Athena, Oregon: motorcycle city

Hodaka Days 2011

For most of the year, Athena, Oregon, is a quiet little hamlet in the eastern half of the state, just off Highway 11 which runs between Walla Walla, Washington, and Pendleton, Oregon. But one weekend a year, it turns into motorcycle city when it celebrates Hodaka Days the last weekend in June.

Hodaka was a motorcycle manufactured in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. Hodaka was developed for Pacific Basin Trading Company, an agricultural supplier in Athena that wanted a sturdy motorcycle for local farmers to use. Soon it was being used by dirt bikers and flat-track racers and being sold all over the United States from Athena. It was the little motorcycle that could -- and did, with quirky names like Super Rat, Dirt Squirt, Road Toad and Combat Wombat.

Hodakas weren't manufactured after 1977, but the motorcycle has been raised to a cult level by its fans who pay homage to it every year. Fans come from all over the United States, with at least one or two people riding their Hodakas cross country for the event. Riders ooh and aah over the bikes on display at the city park and swap stories about the glory days. Suppliers come from all over to sell parts and talk shop.

Other weekend events include the Bad Rock cross-country ride, a mini-trials competition, and a parade down the town's Main Street with riders wearing white shirts and ties.

It's just a cool way to spend a weekend.

Rain: it's a fact of life



Dayton All Wheels Weekend 2010

Rain is a common occurrence in the Pacific Northwest. It's what keeps the region so green. Eastern Washington generally doesn't get as much rain as the west side of the state, but this year it seems like it's getting to be more than it's fair share.
Not only do we have more rain this year, but the temperatures are a lot cooler. So cool, in fact, that it took six weeks for my cucumber and zucchini seeds to germinate. I normally have blossoms by this time.

It rained this morning so we didn't make our annual trek over to Dayton's All Wheels Weekend, held every year on Father's Day weekend. It's a pretty big car show, with the city closing several blocks of Dayton's main street so hundreds of cars can be displayed. My husband is a caroholic, so we go to a lot of car shows. Dayton is one of my favorites. I like wandering through quaint shops while he looks at the cars again and again. (One time through is my limit.) What I especially like about Dayton is show sponsors have other activities. They usually have slow drags and bed races; another year, power lawn mower races were held. I couldn't believe riding lawn mowers could move that fast.

If you're into cars, this area is the place to be from April to October. It seems like there's a car show -- sometimes two -- every weekend from Soap Lake, Washington, to Joseph, Oregon. There's a big car show coming up the first weekend in July in Pasco, and Cool Desert Nights is next weekend in Richland. I think this year the car show will live up to its name.

Art in the Park

Mark your calendars now to attend Art in the Park July 29-30 at Howard Amon Park in Richland,
Washington.

This will be the 61st outing for the Allied Arts Association which sponsors the art show. It's always held the last weekend in July which coincides with the hydroplane races which take place in the Columbia River at Columbia Park in Kennewick..



Howard Amon is a long narrow park along the Columbia River. Filled with huge shade trees, it' a most pleasant place to be in the summer, with all sorts of activities taking place there. My favorite is Art in the Park, an outdoor art show I first attended in the mid-1980s when I lived in Connell, about 35 miles north of the Tri-Cities.

The art show features work by traditional artists as well as photographers and crafts people. You can find handmade clothing and furniture, ceramics and pottery, wall hangings and greeting cards, as well as the traditional paintings and photographs. The offerings change from year to year, so it's a good way to keep up on trends in the crafts world. I few years ago, I fell in love with seashells glued to coastal scenes, but regrettably did not buy a painting. I was determined to buy one the next year, but none were on sale.

The art show draws artists and crafts people from throughout the Pacific Northwest. Allied Arts says artists come from 46 states and Canada. Some even demonstrate their crafts for visitors. The two-day event is just a cool experience.





The "dolls" of Maryhill Museum

The "dolls" at Maryhill Museum of Art

I first visited Maryhill Museum, a wonderful eclectic museum in southcentral Washington, when I was five or six years old. It was the first museum I'd ever visited, and even today remains my favorite.
What I remember most about that visit was the "dolls." Well, I thought they were dolls, but they really weren't. They were fashion mannequins put together by French houses of fashion toward the end of World War II to let the world know that French fashion was very much alive, thank you.

The mannequins are 27 inches high, made of wire, and are dressed in the latest French fashions of that day. Even the accessories, such as shoes, jewelry and handbags, were made by the finest fashion designers Paris had to offer.



After being in storage for a number of years, they ended up at Maryhill where a third of them are on display every year. The mannequins have a special hall to themselves, and they deserve it. Maryhill also has a fascinating collection of chess sets from around the world and Native American artifacts, and memorabilia belonging to the royal family of Romania, but it is the dolls that have always held my interest.



Downtown Kennewick art

Pants statue

The Parkade in downtown Kennewick, Washington,  is a mini outdoor art gallery. There are statues on street corners that reflect interests of the downtown area. A statue of a paper boy stands on the corner that leads to the daily newspaper office. My favorite is a statue of a pair of paint-splattered paints standing next to a can of blue paint



On a nice day, it is pleasant to walk along Kennewick Avenue just to see the art. This area used to be the main shopping area in this southcentral Washington town, but then the malls came and drew the business several miles away with the big box and chain stores.

But the businesses in the Kennewick Parkade still breathe life. Boutiques, restaurants and taverns, art galleries and antique stores now fill the void. It's an eclectic mix of businesses that makes the area so interesting.



Toppenish murals

If you're like us, you whizz by Toppenish, Washington, on Interstate 82 between Ellensburg and the Oregon border. But the next time you make this trip, get off the freeway and drive into Toppenish to see the murals. It's a detour well worth the effort to make.



The "artist" working on the mural is part of it.

The Old West lives in Toppenish, particularly the downtown area with its Western style buildings, many of which are adorned with murals. The murals pay homage to the city's pioneer and Native American heritage. Tens of murals decorate the sides and fronts of buildings, and a new mural or two is added each year.



Some of the murals are quite realistic. We made a special trip to Toppenish last year just to see the murals. I'd stopped to take a picture of one when my husband spied a man on a ladder painting a mural on a wall about a block away. He encouraged me to go interview the artist so I could write an article for an online magazine. I started off across the parking lot and had almost reached the mural when I realized the "artist" was part of the mural.



The easiest way to view the murals is to park your car downtown and then walk around. I think you'll agree with me downtown Toppenish is pretty special.

Pasco Farmers Market

The farmers market in Pasco, Washington, opens this weekend, running on Wednesday and Saturday mornings until the end of October.

It's the oldest and biggest farmers market in the area. Besides fruits and veggies, you can find crafts, baked goods and plants on sale. The produce offerings depend on the time of year. There's usually not too many vendors in the opening weeks, but as the summer moves on, more farmers show up.

I visit the market several times a summer, but I usually don't buy anything. I think the prices for fresh produce are too high, sometimes higher than what you'd pay in a supermarket, but then supermarket produce is not as fresh as what you can find at the Pasco market. However, the contract farmers have with the market require them to charge prices that are comparable to what grocery stores charge.

I go mainly because the farmers market is a good place to catch up with friends I haven't seen in awhile. I also go to take photographs of all the fresh produce on display.

I used to really love shopping for produce at farmers markets, but that was until I moved to China for a couple of years. There, instead of shopping at farmers markets just occasionally, I shopped for produce on a daily basis at street stands. One might sell just tomatoes, another celery, and a third apples. Each stand usually only sold one vegetable or fruit. When you have to shop like this all the time, farmers markets lose their allure.

The Pasco farmers market is open from about 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., though many farmers leave as soon as they sell out, so the earlier you go the better. It's located at Fourth Avenue and Lewis Street in downtown Pasco.