Sunday 25 April 2010

Julie Andrews knows best...

Oh dear me..where to start? I've been trying to get a handle on where to begin this series of posts for a couple of weeks now and nothing really ever grabbed me as being quite right when it came to getting rolling on writing about my recent and wonderful two weeks in the Pacific Northwest. Then this afternoon, as I was lolling on my sofa grabbing an hour or so for myself between fitting new toilet seats and stuffing Michael Buble down my bra in the supermarket, the ever-inspiring Sound of Music came onto the TV and there in a flash was Julie Andrews telling me just what I should do.

No, I haven't decided to start with the Lonely Goat Herd that I may or not have come across on my travels across the wilds of Oregon (ye-e-oddle-ey-hee-oddle-ey-hee ho)  and I didn't feel the need to Climb Every Mountain between Salem and Bend so no tales to tell there (although I clearly could have jogged up each of them had the mood had taken me). I'm not even going to 'start at the very beginning'..though according to Miss Andrews and the young children in her care, that's a VERY good place to start. Nope..I've decided to start with my 'Favourite Things' - there will be no stories of door bells, sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles (although Jeff did wonder why I never used HIS doorbell when I had forgotten my key and wanted to gain entry to the Burhans compound..thing is though that he hid it REALLY well and I never did find it!) and not so much about raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens (although I have a great pic of raindrops on tulips). There will be more Cascades than Alps, more Seattle than Salzburg and slightly more Sgt Burhans than Captain von Trapp..but the general idea will be the same.

Just as Maria and the children used their favourite things to make things all seem a little bit better while it was thundering and lightning in a rather demented and clearly frightening fashion, there were moments in my trip that I have tucked away safely in my mind, to be recalled and smiled about when things occasionally get a bit tough. These are the most special and treasured times of my trip and it is with these that I shall start my travelogue, before going back to the very beginning and being a little more chronological and detailed in my story telling. Now...to try and remember all of those favourite things...hrms...


(See..he hid the doorbell intentionally behind a large tree, just to try to confuse me...)

Raindrops on tulips.....

8 comments:

  1. No wonder you had a problem...I believe the line is: "Raindrops on roses...."

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kate, don't be obtuse my darling girl..they do not have roses in planters in the streets of Portland in March. Sheesh..botany 101 flunk out!! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Who said anything about Portland???? I was being TRUE to the great lyrical work of Rogers and Hammerstein! ;) Botany, schmotony!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Rogers, splodgers! Hammerstein, philistine! Hush now Kate and "so long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen good night..adieu, to yeu and yeu and yeu and yeu (that 'yeu' is 'you' four times but I was trying to be true to the fake Austrian accent of the little boy with the lederhosen and the weird hat..aka true to the great lyrical work of Splodgers and Philistine!) :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. How dare he hide the most needed doorbell button behind foliage? Not fair at all!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I KNOW..his excuse will be, I'm sure, that if you just walk past the foliage and approach the door it is ON the door in clear view, but sheesh..who am I? Columbo?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ah, now if you'd only donned your Sherlock Holmes cap and pipe you'd have found said hidden doorbell instantly.

    I love the tulip photo, well done!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I know Jude..I feel silly now!

    Thank you...that is one of my favourite pics of the trip.

    ReplyDelete