portland in september

it sure is hard to both eat well and avoid rapid plastic consumption when you're eating on vacation, especially if you're the type, like me, who prefers to "go with the flow." and especially if you're vegetarian. bread and cheese are two of my favorite things, but it seems like i consumed waaay too much of both on our trip home to portland and the west coast this last week. i had fantastic muffins at crema and costello's, drooled over produce (flats with red raspberries, white raspberries and blackberries...i could have cried a little) at the wednesday market, indulged in the usual garden dungeon burger, and drank a whole bunch of beer. we didn't get around to buying bread or coffee to take home, but i did grab a loaf of san francisco sourdough for our friend as a hostess gift. apparently, it's the "finest" you can get at the oakland airport. i hope it gets eaten. everyone aged on this trip. my four-year-old niece reads a little. my nephew is seven months and is all smiles and actually getting fun. i saw both brothers' new homes for the first time. they're both first-time home buyers. good friends got married, and a single friend decided on the way to the nuptials that she might be in the minority now. that could be true. us marrieds are taking over. we partied with kids and dogs. i saw my dad's parents for the first time in 5 years, and they're not in the best health. my aunts and uncle and cousins age at the same rate whether i see them or not. everyone keeps growing up. brian's bag was the victim of a smash-and-grab in eugene, oregon, and we lost our laptop, his iPod, and most notably for my fine readers, our digital camera docking station. the camera is fine. we have pictures, even. they're just not getting out for a little while. strangely enough, the only thing that really bothers me about this is how upset it made brian, and how it ruined his night, which should have been really freaking fantastic. laptops die. so do iPods. but brian doesn't get to go to his college town (home of 8 years or so), see old friends and reunite with old bandmates to play songs everyday. he deserves fun. that's our trip. a little intense, but not nearly food-intensive enough. tonight i got groceries, so cooking should actually be occurring in this house fairly soon. i can't wait!