violetismycolor

umbrella tour...

 

I got invited on one of Portland State University's 'Umbrella Tours'...so named for two reasons:  they give an overview of various parts of the campus and its life AND one often needs an umbrella when touring.  Lucky for us, the day was beautifully sunny.

It was really very interesting.  We started out with coffee and juice, introduced ourselves, and then headed out for presentations done by 4 different professors.  There were about 5 others being 'given' the tour, plus a couple of student guides, a couple of people from the President's office, and the president of the Faculty Senate.  

I almost felt the tour was tailor-made for me.  We started with an Engineering professor talking about their electronics testing department.  I worked for Intel as a cost analyst (a long time ago) and so I actually understood what he was talking about.  I had done cost analysis for a department that made memory chips, so I understood all about wafers and yields and all that. 

Next, we went to a talk by the professor in charge of the Gerontology/Aging Studies dept., which is a part of the department of Urban Studies.  They look into how communities work successfully as folks age.  Ross is interested in Urban Planning and has worked with the elderly for the past 3 summers and I wonder if maybe he wouldn't be interested in pursuing this...

Then we went to an Advertising Class where the students presented an advertising campaign they had come up with having to do with discouraging binge drinking on campus.  They used all sorts of media including commercials, websites, text messaging, using social networking sites and more.  They were very impressive.  I had worked doing Advertising Cost analysis at Atari (again...an age ago), but still...

Lastly was the Physicist who was working on Global Warming issues, with an emphasis on the contribution of Methane to Global Warming.  My dad having been a dairy farmer, I was very familiar with problems that cattle have contributed.

They gave us lunch with the University President at the end and they gave us these GIGANTIC umbrellas.  Cool.

I came away being impressed with the breadth of things that the university was doing well.  The campus is lovely.  When I (eventually) turn 65, I can take classes for free there.  Only 13 years to wait for that little benefit, but I would definitely take advantage of it.  The staff is incredibly excited about what they have there...a little gem in the heart of Portland.  And that's what they have become...a wonderful asset to the city, an urban university that is a good choice for the students here.  Thanks, Portland State, I had an inspiring experience.

little flakes keep falling...

Oh snowy Portland...don't you know it's almost March?

IF...instinct

I decided to go ahead and try an Illustration Friday entry.  OMG, it has been FOREVER since I have done this.  My Adobe Illustrator skills are so dusty.  But, when I thought of Instinct, I thought immediately of the instinct someone would have to excel in what they do.  As the Oscars were on this week, I decided to do an Oscar-themed drawing.  

And, to be clear, I totally agreed with all the Oscar voters when they voted for Kate Winslet, Sean Penn, and Slumdog Millionaire.  I am a big fan of all three.

night shot...

 

I was doing another bit of wandering town, trying out some nighttime photography last evening and THIS was actually my favorite shot of the night.  Done with a flash for the lovely floral foreground, had my camera on a tripod, with evening just falling. 

killers in the kitchen...

Those who know me well, know that I do not have a good record with kitchen knives.  On any given day, they will attack me and try to kill me...or at least slice little bits off my hands. 

In the past couple of weeks, I have subdued the knives but apparently they have been plotting with my pots and pans. 

Two weeks ago, I was innocently turning over a piece of frying chicken and my frying pan hocked up a spit/bit of hot oil and burned the back of my right hand quite badly.  I was just about healed from that...just a bit of redness left to mark where the attack happened...when last night that SAME FRYING pan became even more of a threat. 

I was working on the final stages of 3  dishes at one time (Roasted Chicken in a Scallion and Vermouth Sauce, Seasoned and Steamed Broccoli, and Baked Sweet Potatoes), when my frying pan took the opportunity to prey on my overworked mind to begin hostilities.

John had just gotten home and was talking to me, asking me something complicated, like "When will dinner be ready?"

And I had just taken the frying pan out of a 450 degree oven, had removed the chicken to a plate, stirred the broccoli in its chicken broth, was reading my recipe book for the steps to make the Vermouth/Scallion Sauce...when in my confusion, the gleaming handle of the frypan beckoned to me, saying "you must drain most of the fat"...well, maybe it was the cookbook that said that but the frypan handle WAS gleaming...when in my confusion, I picked up the gleaming silver handle and heavy frypan and (too late) realized my error.

Thank goodness for Aloe Vera, my lovely husband, and SilvaSorb pads.  I think I was saved by all three of these things...no emergency room visit, no lasting horrible pain...but lots of embarrassment, minor pain, and frustration at not being able to use my right hand well for the foreseeable future.

Now, I have to figure out how to cook without using knives and frying pans. 

tagged...

 

Stephanie of CreatureBug tagged me to put my 7th photo from my 7th photo file up.  Interesting idea.

This photo is from 2006 when John took me to McMinneville for Valentine's Weekend (we stayed at the Oregon Hotel, a gorgeous historic building).  This is the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum.  I took tons of photos because the planes were so interesting. 

I took a photo of this old mini-bus because it looked alot like an old truck we had on our dairy in Artesia, CA.  It had a crank in front, too, and the front end was square like this...oh, and the lights were big and round eyeballs like these.

Not my most artistic photo, though.

finally, a date with my mom...

  I finally got a break from the weather and spent the day with my mom.  I picked her up and we drove back to Portland, where we headed straight for the Portland Art Museum for the exhibit on painting in the age of Mme de Pompadour...in the Rococo Era.  The painting was florid, full of adorable chubby Cupids and Cherubs, and wonderfully colorful and charming.

We started out at the Cafe and had lunch, joined by my sister, Ann Marie.  That was lovely.  We had a chance to catch up on kids and such. 

Then we went upstairs, collected our personal touring devices, and set out.  I especially loved the work of Francois Boucher and Carle Vanloo (the painting, shown here, The Laundress, is one of Vanloo's).

We had a really nice day.  Hooray for no snow!

Corvallis junket...

I drove to Corvallis on Friday to take Ross shopping.  He was going to attend a formal (!) dance last night.  And he needed...everything.

I brought him a shirt, a tie, a nice coat.  We went on a shoe-buying outing.  Everything for the stylish young man.

He was very nervous about the prospect.  He's not much on public social mixing.  But I can't wait to hear how it turned out.

I also love the city of Corvallis and its surroundings.

The post office is this gorgeous testament to public buildings of the past.  I'm not sure if you can tell from this photo but it has gargoyles and terra cotta decoration, brass lamps...gorgeous.

 

All around town, including in front of the Post Office, they have these cool waves with salmon sculptures.

 

And some cool restaurants.

And the countryside is lovely, with red barns and electric green fields.

 

I processed all these photos in Photoshop with Viveza film filters.  Aren't they fun?

listen to this State of Washington...

Last night, Steven Colbert made a joke about changing the name of Washington to "Starbucksistan". 

Funny. 

And appropriate.

snow, so no mom...

I keep trying to take my mom out and it keeps snowing on the day that I try to take my mom out.

Two weeks ago, I was going to take Mom to the Chinese Garden...snow.

Today, I was going to take her to the Portland Art Musuem for their new exhibit:  French Painting in the Age of Madam de Pampadour.  I had really been looking forward to it, too.

We now have a plan to go next week.  Hopefully, that won't mean more snow!  Because really...I'm sick of it.

Nighttime in the Garden...

The Portland Chinese Garden had a free open night.  This was the end of their Chinese New Year celebration.  I thought to myself that it was a great opportunity to try out nighttime photography.  

It was gorgeous there.  They had these lovely little floating flowers, with a light inside, that they floated on the pond.  And then there were some folks carrying shaped lanterns.  

Here are a few of the photos I took.

***Click on the photo to see an enlarged version***

movie review: Gran Torino...

John and I saw Gran Torino, the latest from Clint Eastwood.

First of all, if he glared at me like that and said, 'Get off my lawn.', I think I would pee my pants.  He is one scary-looking dude.

That said...

I loved how Clint's character, Walt Kowalski, developed over the course of the story.  I would not like his in-your-face racist talk. 

There is a scene where he takes this young man, of Hmong-American nationality, to his barbershop to 'man him up', to teach him how to relate well with other men...they sling racial epithets at each other, in what is meant to be well-meaning banter.  Apparently, this is not the American culture I learned, nor one that I would want my sons to emulate.  But it is supposed to work in the Blue Collar Midwest of Clint Eastwood.  I came out asking, "Really?  Is that what men are supposed to be like?"  Not any man that I would have dated...

This just-recently-a-widower begins adrift from the world...no religious affiliation (he only went to church to appease his now-dead wife), no real connection with his sons, living in a neighborhood that has emptied of the white guys like him, and is filled with what he terms 'gooks'...and in the end, has SO connected with his neighbors and the Hmong community that they know him better than his own family.  And he is willing to risk his life for them... Unthinkable to him at the start of the story since he killed 'slant-eyes' in the Korean War and got a medal for it.  He never saw these enemies as people, that would have made it too unbearable.

Finely acted.  Incredible portraits of diverse human beings.  Powerful. 

Go see it.

Oh, yes...and we had sushi before the movie at one of my fave cheap-but-delicious sushi joints...Sushi Hanna in Tigard.  I love how the sushi goes around and around on a little track, tempting me with its deliciousness.

Bonnie is so lucky...

This is the kind of cool thing Bonnie is going to see TODAY, as she in Hokkaido for the weekend for the Annual Snow Festival.  Wish I could be there!

funny baby...

 

I have to say that I love the eTrade baby commercials.  Of course, I love babies...what's not to love?  They are cute, funny, and they don't live at my house. 

But I watched the Super Bowl for two reasons:  to be a TV buddy for my hubby and to watch the baby ads.  I am not kidding.

You can tell how big a football fan I am by the conversation John and I had as the game was starting.

John:  So, which team are you going to root for?

Me:  Who is playing?

John:  Wow, you are so sad.

Yah, I was out of the room when the baby ad came on.  I had to go watch it on You Tube later.