Travel Filled Father's Day

It seems that this Father's Day has a lot of people I know traveling.  This morning around 7AM my dear friend Michael began his first ever road trip.  I gave a preview of sorts yesterday.  He is driving his Scion and it is one of the first that came out and looked a lot more European than those of recent years.  His is white, but could not find one on the search this morning.

 

Janet, my sister, took a cab to the airport this morning and flew to San Francisco for a conference this week.  She sent the following description yesterday as to what she is going to be involved with this week:

 

At Nueva's world-renowned Innovation Lab (I-Lab), created in partnership with IDEO and Stanford's d.school, hundreds of visitors from around the world have asked, "How can we implement Design Thinking in our schools?"

For five years, we have pioneered the teaching of design thinking to students. We are experts at creating hands-on, project-based, design thinking curricula. Come learn from experienced educators how to implement a similar program at your school.

This institute will enable you and your teams to efficiently create projects that will foster your students' Design Thinking skills, preparing them for the future.

When she gets in this morning she is being met by our cousin Vicki and Aunt Pearl and they are going to have brunch/lunch together and then she will be dropped at her motel.  Later today she gets to see a friend for dinner and then begins her conference tomorrow.  Not a lot of time for sight seeing, but hey, it is a chance to get out of the city for a while.



She gets home on Friday and then turns around on Monday next and heads to Leavenworth for another education conference.  Let the summer season begin.  She is going to be down in Ashland for a visit in July and another possible in August.

Another person traveling is my brother Mike.  He is headed to Lake of the Woods in southern Oregon for a family picnic today and most of his family will be joining him.  He shared in a text this morning that in addition to the picnic, they are going to be boating on the lake.  I have a feeling the water is still too cold for water skiing.  When we were growing up Dad had built a cabin up there and it was our destination on many a summer weekend. 

Many good memories even if we had to use an outhouse and schlep in all the water.  Many mornings we awoke to the smell of the wood burning stove and then Mom would get up and fix us gashouse eggs.  These are called many things by people and it is a slice of bread with a hole cut in the center and the egg cooks in the center hole.  For years we did not have electricity and used lanterns to light the evening interior.  Maybe this is one reason I like the coolness more than the heat as we were often cooler up there.

Even though Dad died in July, 1999 the memories do live on and I was thinking this morning about his helping me with the newspaper route on Sundays and when it rained.  He loved to laugh and oh did he love his sports.  Today is the final round of the US Open Golf Tournament and I happen to look in my closet where I have the golf ball from his hole in one that he sank years ago.  Among his friends he was known as Easy Earl and to us kids, he was Dad.

Now as you have seen up to this point food has not really been mentioned this Sunday as it has the past several.  I did not want to disappoint you and I find it amusing that one of the people who gives me a hard time about all the food descriptions is the very person who provided today's delights.

My sister had her birthday this week and on Friday she and two dear friends Cindi and Deborah went to Kell's on 21st in Portland and had a wonderful dinner together.  Below is main course, Shepard's Pie and I guess all three of them ordered it.

From Kell's menu - Ground beef simmered in Guinness with carrots, onions and peas, baked with a cheddar potato crust. Served with house-made demi-glace.

For dessert Janet's two friends opted for the toffee pudding (above) which - I was told - was quite wonderful and then Janet had the toffee brownie which is directly below.  From the sounds of my sister's comments they had a grand time and plan to repeat it next year!

Before I close I also have to share that last night I was invited over to Jodie and Rob's for dinner where we feasted on New York Strip Steaks and a warm sautéed shrimp salad on a bed of torn iceberg lettuce.  The sauté included shrimp, roasted tomatoes, green onions, sliced water chestnuts, lime and butter plus garlic.  For dessert we enjoyed key lime cake which I completely enjoyed as I had not consumed carbs all day!  Quite the festive night.