Saturday, November 17, 2007

Big windstorm

The most enjoyable thing I've done this past week
Drive around Joseph and the north end of Wallowa Lake on Monday morning with my son taking photos for our newspaper of a wild, wild windstorm. He was driving most of the time, while I was trying to get photos out the car window, but it was blowing and raining so hard, even in the car, I could hardly keep the lens clear. There were gusts from 100 to 78 (depending on where gauged), with limbs and trees toppling, one barn fire, wires down ... Nothing like a natural disaster (no one hurt) to get the journalistic adrenaline churning.

The worst thing that happened in the past week is that my trusty digital camera suddenly quit working last Saturday night, while I was covering the annual Healthy Futures dinner/auction given by the health care foundation (to raise money, this year for a new ambulance).
It's a Fuji S5000 with a 10X optical zoom that I bought on-line for less than $300 almost four years ago, in preparation for my first trip to London. I carry it everywhere, use it for work and easily take an average of 100 photos a week.
One minute it was working at the dinner; I turned it off for awhile, and then it wouldn't turn back on. I changed the batteries .... nothing has worked. My theory is that after 3 1/2 years of hard use, it just wore out.
For Monday's storm, my boss had left her camera home, and I borrowed a Cannon from the ad department; it has a lot more bells and whistles, but I had trouble adjusting during the heat of the storm. I know I could have take even better shots with MY camera. Alas. I think I'll be going on-line to see if I can find another, just like the one that quit. Unfortunately, there are no camera repairmen within 200 miles of my end of the road location.

Aftermath of the storm - We didn't drive up to the head of the lake, the resort area, during the worst of the storm, where it turned out the most damage was. Trees fell on cars, houses ... The state park lost about 30 big trees, which is sad, but amazingly no one was hurt. It was very dangerous, so it's probably a good thing I missed it. Geoff from our paper went up the next day and got some very good photos. He put together a really good slide show for our web site. (www.wallowa.com)

Saturday, November 03, 2007

Double Grandma


Being the grandma of two little girls is twice as good as having only one granddaughter
Adeline Faith -- Addie for every day -- made her appearance on Monday, June 2, 2007, the day after I returned home in the wake of a week-long vacation basically spent waiting for her arrival.

Of course I had a lot of fun with granddaughter #1, going to a friend's birthday party at a kid's gym, discovering the library with her for the first time and of course coloring and doing crafts, her favorite. My daughter was very pregnant and somewhat crabby, but we had some good talks and though Addie chose to remain unborn, it was still a good time.

Grandma Carol and Grandpa Steve came the day after I left, so were there taking care of Lily during the time of Addie's birth. and I saw lots of photos.

Finally I met my new granddaughter during a long weekend at the end of August (her dad was in the Hood to Coast run!) She's fair skinned and blue-eyed and basically bald with the most darling chubby cheeks and a beautiful smile, a true darling.

Lily is very loving with her "stister" -- except when she suddenly gets too rough. I'm sure she can't wait until Addie can do more than drool and flop over when Lily holds her. She turned four months yesterday, so it won't be long. Jenny says she's discovered her hands.

Was in Tigard last for Lily's third birthday -- only five families (plus me and Uncle Matt) were invited, which meant a houseful. Lily loved her Dora castle, Dora furniture, doggy vet set, human doctor set, huge craft set, big play doh set and on and on and on. Addie loved being held and watching her "friends" (mobile animals in her swing chair or changing table).

Lily is full of life, mischievious, curious about the world, very well-behaved except when she's not, so smart and articulate, always on the go. Addie is still in many ways an emerging personality, so new to the world, but so very, very much loved!