The Move Progresses

Derron is in Louisiana now packing our worldly possessions into a series of PODs containers. Once done, they will be picked up and stored - for safe keeping we hope - until we have a place to settle into.

Derron took on a lot this week...he had to mow a very overgrown 3 acres, pack all the already packed boxes (about 100) into a POD on his own, pack a few more, renew the car registration (we can't do that here in OR until we've been here 6 months???), get a termite inspection certificate, pay a visit to Public Health and schedule a well and septic system inspection, drop off a Power of Attorney with the title company handling our house sale, and drop off various items at our realtor's office. He'll be completely exhausted when he gets back here very late Wednesday night.

While he's been gone, I've been on my own with the dogs. The first day was a bit rough...I have to walk the dogs separately because they're too hard to handle together. Hazelnut had gotten used to Derron walking her. She hates change so naturally she had some issues. Nutella was in fine form...acting out, barking at all the little dogs, and jumping and lunging at everyone.

They spent most of Saturday and Sunday at The Dog Bark. That certainly helped. Today, Monday, I'm on my own with them again. Seems they've gotten the message...and both have been really, really good.

Gracie, of course, wants to go outside every single second of the day...and that's fine so long as our neighbor's dog, Liberty, is not out too. Also, I tend to forget she's out there. On Saturday, I left her out in the rain for a while...so sorry Gracie. I rubbed her dry with a clean towel, which she surprisingly loved, and made sure she was warm.

She's missing Derron at night. She's used to sleeping near him. Seems she's decided Hazelnut is a fair substitute...as evidenced by the photo below.

Mystery Solved

We have been wondering about the field behind us. We thought maybe it was some kind of vineyard but we'd never seen one like it. While in Independence over the weekend, we discovered its purpose. It's a hops field! Evidently, Independence is the hops capital of the world.

Well it's been over a week since we crossed the Willamette River via the pedestrian bridge from West Salem to Salem. It was a beautiful day and there were many people out. Once in Salem, we walked to Riverside Park. Nice walk...good workout.

Nothing much else going on. We seem to spend a lot of time in Independence...where we hope to find a house sometime soon. We take the dogs to the dog park there, then walk them to Independence's Riverside Park. It's a good walk for them and us! Both the dogs like walking down the boat launch and wading in the water. Hazelnut more than Nutella, but both are happy to have a cool drink after a good walk. We've also been walking them up to Main Street from there to socialize them with the traffic -- not a lot in Independence, but more than they're used to. 

We visited the Independence Heritage Museum yesterday and had a nice long talk with Peggy, one of the curators. She's been in Independence for over 20 years and shared a lot of town history with us. She's also been involved with city government and various boards and commissions. 

Later in the afternoon, we ventured into Monmouth, just up the road from Independence, for some ice cream. There's a little 'mom and pop' ice cream shop on Monmouth Avenue across from a small park. We ate ice cream and sat in the sun for a while. 

Derron has a second interview with the Salem-Keizer School District on Wednesday. We're hoping he gets it of course...but it would be nice to know sooner than later...he wants to go back to Bush and pack up the house before he has to worry about trying to do that while starting a new job. Most of the house is already packed up...but I need to arrange for PODS to be delivered and for some manual labor to help him. I am sure he's not looking forward to the work, but it will be nice to know our stuff is close by instead of so far away.

We found a house we both like in Independence...but we haven't looked at anything yet. I am trying to find a realtor so we can start compiling a list of places we want to consider. Main Street, or any street within a 3-4 block radius of Main Street, would be perfect since it would allow us to walk to everything -- the park/dog park, coffee shops/bakeries (there are two on Main Street), Thai food, 2 bars/pubs, Italian food (2 places), a used bookstore, the Civic Center, the library, and a cinema. Sounds ideal!

Weekend in Independence, OR

We have been in and around Independence many times. There's a dog park there...so that's our primary reason for going there. Recently, we discovered its historic district and have fallen in love.

Last night we ate at Mangiare's on Main Street. Derron had Chicken Parmesan and I had Gnocci in a Gorgonzola Sauce with Shrimp, Spinach, Tomatoes, Mushrooms, and Artichokes (I didn't see any artichokes though). We also had Caesar Salads and Dark Chocolate/Bourbon Pecan Gelato for dessert. It was a lovely dinner.

The wine menu was interesting. Lots of Oregon and Italian wines. No Barolos, but they do have a Barbera. Too pricey for me right now so I chose a Chianti instead.

Derron enjoyed the Chicken Parm and Ravioli. I would have expected cheese ravioli, but they were stuffed with meat. Not house-made (I asked the waiter).

The gnocci were light and so tasty...and house-made. Kinda weird...if you can take the time to make gnocci, ravioli is not much of a stretch. Oh well. The shrimp were perfectly cooked and the Gorgonzola sauce was soooooooooo rich. Not a meal you can have often, but once in a while.

This morning we took the dogs to Riverside Park bordering Main St. There is an amphitheater at the park where, in the summer, they show movies on Thursday nights and host concerts on Fridays. 

We walked the quarter mile trail to the dog park and back. The dogs were pretty happy. As we walked by, we noticed people setting up for a Farmers Market (the first opening of the year!). So we took the dogs home and headed back. We tasted some great cheeses from Full Circle Creamery -- all raw cheeses. We tried their 20-month aged sharp cheddar, a herb cheddar flavored with sage, rosemary and thyme, and a Diablo cheddar flavored with a locally made hot sauce. The cheesemaker, Brian, has a Bachelor's degree in Food Science from Oregon State University, and a Masters in Camembert...in Camembert! 

We then wandered over to the Lion's Share Coffeehouse & Bakery booth. I had the most magnificent chocolate croissant ever...and I can say that because I have eaten many a croissant on the streets of Paris...so I know my croissants. Derron had a blackberry scone and said it was delish.

The Kindness Of Strangers

Monday --

I thought I'd killed my two plants. Gracie has been horrified because, actually, they are hers. At least she's the one who has been caring for them. We left them outside in the rain too often, for too long, and possibly in too cool temps too. Anyway, I looked up some remedies online and set about to make things right. Just today, when Derron and I were taking a walk, I told him I thought I'd killed my plants. He swore he saw some new growth since I'd repotted them and put them in indirect sunlight.

As we were rounding the far end of the park, we stopped at a beautiful garden. We saw the lady that gardens there earlier when we were walking the dogs. She thanked us then for keeping the dogs out of it. She has beautiful tulips in bloom now. Anyway...as we were stopped at the garden, she came over to talk to us. I told her about my plants...she asked to see them. Derron got them out and put them on the picnic table. I did see some new growth! She recommended using some of her dirt and sand to replace the top part of the soil I'd used when I repotted them. How sweet was that...she even loaned us her gardening tools to use. I repaid the kindness by giving her the old pots. She has a ton of pots and said she always needs more...she finds plants in the garbage and brings them back to life.

That's the "up" news of the week. Over the weekend I noticed my Microsoft apps were gone from my laptop start up screen. Seems when I upgraded to 8.1, they took a hike. So I spent several hours trying to figure out what went wrong. When I upgraded, seems the apps migrated to my Outlook toolbar. That's very helpful if I am online, but I wanted the apps back for offline work. Several more hours were killed trying to fix things. I wound up uninstalling Office 365 (biggest rip-off on the planet BTW), then reinstalling it. Fortunately it did not "take away" another one of the 5 installs I paid for...and in the process, Derron took the time to install it on his laptop as well...so now I don't have to lend him my laptop. Everything is good again, or at least like it was...

There's a progressive film series here in Salem. Tonight they are showing The Healthcare Movie. The writers/director will be there to answer questions afterward. We're going to get some Lebanese take-out and catch the flick.

Update on film news above: April Fools! Apparently I wrote the date down wrong. The movie is on May 1st. Oh well, we'll try again.

Wednesday --

We drove out to Silverton to look around. Nice little town...lots of restaurants, coffee shops, and bars. We also stopped off at Silverton Falls. Too chilly for a hike, but we'll come back and hike through the Falls when it warms up. Derron captured a couple way off pics...we hope to get closer later.

There's a little frog pond up by the RV Park office. Derron swears he's seen a frog there several times. We walk the dogs by there every now and then but until yesterday, never saw one -- when we were all together that is. But then...we were standing next to it while Derron pointed it out. I didn't see it...then the damn thing jumped into the water, scaring the bejesus out of me! Neither dog saw it...so Derron took a pic to prove it exists.

Looks like a frog to me...