Successful Eugene Weekend

Like most of the rest of the country, we are starting to see some serious signs of spring.  We are getting more prolonged sun (three days in fact) as opposed to just a few minutes of sun breaks every now and then.  The flowers and trees are blooming.  And people are wearing summer beach clothes despite the fact that it is only 70 degrees.  Everyone at work on Friday was talking a good game about weekend plans and I am happy to say that this weekend I/we delivered.

Saturday was a pretty big day in Eugene as it was the one that every Ducks fan has been dreaming of since the end of the Fiesta Bowl.  The Spring Game.  Part of the stadium area is under construction (some emergency exit paths) and because of this Autzen could only hold a little over 37,000 yesterday.  The game was free but you did need to bring three cans of food for FOOD for Lane County (AMAZING organization by the way you should check them out).  I went with my boss, her husband, and two year old kiddo.  We got a seat in the shade and all was well in the world.  People seemed so content  just to be back in Autzen.  It was the first time that the town saw what the Ducks looked like without Chip Kelly.  Offense played defense and it was a good time.  Plus there was lots of talk about the uniforms as...you know...it is Oregon football after all.

After the game Cliff and I went to Red Robin and redeemed our free rewards card burger!  That's right.  We eat there enough to get a free burger every six-eight months.  On the way home I heard something coming from our car.  I had to pull over on the side of the road as it sounded/felt bad.  Sure enough we had an extremely flat tire.  Really flat.  We have my Dad to thank for saving our sanity as we used an amazing gift he gave us- a portable air compressor that works by plugging into your cigarette lighter.  We pumped that puppy back up and drove to the Honda dealership where they patched it and got us on our way in less than 30 minutes.  Cliff and I were impressed how we dealt with the whole situation like adults.  No stress.  Clear thoughts.  Boom.  On the road.  Thanks Dad!

End of successful day number one.

This morning we got up at 6:00am to head down to cheer on runners for the Eugene Marathon/Half Marathon.  After everything that happened in Boston two weeks ago, I knew that I needed to be there to show my support and general faith in humanity.  We knew a few people running in the race so we came up with a solid plan to cheer folks on at the 2 mile mark then move to Hayward Field to see the finishes.   I think it is safe to say that I cried for most of the 3 hours that we cheered folks on.  I can't help it.  I love this type of thing.  

Go Alex!

Over the last two weeks I have really struggled with what happened in Boston.  My heart and mind still can't wrap around it.  I lived there for four incredibly formative years.  I walked those streets on a daily basis.  Marathon Monday is magical.  I love that city and I love the people who live there.   Marathon Monday was our favorite day and so many of my warm fuzzy memories of college and the city are attached to this celebratory event.  Since I couldn't be there to grieve with friends and colleagues, I wanted to show my support by going to my new city's marathon and being apart of the love and the joy.

2006 photo of the Boston Marathon by Steve Lewis

I love that the race ended at Hayward Field.  It is holy ground for track and field folks so I can imagine how amazing it would feel to run on the track, in front of cheering fans in the the stands, and to finish the race.  We got there early so we got cowbells (awesome).  We sat there and made lots of noise for hours.  Even Cliff!  It felt so good.  So many people were sporting their Boston Strong apparel (the shirts were created by Emerson students by the way).  Those who ran the Boston Marathon wore their bibs on their backs.  Runners sported black ribbons.  People crossed the finish line with their hands to their hearts.  The whole event was about the power of the running community.  People held hands as the finished together.  We saw several little kids triumphantly crossing the finish line.  Several ran the entire distance holding American flags.  One man pushed his disabled son in a cart the whole way.   In those final stretched we saw hard working faces, lamaze breathing, tears, and lots of smiles.  My heart was full of love and happiness.

I did learn one thing today and that is that I maybe shouldn't sit that close to a finish line ever again.  We saw quite a bit of puking, heaving, and general first aid issues.  For anyone who knows me, this is a big deal as I am phobic about you know what.  So let me be clear when I say I'm proud of how I kept my act together today as we saw quite a bit of vomit.  After the first runner got sick it became several folks jobs to run up to people after the race and give them a plastic bag to puke into.  I would die if that had to be my volunteer job.  They even had a special kind of bag for it.  See.  Oh my gosh.  The stress.

It was so sad to see people's legs/feet giving out on them so close to the end.  We saw a girl go down about 150 yards from the finish line.  A fellow runner stopped, not worried about her own time so close to the end) and help to carry/walk the injured gal across the line.  We saw quite a few people collapse upon crossing the line.  There were lots of quickly moving wheelchairs.  So emotional!  I could never be an EMT, nurse, or doctor.  I thank those solid stomached people for doing lots of good in the world.

Afterwards, Cliff and I went climbing.  Since it was sunny out no one was in the gym.  We had the whole wall to ourselves and Cliff took full advantage as he probably went up about 15 times.  I worked my first 5.8 (with lots of rests) but I'm considering it a victory.  

Rudy also got to play outside this weekend.  He isn't a big fan of the rain or mud so the winters involve lots of fetch in the house.  Rudy loves days like today when he gets to run around as we chuck tennis balls all over the yard.  (He is so stinknin' cute that he deserves two photos.)

I should also mention that because I have been outside for the past two days my allergies are ridiculous.  I'm pretty heavily medicated everyday in order for my body to combat all of the allergens that live in the world; so it is a sad, sad day when even decongestants, antihistamines, and nasal steroids can't save me from the itchy, red, inflamed, wheezy, grossness that is my life.  My face has in fact been red, blotchy, and kinda swollen all day.  It wasn't a surprise when I face planted into the couch earlier today to take an epic nap.  In fact, a Benadryl is calling me now...

End of successful day number two. 

Tulips!

This past weekend I traveled to Woodburn, Oregon with some coworkers to visit the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival.  Kathy and Jill have talked about the event for the last few years and raved about how beautiful the fields are.  Jill bought bulbs there and I've been jealous about how nice they look next t their house.  Knowing this I was excited when my coworker Erin invited me and another coworker (Jana) to make the trip.  Well, let me just say that it was beautiful.  There are 40 acres of tulips of all shapes, sizes, and colors.  The fields were full of people taking photos (some people even brought professional photographers with them to snap official family photos).  I confess as I took a lot of photos too.  It was hard not to.  We pretty much got our photo taken next to every tractor, wooden face cut out, flower, and kids activity possible. 

In addition to the photos we also got to see a man carving wooden shoes, race little rubber duckies down a shoot, browse craft vendors, and eat corn dogs.  My meal consisted of a hot chocolate and a corn dog with sweet and spicy mustard.  I'm classy like that.

On the way out I placed my order for 25 spring variety bulbs.  We will pick up our goodies in the fall.  I'm excited to see what sizes, types, and colors we get.  Yay!

 Oh, and there were steam powered tractors....

On the way out we saw a group of adult males lined up along a field watching some guys plow a row.  The tractors were really humming and steam was coming out like crazy.  One really excited guy even yelled "there it is!" as the dirt was being dug into.  Can't get much better than that.  Thank you Woodburn, OR.

Biggest Loser 5K/15K RunWalk

A few weeks ago a team from my work participated in the Biggest Loser 5K/15K RunWalk.  Apparently Biggest Loser has a group of former contestants that travel all around the country and promote these races.  It was a pretty big deal as it brought 1,700 plus their families to our facility to participate in a variety of wellness activities.  My work sponsored a team of about 25 of us.  We showed up decked out in out "Live It!" staff shirts to run, jog, or walk the 3.1 miles. 

Well, let me just say that it has been a really long time since I have ran.  I mean, a really long time.  Cliff and I ran all the time last year as we were both unemployed and looking for something to keep us from going crazy.  Since starting work, Cliff has been climbing a lot, I have been swimming regularly, and we both have not spent our fitness time running.  In fact, the last time I ran anything more than 3 minutes on the treadmill was back in June for the Moonlight Five.  No worries as I threw myself back into the saddle at the Biggest Loser run.  I had high/low expectations for myself.  I was hoping that I would be at the same level as I was last year based on all of the swimming I've been doing BUT I knew that I probably wouldn't be as I have not run in 10 months. 

Cliff was awesome as he came along to cheer on our group and document with photos.  He also signed up to belay at the climbing wall after the race to get folks interested in coming back to do it again.  There were so many people there.  According to the bibs there were over 1,700 walkers/runners.  The best part was the amount of first time runners/walkers.  Dan and Jackie from Biggest Loser 5 (the mother son duo) were there to start the race and cheer people on.  They asked the crowd at the starting line to raise their hands if this was their first race.  SO MANY HANDS WENT UP.  I saw people pushing walkers.  I even saw one amazing man walking and pulling his oxygen tank.  It was such an amazing thing to experience as all of us participating in the race cheering for others as we saw them on the route.  Tears.  I was emotional the whole time. 

I was pretty pleased as I ran the entire time.  I guess according to my time you could say that I jogged the entire time.  I don't care as I was able to keep it up for 3.1 miles after not running for so long.  I guess the swimming is paying off as my cardiovascular ability has improved.  But sadly my legs and body had forgotten what to do.  I was soooooo sore the next two days.  My body was confused as to what had happened.  I pretty much had to fall into every chair I tried to sit in.  Pretty hilarious but well worth it as look how victorious I was....

After the race I happily ate my little cutie, banana, and cheese bagel.  We listed to Dan from the Biggest Loser sing some country music and then we got our photo with him.  Really nice guy and he is doing great at keeping the weight off.  Five people from my work placed in their age group (nice!) and one of those folks won the whole race.  Way to represent.

 

It was a really great event and I am so happy that we got to be apart of it.  Everyone was so happy and excited.  Biggest Loser sold all sorts of mech including some pretty inspirational t-shirts.  Once again, tears.  I sadly can't help myself.  I love it when people feel proud.

Cliff and I think we might participate in a few 5Ks every year just to have something to help keep us in better running shape.  I think I am going to do Bark in the Park next month which benefits the local humane society (plus Rudy would get a fun bandana).  My work has a Summer Solstice Dash and Bash 5K coming up on the summer solstice (aka June 21st).  I will be behind the scenes so I won't be able to run but Cliff will do that one again (he placed in his age group last year).  Who knows what we will end up doing.  We are just pretty excited that we are getting out there. 

It's Blooming!

The Christmas amaryllis is blooming!  It is absolutely beautiful.  I want it to stay like this forever.

My First Raw Oyster

As I mentioned in my last entry, Cliff and I have fallen in love with the Eugene Fisherman's Market. Over the last week, Cliff has been dreaming about the six giant oysters that Joe got when we ate there (six giant oysters for $4.50 may I add).  We went back yesterday and feasted on fresh, local seafood for $15 total.  We split a salmon fish and chips with poppy seed coleslaw and two kinds of tarter sauce, a basket of fried clams (I love that I can eat shellfish now!), and six oyster shooters as they were on special for two for a dollar.  Cliff raves about oysters but I had never tried one raw..until yesterday.  Cliff documented the momentous occasion.

You can clearly see my terror....

It wasn't bad!  I was relived when I didn't gag...or throw-up...or die.  Next time I will need to eat one directly out of a shell that I have shucked.

Victory.

Andrea and Joe's Culinary Tour

The week before last Andrea and Joe came to Oregon for a spring break trip.  We spent a day and a half in Portland and then seven days in Eugene.  It was amazing.  We miss them terribly and wish that their trip could haee lasted longer (although it was one day longer due to a blizzard in Colorado).

Andrea and Joe got to explore the area while Cliff and I were at work.  Every night we found something fun to do.  All in all I think we ate for most of the trip.  The photos I took prove it as they all involve food.

So here they are....enjoy the restaurant list and photos from Andrea and Joe's Oregon Culinary Tour/Vacation.

Saturday

1:00pm Hopworks Urban Brewery in Southeast Portland with Brie.  Beers, salads, calzones.  Very cheesy but delicious.

4:00pm: Albina Press on Hawthorne in Southeast Portland.  Macchiatto, mocha, two hot chocolates.  Beautiful coffee/hot chocolate art.

6:00pm: le Bistro Montage under the Morrison Bridge in Southeast Portland with Kathy and Jill.  Rolls, fried catfish, greens with hominy, gumbo, red beans and rice, spicy macaroni and cheese.  Great atmosphere with a very diligent water server and a flair for fun foil animals to hold your leftovers.

Sunday

9:00am: Moonstruck Chocolate Co. in Northwest Portland.  Dark hot chocolate, Mayan hot chocolate with cinnamon and almond, and spicy dark hot chocolate.  Really wonderful sipping hot chocolates and the cutest Easter truffles (they were shaped like little cows, lambs, pigs, horses, dogs, cats, etc.).

9:15am:  Portland Bagel Company in Northwest Portland.  Jalapeno and cheese bagels, marionberry french toast bagels, and pesto bagels with cream cheese.  Less of a bagel and more of a buttery round roll with a hole in the middle.  Between the hot chocolates and the bagels, it was a really good fancy feeling but cheap breakfast.

2:30pm: Kettle Corn at the Daffodil Drive Festival at the Long Tom Grange in Junction City.  A bag of warm kettle corn from a bag the size of a toddler.

5:30pm: Falling Sky Brewing in Eugene. St. Pattie's Day beer, corned beef with rye bread pudding, chickpea field burger with salad, and sadly I forgot what Andrea and Joe got.  I got some sort of weird allergic reaction where my face got really red and felt instantly sunburned.  Didn't matter as it was still delicious.

7:00pm: Root beer floats at home.

8:00pm: Cocktails.

Monday

5:30pm: Hop Valley Brewing Company in Springfield. Happy hour cask beers, nachos, sliders with fried, fish tacos, and onion rings.  Greasy and delicious.

7:30pm: Root beer floats at home.

8:00pm: County ham and biscuits at home.

8:30pm: Cocktails at home.

Tuesday

4:30pm:  La Perla Pizzeria Napolentana in downtown Eugene.  Ceasar salad, Margherita pizza,
Quattro Stagioni pizza with atrichokes, muschrooms and basil, and La Perla pizza with tomatoes, house made mozzarella, and Calabrese salami. Too expense as it did not live up to the hype (in our opinions).

5:45pm:  Vanilla Jill's Frozen Yogurt in the Eugene Whitaker neighborhood. Sundae's made with hard frozen yogurt (made with Nancy's local yogurt).  We met one of the owners, Vanilla Jill's sister Chocolate Megan. Sampled pretty much off of the flavors including those that were paleo or vegan.  The vegan cinnamon waffles and fresh whipped cream helped to make Vanilla Jill's a happy Groupon experience.  To me the hard yogurt beats their soft serve yogurt.



Wednesday

5:00pm: Snack at home of nachos and cheese.

7:30pm: Cliff's chana dal with rice at home.

Thursday

5:30pn: Euphoria Chocolate Company in Eugene.  Truffles.  Delicious, delicious truffles.

6:30pm: Fisherman's Market in downtown Eugene. Raw oysters, fish tacos, fish and chips, and fried oysters.  My new favorite place to eat as they have great seafood at a great price. 

7:15pm: Sweet Life Patisserie in downtown Eugene.  Chocolate mouse cake and an oatmeal stout with malted cream cupcake.   Caused us to be so full of rich food that it hurt.

9:00pm: Mead from Maryland at home.

Friday

1:30pm: Falling Sky Brewing in downtown Eugene.  Beer, burgers, chickpea field burger, grilled ham and cheese, potato leak soup, and pulled pork french fries.

3:00pm: Domaine Meriwether Sparkling Wines in Veneta.  Sampled two sparking and three traditional wines.  The owner's dog, Captain, kept us entertained during our tasting by forcing us to play fetch.

4:00pm: Silvan Ridge Winery in Eugene.  Sampled five wines.  Still our favorite winery in the area and to prove it we bought two bottles of their muscat (aka peachie-o's wine).

5:00pm: Sweet Cheeky Winery in Eugene. Sampled five wines and feasted on fruit and cheese that we bought at Market of Choice.  Their view is beautiful so we bought a bottle of riesling to sit outside by a fire and eat fancy blue cheese and aged cheddar with bread and grapes.  We even made a new friend who encouraged us to start line dancing at the Whiskey River Bar in Springfield. 

9:15pm: Prince Pucklers Gourmet Ice Cream in Eugene. Euphoria Chocolate Sundaes.  Best ice cream in town and a happening spot at 9:00pm on a chilly night.

Saturday

8:30am: Dutch babies at home.

2:00pm: Dizzy Dean's Donuts in West Eugene.  One dozen donuts.  Best crullers I have ever had. Once again another great Groupon purchase.

2:45pm: Holy Cow in South Eugene. Kombucha, beer, felafel, lentils and rice, an Indian platter, and fish tacos. Their food makes my stomach and heart happy.

3:45pm: Allan Bros. Coffee in South Eugene.  Americano, mocha, hot chocolate, and more Dizzy Dean's donuts. Joe's favorite hot chocolate of the trip.

8:00pm: Salad, potato pancakes, and homemade sauerkraut at home. Our crock is amazing.

9:00pm: Warmed, spiced mead from Maryland at home.  Absolutely delightful. 


Sunday

8:00am: The rest of the Dizzy Dean's donuts.


I was a wonderful nine days.

Our Last Month In Photos & Blurbs

Over the last month or so I've had a few days where I've said "I should totally put this on the blog". Then I came to my senses and realized that each of my "awesome!" moments probably wasn't worth an entire blog post.  Which brings me to our last month in photos and short blurbs.

Cliff and I actually celebrated Valentine's Day this year (I know...I was shocked too).  We saw that Falling Sky had a prefixed meal for two.  Oooh...how fancy. We ate warm ceasar salad, cassoulet, beeramisu, and three pints.  It was amazing. Falling Sky has really taken it up a notch since the fall. Their Facebook feed tempts me constantly, so much so that we ate this there on Tuesday.

A new bakery recently opened up in Springfield and its name is Chaos Kolaches.  They sell kolaches (ko-la-chees)  which are traditional Chech pastries filled with either savory or sweet things. Apparently they are really big in Texas and in the midwest. Well, they are new to Springfield and they are new to me.  We checked them out one day for lunch. We split a bbq brisket sandwich on the kolache bread.  For dessert, Cliff has one filled with apricots and I had one with Oregon cherries and cream cheese. Yum. 

Last week I spent three days in Seaside, Oregon for the Oregon Festival and Events Association Conference.  It was fantastic.  The sessions were incredibly informative, I got to reunite with my Albany Parks and Rec. co-workers from my 2007 internship, and I got to spend time on the coast in a pretty nice hotel.  There were also fireworks.  I was introduced to two new bands: Lincoln's Beard and Screaming Orphans.  They were some of the folks who performed at the event hoping to get booked at upcoming festivals.  Lincoln's Beard sounds like a mix of Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews, and Mumford and Sons (to me at least).  Screaming Orphans are this amazing mix of ABBA, The Bangles, Indigos Girls, and Celtic Women (as they are Irish).  Intrigued by both?  We you should be.  Check 'em out.

I snuck down to Cannon Beach during a break to finally see the big rock in the water (Haystack Rock).  I gasped when I caught a glimpse of it from Highway 101 and then I actually cried as I walked down the beach towards it.  I know this probably makes me sound like a nut but it is honestly the one of the most beautiful and peaceful places.  I need to go back.  I. Need. To. Go. Back.

On the way home from the conference I stopped at a logging restaurant, museum, and memorial called Camp 18.  It was a fantastic log cabin.  Warm and glowey.  I ate cabbage soup with a grilled ham and cheese.  There were dancing bears carved out of log and a nice fire.

I took home an enormous cinnamon roll from Camp 18 for Cliff and I to gorge ourselves on.  It lasted less than 12 hours. 

Oh and I finally learned how to use Instagram so that is why the last few photos are better than my normal ones.

This past weekend I took the plunge and bought my own climbing gear **shocked face**.  We have been talking about climbing outside for the last few months and in order for this to happen I needed my own stuff (and we need a rope, carabiners, etc. but that will come eventually).  On Sunday, I donned my new goods as we climbed with a friend at the Columns at Skinner Butte. This was only my second time climbing outside and it went so much better than the first.  The first time was back in August and I cried and panicked about 15 feet off the ground.  Embarrassing.  But not on Sunday!  I climbed up to the top twice.  On a more difficult route.  TWICE!  And I went a different way each time.  Look at those amazing shots of my being awesome.

I should also mention that Cliff is a pretty darn good climber.  He climbed all morning long.  Up and down.  All in his Lyddane 2012 Vacation t-shirt.  See the number 4?

Oh and bulbs of many kinds are coming up....

Did I forget to mention that Andrea and Joe are in Oregon in t-minus 18 hours.