Author: Judy

Dear Liza,

Now that you are back in Salinas, I will tell you about Auntie Bridgett Spicer’s art show. It has been up in the SideStreetArts Gallery for a week, but on Sunday she gave a talk about her work to a small but very interested group of folks.

The show is called “Closer to Home”, and is a paired exhibit with ceramicist and friend Nicole Curcio. It shows their transition from being visitors to Portland to living here and making it feel like home.

Because Portland has lots of bridges, her paintings do, too. The style of her paintings is called Abstract Expressionism, because they aren’t supposed to look exactly like the thing they show. But you can usually tell which bridge she’s showing.

It was so much fun seeing her talk about her art! She gets silly, expressive, and serious, all in turns.

After her talk, we chatted with folks and nibbled on snacks. I had made a bunch of pinwheel cookies and everyone enjoyed them!

Michael Pratt, a local artist who owns the building that houses SideStreetArts, came by a bought two pieces!! He got Auntie Bridgett’s “Ugly Recliner and 29th & Pine” and Nicole Curcio’s “Urban Growth Boundary III”.

Hooray for sales!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Kyle,

We had a lazy morning. Liza made a catnip toy for Mouse and they had fun with it.

Last Friday was our last day with Liza and David before they flew back to Salinas.We had a nice long walk through the neighborhood and a bus trip to Katie’s Bookshop, Books with Pictures. It was a hot day!

David was amazed at how bright and organized it was, because the last time he saw it, it was still under construction.

Liza found a comic book about Minecraft and enjoyed reading it. She is still a beginning reader, but comics are a great way to make words less scary.

When we got hungry we walked to Palomar, a wonderful, modern Cuban restaurant down the street. The huge windows were open so we had a view of Division Street, with its people, bikes, trucks and even a giant freight train, passing by.

The food and drinks were yummy and spicy, cold, and refreshing.

Back at BwP, as the bookshop is sometimes written, Liza bought her new Minecraft book and then played with action figures while David and Katie talked about projects upstairs.

Back home to pack up, a dinner out on the way to the airport, and off they went! I am one exhausted but happy Grandma Judy, that is for sure.

Love,

Judy

Dear Kyle,

On Thursday, Liza went with Bridgett and me to The SideStreetArts Gallery,where Bridgett is having a show of her work. She found a lot to like!

Alicia Justice’s handmade dolls include two Russian ladies that Liza recognized immediately by their traditional dresses. She also loved Gary Hirsch’s giant, cheerful mural on the walls outside.

On the way home we walked through Laurelhurst Park, and while we people-watched, she enjoyed climbing on the metal statue called “Triad”. It is very sturdy and a favorite of kids in the park.

The rest of the day was pretty lazy until we fetched Jasper and Kestrel from camp. Kestrel went into full on crafts mode, making a pompom that was so big Nelson called it King Pom, and creating a black velvet ghost on a stick.

One thing David loves to do is put Liza onto his shoulders, and they’ve been doing it so long it is just one smooth movement. He showed Katie how to do it with Jasper, and Liza heard the ruckus and came up to get lifted, too.

What a family!

Love,

Judy

Dear Kyle,

The third day of Cousin Liza’s visit was very interesting. Nelson, David, Liza and I went to OMSI, which is short for the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.

Their special exhibit for this summer is the Science of Pixar, which shows all the modeling work and computer programs that need to be created to make the Pixar movies like Toy Story, The Incredibles and Bug’s Life. Some of these programs are written by people, and some are written by other programs! Yes, some computer programs are so complicated that it is easier and faster to create a program to write it.

For details like the hundreds of trees Merida rides past in Brave, or the millions of blades of grass in Bug’s Life, the programmers set parameters (no higher than this, no wider than this…) and the programs did the rest.

After we explored the Pixar exhibit, we went to the completely re-furbished Turbine Room. This is the hands-on room, with erosion control experiments, turbines to invent and improve, and sound to play with.

There is a big harp-like creation that our neighbor Jonathon helped design which Liza loved playing! The activity is part dance, part music, part light show. It was wonderful!

Our last activity was trying to create “flinkers”. These are items made up of metal washers, bits of wood and cork, held together with rubber bands. They are supposed to neither sink nor float, but hover mid-water, or “flink”. It was hard! But we kept at it for quite a while, getting wet as we went along.

After a nice lunch a a look out over the river, we went home to rest before our next adventure.

Auntie Katie came over for a picnic dinner with the cousins at Laurelhurst Park. We ate, told stories, and played Frisbee. We managed to get pretty good just before it got dark.

Then, everyone off to home and bed.

What a day!

Love,

Aunt Judy

Dear Kyle,

I am writing this to you because all the other cousins are here in Portland!

Your cousin David and his daughter Liza flew up from Salinas. The first morning after they arrived, Auntie Bridgett and I took Liza down to Slappycakes on Belmont. It is a fun place where you get to make your own pancakes, with different flavors and colors of batter. You can add toppings and syrups, too, but the fun is in the making.

We got there just after Slappycakes opened, so we didn’t have to wait for a table, and we got to relax and play with our food. We all got very creative. Liza made a heart and happy face. She also added a wing into the unicorn I made her to create an Alicorn, which is her favorite animal.

We made spirals, circles, and even a My Little Pancake, which we thought would be a good cartoon series, about pancake ponies that go on adventures…and then get eaten.

On the walk home we passed some beautiful gardens in people’s yards, and got to tell the people how much we enjoyed them. Portland in summer is a beautiful place!

We continued towards home, stopping at Laurelhurst Park to play on the swings. Liza is only six and can pump herself really high! We also found the Catsura tree, Portland Heritage Tree number 160, which has big bumpy roots to walk on. Then we walked through the foresty part of the park.

After some rest and art time with Auntie Bridgett, we all walked to Blackbird pizza for lunch. Liza got to play her first game of pinball. It went by so fast! But she got to hit the ball quite a few times before it escaped down the hole.

Walking home, we stopped at Colonel Summers Park to play in the small splash zone area, where water squirts up and splashes you. You can get as wet as you like, and Liza got VERY wet. I just got splashed a bit. None of the other adults wanted to.

Once we here home, it was time to rest before the next part of the adventure.

Uncle Nelson and I drove across town to fetch Cousins Jasper and Kestrel from Trackers camp, and all the kids got to play. Jasper and Liza both love Minecraft, so they built houses, grew sugar cane, and fought fire zombies. They really hate fire zombies.

Cousin Kestrel prefers to sew, so she found a tiny toy puppy in the basket and made him a warm bed. I loved seeing the cousins all happy and playing.

After we all had hot dogs and fruit for dinner, hide and seek was the game. Kestrel won because she hid in such a tiny place no one could see her. Then Jasper and Kestrel’s dad Dave came to pick them up, and the evening slowed down until it was bed time.

More adventures tomorrow!

Love,

Aunt Judy

Dear Liza,

In Salinas, you have a big Obon Festival. A summer festival of remembrance of one’s ancestors and history, it is celebrated by Japanese Americans and their friends and relatives, along with thousands of visitors.

Last Saturday, I was very excited to go to my first Obon in Portland.

It was very hot when I walked the six blocks to Cesar Chavez Blvd. to catch the number 75 south to Powell Street, then got off and walked six blocks back to the Buddhist Temple. The Japanese style ceramics of Jim Johnstone, the glass art of Kurumi Conley, and the Bonsai of Lucy Davenport were offered by the artists, along with cotton candy and shave ice and games for kids.

I saw a tiny glass dish I wanted to by for Auntie Bridgett, but didn’t want to carry it all day. I told the young lady (who, seconds earlier, was speaking fluent Japanese to an older gentleman) that I would come back for it.

The heat was rising off the asphalt parking lot as I walked to a welcome piece of shade with some benches. A small crowd were claiming their spots as a jazz band began to assemble under its own puddle of shade. Bright red lettering on black music stands read The Minidoka Swing Band. There was barbed wire in their logo. I was puzzled.

And why did the name Minidoka sound familiar? As soon as the band started up, I realized it.

Andy Streich, the vocalist, began singing original lyrics to a very upbeat song that sounded like “Rock Around the Clock”, and they went like this:

“Back in 1942 we were in a fix,

The government issued Order nine oh sixty six

We had to be gone from the western shore,

They smashed our windows and looted our stores

We lost all our possessions and we lost our homes,

They shipped us out to Minidoka where the buffalo roam.”

It continued for three more verses, telling of conditions at the Minidoka Internment Camp in Idaho, and how the Japanese American prisoners used popular American music to keep everyone’s spirits up by forming a swing band and playing for dances.

“When the music starts, and the people sway,

You can hear the Minidoka Swing Band from miles away…”

As Andy continued singing, the story emerged. Some of the members of the band are descendants of survivors of the Minidoka Internment Camp.

Obon is a time to remember ancestors. This is how they were doing it.

I listened with joy to the rest of the set, loving all the familiar tunes that allowed me to celebrate my own parents, who were also fans of Summertime, String of Pearls, and Tuxedo Junction. Everyone applauded, lost for a moment in the music and the past.

I had a light supper of chicken, rice, and a Japanese pickle, then explored the small shop in the basement which sold inexpensive toys and lovely, expensive kimonos.

By the time I had eaten, the band stands had been cleared away, getting the parking lot ready for the dancing in two hours. I found Todd Ouchida, who played trumpet, visiting with friends under the tent. He allowed me to take his photo so I could remember the people and the logo of the band.

Japanese Taiko drumming and Bon Odori dancing would be happening later, but I was suffering from the heat and really needed to get home.

I bought the lovely piece of glass art and headed back down the hot street, grateful for the air conditioned bus all the way home, wishing I had been able to stay, or maybe gone later to see the drumming and dancing. Maybe next year.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

It has been hot this week, and the grass in the cemeteries and parks has been getting dry. It was still very warm at ten o’clock last night as we walked home from seeing The Tempest performed by Original Practice Shakespeare.

OPS, as they call themselves, are a talented group of professional actors who perform up to nineteen of Shakespeare’s plays every summer. They do it the way it was done in Shakespeare’s day, using small scrolls with just each actor’s lines on them. The actor keeps the scroll with them during the play.

This method has the advantage of performing numerous plays in a season, and of us getting to see different performers doing different parts. We have seen Jen Lanier, for example, as both Prospero and Stephano in The Tempest. But it has the disadvantage of keeping us always aware that the actors are reading their lines. It doesn’t allow us to suspend our disbelief.

Still, Shakespeare for free in a lovely glen three blocks away is not to be sneezed at. We took a picnic and our lawn chairs and joined about 60 folks, including little old ladies in wheelchairs and babies in tummy packs, among the tall firs of Laurelhurst Park.

The play started just as the sun began to go down behind the trees. The opening shipwreck scene, with a rattled aluminum sheet for thunder and lunging actors, set the tone of boisterous performances and direct audience response. Shouts of “Look out!” and “Oh, no!” enhanced our involvement in the action.

As the play continued we saw the light change, Miranda and Ferdinand fall in love, a drunken Stephano attempt a coup, and all end well as families are reunited and forgiven. By the time Prospero says “We are such stuff as dreams are made of,” it was time to go home.

And this morning, it is raining. The dry grass of last night’s performance will be greener by afternoon, and our lovely city fresher. Just like tears through laughter is my favorite emotion, rain between sunshine could become my favorite weather.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

In case you thought we were only going on long adventures, let me tell you about our walk the other day. It was predicted to get up to 90 degrees, so Grandpa Nelson wanted to head out early.

Heading down Yamhill Street, we enjoyed dappled shade, friendly dogs and overheard shouted conversations from cyclists. We even found another one of Portland’s Heritage trees! These are trees …….

This one is a River Birch at the corner of 21st and Yamhill, and it is huge. I couldn’t reach around its trunk, and I needed to get well across the street before I could fit it all in to a picture. I am glad that Portland values its trees.

We walked down to Colonel Summers Park, which I have told you about. It is named after an officer in the Civil War and later, the Spanish American War in the Philippines.

The last time I saw the park, it was being remodeled. Now it is complete, and delightful. The low area that used to flood in winter has been given drains so that won’t be a problem. Delightful, silly water features have been added, for kids (even old ones like me) to play in. These are only on in Summer, and use the same plumbing for the water to drain away.

Today, the fountains were being enjoyed by half a dozen kids and a few grown ups, splashing, cooling their feet, or just enjoying the show. We found a piece of shade and hung out for a while.

We passed the Colonel Summer’s Park Community Garden, where local folks can use beds to grow flowers, herbs, or fruits and vegetables. Everything was doing so well!

On the way home, we passed an informal sort of garage sale. The owners of this house have put a cover out front where folks can put things they don’t need and take what they can use. I imagine it has been useful when people need shoes or other such second hand goods. It takes a certain amount of maintenance, I’m sure, but so do most worthwhile things.

We got home from our walk to have lunch and see Auntie Bridgett off to her shift at the SideStreet Arts Gallery. See you next week!!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

Last week I got to spent the day with Cousins Jasper and Kestrel, and, as usual, it was a fun time.

I walked to their apartment because it was such a pretty day, and the bees were very busy in the north rose garden of Ladd’s Addition. These rose gardens are being maintained by teams of volunteers (who go by the delightfully dramatic name “Off with Their Heads!) because of city budget cuts, and the folks are doing a fine job. I helped a little by pulling off some spent roses.

First on the list of To-Dos was some house work. I folded laundry and they put it away.

We decided on a short walk to Palio first, because juice and pastry is a good start to any adventure. As we ate, our spirits rose and we brainstormed the next step.

Mount Tabor? Train to OMSI? Downtown? I gave them their pick of the city. We decided to start downtown.

As always, Tri-Met (the Portland public transportation system ) didn’t let us down. The number 10 stopped just outside of Palio and took us into the heart of the city. We saw some new public art and wandered around for a while, playing a new game called Random Adventure.

At each corner, a different person would choose the next direction: straight ahead, left, right, or back. We found Schrunk Plaza, with its own Scholar Stone Memorial to Veterans of the Vietnam Nam War.

Jasper had fun squirting us with one of Simon Benson’s Bubblers in Chapman Square.

After a while, Kestrel asked, “How far is it to the Chinese Garden?” I checked google maps… “About ten blocks north,” I told her. “You guys interested?” They were, so we headed north.

The garden, whose name Lan Su means “The Garden of the Awakening Orchid”, was not very crowded. We wandered, sat on benches and told stories, chatted with the fish, and of course, had moon cakes, buns and dumplings at the Tea House. The familiarity and tranquility of the lovely space seemed to do us all good.

When we were full up on stories and lotus blossoms, we caught the number 2 home and rested.

Another great day on the books!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Dear Liza,

As Grandpa Nelson and I walked south from Downtown along the West Bank of the Willamette, we saw how quickly the environment changed. Glass condominium towers had views of wooded banks and open river. The paved path passed under dense canopies of cottonwoods.

There was traffic on the river, but it was more recreational than industrial. A small sailboat had to pull over and make room for a large river cruiser taking tourists upriver to Oregon City, and we even saw a fellow water skiing behind a motor boat! This is where the river comes to play.

We found this charming bronze beaver installed at Heron Point. It is a memorial to Stuart Wells Jr., who worked to clean up and maintain the river and its ecosystem. It was next to an informational sign showing how the river’s channel has changed over the years, making it better for shipping, but worse for wildlife.

We passed the Willamette Sailing Club, where young folks were carrying their paddle boards to the river, and eventually entered our destination, Willamette Park! It was five miles from home, and we felt very accomplished as we sat in the shade, watched the trees dance in the soft breeze, and took inventory of our feet.

“How are you feeling?” Grandpa Nelson asked. “Because the Sellwood Bridge is right there… I mean, it’s only a mile away.”

I looked upriver. The Sellwood Bridge, which I had not even counted as being in the city, was indeed, right there. It was sort of waving to us. We could so do this.

The walk between the park and the bridge was hot. There were no trees along the path for shade, but there were a few places where you could walk right down and get your feet wet. I did, once, and even picked up two river stones.

But I knew that the longer we spent in the full sun, the less we would enjoy the rest of our walk. So we hustled along, finding our first shade in a half hour under the Sellwood Bridge.

I stood for a minute, just relishing where we were and how we had gotten there. I felt pretty good about it, I must admit.

We walked up onto the bridge, looking upriver and down. We were amazed at the views of wooded banks upriver and the sparkling city of Portland, our new hometown, in the opposite direction.

The city of Sellwood was founded in the 1890s and has a history all its own, of a playground for the well to do of Portland, of golf courses and rowing clubs. It has a population of about 10,000 and is now a neighborhood, rather than a city, but it still has its own distinctive flavor.

We knew just where to stop for lunch! Ancestry Brewery was just a few blocks from the bridge. We had stopped on our way back from the Lake Oswego Arts Festival last month. The beer, cider, burger and fries refreshed us from what was now an EIGHT mile walk. We sat for quite a while, enjoying conversation, air conditioning, and rehydration.

And it turns out, the number 70 bus back to town runs just a block away! We caught it and enjoyed the parade of humanity and neighborhoods from our seats, transferring to the magic 15 to complete our ride home.

What a great day!

Love,

Grandma Judy