Entries by TATIANA

Summer Solstice 2021 is here.....the longest day of the year!
I started my day downtown with the Pet Pack which was unusually busy because I was the only volunteer in attendance but but with the help of two friends that usually show up on Sundays we took care of everyone that needed our services. I have always said that I could do Pet Pack by myself if there were no other alternatives and today I got to prove it.
Later in the day, once it started cooling off, cause it was in the 90s in Portland today I met up with my friend Jen and we went to gorgeous Forest Park.
A little toast to Summer Solstice with blood orange ginger ale. Skål!



This place is amazing and it has many miles of trails. I love coming here.



Me and the girls.



What a beautiful day! Happy Solstice!

Today I got to play viking in Portland for a few minutes. I went to another Swedish Midsummer celebration this afternoon, the real deal is celebrated in Sweden next weekend. And tomorrow is Summer Solstice - already! Noooooo......I do not want the days to get shorter! I am going to try to savor this summer before it is over. Or like we say in Sweden....Sommaren är kort, de mesta regnar bort. Men nu är den här, så ta för dig solen skiner idag.

Yesterday I attended a Swedish Midsommar celebration here in Portland. (Midsommar = midsummer). Actually this year in Sweden Midsommar falls on June 25 but for some reason it was celebrated earlier here, probably some sort of a timing issue. Anyhow....the celebration took place at Nordia House, a Scandinavian cultural center here in Portland that I have been to several times.
I had to do the traditional thing and make a flower wreath to wear on my head. All the flowers were donated. There was food so I had some potatoes, red cabbage and very delicious pannkakor (pancakes) with raspberry jam and whipped cream.



Midsommarstången got raised with a communal effort.





For those who might not know.....Sweden is one of the five countries that make up Scandinavia. Located in Northern Europe between Norway to the West and Finland to the East. Yes it snows in Sweden but not year round. We also have an absolutely beautiful summer (if the weather allows). And growing up I heard stories about princesses with long golden hair, trolls living deep in the forests, animals that talked, faeries and Näcken and part of me still believe that all of that truly exist.



Lingonberries is something that I like to eat with potatoes and brown sauce (not with pancakes IHOP style). I like to enjoy my pancakes (and they should be thin) with either raspberry or strawberry jam. Blueberries are delicious in a warm pie. And I remember eating handfuls of gooseberries (krusbär) as a kid cause we had them growing in the yard.



Glad Midsommar!

My friend Richard passed away a few days ago. I have not been around a lot of death so I am still processing that I will not see his sparkly kind happy blue eyes again, not see his smile, hear his voice, have interesting conversations or joke around with him. No more. ? He was a wonderful man and his passing was sudden and unfair.
I met Richard at work. We became good friends. I looked forward to seeing him walk through the door because he was fun to be around. He had lived an interesting life, quite known around Portland because he accomplished a lot. He was ALWAYS nice, a true gentleman.
The first time back to work after his passing was difficult. Just knowing that he was not sitting in his usual spot with a smile on his face was not an easy thing to accept. There were tears. Many of my coworkers are saddened by his passing.
Yesterday I went to The Grotto here in Portland and lit two candles. One of those candles was for Richard.
Walking through The Grotto I asked God and in case you wonder, I consider myself spiritual not religious....I asked God to please keep me if I get to go to a place after my life here on Earth is done. I do not want to come back here because there is too much suffering and misery on Earth and it makes me sad. I just want to be with Chhaya after I die. And all my other pets that I have loved. Family and true friends would be nice too. I just don't want to come back to Earth.



Today I lit a candle for my friend Richard here at work. The locomotives represent his passion in life. You are truly missed my friend. ❤️



And the unfair thing about this whole thing.....and this is my personal belief AND other peoples as well. Richard was healthy until he got the J&J vaccine. After that, things went downhill fast and he got several blood clots that in turn led to other complications. It makes me feel so sad, angry and helpless that a person with so much more life to live and so many things to look forward to had to live out his last days in mental agony and probably physical pain too, knowing that had he not taken that vaccine most likely he would had been here today. He thought he was doing the "right" thing....you know the "do your part thing" that we get bombarded with, pressured into.....yeah well it didn't work out so great for my friend did it?
The vaccine, the ones who got it and the ones who have not is a big controversy right now. There are several reports linking the J&J vaccine to blood clots. I guess these things don't really matter until somebody you personally know passes from complications. Do not be so harsh towards the ones that have not take the vaccine. I have not. I am not anti vaccine. But I am holding off. I am not judging the ones who got the vaccine. I get it. People want to do the right thing.

A large chunk of Europeans watch the yearly music event called the Eurovision Song Contest when one or several representatives from each European country competes with their song.
I would watch this when I lived in Sweden. It was a stay at home all evening event accompanied with chips and cheese puffs. Of course Sweden's most talked about and best win was ABBA's 1974 contribution with Waterloo. And who doesn't love ABBA?
I certainly do. Their music is still amazing. The Eurovision Song Contest has been around since 1956.
Anyhow.....since I left Sweden my interest in watching the Eurovision has dwindled until I saw something about an alleged cocaine issue and this years winning band - Måneskin. Like what? Well, I could not care less whether the singer of Måneskin, Damiano David did in fact do coke or not and I believe him when he denied the accusations and said he would not be so dumb to do coke during a live taping of the show. Duh!
What I do care about is that.....WOW this band is AMAZING! I love the song, "Zitti E Buoni" and the band's live performance. The right song definitely won this year! Since I found out about them I have watched several of their music videos and performances and downloaded their songs to my Spotify list. They are really good. And Damiano David is super hot. Like HOT. With a great voice. And more charisma than I have seen in a long time.
I am glad that a band won the contest cause learning how to play an instrument and perform live is way higher on the skill ladder than stumbling around on stage lip syncing with tits and ass hanging out (like much of the latest US "talent" lately). Yeay Italia!
Good job. Rock'n Roll never dies.....
I used to listen to Eros Ramazzotti a lot back in the day and Italian is a beautiful language.
In fact my ABSOLUTE favorite song is "Caruso" performed by Pavarotti. I hope this band, Måneskin blows up. I am now a fan. Should I bombard Damiano David with love letters or what?

After visiting Crystal Crane I continued South and went to the Alvord Desert.
Not my first time there. Me and Chhaya visited and spent the night in 2017.....if you put in "Alvord" in the search bar of the blog you can see my previous Alvord Desert entries. But I had not been to Alvord Hot Springs until exactly one week ago.
The Alvord Desert is a dry lake playa much like the Black Rock Desert playa where Burning Man takes place. In fact the Alvord Desert and Black Rock Desert are not too far from each other, only about 90 miles.
So being on the Alvord Desert playa feels just like being at Burning Man. I miss Burning Man!
This is the entrance to the Alvord Desert.



A short walk to the hot springs.



The hot spring is divided into two pools. One completely outside with gorgeous views and one enclosed so you can have shade.







You can somewhat regulate the water flow and temperature.



I stayed the night and slept in my car. There is a camp host and it cost me $20 to spend the night with access to the hot springs. I would like to visit this place again, plus driving around on the Alvord Desert playa is a lot of fun and the scenery is amazing.