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March 18, 2005

IT'S FRIDAY, MY FAVORITE DAY!!

I'm writing this from our hotel room in Ashland this week.

We spent the weekend and Monday still babysitting out two older grandchildren, Paige and Ashtin. On Saturday, I took Ashtin to her ballet and tap lessons while Dave stayed home and watched Paige. On our way home, we stopped and got some donuts and a newspaper to bring back home. The rest of the weekend was doing the usual things, washing clothes, mowing the lawn (after I picked up all the dog doo doo) taking care of Bob the cat and just enjoying the girls. But by this time, they were counting the days to when their parents will be back.

Monday comes and the parents are back! Hey!! It's been nice but I am ready for a break, especially from the Disney Channel! I think adjusting to a couple of kids hasn't been as bad as adjusting to a couple of BIG dogs that tend to follow you around like shadows. Anyway, Leslie and Jason got back late that afternoon and were real excited about their trip to Las Vegas and the NASCAR race. They had great seats where there was plenty of action. We know, because we were watching it on TV. Anyway, they took us to dinner at Red Robin and then we settled down for the night pretty early. We leaving in the morning for Eugene and Ashland and Ashtin had to go to school.

On our way out of town, we stopped by a kitchen/bathroom store to look at countertop material for the laundry room. I picked out a nice piece and so when it is delivered next week, we will have our contractor install it. Then all I will have to do is paint and that project will be done.

Instead of taking the I-5 freeway down to Eugene, we decided to take old Highway 99 because we had plenty of time. That's what is nice about retirement; there is usually no big hurry to get where you are going. Now I know why old folks just toddle along! Not that we're old...or that we toddle! We just took our time. It was a nice day and everything was in bloom. I even saw some sheep with their little lambs; o' the signs of spring are here!

Our next stop was a visit and overnight stay with some dear old friends, Ed and Diane Avila. We first met the Avila's when we were newlyweds and Dave was in the Navy stationed in Alameda, California. Even though we moved back to Oregon when Dave's Navy hitch was up, we've managed to keep in contact through the years. That became easier when they moved to Oregon in the 70's. We used to go hiking and camping together when our kids were young. Anyway, we have been meaning to stop by several times on our way down to Ashland but never seemed to have the time. Another plus for being retired; now we have the time! Ed is also retired and Diane is seriously thinking about it. After dinner, we sat around and got caught up on our lives and the next morning we were up and away early, headed to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland as we had a 1:30 play we had to make. It is about a three-hour drive from Eugene to Ashland, which is located in the southern part of the state near the California border.

After arriving in Ashland, we checked into our favorite place to stay, the Columbia Hotel, and picked up our play tickets at will call. The first play we saw, "Room Service" was a sort of a slapstick comedy and we enjoyed it very much. That evening, we decided to check out this new Italian restaurant down the street from our hotel. I ordered Chicken Parmesan and I had them take it back as the chicken was raw in the middle. So much for that place. Later, we saw a more serious Shakespeare play, "Richard III" which was excellent. We sat right next to some friends from Wheeler, Maranne and Winston Laszlo who were also there to see some plays. We knew that they were going to be in Ashland, but we didn't expect to have seats right next to them at the play. It sure is a small world.

Thursday morning we got up, ate breakfast and did some shopping. I bought some books for the grandchildren for Easter and a birthday gift for my sister, Jeanne. There are a lot of unusual shops here in Ashland and it is sort of fun to just browse around. We saw a couple more plays, "The Philanderer" by George Bernard Shaw, and "By the Waters of Babylon", a play written specially for this theater. Of course, both were very good. I don't think I have ever seen a bad play in Ashland. We will be back this fall to see six more plays.

By the way, Happy St. Patty's Day! I am not Irish and I am not wearing green, and I refuse to play along. I saw this woman walking down the street wearing this band in her hair with two green balls bobbing about. Boy did she look ridiculous! But I will wish you the best o' the day!

This morning we are leaving for Portland. I'll get a haircut this afternoon and then race out to Hillsboro to get my annual mammogram. We will stay in town through Saturday night as we have a Blazer game and then run down to the coast Sunday to attend to matters there. I think I will be spending the night down there just because I am getting tired of living out of a suitcase and I want to sleep in my own bed for a change. Then I will get up early Monday morning and drive the two-hour commute to my temp job in Beaverton. What's the difference if I drive from the coast in two hours (with no traffic) or deal with rush hour traffic and it will take me 45 minutes from West Linn? Dave gets to stay home in Wheeler and won't be back in Portland until he has a game later in the week.

By the way, the last time Lara and Greg came down, I made a chocolate cake for Lara and had taken this picture of her "licking the spoon". A few days later Lara took a picture of Jadyn "licking the spoon" after she made a cake. Here they are side-by-side. I tell you, the nut doesn't fall too far from the tree, does it?