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Friendship Day dinner

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Having gone through a couple of disastrous Valentine’s Days over the past 13 years, my partner and I don’t really celebrate the holiday. We usually go out for dinner and celebrate Martin Luther King Day instead, both because we find it to be a much more valuable commemoration and because it’s closer to the anniversary of the start of our relationship.

At any rate, this year we decided to do something a little different: we went to a church dinner. The town Church of the Brethren was having a spaghetti dinner on Saturday night, donations only, that included live music. Our friends were game to join us, so we dubbed the evening a Friendship Day celebration and away we went.

The dinner itself was actually very nice, with tasty food and a warm atmosphere. The folks putting it together had worked hard on all the details: there were flowers, candy dishes, pink and red lights, and all the servers were wearing lace-trimmed heart-shaped aprons. If the Peace Pole outside the front door hadn’t been enough to sway us, this last—seeing a middle-aged man cheerily taking orders in a lace-trimmed heart-shaped apron—led to the consensus at the table that ‘these are good people.’ The music was by Don’t Tell Bob, an area band who played a mix of spirituals and folk songs that leaned toward what I would call bluegrass but may have a different designation out here.

All in all, it was a nice evening. As he commented when we got home: it was the kind of thing we would have been mortified to be seen at with our parents as teenagers, gone to in our early twenties because we couldn’t afford anything else, been too busy out living it up a few years ago to be bothered with, and that we now both genuinely enjoyed now.

So, I hope you had a warm and happy Friendship Day. I know we did!

Friendship Day dinner

the ice storm goeth

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We must have been perfectly prepared for the storm: in line with Murphy’s Law, we didn’t even get any actual ice. Snow, sleet, freezing rain, slush, some wind. That’s it.

Nothing like what we remembered from Indiana 17 years ago. Which was, you know, good. I’m sure my foresight will be duly rewarded on some other occasion, hopefully one that doesn’t threaten life or limb.

the ice storm goeth

the ice storm cometh

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As far as I can tell, we’re as prepared as we can be for the ice storm expected to hit the DC area any minute now. It’s supposed to rain and freeze all night, and I fully expect to wake up to a house without power. Our town is full of trees: lots of beautiful old trees growing under, over, on and around power lines. When we moved in last spring, one of our neighbors told us that anytime there’s weather in this region that causes power outages, it’s pretty much guaranteed that our town will be out.

So, we’re expecting to deal with that tomorrow, although I’m prepared to be pleasantly surprised. The best case scenario would be if we had power and yet the federal government was closed, but I’m not holding my breath for that one.

At any rate, we have food, we have water, we have batteries, flashlights, candles, matches, two snow shovels, fire starter sticks (but no firewood; I’m hoping to rely on neighbors if that becomes necessary), a battery-powered radio, and a carton of rice milk. The biggest challenge will be getting coffee; I’m hoping it won’t come to making it with hot water from the tap (our water heater runs on gas). But if that’s what I have to do, that’s what I have to do.

the ice storm cometh

Cape Meares, Oregon

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On my trip to Oregon last month, I was eager to visit the coast, and chose Cape Meares as the destination for a day trip. Although Cape Meares is best known for its offshore nesting bird colonies, it’s also lovely in the winter. We hiked a short trail from the lighthouse, through old growth, and then toodled on down the coast to Netarts and along the Tillamook River to check out the winter sights.

All of the below photos were taken on my seven-year-old Yashica T4, which I still love and am relying on again during this time of waiting for my Konica to come back from the shop.


Three Arches Rock, from the trail.


Cavity in a tree stump.


Snow on the trail.


Walking between huge old trees.

View of the ocean, from the trail.


Snow-covered moss on a tree trunk.


Trail, on the way back down.


Last view of the ocean, before heading back to the lighthouse.


Beach at Netarts.

Cape Meares, Oregon

dining room

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I’d known from the time we moved in that I wanted to paint the dining room two shades of yellow, but it took a long time to find the colors that matched the image I had in my head. In the end, we went with ‘Golden Yellow’ on the upper section, and ‘Bicycle Yellow’ on the bottom half (both from Ralph Lauren, much to my chagrin). We did the actual painting in December, finishing up just in time for our housewarming party on the 17th.


Dining room paint job, upper half complete.

Halfway through the first coat, the upper yellow looked really dark, next to all the white on the other walls. We had some challenges with this paint, as one gallon wasn’t mixed properly, and had little clumps of pigment floating throughout. Rather than taking it back (the choice I will definitely make in the future), we mixed the two gallons together and then smoothed, smeared, and picked out with toothpicks the clumps of pigment as they appeared on the roller and walls. As a result, we suspect that the walls are lighter than, and not a true match with, the intended color. We like it this way, though, so it worked out well.


Dining room paint job, front corner.


Dining room paint job, door to kitchen.

Particularly when I was just starting to paint the lower section, the yellow looked really brassy, and notably more green, compared to the yellow on the upper part of the room. Again, it looked the worst when I’d only edged it; once the third coat went on, it looked pretty good. We’re used to it now, and of course much of it is blocked from view by furniture, a ficus tree, and paintings. Nonetheless, it’s still quite bright, and it’s lovely in the morning with the sun coming in that side of the house.

Completing this room has had the unforeseen effect of making the rest of the house look very dull. I’ll get to work painting the living room just as soon as I pick a color.

dining room