Things you can't unsee

Bobby, Tara, and I took off for McMenamins Edgefield on Friday afternoon to see the divine Ms. Neko Case. We got there early enough to score prime real estate near the front, and the weather couldn't have been lovelier. Of course, since you're trapped inside a fenced area, the prices aren't quite so lovely. Five bucks for a slice of mediocre cheese pizza and six bucks for their proprietary beers (PBRs were $5, and I don't drink those anyway). I did drink the beer, however, as a child-sized cup of wine was eight bucks, and that is highway robbery. Teetering back to our blanket stakeout with two slices of pizza and two beers in my hands was a challenge, and I spilled on myself and my food more than once. All in the name of fun, though. Beer-battered pizza is surprisingly good for an accidental creation.



We were seated right in front of the stage, which was fantastic. My plans of listening to Ms. Case while lying on my blanket in the waning sun were somewhat dashed by the jerks who decided to stand up in front of us, and I yelled at them good before I went and stood in front of them. Tall people have it so easy. Rude concertgoers aside, it was an excellent way to end a Friday. I'd tweeted Ms. Case with a song request (Twist the Knife) earlier in the day, and alas she didn't play it. I did, however, get to hear this one:



Simply put, she was amazing. It's a shame I went as a civilian and don't get to review this one for Melophobe, because she'd be getting a glowing review from me. I don't think I've ever seen somebody sound so good live. Perhaps it was the woodsy outdoor venue and the joyous sunshine, but the whole evening was pretty magical. The video above doesn't really do the experience justice, as it's from Bumbershoot a few years ago. She had signs up requesting no photos, and I respected her wishes. We waited for the disastrous parking situation to calm down a bit, which didn't do us any good because we got stuck in construction traffic on the way home.

Saturday morning, I headed up to Tara's house so we could go to the beach on Sauvie Island. We had planned to go around 10:30, but the air was much too cold. We dallied around a bit, dropped by Grand Central for sandwiches, and were buying our parking permit by 12:30. Sauvie Island is huge. "About the size of Rhode Island," says Tara. Our beach destination was at the northern tip, so we had quite a ways to go. I'd heard from friends that between the super crowded main beach and the "clothing optional" beach, there was a prime spot for splashing in the river and cooking on the shore. We drove all the way to where the road became gravel, and found no such spot.

Tired of being in the car, we opted for the clothing optional beach. It's not the naked mandatory beach, after all, and there'd be no kids to kick sand in our hair while we napped in the sun. Win-win, really. There we sat, two ladies in swimsuits surrounded by several groups of leathery-skinned regulars in their collective altogether. Sure, we stuck out, but we didn't much care. We settled in, ate sandwiches, read magazines, and soaked up the sun with the rest of them. Let me tell you, though, the nude beach does not attract people you'd like to see naked. No siree. We spent a good amount of time staring straight at the water and trying not to giggle. Because that's where we ended up, I have no photos of the excursion. It's rude to take photos on a nude beach, even if one is discreet and uses a camera phone. Also I didn't want to accidentally photograph anybody else. I do have a photo of the St. Johns bridge on the way, though, so that's something.



We called it a day around 4:00 and returned to our respective homes to get ready for Conor and Jonathan's housewarming party, of which I also have no photos. I am terrible at taking photos of social gatherings, apparently. Still, we had a fine time eating gooey butter cake (OMG that stuff is addictive) and pineapple, and having a chat with the many people who dropped by.

This brings us to today. Bobby went with the Ringers and Tara to watch Trek in the Park, and I prepped the house for our weekly True Blood barbecue. By prepped the house I mean napped on the couch while watching home improvement shows. Either way, there's nothing better than hanging out in the sun with friends and watching a silly HBO summer soap opera. This week I've got houseguests coming from California (Mircea and his fiancee Lyndsey), and a potential show on Thursday. I do love Portland in the summer.