It's been a while since we've posted anything. The biggest excitement we've had since our last entry is that Nate went on a two week trip to Saudi Arabia, as a researcher on a joint Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute - King Abdullah University (Jeddah, SA) project studying reef fish in the Red Sea. He was invited along to share his expertise in doing fish surgeries, but unfortunately, a paperwork glitch prevented the surgical supplies from reaching them until the last few days of field work. Nonetheless, Nate made the most of his time by SCUBA diving, swimming with whale sharks (which were tagged by another researcher in their crew), and trying not to get too sun tanned. He brought back, among other things, the fillet knife pictured below, as well as a huge assortment of spices, saffron and dates (all purchased for under $10 US currency). I'm thinking we could make a pretty penny by selling the saffron at US prices to yuppies here in Corvallis! To see more of Nate's photos from his trip, check out his Fickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/14468926@N02/sets/
Nate celebrated his 34th birthday while he was in Saudi Arabia, so we had belated birthday cake with him last Friday night. I made an Ambrosia cake - angel food cake with orange buttercream frosting, mandarin oranges, pineapple, and toasted coconut. We' ve been enjoying it all week...
This past weekend, we were treated to two solid days of straight sunshine and warm temperatures. It was absolutely delightful and such a welcome change from the somewhat dreary winter weather common to this region. We took full advantage of the sunshine by sunning ourselves on the driveway.
On Sunday, we decided to head to the coast. We got breakfast at a funky little restaurant in Newport, then headed south to explore Cape Perpetua State Park, a beautiful spot of rugged cliffsides and tidepools overlooking the mighty Pacific. After lunch in Yachats, we headed back home and enjoyed a few more delightful hours of sunshine. It continues today...what am I doing inside?!
Nate celebrated his 34th birthday while he was in Saudi Arabia, so we had belated birthday cake with him last Friday night. I made an Ambrosia cake - angel food cake with orange buttercream frosting, mandarin oranges, pineapple, and toasted coconut. We' ve been enjoying it all week...
This past weekend, we were treated to two solid days of straight sunshine and warm temperatures. It was absolutely delightful and such a welcome change from the somewhat dreary winter weather common to this region. We took full advantage of the sunshine by sunning ourselves on the driveway.
On Sunday, we decided to head to the coast. We got breakfast at a funky little restaurant in Newport, then headed south to explore Cape Perpetua State Park, a beautiful spot of rugged cliffsides and tidepools overlooking the mighty Pacific. After lunch in Yachats, we headed back home and enjoyed a few more delightful hours of sunshine. It continues today...what am I doing inside?!
