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Friday, September 22

We're Havin' a Party

"Why can't we get all the people together in the world that we really like and then just stay together?" ~ Snoopy
Before Tualatin's very own redneck got the heck out of Dodge, we had to throw a party. And what better theme for Andy's goodbye party than CAMO?!?! Although civilian clothing was frowned upon, most people did dress the part. (yea, festive friends!) A good time was had by all (especially the G.O.H.), and really who wouldn't with gorgeous weather, the BBQ grillin', beverages flowin' and more food than we knew what to do with!!

Roomies! Steve & Andy. This shindig was at Steve's house and he was the host with the most that night! (Not to mention one half of the decorating committee. One guess who was the other half?)

Dancing machines Meghan & Elisa (my salsa and country dancing buddies!)

Blonde moment: Me & Andy AND MY KICK-BOOTY TANK CAKE!!! (sorry, but I am really proud of that thing!)

This is what happens when it gets late and there are cheesy, plastic army props laying around!! (Check out the awesome decorations above us! We went all out!)

Monday, September 18

Fly Like an Eagle. . .

. . .or a Goose!
"I feel the need. The need. . .for speed."
-Maverick and Goose
After checking Multnomah Falls and Pittock Mansion off the list, Andy's Tour de Oregon continued this weekend with a trip to the Evergreen Aviation Museum to see the Spruce Goose. Here's a helpful hint: if you're going to a flight museum, it's handy to have someone along for the ride that actually knows a thing or two about airplanes & helicopters! Like someone who flew Blackhawks in the Army. . .yeah, they're pretty smart.
"Please make sure your seat backs and tray tables are in their upright and locked position."
Left: Proof Andy visited the Spruce Goose
Right: Me with the best looking guy in McMinnville on the infamous Third Street.
And of course we couldn't go to McMinnville without seeing Linfield!! We ate supper at Geraldi's. Mm-mmm I love my spaghetti and meatballs!!
And did I mention a couple hours later I lost both the heads on my drivers at the driving range. They went farther than the balls!!! (Insert your own joke.)
Next up: Ape Cave & Mt. St. Helen's!

Tuesday, September 5

So Long, Farewell

"In tennis, love is nothing. In life, it's everything."
Sunday was Andre Agassi's last match as a professional - shoot, maybe his last match ever because his back is so totally and completely injured. In his 3 rounds over the course of 4 days at the US Open he received at least 5 shots of either cortisone or anti-inflammatory drugs. Being the "Tennis Nut" I am, I don't remember a time when Andre wasn't playing and he will certainly be missed. I was fortunate enough to have attended his annual fundraiser in Las Vegas in 2003. (For that year), it was the single largest fundraiser in the country. And why shouldn't be when Elton John, Robin Williams, Billy Joel, and Lance Armstrong (among others) show up. Thank you Andre!!! You rock!!!

Andre blowing his final "4 corner" kisses to the crowd after losing on Sunday.

Everybody's Workin' For the Weekend

"Friends are thieves of time" - Anonymous

Labor Day weekend rocked the house because it was filled with friends - both being newbies to The Blog. After being on our duffs all day Saturday (Go Ducks!), Sunday, I showed off Oregon to my Alabama friend Andy. The goal was to climb to the top of Multnomah Falls. (And neither plums nor peppers could stop us!) We didn't exactly make it there, but over 6 miles and an elevation gain of 1500' later we saw plenty of other gorgeous sights. Oh, and I did the entire trip in flip-flops. Since it was totally spontaneous (thus the flip-flops) I had to borrow pictures from the website: waterfallsnorthwest.com

These are the 3 big ones we saw: Weisendanger Falls, Ecola Falls and the last one is Wahkeena Falls which means "most beautiful." And how! This is Andy and I at my birthday party earlier this year:

Sunday night: CHARLA!!! She made a pit stop in L.O. on her way down to becoming a P.A. in Eugene at a dermatology clinic. Here's another archived picture: after she baptized me last summer:

Monday was the Cape Horn Trail adventure with my other New-Kid-On-The-Blog friend, Nancy. We got kind of a late start and traveled to another state and couldn't find the official trailhead and didn't know if this was a loop or out and back and had to call my mom and dad and walked the last 1.7 miles on the "shoulder" of an undivided highway. . .but other than that, it was a great hike!!!

Check out the GORGEOUS views of the Gorge. It looked exactly like this during the Multnomah hike, except we were staring at Washington.


Nancy and I during our pit stop about halfway through. (Really, who knows where we were or how far we had gone at that point?) I do know we were good and sweaty though!!


We started our hike walking next to that field. Yes, that is an elevation gain of over 1000 ft. Granted, we did the thing backwards so maybe it was a little more for us. At least I had boots on this time!


I can't begin to explain how happy I was to see the car! This was one of Portland Monthly's "Lost Hikes" and boy did we do that name justice! Not that we got lost, we just didn't know where we were - yes, there is a big difference. Now it's off to Chez Elisa's for dinner!!!