On the Way Home

We stopped for our traditional departing yurt photo. Yurting in Tumalo State Park in early March was great. I think we were the only ones yurting. There were a few camper vans, but overall, it was pretty quiet.

On the way home, we stopped at Petersen Rock Garden, and what a treat it was.

I’m not one for rocks, but when a Danish immigrant makes them into really cool things, I’m a happy tourist. The huge chunks of obsidian alone are worth a visit.

The museum was closed because they were finishing up renovation for their grand reopening in early April, but Matt peeked in through an open door, and we were beckoned in. We got to see the glow room (and the cool new glowing floors) and take in the fireplace which again, is worth a visit.

Peacocks live at the rock garden. None were feeling showy while we were there.

The garden sells cups of corn that people can use to feed the chickens and the peacocks. Matt coached a boy through feeding this pretty chicken.

Because the museum was closed, the old restaurant was serving as a makeshift museum and gift shop. This was also a treat! The counter! The wallpaper! The sign! Egg salad for 50 cents!

Our final stop on the way home was in Government Camp. I resisted the call of the house-made maple bars as long as I could, but I eventually gave in. And it was a good choice. I’ve not had such a freshly made maple bar in ages.

Shevlin Park and The Grove

We did a nice hike in Shevlin Park. It’s quite popular, even on a Thursday in early March.

Then, we headed to the Grove for some lunch. Matt ordered some Thai food, we split some tempura green beans, and I picked out a grilled cheese with fries.

We had ice cream for dessert. I got the special Peeps milkshake. Marshmallow-hating Matt did not approve.

As we were eating the place was slowly taken over by teenagers. “Are we near a high school?” I asked. Google Maps told me we were.

March 2026 Vacation: A Visit to the Deschutes Historical Museum

Matt and I stopped by the Deschutes Historical Museum and found many fun things.

Among them:

This eighth grade diploma test for grammar.

I really enjoyed it because I’ve been teaching myself how to diagram sentences which is where you learn all the stuff they are asking questions about. Since I would get to skip two, I would not answer numbers 4 (my brain goes blank when I have to come up with different uses of a word) and 11 (I apparently haven’t learned what “principal parts” are?)

There was also a great display about Camp Abbot, a training site during World War II. My favorite detail was about the Great Hall.

Camp Abbot didn’t have an Officers’ Club, and the officers weren’t much fans of that. So they had one built. After the war, Camp Abbot was razed, but the Officers’ Club wasn’t on the plans, so it wasn’t taken down. You can still visit (or rent) it; it’s located in the Sunriver Resort.

Matt got caught up in the Don’t Be a Sucker film. It was engrossing (and perhaps relevant to today). You can watch the 22-minute film on YouTube.

And this is just a fraction of what we learned about while at the museum.

HH outside of Boone’s Treasury

Our vacation has begun! Matt and I stopped at the two Salem McMenamins to get our stamps (and our sandwiches.)

While at the Boone’s Treasury location, the server told us that Herbert Hoover’s initials were on the side of the building. She also told us where to find them.

And here I am pointing to the faint HH.

A Mirror at Third Rail Repertory

This was the program we were handed for the performance of A Mirror. It definitely set the stage.

I really enjoyed how this shifted back and forth several times in the play. It was engrossing from start to finish.

There was a talkback after, and we also got this reading list, assembled by Danielle Jones, with whom I rode with to the play.

Books Read in February 2026

*Book group selection | bolded means favorite

Picture Books

*Croco by Azul López and Kit Maude, translator
*Many Things At Once by Veera Hiranandani and Nadia Alam
*Kaho’olawe: The True Story of an Island and Her People by Kamalani Hurley and Harinani Orme

Middle Grade

*D.J. Rosenblum Becomes the G.O.A.T. by Abby White
*Buffalo Dreamer by Violet Duncan

Young Adult

*Under the Neon Lights by Arriel Vinson
*One of the Boys by Victoria Zeller
*Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories, Cynthia Leitich Smith, editor
*Silenced Voices: Reclaiming Memories from the Guatemalan Genocide by Pablo Leon

Young People’s Nonfiction

*Hick: The Trailblazing Journalist Who Captured Eleanor Roosevelt’s Heart by Sarah Miller

Grownup Nonfiction

Swimming Studies by Leanne Shapton

Funny Internet Things February 2026

This month’s roundup.

As an eater of a lot of cheese, I approve of this message:

What cheese will you eat first to celebrate this study?

For a brief, shining moment, the Oregonian would feed me Alexandra Petri‘s humor column in the Washington Post, and those were good days. I’m glad she has a home at the Atlantic, and this reminded me of how fun she is.

Want more? I can recommend her book Alexandra Petri’s US History Important American Documents (I Made Up) as a laff riot.

We really need to move away from the tipping system.

Just pay people the wage they deserve.