Weather, snow, weather, and more snow

It is now 17:45 and still snowing at home. Snow has been falling most of the day. Bonnie and Bill ventured to Sandy to grocery shop for Lois, Bonnie's mother. We stopped in Sandy and put on chains to travel down Ten Eyck, well more for traveling back up the hill. After Bills issues yesterday, a bit of caution was due. The chains made the trip up the hill a safe one with all the ice on the road.

Snow, amazing how much snow there was in Sandy. At least eight inches and it continued to fall the whole time we were there. Our concern now is loss of power at Lois's place. With temperatures in the low twenty's the house will cool quickly without the fan in the propane stove circulating the heat.

We can always tell when Old Man Winter has arrived. The robins come to clean the holly tree of its berries. Fun to watch them pick through the tree. Amazing how quick the berries disappear.

Our picnic table on the deck at home has a good eight inches on it. Per the weather reports, there is more snow to come. And then possibly the transition from snow to freezing rain to rain. A time Bonnie and Bill are very concerned about.

Early Christmas Gift Exchange 2008

Last evening Bonnie and Bill were at Dale and Kristinas with Tonya, Noah, and Izabella for an early gift exchange. With weather and all it was decided to swap gifts early.
Dale and Kristina hosted a very nice lamb dinner. Nice to have good amature chefs in the family such as Dale and Kristina. With daughter Tonya being on a gluten free diet, Dale whipped up an almond cake with creme frachie for dessert.
A very nice evening overall. Even the dogs, Emily and Archie got along.
Merry Christmas to All.

Lacey's Six Month Check Up Plus a Little Extra

It’s hard to believe that in April Lacey had a pace maker put in. It was quite an experience for all involved. At the end of May she had her 30 day check up which gave her the OK to go back to her regular activities, which would include a 6 month check up for the rest of her life. This was our first six month (11/21/2008) check up since Lacey was given the thumbs up to go back to being normal. Our appointment was at 9:45 in Corvallis at the Vet School and Dr. Scollan who did the pacemaker surgery was still doing her internship so was Lacey’s Dr for this appointment. Since the 30 day check up only took about 2 hours we were anticipating more of the same, but we were wrong. Dr Scollan gave Lacey the once over, said they needed to do x-rays, ECG plus check the generator and that we should come back at 3:00. While Lacey wasn’t thrilled with the prospect of this visit, there was nothing we could do except make the most of it. We waved goodbye to Lacey, told her to be a good girl and headed out of the exam room.

So there we are with 5 hours and no firm plans. Bonnie bemoaned the fact that we didn’t know we’d be there so long otherwise we could have called up the Co-Motion Factory (that is who manufactured our tandem) in Eugene and then headed up to the reception desk to get a map of Corvallis. When she got back to Bill, he was on the phone with Pete at Co-Motion and we had an appointment to tour their facility.

Bonnie and Bill were quite excited since they had recently purchased a used Co-Motion tandem bike. Pete, the manager of the facility was very gracious with his time, talking about their new models, and then taking time to walk Bonnie and Bill through their facility. How cool to see the process of raw tubing being turned into a gorgeous bicycle built for two. The first step even before cutting the tube pieces is creating a detailed design. From here the tube is cut into various lengths, notches and holes drilled where necessary. Then these pieces are put together in a jig and tack welded, with the next step being the finish weld of each joint. Brazed for steel, welded for aluminum. With all the heat of welding the frames are then locked down and fine tuned for straightness and various dimensions. Next is polishing and frame readying it for the paint room. The paint room is such that six frames can be sprayed at the same time. The room in like what the auto industry uses. Some frames have a simple single coat of paint, while others require multiple sprays with buffing between each coat of paint. Interesting note for shipping. The bikes are shipped broken down. Once received at a retail store, they are assembled for the sales floor. Much less damage when shipped in this fashion. If you ever get a chance to visit the Co-Motion factory it is well worth your time. It is best to call ahead a day or so, so Pete can plan for your tour.
A big thank you to Pete and the Co-Motion crew for their time, and friendly environment for a couple of individuals with many questions of why, what, and how.

Once we left Eugene we headed back to Corvallis as there was still lots of hours until the scheduled pick up time. Since we’ve been to Corvallis previously we already had a lunch and coffee place picked out. The first item on the agenda was FOOD, so we headed downtown to the Great Harvest Bakery. We sampled bread and had a great lunch, then we walked along the river and did some window shopping. If you ever go to Corvallis be sure to stop at “Sibling revelry”….they have a fabulous selection of all kinds of stuff and we were able to purchase a few Christmas gifts, the next store of interest was Grass Roots Books, another wonderful store, we could have spent hours looking around the store.

As the 3:00 hour approached we headed back to the vet school to get Lacey’s test results. The technology used in the pacemaker is absolutely amazing. Dr Scollan told us that Lacey’s x-rays were perfect and the lead and generator had not moved so it wouldn’t be necessary to have an x-ray next time and we would just do it once a year. The lifespan of the battery is expected to be 9 years and Dr Scollan showed us a bar graph indicating what Lacey’s heart rate has been over the last six months. The heart rate has varied between 60 (which is the low that the pacemaker is set at) and 140, with the majority of the heart rating being below 100 bpm. Wouldn’t it be interesting to know what she was doing when her heart rate was up to 140?
As we headed out of town we stopped at our favorite oddball coffee shop, The Internzone and had our latte & white mocha and a piece of Strawberry rhubarb pie that was out of this world.
It was a very good day!

Here Comes da' Judge

I was invited to judge Saluki sweepstakes at a supported entry for the Galveston Bay Saluki Club On November 9, 2008, and my friend Michelle Haag from Salt Lake City was invited to judge the regular classes, and Nell Wilmoth our friend from Conroe, TX invited both of us spend the night at her house before the show. It was a quick weekend trip as I flew out at 6:00 am Saturday, and returned back to Portland at 11:10 pm on Sunday. The flight down was uneventful with a 1.5 hour pit stop in Denver. Nell was there waiting for me when I arrived in Houston and Michelle arrived about 15 minutes later. The car ride back to Nell’s hours was non-stop chatter about everything under the sun and it was lots of fun. Once at Nell’s house we all went out in the yard to visit the Salukis. Nell is one of Rhett’s #1 fans and as such has a household full of Rhett kids, so I felt right at home and one the kids was Gloria who was from Michelle. It was a home away from home for both of us. The rest of the day was spent catching up on anything and everything and Nell’s husband Dennis joined in for a wonderful visit.

Sunday morning we headed off to the dog show. Michelle & I were sequestered in the judges room until it was time. There was an entry of 17 puppies and 3 veterans. The first class walked in the ring and we got down to business. The judging needed to be completed in 50 minutes so there was no time to waste. I have a specific pattern that I use for all of the classes, as I like to watch the Salukis move. Every puppy whether naughty or nice had their moment in the spotlight. The 50 minutes passed and I found that I was running a bit late, but only 10 minutes, so I was pleased that I made it through that many dogs in an hour. The entry of Salukis was excellent and the final result in the puppy sweepstakes was a brother/sister team winning it all. The veterans sweepstakes had three wonderful old dogs. The winner was owned by Caroline Coile who happened to own, Baha, was was the sire of our very first little of Salukis. It was fun to sit and watch the regular classes that Michelle judged as we have similar ideas on what a Saluki should look like but they are not identical ideas. Michelle’s end result was similar to mine with a few variations. It was great to watch all of the dogs entered as I haven’t been to Texas in a few years. On the way back to the airport Michelle & I took Nell out to lunch. It was a great discussion of who did what and why and then justifying why we ending up with the dogs we ended up with. The flight home was LONG but Bill met me at the airport and the girls were waiting at home. There’s nothing like visiting friends, but there is nothing like returning back home.

Bonnie's Commute to Work

Bonnie’s friend Lisel talked her into commuting by bike to work this week. Wednesday Bill prepped Bianca Bike to travel the streets once again as she had been sleeping since April when she last commuted to work. Panniers were readied, chain was lubed and tires were pumped.
The meet time was set for 6:00 am and Bonnie & Lisel would commute to the route start at 92nd & Flavel. The bikes were loaded; Bill waved and gave words of wisdom as “The Girls” headed off on their adventure.
The day was a typical November day, rain, sprinkles and a bit more rain, but a few rain drops wouldn’t stop those Girls from achieving their goal. About four blocks from the car Bonnie realized that she didn’t have her glasses on and as a result the street signs weren’t too easy to read, so Lisel became the eyes of the team and Bonnie the navigator as there were many side streets to travel. The trip went very smoothly despite the rain; there were no incidences and no wrong turns. They arrived in NW Portland about coffee time so decided to stop at Sydney’s, a local favorite, to have a warm drink warding off the chill of the cool Oregon rain.
After work we decided to try a different route home and took the East Bank Esplanade to the Springwater Trail. Bonnie had thought on the morning ride that perhaps Lisel rode faster than she did but with so many turns it was hard. There was no question on the return trip Lisel was FAST like a little gazelle and Bonnie worked hard to keep up the pace. Oaks Bottom was a test of endurance with its flat straight path that went on for MILES…..Lisel lead the way setting the pace. Unfortunately the speedometer wasn’t working but if it had, Bonnie was sure it would have displayed 25 mph or greater.
The afternoon ride had sprinkles and rain and sprinkles again. There were a few rather isolated spots where Bonnie was a bit concerned but as Lisel explained, she had been a parole officer when she got out of college and was giving Bonnie some tips on self defense. Bonnie listened and listened and with each little tip decided it was best if she pedaled faster and faster! They arrived back at the car without mishap, no flats, no need to try out the self defense tips and at the end of the 24 miles it was a satisfying accomplishment. After parting ways Bonnie relayed the details of the trip to Bill, excitement at accomplishing the goal and exhilarated by the exercise…..later that evening as Bonnie’s head started bobbing from exhaustion, she told Bill that she felt like she had been riding hard with someone 20 years younger……to which he replied yes you did as she fell sound asleep.

Canby Ferry Loop

Bonnie and Bill rode the Canby Ferry Loop today. Started out a bit wet but seemed to dry out as we continued our ride. Climbing out of the canyon on Central Point Road we found the low set of gears failing us. When in the granny gear the rear derailer would not settle into any gear. So from here on we rode in the center gear ring. Traffic was pretty quiet so the ride through Canby to the ferry was very nice. We did a photo opportunity at the Swan Island Dahlia Farm. Flowers were a bit beaten down but still had some color, then onward to the ferry. After crossing the ferry we discovered a flat tire likely due to berry thorns on the road side Looking at the ominous hill climbing up from the ferry we decided to walk it. Definitely missing those low gears. Onward to Petes Mountain. Oh, and did I mention the low gears not functioning. Once again missing in action. And remember, do not walk any great distance in bike shoes. It was good to get to go downhill on the bike resting the feet. Once in Oregon City we cheated and rode the elevator. Yes a tandem will fit with a bit of finesse. And then onward to Linn Avenue including a nice walk due to, NO LOW GEARS. Our bike minds us very well while walking.

On our way home stopped at a new coffee shop across from Tonys Fish Market, Ami’s. Was a nice way to relax on the way home. I might say we understand what rode grime is. The bike was beyond dirty. Fenders are a must if we are going to ride this winter.
Lessons learned: 1) Stokers can supply horse power going up hill; 2) Fenders are a must on a wet fall day; 3) Bike fitting is worth every penny!; 4) Bonnie does not like to go downhill fast; 5) Bill likes to go downhill sort of fast; 6) Thank heaven for construction site port-a-potties.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween!! Way too much candy and food. My word. And I thought we were on a weight loss program. Well, maybe we will start tomorrow, or the next day. Hmm. A great place to work. Lots of good real estate chat, old stories, and friendship in abundance.
Have a safe evening collecting that candy.