Something Pleasant, For a Change

I thought this time I'd just share some nice pictures with you.

Last weekend my sister Missy was here from Phoenix. I had a great time while she was here, but one of the cool things we got to do was walk around and shop in Portland one afternoon with Chiara.

We got lattes and whole beans at Stumptown. That was probably the best latte I've ever had. And look how pretty:


And here was this great mural we saw. It reminded the three of us of many things. It reminded me of Brian Andreas, for one.


Sometimes when I take my walks around Aberdeen I see blackberries growing in people's yards. I know I shouldn't eat berries out of a stranger's yard, but sometimes I do anyway.


Here's this nice old elementary school that's kitty-corner from our place:


And here's some nice lush tree moss:


Nico and I have also gone to the Spar Cafe in Olympia a couple of times. We likes it.



So there you are. Things aren't all bad.

Picturesque

Have I mentioned how picturesque our little town is? It is. Quite. Picturesque. And quaint. There are moments when I think the quaintness might tumble us into a Norman Rockwell illustration. But it's the pituresqueness that strikes me more often than the quaintness. It's almost like the place is auditioning to be part of a David Lynch movie, if you get my drift.



On Thursday night Nico and I were invited to a dinner party our landlord was having. I thought it was a little odd because I've never had dinner or done anything socially with a landlord before, but this landlord is relatively young so we thought why not. There were a couple of women who were probably about my age and who were both from "the Harbor," (as folks call it around here) although one of them works in the South during the schoolyear. The other one has a photography studio here in town. Then there was another couple from CA who've been here three months and bought the huge old house behind us. They're here because of the cheapness of the houses and the proximity to Portland and Seattle. They're trying to get his art out there.

It was really sort of a relief to be able to sit and talk with people - other outsiders, in a way - in a casual environment. There were some weird and awkward moments to the conversation, as I think there often are when you're with new people, but overall it was nice. I don't feel quite as isolated as I did, because now I've at least talked to some people here who are more 'like us.' Not too similar, though. I only hope we made a good enough impression to be included again in the future.

To be honest, we'd quite like to host some dinner parties, but we've still got unpacked boxes and no furniture. Though at least we're a little closer to knowing who we could invite.

Oh, and if you're a foodie like I am, the dinner was quite nice. There was:
green salad with cherry tomatoes and fresh mozzarella, oil and lemon juice dressing
corn on the cob
some kind of crusty bread
olives
skin-on pan seared salmon
a cheese course, two soft (probably a blue) and one hard, but I don't know what they were
And one of the other guests brought a fresh fruit tort she had made. Let me tell you, we are not used to our fruit being that good in AZ. It was fantastic.

Time to start brushing up on my cooking repertoire.