Memorial Day Weekend

We spent the weekend at Winchester Bay riding our sand toys and hanging out at the beach.

Union Street Bridge

The Union Street bridge project began with a railroad bridge that saw it's last train in 1990. Fourteen years later the City of Salem purchased the bridge to connect Riverfront Park and Wallace Marine Park. The bridge opened to bicycle and pedestrian traffic a couple weeks ago. These are some pictures of the Willamette River from the bridge. Today was a beautiful day for a walk.

Farmer's Market

Today was beautiful, and a perfect opportunity to visit the Salem Saturday Market. The market started the 2009 season a little over a month ago, and unlike a more traditional farmer's market, includes baked goods, food vendors, craft vendors and local pet adoption agencies. Today's purchases included for my aunt and I included homemade molasses cookies, banana bread, fresh-cut flowers and Cape Foulweather coffee. I'm really looking forward to the season progressing to include more fresh fruits and vegetables.

Quasi-Anonymity

Hm...I may not have spelled that correctly. Oh well. The point is that being anonymous can be a powerful thing sometimes. Think of all those "juicy tween and teen secrets" you spilled to your brand-new bunk mate at camp. Or those little tidbits of yourself you mention to that stranger on a bus or in a waiting room. It's weird, sometimes, how a person can feel more comfortable talking to total strangers than close friends.

I've personally always been more comfortable having really powerful conversations with some space. When I was a teenager and life was hard and my emotions were rioting I would write letters to my parents and leave them in places they would find them. The teenage years were tough, and I couldn't speak the words face-to-face. I thought, somehow, I'd outgrown that. That with age, experience, and maybe wisdom I'd grown to be more honest in my interpersonal communication skills. I haven't. Tonight I found myself doing that very same thing, this time electronically, to tell a friend some things I needed to say. Things I couldn't say to his face, but things I've been wanting to say for awhile now. I just hope things won't be strange the next time I see him.

Festival of Flowers

Today was the Jefferson Festival of Flowers. Jefferson's a small town, so we weren't sure exactly what to expect, but there were flowers, and a maypole. The tiny Jefferson library had a book sale. We bought some flowers in between rainshowers and at ate lunch at the Tratoria. And I was recognized by a few people I knew from years ago when I was a substitute teacher.