Oregon

My dad’s parents live in Eugene and I don’t make it to the west coast often enough. My last visit with them was to Arizona where we admired the desert and red rocks areas as well as getting me to my first viewing of the Grand Canyon. While a fantastic trip, it is always good to see Eugene. They still live in the house my dad grew up in and I always get a new story about how my dad got into trouble. I also love the garden’s my grandmother keeps and a fantastic fountain Grandpa built from lava rocks – it looks so natural you can’t believe it hasn’t always been there except for the fact it’s back is a fence.

Anyway, a fairly uneventful trip on Delta landed me in Eugene’s own airport where I blew by them as I headed to baggage. They did manage to catch a picture of me flying by. Luckily they like my driving, so I got to make up for not having a car in NYC while Grandpa got a chauffer.
We managed to fit a lot into a few days – a trip to the coast to see the new exhibit at the aquarium was fantastic. We had stormy seas and had a lot of great wave action along the rocky coast. Also, we got to swing by my great grandparent’s farm, which still bears their name. Grandpa took us on a tour of the Oregon campus to look at the new buildings (home of the Ducks). Aunt Helen had us over and backed a pie for each person present. Plus Grandma and I brought over fresh baked cookies. There might be too much of a good thing. I even learned to clean up after a car (no dripping water allowed in the garage!).

I got to try the food at some of their favorite haunts and I have to say the roast beef sandwich was fantastic. My favorite meal was the Thanksgiving dinner Grandma made. She had already made a fantastic rhubarb and pumpkin pie but added turkey, a nice thick gravy and, of course, dressing. And a feast wouldn’t be a complete meal without potatoes so we had candied sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes. Pretty tasty! Of course breakfast was pretty enjoyable too – hot chocolate and Grandma’s canned cherries (see Hounds in the Kitchen for the recipe).

My last full day we actually chased a rainbow and found its end for a minute before it jumped away from us again. Since a picture is worth a 1000 words here are some to finish up.

Since it was rain season there, my flight out was almost was cancelled for rain and fog but they managed to get me out and on my way home. My new suitcase (a Zuca) did well and provided me with a seat during the layovers. It even managed to fit in my purchases for the trip back.

Quote of the Post:

I'm a Medford man - Medford, Oregon. Up in Medford, we take our time making up our minds.
- Mr. Jackson, in Double Indemnity (1944)