Wedding Day Plus 1

Here are Pam and Tom Watson, the newly minted couple for which we journeyed to Murfreesboro. Their wedding day was Saturday, September 27, and the it could hardly have been nicer. The weather was great, the service over which I officiated went without a noticeable hitch, and the reception included some great dancing for Jan and me.

It was also a super time because all of my siblings -- Louise (mother of the bride), Barbara and Leonard were all together along with a good number of their children -- nieces and nephews and great-nieces. With our families spread from Colorado to New Jersey, from Minnesota to Texas, an occasion such as this is precious. This morning, after all the excitement, my sister Louise and husband Doug Smith hosted a family brunch before we all spread out on our separate paths.

Tonight Jan and I are in Louisville to visit her uncle and aunt, Gerald and Frieda Wheeler, who are in a Louisville nursing home, and her cousin Barbara Wheeler. Tomorrow, we head back to New Jersey.

Murfreesboro Sep 26

Our trip to Tennessee was pleasantly uneventful. We spent two eight-hour days on the highway, arriving in Murfreesboro on Thursday afternoon. My sister Louise invited all of us presently in town to their home for dinner.

This morning we shared breakfast at the Holiday Inn Express with my brother, Leonard, sister-in-law, Jolene, nephew, Len III and his wife Lisa. Then it was off to do some sight-seeing at the Stones River National Battlefield near Murfreesboro.



It reminded me of Gettysburg in so many ways, with the seemingly senseless loss of life on both sides of the controversy. The park is beautiful as was the day, but the impact is still somber.


Tonight is the rehearsal for the wedding, and tomorrow we celebrate!

More to come...

Trip for Pamela's Wedding

On Wednesday, September 24, we begin our trek to Tennessee for the wedding of my niece, Pamela Smith. (You can see her wedding blog at http://mrandmrswatson.com/blogger)

Pamela is the oldest daughter of my younger sister Louise, who with husband Doug, live in Murfreesboro, TN.

All forecasts seem to indicate good weather for the trip, although there are some rumors of gasoline shortages in the South. I'm hoping we won't encounter that.

More to come...

Pacific Coastline

Yesterday (Friday) and today brought us to the Pacific coastline starting at Seaside, OR. On the left is Jan at the beach at Seaside. Note the contrast from 98 degrees F. on Wednesday, with 60 degrees F. and windy on Friday. And yes, that's a rain cloud in the distance, which moistened us a good bit on the way back to the hotel. The town of Seaside and the beach area has been densely populated for the past couple of days for the Budweiser volley ball tournament.

Before arriving at Seaside, we made our way to Astoria, OR near the mouth of the Columbia River. It's the oldest settlement in the USA west of the Mississippi River and is built on hills not unlike San Francisco. Nearby was Fort Clatsup where the Lewis and Clark Expedition wintered before returning East.

Today we drove south to Cannon Beach which has a shoreline populated with stone monoliths and rocky beaches which have a rugged beauty. We then headed to Tillamook, OR to visit the Tillamook Air Museum, housed in one of the huge hangers built during World War II to house the dirigible fleet which escorted the cargo ships up and down the Pacific coast. The hanger was built all of wood because the available steel was directed to other war construction, and is now the largest wooden building in the world. Check this URL. The museum houses a great assortment of vintage planes used in WWII through the Vietnam War.

Finally we checked out the Cape Meares lighthouse near Tillamook. It has been replaced by a modern signal unit, but is open to the public to marvel at how it efficiently it worked.

Here's the photo gallery of the trip. Enjoy!

Quitting Time

For the last three days, we've had an intense stretch of work on the re-design of the Diocese of Oregon web site. With Director of Communication, Deirdre Steinberg, we've met a diocesan headquarters to review everything about the present site, and with the help of diocesan staffers, have discovered where most of the out-of-date material exists.

After working seven hours at the office, we've come back to the hotel to do more work, as well and keeping up with the requests of other clients. Only on Tuesday was Jan able to check out the city of Portland, and late that afternoon brought me back to see the amazing Rose Garden. The accompanying photo is just a tiny sample of the hundreds of varieties raised there.

But now it's quitting time. We've completed the planned three days of work and tomorrow we head for Seaside, OR, on the Pacific coast, to sight-see and relax. So far the weather has been very cooperative, and we hope that will continue.

More will come...

The Columbia River Gorge

On Monday, August 4th, we arrived in Portland about 10 a.m. The flight was on Continental Airlines, which did not charge us for baggage and provided us with a hot breakfast and snacks! Way to go, Continental!


We got a surprise when picking up the car. Hertz apparently did not have the economy model I had requested, so for the same price, they awarded me a Nissan pickup truck! It has plenty of room, drives pretty well, and has a good air-conditioner. Hey, you never know.



Upon leaving the airport, we headed directly to the Columbia River historical highway, built in the early 1900s to open up the truly beautiful valley. Jan had researched a tour going from west to east, including spectacular look-outs and at least seven waterfalls. The accompanying photo is taken at the Multnomah Falls, the second tallest falls in the entire United States.


We drove as far as The Dalles and then back to Portland to check in and check out what had collected in the inbox. Tonight we sleep well and tomorrow my work starts.



More to come...

Off to Oregon

Tomorrow begins a new adventure -- part business, part pleasure. Jan and I will be off to Oregon where I will consult with Deirdre Steinberg, the Director of Communication for the Diocese of Oregon, about the redesign of the diocesan website.

After we land in Portland, still in the morning Pacific time, we're going to go sight-seeing up the Columbia River highway. In the afternoon we return to our hotel in Portland so that I am ready to go to work on Tuesday.

More will follow...