Oregon Trip

Austin and I just returned from our (extended) trip to Medford, Oregon. I say "extended" because we had to stay a couple of days longer than planned. Snow will do that.

We went to Oregon so I could play in a Christmas concert up there. A dear friend of mine, Steve Harris, has a choir up there and asked me to play with them again this Christmas. He writes wonderful oboe parts for me to play and it's just so much fun, so I was excited to go again. Plus I suppose it helps me grow as a musician since I hate playing in front of people and when it's just a flute, oboe, piano and singers, I'm definitely playing in front of people and being heard. The performance went great and again, I was astounded by the number of people who attended the concert. Such a wonderful support for music, and I can't tell you how many people came up to me afterward and told me how much they enjoyed it. And I didn't have anyone tell me they enjoyed my "clarinet playing." (Something oboe players hear often from non-music type people!) People actually knew what an oboe was! The people in Oregon are so friendly - at least much friendlier than people are here in Fallon (which could be a whole other post for another day...)

As I mentioned earlier, because of snow and road closures, we did get stuck there for an extra 2 days - which didn't suck. It was actually nice to be "stuck" there because it gave me the opportunity to explore the area a little more than we were able to last year. (Last year it rained the whole time we were there.) I learned that, much to my delight, the sun does shine in Oregon - even in December. Austin and I checked out the area, did some tax-free shopping and just really enjoyed our time there. I know that Oregon will be the next place we live. I absolutely love it there and as soon as we can find work there, we will be checking out of Nevada.


I didn't really remember to take many pictures while we were there - but here are a few.

Here are 2 of Austin playing at the indoor play area at the mall.
There were so many little kids in there playing - I guess because of
the cold weather. There are also an unbelievable amount of pregnant women at the mall.

One of my favorite things to photograph is temples, so here is the Medford Temple, right outside where i was playing Sunday night.

The next 2 are the view from our bedroom window when we woke up Monday morning and it became clear that we weren't going home. (I also love taking pictures of snow-covered trees.)

Austin and I visited Lithia Park in Ashland on Monday. It was absolutely breath-taking with all the snow everywhere. The pictures don't even do it justice.

And these last 2 are my favorite ones that I took in Lithia Park
and made into Black and Whites.

To Steve and Julie if you're reading this: Thank you for a wonderful time. You guys are the best. Thanks for putting up with us for 2 days longer than expected, for putting up with a noisy 4-year-old and his less-than-patient mom. Steve, thank you for sharing your beautiful music with me, and we can't wait for next year!