Bee's Knees Industries

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Jolly Good!

July was quite a whirlwind for me. I got back from my trip to England and just couldn't seem to catch up. Don't summers tend to go that way, though? Best just to enjoy it and go with the flow.

England was such a wonderful place to visit. Tony and I went there for his sister's wedding, and it was so nice being able to spend time getting to know her better and meeting more of Tony's family. Of course, we managed plenty of other mischief while we were there.

I drank plenty of tea. Earl Grey. Hot. I've been a heavy tea drinker since I was a kid, so I was in heaven in the land of tea. (The coffee drinkers in the group were less than enamoured of the ubiquitous instant coffee, though.)

Perhaps I drank a bit too much tea. You are what you eat, er, well, drink.

The wedding was out in the country, so Tony and I spent some time traipsing around British forests. They're spooky and wonderfully different than the forests in Oregon.

In London, we didn't bother to see Big Ben and only walked past Buckingham Palace, but we made certain to see Sherlock Holmes' aparment. We have our priorities.

We also took a day trip to see some of the sights around the rest of England, like the cathedral in Bath, where this happened:

Tony proposed! (And I said yes, of course.)

A million thanks to Tony's cousin for being on hand with a camera. It's good to know I'll be marrying into a family of shutterbugs. I'm sure I'll fit right in.

Portland Pride

Did you know that many of the streets in Portland were named after Simpsons characters? Yep, they renamed the whole infrastructure in the Nineties.

When I first moved here, I had no idea that Matt Groening is from Portland. I just thought it was a coincidence that so many streets shared names with Simpsons characters. By the time I had to visit a spot on Terwilliger, I decided to investigate.

Turns out Groening named many of his characters after major Portland streets, although, interestingly enough, the name Terwilliger really is a conicidence. I suppose it's more common than I would have thought.

Seeing all the sights

I spent the past weekend in Seattle, having an amazing time with some great friends. I didn't realize quite how many pictures I took of the Space Needle until I got home to unload them from my camera. I'll share some non-Space-Needle photos throughout this week.

I'm crushing your Space Needle! I'm crushing your Space Needle!

It's the little things...

I believe I've mentioned here before that I am in the very fortunate position to be able to walk to work every day. I live about a mile from my office, and I love the brisk walk that begins and ends my day at work.

Walking for transportation means that I get a chance to stop and smell the roses (quite literally, with all the beautiful varieties that grow in Portland), and I see little things that no driver could ever notice.

Case in point, this lovely dearly departed butterfly, who so perfectly matches my rain jacket. It's the small details like this that put a smile on my face every day.

Harriet Lake

Despite my busy schedule these days, I still try to find time to get out and enjoy nature, especially in a state with as wild and wonderful spaces as Oregon.

I visited Harriet Lake recently, and ran into a sasquatch!

Ever the elusive creature, he consistently slipped from the grasp of my camera lens.

By the time I could compose myself (and my camera settings), he was already gone.

How mysterious...

Now that's a finger puppet!

I always find the best stuff at Powell's, like this little guy, who reminds me of the finglonger.

I had to share:

All that fetching makes a fellow thirsty!

Another Hike

My friend Rhonda suggested a hike today, and I couldn't resist. We originally planned to climb Larch Mountain, but, as neither of us had actually been hiking in over a month, we thought we should take it easy and do a nice little eight-mile-long, 2,500-foot-high climb to Devil's Rest.

Part of the fun of not going to the woods in over a month is the sudden changes you notice. The forest was full of creepy crawlies, like this white snail with a gold shell. I've decided to spare you the photos of 6-inch-long slugs and dozens of millipedes.

Instead, I'll share photos of some of the amazing wildflowers I get to experience out in Oregon.

And look at that: Actual proof that I was in the woods! I couldn't resist a photo opportunity under this extremely bizarre tree. I've never seen anything like it. Which is exactly why I love spending so much time in the outdoors. Mother Nature never fails to surprise me!

A great way to start the day

I have a goal to purchase a home by the end of the 2013 tax season. In line with this goal, I moved this year into a very modest apartment. Not only am I low on square footage; my apartment is in an attic, making the cubic footage in short supply as well.

However, a wonderful thing about my home is a small front porch with a tremendous view. With a sky like that, who cares about a low ceiling?

I hope to share some photos of my teeny home soon, but I'm still working out quite a few kinks related to having a living space and an office/studio in such a small space. Once I'm happy with the look of things here, I'll be sure to share.

Neighborhood Kitties

I love spying on all the sweet kitties that meander the streets of Portland. My little lady is a strictly indoor cat (I've never had an outdoor cat come to anything other than an untimely end), but I always enjoy taking a gander and other people's feline friends.

Edible landscaping at Portland's City Hall

Check out that amazing rainbow chard!

The little white flowers in the background are strawberry blossoms. I never knew they make such a lovely groundcover. Who needs lawns when there are fresh berries to be had?

The Best Yarnbomb Ever

Found on Hawthorne Boulevard, not too far from SE 50th Avenue.

I love having a dog in my life.

Success!

Every spring, I get the itch to start gardening, which can be tricky when you live in a small, dimly lit apartment. I always try container gardening, but there is a lot to learn about growing food in a small container, and I tend not to have a very large harvest from my efforts. Of course, the real goal is an excuse to play in the dirt, so in that respect, I'm always successful.

It's nice to be able to really reap the rewards from gardening, and this year I'm well on my way. I planted radish seeds in a window box on my porch before it even stopped snowing out here, and I already have delicious vegetables to show for it. I'm trying a few lettuces and herbs and even a tomato plant as well, so I'm excited to see how things go.

On a side note, does anyone know a good use for radish greens and the spindly roots? I'm not so sure I like the way they taste plain, but I'd love to find a way to utilize every part of my harvest.