Randy and Robin's Roving Retirement

Yes, Portland has been awesome. I know the news about riots every night and violent protests have been concerning, but we have been in a peaceful enclave and have not had any issues. Most of the demonstrations and riots have been in the Downtown corridor, while we are in SE Portland. The riots seem to happen after 10pm and we are usually home by 9. So for us it has been a wonderful adventure with excellent weather, a walkable neighborhood, beautiful parks and connecting with old friends.

Here’s what we have been up to. We explored the beautiful Oregon Zoo which was a fun adventure and with all the new exhibits under construction will be amazing by Fall 2021. We went to Oregon Museum of Science and Industry to see the Body Worlds exhibit. Unfortunately, the rest of the museum was closed.

We are on a mission to find the best ribs in Portland. So far, we have savored Podnah’s Pit BBQ, Holy Trinity BBQ , Bark City BBQ and Matt’s BBQ. We give first prize to Holy Trinity. One day we drove the Columbia River Gorge so I could show Robin my old rock climbing spots, Rooster Rock and Beacon Rock.

We spent another day driving to Seaside and Cannon Beach, Oregon to walk the beaches. Another day we drove to Moulton Falls, Washington. Gorgeous scenery everywhere here. Beautiful parks around this city. Laurelhurst Park is our local walking park filled with old trees and eclectic visitors from aerial acrobats, to juggling classes, tai chi groups, tree climbers, bocce ball gamers etc. Mount Tabor Park and Summerlake City Park are also scenic.

We connected with some old friends of mine from the South Pacific trip at Lewis and Clark College. Kathy hosted and Lisa, Gini, Wendy joined Robin and I for a pot luck on Kathy’s patio. A few days later we had lunch with Dick Hartung another South Pacific participant.

We are getting along amazingly well as new retirees, suddenly together 24/7 and in 300 sq feet of living space in a new city. Yes, life is really good. We miss our daughters and hopefully they will come visit in the next leg, Lynden, WA, 5 miles from the Canadian border.

Portland Art Museum is a full day experience

We spent one day we called Bike and Bites. We rented a deuce coupe bike for an hour and rode the waterfront trail. Tried to take the Steel Bridge to the other side, but it was up. Fun ride though. We then stopped at our favorite, Portland Sports Bar and Grille for steak bites, garlic fries and a hefeweizen. Scrumptious!!

We finally made it to Pittock Mansion. We had walked the grounds previously, but this time we went inside. Self guided historical tour was educational and entertaining.

Goodbye to Portland. Next stop, Lynden, WA.

Drove to Portland August 1st. Our initial Airbnb canceled on us, so we found a new place in SE Portland. Our tiny place is about 300 square feet, but after a few days we have adapted. Very walkable neighborhood. We use the neighboring Latin restaurant picnic tables for breakfast and relaxation. Washington Park is amazing. Walked the Hoyt Arboretum and the International Rose Test Garden. The Vietnam Memorial and Holocaust Memorial are quite moving.

Portland has been a blast. Although we read about protests, we have not experienced any issues. Lots of homeless issues, similar to Seattle. Many enjoyable walking opportunities abound from Washington Park to the waterfront to various parks. And as always, we stay safe and wash our hands!

Major plumbing issues at our Bothell Airbnb had us put up in the Holiday Inn Express for the night. Next day we were refunded for the rest of July and told to find a new place as major work was needed. Fortunately, Katy was able to put us up for 3 nights until our next place was available. We said farewell to our duck friends and junco baby. Katy made us an incredible salmon dinner one night. We took her out to Poquitos for Mexican food another night. We walked the Sammamish River Trail and went to the Woodland Park Zoo again and made the best of it. We had our dream reservation for an 8th floor condo on the Portland waterfront. Then we got the cancelation from our Portland Airbnb that he had water damage from the unit above. Happily all is good now. We have moved into a beautiful penthouse in Ballard just off 15th Ave NW. We have a deck and a sun room! We also have new reservations in Portland for August and in Vegas for October. For concerned friends and family, we do a good job of distancing when out and about. The majority of our excursions are outdoor walks. Being retired now we can avoid the crowds and do things midweek. When we go out to eat, we try to eat outside or go eat at 4pm when the restaurants are empty. And we are getting a collection of stylish masks.

We just love our new place in Ballard. Only here 9 days, but the penthouse is a dream. The only issue is the 4 flights of stairs 😜

We drove to Bellingham to visit Brad’s mother, Joyce. Soup and salad at Olive Garden along with pleasant conversation. We will visit her again when we are in Lynden. Stopped at Fairhaven for a short walk and then to the Oyster Bar for a drink. Such a beautiful restaurant with a glorious view.

Happy bithday to Robin! First a haircut, then met Katy for a glorious walk along the Kirkland waterfront. Robin had an awesome salmon Cobb salad and was treated to a pedicure from her amazing daughter. Later we enjoyed a Porterhouse steak at the Outback Steakhouse.

We are experimenting with new hobbies. Bought some paint by numbers kits and will see what we think. Katy loaned us a few games and we played Pajaggle. Our robins have flown the nest and we still have only one hatched Junco. Not sure the other 3 eggs are still viable.

Rikka and Joseph came by and saw our place. They seem happy and are constantly coming up with new life plans. We met up with Brad’s cousin, Rob and his wife, Lisa. Really enjoyed our conversation with them at the Crystal Creek Cafe.

Drove by Chateau St. Michelle, to have a picnic, but it was closed due to Covid. We stopped by Barking Frog Winery. The restrooms across the driveway, at the Lodge at Willows Run were incredible with waterfall faucets and embossed paper towels. The ultimate was peeking in at the Herbfarm. It oozes elegance and class. I guess it should as National Geographic rated it the #1 Destination Restaurant in the world.

Our 1st Airbnb is in Bothell, WA by Thrashers Corner. It is very roomy, 1000 sq feet and we feel like we are in the Garden of Eden, but with clothes on and no talking serpents. We have a pair of nesting robins with at least 2 hatchlings as well as a Dark Eyed Junco nest with 4 eggs. We walk the North Creek Trail most mornings. We purchased crushed corn at the local feed store and the ducks come running as we approach the pond. For the 4th of July we went into downtown Bothell and had a glass of wine at Resolve and enjoyed live music. The next day we enjoyed walking around McMenamins, reading our books in the sun, then enjoying a beer on the patio. Monday we went to the Maltby Cafe and shared a giant cinnamon roll and a side of bacon. Our waiter suggested we go to Flower World which is an enormous nursery. By enormous, I mean 15 acres! They have chickens, goats, sheep, peacocks and more. We are looking forward to walking at Paradise Valley Conservation Area and Brightwater Park as we have briefly explored both. Fred Meyer has a 10% off for seniors the first Tuesday of each month and now that we are retired we finally made it.

Randy retires June 26th. The condo closes July 1st. We have sold almost everything we own. Our first stop is an Airbnb in Bothell, WA. Here we will decompress and enjoy the first few weeks of our retirement. Next stop will be Portland, OR in August.