As Promised and More

Man, it has been a while...again. But, here are the promised pictures from my visit to San Diego. Uncle David and Aunt Noreen took us to this Mexican restaurant they have been going to for 11 years or something. They knew everyone's name, exactly what dishes to order, and tequilas to sip. Preceded by a round of Noreen's famous (and surely infamous at times) margaritas at their place made for an excellent time catching up with family with which we don't often get this kind of time. Most excellent. The rest of the weekend was also full of incredible food and romantic walks on the beach, in the city, and myriad adorable small beach towns around SD.

One day before I arrived for our special weekend together, Chip had a surfing accident, split his head open, and had to get seven stitches in the middle of his face....making it impossible for us to surf or get in the water at all aside from a skinny dip on the nude beach (which was also the best beach for running...our initial reason for going....I swear....it was pretty creepy otherwise). But, as it turns out, that was perfect cause surfing is sort of an independent sport and this way I got more time with my best friend.

We snorkeled and kayaked in Lahoya Cove. We didn't get to see the leopard sharks like Chip and Chris did the following weekend, but did catch glimpses of some cool fish, sea lions both on land and in the water, and of course, seals.

Chip's been home now for almost five weeks. Very nice. He caught the end of fall, which he reports was a nice change from the consistent sunny bliss of California. I am glad I got to share at least part of my favorite season with the family back together.





I have been blessed with the most incredible orchid in my life. She has more blooms than any I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying for more than only moments at a store. Aunt Noreen (orchid owner extraordinaire) turned me on to the fact that one of my favorite plants might thoroughly enjoy Portland's cloud filtered sun and humid climate. So far, SO good.





This last photo is just a reminder that Christmas is right around the corner. What happened to Thanksgiving? Well, Chip and I had about the most mellow long weekend together we have ever had. I committed to trying new recipes all weekend- I believe I fit in seven over the weekend (caramelized onions, baba ganoush, bourbon sweet potatoes, sage white bean dip, turkey enchiladas, warm chocolate puddings, and my personal favorite of the run- turkey phu). Next update will probably be the yearly summary. Until then....

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

-Howard Thurman

Tennis to Tap

I have not posted in a long time. Partially because there hasn't been too much exciting going on....but just typing that feels wrong....cause it IS wrong. More truthfully, Chip hijacked the camera and I have never considered posting without pictures. It feels like a cookbook without photos- I am sure there are some good recipes, but it is going to take a real visionary to give it a whirl without the photo to motivate. So, hopefully someone motivates to read this, but if not, I don't blame you. :)

What has been exciting?, you ask. Well, Chip has been in Roseburg and now San Diego on rotations. Three months of only brief moments together for the most part, means lots of time for Audrey to herself. An idle mind is the devil's playground....for me anyway. Depression, anxiety, loneliness...they all smell boredom from a mile away and come set up shop, build playgrounds, and act like they were invited. So annoying. Knowing this, I planned ahead.
Let's just say that next time we visit, perhaps we should fit in a game of tennis, or perhaps, I could perform a tap routine for you. Do you want to know about meditation, or how to raise city chickens? These are also topics I now (or will soon) know something about. Maybe you just want to sit on the front porch and play some blues on the guitar. I am making it sound like I could actually make any of these experiences enjoyable for us. However, in actuality, I think I have tried out so much and only scratched the surface of so many things in the last few months, that I recommend checking in with me in a few more months and seeing what I actually remember or still do (my prediction- tennis and tap). But, for now, it has been fun to explore so many fun things and, although I have missed my husband so much I haven't figured out how to explain it in words yet, I also have managed to keep away unwelcome guests and help the time pass quickly and enjoyably.

There have been other scary and exciting things (cancer, newborns, incredible strength and love) going on in the DuRoss clan in general that have helped me distract from deciding to throw myself a grand ole pity party about my partner being gone temporarily. Oh and, I don't think I have previously mentioned that at the end of August I also got a new job- same agency. I am now the full time child and family therapist at Milwaukie High School. This is a new program which means I have been responsible for growing a caseload and defining routines and roles within the new working relationships. So far, so good for the most part.

I get tired....and also excited...when reading this entry! There HAS been a lot going on. Life is so abundant. I feel so grateful.


"Sorrow shared is halved, and joy shared is DOUBLED!"
-Native American Saying

PS- also fit in a trip to San Diego to visit Chip and my Aunt Noreen and Uncle David- SO great. Will wait to post something with pictures when Chip gets back....next weekend! Yahoo!

Randomness

Truth be told, Chip and I hope to return to the arid ways of the Rockies one of these days. In the meantime, we are soaking up as much of the beauty only supplied by incredible amounts of humidity...and talk about how much we are going to miss the rich aromas and vibrant colors that flourish like brown grass in August in most other places we have lived.


"Not just another pretty lake"....the headline of the informative newspaper the ranger hands us as we drive into Crater Lake National Park and flash the park pass that Chip's roommate lent us for the weekend. I won't go into the incredible chain of events that brought this lake into existence- but if you find yourself close to this natural wonder, making the time to take a look and a dip is well worth it. We have plans to return to do a winter ski around the 30-mile perimeter.
Josh hosted Chip and I this weekend for a Labor Day Weekend extraordinaire. He is doing another rotation with Doc (from previous post). All these students have to find housing for their six week stints around the country. This is not an easy task, but somehow the universe seems to always pan something out for them. Josh is appropriately pictured here in his temporary (fully furnished and decorated) abode with a portrait of a lighthouse in the background. We counted over two hundred lighthouses in this 400 sqft basement apartment. bed spreads, dishes, hot pads...I could go on like Forest Gump about shrimp.... Aside from the usual surfing, we also consumed SO MUCH delicious food. Crab, the real thing, not with a "K", is my new favorite food God blessed this earth with. We cracked and ate well over 25 crabs this weekend. It's sweet flesh with a salty ocean seasoning is....addicting to say the least...I will work on a better adjective. Right now it is beyond words in my mind.
Freshly picked blackberries with B&J's strawberry cheesecake ice cream- I know, right?!

So, back to work tomorrow. I have been at my new job for two weeks now. No clients still, but doing a lot of ground work for the new program. I will do a post with more info about all that as things progress. Tomorrow is also our anniversary- 8 years! I love this guy! He brings out the best in me, even on those days when I don't think there is a tolerable piece of me there. He loves life in a way that I admire. And, he has one of the most generous spirits I have encountered.

"Love does not consist of gazing at each other, but in looking together in the same direction."
~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

El Verano

The summer has been good to us. We have yet to experience "typical" Oregon/Portland weather. The winter brought "Arctic Blast '08", and then this summer we were breaking heat records. It was above 100 degrees for a week in July and, at one point, was 107! Without air conditioning and humidity reminiscent of Ohio, we were uncomfortable. I actually resorted to putting the sheets in the freezer one day. People got creative around here! We are back to daytime temps of 75...love it. Needless to say, we have spent many weekends on the coast. Surfing. Every time we pull up in the parking lot and I look out at the ocean, I feel like I am on vacation....is this really where I live?? Here are some pictures of random weekend sights.

Exceptionally low tides a few weekends ago- hundreds of star fish and anemones
We have spent quite a few nights falling asleep with the comforts of the sand under our mats and the sound of the ocean lulling us to sleep. The picture directly above is the fruits of some architectural genius on the part of Chip and Josh we named "The Blue Room".

Fires on the beach have become one of the things I look forward to most.

NW berries are a sweet, plentiful summer treat we have come to love.

"If an (August) night could talk, it would probably boast it invented romance. " - Bern Williams

All Things Portland

Katy came for her second annual visit to Portland and brought two cool cats with her this time. Eric, Katy's "partner" (to use a very Portland word), and another good friend of ours, Andrea joined the weekend posse. It meant the world to us that they come out our way while we are somewhat stranded in terms of traveling on our own accord this year.

We tried to show them the most "Portland" weekend we could conjure up, retrofitted to as many of our shared interests as possible. We shopped. Okay, this wasn't necessarily a "shared interest", but I got Katy in skirt, and everyone found treasures by the end of the weekend. Chip said he, "scored by not scoring". Not the girls- we just scored. We ate sushi. There is a local place where the roles are the size of your forearm...I am not exaggerating. We hiked. Checke out the local rainforest trails as well as did a creek walk in the gorge. It was a hybrid of canyoneering NW-style and bringing back favorite childhood summer pasttime. We explored the city via bikes. Chip worked hard to get all of our bikes running- apparently we have accumulated a few bikes. We also ate and drank requisite local favorites including Voodoo Doughnuts and Stumptown coffee.

I have spent many hours exploring the back country with these folks, so it was fun and entertaining to explore the front country unlike we ever had before. Thanks for comin out! Looking forward to next year's visit already. :)







"Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... It has no survival value; rather is one of those things that give value to survival."
- C. S. Lewis

Eddy '09

Last weekend I joined three of my favorite people for yet another Eddy St Reunion. Almost ten years ago, we graduated from the University of Montana and decided we could not bear the thought of growing apart and just becoming part of the fond memories from our time in Missoula. No. We wanted more adventures, more bottles of wine together, laughs, support, and friendship out of each other.

And so, about every other year we get together for an Eddy St (that is where we all lived together) reunion. I have known and shared so many things with these incredible people over the last decade of my life. We have not lived in the same states, or even countries, since leaving God's country (MT). We share some interests, but at the end of the day are a somewhat diverse group of gals. And still, even more so maybe, I crave their perspective, to know their experience, and to share mine with them.


When our car got broken into on the first day of our long weekend and ALL of our things taken, it sucked, but not enough to make me forget why I had made the trip to Denver to spend time with these girls. We managed to get in quite a few fun events despite not having wallets, IDs, money (except for $100 in cash- thanks for the loan Addy parents!), phones, or keys.

PS- Amy and I are giving the camera the "ring" finger. Amy's big news- she is engaged!! Yahoo!! Congrats!!

We did a burly hike up The Incline (where we were robbed), talked, sang Karaoke to all of Denver out Jayne's window, ate THREE pans of brownies (I think that is a record girls) and lots of delicious fruit to balance out the brownies, talked, saw a lacrosse game and incredible fireworks at the Ivesco Stadium, drank beers with local friends in the park, talked, and made a second trip to Manitou Springs to pick up our police report (so Amy and I could fly home without IDs). We walked around Denver, BBQed with friends, and talked a bit. It was fantasmagorical.

"The connections between and among women are the most feared, the most problematic, and the most potentially transforming force on the planet."
- Adrienne Rich

I do

I ventured without Chip to the beautiful Beaver Creek,CO for my cousin's wedding. It was a fun and rejuvenating trip for several reasons. Let's start with the phenomenal surroundings. Dave and Jen could not have picked a better time to throw a spectacular party for all their favorite people in Colorado- everything was green still from the spring rains and the mountains were still crowned in their snowy glory from the winter blizzards. When I just picture the scenery in my mind's eye sitting here today, it takes my breath away.



Reason number two this was a most excellent trip- family. I saw a lot of family I haven't seen since our wedding... almost 8 years ago! We vowed to not let that happen again and started making plans for the next visit already. Then, there were other reasons it rocked- like the amount of totally delicious food we consumed together, hyperness with my neice and nephew, some unexpected extra time with best friends in Denver, and the opportunity to check out Mindy's home town of Steamboat Springs. All in all, the only thing that could have iced the delicious weekend wedding cake in more joy would have been Chip's company. But, he continued to plug away at his ER rotation on Whidbey Island and finished in fine form...now done and home- yahoo! Next, the prison....check out www.clinicalrotations.blogspot.com for more details.
"Two human loves make one divine."
- Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Part Deux

Part Deux of the tour took place on Whidbey Island, this magical place Chip gets to call home for six weeks. We explored for two days, hiking, collecting treasures on the beach and eating a pound of mussles while watching the Cavs lose (sorry, Derek- it was close!) at the local sea front bar. One of the best parts of visiting is that now I have a picture in my head when I talk to Chip from Portland. Somehow, it feels better when I can picture the actual places he may be sitting and sights he may be seeing when we talk or when I just picture him going about his day. Of course, Kessler girl was ecstatic to see Chip and is still trying to figure out why her three favorite comrades are all split up right now.



"Profound commitment to a dream does not confine or constrain: it liberates. Even a difficult, winding path can lead to your goal if you follow it to the end." -Paulo Coelho in "Maktub"

Chip and I both have some commitments going on right now, and the path proves to be particularly windy for us the next fifteen months and beyond, but I guess we will keep truckin in liberation.

Tour de PAs

Yup- I am in this boat- blow up for full effect of how much air we had

I was fortunate to be able to visit our friend, Josh (he is a frequent flyer on the blog at this point- you might recognize him) in his new location, Wheeler, OR. Wheeler sits on the Oregon coast- a beautiful spot for sure. We have been spending time in this area on the weekends attempting to take up surfing this past year.

This is Doc- our fearless leader in all things coastal

This weekend we did get a little bit of surfing in. However, the highlights were of a different nature this time. Josh's precepting doctor is a well seasoned practitioner who delivers an unquantifiable amount of services to his community and the surrounding small rural communities as well. His generous nature was obvious this weekend as he took Josh and I under his wing and shared some authentic coastal pastimes. We ate well, laughed often, and enjoyed the beautiful weather on this Memorial Day weekend. Next stop on the tour de PAs, Whidby Island, for a special mid-week weekend with Chip as he currently has Tuesdays and Wednesdays off in the ER. Enjoy the photos below of the coastal weekend.

Josh- student of medicine and so much more these six weeks


Ode to my new favorite boots- perfect for clamming- who knew?!


Ugly little suckers. But, batter and fry them, and they are delightfully delicious

Home Is Where The Heart Is, Right?

This is a little laborious, but follow me for a second here. ...Chip and I just moved last weekend into a new rental here in Portland. It is closer to my work. Chip will be heading out and about around God's green earth for the next 15 months, so no need to split the commuting difference any longer. The move seemed to make sense.

As we ate our first meal at the new pad, we calculated exactly how many times we have set up shop in our lives. So, here it goes. I have moved 18 times in my 32 years of life. That comes out to a move every other year or so. However, I lived in the same place for almost 18 years of my life, making for 16 of my moves taking place within the last 14 years of my life. That is almost a move every year! It is no wonder I was feeling excited about this new location, but...a bit tired of packing and moving! Chip has similar sums, so I won't run you through his calculations. Our cumulative total is 28 homes we have inhabited throughout our two lives. ...mind boggling. I know we are not alone in this experience. I wonder how this has sculpted us all into who we are....

At any rate, it is all good. We are happily invested in setting ourselves up for something great in this 18th move and, hopefully, the 19th move will be one to bring our averages down. In the meantime, enjoy some artsy pics of the new place. You will have to come visit to see how they all come together to create the two bedroom (yes, we have a guest room!) place we call home. Plan your trip now! There are free Americanos, egg sandwiches, and tours of Portland included in any stay.

Kessler has been busy finding all of her new favorite hang-out spots.

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”

Albert Einstein quotes

Five Mile Butte Fire Lookout

Spring Break '09 started with a trip to the Five Mile Butte Fire Lookout with the crew pictured above. Chip, Josh, Jamie, Kessler, Hank, and I spent three relaxing days in a room of windows 60ft. off the ground. Our ski hut at elevation is/was otherwise used to spot fires from a vantage point in the forest. We were grateful for the smiple pulley system in place to hoist our heat and water sources up to our flat. I can honestly say I have never skied such lovely 20 degree spring corned (did I just make that adjective up) slopes. In the ski world I believe we call this "meadow skipping". Have you ever tried to skip without smiling- it's impossible. Therefore, even though we longed for the steep slopes out of reach on Mt Hood, the skiing was still completely fun.

We were blessed with a variety of weather, allowing us to see Mt Hood and her surroundings in many different lights. A variety pack of visuals to illustrate this are included. I am addicted to the new "collage" feature I finally figured out. So, sorry if the pictures are too small for you to see- you can click on any collage and blow it up if that helps ya out. Mostly this was a great opportunity to hang out with great grad school friends for Chip and I. The combination of special people was delightful- plenty of laughter, relaxation, good food, and fun. Thanks guys for a great trip!

"Simplicity is the peak of civilization."
- Jessie Samptor

Brotherly Hyperness

Chip is already back to the books, but between his studies of ortho and women's health, we enjoyed a long weekend of playing- mostly with more DuRoss around than usual. Mr. Heater has a warehouse in Portland, and thus, Derek was in town for work last week. He was also able to stay the weekend to check out town with the Coastal Division of the Western DuRoss Clan. One can see from the photos above, there was hyperness in the air. Music filled the weekend- live, listened to (and burned), and shopped for. We also tasted our way through the city including doughnuts, pizza, the brewery, and this restaurant called Montage where they wrap your leftovers into aluminum sculptures of epic proportions....not really a very "earth friendly" gimic- but surprisingly entertaining and popular in Portland. Hope, thanks for lending us your husband, especially on Valentine's Day! It was great to catch up and we look forward to our future rendevous.

"Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero."
-- Marc Brown

Yes we can!

I am not sure exactly what will become of the words and images we have been collecting on this blog. But so far, it has become a place to record our personal histories in a journalistic fashion. And therefore, I can not pass up this opportunity to document the power and inspiration of today's inauguration for Chip and I. This marks a U-turn in our attitude and pride in being an American. Never before have we stood so tall and felt so confident in our country. The same people walked the streets in cities and towns aroud the country yesterday and yet, today we seem to have more hope in their potential...our own potential...than we did just a few months ago. I never thought I would live to know a great leader like the ones we learned about in school, but it seems the day has come. We are not naive to the fact that Barack Obama is walking into a "storm" as he put it today- wars, economic colapse, evironmental and health crisis...the list goes on. And, we do not expect a magic wand or one great speech to solve these issues. Thankfully, throughout his campaign, he remained humble to the fact that he can not really "fix" anything- All he can do is try his best and inspire the rest of us to do the same. And with that positive cumulative energy, change IS possible. I feel honored and excited to be led by a man of such humility, intelligence, and insight- qualities that are not modeled in a modern way for us often enough. So, put me in coach! I am ready to do my part!



"A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus."
Martin Luther King, Jr.