Flat Stanley

My niece sent me Flat Stanley in the mail. She asked me to take pictures of Stanley's adventures in Portland for a class project (she is in the second grade). Here is a picture of Stanley on a boat dock at Willamette Park. The Portland skyline is in the background.

Earth Intruders

Bjork’s appearance on SNL last Saturday refreshed my recollection of how absolutely awesome Bjork is. She performed Earth Intruders. I purchased this song from itunes tonight, and I have listened to it at least ten times so far. It is wonderfully addictive. Toe-tapping, futuristic, and tribal all at the same time. I can picture her stomping and dancing as I listen to it. She is an Icelandic oddity, as is this song. I love it; however, I have no idea what it means.

We are the earth intruders, we are the earth intruders, muddy with twigs and branches. Turmoil. Carnage. We are the earth intruders, we are the paratroopers. . . Here are the earth intruders, with our feet thumping, with our feet marching, grinding the skeptics into the soil. Shower of goodness coming to end the doubt—pouring out. . . Necessary voodoo.

Whoops

As we just recently started blogging again after a long break, we moved temporarily to a new URL. All was going well until one of our friends pointed out that there was a very similarly titled website with material on it that we may not want our blog to be too closely related to-- (think cross dressing, and other various trans-gender goodies, Portland style). We changed the url quickly, and decided to stick with the old one. Hence the back and forth for those of you who are paying attention.

I'm a Lumberjack and I'm OK

A pine tree in our yard died, so we had to chop it down. The tree was 36 years old (we counted the rings) and about 40 feet tall. The actual chopping (felling?) was quite a spectacle, and it brought out the neighbors to watch. Yang bought a brand new Husqvarna chainsaw for the occasion.

It reminded me of the Lumberjack Monty Python skit.

I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK,
I sleep all night and I work all day.

He's a lumberjack and he's OK,
He sleeps all night and works all day.

I cut down trees, I eat my lunch,
I go to the lavatory.
On Wednesdays I go shopping,
And have buttered scones for tea.

I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK,
I sleep all night and I work all day.

He's a lumberjack and he's OK,
He sleeps all night and works all day.

I cut down trees, I skip and jump,
I like to press wild flowers,
I put on women's clothing,
And hang around in bars.

I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK,
I sleep all night and I work all day.

He's a lumberjack and he's OK,
He sleeps all night and works all day.

The Cat Crapper

Yang hates cat litter. (Does anyone really like litter?) In our old house, we kept the cat litter in the upstairs guest bathroom. Despite the fact that I cleaned it out daily, we could still smell the litter. Yang vowed that in our next house, the litter would go outside. I pointed out that our cats wouldn't use a litter box that was located in a cold place and would likely find someplace inside to do their business. Thus, the cat crapper came about. Yang built a cat house in the garage for the litter, complete with carpet and drywall. To top it off, he put a heat lamp inside so it is nice and warm for the cats. They love it.

Some Introductions

This is Freya and Gollum

A League of Our Own

Yang took me bowling for one of our first dates back in March or April of 1998. I bowled somewhere around 160, which was very uncharacteristic. (I’m usually happy if I break 100). Unfortunately, Yang did not know that was uncharacteristic and felt threatened when he scored less than I did.

We have bowled many times since then, and Yang has beaten me every time. However, the first impression stuck. He thinks I am a fierce bowling competitor. Whenever we go bowling with friends, Yang talks about how I’m an expert bowler and everyone should watch out. Sadly for me, I usually place last or close to last in the group. Ah, good times.

Here is a picture of us at the bowling alley with our friends, the Melansons. Yang scored 168 and I scored 115.

The Great Home Remodel Project

Yang and I bought a new home in February. It is an old fixer-upper. Yang is a home remodel pro. He has already tackled the plumbing (replacing the galvanized pipe with copper), the main bathroom, and the guest bedroom. I try to help, but I mostly get in the way.

The house is located much closer to work and downtown. We used to have a 35-45 minute commute. Now we have a five minute commute. The shorter commute has really improved my quality of life. It is lovely.