That's what they just said on the news for my area. "Arctic Blast 08" is what channel 8 is calling it. "Deep Freeze" says channel 6.
Portland, Oregon is bizarre for weather. Right now we are a week into a bad winter storm. Tonight it's supposed to stop snowing and then the freezing rain will set in. If you live closer to the Willamette river, you might not get any snow. Where I live, a hundred blocks out - it's VERY windy at almost 50 mph winds. I had to shut the curtains so I wouldn't keep watching and thinking the big window was going to blow in. If you are anywhere in the Columbia Gorge - you're really screwed. 8 foot drifts and they've just closed down Interstate 84.
I feel bad for making him go out, but I asked the Mr. check our oil level in the outdoor tank. The valve is outdoors underneath a Yuban coffee can. Last year we ran out during another storm while the family was visiting for the first time. Because we ran out, when the oil truck came to add more oil, the debris in the tank got through the filter, broke it and we had no heat for week. With the temp at about 15 degrees, I didn't want a repeat experience.
It's been 12 years since I've been in Portland and I've never seen a storm like this. Roads are closed down. Trains are stuck. All flights cancelled. We've had it bad before, but not for this long. I think we may be like this for ten days total. Pretty unusual for the Pacific Northwest.
How lovely and blessed to be indoors and warm. Made an apple custard pie and homemade apple chutney.
To warm up, here's a recipe with Booze!
Mulled Cider
2 oz. spiced Rum
1 cup Apple Cider or Juice
1 tsp. Honey
2 Cloves
1/8 tsp. Allspice
1 Cinnamon Stick
Combine ingredients in a saucepan and heat over medium heat. Stir occasionally, don't let it get to hot. Once the mixture is thoroughly heated, strain into a mug. Garnish with a lemon twist. Yum!
As a kid, I was never in a place where one could run around in the summer at dusk capturing lightning bugs. You know, after a day of exploring in the woods and swimming all day. Or was that just something that happened to Haley Joel Osmond and Dakota Fanning in the movies? Ah - well, this project warms my heart anyway. Besides being a fun, easy thing to do, it's very eco-friendly and a cool modern yet old-timey gift.
Invented by Tobias Wong, the Sun Jar is essentially a Mason jar containing a solar cell, a rechargeable battery, and an energy-saving LED lamp. Placed in a sunlit area by day, the solar cell inside the Sun Jar charges the battery with solar energy and uses that energy at night to power the LED lamp. At night the frosted jar gives off a warm, soft glow, making it perfect to use as a nightlight. Several Sun Jars grouped together are also a wonderful natural lighting alternative for the garden, as the Mason jar is airtight. Here's how to make it:
Components:
1. Glass jar with glass lid large enough to hold componenets (Ikea makes some for about $3)
2. Solar garden light
3. Rechargeable battery (AA size)
4. Blu-tack
5. Tracing paper or glass frosting spray
Tools:
Screwdriver, Utility Knife
Bringing them together
Step A: Rip open the innards of the solar garden light. I know that may sound ambiguous but you'd be able to use a utility knife and surgically dissect the relevent components out. Solar garden lights are easily available at your local major hardware store.
Step B: Flip open the ikea jar and place the "solar garden light innards" as shown in the picture.
Step C: Cut a strip of tracing paper and place it in the glass jar. OR Use a Glass Frosting spray.
Step D: Close the lid of the glass jar with tender care and you're done.
You can also pick blue colored solar lights for a Moon Lite jar.
We lost a great photographer and curator when Terry Toedtemeier died after giving a speech about his book Wild Beauty yesterday in Hood River. He was considered Portland's premiere landscape photographer and besides vastly improving the Portland Art Museum's photography collection, his own collected exhibit Wild Beauty is up now at the Art Museum until January 11. Hear him discuss the book here. He also co-curated Blue Sky - my favorite photo gallery in the Portland.
I've been working at the Oregon Historical Society preparing for "Holiday Cheer" the museum's annual author meet -n-greet, and have spent the last few weeks preparing his book along with other Oregon related books for the event. Wild Beauty was one I'd picked up over and over while I worked, flipping through the photos and marvelling at the beauty in the landscape of Oregon. Unfortunately, I did not attend the event and missed meeting him and I'm sorry for that.
What is bizarre is that last year, he'd had an exhibit up called From Hawaii to Owyhee. Which is somehwat ironic since lately I've been researching Hawaiians in the Pacific Northwest from 1811-1870s. Below is his statement for the exhibit.
From Hawaii to Owyhee
Statement: It is a kind of twisted irony that a place name, the Owyhee River, in the remote landscape of Southeastern Oregon would derive from the deaths of two men conscripted from their native island of Hawaii, by the explorer Peter Skeen Ogden in 1819. Although the Owyhee country is vastly different from the Big Island, it is also home to the Jordan Crater lava field - a place virtually identical to Hawaii’s more recent lava landscapes. Though the photographs in this exhibition include images from both Hawaii and the Owyhee country, there are many other depictions of basalt landforms that are millions of years older. These photographs trace a large igneous province that extends from Southeastern Oregon to the Columbia Plateau and ultimately to the Northern Oregon Coast. - Terry Toedtemeier, March 2007
The show's different threads mirrored Toedtemeier's many dimensions. And what did these many dimensions share?
"Beauty," says Toedtemeier's wife, Roberts. "He was trying to find that special place of beauty."
On a gorgeously sunny December day, the Mr. and I drove out to historic Kirchem Farm near Carver, Oregon to pick out our xmas tree. I love supporting local growers. Especially one's like Kirchem Farm where they limit their use of pesticides and fertilizers. We got a beautiful handmade wreath and fresh gingerbread men cookies as well. A wonderful day.
The Mister and I caught a portion of a TV show that actually was really heartwarming and inspiring for once, "CNN Heroes". REAL heroes - not the sci-fi ones on NBC. On the show, Anderson Cooper hosted and highlighted ten individuals who rose above and gave back to their community in need. While all their stories both broke and healed my heart, one of my favorite's who stood out was hero, Yohannes Gebregeorgis.
Yohannes' project is called 'Ethiopia Reads'. Through it, he establishes libraries and literacy programs to connect Ethiopian children with books. He's also built a library out of the first floor of his house, two reading tents in the yard, and has set up hair cuts, washing and braiding stations for the children who do not have sanitation.
Besides the library in his home, he also brings books by donkey into the outer villages of Ethiopia. They set brightly colored chairs out for the children to sit - though the kids are too eager to sit still at the site of the painted cart and decorated donkeys rambling into their village. They also have story hour and read to the children who have not yet learned to read for themselves. When the books didn't exist in the languages he needed, he wrote them.
It's a fantastic program and a wonderful story. The website offers many ways you can help. Check it out...
Have you ever wondered what your pet does all day? Cooper, an orange tabby in Seattle has been gaining notoriety lately for documenting his own life for the past year. Taken from a camera that hangs from his collar, his owners, Seattle filmmakers Michael and Deirdre Cross didn't expect the amazing shots he'd bring back.
From a few inches above the ground, Cooper takes between 200 to 400 pictures a day on a miniature digital camera programmed to take one picture every two minutes. His owners built a harness for him so the lightweight device would be as unobtrusive as possible.
Hoping to see what Cooper did all day - where he went, if he had friends, a girlfriend - they discovered he was a lone wolf who kept to himself, birdwatching, crossing busy streets, and exploring his Greenwood neighborhood. The kitty has an infrared bauble on his collar that allows him to have access in and out of the house through a cat door. The Crosses installed it after they realized through the photos that Cooper would wait for hours to be let in.
Not all of his pictures turn out, of course. Some are blurry or dark but a lot of them are quite stunning.
To see more of his shots CLICK HERE