Backposting

There's a pic of me and my Evil Twin from 3/11 that I posted back in the Goodbyes post, because I just got to it. Them's the breaks when everything has to be unpacked. Hehe enjoy.

Beaverton, OR - our new home

Our balcony overlooks the brook and duck pond. The ducks fly right past our balcony when they leave the pond at night.


Close-up of the duck pond


The entrance to our apartment complex


Our street


The neighboring street


This park is literally a 2-minute walk from our place. It has lots of trees, little creeks, a couple of pretty meadows, a basketball court and a playground.






A cool view of the moon, near home


More to come.....

Woodburn, OR - Wooden Shoe Bulb Farm - Tulip Fest

Every year this bulb farm has a Tulip Fest, where you can come see all their fields of flowers in bloom. It is absolutely stunning. They have huge fields of white and yellow daffodils, too, but there was no place to pull over and snap a pic.

Beaverton, OR - Pics to come

Our internet access has been spotty at best until we better learn the lay of the land, and there has been plenty else to do, but I am eager to post pics of this pretty area and our new home. I'll try to snap some more photos and get 'em posted within the next few days.

Random thoughts - Oregon

We've decided to settle in Beaverton, OR and it's really gorgeous. We just landed an upstairs 1-bedroom apartment in a really quiet neighborhood, with pool, weight room, sauna, recreation room with free cable TV... but best of all, fantastically lush green landscaping... I mean trees, bushes, flowers, squirrels, birds, a brook, a duck pond, and benches to sit outside and enjoy it all - WOW!!!!

And the price? Drum roll please....

Five hundred sixty a month.

You could have some (but certainly not all) of this in L.A., but the rent would be at least a thousand dollars higher. We were blown away, and jumped at the opportunity! We move in next week. We are so excited!!!

Btw the drive up here was amazing! (Mind you, it was rather scary heading up the 5 freeway through the winding mountainous areas in Oregon at night - my advice: stop in Redding, CA for the night, then cross into Oregon and do this hard part during the day.) Once you hit Oregon, at least now during springtime, you start seeing patches of beautiful yellow and white daffodils growing wild in random patches alongside the 5 freeway and everywhere in the towns. They started just north of the California border and continued on all the way up to the Portland area (by the Washington border), so I'm guessing it's a statewide thing. This place is so beautiful and we just love it here.

Goodbyes :-(

Goodbyes, aka "God, we are going to miss these people, and lots of others we may not get to visit before we go."

Here are some pics of us paying some of our dear friends a visit before we go.

Evil twins, or me with the HGIC (Head Geek In Charge) - wearing appropriate headgear for our moving destinations


Shawn and Ed




Ed with offspring, aka "cute objects in viewfinder are much more dangerous than they appear." LOL j/k


Sean and Christine




Frances with offspring and vicious attack bunny.

Preparing to leave for Oregon

We are, at long last, in the last stages of packing and preparing to leave Southern California. We have a couple more people to visit, and I'm waiting for my back (which gave out on me a few days ago) to heal some more before attempting to pack our stuff into the cars. We expect to leave in the next few days. We have applied for Canadian immigration for Nickie, and will most likely settle in the Portland, Oregon area while we await a response. Pictures to come upon our departure, of course.

Next, assuming Nickie gets approved, the plan is to immigrate and purchase an RV (as opposed to trying to import one, and all the associated hassles and fees), then start our full-time RVing. At that point, this blog will fully serve the purpose its web address implies. It'll be the easiest way to find out where we are at any given time. {grin}

Los Angeles, CA - Chinese New Year

We live very close to Chinatown in Los Angeles, and could not resist joining in the festivities in celebrating this Golden Year of the Boar. It was a strange experience for me as I have been connecting with my Chinese heritage, a culture and language that up until recent months, I've known almost nothing about. The celebration was big, bold, beautiful, and fantastic!!

By the way, is it good luck to get your toe licked by a boar in the Year of the Boar?


This is part of a Chinese acrobatics show on one of the entertainment stages at the festival. You may need to click this pic to see it, but this woman is balancing 3 eggs stacked on top of a stick, on the bridge of her nose. No, I'm not kidding. You have to see it to believe it.


I believe that's 21 champagne glasses, on a tray balanced on her forehead, while spinning 2 rings on each arm and a hula hoop around her waist. Told ya, you have to see this to believe it.


Another part of the Chinese acrobatics. This man is repeatedly balancing a teapot on a stick between his teeth, throwing it up in the air, and catching it again... on the end of its spout. And its side. And the bottom. Another "no way" moment.





The same man, putting stacks of porcelain dishes on his feet, tossing them into the air, and catching them in a growing stack balanced on the top of his head. Then putting a curly wire in his mouth and catching some more of them on the wire. Did I mention he's doing all this while riding a unicycle?




A flock of seagulls began circling around the moon, still visible as we waited for the parade to begin at 2:00 p.m. It was a striking scene and I just had to capture it.


There were many beautiful dragons like this throughout the 3+ hour long parade.


A couple more gorgeous pics I managed to take before the camera batteries died.