Punk, Blues, Jug

February has been a month of musical exploration as we look for things to do inside, where its warm. We were lucky enough to see three amazing shows that spanned the ages with some old timey jug band music (featuring my former boss (he can play a mean jug)), aging punkers who still know how to rock (NOFX), and revivalist gut bucket country soul (Alabama Shakes). Portland has no shortage of music to put in your ears.

Below are some photos from the festivities as well as links (also above) to some of my favorite tracks.

 NOFX: Yes I got into the pit!

 NOFX: The punks grew up but they still know how to make fart jokes and wear womans undergarments.

 Alabama Shakes: the country soul rockers are the talk of the town. We had to wait in a sold out line hoping to get tickets. The lead singer/guitarist Brittany Howard is a spark plug of southern energy who alternatively growls out blues numbers like a demon or sweetly offers deeply confessional gospel tunes.  

 Jugapalooza! the first annual celebration of all things jug. There was a jug off, double entendre contest, and a group kazoo-a-long. Go on git your jug on. (My former boss is the white haired man with the jug on the left!)

 A tap dancing sax man. Way too cool!

More sax man!

New Year Updates

So we found out that when it's not raining in Portland- it's snowing. We came home from a weekend out of town to find the town a-flurry with snow flakes. Unfortunately there was only snow one night, but it was worth it.

Don't worry- within a couple of days it was back to grey skies and rain.

The rivers were all dangerously full all over Oregon

Update: Normie is great! We think he's adjusting well. Although we don't allow him to jump up on the bed, we do read him bedtime stories and make sure to give him lots of hugs. We have since remodeled his terrarium where we introduced him to a new friend. As you can see they are getting to know each other well.

As the new year has arrived we are trying to think of new and exciting things to cook. Since we've been living together I have been introducing Todd to all kinds of interesting Asian flavors. We decided to make and roll our own dumplings filled with pork, fresh ginger and tons of spices and sauces. He was a natural at rolling the potstickers! We hand-filled and wrapped each one and even froze some for later!

And then this happen....which pretty much ended our weekend and ruined our week.

Our New Addition!

Meet Norman the Tortie, our new adopted Russian tortoise! Straight from Molalla, Oregon we brought home our little bundle of joy right after the new year. Previously called Squish, his past owners wanted a new home for the little guy as they had recently had a baby and also had a rambunctious pup. Todd and I were happy to take him since we aren't quite ready for the full responsibility of a dog (or any other living creature) so adopting a tortoise was the natural next step for us. We are learning a lot about tortoises and hoping to be good parents. As Todd and I are both dedicated to raising our little guy right we are hoping to be good tortoise parents. The last thing this world needs is another tortoise living in an unsustainable ecological environment without a good education.

Yes, we know what you're thinking...What in the hell is going on with that beak!? We were concerned at first, but read that some tortoises in captivity sometimes have overgrown beaks. Don't worry, we are in the process of trying to find something natural for him to shave it down with. We will update later to see if it works. Until then, we just hope he can get food in his mouth!

Tortoises liked to be soaked every couple of days- it gives them a chance to submerge themselves in a nice warm bath and often times they will do their business when they soak. It took Norm some getting used to but I think he will become a real floater...and hopefully make some too!

We day we are figuring out Norman's likes and dislikes as we get to know him more. We have since figured out he likes kale, oldies soul and roaming around the living room. He dislikes bathing in the sink, ironic facial hair and being cold. We think we may have a budding musician on our hands...

Here are some of Norman's many facial expressions to help us understand him:

Norman when he is happy.

Norman when he is sad.

Norman when he is thoughtful.