Saturday Sunset

The sun is setting further south each day. The sitka spruce still blocks it from sight while in the living room but if I go into the breakfast room -- the view is spectacular. I don't like to take pictures through the windows so usually take them from the deck in front of the living room.

From the deck.



From the breakfast room window.

No rain today. Total rainfall is now at exactly 7 inches.

Thursday Color

No sunset tonight. Tis a dark stormy night here at the peaceful retreat on the bay so I'm sharing last night's color. I took these two photos a few minutes apart and shortly after I took the second, the color quickly dimmed into gray.

I've been bad and not recording rainfall totals. The year to date (from Oct. 1) is 6.56 inches.

Flu Shot

I got mine -- have you got yours?

Picture courtesy of CDC -- and yes I know it is of an expired vaccine :)

Sibling Rivalry

Last Monday, I put up some pictures of Jen (my eldest) and promptly got a what about me from Stephanie. I asked what happened to her rule about not posting pictures of her and added that I don't have any recent ones of her. She ignored the first and send me a variety of photos from her current adventures galavanting about the mid-West. The picture up top is of her mini-mohawk before she left Portland. She said she was very proud of that mini-mohawk and asked that I include it with any other pictures I selected.

Here she is in Aspen with her friends:

Lakeshore at Lake Michigan in Chicago:


Celebrating fall at a pumpkin patch in Illinois:


Mugging in front of the case containing James Dean's shirt from Giant at the Kansas Underground Salt Mine:



She will be back in Colorado (currently in Kansas) by the first of November. She plans to spend the winter there and return to Oregon in spring to pick up her stuff (including her car) before starting Bible College in Wyoming.

Viagra

Robin Williams - Viagra (totally not safe for work)

The Dentist

Bill Cosby -- The Dentist. From his 1983 show Himself.

Walked out with one less tooth but it was a doozy. He went after that bad boy (his words) bottom right molar. Took 4 shots and he tested it again, this time popping out one root. I still wasn't totally numb (he said I'm wired a little different -- not uncommon-- and they were looking for my lip to go numb) and since there was only one more root to pop out, I told him to go ahead and take it out. He asked me if I was sure and I affirmed and he yanked that puppy out pretty darn quick.

Of course, halfway home and while telling A (who drove) about the procedure, my lip went numb. And stayed numb for a long time. Once it started to wear off, I started to notice my jaw was really really sore. Thank goodness, Dr. T wrote me a rx for some pain pills. I took one and it helped a lot. Coming about due for another one but wanted to get this post done before I took it -- friends don't let friends blog while comfortably numb.

Bill Cosby sure hit the nail on the head about that lower lip thang.

Waiting

Waiting for the storm off the coast to come in. Tomorrow is supposed to be a solid rainy day -- and is the day I return to the dentist. Dr. T, the traveling dentist, will be in town tomorrow and will be doing more extractions. My landlord, A, is at the studio and said she will drive me there and back home.

Gary-the-wood-guy is bringing more wood later this afternoon. I have two different pots of soup in the freezer along with some ice cream (just in case of any potential swelling yanno) . I'm as prepared as I can be -- now I am just waiting.



The Doors - Waiting For The Sun from their Morrison Hotel album, natch.

The Sounds Of the Bay

This is my first attempt at recording video with my camera. As you can see, I'm still learning but I was amazed at how the audio picked up the sounds of the birds and the ocean roar on the other side of the spit.

Not bad (if ya ignore the zooming and the camera being pointed at the sun thangs) if I do say so myself.

Manic Monday

Spent the day hanging out with my oldest, Jennifer. We went girlie shopping (!!!) after I opened a buttload of birthday presents from her and Mike. Oh My Stars! Pants (yes plural). Long sleeved tshirts (plural). A forking jacket! Warm fuzzy purple slippers and wicked cool green and black striped socks with a purple witch on them. A tank top to layer under the tshirts. A warm fuzzy soft scarf to wrap around my neck -- my short hair leaves areas uncovered that were previously covered :) Holy moly -- when I gave her the list she asked for, I was expecting one item from the list -- not the entire forking list!

Twas a grand day and I don't feel at all guilty about all the makeup we picked out. Yes -- makeup. The last time I wore makeup was at her wedding and I can't remember the time before that. My goodness there sure is a lotta variety and styles I've never heard of. Thank goodness I had my girlie girl with me to translate. We went to the Sephora store (fanning face) and I was only nervous for a few minutes. Got right into the fun of trying stuff on and figuring out colors. A. Lot. Of. Fun.

Of course on the way home we had to stop for lattes before we scarfed down the chocolate mousse she had made. From a Barefoot Contessa (Ina Garten) cookbook -- I don't know which one but ... I am headed into the kitchen to snag some. Jen sent me home with a container for my midnight snack.

Pics of Jen and Mike, Jen and Dublin, Mike and Dodger Blue, and a group shot.



The Bangles - Manic Monday. Contrary to what they sing, Mondays are Fundays.

Misty

A misty day. Was 56 when I got up after the crack of noon Sunday and it is currently 55 outside at 1:00 in the morning. A day made for procrastinating -- I'll run my errands tomorrow when I head over the hill to spend the afternoon with Jen. We are doing coffee and dessert and going shopping -- a day to celebrate my birthday last week.

Token and Bailey cat spent most of the evening curled up on the sofa in front of the fire. I'm off to spend what is left of my evening joining them.

All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down

The Mavericks - All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down.

Not much rain from the storm so far -- only 0.08" so far but it has been quite blustery. Wind woke me up several times this morning but hasn't knocked any plants over (like the last storm). The storm tracked about 50 miles north of where it was expected to go -- Washington State is getting hammered with buckets and buckets of rain -- but pretty dry here.

The winds have the clouds swirling and scurrying across the sky. The top of the Cape is cloaked in clouds. The treetops are dancing -- swaying and dipping to the music of the wind. The sun breaks through occasionally -- blindingly bright -- but only briefly before the clouds turn everything gray and cold looking again.

Started the fire early today. Token is curled up on the sofa snoozing and Bailey cat has yet to make her appearance today -- she'll show up when it starts to rain (or she gets hungry).

The Spider and The Fly

The Rolling Stones - The Spider And The Fly.

Had a great forking birthday. I can't believe how many people wished me a happy happy -- my Facebook page is full and there are more that rolled over onto the second page.

A day spent alone turned out to be a day filled with love and good wishes, wordsmithing laughter, and joy. An unexpected pleasure on what I had feared was going to be a lonely sad day.

Extra bonus points: I have a new step-grand-something (step grand-nephew?) to share birthdays with.. Jennifer's step-sister Alicia (remember her from Jen's wedding) gave birth this morning to this little bundle of joy - Alex weighs in at 9lbs 10 oz and is 21" long -- the exact same size my Stephanie was when she was born dang near 21 years ago.

Welcome Baby Alex.

Almost Hippo Birdies

Yesterday, before the storm blew in.








The Wind started to blow and the birds on the bay took flight.







Today the rain turned to sprinkles and the clouds danced across the sky.





Some were dark and looked downright malevolent.





The sun broke through albeit briefly. Rain and clouds in the forecast for the next week. Picked up 1.26" from this round.



My camera has ceased and desisted and refuses to use the automatic plug in feature to download pictures. I'm thinking that fall the camera took from the chair when I was moving furniture around Monday night might have had something to do with that.

Thanks goodness I remembered that I have a memory card in the camera and a place to stick said memory card in the laptop. Sure enough, took it out of the camera, plugged it in, and pulled up the camera transfer program.

Viola! Pictures on the computer. Memory card back in the camera -- I'll have to transfer photos this way until I figure out what the problem is. Could be the transfer cord got damaged. Hope it is not something expensive in the camera itself.

Tonight is my last night as a 54 year old woman. At midnight, I double nickle. Got my tunes blaring (currently She Left Me For Jesus ) and am working up the energy to go clean the kitchen before midnight.

No housework on my birthday is my #1 rule. I plan on celebrating Thursday night during my Late Late Night post.

The photos are of the changing weather. I love how even a gray overcast day changes in just a flash up here.

Riders On The Storm (Remix)

Snoop Dogg and The Doors -- Riders on the Storm

Poker Face

Lady Gaga - Poker Face

Choctaw Bingo

While waiting for the first winter type storm to arrive.....



James McMurtry - Choctaw Bingo. This is not my favorite version of him doing this song but it is the best I could find on these here innertubes.

And Then There Were Clouds

Lovely day today -- bright blue skies, no wind, but still a chill in the air. Only got up to the mid 60's but once the sun got low in the sky, it started cooling off quickly.

And then there were clouds in the sky -- until there was only clouds and the sunset was hidden and everything was gray.

Should get down into the 30's tonight per the weather dood. Rain should start coming ashore late Monday evening and ran is forecast for the next 7 days. I am so glad I no longer wear that yellow banana suit over my wools while pretending to be a traffic signal in the rain. Rain is much more enjoyable while inside -- with a good fire blazing -- listening to the drops striking their staccato tap tap tap on the windows instead of feeling them drip down the back of my neck under the banana suit.

Changed my whole attitude about rain.

Brrrr

The cold is on its way. We have a Special Weather Statement and everything:

Statement as of 2:09 PM PDT on October 10, 2009

... Colder nights with possible freezing temperatures through the weekend in southwest Washington and northwest Oregon...
... Wet conditions next week across southwest Washington and northwest Oregon...

An early autumn modified Arctic air mass that spread into eastern Washington and northeast Oregon was pushing cooler and dry air through The Gorge into northern Oregon and southwest Washington. The air mass will continue to spread into the area through the weekend.

This dry and cooler air will set the stage for the lowest minimum temperatures of the season so far.

Low temperatures could fall into the 20s the next couple of mornings. The one mitigating factor in some areas will be the strength and duration of the east winds. Areas where the winds continue through the night will tend to stay above freezing due to mechanical mixing of the air. Thus... 15 to 20 degree ranges between the coldest and warmest areas are possible... and will make pinpointing low temperatures difficult. The coldest temperatures will be early Sunday morning and early Monday morning.

Next week appears active as the first series of stronger autumn storms sets up off the coast. Periods of rain... with gale force winds and rising seas over the coastal waters are likely to occur at times next week. Current timing for the onset of this change looks either to be late Monday night but more likely Tuesday. Strongest winds and heaviest rains are initially headed toward northern California... but northwest Oregon and southwest Washington will see its share of active weather throughout next week from this series of systems.

If you have any tender plants susceptible to the cold... be sure to take any necessary steps to protect them. You will likely want to disconnect outdoor hoses from faucets as well.

The fire is all set, ready to be lit. Have a decent stack of wood inside (thanks to the helper girls) and Gary the Wood Guy is going to bring me more. I'm gonna need it.

The sun feels like it is at half strength today and there is a quiet calm on the bay. Tis only 67 outside and the temperature has dropped 4 degrees in the last hour. I am predicting tonight will bring the first night of layering clothes and may even have to get out the old watchcap. My shorter hair doesn't insulate as well as the longer did -- and certainly does not help keep my ears warm :)

In California, I was used to my birthday week feeling more like summer. This is going to be a fun change - I'm glad Jen and I picked the 19th for our celebration.

I'm Against It!

Groucho -- singing the GOP platform theme song, I'm Against It!

Great Big Woman

Candye Kane - Great Big Woman

Tuesday In Pictures

Sunday Sunset

A lovely way to end the day. Got down to 37 last night - the first night of temps in the 30's since spring. Weather dood is predicting warmer days and continuing colder nights during the coming week. The first snows of the season fell in Eastern Oregon and the Cascades, including Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood. After watching the Ken Burns National Parks series on PBS last week, I've resolved to check out the sorta local National Parks (Hood and Rainer) and their lodges. I think I made this resolution too late in the season to avoid driving in snow -- I'll have to wait until spring.

During my drive into town today, I saw the first signs of fall color along the road that goes over the hills separating the bay from Tillamook. Gonna have to remember to bring my camera when I go into town the next couple of weeks to snag some photos of the local color. Am sure it is not as glorious as the New England fall color (also on my list of must visit), but it was grand to these California eyes last year -- fingers and toes crossed the color matches my expectations.

Willin'/Don't Bogart

Little Feat - Willin'/Don't Bogart, July 16 2009 at Trädgårn

Friday

Early morning rain followed by sunshine all afternoon. Sunshine that held off the clouds waiting offshore and provided this sunset.

All in all, a crisp clear fall day at the peaceful retreat on the bay.

October 1st

October 1st. So many things associated with October 1st.

I moved into the peaceful retreat on the bay one year ago today.

Rainfall totals are calculated from October 1st to September 30th. My rainfall total for the past year is 42.06 inches -- a dry year when compared to the average of 70 inches a year.

Tis also the start of my birthday month. I'm wanting teeth this year instead of presents. I'm going to be 55 on October 15th -- tis my double nickle year instead of the year that I am the same age as the last two digits of the year I was born - 54.

The changing of the season is in full swing here. I noticed the start of the change in leaf color at higher elevations mid-September but the leaves are now starting to begin their changes down here at sea level. No color yet - but the vibrant green is dulled. Color should start making an appearance any day.

The air feels different - cooler and it has a crispness in stark contrast to the softness of the summer air. Am starting to think about my fall and winter cooking -- thoughts of baked potato soup, cornbread, and meatloaf with smashed potatoes, roast turkey instead of chicken, bread pudding instead of ice cream. Have been wearing fleece all week (yay!) and am going to be back to wearing socks soon.

Change is in the air. I'm changing hand in hand with the seasons.