Roger prepared an authentic Iranian dinner for our guests on Sunday. Kabob is an important item and the meat must be cooked on a charcoal grill, preferably on mesquite coals, so he prepared steak, lamb, chicken and ground beef kabobs with saffron rice.
Pictured is a dish that is similar to American potato salad but it has a larger variety of ingredients. All the items are precooked, then chopped and mixed with seasonings, mayonnaise and yogurt. Included are potatoes, diced carrots, peas, dill pickles, boiled egg, cooked chicken breast, green olives and celery. It's actually like a main dish so we enjoyed some lunches from the leftovers.
It has been a pleasant week with a variety of activities. Last night I attended a meeting hosted by Tri-Met to learn about the new MAX line that will run down Lincoln Street (right outside our condo). It will be wonderful to have train transport just steps away but there is also a noise impact that is being addressed. It's a four year project that won't begin until next summer so there's a lot more that we need to learn.
Now we're looking forward to a weekend visit with Mike and Teresa and next week Bella and I will fly to Sacramento for a short visit with Lodi and S.F. friends and family.
Weather is still cool and often also "drippy" but the trees are full of flowers and greenery so we know that nicer weather will be here soon.
Almost every day seems like the weekend for Roger and I but things still seem like more fun on Saturdays and Sunday.
This afternoon we went downtown to the Newmark Theater to see the end of the season Oregon Ballet production. The theater is smaller so the audience feels like part of the dance. Today was exceptional with a variety of styles, music and dancing. Everyone's favorite was the last part that featured ballet danced to Samba music. We left the theater feeling like dancing ourselves.
The Heathman Hotel and Restaurant is nearby and it was happy hour so.................
We're back home now so it's time to get ready for dinner guests tomorrow night. The Sacher Torte is baking in the oven and Roger is doing the prep work for the barbecued kabobs so most of the work will be finished and we can join the party.
It's Earth Day so it's a reminder that we need to Recycle !
Today is the beginning of a stretch of about four days of sunshine so Allison and I celebrated by taking Alfie and Bella for a walk to the river where we had the best burger in Portland for lunch.
Alfie is a seven year old Doberman who gets stopped by almost everyone that we meet on a walk. Poor little Bella was unnoticed which came as quite a surprise for her.
We are enjoying warmer weather so the barbie is clean and fired up. In fact there are three barbies now; one gas, one small charcoal for picnics and one larger charcoal one for entertaining. (Ed, in Lodi - you'll appreciate that Roger is a charcoal fanatic like you...........).
Tonight we're doing corn on the cob and chicken. It has been a good week. Roger learned that surgery is not necessary for his back problem and he has an appointment Wednesday for an injection that we hope will alleviate the pain.
Thursday the complex had its annual dinner meeting where we learned about all the problems that condo owners share (like large assessments for unexpected repairs) but we live here because we love being downtown so it's a small price to pay for the convenience of being close to everything.
Ashley sent a hand made pottery bowl she made that is beautiful so it's out on the back balcony ready for a Spring flower. Roger continues to plant little seedlings so we have a "nursery" near the big sliding door in the living room and a few larger plants outside with the hopes they will catch a few rays of sun.
Yesterday Ann and I enjoyed lunch at the Heathman and the last Pops concert for this season featuring music from the "Fabulous Forties".
I would like to wish Kristen Friedli (my great niece) a very Happy Birthday and also a Happy Birthday to my great nephew, Sean, who is celebrating his birthday tomorrow.
Steven and Vicki wrote yesterday to tell me that Steve's dad had passed away. I remember many enjoyable occasions spent with Steve's parents. It's a difficult time when we lose a precious loved one so I send my sympathy and concern to Steve and his family. Rest in Peace, dear Marv .............
Tonight we were Allison's guests to an amazing dinner at Jake's Crawfish Restaurant, in business for over 100 years and still jumping....
This month they are featuring crab in many of their dishes so tonight we splurged with Alicia having crab leg pasta and Allison and I sharing sauteed crab legs with fresh artichokes and mushrooms. Roger opted for fresh grilled Oregon Sturgeon. Banana Cream Pie was suggested by our waiter so we decided to share a piece. Thankfully, we only ordered one because it was huge (and delicious).
We're having a great week - enjoying beautiful weather and keeping busy............
If you love to read you must read Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay. On one of the comments at the front of the book, Jenna Blum, author of Those Who Save Us writes "Just when you thought you might have read about every horror of the Holocaust, a book will come along and shine a fierce light upon yet another haunting wrong. Sarah's Key is such a novel".
Its subject is the Vel' d' Hiv' that occurred in Paris in July of 1942 taking 4,000 Jewish children to their death.
Yes, it's been almost a week since you heard from us in Portland so I wanted you to know that we're fine. It has been a good week taking care of a few medical appointments, going to lunch, running some errands and................... suddenly the week is over.
Roger is presently tempting all the neighbors with the smell of charcoal barbecued rack of lamb.
Tomorrow morning we return to the Farmer's Market but that's all we have planned for the weekend so it will be nice to enjoy the sunshine and some leisure time plus cook some of our market purchases.
Happy Easter ! The Farmer's Market was damp and a little soggy from the rain yesterday but we still ventured out to pick up some fresh produce. Ann, Cheryl and I stopped at Oba's in the afternoon to enjoy their happy hour so it was a great day.
Today Roger and I will be joining his friends for a picnic at a nearby park so we're not cooking a traditional Easter dinner. We'll be enjoying a barbecue instead.
We wish everyone a happy day with family and friends.
We had an enjoyable drive to Springfield to see Rachel while she is recovering from surgery and to see Brian and Carolyn. The forecast today was for a severe rain storm but we found blue skies with an occasional dark cloud that would pour rain for a minute or two and then the sun returned. The drive home was a little more stormy but, being a typical Friday afternoon commute time, we still had a comfortable trip. Bella got to go along so she's exhausted from the trip and all the extra attention.
Today I agreed to be a substitute teacher at Oasis for a blogging class. Did I know what I was doing? Well, not really but I was hoping that the students would just want to learn the basics.
There were only two in attendance and they were really sharp ladies who asked advanced questions (some that I didn't have an answer for) so it turned into a team effort with the three of us brainstorming and figuring out the answers.
Linda is on the left and Martha is on the right. It turned out well and I feel confident they will both be talented bloggers very soon.
Yesterday afternoon we stopped at our favorite small bakery in Beaverton that sells some of the most fabulous pastries. This little cake is a four layer chocolate cake filled with a marshmallow type frosting and covered with coconut. It was delicious but it wouldn't hold 74 candles !
Roger received telephone calls from friends and family all over the world so he had a great birthday.
