Courtney P.K.

Picking up again on my “Year in Review” series for 2019. April started with a trip to London. I tried some new things, as well as enjoyed some time at home.

London, UK

At the beginning of the month, I took a work trip to London — my first time there!

I took a personal day at the end of my trip to explore London on my own, and visit museums! I took a LOT of photos of the exhibits so I could remember them, but I won't share them all here — you can see them in my full trip album.

My friend Sarah happened to be in London at the same time, so we met up for dinner at The Botanist!

I then explore a little more on my own, walking around Covent Garden, then made my way to the London Cocktail Club. I happened to be there during happy hour, so they gave me two of the cocktail I ordered (a white negroni).

I had to leave early the next morning for my flight home, so I made my way back to my hotel. But before calling it a night, I had to stop by Platform 9-3/4 one more time to take a crucial photo.

Early the next morning, I walked through a practically empty tube station to make my way back to Paddington Station. Of course, I had to say hello to my friend before hopping on the train back to the airport.

Modular Synth Class

In a quest to try something new, decided to take a beginning class on modular synths at The Synth Library. It was an interesting experience, but I'm not sure if continuing with it as a hobby fits into my lifestyle and schedule right now.

Dining Out

We went to Yonder multiple times, as it had recently opened (and I was a Kickstarter backer)! In April, we also tried Radar for brunch (which we enjoyed), The Garrison for happy hour, SuperDeluxe for a casual dinner, and Eem for some delicious Thai BBQ and tiki cocktails.

Cooking

Because of travel and general busy-ness, I didn't cook a whole lot in April. I wanted to use up some offerings from our meat CSA, so I cooked some leg of lamb and steaks later in the month.

Miscellaneous

Other photos from April without much context:

March was a bit of a rollercoaster, but full of lots of activity and experiences.

Exploring

In March, we started a new habit to take walks with no particular destination. We would get a carshare (as we didn't own a car at the time) and drive to a neighborhood that we wanted to explore, and just meander for a while.

One of the nice things about walking in residential neighborhoods is that you meet all kinds of friendly cats.

Ginger

Mid-month, Ginger suffered from a seizure, which had never happened before. We were terrified when it happened, but in true Ginger fashion, she bounced back and was back to her normal self within a few days. She has always been a tough cookie.

Cooking

I did a lot of cooking in March, but the only meal I documented with a photo is this half pan of Lasagna.

Dining out

I co-worked at a couple of spots this month — I checked out the cafe attached to my local library, Bitter Rose Coffee Bar. I also spent a few hours working at Proud Mary later in the month.

I also tried a few spots solo, including Giraffe (a Japanese deli located inside of Cargo) and Kargi Gogo, a Georgian spot in the Alberta Arts district.

To celebrate Mardi Gras, we went to Tapalaya to enjoy some NOLA-inspired cuisine and live music.

We also tried a few new (to us) spots: Arleta Library Bakery Cafe and Anchor End for brunch, and the cocktail spot Wonderly.

Entertainment

In March, I saw a couple of movies in the theater: Captain Marvel and Us (both which I enjoyed quite a bit).

I also went to a live theater performance for the first time in a while! I went to see LĒR, an adaptation of King Lear from local performance company The Reformers.

Miscellaneous

More photos from March without much context:

This is the second post in my “2019 in Review” series! February brought snow, a trip to Thailand, and a live music show.

Snow!

We had a couple days of snow in early February — a good opportunity for us to stay cozy indoors with the fireplace.

Bangkok, Thailand

Mid-month, I went on a work trip to Bangkok, Thailand — and I made a seemingly foolish decision to only stay there 3 nights with a 24 hour travel time both ways. But it was a formative experience for me, as I traveled overseas alone and solely represented my team. There were a lot of wrenches thrown into my trip, but my survival mode kicked in and I'm proud of how I overcame my challenges.

View the full album of photos of my journey.

Cooking

I only seem to have documented a couple of meals prepared in February: I made Split Pea Soup early in the month (alongside Gouda cheese that I bought in Amsterdam!), and a 7-layer dip for Super Bowl Sunday.

Dining Out

We tried a couple of new spots in February: Heim Bakery & Cafe and Jackrabbit (a spot brought to us by San Francisco Chef, Chris Cosentino). Both were quite good, and the latter has great cocktails!

Entertainment

We saw Roma at the our favorite movie house, the Hollywood Theatre, where they were showing it in stunning 70mm. I really enjoyed the film's visuals and storytelling.

We rarely go to see live music these days, but we always enjoy it when we do! On the last day of February, we went to see one of our favorite bands, Beirut, perform at the Schnitz.

Miscelleanous

Every time I've gone to a record shop in the past couple of years, I've kept my eye out for a copy of Paul Simon's Graceland, and I finally found one in great condition at Little Axe Records!

And now for a couple of random snaps from the month that don't fit anywhere else...

Here's the first of my Year in Review posts for 2019! Movies, food, and a trip to Amsterdam defined my month of January.

New Year's

For many years now, we've spent the New Year's holiday partaking in a movie marathon. The theme for this year was Ron Howard, so we watched Cocoon and Willow on New Year's Eve. We toasted the stroke of midnight with glasses of Rosé Cava.

On New Year's Day, we completed the marathon with Parenthood, Backdraft, and Apollo 13. I also cooked some Spice-Rubbed Picnic Chicken and Hoppin' John.

Kitty Friends

I came down with a really nasty cold during the second week of January, but Ginger took good care of me while I watched soothing nature shows on Netflix.

After I got better, I hung out with a new co-worker (my teammate Andrea's kitten, Trixie).

Magna Kusina

We went to the Magna Kusina preview (they were to open a brick and mortar location later in the year). Chef Carlo Lamagna provided his takes on Filipino food. We're always happy to see more Filipino food in Portland!

Amsterdam

In late January, I traveled to meet my team in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. We are a global team spread across 4 countries, so we meet once a year to work synchronously.

For most of the week, we worked on a few projects at a co-working space. On our last full day, we went on a fantastic food tour all over Amsterdam, learning about the history of local cuisine, and tasting all sorts of specialties.

There are lots more photos of our Amsterdam trip to be seen in our team album.

Miscellaneous

Before my trip to Amsterdam, I got a neat set of monochrome + negative space nails from ChiChi of Best Nails Club!