Oh What a Catch!

He's quite the looker.

Thirty-eight pounds of pure muscle. The tuna, people, I'm referring to the tuna. Sheesh.

Impromptu hiking trip

This post is a little belated. I've been having too much fun painting, and gardening, and running, and berry picking, and baking, and canning, and visiting my sis, and visiting some friends. Consequently, I haven't taken time to put up some pictures I've been meaning to share.
A couple of weeks ago, Ross, Youk, and I went on a short hike/camping trip to a place near Bend in the Deschutes National Forest. It was a nice short hike in, or would have been if we had gone the right way. Luckily, in conversation with a fellow hiker, we became aware of our misdirection and consulted a map in addition to Ross' Dorkometer (aka GPS). On our second attempt, we found the right trail head, and from there it was a nice short hike in.
It was hot, and the dog wasted no time jumping into the pristine waters. The view was phenomenal, and I can only imagine what it would have looked like prior to forest fire that burned through here a few years back.


Some of the foliage was surprising too. I never would have expected to see a flower like this up there, but they were all over the place.


The only draw back from that hike and lake and view was the overwhelming abundance and ferocity of the mosquitoes. They were fierce. Even the poor dog had to jump into the lake to get away from them. Despite the warm weather, we were wearing multiple layers of long sleeves and pants to keep from getting bitten. It didn't take long to realize they could get right through one layer of fabric. Next time we'll remember bug spray.


Ross did a lot of fishing in the 17 or 18 hours that we were actually at the lake. While he fished, my job was to keep Youk on shore. That was a full time occupation. He desperately wanted to be with his boy. He tried all kinds of tricks to get out there. He'd be super sneaky edging his way to the water, or he'd try to race in before I could call him back, he'd pretend not to hear me, or he'd walk way over to the other side of the cove and try to sneak into the water when he thought I couldn't see him. Such a pill. Such a Daddy's boy. Next time we're going to remember a rope.


This isn't the biggest one he caught, but it's the only one I got a picture of.

Yes, he did pack in his waders and wading boots (or whatever they're called), his rod, his flies, and about sixty pounds worth of other camping stuff. It was a short hike.

Mmmm mmm mmmmmmmmmm

I made this: Blueberry Cream Cheese Braid. You should too. It's delicious.

The next b-ball star

Youk has made a discovery. He can jump. Unfortunately, he's also discovered he can use his new found talent to free himself from any kennel or yard. Five foot fences are merely an obstacle to be traversed. The boy has hops. He now lets himself into the front yard when he's feeling abandoned or ignored. He also has perfected the art of cherry picking. While I'm sure these skills would also benefit him on the court, he seems satisfied to use them on the front lawn.
When he was done cleaning off the lower branches, he stood on his back legs to get at the higher cherries, when that wasn't good enough, he put his jumping skills to use once more...crazy mutt.

Kissy Kissy Little Fishy

Oh my sweet tuna fish,
you are a rather handsome dish.
Your glassy eye makes my knees quiver.
Your heavenly scent makes me shiver.
I like to smooch your tuna lips,
and watch you shake your tuna hips.


My love for you is more than scale deep.
It's your insides that make me want to weep.
I'll hold your fin while we take a look.
Then we'll cut out the part that we want to cook.
I guess I'm a little too late,
to warn you about the fisherman's bait.


Trust me, it works out better this way.
Now I can have tuna anytime of the day.

House sitting

House sitting - is that one word or two? I'm going to go with two, mainly because I just spell checked it and that's what it said. Spell check, what a phenomenal invention that was. Too bad our students don't know how to use it, but that's another story.
This week I'm house sitting for some of my favorite people. I really love spending time with them when they're around, but I also really love it when they leave. ;) Their house is awesome. I am hard pressed to call hanging out with their sweet dog and taking advantage of the big screen TV and miles of kitchen counterspace, work. I might still be here when they get back. I might just forget that I'm only supposed to be "sitting" while they're on vacation. They may have to ask me to leave.

I've got one day left. Maybe their flight will be delayed, maybe I can camp out in the guest room without being noticed, or maybe I can barracade myself inside with a wall of zucchine and summer squash - their plants are already going great guns. Hmmmm, I'll have to spend sometime meditating on these options.

As Promised

Here are some pictures from our trip to Maine, in no particular order.

This is a fort on a beach. I don't remember the name of the beach or the fort, but if Ross gets back before I hit publish, I'll try to be more specific. I do know that it was used during three wars, including WWI.


This is Ross' mom's beautiful home. It is just up the hill from a lake.


Oops, I guess I should develop my film more than once a year.


This is the fire tower we climbed on top of Mt. Pisgah. The trail is just across the road from Ross' mom's place.

This is the view from the tower. It's much nicer than the view I got on the trail up to the tower. I won't post that picture. It's PG and leaves you feeling a little violated. I'll just say it involves a very white full moon.


This is my extremely attractive boyfriend and me at the beach. Don't be jealous girls.


In Boston we were able to follow part of the freedom trail. It's marked by two red bricks side by side and takes you past the historical sights within the city.

This was a pretty powerful memorial on the walk. They are gas chambers, and each one is full of quotes from holocaust victims and survivors.

This is Ross, his sister, Liz, and her boyfriend, George at the Boston Red Sox vs. Florida Marlins game. It got rained out halfway through the fifth inning, and the Red Sox ended up losing 2 to 1.

There are more pictures, but some are still in my camera.

We almost had our trip extended for a day when our flight home got canceled. Fortunately, they rerouted us through Atlanta with first class tickets, and got us home even earlier than our other flight would have. Holy cow, I will never be the same. If flying coach is like eating day old cornbread, first class is like eating ice cream cake. It was that good. We felt like intruders and kept looking around like little kids who had done something wrong. Each time the stewardess got on the intercom we held our breath, afraid they were going to call us up and send us back.

All in all, it was a great trip, and to avoid even a single dull moment, the morning after we got back, we packed up again and headed south for the Fourth of July weekend in Shasta City.