OMG- PICTURES!

YEAH! I got my act together, and now I present to you PICTURES.

A Pipe Band taking the field

Their fancy piping and marching

I mentioned that we browsed the vendors' booths and found some pretty cool stuff.  This what the first vendor sight I saw when walking into the vendor booths.

Yes, those are capes...

But wait... it gets better...

What does that say?  Yep, that's what it says...

Moving along, they had fun things for my dad to look at including knives, swords, guns and more swords.

Guns and Swords

... and swords...

And more swords...

So that was fun for some folks, but I had a better time looking at these:

Yes, that's a table full of kilts.

I coveted the purple tartan... alas, I have two official family tartans that I should get before I get frivolous purple ones.

My mom and I discovered baby and toddler kilts, and then saw an adorable little boy wearing one... which started the conversation (on my mom's end) of, "When do I get grandkids to put in kilts?".

How wee it is!

Then I lost track of booths and started people watching... I will not post some of the more ridiculous pictures because I don't want to get nasty emails and comments.

Who says kilts aren't manly... or comfy on a hot day?  I'm not making any jokes here, as you will see when I post pics of BF in HIS kilt.

Yes, that'sa tartan prom dress with oriental style umbrella.  Notice the rennaissance fair lady standing next to her?

See... this guys looks comfy, and stuffed full of bangers, meat pies and haggis I'm sure.

And thus ended our adventure at the Highland Games... I'm definitely going next year.  I will not forget to take pictures of the highland athletic competitions where they try to throw a 96 lb. boulder or do the caber toss.

I'm So Awesome

Because I promised you pictures, and now I'm posting NO PICTURES.



I know...




So here's the deal. Last night at home I was all like, "I'm going to download my pictures so that tomorrow I can post them... because I'm awesome like that." But what I didn't do was realize that if I download them to my laptop at home, I cannot post them while I'm at work... because they are on a different computer. Yes, that is how awesome I am.


I can try to blame it on being all dumb from the allergy meds because I was dying last night. I can also try to blame it on being exhausted from the kick-awesome workout I had at the gym earlier in the afternoon. I could try to blame it on unclear thinking due to grumpiness from not seeing the BF yesterday at all. But all of these reasons aren't 100% valid excuses. Really, if you want to know the truth, my brain sometimes just doesn't work. It's that simple.


So maybe tonight when I get home I will post the pictures that I told you I would post.

The Problem Is I Don't Think Ahead When I Sit Down and Post

Which is why my weekend happenings post is going to come in two parts: one today and one tomorrow with pictures.

So Friday morning BF left to go on a kayaking trip for a class he is taking. He was gone ALL WEEKEND which left me all by my lonesome... which really means I wasn't alone I just wasn't in the company of my favorite person. It's not bad, it's just that he and I find the same things funny and I will see things when he's not around and I think, "Oh man, BF would LOVE this..." and then I try to remember to tell him the funny thing/story but usually I forget. And when I do remember the story or thing I start laughing and then realize that BF isn't laughing because I never told him in the first place.

Anyway, so Friday night I worked out at the gym FOREVER because I had nothing better to do. It was quite nice. I did a whole hour of cardio after my regular weights so I went home and vegged on the couch and watched some movies.

Saturday was the epic Portland Highland Games in which I talked my parents into going to. They totally didn't want to go, but once we were there they had a pretty good time. I ate bangers for lunch and my mom absolutely hated it. I have no idea why. She generally likes most food, and bangers are just sausage, but she was sort of repulsed.

We wandered around looking at the booths full of funny/awesome/crazy stuff. We bought toffee and different kinds of shortbread cookies, matching Tree of Life shirts designed by this awesome celtic artist, family crest stuff (more on that later), and browsed the Scottish fashions.

I was at first happy to be taking pictures of what we were shopping for and looking at, but then my wandering eye was drawn to the folks at the event itself. I took some very awesome pictures, but I was trying to be super inconspicuous.

A few of the booths there sold family crest stuff and clan items such as kilt pins or crest brooches. One booth had family crest info sheets and I found one with BF's name (it's not Scottish in origin but is Irish). I had to buy it for him. I also have to show you his crest. There are a few variations to his family crest depending on the branch of the family, but this one is my favorite, and you'll see why.

Yeah, it's tiny, but I can't freakin' get a larger one for free online so there you have it.

Anyhow, so I bought the page with the crest and a little bit of background info and put it in a cool frame for him. I'm sort of a dork.

Saturday night I met up with some friends which was nice because we sat outside and ate brownies and other good food at the Cornelius Pass Roadhouse and then warmed ourselves by the fire.

Sunday I went and watched my parents play softball on their church softball league and my left arm is now about 7 shades darker than my right because of the angle of the sun. I look awesome. I left the game early because I was starving and feeling a bit gross. After I ate lunch I ran to the grocery store to pick some things up for my meals this week and then I went back home and did some cleaning and laundry.

BF texted me when he was on his way back from kayaking so I made his favorite Korean Spicy Chicken and brown rice for dinner. I made banana pudding for dessert and brought some to the boys' house as it is Mark's favorite.

BF and I just lazed around for a few hours before we had to get ready for bed. He has a class today and tomorrow as well, which also sounds like so much fun that I'm slightly jealous. As far as we know, this class is just a tour of Portland by various means (car, canoe, and walking) and the teacher just tells about cool places in Portland and a little history behind them.

Back to the kilted front, here are pictures of the kilts we ordered:

This is the tartan that BF picked since he doesn't belong to a registered clan with an official tartan. This one happens to be the Graham tartan. He likes darker colors and I tend to agree.

I picked the All Irish tartan because I have more Irish roots than Scottish, but also because I want to order a dress kilted skirt and sash of my actual family's tartan later and I don't want two of the same tartans. I'm lucky like that. Also, I want to point out in this picture that traditionally women don't wear kilt hose with flashes, but kilt fashions have changed with modern times and I guess it's ok to wear them if you want...

On that note, while at the PHG this weekend I saw quite a few women wearing sporrans (the usually leather or fur bags that hang around your waist when you wear a kilt). Traditionally women didn't wear them either, unless they were in a pipe or marching band that called for one as part of the uniform. Women can, however, us a sporran as a purse on the shoulder and I think that looks sort of cute.

So that was my weekend in a not so neat nutshell.

Pictures to come tomorrow.

Oh, And You Thought I Was Joking

Yesterday I did some intense research regarding where to buy kilts in Portland. I found a few places, but I decided to go a different route because I don't have $400 to spend on a kilt.



I went to the Sport Kilt website and found exactly what I was looking for. Sport Kilts are not traditional kilts because they are not made with the same amount of fabric and they are not made of wool. They come in a few different styles and fabrics depending on what you want to wear them for and are only $40-$100.



Last night I showed BF the Sport Kilt site and he picked the style and tartan he liked and we ordered it! I put it in as a rush order so hopefully we will have it by Brew Fest next weekend where he promised to wear it. I also ordered a lady kilt since we were already placing an order.



On the topic of kilts- did you know that they make kilts for EVERYTHING? They have dress kilts for more formal occassions (like weddings, etc), team kilts for sports, hiking and running kilts, utility kilts for work (for guys who do construction, etc). I was amazed.



I think if we like the kilts we will order dress kilts. I have no idea why I really like the idea of that, but I do.

The Best Things In Life Are Free

Boy Howdy, is that true.


Last night, BF and I went to dinner at PF Chang's because I won a $25 gift card at work, and then someone gave me a $50 gift card as a thank you so we had $75 to spend at PF Chang's... so how could we not? It was awesome. I had the Almond-Cashew Chicken and BF had the Spicy Chicken, but because we weren't paying for it we also got the Fried Wontons and Spring Rolls for appetizers. Dinner out is so much better when it's free.

After dinner we headed to Sellwood to hit up Staccato Gelato because BF had tokens (like mini gift cards) and so we ate gelato for dessert for free as well. I had espresso gelato and pistachio gelato and BF had Black and White gelato and some sort of berry gelato. Fruit... who needs it in desserts?


So we had an awesome, entirely FREE night out.

I'm going to be somewhat bored this weekend because BF is going kayaking for a class. He leaves tomorrow and doesn't come back until Sunday night. Can you believe you get college credit for kayaking for 3 days and looking at pretty nature stuff? That's insane. I'm just jealous. Whatever.


But while BF is gone, I will be hunting down a kilt for him. This is not a joke. I need to find him a kilt pronto so that he will wear it to the Oregon Brew Fest in a week. If you know where to get one in Portland let me know! I'm doing my interwebs search today.

Are You Serious?

So this happened, and I'm a little mad:


The Iroquois Nationals Lacrosse team plays in the World Lacrosse Championships every few years, not as a US Team, but as their own sovereign nation because we are just that, OUR OWN SOVEREIGN NATION, with a government and everything.

Let me pause here... I should tell you if you didn't already know that I am Iroquois. I am Seneca, which is one of the six nations that makes up the Iroquois Nation. We invented Lacrosse, no joke. It is in our blood from birth and an integral part to our culture. It is played to strengthen us, to heal us, to bring us together... and I feel very strongly about my culture and Lacrosse.

Continuing...

How are we our own nation and not technically governed by the US? I'll tell you: We were made to move to reservations after we helped pilgrims and settlers survive (hunt, farm, build shelters, navigate the land) and our own government and political structure was used as a model for the United States government and Constitution. When we moved to reservations we signed treaties with the US Government stating that we had sovereignty and thusly we would govern ourselves.

Since then there have been tests and trials to the treaties and agreements we have made. This week we are being pushed again.

The Iroquois Nation has their own version of passports which, up to this time have been declared perfectly valid by the US Government as well as numerous other countries. The reason this document exists is that some Nation members do not want to have US Passports or US Government issued IDs because they don't consider themselves to be governed or a part of the US Government, but really only governed a part of the Nation. It's a culture thing and it's sort of hard to explain. If we are our own sovereign nation, able to elect and sustain our own government and run our own nation, then why would we need to identification from another outside nation? It's almost like living in Austria but having to go through Germany to get your driver's license, if that makes sense. You border each other, but you don't really govern each other and mostly should coexist peacefully.

Anyhow, the Iroquois Nationals team participates in international games as their own nation, and not as a US team... makes sense. So they were invited as they always are to participate in the World Lacrosse Championships this week which is being hosted in Manchester, England. They applied for their travel visas and were denied this year, FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, because the US Government will not let them back into the US to return to the reservation without US issued passports...

OK, so this team and other Nation members have traveled using the Iroquois passport since the 1980's without any issue. People have gone not only to Mexico and Canada, but Japan and most recently Australia using these passports and NOT US issued ones.

So because the US Government won't allow the team back without US issued passports, the British Government cannot approve their visas. Why won't the US Gov let them back without US passports? Apparently this past year the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative went into effect which changed the documentation necessary to enter back into the United States.

That is great, if you are technically a citizen governed by the US.

Letters have been written by govenors and other US officials to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton as well as Janet Napolitano to urge them to have the necessary letters sent so that the team can travel to compete in the championships of a sport that their ancestors created. The team showed up to the airport today, despite knowing that they would be denied access to the plane hoping that the necessary letters would arrive to allow their visas to be approved.

Last I heard (from NPR) the team was still waiting at the airport and the World Lacrosse Championships officials have stated that they hold out hope that the team will make it to England to compete.


This is completely messed up. I am disgusted with the US Government for once again trying to impose rules on a Nation that is not governed by it. Not only did you push these people, MY PEOPLE, from the villages and lives they founded, but you tried to make it impossible for the culture to thrive. Despite all of these things the Iroquois Nation has grown and thrived. It has taken years to build back up the culture and it's people and now we have to fight to play a simple game; a game that we created and is built into the very fiber of our Nation.

They are athletes... not politicians, not dangerous criminals being transported... just let them play and then let them come back home.

Fashion Woes

I wore plaid in the 90's, with ripped boy jeans and untied Doc Marten boots. And in case you haven't been out of your house this past year I should inform you that some people think that plaid is back.

Well, it is back, in a way, but mostly not fashionably so. I don't know if I can describe this new trend correctly, but some folks are getting right, and some aren't.

I like plaid. I sometimes wear something plaid, but I don't wear EMO plaid. That's different. I think it's fashionable to wear more retro/western style plaids really, like this:

I don't know, something about the smaller lines and the layering of multiple colors makes it more appealing to me. I also like the ones made with paper-thin material with delicate trim or slightly western styled trim because it has an understated casual sophistication about it.

But, as I stated earlier, plaid is back... with an emo vengence and it looks like this:

There are two colors there... black and purple. A lot of times it's black and one solid jewel or neon color. Don't even get me started on the asinine neon colors being used from the 80's right now. Anyone ever heard of "in moderation". Anyway...

I really have no idea why I hate this new style of plaid so much, but I do. And it's not just in shirts... they are using it for everything: tank tops, dresses, skirts... it's too much.

Alright, I just needed to get that out. Thanks.