Starbucked

I just finished a fascinating book about a fascinating subject: Starbucks. I've long been enthralled with the cultural obsession with Starbucks. Those white-and-green cups have changed our society, and I wanted to know how.

Mind you, I'm not a coffee drinker. I don't like the stuff, I don't want the dependence on caffeine and I don't want to spend the money. But I worked downtown Portland for nine years with a Starbucks just a block away in two different directions. Most of my coworkers went there daily - many two or three times a day! I occasionally tagged along to be social and found myself in a huge line with all kinds of people craving their Starbucks. Honestly, I don't even know how to order a drink. If I ever went to pick something up for someone, I had to write it down just as they said it so I could get the lingo right. If I ever got myself a hot chocolate, I'd fumble through the order (probably doing it all wrong) and then be embarrassed because I wasn't part of the Starbucks culture (by the way, I don't like their hot chocolate - too bitter!). And when I walked around the corner to my building, I was torn between feeling proud and trendy with my white-and-green paper cup and feeling dirty and trendy with my wasteful "treat".

I digress.... I just got around to reading "Starbucked: A Double Tall Tale of Caffeine, Commerce, and Culture", written by Portlander Taylor Clark. The incredibly quick read covered a multitude of subjects, including the company's beginning, the history of coffee, the truth about Fair Trade coffee and the international market. It also had some Portland references - always a fun bonus! I could not put it down.

I found myself loving Starbucks and then hating Starbucks, admiring Starbucks and loathing Starbucks. Overall, I'm still fascinated with the phenomenon. I have to admit that the people in charge are geniuses. But so were the inventors of the atom bomb. Hmmmm.

If you've ever had a Starbucks drink, passed a Starbucks shop, seen a Starbucks cup in someone's hand, read this book (I'll loan you my copy if you want!). I'd love to hear your thoughts.

-Liz :)

Two-Bean Tamale Pie

Tonight's menu featured Two-Bean Tamale Pie from BHG.com. It was super simple and quick -- and yummy! I followed the recipe but with loose measurements. I forgot to buy cilantro, so I added a dash of coriander instead. It had a bit of a sweet flavor. Next time, I might add a little hot sauce or ground red pepper to the bean mixture to spice it up.

Two thumbs up from us both!
-Liz :)

Just like riding a bike? Not so much

Brad and I spent a beautiful Sunday on Mount Hood. It was his last ski race of the year, so I tagged along to get in a few turns of my own.

I knew I'd be rusty because I hadn't down-hill skied since last spring. We stepped into our bindings and headed up the lift for some warm-up runs. The sky was covered in high clouds, but we could still see the top of the mountain - and Jefferson and several other peaks to the south! The shade made the snow icy, and when you combine that with my lack of recent experience, I was a mess. Serious, I was skiing like a beginner and getting really frustrated. (It didn't help when some guy clobbered me in the lift line and knocked me to the ground!)

FINALLY, the sun came out and softened the snow just about the time my body was remembering what it was doing. We found some great sunny steeps covered in moguls and had a great time. I even think that my back-to-basics warmup helped me improve my balance and off-groomers skiing. I also learned that I need to suck it up and buy some lift tickets next year so I don't completely forget how to do this sport that I worked so hard to get good at in the first place.

-Liz :)

PS - After the sky cleared, this was the view all day!!!

Love In The Name Of Christ

"At Love In the Name of Christ, our mission is to connect families in need with local churches and service agencies who can help them. We believe that by serving others and demonstrating the unconditional love that Christ has for us, God will work through us to transform lives in our community."

Our church organizes a firewood ministry for Love INC, collecting, processing, storing and delivering firewood for needy families in the Newberg area. The second Saturday of each month is a workday, and Brad and I go whenever we're around. Today, a whole bunch of us split and stacked piles and piles of wood. It's a great time to hang with friends, meet new people, get some exercise and help those in our community who can use a hand. Join us sometime!

-Liz :)

Herding chickens

My grandmother (the Master Gardener and giver of many free garden starts!) invited me to join her today as her garden club toured a hellebore garden in southwest Portland. Having a very shady yard, which includes a couple of hellebores blooming right now, I jumped at the chance.

Jim the grower was full of information about hellebores, both technical and practical. (Did you know that the "flower petals" aren't really flower petals at all?) I told Jim that I had a hellebore (like the one pictured) that did well for several years and then just died. He said it's a foetidus and not a true perennial. They live a while and then die. BUT there's hope. He said they are prolific seeders, and if I don't stay on top of my weeding, I could have some new ones coming up! We'll see. The foetidus is also called the stinking hellebore. I never noticed that mine smelled funny, but I took a sniff of his and there was sort of a burnt-coffee odor.

After learning all about his hellebores, the garden clubbers all debated which ones they should take home - there were so many beautiful plants to choose! Because she said it made her happy, I let Ma get me this new foetidus. I promised Jim I wouldn't weed around it until May :)
Jim was a really cool guy with a great sense of humor. He attends Multnomah Monthly Meeting and had a bunch of anti-war signs in the windows and bumper stickers on his older Volvo (we talked briefly, and he recommended "The Three Trillion Dollar War"). The garden looked great, even during this transition time of year. The enthusiastic gardeners were learning about hellebores but also running around the garden, investigating his plant selections and techniques. Their attention was a bit unfocused, and at one point while giving his talk and trying to answer their (sometimes unrelated) questions, Jim said it was like "herding chickens." He was right :)

-Liz

Chipmunk Cheek

One cool advantage of being home most days is that I get be there to care for my family. My dad had a wisdom tooth extracted today and needed a ride. Because I didn't have anywhere else pressing to be, I was able to drive him there, wait (while reading a fascinating book about Starbucks), get him home and down on the couch and then pick up his prescription. That might seem like a chore to most people, but I think it's one of the reasons that I'm not working right now - to help those around me, including Chipmunk Cheek :)

-Liz

Reward night

Last night was the second workout reward night for the McKee family. Everyone met their February workout goals (except for some excused absences due to illness and a back injury), so we all got together for dinner and games.

Hopefully we can go through March illness-free and meet again in a couple weeks for another great reward! Yay!

-Liz :)