On My Own
Last night I unearthed my dried Chipotle peppers and added that plus some Chili Powder and kidney beans to my left over spaghetti sauce. What a interesting Chili that was, we loved it. I threw a couple of Yukon Gold potatoes into the microwave and spooned the chili over the top and sprinkled some shredded Tillamook Cheddar and Pepper Jack cheese over the top. This meal will be repeated in the future.
Today Dick didn't feel well and Mother wasn't interested so I took myself to the Portland Art Museum to see Hesse: A Princely German Collection. I used my GPS Tom Tom Navigator for the Palm to find my way to downtown Portland from the RV Park. I crossed the Hawthorne Bridge which was the bridge we always used when we visited Portland when I was a child. I had two Aunts and Uncles that lived on the east side of the Willamette in Portland and to get to their house coming from Vernonia always involved crossing the river via the Hawthorne bridge after passing through the part of town where the Gypsies hung out. We could usually see them on the street. I think they are long gone now. The bridge is a different color but the steel grating is still there and feels just as squirrelly to drive over.
Anyway the Hesse collection as a world class art exhibit. This is quite a coup for the Portland Art Museum to have this show. I did not see any evidence that it will be seen anywhere else in North America. This is a show that is worth coming to Portland just to see. There is a wide variety to see and it is presented well and the audio commentary is interesting and informative. To quote the Sunday Oregonian "It is a history in art of the family itself, an international-leaning clan liked by marriage to the Russian Czars, Queen Victoria of England and other royal houses.
Second it is an ode to fine craftsmanship."
Almost immediately there is an engraved genealogy showing how the Landgrafs are descended from Charlemagne. They were involved with science, art, wars, royal marriages, and mercenary soldiers. The last Tsarina of Russia was Alix of Hesse.
The centerpiece of the exhibit is The Holbein Madonna. It is known as the crown jewel of the Hesse family collection. It is considered one of the greatest works of Europe's Northern Renaissance. The museum had two large benches so I could sit and peruse the painting as long as I wanted.
There were so many interesting and attractive items and collections. I noted the 3 rifles on display, the first a wheel lock rifle, then a flint lock rifle and an air rifle with pump from 1790. This is for my son-in-law the student gun smith. There were several table fountains of gilded silver. One was three feet tall with Mars hold up the basin with Bacchus straddling a barrel, and above that Aphrodite. Water was poured into a small basin which flowed out of Aphrodite's breast into a basin where the wine from Bacchus barrel combined.
The only difficulty was the headphones for the audio were too big for my head and they kept falling off my ears. They were adjustable but not enough for my head. The parking lot also jacked the price up to $8 from the normal $5 they charge on weekends.
I wish we had time to stay in Portland longer this trip, I would like to visit the Oregon History Museum and the Forestry Center but we have to save something for another visit.
We picked Mother up and went to eat at DaVinci an unprepossessing place on McLoughlin not far from the retirement center. The menu was extensive and took some time to review. Wayfinder and I decided to split the Seafood Fettucine with Dungeness
Crab, clams (no shells), shrimp, in a light cream sauce. He had the minestrone and I had the green salad. Mother had the Tortellini appetizer. For desert I had the Creme Carmel and Wayfinder had the Black Forest Chocolate Cake. This was a fine meal which we enjoyed very much. The Creme Carmel was done just right. I am very fussy about custard dishes. I do not like overcooked custard. I told Mother she had spoiled me as her custards always came out perfect. She told a story about how she baked two custard pies for a bake sale at my sister's school and they didn't make it out of the principal office as the staff bought them before they could be put on display.
We talked some about what to do for her 90th Birthday next June 1. She says she doesn't want any fuss. I tried to get a sense of what she meant by just family. Does she mean just my sisters and our children and families or can we expand it to all the family in Oregon and Washington? Actually this would mean all the relatives from my Dad's side as Mom was an only child. I didn't really get an answer so I will suggest to my sisters that we just decide what we want to do and do it.
Today Dick didn't feel well and Mother wasn't interested so I took myself to the Portland Art Museum to see Hesse: A Princely German Collection. I used my GPS Tom Tom Navigator for the Palm to find my way to downtown Portland from the RV Park. I crossed the Hawthorne Bridge which was the bridge we always used when we visited Portland when I was a child. I had two Aunts and Uncles that lived on the east side of the Willamette in Portland and to get to their house coming from Vernonia always involved crossing the river via the Hawthorne bridge after passing through the part of town where the Gypsies hung out. We could usually see them on the street. I think they are long gone now. The bridge is a different color but the steel grating is still there and feels just as squirrelly to drive over.
Anyway the Hesse collection as a world class art exhibit. This is quite a coup for the Portland Art Museum to have this show. I did not see any evidence that it will be seen anywhere else in North America. This is a show that is worth coming to Portland just to see. There is a wide variety to see and it is presented well and the audio commentary is interesting and informative. To quote the Sunday Oregonian "It is a history in art of the family itself, an international-leaning clan liked by marriage to the Russian Czars, Queen Victoria of England and other royal houses.
Second it is an ode to fine craftsmanship."
Almost immediately there is an engraved genealogy showing how the Landgrafs are descended from Charlemagne. They were involved with science, art, wars, royal marriages, and mercenary soldiers. The last Tsarina of Russia was Alix of Hesse.
The centerpiece of the exhibit is The Holbein Madonna. It is known as the crown jewel of the Hesse family collection. It is considered one of the greatest works of Europe's Northern Renaissance. The museum had two large benches so I could sit and peruse the painting as long as I wanted.
There were so many interesting and attractive items and collections. I noted the 3 rifles on display, the first a wheel lock rifle, then a flint lock rifle and an air rifle with pump from 1790. This is for my son-in-law the student gun smith. There were several table fountains of gilded silver. One was three feet tall with Mars hold up the basin with Bacchus straddling a barrel, and above that Aphrodite. Water was poured into a small basin which flowed out of Aphrodite's breast into a basin where the wine from Bacchus barrel combined.
The only difficulty was the headphones for the audio were too big for my head and they kept falling off my ears. They were adjustable but not enough for my head. The parking lot also jacked the price up to $8 from the normal $5 they charge on weekends.
I wish we had time to stay in Portland longer this trip, I would like to visit the Oregon History Museum and the Forestry Center but we have to save something for another visit.
We picked Mother up and went to eat at DaVinci an unprepossessing place on McLoughlin not far from the retirement center. The menu was extensive and took some time to review. Wayfinder and I decided to split the Seafood Fettucine with Dungeness
Crab, clams (no shells), shrimp, in a light cream sauce. He had the minestrone and I had the green salad. Mother had the Tortellini appetizer. For desert I had the Creme Carmel and Wayfinder had the Black Forest Chocolate Cake. This was a fine meal which we enjoyed very much. The Creme Carmel was done just right. I am very fussy about custard dishes. I do not like overcooked custard. I told Mother she had spoiled me as her custards always came out perfect. She told a story about how she baked two custard pies for a bake sale at my sister's school and they didn't make it out of the principal office as the staff bought them before they could be put on display.
We talked some about what to do for her 90th Birthday next June 1. She says she doesn't want any fuss. I tried to get a sense of what she meant by just family. Does she mean just my sisters and our children and families or can we expand it to all the family in Oregon and Washington? Actually this would mean all the relatives from my Dad's side as Mom was an only child. I didn't really get an answer so I will suggest to my sisters that we just decide what we want to do and do it.