Monthly Archives: April 2011

A thank you to remember; photo by Jan Jackson

… Right in the middle of this small historic town of 200 people (located between Roseburg and Reedsport), is Tomaselli’s Pastry Mill & Cafe. Entering the restaurant, you come face-to-face with an aggressive bank of pastries. The first thing out of your lips is, “Oh my.”

You continue on in, find a table and pick up a menu. You order a sensible breakfast  (oh come on, homemade corn beef hash and two eggs over easy is sensible). Not for one minute do you forget about the bakery.

As you get ready to leave, you realize that one of your party has sneaked over to the  pastry counter and is buying something. He shares. It’s to-die-for.

But, everything turns out OK, because as you leave the premise, there it is – right on the wall by the door. A thank you for not dieting. Those are my kind of people.

Luv,

Sissy

Wall of Water public fountain at Oregon State Capitol Park in Salem; photo by Morris Pike.

…now that’s a thought. Actually, for the past three years it has been Oregon’s most used park.

I didn’t know until the Statesman Journal (thanks Dennis Thompson Jr.),  that the 25 acres of greenery, fountains, trees, statuary and the five big buildings that form the Capitol Mall, became an urban state park in January 2008. And, unlike most state parks, it has wide-open access 24-hours a day, 365 days a year.

So, if you work for the state and someone says,”Oh, where do you work?” The answer is, at the Capitol State Park in Salem.

Just in case you heard it here first, you’re welcome – smile.

Luv,

Sissy

Obsolete wigwam waste-wood burner in Drain, Oregon; photo by Jan Jackson

… out of the thousand or so obsolete waste-wood burners Oregon started out with, there are only about 50 left.

If you should be lucky enough to spot one, it would be good for you to know that these free-standing conical steel structures (ranging from 30 to 60 feet high) were used to burn waste wood in logging yards and sawdust in sawmills.  However, even though their tops were covered with a steel grill or mesh, the smoke and ash they produced into the air was too much.

Since they were legally banned in Oregon (they were taken out of use in the 1970s), we have since developed a use for wood waste as a component in various forest products such as particle board, paper and mulch as well as a burning process that produces steam to make heat and/or electricity.

The burner pictured is located between Drain and I-5 (take Exit 162) near the town of Drain. For those of you who have a deeper interest in wigwam burners, visit the blog site of the new Oregon Wigwam Burners Association:

http://jaycritchley.com/2010/11/11/oregon-wigwam-burners-association-formed/

If there are 50 left in Oregon, then I have one down and 49 to go. Where oh where are the rest of them? Let me know and I’ll shoot ‘em – smile.

Luv,

Sissy

Colliding Rivers, in Glide Oregon, is the only place in the world where two rivers meet head on; photo by Marvin Kellar.

… and you can see it big as life in the photo on the right.  The photographer was standing on the highway bridge looking down at the swift, deep waters of the North Umpqua River where it funnels into a water chute and meet the rapids of sparkling Little River head-on.

The viewpoint includes a newly constructed rest area and comfort station, plus several interpretive panels about the area. Located just off Highway #138 at Glide, 18 miles east of Roseburg and across the street from Colliding Rivers Visitors Center.

The only place in the world. If you don’t see it in Glide Oregon (population 1600 or so), you aren’t going to see it.

Luv,

Sissy

Dandelions growing at Colliding Rivers Viewpoint in Glide Oregon; photo by Jan Jackson

… too many dandelions in your lawn? Well maybe it’s time to make dandelion wine from the blossoms, or coffee from the roots, or tea from the leaves, or… or… or – smile.

Historians say the dandelion came over on the Mayflower because of their beauty and because they have so many uses (yes, on purpose). Get this – gardeners used to weed out the grass to make room for them.

So dear gardener, before you reach for the Round-up®, you might want to read The Ten Things You Might Not Know About Dandelions at:

http://www.mofga.org/Default.aspx?tabid=756

Or, skip right to the wine recipes at:

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/dandelio.asp

Oh and something else. The name dandelion comes from the Old French dentdelion, literally, “tooth of the lion,” referring to the sharply indented leaves of the plant. The earliest recorded instance of the word occurs in an herbal written in 1373, but we find an instance of dandelion used in a proper name (Willelmus Dawndelyon) in a document dated 1363.

So, that’s it.

Luv,

Sissy