Welcome to Chaos !!

Today's beauty. I pulled over on the side of the road, stepped out of the car to admire this view.

The pretty light pink cherry blossoms are here.

And darker pink. The cherry blossom trees might be the prettiest trees I have ever seen. The flowers are so soft and fluffy. Besides being perfectly pink. 

So much beauty all around.

I have been absent from the blog because I have been occupied with life and being overwhelmed with it, well with my overwhelming chaotic life that is. This evening was the first time in almost a month that I paused and took a breath.
So let's see what's been going on lately......
I have been spending time on the Oregon Coast. About a two hour drive from Portland lays Astoria (the oldest city in Oregon). A lot of Scandinavians settled here a long time ago and you can find many things related to the old countries in Astoria. There is even a little park called Nordic Heritage Park.

I got burned by steam on the inside of my wrist. I found this Curad stuff to put on the burn, leftover stuff from when I injured my hand over a year ago. A year ago......! It feels like no more than three months ago, time goes so fast, too fast!

I got laundry sheets, or are they called eco-strips? I have not tried them yet. I am thinking a lot about how I can improve myself as a human. And one of the ways is to be more aware and mindful of the products that I use and discard of.
The plastic laundry detergent jugs are bad, I am trying to use and consume less bad and more "good".

And speaking of laundry. I hang dry most of my laundry, this drying rack from IKEA is great.

I saw a perfect sand dollar on a tree.

Since around Christmas time I have been eating pierogis on a regular basis. I found a brand of pierogis called Jaju -I like! The company is owned by two sisters. www.jajupierogi.com
Finding good pierogis is not easy, unless you live in Chicago or somewhere around NYC. I would go to the Polish Deli in Vegas for my pierogis and they sold pierogis that shipped in from Chicago. Since I left Vegas the hunt for good pierogis has been on and the Jaju pierogis are good.

I like my pierogis with chopped and fried red onion and sour cream. YUM!

This is my new beverage of choice. Grim Leafer by Liquid Death. A funny name but I like the companies concept. Also all their beverages come in aluminum cans. Which is GOOD. Most aluminum beverage containers are manufactured back into aluminum cans. I am trying to eliminate plastic bottles from my consumption.

I added an app on my phone called YUKA. And I don't really do apps. When people say I need an app to do something I rather not do it, like I do not want to have a bunch of apps on my phone - so irritating.
But this one can stay for a while. You scan the barcode (if available) of whatever you are going to eat and drink to see the score of the food or drink. The closer to 100 the better. As you can see this iced tea is "good".

Another thing I have been eating daily for a while are mandarins. They are addicting. I eat like six a day.

There is a place that does two for one tacos on Tuesdays. Tacos? Yes please. Four for me. With jackfruit. And limes.

And one more thing......flip flop weather has arrived! Yeay!

But now it is time for me to sleep......my eyes keep on closing.
 

Breaking news! A dancer (stripper) is running for Portland mayor. I know what you are thinking......is Tati running for mayor?
I guess another dancer beat me to it. A dancer I have actually mentioned in the blog......her name is Liv but her dancer name is Viva Las Vegas.
A couple of years ago (two years ago actually) I went to Hollywood Theatre to watch a documentary about Liv called Thank You For Supporting The Arts. You can read about it here.
https:://fargosisters.com/styx/archives/3392-Thank-You-For-Supporting-The-Arts.html
So now Liv is running for mayor and I am intrigued. I think it is great - the REVOLUTION has arrived! Liv is thinking to put together a team of knowledgeable people to help her run the city. And yes.....Portland is a great city! Yes there are problems but problems have to be dealt with and problems can be resolved.
So it dawned on me.....Liv should put me on one of the teams. After all, I have been volunteering downtown Portland for years now. I am totally comfortable in random situations, I strongly believe in helping others, I advocate for animals, I pick other people's trash every day, I believe in transparency connected to leadership and money and I can talk to anybody (it's a dancer thing). So......there must be a spot for me somewhere on a team when, or if Liv becomes the mayor of Portland.
Let's make Portland more magical together! Read an interview with Liv in the Willamette Week here.
https://www.wweek.com/news/city/2024/02/27/liv-osthus-stage-name-viva-las-vegas-is-running-for-portland-mayor/

Today's yummies!
Before Pet Pack I stopped at Stumptown and had an oatmilk vanilla latte. A free one at that. Extra exciting cause I have a girl crush (yes!!!) and she works there and she took my order and she talked to me! I have liked her for some time now......she is on the today's yummies list for sure.

Tonight waffles (from IKEA) with raspberry jam and whipped cream. Watching Dateline right now and relaxing.

I've done a couple of IKEA visits in the last week. On the first I ate by myself and missed everybody in Sweden. It is not easy emotionally to feel torn between two places. Should I live here and then what? Or should I move back to Sweden but how will that go?
I always have the plant or veggie balls and those come with mashed potatoes, brown sauce and lingonberries.
Apple cake. And coffee. If you have an IKEA card (of course I have an IKEA card) you get the coffee for free.
I came across this at IKEA and it made me happy and sad. I often feel happy and sad at the same time......Portland based Daren Todd is collaborating with IKEA and designing small spaces for unhoused people. I don't want anybody to be unhoused, unless by choice. A lot of people are only one rent payment or one unforseen expense away from risking becoming unhoused. Rents all over the country are going up, unaffordable for many. And I speak about the US now.
A few years ago I had nowhere to live. I thought I did, I thought everything was just normal until it wasn't. My life turned upside down in the span of a phonecall. But for a short time I had nowhere to live due to another person's shitty actions.
Lucky for me I have friends, savings and good credit. But many don't. Again, I do not want anybody to be houseless, unless of course by choice.
I believe we all have the right to basic human needs - food, water (clean water preferably), shelter (a safe place to call home) and clothing. Beisdes that we all have the right to rest and sleep.

The living space you see is 96 square feet. (There is a bathroom as well but not visible in the picture).
Thank You Daren and IKEA!

I saw this sign in an antique store a couple of days ago. Bäst av allt är ett eget bo. That is Swedish and means best of all is a home of your own. I agree. Preferably your OWN home, no landlord raising the rent or being difficult. I love spending time at home. Coming home, closing the door to the loud outside, take off my shoes, change into something comfortable, make a cup of tea and get cozy on the couch and then get comfortable in bed. That moment when you burrow down in bed, I love that feeling. If you are lucky you have a pet or a few pets that share the bed and your living space with you.

IKEA knows what's up with those amanitas. Mushrooms hold the answers.

Then I went back to IKEA yesterday with Ann and Molly, it was their first time. They thought thumbs down for the meatballs and potatoes. Like gross to them. OK, like we say in Sweden "smaken är som baken." I mean, it is not a gourmet meal, it is cafeteria style fast food. But beside the food they liked IKEA. What is there not to like? I love IKEA. I should work there. 

I did my volunteer Pet Pack shift yesterday as well. Somebody told me that the shopping carts used to hold and transport people's belongings are called Burnside Cadillacs. Burnside Street is one of the streets in Portland. It was a rather chaotic scene down there yesterday. We gave away all but one of the four pound kibble bags that we prepare for dogs.
I am going down there again on Sunday. The dogs and cats need food and whatever else we have available to give away.

What a nice day today and yesterday too.
I decided to pay the Iredale shipwreck another visit.

Yesterday's view.

And some sights around town.

 And an empty box of Q-tips. Which somehow coincides with a change in my life or something happening that pertains to me. And yes indeed, I am in the middle of a change. A rather major change. Lots has been happening in the last couple of months.......I was hoping for personal peace in 2024, still hoping for that. I need it badly. Got an extra large Q-tip box to replace the empty one with, do not want any unexpected and unwelcome things to happen for a good while.