Rembolds on the Road: Salem July Trip

SALEM TRIP TO HELP JED with HOUSE PROJECTS

TUESDAY, July 16

High Country Lane to Jed’s home in Salem, Oregon

355 miles

We are loaded up and ready to roll around 8:15! Rick has a dentist appointment in town at 9 and we want to get the tires checked at Lew Bros first. I walked along the parkway toward town to stop at Coffee Corral and pick up Rick’s mocha granita order. Well, I met up with Mark and Patty Bogart and we sat there and visited for a half hour! Nice start to the day!

We are officially on the road west around 10:15. Rick ends up driving the entire distance as I finished up another camel for the needlepoint nativities. We stop in Prairie City (park restrooms!) and not again until Bandit Rest Area at Occhoco Pass. Gas stop, pit stop, and fresh drinks in Redmond and on west! Encounter cloudy skies and considerable haze/smoke in the Redmond/Sisters area (no good pictures of the mountains today!) but clearer skies after Santiam Pass.

We pull up to Jed’s house at 5:35pm – A little over 7 hours for the drive. Jed left about 20 minutes earlier for his class up in Portland. I manage to work the code for the front door, unload most of the inside of the truck while Rick unties our load in the bed.

The bed frame is set up in the guest room (Jed has it all cleared out!) and we maneuver the box springs and then mattress into place. Whew! More to come tomorrow! Finally grab a bite to eat (leftover taco salad from last night) and relax for the evening. I do some puzzles while Rick channel surfs!

Jed arrives right after 10 pm. Short visit for me and I am into bed. Rick and Jed talk until nearly midnight!

Truck is all loaded up and ready to go while Rick sees the dentist.

WEDNESDAY, July 17

I am up at my usual 5:45, but just go to the living room to do my usual. All is quiet for a couple of hours before Rick, then eventually Jed arises! Rick is out on the patio by 8:30 or so beginning to remove the last of the wood decking and pulling out an abundance of screws. It is warm out so time to get busy before it gets miserable outside! While Rick and Jed work on the wood, with breaks to discuss options, etc. I find pruners, etc and tackle the blackberry vines emerging from next door .. everywhere. Jed says to keep the branches with berries, but cut all else out. He’ll harvest and then attack! We are moving some of the roses, trimming others and in general cleaning up parts of the jungle! Toss in a thistle or two and it was a morning of thorns!!

I send a text to Norrells, as Jed has a virtual class tonight from 6-10 so it is a good time to pay a visit and get out of here! A later phone call and we are set to visit them for dinner (nothing like inviting yourself over!)

By 2 we have the back cleared and picked up...ready to finish planning for tomorrow. Jed has done some research and has ideas about what he wants in terms of a retaining wall. Quiet afternoon – as Jed has some prep he needs to do before his class.

Rick and I head down to south Salem and Clint and Kathy’s house on High Street around 5. A cute older home with lots of vintage features. Small rooms, but they like it. Nice little backyard area in the shade where we enjoy appetizers and drinks. Don’t get around to dinner until nearly 7pm! But Kathy has made BBQ ribs, tater salad, bread, green salad – all very good. We visit until 9, laugh a lot, mourn a little some losses. A good time. And their hydrangeas are gorgeous!

Back up to Jeds and sit around until he is done with class. I head to bed at 10:30.

One cluster of Jed's pretty roses!

Beginning work on back patio - Rick unloads planter boxes

We need to take this old twin bed to the thrift store -

THURSDAY, July 18

Up early – we have work to do, but mostly today will be shopping and determining our options. Jed has volleyball tonight so he doesn’t want to kill himself outside first!

Rick and I work outside a little softening soil so as to move some rose bushes and I trim a bit more of the blackberry vines out of the trees! Jed is late in arising (like after 10!) so by the time we access our needs, discuss options, it is afternoon before we trek to Home Depot. I have some bread rising by then!

Back around 2 to unload 50 bricks into a brand new wheel barrow. Rick and Jed take off to explore a local bike shop and pick up some groceries while I finish up the bread. They return with Rick’s new bike! Plus the eggs I needed to finish a batch of pumpkin bread/muffins.

Pizza burgers and corn for dinner and then Jed is off to the PAC Center for volleyball. We follow shortly after to watch two matches, leaving before his third. Fun to see the caliber of play, his interactions with two former Willamette VB gals, and meet some of his friends (including the effervescent electrician who recommended his furnace guy to him!)

Measuring, figuring...brain work!

Neighbors flowering hibiscus tree

Unloading the first 50 bricks...

...the truck could only take so many at once!

On to the volleyball court!

I don't think he was pulling up his shorts....

Preparing to serve it up

FRIDAY, July 19

Hopefully we will get started a little earlier today so to beat a bit of the heat. Some pick and shovel work ahead of us! Jed has set his alarm for 8:30!!

While more clearing of the space takes place with the pick and shovel, I prune an errant maple tree, move dirt, etc. Also moved the red hot fire poker plant by the gate. That was revealing as thousands of little orange colored tuber rizomes filled the ground. Yikes!

The day includes a trip to Home Depot (of course!) where we pick up lots of glue (Liquid Nails), hostas, etc. We also stopped at Bark Boys and checked the pricing of the the mulch and mixed soil we’ll need for the planter boxes. But first, after a morning of digging, a visit to the Creamery for lunch/dinner!

The Creamery is a Hispanic cheese shop and ‘restaurant’ where you can order quesadillas or burritos, etc. to order. A bright colorful place with the big open windows so you can watch them stretch the mozzarella type cheese and then wind it into balls. Fun.

Back to the house from our errands around 3 for rest time! Jed had a little school work he needed to do. Around 5:30 I left to make a run to JoAnns and Walmart. It took me 2 hours! Back to find them digging, but at least the back of the house is in the shade by 6pm! I planted the hostas when I got back.

Jed and I finally get in a game before we crash.

Oh...Marg called when I was in the store. Tried calling her back but we just shared texts then.

Making up pumpkin muffins from Jed's supply!

Pick axe and shovel are the order of business!

Transplanted rose bushes from the back of the house

The dirt is like CLAY!

Fire poker tubers

Inside the cheese making part of the Creamery

Stretching the cheese

Creamery decor include the rainbow of colors!

Look close - this Mona Lisa is FILLED with hidden images!

Hibiscus in front of the Creamery

We planted some hostas in Jed's front yard, plus parts of the Red Hot Fire Poker

Cleaning up the corner to be ready to lay some bricks!

SATURDAY, July 20

Today is forecast for high 90’s. Oh boy. After a bit more figuring and clearing, Rick and Jed take off for Home Depot for a 10am reservation for a compactor. I stay and continue to clean up tree branches, etc around the place. Liz called and I returned the call but didn’t get her so left a message. We aren’t going to make it up to see her – this job is going to take all our days here!

Around 10:30 the guys return and while Rick finishes ‘picking’ the east strip by the house, Jed runs the machine (and makes dust!). We have it until 2pm and want to get the base row of stones down, so we can anticipate how many more stones he is going to need! So hot!!

Trip to HD to return compactor and purchase 60 more stones, unload from truck, and then take a BREAK!! Too warm to work! I eventually make some dinner and get another batch of pumpkin muffins in to cook. By 6 the shade has arrived and we go back out to lay more stones and actually glue them down. I lay down the glue with caulk, Rick put the stone down, and Jed comes along to finetune the position. We get over 4 layers high and realize….we need more. Quit at 9pm and call it a day!

Rick begins clearing the pathway for mulch and strawberry bed at back of house

Ready for compacter and then landscape fabric!

Jed gets the muscle job of running the compactor!

...While Rick continues to hack away at the claylike sod!

Cleaning up the corner...

Figuring out the initial row of blocks

Hmmm....how high do I want the wall right here?

Rick backfills with gravel.

How many more blocks will we need??

SUNDAY, July 21

Not sure this will be a ‘day of rest’. Too much to do in just two more days! But the good news is the temps are to be at least 10 degrees cooler than yesterday. In fact, we had a thunderstorm roll through around 8, one clap that was VERY CLOSE and shook the house!! (Also put out the internet for abit until Jed got up!)

After a bit of adjustments to the two ‘along the house’ paths, Rick and Jed take off for another load of stones from HD while I get the landscape fabric laid down, anchored, and cut around all the foundation wells. They return with blocks which are unloaded out of the way to be dealt with later! While I put the slats into the fence/gate which Jed had previously ordered, they cut the boards and installed that will line those beds (the two long flower boxes will go here!)

Then….two more trips to BarkBoys for hemlock mulch. Boy does it smell good! All has to be wheelbarrowed to the back. Rick helps shovel from truck, Jed shovels, wheels and dumps, and I level it out with the rake to some degree. And then? Time for a break!

We all shower and Jed drives us downtown to Happy BiBimBop House, a Korean restaurant he likes. A very progressive little place that also has a mission to the homeless on a regular basis. I can’t tell you the names of what we had but everything was good. I took the safe choice and had what Jed ordered only with pork instead of chicken. Rick had a spicier soupier meal! But we were served some sort of scallion pancake with four other saucers of appetizers, our meal, and followed up with a slice of watermelon for each! All for under $13 apiece!

Back to house for rest time before heading back out around 6 to finish the wall. While Jed and I did that (Jed doing all the figuring, I just put down glue where he wanted it), Rick began the process of backfilling behind the boards along the side wings. By 8 pm, THE WALL IS DONE!

By tomorrow the glue will have set.

Jed and I play three games before I hit the sack at 10. I WON THE CRIBBAGE GAME! The second was called Polarity and involved magnets and balancing little discs. I lost abysmally! Last one was the Crows card game – a fast one with a story at the end. I won that one! Wow! Never happens with Jed!

My 'selfie' while laying down the rest of the landscape fabric

Midway through putting slats in the fence and gate

Fixing the side board to hold the mulch in place.

And here comes a wheelbarrel of mulch!

All 'mulched' in!

Dinner at Happy Bibopbam Korean!

After dinner Jed finishes up the wall!

I won!!!

MONDAY July 22

Last day to finish our projects! Thankfully another 85 degree day so not as miserable!

Rick and Jed return to Bark Boys for another half yard of mulch, and then a load of top soil/compost mix. I think they gave us more than a yard there because we filled all the planter boxes and had a pile left over...put on a tarp under the trees by the front of yard. I hauled clumps of dirt (clay!) around to the sidewalk edge and threw them behind the arborvitae trees – mostly hidden from view! Jed and Rick slid dirt down to backfill behind the wall (which is now very sturdy!) I also did more pruning here and there.

Then it was time for the dump run – scrap wood, grass clods (unusable), clippings, tree trimming – it was a full truckload. Oh, cardboard too! While the guys went to the dump I planted the strawberries and tried to clean a few things up in the backyard, put tools away, etc.

Cleanup time! We load the twin bed mattress and frame into the truck, plus a few other items Jed had to donate, hit the Thriftstore just down the road, and then into town to find Bo and Vine, a burger place right downtown. It was Happy Hour time, so we got a few good prices – including a ‘shared’ plate of sweet potato fries for $6. A HUGE plate! Gotta thank Jed for treating us three nights to dinner at some different places – options we don’t have in BC.

After dinner we stopped at the Thrift store again to look around for some planters, but found nothing to buy. Home to put the headboard on the new guest bed and then Jed left for volleyball.

After our Waremart run and gas fill-up, Rick and I semi packed to be ready to leave in the morning and relaxed. Jed didn’t get home until 10:30p, Rick was already asleep. I said goodnight!

The finished gate

A few of Jed's pretty roses

It's a heart of white roses!

Backfilling and leveling the area

How does it look??

Beautiful blue skies and the Japanese maple tree in Jed's front yard

I got the strawberries transplanted today

More rose pretties

Hummingbird feeder gets put up!

And the headboard installed on the new bed

Final backyard pictures...

TUESDAY, July 23

Salem to High Country Lane

350 miles

Time to head home to Baker City and find out what havoc the Durkee fire is causing! We get loaded up and pull out right at 8:35 to head to our lunch date with Tom Hinkle in Prineville. Jed thanks us again for all our help. We didn’t get everything done on his hoped for list, but the biggies are done and we'll be back for Thanksgiving.

A pretty and smooth drive up 22 past Detroit and over Santiam Pass. After the pass we can see the layers of smoke filling the skies in Eastern Oregon. Quick stop in Redmond to gas up, call Tom, and meet at the Sandwich Factory right off the main drag through town. One of Tom’s favorite places! We order and then head up to the upstairs dining outside to visit and eat for an hour! Good time! Good food! (Hot news… Tom has a lady friend in Albany, we suspect daughter Kim set him up! So happy for him!)

Onward to BC at 1pm and home by 5 (with a stop at Post Office to find, once again, that mailman delivered mail when I said I would pick up!) I drove just the section from Dayville to Prairie City, Rick the rest. The final hour from Austin Junction to Baker was slow as commercial truckers are using the route and we got behind 5 semis, the front which was driving VERY cautiously!

We can barely see our mountains from town, with a bit more separation of the hills visible from the house. Definite smoke in the air!