19 Tuesday Feb 2013
Posted in And Around, Community, Events
12 Tuesday Feb 2013
Posted in And Around, News In
Some faces you just can’t argue with.
Bernie
Bernie was featured, double page, as the leading pup in Gun Dog’s spring 2013 puppy edition of the magazine!
There are other cute pups in there, but since Bernie is our local celebrity, and you can never have enough of cute celebrity pups, here’s more Bernie…
You will note that Max appears in the gallery. That’s because every good pup needs a good old (not so old, but six is a grownup) dog to teach him the ropes.
Bernie and Max share their Troutdale home with Mindy and Noah (anyone with dogs knows why I said it like that). And, because Bernie would never have made the show without Mindy’s good eye and camera, here’s a sampling of her work (and a glimpse of her buried in camo). Mindy is working at the Comfort Inn Columbia Gorge Gateway and going back to school in the fall to further hone her photographic talents.
Congratulations, Bernie and Mindy!
11 Monday Feb 2013
Posted in And Around, Community, Events
Tags
Adult Learning Systems, ALSO, art, event, Grand Opening, Infusion Gallery, oregon, Parris Foley, Troutdale
Infusion Gallery’s grand opening was last Thursday and it was a great event. I stopped in early afternoon to drop off some smaller format Mirror prints, and there was little evidence that there was anything significant waiting in the wings (well, other than Parris showing some minor indications of stress). Five hours later, I walked in at 5:15, figuring it’d be another hour before things really got rolling.
Boy was I incorrect. The gallery was packed with dressed up smiling people, enjoying stellar nibbles and wine, and just generally having a good time. The food was fabulous (sorry you didn’t get any of those little creampuff things that were magically chilled in the middle, but I couldn’t stop), with treats from Riverview and Cheese And Crack (the cheese oatmeal cookies were to die for), and huge chocolate covered strawberries dipped in all sorts of good stuff. The whole event was very nicely done.
I had the honor of holding the end of the ribbon for the cutting (off to the right out of frame in this video. I’m okay with that.), and we’re off! Proceeds from all sales benefit Adult Learning Systems of Oregon (always), and Parris was busy writing up beautiful purchases.
Congratulations, Infusion! Most glad to have you in the community.
Infusion Gallery
305 E Historic Columbia River Highway
Troutdale, OR 97060
503.489.6595
04 Monday Feb 2013
Posted in And Around, Other Side Of The Inside Of The Box
I’m thinking we’re well on our way to spring. On the way down the hill from the evening hike four days ago, I was sitting at the stoplight on the east side of Mt. Hood Community College, and thought my car was blowing up. I turned down the story I was listening to and rolled down the window, because (in limited areas of life) I prefer to confront bad news head on. The light turned green, and as I crossed the intersection and headed past the green space, I realized I was hearing
frogs.
A whole lot of frogs.
Every night since, I have turned down the story I was listening to and rolled down the window. It makes me laugh every time.
The frogs we have around here are teeny tiny green tree-frog-ish types, but boy can they sing.
So if you have a few minutes, after dark, go drive Stark by the creek that runs through the greenspace, slow, or better yet park and walk the new path they put in last summer. Bettin’ it makes you smile, too.
Where to go
Intersection of Stark Street and Troutdale Road
Just behind MHCC and across from Dairy Queen
Meanwhile, go take a look at the National Wildlife Federation photography contest pics I borrowed the featured image for the post from. I won’t spoil the surprise by showing you the owl here.
Victor S. Lamoureux’s frogs are New York frogs, but still. Charming, aren’t they?
22 Tuesday Jan 2013
Posted in And Around, Day Trips, Other Side Of The Inside Of The Box
Tags
beautiful, cold, columbia gorge, Corbett, moon, Sandy River, Troutdale, walk, wind
It has been one wicked windy few days. Utterly beautiful blue skies, frosts in the mornings, and an all around visual delight.
But bundle on up before you go out there, it has been one wicked windy few days.
You would think that those of us who have lived here our entire lives would be used to it. However, I have come to the personal conclusion that there are things you never get used to and will push against to your last breath. For me, the wind is one of those. I’m good with cold, I’m okay with hot (yes, we do get hot. Think back.), but when you add those 52 mph gusts to a 32 degree temp, I’m out. Could I please have the 14.1 degrees straight in calm air? [Want to know where I got that number? Here’s a cool toy for those of us who live in the wind. Wind chill / temp conversion tool. You can thank me later.]
However, I would like to point out a couple bright spots in the midst…
1) You look very healthy when you come indoors (once you get the hair back off of the wrong side of your head and other humans can see your face) with a flattering rosy glow.
2) If you’re having trouble waking up in the morning and getting into your day, save the five bucks for the coffee and just step outside.
3) When you take your dogs up to that stretch between Corbett and Aims for the run down to the river, that calm clear cold under a clear-star-sky moon will absolutely redeem any lingering annoyance with the environment.
Larch Mountain blocks the east wind completely where the dogs and I take our nightly hike to the Sandy River. Completely. We pile into the van in the chaos and drive up the hill, and we step out into pure peace.
“Hey, what do you want from a cell phone in the dark?”
It is such a gift. The waxing moon has lit the trail almost to no-flashlight level, the river is sparkling under the occasional mist, the rocks are beautifully frosted, it’s the perfect temperature for the long hike back up the hill, and everyone else is huddled at home around the woodstove, leaving the trail, and the forest, and the river,
to just us.
It is a good thing.
16 Wednesday Jan 2013
Posted in And Around, Community
Tags
art, Caswell Gallery, Columbia River, Infusion Gallery, Sandy River, Troutdale, West Columbia Gorge Chamber, Ye Olde Pub
The past week I’ve had several occasions to be in town and am reminded how much I love this place. All of it – the sweet little town, the wilder places just outside of town, and my beautiful river. You can have the Columbia – I’ll come look at it, walk by it once in awhile, delight in that magnificent approach to PDX over the mountain, but the Sandy River has my heart. I lived on it for four years, drive by it every day, walk to it 300+ days a year. Love my river.
Anyway, Troutdale this past week.
The West Columbia Gorge Chamber Of Commerce is moving from the house by the arch just across and down the street to 107 on the historic highway. I went in to see Marcia last Wednesday, and she was her usual gracious self, with only a slight underlay of Frantic (moving will do that to you). I was able to get in a couple hours helping her haul stuff Thursday and Friday, and am seriously in love with the house as studio / gallery space. If I win the lottery tonight, it’s all mine.
Photo Rip Caswell
Stopped by the Caswell Gallery to take a look at Rip’s Nimitz sculpture on Wednesday. His son was working on the shoes, which are incredibly more detailed than in this earlier pic. It’s an impressive piece, and worth the stop to watch work in progress. Article on the Pearl Harbor installation is here.
Gulled, my cohort from the hotel across the highway, met me for lunch yesterday at Ye Olde Pub. We talk about having lunch once a month, and it works out to about three times a year. Philly sandwich, fish and (onion-rings-substituted-for-) chips and good conversation. Some of it about work.
Parris sold four more pairs of the Mirror Project earrings (yay!) at Infusion Gallery on Friday, so Gulled and I dropped in, since he hadn’t seen the gallery yet, and I needed to talk to her about more inventory. It is looking SO great. The (big!) workshop for Adult Learning Systems is ready to go, kitchen and art supplies and all, the ALS art is hung (you have to go in to see the new collage work – I’ll get the artist’s name, my brain is its usual sieve). Grand Opening is February 7th, but don’t let that stop you from stopping by prior.
SOLD! : )
Bunches more, but I have to go pick up the pups from their night in the woods, so will post the rest shortly.
Rock your day!
Loree
6:45a P.S. Pups are home and fed and passed out… whooboyhowdy is it foggy up there today – hate it when it’s so dense the highbeams just kick back glare, but gotta use them or you can’t see the inevitable deer in time. (They are beautiful but stupid and slightly suicidal – had to brake hard for only two this morning. Look both ways before you cross the road, dear does!).
Terri Clark image taken (I’m guessing), sometime in the summer and when the sun was up.
The only good thing about getting up early to drive in the 5 a.m. dark to pick up dogs, is that shining light in the black as you come into Springdale. Next drive up that way, make sure you stop at Liz’s Coffee Cabin. I’ve been driving eight miles out of my way to work to get the Big Train Chai latte. 3.50 for the huge one and so so good. Cool thing, too – the punch card isn’t for free coffee. When it’s full, she donates 4.00 to the Corbett Cardinals to support the kids. How hard does that rock?
10 Thursday Jan 2013
Posted in And Around, Day Trips
It rained yesterday for a goodly part of the day. Hard. I know that because Rian and I were tromping around town in it, gathering up site partners and talking to good people. Everyone here understands when you walk in with their informational packet wrapped in plastic, your hair askew, and your makeup running.
It quit, or more accurately slowed, early afternoon. Late afternoon, clear of tasks for the moment, I headed for my daily hike in the woods with a van full of dogs (358.8 pounds in four black-and-tan bodies officially qualifying as a van full). We got there just before 5:00 (the days are getting longer again, have you noticed?), in time to walk the first mile through the forest without a lamp. And when we came out of the woods at the river a mile later than that, there was still enough light at the bottom of the gorge to sit on a wet rock by the river for a few minutes and enjoy the rampage before the late dusk turned to full dark.
It is a function of human, that when you’re in the middle of flourescent and traffic and phones and people all day, you don’t think about what that inconvenient rain and a relatively warm day means in the wilder parts of your world.
The Sandy was running high and loud and beautiful with rain and snow melt. The huge sitting rock at the edge of the beach was six feet out in the river, the boulders at the bottom were gently knocking into each other, the air was crisp and clean and six kinds of jazzed up with ions, the sky had cleared enough to show a swath of stars sparkling in the cold. It takes all of thirty seconds in that environment to wash out a day and drop you into sweet peace. Try it some day, when it’s been raining all day and still might be a little. Hike a muddy trail, get a little wet, take a happy dog, brave the dark. You’ll walk out new, I promise.
LLH
07 Monday Jan 2013
Posted in And Around, News In
Tags
First and foremost, I have been absolutely utterly terrifically negligent in getting around to the fun stuff… please accept my abject apologies for leaving a gaping hole here between pre-Christmas and post-New Years : ). I hope you and 2013 are off on the right foot.
Just found this on my camera from last week at the Delta behind the hotel, and was reminded that (Oregon being Oregon) even in the middle of a stretch of gray, a sweet spot will appear.
…which seems like as good a thought as any for the first post of a new year and so I’ll hush right there.
12 Wednesday Dec 2012
Posted in And Around, Community, Events
The rain cleared for the evening, and the tree lighting and song from Reynolds’ Expressions Honor Choir (plus a visit from Santa, of course), made for a magical opening of the holiday at Troutdale’s First Frday.
Troutdale tree lighting festivities video!
[Apparently I am incompetent at video embedding, so I’m shipping you off to the West Columbia Gorge Facebook page, where they know what they’re doing, to watch. Take a minute, it’ll make you smile. Promise.]
27 Tuesday Nov 2012
Posted in Community, Events, Other Side Of The Inside Of The Box
Shortly on the heels of the single picture posted a couple weeks ago, I got a slew more from Doug Trice, the coach we see most often with athletes at the hotel.
So in the spirit of better late than never… great job, athletes! Coaches, thank you. All, we love having you here.
– Loree and all the staff
Columbia Gorge Gateway 