My, how the scenery changes...

I have been to the coast of Oregon only one time before now. Back home, when one said they were going to the ocean, they would be crazy not to wear a tank top and shorts. Here in Oregon, you have to wear a few layers of warm clothes. Ten years ago, I wore a tank top and shorts in the middle of summer to the beach of Oregon and my, oh my, how it was cold. It is no wonder why that is all that I remember about it. This time, I was prepared. I wore jeans, waterproof hiking boots, a sweater, down feather vest, and a wind/water-proof jacket. Needless to say, I was warm.

So we headed out with Pluto, my dog, in my lap. We pointed the borrowed 1974 maroon Mercedes towards the coast and started driving. Along the way, we talked mostly of how blessed we are to have the chance to do this, while admiring the beautiful farmlands.

Along the way, we passed a few hundred geese. I could kick myself for not taking a picture, but at the time, I was so amazed that so many geese were all in one area like that. There must have been at least five hundred geese in an empty field by this large pond. It was unbelievable. Remember the swans in the movie The Notebook? It was exactly like that, except ten times more!!

Then we drive onto the indian reservation. There was a casino there and those people must have thought they were in Vegas or something. Everyone from that town and the two adjacent ones must have been there gambling. We will have to stop one day and see what all the commotion was about because that must be the place to go. I'm not a gambler. Though people watching is a hobby of mine, and I would love to see the ones in that place. 

The scenery started to change the closer we drove to the coast. It is the same as you drive from Chattanooga to Panama. Soon all the oak trees turn into palm trees. Here, in Oregon, the scenery goes from the occasional tall evergreens and deformed hazelnut trees to mossy trees. They are so tall and the moss covers them from the bottom of the trunk to the tip of the branch. Have you ever seen a shaved poodle? Remember how when the fur was gone, the animal underneath it was as skinny as can be? That is exactly what would happen if we took the moss off these trees. There would only be twigs underneath. Literally, the moss on the tree grows like the hair on a poodle--big and fluffy. I've never seen anything like this, and my picture doesn't capture the true ugly-beautifulness of it. Because that's what it is-- it's so ugly that it is beautiful.

After an hours drive, we come to the coast of Neskowin. Admittedly, we almost pass it because it's so enclosed by hills and mountains. The coast wasn't the same as it was ten years ago. That cold beach turned into this magic land. It was still chilly and the sun wasn't shining, but those facts didn't take away the sheer beauty. The signs along the trail warn of high waves and swift current.

The usual white sand from my memory from Florida, is replaced by this black-speckled, brown sand. There are large rocks and driftwood scattered along the ocean side instead of lounge chairs and towels. Pluto won't go near the water and when a wave crashes on the shore line, he tries his best to climb up the rocks to get away.


Now I appreciate this place so much more and cannot wait to go back. Scott and I were meeting up with friends later that evening for dinner so we only stayed at the coast for a half and hour. This is my second favorite place in Oregon (first being home with Scotty) and I was reluctant to leave.


We will be going back to the coast this coming weekend. Depot Bay is south of where we were but it will be equally as exciting because the whales will be migrating north and showing up at this bay. This time I plan on ordering a bowl clam chowder. I hear it's a specialty here in Oregon.

Treats

We received many wonderful gifts from our friends and family to get us going in our new home here on the outskirts of Salem, Oregon, aka wine country. One of the items that was given to us was a propane grill. I can't actually say that I will use it, but I know I can rely on my grill-master husband to cook up something delicious. 

My last grilling fiasco didn't go so well. I combined extra virgin olive oil and barbecue sauce and then slathered it on the chicken that was cooking on the grill. Needless to say, it brought forth the fires of hell. My brother, Josh, scolded me and I haven't set foot near, nor have I  placed a finger on a grill since. 

With all the past nightmares aside, I was so excited about helping Scott put together our new grill. He was stoked, I was stoked, and then after the third set of instructions I had to go inside because I could not decipher the codes on the manual. 

He finished it though, and a few nights later, we grilled our chicken sausages over the flame. When I say we, I really mean he… Yet, while that was cooking, I was in the safety of my wonderful home grilling onions and peppers for the dogs and whipping up my favorite dessert- Barefoot Contessa's brownie pudding. 

An our later, we are complaining about how full we are until I pull out the brownie pudding. And let me just say, it was even better than the last dozen times I had made it. It's a little piece of heaven that I will savor until it's all gone. Anyone who knows me knows that I live and breath sweet treats. My daddy says it's how I fill up my sugar bowl, aka dimple on my chin. 

If I do one good deed today, it would be to share this recipe. So here it is. Please try it. It's so easy and delicious that I can't think of any reason why you would not want to. If you can't eat eggs, use egg substitute. If you can't have gluten, try it with gluten free flour from King Arthur. See… like I said… enjoy. 

Barefoot Contessa's Brownie Pudding recipe

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus extra for buttering the dish
• 4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup good cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly butter a 2-quart (9 by 12 by 2-inch) oval baking dish. Melt the 1/2 pound of butter and set aside to cool.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed for 5 to 10 minutes, until very thick and light yellow. Meanwhile, sift the cocoa powder and flour together and set aside.

When the egg and sugar mixture is ready, reduce the speed to low and add the vanilla seeds, framboise, if using, and the cocoa powder and flour mixture. Mix only until combined. With mixer still on low, slowly pour in the cooled butter and mix again just until combined.

Pour the brownie mixture into the prepared dish and place it in a larger baking pan. Add enough of the hottest tap water to the pan to come halfway up the side of the dish and bake for exactly 1 hour. A cake tester inserted 2 inches from the side will come out 3/4 clean. The center will appear very under-baked; this dessert is between a brownie and a pudding.

No Furniture, No Internet, No Problems...

The locals here thrive on coffee. The coffee shops here remind me of the churches back home in Tennessee: there is one on every corner. Churches are few and far between here though. Scott, being raised adventist, has seen only two churches. I was raised Church of God and I've only seen one of those. We have decided to meet in the middle and go to church on Saturday and Sunday.

The weather is overcast, yet again, but it doesn't take away from the beauty. Oh wait, I see a bit of sunshine peeping through the clouds…. and now it's gone again. If it's this pretty in winter, I can only imagine what spring and fall will bring. We have a lot of yard work and landscaping at this house to do, but it will be well worth our efforts in the end.

Every chance I get, I run errands during the day to see the landscape. Coming from the south, I held my opinion that we were country farmers, but  now I stand corrected. I've never seen so many farms in my life. There are so many different types of farms here, too. Dairy farms are few and far between, but I will see a rooster or a cow every once in a while. What populates these fields are rows and rows of trees! I'm not sure what type of fruit grows on these trees, though. When my dad comes here for a visit, he'll be able to tell me. There are also a ton of vineyards hosting different names and wines.

The houses aren't as kept up as the houses in Chattanooga, but it's hard to keep the mold off of everything because of the damp weather. In fact, I believe that's why the grass looks so green; moss and grass intermingle on the ground. 

Pluto, my dog, hates rain and thunderstorms so I was a little weary to bring him out here. I kept telling myself that he would get used to it. The first five days, he shook himself to sleep. He was a nervous wreck. When we moved into the house, I put a little blanket in the closet for him so he could hide. Tuesday, he stayed outside for about ten minutes at a time. Wednesday, I had to force him inside.

Pluto loves to bark and chase things. If I could train Pluto, he could win races and obstacles because he's so fast and agile. When he runs, he gets so low to the ground and runs so fast, he looks like a champion grey hound. Our yard here is fenced in but half of it stretches along the road. Every time a car races by on the road, he runs along beside it barking his head off. I'm sure the neighbors don't find it as amusing as I do, but I can't find it in my heart to scold him because this is what makes him happy. The neighbors will have to learn to deal with it.

Back in Tennessee, Pluto would chase and nip at the cows legs in our back yard, but here in Oregon, there is no wildlife to do that, so what does my dear old dog do? He runs with the wind and barks at the clouds. He's beginning to love this place, and I feel like a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. After the third day of his non-stop shaking, I started to think that him being here wasn't worth my happiness because he wasn't happy. How could I possibly keep him in a place that he hated? I would be a cruel person to do that so I was making plans to send him back to Tennessee with my parents. He was so happy there. Now, I'm glad I didn't put my plans into motion because he's growing to love it here.

I believe I will love it more when we get our stuff here! Scott took a week off to get married so we didn't have enough time to take a honeymoon. Instead of a week long honey moon, we decided to wait until summer and go on weekend trips to see the north west. Originally, we were going to rent a truck to drive our stuff out here, but since we only had two days to get out here, we decided not to test our marriage that soon. Seriously, who wants to drive a U-Haul truck non-stop for 42 hours as newlyweds? Certainly, not me! We ended up flying and paying a trucking agency to drive our stuff.They quoted us a reasonable price and we signed a contract. They picked up our stuff last Friday and told us it was going to be here anywhere between the 2nd of March to the 5th. Now, they're running behind and won't be here until the 9th. We ordered a couch but it won't be here until the 20th. We are sleeping on an air mattress for now.

One of the perks of being out in the country is our privacy and back yard over looking the Willamette river. Being too far out for the internet to reach us is NOT a perk. I can do without cable TV. I went without it in Tennessee for over a year. But I cannot deal without internet! It's ridiculous that with all of our technology, it is limited to the cities.

I'm done complaining about the internet. I am very lucky to have the chance to move out here and have a roof (pronounce ruff here in Oregon) over my head and coffee in my belly. This is an adventure. In time, I will reflect back to these memories of sitting on the blow-up mattress with a down-feather blanket over my legs, hearing absolutely nothing but silence, and wishing I could have it back.

It's Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011 but I probably won't be able to post this until this weekend. Until next time….