Right now I am snacking on an apple and authentic Tillamook cheese, both swiped from the continental breakfast of a hotel in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Lake Oswego is not too far from Tillamook, so the cheese has not suffered the transfer of many miles to get to me--accept in my backpack, on the flights that brought me home.
Our first night in Oregan, we took a bit of a pit stop from our Amazing Race-like tour to go to PF Chang's and see Alice in Wonderland in IMAX 3D. It was small for an IMAX screen, but the film was absolutely amazing visually. It wove practical effects with CGI and motion capture in a way that should make the creators of Avatar jealous. It was also true to the Lewis Caroll original, bringing back fond memories of reading it in sixth grade.
The following day was rather rainy as a tiny group of us ventured into Portland to see what there was to see. We wound up winding our way through a labyrinth of gardens above the city trying to find the magnolia trees that are in bloom. On our way, we saw neat rows of rose bushes (not in bloom), many daffodils, a statue of Sacajawea, and copious sheets of rain. Eventually, we found the magnolia trees and they were almost worth the search. Dinner at the Spaghetti Factory that night was more worth the trip, though. I had not been to the Spaghetti Factory in over a year, and I had forgotten how delicious the bread, a cherry Italian soda, a pesto salad, and spumoni ice cream can really be--never mind the actual entree, a glorious vegetarian lasagna stuffed with a delightful array of vegetables.
That night's CE concert was in Vancouver, Washington. It seems odd to me that Portland, the state's capital, should be so close to the border that the trip to Vancouver only took fifteen minutes or so. The church there was impressively built, with large arching glass windows and lovely works of religious art lining the lobby. They were in the process of getting ready for a prophecy seminar, and it felt good to be a part of that preparation.
The next morning, we set out in search of a famed Red Mill, and found it--but not the tour of its facilities. The Red Mill manufactures more varieties of grain than I had ever dreamed existed. It is also a restaurant that serves excellent vegetarian, even vegan food. I enjoyed a garlic roll deeply, as well as some peanut butter cookies. Then, we met up with the rest of CE at the site of director Calvin Knipschild's new home. He really has chosen for himself a wonderful view in a prime location. I'm a sun person, but it would almost be worth the rain to enjoy the spectacular view his home will have.
Afterwards, we took a scenic drive down the Columbia Gorge, which sported stunning vistas of stark mountains, dark blue lakes, and delicate waterfalls. It must be the Oregon equivalent of Yosemite. We stopped at the Bonneville Dam, which supplies a good deal of power to the Northwest, and watched the salmon swim in the fish ladder next to it. We crossed the Bridge of the Gods (a delightfully ostentatious name) to look at the other side, where we were actually allowed to drive over one of the powerhouses that contain the massive generators the water powers. We also stopped at a fish hatchery, which had this massive sturgeon called Herman swimming in its murky waters. It truly looked like a prehistoric fish of some kind, about six feet long with bony plates of armor all over it.
Thanks to a misunderstanding about the time of the concert and horrific traffic in Portland, it was a miracle we made it on time that night. By some divine aid, we actually managed to get the CD tables out on time. That night, I met a man who had worked at Camp Wawona back when my parents were staff there. It was fascinating to pick his brain and listen to his stories.
When Sabbath morning came, it was hard for me to accept that I was just one day away from returning to PUC. When I went up to join my father at the piano for the children's segment (which I do every time), something happened that had never happened before. A cute little girl saw that I didn't have a CE magnet (if I took one at every concert, I could paper my walls with them), and offered it to me. I kindly refused, but was touched by her sweet gesture. That church left us with an amazing potluck, served in a Sabbath school room that actually had highly detailed paintings on its walls with an amazing sense of depth. I hated to leave, but my mother and I had a plane to catch.
We made such good time, however, that we were able to stop at the Grotto of our Sorrowful Mother, a contemplative walk/park/public outdoor art gallery/monastery near the airport. It had two lovely replicas of the Pieta at the Vatican City. My favorite part of it, though, was a chapel at the top of the cliff that looked over Portland and the surrounding towns. The view was breathtaking, a good last look at my spring break travel.
Now, I am writing from PUC and I do not know when I'll have time to write again. Hopefully, it will be soon. Tomorrow the quarter starts, and I will be taking 19 credits, of which 10 are language--6 of them dead language. Please pray for me as I study Greek for the first time in two years. I also wish everyone luck on this last stretch of the school year, at whatever level it may be. Summer is coming!
A blog version of Jillian Spencer's updates on her travels to friends, family, and other interested parties.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
CE in Washington State, March 20-24









Hello! I know it's been a long time since many of you have heard from me. That is because I took 20.5 credits last quarter, including a labor-intensive class called Spanish Literature. I learned a lot about literature, but a lot more about time management this quarter and breathed a sigh of relief when I scraped through test week with good scores and was able to come home. I didn't stay there long, though, because two days later my parents and I were on a plane to Portland, OR with some of my favorite people on board--my many uncles, the men of Christian Edition.
After a two-hour drive through the state of Washington, we arrived at our hotel in Chehalis. This was wonderfully convenient, as Chehalis SDA Church was the next morning's concert appointment. I have always admired that church's love of beauty and excellent acoustics. They gave us the same warm hospitality I received when I came with the PHAA choir three years ago with their wonderful potluck and friendly company. I especially enjoyed the green bean casserole, which I haven't had in over a year.
Across the street from Chehalis SDA Church is an old cemetary which we enjoyed looking at. A lot of modern cemetaries don't have proper tombstones any more, and it's fun to look at the different styles and some of the fun verses on them. We also visited a little pioneer village nearby with a plaque from the Oregan Trail in front of the tiny church.As we journeyed towards Olympia, the state capital, we took a detour to try to find the Chehalis Tribal Center, but only wound up looking at obscure parts of Washington on the way. Still, we had a grand old time looking at the stately capital building once we got to Olympia, as well as the outside of the governor's mansion with its armed guard. We also saw the Tumwater river waterfalls and the house were famous singer Bing Crosby's grandparents first settled. That was neat--and after seeing all of that, we still managed to arrive at our concert appointment early.
On Sunday, there were two concert appointments. The first one was at a wonderfully friendly church that smelled faintly of coffee and popcorn. I was astounded at the incredible warmth with which the members greeted each other. Their greeters were absolutely amazing. It was such an agreeable place, I almost didn't want to leave. We had a great time that afternoon, though, at the Hard Rock Cafe in Seattle. I was pleased to discover a vegetarian item on the menu the waiter was unaware of before--spring rolls! In this particular Hard Rock Cafe collection, there was a contract signed by Ray Charles, which was interesting. From there, we walked down to Pike's Place Market, which our friend Melissa hadn't seen before. We also visited the very first Starbucks. It is a small, unassuming place, but smells wonderful and has a line a mile long--though the line for the piroghy place next door is longer.
The evening concert was in Kirkland, the birthplace of Costco. Afterwards, we hurried to get to St. Mark's for the Compline concert (a group that does plain chant for free every Sunday evening), but the road was barricaded by police. We never found out why, but we did make it there in the end and it was GORGEOUS. After the monks sang, the glorious strains of "Toccatta and Fugue" rang out and it was worth the trouble just to see our friend Richard, a long-time organist, grin from ear to ear.
After all that excitement, we had a nice, slow start on Monday morning and we took our time travelling from Tacoma to Sequim (pronounced SQWIHM). Our first stop was in Bremerton, a famous naval base where the USS Nimitz is currently docked. We only had a passing glance at this great retired aircraft carrier, but we did have the joy of seeing the Harborside Fountain Garden in town. Designed by WET, the same company who made the Bellagio fountains, It sported five incrediby beautiful fountains that looked at the same time like whales breaching, subs sinking, and volcanoes exploding. The sidewalks weave around them like an intricate sailor's knot. Closer to the water, there is also a fun sculpture garden reminiscent of machine parts that fit together well. The museum attached to it is actually quite good. The exhibit on the second floor is devoted to life on an aircraft carrier. It talks about the daily life of a Navy sailor, from the small bunks they inhabit to the phones and the rainbow-colored uniforms on the flight deck. I even got to sit in a real pilot's chair, which was fun. In Silverton, we stopped at the Undersea Museum, which was all about submarines and also very, very cool.
By now we were quite hungry, and we happened upon the town of Poulsbo, where my parents hoped to find a restaurant they had enjoyed before. It was, sadly, closed--but in its place we discovered Tap Rocks, which was AMAZING. It featured Pike's Place cheese triangles, local Oregan hazelnuts, and amazing whit echeese potatoes. As we drove away from there and closer to Sequim, I was amazed by the astounding natural beauty in the area.
The next day, we enjoyed meeting up with lifelong friend and former principal, Denise White and her husband Floyd. She gave us a tour of the Washington Conference Office's new building. It really was beautiful without being ostentatious. I loved the play of light from the windows on the light wood, making a modestly sized space open up and look much bigger. The windows reminded me of Villa Aurora--all golden rectangles. My favorite feature, though, was a beautiful painting of Jesus with Mary and Martha in the lobby. Mary and Martha's robes had a detail to them that I haven't seen since my adventures in Europe.
Later, we went to lunch at an amazing Greek restaurant, whose name I wish I could remember. After such an incredible meal, I didn't need almost anything for the rest of the day. It was matched only by the company in its delightfulness. Then, we boarded a Duck, an amphibious craft that gives tours of Seattle. We left from the side of the Experience Music Project and went all around the city, then into the water. From the water, we could see the floating house from the film Sleepless in Seattle and even St. Mark's from the outside. The tour guide was incredibly charismatic and it was incredibly fun.
At the concert that night, Dad did the prayer ministry call and talked about Justin. It was the sixth anniversary of Justin's death, and a bit of a hard concert for the guys to sing. For me, the people I've missed on this trip are Joyce and Sonny. I've had time to grieve Justin as my own family member, but not a lot to process the loss of these two creative members of the Christian Edition family. Joyce, former editor of the CE Notes, published my first article and gave me the idea for these letters. Sonny's graphic designs for the group are still in use today. Both of them are well-loved and well-missed, just as much as Justin.
Yesterday was our last day in the state of Washington, and we visited the Tacoma Museum of Glass. Its main feature was a large glass-crafting workshop. I loved it! I watched how the glass glowed straight out of the furnace, how it was turned, stretched, cut, shaped, and formed by the tools in the hands of the artists. I could have watched the play of fire and glass for days. I also enjoyed the galleries themselves. I think my favorite artist was Preston Singleton, who incorporated Tlingit designes into his work in amazing ways. He used shadow to great effect, as well aas a technique that made some of his work look like pottery. The most fun exhibit, though, was designed from the drawings children submitted to a contest. They were colorful, fantastical, and utterly hilarious.
We tried to visit Mt. St. Helen's on our way to Portland, but the visitor's center closed as we arrived. There was still an excellent view of this great volcano from the porch, and we took pictures in front of it. Someday I'd like to see the side of it that blew, but for now, this view was absolutely amazing as it was. Later in the day, when we took a look at the Northwest Union offices, all of the meeting rooms were named after local mountains, and that was one of them. This building was also incredibly beautiful, and we were lucky enough to get a tour of the offices and see their fledgling Heritage Library. I almost envy them being in the starting phases of this project, but a part of the fun I have at PUC's Heritage collection is the rediscovery of what's already there.
All in all, it's been an amazing trip already. I'm sorry it's been so long since I've written one of these--I will try to do better this quarter. I wish you all well and hope that you're having a great spring break wherever you are.
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