Our Kitties Come Home

MAY 29, 2009
We contacted Hood River Cat Rescue in hopes of adopting a couple of kittens. On May 31, we met with Jen Schwab, the foster mom raising the rescued kittens we wanted (and about 10 others). We picked out littermates — a brother and sister, and agreed to pick them up near the end of June, after they're 8 weeks old, weigh more than 2¼lbs, and have had their shots etc.

JUNE 10, 2009
Today, we emailed Jen Schwab again and she mentioned that the kittens are growing and are very playful and socialized. Then she mentioned that "they sleep in each others arms, with Winston in between." Winston is the brother of the two kittens we adopted.

Pennie and I looked at each other and immediately emailed back that we could not break up the trio of siblings, so … we will be the proud (and frazzled) parents of THREE kittens as of 4pm on June 26.

JUNE 26, 2009
We drove across the bridge to White Salmon to pick up our three kittens. As we placed them in the carrier, we received instructions, medical history, toys and food from Jen’s assistant. We found out earlier that instead of two boys and a girl, we have two girls and a boy. Thus their names currently will be Louise & Clark and Sacagawea (we were going to name the black kittie York until we were told “he” was a “she”).

Louise is gray and white, is tiny (1 lb 8 oz.) and very cute. Clark is black & white with a distinctive black stripe on his chin, weighs 2 lbs 5 oz., and climbed the carpeted stairs to the second floor immediately upon arrival. Clark the explorer — we’ll have to keep an eye on him. Sacie is all black, the largest at 2 lbs 8 oz., and very frisky.

After a couple hours of discovery — including finding a hole in the kitchen baseboards that led to a secret place behind the cupboards — they began playing in earnest. Pennie and I settled into our chairs and after a few minutes we both noticed the silence. “Where are they?” we both asked. After a few minutes of searching we found all three asleep under the TV stand. Home and safe at last.

Name correction: It turned out that "Sacagawea" was just too clumsy to say. Originally Hood River Cat Rescue identified the black kittie as a male named Winston. When "he" turned out to be a "she", we decided to change "Winston" to "Winnie".

We have been watching and laughing as winsome Winnie, sweet little Louise, and Clark the Explorer alternate between full-speed hyper-kittie play and time-out, purr-laced coma-naps since morning. :*)

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Tom Bakes His First Pie

Yesterday, I decided to bake a pie.

Not just any pie…my very first pie.

I was surfing the Internet for cooking "How To's" to add to my recipe database. I found a series of tips and techniques on making pie crusts, and one of them included a basic recipe for peach and strawberry pie. So, on a whim, I decided to make a fruit pie.

Okay, I’ll be the first to admit I didn't make the pie crust dough. My mother did. She makes 8 or 10 pie crust dough balls at a time, refrigerates them, and uses them whenever she makes a pie, which I'm happy to say, is often.

So, when I got this urge to bake my first pie, I went to my mom's and picked up a couple of dough balls. She gave me a few hints about rolling out the dough, and I did the rest.

Here's the final product of my efforts.
















To see the step-by-step photos, CLICK HERE, then choose SLIDESHOW in the upper right corner of the Flickr window.

Yosemite and the Oregon Coast

SUNDAY, MAY 10
We left Hood River for our Yosemite & Oregon Coast Adventure. We stopped at the local Starbucks for a little caffeinated fortification and blueberry scones. After saying goodbye to our wondrous Columbia River Gorge, we turned south on Highway 5 and before long Pennie noted some flashing blue lights in the rear view mirror. Uh-oh…this can’t be good. A stern, tight-lipped female OHP officer stood outside our passenger-side window and pummeled poor Pennie with penetrating questions such as, “Do you know why I stopped you” and “Do you know how fast you were going?” Apparently satisfied with Pennie’s responses, she issued a series of strict and harsh warnings, but no ticket. Whew!!!

Once our little hearts stopped racing and we resumed our trek down 5, we were constantly amazed at the myriad shades of green everywhere. We use to think of California as a “green” state, but it’s not even close. Oregon is truly the emerald state. Orchards, farmland, forests, grassland—everything was green.

We soon passed through the flatlands near Salem and the rolling hills of Eugene. Highway 5 climbed into the mountains and forests surrounding Grants Pass and then dropped into the valley at Ashland, where we stopped for lunch.

Fully Quiznosed, we continued south into California, just west of magnificent Mt Shasta. We needed to stop for gas in Redding, and asked “Greta” our Garmin GPS device, to locate a 76 gas station nearby. On her first attempt, she directed us to a vacant lot—the former site of a 76 station. She recalculated and took us to a 76—now Valero, station. Fortunately there was a Shell station just a block away. I filled the tank and washed several pounds of dead bugs off the windshield while Pennie berated Greta for her misdirections—“You Teutonic twit!” (or something like that).

We saw several more CHP’s as we drove south toward Sacramento, but Pennie managed to avoid detection. Near Benecia, the traffic was nearly stopped on the other side of the 680, as motorists left the bay area after Mothers Day visits. We switched to the 580 and arrived at Matt, Marianne and Danny’s in Pleasanton at 7pm—12 hours and 700 miles after leaving Hood River.

Marianne had prepared a tempting plate of hor d’ouerves paired with a fine wine while Danny showed us his latest origami talents (and his deepening 13-year old voice). Matt was busy with the final touches on his specialty—BBQd ribs. They were very tasty and done perfectly. For dessert we had a sip of Port and an Ice Cream Cow. Yummm. The highlight of the evening was when Matt announced he had been promoted to Director of Web Experience at TiVo. Good job, my talented son!

MONDAY, MAY 11
In the morning, I took our bug-crusted CR-V to the Pleasanton Car Wash. This place is in my customer service hall of fame for exceeding my expectations. They not only washed and vacuumed my car to showroom condition, but also air-hosed every nook and cranny of the exterior to remove any remaining water drops.

We spent a leisurely morning sipping Marianne’s blueberry smoothies while watching the final episode of the Amazing Race that Matt had recorded for us—did I mention my son is a Director at TiVo? Danny was home from school with a head cold and was focused on playing iBots on my iTouch.

We hit the road again at about 11, heading east on highway 120 through the flatlands of Tracy, Escalon, and Oakdale, then into the foothills near China Camp, Mocassin and Groveland, before stopping for lunch in Buck Meadows.

We briefly entered Yosemite on Big Oak Road and took a few photos at Tamarack Falls on the western edge of the park before continuing on to our destination, Cedar Lodge at El Portal, approximately eight miles from the western entrance to Yosemite. We had dinner in the Cedar Lodge restaurant. Since we were still full from our Buck Meadows burgers, we shared a Chef Salad and one order of Buffalo Wings. The tab? $30! Can you say yikes!? Can you say gouged? Can you say overpriced? Fool me once.

TUESDAY, MAY 12
Since there were no other dining options, we returned to the same restaurant and endured an uninspiring breakfast buffet for another $30. Fool me twice.

We entered Yosemite at about 10:30 am and went directly to Yosemite Village. We parked in the lot outside the Village Store and noticed a small booth offering tours. We signed up for the 3 pm Valley Floor tour and then began following the signs to the Visitor Center, which always seemed to be just a little farther… around the next bend… beyond the next rise… just a little more… finally, we arrived at the Visitor Center.

I need to mention that Pennie had only been out of her non-walking cast for a few days (she broke her ankle when she slipped on ice in late January), and walking with her cane for any distance was a struggle. But she did it, and she is my hero!

We learned much about Yosemite’s history and geology at the Center, explored the bookstore, then went to the Ansel Adams Gallery nearby, where a large group of folks were about to take a four-hour photography class.

We drove a mile or so east to The Ahwahnee Hotel. As their web site notes,

“The Ahwahnee shines as Yosemite National Park’s distinctive AAA® Four-Diamond hotel. Known for its magnificent façade, and architecture, The Ahwahnee was specifically designed to highlight its natural surroundings, featuring Yosemite Falls, Half Dome and Glacier Point. The destination of queens and presidents alike, The Ahwahnee offers a perfect balance of history, hospitality and elegance.”

We had a quiet lunch on the patio amid the blooming dogwoods bathed in the midday sunlight. Across the hotel’s lawn and above the trees we could see the granite walls of the valley rising to Glacier Point.

Relaxed and refreshed, we returned the Village and boarded the open-air tram for our Valley Floor Tour. The Ranger Karen pointed out the various sights we passed and gave us lots of additional information. We stopped at the base of El Capitan and the tram driver, Roger, led us to a clearing in the woods. El Capitan is a 3,000-foot vertical rock formation located on the north side of Yosemite Valley, near its western end. The granite monolith is one of the world's favorite challenges for rock climbers.

It turns out that Roger is an accomplished rock climber and has climbed the face of El Capitan three times. He had a back pack filled with climbing tools and paraphernalia, and he explained the use of each as we watched several groups of climbers maneuvering up the face. Climbing El Capitan usually takes two to three days, but recently speed climbers have free-climbed it in a little over two hours! Unbelievable.

Our tour continued as Ranger Karen promised us a “special treat.” We arrived at Tunnel View for the traditional and postcard view of the entire Yosemite Valley, from El Capitan on the left, to Half Dome in the center, and Glacier Point on the right. Our special treat was a beautiful rainbow formed by the mist at the base of Bridalveil Falls, which occurs around 4:15 pm daily during the Spring.















We continued our loop around the valley past Bridalveil Falls, the open meadows and forest groves (where we learned they now do controlled burns throughout the year to increase the growth potential of the Sequoia trees), to Curry Village and the story of Galen Clark who discovered Yosemite, and finally back to the Village near the base of Yosemite Falls.

We went to the Village store and stocked up on cheese, crackers, apples, cereal, milk and plastic utensils—no more gouging at the Cedar Lodge restaurant for us.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 13
We arrived at Yosemite Lodge at the Falls at 8:30 am, and boarded the large, cushy, air-conditioned bus for our all-day Grand Tour. Our driver, Sam Hays, was 52, 6’2”, 300 lbs, had long wavy black hair, was slow talking, and had a dry sense of humor and an erudite vocabulary which served him well as he spent the day describing various features of the park mingled with the ongoing adventures of his secret love for “Ranger Ginger and the Apprentice Ranger Test”. We saw and learned a lot, and laughed even more throughout the day as he told us of his rejection by his high school sweetheart Debbie Pimentel, having to go to his Prom with his friend (not girlfriend) Eileen, using his credit card to make a late payment on his fire insurance by phone as the flames raced up the hill toward his home in El Portal, and much more. He was the best!

As we approached the hair-pin turns near Glacier Point, Sam assured us he always kept four wheels on the road at all times, pause… pause… pause, then he reminded us the bus had eight wheels. His timing and delivery were impeccable.

The altitude at Glacier Point is approximately 8000 feet, and the views of Half Dome, Vernal and Nevada Falls, Yosemite Falls and the entire valley floor were nothing short of spectacular. We were given 30 minutes to explore the area and take in the sights, but a lifetime wouldn’t have been enough.

We passed the Wawona campground and I recalled camping there with my parents when I was 12. This was my first trip back to Yosemite in over 50 years and the memories flowed easily.

We had lunch in the historic Wawona Hotel and strolled around the grounds before re-boarding the bus for our trip through the Mariposa Grove of Tall Trees. It is the largest grove of Giant Sequoias in the park, and two of its trees are among the 25 largest Giant Sequoias in the world. The oldest, named Grizzly Giant, is between 1900-2400 years old, 210 feet tall, and has a diameter of 30 feet at its base.

Sam completed the saga of Ranger Ginger and the Apprentice Ranger Test as returned to Yosemite Lodge. A day well spent—filled with Yosemite’s fantastic sites and Sam’s fantasies.

THURSDAY, MAY 14
On our last day in the park we wanted to focus on Bridalveil Falls, The Ahwahnee Hotel and Lower Yosemite Falls. After entering the valley, we missed the turnoff for the Bridalveil Falls parking lot. This is significant because traffic flows in one direction only in the valley, so our mistake meant that we had to drive about another two miles before the loop would return us to the parking lot.

Our error was compounded when we came upon a traffic jam near the face of El Capitan. We heard the sound of helicopters and noticed ambulances and several rescue team members in full regalia in the meadow next to us. We parked and joined the other “lookey-lou’s” watching the helicopter lift off with a man tethered at the end of a long rope. We squinted toward El Cap to see where the climbers were. I asked a photographer what was going on, and she informed us that it was a rescue drill—that they were practicing placing and removing climbers on various ledges on the granite face.

It was pretty interesting stuff but we needed to complete the loop and return to Bridalveil Falls. We did so and Pennie decided to join me in the trek up the path to the base of the falls. She pushed her rolling chair up the wet, winding path but stopped about 25 yards short of the base when the wind and water became too much. She waited by the river taking pictures while I continued on to the base. I’m not sure it was worth the effort because there was so much turbulence and water in the air; it was impossible to see much of anything. But at least I could say I did it, which was my goal.

We returned to our car and continued around the valley (again), stopping for lunch (again) at The Ahwahnee. We ate inside and then explored the lobby, the massive great hall, meeting rooms and the large formal dining room. The Ahwahnee’s web site provide the following description…

“The crown jewel of Yosemite dining, the award-winning Ahwahnee Dining Room is both magnificent and intimate. The 34-foot-high beamed ceiling with large sugar pine trestles that complement the room’s granite pillars, floor-to-ceiling windows, chandeliers, linen tablecloths and beautiful china create the perfect ambiance for a memorable dining experience.”

The entire Ahwahnee facility was definitely impressive.















In the early afternoon sunlight we drove to the path leading to Lower Yosemite Falls. This ½ mile hike was longer, initially flatter, and definitely dryer than Bridalveil so we slowly made our way along the forested path. In a meadow off to the right we could see and hear a high school marching band putting on an informal concert. The eclectic mix of musical numbers, from Souza to Led Zeppelin, provided a bizarre note to our own march to the falls. Eventually Pennie’s ankle became too painful so she sat on her rolling chair while I pressed on.

Though the falls remained hidden as I continued up the winding path, the sound of the water crashing over the upper and lower falls was constantly booming and thunderous. Finally, I rounded a corner and there it was—a bridge over the roaring water at the base of Lower Yosemite Falls. I’m a big guy but I was definitely buffeted by the rush of air from the falls as I crossed the wooden bridge. On the far side there was an area that was protected from the wind and moisture and I took several photos and video.















We had an early dinner in the Yosemite Lodge cafeteria before leaving the park for the last time.

FRIDAY, MAY 15
This was a travel day and there wasn’t much excitement to report—rolling hills with California Live Oaks near Merced, a noon-time traffic jam on the 880 in Oakland, lunch and gas in San Rafael, then on to the Redwood Highway. We passed Paul Bunyon and Babe the Blue Ox at the Trees of Mystery then rolled into Eureka in the late afternoon.

The Chinese desk clerk at the Travelodge made sure I understood it was really inconvenient for me to ask to be switched to a first floor room because of Pennie’s ankle. After all this was grad night at Humboldt State and rooms were at a premium.

We had a very nice dinner at the Sea Grill then spent a few minutes searching for WiFi in Eureka. We had not been able to check mail etc for nearly five days and I was experiencing severe withdrawal symptoms. :*)

SATURDAY, MAY 16
In the morning we went to see the historic Carter House, then over the Samoa Island Bridge to the Samoa Cookhouse for breakfast. On the way back over the bridge, we decided to take a detour south and explore the quaint Victorian village of Ferndale. We drove around the residential streets near the center of town taking lots of photos of the wildly colorful Victorian homes. We parked on the main street and entered an old-fashioned, turn-of-the-century general store with everything from hats, jewelry, soaps, candles and candies and actual old-timey products like Fels Naptha Soap and Blackjack Chewing Gum.

We arrived at the Whaleshead Resort in Brookings and went to our private cottage on the bluff overlooking the bay. It had a large living room, dining room, kitchen and bedroom, plus an additional bedroom loft. The deck outside had a grill, picnic table and chairs, and a large hot tub. The cottage seemed to be no more than two or three years old and was nicely furnished. We talked of returning here for a week or so later in summer—the ideal get away location.















We did our laundry then had dinner at our window table in the Whaleshead Restaurant.

SUNDAY, MAY 17
We were on the road early on our way to Gold Beach and our adventure for the day—a 64-mile round trip on Jerry’s Rogue River Jet Boats. We boarded at 8:30 am and cruised the harbor to view seals, cormorants and a bald eagle. Our souvenir photo was taken as we passed under a bridge, then our captain Chris pushed the throttle to full speed. A minute or so later he throttled down as we passed a small boat with two anglers. This was to be a pattern repeated throughout the day — zoom — drift —zoom — drift again. And just for bonus laughs, when our flat-bottomed jet boat was speeding along the river, Chris would yell “Hang on!” and then spin the boat in a tight 360° turn, and we would be doused by our own spray. It was very cool in more ways than one.

We saw several osprey and eagles, a family of geese with five little goslings huddled between mom and pop, a young deer hiding in the bushes near the river’s edge, and Chris kept us informed about the history of the Rogue River and various floods etc.

We stopped at Singing Springs resort for lunch and were driven in a Jeep Ranger up a steep hill to the restaurant. The dirt road was barely one lane wide, was peppered with potholes, and ran parallel to the river below.

Afterwards we strolled around a park that was bathed in sunshine and ringed with rhododendrons in full bloom. When it was time to re-board, we rode in the Jeep Ranger again, but this time we BACKED down the steep hill. Allen, our driver, manages this thrilling, bumpy, backwards drive on a daily basis, but it was still an e-ticket ride for the rest of us.

We returned to the Gold Beach harbor about 2:30 pm and picked up our souvenir photo in the gift shop. Our jet-boat adventure on the Rogue River was definitely fun.

Driving north again on our way to Bandon, we passed through quiet Port Orford, and then we once again saw the flashing blue lights in our rear view mirror. Pennie pulled over and convinced the OHP officer that she didn’t realize she was doing 40 in a 25. (I’m not sure but she may have smiled and batted her eyelashes during her plea-bargaining.) In any case, the young officer implored her to use more caution, and once again my Sweet P dodged the speeding bullet.

Near Bandon, we stopped at the West Coast Game Park Petting Zoo and fed some of the animals such as goats, deer, and a burro. We saw brown bears, tigers, leopards, panthers, a chimpanzee, baboons, peacocks, llamas, elk and more, but the high point of our visit was when we each got to pet a young lynx.















We checked into the Table Rock Hotel under gray skies in Bandon. Though we were only 50 yards from the beach, the weather had turned blustery and we relaxed in our Egyptian-themed room. We drove down to the harbor and we both enjoyed shrimp and scampi pasta—SCAMPI! (inside joke) at the Wheelhouse restaurant.

MONDAY, MAY 18
In Florence we saw the first of 40 miles of sand dunes, some nearly 300 feet high. There was lots of recreational activity related to the dunes, with ATV and sand board rentals, horseback riding and hiking. The odd thing about these dunes is that there are groves of tall trees all over the dunes, so it begins to look like ski slopes, but with sand, if you get my drift (sorry).

In Newport, we visited the Oregon Coast Aquarium, a small but first-class facility. We saw lots of marine birds, mammals and fish, and we were fortunate enough to see the feeding of three otters as they cracked crabs on their chests while floating on their backs. We petted starfish and other tide-pool creatures, and enjoyed a beautiful display of colorful blown glass objects submerged in tanks for the fish to swim in, around and through.















We arrived at the Elizabeth Street Inn in Newport in the late afternoon. Pennie mentioned that the best Clam Chowder she had ever had was in Newport, but she couldn’t remember the name of the restaurant. I asked the desk clerk as we were checking in and mentioned we were looking for a combination bookstore/restaurant that serves Clam Chowder. Immediately the clerk identified the Canyon Way Bookstore and Restaurant. She called them to make reservations for us but was told they only serve dinner Thursday thru Sunday. Today was Monday. Oh well.

Instead, we drove into town and found the Chowder Bowl on a quaint little street near the ocean. The clam chowder was good, but without any way to compare it to Canyon Way’s version, we’ll just have to come back at another time.

Back at the Elizabeth Street Inn, we stood on our 4th floor balcony and enjoyed the view of the wide beach and rolling surf. That evening Pennie began to experience the initial stages of a chest cold which was worse by morning.

TUESDAY, MAY 19
A light drizzle followed us north toward Lincoln City. We stopped at a strip mall in Gleneden and browsed in the Allegory Bookstore where I purchased Thomas Freidman’s latest book, Hot, Flat and Crowded. I joined Pennie next door in the Coast Roast Coffee Company where we read the morning paper over a hot cup of latte.

We left the coast and drove east on the Salmon River Highway. Our drive through the quiet, lush green countryside was momentarily jolted by the huge, neon-flashing, Spirit Mountain Casino mega-complex. There ought to be a law against this type of garish, gaudy, tasteless and tawdry assault on the senses.

As we approached McMinnville, we saw a sign for Amity, home of the world’s only Briggitine Monastery. No, I hadn’t been struck by a return to Catholicism. No, I wasn’t interested in seeing where my brother had spent time in the monastery. I was interested in one thing, and one thing only—their fudge! The Briggitine monks devote their time to producing world-class, world-famous fudge and truffles.

We followed the signs and soon were at the small, austere monastery. Wendy, who manages the gift shop greeted us, and soon she was forcing us to sample several of the monastery’s fudge offerings. We tried to discourage her and make our purchase, but Wendy wouldn’t stop offering us more fudge. She was indefatigable (I love that word). As she plied us with more fudge fun, we kept shouting, “Please”, “Don’t”, “Stop”, “Please Don’t Stop!”

Finally her sample tray was momentarily empty and before she could refill it, we purchased two boxes of fudge and one of truffles, outran her to our car, and sped down the dirt road to freedom from this fudge infested monastic hell-hole.

Downtown McMinnville is charming, tree-lined, filled with many shops, boutiques and restaurants, and smack dab at the center of all this is Hotel Oregon, another turn-of-the-century restoration by the McMenamins. I unloaded the luggage, and a coughing, limping Miss Pennie (she’s such a trooper, she could still smile). I found the parking garage two blocks away and hoofed it back to the hotel. Despite (or because of) the recent infusion of fudge, our tanks were running on empty and we took a well-deserved nap, then had a nice, quiet dinner in the hotel’s restaurant.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 20
We had planned to taste at three or four wineries in McMinnville and Dundee, but Pennie was stick sick and we both wanted to get home. We soon found ourselves slowed by the ever-present traffic in Portland, then we broke through and reached Highway 84. We talked about all we had seen and done in Yosemite and on the Oregon Coast. It was a magnificent and memorable adventure, but when we saw the familiar but uncommon beauty that fills the Columbia River Gorge, we knew we were home again.

Love,
Tom & Pennie

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