Like Flipping a Switch

Fall weather descended upon Portland promptly on the first day of the season.  We had such a wonderful, long summer that I think I'm ready to face some of the wet grey skies that are sure to come our way and then linger for months.  I have a reserve of sunshine in me that I built up this summer, but I know it won't last all season long.  So Barry and I have prepared ourselves with a list of things to do this fall and winter to keep the blues away.

Hiking/Camping/Backpacking: When the weather allows, or when we get better rain gear, we're heading outside as much as we can.

Living Room Theaters: Every Monday is the plan.  Five dollar tickets, the cushiest seats ever, intimate little viewing rooms, great food and drink... heck the set-up is so good that it doesn't matter what's showing - we're going to be there.  We started our new weekly habit this Monday and even though the movie we saw was merely okay, the experience was great.  Just knowing that we were comfy and cozy while it was pouring outside made it fun.  I've never been big on going to the movies, but this place is making me a convert.

Galleries: We plan to regularly visit our favorite neighborhood art galleries and check out ones that we haven't been to around town.  Bookend said visits with coffee and cafe treats.

Game Nights: Some oldie but goodies and some new-to-us games.  Comforting food and drink.  Friends.  Easy.  And obvious.  So why haven't we done this before?

Books, Books, Books: You may remember that earlier this year, Barry and I took turns reading a book to one another.  We've chosen another one for the Fall (we tried reading it this summer but reading to one another thing seems to be better suited to cold weather than hot for some reason).  I've got a list of titles to read myself, including Dissident Gardens by Jonathan Lethem, a couple by Jeffrey Eugenides (I'm coming to them a bit late after reading The Marriage Plot this summer), and several from Sheri's Great Fall Book List.

Be A Homebody When Necessary: I want to be intentional about being out and about on dreary days, but I can't deny how much comfort I find in our home.  And on some messy days, I'm going to find total contentment by staying put.  Afternoon light often hits our place just right, even on rainy days.  Good music on the record player, stacks of books, plenty of recipes to work my way through in the kitchen.  I'm looking forward to hours of it all.

 

 

Mountains are Big

 

One of the things I love most about backpacking (aside from viewing majestic mountains, dipping in glacier-fed lakes, sleeping under the blazing milky way, being whistled at by marmots and ignored by mountain goats, and feeling satisfied with self-sufficiency) is the mind-clearing that goes on in the wilderness.  When I mentioned yesterday that life has been hectic, I really should have said is that my mind has been hectic.  Hectic with too much analyzing day to day stuff, hectic with images of style that I see on-line and wish I could attain, hectic with stuff that doesn't really matter.  Backpacking snaps me into the reality of how small all that hectic junk in my head is.  Mountains are big; the clutter in my head isn't.

Goat Rocks Wilderness

 

 

 (do you see our little blue tent near the center trees?)

Life has been a little hectic recently.  Not crazy, but not as smooth as I'd like.  A stolen wallet.  A six day work week.  Lots of appointments to juggle.  I'm figuring out some things that I want to eliminate from my life to make it more peaceful.  But this summer I realized that adding one thing - backpacking - gives me serious joy and a sense of calm.  Last week we went on a quick two day trip to Goat Rocks Wilderness in Washington that was just what we needed.  More photos to follow.

Last Night A DJ Saved My Life

Barry home-DJed for several hours the other night (relying heavily on the site Who Sampled for interesting material) while I worked like crazy on new sulu-design pieces for fall.  Most nights I fall asleep by 10.  But get my foot tapping and I'm up 'til dawn.  Anyhow, the first collection will be available at Betsy & Iya on Friday.  Other restocks soon to follow.  By the way, you can find a rather unsatisfying discussion on the past tense of DJ here.

Huge Sale this Friday at Union Rose

This Friday night at Union Rose the largest selection of sale sulu-design jewelry ever in one place at one time - 70 pairs of earrings and a handful of necklaces - will be offered at drastically reduced prices.  It's the perfect opportunity to pick up several pairs for yourself and for gifts.  Lots of other Portland designers will be there with their designs, too, all at incredible prices.  I'll be popping in... hope to see you there.

Wallowa-Whitman: Day Four

We woke, made a fire, and drank more camping coffee than I've ever had in one sitting.  I loved it.  We made the 6 mile hike back to our starting point, passing a couple mule deer along the way.  Only when we were almost back at the trail head did Barry admit that the tracks that I'd seen on the trails (and that I'd been commenting on regularly while we were hiking) were indeed mountain lion tracks.  Back to the car, on to Enterprise, Oregon, for burgers and beer at Terminal Gravity, and a 6 hour drive home through beautiful Eastern Oregon.  Amazing trip.  The end.