November 29, 2008

  • Thanksgiving Weekend Fun Update

    Yesterday, we got up extra early, but not to go shopping, but to take the kids to Chattanooga!  It is about a two hour drive.

    First stop was Ruby Falls, an underground waterfall inside a cavern in Lookout Mountain.

    Next stop was Rock City, a labyrinthine stone garden on top of the mountain.  From the very top you can see seven states, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina, Kentucky, and two others.  It reminded me of Rockome Gardens but with venture capital.

    Around 1:30pm / 12:30 central, it was time for lunch, so we drove downtown and had barbecue at Sticky Fingers.  They were short staffed so one of the operating owners took our orders and served us. 

    Finally, we visited the Tennessee Aquarium.  The first building is devoted to ocean life and a butterfly garden on the very top.  The second building has many more exhibits and focuses on river life.  I highly recommend visitng this place and taking a whole day to see everything. 

    What a full day! 

    Thankfully, today, I was able to sleep late... woke up at 7:00 am.

    We are planning to take the kids to visit their grandparents in Waverly, but we may go by way of Clarksville.  No, we are not taking the last train.

    Tomorrow, maybe see a movie?  We are taking it one day at a time.

November 28, 2008

  • Thanksgiving Update

    Yesterday, we stayed with Chuk's parents and hung around Waverly (small town west of Nashville).  We learned how to make "Chess Pie" also called "Vinegar Pie."  It's very sweet and rich.

    Today, we drove them to Chuk's sister's & her husband's place for Thanksgiving.  We had a delicious meal with them and their kids while we watched football.

    Tomorrow, we are taking the kids to Chatanooga to the aquarium and Rock City.

November 23, 2008

  • First Full Day in Nashville Update

    We flew from Portland, OR to Nashville, TN yesterday.

    Today, we took Chuk's niece and nephew to Nashville's
    Adventure Science Center.

    They have a very new planetarium and we got to see an interesting star show through which I kept falling asleep.  I blame jet lag.

    We ate at four different restaurants.  

    Chuk and I had lunch at a nearby Mexican restaurant and the kids just poked at their french fries.

    Then we stopped at Sonic for a shake and popcorn chicken for the niece. 

    After the visit to the museum, we stopped at BK for a kids meal for the nephew.

    And later that evening, we all went out to a nice family restaurant for a steak and spaghetti dinner

    Tomorrow, we drive to the country to visit Chuk's parents for a few days.

October 4, 2008

  • Portland Exercise Update

    When I was living in San Francisco, I drove to work 4 days a week (average 45 minutes each way) and worked from home one day a week.  And if you remember I was exercising using the Yourself Fitness application


    When I was living in the apartment in downtown Portland, I walked about ten blocks each way to work.  Now that I take a bus to work, I walk about five or six, with a 30 minute bus ride in the middle. 


    Last night I decided I would start exercising again using the Yourself Fitness application starting in the morning.


    That morning is this morning and I just finished a 15 minute aerobic workout.  It feel good to work up a sweat.


    Now to take a nice shower and get ready for the day.

September 21, 2008

  • Unpacking Update

    38 boxes unpacked out of 110.  No boxes in the main bathroom or kitchen.  It is what it is.

    After many weekends of searching, we found and bought a dining room table and a buffet / server from an antique / second hand store.  They should be delivered on Monday.  That means we have to clear things out of the dining room to make room for this stuff.

    Giving up on finding cheap patio furniture as the season is gone and so are the sales.  It rained last night and the tree in front is starting to shed.  Autumn is truly upon us.

August 31, 2008

  • Day 2 of 3 Day Weekend Update

    No, you didn't miss yesterday's update cause there was not one... until now.

    Friday, after work, we went to my co-worker's house for a party.  We had fun, but after I got home, I was very tired so I went to bed early.

    Saturday, I slept until 7:00 am, when the bedroom got too light for me to keep my eyes closed.  Most of the morning, I did about 6 loads of laundry of clothes and sheets we had used as packing material as well as clothes we had worn the week previous.  We visited a few furniture shops and had lunch at a fish and chips place.  It was very tasty.  We also visited a local chocolate shop.  You must stop by if you are in town.  We did more laundry in the afternoon, had an early dinner, then visit our friend's house to play Rock Band.  We got back home at midnight and went straight to bed.

    Sunday, I think I woke up around 7:00 am again and did two or three more loads of laundry.  We watched an ep. of Clean House (not with Ms. Niecy, sadly, but the new guest host has more pizzaz than last season's guest host).  For lunch we went one of the local Vietnamese restaurants, and had planned to do a bunch of unpacking after we got back.  Unfortunately, I began suffering from a sinus headache so I had to lie down for a number of hours.  I even switched the curtains in the bedroom to block out more of the light so I could rest. 

    Thankfully, after some ibuprofen and some quiet time, I got better.  By that time, Chuk had left for his game, so I unpacked a couple of boxes found some more curtains for the dining room.  I also set up the "grandmother clock" on the mantle in the living room, wound it up, set the time and got it going.  I will probably have to adjust the pendulum a couple of times to make sure it keeps proper time.   Dinner was salad and leftover chicken  & grapes.

    Tomorrow, I think we are unpacking more boxes.  My goal was to unpack 10 a day.  So far, the average has been about 3.

August 16, 2008

  • TGIF Update

    I can't believe it's Friday already!


    Parents arrived on Tuesday and they and Chuk have been working on the back yard a lot.  They cut back a lot of overgrowth on the lilacs, the bamboo and some of the kiwi trees.   This morning, the trash and recycling people took away 5 huge bags of clippings. 


    It was really hot yesterday and today.  Whereas we had been using fans to pull air out of the house because of the chemical smell from the hardwood floors being refinished, we are now keeping everything closed up tight so two  air conditioners can keep everyone from roasting alive.


    This evening, we went to Pho Ton for a light meal.  Yes, that's the restaurant's real name and it's a 2-3 block walk from the house.  I enjoyed my crispy egg rolls and my shrimp / calamari salad, but my mother's food left her underwhelmed.   Still its convenient so we will probably go back again and again.

August 13, 2008

  • Unpacking Update

    We made it safely to Portland on Saturday afternoon and by 7:00 pm, all our boxes were out of the truck and in the house. 


    We had a delicious dinner at the Hawaiian cafe, Ohana, on Sandy Blvd, then we made a short trip to Fred Meyers (similar to an upscale local Walmart) to get a few things, including a couple of fans.


    While we were in San Francisco, we had the wooden floors sanded and refinished.  I say wooden floors because the floor in the kitchen is fir, a softer wood, while the rest of the main floor has oak.  The upstairs is also fir but we didn't have it done because I think I want carpet. 


    Anyway, because of the finish, it smelt of chemicals so we need to have fans pulling air out of the rooms.  The next day we went back and bought two more box fans.


    But I get ahead of myself.  Sunday, we stopped by the apartment and gathered what we could and put it into the truck.  Then we went by a friend's house to pick up stuff he was storing for us there.  We also played some D&D.  It was fun.  Then we went back to the house and unloaded stuff.


    We were going to have dinner at one of the local restaurants but it was closed so we got some food from Safeway instead.


    Monday, I went to work.  After work, I went to the apartment to pack more stuff, which we loaded into the car and took away.  There's still stuff in the apartment, but its mostly books, a lamp, a night stand, papers, yarn, clothes, and all the plates, utensils and mugs I used while living in the apartment.   Really, its not that much...


    Today, my parents arrived.  We had dinner at another local Vietnamese restaurant.  They went to bed early and Chuk and I unpacked a bunch of kitchen stuff.  There's still a mountain of boxes in the guest room and the living room and a bunch upstairs in the bedroom.


    Unfortunately, I have to work, so my parents will tool around with Chuk tomorrow.  They expressed interest in seeing Powells and Multnomah Falls. 


     

August 9, 2008

  • Miles to Go Update

    Actually, we did go the miles and we are now resting comfortably inn the comfort in inn Medford.

    Last night, we packed and packed until 11:00 pm. 

    This morning, we woke up at 5:00 am, got ready and went to the truck rental place by cab at 7:00 am..  Chuk didn't want to move the car since it was in a prime location for loading it up.

    We got back and the moving guys were already there waiting for us.  From 7:30 to about 10:15 am they crammed our two bedroom apartment into a 17 foot truck.

    Unfortunately, there were a few things that didn't get loaded so we gave them to the guy that works in the laundromat, including four doughnuts that didn't get eaten by the moving guys.

    We cleaned the place, talked to the landlord and gave him back the keys and were on the road by about 1:30 pm.

    I drove the car; Chuk, the truck.

    We had "lupper" or "dinch" at Granzellas in Wilson and I picked up a few bottles of olives and what not.

    Then we drove in the same vehicles as before and I made it up to Medford by about 9:30 pm.  Chuk got here about about 30 minutes later.  

    Tomorrow we wake up early and then drive the rest of the way to Portland, OR.