First Half of May 2015

Beautiful!

Brittney graduates from high school this month!  I scanned in her photo, along with the front of her invitation and the insert card.  The graduation ceremony for Fast Forward Charter High School will be held Thursday, May 28th, 2015 at 7:00 p.m., in the Kent Concert Hall at Utah State University.  Congratulations to our oldest granddaughter who has accomplished this important step in her life!!!

We went with Ali, her girls, and friends (sisters in another family) to a fun center to miniature golf, bowl, and play arcade games for tickets, redeemable for small toys.  Avril had won a $50 gift certificate to "Fat Cats" in a coloring contest held by the dental office where the girls go for check-ups.

 I was the designated bowling helper, since most girls couldn't manage the heavy bowling balls by themselves.  Did I mention we had pizza too --- while we bowled?

 The miniature golf was not really up their alley, but they loved trying different arcade things, like motorcycles.

 McKel, taking aim at a moose.

 Saying goodbye to QianQian before she moves back to China.  Not sure who the other Asian girl is.  Avril was very sad QianQian had to leave.

 The girls wrapped up their soccer season and both got participation trophies.  McKel proudly displays hers here.

And Avril very much enjoyed the sport too.

April 2015 and Oregon Trip

April was a big month.  I retired from Thermo Fisher Scientific (had been HyClone, etc.) on April 6th.  Here are some other happenings from the month:

 Checking out the bunnies at a local western store.

 A visit by Julie, Brian, Rob, and Wendy, plus assorted kids.  Playing in the backyard in the early spring.

Good time to practice some soccer.

 And of course, April16th is birthday for Adrian, Jared, and Arleen, not to mention Patricia's triplets as well.

 Gayle misses her friends from the Thrushwood area, and here re-connects with Janet Garn and Cheri Murdock.
 
 The girls live in an amazing melting pot environment.  Avril's best friend from day-care is QianQian (pronounced chin-chin), from Shanghai.  Her dad finished his degree and they now have moved back to China.  They were both very sad that they were being separated.  This shot was from April.  They moved in May.

Gayle and I took off several days to go to Oregon.  We visited and stayed in Portland with our missionary friends Ron and Cynthia Parker.  The Parkers took us several places (in the rain, what a surprise), such as to this botanical garden.  We also went to a rose garden (a bit early for most blooms) and a rhododendron garden.  We enjoyed some Mexican food in town at the "¿Por Qué No?" restaurant.

A bridge in one of the gardens we visited.  Ducks in foreground.

One of the many beautiful trees in the gardens.

 Ron Parker and me.

 Gayle and Cynthia.

 Amazing flowers everywhere.
 
 And this was one of many Dogwoods in bloom right in the neighborhoods of Portland.
 
 We were also able to visit my first companion in the LTM (now the MTC) in Provo, Fred Clausen, Camille, and family, now living in Beaverton, not far from the Parkers.

 The Parkers went with us over to Cannon Beach to see the fantastic stretch of the coast from this point in Ecola State Park, and to eat at Castaways, a wonderful but small and very popular restaurant in town.

Looking south toward Cannon Beach.  Very scenic drive to the coast, and very beautiful coastline (especially when the sun is out!).

 In Ecola State Park, looking west of course.

Same general view, but note the guys who climbed up the chunk of earth next to the water to the right in this photo.

 Dining at the Castaways. You must arrive early in order to get seated.

 My tuna steak plate with mango sauce and I have forgotten what else.  Wonderful.
 
We then drove down the coast a few hours to Newport, where mom's brother has a cabin on a bluff above the sea.  We were able to stay here briefly.  However, it is for sale and will probably sell soon.

 View from the deck to the north of the cabin.

 View to the south from the deck.  Note lighthouse on the point.  We visited it later.

 Exploring the beach one morning.

 Nature reclaims things quickly.  Shifting earth and its impact on stairs shown above.
 
 Looking up at the rising morning sun through the trees above the beach.

 Gayle in the shadows as the sun comes up.  Surf looked pretty good too, but I had no wetsuit nor equipment.  We did see some dolphins (or they may have been porpoises).  Near the light house we saw sea lions (or were they seals?).  Lots of pelicans too.

 Lighthouse up close.  We took the tour inside too.

 Looking up the spiral staircase inside the lighthouse.  Very good tour about the history of how these were maintained, etc.  Families lived on site.  Pig grease was once used to burn the light.

 Up where the light source and lenses are.

 Looking north from inside the lighthouse at where the cabin is.

 South toward the town of Newport, where we attended church.  The ward is in the Corvallis stake.

North from the cabin as fog develops.

 The tide pool area below the lighthouse.

 A local surf spot just south of the lighthouse.  There is a guy out (too hard to see in this shot).  Definitely a long board spot.

And here is a shot that doesn't do justice to the sunsets seen from the deck of the cabin.

Spencer's China Business Trip

In March I attended a business meeting in Chengdu, China.

 I like Americanized Chinese food.  But the food choices in China are so unusual for me that I have difficulty selecting menu items. This plate includes some digestive track items.

 Squid and congealed pig blood slices.

 Our hotel was near a nice plaza in Chengdu.  It included an underground shopping area.

 Yours truly.

 One afternoon we got to tour the historic district.  There were lots of food stands, several of which, including this one, were serving rabbit skulls, among other delicacies.

 To show the abundance of visitors in the historic district.  Most were Chinese, but the Indian to the left was part of our group.

 Some of our team.  The gal on the left is from Australia; the gentleman on the right from India.  The three of us in the middle are from Logan.

 Some of our Thermo Fisher Indian contingent.

 Inviting passersby to a restaurant.

 Aforementioned rabbit skulls (note the "rodent" teeth).

Playing with a cooked pig nose.

 Said pig noses for consumption.

 I walked through a local market to see where folks get their very fresh food items, such the live eels in these bins.  I won't share the video clips I took of them squirming around in the water.

 Get your fresh frogs here!

 This is the region of China where spicy food is quite popular, as evidenced by these large bags of chili peppers.

 The buildings often have unusual and interesting features.

Me, at the plaza.