Eugene

Mark and I went down to Eugene over the weekend. We just celebrated one year since our first date, so we thought it would be fun to go to Eugene for two reasons: one, we spent our first Valentine's Day there and two, we've sampled and enjoyed several microbrews over the past year and one of our favorite brewers (Ninkasi in Eugene) was sponsoring the Sasquatch beer festival in Eugene. We hoped for a smaller, more enjoyable brew fest than the over crowded, hard-to-enjoy ones that we've been to in Portland, and we got what we hoped for. There were quite a few beers to sample, the tastes were extremely generous for $1 each, and we didn't have to wait in line for 20 minutes each time we wanted to try something new. There was room to walk, if not always room to sit, there were plenty of raffle prizes for everyone, and the music was pretty good. After a couple of hours of sampling and enjoying the afternoon, we had a delicious, modest dinner at Steelhead Brewery and then played some darts.

Sunday morning we visited Eugene City Bakery, a favorite we discovered last time we were in Eugene. We got the same things we did last time we were there: a cinnamon roll that was really a cross between a cinnamon roll and a croissant for me, and a raspberry scone for Mark. Well, he had most of the scone anyway. He shared quite a bit of it with the birds that seemed to know that bakery customers were sure to drop and toss plenty of delicious crumbs.

After breakfast, we headed over to Alton Baker Park to work off some of the pastries and beers. We walked for a good two hours along and across the Willamette River. The weather was perfect and we saw ducks, geese, and a beautiful rose garden. From there it was time to go home. A short weekend, but with some very nice memories.

Photos here.

Hiking

Mark and I have hiked the last three weekends. Averaging about 8 miles per hike, we're getting some good exercise and having a lot of fun. The weekend before last we hiked Wygant Trail Loop in the Gorge just west of Hood River. This was probably the most challenging of the three hikes. Though the climb wasn't too difficult as far as elevation gain, there were a lot of trees down which meant lots of scrambling. Thankfully, Mark was very patient and encouraging, holding my hand whenever I needed help or felt a little nervous. We made it about 3/4 of the way around the Chetwoot Loop when we came to Perham Creek--and no bridge. Apparently, it's been out for several years and was never replaced. There used to be a sign at the beginning of the loop indicating that the bridge was out. As the sign was no longer there, we thought they'd finally replaced the brigde. That didn't turn out to be the case, so we turned around and went back the way we came (and did a lot more scrambling).

Yesterday, we hiked a section of the Pacific Crest Trail at Panther Creek, just north of Carson, Washington. This was a bit steeper climb than the week before, but still not too difficult. There were a few trees down, but really only one large tree to climb over. Most of the trail was in the trees with not much more to see than trees, ferns, etc., but we were treated to a beautiful view of Mt. Hood at one point (narrow trail here and I hope to some day get over my nervousness about stopping and looking!) and then a gorgeous view of trees and hills on the north side of the Gorge when we reached our turnaround spot.

Though I haven't worn them on the trail yet, I got some new Merrell hiking shoes on Saturday. They're probably the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn, and I'm looking forward to trying them out. I also got an UnderArmor top to keep me cool and dry while hiking on warm summer days. Now I have to find the right pants to wear...
Photos here.

Star Trek

Mark and I went to see the new Star Trek movie last night (Tuesday evenings are a great time to go to the movies--very few people there!). I was expecting to like the movie well enough, and was looking forward to spending time with Mark, but that was about it, given that I'm not a huge movie fan. Though I could have gone for less violence and more character development, I really enjoyed the film. I laughed, I cried, I cringed. The special effects were great. I think the best part, though, was watching how the new actors portrayed the characters from the original TV series. I think the fact that I remember so much about the characters from the original series--and while watching the movie I realized that I remember more than I thought--was the main reason I liked this movie. The actors did a really good job of recreating the mannerisms and chemistry of the original cast. I think my favorite was Zachary Quinto as Spock. I just like the character of Spock--logical, yet always struggling with the feelings of his human half--plus I'm familiar with Quinto from the TV show, Heroes, and it was fun to see him in this different role. Getting back to my comment about wishing for more character development--a comment that Mark made about the movie as well--it would be great fun to see a new Star Trek TV series starring the cast from this movie.

Ann Coulter

I love books by liberal women authors with a sense of humor. I just started a book called Made from Scratch by Jenna Woginrich. The author talks about how even a person with a full-time office job, living in an apartment can live the handmade, "homesteader" life. Her first step towards this way of life is to be a chicken owner. She happily and excitedly brings home her first three, full-grown chickens, only to wake up the next morning to one of them loudly squawking. Worried that the neighbors are going to call the police, she tries everything to calm and quiet the chicken down. When nothing works, she sets the chicken down in frustration, leaves it to explore on its own, and names her Ann Coulter.