Hipstamatic

Just to be clear, before I start raving about my favorite new app, let it be known that I will always love ShakeItPhoto, because you actually get to shake it.  That said, I feel like it's Christmas having newly discovered Hipstamatic.  I am pretty much completely in love with this thing.  It's cute (very important), easy to use (good) and it delivers (awesome).  See how exciting it is?  You better hit the app store pronto and get it yourself!  At $1.99 can you really come up with a valid reason not to?  I didn't think so.

Spring Smells

photo courtesy of sephora.com

When I was living in Switzerland a few years ago, I got this perfume, Insolence by Guerlain, just after spring had sprung.  I chose it because it reminded me of some Sanrio perfume I had as a little girl with Little Twin Stars on the front of the tiny little bottle.  I have no idea where I got that Little Twin Stars perfume, but I loved it and when I smelled Insolence it immediately took me back to a really delightful childhood state of mind.  I was sold on Insolence immediately and I adored wearing it with skirts and summery tops and feeling flowery and fresh.  I wore it on many hikes through the gorgeous Jura Mountain range with the sun shining on my face and birdsong all around.  Since that time in Switzerland, when I wear it, I feel childlike, flowery, sunny and fresh and I can almost hear the birdsong.  All at once!  It has been great to wear on dreary grey days in the Northwest and today I'm wearing it on a lovely, sunny, birdsong filled day in Portland.  It's simultaneously taking me back to joyful childhood days, sunny days in Switzerland and brightening this perfect day in Portland.  Yum.

Small Stuff

It's always the little things that make me the most delighted.  Like this glass front cabinet with all of the brightly colored cookware within.  This really makes me smile.  I love the black and white floor contrasting with the colorful pots.  And I love thinking of all the wonderful things I cook in said pots.  Mmmm.  Another little thing that's making me happy is the lovely, soft spring rain we're having in Portland and that my husband just finished vacuuming and mopping our apartment.  Lovely.  Little.  Things.

Le Pigeon

As far as restaurants in Portland go, I'd have to say this is one of my favorites.  Just look at that duck with chard and chestnuts.  Heavenly.  I have been going through a giant life-changing decision making process so I haven't posted for the last month.  I've been too busy freaking out and going back and forth.  What I should be doing is going back and forth to Le Pigeon for glasses of wine and profiteroles with foie gras and caramel sauce.  Who cares what you're deliberating when you're eating something that wonderful.  In fact it was so delectable and I was so caught up in savoring it, I didn't even think to take a picture!

¿Por Qué No?

This afternoon, Joel and I went for lunch at Por Qué No on Mississippi.  There was a line, of course, but not nearly so long a line as is often spotted at the Hawthorne location.  Once inside, we were charmed by the colorful, candlelit atmosphere.  The food was delicious!  It is so so fun to be able to go out to lunch on a Monday.  Now I'm going to go take a little nap and read my novel.  Oh how I love spring break.

Delightful Day

It's hard not to enjoy the first day of spring break.  I slept until a quarter past nine, ate a leisurely breakfast of sausage, fresh eggs and hashbrowns, drank not my usual one, but two cups of coffee and stayed in my pajamas until mid-afternoon!  Once I finally decided to don daytime clothing, I took care of some paperwork, got together three bags of clothes to get rid of and even took out the garbage.  That's when I realized how decidedly summery it felt outside.  I got together my things and headed out.  It was a lovely day for walking and being about town.  After getting a few errands taken care of, I had a cup of Tomato Orange soup at Elephant's and read the latest issue of Real Simple.  Now I'm home and you can't imagine how lovely it is to sit and read at this table on an evening like this one.  And, of course, it's needless to say that I am head over heels for our magnolia.  I'd like to give that tree a hug.

Signs of Spring

Can you believe these cherry blossoms?!  They are everywhere and smell amazing.

Our magnolia is coming to life!

Time for a little spring cleaning.

And much to my surprise, my cyclamen decided to bloom!

Early Risers

Getting up early on the weekend is just about my favorite thing to do.  Luckily these days it's easy with the sun streaming in by 7:15.  

By 9 this morning, Joel and I had already enjoyed a nice breakfast at Starbucks on Broadway and were happily walking through Forest Park listening to the birdsong.  We stopped for a little while and watched the tiniest, happiest bird there ever was building a nest out of moss and twigs in a little hollow in a tree.  How lucky we Portlanders are to have a park like that right in the city.

photo from fleurdelys.org

After our walk it was more coffee on 23rd, a few errands and then I spent the lion's share of my afternoon knitting.  My socks are really taking shape!  

The evening began with Indian food and Talk to Her.  I love watching a favorite film again.  Especially when I've forgotten most of what happens.  

Ashland

Here's everything you need to know to spend a delightful, relaxing weekend in Ashland.

{drink}  Noble Coffee Roasting 281 4th Street  

Equally delightful rain or shine.  All beans are roasted in house.  Try the Pompadour.

{shop}  Prize 264 East Main Street  

I wanted to transport every lovely piece and beautiful detail directly into my home.  But I settled for a vintage Paris map, Savon de Marseille Extra Pur Figue and Smith's Rosebud Salve.  

{indulge}  Chozu Bath & Tea Gardens  832 A Street

Troubles seem miles away when your soaking in 105 degree salt water sipping on jasmine tea or sake.  Stay the night in a cottage and snack on healthy japanese fare by the fire for a little après soak.

Larch Mountain

What better way to spend a gorgeous sunny day in Portland than with crèpes for lunch at Chez Machin followed by a 10 mile walk up Larch Mountain.  In fact, it was so gorgeous yesterday that sitting at an outside table at Chez Machin, I was able to bask in the sun in jeans and a t-shirt!  This February spring weather is definitely one of the best things about living in Portland.  Every year we're treated to two weeks of bliss.  I've been in Oregon long enough to know that it's going to get cold and rainy again, maybe until June.  But for now, long live the sun! 

The craggy summit.

It was so clear you could see (l to r) Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier and Mt. Adams 

Of course, Mt. Hood was grandly beautiful.

Me and Joel at the top!

If you'd like to walk up Larch Mountain, just take I-84 east from Portland to exit 18 toward Lewis and Clark State Park/Oxbow Regional Park, Turn left at Crown Point Highway, Continue on Historic Columbia River Highway, Continue on SE Hurlburt Road, Slight Left on SE Littlepage Road, Slight Right on SE Louden Road, then follow signs and Turn Right at E Larch Mountain Road.  You can park at the closure gate at milepost 10 and walk up Larch Mountain Road the remaining 5 miles to the Sherrard Viewpoint.  The road reopens sometime between May and July and then you can drive all the way up.  Walking is much more fun, though!  The view looks way better when you've earned it.  

Judy's Magic Cast-On

My first knitting class is complete, and now all I want to do is knit. However, I'm starving, so I must stop and eat. But first, a little blog update and a few pics.

Class was amazing. Our instructor taught us Judy's Magic Cast-On which is truly magical. It results in a purl row once cast-on is complete, leaves no edge or seam on the toe and is a complete snap! I decided to get bamboo circulars instead of metal because I hate the feel of the metal ones. I'm hoping I'll warm up to the metal ones later. I also had to go back to throwing because learning a new skill on little tiny needles while simultaneously practicing a new technique proved difficult. I'll still practice continental on a felting project I've got going now at home because ultimately that's how I want to knit. For now, I'm very happy with my latest foray into knitting and simply bursting with ideas of things to make on those wonderful circular needles. What a lovely afternoon!

A little blooming jasmine waiting for class to start.

A fun sign.

And the best part about being in a knitting shop: the incredible colors.

Oooh!

Bring on the socks.

Today I'm starting a knitting class at Twisted which is conveniently located just three blocks from my apartment. I cannot wait to learn how to knit toe-up socks on two (!) circular knitting needles. This morning I got online and watched a few videos of knitting basics because I realized I had pretty much forgotten everything I already know about knitting. I refreshed myself on how to cast-on and then learned some new tricks. Not remembering anything has its upside, I discovered! This morning, I officially converted from being a "thrower" or "English" knitter, to being a "picker" or "Continental" knitter. That definitely would not have happened were I well entrenched in the habit. Rah!

Doesn't that buttery yellow yarn just make you feel all fuzzy inside?

Class doesn't start for an hour so I'm going to get out, enjoy some of this sunshine and play with my camera. À bientôt!

friday afternoon...

The past week went by so quickly it's almost as if it never existed at all. I'm thrilled to be feeling better and happy that the time I was sick was somewhat "productive" given that I discovered a couple of new blogs I find very inspiring and had a lot of time to think. Joel gets major points for taking good care of me while I was sick, including busting out the Comet, scrubbing the bathtub and making this happen.

One of the new blogs I'm smitten with is The Awesome Summer Journal which I blogged about here. The other one is wikstenmade. Jenny Gordy of wikstenmade is completely adorable and I intend to hijack her eyebrow shape as soon as humanly possible. Her clothing designs are impeccable and reading her blog just fills me with feelings of sunshine, farm fresh eggs and green green grass. Don't ask me why, it just does.
I learned via The Awesome Summer Journal about a little thing called "bokeh" which is the blurry, out of focus part of a picture. I had to take photos while paying attention to this phenomenon at once! And I knew just what to try it on. The perfect pansies in my window box that I'm unabashedly in love with.

But I believe it's really more dramatic at night, so I just tried a few more in the twilight that's glowing over Portland right now. It's definitely tricky to get the camera to see what I see and focus on the right part. It always wants to go to the background. Then once I get it to focus it's delicate to hold the shutter release half way down while framing the shot. Still, I can tell this is going to provide hours of fun. And what a relief! When I bought my G10 back in August, I had this lingering doubt that I had bought way more camera than I'd ever make use of. Turns out, not so!

This photo is probably the best of the lot. And while I wasn't entirely satisfied with it, it did occur to me that my neighbors may think I'm trying to take pictures through their windows and I felt compelled to stop.

I wish you all a lovely Valentine's Day. To celebrate, Joel and I are going to Chozu Bath and Tea Gardens in Ashland. I can't wait to spend two days doing nothing but soaking in a hot, therapeutic salt water pool, reading magazines and books and walking around adorable Ashland. Three cheers for the three day weekend! See you back here Monday.

A few beautiful things...

Expect today to be a day filled with many posts. I am still sick and lying in bed with a hot cup of tea and my laptop is a good thing to do when sick. I can watch a movie in my bed, or read the New York Times in bed. Or pay bills in bed. Or check facebook and email in bed. Then when I'm ready for a nap, I just set the laptop aside and snooze. Now that I'm not writhing in pain, getting my strength back is almost pleasant. Except when I swallow. Or sweat feverishly. Or can't snooze due to nausea. But at least the majority of the body pain and headache are gone. If you have not experienced Strep Throat as an adult, learn more about this hellish misery here.

But onto the beautiful things.

Wouldn't this be a lovely bed to snooze in? I am a ridiculously devoted west elm admirer. Their aesthetics just resonate on every level with me. And I love the vocabulary they put with this bedding set: Tailored, Tidy, Terrific! What glee! It's enough to put a spring in your step and how I'm dreaming of spring.

Photo from westelm.com

Another beautiful thing that I cannot find one fault with is La Compagnie de Provence Savon de Marseille Extra Pur. I like the modern bottles and clean lines and this stuff lathers like you wouldn't believe. I am in the process of justifying the price tag on the rose soap in the glass bottle. Given that I will never get sick of it, and the refill is much more reasonable, I think it's a worthy investment. Lovely.

Photo from lcdpusa.com

And now it's time for me to take a little nap.

Get a Grip!

I was so completely inspired by this photo when I saw it. For several reasons, but we'll get to that in a minute. It came from The Awesome Summer Journal, a blog by a woman who lives freakishly close to where I live. Weird! And it makes it extra fun to read her blog because I know all the streets she's talking about, and restaurants and all that. This picture was taken on the Hawthorne Bridge. See more here.

But the reason that this picture really inspired me is this: I get so bogged down with teaching and how demanding it is and how tired Joel and I always are by the time we get off of work that I don't even take advantage of this amazing city I'm living in. My first thought upon seeing this photo? What's the point of living so close to everything if you don't even bother to get out and walk around? Exactly. So, if there's one good thing about being sick, it's that by the time you're well enough to sit up and think a little bit, you discover a sliver of time that didn't exist before and you use it to get new perspective on life. Maybe that's why I get sick so frequently. I need more perspective. Huh. Well, anyway, I would like to enjoy my life more than I do, and I'd also rather not be so rushed and overwhelmed the majority of the time.

I think I will make a list.

Sick Weekend

I suppose it's a good thing that I didn't have any set plans this weekend. I'm terribly sick with strep throat and have done absolutely nothing since it began Friday night. It's hard to believe how nasty and painful strep throat is. I've been on the antibiotics for 24 hours now and yet I feel worse than I did yesterday. The doctor said even with antibiotics it could be 4 or 5 days before I start to feel better. It's miserable. The fevers, the pain, the absolute and total fatigue. At least I have a really cozy bed and a good supply of ibuprofen. And Joel is taking good care of me. But my weekend was taken from me. No grocery shopping and cooking, no leisurely mornings drinking coffee, no meeting up with friends, no fun at all. Just the foggy headed feeling of a high fever, difficulty sleeping and squirming from pain. Sad. I really hate being sick.

A Few Things...

First off, don't these carnations just make you smile?! I am completely obsessed with pink carnations, and with Weck Jars. They really do make a delightful combo. Yum!In other news, I just ordered a new battery for my laptop. My computer might be described as a dinosaur by some, given that it is a 2004 Powerbook G4, but I'm telling you, aside from being a little slow, this thing is going strong! At least for what I need it for. A little email here, some blogging there, Facebook, MS Word and Excel, printing some stuff now and then. Do I really need a super fast computer? No! But it is a pain that it always has to be plugged in and that every time I do unplug it, I have to reset the clock when I start up again. So, I got a new battery off of eBay for a mere 35 bucks. Rah! Over the years, I've loved this little computer. I added RAM at one point. Nice! I installed Leopard. Yes! I am with the times. I even got a new hard drive when the old one went kaput on me. Not so fun. But, luckily, the computer started acting up and gave me advance warning so I got all my photos burned onto cds before the big crash. Excellent! And it was very inexpensive to replace the hard drive. I have really gotten my money's worth out of this thing - and without putting that much into it. Why is this relevant to my blog? Well, I am hoping that having more mobility with my computer will make it easier to update more often.

Over the past few weeks, I've been busy with a project. I decided to completely rearrange our living room and dining room a few weeks ago. I didn't really realize what a crazy decision this was at the time, which is probably a good thing. I might never have begun if I had realized what I was taking on. I must admit though, I love doing interiors and I'm having heaps of fun. HEAPS! Here are a few before pictures for your perusal.Looking from the northeast corner of the apartment toward the bedroom and entry hallway.Looking south from the northeast corner into the kitchen.The view east from the archway to the bedroom and entry hallway.

Basically, I decided to flip-flop the arrangement of these elements. Here are a few pictures in progress.

Yikes!Oh my! What have I done!? Don't worry, it's working out fine. Once I have the place spiffed up and ready to have some girlfriends over tonight, I will take a few photos so you can see the finished product. What fun!

Out of Time

Sometime in early to mid-November when my December issue of Sunset magazine arrived, I was really taken in by an article titled Kanella Christmas by Joyce Maynard. Her cookies, the Kanellas, sound absolutely amazing, and I've been fancying her Kanellas my signature cookie every since. I've gone so far as to tell many friends about these fabulous cookies I'm going to make and give to coworkers and loved ones alike. I've described them and their adorable, stubby, misshapen form. I've even imagined myself years from now eating a lovely Kanella and thinking I really hit the nail on the head back in 2009 when I found that Kanella recipe. They're just right, I imagine myself thinking then as I do now. Timeless, simple, yet surprising.

Keep in mind I have yet to taste a Kanella. I can tell you that the recipe seems like a good one and that the picture on page 76 of this month's Sunset is adorable. It's just I don't seem to have enough time. And while I know everyone says that, as the year draws to a close this is something that is really troubling me. Over the past week, I finally got through all of my obligations for work and now it's 9pm and the Kanellas take two hours. I have the whimsical jars to present them in, charming gift tags and all the ingredients in my kitchen. It's just not going to happen tonight.

I have to go to bed now. 26 children need me to be full of energy for them tomorrow. Maybe I'll just lug all the ingredients in to school and make the Kanellas with them. Now there's an idea. Besides, I can't risk everyone going on a diet and not eating them come January!

Fall 2009

Winter is almost here. Sometimes it's almost hard to believe how much change actually takes place during the fall. From the bright yellow sunlight and bold blue skies of hot summer days, to warm orange sunlight, red leaves and long shadows on crisp fall days we somehow arrive at cool blues, icy greys and low white sunlight hovering on the horizon. I cherish the changing of the seasons, but I'll admit, fall is definitely my favorite.

Life Lessons

I've made a resolve to relax more and stress less. I made a list of activities that help me de-stress and a list of those that actually make me stress more. In an effort to stress less, I've set the goal of doing at least two de-stressing activities each week. This afternoon, I drew myself a hot bath with bath salts and candles, got a glass of water and the December issue of Real Simple. It was wonderfully relaxing. Especially when I got to this article. It's a good one, and definitely made me feel like I'm on the right path these days. Photo from realsimple.com