A Visit from Family and all things Portland

It's been a blissfully busy time here in Portland. The June weather has not been exactly what I expected. After those 90 degree days around Reach the Beach, it got cold and rainy, and except for a few random beautiful days, it has stayed that way.

Mom paid her first visit to Oregon last week, and Aunt Joan and Uncle Joe joined us for part of the trip. Despite the dreary conditions, I had a great time showing them around Portland. We covered a lot of ground in the week mom was here. The obligatory trips to the Gorge and the Coast, the Oregon Zoo, the Rose Garden (seen here), the Japanese Garden, the Saturday market, and of course Powell's books. I didn't want mom to miss out on the weirdness of Portland either, so we spent a little time at the Velveteria, the largest (and only) collection I've ever seen of velvet art. They had it all - the fluorescent room, the nude section, the celebrity wall, and of course the kings - Jesus and Elvis. The owner was a friendly, quirky guy who was happy to share with us the story of each piece - where he'd gotten it (whether a flea market in Mexico or commissioned through a local artist), what he liked about it, why it was arranged the way it was.

As the promise of summer approaches, the town is starting to buzz with events and people who've been cooped up for too long. We are in the middle of the Rose Festival now and were able to see part of the parade on Saturday from the market and on television. It was also fleet week, so we got to watch the Navy ships roll in, holding up drawbridges for several minutes.

This weekend is Cirque du Cycling, Pride Festival, and the beginning of the much anticipated Pedalpalooza! Oh dear. I brought up biking again. Not only that, but after I typed the word "Pedalpalooza", I drifted away to their website to read over the schedule for the thousandth time. Just how obsessed have I gotten with biking, you ask? I bought plastic jewels and a glue gun tonight and decorated my fenders. Do they have a support group for this kind of thing?

Luckily, there are plenty of people in town to share my passion with. Sunday, I took my friend Patty up to Pittock Mansion, probably the steepest ride I've done. She loved it, even though it nearly killed us both. It's hard to imagine I'll be doing it again next week hauling a gallon of coffee and some doughnuts! That's the route we've chosen for our first Cruller Crawl.

A few weeks ago, I did a nice gentle ride out to Edgefield with Candice, Donna, and Nancy. Edgefield used to be the living quarters for poor farmers a hundred years ago. Then it was a nursing home. Now it's a hotel, winery, brewery, pitch and putt golf course, spa, movie theater, and concert venue, and it has several bars and restaurants to enjoy on the grounds. We spent about 6 hours there, then rode the hour back to Donna's house, arriving before the severe thunderstorms rolled in. Candice and I will be heading there again (by car) to see Spoon, Nada Surf, and Presidents of the USA in concert on Friday!

To add to the fun, my old grad school roomie Jim will be paying me a visit this weekend, so I have much fun planned for us, maybe even the World Naked Bike Ride if I can get a few drinks in him! I won't be posting pictures of that, but you might see my bejeweled bike on the website sometime soon.