Lesson Learned

As you know by this point, my grandmother turned 100 last week. When I went to visit her before her birthday, she mentioned that her “big” chocolate bar was missing.

(I am fairly certain that my grandmother and I have very different definitions for “big” when it comes to candy bars. When she gets a box of Russell Stover chocolates – one of her favorites, she’s satisfied eating one piece a day. I, on the other hand, consider a box of chocolates a type of comparison shopping.)

She had been saving that chocolate bar for a “special occasion.” (I could see where one might consider a 100th birthday to be a special occasion.) As she said that though, she kind of chuckled, “Nearly 100, what was I waiting for?

I would say that the universe is always sending us messages, some more obvious than others. It’s up to us to listen to them. In my grandmother’s case, she could have dwelled on the “missing” part of the chocolate bar, but instead she decided to focus on savoring the moment. Continue reading

It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere

I was not designed for heat, and perhaps that’s why I eventually found my way to Portland, Oregon. When “summer” decides to arrive in Portland, the days are sunny and a comfortable 75, maybe 80 degrees. Portland doesn’t often get too hot, so I used the weekend’s upper 90s as an excuse to break with OFG (Operation Feel Good) and have a little ice cream. Because the craving struck around 10:30 am, I had to seek a second excuse. That didn’t take me long – I decided upon “it must be 5 o’clock somewhere.”

Wait, does that work for ice cream too? Continue reading

You gotta believe me, it started as a salad.

My youngest niece is a staunch defender of the dandelion. Against her brothers and cousins and a few aunts and uncles, she has stood her ground. They say it can’t be a flower, because it’s a weed. She says it’s a flower. I tend to agree with my niece. A weed is an opinion, a perception, a plant where you don’t want it. Not really a winning argument if you ask us. A little too situational to condemn a symbol of wishes. Continue reading

Bury Me in Green and Gold!

For the first time in my life, I am a sports fan. (Maybe not a great one, because this post is actually about ice cream.) I’ve watched sports and enjoyed watching them, even rooting for one side to win. But I had never attached myself to one team before moving to Portland, when losses feel personal, when you start saying “we.” The Portland Timbers are my team. (See “Opening Night” for a little background on my soccer career, which lasted one day back in 1978.) Continue reading

Now there’s rhubarb in my ice cream.

Salt & Straw has been getting a lot of press lately, having just opened their second ice cream shop in Portland this spring. I first encountered Salt & Straw last summer when it was just a pushcart. A hot summer day, a pushcart, it all just screams for ice cream.

Continue reading