Olympia Airshow -- Father's Day

 Held in Olympia at the Olympic Flight Museum, this is where the warbirds kick off the summer season.
Frequently mired in rain, we only make it every other year or so. Our friends from the Cascade Warbirds fly in from all over the Northwest. Another site with info.
If you need a ride or just need to step inside a B-17, they have you covered. There is a terrific amount of aviation memorabilia inside the museum as well.

Bud Granley 

Bud Granley raced this plane for one of our friends at the Reno Air Races.

I don't plan on going this year but my husband might ride with  a stearman buddy (owner of the T-6 above). Then again, the kid is getting his ACL surgery that week so - yeah - it's up in the air.




More photos of the T-6 above.

Japanese Garden Inspiration

We were supposed to be here but the best laid plans...seem to derail handily into this.
 We are blessed in Portland to have a really well-known Japanese Garden.  I went seeking planting inspiration in renovating my 200 feet of 'garden walls' between my neighbor's shack and myself.

I tried last week to go but the torrential rains continued (rainiest June on record! and there is still a few days left in the month). This week, with my plane trip up to Olympia cancelled due to -- duh, more rain, I managed to take these photos.

Most of the photos were taken around 2pm - not optimum photo light but the surrounding firs in Forest Park help to minimize glare and haze. There is a outstanding view of the Portland skyline up here but the afternoon haze made for a deleted photo.

I am thinking one of the paths over to the neighbor's will become this. A shrub at the back of the water feature will easily transform the path to a little alcove.

I think I know where to get all the rocks.

I have a plant list but I still need to draw it out so the plants will fill in over the next ten years creating a living fence. Because good fences make good neighbors.

I'm not sure I can manage little paths meandering here and there. The bed may be long but only 25 feet wide at the widest point.

Weird green glare here - but I would like to try a multi-trunk Kousa Dogwood in the midst of shirred Azaleas. 

I could also put bamboo panels to block the worst shack moments while the plants grow up.

I am pretty sure I am not putting these concrete Japanese shrines in the design.
I like them but the rest of the yard will NOT be Japanese inspired. Nor am I Japanese. I think we will stick to really cool rocks.

2008 Olympic Air Show from Scott Gribble on Vimeo.