Greece--Day 3 part one

So much happened on day three that I decided to split the day into two posts! Bob and Nicole's partner ventured out for the coffee run. They not only returned with coffee but six free small waters as well. 

Room at Museum of Illusions--photo B Knott

On this day, our group went to two locations. . .the majority went to visit the Museum of Illusions. 

How can she be so small--photo N Knott

It was a smaller place; but full of exhibits that tricked your eye into seeing a variety of illusions.

Who's taller now--photo N Knott

The Infinity Room was the group's favorited exhibit. Even Miss Ada thought it was a great room.

Amanda and James at the pie shop

Amanda, James and I went on a food tour. We rode the underground train. James did a great job of navigating the platforms to ensure we were headed in the right direction.

The information about the tour warned us not to eat at least three hours before the tour began. It was my first time to take a food tour; but, it won't be the last. We had one other person with us, Freddie. Freddie was from Cambridge in the UK. He was a journalist who while working for a mercy organization produced a short film about refugees living in asylum on the Greek island, Samos. 

Samos On Fire film

The title of the 29 minute film is Samos--On Fire. I found a review on line. On another site, I was able to listen to one song. 

Our guide ordering our samples

We had savory and sweet pastry at our first stop. I thought that the spinach pie would be my favorite until I tasted the cheese pie. This cheese was so delicious that Amanda decided she would look for it at the market. 

Savory pie samples

We also had a sweet version of the pie. It was good; but, I liked the savory version better. 

Sweet pie

As we left the shop, a man was rolling the dough for more sweet pie! It was interesting to watch him work.

Folding the dough for more pies

We walked through narrow streets as we passed through the meat and the poultry markets on our way to the next stop. 

Narrow streets

Regarding the narrow streets, when motorcyclists pass cars, they often drive on the lane line of the street. It isn't unusual to see them clip the mirrors of other vehicles when they pass!

Rabbits and poultry for sale

At the meat market, each vendor artfully displayed their goods. Rabbits with their furry feet and plucked chickens hung in one stall. 

Head, tongues, livers and lungs

Lungs, livers and hung in another stall. Of course, there were the usual cuts of beef, lamb, pork and chicken on display.

Fish market display 

One vendor at the fish market posed the fish so a number of them appeared as if they were swimming in the ice. We saw a lot of octopus and squid displayed. The area where these vendors was large. With so much variety, I imagined  navigating dinner options every day had I lived there!

Brewing coffee in a table of sand

We left the fish market behind and headed toward our next stop which was to experience a cup of Greek coffee that was made on a sand table. This was my favorite stop of the day.

Coffee ready to be served

Under the metal table are a couple of burners which heat the sand. The coffee which is ground to a dust as fine as flour is placed in a copper pot with a long handle. In the cup is also sugar, if you want it, and water.

Then the barista moves the little pot around in the sand until the coffee comes to a boil. This is the point that the pot comes to your table. You pour the liquid into your cup and wait two minutes for the sediment to settle. We learned this was how the Turks and Greeks in the dessert made their coffee!

Honey and gelatin treats

We also received a honey gelatin treat which was delicious and a Greek delight which reminded me of Aplets and Cotlets but what our tour guide said was heavily influenced by Turkey. The Greek Delight was good. The sweet items were a good accompaniment to the coffee.

Greek Delights

After coffee, we tasted Greek donuts. These are fried in oil and contain three ingredients: flour, yeast and sugar. The name of the shop we went to was Kpivos. Open the link, the video describes what we thought about the donuts.

Donuts with a Greek honey and cinnamon glaze

The business has two locations. You can purchase take away at the kiosk. You can also walk a couple blocks more and eat your donuts at a table. The company has been at this location and been in business for over 100 years. Before serving donuts, the building was a pharmacy. These taste a lot like beignets except they are a little crunchier than the beignets.

Walk up kiosk

As we left the bakery, our guide pointed out graffiti that was painted with a permit. 

Permitted graffiti

We also saw graffiti that wasn't permitted. Greek people have a lot to say, hence all the spray paint!              

Non permitted graffiti

At the next stop, we learned about olives. This small shop contained so many different olives. There were stuffed olives, as well as a variety of marinades as well as a variety of olives! There were olive oils too.

Olive shop

I found that I liked the flavor of the smallest olive best. All the olives were delicious.

Olive assortment

Next door to the olive shop was a deli. We were able to sample a variety of dishes. Our guide selected a variety of options which were placed on plates which we shared. 

Deli options

I enjoyed the orzo salad. It had sun-dried tomatoes and mint in it. 

Clockwise from center, orzo salad, bread, olives and chicken

The fried calamari was a hit as was the eggplant. 

Clockwise from lemon: deep fried calamari; mussels in a mustard sauce; grilled sardines; marinated chickpea salad

I also was pleasantly surprised that the mussels were mild. 

Clockwise starting a spoon: butter beans and yams in a tomato sauce; chicken; 
steamed potatoes and carrots drizzled with olive oil; roasted eggplant salad; cheese spread

The cheese spread was delicious. The butter bean and yam dish was good too. All the items we tasted were good!

Display of herbs available for sale

Next we walked by some herb vendors on our way to taste some vinegars at a hotel. Amanda and I liked the purple version best. It is different to taste vinegars. These vinegars were made to sip which is an unusual concept for me. Although, after tasting each, I could see how one could sip each!

Vinegar tasting

Our last stop of the day was to purchase a gyro sandwich. This establishment deep fried the pita and then stuffed it with meat and a special tomato ace. It was delicious. Unfortunately, I didn't snap a photo of the sandwich.

It was a great tour. I'll post about our evening activity next Wednesday. 

Santa 2021

 

Package delivery

When our daughters were little, my father-in-law would drive two hours to our house to wake the kids up wearing a Santa costume that my mother-in-law had made. He would ring the bells and the girls would fly out of their beds to try to "catch" Santa in the act of leaving presents. One daughter would always check outside for reindeer hoof prints! He would gift each girl with some special presents on his way out to make other deliveries. 

Then he'd make the return two hour trip. He would call the girls to find out if they had been good enough for Santa to fill their stockings! He played Santa for other families too once the girls become wise and then too old for Santa.

The "awe" of  Santa in the house

My husband has been filling the Santa role since the granddaughters have had Christmases. The beard and wig while the best accessories for the costume are also what makes the costume extra hot. The pillow worn at the midriff also traps the heat! 

This year, we didn't think that their parents were going to allow Santa inside their home in spite of Dr. Fauci's claim that Santa was immune to COVID 19. 

With less than a day notice, Santa received visiting privileges if he wore a mask. The granddaughters at age 7 and 8 1/2 were up at 3AM. Their parents encouraged them to go back to bed; but, they were too excited to sleep. I'm told the bell ringing at 5:30AM brought them out of their rooms!

Santa commented that the youngest seemed to figure out his identity although she didn't ask. The way she is "snuggled" in for the photo gave us all a clue that she is in the know! With the deliveries complete, Santa returned to the North
Pole for a well deserved nap and vacation.

Snuggling with Santa

The first opportunity after the holiday that my husband had to spend with granddaughters was a walk yesterday. The youngest granddaughter said, "Papa, you look a lot like Santa. AND Santa is almost as handsome as you!" Is that not a thoughtful comment for a kid to make? To let you know; but, yet, still be able to walk the line so that Santa will come again next year? What a memory they made together!

As a family, we met via Zoom. A year ago, we were visiting our youngest daughter at her flat in London. We traveled Christmas Day. What a difference a year makes! 

The daughters cooked lamb for dinner. We cooked a ham. We look forward to physically being together in 2021.

This is my last post for the month and the last post for the year. I helped 22 people earn their 

American Heart Health Care Provider CPR certificates. I had two finishes for the quarter. I finished Unity and I finished Steps. I plan to roll most of my fourth quarter list forward into 2021. I also have lots of new projects planned for 2021 which I'll be posting about in the coming weeks.

Thank you dear readers for reading my posts and for your kind and uplifting comments. New Year's Eve, I'll be sitting and sewing with my Friday Clark County Quilters group. I hope the new year brings you joy. Stay safe. May the vaccine come to each one us sooner rather than later!

Re-Siding the Barn

Half the barn ready for siding

This is a mostly unrelated quilting post. We moved to this property 30 years ago last Labor Day weekend. There was a red barn with four stalls on the two acre plot. The previous owners had six horses, a plethora of chickens in a variety of chicken coops and a bunch of dogs that resided in the various kennels attached to the house. There were so many animals on the property, that there was little grass!

During the first few years that we lived here, we raised a couple beef cattle that we later slaughtered for meat for our freezer. We stored the hay and grain in the barn. There were about six chickens that escaped the move.They roosted in one of the stalls of the barn. The kids played in the barn when they were in elementary school. The grandkids have played in the barn too.

Rod setting up the skill saw 

Now, it is the place where the rototiller and lawn mower reside. Bob, my husband, has stored the extra siding, shingles and flooring used on the house in the barn. There is reclaimed fencing material from the previous owners and some leftover pieces of wood from previous projects that are stored in the barn. 

Bob has painted it "suburban red" about four times over the years. The first time it was due for a coat of paint, we talked about changing the color. We decided, however, the red barn seemed the best fit on the property so it has remained suburban red. Bob has patched the roof several times. There was the time that the tree blew over in a windstorm and a limb caused some damage. There never were gutters on the roof.

Over the years, nature's elements have deteriorated the siding to the point that the majority of the boards were rotten. It was time to replace the siding. He developed his plan. He first removed the rotten boards. Then he knew how much new wood he needed to order. 

Teamwork in placing the boards

He learned that the stalls were tacked to the outside walls so when the boards were removed, the panels would collapse. He shoveled away some of the dirt that had accumulated from many years of "organic compost" deposits from the horses.

He worked on half of the barn at a time. After he had ordered the wood from a local company who also delivered it, he and a friend spent a day installing the new wood. The third day, he stripped the other side of the barn and his friend arrived on the fourth day to finish the installment process.

He is waiting for the new wood to dry for a couple weeks so he can prime and paint it. The smoke from the Riverside fire stalled forward progress on the project because the air quality was rated hazardous for a week. It was unsafe to be outside. We will get it painted. 

Bob has purchased the primer and all the "suburban" red pain he needs to finish the project.  I plan to help with the painting; but, knowing my husband as I do, I wouldn't be surprised if the next nice day he starts the job whether I can be there or not! He can't be idle nor can he have an unfinished project staring at him!

Finished side waiting to dry before painting

It started raining late Thursday night and the air is clearing. I was surprised that after several hours of rain falling, the smoke was still visible. At any rate, he will get to wait for the wood to dry again before he can paint it. 

He'll be raking needles while he waits for the wood to dry. You can't tell from the photo, but that line of needles is about the height of his knees! Yesterday, he raked 192 wheelbarrow loads of needles. Bob said that this was the most that he has raked at one time. Those three days of high winds caused the needles to fall in great quantities. He has at least that many needles left to rake! Our air quality dropped from 292 to 30 from Friday to Saturday! 

Thursday, we brought the Tahoe home with our "important stuff." The quilts are stacked on the bed and the other "stuff" is back where it was. I'm planning to inventory the quilts. I've never counted them nor do I really know how many I have or have made over the years. With the quilts in one place, it is a good time to compile a list! My husband thinks there are 832 quilts (No way!); my youngest daughter's boyfriend estimates 172; (Still too many); my oldest daughter estimates 123; my youngest daughter estimated 100; my son-in-law estimates 65 and I said 50ish!

Quilts to inventory

Quilter, pattern maker, author and hand embroidery aficionado Bonnie Sullivan lost her home in Mill City to the Beachie Creek fire. She escaped with a backpack and the kindness of a stranger who gave her a lift to safety. The Salem Reporter compiled a special report about the area fires in their circulation area. Truly, firefighters saved many. We will never hear about all the lives they actually saved because there are just too many. Thank you God for having so many heroes available to help those that needed assistance! Neighbors are helping neighbors get back on their feet. There are still about 3000 people in shelters which could mean hotels from Medford to Portland because their homes are a pile of ash. There are still a few actual shelters that are open. Those that can return home have. 

The Estacada Community Watch has organized a welcome pantry to returning evacuees. Drive up and pick up a bag of groceries to help you as you learn which food supplies in your home are no longer edible. Often, you would hear about a particular organization taking this role. Rural Oregonians are an independent group who look after one another and who figure out ways to help themselves. Unfortunately, our governor has said little about these efforts to the media. 

Regarding COVID:

Bob raking needles dropped during the wind storm

Worldwide: 30.5M confirmed; 20.8M recovered; 953K deaths

United States: 6.82M confirmed; 3.69M recovered; 202K deaths

Oregon: 30,342 confirmed; 521 deaths

The media reported a case study indicated that there will be 400K COVID deaths in the United States before the end of 2020 if the infection trend continues at the current rate. While the President continues to claim there will be a vaccine available before the end of the year, the CDC continues to advocate wearing a mask and social distancing. CDC director Robert Redfield stated mask wearing would be more effective against COVID-19 than the vaccine.

Regarding the protests, last week the media has reported the protests continue although, the violence factor has not been organized. Last night, the protests resumed. The media cited air quality as the reason for the break. The first of September, the New York Times ran a story about the 100 days of protest in Portland. The people interviewed live outside of Portland. I appreciated the perspective.

Oregon Fire--The State Is Burning

Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 

The state of Oregon is on fire. Firefighters are trying to contain four major fires as well as a number of smaller fires. We have had dry, hot weather coupled with high winds. 

Over one million of acres have burned. Whole towns are destroyed. It took the governor three days to request assistance from the National guard. It took her four days to reach out to the President to request federal aid. I appreciate that the President spoke to her directly since it wasn't that many days ago that she publicly lambasted him sending federal officers to protect federal property during BLM protests. He told her that he would support federal aid packages to our area. 

News sources have reported air quality for the city of Portland is the worst in the world for cities of its size. Air quality where I live is worse than in Portland. During the day, it is dark like it is evening! 40,000 people have been evacuated; 500,000 people are on alert to evacuate. We are one of the 500,000.

View towards the fire at noon on September 10

It isn't known how all the fires started. Arson is suspected in some of them. Lightening started at least one fire. Firefighters are spending their time trying to save homes and ensure that people who were supposed to evacuate did. There are not enough firefighters to adequately cover all the fires. 

A couple who were friends with my husband's family when he was a boy lost everything. They lived in Phoenix, Oregon which was one of the towns that was completely destroyed. 

He drove his wife to her hair appointment and took the dog along for a ride. When they returned home, their house and their neighborhood had burned. They had no warning. Starting over when you are in your mid-eighties would be hard. Their children are lending a hand, since they live in the area. Their children are also affected by the fire. The couple is thankful that they weren't hurt, that they are in a hotel, and that they are together. They are spending some time canceling water, electrical, internet, etc. services while considering their options.

Taking a photo of the contents

Some people, who have loved ones with medical issues, left the fire area and went to a motel. The Red Cross handed out hotel vouchers to level three evacuees until the motel/hotel accommodations filled. Then shelters were opened because people had no where to go. Because of COVID concerns, they had tried to avoid opening shelters. Many evacuees are staying with family in the area. The Salvation Army has also mobilized to help people that the fire has affected. Leadership from the Salvation Army Cascade unit stated that Oregonians are a resilient group. Many people who are eligible for assistance, have figured out how to help themselves and are too proud to accept assistance. 

Yes, daughter, the Oban is packed

The Riverside fire, which has burned more than 132,000 acres, is the fire that is affecting us. I haven't heard if lives were lost in this fire nor do I know how many homes have burned. 

This is a rural area so in addition to people evacuating, there are a lot of horses, cows, goats, chickens, pigs and ducks to evacuate too. Then there are the dogs and the cats that live with the people. Dogs and cats generally aren't allowed in a shelter. A number of people have RVs so they have evacuated in those; but, they need a place to park them. Some areas, like colleges and large shopping centers have been designated as parking shelters for that purpose. Police have had to place curfews in areas and they have increased patrols to stem area looting.

The screenshot photo is the fire levels at 1pm on Thursday, September 10. Our house is the tiny black dot on the border of yellow and green just above the second red point. When our status was green, which means level one prepare to evacuate, we talked about what we would pack. We made a plan. When our status went from green to yellow, we started packing the "important stuff." Yellow is level two and it means to be ready. Red is level three and means go now.

The load

We gave ourselves two hours to pack. Bob packed documents that we need to have on hand as well as items that were special to him. I packed pictures and quilts. While I was packing, the youngest daughter called and sent a list of items she wanted saved. Her dad took care of those items. Oban spirits, a couple pictures and her baby teeth were items on her list. We each packed a GO bag. At the end of two hours we stopped. We walked through the house to see if there was something else that needed to go with us. We didn't.

Bob then photographed each room of the house so we could remember what was there. One of his friends who lives near us, offered his shop as a place to store our "important stuff." I hesitate to call our stuff valuable because to us it is sentimental and irreplaceable. Bob drove the packed Tahoe to his friend's house. (Our GO bags sit by the back door ready to be loaded.)

View at 9AM on September 13

Friday, September 11, I packed the Unity quilt and butterfly projects I've recently blogged about. I also packed my Bernina and Featherweight machines. Then I drove with them to work. It was so weird to leave not knowing if I'd be able to return or have a house to return to ten hours later! It was challenging to be separate from Bob because people evacuating have brought freeways and well traveled thorough fares to a standstill at times. We had meeting places picked for several options.

We did pack sleeping bags and tarps, water, toilet paper and some food so if we had to camp, we could. We have our dog, Bailey, who we wouldn't want to be without us even though her presence limits our accommodation options. We had planned our evacuation destination to be our daughter's home in West Linn as she had invited us. Her area, however, was placed in a level one so if we are called to evacuate we may choose a friend's house instead. 

Most of Bob's friends have extended offers to us (which includes Bailey) to stay with them and to bring as much stuff with as we can/want. A number of my friends have offered to share what they have with us. Friends who live far away have texted, e-mailed and called to check in on us. No matter what happens to us, we know that we have a wonderful support system! 

At the end of my work day, I was able to return home! The fire continues to grow and the red area of the map has inched closer to us; but, the weather has improved. The strong winds have died down and the temperatures, instead of being in the upper 90s, are in the upper 60s. Rain is forecasted to fall tomorrow and throughout the week. 

Today (Sunday), the smoke index for our area is 502 with 300 as bad. We stay inside as much as possible. Late last night, officials updated the fire evacuation map. While we are still in a level two, the line moved so we are closer to being in a level one zone. We will stay in the be ready phase until the fire threat has passed.

The lion is supporting the police

Regarding COVID:

Worldwide: 28.6M confirmed; 19.3M recovered; 917K deaths

United States: 6.56M confirmed; 3.55M recovered; 196K deaths

Oregon: 28,865 confirmed; 499 deaths

College campus have scaled back in person classes because students failed to heed the social distancing guidelines and contracted the virus. In Oregon, the word is that the smoke from the area fires can make us more susceptible to contracting COVID. 

Regarding Portland BLM protests. . .Earlier in the week the media released a poll that said Oregonians were not pleased with Mayor Ted Wheeler's response, nor Governor Kate Brown's response nor President Trump's response to the protests. Oregonians also felt that riot was a better term for the gatherings rather than the word protests. The respondents views were that the protests hurt the BLM message. 

I don't know if the protests have continued because there hasn't been a media report regarding the protests for at least the last four days. The media is busy covering all the area fires. If the destruction has stopped, perhaps, there is a correlation for appearing in a news story and rioting. Our neighbor changed the lion's hat to a police hat. Evidence of police support is everywhere--in FaceBook posts, blue ribbons worn on clothing and sign boards posted outside of homes and businesses to name a few examples.

More Masks--

First mask ready to cut

A friend sent me an e-mail last week asking me for "Terry Masks" for her family. She said she had recycled t-shirts into masks. She wanted to be able to slip an additional filter into the mask for extra protection. Her pattern didn't allow for that function and she had seen the ones that I had made for my family.

She doesn't sew. She wrote, that her family would be happily surprised to get out of the "Seattle Grunge" kind  that she had created! I chuckled over that comment! I decided that I would need to stitch three pair of masks for males and two pair of masks for females.

I have little fabric that "speak" male. I won that red fat quarter several years ago. I don't remember what I made with it initially, but, it was the perfect fabric for this purpose!

The view at the mid-point

Over a couple days, I stitched 10 masks. Friday, my husband mailed the package to my friend who lives in Washington State near Seattle. Those of you who have stitched that many masks in a morning or an evening. My hat is off to you! I don't have that type of production in me!

I used a twist tie from the grocery store as the nose wire in most of these masks. I found that a nine inch by thirteen scrap was large enough to make a mask. I used more packages of my grandmother's bias tape. I now have all of the bias tape in one drawer.

There is the outer fabric, the lining and a muslin facing in this project. I used 1 3/4 yard of fabric. I have now used 35 3/4 yards from my stash in projects this year. This project was an addition to my finish a long goals so I won't be counting it as an "official" finish.

10 finished masks

Regarding Covid--
Worldwide:
4.02M confirmed; 1.38M recovered, 979K deaths
U.S.:
1.34M confirmed; 210K recovered, 76,696 deaths
Oregon:
3,160 confirmed, 71460 negative, 120 deaths

The Oregon Governor is allowing Oregon to slowly begin to open. In counties where there is little Covid activity, the county can apply to open boutiques, jewelry stores, furniture stores and art galleries as early as May 15. Kids summer camps also fall in this category.

Some outdoor parks opened on May 5 for people to be able to walk and hike. Social distancing and masks are to be used. Gyms might be able to open around the first of June.

Rice is still hard to find as is flour. We may have meat shortages; but, so far Bob has been able to purchase the items on the grocery list. We have quite

Readying the clippers for cutting hair

a bit of meat in the freezer so we should be okay for six months or more with what we have on hand.

Growing up, we canned and preserved foods in the summer months that we ate in the winter months. Our pantry was well stocked. In my married life, we've continued to keep a stocked pantry and have always had the space to do it.

Yesterday, I cut my husband's hair with dog clippers. In my life, I've trimmed horses, cattle and dogs but, I haven't trimmed human hair. I was nervous about clipping his ear or gouging his scalp. The first time, I used the shortest guards that came with the clippers. While the haircut felt better to Bob, it wasn't short enough for him.

He encouraged me to take the guard off and to cut it again. I took a deep breath and I recut his hair. I drew no blood. The results are good. I think it looks like he did see his barber. I trimmed his eyebrows, ears and nose too. He loved his hair cut. I hope that by the time he needs another hair cut, the barber will be open. Although I would cut his hair again if needed.

After the hair cut

I was surprised at the pile of hair that came off of his head. It was a windy day. We decided the best place to cut hair was outdoors so the hair was blown away before I could photograph the pile! I'll also admit, I hadn't seen his "curls" in many years. I did like seeing them!

He said he would do clip my hair for me; but I politely declined his offer. My hair can continue to grow. I can braid it if it bothers me too much!

We are still encouraged to shelter in place as much as possible. On Monday, I have a chiropractic appointment and that will be my first outing since March 19. She was the last place I visited. I will be wearing a mask during my appointment. Thursday and Friday, I will be teaching CPR skills at the hospital. I'll be wearing gloves and a mask the entire day.

Today, is Mother's Day. My mom dropped by for an unexpected overnight yesterday. She was on her way from Woodland, Washington to Bend, Oregon because she wanted to check on her Bend house. At 82, she lives her life according to her rules.

Happy Mother's Day to all moms. Moms of fur babies count too!