When you are not very familiar with their whereabouts

Just as the week before, when G and I tried to buy our roasted chicken from these pop-up stalls dotted around town, the cues were enormous. We drove around town in the heat last week trying every rotisserie stand we could find and they’re not easy to locate when you’re not too well acquainted with their whereabouts. Some are set up outside boulangeries, some outside fruit vendors, we drove for half an hour until we found another. We didn’t know last week about reserving chickens either. As I waited patiently in the cue, reprimanding an old cyclist who thought nothing of pushing in and eyeballing a woman who had the same intentions, we were told after fifteen minutes that unless we’d reserved a chicken, there were none left and we’d go without. One friendly lady told us where we could find some more that would be ready at 1.30pm but after smelling crispy and juicy chickens all morning with garlicy sautéd potatoes, we couldn’t wait any longer. We tried a butcher, no such luck. We were resigned to our fate and opted for slices of cold roast beef instead and warm, freshly-baked baguettes from the baker next-door.

They are free

After one and a half months of getting used to their new home Betty and the girls were ready to go free range this weekend.  I had been dreading this because when I first got them they escaped and it took ages and a lot of trouble to get them back into their cage.

I was assured by Alf who gave me the chickens that after a month they would have settled down and I would not have a problem getting them back into their cage.  So early on Saturday morning I released them into the wild to go foraging.

I noticed that they are no longer afraid of me and that they may even like me a bit now.  In fact they come when I call and I can get them to follow me.  I even took them to the compost heap to go scratching for worms. They followed me all in a row while I made chicken noises and scratching sounds.

The universe is how? And, dream?

I like this kind of magical feeling!

My favorite food and beer

Despite our reservations, let’s not lose sight of the things that have changed. Again, I can only speak for Leeds and its environs, but I’m seeing much more Beer and Food interest – especially in the last two years. I personally have run formal meals at  Dough Bistro, and a few more informal events all with varying degrees of success. People come, are interested, speak to you and genuinely want to know more. What’s more, they go away either buying a bottle of what they’ve tasted or askig for it when they sit down to eat next. In the case of Dough, people were paying to come and eat -and both events that we ran sold out. People were, and are, interested.

He is a proud man

Who would have thought? Not me, not in this lifetime. I grew up with Jack Ramsay and Mike Schuler and Rick Adelman (whose family goes to my former church back home). I remember when I was a kid and my mom took my sisters and I to the grand opening of the new Fred Meyer store in Beaverton. I wanted Jack Ramsay’s autograph on a day when actress Farrah Fawcett was also there for the opening, I have no idea why. But by the time we got there, Farrah’s limo was leaving with her in it and Dr. Jack was gone, with only a few people wanting his autograph so I guess he cut out early.

Since then the NBA has gotten bigger and richer, and since then, the Blazers have also had P.J. Carlesimo, Mike Dunleavy and Maurice Cheeks as head coaches. Then came maybe the best hire of all, Nate McMillan. At least it was at the time.

Well, McMillan made it almost seven seasons before the Blazers fired him last week. The guy they replaced him with on an interim basis? Canales.

Good beautiful place!

Yesterday was a beautiful day here in NEPA – 80 degrees, perfect for ice cream, fishing and photography. Say no more.

Find the answer?

You can see he's doing? In fact in each has his own answer! I think you also.