sophia’s travel by night

on y va!

happy new year. it snowed last nite here!

it snowed last nite while i slept. always something amazing to wake to the wht/grayness outside. suddenly i feel time warped backwards n i thought it felt like x'mas again. last nite i met a little boy name kai. kai is always been a boy name i liked. he's 1/2 japanese, only speaks japanese tho at ths stage. almost 3. so cute n playful. we b'came frnds instantly. showed me the various toys he was playing with. altho we didn't communicate w/language, we were able to play anyway. josh (neighbor)'s ribs were so tasty! yum! think tht's the most meat i ate since i got here! i am a little more than 1/2 way thru shantaram now. finally. curious about the rest, but tough to read thru quickly. will b travelling north tmrw. meet up w/joseph for dinner? never been to seattle, should b interesting. vancouver, just in time for chinese new year, i think...? whistler, can't wait, for the snow. i chk'd online how to improve my skiing a bit better. i wonder if ths will hel...

different environment and material inspired my hands to do different things. i'm liking ths so far!

i woke up w/a song from Lhasa humming in my head, decided tht today will b walking around n listening to them til i'm tired. had another hat fitting appt. excited tht i will hv it for vancouver! yeh! the day started out a bit gray & of course, very cold. walking thru town, errands, looking around... can't wait for my new shoes to arrive, something else to wear can't wait to go home n pick up my shoes ther or at least, to kno if i hv any more winter shoes to wear or i need to buy something? i only remember buying boots or sandles (flips) got a ski helmet last nite, dual reasons, i seem to become clumsier these days on slops, gotta b careful. & for horseback riding lessons too. tht should b good safe thing to do. made ratatouille finally... but not sure, something might b missing in the recipe for the taste... missing a punch. speaking of food. i realized, indian food outside of india, no matter where u go in this world, is always quite pricey in comparison (tried out...

i kno i've been wanting to blog everyday somehow, but not easy to keep up this intention... catching up... fri nite cont... white bird dance series ( bad boys of dance ) late dinner at Clyde Common , cod & taglietelle, delicious food. warm atomsphere. sat. sunny still! a day to wander thru town n run a few errands. sat at the sunny table in Half & Half , gr8 sandwiches. chai not so good, but serves stumpton coffee. the sun heats up this cozy space by window tht 1 tends to forget it's only 40+ degreesF outdoors. back to Nau's sale again to chk out if ther's anything else. tried the mini cupcakes. not bad. good thing it's mini. yoga (vinyasa, sarah, too fast but at least not too chatty) cooked my own version of miso fish w/out soy sauce, mirin nor sake! using miso, jam, port.... LOL, turned out to b fairly good still. we'r learning to b better at using up everything in the fridge to make nice dinners still. sun. sun/windy wake early to go Mt Hood for a b...

wed. 01.14.09 (heavy fog then sun!!!!) ok, so i forgot what it was i did on wed (01.14.09) after blogging. i prob stayed in n hung out, maybe i worked a bit? all coming back to me now... i lay by the window n got some sun while catching up on reading Shantaram, quit when it started to suck for the main character. then i wnt to yoga class at yoga pearl. this time, i took yoga fusion class. it's a bit workshop like, tho it is quite interesting & i like the teacher, she didn't talk too much b.s. stuff, so tht's always nice. i think i will continue to go to her classes. quiet evening at home watching dvd (west wing) wow, these ppl talk so fast n the conversation is sometimes hard to follow. i guess it's all about the quick responses tht keeps us intrigued. thurs. 01.15.09 (sunny but COLD still) i spent the morning painting. started something new cuz the sky outside inspired the clrs! n well, the braided tree trunk outside the library inspired me to try out the lines. we...

monday will b monday. working during the day at home. not feeling the need to b outside at all. work is slow progress. then it's my first horseback riding lesson 2nite! inside the cold barn i'm relearning to ride. so different than b4. paying more attention. not western style. i like ths much better i think. the saddle suits me better. tho it's only 1 hr, it is tiring but fun. tues sun came out, making it tough to stay in n work. attempt to go yoga failed, but had my pants altered at Gien's Tailors near library. wnt shopping w/allie instead. learning shops, walking thru the pearl (Frances May, etc) then to downtown. visiting several interesting 2nd hand shops including the antique optical frame shop n the Portland Outdoor Store, which is diff than US Outdoor Store in same area. then Nordstroms for a quick spin then to the Buffalo Exchange. where ppl constantly bring things into shop to sell n then buying in the shop. so many things to browse thru! it's a quick fix f...

no skiing today, too cold & wet up ther. i'm ok with it. think we should physically rest for 1 week b4 going up. awesome brunch at home. out and about in the city, library,........, stumptown, Filson , lizard lounge , so many interesting things to shop for. but, shouldn't b buying. saving my money for summer trip to australia, mim's wedding. gelato... ate too much! back to library n chk out the stacks, photographs by august sander. golden globe awards tonite, pizza! read.

nitemares & dreams to wake us very foggy morning will sun show his face? thankful still a bit achy in body from impact o, hat appt in downtown! remeasured, remade happy little boy, cute shop owner! brunch @ bijou, cafe home again, happy to b lazy n nothingness, after laundry. watched documentary called, How to Cook your Life , b mindful and just do what u r doing now. cooking, cook. eating, eat. talk, talk. shared the 1956 short film Ballon Rouge by Albert Lamorisse, it is still 1 o my fav since childhood. 1st try at making our own Croque Monsieur, semi-success! yet sooooooooo tasty, i think it's the mustard & nutmeg! happy to b home. chilling. shoulder/neck, very achy still hips a bit achy too. but healing. thankful again.

yoga at the Pearl , 9.30am, vinyasa. jenn is nice, but said some things i don't like tho i kno tht chg is constant not very gentle tho, when she flicked my elbows. pearl bakery for sat's breakfast. shop for ski wear at portland outdoor store on broadway & burnside. shop for miso soup supplies @ whole foods, for my sudden winter cravings. after a quick painting warmup i got a bouquet of beautiful mix o wht flowers! frangrant lilies n irises w/eucaliptus! k's home & dinner (leftover risotto & miso soup of cabbage, shroom, tofu) rest a bit, feeling lazy, but got up to go to a charity gold/silver party in NE pdx finally got our drinks, too small, too packed time to go, very foggy nite. heard sound of cars crashing white volvo came towards us in quick flashes, mere seconds if i wasn't pulled away n he dove/roll w/me in protection, forward. tho it just seem to happen way to fast n the car was really going to roll over us. i saw in shocking clarity tht the bumper ...

home most of the day, updating myself. then to downtown, shopping a bit@ A&F, get a map of city on way home, look for hairdryer, turns out Safeway is supermkt, not general store. got carded for buying water in a liquor store. diff laws in ths town. streetcar to home. the heathman for all day happy hour special, dinner & drinks. chilly nite, but dry. happily dry

today, after organizing myself. i ventured out, not realizing how strong the rain was, i wnt out in wht pants! silly me! ths time, i chk'd the streetcar real time web n caught it as it came up. no long waiting time in the rain. walked about the pearl region, basically all around the Whole Foods region. met up a/allie for lunch at the yoga pearl (quinoa & kale lunch + fresh juice) coffee across the street utrech art shop, it's smaller than i expected it to b... only huge oil sticks. still, i got my paper. even got something called YUPO, paper of 100% polypropylene. it says it's for water techniques. bought a pack to test. then post office on 6th/main, this must b the HQ for post office here. ornate decor (art deco?) dinner plans tonite... found on food & wine site recipe for Lemon Risotto with Asparagus and Shiitake Mushrooms , so bought stuff + Fab Bastard chardonnay, yum. home nap cook tv/dozing off goodnite.

the cookies tastes better n better as it ages. worked at home all day was finally able to venture out n chk out my books at the library by late afternoon this is a great chance to focus on catching up on cookbook reading wow, sun rises late n goes home early in ths town. quick bite, then to thurs nite dropin yoga. it was the messiest vinyasa i've ever been to. i miss rob's classes. sometimes i think i can teach better class. haha, j/k. tho did think to get certified one day, just being lazy. don't wanna end up like those crazy super yoga ppl. done with work? not! someone gave me the wrong sizes n ended up working til 3. all done. happy

monday tried to focus on work, but hard, very typical when working from home. lite yogurt/fruit lunch, choco chip cookie is this too tie-dyed colors? adventure on the max, horses rattled, canceled lessons awesome dinner at the Higgins imaginary battleship!

woke up late, almost slept thru the nite (only worked a couple hrs) sunday brunch in-house nice to laze about indoors when it's soooooooo gloomy outside art museum. walkabout, shop 4 cookie supplies it's drizzling wet & SNOWING! going home after dinner, baking yummy cookies, rec from food&wine site. not bad! tho next time, gotta make sure the chip is not such huge chunck so it'd melt properly & semi-sweet. i think i caught the chills.... not feeling 100% 2nite.

lunch/ shop in Hawthorn area (pho van) grocery in 23rd (zupane) so happy to b able to choose from a larger variety of apples than fuji apples! dinner (lovely hula hands) in mississippi area (duck duck duck)

woke up to snowy rooftop but sunshine in the blue sky walk from riverside in, still learning. bridges one can always find a chinatown library card! lunch @ 50plates, yummy sliders crashing...home wine & dining in. jetlag over yet?

rainy day walks in town learning, exploring, new city yummy pastrami lunch @ kenny&zuke's restup movie: charlie chaplin in City Lights airport for luggage homebound. no more rain.