Weddings

Everything looked perfect, the church, flowers, tables, and slideshow, music all set perfectly in this special moment in time.

The Bride my dear friend and truly a sweet young lady looked lovely in white.

The Groom, dashingly handsome, and anxiously awaiting to see his lovely bride to be.

For two hours on Saturday afternoon my faith was restored in what marriage can be between two people. Very few of us will ever know the true amazing love these two share, very few of us will ever experience the true depth of commitment and respect I see in these two wonderful young people.
I was truly honored to be there, honored to watch them marry and stand by their side as they embark on their journey together.

Concert at the Zoo (Robert Cray)

I enjoyed the wonderful sound of Robert Cray Saturday nigth at the Oregon Zoo. The summer concert series at the zoo are not to be missed.

Multi-talented Robert Cray is an artist of considerable scope. Considered to be one of the most expressive vocalists and impressive guitarists on the contempoary rhythm and Blues scene, Robert Cray draws R&B, rock, pop, and jazz with equal insight and authority.

The Robert Cray Band was born in the north west of America in 1974 and is now celebrating 21 years in the business. During those years Cray has achieved no less than six Grammy nominations and three awards, obtaining the universal respect and admiration of musicians and audiences alike.

Born: Aug 1, 1953 in Columbus, GA
Genres: Classical Music, Blues Music, Contemporary Blues Music, R&B and Soul Music, Modern Electric Blues Music

Return to the Scene

Today I returned to the scene of my bicycle accident 3 weeks ago. My friend M~ and I road the same route only this time I finished the ride and bought my friend the lunch I owed him. It felt odd to go by the exact spot I wrecked, we chatted and rehashed the details and made a few wise cracks… It felt liberating to finish the ride to finish what I started… Quitting is not an options…

My Special Gift

She’s smart and talented and blessed with a warm humble heart. She is my better half most of the time. She is a mirror and her ways are more mature than her years. She is a gift to all of us. She is strong and exact and I love her to pieces….

We All Fall Sometimes

We all fall sometimes even me, what is important is who is there to pick me up. For me he is many things, he is like my big brother, a cool guy to hang with, a safe friend, an advisor. Over the course of a year he has filled so many voids in my heart and mind. Statements of encouragement, being proud of my good choices, providing logical solutions to my questions…. But on August 5, 2007 my appreciation for what an amazing person he is grew deeper.

We were just finishing up our 45 mile bike ride on the Marine Drive bike path with only 8 miles to go I was anticipating the calorie packed hamburger that awaited me at the end of our ride. I was going to buy this time it was my turn… The sun was getting warmer so I slid my arm warmers off and tucked them neatly in my back jersey pocket in doing this I let my front tire go off the road and before I could react I was flung over my handlebars landing on the back of my head at 18 mph. Don't you hate that feeling the moment you know you're about to bite it, and you're just trying to figure out how to make it less painful? I yelled out my friends name as I hurdled over the bars and didn’t regain consciousness until I felt him by my side assessing the damage. A fellow cyclist stopped to offer help and between the two of them they had 911 on the way and M~ was holding the back of my head. As I started to grasp what had just happened I looked to see if my bike survived the crash. As M~ handed me my water bottle what I saw almost made me throw up. My friend was covered in my blood, his hands, shirt it was everywhere.

If wrecking my beautiful road bike wasn’t bad enough, I’m bleeding all over my dear friend and to top it off when the fire department shows up it is training day so instead of the normal three maybe four good looking firemen that show up on calls I get nine. Oh God let me die now!!! Nine very nice looking firemen all wanting a piece of the action so they can claim it towards their training time. I recall feeling very claustrophobic, I guess we don’t out grow that phobia as we get older or at least I haven’t as I learned being strapped to that board laying on my back where most of my injuries were it was very painful.

I had my first ambulance ride, cat scans, five staples put in the back of my head and three sutures to finish off the day…. I will never look at a stapler the same. The hot shower water later that night revealed the road rash I had on my back and hip. Ouch!!!!

M~ had taken care of my bike and stopped by Emanuel Hospital to make sure I was okay, it was comforting to see him and I thanked him for caring for me and also apologized for ruining our great ride that day.

When it was all said and done when the fuss was over and I knew I was okay I laid there alone in the bright white emergency room thinking of one thing… Jules, oh how I wanted my dear friend. M~ called her and she was on her way to get me. When she peeked her head around the corner and said “Hello” I saw her face and knew that all was well in the universe and all became balanced for me. She took me home, fed me, cleaned me up and stayed with me most of the night.

I am truly a blessed lady, I have the most amazing circle of friends and if I ever doubt my Heavenly Father all I need to do is look into the eyes of my friends and I know he is right here with me, he is in each of these wonderful people around me…

She Sings Like Bird

It is Summer 2007 the Norah Jones concert is sold out. I’ve missed out, I’ve lost my chance to watch one of my favorite singers perform in one of my favorite places the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. Damn! Maybe my trusty old friend Craig’s List will have a ticket for sale; someone has to have a ticket they can’t use….

The ad read “She Sings Like a Bird” Looking for special lady to enjoy the NJ concert with. Oh Great! He is probably a complete whack-job. No way, I’m not going to attend a concert with a guy I don’t know, who knows he may chop me up I little pieces and toss me in the Willamette River. Humm,,, Okay fine I’ll reply, I am sure by now he’s gotten thousands of responses and he isn’t going to kill me right there in an area full of thousands of concert goers. After four days with no reply I accept my fate and resign myself that I would not be going to the concert, one final search on Craig’s List for a ticket and a quick check of my emails, nothing.

But Wait??

Simply stated the email read “W~ if you are still available I would like you to join me at the NJ concert” P~
Oh I must be the luckiest lady alive, I bounce out of my cubical announcing to my co-workers I’m going to the concert…. With deep concerns they all take turns terrifying me about the dangers of meeting a stranger off the Internet. Do I heed their warning, NOPE!!! Because I’m going to the concert, yeah!!!!
A few glasses of wine, a perfect gentleman, nice looking, great conversation, more in common than expected, a fantastic concert and an amazing new friend, it was truly a magical night the kind that young girls fantasize about. She truly does sing like a bird.

My First Blog

Here I am with my dear friend we're creating my avenue for communicating with the world. Or we're going to just take over the world, one sorry story at a time.