Friday, October 6, 2023
Autumn garden update
Sunday, August 13, 2023
Brighton and Dover--photos
Monday, July 24, 2023
Portsmouth, Salisbury, and the Isle of Wight--photos
where we stayed in Portsmouth |
Portsmouth harbor area |
the Bridge Tavern and the famous Spinnaker Tower to the right |
Portsmouth harbor area |
the HMS Warrior in Portsmouth Harbor |
Salisbury Cathedral |
Ryde Pier on the Isle of Wight |
scenic view on the Isle of Wight |
the Isle of Wight has its own white cliffs |
scenic view on the Isle of Wight |
scenic view on the Isle of Wight |
Friday, June 30, 2023
The beauty of Colorado
After I visited Oregon, Judy and I flew to west Colorado to visit Janet, another high school friend (see my post from June 19th: A New Yorker in Oslo: I've been traveling (paulamdeangelis.blogspot.com). We did some walking in the vicinity of her home, and also took a day trip to Ouray. Here are some photos from Colorado:
the creek behind my friend's house |
irises growing in abundance along the walking path |
facing east with the Rocky Mountains in the distance |
the charming town of Ouray |
Ouray |
Ouray |
the road leading away from Ouray |
Saturday, June 24, 2023
The beauty of Oregon
It's been over three weeks since I visited my friends Judy and John in Oregon. I've had time to reflect on my trip and how wonderful it was to be together. A short two-day trip, but truly memorable. I realize that life offers us opportunities to be together that don't really come again, at least not in the same way. They visited us here in Oslo last June, and this June I was able to visit them where they live in west Oregon. We were gifted our time together and I am very grateful for the gift. Time moves us steadily onward; we get older and perhaps the chances to be together will be less in the coming years. I hope not, God willing, but no one really knows for sure. I know many people my age who can no longer travel due to health problems; there are no guarantees, so it's best to take advantage of the opportunities as they arise.
We used a day to travel by car from west to east Oregon, driving from Portland to Mount Hood (about a fifty-mile drive), with a stop in Hood River to visit Paloma, who is the graphic designer for my books. While we were in Hood River, we also stopped and watched the kite surfers being whipped about by the wind on the Columbia River. We then drove on to Mount Hood and ate dinner at the Timberline Lodge that is located on the southern flank of Mount Hood. The lodge is a National Historic Landmark, and well it should be, after having watched the video about its construction. It was built between 1936 and 1938 as a WPA project during the Great Depression. One of its claims to fame is that Stanley Kubrick used outside views of the lodge in the supernatural horror film The Shining (1980).
The following photos don't really do these places justice, but they give some glimpses of the beauty of Oregon. Enjoy!
the view from the backyard of my friends' house |
view from The Vista |
Rowena Crest area |
view from Rowena Crest area |
Mount Hood |
Saturday, April 8, 2023
What a difference a week makes
What a difference a week makes! This is how the garden looked on March 29th--still a lot of snow on the ground and ice patches here and there. Pretty, but I was getting impatient because I wanted to get started in the garden. As luck would have it, we've had nothing but sunny and warm days this past week. So the snow and ice are gone. Next week it's supposed to rain every day, so I'm glad I used this week to rake leaves and dead plants and fill the compost bin with them. I'll have a lot of good compost to add to the soil in the autumn.
The snowdrops are blooming and the crocuses, daffodils, grape hyacinths and tulips are starting to poke their heads up from the soil. Spring is here, and soon it will be time for planting this year's vegetables and flowers.
The surreal world we live in
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