Our Day

Hibi's Invisibility Cloak
Originally uploaded by sanfranfamily.

Today was Paul's day off. We slept in way late and had apple pankuchen for breakfast. Then we decided to go for a hike at Portland's Forest Hill. It's this huge park that's been left natural, right inside the city limits. It's got lots of hiking trails, and Paul's parents bought a book describing all it's trails and left it with us. So, we chose a managable 1 1/2 mile hike and really enjoyed it. Lots of ferns! Growing up the trees and on the bottom of bridges. We heard lots of birds, and the creaking of trees rubbing together in the wind, and had a great view of Mt. Hood. It hasn't rained (!) and the sun has been shining (!!) all week, so it wasn't too muddy.

Then we went to Laughing Planet for lunch. The kids and I had been for a snack earlier this week, and really liked it. We saw one on our way to the park so we stopped there on on the way back. Yum, yum. Paul got a Che Guevaro burrito with sweet potatoes and plantains in it.

Home, and then I got to use my new sewing machine for the first time! I'm not really a sewer, but I do like having a machine around for repairs and for my speciality, kids' cloaks. We bought the fabric for Hibi's invisibility cloak over a year ago, and I finally sewed it today. I don't know why I agreed to sew with this stuff....but it is cool looking. The material is very sheer and it has glimmering stars on it.

While I was sewing, Paul was trying to clear up an IRS glitch. That sure put him in a bad mood. Then I made pizza with the leftover dough from when Mimi and Dawn were here, and as when they were here, it got all smoky in the house which made the family gripe and put me into a bad mood. So, here I am, blogging, trying to get back into a better mood. Maybe if anyone here has any suggestions for how to use a pizza stone without the house getting all smoky?

When the kids and I went to Laughing Planet on Belmont earlier in the week, we saw a house on fire very near where we were going. We walked over to see the show--lots of firemen, a police car blocking the street, all the neighbors out watching it. The firefighters were on the roof as we could see flames jumping up out of the house. It didn't look too safe to us.

Last night we were told that one of the members of Capella Romana, a Byzantine choral group that gives concerts and has recordings, died in a house fire. In this morning's paper, it told of a man who was visiting a friend and making brandy with him in a house near Belmont. Something happened with the alcohol--maybe it exploded--and it caught him on fire. He was rushed to the hospital, but died early the next morning. I had no idea while I was watching this fire that anyone was, in fact, hurt, and that I was connected to this person. I never met him---at least I don't remember meeting him--but I have seen Capella Romana in concert and have CDs of theirs. It was, once again, one of those reminders that it will happen to all of us--whether in a fire at only 53 years old, or in another way at another age.