More Ornithology

The Andrew Bird show Carley already posted about magical and captivating. He performs with more verve than most, truly a performance rather than a show. He starts out each song whistling, chiming and fiddling pieces of the song, then loops and layers them together when the drummer and guitarist get involved. The effect is captivating. Listening to the record you might assume that there are a bunch of musicians on stage, but there are only three, and AB plays much of the music himself. It's breathtaking--very different than the other shows I've seen recently.

Live Bird show on NPR--I think the best song he performs is "Why" (26 minutes into the show) The main pizzicato section is recorded first, but is almost of beat enough to sound like it is new every time.

Riding along swimingly

Update on my 52 rides this year--nine down. Tomorrow will be ten. Everything has been good so far. I had my rear wheel rebuilt last week and it has been true and steady since then.

By the way, the impetus for my commuting one day a week comes from River City Bikes, who have pretty fun ads. This blog talks about their ad spending.

more pics~

A few more pictures from our trip last weekend - I can't resist~ Many of you know the twists and turns on the Historic Columbia River Highway as it takes you past Crown Point and Multnomah Falls at the west end of the gorge, but just a little farther east, we enjoyed some other points to explore. From Hood River to Mosier, the Old Highway has been revamped for used by bicyclist, hikers, and for occasional antique cars. This sections includes the Mosier Twin Tunnels which are pretty cool! Now that we are both into cycling, we might have to revisit this stretch of the Gorge for a nice challenging ride!

Wags was a happy member of weekend trip to Hood River~ However, on Tuesday when Dave was petting Wags, he notices that Wags was carrying around a tick attached to his poor little face!! We promptly pulled it out, and he seems totally fine, so no worried. Still, it was weird and gross to see a nasty tick- we've never seen one before. I'm glad they aren't a problem in our area.

Hood River trip

We spend last weekend in Hood River with friends. 4 couples rented part of the Panorama Lodge for a retreat, and it was a very relaxing and peaceful time. The Lodge/B&B has an amazing back deck with views of Mt Hood and the apple and pear orchards, along with beautiful flowers and great bird feeders that attracted a constant stream of Rufous hummingbirds, Stellar's Jays, American Goldfinches, and Grosbeaks. On Saturday we explored Rowena Point and the Mosier Tunnels, a part of the old highway. Wags was very happy to be with us during the trip, and he's always good for love and entertainment - such a good dog. And since it was a "retreat", we totally ate too many cookie and treats, so we were all so full by the end of the weekend!

The last day was cooler and drizzly, so no extra hikes for us. Instead, we walked around the shops in Hood River and then stopped to see Herman the Sturgeon at the Bonneville Dam. Fun weekend!

Check out the hummingbird!!

Andrew Bird~

Andrew Bird is awesome~ We went to his concert at the Crystal Ballroom earlier this month on a Friday night. This was the second time we've seen him in concert, and it's always a treat. He is a great performer, a lovely whistler, etc. His extremely quirky lyrics are highlighted with the lively poppy music and great instrumentals.

New bike!!

After some fun rides this year, I decided
that I like cycling and would like to get a new bike. My old bike needed some work and was very heavy, so it made sense to get a new one. We found this bike at Citybikes Workers' Cooperative in inner SE Portland, and it's a perfect bike for me - a commuter hybrid bike by KHS Bicycles.

We have plans for long bike rides along the Springwater Trail and waterfront, the Bridge Pedal, and parts of the 40-mile loop around the Metro area. Since OHSU is so bike friendly, I'm even considering riding to work some time by taking MAX closer in to town. Maybe someday~

I can't wait to ride!

EVENING UPDATE~ this is the ride i did this evening along Marine drive ~13.5 miles. Such a beautiful sunny day, tons of people were out riding, walking, fishing along the river.
C**

My Bike, Bike Riding, and Bike Maintenance

Carley gave me panniers for my my birthday and her parents gave me a rack to mount them on. They're great--It's nice to ride to work without wearing a back pack. I've ridden the last two days. My goal is to ride 52 days this year--only 50 days left. Even though I am never really excited in the morning to ride in to work it's a nice way to start the day. The only thing I miss is NPR--I guess I'll have to get the podcast.

I popped a spoke on the way to work this morning, so I won't get to make it three days in a row. I've been having rear wheel issues, so hopefully a new spoke and one more truing will take care of the problem.

Dave's Birthday

On Friday, Dave turned 28!! Friends gathered to celebrate the occasion, to eat, drink, and..eat donuts. We started the evening at Mio Sushi in the Hollywood neighborhood where everyone got their favorites - the Oregon roll, crunch rolls, and lots of nigiri, plus some new items like seaweed salad and tempura root veggies and seafood. Yum~ Next, we headed downtown for drinks at Kell's and treats at VooDoo Donuts.

VooDoo is a popular Portland pit-stop for night time snacks. They have some odd concoctions like maple bars with bacon, Fruit Loop donuts, and mang-filled donuts. I had the namesake VooDoo donut which is shape like a sad doll, filled with raspberry filling, and comes impaled by a pretzel stick. The birthday boy had the deluxe fritter with chocolate sauce, peanuts, peanut butter, chocolate chips, and glaze. Everyone loved their treats - we'll be back~

Happy Birthday, Dave!!