As rash generalizations are a specialty of the house, we feel free to say that we think we have absorbed the overall gestalt of Eugene.
First of all, in the spirit of full disclosure, let me admit that it did finally rain here. In fact, at times, it was torrential. But other times, it was fully sunny. As Don’s yoga instructor said this morning, expect hail at any moment in Eugene, because the weather is just as neurotic as the people. Neurotic – and left wing – in a good way, of course.
There are some special things here we know we missed. Don has learned that Eugene is the home of the world’s largest ball of rubber bands. That has always been one of the things on our personal bucket list, and probably yours too.
However, to his great chagrin, he also learned that it is privately owned and not accessible to the hoi polloi – even though it was done with the cooperation of Office Max. We will have to have a word with their PR department.
So we had to resort to seeing what the rest of the world was allowed to look at in Eugene, and that had to do with nature – surprise!
We started with lunch at one of Eugene’s many breweries – one that had formerly been a bank, hence the safe doors.
Then it was off to the Owen Rose Garden, where many of the varieties have started to bloom. Here is a huge bouquet of beautiful Oregon roses and wildflowers to brighten your day:
We thought about going to the art museum. But more flowers seemed the order of the day. The place to be was the Mount Pisgah Arboretum, for their annual festival and plant sale. Yes, there was also fiddle-playing and weaving and vegetarian delights, as well as the chance to join the Sierra Club and butterfly society. A great time was had by all.
