SYP Says

How do I miss Ashland? Let me count the ways...

I've been gone from Ashland, Oregon about 5 weeks now and I was musing on what I miss. Before I left, I thought I would miss Tacos Michel terribly, but with the plethora of amazing taco stands in SoCal, that hasn't really happened.  (Although if you're in Southern Oregon, you must go there!) Then, I thought I'd miss the coast, but I'm only 20 minutes to Laguna Beach, Huntington Beach, and Newport Beach, so while the Oregon coast is ruggedly beautiful, it was a bit of a hike to get there and I can't say I really *miss* it.

So, what do I miss about the place I lived for the last 3 years? Ashland never really became my home like NYC was/is, but it was my permanent locale for a while anyway.

Well, in all honesty, I don't miss much. That probably sounds terrible, I know! It doesn't mean I didn't like living there. I did and it was an experience I'm so glad I had. And of course I miss Musician's Friend the way you would any job you really enjoyed (and I've been lucky to have loved just about every place I've ever worked).

However, my definition of missing something is true longing--a nagging feeling that if given the chance, I would go back and experience whatever it is in a heartbeat, no questions asked. Sort of like the way I miss the New Malaysia Restaurant in Chinatown I used to frequent (oh, their roti canai!). Or the way I just miss the general 24-hour hustle and bustle that is NYC.

I can't think of anything that fits that description here, however there are a few things I miss to a lesser, but still justifiable, degree.

* OK, the natural beauty is a given, but I'll list it anyway. It is a gorgeous, remote location, no doubt about it, and I really liked being able to live in a place that was as pretty as Ashland.

* My hairdresser. Yoko at The Plaza in Ashland was one of the best, nicest hairdressers I've ever had, including the ones I used to go to in NYC. And so inexpensive!

* My pilates teacher. Millie at Verve Pilates in Medford rocked.

* My dentist. I'm serious. If you're in Southern Oregon, go to Dr. Michael Kempf and Sandy. Tell them Jeff and I sent ya.

* My goats. You can read about them here.

* Last, but not least: Marionberries. When I first moved to Oregon, we stopped by a roadstand selling marionberries and I thought they were playing a joke on me, Ms. East Coaster. "Marionberries? Are they...named after Marion Berry?" They just looked at me strangely and said, "Who?" Oh well. They're yummy though. Great in pies and I've never seen them anywhere other than Oregon.

SYP Leaving Ashland, Oregon

After three years, the time has come for me to leave Ashland, Oregon. For those of you who have been tracking my time away from NYC and remember when I first came upon these shores (...er, mountains) and why I decided to make the move out West, you know this has been quite a journey! I have loved it here and especially the beauty of the area, but for a variety of reasons, I've decided to leave my job at Musician's Friend and move to LA to take a new job I'm really excited about. 

I've got some final musings about the big move and what I'll miss, but will save those for future posts.

Hope you'll stick with me once I become a SoCal girl. I think LA will end up feeling just as foreign to this New Yorker in some ways as Ashland did when I first arrived (and, in many ways, still does!). I'm really psyched about it though and going back to a city makes me happy. Plus, I'll be just a half hour to the beach and, probably more importantly, will have a 5-minute commute. Not too many people in LA can claim that!

Anyway, this note is just to thank you for your support and to let you know that after this week, I'll be in LA. I've decided to change my blog name to Displaced New Yorker living in the Southland. What do you think?

*** Update as of 4/20: Sorry for the hiatus. The moving, unpacking, etc. took longer than expected and then I was in NYC for a week. I'm back now and will begin regular posting later this week! Cheers, SYP

Small Town, eh?

Strangely enough, Southern Oregon University, based in Ashland, Oregon, actually offers a certificate in e-commerce. Chuck Jaeger, the professor who heads up the program, called me in December to do a brief presentation to about 100 students--just say a bit about Musician's Friend and any internship opportunities--and be on a panel to answer some questions.

Although Southern Oregon is not exactly an e-commerce mecca, as small as it is, it does host a few surprisingly large direct marketing companies--Musician's Friend (where I work), the largest direct seller of musical instruments in the world, Harry & David, one of the largest fruit and gift sellers around (you probably know them for their amazing pears which are grown right here in this area), and Fire Mountain Gems, one of the world's largest bead companies (go figure).

Anyway, a couple of weeks after the presentation, I went to buy my new iPhone (which I love, btw) and the sales associate says to me, "Hey, I saw you speak at SOU!" And then again at the grocery a few days ago, I was in the fruit section and a young guy stacking oranges stops me to tell me, "I know you! I saw you at SOU last month. I'm a computer science major."

OK, seriously, how small is this town?? :)

Jazushi in Jacksonville, Oregon

Had dinner last night at a cute little Japanese jazz + sushi restaurant called Jazushi in Jacksonville, Oregon, home of the Britt Music Festival, and an even tinier town than Ashland. It's about 20 mins away and reminds me a little of Chibi's on Mott Street in NYC.

It's just one guy who owns the place and does all of the cooking. The ambience is like being in his living room. They're generous with the sake, always a plus. Our rolls were fresh and my salmon with homemade teriyaki was really delicious. I usually avoid anything teriyaki, but here it was surprisingly tasty. 

There are several sushi restaurants in the area, but nothing really to write home about. The only one I go to on any regular basis is Kobe in Ashland and it's pretty pricey, so we don't eat there too often.

Anyway, try Jazushi if you're in town. Thumbs up from me.

Jazushi: 100 E. California Street in Jacksonville, Oregon. 541-899-9338. Open Tues-Sat 5-9pm.

 

Canvassing for Obama in Central Point, Oregon

This Presidential Election really has me riled up, so yesterday morning I got up early to volunteer for Barack Obama at the Medford, Oregon office.

Ashland, where I live, is very liberal (think Berkeley in the mountains) and the office there gets loads of volunteers. Medford OTOH is only 15 miles away, but much more conservative. Figured they needed us more there.

We walked in a few minutes late--the training for our shift had already started. It was busy and the office was packed with half-opened boxes of campaign mterial. 25-30 volunteers were listening intently to a college-aged man gesturing energetically while he gave what I at least thought were amusing canvassing instructions, like:

* Don't get chased by a dog. If the house doesn't look safe or a man comes after you with an axe, don't go up to the door.

* Don't get in a fist fight. At this point, we're not trying to change minds. 

On a serious note, he said this is a numbers game. 1 in 12 people you talk with will vote. And remember, you're representing Barack Obama and we have spent a lot of time building a positive reputation in Southern Oregon.

As he reviewed the packet with us, a woman in her 60s who for whatever reason felt the need to antagonize on an early Sat morning, interrupted dourly, "Excuse me, but I really feel like you're being condescending. Like we're kids or something. I don't know if this is generational, but the way you are talking is offensive. I came in here inspired, but now I feel like walking out." Mind you, the guy talking to us looked like he hadn't slept or eaten in a week. And sure, he was a bit of a smart-ass, but I kind of like that in a person. The room fell uncomfortably silent. The young man calmly said, "I've been up since 6am and I've already had a full pot of coffee. I'll see what I can do." 

Kind of an odd way to start things off, but I was proud of the guy that he kept his cool. He probably gets people like that all the time. She didn't have much of a sense of humor. Maybe she was an ex-Hillary supporter (ha ha). Anyway, after the drama, we all got in our cars to drive to our canvassing areas.

We ended up with Turf 3 in Central Point which is a town past Medford. We got the area by the highway--a mostly all-white, lower-income neighborhood. It was starting to rain. We went from house to house, knocking on doors, and asking them if they'd voted or not and if possible, marking whether they had voted for Obama (checkbox 1), McCain (checkbox 5) or were still undecided (checkbox 3).

Most everyone was nice, polite, and enthusiastic, except for a meth-head girl sitting on her apartment stoop who said she wouldn't be voting and a woman whose yard was filled with so much random junk I could barely find a way to the front door. She eyed me suspiciously and although at first I could tell she considered giving in, she ultimately said, "It's none of your business whether I vote or not" and slammed the door in my face.

At this stage in the game, it is all about getting people to vote. And in Oregon, it was important to make sure that voters who hadn't yet turned in their ballots knew it was too late to mail them in and they had to drop them off at an official ballot box. During training, we were told we could bring back ballots to the office, although most people wouldn't feel comfortable doing that.

One of the first people I talked to was an old man who hadn't mailed his ballot in yet. I offered to take it for him and drop it off at the Obama office where they would take care of putting it in the ballot box. He said that would be great and handed his signed ballot to us. I have to say I was surprised. I told him I'd give him the office number so he could doublecheck it had been turned in, but he said he trusted me. I was very proud. 

I met a young Hispanic couple having breakfast who pumped their fists in the air about Obama and a frazzled woman with several young kids who had just moved in and didn't know where her ballot was or who to vote for in the local elections. I gave her the address of her drop-off location and made sure someone from the office called her back so she could get help before Tues. I was going to give her a few URLs to look up, but she didn't have a computer.

We kept running into a young man with a grocery bag who was presumably on his way home from the store. Every time he walked by my Jeep, he stared way too long at it. As luck would have it, we were knocking on doors near his place and saw him go into his apartment. He watched us while we did our work and we eventually ended up knocking on a door two down from him. "What are you doing anyway," he finally asked us. We said we were just encouraging people to vote. We asked him if he had voted and as he looked at us glassily, he said he wasn't allowed to. Well...you know what that means. 

We knocked on a door for a young man, but got his mother instead. He was in Iraq. He was in the Army seeing combat, calling in tanks. She missed him and he'd be home in February. We talked for a few minutes, but it was raining and we needed to keep going. As we walked away, she called out--the election was important, but it would turn out the way God intended. It was God's will, she told us.

All in all, I felt great after 3 hours of canvassing in the rain. We turned up almost 75 contacts, 11 of whom had voted (most for Obama). Of the remaining, they all said they would turn in their ballots Monday. Here's to hoping. 

My Name Is Bruce premiere (finally)

Just got a note from Gary Kout, Line Producer on Bruce Campbell's latest film, My Name Is Bruce, which I blogged about last year when an early version of it screened at The Ashland Independent Film Festival. It was shot here in Southern Oregon, where Bruce lives.

My Name Is Bruce is finally premiering in a couple of days in Austin, TX. Bruce will be joined at the premiere by film geek (and Bruce Campbell fan) Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News. The premiere kicks off a 20+ U.S. city tour and Bruce will be doing a live intro and Q&A at each event.

The date for the Medford, OR screening is currently 12/15, but location is still TBD. The up-to-date calendar is on the official Bruce Campbell site.

The screening in NYC is 10/31-11/2 at one of my favorite Manhattan theatres, the Landmark Sunshine on E. Houston. Would be a fun way to spend Halloween!

For the trailer and a little bonus not available on the official movie site, visit Gary's page on My Name Is Bruce. If you ask him nicely, he might tell you the real story behind "Scary Gary". :)

Gobama! (Plus, pledge to vote & get a FREE Wilco song)

I just voted! Am very excited. I have to say I love the fact that in Oregon, you mail in your vote. It is very convenient.

I encourage you to vote early if you can and if you can't, make the time to vote on Nov. 4. No excuses (unless you are planning on voting for McCain, in which case I don't mind if you skip).

Need a little more encouragement? Right now, when you pledge online to vote in the 2008 election, the awesome band Wilco will give you a free download of the Bob Dylan song, "I Shall Be Released," performed with their friends the Fleet Foxes in Bend, Oregon earlier this year.

Pledge now and get your free Wilco tune. If you can spare it, make a donation to Feeding America too.

Troon Vineyard in Southern Oregon

"It takes a lot of beer to make wine," Chris Martin divulged to us last month when we went to visit Troon Vineyard in nearby Applegate Valley. Chris is the winery's proprietor--he manages the day to day activities of the vineyard and one of his legacies will be the recently built outdoor tasting room (the one indoors is airy and beautiful, but the one outside is even nicer...plus, you can play bocce!).

I love the randomness of people finding my blog and one day in early August, I received a lovely, sympathetic email from Chris who had read my post on The Wharf restaurant in Medford. A fellow displaced foodie, he invited me to his vineyard for VinoLab, a small culinary program they run during the summer focused on pairing Troon wines with small plates using locally sourced ingredients.

The grounds are gorgeous. You really feel like you're in Europe. Even better is the wine which is estate grown, produced, and bottled. They make only small lots (under 300 cases) of Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Chardonnay, and more. They finish their wines mostly in French oak barrels for twelve to twenty four months depending on the grape and the amount of oak needed to perfect the wine.

In the vineyard, they follow organic principles and aspire to a closed loop, sustainable farming environment. No herbicides or pesticides are used, and all tending of the vines is done by hand. Pretty cool. Can't even imagine how much work that all entails.

The winery was established in 1972 by founder and southern Oregon grape growing pioneer Dick Troon. Today it's run by the Martin family, but Dick Troon lives just up the road and recently planted some olive trees. The vineyard is in great hands and they really seem focused on providing a great customer experience--Phil would really like visiting them.

When we sat down at the table, Liz Wan who handles events and also created the different appetizers, talked with us about how she comes up with the menus. Sounds like a super fun job. (She might consider making that pomodori al forno I had such great success with--curious to know what kind of wine they would recommend to go with it!)

We each had a VinoLab flight. The delectable line-up:

* Crackling Shrimp Chip with Shrimp Guacamole paired with 2007 River Guide White

* Buffalo & Savory Stuffed Baby Porabello paired with 2007 Druids Fluid

* Three Berry Meatball paired with 2006 Spirit of the Rogue

* Housemade BBQ Chicken Pizza paired with 2005 Old Vine Meritage

* Blackened Ahi Candy paired with 2006 Reserve Zinfandel

* Truffles and 2004 Insomnia Port

Troon wine has received many awards. I went with my tastebuds though in selecting what I wanted to take home. I opted for a couple bottles of the 2007 River Guide White, a bottle of the 2005 Old Vine Meritage, a 2006 Reserve Zinfandel, and a 2004 Insomnia Port.

Visit Troon if you're in the area. It is easily the nicest vineyard I've been to in Southern Oregon!  They're open 11-5 daily. For more about Troon Vineyard, visit their site, call 541-846-9900 or email info@troonvineyard.com.

If you're not, buy Troon's wine online. (Their shipping info is here.) You won't be disappointed. I'm enjoying a glass of the Meritage right now. :)

Paragliding in Vancouver, BC: My First Time!

Have you ever wanted to just run off the edge of a cliff, fling yourself headlong into space, and soar through the air like a bird?

I now know how that feels.

It was around noon yesterday when I finally decided to go paragliding for the first time. I was with my family at the top of Grouse Mountain (elevation 4,100 feet) in Vancouver, British Columbia and just couldn't allow myself to pass up the opportunity.

I was glad to be the only "passenger" at the time. My First Flight guide, Gavin from New Zealand, got everything ready while I looked out at the landscape beneath me and wondered what I was in for. I didn't feel nervous, but rather strangely calm and contemplative. If this was how I was going to go out, at least it would be spectacular. I imagined myself running off the top of this mountain and never stopping, the wind on my face. Pretty heady stuff.

Gavin called me over and strapped a large pack with an attached seat onto my back, stuck a helmet on my head, and said seriously, "When we get in the air, you don't have to do anything, but first we need to get there and I need your help to do that. When I tell you to, start power walking. You'll feel a pull at your hips. Just keep going. Then when I tell you to, start running as fast as you can. Don't stop."

Now, every time I've ever seen paragliding on TV, people always seem to practice takeoffs ahead of time. So, I ask hesitantly, "Don't you think I should practice?" He said, "Nope. I'm pretty sure you know how to run." Okee dokee...

I stepped in front of him and the paraglider wing or canopy as it's called. He clipped us together and pointed to a sign marker in the distance down the rocky slope and gave my final marching orders, "That's where we're headed, so go in that direction. We're going to wait for a little gust to help us and then we'll be off."

The air was still and quiet and I could hear nothing but our breathing. Then all of a sudden, I felt the wind pick up a little and his legs start moving. "Let's go and think positive," he yelled. (Yikes!)

My mind went blank. I just put my eyes on that sign and started running with utter determination. My legs were still going when we lifted into nothingness and left the ground behind. My breath caught. What an amazing feeling! I settled back and enjoyed the ride after that, while we flew 6,000 feet above the ground at over 20 mph. All I could hear was the wind rushing by me as we circled Vancouver. It was almost like time stopped. Totally surreal.

That is until I felt movement behind me and suddenly a camera appeared on a long pole. "Smile!" Gavin shouted as he took our photo in mid-flight.

We did 360s while he took a short video and then he asked me if I wanted to do some tricks. Um...yeah, right.

We landed in a soccer field with no mishaps. My stomach was a little fluttery, but other than that, I was no worse for wear. I'd survived. What's more, it was some of the most fun I've ever had. I just wanted to do it again!

According to First Flight Paragliding owner, Yaro Lahulek, Southern Oregon, specifically Ruch which is in the Applegate Valley about 40 mins from Ashland, is the best place in the U.S. to go paragliding. Something about the different valleys coming together and the air currents...

He recommended Kevin Lee for lessons--he's apparently a local instructor with some renown who was voted U.S. Instructor of the Year a couple years ago. I'll be giving him a ring. I think I might be addicted. :)

More pics of me paragliding are here. Video to come. Notice how happy my instructor looks in every picture. Do you think he likes his job? LOL--can't really blame him.

Thank you, Yaro, Gavin & First Flight! You guys rock. For more info about First Flight, visit them online at First-Flight.ca, call 604-671-4002, or email Yaro.

Float Like a Butterfly, Sting like a Bee

I was recently cruising up to beautiful Hyatt Lake, windows rolled all the way down in my Jeep, sun on my face, loving life, when I felt something hit my face and then a sharp sting in the area right between my nose and the top of my lip. My eyes immediately began watering and I could feel a stinger which Jeff kindly pulled out.

After about 5 minutes, all seemed fine, so we proceeded on our merry way. Only after about 8 hours, did I feel a soreness in my jaw, which I, of course, ignored. The next morning, the entire right side of my face looked like I'd been in a boxing match.

I figured the swelling would go away, so I put ice on the area and stayed on the couch, downing Advil. Day 3 came and my face was still out of whack--my lips were getting pretty huge (a la Brittany Murphy in the picture here) and the swelling was creeping towards more right eye. I felt like The Elephant Girl or as Richie so kindly put it later "...I am not an animal!."

So it was off to Valley Immediate Care in Medford which actually turned out to be quick and professional, although points must be deducted for having to endure Fox News while I waited. After about one minute of their blather, I started to worry the doctor would have to treat me for bleeding ears in addition to my swollen face.

The doctor informed me that she'd seen quite a few Yellowjacket stings this summer and recommended I take antibiotics. It seems Yellowjackets (which are wasps, not bees) feast on lots of different goodies, including rotted meat, so when one stings you, it is possible to get a nasty skin infection and I was obviously a bit allergic besides.

After a couple days of antibiotics and Claritin, the crisis was over and I no longer felt like the sister of Joseph Merrick. I am embarrassed to say how vain I was during this whole incident. What a wimp I am. The few places I went, I felt like everyone was staring at me and I just wanted to put a bag over my face.

I feel lucky anyway. I could have been one of the 100 or so Americans who die every year from allergic reactions to insect stings.

Living in the middle of nowhere is risky business, my friends. And they said NYC was dangerous...