The Movie ARGO and a Return to Brix

This afternoon Roger and I watched Argo at the Living Room Theater.  It covers the period of time when Americans in the American Embassy were held hostage in Tehran in 1979 and focuses on the six who escaped to the Canadian Embassy for asylum.  Roger's office was in a building across the street from the Embassy on the 6th floor so he was able to watch the capture from his window.  He says that at that time, Iranians were puzzled about what was happening in the country - never guessing that their lives would forever change.  The movie is exceptional, not just it's story but, with an excellent quality of acting and action.

After the movie, we stopped at Brix to check out their dinner menu.  It's a great place for dinner because it suits every taste from pizza, to sandwiches to elegant full dinners.  I had prime rib (huge) so Bella got a taste when we got home (with more to come tomorrow).  She's already forgiven us for leaving her home alone.

Fall at PSU

Walking home from my Ancient Greek Art History class, I couldn't resist taking some pictures of the beautiful colors of the trees on campus.

The class is exceptional - we're currently studying 530BCE Greek architecture and statuary and it's a fascinating subject.

Tomorrow at my Palestine and Israel class we're privileged to hear a guest speaker, Professor Joel Beinin, an expert on Palestine and Israel history from Stanford University. 

Mr. and Mrs. Mayer

We just returned home from the afternoon wedding of Callie Bennett and Manuel Mayer.  The ceremony was held at the Vie de Boheme Winery in Portland and it was perfect in every way.

Congratulations to you both.  We wish you a lifetime of happiness !!

Live in Portland? You MUST try BRIX Tavern in the Pearl

Today Roger and I enjoyed one of the best brunches, ever, at Brix Tavern on Hoyt.  Their menu has so many temptations that it was difficult to choose.  Roger decided on the "Chicken Fried Chicken" with gravy, eggs and hash browns and I had a fresh local wild mushroom and brie omelette.   While we waited for the food, they served fresh hot donuts for a starter - unbelievably good................  The restaurant was jumping with people everywhere.  We're looking forward to returning for another brunch soon because of the great menu choices.  I just checked out their dinner menu and it's fabulous, as well.  On the table there was a dinner special.  If you go to dinner on a Tuesday night and order one entree, the second is free.  It doesn't get any better !

Saturday

As I write this, Bella is hunkered down on my favorite chair in front of the fireplace.  The weather has cooled, with showers predicted for the next five days, so now she looks for any place that is cozy and warm.  I must admit that I'm tempted to return to the chair for some cuddles while I check out the November Bon Appetit Magazine.

It soon will be time to plan our Thanksgiving menu, except this year we plan to deviate from the turkey and try something different.  Pam and Lori will be here for the holiday weekend so they already have given me some menu ideas.  One thing is for certain.  Pam and I will be enjoying warm fresh made cranberry sauce, no matter what we choose for the entree.

Portland Oatmeal Dry Fruit and Nuts COOKIES

I love getting the Penzeys catalog because they include really great recipes.  Today I found one for "Martas" but I was determined to bake a cookie with oatmeal in it.  I did some research and found that I could alter their recipe to include oatmeal and "tweak" it in a few other ways.  They turned out so well that I want to share my new version.

2 cups oatmeal
3 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp gound nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 cup crisco
1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar (the cookies are pretty sweet - your might want to cut this to 1/2 cup)
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup raisins (I used a package of dry mixed fruit from Trader Joe with raisins, cranberries, blueberries and cherries and it was fabulous!)
1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Sift the flour baking powder, soda, salt and spices.  In a separate bowl, cream the shortening and sugars until blended.  Add the eggs, one at a time and beat until fluffy.  Blend in the vanilla.  Add the flour and oatmeal with the buttermilk, alternately, until blended.  Stir in the dry fruit and nuts.

Drop by a spoon onto a cookie sheet about 2 inches apart and bake for between 16 and 18 minutes or until lightly browned.  (I used a tablespoon so if you make smaller cookies, the baking time will be shortened). 

I baked half the dough and shared the cookies with our friends (with still a lot for us) and I froze the rest of the batter to experiment with baking more after the dough defrosts.  If that works, these will be great for the holidays, as you can bake them fresh as needed.

Happy Birthday, Rosanna (In New Zealand)

My plan was to wish you a happy birthday tomorrow (Oct 11) but I see that you're already celebrating in New Zealand where it's one day ahead so let's celebrate your birthday for TWO days.  Enjoy every minute and continue to have a wonderful time on your vacation !!

The Body Beautiful In Ancient Greece at the Portland Art Museum

Today our art history class was held at the downtown Portland Art Museum where we viewed a collection of more than 130 objects of Greek and Roman antiquity.  The final test for the class is to write a thesis about one of the objects in the collection that is borrowed from the British Museum.  We're currently studying the Cycladic period dating to 2600 - 2400 BCE and it was exciting to be able to view  sculptures and pottery from that period. 

Another Salmon Dinner

Tonight we enjoyed another salmon dinner from Allison's fishing trip on the Columbia.  Ann came with a pot of flowers and Allison brought roses so I'll cook dinner any time for these two best friends.

Both Ann and Allison are talking about going on another fishing trip so I may be cooking a lot of fish in the coming months!

Another look at autumn

Roger's homework for his two dimensional art class is to draw a picture using just a pen and black ink.

He just finished this and I think that his instructor will be pleasantly surprised.

Market Day

The Farmer's Market looks like a Norman Rockwell painting of a harvest season.  Pumpkins, squash, pears and apples, dozens of varieties of peppers - but still a remnant of summer with strawberries, tomatoes, peaches and corn on the cob.

Today I went to the market alone with an intent to slowly savor the experience so after a lengthy stroll through the market, I could barely pull my cart home because it was so heavy with my purchases.  It took almost an hour to wash, trim and repackage everything but now, when I open the refrigerator, it's like a symphony of color and beauty.

1st Thursday Art Walk in the Pearl

The first Thursday evening of each month, art galleries in the Pearl stay open late and they feature a different artist each month.  Last night Roger and I enjoyed an early dinner at Shiraz and then we checked out the art at six galleries.  Most had live music and several were pouring wine and drinks so it was more like a street party.  We're learning that the term "art" has many interpretations - some that we like and some that we simply don't understand.

Roger is taking two interesting art classes this term; one is two dimensional art and the other is three dimensional.  He's presently working on three projects using plaster, clay, plaster fabric strips and other modeling materials.

Meanwhile, I'm enjoying my Ancient Greek Art History class and next week the class will have an opportunity to go to a museum downtown that is featuring a collection of Greek art that is borrowed from the British Museum.  The students will choose one piece of art at the museum to write their thesis.

In the Palestine / Israel class we're learning about Zionist Nationalism between the years of 1897 and about 1914 and the class is fascinating with lots of dialog between the professor and the students.  This topic brings out some very firm opposing opinions.

We continue to enjoy sunny cool weather so the nights are crispy and the afternoons are warm.  Leaves are turning color and some are already on the ground so it's clear that "fall is in the air".

Happy Birthday, BELLA !

Bella is celebrating her sixth birthday today so she's a grownup now.  She'll get some extra chicken for dinner tonight.  She has brought a lot of joy to my life and she loves me no matter what.............