Juneau Fall Classic

Greetings from Redmond, Oregon, home of the Juneau Golf Club 2008 Fall Classic.

We drove up from Portland on Sunday morning - a beautiful drive past Mt. Hood and up into the high desert. The weather was, and remains, near perfect. The previous evening we had supper with Jane, John, Terry, and Jim at a neighborhood Italian restaurant in Sellwood. It was on par with the best food downtown and the last in a series of outstanding Portland meals. Bet I gained a few pounds in Portland.

Alison helped man the tournament registration table on Sunday afternoon and Dougie and I went grocery shopping and got us checked-in to the condo. The units are very nice with two bedrooms, a full kitchen and nice deck. Alison cooked steaks on Sunday.

Yesterday we played a scramble. It was quite fun although I don't know that I contributed too much to our team effort. We finished at even par and the winning team was 7 under. In about an hour and a half we tee-off on the first of our three round tournament. There are about 90 participants. This evening we have a BBQ at the Clubhouse for all participants. Laura Beason is the tournament organizer and so far she seems quite pleased with everything...

Supper at Paley's Place with the Snowdens. Good eats and good company.

More food! Dining under the moon and stars on the patio at Lovely Hula Hands.

Street theater in Portland. Elvis - the party years.

Stay tuned for more pics from Portland and Redmond. I'm going to eat my Wheaties and go play golf!

Life in the City

Greetings from Portland Oregon. I've had a busy couple of days. I drove to Portland from Corvallis on Wednesday - played a round of golf at Trysting Tree before the drive. I played with three retirees from OSU, a couple of professors and the former Dean of Students. They were great company. I could very easily get accustomed to a regular tee time with a crew of old lefties. They were, at best, highly skeptical of wannabe VP Palin.

I got to the city around 5 PM, checked into the Vintage Plaza Hotel (which is very satisfactory although I miss the Great Room at the Benson), and then went to the Portland City Grill with Amanda and Matthew for a great supper with a spectacular view. The restaurant is located on the 30th floor of a bank right downtown.

Thursday was fairly low-key. I collected Doug and Alison at the airport in mid-afternoon and we went to Paley's Place with Arthur and Sher Snowden for supper. It's a great restaurant.

Yesterday Doug, Alison, Leah, Chris, Matthew and I played 18 holes at the Glendevere Golf Course. It was a S-L-O-W round - we teed-off at 11:15 AM and didn't finish until almost 4:30 PM. Everyone played fairly well, however, so it was quite fun. Another beautiful sunny and warm day.

Last night the gals, their pals, and I went to Lovely Hula Hands in the Mississippi District for supper. We dined al fresco under the moon and stars - something this Juneau boy can never get enough of - and the food and company were superb.

It's now Saturday morning and I will hang-out waiting from Leah and Amanda to give me a call. It's shopping day! Nordy's is on the agenda and I'm sure other fashion emporiums as well. Tonight Doug, Alison, and I will go over to Jane's for cocktails and then out to a local Italian joint in Sellwood. We will have Special Guest Appearances by Jim Larson and Terry Harrigan. Should be big time fun!

Hmmm. It appears that I cannot upload any pics at the moment...don't know if it's a problem with the Google site or the connection here at the hotel. I will try again later; but I may just have to wait until I'm at another location.

Next post: dateline Redmond, Oregon and the Juneau Golf Club Fall 2008 Spectacular.

Fun in the Sun

A great day yesterday. Had a good workout, visited with my realtor, played 18 holes at the Trysting Tree Golf Course, and had a super supper. The skies were blue and the sun beat down on one very happy Elmo.

The real estate market is very slow. There is a large stock of homes on the market - over 300 at last count. The realtor is hopeful - but not at all certain, that the bottom will come next Spring. Works for me.

I had supper at a French restaurant last evening. The mussel appetizer was out of this world and the lamb osso bucco was very good. There are three other new restaurants in town that are also supposed to be quite good - but they will have to wait until my next visit.

I'm going to go have another workout this morning and then play golf again. Then I will hit the road to Portland and supper with the gals. Yippee! Life is good.

Mom called last night to give me the news I had heard the day before - Alison Elgee has been appointed as an Assistant Commissioner at my old department. She will inherit the duties previously performed by Janet Clarke. Congratulations Alison! The Department of Health and Social Services is lucky to have you!

The sun is shining again today and the forecast is for more of the same...

Next post - dateline Portland.

Over Hill, Over Dale

Greetings from Corvallis, Oregon. Home of the Oregon State Beavers and, hopefully, me, at some future date at least.

Before anything else - a million thanks to Pat Williams for the hospitality in Boise. We covered a lot of ground in three days - and she is still the amusing and delightful person I remember from what seems like a million years ago - when we both worked for the Division of Legislative Finance.

I left Boise about 8:30 AM and was not sure I would want to drive all the way to Corvallis in one day. But I got to Bend about 1 PM (there's a one hour time difference between Boise and Bend), still felt quite chipper, so decided to push-on.

It was about 89 degrees when I arrived in Corvallis and the forecast for the whole Northwest looks encouraging for at least the next week or so. I had a decent supper at my regular haunt, Michael's Landing, and just got back to the room. I got some exciting news while I was at the restaurant - but I'm not sure if it's public or not so it will have to wait. I wanted to dance a jig.

No pics today so you'll have to settle for a written description of my trip. From Boise, I headed northwest on a state highway and then on I-84 to Ontario Oregon. This was all through Treasure Valley in which Boise is located and it is dry, dry, dry. Then west on Highway 20 through Vale, Oregon and continuing west through the desert gradually gaining altitude to Burns. Still desert and still pretty bleak with sagebrush and bloody little else.

Once you get through Burns you gain a little more altitude and then are on a plateau for most of the way to Bend. Pretty grim. About 30 miles east of Bend you pick-up the first views of the Sisters and Mt. Jefferson in the Cascades and start to get into pine forest (although still pretty damn desert like).

I really like the Bend area - it's fairly heavily wooded - and it's close enough to the Cascades that you feel you can beat a hasty retreat to the west side of the mountains if you get into trouble with the desert people (like tell them what you REALLY think about Sarah Palin). I had to be pretty coy as to my feelings in this regard in Idaho - the locals in McCall were particularly smitten by her comparison of herself to a vicious, yet pious, pitbull.

The drive down to Corvallis took me through Sweet Home and Lebanon which I was somewhat curious about since I get some listings for homes in those communities and homes there are much less expensive than in Corvallis. But they are pretty rural. I feel much more comfortable on the west side of the valley in Corvallis.

Tomorrow morning I will go have a workout, stop by my realtor's digs, and then go play a round of golf. And in the evening I will check-out the new eateries which the bar person at Michael's Landing told me have sprung-up in the last year and have reportedly added a new and much needed sophistication to the local dining scene. I will report in detail.

Hasta luego.

Greetings from 'Tater Town

Hey kids! Greetings from Boise, Idaho. I've been having a great time catching-up with my dear friend, Pat Williams, with whom I worked at the Division of Legislative Finance so many years ago. We spent yesterday afternoon going through the Official Division Ho Ho File. I got a few gems I will share with you at a future date. Although much of the material is dated...political stuff that was SOOOOOOOOOO terribly important 25-years ago; but is now deservedly forgotten.

Pat says "Howdy, Pilgrim. C'mon in and set down a spell."

Pat has a lovely older home in the older part of town.*

My drive to Boise was uneventful but fun for a Juneau guy in need of a serious road-fix. The trip from Double Walla to McCall was fields of amber grain until you get passed Lewiston, then more farmland on a plateau, and finally beautiful evergreen (mostly pine) forest in the hills as you approach McCall. I checked-in at a Super 8 in McCall (called the Super 8 LODGE), had a few cocktails, a non-descript supper, and then played a round of golf at a nice course the next morning before proceeding on to Boise. McCall is pretty nice - but you need to stay at least two nights to get lodgings at any of the resorts or condos - and I would NOT recommend the Super 8 - whether they call it a lodge or not.

Welcome to McCall Idaho. Locals used to own this property. They don't anymore... Outta my price range too...but a nice place to visit.

The drive to Boise was also very scenic. You drive along several rivers on the way down from Lewiston - the Salmon River being the largest. Hells Canyon on the river is pretty cool.


The house that tater-tots built. The Simplot mansion of Ore-Ida potatoes fame.

It is BAH LOON! They cruise over Pat's house in the morning. She actually had one crash-land in her cul-de-sac and one bump her house. They occasionally land in the big soccer field next door.

Yesterday we did the Boise sightseeing gig and went out into the country to visit Pat's daughter, Michelle, and her family. The weather here is great; but July and August would be too toasty for my taste.

Pat, her daughter Michelle, and family.

Pat has got doting grandma down pretty good for Danielle. Danielle's pal is Juneau (or Juno).

Tomorrow I'm off to Corvallis by way of Bend. I may spend the night in Bend if I'm pooped by the time I get there. It should be about a 9 1/2 drive in total (it would actually be quicker to take I-84 all the way to Portland and then I-5 south to Corvallis; but I still haven't got my driving Jones satisfied so will take the more scenic route on the state highways.

More later from Bend or Corvallis assuming I have access to the internet...

*This is actually the first house ever built in Boise - in the 1840's as I recall. Boise was on the Oregon Trail.

Ellie Mae, Jethro, and The Five Blessings

Well, it sounds like the latest installment of the Wasilla Hillbillies was a smash hit last night - at least for the total immersionist crowd. I still can't believe it. I missed the speech myself; but it sounds like there was enough red meat for the right wing to satisfy even the most rabid among the assembled delegates. Sigh...

But...it's time to set the politics aside for a bit and concentrate on the here and now - having fun on vacation.

Yesterday was a long day; but everything went as planned. I was a little worried about my bags. After I checked-in I had to go stand in a SECOND line to deposit my oversized golf bag. I was standing behind a guy with a labrador and while the owner fiddled with the kennel I was petting the hound. The pup was whining and I tried to reassure him that everything would be OK, that he had nothing to worry about and, besides, they treated us ALL like dogs. This comment elicited a stony stare from the Alaska Airlines functionary and I was sure my golf clubs were headed for Orange County; but lo and behold they showed up at PDX on schedule and apparently intact.

The drive from Portland to Walla Walla (or as Dave Gray calls it - the Double Walla) was quite fun. It was sunny and the drive through the Columbia Gorge was very nice. I got into Walla Walla around 6 PM and went to a wine bar for a couple of glasses of local libation and then had a decent meal at an Italian joint.

There are LOTS of hole-in-the-wall tasting rooms on the main drag here; but they were all closed by the time I arrived. The dining scene appears to be fairly limited however. I believe there are two golf courses. In another decade this place might be a real destination; but today I think a 15 hour stop-over is about right.

Right now I'm going to hit the shower and then hit the road. It should be about a 5 1/2 hour drive to McCall, Idaho via Lewiston. I was talking to a couple in the coffee shop this morning and it sounds like the road is pretty winding but the scenery should be quite nice.

I don't know if I'll have a computer connection in McCall...so there may be no more posting until Boise.

TallyHo!

Let Freedom Ring

Twenty-four hours and I'm out of this sodden burg - for a few weeks, at least. I am really looking forward to sun, golf, and seeing the gals and my pals.

Labor Day weekend was quite labor intensive. I helped Dougie construct a backyard fence on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning and then we legged-it out to Dave Gray's to help put a roof on Dave's new car port and shop. I actually enjoyed the work - and it didn't rain!

In politics, Americans continue to puzzle over the nomination of Governor Palin as John McCain's Veep running mate. "Troopergate" and Bristol Palin's pregnancy are in the headlines this morning. Both of these are trivial matters in my opinion. To my mind, the real issue remains McCain's poor judgement as demonstrated by Palin's near complete lack of qualifications to serve as President.

Also, it is becoming apparent that the McCain team's vetting of Governor Palin was perfunctory, at best. And the reason the vetting was incomplete is that McCain wanted either Joe Lieberman or Tom Ridge as his running mate - but both were vetoed by the right-wing of the party which threatened a floor fight at the convention.

In other words, the Straight Talking Express was hijacked by the mullahs and other whack-jobs in the name of the unborn and other assorted causes to which McCain's allegiance has always been suspect in the eyes of the self-righteous.

So much for putting America first...

Take a deep breath Elmer. OK, now where were we?

Ah yes, vacation. Here's the itinerary, in brief.

September 3rd: Fly to PDX and drive to Walla Walla.
September 4th: Drive to McCall, Idaho. Hope to have time for a round of golf.
September 5th: Golf in the morning. Drive to Boise in the afternoon.
September 6th - 7th: Whoop-it-up with Pat Williams and family in Boise.
September 8th: Drive to Corvallis via Bend. This is a 9 1/2 hour drive and I may spend the night in Bend if I get tired.
September 9th: Golf and checking-in with my realtor in Corvallis.
September 10th: Golf in the morning, drive to Portland in the afternoon. Hotel Vintage Plaza on Broadway. Dinner with the gals?
September 11th: Pick-up Dougie and Alison. Dinner with Arthur and Sher.
September 12th: Golf. Dinner with the gals?
September 13th: Shopping with the gals, maybe golf, dinner with Jane, Terry, Jim & Co.
September 14th: Drive to Redmond. Maybe golf. Check-in for tournament.
September 15th - 18th: Fall Golf Tournament
September 19th-20th: Recover from tournament - play more golf.
September 21st: Drive to PDX and fly to Seattle. Hotel Harrigan.
September 22nd-24th: Hotel Harrigan. Medical procedure on the 23rd.
September 25th: Fly to Juneau. Start count-down to next escape.

Well, gotta get moving. Do laundry, chop kindling for the elders, workout, dental appointment, pick-up prescriptions, pack, go to elder's for dinner, etc. etc.

NEXT REPORT DATELINE WALLA WALLA OR MCCALL.

I leave you with a couple of birdie pics from the wetlands last week:

I THINK these guys are Short-Billed Dowitchers. There were a bunch of them.

A Lesser Yellowlegs plays through...