Uncle Nels and Jim: Extreme jeepin'

Each time we visit Uncle Nels and Aunt Gwen, Uncle Nels can't wait to take Jim out "jeepin'" in the old decrepit jeep. This time, Jim even had a seat belt! Jim keeps laughing...well into the evening. Hang on, and ride along down to the Christmas tree farm below their house overlooking Newberg and enjoy the wind in your hair! And blackberry vines in your face...And bugs in your teeth...There's "nothin' funner!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxI-ULUi0Kk

Home again

"It's a dangerous business going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you'll be swept off to." – Frodo Baggins

There's no place like it. We're back after our adventure, slogging though an impressive 'to do' list. The cats are showing vague interest. Jim is already back at the Y and got a rousing reception from Ken, Heather, Andra, Laura and Erin, complete with a welcome back gift. He took in jam and biscuits so Heather proclaimed that "The Y is back to normal!" The flowers are up in the yard, we planted the seeds and our tomatoes and peppers are waiting in the sunroom. Jim planted cucumbers in the oak barrels so the season is well underway. We've already had the special at Norm's! Norm actually smiled and said he was glad to see Jim, if not us :) This will be the last entry in our Saskatoon to Shire 2011 blog. We hope you enjoyed it; we sure did!

"We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner! I can't think what anybody sees in them." – Bilbo Baggins

• The stars are far brighter
  Than gems without measure
  The moon is far whiter
  Than silver in treasure:
  The fire is more shining
  On hearth in the glooming,
  Than gold won by mining,
  So why go a-roaming?

Ouch, gas!

Tonight we noticed there is a beautiful full moon over the prairie. The one we saw before this was up at Mt. Ada on Catalina Island. The one before that was on the black sand beach at Raglan, New Zealand, as the Tasman Sea crashed on the shore. Before that one, we were standing on our back deck in Dunedin, New Zealand (it wasn't raining!) and we could see the Southern Cross over the Otago Harbour. Wow.

Long day from Sand Point, Idaho to Swift Current. By the way, Sand Point, recommended by Karin's brother Nels and our sis-in-law Gwen, is worth a return visit someday when we have the time -- beautiful lakeside and a very quaint town. Wind warnings issued along our route -- so it was a hard drive in our tiny Corolla. But the border crossing was easy, no questions and took under five minutes, and we were okay once we adjusted to the jump fuel prices ($1.34/litre & the exchange rate = $5.40/gal at the border). Hope it's cheaper in Saskatchewan. We crossed through the Crowsnest Pass, and the scenery was magnificent. We paid our respects at the Frank Landslide (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Slide), and stopped a few times to stretch along the way, but otherwise, stayed at it all day and Jim led the way to the jacuzzi at the Super 8. Home tomorrow, how surreal that will be!

Sleepless in Seattle

We just returned from a whirlwind trip via many modes of transportation to Seattle, Karin and Nels’ birthplace. We all went up on Amtrak and over two days, hopped on city buses, taxis, monorail, our feet. It rained one day, the sun shone the next. We hunted down grandparents’ resting places and visited Grandma Melberg’s old house at 5503 16^th Ave NE, a place we went to often as kids in the 1960s. Looks a bit smaller! We saw fish flying at Pike Place Market, and had a memorable evening in the Space Needle restaurant with spectacular views as the city changed into a glittering nighttime skyline. Jim was hugely impressed that the restaurant revolved and with Matt, our lovely waiter, who brought him a Lunar Module dessert, complete with flowing dry ice!

37 in Oregon: Part 2

(Just realized I'm adding photos in wrong order; go to bottom for first!) We celebrated Jim’s birthday dinner at his request with MEAT! He asked for rib apps, then we moved on to the meat course: steak. The baked potato counted as vegetable. He opened gifts, and Rick held the phone so he could talk to Char and Larry while he opened their present. Once all the loot was unwrapped, we settled in for a movie, birthday cake and popcorn.

Up early in the morning (since we hadn’t eaten enough) for Uncle Nels’ famous Eggs Benny before loading into the Birthday Bus. We had a fun time on the road (what a smooth ride!) and stopped in Garabaldi for SIX big crabs. After a refreshing walk on Rockaway Beach at Barview, we had a crab boil and campfire. Bus camping is very civilized and we felt sad for people in tents since it did rain heavily overnight.

Another famous Uncle Nels breakfast of corn tortilla-eggs-sausage rollups in the morning, another walk on the jetty and beach before turning around for home. We had to stop at the Tillamook cheese factory (because there were free samples, of course) and then a quick visit with Jim’s very pregnant cousin Jenna who had been dog-sitting for the weekend. Dogs aboard, we got home and unloaded, had showers and had a very good night’s sleep.

37 in Oregon: Part 1

Jim's birthday began with cake prep last night and Rick blasting Jim this morning with the Beatles Happy Birthday song on the iPad. Jim requested "Eggs, lotsa eggs" at his party-festooned breakfast table. That was followed by a trip to town for "ribs, steak, baked potatoes" for birthday supper barbeque. We'll be well and stuffed with meat! Tomorrow, Jim gets a camping trip in Nels' converted Greyhound (really!) to Rockaway beach on the coast. We'll have a crab boil and campfire. Thanks to all who have sent ecards and bday email wishes! We'll post an update after our trip on The Big Birthday Bus.

Day trip to Columbia River Gorge

Nels and Gwen had Wednesday off so we all drove out to the Gorge. We visited the Bonneville Dam and fish hatchery and were all gobsmacked by the size of the sturgeon. One named Herman was over 10 feet long. They look like dinosaurs. Jim fed the trout. Lots of pretty waterfalls. We stopped for lunch and did some hiking. After a visit to a little museum, Nels had a nap on the lawn in the sun, at least until Jim jumped on him.

Farmer Jim

We're catching up on a couple of updates at a coffeeshop in Newberg since Nels and Gwen have a slooow connection up in the hills. Jim's getting a good dose of farm life, and now even feeds stale toast to the goats and donkey himself. Jenna's leftover baby shower cake was pretty dried out, so Jim carried it to the barn. The Curly and Jasmine particularly liked the pink icing. He draws the line at farm animals on his bed, though, so we have to drag the dogs and cats out of his room.

Heading north again

It was hard to say goodbye to Ben and Julia this morning, but they'll be glad to have their house back! We're looking forward to coming again to explore more of their favourite places in the city. They treated to a fun breakfast at Bette's and presented Jim with an early birthday gift before we piled into the car. We made good time and are overnighting in Grant's Pass. Mt. Shasta was completely snowcovered just like it was when we were going the other way in December. The last photo proves that men on the road talk softly and carry a big spoon.

Visit to the Zs and Wights

Our good friends Todd Zazelenchuk and Helen Wight live in San Mateo with baby Sam. We showed up for supper tonight and had a good catch up with them. Our timing was impeccable; we arrived just as Todd got out of his car with pizza. Fourth-month-old Sam is, of course, adorable and tolerated being passed back and forth. We are again reminded what good friends they are and how we wish they were closer.

San Fran

Having fun, cooking (see the beautiful artichokes we got at the market?), walking, eating! So much to eat in this city! Julia showed us how to use Bart (Bay Area Rapid Transit) trains, so we don't need to use the car much. Rick, Karin and Jim walked to Berkeley campus yesterday (there was a protest of some sort) and on the walk home, stopped to pick up some basil plants. We're rehabilitating the kids' backyard garden. Ben's old high school friend Tony just got back from an extended stay in Thailand, so he came by last night looking very calm and Jesus-like and we all swapped travel stories. Jim wrote a postcard to his YMCA coworkers and one to Jon to drop in the mailbox today. Beautiful sunny day and blue skies so a good day for more gardening.