SOCIAL METABOLISM

The Pandemic has caused this introvert to become even less social.  The thought of organizing and attending a "group" outing gives me a panic attack.  Oregon is tightening up on Covid restrictions again and I welcome that with open arms.

Janet (my sister) arrived Friday evening at 6:30pm.  We drove to give Tahlia a hug as she was leaving for another weekend Ultimate competition.  She is on Eastern time so we had to find somewhere close to have dinner.  We settled on sushi (something my family does not enjoy).  It's super fun with Janet as she loves to share meals so we had edamame, miso soup, seaweed salad, two kinds of tuna sushi rolls and salmon nigiri.  AND ... we shared a beer!

We came to the condo and got her settled into the Guest Suite with a plan to meet at 8:30 am Saturday for coffee and a treat.  As I was washing my hands, a visitor jumped up out of the drain!  He looks smaller in this photo!

It is right next door to our Farmer's Market.  My favorite way to do the Market is to go up and down every aisle, have samples then decide where to return to make purchases.

Have you ever tried kombucha?  I have, maybe twice, and it tasted like vinegar to me.  This vendor had jun kombucha and she wanted a taste. We shared it  and it was AMAZING!  Natural ingredients that ferment on their own without sugar or black tea.

"Jun is a fermented, naturally carbonated beverage brewed with green tea, raw honey, and a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast.  We use raw local honey from ethical beekeepers as well as source organic teas from local and fair-trade vendors.

Our Jun is produced in small batches, unpasteurized, and served fresh at our retail locations and farmers markets.  Each one of our flavors are designed to effect the mind and body in a unique and gentle way.  It is a great source of probiotics, providing immune support and digestive health."

I chose the Venus Rose version and immediately looked up the company and where I can get their products locally, after the Markets close for the season.

Next on our agenda was to watch Deacon play soccer.  Dad is now the Assistant Coach and it was fun to watch him personally coach EACH kid, no matter the team.  I was sipping on my kombucha and the boys wanted to taste it.  THEY LOVED IT!

We met with my condo friends, Gary and Gail, at 5pm on Saturday night.  Did not leave until after 9pm with them saying "no! you haven't been here that long!!!"

Pushed me to my limit socially!

TINY PROGRESS

 My niece, Tahlia, is making great strides towards her financial future.  She bought a "tiny home" in July 2020 and rented the spot in the previous owners' parents backyard.  In April after a million bids OVER asking price, she bought a 1901 home in a great Portland neighborhood.

Much work had to be done for the infrastructure and coordination of moving the Tiny into her back yard.

This is how Tiny looked when she bought it.  324 square feet, two lofts and a full size kitchen.

The view from one loft into the living area.

This is her home. Before moving her Tiny into back yard.  Built in 1901 and is 986 square feet, two bedrooms with one bath.

This is the back yard (so far).  She wanted to put up a wooden fence to replace the 3' high chain link fence that had to be taken down to maneuver the Tiny into the back.  The neighbor insisted she wanted her little fence (they don't even make that size), so Tahlia borrowed tools from the library and put up the old rusty chain link fence.  Wonder Woman!

Tahlia found some greenery on Amazon to pretty up her side a bit!

She has a renter lined up for as soon as Tiny is ready.  She has a roommate in the house with her.  Mom and Dad are arriving soon to help get some sod and shrubs in and then I think she is ready to go!  On top of all this, she works remotely (so far)(employee of the month last month!) and is very active with Ultimate Frisbee every weekend as well as community volunteering.  

Youth!!!

Hilariously Happy

As I write this on Saturday morning, we are enjoying a nice, grey, cool RAIN.  Our first substantial rain in 62 days!  I sure love the first few days of rainy season and it is tolerable after that.

Lately I have been enjoying some new purchases.  I prefer Vionic footware and always wear slippers in the house (legos, GI Joe weapons, checkers, etc on the floor).  After five years of living in my black and grey slippers, I indulged and got new pink ones.  I'm really a lover of pink (any shade).  Vionic also provided me with another pair of flip flops.  I had almost worn through two pairs that were purchased in Maui.  What a difference in support!  Tossed the worn out ones in the Goodwill bin.

This past week I bought a huge wedge pillow to sleep with my head elevated.  My eyes have been puffy and bags under my eyes more noticeable (at least to me).  Mr. Google and I did our research and home remedies are sleeping with my head elevated and using a cool eye mask.  While I'm not so sure about my under eye benefits yet, I have been sleeping more soundly thus only getting up once in the night!  It's worth it for that alone.

Now let me rave about zip on sheets!  When Braeden was a baby and we watched him here a lot  (parents worked retail,) the hardest thing was changing the crib sheets.  It was so hard for me to reach over the high sides to get to the two back corners.  And they had to be changed daily as he soaked through every night.  I somehow discovered crib sheets where just the top zipped off and on.  Game changer for Gramma!

Recently the parents decided to get sturdy bunk beds for the boys as they rarely put the trundle bed away so there was no room to play.  The main negative was changing the bedding.  I remembered the crib sheets and lo and behold!  They make all sizes!  The "fitted" sheet extends further under the mattress as it mostly stays on.  Then you can simply unzip the top, flat part for washing.  I even got Queen size for myself.  

P.S. I got the job!  With a fancy title "Social Media Coordinator".  I'm learning new software (Canva) and it's been chaotic this week.  The college student who previously did this position was very helpful the first day and has been incommunicado ever since.  September is Hunger Awareness Month so everyone is very busy.  No one seems to know the passwords so that I can begin posting.  My boss took Friday off for her sister's wedding this weekend, so I'm just winging it for now!  Now to learn about Instagram and Twitter.

How was your week?

Surreptitious September

 It would have been 37 years on September 28, 2021

COVID CONTINUES

The children started school on August 30.  In person at the local public school.  The district is very short staffed and their 1.7 mile trip to and from school would be a MiNIMUM of one hour.  We got a notice last week that it may now be over 90 minutes each way.  Kidults take them and I pick them up.  Waiting in line for 30 minutes.

Hallinan Elementary School principal Melissa Griffiths sent a notification to parents on Monday, Sept. 6, that said someone had tested positive and that a total of 47 "close contacts" on the bus had been identified.  These "close contacts" were students on that bus.  Now they have to miss school for 14 days to quarantine.  They were all too young to get a vax.

Lunch and breakfast are now free to all students.  The first week was okay although every item is completely sealed, except fruit and fresh veggies.  Then the district did not have enough lunch ladies so this past week was yogurt and a carb (bagel, soft pretzel, crackers) and carrot sticks.  So our guys opted to bring a home lunch.

I've been backing off from volunteer time with WLLO Village.  I found a  new right-up-my-allley volunteer job with Hunger Fighters.  

"One immediate need that comes to mind is for a Social Media Coordinator.  Those details are below.  Please review and let me know if you think this might be good a fit for you.  We may have other computer needs as well, however, I thought this was a good starting point as our current social media coordinator is relocating soon and will no longer be with us.  

 

Social Media Coordinator

OVERVIEW: Maintain social media presence on HFO website, Facebook, Instagram, Nextdoor, etc.

DESCRIPTION: Update website as needed, make posts to social media to promote HFO drives and keep clients informed of HFO related events

LOCATION: at home; computer based role

REQUIREMENTS: Must be familiar with social media platforms and creating posts

TIME FRAME: ~ 1 hour/week

COMMITMENT: On-going role (no end date)"

I can continue to be my introverted self and do everything from home on my computer!!!

SEPTEMBER in PHOTOS

Hi (almost a month later)!!!

I think I'm back, at least once a week post and once a week photos.  Here are some photos! 

Fresh new hair cuts

Back to School 2021

All dressed up for an evening

My one and only gorgeous girl