Chain Me Up Bill

Well - behind on this again. We left Seattle yesterday and hit the dreaded sign "chains required" as we went over the mountain. I have (of course) never installed chains on my tires before and had ignored the suggestion in the instructions that you should practice putting them on before you use them. Also the instructions didn't give you any idea how much of a pain it can be to get the darn things off. Anyway we made it and it should be easier to go through the process the next time.

Christmas Day - And the forgotten pictures of the trip from Bend to Seattle

Helen's Comments:
Christmas Day started with a pretty fluffy snow fall here in Seattle. We started our day with brunch at friends, and then home to spend the day with Heather, Leslie and Evan. After a short nap, we opened presents and played with boxes and wrapping paper before ending the day with a wonderful salmon dinner. Fun was had by all... and hopefully a good nights sleep by all. It was great to have spent time with Evan on his first Christmas.

Christmas eve we attended St.Mark's Episcopal Cathedral for the 11pm service. The music prior was wonderful as were the musicians. Huge church, very old with some great history, it was never completed to the Gothic state intended, it remains unfinished inside, just bare concrete walls with the marks of the wood used for forms in the early 1900's. When we went by to check on times for the service, Bill discovered that the artwork he had seen in August when he was here was still on display. I was invited in and given a private showing of "Keiskamma Altarpiece". Amazing work and a powerful story. Go to http;//www.keiskamma.org to learn more.

Here are some of the pictures from the festivities at Heather, Leslie and Evan's:



The Trip
The comments from Kansas seem to be that they think the sun does not shine in Bend! Well it does, usually in the morning and then if snow is coming for the mountains it starts to cloud up as the day wear on. Then the night is clear and there are more stars than you can imagine. So I had to capture the beauty of the mountains for the "dotts" in my life!

It was a pretty drive until we hit Washington, then the rain came, all the way to Seattle, then the clouds broke. However it has rained pretty much every day since we have been here. The snow this morning for Christmas was nice, it didn't stick, which is a good thing because unlike Kansas, they don't have a clue what to do on the streets, it shuts them down. Leslie spent most of the day worring that she would have to go into work if the snow kept up because people would not show up. Thankfully it melted away.

All for now - hope everyone had a wonderful Chiristmas.

Penniless in Seattle

We arrived in Seattle today, spent some time with Heather, Leslie and Evan then Heather took us to her friends house where we will be house-sitting while we are here. The owners have a pair of zebra finches that are very cute and very talkative.

Went to the movies tonight (Saturday night - it's actually two hours earlier here than the time that is shown on our postings - the server must be in the Midwest). $8.50/ticket (senior rate) plus $9.50 for a small coke and small popcorn and then $12.00 for the parking (theater was in downtown). WELCOME TO THE BIG CITY! Plus, of course, the traffic is absolutely frantic in this city.

Observed lots of shopping downtown, lights, a carousal in the street, and lots of people with Santa hats. A word of caution - when headed North on I5, be carefull not to get in the express lane as you will be getting off of the highway 50+ blocks past the street you wanted!

Pictures of New House

Here they are - if you want to see a larger picture with (in a few cases) captions, double-click on the picture.

House Update - Almost There!

Sorry - the last few days have gotten away from us. Our last offer was accepted by the Owner and we had the house inspected yesterday with a few problems noted that we have sent to them to get repaired, we will hear back on that sometime this weekend.

I tried to upload additional pictures but the connection kept timing out. We are leaving today for Seattle so it will probably be another couple of days for more pictures. You can see a few at the post on 12/16/2007 "Try, Try Again".

A Little Closer

Well - the news from the home buying front is that we have had a counter-offer that we MOSTLY agree with. We have agreed on price but we have asked for an extended warranty on some of the concrete work. Another 24 hrs should tell the tale!

But until then a few pictures of places that didn't make the cut:

Try, Try Again

Made on offer on another house yesterday (Saturday) - pictures are below. This is the 2nd house we have actually put an offer on - but after 50 houses or so it has started to feel like an eternity.

We are fairly close on price with this one so the hope is that we can close the deal - but we shall see. Our preference was a ranch, but it has become obvious that a ranch style with the space we want is out of both our comfort and price range.

If this one does not turn out we will probably stop looking for now - we are worn out.

Rejected and Helen with Evan

Rejected
Yesterday the realtor gave me the reply from the owner on our last offer,they countered with a price that was still $20k more than we wanted to pay. So after talking with Helen on the phone (she was on here way back from Seattle) I told the realtor that we where breaking off negotiations and to give us another list of homes to look at.

Helen and Evan
Pictures from Helen's trip to Seattle and time with Evan. Helen claims that he is as cute as Heather was when she was a baby - you can decide for yourself. She also says that he has a lot of the same mannerisms that Heather had at the same age - genetics in action!

Portland and Boring Oregon, Call from Realtor

It's a boring day - at least for BLOGging - I rode with Robert today to Portland, he needed to do some planning with a client so I spent some time shopping at the mall for Xmas presents. One the landmarks that we passed was boring - i.e. Boring Oregon.



In the meantime, Helen with Diane to Seattle. Diane was going there on business so Helen was going to take the opportunity to spend some time with Heather and her family.

HOUSE UPDATE
While we where on the road to Portland the realtor's assistant called to tell me that they had a reply from the current owner - of course not to be revealed until we meet the realtor in person, that will happen at 10 AM in the morning. We shall see.

The New House? Probably not - but waiting

This is actually a couple of days behind - but we made an offer on a house. Pictures are below. The house has been on the market since the spring and has been reduced significantly, but we think it is still too high. First and second offers to the Owner have been rejected and we have left the last offer on the table just in case... we will see in a couple of days.



It meets all of our requirements but is a bit large and definitely is need of a little fixing up and a serious kitchen make-over, but all in all a good house - if the price comes down another 20K or so.

Food/Snow/Food/Presents and ByeBye Jenn

Saturday we started the day with breakfast at our favorite restaurant and then it was on the road for some site seeing. The first stop was at the Inn of the 7Th Mountain where we own two condos with our partners Robert and Diane. Then it was on to Mt. Bachelor - a couple of pictures follow...






Next stop - another vacation area, I wanted Jennifer to visit Santa but she said large groups of children scare her.Sun River is just south of Bend, lots of activities and popular year round.



And then finally more food! Then back for a nap and then, you guessed it, more food! This time with the motorcycle club that Robert and Diane belong to, which was followed by a White-Elephant gift exchange. Can life be any sweeter?

Bye-Bye Jenn
Sunday morning we took Jennifer to Redmond to catch a plane back to Eugene - sorry to see her go! I hope that Ryan and her can come back at some point in the future to do some outdoor activities.

Jennifer Day

This morning we took a trip over the Cascade Mountains to Eugene Oregon to pick up Jennifer. She was there for three days interviewing for a job at the University of Oregon. She feels like she did fairly well but doesn't want to get her hopes up - understandable, but I hope they realize that future Nobel Prize winners are few and far between!

Here we are leaving the Secret Garden B&B - cute place complete with dogs!



We stopped on the way back to bend for lunch at The Lodge at Suttle Lake, they have a Rustic restaurant on the lake.


And Helen tried out the facilities!

After resting for a little while, we walked into town for "First Friday" The Galleries were packed with people, the food and wine were good, especially the chocolate truffles. Most of the art was beyond our means but impressive.
We met up with our friends Robert & Diane and after visiting most of the places downtown we settled on Thai food, which was tasty.
That brings everyone up to date - tomorrow a whirl wind tour of Bend for Jenn!

Housing Malaise and The Stoned Neighbors

There hasn't been much happening in the last few days. We had a little bit of movement on the housing front yesterday, but to a great extent we are discouraged. We will be revisiting some property today to try and get our perspectives realigned.

The Stoned Neighbors
We are living in a three-story condo and our unit is in the middle of the second level. It didn't take long to discover that there was a young man living in the unit above us who is fond of parties and drinking. The night before last the party started about 9:30 and by 10:30 I went up and knocked on the door - it took several knocks before an obviously stoned young man finally opened the door. There where a number of young people in the apartment.

I asked the person at the door to cut down the noise - and I believe the reply was something like "OK, whatever man". Felling that this was perhaps not the commitment I was hoping for I told him that if the noise kept up we would call the police.

The noise did cut back for a while, but about 11:30 it was so bad that Helen called the police. When the police showed up and knocked on the door there was a flurry of activity in the apartment above including flushing toilets, and several people who climbed down from their deck onto ours (Helen opened the door and gave them hell!) who then jumped to the ground and ran away. We think that the police took a couple of people away.

Last night when we returned home we where greeted by a large slice of half-eaten pizza laying by our front door. A bit later we heard activity on the steps, our friends from upstairs. I politely commented to them that "I assume the pizza in front of our door is yours - I'd appreciate it if you would take it with you". The young man did and I thanked him for taking it - he did not look pleased.

We shall see what happens next, but apparently this young man lives in a condo that is owned by his parents and has been a problem for a long time. You ask - why has it not been taken care of? Good question.

Snow/Snow/Rain/Snow/Rain

It was a snowy, rainy day yesterday in Bend. The weather, along with some pointed questions from Helen's brother Jim about where the water would go at the house we put on the BLOG, got me wondering about the actual rainfall in bend. So here it is for Bend:


And here is the graph for Kansas City:


House hunting update:
We did "drive bys" on another nine houses yesterday and sent a list of 3 more to visit to the realtor - we shall see if one of these is the dream house.

House Number 35

Well - the week has been a continuous stream of houses to drive by or visit. We think we are starting to get a handle on the market, and thought a couple of times that we might have found "the house".

The pictures below are from the one that so far has survived all of the cuts, but we are certainly not sure if we should look at more places or not.

Almost Free Lunch

We have discovered the new cornerstone for the baby-boomers in Bend - the Senior Center.



The best part, which I in particular intend to make the best of, is the $3.50 hot lunch! This is NOT a light snack but the full-meal-deal that is our birthright as old people!

National Lampoon Christmas - Bend Style

Well - it's been a sucky day, I won't get into the details as it involves the rental properties that we own up here. Suffice to say that it falls into the category of "you won't believe this".

So to lighten the mood: a view of Christmas Bend Style! Click on image for a better view!

Thanksgiving at the Boller's

Our hostess and her administrative assistant (Tinkerbell) met us at the door.


Prior to any festivity it is important to be properly groomed. Since Tinkerbell did not meet the minimum requirements a trim was in order.


After snacks the girls decided that a walk was needed - of course the guys opted for the football game.


Robert fires up the deep fryer.


Safety first - the master starts the process.



The final product and the table of plenty.



After dinner we played a game of Monopoly (the contractor version) and Robert committed the social error of winning over his guests! It's just a good thing that Mr. Bill is such a gracious looser.

Our thanks to Robert and Diane for a great meal and their friendship! We always have a great time with them.

Day 4 - Lot #4

Well day 4 in Bend - cold crisp air with fog hanging over until noon - then beautiful blue sky with snow capped beauties! Ahhhhh!!!!
We set out to look at old neighborhoods that we admired on our last visit and investigate new ones. One that looked intriguing last time that had "plastic thatched roofs", a take on the Hobbits homes in Shire - pretty much was at a standstill, will probably not make it. However the roofs still looked good and interesting. I will have to go back and take pictures for a later post.
However, my dream lot "Lot #4" (quilt in the making called "Moon over #4") was still there and still a wonderful view.... and still way beyond our means! The photography is not that good, I didn't refocus and the mountains are a little blown out here, but image the view! That is Bachelor on the left and Sisters on the right!



Tomorrow is Turkey Day at the Boiler's - a relaxing day watching football and cooking. I am sure we will eat too much, relax too much - but we will enjoy a day with friends that we treasure. And to all reading this may you and your family and friends have a wonderful "Thankful" Day!

Tuesday - And the Confusion Continues

Well - again no picture, but there is news; but first background:

You may or may not know that we have friends here, Robert and Diane, that we own condo property with. When we planned this trip both of the units that we own with them where rented for the remainder of the year so we are staying in a unit that they own on their own that they are trying to sell.

Well - (yeah I say that TOO much), being the entrepreneurs that we are, we had the opportunity to sub-lease the unit today for three months, now we have no place to stay after the 27Th but we are going to make a pot of money on the deal (but don't tell them!).

More later...

PS - Jennifer, don't worry we have a sleeping bag for you and there are few reservations at the park this time of year!

Monday - Let it Snow

Saw our first snow today, OK there wasn't much of it but it was exciting anyway. The sky turned dark and ugly and the next thing - white stuff. Fortunately at the time we where about to enter Target to buy some stuff and realized we needed a better window scraper for the car than what we had.

Met with a mortgage broker today to talk about a loan and where pleasantly surprised with the information we received. Need to talk more detail but it all sounds promising.

No pictures - maybe some tomorrow?

Oregon or Bust (Saturday Redux)

A stop in Twin Falls for breakfast on Saturday was a learning experience. While checking out Snake River, we discovered that this bridge is the only legal "free base" jumping bridge in the US! And the mound of dirt here is the the remains of Evel Knievel's attempted jump over Snake River in the 70's? Did he make it? Can't remember! Pretty impressive area.






Oregon was a welcome site! Rolling hills as we made our way across on the east side of the state, highway 20 - not much traffic, and very few houses. Cattle every now and then and a few sheep, mostly sage brush and velvet covered foot hills. It wasn't until we started to descend into Bend that we realized we had been on a plateau - we thought it was just flat, like parts of western KS and Colorado!






Oregon has some strange trees, they bear some unusual fruits! (It must be an Oregon thing, Bend has one too)

We understand that this is the extremly rare Oregon Shoe Tree!




Of course along the way, what should we find? A Quilt Shop! We had to stretch or legs! And purchase a couple of fat quarters! (Nice shop, lots of fabric!)



We arrived in the dark, but then it gets dark early up here - around 3:30 you would swear it is time to start dinner - so we are still adjusting and have enjoyed the socked in grey day with drizzle all day long - felt like snow a couple of times, so we are hopeful for a snowy Thanksgiving.
All for now, we will add photos later this week as we putz around town!

In BEND!

We have arrived! Exhausted! More on today's journey tomorrow! Going to bed - zzzzzzzz......

Waking Up in Idaho

Well - we made it to Twin Falls Idaho last night. About 100 miles (?) from Boise. Helen is still feeling like >>> so we are thinking of finding a clinic for her this AM.

Hit rain for the first time last night - not good for driving as both of us have begun to have a hard time with depth perception at night. Is that an OLD thing?

Anyway, we have seen some great scenery, and a raft of wildlife - which has also added to the white-knuckle syndrome when driving at night. Some examples:



Helen tells me that we have loyal followers of this BLOG that are complaining that we are not posting enough. My apologies to those followers (all 1 of them?) and will try to do better - but don't hold your breath!