NEW; Ocean Park-WA

This morning we left Eugene-OR, and made tracks for Ocean Park-WA

Chris Stapleton - 'Starting Over' - Lyrics: 

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRL3oXC6Tiw)

Pulling things down and getting Independence ready for travel, I mentioned to Holland some of the things I plan todo when we get back up North; I also added that when we get back to the PNW, I want to go buy some skeins of yarn to keep me occupied with projects, saying, "because when I'm bored, I get antsy; when I'm idle too long, I'm not an easy person to be around. This house doesn't take too long to clean, and we eat pretty simple-to-make meals. I need to be be busy - or at least keep my hands active with a busy project." Holland quickly agreed, saying, "Yes! By all means, buy some yarn! You're right - you need to be busy." He appreciates my [quiet time] evening crafting/movie hours: when my hands are moving (instead of my feet, or Betsy burning up the road) and my mouth is silent (he says I always want to talk when he wants to watch the news, YouTube vids, or a movie) - he now sounds like a full-fledged husband 😂🤣

We hadn't unhooked Betsy from Independence, so as soon as the slides were pulled, and the steps latched inside the door frame, we were on our way 👌

Ocean Park-WA from Deerwood-OR; 3 hr 57 min (227.7 mi) via I-5 N

Morning fog bank; Eugene-OR

Again, I slept most of the route while on the freeway.

Freeway traffic is too frantic for me; sleep keeps my eyes from seeing road rage craziness. Sleep keeps my heat beating a steady rhythm - which keeps my startled bleats from surprising Holland into an eye-darting action, trying to see what caused my distress. Crazies do not startle my husband: he enjoys freeway challenges … and he also enjoys my freeway naps, where silence reigns supreme in Betsy's cab 😘

I woke up as we were passing through Portland-OR's concrete jungle:

Merging onto the I-5 Marquam Bridge; Portland-OR

Marquam Bridge: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marquam_Bridge)

I love this Bridge - the only thing I truly like about Portland-OR

St. Johns Bridge: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Johns_Bridge)

I stayed awake all the way to Ocean Park-WA. Scenic, backroad drives interest me; and keep me alert 😁

We saw a new building mural (new to us, anyway), in Clatskanie-OR; featuring Coho Salmon, sporting spawning colors. I'm not a salmon meat lover - but the majority of Washingtonians, are. Holland loves salmon. Bob loved salmon. My friends love salmon. I'm the odd one 😉

A new Coho Salmon Mural; Clatskanie-OR

Coho Salmon: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coho_salmon)

We saw new construction going on in Astoria-OR

And, we were baptized in our homecoming with a Spring rainfall:

Yep - we're back in the PNW; Napa-OR

There is a lot of newness unfolding in our Life, this year …

New direction.

New season.

New attitude 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

New bridge paint.

New building mural.

The scent of new growth.

New buildings going up.

Discussion of new ventures, that will lead to adventurous undertakings ❤️

FREEWAY, SYMBOLISM, & 3D BREASTS HUMOR; Eugene-OR

April 9th: It was wet when we pulled stakes in Redding, this morning:

Heavy dew, this morning; Redding-CA

Hooked up & ready to roll …

Deerwood RV Park, Eugene-OR from JGW RV Park, Redding-CA  5 hr 12 min (315.0 mi) via I-5 N

We made good time 👊

I got a new shot of Mt. Shasta 😊

Mt. Shasta-CA

We saw a newly painted rooftop 🦅

Rooftop 'Old Glory' & National symbol, the Eagle; Hornbrook-CA

The American Flag, with its 13 stripes and 50 stars is a powerful symbol of national unity, patriotism, and the ideals of the United States. The American Flag symbolizes the nation's foundation, unity, and ideals of freedom, liberty, and justice: the 13 alternating red and white stripes represent the 13 original colonies that declared independence from Great Britain. The 50 white stars on a blue field represent the 50 states of the Union. 

The flag's design and colors are deeply rooted in American history, representing the struggle for independence and the formation of the nation - it's colors represent America's hard-won freedom.

Red: Symbolizes hardiness, valor, and bravery.

White: Represents purity and innocence.

Blue: Symbolizes vigilance, perseverance, and justice.

The flag is displayed on military uniforms, flown over military bases, carried into battle, and draped over the coffins of those who made the ultimate sacrifice, representing the ideals service men and women are fighting for and defending. 

The Bald Eagle was chosen as the national symbol of the United States in 1782, appearing on the Great Seal, due to its association with strength, freedom, and power, and its unique presence in North America.

The Bald Eagle is the only eagle indigenous solely to North America, adding to its significance as a symbol of the United States. 

Secretary of Congress Charles Thomson finalized the design for the Great Seal in June 1782, incorporating the bald eagle, which exists only on this continent. 

While the bald eagle has long been a symbol of the United States, it was recently officially designated as the national bird in 2024.

The eagle on the Great Seal holds an olive branch and arrows, symbolizing the powers of peace and war, and the shield is "born on the breast of an American Eagle without any other supporters, to denote that the United States of America ought to rely on their own Virtue," according to Charles Thomson, an Irish-born Founding Father of the United States; and secretary of the fledgling American's Continental Congress.

I saw an interesting mountain peak:

Don't know what Mt. peak this is, but I like it ;-)

We saw patches of new green hued roadway along the route …

New, spruce-green asphalt - it's actually eye-appealing.

And when we pulled over in a rest area to eat a quick lunch - I snapped a pic of the mistletoe balls I saw along the entire drive through Grant's Pass:

Mistletoe balls growing in most of the trees of Grant's Pass-OR & another good weather day for traveling.

When we reached our destination in Eugene-OR, I was delighted to see that it is in a forested area with ferns, birdsong … and later on in the evening - frog courting serenades 😊

This country gal will sleep country happy, tonight 😉

This is a very nice Park; & a new memory for both of us; Eugene-OR

On another note … as much as I enjoy giving free rein to my gypsy bone, I have to admit that I'll be glad to be in one place for a while where I won't be stuck indoors because of tempestuous dust devils - I need to trimline my hourglass shape, and I am hoping the PNW climate will allow me to be outside more getting some walking in; I do have a stepper, but with my lungs messed up due to the dustings, I have not been able to utilize it. The weight gained is starting to be hurtful.

I have gained back all that weight lost during widowhood, and I am not happy about that. I have little to no waist; and my boobs and butt are pulling my curvaceous figure in separate directions, causing discomfort with my spine & joints.

Ideally a 40 pound weight loss would be a doctor's recommendation … but knowing me as I do, a 20 pound weight loss seems a more realistic goal; I'll grab at 30, if that's a remote possibility.

Holland is a boob man, so he's a little concerned about my hoped for weight loss. I've lost significant weight before (many times) over the decades, but the boobs have remained stable from age 40, forward. But, wanting to put my new husband's mind at ease … I thought I'd go online a see what a 30 pound shearing off would mean breast-wise. According to {science}, "breast tissue is approximately 80% water". I don't know about that - my 68 yo breasts are pretty meaty … hefty meaty: they are fricking heavy, not swishy soft. I have literal grooves worn into the tops of my shoulders; and because I lift weights, my shoulders aren't all that soft, either.

If I don't wear a bra, there's really no problem - but, when I am out in public, I need to strap the boulder holder on; and that's when the discomfort kicks in.

On a lark, I thought I'd research just how heavy each one weighed; I know they are heavy - my shoulders and back testify to that fact; but just how heavy are they?

I typed into the research bar, How much does a DDD breast size weigh? I burst out laughing when I read: "The average pair of DDD breasts weighs between 15 and 23 pounds. To put this into perspective, this is the equivalent of carrying around two small turkeys on your chest every day. For some women losing 20 pounds will make them one cup size smaller."

IF by some divine miracle I can actually shave 30 pounds off my petite frame, I could live quite happily with a simple, scaled-back, D size: and my aching back and sore shoulders will be graciously thankful 😁 

Well, I've baked small turkeys and I've baked roasting chickens: a Foster Farms roasting young chicken typically weighs between 10 and 12 pounds … and I'm thinking that is closer to my actual breast size - of course, if you get a Vegas implant doctor, you can modify as large as you want. But, I have not had, nor did I ever need modification, my naturally organic "roaster chicken" sized breasts are plenty heavy enough.

I was laughing so hard thinking of these computations in reference to bra size, that when I was reaching in the freezer to haul out the roaster chicken for comparison, Holland was probably wondering if perhaps my day had been too long (I was laughing that hard) - but when I could finally catch my breath long enough to rein the laugher in, and told him what I was doing, he joined me in laughter 😂🤣

But honestly, in all seriousness, I am seriously going to trimline my shape - assuring my husband that regardless of how much fat I manage to trim off his little curvy banty hen, "there will still be plenty of breast meat to satisfy us both" 😉

Left = 22 months of married life~Winter 2024; Right = 2 years before married life~Summer 2021. My goal is to be where I was weight-wise, in 2021, again.