The open road.

I think anyone reading knows how much I love to drive. The open road holds so many possibilities. Today I am on my way home to Oklahoma. Yesterday, after a tearful goodbye in Vancouver, I headed south to see Mahesh again in Portland. The sadness of leaving my sisters was tempered by knowing I will be seeing my son soon. I arrived in Portland around 9 p.m., the border crossing is always harder on the way back into the United States, for some reason they never have enough lanes open. I invariably pick the slowest moving lane, I really don't know how I manage to do that!
The drive on I-5 south is ludicrous, I was amazed yet again to come across the most incompetent drivers in the Union. Last year I remember writing that Washington state had the worst drivers and true to form they are still ill mannered. They really don't understand the concept of the left lane is for overtaking only! It was the long border wait and the incompetency of the Washington drivers that delayed my arrival by two very long hours. But, it was wonderful to see Mahesh and Sara again. Dinner was awaiting me and a warm, comfortable bed.
Mahesh and I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning catching up on my visit to Vancouver. It seems as though it's never enough time when we start exchanging ideas. The good news is that he will be coming home to Oklahoma to visit in about two weeks. The lure is two brand new Cocker Spaniel puppies his sister has adopted! I too am looking forward to seeing the brand new addition to the family.
I started out this morning around eleven and ended my day in Boise Idaho. The imagery on the way was spectacular. Oregon has many faces, most often people think it's lush and green with towering cedars, but eastern Oregon has a totally different topography. I had the top down for most of the day and enjoyed the wind through my hair, listening to Robert Plamer and others on the cd my son in law had prepared for me. I love driving in this great country I call home!

Goodbye Vancouver...

Even though I am anxious to return home, it's never easy to leave Vancouver. I always miss the beauty of this incredibly vibrant city and of course my family. I went to my sister Shushma's radio station RJ1200 in this morning to sit in on a staff meeting and to say goodbye to all the staff members along with my sister and nephew. I was on my way out of the city when I realised I had left a favorite pair of sandals at my sister's home. I was close enough so I turned around and headed back home. I am never happy to leave Vancouver, so it was great that I was able to go back, have lunch with my younger sister Sadhna. That is the comfort of driving, I can change my itinerary at a whim, I love being able to do that!
As it turned out my sandals were tucked away in the boot (trunk) of my car, I guess my heart wanted an excuse to go back one more time. I am glad I had lunch with Sadhna, it was easier to leave again for the second time.  Now onto the border and customs not my favorite thing to do!

The warmth of family.

It's been good to be in Vancouver for the past few days. It was tough to leave Portland last Saturday. After packing my last few belongings I headed north towards the Canadian border, it was easier to leave Oregon knowing I will see my son on my way home in about two weeks.
The wondrous thing about being in Vancouver is spending time with family and getting to eat Indian food I didn't have to prepare! Last night we were at my brother's home, gathered around the dinner table enjoying favorite dishes prepared by my sister-in-law; teasing my young niece and nephew endlessly-- good times!
We all wished my son and daughter could have joined us here in Vancouver this summer; they were both present in our hearts and stories being told about them. Many trips down memory lane accompanied by laughter as well as wistful sighs, missing the members of our families no longer with us.
I have been busy with Feng Shui consultations for family friends, going to familiar haunts and discovering new places to see. Today my sister and I were in downtown Vancouver, how this city has changed in the last few years. I remember how easy it was to go to downtown; it was such an accessible city. Of course now with the city growing it feels as though it's bursting at the seams.
Sometime next week I will be my sister's radio guest. She owns her own radio station called RJ1200. I will be doing a show on numerology. I am anxious to get home to Oklahoma, see my daughter and two brand new Cocker Spaniel puppies!

Au-revoir Portland...

Well, my last night here in Portland is here.  Mahesh, Sara and I went out for dinner at a local Italian restaurant called Jopa. It's less than a block away from my apartment. I make this entry with a heavy heart, I am never ready to say so long to my son. Now that I have spent the last seven weeks with him, it's going to be twice as hard not seeing him almost daily. I am looking forward to going to Vancouver and getting to spend time with my Canada family. Though, I am also anxious to get home to Oklahoma. Being away from the familiar does begin to wear on a person.
My time here at Glencullen has been very relaxing, I have been able to paint and also spend time discovering the myriad of fabulous eye absorbing locations. Portland is an easy city to navigate, the downtown area is not as frustrating as San-Francisco or Vancouver. Parking is usually readily available and there is no end of charming, eclectic shops to frequent.
I will miss my son the most, my heart aches every time I think of leaving him. 

"Vancouver, Vancouver, this is it!"

Those were the last words heard from David. A. Johnston an American volcanologist. He was killed by the eruption of Mount St. Helens on May 18, 1980.  In 1980 when Mahesh, my son was only five his little sister three, I took them to see the devastation caused by the volcano's eruption. Today thirty years later Mahesh and I went back to Mt. St. Helens, this time we were up close and personal. We were at the observatory named after Johnston, it has been erected where Johnston was stationed those thirty years ago. The volcano was majestic before it "blew" it's top and now there is something painful about the volcano, there is a part of it missing forever, though the magma keeps building up and a dome is trying to push up, the majesty of pre-eruption will not be regained. The reminders of the awesome fury of the eruption were visible everywhere. Huge tree trunks left snapped in half dotted the adjoining mountain terrain. I was so tempted to bring a small piece of the felled trees with me but my son would not allow me to fall off the "wagon".. I am after all a recovering rockoholic! Too many pieces of rocks or pieces of wood have found their way back home in earlier travels, but no more.  I made a promise a long time ago to leave those treasures in their homeland and not transport them to Oklahoma. I kept my promise, though today it was the hardest thing I have ever done!
Today I was able to walk a lot without pain, I am so grateful for the prolotherapy. I hope more people will educate themselves about this least invasive procedure.
I had such a wonderful day with Mahesh, we ate the soggy tomato and cheese sandwiches with Coke and potato chips and enjoyed deep philosophical discussions.  It was a memorable day!

Mt. St. Helens!

I am waiting for Mahesh, my son, we are going to go to Mt St. Helens today for the entire day. He was only five years old when the volcano erupted back in May 1980. I took them to Toutle River to see the devastation caused by the eruptions. He has been fascinated by volcanos since then! He has wanted to go back and see Mt. St Helens since then; I am glad we will be able to spend the entire day together. I have already prepared sandwiches and Coke is cooling in the cooler. I always made tomato and cheese sandwiches on our road trips, by the time it was time to eat them they were soggy-- both my children have grown to love their mother's soggy tomato and cheese!
I will write more about our adventure together at the end of the day.
The past couple of weeks have been eventful, I went to the Beaverton farmer's market last Saturday with a friend. I was amazed at the size of this farmer's market, it stretched for blocks and the fruit was all too tempting. I had to keep reminding myself that there is only one of me and there is only so much fruit a human being can consume-- nevertheless, I still bought more than needed; though I didn't waste any.
I have also found a charming tearoom in Beaverton, the proprietress is French, so the tea service and food has a very continental flair. The name of this eclectic antique store/tearoom is Tea Thyme and Lavender if you happen to be in this neck of the woods.
While my son and his wife were gone to the coast last weekend for their anniversary, I prepared an entire meal as an anniversary present for their return. It was enjoyable to cook and get to taste some of my own cooking. I don't usually make the time anymore to prepare elaborate meals.
I have also been following up with prolotherapy on a weekly basis and I am happy to report that my knees continue to improve.  I am so glad my son found Dr. David, he practices in St. John here in Oregon.
I will write more at the end of my day. Until then. 

July in Portland.

Sunny warm days are finally here in Portland.  Though, I have enjoyed the cooler weather, I was ready for hot summer days.  Judi and Mike my hosts have a pool and today I was able to swim and laze while looking up at towering cedars. The sky definitely looks a cooler hue of blue here in the northwest.
My daughter Reina came to visit us over July 4th weekend. It was a whirlwind weekend, we went to the Oregon coast to scatter Murphy's ashes (Reina's beloved cat). A few years ago we had done the same type of ceremony for Snuffy our cocker spaniel. It was fitting that Snuffy and Murphy be together on the west coast, since they both grew up together. while Reina was here it rained and was mostly overcast. I think she was happy with that since in Oklahoma it had been hot. It was great fun to have Reina here, though her visit was all too short.
Tomorrow, I go in for another prolotherapy session. The pain in both my knees has returned, my research shows that it will take time before healing can take place. I am happy that I don't need to take any pain medication; at the same time I am a bit disappointed that my recovery is slow.
After Reina left, I returned to my painting and was able to finish two more paintings. One is a sunset and another one is of raindrops--wonder why that is on my mind so much!
As I was laying by the pool this evening, I was looking up at the trees swaying in the gentle breeze, it felt as though the trees were sharing a good laugh with the wind. The leaves were glistening in the sunlight, moving gracefully back and forth and I came to the conclusion that all was well in my world!

Hoyt Arboretum.

Today, I spent the afternoon at Hoyt Arboretum.  I have loved arboretums since my childhood in Nairobi, Kenya. One of my most vivid memories of Nairobi is going to the arboretum with my family. I think my intense love of trees comes from going to the arboretum. I remember looking at the different varieties of trees and visualizing one day seeing the trees in their natural habitat.  I am happy to say, this is something I have been able to do in all of my travels.  When Mahesh and Reina were little tykes, I taught them to hug trees while on a hike. I would tell them trees had special magical powers and would replenish their energy with a simple hug!
Needless to say, their friends thought both of them to be a bit strange watching both my children hugging trees on nature hikes. Soon, though, they had their friends hugging trees too. Trees are the lungs of this planet; I will never be able to chop a tree down.
My afternoon was indeed idyllic, I am happiest when I am amongst my trees. I took many photographs, and looked at a multitude of trees, plants and flowering bushes. The arboretum is about a fifteen minute drive from my apartment, so I plan to go there often.
The day today was perfect, highs were in the eighties and a soft breeze was present. After my trek to the arboretum, I headed home and still had enough time to paint.  I had been waiting for one of my oils to start to dry out so I could add details. The paint had dried enough to allow me to do just that. Painting is a natural endorphin for me; right now all is well in my world! 

Painting heaven!

Today, I spent my entire day painting.  I used to do that on a regular basis, but it's been years since I have painted one painting after another.  My first composition was calla lilies, I did that in oils.  I prefer to paint outdoors in oils, I find that I can paint quickly in oils.  Couple of hours later my painting was done and I was on my way to the next painting.
My second project was in acrylics, a painting in the genre of Goddesses.  I grew up in a culture of being surrounded by beautiful Goddesses. In Hinduism, we have a Goddess for knowledge, prosperity, a warrior Goddess, a love Goddess and the list continues. My hosts here at Glencullen have a beautiful wooden sculpture of a Goddess from Bali adorning my front door; she became my inspiration!  I am going to take my time painting her.  Most likely I will paint the Goddess in between painting the outdoor oils.
On another note, my knee continues to be pain free.  I am anxious to have an injection in my left knee.  It's been strange to be pain free in one knee and still have pain in my left knee.
Painting does the mind good!