The Trestle and the Pool

I pretty much lost my entire summer to illness and to being overwhelmed with work and school, and I got to Westfir with only a few days left of it.  Autumn is my season, but summer is good for taking the dog out to play and for swimming in the river.  We went up on the ridge on Monday, and found a beautiful trail into the woods.

We found another spot with access to the river just a short hike up the ridge and down through the woods.  It’s stunningly beautiful, the water absolutely clear and very still, due to the presence of a great downed tree and many rocks that slow down the flow and create a shallow pool in that part of the river.  It may be man-made, because there are some ruins of an unidentifiable structure on the shore.  Theo, of course, had a grand time.

Yesterday, the fall blew in with force.  I woke to the first drops of a rain storm that lasted until the late afternoon, and last night it was cold enough that I had to turn on the heat for 20 minutes.  I run hot, so it doesn't take much to warm me.  The sunset was amazing, pink fire in the west as the mist draped itself across the eastern foothills, even drifting deep into the valley.  I spent the morning making things and photographing them - my total for the last few days was 4 batts and 17 sets of stitch markers.

I drove into Eugene in the afternoon to buy supplies and use some WiFi to complete a major shop update. I’m rather proud of myself for getting so much done, although nothing has sold and I worry a bit about getting a small cash flow to keep dog food coming in.  I’ll be putting up flyers in Eugene and Oakridge for spinning and knitting lessons, so hopefully I can get a couple of students.

Eugene is a sweet city.  I can’t speak for the culture with authority while I’m so new to it, but people have been very kind, with the endearing Northwestern habit of actually making eye contact and smiling – that was very hard for this East Coast girl to get used to at first, although I love it now.  So far, I think that I will like it much more than Portland.  There are lots of strange and appealing little businesses, and the food is better.  Getting out of town is easy, and the forest is Right There.  We went to the dog park, and it was pretty posh, with three kiddie pools for wading and a smaller, separately-fenced park for tiny dogs.  On the way into town, I stopped for hay at a feed store right off the highway in Pleasant Hill, and it was by far the best quality and cheapest hay I've bought.  Granted, it is that time of year, but the hay in Portland isn't nearly as nice.  This stuff was probably harvested just down the way; no reason to truck it all the way to the city.

The houseplants are nearly all settled in, and all but 2 spinning wheels are here, so this place is really feeling like home.  I have to go back to Portland today to finish up things at the old house and do some renovations in exchange for not paying August rent.  It’s hard for me to leave this place.