011

2011-10-27T04:00:00.000-07:00

With the help of both the Garmin and the iPhone, we made our way from Gaston to Portland and our destination, 3 Doors Down Café, SE 37th and Hawthorne. While we waited in the bar for Kailey and Leland to meet us, we noticed a sight I've seen before. I took these through a window. I think they're best friends. What do you think?

Part 4, our last fun day together, Sunday, August 28, 2011

2011-10-26T04:00:00.000-07:00

Elk Cove Winery, Gaston, Oregon turned out to be a very nice vineyard to visit. Once we found it.

We followed the Garmin on what turned out to be a wild goose chase to a dead end. Then we used my iPhone and made it there before they closed! About the wild goose chase, let me say that I've never had so much fun driving forward, then backing up, turning around, all on a hard-packed gray gravel road out in the Oregon countryside, well after we'd left the paved highway.

We'd genuinely enjoyed being together on the entire ride--dust and all--'cause the dust stayed outside the SUV!

Once we were inside the tasting room at Elk Cove, still talking and chuckling about how we finally found the place, one of their employees piped up, "Oh, that happens to people all the time when they use Garmin. The road stops on one side of the ridge and starts again on the other side." We looked at each other and laughed some more. And it was not the wines being tasted that led to the laughter. By the way, Milton's holding Kay's glass--he didn't drink out of two all by himself. Really. And I had sips of two different wine--one doesn't drink and drive, especially with a Zipcar full of family and friends.

Weddings take place at Elk Cove. In fact, one would happen not too long after we left for Portland. Several people worked hither and yon, getting ready. And then two vehicles filled with the wedding party (no bride or groom yet) and folks who looked like wedding guests parked near the SUV.

I enjoyed walking around, taking a few more photos.

Part 3, our last fun day together, Sunday, August 28, 2011

2011-10-25T04:00:00.000-07:00

On the drive to find somewhere to eat lunch, probably in Depoe Bay, Oregon, south of Lincoln City on Highway 101, we came to this scenic outlook. I just had to stop, which was OK with my passengers. Hooray for the view!

A good-looking rig drove through the parking lot.

And a beauty parked facing the ocean. A red 1960s Chevy El Camino. I don't know the year, but I know it's close to whatever year the one was the my dearly departed husband had when we married. Now, 28 years later, I can't remember the year, but I can remember vividly that he taught me to drive a stick shift in it. What a trip that was! Me, uncoordinated to say the least, and a heavy duty clutch he'd decided to install. I did learn, though, and when they came of age, I taught both of our sons to drive a stick shift Honda. Thanks, LeRoy, honey. I love you and miss you, still.

Looks like everyone found a perfect spot for watching.

We stopped at Tidal Raves in Depoe Bay for lunch. Here's part of the view from the parking lot.

And here's part of the view from the restaurant itself.

Fish and "Chips," as it is printed on the Menu at Tidal Raves Seafood Grill consists of mahi mahi in crisp beer batter served with housemade slaw. I don't know why they don't go into detail about the "chips," cause they beat the you-know-what outta that slaw. The fish was flaky and tasty, just right. I enjoyed a glass of sweet ice tea, too. Seems like Milton got a cup of clam chowder and a cup of spinach oyster bisque, an order which sort of shocked our waiter. He understood, though, when Milton said he wanted to taste both of them, so why not. Kay got the spinach oyster bisque, I think. Howard and Vanessa split an oyster po'boy, I think, and maybe some spinach oyster bisque.

Where we were seated, on a raised level above the tables at the windows, provided a splendid view of the ocean while we enjoyed our light lunch. Then we set the GPS for the Elk Cove Winery in Gaston, Oregon.

Part 2, our last fun day together, Sunday, August 28, 2011

2011-10-24T04:00:00.000-07:00

Our second stop, the beach at Lincoln City. We had to wait quite a while for a parking space, but I was bound and determined to get one so that we could all get out of the car, go to the bathroom, and walk on the beach if we were of a mind to do so.

Somebody's about to get a mouthful of tennis ball and sand!

Had some difficulty getting whoaed up, as they say in NASCAR. Where is it? Where IS it? I see it! Now, if I can just get my right back leg out of this sand! Yes! Here I come, tennis ball! Ready! Set! Go! Full tilt boogie. That's how I roll.

Lincoln City doesn't actually do things backwards. These kites flew above the beach through which runs the "World's Shortest River," the D River. It runs a total of 120 feet from Devils Lake to the Pacific Ocean. Twice a year the city hosts a kite festival here which are known as two of the largest kite festivals in the world, so Lincoln City is known as the Kite Capital of the World. I know for a fact that the wind's always been blowing when I've been at this particular part of the Oregon coast. That's the D River you can see there, dissecting the beach. And, of course, this is not a photo during a kite festival, just an amazingly sunny Sunday around noon.

Sand in my shoes! OK with me. I knocked it out, put them back on, and we all got back into the SUV. Each of us enjoyed our short stop at the beach. Then we went looking for somewhere to eat lunch. Come see all about that soon.

Fall Foliage, 2011. I found some! In my old neighborhood!

2011-10-23T04:00:00.000-07:00

After spying a photo on Flickr taken at the intersection of NW 23rd and West Burnside, I knew I had to get over there soon, before the leaves got rained or blown off the trees.

So Friday after work I took the 15 bus and traced my old route home, thinking of Mama and how much I miss her. How much I miss that part of Portland. Not that I don't adore where I am now because I do. I just miss the Alphabet District. These trees lining the sidewalk at a shopping center parking lot go a long way to explaining one of the reasons I miss my old neighborhood. I'm standing on Westover Road looking south towards West Burnside.

I took this from the upstairs balcony at the shopping center.

From 2006, through 2010, these beauties trumpeted the arrival of autumn for Mama and me. We never got tired of seeing them. They're in the parking lot in front of Zupan's. The red car is on SW Vista at its intersection with West Burnside. It was someone else's photo of them that got me on the bus.

You see, the trees where I now live have not changed much, yet. At least I'm hoping for yet because there are a lot of trees in my neighborhood. These trees are very near my apartment. I took these photos last Sunday afternoon as a way to gauge the arrival of what I hope will become glorious color.

Part 1, our last fun day together, Sunday, August 28, 2011

2011-10-22T04:00:00.000-07:00

Our plan for Sunday, to go to the Elk Cove Winery and to go to Lincoln City to see the Pacific Ocean and a bit of the beach. Our final stop back in Portland--3 Doors Down Cafe for dinner. I had looked up addresses on the Internet and gave them to Milton to put into his Garmin. Once we had everyone loaded in the Zipcar, we decided to head for Lincoln City first so that we wouldn't be at the winery early in the morning.

That ride to Lincoln City took me along the same route that Mama and I followed many times to Spirit Mountain Casino where we had fun playing the penny machines. I had not been that way since she died in January, and I am so glad that I had family and friends with me as memories flooded in continually.

One of the things that Mama and I did was to drive through the grounds of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum and Wings & Waves Waterpark in McMinnville, Oregon. First thing that caught my eye, the 747 on top of the waterpark. Yes, on top of the waterpark which is inside the building which houses 10 waterslides, a wave pool and a children's museum which teaches all about the power of water. You can see some of the waterslides coming out of the plane!

Second thing that caught my eye, this shuttle used by the museum to transport folks between buildings and vehicles, I'm guessing. Cool design!

And the last thing that caught my eye, something I will go inside and see one day, is the Spruce Goose, the largest plane ever built. I pulled to a stop in front of the building and took this photo through the front passenger window. With the help of Picnik, you can see it pretty well through the glass wall, all four engines on the wing to the right and just one of them on the wing to the left. The plane's wingspan is 319 feet, 11 inches. See the white dot there toward the left at the bottom of the photo, right at the second open window? That is a man's ball cap! Yep, a full grown man! He's facing the window, looking down at one of several display panels which surely tell the story of this gigantic airplane. And be sure to notice the tail, right up there close to the American flag. The plane's height is 79 feet 4 inches, which I assume is from the tip of the tail down because I also found this statistic, fuselage height 30 feet.

Here's what I found out about it on their Web site: Built entirely of wood due to wartime restrictions on metals, this massive airplane stands as a symbol of American industry during World War II. Learn more about the history, first flight, and legacy of this mammoth plane. The largest airplane ever constructed, and flown only one time, the Spruce Goose represents one of man’s greatest attempts to conquer the skies. It was born out of a need to move troops and material across the Atlantic Ocean, where in 1942, German submarines were sinking hundreds of Allied ships. Henry Kaiser, steel magnate and shipbuilder, conceived the idea of a massive flying transport and turned to Howard Hughes to design and build it. Hughes took on the task, made even more challenging by the government’s restrictions on materials critical to the war effort, such as steel and aluminum. Six times larger than any aircraft of its time, the Spruce Goose, also known as the Flying Boat, is made entirely of wood. Originally designated HK-1 for the first aircraft built by Hughes-Kaiser, the giant was re-designated H-4 when Henry Kaiser withdrew from the project in 1944. Nevertheless, the press insisted on calling it the “Spruce Goose” despite the fact that the plane is made almost entirely of birch. The winged giant made only one flight on November 2, 1947. The unannounced decision to fly was made by Hughes during a taxi test. With Hughes at the controls, David Grant as co-pilot, and several engineers, crewmen and journalists on board, the Spruce Goose flew just over one mile at an altitude of 70 feet for one minute. The short hop proved to skeptics that the gigantic machine could fly. Perhaps always dreaming of a second flight, Hughes retained a full crew to maintain the mammoth plane in a climate-controlled hangar up until his death in 1976.

Back to Saturday, August 27, and fun with Howard and Vanessa and Milton and Kay

2011-10-21T00:00:00.000-07:00

We drove away from where you saw the Zipcar on the Friday, October 7, post, eventually heading north in downtown to find a parking place closer to the Saturday Market.

Getting around in downtown Portland often requires making the block with a series of left turns. In doing so we stopped at a traffic signal, and I saw the sun on this "diamond" above the doors of the Willamette Building, 534 SW 3rd Avenue, shining in the sun. I grabbed my camera. Click! Nice adornment that calls attention to the diamond dealers in the building.

We parked and walked a few blogs in Old Town towards the Saturday Market where we walked up and down the aisles, browsing. Once we reached the end of the aisles we sat down to listen to the How Long Jug Band. Hooray for live music, folding chairs, canopies, and sunshine.

Just to our left stood a Rogue Nation Rise Up stall. Folks stood in line for a cold drink, wearing their sunglasses in hopes of knocking down the glare. What caught my eye, though, was the woman's purple hair.

To our right, this little dog taking a ride in the bicycle basket caught my eye. Looks like that little girl got a kick out of the dog's ride, too!

Not twenty feet behind the back wheel of that man's bicycle stood this colorful formed beauty, advertising Hamburger Mary’s Bar & Grille. I have never been to this eatery, so I know nothing about their menu. However, I do like this statue a whole lot.

Look who I saw a few feet to Mary's right! My favorite busker, Mr. Statue.

We left soon after I took these photos--I delivered Howard and Vanessa to their hotel. We three drove back to the apartment. Kay wanted to do some laundry since they would be boarding Amtrak for the long ride home on Monday, and we had all-day plans for Sunday. Howard and Vanessa walked over to the Rock Bottom Brewery for supper. We stayed in, did the laundry, ate leftovers, drank sangria, and watched NASCAR while putting all of Milton's video of the trip onto my iMac. Then to bed for a decent night's rest.

Bauman's Farms: Giant Pumpkin Weigh Off, a great big fun time, really.

2011-10-20T00:00:00.000-07:00

The biggest looking pumpkin being manhandled and forklifted towards the scales.

After I took the photo of the pumpkin being dropped from the helicopter which you can see on yesterday's post, I decided to head for the store to check out the baked goods. That's when I got to hear Uncle Pete's accordion, up close and personal and enjoyable. Inside the store I tasted a raspberry pound cake and bought one to take home. Then I fell for a scoop of Tillamook chocolate and vanilla swirl ice cream. I walked to the Zipcar and sat down inside it to enjoy the only ice cream I've had in months and months. Yummy, yummy, yummy. Next I decided to head on back to Portland.

Following the exit arrows, I came upon the site of the other event that had drawn me to Bauman's Farms in the first place--the Giant Pumpkin Weigh Off. There was a parking space waiting right there for me! I walked about 30 feet to stand beside a waist-high fence that separated me from two rows of huge and/or giant pumpkins, two forklifts, and men all over the place who had lots of pumpkin weighing and/or growing in their past. After watching from that spot, I walked around the fence to the edge of the opening in the huge shed to stand about 10 feet from the scales so that I could get some photos from a better angle. To my right, lots of people of all ages sat on a grandstand of sorts, constructed of stacked bales of hay.

In between the weight announcements, I talked with a very nice, tall man who said he carved pumpkins, that he had carved one in the Bronx Botanical Garden in NYC and had displayed a different one he had carved on the Today Show. I Googled just now and found photos and some video of him carving at the Botanical Garden. Turns out that I was visiting with Scott Cully, a repeat Guinness World Record Holder carver of the largest jack-o-lantern. The one at the Botanical Garden weighed 1810.5 pounds! Whoa!

Anyway, here's some of what I witnessed for the next hour and a half. I don't think anyone planned for it to take that long, but a 1272 pound pumpkin, followed by what turned out to be a 1313 pound pumpkin put the scales out of order! Another one had to be brought in with a forklift. Also it was announced that the weights would not be certified until the certified scale was repaired which we were welcome to wait around for because a repair person had been summoned. I decided to leave once all of them had been weighed. I knew I could eventually find out the correct weights on KGW because, after all, their Drew Carney had been there for his early morning Out and About segment, and I figured they wouldn't pass up the chance to report on the outcome.

These photos are in sequence as they were weighed, not by weight.

The 1272 pound pumpkin.

The 1313 pound pumpkin and the lady who grew it. The digital, certified scale would not work--that's why the read-out is zeros.

The 1504.5 pound pumpkin.

The 1371 pound pumpkin.

The 1502 pound pumpkin.

Turns out the biggest looking pumpkin weighed the most! The winner, at 1580.5 pounds, had been grown by Thad Starr. I snapped this shot as the weight was being announced. I think he had just heard it and was about to bust out in a great big smile and I clicked. I heard on TV that he won $9000!

The most unique thing I heard all day--one man standing across from the bin of pumpkins at my side and to my left said to another man standing next to me on my left: "You growing this year?" "Just one. Split. Backyard." "Oh." Now, it took me several seconds and all I could do to not turn and stare at the two of them before I realized that the first man was not seeing someone he hadn't seen in a year and who had grown taller, they were talking about growing giant pumpkins! Sweet.

One more interesting sight, a bunch of pumpkin-knowledgeable men standing on the certified scale as an attempt to reset it took place. The man in the orange shirt is the guy they had called up out of the audience to help figure out what was wrong with it--I think he's on the phone to the cavalry. See the 199 on the digital read-out? The man in the black hat (I love typing that!) had stood on the scale alone at first, excited when it weighed him in at 199, thinking OK, it's fixed! But when all of those men stepped on it to see if it would continue to register added weight, nothing happened. Nothing. That's when a forklift moseyed off with a young man at the controls, to get another scale which it brought back to the shed. Several men guided it to the table. Let the pumpkin-weighing resume!

Here's the news about the BLAST that I had at Bauman's Farm on Oct. 1 when I went for the Giant Pumpkin Weigh Off. I even shot an Apple Cannon!

2011-10-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

I decided to go to Bauman's Farm after seeing their activities highlighted on KGW, Channel 8, with Drew Carney, their Out and About guy, who is highly entertaining in his own right. When I heard about dropping pumpkins from on high and weighing giant pumpkins and zip lines, I thought, "Why not get a Zipcar and "Check-ch-check-check-check-ch-check it out!"--a la The Beastie Boys! So I did, and I'm glad. Scroll to the bottom of this post and learn about just how much time you've got left to go have some fun yourself!

Right after I found what turned out to be a perfect paved spot to park my Zipcar, I walked past the big red barn that houses the Farmers Market and Bakery and the Nursery which is beside it, plant nursery that is. I rounded the corner and spied this welcoming quartet of goofy grins and an even more welcome sign above their heads!

Look what I found around the corner. And I don't mean that wheelbarrow or bin of pumpkins in the distance!

I took this photo from the Barnyard bridge, looking towards the massive parking area (I did park there later on--more about that tomorrow) and the field where later on pumpkins would be dropped from a helicopter as part of a fund raiser for Easter Seals. In the foreground you see folks riding on the Pedal Carts. Love that caterpillar! And I'm sure you noticed the giant pumpkins all lined up in two rows, between the Pedal Carts and the parking area. Can you guess which one ends up weighing the most? I'll show you tomorrow!

The Jumping Pillow! Looks Like fun!

I thought about doing this, but I decided not to since I was driving myself in a Zipcar.

Well, I could have done it safely. Maybe next year.

The Apple Cannon and my results!

I shot the yellow one later, two shots for $1.00.

If you look closely above the left-center of the grin, you can see splat that was the apple that I shot! I took the photo in between my two shots. My second shot hit the ground and bounced towards the Isuzu Trooper.

Cute little ladies man takes in the action of these two balloon artists.

About the pumpkin drop, I kept looking here and there, expecting to see a giant crane in the air, waiting to drop one or more of them somewhere. Couldn't see it anywhere, but then I heard a voice coming from up on the Barnyard Bridge, a little boy saying, "They're gonna drop it!" I looked straight up at him from the barnyard and then remembered that I had just heard a helicopter. I quickly put two and two together and hot-footed it back up onto the bridge. I changed to my zoom lens and got several photos that I like.

First one, the helicopter takes off, loaded with a pumpkin.

Second one, pretty much self-explanatory.

Uncle Pete's Polka music, his 12th year! He played The Chicken Dance, and that lady had some fun doing it! How about that little gray poodle in the violinist's lap?

Lots of other sights, all over the place.

Bauman's Farm & Garden, 12989 Howell Prairie Road, Gervais, Oregon. October hours: Monday thru Friday, 9-6, Saturday and Sunday, 9-5.

Here's the activities map.

All of their activities are covered, except for the pumpkin patch. On their Web site, I counted 26 regularly scheduled weekday activities, in addition to their upcoming special weekend activities:

Saturday, October 22
Face painting/air brushing
Allegro Dance Company, 11 a.m.
Silver Creek, Noon â€“ 3 p.m.
Healing Rhythm Drum Circle, Teepee
Uncle Pete's Polka Music, Store
Wine Tasting & Gourmet Food

Sunday, October 23
Face painting/air brushing
Pumpkin Carver Tim Tate
Pie Eating Contest 2 p.m.
Silver Creek, Noon â€“ 3 p.m.
Healing Rhythm Drum Circle, Teepee
Uncle Pete's Polka Music, Store
Wine Tasting & Gourmet Food

Saturday, October 29
Uncle Pete's Polka Music, Store
Healing Rhythm Drum Circle, Teepee
Wine Tasting & Gourmet Food

Sunday, October 30
Courthouse Dance Academy, 1 pm.
Pie Eating Contest 2 p.m.
Uncle Pete's Polka Music, Store
Healing Rhythm Drum Circle, Teepee
Wine Tasting & Gourmet Food

Weekdays I counted 16 activities. It's pretty much an amazing place. Their Web site is informative, and they're on Facebook, too.

Tomorrow I'll post about the Giant Pumpkin Weight Off!

More MOPAR #6, Cars in the Park, Saturday, August 27, 2011

2011-10-18T00:00:00.000-07:00

1970 Dodge Charger 500

A break from MOPAR and the family and friends in PDX for some photos from Portland's Race for the Cure, participants in support of the cause

2011-10-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I think it's about time I share some photos that I took on Sunday, September 18, alongside Tom McCall Waterfront Park on Naito Parkway. There were all sorts of races, timed, not timed, running, walking, different distances. Huge, huge crowd--more than 35,000 participants.

All sorts of pink everywhere, from head to toe, flying and fluttering sometimes.

More MOPAR #5, Cars in the Park, Saturday, August 27, 2011

2011-10-16T00:00:00.000-07:00

1960 Plymouth Fury Convertible

1960 Dodge Phoenix

1961 Chrysler Crown Imperial

1964 Chrysler Crown Imperial

A break from MOPAR and the family and friends in PDX for some photos from Portland's Race for the Cure, during the event, a few of the survivors

2011-10-15T00:00:00.000-07:00

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I think it's about time I share some photos that I took on Sunday, September 18, alongside Tom McCall Waterfront Park on Naito Parkway. There were all sorts of races, timed, not timed, running, walking, different distances. Huge, huge crowd--more than 35,000 participants.

During the event, survivors ran down their special, set-aside-just-for-them, finish chute, grinning and running. Brought tears to my eyes, more than once, I can tell you. Lots and lots of survivors and those who love and support them.

More MOPAR #4, Cars in the Park, Saturday, August 27, 2011

2011-10-14T00:00:00.001-07:00

1956 DeSoto Firedome Station Wagon

1959 Plymouth Belvedere Convertible

A break from MOPAR and the family and friends in PDX for some photos from Portland's Race for the Cure, at the start

2011-10-13T00:00:00.000-07:00

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I think it's about time I share some photos that I took on Sunday, September 18, alongside Tom McCall Waterfront Park on Naito Parkway. There were all sorts of races, timed, not timed, running, walking, different distances. Huge, huge crowd--more than 35,000 participants.

The starting line, before the start of this particular event. Folks just kept heading for the intersection.

More MOPAR #3, Cars in the Park, Saturday, August 27, 2011

2011-10-12T00:00:00.001-07:00

1946 Chrysler Town & Country Sedan

1948 Chrysler Imperial.

A break from MOPAR and the family and friends in PDX for some photos from Portland's Race for the Cure, before the events

2011-10-11T00:00:00.001-07:00

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I think it's about time I share some photos that I took on Sunday, September 18, alongside Tom McCall Waterfront Park on Naito Parkway. There were all sorts of races, timed, not timed, running, walking, different distances. Huge, huge crowd--more than 35,000 participants.

Before the race, participants and supporters came from all directions.

Come back in the next few days for more Race for the Cure photos.

More MOPAR #2, Cars in the Park, Saturday, August 27, 2011

2011-10-10T00:00:00.000-07:00

1933 Plymouth PD Convertible Coupe

1935 Dodge KC Pickup

From the Internet: Mopar (short for Motor Parts) is the automobile parts and service arm of Chrysler Group LLC. The term was first used by Chrysler in the 1920s and has been in continuous use ever since. Mopar parts are original equipment manufactured parts for Chrysler vehicles. In Canada, these were sold under the Chryco and AutoPar brands until the Mopar brand was phased into that nation's market, starting in the late 1970s.

Mopar has passed into broader usage among car enthusiasts as an unambiguous reference to the Chrysler parent company, as the Chrysler name also refers to a company marque. The term has thus become an inclusive word for any Chrysler-built vehicle—most any Dodge, Chrysler, Plymouth, Imperial, or DeSoto, plus Jeeps and sometimes Eagle vehicles built after Chrysler's 1987 buyout of AMC-Jeep. Thus, for example, a car club for owners of any Chrysler Corporation vehicle might describe itself as a club for Mopar enthusiasts.