Number H - Ben & Hank

Visit to London - October 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 04:51:00 +0000

Visit with Lacy - included a side-trip to Cambridge

Here's a slideshow (if you're getting the email - you probably have to click through to see it)

Hollywood Hank August - October 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Sun, 16 Oct 2011 23:25:00 +0000

Here's the last few installments of Hollywood Hank's column from Portland's Hollywood Star Reporter. Note - I do not have anything to do with this. My neighbor Kathy Eaton does all of these.

August - Hollywood Hank Meets Author Val Mallinson

September - Hank Coaches the Team

October - Hank Features His Photographer

Hollywood Hank February - July 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 21:17:00 +0000

Here's the last few installments of Hollywood Hank's column from Portland's Hollywood Star Reporter

February - Leader of the Pack

March - Meet Bella the Boxer

April - Hollywood Hank Visits 42nd Street Station

May - Hank Learns About Noise Phobia

June - Hollywood Hank Visits Stay Pet Hotel

July - Hollywood Hank Gets Festive

Nigeria!

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 05:54:00 +0000

Dad and I took a trip to Nigeria to visit Dan.

Here's some pictures

Dad already made lots of notes and I figure - why re-invent the wheel... So here's dad's notes pretty much in full though I did edit some stuff out. (I should have probably asked for permission first... :)

DKL NOTES OF TRIP TO NIGERIA JANUARY 2011

1. TRAVEL:
Dates: January 6, 2011 to January 22, 2011.
DELTA from Portland to Atlanta to Accra, Ghana to Abuja, Nigeria
From Abuja to Accra, Ghana to Atlanta to Salt Lake City to Portland (36 hours!)
Dan provided first class/business class tickets using his accumulated miles. At each major stop I was able to use Delta’s clubroom.
DKL spent $1100, mostly on hotels at Yankari National Park and in Kano, and for golf in Abuja, as well as $100 tip to Absalom the driver.
Inside Nigeria traveled by means of Dan’s work vehicle driven by his driver Absalom. I took Oregon salt-water taffy and small jars of jam as gifts for Dan’s office staff.
The Abuja check-in process to come home was unique, which included two scanning operations, a personal pat down, body imaging, baggage search, and clearing their customs and “emigration” folks. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it had been in any kind of order or sequence. Dan was not allowed to come into the area, but there was an upstairs viewing area where people could stand and he shouted instructions to me to help me figure out the process.

Ben arrived on the following Tuesday, January 11th. The best aspect of the trip was being able to spend the time with both Dan and Ben. They took real good care of me.

2. CITIES VISITED IN ORDER WITH SOME COMMENTS ABOUT THE TRAVEL
Accra, Ghana: UN airplanes, Mormon missionaries and old, trashed and abandoned airplane and helicopter carcasses.
Abuja (same comment about airplanes]*
Bida
Mokwa
New Bussa
Wawa (foolishness)
Bokane
Tegina
Minna
Keffi
Akwange
Jos*
Bauchi*
Dindima
Wikki
Makaki
Birnin Kudu
Kano*
Gwarza
Yankara
Langalanga
Gusau* [motel compound, Bakura Farm operation center, Wurno dam project]
Sokoto*
Fontua
Zaria
Kaduna (meaning Crocodile)

Asterisks are towns where Dan has lived.
Miles driven approximately 2000
Roads in some places were 50% potholes; particularly from
Abuja to New Bussa—we weaved all over the road to avoid the potholes. Heavy truck traffic, also weaving all over the road . Made for slow driving, and interesting meetings with on-coming traffic.
This is the Sahel part of Africa (sub-Saharan dessert). It was mostly what they call wooded savannah. Jos & Bauchi are in an area they call the “plateau,” which is a higher altitude.
This is also winter there. At night or early morning a sweatshirt was desirable. The Nigerians dressed like it was a winter in Oregon.

Cites missed that I would like to have seen included Dennin Kebbi (where Dan started, and close to the famous Argunga fishing festival of which we have pictures), and Makurdi in Benue state where Dan is now spending most of his working time.

3. TOURIST SITES VISITED WITH COME GENERAL COMMENTS.

Kanji Lake National Park in the state of Niger [Oli River] [borders the country of Benin] [some fires burning—here and at Yankara. At this time of year foliage very dry, but interestingly the fires do not burn wildly, but basically slowly on the ground. Made for smelly air, and coupled with the Harmattan it was very dirty. Here we had an armed guard for the lions, but we never saw any. This park is not very developed nor is it visited much. The facilities here were poor, poorly staffed—a comment generally applicable to the Nigerian tourist sites. The safari road was in bad condition. Many times we had to make our own road to get around fallen trees. Once the left front truck wheel broke through a concrete culvert pipe that ran under the road & we had to push it out. The Park boasts many snakes, which we did not see, but we did see paths in the dirt, and skins at the Museum noted below]
Kanji Lake National Park Museum (sparse, not well maintained, but interesting).
Kanji Dam [on Niger River]
Mungo Park Cenotaph. Did not actually see it, but drove in the area. Tourist attractions are not marked with signage, and the Nigerians don’t seem to understand the interest. [Park was one of Africa’s first European explorers—he died in area now covered by the Kanji reservoir under suspicious circumstances, either drowned or killed].

Yankari National Park [Gaji River]
Wikki Camp. This camp was quite nice, although still somewhat in disrepair. The Baboons were everywhere, and you had to keep your windows and doors locked because they knew how to open them.
Wikki Hot Springs: These flow out of a big vertical wall rock. Quite a large volume at a luke warm ++ temperature. We swam in them at night when no one else was there. The sky was full of stars, it was beautiful.
Marshall Caves: Caves of unknown origin. Some believe they were hiding places during the slave trading days.
No armed guards here, although we saw a lion rather close up. We did not see elephants, but we saw a lot of footprints and dung. Our safari guard wore a New York hat and Oakland Firefighters Sweatshirt. Our Safari vehicle broke down on two of our trips, necessitating waiting for several hours [once in the pitch dark] to be rescued.

Kano
Kurmi Market [2000 years plus old]. This place smelled badly, but was very interesting. It was a maze of alleyways and small shops. We had a guide, as is recommended. Danny took a picture of me standing by a Taureg tribesman, who when he figured out what we were doing was very unhappy about it. A fellow kept following me around saying things like “welcome your Excellency’” etc. Danny paid him 100 Naira to go away. I thought he should have paid him to continue!
Kufar Mata Dye Pits [oldest in Africa]. The pits are bout 30 feet deep. Once they prepare one for use they use it for about a year. The dye is made up of water, ash, potassium [urine] and indigo plants. Dan and Ben bought blankets, including a Bride’s blanket for Chris and Holly—I am not sure about the dye, and worry it will run.
Dola Hill [historically significant}
Gida Makaman Museum [again, not well maintained, somewhat sparse, but interesting].
Emirs Palace [drive by]

Sokoto Caliphate Palace [drive by]

Abuja IBB Golf Course: This is actually a pretty nice golf course. We played it three times. I did not do well, scoring 103, 100 and 97, so at least I was on an improving trend. There were crocodiles in the water hazard next to the 10th hole green, and in the water hazard along the 17th fairway. I saw a not so nice golf course in Kano with oiled sand greens.

National Mosque and National Christian Chapel in Abuja. The National Christian Chapel is non-denominational, as I suppose is the National Mosque. In this country must keep both side happy.
Abuja Hilton Hotel and British Consulate (smile)

4. BIRDS AND ANIMALS SEEN

Mourning dove
Kingfisher
Guinea fowl
“magpie”
Crow
Groundhorn Bill
Saddlebill Stork
Golliath Heron
Cattle Egret
Secretary Bird
Bee Eaters

Lion
Hippopotamus
Baboons
Grimm’s Duikers
Roan Antelopes
Bushbucks
Oribi
Warthogs
Peccaries
Kob
Western Hartebeest
Monkeys many varieties
Monitor Lizards
Crocodiles
Red flanked Duikers
Waterbuck

Major rivers: the Niger, Oli [Kaniji National Park], Sokoto (Wurno Dam Project] and Gaji River [Yankari National Park].

Trees: The African Baobab. Dan believes the fruit of this tree will be the next big thing like acacia.

I also saw Yam and Cassava fields, sugar cane fields, rice fields, onion and carrot fields. In the open air market places were abundant quantities of red peppers, tomatoes, carrots, pineapples and other fresh fruits and vegetables.

Wood is used for cooking probably by most of the people; so wood gathering was a big deal. As you drove you saw people gathering wood just about everywhere we went, and piling it along the road for sale. Unfortunately I did not get a good picture of this activity.

5. GENERAL OBSERVATIONS AND COMMENTS

150 million people (1/2 the total US population) located in an area roughly the size of Washington, Oregon and Idaho. Always around, even when you thought you were essentially in the middle of nowhere some one would show up.

Coca-cola is available everywhere.

Exchange rate is 152 Naira to $1US dollar. Or 1000 Naira equaled about $6.666. We changed our money with some Hausa money traders in a run-down office in Abuja. Danny commented that there was probably a $1Million US in the place. Anyway, $1000 US gives you a whole packet of money; actually tow packets of about 1” thick each!

Outside of Abuja there was not much variety in the food. Part of this was that I was not being very adventurous in hopes of not getting ill. Food was:
Rice and chicken or beef
Spaghetti and chicken or beef
French fries were available most everywhere.
“Biscuits,” being a holdover from the British: essentially crackers and cookies of various packaged varieties.
Suya, which is barbecued chicken or beef with a coating of a sauce made from peppers and peanut oil. Often accompanied by a salad of plain chopped cabbage and onions. The onions over there are great incidentally.
Eggs, scrambled or in omelets (onion), usually without cheese.
“Stew”, a sauce made up of peppers and tomatoes sauce, sometimes with some meat remnant in it provided the “sauce” for everything, particularly the spaghetti.
Roadside you could buy dates, peanuts, bananas, sugar cane, plantains, oranges, and tomatoes.
You can also buy packaged fruit juices most everywhere.
The pepper in salt and pepper is red pepper.

Rest stops were taken at roadside—took a little getting used to doing your thing while traffic roars by. In a general comment about people being everywhere and being friendly, once I was taking care of business when a guy raised up about 100 yards out in the field and whistles to catch my attention, he then waves, I wave back and he goes back to his work and I finish my work.

The people generally were very friendly, breaking into big smiles when spoken to. They speak English as the national language, but often it was hard to understand them, and obviously hard for them to understand me. Respectful of us old folks. Particularly in the remoter villages I would go into a shop to get a coke and they would call me the “daddy” or the “papa.” Sometimes they seem rude, but I think it is just their way of dealing with a lot of people. Spatially they will get right close to you just because again I suppose the number of people. I was impressed that with that many people they seemed to get along pretty well, and take for granted the crowding and pushing that occurs, or close misses with other cars.

We travelled mostly in the North. This was also the period they call the “harmattan,” which is when winds blow dust from the Sahara desert over most all of west Africa. The air was dirty—some days you could not see a ½ mile, and it made for dirt everywhere. Also, some parts of the North do not seem to have progressed as much, which enhances the feeling of dirtiness. Even freshly washed towels or clothes smelled of dirt.

For the most part garbage is not collected, and often there are no sewer systems. So garbage has accumulated. Big piles of it—remember the older cities are over 2000 years old. Plastic bags and other containers are everywhere. And you need to watch where you step as human waste can be found in a lot of places.

Electricity was always an issue. Generators exist everywhere to kick-in when the delivery system fails, even in the capital city of Abuja. In some areas you only get electricity during certain hours. For example Yankari National park the electricity went out at midnight—makes it very dark. In town some of the connections off of the power poles were very interesting with maybe 50 wires leading of the pole. The National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) is the entity responsible for generation and distribution of electric power in Nigeria. People says its acronym, NEPA, stands for “no electric power again.”

On the other hand, the Internet and wireless phone system is extensively developed, with most of Nigeria being 4G.

Roads between major cities are usually pretty good. Roads elsewhere could almost be more potholes than pavement. The storm water drains, where they exist, are a little scary. Usually a concrete ditch about 2 ½ to 3 feet deep along the edge of the road with no barrier or warning.

There are a lot of half-completed, or even completed projects, that have been abandoned for one-reason or another. It is like a project gets planned, done and then abandoned to move on to the next project without completing, operating or maintaining the first project. A lot of economic waste.

I enjoyed their colorful clothes, particularly in contrast to the dirty surroundings. The found the full dress of the Muslim ladies with the bright colors attractive.

The far North is mostly Muslim. The Sokoto caliphate is the head of Islam in Nigeria. They start calling for prayer at 4 in the morning. We came across a few circumstances where everyone (almost) was participating in prayer. All over there are small concrete pads lined up to face Mecca where people would pray. Even these are called Mosques. The five pillars of Islam are: Faith, Prayer, Fasting, Charity, and the Hajj to Mecca.

We visited the town of Jos where the Muslims and Christians have been actively killing each other last year and this year. The town was mostly abandoned with a fair military presence keeping order. We saw the burned out bus where the Christians burned up, allegedly, the Muslim wedding party, and we saw the burned out van where the Muslims reportedly reciprocated. We had lunch in a diner operated by a British person—let’s see, I think I had chicken and fries.

It was interesting watching Danny dealing with the Nigerians. Because of language issues and cultural differences (I think) it seems necessary to repeatedly ask the same question and to test the answers to make sure you were all on the same page. Whenever we went to a hotel he made them show us the rooms, and quizzed them repeatedly about the electricity and hot water, and made them demonstrate they worked, before we would stay. He joked often with them about black and white issues, like at Kainji where they have a “foreigners” tax, which Danny razed them about being a tax on white people. Or at the golf course when the caddies asked if he had ever visited Benin city, and he said no because they kidnap white people there. They seemed to get a kick out of his comments.

Lots of abandoned gas stations. I understand that in order to be allowed to transport gas in gas truck, you need gas stations. So they open the stations, but never operate them, taking the load of gas North and selling it on the market in neighboring Niger or Burkina Faso. In addition to housing owned by Dan’s company, we stayed in hotels at Kaniji National Park, Yankari National Park and in Kano. At the to two national park facilities the water was cold, and the showers were of the “bucket” type. The hotel at Kano was quite nice with the room being about the size of our living room and dining room combined, and it even had warm water!

For one reason or another there were a lot of “road blocks” or at least obstructions on the road that made you have to slow down and weave through them. I saw a car coming at us at a high rate of speed try to go through one, and end up flying in the air, turning over and crashing. There were like 10 people in the car and no one was hurt—because I suppose they were packed in so tight they couldn’t get hurt. Never did find out why they were trying to go so fast through the blockade.

They say they want to promote tourism but they make it very hard from getting a visa to visit, to no signage, to nobody trained to deal with and promote the visitors they do get. It was almost like you had the beg waiters or waitresses to wait on you, and they have no flexibility. In other words forget about saying hold the mayo and onions, because they don’t get it, or can’t seem to be able to deviate from the set process or menu in this example. The women waitresses seem very reluctant to talk to you or deal with you—which is strange given why you are there and why they are there. Danny says this is because of the culture where they can be physically and/or mentally abused if they offend a male patron.

When we went to Kainji National Park, which is the largest National Park they have, in the nearest towns (New Bussa and Wawa) several of the people did not even know what we were talking about, and we could not find any signage, although on the way out we saw a diminutive, half hidden sign. We finally found a hotel that seemed ok, and said they could get us a guide to the Park. Luckily such a fellow showed up just as we were moving into our rooms, and we discovered that the main headquarters of the Park was still about 100 kilometers away (half on public road, and half on the road inside the Park), and that there was a hotel in the Park at the main headquarters. We checked out of the hotel, with a nice tip [they call it a “dash”] and went to stay in the Park. If we had not we would have wasted half the next day getting there. Close by the Park was a big reservoir on which they advertised boat rides, but nobody could tell us how to get there. This is also why we never found the Mungo Park Cenotaph, which they advertise in certain tourism websites, but nobody we talked to knew where it was. The National Park fees were interesting: there is an entrance fee, a fee for each camera, a foreigner’s fee, and of course separate charges for hotel, food and guides.

However, the Yankari National park was a little better in this regard, and the guide at the Kano Dye pits gave a tour and explanation that was great.

People everywhere wore old US clothes, like athletic team clothes, or as mentioned earlier, fire department t-shirts and New York hats. Danny made the observation that this was good. We should rather have them identifying with us rather than for example, wearing a Beijing China fire department sweatshirt.

Lots of beggars, usually old men or old women, or physically impaired persons or too often young kids who run around with a beggars bowl. I told Dan and Ben that if I had known this, I would have put them to work as youngsters. Dan almost always gives to the old ladies, but not the others. He says most of them may have been the 3rd or 4th wife who got nothing when the husband died.

Roadside vendors were amazing. Around Abuja in places where cars were congested, like intersections, they (literally 40- to 50 vendors at a time) would walk between the cars peddling their wares. You could have bought socks, shirts, pants, all kinds of foods—fresh and packaged, clocks, knives, etc.

The Sokoto Caliphate (Muslim Fulanis) once ruled an empire stretching from Sudan on the East to Senegal on the West, and is still the religious center/leader of Islam in Nigeria.

In the areas we travelled the people are mostly Fulani or Hausa. The Fulanis are traditional pastoralists, and you see them all over driving herds of cattle. The Hausa were farmers and traders. Lots of people are still afraid of the Fulanis.

Seemed to be one fast food chain called Mr. Biggs where like here you could be assured of a certain level of cleanliness, and a pretty standard menu.

Nigeria seems to be divided between the really wealthy and the quite poor. I am sure there is probably a small middle class, but mostly we saw how the poor lived. Almost all houses are gated or behind walled gated communities. From the streets you could see some huge houses.

They are working hard to create a national identity as “Nigerians” rather than having people just identity with their religion or with their tribes. This is why Abuja was created in part, as a brand new planned city in the center of the country not belonging to any one tribe or religion, but attempting to represent all groups and Nigeria as a whole. Somewhat like what Brazil did when it created Brasilia. Abuja is a modern city with good roads, and other urban amenities.

6. DAN’S WORK

Jerry Cunningham age approx. 58 is the “boss.” He is related to Dick Shepard, age approx 65. He is other original partner. Scott Shepard is Dick’s son, and was owner of the Headliner Café in Corvallis where Dan worked at college and how he got hooked up with this crew.

They have projects all over Nigeria roughly from Benue River North. They have pending 5 new government contracts, one of which alone involves 14 different sprinkler projects. In addition they may get contract to repair washed out Wurnu dam project. They believe they are in a good position as they are the only company that does what they do (sprinkler irrigation and related agricultural services/products), and Nigeria has set a goal of self-sufficiency for food production by 2020. They have also been asked to consider projects in other West African countries, such as Ghana where oil was also recently discovered.

They have various properties and facilities all over. We visited the Wurnu dam project (washed out by flood last fall); the Bakura farm operations center (2 centers close by) where equipment is stored, repaired, etc. The have many houses. The Wurno project was a rehabilitation of an existing dam and gravity irrigation system that stored water for the irrigation of thousands of hectares. Last year they had record rainfall and a big dam further North burst sending a cascade of water down the river, which then smashed through the Wurno dam, causing a lot of damage and even death. The government has done nothing to fix the problem, but is starting to get worried about the fact there is not water storage, etc., and next rainy season is forth coming.

We stayed in company houses in Abuja, Sokoto, and Gusau. The Sokoto house, which Dan originally found and leased, is a 4-wife house, with separate quarters for each. Gusau has a large compound, which is motel like with many separate buildings with 2 to 4 units in each building. Lots of employees live at this compound with family and others. I kidded Scott about whether he really had any idea how many people were living there. This was the project Danny originally went to Africa to manage, but government never followed through with funding. Scott lives here. Dick lives in Sokoto. Dan and Jerry live in Abuja

Scott and Dick are on the ground running Sokoto and Zamfra states. Danny is developing new projects and government relationships in Bauchi and Benue states, which I did not get to see. He also does business development and strategic planning for Sokoto, Kebbi, Bauchi, Kware, Adamawa, Kano states, and they are considering moving into Edo, Cross River and Borno states. Danny sees his job as essentially government relations, marketing and finance. Shepards with Jerry work operations. Jerry works the importation of the equipment they work. They have several US citizens working for them, as well as many Nigerians.

Note, one of the curiosities is that when an employer hires someone, at least for some jobs, the employer also provides the housing. For example, at Abuja they house Danny’s driver, a gate guard, a housekeeper and a laundry person, albeit the housing is small.

We met and had our picture taken with Senator Yarima (Alhaji Sani Ahmed Yarima) who is the former governor of Zamfara State, and is now the Senator from Zamfara State, and minority leader in the Senate. He was the first governor to institute sharia law in his state, and according to Dan is one of the most powerful and popular politicians in Nigeria. He is also a shareholder in at least one the WM companies, WM Environmental Solutions I believe. He was very gracious. He is a Muslim. Danny and Jerry both said he is a rock star in Nigeria. Dan had a golf bag with this name on it—and all the caddies knew who he was and were curious about why Dan had the bag. Dan told them he won it off of the Senator in a golf match. In truth they bought the bag for the Senator but never gave it to him for some reason. The Senator has purchased two of the Tundra trucks Dan shipped to Africa. The first one was evidently “destroyed” by the crowds in the current election campaign, so while I was there the Senator bought the second one.

Hollywood Hank January 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 05:48:00 +0000

Hollywood Hank thanks the Star staff

Hollywood Hank January 2011, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

More Hollywood Hank Posts:

Hollywood Hank December 2010 & Hank Gets Painted

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 20:32:00 +0000

Hollywood Hank's Humble Roots
Click on the article for a full-size, more readable version.

Hollywood Hank December 2010, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

Note - the article may not show up in the email/rss - click through to see it.

I'm glad Kathy took the time to write about where Hank came from (I'm his 3rd owner) and about giving dogs (and cats) a second or even 3rd chance. I'm so glad I got a dog and not a puppy. :)

I am so thankful for Hank and I'm so glad that he came to live with me. This year has been difficult for me personally, but having Hank around has been a god-send. I have actually learned a lot from Hank. He calms me down, makes me feel loved and appreciated, has extreme patience, and makes me get up off my butt to take him for walks even when I don't want to go outside. I even like listening to him snore at night. He puts me right to sleep and when I wake up in the middle of the night - I can tell he's there. :) I don't know what I'd do without him around.

Thanks Hank.

Hank Gets Painted

I also wanted to share a picture of Hank that my Aunt Glennda Field painted and gave to me over the holiday.

And here's the photo that she painted it from:

Pretty amazing right?

More Hollywood Hank Posts:

http://numberh.blogspot.com/2010/11/hollywood-hank-articles-january.html http://numberh.blogspot.com/2009/12/hollywood-hank-august-december-2009.html

http://numberh.blogspot.com/2009/07/hollywood-hank-junejuly-2009.html http://numberh.blogspot.com/2009/04/hollywood-hank-debut.html

Hollywood Hank Articles: January - November 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 02:31:00 +0000

I haven't been good about adding Hank's columns to the blog - so here's all his articles from January through November 2010.

For a more readable version of any article - click on it and then click on "all sizes" when you get to Flickr. You can look at a bigger version there.

More Hollywood Hank Posts:

January - Hollywood Hank Braves the Cold Weather

February - Hollywood Hank Meets the Cats

March - Hollywood Hank Goes Curving

April - Hollywood Hank Shops Organic

May - Hollywood Hank Promotes Safety

June - Hollywood Hank Leashes Up in Style

July - Hollywood Hank Goes to Summer School

August - OHS Helps Hollywood Hank & Other Dogs Beat the Summer Heat

September - Hollywood Hank Visits the Hairdressers

October - Hollywood Hank's Perfect Shot

November - Hollywood Hank Banks Locally

Roommate Wanted

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 05:05:00 +0000

I have a 2nd room and I'll rent it cheap. The room itself isn't particularly big, but my place is and there's plenty of room to share.

A little about my place:
1300 sq feet 2 bed 2 bath with a unique layout. Main floor - open floor plan with hardwoods, gas fireplace, full kitchen, big comfortable couch, entertainment ctr, 15' vaulted ceiling with lots of natural light, large balcony and more. There's good closet space throughout. The building has only 8 units and it's very quiet. The neighbors are all very nice and helpful.
If you're interested - contact me and I'll fill you in on rent etc. benjaminlloyd@gmail(.com) or Facebook

Included in rent:

All utilities:Electricity, heat, AC, water, garbage, etc

Green: Electricity is alternative power & Natural Gas is carbon offset

Washer/Dryer/Dishwasher
Cleaning service once a month
Fun stuff: 50" Plasma, Xbox 360, Premium HD cable, good-sized balcony & grill, and a PINBALL MACHINE.

You:
Must have a steady job, a social life, and like dogs

Excellent Location:
Often overlooked - Hollywood is an excellent neighborhood with a great location for getting around town quickly.

Tri-Met: Hollywood Transit Center and the MAX station are nearby, the #12 is just a block away. It's only a couple of blocks to Broadway (77?)
Walking distance to Trader Joes, Whole Foods, 24 Hour Fitness. Great coffee shop / French bakery right across the street and several bars / restaurants within blocks...
Easy access to bike routes - I can bike downtown in about 25 minutes
Easy & fast to get around town by car: Near I-84, Sandy Blvd, Broadway, 39th (Cesar Chavez), 33rdf you're interested - contact me and I'll fill you in on rent etc. benjaminlloyd@gmail(.com) orFacebook

View Larger Map

View Larger Map

Hollywood Hank: August - December 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 22:44:00 +0000

I haven't been good about adding Hank's columns to the blog - so here's all his articles from August through December 2009.

For a more readable version of any article - click on it and then click on "all sizes" when you get to Flickr. You can look at a bigger version there.

More Hollywood Hank Posts:

August - Hollywood Hank & Defender talk about Therapy Dogs

September - Hollywood Hank Goes to Work

October - Hollywood Hank Visits Doggie Daycare

November - Hollywood Hank Goes Holiday Shopping

December - Hollywood Hank is Home for the Holidays

Oktoberfest!

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 03:44:00 +0000

Maria & I just got back from a couple of weeks in Europe - culminating in a couple of days at Oktoberfest in Munich.

Here are the pictures:

The Trip
Part 1: London
This year's European adventure took us to London where we met up with my parents who were wrapping up THEIR first trip to Europe (2 weeks in Italy + stops in Paris & London). We stayed near Marble Arch and highlights of our time in London with my parents included the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, a double-decker bus tour (touristy yes - but we love doing these. It's the best way to see the sights), a cruise down the Thames, a spin on the London Eye and high tea at Harrods. Maria & I also spent a little time in a great pub near our place, and we took in a show in the West End (Avenue Q -you know I'm not a theater guy but it was pretty great!)

Part 2: Ireland
After London - we went over to Dublin where we met up with our friends Jamie & Weylan (Kansas natives living in PDX) who also came from PDX to visit Weylan's brother Austin, who's taking a term abroad from KSU at a school in Dublin. We spent a couple of days in & around Dublin learning the subtleties of Guinness before taking the train to the other side of the country for a night in Galway. We also took a bus tour out to the Cliffs of Moehr - which is/are extremely impressive.

Part 3: Munich/Oktoberfest
After Ireland - Jamie & Weylan and Maria & I made our way to Munich to go to Oktoberfest. In Munich - we met up with our friend Josh who was making his 5th consecutive pilgrimage to Oktoberfest (Josh is also a native Kansas guy living in PDX). Josh introduced us to several friends he's met over the years - many of whom have also been to Oktoberfest a number of times. You'll see these guys in our pictures - they're wearing flight suits. :)

In addition to Oktoberfest - we did a little walking around Munich and even took a half day or so to go visit a monastery outside of town. Did I mention that the monks at this monastery specialize in brewing beer? BIG SURPRISE! The pork knuckle was also pretty sweet - if you go through the pictures, you'll see a picture or two of Maria working over a pork knuckle.

People ask what Oktoberfest is like. It's actually easy to describe but the description does it no justice... the pictures don't really cut it either. Oktoberfest is set on a large fairground in Munich - it's a lot like going to the state fair, but instead of livestock & barns - there are beer tents. There are amusement park rides, food vendors, games and all the stuff you'd see at the fair. It's HUGE - and so are the beer tents. We mostly stuck to the Hofbrau tent - which holds something like 9,200 people (including the outdoor beer garden - the inside holds something on the order of 7,500 people). Inside the tents - there is lots of music and singing, beer wenches carrying an amazing number of liter-size beer steins, lots of beer drinking and generally - just lots of happy people. Despite the alcohol - it's not particularly rowdy. Well - maybe the last hour or so gets a little rowdy. :) Anyway - it's a great time and the trip was a TON of fun... but I'm still a little wiped out. It was one of those trips where you definitely need a vacation after the fact.

Enjoy the pictures!

Yellow winks peppers growing on the deck

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 17:32:00 +0000

I think it might be time to eat some of these?

Hollywood Hank June/July 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 20:03:00 +0000

More Hollywood Hank Articles in the Hollywood Star News (Portland Oregon) - June & July 2009

Hollywood Hank June 2009, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

Hollywood Hank's Debut

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 22:29:00 +0000

Hollywood Hank, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

The first story about Hank written by our neighbor and published in our neighborhood newspaper. The Hollywood Star News (That's Hollywood Portland) doesn't publish online - so I don't have a link to send.

Click on this link to get to the full size readable version of the picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/benjaminlloyd/3425215368/sizes/l/

While I'm on the subject of Hank - here he is an an informercial for a product that a friend was working on, and that we totally endorse.

Blogging Blackout

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 16:39:00 +0000

Have I really not published anything to the blog since September? I suppose I've been quiet for all the regular reasons (busy / no time), and some others (didn't feel we had anything noteworthy to publish).

It would be pretty hard to do a 6-month plus recap, but there have been some noteworthy developments since 9/16:

Work has been busy (search engine marketing is a good place to be in a down economy)
I started my term as President of SEMpdx (sempdx.org) which keeps me really busy
I got appointed to the Mayor's economic development cabinet

We haven't done much traveling together since then, but:

Maria went to St Louis & Detroit last fall
Maria & I went to LA to watch the Beavs beat UCLA at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena
Maria has had a China/Shanghai trip or two in there as well
We stayed a couple nights near Pacific City for Hank & Maria's birthdays this month (pics @ Flickr)
We're headed to Puerta Vallerta at the end of April with Jamie & Weylan and some of Maria's old Detroit friends. Should be fun!

Keeping up with us:

Blogging is fun & all, but it's a whole side trip for me to take. Facebook, Twitter (@blizzle) & Flickr are probably the best ways to know what we're up to on a more frequent basis. (FWIW - all of those things are hooked up to Facebook - so if we're Facebook friends, you'll see updates from my Twitter & Flickr accounts.

Rome + Croatia

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 03:47:00 +0000

Maria & I just got back from a trip to Rome + Croatia.

Here's the slideshow:

NOTE: If you'd like a bigger slideshow and/or more info (descriptions of the photos, click here to see the Rome + Croatia set on Flickr. Once you're there, click the little "slideshow" link at the top right for the real deal, or just peruse the pics on your own)

Our trip:
1st Stop - Rome
We visited Rome for several days and took in the sites while also managing to see our friends Jaime & Weylen get hitched in the all official Catholic style. We had a great time meeting their Kansas family and friends and we even managed to stay out with Jaime & Weylen until 6 am on our first full night in town. That kinda hurt actually...

Then, Maria & I set off for Croatia.

Our first stop was in Split where we spent a night in a little apartment right across the street from the fish market... it smelled funny but Split was pretty great. I think my favorite highlight was the little square in the middle of the palace where you could get a drink, sit on the steps and do some serious people watching.

Our next stop was 2 nights in Hvar - a little island town that's about a 45 minute ferry ride from Split. We FINALLY got to do some swimming when we got to Hvar. It was nice, but small and it was obviously very popular with the yachting crowd.

And then we made our way to Dubrovnik to meet Crystal & Darlene for 4 or 5 nights (I don't quite remember). Dubrovnik was great. We stayed in the old town and Dubrovnik was just the right size to walk around & see everything. It had just the right number of topless beaches (are you still reading this?), there were some good restaurants and we found the BEST beach/bar in the entire world. You'd just duck through an opening in the wall around old town and find yourself on the rocks overlooking the water. There was a bar & all that, plus you could just walk right down to the edge & jump off the rocks into the deep, crystal clear water. Like this...

Hank Went on Vacation Too
While we were gone, Hank got a vacation of his own. We took him out to a farm where he played with some pigs, goats, a couple of great dane's and a toddler.

Here's what he did with his vacation:

New Longboard Skateboard

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 01:14:00 +0000

My new skateboard from Eastside Longboards - it's pretty rad and it has a handle!
New Longboard Skateboard, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

Already wiped out on it once and have the first battle scar of many on the ol' elbow. Not really sure how to stop this thing when I'm going fast... Looking forward to a few more scars and some serious fun (it's a total blast to ride)

Plate and Pitchfork with Mario & Jen

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 00:25:00 +0000

Maria & I spent Saturday evening with our friends Mario & Jen out at a Plate & Pitchfork event.

P&P is a great dinner event that gets you in touch with your local farmers, vintners and chefs in a very unique way. We've been a couple of times, and the general idea is that you meet up at a farm, have some appetizers & wine and then head out with the farmer to walk through their fields and hear about their work. Then you end up at an outdoor dining room with white linens and the whole bit. Local chefs prepare dishes from the local produce, and a local wine maker will pair the food with their wines. It's quite nice and a little on the spendy side, but worth it.

Some details on our dinner:

Chef Jason Stoller Smith and Chefs Carmen Peirano and Eric Ferguson from Nick's Italian Cafe
Wines from the Eyrie Vineyards and BlackCap. Featuring produce from Gaining Ground Farm.

Rather than writing it all up - Mario did the job for me, and took some nice pictures as well - so I'll have you check out his post instead!

Mario's Post - Plate & Pitchfork at the Smith Berry Barn

And a couple of pictures, courtesy of Mario

Pumpkin Ridge for Dad's Birthday

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 05:41:00 +0000

Good times on a beautiful (but REALLY hot) day with Dad, Chris & Uncle Scott. So glad we're still playing golf with Dad - a couple of months ago, I wouldn't have guessed he'd be able to play golf this summer. I think he's feeling pretty great these days too. He put up a pretty good score too!
Happy Birthday Dad!

Fwd: Pumpkin Ridge for dad's birthday, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

The new pinball machine

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 00:03:00 +0000

The new pinball machine, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

Check out our new pinball machine. Spider-Man! Just got delivered today. There will be a pinball-warming party soon...

link to the manufacturer's page for some better views: http://www.sternpinball.com/spider-man.shtml#

I Love It When a Plan Comes Together!

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 22:19:00 +0000

Maria with a Cigar - 2008 PDX Int'l Beer Festival, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

Maria & I rode our bikes down to NW Portland on Saturday to take a crack at the 2008 Portland International Beer festival. We spent the afternoon drinking some beers with friends (shouts to Diane (also pictured), Crystal, THE NOOSH, Darlene & Gunner, Jamie O, Streetcar Mary and more that I'm blanking on right now), I had a cigar, ran into cousin Tommy etc.

Great day...

(that's cousin Tommy)

All this for a busted pinky part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 20:25:00 +0000

Does it look crooked to you? 3 days after the break... Took these while waiting for the doc to look at it.

All this for a busted pinky?

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 21:35:00 +0000

All this for a busted pinky?, originally uploaded by b-lizzle.

busted my pinky playing kickball on Sunday. thought it was dislocated... i was wrong.

Blogging Blackout

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 16:59:00 +0000

So, the reason I haven't blogged in a while? Dad went to the hospital for a major surgery on May 1st... He was supposed to be there for maybe 10 days... He didn't get out until May 30. 30 days in the hospital is a lot to take. He's at home resting & recuperating now, so please keep him in your thoughts.

Over the course of the last month+:

I spent a lot of time in the hospital
Maria went to China again
I had a birthday
Did the normal work & SEMpdx stuff
Posted a couple of new burger reviews
I went to Seattle for the SMX Advanced conference & saw cousin Jenna & Jude
Before I hit Seattle, Freeman & I went to see Iron Maiden
And I started the process of hiring another person for the team here at Amplify Interactive

Now that things are starting to calm down, I will return to blogging.
Stay tuned!
Ben

Wine Tasting for Mario's Birthday + A New Burger Review

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 22:58:00 +0000

Mario turned 27 a couple of weeks ago, and as a present/party, we joined Mario, Jen & some of their other friends for a day of wine tasting. Stops included:

The rest of the pictures are on my Flickr, and Kate's pictures are here. The pics above are from outside Rex Hill.

Anyway, I had to mention that we stopped to have lunch at Dundee Bistro, and I got the $14 hamburger... it was pretty good, but I don't think it was worth $14. Here's The Dundee Bistro burger review on the Portland Hamburgers site.

Thanks Grandma

noreply@blogger.com (Ben) — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 22:47:00 +0000

My family laid my Grandmother to rest on Friday April 18. It was a sad occasion indeed, but funerals can also be good. Seeing family and coming together to support each other in a sad time was actually very re-affirming. We drift apart over the years and go our separate ways... but it's nice to know that the support system is there. It was wonderful to see so much of my family together in the same place. Even my uncle Rich showed up - I haven't seen him in years!

Another nice aspect of the funeral was the service itself. Aunt Suzie told us grandma's life story. I actually learned a lot about Grandma that I had never known... I didn't even know her name was Martha! I thought it was June! Maria got to come & hear about my grandmother's life in a way that I never would have been able to tell. Thanks Aunt Suzie.

I don't want to spend a lot of time on a sad subject, but I did want to commemorate it and leave myself a few reminders.

Obituaries
http://www.theoutlookonline.com/news/story.php?story_id=120831271908028300

Martha was born July 6, 1923, in Wellsville, Utah, to Charles and Mary Ellen (Glenn) Green. She was raised in Wellsville and attended business school in Salt Lake City.

On Sept. 2, 1942, she married Glenn Ira Short in Salt Lake City.

Martha moved to Gresham in 1956 and taught piano until 1970. She moved back to Utah in 1971, but returned to Gresham in 1984. She was a member and organist for the Kelly Creek Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and she was involved with genealogy work for the church.

Martha was an avid reader and she loved music, writing poetry and spending time with her family.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Glenn, on April 11, 1994.

http://www.oregonlive.com/obituaries/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/obits/120830552039570.xml&coll=7

Martha June Green was born July 6, 1923, in Wellsville, Utah. A homemaker, she moved in 1956 to Gresham, where she was a piano teacher in her home. She returned to Utah in 1971, and to Gresham in 1984. She was a member of the Kelly Creek Ward of the church and a church pianist and organist. In 1942, she married Glenn Ira Short; he died in 1994.

Rest in peace grandma.