Forging memories...

Before I begin, I'm certain I'll forget several things from this past weekend. It was nonstop the entire time. Back in July, Olga purchased a map of the Hardrock course, while in Silverton. She had many of the runners sign it and gave it to me as a gift. One of runners, Steve Pero signed, "Great to meet you! If you can keep up with Olga, more power to ya!". His wife, Deb, countered, "You'll never be able to keep up with Olga--but have fun trying!". Let me just say, it is not only fun, it is a total blast "keeping up" with Olga. Actually, it's not an effort. Just pure enjoyment. Now on to the details.

I had a marvelous weekend in Oregon with Olga! We woke up early (5am’ish) on Thursday and Friday to go to yoga. I was very nervous about the 6am Astanga yoga class we attended on Thursday morning. I have never been to yoga before and knew I would really struggle in the class. I was also concerned about being self conscious regarding the poses and whether, or not, I would be able to get halfway close to doing them correctly. Olga assured me everything would be just fine. I’m glad she had confidence in my ability because I had none. The experience went better than I expected. The poses weren’t too difficult, but there were definitely some that I could not do because I lack flexibility. And, no one could have cared about what I could or couldn’t accomplish, due to the simple fact everyone was focused on themselves. It was, actually, a surprisingly good experience. And, it was great having Olga there so she could guide me into each pose. Friday morning was an entirely different experience. We went to a yoga studio to attend a Bikram class. The heat didn’t bother me too much, but Olga said it should have been much hotter in the room. I’m glad it wasn’t. The poses for Bikram were much more difficult for me than Astanga. I couldn’t do many of the poses. Several of the poses looked impossible and I was amazed at the ability of so many in the class to do them. It was a very humbling experience and I spent a good portion of the class in some pain—mostly, associated with my back and ankles. There was no clock in the room so I had no idea when the 90 minutes would expire. Later on, Olga asked me which type of yoga I liked better. I couldn’t decide. I saw benefits from both, because the poses were unique and focused on different movements. Will I do yoga again? Absolutely! At least, I now have some insight into what yoga is all about so when Olga talks about the classes she attends weekly.

After the Thursday morning yoga class, we drove to Forest Park so I could run for an hour, or so. We met up with Olga’s friend Gail and one of Gail’s friends, while on the trail. Olga sent me off to run a few miles with them while she hiked and, then, I ran by myself, afterwards, for about 20 minutes. Forest Park is an amazing place. A paradise on the border of the city. If one were to run from the beginning to the end of the trail one way, it would be around 31 miles!!! And, there are several connecting trails along the main trail making it possible to run around 50 miles within the park with limited necessity to use the same trail twice. It was an excellent way to spend an hour.

After eating an early lunch, Olga and I went to get her car radio fixed, which turned into a very quick solution. She has been without a functioning radio since before Labor Day weekend. It had to do with not having the access code after the car battery had been disconnected. If you don't have the code, the radio and CD player will not work, again. Theft prevention is what they call it. Ha! While at the dealership, we had the oil changed, too. We hung out in the waiting area perusing the internet and talking about all kinds of subjects associated with life. I bought some new windshield wiper blades for her car before we left. We stopped by a Russian deli on the way home and it was funny how, instantly, the store clerk knew Olga was Russian and an ensuing conversation began between them. I have learned a few words from Olga over the past months, but, besides the customary salutations and endings, I have no clue what is being said. She purchased some veal dumplings, poppy seed bread, and some very sweet concoction that is meant to be eaten with tea. We stopped at the post office on the way home to mail a package to Olga’s sister who lives in Moscow. I’ll never complain about paying to have a package mailed within the U.S. again. The cost, with no insurance, was $35! When we got home, I installed the newly purchased wiper blades as Olga blasted the Mama Mia soundtrack on her radio and did one hell of a job distracting me from focusing on the job at hand. She sang the songs and had a lot of fun playing it up as she made her way around the car acting like Glenn Close. All I could do was smile and chuckle and she laughed at me trying to focus on installing the wiper blades because she knew it was taking me every ounce of effort to get those blades installed. Afterwards, we went to purchase Stephen a new computer.

Olga dropped me off at home, afterwards, and went to a parent teacher conference while I set up the computer for Stephen. Then, we drove to a nearby town so she could have an MRI done by one of her friends, Tom. As many people are aware, Olga is injured and it is difficult to see her unable to do something she loves so much. Many equate Olga to running, but she is so much more than that. I did meet her and run with her for the first time this year at a race in New Mexico. And, I even knew about her since I had followed her blog for over a year before that and had met her for a few seconds in 2007 at Zane Grey. And, I wouldn't have met her if it wasn't for running and that is the primary passion we had in common. All I knew was that she was a great individual whom, within the past several months, I have had the benefit of getting to know on a level that has little to do with running and mostly about a person living a full life. But, back to the MRI. The scans shows inconclusive evidence into what is causing her pain. If there was something glaring, at least it would have provided some emotional relief in knowing the cause of the pain. Afterwards, we drove to a local brewery to have dinner with Olga's friend, Monika and husband, Stan, along with ORRC board members Jeff and Margie. They were discussing the PCT 50 race for the upcoming year. It was great to finally get to meet Monika and Stan, especially, since they have adopted Olga into their family. The day finally ended and that was just the first day!

After another 6am yoga class on Friday, this time Bikram, Olga and I headed towards Forest Park so I could get in another run, but I begged for a rain check and she obliged. Back to the house where I would take a short nap. Bikram really took a lot out of me. Eventually, we would drive to the massage school so Olga could attend the orientation class. Next week she officially begins school! While she was there, I took her car to a local car wash and washed it, vacuumed it, and thoroughly cleaned out the interior. She told me it would just get dirty, again. I knew that, but that wasn't the point. I enjoy doing that kind of stuff, especially for her. After I picked up Olga, we went to the OHSU campus to drop off the MRI films/CD at the sports doctor's office so they can provide an assessment. We, then, took a ride on the tram at OHSU. It was a lot of fun. We enjoyed the ride from the top of Marquam Hill down to the waterfront and back. Later, we drove to another gem in Portland called Tryon Park. This was another place where Olga has logged a lot of training miles. It was beautiful and we both enjoyed our time together as we talked and hiked along the creek and through the woods. Eventually, we headed back home where I would complete a small repair on Olga's car that the dealership was going to charge $30 to do. Later that day, we would take Stephen to his father's home where I would officially get to meet Oleg. We shook hands and left shortly, thereafter, to head to the Pearl District. We were going to meet Olga's friend Anna, who is originally from St. Petersburg, along with her husband. Before heading to the brewery, Olga took me to Powell's Books. This was the best bookstore I have ever seen. Nothing compares. I wanted to find a book on learning Russian and, since I had an expert with me, thought I would take advantage. She perused through several books before finding one that she thought would be good. I am very excited about learning the basics of the language. I've become somewhat familiar with the Cyrillic alphabet over the past few months, but I'm ready to get serious and learn what I can. Eventually, we made our way to the Brewery to meet up with Anna and her husband, Steve. We had a great time talking, eating, and drinking. It had been another full day and very fun!

Saturday morning, we got up fairly early and drove out to Estacada to run in an 10k that began at 9am. Olga had every intention of running and/or walking in the race. We picked up our bibs and headed for the porta-potty line. She did a quick hop test and yelled out in pain. We both realized she wasn't going to be able to run or walk the race. We hugged and she cried in my arms. A painful thing to witness, but I wanted to provide whatever solace I could. She walked with me over to the bus that was taking the runners to the start line and I handed her my jacket while standing in the freezing cold air (at least it felt that way to this Texas boy!) and boarded the bus. I finished the race in good spirits and we almost, immediately, left back for Portland so we could make it to Stephen's soccer game, which was at noon. We had a late breakfast of Russian veal dumplings. They were the ones Olga purchased on Thursday at the Russian deli. They were delicious and I could have eaten many, many more! We drove to the soccer game and it was great seeing Stephen's team in action. They dominated the opponent the entire match. Oleg was there, as well, taking photos and Stephen and he left to spend the remainder of the day together. Olga and I went to her lab so she could perform some tissue culture work while I watched. She thought I would be bored, but I wasn't. It is great getting to watch her in her work environment. She’s so serious when she’s working—all business! It provides greater insight into what she does during the weekdays.

Later that afternoon, we began our drive to the Oregon coast--destination Manzanita! I was looking forward to the drive and my fourth visit to the Pacific Ocean this year! We enjoyed the drive and Olga got in a much deserved nap and woke up just before we reached the coast. We made a few stops between Cannon Beach and Manzanita. One of the stops was at Oswald West State Park. The fauna was almost identical to what can be found in the local parks in Portland. We made our way down the wide trail to the beach and, eventually, crossed Necarney Creek on a long footbridge. We even saw a tree that was growing out of a large, old tree stump. It looked surreal. The creek, which was comprised of rounded rocks of various sizes, emptied directly onto the beach and into the ocean. The forest abruptly ended at the very edge of the beach. Absolutely amazing. I could have thrown a rock from the forest into the water. Another forest that ends where the ocean begins... I couldn't imagine a more serene and perfect location and, to make it even better, it was in a cove. We walked along the beach, touched the water, took a lot of pictures, laughed, talked, saw a starfish, and, then began following the creek into the forest. We bushwhacked for a few minutes before deciding to cross the creek on a log and climbing an embankment back to the main trail. We were enjoying ourselves like a couple of kids, which I believe is important for adults to experience. We drove into Manzanita, which is a quaint, little beach town and walked to the beach. We sat on a large rock, talked, and watched the sunset. I even witnessed the elusive green flash that I have wanted to see my entire life. It lasted for a second, or two, and occurred just as the uppermost very tip of the sun pinched the horizon line. We walked to a nearby restaurant and had a great meal before making the two hour drive back to Portland. Another wonderful day.

It was great getting to sleep in Sunday morning. We spent a lazy rest of the morning at home and had a wonderful lunch, compliments of Olga and, eventually, drove to the airport for my return flight to Austin. An awesome extended weekend that I wasn't ready to end. Thankfully, there will be many more...