My Two Cents: Oregon FUN

Oregon is ridiculously wonderful.
I got off work at 7:45ish Saturday morning. I went back to my apartment and did some last minute packing, then headed to Midway via the El. Oooh the El. I was fighting to stay awake during the two hour trek and miraculously made it. I had a layover in Kansas City (which, for the record, is the WORST airport ever), and finally arrived to Portland around 6pm (pacific time.. so 8pm Chicago time) Saturday evening. I was exhausted and starving, but so happy to be home. Since arriving I've been soaking up this great state as much as possible.
On Sunday I went running outside which was so nice but so terrible. Holy hills! My legs definitely felt the burn, but there's nothing like (slowly) approaching the peak of a hill and seeing the mountains and the entire amazing view. For a small fraction of a second you almost forget that you can't breathe and that every muscle in your body is screaming bloody murder. Monday I signed up for a week membership to the gym and have been LOVING it.
Also on Monday I went hiking with my good friend, Courtney. She knew of a place, Shellburg Falls, that is gorgeous and uncrowded. We saw some beautiful waterfalls that I had no idea existed, and then I had the brilliant idea that we should go off the trail to get to the top of a crazy huge and steep hill to see if there was 'anything exciting up there.' Hiking rule #1: don't go off the trail. We stupidly decided to go for it, and waded through masses blackberries, sticker bushes and the remnants of logging (..sticks) all on an incline that must have been 89ish degrees. Blood, sweat, and close tears resulted-- but we made it to the top. The excitement that met us was a RIDICULOUSLY GORGEOUS view of the mountains. We could even see the coastal range! After we made it to the top we concluded that there was no way we'd go back down the same route, so we searched for something else. There wasn't a lot, but we went through some forest and tried to avoid the blackberries. I still have several thorns stuck in my hands. It was a lot of
fun to be outside in such gorgeous weather and to hang out with a good friend!

One of the small rivers leading to a waterfall

Behind a Silver-Creek-Falls-esque waterfall

My bright idea

At the top-- barely!

A sad attempt to capture the view-- this pic doesn't do justice

Yesterday (Tuesday), I went to the beach with my mom and grandma. Those two can sure

cause trouble. Not really, but we all have some imp to our nature. I love the ocean a LOT and it was roaring and awesome. The weather at the beach was really unusual-- warm and sunny! I'm accustomed to bringing a hoodie and sweatpants to the beach, no matter what the season. I couldn't have asked for better weather or better company. It was a fun way to spend the day.