Eugene...finally

So we're here in Eugene, and all is well, except I haven't found a job...yet. I won't harp a lot about it, but the jobn market out here isn't so good. Substitute teaching will begin soon, but there is some red tape that needs to be handled before I begin.

The new Sacred Heart Hospital that Lindsay is employed at is pretty freakin' phenomenal. It was just built, and from what we heard, $10 million dollars was spent to make this place far surpass anyone's expectations of what a nice facility should look like. The place looks like a ski resort, no joke.

Anyway, before we arrived in Eugene, we spent a nice long week down on the southern Oregon coast soaking up some sun (and a little rain), relaxing on the beach, making S'mores over a campfire, and sleeping under the stars.

Check out the link below for the pictures from that week.

http://picasaweb.google.com/chrisduca34/OregonCoast#

Veggies of Unusual Size

Had it not been for work, I don't think Lindsay and would have returned today from Oregon. It was that good.

Last Thursday, Lindsay and I piled our usual assortment of gear, clothes, food, and some odds-and-ends into our Subaru and traveled the 5.5 hours down to Bend, Oregon for a few days of climbing with Drew the Cougar Hunter, laughing, R&R, and some good ol' fashion farm work on Jim and Jessi's farm--Big Star Farm.

Minutes after we arrived on Thursday evening, we helped pick veggies for their CSA members. Friday was spent chasing the shade and climbing some amazing trad routes on the backside of Smith Rock. Saturday, we awoke, climbed at Smith again, then headed back to Jim and Jessi's for the 2nd annual Big Star Farm Harvest Party. Adult beverages were swilled, loud noises were made, Gandalf the Grey made an appearance, veggies of unusual size were raffled off, and a dance party ensued as a pretty heavy East Coast contingent was very present. Sunday--recovery from Saturday's activities, plus a short float down the Deschutes River through Bend. And Monday we drove home, packed up the rest of our home-on-wheels, made dinner, then walked Lindsay to work.

News Flash!! "Only 3 days left in Tacoma, then we're off to Eugene, Oregon for another 3 months!!"

Talk about winter destinations has begun...ideas and rumors are afloat about living in a state that has tried numerous times to secede from the union...hmmm...

Check out the cornucopia of pictures from the long weekend by clicking on the link below:
http://picasaweb.google.com/chrisduca34/BigStarFarmHarvestParty2008#

Nurses gone wild!!

Check out what the paparazzi caught on film while two nurses visited Vancouver, BC last weekend!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/chrisduca34/VancouverBC#

Tacoma Slideshow

Click the link below for some random pics of some random things I found around Tacoma the other day.

http://picasaweb.google.com/chrisduca34/TacomaWAAndOurApartment#

Good Things to Come

Just sitting here at the One Heart Cafe in Tacoma, enjoying our last week or so, absorbing what remains to be absorbed of thi town of concrete, pulp mills, and eccentricity. We have mixed emotions about our stay here. Mostly, we are glad to be leaving what has become the very anti-thesis of us. Getting anywhere is a hassle, and our Vermonter attitudes have been majorly compromised and masked. However, we've met a group of people in our little apartment complex that have truly helped this otherworldly transition. They and their dogs have been nothing less than warm and friendly, humorous and sincere. Funny that we've found a small slice of the Vermont we love right here in an apartment living atmosphere.
Lindsay is ready for a change of work venue. In the three months at TG, she hasn't really found anyone (save for one person, I think?) that she can totally relate to. I think the consensus is, there are many people who aren't too friendly in the Tacoma healthcare industry.

Realizing we're moving to a much smaller town with a different progressive slant on things, we're hoping for a better experience. One that offers Lindsay a fresher outlook on nursing, and one that enlivens the travel bugs in our shoes.

Pictures will be posted later today...