Vacations!

This past weekend, L, T and I road-tripped to Manzanita, Oregon for a change of pace, people and scenery. The adventure began with superburgers in PDX, melded into a 94 mile dance party from which my ears may still be recovering, and overall led into a fabulous weekend. Weather conditions attracted a throng of surfers to Short Sands Beach just a mile up 101 from us. This local hotspot, which couldn’t be more than a half mile long, is nestled between two cliffs of Neah-Kah-Nie Mountain and can only be reached by a single track trail through the old-growth forest of Oswald Park. On Saturday, my sister tagged along, diluting our surfer-watching and sun-bathing aspirations with her desire for company in the waves, in the tide pools and in a rock climbing expedition. We found that we identify well with the surfer community, despite our inexperience with a long board, because of their athletic lifestyle, appreciation for natural beauty, and embodiment of the laid back attitude that we try to get in touch with over the summer. We returned to Short Sands on Sunday, as a colleague of mine was graciously able to cover my afternoon shift at the pool. This was not before an aggressive run up an ancient logging road in Wheeler, another small beach town about two miles from Manzanita. T’s apprehensions about training with L and I reached an all-time high as her first long run of college training began with an excessively steep climb that would have gone on forever had we not peeled off to a more rolling route to admire the spectacular ocean views.

Other discoveries of the weekend including coining the phrase “food orgasm,” which was applied several times daily to describe salmon omelets, just-baked cinnamon bread, organic fig bars, and a delicious red lentil spread atop fresh multi-grain bread. We returned to Portland fully rejuvenated for a week of work, and determined to return at least the next two weekends. We’ll take a break for Grat-a-Tat’s animal-themed birthday dance-party the weekend after that and then hopefully return at least once more before L departs for the East Coast.

Future plans for the week include a Portland Timbers game, a rodeo and/or another festival called “First Thursday” in the Pearl district, the legendary Prefontaine Classic in Eugene on Saturday, and 4^th of July festivities at the Coast on Sunday.