Market of Choice

Eugene is a unique place in many ways. Everyone seems to know it as a hub for hippies but there are all kinds of folks around here. I've seen about ten times as many runners as I have tie-dye-wearing, peace-loving, shower-shunning, bra-burners. Don't get me wrong, I have been invited to sign petitions to legalize pot and learned several new ways to tame dreadlocks, but I think the city's stereotype seriously undermines the variety of people that have combined to give Eugene its special flavor.

What I've noticed most in my vast experience of living in Eugene (after all I've been here for more than a week) is that there is space for everyone.

There is a grocery store here called Market of Choice. It carries all the granola-y organics as well as the cheap chemically manufactured Cheese-Whiz and everything in between. I think this whole place is like that. There are about a million churches throughout the town, pubs all over, and drum circles. Most restaurants offer menu items with or without meat and they often have vegan choices too.

The people around here are just like everywhere else. They often stop to smile at Rocky and are very friendly. They even have enough love in this city to make room for a little family of Mormons. We're probably the weirdest ones of all.

Good Morning

This morning we woke up and realized that Rocky had slept through the entire night. We were rejoicing when discovered that our bikes had been stolen. You win some, you lose some.

Peaches Come From a Can

Growing Pains

Rocky hasn't been her usual self lately. The last couple of nights she has been awake three or four times. I have several suspicions about her new behavior.
She may be listening to our upstairs neighbors play Rock Band into the night. They seem to be pretty good and it must be because they get so much practice. Right now it sounds like they are moving furniture around, or having a wrestling match. Brandon and I agreed that we like hearing them because it makes us feel less bad that they have heard our baby. She doesn't do the cute cry that she used to have. It's a lot louder and a lot less cute.
Perhaps she can read the newspaper clippings that Brandon has posted and wants to flee the crib to catch some of the great bands that tour the local venues.
She might be worried about all the fat that has surrounded her previously petite face. Her several chins seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

Those peaches can do that to you. I tell her not to worry. Her vegetarian diet is super healthy and it will help her fit in with the hippies. Besides, she still looks great from behind.
She's still pretty small, but the solid food has made a big difference.


I'm hoping that the real culprit for the surliness is the cure-all excuse that all parents use for orneriness...teething. The only reason that I have this suspicion is because of the way that she treats her bottle. I usually fill it with cold water and lately she won't drink any, she just traps it between her jaws and holds it there.

That, and the drool which is clearly visible in many of the pictures.

Hopefully the trouble, whatever it is, will pass soon. In the meantime, at least while I'm up at night I have some entertainment from upstairs.

Eugenie

After a grueling experience with a Budget truck, and several days of trying to figure out where to put all of our stuff, we are finally starting to feel at home in Eugene. Although we loved our little apartment at Grandma's, once we had Rocky we outgrew it. Now we are happily found in apartment #220 of the Spencer View Apartments. We've got lots of space and are living in luxury in student housing. Our kitchen is so big that we can actually keep all of our appliances and food in it, at the same time.
Rocky is living like a queen with her own bedroom. I knew that she had a lot of stuff, but when it is all combined into one room it is pretty overwhelming. She has more outfits than Paris Hilton. She's still to small to wear most of them, but, because she is now eating solid foods, she is starting to pudge out. All the fat goes straight to her face, or more specfically, to her chins. She's a good eater and scarfs down rice, peaches, peas, carrots and bananas. She's like her parents and loves a good meal.
It's been a little tough on her to deal with all the changes, but she's finally starting to relax and enjoy herself.Our apartment complex is really big with about 230 apartments. We've met a lot of really nice people. There are 8 other LDS couples living here and they all seem like they'll be good friends. As we were moving in two girls from India, Hema and Anu, were also moving in right by us. They were really cute to help us move in some of our boxes. We hit it off with them right away because, thanks to Eric, we had seen the Bollywood movie Kutchi Kutchi Hota Hai. The other day was Hema's birthday and she invited us over for dinner. They cooked a delicious Indian meal. I can't remember what any of the foods were called, but there was rice, bread, and a special sauce made with potatoes. I thought that it was the perfect amount of spicy-ness, but the girls said that they had toned it down because they knew that it would be too hot otherwise. While we were there we met a family who were Tibeten refugees. Being in a language department, Brandon's classmates are from all over the world. He works with people from Spain, Bolivia, Italy, Peru, France, and Japan. It's fun to learn about other cultures.
Brandon has been to a bunch of orientations and will start classes on Monday. He seems to be very happy with things so far and he likes riding his bike back and forth from the school.
I've had a lot of questions about the hippie-ness of the area. I think that it is big mix of people, and the hippies are definitely part of it all. Right around the corner is a natural foods store. I think that eating organic is probably a good idea, but it is pretty hard on the old pocket book. As for us, right now we are sticking with the Albertsons and Safeway pesticide dusted, hormone enhanced, just like home groceries. The things college students will do to save a buck.
We live right by a really cool bike trail. I've taken Rocky for jogs in her stroller. We really have to bundle up. So far we only made it about a mile to the city pool. It's so cold in the mornings that the pool looks like it is on fire because of all the steam. I'm looking forward to seeing what will come next. It gives me a little bit of extra motivation to push myself further. With that, and my new ipod I should be ready for a marathon in no time.
Basically all we need to be perfectly content is all of our family and friends to move here. Let me know when you are coming and I'll start scouting out the area for houses.

Wimpy Excuses

I know that I've been neglecting this blog, and this post really will be no better. We've just been really busy getting ready to move and our computer is having some troubles. We'll be getting our new computer on Monday and then leaving on Tuesday morning. Next week I'll get back into the groove.