Anna and I just had SUCH a wonderful weekend in Oregon. We spent the first night with Auntie Lala and loved our time with her, then Friday we did a couple things in Portland including getting to see the gorgeous nursary where Lala works, getting to meet Greg's lovely girlfriend for coffee and my first-ever stop into an Athropologie store...whooo boy...that place was DANGEROUS! I managed to (mostly) refrain (ok, I bought t-shirt for me and a very cute hat for Anna) but man, I seriously wanted one of everything. Just, wow. I'm glad we don't have one here.
Then we headed for the coast, singing songs from the Sound of Music at the top of our lungs most of the way there. We headed straight for the beach. Anna was so excited by the sand that she literally opened the door of the car and started playing in the sand right there in the parking lot....poor little city-kid! Friday night was just a nice dinner at home with Rod and Julie; they are such graceous hosts, and their house and yard is so amazing: full of music and creativity and incredible treasures from their travels.
Saturday was warm and sunny (for the first time in months, they said) and we packed some food and wine in a cooler, loaded up with books and blankets and after a FABULOUS breakfast at the Grateful Bread, spent the entire day at the beach in the dunes. We hunted for treasures and built a sandcastle, and Greg and his daughter Annika joined us. Annika is exactly one year older than Anna, and while they played together as babies and toddlers, they have only seen each other once in the past 3.5 years. Nonetheless, they clicked immediately and spent hours playing the sand and building a very complicated fortress for a centipede they found named Millie. Meanwhile Greg, Rod and Julie and I lounged on the blankets, discussing wine (Greg and Rod are both very knowledgeable), relationships, art, books and politics...it was so, so relaxing and wonderful to spend time with these dear old friends. After 5 hours at the beach and sun-burns for Rod and I, we headed to Hawk Creek in Neskowin for dinner. Then, because we weren't ready for the day to end we all headed back up to Rod and Julie's house. On the way we saw our old friend Mark out in his garden, and we stopped and dragged him and Kim up as well; more wine and laughter and music and great conversation. It was just the best, BEST day I've had in a long time. I just wish David had been there with us.
Sometimes I get nostalgic for Oregon; it just feels like HOME to me, more than any other place I've ever lived. And spending time with these people reminds me how much I miss them, and how blessed we are by their presence in our lives. We made such good friends during our time there. Anna and Rod just picked up seamlessly; it always surprises me how, for a child who is usually pretty reserved around even family, she just climbs up into Rod's lap and claims him as her own. They have a very, very special relationship. Sunday morning she even asked him to wrestle; it was very cute. Then, he took her for a ride on his motorcycle, again totally amazing me that she was willing to step outside her comfort zone. She came back with perma-grin and hasn't stopped talking about it since.
Leaving was hard; Anna managed to hold it together until we got into the car and shut the doors, and then she just dissolved into tears....she couldn't even look at them to wave good-bye. We drove down the drive-way and then I pulled over and we just hugged and cried for awhile. It's hard, when you love someone so much, to have to say good-bye.
It would be a hell of a lot easier if they weren't so damn wonderful!
Anna at Cape Kiwanda.
With Haystack Rock in the background...
In the dunes on Friday. Unfortunately, the battery on my camera died after I took about 4 pictures and I didn't have my charger! So all the photos from the rest of the weekend are on Julie's camera. I'll post more when Rod emails them to me.
7 comments:
How great that you had good weather, good friends, a good time and so sad that it was so hard to leave. Perhaps some day you can live there again, when it is for the fun of it and not struggling to survive. Though you did hit that lovely weather, that is so rare. Glad it was that way for you. I loved your narrative, and could "see" everywhere you went--the beach , Cape Kiwanda, Neskowin, etc. I loved visiting you there---loved the Inn. I miss those times.
Glad to have you back! Sounds like if it wasn't for David, you may not have come back! What's a athropologie store????
Anthropologie is a hippie/yuppie clothing store that also has REALLY FRICKIN' COOL housewares. I found a $98 table cloth that I couldn't live without....but I'm going to live without it. :)
Did you get your Migrations sign? Who has it?
WOW..that sounded like a fricking fantabulous trip!! I'm so jealous..I would really love to travel to Oregon one day..that is a state that is high on my list of places I'd like to visit.
Nope, didn't get the Migrations sign. Jeff and Mary booted the most recent owner of Migrations and they took over the space and changed the name. My friend Greg asked their construction supervisor about the sign and was told that it was in storage and that he (the construction manager) would happily give it to me if I wrote to Mary and made sure I could have it. That's where the plan hit the skids because, well, I sort of burned that bridge...I wrote Jeff and Mary a nasty-gram when they screwed over my friend Roberta. After all they did to us when we sold the business, hearing that they did it to her too was the last straw.
I dunno...I may work up the courage to ask them for it because I'd love to give it to Eric; the sign is based on his design of our logo. I thought it would be a cool Father's Day present.
I'll call and ask for it! And drive over to get it. Want me to? Give me her phone number and I'll see if I can get it. I wish like hell I'd kept my Water & Wood sign. So I'd love to get that Migrations sign for you.
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