Heceta Headland Day Trip

So believe it or not, this was our family's first excursion out into the world since before Covid. James and I, together with our son Tayo and his girlfriend Ellie, took a whirlwind day trip to the Oregon Coast and it definitely revived our spirits and gave us hope for future travels.

The lighthouse at Heceta Headland is a well known sight to most Oregonians. It's a large part of the history of the area, having been built in 1894. It is situated 205 feet above the Pacific Ocean on a bluff carved out of the west side of the 1,000-foot-high headland.

Although we have visited the coast many times over the years, we have never taken the self guided tour of the lighthouse - until now. It's an easy half-mile hike on an uphill dirt trail and it was a perfectly beautiful and warm day. 'The kids' headed up on their own right away, while James and I took our time.

The 54-foot lighthouse tower contains a Fresnel lens that was built by the Chance Brothers of Birmingham, England and originally contained kerosene oil lamps which were maintained by a lightkeeper crew. These days the lamps are electric and automated. To this day it is still a working navigational light that is visible for 21 nautical miles.

After learning about and admiring the lighthouse, James and I then turned our attention to the stunning views. To the south is the sandbar at Cape Cove:

To the east you can see the sheltered Cape Cove Beach and the Cape Creek Bridge in the background:

As we descended back down the trail we stopped to view the Assistant Keeper's Duplex, one of the last remaining on the Pacific Coast. Originally there was also a Head Keeper's House, however it was demolished many years ago.

It was an enjoyable day of hiking, picnicking and sightseeing. At some point during the course of this day, however, it struck me how much we've missed over the last two and a half years. I've realized that I've allowed myself to get caught in the trap of thinking there's no use going anywhere anymore because everything has changed because of Covid.

And while certainly there have been changes in our perceptions and in how we navigate our day to day lives, it's also important to get out of our tightly held, cautious routines and enjoy nature and to see other families out there doing the same. And it also dawned on me how important it is to recommit to spending time with family seeing new things, exploring, and having that feeling of being free to wander and take things as they come, even if only for a day. It rejuvenates the spirit and helps us connect with each other in a wholly different way from our daily lives of work and worry.

For us, family trips have always been an important part of life and this day was an important reminder to continue that tradition, for ourselves and for the younger generation.

Have you taken any trips lately?

 

Flattening the Curve, Day 38

Hello everyone. Today is the thirty-eighth day that I have been on leave from my government job due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

It's Saturday and Jim and I ventured out just one time the entire week for groceries. Before we headed out on the trip I contacted our daughter Audrey to see if she needed anything at the stores we planned to shop at.

Really though, it was an excuse to see her. Since we live in different households we have been keeping our social distance. So, since Audrey did need a few groceries, I was happy to pick up the items and stop by her place to drop them off. Of course, that means when I arrived I placed the items on her porch and walked out to the side walk. Then Audrey came out to retrieve them and we talked for awhile...at a distance. No hugs.

Such is life in this new and strange time.

As I mentioned, it's the weekend and on that same shopping trip the other day I picked up ingredients to make a chocolate cream pie. The kids like it quite a bit and it feels like everyone needs a bit of a treat. I also bought flowers. I always need flowers - they brighten my kitchen and elevate my mood.

I spent most mornings this past week working on collage projects. Above you can see a sneak peek of what I'm currently working on. I finished the piece today and hope to get it photographed and share it here on the blog soon. I'm reading the latest issue of kolaj magazine. I enjoy seeing what other collage artists are working on and reading the essays.

Such are my weekend vibes.

I hope you are safe and that you are finding activities to keep you busy during this great pause.

Till next time.

     

Flattening the Curve, Day 11

Hello friends - do you have a loved one that lives in a care facility? I do.

My elderly mother resides in a skilled nursing unit very close to where I live. On March 11th I was informed that due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, visitors are no longer allowed until further notice.

That was a sad day. And since that moment there has been a very heavy weight on my heart. It's been difficult enough with job and family duties to make time to visit my mom, but now there are no visits of any kind allowed. Of course it is for the protection of all the residents in the home and I am grateful that the administrators made the right choice.

But I did need to deliver some new clothes to my mom that my sister bought for her and today was the first time I experienced the new method of bringing personal items to her. I called ahead of time and was instructed to ring the bell at the back entrance and someone will come and retrieve the items. So I placed the clothes in a plain paper bag, knowing that the bag will probably not be allowed into my mom's room, and stopped at the grocery store and bought a nice bouquet of flowers. I chose pink roses and pink oriental lilies. The lilies are so fragrant.

I did feel relieved to finally get the new clothing delivered to mom but I was so very sad not to be able to see her and give her a big hug and sit next to her and just be together.

And none of us know how long this will go on...

Be well family and friends. 

Weekend Life: Happy New Year

Hi Friends! I'm happy to be back in the blog world again, now that the long Christmas holiday season is over and the New Year is in full swing. I've been taking it easy for a couple weeks now, and I'm finally feeling rested up and recovered from all the extra activity of the holidays. However, I already miss those enjoyable quiet moments snuggled up on the couch watching movies with my family - an activity we really only take part in at Christmas time.

There's nothing quite like a three day weekend! This past week included the Monday holiday Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. It is a day set aside here in the United States to honor the work of Dr. King, a civil rights activist in the 1950s and 60s.

Three days off work instead of the usual two, allowed me the chance to finally clear up all the household bits and pieces that got neglected during the holidays, as well as donate unwanted items and clothing, and sell an old desk. My art studio is part of what used to be our garage (here in the US, most houses have a space to store an automobile, which we call a "garage") and it too needed some organizational attention. Once that was done, I was able to work on some art pieces I've been excited about, in preparation for an upcoming spring show. I also dove into a long neglected pocket-style photo album project - here's a look at one of the spreads I finished in that album, featuring a few of my Instagram photos from the spring of last year:

I also took some time to finish reading The Bonesetter's Daughter by Amy Tan. My daughter Audrey, who is an avid reader and lover of fiction, gifted this book to me for Christmas. Coincidentally, I found the Studio Calico 'Book Review' journaling card (shown bottom left) in my stash when I was working on my pocket album. Once I finish writing out my thoughts about the book, the journaling card will be a nice addition to my pocket album, paired with this photo:

This month marks the second year for the Under The Plum Blossom Tree blog. I have enjoyed sharing my various interests here, and am grateful to those of you that have taken the time to read about them. I have some plans in the works for the coming year: I'd like to give the blog a new, more polished look, so I am looking at blog formatting options right now; also, I will be selling a Plum Blossom exclusive product, handmade by me. So I hope you will stayed tuned!

You can follow me by email here on the blog (see the widget for that in the right sidebar), and Blogger will send you a notification.  

As always, thanks for reading!
  

Weekend Life: Autumnal Changes

    Both the autumn and the spring are busy seasons in the garden.  While mother nature brings a full display of color for us to enjoy, we gardeners are busy preparing and planting beds.  This year's autumn season here in the Willamette Valley has had perfect planting weather, with just the right mix of sunshine and rain, and although my heart has been heavy with family matters lately, my thoughts have been distracted by the color inspiration that is all around me at this time.  

I've been thinking a lot about color this season, particularly red and green, so when the weekend rolls around I am anxious to tackle my to-do lists, especially items that say something like 'photograph the garden in the early stages of autumnal change - look for red and green'.  

It's amazing when I get hooked on an idea like this because, for awhile, all I see are reds and greens!  It's like getting a song stuck in your head.  So, here are a few of my favorite songs, ah, photos, featuring red and green:

In the first photo above you can see that Jimmy's maple is still growing strong. I'm not sure what that next plant is - I bought it as part of a potted assortment of plants, of which this is the only one left.  I think it is a succulent of some kind.  Next is the Japanese maple I bought at the Saturday Market several years ago when it was just a twig.  It's really come a long way!  Then there is a spring lily, or what's left of it.  And last but not least, a blueberry branch.  

Earlier, I mentioned planting, and that was part of my weekend too.  I bought a couple of fall mums to plug in, since I love the instant color they provide.   

As you might notice looking at the first picture, I was still thinking about red and green, even when choosing mums.  The second mum has beautiful variegated orange and yellow blossoms.     

Jimmy added two more blueberry bushes to the garden plot, which brings the total to five.  Our first three were planted several years ago, and although it took a couple of seasons until they began to bear fruit, it was worth the wait.  When early spring rolls around next year, we will plant strawberries around these new blueberries.  Strawberries love the shade provided by the bushiness of blueberry plants. 

I started my bulb planting this weekend as well; about half of my tulip bulbs went around the base of the maple tree.  There are still crocus and muscari to plant, and I'm hoping it actually happens before the fall is over!  Although we have planted spring flowering bulbs as late as, well, spring, and they still grew, and blossomed!

All the gladiola bulbs in this area were moved.  It appeared that the blueberries developed an aversion to them.  Sounds strange, I know, but the blueberries started veering off in weird directions after the gladiolas started to take over.  So, for now, the gladiolas are sitting in a tub...

And what would an autumnal weekend be without some leaf raking?  I love to rake leaves!  It's an invigorating sport, and a great excuse to take a look around the front and back yards and see what's happening.  

And as you can see, I did come upon some interesting things.  I found a snake sunning itself on the wood pile, some mushrooms in a shady spot, and now that I've placed niger seed socks outside my kitchen windows, I was delighted to have some warblers visiting.  And, a flock of wild turkeys came through my front yard; about eight or ten of them.  They were grazing through the grass and leaves, looking for food.  This particular turkey came over and checked me out, even though I was sitting very still!

Another part of my weekend involved doing photo shoots for my Instagram account.  Right now I am photographing some of my collectables and have joined the 'Faffing' community.  Click on my Instagram link at the top of my blog (or just click here) and see what I'm up to!  

What kind of autumnal adventures are you experiencing?  Or maybe is it spring where you are?  No matter the weather, there are always interesting changes to see in the natural world.  Thanks for reading!

Weekend Life: Family Reunion

Don't you just love it when all the pieces fall into place, and an event that you've planned and worked so hard to make happen, actually works out?  Our family reunion this weekend was just that kind of thing; a culmination of emails, arrangements being made, and effort large and small on the part of so many. 

My step daughter Kaede and her new husband Joey drove down from Seattle for an overnight visit.   I wrote about Kaede last spring when we attended her beautiful wedding here. They brought along their puppy Louie, who is a Miniature Pinscher and Terrier mix.  Although it was a short, quick visit, we managed to squeeze in a lot of conversation, catching up on what's been happening in our lives, and listening to her dad Jimmy tell some of the interesting stories of his life. 

Here are a few photos I managed to catch during the event:

Our daughter Audrey loves party planning and is very good at it.  We had  decided that our main evening meal would be a simple hardwood barbecued salmon, and her choice of items for our appetizers, the meal itself, and the pairing of the wine, all reflected her eclectic taste, yet was easy to prepare.  An apple pie that I made early Saturday morning rounded out the evenings fare, and I think it's safe to say that everyone enjoyed the meal and had a good time - even Louie.

Kaede and Joey left for home on Sunday morning.  We were sad to see them go.  We all agreed that we would see eachother again after the new year.  

Thanks Kaede and Joey (and Louie!) for brightening our lives for this very short time. See you soon!

Weekend Life

    Weekend Life is about slowing down.  Weekend Life is about less outside distraction.  Weekend Life is about small moments enjoyed.  If you're like me, you may not get many weekends like this.  Today I was reflecting on how rare it is around here when it's quiet and I'm not racing the clock, but rather letting it go, and realized I actually accomplished a few things.  For example, I had been waiting for the hydrangeas in my garden to bloom just so I could put one in this Hull USA duck planter.  

Then there were more blueberries in the garden that needed to be picked.    

And I was able to spend a considerable amount of time in my studio working on scrapbook pages, and planning other projects.  

Weekend Life.  Thanks for looking.