Today is Jesse's 22nd birthday. I was 23 years-old when I had him. I still feel like I'm that age; how did he catch up to me?

Such a delicate and kind boy. So amazing to watch you bloom. So fascinating to look into such wise eyes before there was a voice.

When we brought you home from the hospital we decided that we wanted to honor you with a big Christmas tree, so your Papi, our dear friend Marco, and your Grampy David went up the mountain behind our cabin and cut down a 20 foot tall tree. They had to drag it down the mountain and somehow through the doors of the house. It stood in our vaulted living room commanding attention, like you.

Here you are celebrating your first birthday with your uncles André and Jonathan. Inside the package you're opening is a furry motorized raccoon toy from Japan. You were so tickled by that toy. It would squeek and wiggle it's tail as it walked toward you, then it would back-up and start over again. I still have it on a shelf in the closet, if you wanna be tickled again sometime! Squeek, squeek.

We went to Mexico to celebrate your second birthday in your Papi's village of Angamacutiro, Michoacan.

On the left, you're sitting in a Cana field eating sugarcane with your cousins. Cana is one of Angamacutiro's major crops. On the right, you're sitting with your great-grandfather. Check out my perm!

Here we're wearing outfits that we got for the celebration of the Dia de Virgin Guadalupe. We traveled all around Michoacan to collect the various pieces…Uruapan, Patzcuaro, Morelia, Janitzio, Paracho…

Mexico is such a magical place to be at holiday time. There were fiestas in every town that we went to.

Below is the photo that I've been telling you about, from when you were in your Robert Smith stage!

You were such a happy boy, always smiling and giggling. But in the photo below your expression contradicts your t-shirt!

In the photo below you are playing football on your 11th birthday with Trevor and Lauren, among others (note: Lauren was recently drafted as a pitcher for the Detroit Tigers). You're playing across the street from our house, at Mission Hill Jr. High.

Below is your graduation day from Mission Hill.

Here you are with "evil" stepdad Richie on Donner Summit. Don't worry, there was no threat of anyone being eaten (reference to the Donner Party)! Note that Richie is wearing garden gloves for the snow 🙂

Below, holding Marcel in Southwest France, 2003.

Another great one holding Marcel…

And finally…holding me! Happy birthday mon fils!

-excerpt from How Can You Live In The Northeast, Paul Simon

We have just returned from a wonderful vacation in Oregon. What a road trip. I'll share a bit of the details here, and for more photos you can visit my Flickr.

 

 

One thing that is essential when on the road is choosing your pit stops well. One time when I drove from Santa Cruz, California to Vancouver , Canada I decided to stop mainly in college towns so that I would be assured of finding quality coffee, something that for me is not negotiable. I would pick the highway exit nearest to the campus and without fail discover a good café. On this latest trip we drove up Interstate 5 which presents more of a challenge. It's a trucker's route and as a result you can drive for many a mile without any commerce in sight, as well as having some very seedy towns along the way. We came to discover that it was a safe bet to stop when we saw a Starbucks sign on the roadside. As much as I prefer to go to a locally owned café, we found that Starbucks is a pretty good barometer for "safe" pit stops. If Starbucks won't locate in a given place it raises some red flags; they do have a reputation to protect. Let me make it clear that I am not a snob. When I say "seedy" that can translate as dangerous and creepy (and I'm an urban girl, so you know it's bad, like Texas Chainsaw Massacre bad).

 

Common Grounds is a sweet café that we stopped at in Willows, California:

 

Further north we stopped in Dunsmuir, California. It is a train town of 2000 people at the southern foot of Mount Shasta. Their claim to fame is that they have the best, cleanest water in the nation, and in abundance. There are fountains springing up all around town. The water comes from Mount Shasta and doesn't see the light of day until it comes out of the tap, and tastes great.

Another claim to fame for the town is that in 1924 Babe Ruth played at their little stadium. Here are photos of the stands, including Marcel and  Richard:

 

 

We drove on, to Corvallis, Oregon, where Oregon State University is located; population 52,000. We rented a vacation house, Brooklane Cottage, on a little piece of country property that has fresh eggs from the resident chickens and apple trees surrounding it. There are lovely parks and open spaces nearby, as well as a natural food Co-op that carries all of the essentials plus plenty of prepared foods if you don't feel like cooking. The cottage kitchen is fully functional so you can make your own meals if you like, including home made apple pie!

 

 

We went to the northern edge of the city where there were some great hiking trails. I really enjoyed the landscape and the serenity…

 

 

There were soooo many berries, I ate my way to the top of the hill and back down again!

 

 

One of my most favorite treats of the drive was coming upon this incredible dragon sculpture on the side of the road (heading north on Interstate 5, it is on the east side of the highway just north of Yreka, California). It's by artist Ralph Starritt and is made from scrap metal like mufflers, pipes, and corrugated sheet metal…

 

Click on the photos for a larger view.

 

Something that I really appreciated on the vacation was the quality of the air in Oregon. So much cleaner and fresher. Now we're back to the Silicon Valley grime, looking forward to returning north sometime soon.

Next I'll be posting all of my great thrift shop finds from the trip!