Qué es esto?

Spotted this downtown in front of Arts & Antiques. I called later to find out where it had come from or how it was used, but the lady working at the time did not have any information about this interesting piece. She said she would try to find out if I wanted to check back.

Boys and their toys

This fellow was all over the Willamette River on his jetski, between Riverfront Park on the East and Wallace Marine Park on the West. He looked a little reckless to me but I guess he was pretty good steering clear of others also enjoying a day on the water. And I'm sure there are lots of ladies who like this sport as well!

Another backyard visitor

First time I've seen a buck in our yard, though the last couple mornings we've had a doe with twins. He may have had something to do with that.

A Touch of New Orleans

I saw Samantha Brown touring New Orleans on the travel channel and thought I recognized a building, at least the style of it. This is Jonathan's Oyster Bar, downtown on Liberty and State Sts. I took this photo a while back before they changed the name, but thought I'd post it anyway because I love the red geraniums hanging amid the white wrought iron and there weren't any the last time I was by.

Picnic in the Park

Family, a beautiful afternoon, nothing like a picnic in the park. Caught this shot at Riverfront Park. The only reason this is so green is because it is watered. Most lawns and around our house are crispy, dried brown.

Bite of Salem

This weekend through Sunday is the Bite of Salem in Riverfront Park downtown. Various local restaurants are serving up their dishes. And there is live music, beer and wine gardens, and carnival rides for the kids. I loved the lady's flower dress in front of the Hawaiian Maui Wowi Hawaiian Coffee & Smoothies booth.

I had a Chicken Caesar Wrap from the Sassy Onion (review by EatSalem). I scored it an 8/10 (needed a little more Caesar and fresh grated Parmesan). DH had a burrito from Jr's Taqueria (review by EatSalem) and rated it a 7/10.

Admission is free though they ask for a $3 donation. Proceeds from the Bite benefit Salem's youth, including the Boys and Girls Club, many youth oriented events, and numerous community, musical, and athletic programs.

Above and beyond the call

Since we had an electrician schedule for Friday to install a ceiling fan above our dining table, I thought we should probably go buy one. While at Lowe's I was looking for the required bulbs for the fan light but the shelf was bare except way at the back, like 6' back, on the 3rd shelf up. A young fellow came around the corner wearing a 'Lowe's' vest so I asked if he could help us. Well he cleared off a bunch of other bulbs, then climbed up and crawled on his stomach back the wire rack and got the box of 60W that I needed.

When he got down, he rubbed his chest and said he had his dog tags under his shirt and he must have laid on them as he was crawling.

So let me introduce Greg. He is in the Oregon Army National Guard, 162nd Combat Engineers. They are headed out this weekend to fight forest fires in northern CA. And they leave in January for Iraq. He said he volunteered.

Most Americans, no matter their opinions or feelings about this war, support our troups. I told you I would pray for you, Greg, and I will. For your safety, to return home intact. Thank you for choosing to serve. Thank you for fighting the forest fires. And thank you for the light bulbs!!

Not Mine

Spotted this sweet, shiny thing and noticed the license plate. Unfortunately it isn't mine though it does match my Dell laptop.

Berries, berries everywhere

This is a great time of the year here for fresh, local fruits and berries and Amy Clark of Willamette Valley Produce had a wonderful assortment at the Farmer's Market today, all grown locally on their farm. You may not have heard of Marionberries, which were developed in the 1950's as a cross between several blackberry varieties, and named after Marion county (right here!) Marionberries are juicy, have a rich blackberry flavor and less seeds than other blackberries so they are great for making jam (which I plan to do tomorrow). You can read about them at Oregon-berries.com.

Each Wednesday from May to October, Chemeketa St. in downtown Salem is closed off from 10 am to 2 pm between Liberty and High for the Farmer's Market. You can also enjoy some lunch courtesy of several food vendors.

Clark's Berry Farm is located in West Salem. Amy said they sell their berries at both the Wednesday Farmer's Market and the Saturday Market which is held in the state 'green' parking lot on the corner of Marion and Summer Sts.

For all Paris Daily Photo and Eric's Fans

Spotted at the Salem Art Fair last weekend. I must admit that I did turn a mild shade of envy-green.

Historic Deepwood Estate

We had a chance to attend the open house at Deepwood Estate last weekend. This welcoming sight is the sunroom on the west side of the house. This beautiful Queen Anne Victorian, built in 1894, is located on 4 acres with manicured gardens and nature trails at the far east end of Bush Park, on the SW corner of Mission and 12th Sts. The home was lived in by only 3 families before the City acquired it in the early 1970s. There was little 'restoration' needed inside as the house had been well cared for, i.e., no painted-over woodwork needing stripped, etc. It has all the original hardware and fixtures. The woodwork and craftsmanship alone are worth a visit.

The home and gardens were placed on the National Register of Historic Homes in 1973. All the gardens are now maintained by volunteers. The 'Secluded Garden' is my favorite.

Visit the Friends of Deepwood and the City of Salem websites to learn more and the history, occupants, and current events.

Hoopla 2008

This weekend, the street in front of the Oregon State Capitol was closed off for the 10th annual Salem Hoopla. From their website, "Hoopla is not only Oregon's largest and premier 3-on-3 basketball event, we also are an event committed to bettering our community. Beyond the staging of one of Oregon's most prestigious family-friendly sporting events, Hoopla generates thousands of dollars for local charities annually. Most of these funds are given to organizations that focus on youth athletic or activity programs in the Salem-Keizer area. To date, Hoopla has generated more than $135,000 for worthy nonprofit groups."

Salem Hoopla website

And Tim King of Salem-News.com has posted a video on You-Tube, includes some good interviews.

Salem Art Fair Craftsman

This is Alexander Anderson of Madrone Studio explaining how he made the curved door on this cabinet by a method known as "coopering". Alexander is a maker of fine furniture and custom cabinetry. He said his philosophy is to make use of wood from this local area and make as low impact as possible on the environment. He likes to use salvaged wood from demolished buildings, storm damaged trees, etc. You can read more about this interesting young man on his website http://www.madronestudio.com/.

What caught my eye was this exquisitely crafted table he made primarily from Madrone. Kim of SeattleDailyPhoto posted a close-up of the uniquely-colored bark of a Madrone tree. (We tend to call them Madrona in OR and WA.) You can also see photos and find out all about the Madrona {here}.

Salem Art Fair & Festival

According to the Salem Art Association, the Salem Art Fair & Festival, one of Oregon's most anticipated cultural events, celebrates its 59th year on July 18, 19 and 20, in Bush Pasture Park. This is a 'juried' fair, i.e., artists and craftspeople must make application and be invited to participate.



This is Susan of White Oak Farm, a delightful and engaging young lady, who was invited to participate. She said she is a botanist grower and today had a wide array of her gorgeous flower plants for sale. She likes the idea that this is a benefit, that part of her proceeds go to Bush Gardens. When ask which was her personal favorite, she couldn't choose just one, and said it would have to be unusual irises and lilies. She is stationed at the far north end as you enter the exhibit area, just behind Bush Barn in the 'Friends of Bush Gardens' area.

The weather forecast for the weekend is for the low to mid 80's. Clear blue skies.

BTW, we had very good Gyro's prepared fresh by the Greek Orthodox Mission of Salem. My husband had the beef/lamb, and I had the veggie. We passed on the absolutely fresh, homemade Baklava, but it looked decadently good. They are located in the South Food court.

Dry Grass

This is Fred Wells and his mighty Kubota tractor/mower. This time of year in our area it gets very dry and any standing grass and weeds become a fire hazard. We have hired Fred several times to mow around our property and a couple-acre vacant piece of land and we can highly recommend him. He will look at the work and give an accurate estimate of the time and cost, and does a very nice job. He lives in the Aumsville area east of Salem, and I do not know how far he is willing to travel. But if you have similar work and would like to speak with him, he is listed in the phonebook. Or leave a comment and I will get his phone number to you.

I know it can be dicey to hire people to do jobs such as this which is why I offer a personal recommendation. By the way, I think I heard him tell my husband he is 74 years old!

Patti plays the flute

The Salem Saturday Market was a lovely setting for Patti C., a recent graduate of North Salem High School. Her flute sounds floated about like the breeze as she played with a black top hat at her feet for tips. I was so busy taking her photo, I neglected to do so. Hopefully she will be there again and I will make amends. She is headed to the University of Oregon in Eugene this fall. The best to you Patti as you embark on this next chapter of your life.

Historic Deepwood Estate

The gazebo gardens behind the historic Deepwood Estate on Mission and 12th is in gorgeous form right now. Well worth a stop to enjoy. Next Sunday July 20 the House is open free from 12:00-4:00PM and there will be antique cars on display.

See their website Historic Deepwood.

Taking in Down

Probably 30 years ago, my husband and I went for a drive east up into the foothills not far from our house. We found ourselves on a dead end road through a section of forest that had been clearcut (logged off) and got out for a walk. When we returned to the truck, I noticed a little tree about 10" tall, growing in the gravel alongside the road where we'd parked. I pulled it up, stuck it in a bucket and brought it home. We then planted it in the middle of our backyard.

I think I knew it was a Douglas Fir, but had no idea that I would see it grow to over 80 feet tall. And it now loomed way too close to our house. It had a number of broken limbs from a wind storm a couple years ago and we've seen enough houses on the news cut in half by a fallen tree. So we decided to have it taken down today. This professional 'logger' made it look easy. After he worked his way up through the branches and took off the top 15 or so feet, he brought the rest down with one big earth-shaking thud. I have never witnessed a large tree being brought down so I found the whole process quite interesting to watch.

Miss Blueberry

This is Miss Imablueberry. She was wondering around the Salem Saturday Market passing out information and recipes and promoting--yes blueberries--a favorite crop around here from July through September.

Here's my favorite from her pamphlet

~~ Blueberry-Watermelon Frosty ~~

6 ounces frozen lemonade or limeade concentrate, unthawed
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 cups watermelon, seeds remove
Blend it up until smooth
Add 1 cup ice cubes and blend until slushy.

According to the brochure from the Oregon Blueberry Commission, (and my cardiologist 'heartily' agrees) blueberries are packed with antioxidant compounds which combat 'free radicals' and have benefits including improved vision, clearing arteries, strengthening blood vessels, stopping uninary tract infections. I hope you have a good supply of fresh blueberries where you live.

Salem Saturday Market

This is Mark, a very nice young fellow amid his flower stall at the Salem Saturday Market, held in the state 'green parking lot' on Marion St, (bordered by Winter and Summer Sts.) His family grows these beautiful high quality cutflowers on their farm "4T Acres" just west of town. When I told him about City Daily Photo blogs from around the world, he wanted me to let all the young ladies everywhere know that he is SINGLE! So leave a comment for him or just to say 'Hi'.

Another Footbridge

You can tell I love bridges. This footbridge is across Pringle Creek at Pringle Park just west of Salem Hospital.

Memorial to the CCC Workers

When the 32nd U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt took office in 1933, he was faced with the challenge to immediately begin a revitalization of the nation's economy after the "great depression". His plan was not to dole out aid, but to create jobs to give back to American workers their pride in their ability to earn a living. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was part of President Roosevelt's "New Deal." Roosevelt proposed to recruit thousands of unemployed young men to battle the erosion and destruction of the nation's natural resources. More than any other "New Deal" agency, the CCC is considered to be an extension of Roosevelt's personal philosophy. My own father as a teenager, worked for a time with the CCC in my home state of Ohio.

You can read more <here>.

Located on the State Department of Forestry campus, E. State Street.

Update

I am finally home a second time from the hospital. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. I hope to be out and about very soon and posting again. I have been very touched by your comments. Blessings to all.

July 4th U.S. Independence Day