Sauvie Island pics

Photos from our pumpkin picking outing last weekend...

Boys and wagons




Can't get enough of my boy






Dirt. Would you like some?



Blue sky



This is fun



My parents are pretty cool. Can I have some more blueberry milkshake now?

Who is Eddy?

Several people have asked about the name of this blog. Eddy isn't a person. Well, she is the girlfriend of Gus in David James Duncan's book "The River Why" (no, we didn't name our Gus after that Gus, although many friends think we did. Our Gus is named after John's dad) - but this blog isn't named after that Eddy.

It is named after the place in a river, called an eddy, where the current runs counter to the main flow. It is the place, formed by a rock or jutting bank, where a kayaker can sit and rest and regroup and plan her next move. All kinds of things turn up in eddies - leaves, twigs, debris, lost water bottles, broken paddles...

In this eddy, I collect our stories and photos and other bits and pieces. It's my quiet spot amidst the rushing of work and family and environmental advocacy.

From here, I scout my line. I catch my breath and savor the wild and beautiful scenery.

Sunset

According to the NY Times, Sunset Magazine is hip again.

A couple years ago I traveled to Sunset's headquarters in Menlo Park, CA for a roundtable discussion about rivers and water in the west. The interview and article, Will Our Rivers Survive? was featured on the web and in the magazine.

While I was there they treated us to an amazing lunch. I toured the wine cellar and garden. The house, designed by Cliff May, is open and airy with great patios.

I like that Sunset, a lifestyle magazine, isn't afraid to tackle thorny issues like water policy along with recipes for date shakes and grilled tri-tip.

Lemon curd

Inspired by brunch at the Delta Cafe, I want to make lemon curd. Thinking it could make nice Christmas gifts (along with my nine little jars of fig preserves)...

Stumbled upon this recipe on Bread and Honey, a Portland arty-mom-food blog.

Why did I think lemon curd was healthier than it really is? Mainly egg yolks and butter. Hmm.

Pumpkins, Pok Pok, and Po' Boys

Great time on Sauvie Island on Saturday. It's an island formed by the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, just 30 mins from our house. Mostly farms and a wildlife refuge.

I had seen an ad for a pumpkin patch, Kruger's Farm, so we followed those directions. It was right off the exit, and it was mayhem. Hundreds and hundreds of people, cars, traffic. People directing traffic. Haunted corn mazes and beer gardens and a petting zoo. John, being from Montana, was appalled to see the hay ride pulled by a giant tractor, not a horse.

We got out while we still could. Disobeying the traffic director, we turned the car around and escaped. The boys were still asleep in their car seats, so we knew we had time. We pulled back on to the main road - see ya suckers! - and set off to explore the island and find a patch that was more our speed.

It was a beautiful sunny fall day and the trees were just starting to turn gold and red. We saw glimpses of the river as we drove. We stopped at a little country market for blueberry milkshakes and beer. Eventually we came to Columbia Farm. A barn, a pumpkin patch, and a pile of hay for the kids to climb on. And only one little line of cars parked in the grass in front of the barn.

The kids loved the wagon, we played on the hay, got a bunch of pumpkins and apples, and then made our way back to town, where we spent the rest of the day celebrating John's birthday. Beers in the Pearl. Dinner at Pok Pok. Wonderful having Barb and Sierra in town. So fun to be together with our boys.

Sunday, we had brunch at the Delta cafe. Delicious: beignets with lemon curd. Fried bananas. They also had a stellar fresh-squeezed lemonade. I drank one and got a refill. Everybody else had bloody Mary's, but I think they were jealous when they saw my lemonade.

One

October is birthday month around here. The little boy turned one earlier this month, and John's big day is today.

I baked a chocolate cake for A and we were expecting to get the typical baby-smashing-cake photos, but he really wasn't interested. John liked the cake, so I'm baking round two today. We'll see if A wants it this time around.

I just made the frosting. As usual, I bake while others sleep. It's 6am.

Our friends Barb and Sierra, their son Jesse, and 3-legged dog Sammy are visiting for the weekend. Our first Portland house guests!

Flowing

I had my first acupuncture treatment yesterday. I'm glad I am trying this route before venturing down the traditional medicine path, which could lead to drugs and surgery.

As Victoria inserted the needles into my feet, legs, hands, and shoulders I felt little pricks and tickling sensations. Only once was it sharp and uncomfortable, and she readjusted the point. She said it's normal to feel something, but it shouldn't hurt. After all of the needles were in she put a heat lamp over my abdomen and right hand, and left the room for 20 minutes.

I was supposed to relax and turn inward, because the more you can relax, the easier it is to get the energy flowing the right way. I wanted to look up to see exactly where she had placed the needles, but I was afraid to move - I wasn't sure if movement would tweak one of the points/pathways and cause a twinge.

So I closed my eyes, breathed, and pictured myself floating on my back through a canyon on the Main Salmon. It's a snapshot from a river trip four years ago, and I always go back to it when I am doing relaxation visualization. The cool water, warm sun, high canyon walls sliding by, the river carrying me. And then, I fell asleep on the table.

Victoria is great, and was glad I took a little "acu-nap". She is pregnant, and so was sympathetic to my theories of how hormones/nursing/carrying A. with my right arm might all be contributing to the pain.

I am already seeing some improvement. I had a pretty good sleep last night. Woke up with some numbness/tingling/pain, but not as bad or as often as other nights. I need to make an appointment for next week.

One of the reasons why I think I gravitate toward acupuncture is the river metaphor-- just as we restore rivers of the water variety by removing dams, etc, we can restore the rivers of energy that flow through our bodies.

Here's the short description:

The ancient Chinese believed that there is a universal life energy called Chi or Qi present in every living creature. This energy is said to circulate throughout the body along specific pathways that are called meridians. As long as this energy flows freely throughout the meridians, health is maintained, but once the flow of energy is blocked, the system is disrupted and pain and illness occur. Imagine rivers that flood and cause disasters or an electrical grid short-circuiting that causes blackouts. Acupuncture works to “re-program” and restore normal functions by stimulating certain points on the meridians in order to free up the Chi energy.

Thanks for the photo, British Library.