UPDATE and workers doing what they do or the results thereof--Labor Day's on the way, y'all.

UPDATE: At the risk of being repetitive--oh, who cares, right? It's exciting that I slept well again, awoke at 5 a.m. but managed to fall back asleep until the alarm went off at 6:30 a.m. I am thankful, y'all. At work today, I found myself becoming exhausted right before 2 p.m. which has not happened on any other day this week. I took a nap in the recliner in the small room with the door that locks and no windows, therefore it it pleasantly dark. I set my phone to go off after 18 minutes. That nap certainly helped. And I am thrilled that tomorrow is Friday, with a three-day weekend between it and next Tuesday when I work from 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. again. Thanks for your continued prayers, love, and concern. Chemo Round Three next week.



This morning when I waited for my second bus of the morning commute beside the garden at City Hall, I noticed these two men working on the backstop of the two seats at the bus shelter. I had wanted to sit down but when the one you see holding the jug of liquid said that it might be a strong smell or that the substance they would be removing from the backstop might smell even stronger, I got up and walked away. When he saw me take the photo, he asked, "Are you taking my picture?" I replied, "Yes, I want to know if it's OK with both of you that I put it on my blog, Portland Oregon Daily Photo? I take lots of photos related to TriMet and always brag about it." Both said it would be fine. About the photo, it's sort of amazing how the jug managed to look like I cut out its shape from the background. I wonder why that happened? Sunshine hit it just at the second that the iPhone 6 Plus camera clicked?



Here they are, Dale on the left and Nate on the right, hard at work removing the somewhat worn out protective coating that keeps folks from being able to graffiti the backstop. Neither one of them figured this would be a routine procedure; I think Dale said it usually takes 30 minutes or so to remove and replace it. Something--maybe being in direct sunlight every single time the sun shines--had caused the substance to break down enough that removing it would prove time consuming. Dale guessed it could take up to two hours. They were certainly pleasant, hard-working young men, doing a great job as TriMet employees.



Here's a photo showing the results of someone's work--these beautiful roses in the City Hall garden.



And one more of the rose bush next to the previous one. So beautiful, although I didn't get a whiff of them. Sometimes when I've stood here, the scent has been perfect.



Parts of the garden are used to grow vegetables which go to organizations feeding the needy in Portland. More good results of workers working. Has someone let these collards grow too large? Just curious since I've never grown any kind of greens.



And here's me in my work cube. I'm so happy to be a worker working again, even at four hours per day!



After I got off the last bus home, I headed straight for the Blue Diamond, thinking that although the nap had helped, I need to eat more than the green grapes, raisins, prunes, Ritz crackers, and bits of cheese with water that I'd nibbled on in my cube. First up, this side salad with raspberry vinaigrette. Exactly what I needed at that moment, prepared perfectly by the workers in the kitchen at the Blue Diamond, my neighborhood bar with fine food, always fine food. Some pretty good lemonade, too. Thanks, y'all!



Finally, I finished a little over half of this steak and baked potato, all of the tomato slices. I put the grilled mushrooms and sweet onions on the baked potato--outta sight good! The rest of it is in the frig for next time! Thanks to the workers at the Blue Diamond!

Hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Labor Day Weekend and Labor Day itself on Monday.

UPDATE and, yes, I'm posting photos of eating out again, at 3 Doors Down Cafe and the Bijou Cafe. One must have achievable goals when going through chemotherapy. Mine include dining out where I know the food is perfect, along with the service. Just like I always have at the Blue Diamond, too.

UPDATE: Slept a bit better, for longer periods of time in between waking up with some peripheral neuropathy humming through my lower legs. I'm thankful for any periods of sleep during these nights. So far today, the anti-nausea meds continue to work, hallelujah! I don't feel very well overall, like I've got the flu, achy here and there. However, no nausea is such a gift that I can deal with the aches and the humming. Oh, there has been some success in the area of "plumbing difficulties," too, for which I am grateful.



3 Doors Down Cafe, the third place that Mama and I ate out in Portland, back on our first visit in the summer of 2004. I took this photo on July 19, 2015, a little over eleven years since that first meal. Included on the menu as Pearl Bakery Bread with white bean spread, you see here the long-time-neighborhood-favorite-restaurant's popular lead-off dining delight.



Sunday's a great day to dine at 3 Doors Down Cafe because of the Happy Hour selection. I love these mini meatballs with marinara and mozzarella. A perfect consistency to the house-made meatballs combined with the taste of the equally house-made marinara, and that fresh mozzarella--gosh, I really do love this dish! And that Pearl Bakery Bread makes for the best way to finish off the marinara, for real.



My other small plate, an appetizer that I also love, anything that involves duck confit. Here you see bruschetta of duck confit, honey-herbed whipped bellwether jersey cow ricotta cheese, arugula, grilled black plums. Totally mesmerizing with every bite. I well remember my first ever duck confit. I walked back to the kitchen and announced to one and all, "Now I know why ducks have legs!" Sounds mercenary, sorry. It's the truth. (At that time both of my sons cooked at 3 Doors Down Cafe, so I got away with walking to the open kitchen and saying hello and laying on the praise!)



The table's set at the Bijou Cafe, downtown Portland, Oregon. The second place where Mama and I ate out on our first trip to Portland--the first place, hardly memorable so as not to be named here. Bijou Cafe, outta sight wonderful ever since, mine and Mama's favorite breakfast/brunch place throughout the years.



My Bijou Cafe breakfast on that spectacular day, Thursday, March 15, 2012, when I went to the NCAA March Madness games, an entire day of college basketball. This omelette, salad, and pancake held me for hours and hours. I knew that they would, from years of experience.




Chicken, black bean nachos. Perfect. They prepare the black beans at The Blue Diamond PDX, y'all. They are so good! As are the rest of the ingredients on this smooth-tasting treat. I never eat all of them at one sitting. They warm up very well in the toaster over inside a foil pouch that I make. Yummy out the wazoo!



The only place I've ever had a French dip is The Blue Diamond PDX. Why mess with a good thing?

Before too long, I'll feel well enough to dine out again. I've got some great places to choose from, including Killer Burger which you saw on Wednesday's post.

UPDATE, with a video - Mind the sign, said in the mode of the London Underground ever-present-voice as the doors close, "Mind the gap." Meaning, watch out for the gap. You don't want to trip and fall!

UPDATE:



I thoroughly enjoyed making this video because I was outside on a beautiful early morning in my beloved Portland! My ride arrived quickly, and we were on our way!

All's well with the blood work, so I'll have Round Two Chemo tomorrow. I'm pretty tired today, and it's getting hotter by the hour with a predicted high of 99 today, so I'm thankful for my window unit even more than usual. I woke up around 3 a.m. and couldn't go back to sleep for over 30 minutes, then I got up for good at 5:50 a.m. to get ready for the trip to the lab. I am going to take a nap in a few minutes.

I am so blessed to have made such great friends here in Portland. One took me to the lab this morning, around 11 a.m. one took me to the bank and then to eat some chicken strips and fries with a Coca-Cola at Burgerville. I have left over chicken to take with me tomorrow--there's microwave at Kaiser Oncology, and I believe that those will taste pretty good!



Sometimes I need good advice, especially if I happen to be going the wrong way in life. Here's a great reminder of what to do, clear as a bell on a sign west of my building on NE Flanders--STOP. That's right. I will then think about what I'm doing and hopefully come up with a new, more effective plan of action. After all, that's a big part of life, analyzing and revising.



By the way, here's what the sign warns drivers about. I wonder if anyone's ever missed it and ruined their tires? Maybe someone at the Blue Diamond knows. Maybe I can remember to ask some time or other. I need to STOP and set this question in my memory, now.

October 28, 2007 - little did I know that I'd live within walking distance of this intersection by the end of January, 2011

I cannot even remember why I was at this intersection on that particular day. I had to have been in a car, stopped at the traffic signal to get this perspective which I am really enjoying. Nowadays, Monday through Friday if I've been to work and am going straight home afterwards, I walk across NE 20th Avenue at this intersection with NE Sandy Blvd. which is the wide street on the left side of the photo. My apartment building is nearby.

The Blue Diamond PDX is in this building, right behind the Halo Salon. It's sign is just visible through the tree trunks on the left, mostly between the second and third tree trunks. On days when I'm exhausted, I walk on the sidewalk to the right because a doorway to my building is closer if I take that edge of the triangle. On days when I've still got plenty of energy, I walk on the sidewalk to the left. If I'm going to the Blue Diamond before I go home, either sidewalk works--the front door is on the left beneath the sign, the back door through the kitchen is on the right. I am blessed to live in this neighborhood. The Blue Diamond is one of the reasons I say that. By the way, when I took this photo, Bev and Steve didn't own it, but Janessa worked there. Small world, for real.

Lost my mind for a little while this AM, and I didn't even realize that it had gone, well, I realized the first time in a few minutes, but not the second time till I uploaded these photos

I sat on a bench watching people, waiting until time to meet my friend Janessa this morning at the Hollywood Farmers Market. I rode there on the 12 bus. People watching led to photo taking. I had no idea until after I had taken quite a few photos that I didn't have the camera set properly. Therefore this photo that I took to you show you color-coordinated parents and their children is somewhat of a bust because you can't really see the parent in blue with one of his/her children wearing blue, the significant other in red, the other child in red. You can sort of see the man in blue shirt and shoes holding the hand of his son in DayGlo chartreuse shirt and shoes--they're the ones that caused me to notice the others, how they dressed and all. Best laid plans, and all that, for me anyway.



I realized it in time to get this photo a little girl on her scooter--do you call that thing a scooter? She's pushing the crosswalk button. If it's not time, at this particular location the automated voice hollers, "Wait!" and when it's time to cross, a sort of machine-gun-sound starts up. She had been talking animatedly to the woman, so I suspect that's her mom.



The last photos, which I had no idea that I took, well, this is one of three almost identical ones--they're evidence of the second time I lost my mind this AM. I don't know the lady in the black shoes; she's wearing a top my little Mama would've loved. The person holding the Thrive tote bag with the purple straps is my friend Janessa. I loaned it to her so that she could carry some of her purchases in it home to her apartment. She had filled up her backpack. Kaiser Permanente gave me the Thrive bag when I went to their seminar, Thrive with Cancer. They also gave me the pedometer I've been wearing ever since. I've only managed to erase the count twice since May 19, both times when I leaned into the bar at the Blue Diamond, which is where Janessa works. I'm going to ask her to remind me not to lean in like that 'cause both times it happened after work which meant my whole day's worth of steps went up in thin air before I could record it in my One Line A Day, A Five-Year Memory Book. I sort of remembered the count both times, having checked at some point while I sat there talking and laughing and listening to great live music.

All of what I bought is washed and ready to cook Sunday. I'm looking forward to every single bite!

My neighborhood, it's all in the direction that you look.

Yesterday on one of my walks in the sunshine, I took a photo looking each direction, while I stood at the corner of NE 22nd Avenue and NE Flanders Street. This one looks north towards NE Sandy Blvd. where NE Glisan Street intersects it a few feet west of where NE 22nd intersects with NE Glisan--it's one of many unique multi-street intersections in Portland. The tall hedge corners the southwesten border of the front yard at Albertina Kerr--the steps I go up and down on my walks are to the right of that red sign in the distance. Those great wooden benches where I rest are up those steps.



Looking south on NE 22nd Avenue. The streets in my neighborhood, known as Kerns, are wide enough for two-way traffic and parking on each side. 



Looking east on NE Flanders Street. I am blessed to live in a neighborhood with sidewalks in such great shape and so level, too! And how about all of these trees! Soon I'll be walking this way, making it the whole two blocks down to NE 24th Avenue and back. Eventually I'll make the loop which will total six blocks! I return to work on Tuesday, May 26, so my goal is to increase my stamina incrementally, and making the loop will certainly help.



Looking west on NE Flanders Street. That's my building to the right. When I leave for work each morning, I go out the side door of the building which is down this sidewalk a little ways. I walk down to the intersection with NE 20th Avenue--where you can see blue and white way down the sidewalk. I turn right, push the walk signal button and wait to cross NE Sandy Blvd. so that I can turn right after I've crossed the street and walk about 15 feet to the bus shelter. Oh, I forgot to point out that when I go this way, I walk right by the back door of The Blue Diamond PDX, my neighborhood bar--the best one in Portland as far as I'm concerned! Since surgery, I've been going to the front door of the Blue Diamond on NE Sandy, though, because it's a longer walk by a couple of hundred feet--I need each of those steps, not only now when I'm recovering but always!

Sunny Saturday! Been to a lecture and walked around taking photos. About to go out again into the sunshine, just as soon as I get this posted!

Walking from The Circuit Bouldering gym just of NE Sandy at NE 18th, on my way home today at 12:46 p.m. I had stopped for a few minutes to visit with Lamont and Leland who were in there bouldering. Lucky for me, they had a few minutes to stop climbing and visit with their little ol' Mom! Lucky for me also to get this photo of the two buses that I ride home from work--the 12 and the 19. That's my usual stop that the 19 is at--it's named NE Sandy and NE Flanders. The 12 is at the traffic signal at NE Sandy and NE 20th. The multi-browns brick building is the triangular one that houses Halo Salon, on the tip, and right behind it, The Blue Diamond PDX, my practically-perfect-in-every-way neighborhood bar. Depending on whim or weather, I can walk either direction at the tip of that triangle to get to my building--there's a side door if I go right, and there's a front door on the street parallel with NE 20th. Often I go to the front door so that I can get in a few more steps.

Can't stop sharing these photos of my snowy neighborhood, even on Valentine's Day!

It's just that this particular bus shelter means so very much to my life. And to see it blurred by the falling snow sort of tickles me. Not that I want it to snow like this again any time soon. I took this photo on Saturday, February 8 at 10:37 a.m. The colorful building in the background houses the Oregon Children's Theatre. An abandoned car, in the drive-through, going against the actual direction for service, at the Community Consolidated Credit Union. Club 21, also within walking distance of my building, but across NE Sandy Blvd., so I have never been there. I see no reason to cross a busy street on foot to have a good time. Here's my favorite neighborhood spot to walk to for a good time--The Blue Diamond PDX--which is on the same side of NE Sandy as my building. I took this photo on Thursday, February 6 at 5:24 p.m. Lots more snow fell during the night and on Friday and Saturday. Finally, here's the Blue Diamond on Monday morning at 9:14 a.m. Look at all of that snow beside the sidewalk. I took this photo standing to the east of my bus shelter while I waited for the first bus of the morning commute. I had waited to go to work so that the ice on my sidewalks--which had fallen from late Saturday afternoon, through the night, and into Sunday--had a chance to melt a bit. We were above 32 degrees and had a light rain falling. By the way, I have no idea when NE Sandy was plowed because I didn't go outside at all on Sunday, and the last time I saw it on Saturday at 3:02 p.m., it looked like this. It's obvious that no plowing had happened--the street is practically the same level as the sidewalk, only tamped down some by the vehicles that managed to get from Point A to Point B, wherever that may have been. You can't see it in the photo, but take my word for it. The freezing rain and/or sleet had started to fall, so I walked on home.

Happy Valentine's Day, y'all!

We interrupt Disneyland for Portland's winter weather--a few photos I took on the way home by mass transit

At the first of the week, the weather man predicted bitter cold, windy days and the rather certain possibility of a snowy Saturday. I predicted to myself snow earlier, if we got enough moisture in the air. Then, Wednesday night the weather man predicted one to two inches in Portland, starting between 10 a.m. and noon, greater accumulation in the surrounding upper elevations. That's what happened on Thursday. Now we're predicted to get snow through the night, maybe less than we had during the day; more snow on Friday, maybe as much as we got on Thursday, starting around 4 p.m. Snow to ice on Saturday, ice to rain on Sunday, then showers and rain through next Thursday.

 

Conditions on the way home. Thank goodness I had left the office at 3:45 p.m. I didn't check the conditions then, though. I took this screen shot at 4:54 p.m. while riding the second of the two buses I take to and from work.

 

Layered for success on the homebound commute! I had my camera in the green and black bag, but I knew I wouldn't get to take many photos--too windy, too cold, too wet.
 

Snow-filled bowls of a Benson Bubbler on SW 6th.
 

I wonder what happened when he came upon some deeper snow? I saw him while waiting for the bus downtown. I heard a young woman who got on the bus later on remark, "I thought I was a tough bike rider. I wanted to do it. Whew." She'd just put her bike on the rack in front of the bus.
 

It was a long wait downtown for the second bus. By the time it came, I had lots more snow on me, here and there. The wind blew it everywhere.
 

Finally, the bus! So packed that the driver couldn't let anyone on at subsequent stops unless someone got off first. I took this shaky photo looking towards the back of the bus--thanks to the young man who gave me his seat!
   

I took this one looking toward the front of the bus. The narrow rectangle of light on the left is part of the front door out of the bus. The driver was fantastic--personable, calm and skilled--I've ridden with him before. I gave him a hug when I got off at my stop, very happy to be so close to home!



My neighborhood bar, The Blue Diamond PDX, closed for the day earlier as the snow kept coming down--I read the announcement on Facebook. Right about when I took this photo, it looked like it had stopped snowing. Nope, just a momentary thing. I just walked to the front door of the building so I could take a look outside where the street lights are--it's still snowing six hours after I left work, about 10 hours after it started on Thursday morning. Once I got inside my apartment, just a few minutes after I took this photo, I peeled off all the layers, put them on hangers on the shower curtain rod to dry with the fan blowing. Then I cooked myself some breakfast for supper, enjoyed every bite, washed the dishes, and settled down to work on the blog. Tomorrow I'll do it all over again.