Accidental Picnic

"The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; the wise grows it under his feet."  -James Oppenheim

There's been a little more June and a lot more tiny adventures this week in the heart of the Valley.  Certainly there were plenty of opportunities to continue avoiding the laundry and weeding. Sunday afternoon seemed ideal for a drive out to a secret garden.  Dr. "Babe To You" and The Brit-- (aka my sister and bro-in-law)  immigrated from the Frozen Central Plains last fall and are enthusiastic explorers, so off we went. 

If you've not been to Dancing Oaks nursery, it's a treat and well worth the long country drive.  You're likely to be greeted by a fat cat or a three legged dog on the winding paths through lush shrubberies and flowers.  Giant cardoons spill out of statuary on water gardens, exotic vines trail over split beam trellises.  The staff is knowledgeable and friendly and the porch inviting for a rest.

But Sunday we never got there.  As we headed down Suver Road, the skies started clabbering up and a sprinkling of rain hit the windshield.  We saw the sign for Airlie Winery and took a quick turn down 2 miles of nowhere.  Moments later we were being nosed out of our open car doors by the resident Irish Setters.  Owner Mary followed and set us in for a flight of some incredibly tasty local libations.  

Mary is an inspiration.  After 20 plus years working at the telephone company, she went for her dream of owning a vineyard.  "If I'd had a clue about what I was doing, I would have been to scared to do it."  She's an ideal hostess;  down to earth, funny, smart as hell and laid back.  She plied us with tastings and wine trivia as we sheltered from the rain.  The covered table on the patio looked out over the pond and grounds and the dogs ran guard duty chasing rabbits while we talked.  Mary told us about the 2008 dry Gewurztraminer.  "Gewurz is German for Spicy, and the rest refers to the region where it originated.  But Julia Child said it meant 'Spicy tears,' and I like that explanation better."  I don't usually care for Gewruzts myself; they can be cloying.  But the spice was evident in this one, as were the hints of fig and apricot referred to in the tasting notes.

Midway through the reds, a car drove up and out came locals with a platter full of treats, telling Mary, "We worried you'd be hungry out here."  We were strangers until then but they joined our table and shared stories and their food.  Matriarch Betty was recently widowed and had moved from her isolated home to a place on her daughter's land. She'd moved to Oregon years ago from what was then small town Santa Cruz. Ken told a great tale about burying cookies around fellow scouts' sleeping bags when he was a child in the hills of the John Muir.  His dad had told the boys about the feral hogs in the area, and they didn't believe him.  They did when they woke up to snouts rooting around them.   Daughter-in-law Jan works in county mental health and we acknowledged the challenges of the current system and lack of funding.  We chatted and snacked and tasted the day away.  It was a great afternoon, and though the rain never let up we were completely content.  The Brit, who'd worried he'd feel obliged to buy a bottle if we stopped, happily walked out with a case-plus assortment of everything we'd tasted.  It wasn't the afternoon we'd planned, but it was the one we needed.  

Keep your eyes open.  You never know where you'll stumble across a great time.

Things you may have missed in the valley if you weren't paying attention

I think I'll start a new blog about all the wonderfulness that occurs in this burg. In the past several days,  I have enjoyed a great documentary that closed at the Darkside due to lack of attendance, a sold out concert with a recent Austin City Limits headliner  (accompanied by a true hometown boy, talented Alex Hargreaves), a box of tasty fresh-picked produce from a local farmer, an art auction/benefit by Engineers Without Borders, an amazingly complex salad eaten al Fresco at a long-time vegetarian restaurant, breakfast at a cafe' I'd seen for years and never tried with a great colleague I've known of for as many and sat with only once before.   There was more, but that's all I can recall this late on a Friday night.

True, I left a lot of laundry undone and weeds untended.  But i think it was worth it.  And trust me, they'll be here tomorrow.  Not true for the documentary, which I watched as 50% of the audience on closing night.

Coming up,  I can check out the annual rose show, go hear scientists talk about vegetable breeding while sipping a locally made brew,  see more live music, watch a dance recital,  tour a family farm, sit in my lawn chair in Central Park and see the community band, dance salsa, or see a local author read.  Heck, I can do the latter three times:  novelists Keith Scribner and Katy Kacvinsky are both on board, though Keith's all the way in Portland; and Marjorie Sandor 's giving a workshop on memoir writing Sunday at Grass Roots Bookstore.  And that only gets us through Tuesday.

We have a wealth of local treasure to explore, gifting all of our senses and attracting all manners of sensibilities.  For a town of our size there is a heck of a lot going on.

The last few posts have talked about paths to increased happiness.  Some key common factors are community,variety of experience, learning and play.  If you are tired of too much Have To and not enough Want To in your life; if you are hungry for community and stimulation-- go try something new, right here in the heart of the valley.

See you out there,
Jana
Here's a vid of a previous performance by Sarah Jarosz, Nathaniel Smith  and Alex Hargreaves, who sold out one of the biggest lvie venues in Corvallis tonight.  If you like what you see, check out their recorded concert on NPR.