Portland Report

Occupy the Bus Stop

2012-01-05T14:58:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday, at the bus stop, someone had posted three large flyers/posters (approximate size 18"x24"). They were glued to the glass of the bus shelter. I can't recall seeing this method of posting flyers in Portland. They are usually stapled onto utility poles.

The three posters were very artistic and well-designed. All three are from the Occupy movement and you may have seen them around your neck of the woods.

Poster 1: Rainbow starburst on one side with the text 'General Strike' in the middle. The other side was black and white with a floral patterned background, and 3 mask faces above the words 'Occupy Jakarta'. Something like this one:

Poster 2: Colors of gold and brown on both sides. One side said, 'Decolonize Wall Street' with a picture of a Native American. The other side had a large leaf/flower/flame design. There was more text on both sides, but mostly picture. Kind of like these:

Poster 3: The Occupied Wall Street Journal. I didn't have time to read any of it, but I really like the message on the back side which said, 'The Revolution will not be branded but it will be beautiful.' I like the sentiment. Here's what it looked like:

On the first two posters, the light shining through blended the images beautifully. All three were very well-conceived and stylish. I imagine that you have seen them around your own city or town or on the interwebs.

Today they had been torn down. Probably not by Trimet, our transit authority, because the glass walls of the bus shelter had not been washed and the ragged remains of the posters were still there. Whoever tore them down threw the paper on the ground. What had been beautiful was now simply a mess. A bigger mess than just leaving them on the bus shelter.

What prompts a person to do that? A sanctimonious feeling of righteousness? Or did they disagree with the message? I've seen plenty of people who have made it their mission to tear down posters on poles and they do have an air of outrage and smugness about them. But the people I have seen doing that regard the posters as trash and they put them in a trash bag. They don't throw them on the ground. They see themselves as a litter patrol, working on urban beautification. I realize that not everyone will have the same taste in art and design. But, if you don't like it and you tear it down, don't throw it on the ground. Put it in a trash can, you heathen, and don't make our beautiful city trashy.

You know it wasn't part of the 1% out there eradicating all evidence of the Occupy Movement. Some maladjusted, hostile, disenfranchised hater who doesn't have anything better to do than rip down posters... that's just sad.

A couple more things

2011-10-19T17:52:00.000-07:00

Yes, dear readers, I've thought of a couple more things to update regarding my perambulations around the Rose City. I know you are waiting impatiently for updates, I can tell by all of the eager comments you leave... wait, what's that you say? You've never left a comment? Hmm. You probably don't send your grandmother thank you cards either. That's all I'm saying (at this point).

But, to get down to bidness...

That Damned Hill

If you worked on that damned Hill, or if you still work upon it, you must remember the two enormous water tanks at the bend in the road, just past the lonely apartment building in the dell. Yes, I thought so. Do you remember what they look like? Ok, obviously large and round, thanks genius! They were tan with water stains and black mold and frankly they looked shitty. Now, however, they blend right in to the environment since they have been painted a lovely dark green color. A color that always make me think "Norwegian Wood", you know, the Beatles song. In the dark of night, when I am leaving the Hill, you can't see them at all. The pumping station between them is still tan and stained looking, though.

Hawthorne Bridge/Grand Avenue

If you've crossed the Hawthorne Bridge lately you've noticed the construction in both the east- and west-bound directions. At the east end of the bridge, the City, in its infinite wisdom, has decided to take out the rather convenient and efficient traffic moving turn lanes. So, picture this: as you are traveling east-bound over the bridge, and over the elevated street section, you descend to Grand Avenue. If you were to head north, you would get in the left lane and swoop down in your own turn lane to merge onto Grand. Well, not anymore. There's a curb there now and you'll have to queue up with the cars traveling up Hawthorne in order to make your left turn. Same thing in trying to get on to the bridge in the west-bound direction. There was a designated turn lane from Grand onto the bridge approach. These are both being taken out. I can only surmise that it is because of the east-side streetcar -- even though the streetcar tracks are on the other side of Grand. I don't know about you, but I am not a fan of the streetcar. I love public transportation but that damned streetcar bugs me. They are super slow, for one thing. The one that traverses the Pearl? Yeah, you can walk faster than that. I've tried it. They might get up a little more speed on streets with fewer pedestrians, but by and large more buses would be a better investment.

Well, that's it for now. There's probably more going on, but I haven't been keeping good track of things. I'll do better, really I will. And so will you. I know you are reading this drivel; I do check my stats, you know. Go ahead and leave me a comment!

Oh! One more thing! Just got my hair done... what do you think???

Back, I guess, and sorta ready...

2011-10-13T20:24:00.000-07:00

Well, dear readers, what can I say? I haven't been blogging (my great capacity for stating the obvious) but I have been noticing some things around my stomping grounds.

Here's the thing: my darling mumsey has cancer and is slowing fading away before our eyes. It's beyond sad and I've cried a river over it. I'm not going to add more about that, though, because this is not the venue for sad family stories. Just know that I have been distracted and busy and not neglecting you intentionally.

BUT! I do want to get a few little tidbits noted and then I'll try to fill things out later. To that end, I'll have to resort to bullets.

Occupy Portland! Wow! Have you seen all of those tents downtown? How hilarious is it that they chose the park between the cop shop and courthouse? I love it! And, in true Portland fashion, when it looked like they were going to be in the way for the Portland Marathon, they moved. And came right back. We're civilized like that.
In the same neighborhood, the Edith Green/Wendell Wyatt Federal Building is finally looking like more than a steel skeleton. There is some steel superstructure going up on the front and the south side is getting some skin. I'll try to get some pictures.
In my neighborhood, the Gulch, that derelict brick building on 21st that almost fell into the freeway is being rehabbed. What?! Who would put money into that? I don't know, but they are shoring up the south facing foundation and building a new exterior wall. Go figure. Again, pictures would be helpful.
The Slammer Tavern. Someone has moved into the apartment above the tavern. It's been vacant for as long as I can remember and always looked like hell, but now someone is living there. I drive by on my way home from work and I can't help but stare as I'm stopped at the light (7th and Stark). Weird, huh?
South Waterfront and the New Bridge. The south waterfront is a freaking nightmare. I don't know why they can't do some of that work at night. It is hellish down there! But, watching the progress on the new bridge over the Willamette is interesting. The new bridge will be just upstream from OMSI and cross over to the yet-to-be-built new complex of education high rises. OHSU, PSU, and OSU are combining forces and funding and building a shared campus. The bridge will be adjacent. The bridge will be for light rail (a new Max line to SE -- yes, Milwaukie), bicycles, and pedestrians. No cars! The view from the Hill is pretty good and sometimes I'll pause on the 8th floor and watch the bridge stuff going on.

I feel like there were a couple more things I wanted to make note of, but I can't remember right now. I'll try to get back here before too much time elapses and update you, but in the meantime, I NEED A CAMERA! My phone takes the crappiest pictures and my little digital snappy broke so I'm in the market for something easy and cheap.

Oh, and if you were paying attention, I said that on my drive home... sad to say, I'm not riding my bike much right now. For one thing, it's wet out. Really wet. But the bigger issue is that I am working a swing shift and I just don't feel good about riding home in the wet, cold, dark night. I sure do miss Helen though. Sigh. But, if we have a break in the weather, I'll be pedaling.

I guess that's all I've got for now.

Sunset

2011-09-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

I love the sideways slanting light of late afternoon, the way it illuminates and makes poignant all that it touches. Here, on this hill, the light strikes the undersides of the branches of tall fir trees, making them shimmer with silver and gold and darkest green.

Sour Cherries

2011-06-29T14:02:00.000-07:00

Is that anything like sour grapes? NO! Pretty much the opposite, in fact.

Sour cherries are the fruit that delicious cherry pies are made from. Also the fruit that sour cherry jam is made from. And all sorts of wonderful baked treats. If you like cherry pie I can guarantee that you will like any pastry made with sour cherries.

And here's the big news: I found a source for sour cherries! I have been searching, every spring, for several years for a local grower of sour cherries. I couldn't find one! I even tried the grower's cooperative in Hood River, for crying out loud. Any growers that I found only sold to wholesalers. But, hallelujah and pass the pastry, I've found one in Yamhill county!

Fruithill, Inc sells 4 gallon pails of sour pie cherries - with or without sugar - to the public. I contacted them yesterday and had my name added to the database of customers so that I will get an alert when the cherries are ready. Then it's just a pleasant drive to the country with money in hand and I'll be returning home with some future baked deliciousness.

Of course, you know what this means. I'll have to buy a freezer. And, even more important, I'll have to start baking. You might want to show up around my house when that happens.

So. Damned. Excited!

Summer

2011-06-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

Just in case you're following along, it's summer in the Pacific Northwest. What does that mean?

The high today is expected to be in the mid-60's.

I'm still wearing corduroy -- comfortably. And a sweater.

Waterfront Park

2011-06-21T09:19:00.000-07:00

Governor Tom McCall Waterfront Park sure takes a beating during the summer. At least, the lawn does. And, if Pioneer Courthouse Square is Portland's living room, Waterfront Park is Portland's backyard. We spend a lot of time there!

It starts with Cinco de Mayo in the spring and then gets a month reprieve. Then we have the Rose Festival, followed immediately by Gay Pride. These two events pulverize the grass. I rode along the waterfront this morning on my way to work and the city crews have already been out aerating the lawns, just a day after the event.

There is some smaller event setting up right now, down at the Saturday Market area of the park. It is some kind of bicycle event, but I can't remember what it is ~ I know, bicycles in pdx, go figure!

In a couple of weeks we will have the Waterfront Blues Festival at the opposite end of the park. Boats are already being anchored just south of the Hawthorne Bridge for the Blues Fest. It's quite the party!

Not too long after that is the Oregon Brewer's Fest. Mmmm.... beeeeer! The best craft beers that you can't even imagine are available for sample.

Not into the beer thing? How about The Bite? That goes down in August. It usually draws a huge and hungry crowd.

The Oregon Symphony has an outdoor concert towards the end of summer. It's free (because you can't charge people on the sidewalk for listening!) which is nice. It typically ends with the 1812 Overture complete with fireworks and canons. We can hear that across the river and in the neighborhood!

There's more, oh so much more. Oddly enough, the Portland Parks and Recreation department doesn't have a comprehensive event calendar on line. These are just the things I could remember off the top of my head. At any rate, large and small events are happening at the waterfront all spring, summer and fall. The people who maintain the grass have good job security. We love it to death!

Bumpersticker

2011-06-13T11:12:00.000-07:00

I drove past a car that was covered in bumper-stickers yesterday afternoon. It was at Freddy's. One of them caught my eye. It said:

God Is Not Christian

Quite possibly one of the best bumper-stickers I've ever seen. I parked and walked back to read the rest of the car. Second favorite? "Lesbian Mafia, Portland Oregon". Now, that just makes me lol!

Things are Happening!

2011-06-08T11:19:00.000-07:00

Too bad you don’t have a more assiduous blogger to report on them… sorry!

· ROSE FESTIVAL! How could I go so long without mentioning it?!?!? The rides are whirling around on the Waterfront, the Starlight Parade was last weekend (good stuff: the weather was awesome and there was a huge turnout; Darcelle was the Grand Marshall!), the Junior Parade is today. The Grand Floral Parade is this coming Saturday. Also on Saturday, the Dragon Boat races begin. Our niece is paddling in the Grant High School junior varsity boat – Go Generals! The milk carton boat races might be today… if not, then they are sometime this week. The fleet will be in next week, but it’s possible that not all the usual ships will be able to make it because of the high water level on the river. Let’s see, what else… well, there’s lots and lots of stuff. Go here if you want more info: http://www.rosefestival.org/

· Safeway on Hawthorne – GONE! The block between 27^th and 28^th is now filled with rubble and it looks like they are digging a giant hole. Not sure if a grocery store is going back in there, or if we will see another version of the ubiquitous ‘ground level retail, condos above’ meme. One thing I will say for this piece of property, it’s got to have tremendous views! It’s at the crest of a hill and has a spectacular view of downtown, the river, AND Mt Tabor to the east. Will the upper floors also have a view of Mt Hood?

· High water. See above, Rose Festival. We have had plenty of rain this fall, winter and spring, and more importantly plenty of snowfall in the mountains. Now that the weather is finally starting to warm up, all of that snow (well, much of it) is melting and heading downhill. The people who control water in these parts have been drawing down the reservoirs to make room for the expected influx. The Columbia is over flood stage right now, but not really threatening any human construction. The Willamette is near flood stage, which is considerably lower than the height of the sea wall. It is most noticeable if you are at Waterfront Park, or riding your bike over the Steel Bridge. Oh, also, the Eastbank Esplanade is closed until the river settles down.

· GAY PRIDE! Is coming our way! It’s the weekend after Rose Festival, as you all surely know. This year, instead of standing around watching the parade with beverages in hand, my lovely partner and I will be walking in the parade and handing out swag. At least, I hope there is some swag! I got roped into working on my employer’s pride committee this year and walking in the parade is de rigueur for the committee. My big contribution to the event was the idea of printed grocery bags as a giveaway. Our logo is too busy, but the bags will be useful. I’m definitely scoring one for my household! Leave me a comment and I’ll get you one too! Two colors – royal blue and lime green!

The Floral Report

2011-05-11T16:25:00.000-07:00

Yes, it’s true! It’s the long awaited, and oft asked for Floral Report, direct from the Rose City!

And, here’s the thing, this report is late. Very, very late. But, not too late! No, there are still flowers everywhere.

Spring is the season of petal carpets, of petal storms, of sidewalks and gutters running with pink. (Why, oh why is my camera broken?!) The early blooming bulbs are long gone. The crocus and snowdrops were a couple of months ago, the daffodils last month, the tulips are nearly finished. The earliest of the cherry trees already bloomed, and the glorious parade of cherries in the Japanese American Historical Plaza was spectacular, as usual. Right now, in my close-in Northeast neighborhood, the very pink double-blossomed, Kwanzan Cherry trees are in full regalia. They are so LUSH! I have to write it in capital letters because they are so ridiculously floral!!!

What else is blooming? Plenty. The lilacs are just getting started. I was worried because I have two lilacs that grow in the fence line between my yard and my neighbor. Three years ago these lilacs were cut way, way back. It was necessary, as they had gotten to be around 20 feet tall and were bending over into a ‘U’ shape. They were cut back to about 4 feet tall. Now, I don’t know if you know this, but lilacs bloom on second year wood. That means that there would be no flowers the following year. I knew I could tough it out, but then the neighbor hired some idiot who was pretending to be a gardener to do some yard work and he butchered the lilacs yet again. That means that my lilac blooms were still two years away… argh! But, this year they are beginning to bloom. There are two varieties, the standard and the very fragrant “French” lilac. Both are lovely.

Amelanchier alnifolia is blooming right now, also known as Western serviceberry. The birds are supposed to love the berries, but they don’t seem to eat the ones on our shrub. That’s ok, the flowers are pretty. The ribes sanguineum (western red currant) that we planted in the backyard last summer had a glorious display of deep pink flowers.

A biggie that is just getting started is the flowering dogwood. Oh my goddess! They are so beautiful! The great thing about the dogwood is that those pretty pink and white petals are not petals but bracts. That’s why they last so long. Bracts are modified leaves that serve the purpose of petals in attracting pollinators. Everyone knows a couple of plants that have bracts instead of petals: such as that winter favorite Poinsettia, or if you are currently hanging out in the southlands, Bougainvillea. But, around here, the best example is the dogwood. Some genius in my neighborhood, actually on my street, planted a series of dogwoods, alternating pink and white in the front yards of about twenty houses. When you realize the scope of that kind of urban landscaping, you appreciate that there are people who see farther than a yard full of grass and one rhododendron.

Whoa, did I say rhododendron? Yes, they are starting to flower as well. The sturdy, plain, natives are not ready yet, but the fancy, fabulously colored ones are starting to show off.

Related, in that they are flora but not floral, is the greening of the deciduous trees. Right now the alders and the cottonwoods, the oaks and the maples, are all putting forth their tender green new leaves. It’s that time of spring when the leaves are pale and chartreuse. Later they will be darker green and sturdy looking, but right now they are bright and contrasting with the dark green conifers. The alder and cottonwood catkins are hanging in clumps, and really they are flowers so I guess they count in the floral report!

It’s a beautiful time here in the Pacific Northwest. A lovely time for walking and seeing and sniffing. Especially sniffing, if you are an allergy sufferer. We were sitting in the back yard a day or two ago and the cherry blossoms were drifting down to cover us in a white blanket. The air was mild and soft, perfumed with fragrance, the dappled sunlight shining through the mock orange cast a pale green light around us. And, for that moment, all was right with the world.

Behind the times

2011-04-27T15:41:00.000-07:00

Alright. I'm behind on blogging, I know that, you know that, I'd guess both of you who read this blog know that. It's well known. Be that as it may, I am putting fingers to keyboard in an attempt to catch the hell up. I'll have to resort to bullets.

The Edith Green Wendell Wyatt Federal Building. This 1970's era high rise is getting a green make-over. Actually, make-over isn't the right word. This is a full re-do. They have taken the skin off, taken the walls out, the plumbing out, the electrical out, in fact, they have taken this building down to studs - or steel girders. It looks odd, that's for sure, when you realize that it used to be a fully functioning building a couple of months ago. I'll try to keep up with the progress of this one... Oh, and if you are having trouble placing it, it is right across from the cop shop on SW 3rd and Madison (approaching the Hawthorne Bridge from the west side.)

To spin your orientation around, next is a building going up on the long vacant lot in front of the Greyhound bus terminal. It's right at the foot of the Broadway Bridge ramp, across Broadway from the main post office. I don't know what it is slated to become, other than a high rise. I'll check it out and keep you posted.

Remember that long defunct Burger King on the corner of Broadway and Burnside downtown? It's finally been torn down and yep, you guessed it, a high rise is going in there, too. Most likely ground floor retail and condos above, don't you think? Because, for god's sake, we don't have enough vacant condos downtown right now. Jeez! But, again, I'll check it out and let you know.

The parking lot conversion to a plaza-style urban park went very well ~ I'm referring here to the lot on the South Park Blocks between Taylor and Yamhill. It's called Director's Park and I don't know if that is because it is in front of the Fox Tower movie theater or if someone named Director footed the bill. Zoe and Rob stayed in the Paramount Hotel on Taylor recently and I had the opportunity to enjoy the view from the 8th floor. Very nice view, with one of my favorite buildings on the left, The Pythian.

That bloody damn streetcar! The streetcar has come to the close in east side and roads all over are torn up. Detours abound, delays are inevitable. The funny thing about this (to me) is that if you dig down under many streets on the east side, you'll find cobblestones and streetcar tracks. I observed this on NE 28th, right by Freddy's when they were doing some sewer work a couple of years ago. There are streetcar tracks all over, from back in the day when hardly anyone had a car. An ironic thing is that buses are far more practical, cheaper, and more flexible in terms of changing routes and responding to growth, but buses don't have urban sex appeal. Streetcars and light rail are hip, therefore they get the funding.

Interstate Bridge decision. Naturally, the governors and mayors and federal transportation pooh-bahs have chosen the plainest, most boring, least attractive bridge option available. We could have had something really beautiful spanning the Columbia between Portland and Vancouver, but instead it will look like a freeway. I know, I know, it's the economy, stupid! Still, opportunities to build something spectacular and special don't come along every day and it's a shame when the outcome is so... bland.

Well, that's all I have time for right now. Plenty to follow up on, and report back on. I will let you know what is happening on the streets of PDX! Stay tuned!

Soup Cycle!

2011-03-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

We did it! We signed up for Soup Cycle!

I love Portland!

Have you heard of this? Do you subscribe? How amazingly awesome is Soup Cycle?!

So, for those of you who don't know, Soup Cycle is an outfit that makes delicious organic (of course) soup and delivers it once a week by bicycle. They will also deliver salad and bread. You leave a cooler with ice on your porch and when you get home, voila! Dinner is ready to be heated and slurped.

So far we have had:
Chicken minestrone
Chicken noodle
Barack-a-li Cheddar
and today we get:
Hot and Sour

Everything has been delicious so far and I am expecting that trend to continue.

If you are interested, and live within the bicycling perimeter, I heartily recommend a soupscription! Check them out: soupcycle.com

Tuesday Two-fer!

2011-03-08T08:44:00.000-08:00

So, I’m on the bus, riding through downtown Portland, and I see something I want to check out further. Or, maybe something I want to blog about. I turn my head to get a look at the street sign so that I know which cross street is nearest. Oops! We’re sailing through the intersection and as we go by I get a glimpse of the back of the sign. And, guess what? I have no idea what street it is because Portland is too cheap to print the name of the street on both sides of the sign. ARGH!!

The street sign orientation is designed for cars. In a city that prides itself on being bike and public transportation friendly, it’s still an automotive world. This is frustrating! It’s even frustrating when you are in a car and you ask your passenger to check which street you just crossed and they can’t answer because the street signs are blank on the back. Who thought of that unfriendly cost saving measure? I’m not impressed at all.

And, here’s your second peeve today: Road paint.

Why, oh why Portland, do you skimp on road paint? The lane lines, the crosswalk lines, the arrows, all of that important directional and safety information that is painted on the road is there for a reason. But, in Portland, you can barely see it. It should be bright and reflective but in most neighborhoods and on arterials it is very faint when you can find it at all. In a little traveled area this wouldn’t be too big of a deal. But, come on, on the Broadway/Weidler corridor? On Barbur Boulevard? On Powell and Foster? On Lombard? You have to guess where the lane is supposed to be. If you drive that road often, you are mostly ok. You know where the lanes are even if they are not marked. You’d better be looking out for other drivers though, because it might be someone from another part of town who doesn’t drive there often and might wander into your lane. And, at night? That’s when it’s really tough. It’s a safety concern. On a dark, rainy night it’s anybody’s guess where the damn lane is. Be careful out there.

I Promise

2011-02-15T11:51:00.000-08:00

When I retire (notice that I say ‘when’ not ‘if’¹), I promise to be very considerate of working stiffs. It’s hard, nay, grueling, to work full time and stop at the store on your way home to get either something for dinner or something for tomorrow’s lunch. It’s even harder when you take public transportation and have to schlep your groceries home in your aching arms (because your backpack is full of your sweaty workout clothes) and you have to pray for a seat on the bus or train.

I promise to do my grocery shopping either mid-morning or mid-afternoon, or even late evening², but never in the 4:30 to 6:30 after work time slot, or the precious and brief noon hour. Even if it means that I am shopping with the stay-at-home parents and their loud and sticky children, and the elderly who use the shopping cart as a walker and need help reaching the products on the higher shelves (it won’t be long before that includes me, by the way, as I already need help reaching the top shelf). I promise that I will never be that person at the deli counter who has to sample every fecking thing (which is better? the honey ham or the brown sugar ham? Gah! They are the same with a different wrapper!) before deciding that she just wants a quarter pound of the roast beef (same as last time!), while holding up a dozen hard working, tired wage slaves who just need to get a half pound of sliced turkey for their sandwiches for lunch.

I promise to ride public transportation an hour after the day shift has arrived at work³, even though it means I will be riding with the college students and the indigent. I will not take a seat from someone who will be on her feet all day standing at a check stand or serving food. Until I am unsteady on my pins I will surrender my seat to anyone who looks like they could use a break.

I will be the most considerate retiree ever. I won’t go to the post office during those same hours either. I won’t be walking my dog when the commuters are striding down the sidewalk⁴. You won’t catch me in the bank during those hours. I won’t be at the gym either. I’ll be there mid-day when there is no fighting over the recumbent bike. I’ll have lots of time to plan my outings, and I will take the working people into consideration when I do. I promise.

1. I intend to retire from my current job in approximately three years. I will not be old enough to collect social security, if any still exists, or my public employee retirement income (again, if any money is left in there), but I am still going to retire. And then look for a job, because how will I be able to feed myself and pay for my health care? The key is that I won’t be coming here anymore. Twenty years is enough.

2. A great time to do your grocery shopping is on Friday evening. People with social lives are out being social and the only real action at the grocery store is in the beer and wine section (or liquor section if you live in a state that allows that). Ain’t nobody in the breakfast cereal or baking aisles at that hour.

3. I ride the bus that goes to the hospital. Some years ago, in the very early hours of the morning, we pulled up to a stop downtown. Waiting at the stop was an old lady of the crazy variety. In her wheelchair. Now, don’t get me wrong, I firmly believe that everyone has the right to get on the bus – it is ‘public’ transportation after all – and that includes people who are less mobile than us fortunate ones with the full use of all of our limbs. Further, I am delighted at the variety of mechanical advancements the bus manufacturers design. Each one is better than the last! I will say, though, that it takes longer for a wheelchair to get on the bus than it does for someone walking. No big deal! So it takes longer, so what?! The only time it is an irritation is when you are trying to get to work, maybe running a little late, and you would just barely make it if it weren’t for that wheelchair rider. Sigh. Oh well. So, we pull up to the stop and the crazy old lady in the wheelchair wants to ride to the hospital. Of course she does. Never mind that it’s 6:30 in the morning and none of the clinics are open because, Hello, the workers are on the bus; she wants to go to the hospital and she has the right to get on the bus. So, the driver deploys the wheelchair device and she wheels onboard, takes a look at all of us in our scrubs and uniforms and work duds, she lets out a piercing cackle and cries aloud, “Taxpayers! Ha ha ha, taxpayers!” Yeah. Way to rub our noses in it. I promise to never do that.

4. I always, always, always, pick up after my dog. If you stepped in poop on the way to work, it wasn’t from us. I promise!

Perplexed at the Plethora

2011-02-08T16:29:00.000-08:00

What are they thinking? Have they done any market research or looked at the site? I don't think so. Here's what I'm talking about:

The main drag through inner NE Portland is Broadway. Broadway is one way, so it has a twin running the opposite direction, NE Weidler St. There are more businesses on the Broadway side than on the Weidler side, but certain areas of Weidler are very busy. One of the busy areas is just west of the Lloyd Center mall. There is a two block stretch - between NE 7th and 9th that is full of food choices. Or food-like choices, depending on your eating habits.

Actually, I should extend that just a bit and start from NE 6th, where we have McDonalds. One block later, Burger King. And here's where I am scratching my head.

On the corner of Weidler and 8th is Taco Bell. TB used to be next door to Kentucky Fried Chicken and across the street from Skippers. Well, KFC and Skippers closed up shop at this location ~ apparently because they weren't offering enough beans in their menu. The KFC spot is now occupied by a local Mexican food chain called Muchas Gracias. The Skippers site is now occupied by Chipotle. Yes, another quasi-Mexican food place! But, wait! There's more! On the very next corner, where there used to be a pizza place is now... wait for it... A MEXICAN FOOD PLACE! This one is called Qdoba. There is another downtown, so I'd have to guess that it's a chain as well. What gives? Why the plethora of Mexican food choices all crammed into this one area? I like Mexican food real well. It's one of my favorites. But, four similar menus in the space of two blocks? I don't know. It's overkill.

Besides, the smart diner is up on Alberta getting tamales at La Bonita. Autentico! Tan sabroso!

What do you think? Nice to have choices or overkill?

PS: Gager ~ is this thing working?

At least I make myself laugh...

2011-02-01T09:14:00.000-08:00

I was on the bus early this morning and somewhere along 5th Avenue downtown I looked up and saw Mt Hood perfectly silhouetted between two of the 'president' apartment towers. The sun was coming up behind the mountain and the sky was just starting to glow pink.

I got out my phone to take a quick picture to share with you:

Yeah, that's right. Pointed the damn thing the wrong way and took a picture of myself and another random bus rider on the Number 8!

Go ahead and laugh! It's funny! I was laughing; still am.

Too Early!

2011-01-31T16:38:00.000-08:00

Ok, it's too early but who cares?!

I saw a daffodil in my neighborhood this weekend!!! And, the other day, when I was getting home from work, I was stopped in my tracks by the scent of a flower. It's not the daphne yet, far too early for that, but a shrub who's name escapes me at the moment. But, I was walking up the steps to the front door and caught a whiff of it on the breeze and stopped and breathed it in. Heavenly.

We have tulips and daffodils starting to poke their leaves out, and the neighbor's camellia is loaded with buds, and even though it's still January, here come the spring flowers.

Yay!

Top O' Downtown

2011-01-12T15:21:00.000-08:00

Have you been on the #8 bus lately? Or the Max Green line? Something is going on at the top of downtown!

My guess is that it is Portland State getting ever bigger. There were a few buildings in the block bounded by 5^th, 6^th, Jackson and College. I say ‘were’ because all that’s left now is the last remaining cute old house. Everything else has been knocked down and there are large excavations being dug all around.

You know what this means, right? Yes, the Portland Bartending Academy has been forced to move! In fact, I believe that I spotted their new facility the other day, but didn’t realize the significance until just this morning. Unless I’m mistaken, which could certainly happen, those studious future bartenders are no longer in the University district but are now across the freeway in a strip mall. I think they are now on SW Caruthers, but I will check that out and get back to you with a definite yea or nay.

So, what is PSU building now? I briefly checked their website and couldn’t find a page with Urban Domination as a header. They’re up to something, but it might take me awhile to find out just what it is… in the meantime, I’ll keep my eyes peeled for signs.

NFL Playoffs

2011-01-07T15:13:00.000-08:00

SEAHAWKS v SAINTS!

Look for us near the end zone, cuz we are going to the game!!!

Woot Woot!!

Seasonal Affective Disorder

2011-01-06T09:41:00.000-08:00

This may seem a little off topic, but not really. I mean, Portland in winter is DARK! And, I know that some of you feel the effects as much as I do. Besides, what's off topic in a blog like this anyway?! Nothing!

It’s not just the winter blues, it’s the winter blues on steroids. It’s the winter blues that have been working out and pumping iron and are coming after you. It’s the winter blues that take no prisoners.

Yes, I suffer from this disorder. It’s prevalent in the Pacific Northwest and in other places that are either very cloudy or very far north. Lots of research has been done in places like Norway. Go figure.

One of the therapies for SAD is the use of light. There are two main directions you can go with light therapy. One is the full spectrum light box that you sit in front of for a period of time every morning. Many people use this while having their morning coffee and reading the paper (or checking their Faceboob page). The other method is the dawn simulator lamp. I use both.

My wonderful, sympathetic, loving partner got me both types of lights for Christmas. What perfect gifts! We had two Christmas’ this year; the first with my daughter early in the month and then again with T’s family on the actual date. T gave me the light box on the first occasion and the dawn simulator lamp on the second.

I used the light box for a couple of weeks and while I couldn’t feel a dramatic difference I think it might have helped. The odds were not in favor of success, though. My kid had made a short visit and while it is always fantastic to spend time with her, the saying goodbye part leaves me down in the dumps for awhile. I’m still using the light every morning because… why not? Anything that will help seems like a good idea.

The dawn simulator lamp is the most wonderful, brilliant, inspired creation in the history of lamps! In the history of getting up early! I LOVE IT. For reals. I have been using it for two weeks and can give it a solid recommendation. It has already had a noticeable and positive effect on my mood. Brilliant! Pun intended!

Here’s how it works: you set the alarm for the time you want to get up – in my case 4:45 am. A half hour before that time the lamp turns on and starts gradually getting brighter and brighter. When it gets to the alarm time, it is at full brightness and it also makes sound. Mine is set to chirping birds! You can choose a buzzer or the radio as well, but the birds are charming. I begin to wake up about 10 or 15 minutes into the cycle but don’t feel pressured to jump out of bed. By the time the lamp is at full brightness I feel ready to get up, although sometimes I’ll lie there for a few minutes listening to the chirpy birds (who, by the way, get louder and louder).

The only downside to the miraculous lamp is if you have a bedmate who gets up after you and can’t sleep through it. Fortunately for me, T sleeps through most things and even if the light bothered her she wouldn’t want me to stop using it. When I get up, I prop up a couple of pillows to shield her face from the light. The first couple of times I turned the lamp off when I got up, but that just made the darkness feel more oppressive. Now I leave it on while I take my shower and only turn it off after I am dressed and ready to go downstairs.

I have definitely noticed an improvement in my depression and I feel confident in saying that it is a direct result of the dawn simulator lamp. I should have bought one years ago, but I have one now. If you suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, I highly recommend that you get one of these. Best money spent on mental health ever!

Holiday Greeting Cards

2010-12-21T09:46:00.000-08:00

Does anyone send holiday greeting cards anymore? Also known as Christmas cards? Do you?

I remember when Lisa lived with us and between her set of friends and acquaintances and mine we had dozens and dozens of cards. Not a day would go by in December without a card or several in the mailbox. I have a box of small, gold colored paper clips that I used to string together and pin up along the wainscoting. We would hang the cards along this shiny garland. In the heyday of cards we would have the whole living room swagged with holiday greetings.

This year, I have received five so far. Five. Sadly, one of them is from the store where I bought my bike! It's pretty, though, so I'm keeping it up. There are too few to string up the paperclip chains so they are sharing the mantel with some other decorations. There's plenty of room for the five of them! In the old days, only the photo cards were on the mantel.

In case you were going to ask, yes, I did send out cards. Not as early as Miss Georgiana, whose card arrived the day after Thanksgiving, but early-ish in the month.

Is this just a thing of the past? Are the days of sending cards made of paper through the postal service over? If so, that's kinda sad. It's a holdover from the time before email. It's hard to display an e-card on the mantel.

Sparkle Plenty

2010-12-15T08:40:00.000-08:00

No, I’m not talking about our cat, or the Dick Tracy character, or the chandelier cleaner. I’m talking about holiday sparkle lights! Also known as twinkle lights, or fairy lights if you hail from the UK. Or, I suppose, Christmas lights.

I don’t refer to them as Christmas lights because I keep mine up year round. I use them in lieu of a porch light. They are cheerful and colorful and keep the dark at bay in a very pleasant way.

What is the purpose of lights? A rhetorical question, yes, but with a point. The purpose of lights is to dispel the dark. Why do we put up colorful, sparkly lights in the depths of winter? To remind ourselves that the light will return and the dark will diminish. That is the source of many ancient winter traditions that persist to the present day under the guise of religion.

I used to take the lights down at the end of the holiday season, but then I kept stretching the season further and further until it snapped. I always left them up until the spring equinox. It just felt sacrilegious and a little like tempting fate to take them down too soon. And, after a while I thought, well, why am I taking them down at all? They are pretty and they make me happy, so I’m leaving them up!

Several years ago Lisa’s friend Cindy was visiting. I think it must have been in February or early March. We picked her up from the airport in the evening and as we rounded the corner onto our street, she piped up, laughing, and said, “There’s someone who can’t let go of the season!” We grinned as pulled into the driveway. She was embarrassed but I reassured her that almost everyone found my attitude about lights irritating.

As December unfurls more lights are coming on all over the neighborhood. My across the street neighbor put his up on Thanksgiving weekend – yay Mr Denson! House by house the street grows brighter and more cheerful as the days grow shorter and darker.

I’ve only got my usual porch lights on so far, but this weekend I’ll get out there and string more up on the house and in the shrubbery. Bring on the extension cords!

How about you? Do you have any sparkle lights up?

Downtown views

2010-11-30T14:08:00.000-08:00

So, it's dark out there before 7am. You may not have noticed that, since few people get up as early as I do. Oh, I'm not complaining (much). At least, not about your habit of sleeping later than me. My point, and I do have one, is that it's hard to observe a lot of the changes that happen in our fair city when you can't see it because it's too dark. Or too rainy.

However! Traveling up the newly reformatted transit mall on the old Number 8, I can make out a few indistinct shapes in the gloom. One thing I have seen and think is pretty cool is a coffee stand. I can just hear you now ~ Wow! A coffee stand! In Portland, of all places! Ok, ok, quit with the sarcasm. It's not that there is a coffee stand, it's the stand itself that caught my eye.

Do you remember those curvy, mushroom shaped bus shelters that spoke so eloquently of the '70's?

By the '90's, most were closed up and vandalized with just a few left functioning along the bus mall. In the past decade they have almost all been replaced by the new variety of streamlined, hi-tech style bus shelters.

Well, along 5th Avenue, between Madison and Jefferson (I think) is one of the old bus shelters that has been converted to a coffee stand. It looks quite cozy and cheerful! The funny thing is, I think it was moved to this location expressly to be a coffee stand. I don't think it was there before. At any rate, I can't locate it on Google street view at its current location. Interesting, no? Yes, I thought so too. This might need some further investigation!

Sometimes we are out and about

2010-11-15T08:07:00.000-08:00

Blue Sky Gallery, on the North Park Blocks. What a fantastic installation!

Photo courtesy: tlc

Observations from the commute

2010-11-10T10:32:00.000-08:00

Ok, it's dark out when I go to work, but I do catch a glimpse of a few things. Most recently, the absence of a thing.

Do you remember the auto shop parking lot in old town, on the corner of 5th and Glisan? It's kitty-corner across from the back of the Greyhound bus terminal. Directly across from a homeless shelter. I believe that it has changed owners and apparently the new owners are not *art* lovers. Or, they needed the space.

Missing from the lot is a large (and by large I mean about 15 to 20 feet tall) metal sculpture of a hand. Reaching skyward, was it beseeching the heavens for alms? Was it showing us the way? Come to think of it, what the hell shape was it in? My first thought was that it was reaching upwards, then I thought no, it was a fist. Now I think it might have been an 'a-ok'. Frustratingly, I can't find a picture of it on the interwebs. Why don't one of you faithful readers refresh my memory... one of the two of you ought to remember! Please comment!

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Blog Blast for Peace

2010-11-04T08:53:00.000-07:00

Dona Nobis Pacem

From my family to yours...

We Like Our Bikes!

2010-11-03T08:08:00.000-07:00

Helen Meets Mr Darcy

Our friend Chris rode her new bike over last weekend to watch some football with us. Look how pretty Mr Darcy is! He and Helen look very well together! That's Helen on the right, with the basket.

They both have the green/brown color scheme and are very close in color.

We like our bikes! Well, in my case it's love...

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Update from Hawthorne

2010-11-01T14:09:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update to let you know that the new New Seasons market on Hawthorne has opened. Instead of going with the model used by Whole Foods in the Hollywood District, ie: retail on the ground floor and several floors of condos above; the new New Seasons went with the old Fred Meyer model, ie: retail on the ground floor and parking on the roof. But, wait! I can hear your cries of outrage already! What about a green roof?!?! I mean, this is Portland, people!

I’ll have to examine this further. I can’t tell what they are doing with their runoff water. But, by gum, I’ll find out.

Oh, and I haven’t actually been in the store yet. They do claim to be the friendliest alternative grocery store in town though, so maybe they won’t mind my urgent questions about green roofs too terribly much.

I’ll let you know, because you shouldn’t have to wait with bated breath for too long.

The Ol' Number 8

2010-11-01T10:24:00.000-07:00

I rode the bus to work today. No, that is not headline worthy news, it’s just that it’s been a while, a long while, and I noticed something that I thought I would share with you all. I see that as part of my job.

The route has changed! Yes, it still goes to the Hill. But it gets there a different way and I was not prepared for that.

My guess is that the route change is related to the new Green line Max that goes to PSU. I think that stirred up a few changes on the downtown transit mall.

So, cut to the chase already!

Back in the days of yore, the number 8 would come up the transit mall on 5^th, turn right on Jefferson, and left on Broadway (A pointless aside: it used to turn on Clay). It would pass Portland State and continue up the street, crossing the 405 freeway and slipping downhill two or so blocks to turn right on 6^th (which becomes Terwilliger).

Now, the new route goes up 5^th ALL THE WAY TO THE FREEWAY! AND THEN ACROSS IT! I know! It’s astounding! After crossing the freeway, the bus bears to the left where 5^th, Broadway and Barbur are all muddled together, and then turns right on Carruthers. It goes one block and then turns left on 6^th and motors on up the hill.

I realize that this bus route change is insignificant in any measure of, well, anything, but never let it be said that the Portland Report wasn’t staying on top of the insignificant.

No squirrels or goats were observed on this ride. Probably because it was dark out.

Language

2010-10-20T14:12:00.000-07:00

I hate the word 'webinar.' I get that it's a portmanteau of web and seminar, and that it might be more efficient to say one word rather than two, but I still hate it. It just sounds uncomfortable.

What words bug you?

Visual evidence!

2010-10-13T09:00:00.000-07:00

So, you think I'm making up these marvelous stories, eh, Mr RR? Check out these photos from The Oregonian:

Yes, those are goats!

I read the story today (10/13/10) in The Oregonian, front of the Metro section. As I was reading it I thought, I wonder if RR reads the local rag in addition to his east coast paper? I had been at work about an hour when I received a telephone call from the man himself confirming that he had read the paper and had to concede that, yes, this shit is true!

Remember, you saw it here first! The Portland Report is ahead of the curve, people! We are on the street, checking out our little slice of heaven and reporting back to you, our faithful readers.

Today's commute

2010-10-01T13:08:00.000-07:00

I took a different route to work this morning. I'm glad I did! It wasn't a great commuting route, but it gave me a big smile.

I was heading east on SE 11th towards Madison and the Hawthorne Bridge. I passed Morrison and Belmont, and along that stretch before Madison there is a vacant lot. Actually, it might be an entire block. I think there was a warehouse there a few years ago that burned down. You know, by Grand Central.

Anyway, it's a vacant lot now and full of weeds and grass and blackberries. As I rode by, some movement caught my eye. I looked over and there was a flock of goats noshing on the grass and weeds! Little pygmy goats, at least a dozen of them, maybe as many as twenty.

Nice!

I've heard of goats for clearing land before, but I've never seen any in Portland. And, man, we can use them on the blackberries!

Go little grazers, go!

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How to use Google Reader

2010-10-01T13:05:00.000-07:00

Do you ever log onto the computer, open up the internet, look at your favorites list and think, “I wonder if anyone has posted something new on their blog? But, I don’t want to go through and check every single one! I wish there was a way to see just the updated ones…” Well, there is a way! It’s called Google Reader.

Oh, one thing before we get started. I’m using Google Chrome, and I suggest that you do as well. All of these directions are for Google Chrome.

Do you have a Gmail account? Get one. Just go to Google and create an account. It’s easy and if you don’t know how, call me and I’ll walk you through it. Once you have your account, open up Gmail. Under the very top toolbar, there is a space with various Google applications; Calendar, Web, etc. One of these is Reader. Go ahead and click on it! It opens up a new window.

On the new screen, right under the colorful “Google reader” in the upper left corner, there is a button that says, “Add a subscription.” When you click on it, it opens a box where you type in the url (address) of the blog you want to follow. You can follow blogs from blogspot or wordpress, or any other blog host. If the blogspot blogs you read have a ‘follow’ button, clicking on that will automatically put that blog in your reader.

Now that you have a blog or two entered into your reader, close it up. Tomorrow when you do your daily email check, click on Reader in the top tool bar. It pops open and if there is a new post on one of the blogs that you follow, it will open in the reader window. You can either read the post there, or click on the name of the blog and it will take you there – convenient for commenting!

Google reader can do many other things, but this is a handy tool for quickly browsing fresh content on the blogs you love… like mine!

I swear I thought I saw...

2010-09-29T15:21:00.000-07:00

a squirrel riding a raft down the Willamette River yesterday. A little raft, just a squirrel sized raft. No paddle, no sail, just a couple of pieces of wood lashed together.

I wonder; where was he going?

September is Bike Commute Challenge!

2010-09-23T08:06:00.001-07:00

I participated last year, but this year I am committed to riding 100% of the month. I rode about half of July and all but one day in August, and so far I have ridden every work day in September. I was wavering one morning last week when the rain was pouring down but one of my coworkers texted me and asked if she could ride with me. What could I say? “Meet me at Multnomah and 16th.” And off we went into the watery world of the Pacific Northwest.

Here are just a few observations from my ride.

I don’t wear makeup and it’s a good thing. The morning of the downpour I reached up to wipe the streaming rain off my chin and could feel the moisturizer running down my neck.

It’s good to wear contacts in the rain. Without windshield wipers for your glasses, it’s a pretty blurry ride.

Men don’t have enough opportunities to wear skin-tight clothing. The fully outfitted, spandex-clad gear heads make up a large part of the biking public around here. I have noticed that men particularly like to wear those full-on bike outfits; you know the ones, with the sport logo jerseys and the skin-tight pants. When they are walking their bikes through a pedestrian area, they can often be seen stroking their legs and prancing just a little. I believe that they like the feel of their legs encased in smooth, clingy fabric. If men were ‘allowed’ to wear clingy fabrics in their every day lives, they would be more likely to bike in ordinary clothes.

I love my bike. Love, love, love my bike. LOVE. MY. BIKE!

My bike is the most elegant thing I own. I don’t wear elegant clothes; I don’t drive an elegant car… when you look at me you are more likely to think ‘practical’ rather than elegant. But my bike, ahh, she is lovely. I’ve named her Helen M*rren because she is elegant, beautiful and tough (and sessy!). She is a Trek Allant, the green women’s version. She has two full fenders, which are essential in this climate. She came with a frame for a front basket and I have found one that suits her just right. My mom is going to give me her collapsible rear baskets but I am hesitating to put them on because I don’t want to mar her beauty. I will put them on eventually though. It’s that practical side of me coming out.

I feel strong when I stand up and pedal. I feel strong and young(ish) and urban. I thought it would be terrifying to ride in downtown traffic but it is not. I feel quite capable and savvy wheeling through the city streets.

I love going fast and taking a corner leaning into the angle. Well, as long as there is not too much gravel on the street.

I wear my helmet all the time, even though I would really rather not.

I don’t think I have lost any weight, dang it, but my thighs are definitely thinner. Those little pouchy saddlebags on the sides are dwindling.

I am kind of a slow rider; I rarely pass anyone. But that’s ok with me. I’m not training for the Tour d’France.

Idiots

2010-06-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

We spent a pleasant hour this morning counter-protesting the idiots from Westb*ro Baptist Church. They were picketing at Grant high school and I'm not taking that lying down. What a bunch of lunatics! All they've done is mobilize the sane people to take a stand against them. And, just before Pride!

My camera is misbehaving lately, so I only have a blurry phone picture. I'm gonna look for some pictures online, because Portland can be pretty colorful when it comes to gay protests.

That's me with the sign saying, "Don't be a HATER".

April 19

2010-04-19T10:15:00.001-07:00

Today is my daughter’s birthday. She is 26! She is a beautiful, intelligent, compassionate, lovely person. I miss her every single day.

I don’t get to see her today so instead I am going to have dinner with my parents and we’ll toast her on her special day and bemoan the fact that she doesn’t live closer. I’m going to visit her in early May and I can’t wait.

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl! I love you more than all the rain in the Pacific Northwest; more than all the soybeans in Iowa; more than all the fruitcake in California! You are the best thing about my life.

XOXOXOXOOXOXOX
Love,
Yr mama

Sandy Boulevard

2010-04-01T09:49:00.000-07:00

Dear Readers ~ please accept my apologies for abandoning you for so long! Tempus keeps fugiting, ever faster, and blog posts go unwritten. Sigh. I’ll try to do better!

What prompted me to sit down and put fingers to keyboard is the insanity that the city has undertaken at the complicated intersection of E Burnside, Sandy Boulevard, and 12th. It’s always been difficult and has needed some tweaking, but the tweak is going too far!

First, you have to understand that this intersection is part of the famed “Secret Back Way” to get from close in East side to the southern end of downtown (or, in my case, my place of employment). To throw a wrench into my commute is beyond aggravating. Nobody asked how I felt about this!

Work on the project started some weeks/months ago, but we just figured they were working on the sewer project ~ which seems to happen all over Portland, all the time. We didn’t think anything about it when they installed a concrete divider between the east and west bound lanes of Sandy; that just seemed like a safety precaution. We became slightly suspicious when large lighting/signal poles went up. Before we knew it, the street was blocked off and detour signs steered us away from our accustomed path. We still thought it was temporary. And then we discovered that they were closing Sandy permanently! No!

I’m not sure how this is going to work out long term. On the west bound route, one must now turn right onto Couch, left onto 12th, and then right onto Sandy or Burnside. In the east bound direction, one may turn right onto Burnside or left onto 12th. If we choose the right, we need to go either a couple of blocks up and make a left and work our way back to Sandy, or go up to 20th and turn left. Unfortunately, 20th is usually jam-packed during commute hours. If we choose to turn left at the intersection, we can go up 12th past Benson high school and either turn right on Irving or cross the freeway and take the swooping street behind Lloyd Center and turn right on Multnomah. It’ll take a little getting used to, that’s for sure.

I had planned to do a series of posts about Spring unfolding in the Northwest, but I got sidetracked by daily life. I still have plenty to write about in the floral realm, but there are other topics that beckon as well. Hang in there with me! I’m getting back on track!

From the Northern reaches of the Realm

2010-02-01T12:39:00.000-08:00

I drive out to the St John’s neighborhood three times a week and am pretty familiar with the goings on along my route. Well, I try to pay attention to my surroundings anyway. So, Saturday, as I drove through the Overlook neighborhood, I noticed that the long established tavern on the corner of Greeley and Killingsworth had changed its name. For as long as I can remember it has been Yorgo’s. How could one not remember that name?! It’s just different enough that it sticks in the brain. I invented a big Greek family to run the place, because whether or not the name is Greek, it sounded like Greek to me.

Last year Oregon passed a law requiring bars and taverns to be smoke free. That meant that all the bars and taverns that had diehard smoker clientele built little covered patios for their patrons. This happened at Yorgo’s, like everywhere else, but it seems to have been the beginning of the end. They only finished that patio a couple of months ago, and now, BOOM. New name!

And, how’s this for uninspired: Greeley Avenue Bar and Grill. The thing that’s funny to me about the name is that the tavern is actually on Killingsworth rather than Greeley… but no one wants to saddle their place with a name that is synonymous with the ghetto. Lots of bad stuff has gone down on Killingsworth over the years, and even though this is in a completely different neighborhood, the folks in charge of picking a name went with the safer choice. And who can blame them?

There has been a fair bit of gentrification in this neighborhood over the last few years. Believe me when I say that the sushi place would never have lasted a decade ago. But, the US headquarters for Adidas are down the street and that has to bring lots of lunch money to the hood. A girl that my daughter went to high school with lives directly behind the former Yorgo’s. Their family has been in that house for years. I wonder whether they like the changes or not.

Floral Report

2010-01-29T11:53:00.000-08:00

We have had freezing temperatures, ice, snow, wind, and rain, rain, rain. Even though we are in an El Nino pattern, we have been getting plenty of rain. I mention it only because when you have a “water intrusion” as the building trades like to call it (aka a leak), you do notice the unremitting rain.

However, all is not dreary and gray! No indeed, with the above average temperatures that El Nino brings, we are starting to see early spring flowers popping up. I should be worried about them; they should be worried about themselves. It’s really too early to be bursting into bloom. February is known around here as the ice storm month for good reason. But, I am so happy to see them!

In my yard, the winter blooming jasmine is sporting sunny yellow flowers. OK, it’s a winter bloomer, not a sign of early spring, but I love it anyway. Cheers for the jasmine! Thanks for the joy!

My neighbor’s yard is rife with daphne, and they are just starting to send out their heady fragrance. Do you like the smell of daphne? It reminds me of Froot Loops cereal, so sweet!

There are bulb-borne flowers starting to push out of the ground, strong, sturdy, sword-like leaves are cleaving their way through the soil. Tulips, hyacinths, daffodils.

Even the hydrangea is showing new leaf buds on its winter scarred branches. I wasn’t sure we’d get any hydrangeas after that cold snap and snow storm. It is such a fibrous plant that it dies right back in the cold. Ours seems to have survived.

Some planting guides suggest that we can put peas in the ground now (snow peas, I’d guess), but I’m going to wait just a little longer for that. That would be tempting fate, tempting the weather gods just a little too much.

What are your favorite spring flowers? What’s blooming in your yard or neighborhood?

Hawthorne update

2010-01-08T11:02:00.001-08:00

Drove by the now empty lot on Hawthorne where the Daily Grind used to be. I'm happy to report that it will not be a condo tower. There is some signage on the chain link fencing indicating that New Seasons will build a grocery store there.

OK, this is kinda crazy. It was an independent hippie grocery store and it's being replaced by a chain hippie grocery store. Hmmm.... AND, it's just a few blocks from a Fred Meyer. I guess I don't need to know how these things work. At least it's New Seasons, which is a pretty good small chain. They treat their employees well and the prices are not as astronomical as that other chain ~ Whole Foods, also called Whole Paycheck because that's how much you can spend if you shop there.

Oh, and speaking of Whole Foods, I just had a thought. It might be built on the model of the Whole Foods that is going in on Sandy Boulevard in the Hollywood District. Massive, upscale, expensive grocery store on the bottom (and a bank), with condos above.

We shall see!

Just the shell remains

2010-01-07T14:56:00.000-08:00

I drove over to the parents house on Tuesday afternoon. Went down NE 27th to Knott. On 27th between Tillamook and Thompson is the shell of an old house. I'm not sure but it looks like it might have burned.

It looks as if it is being taken apart carefully. Maybe one of these 'deconstruction' companies it taking it apart to reuse the materials. I hope so.

I'm going to have to go back that way and take a longer look. I was in a hurry on Tuesday and couldn't even slow down, let alone stop and look. And, I'll bring my camera because I keep hearing from one of my readers that pictures would add a nice touch to this blog...

Buildings Come Down

2009-12-28T10:08:00.000-08:00

It’s been awhile, faithful readers, and I apologize for that. Life is distracting, what can I say.

But! Yes, I have two things to bring to your attention over here on the east side. Both are buildings and both are coming down. Different neighborhoods, different methods.

First, over in southeast on Hawthorne. The Daily Grind, the hippy health food store is no more. The store has actually been closed for a couple of years now ~ sorry if that is distressing news to those of your far away. The empty shell of the formerly bustling business saw chainlink fencing go up a couple of weeks ago, and then last week the bulldozer started. Yes, they are knocking the whole damned thing down. Well, it’s an entire block on upper Hawthorne, and that’s gotta be worth a fair bit of change. I suppose we’ll see more mixed use condo/retail going in… sigh. The last one of those that they put in on upper Hawthorne is hideous. Just plain ugly.

Second, right in my home neighborhood! Yes, smack dab in the middle of Sullivan’s Gulch, well, more like on the boundary of Sullivan’s Gulch, in fact, leaning over the gulch itself. An old brick building, long suspected of being a drug lab by my darling daughter, began its slow descent this month. According to the infallible local tv news, a water main under the building broke during that brutally cold snap we had in mid December. Once things thawed out the broken pipe washed away the land under the foundation and the side of the building sagged down an unexpected few feet. Now, if you are trying to picture this place, it’s on 21st, right after you cross the Banfield and before Multnomah. That very first block if you are traveling northbound on 21st.

The building has housed a number of businesses over the years but has been vacant for quite some time. I can’t remember what the last business was. Was it the oriental rug place or was that next door? Anyway, it was vacant when it started falling into the Gulch. Of course, they can’t leave it that way, and since it is on a fairly busy street and over the railroad it must be dealt with. They’ve been working on it from 21st, blocking the street, and reaching over the guard rail to pull parts of it off and up. It’s a mess. It looks pretty old, all unreinforced brick.

There is something embarrassing about a building with one side torn off. Like we are seeing it unclothed. There’s no business going on, no personal stuff exposed, it just feels rude and voyeuristic to see its parts on display like that. Poor old building. I hope the bricks are salvaged.

That’s it. That’s all I’ve got for now… Happy Holidays and here’s to a great New Year!

Downtown Project

2009-12-10T13:29:00.000-08:00

I believe that I have mentioned the city lot bounded by 4th, 5th, Market and Mill Streets, downtown. It has been a parking lot for a very long time but things are moving now. Some months ago they started tearing down the existing “structure” which consisted of a retaining wall. I’m oh-so-happy to report that they took care to leave and even protect the venerable, large tree that was on the site. I believe it is a copper beech, but I could be wrong there. They have begun building a new wall. Well, more accurately, they have built the new retaining wall, and it’s much shorter, and they have begun facing it with stone. Above the top of the wall the ground slopes upward to the surface. From the corner of 4th and Market that is quite a slope since the street is dropping away in that direction. At the corner of 5th and Mill, there’s just a small rise.

In the slope, on the downhill side, they have set many large, tubular pieces of either steel or rigid black plastic. These are dug into the side of the slope. They look to be about 4 or 5 feet across, and several feet deep at the high end. I can’t tell if they are intended to be planting holes, or if they are a step in another construction piece. There are too many to be air vents for an underground parking garage, I think. If they are for planting, they are really large, which would indicate the planting of trees… that’s my take, anyway. I’ll try to get a picture of them to show what I mean. Maybe one of you has an idea about their purpose?

Probably if I had the time to read the newspaper more thoroughly I would know what the heck they are doing there... bring on the retirement!

Pink Glove Dance

2009-12-02T12:03:00.001-08:00

Maybe you've already seen this little video... I hope so!

This was created and filmed across town from my place of employment. We don't have this much fun up here on the Hill.

Back but not Ready

2009-12-01T14:21:00.000-08:00

I took the week of Thanksgiving off work. It was the November birthday week in my family and what with birthdays and the holiday it just seemed like a good time to be at home. Now, however, I’m back at work and struggling to give a shit.

During the week I hardly logged on to the computer. Didn’t check my facebook page, didn’t read my usual blogs, barely checked my email and then only on the crackberry. I pretty much went without the electronics for a week. It was fine. The earth did not stop spinning. Amazing!

Coming back to work after time off is hard. It’s been a slog lately and the break was very welcome. I did ok yesterday, Monday, but today I really don’t feel like being here. I’m restless, and alternating between bored and antsy. I’d like to get out of the office and walk home, but I need to be here and I don’t have the time for that long of a walk today. Instead, I’m looking out the window at the rare winter sunshine. People are calling and emailing with issues and problems and I just can’t find the energy or interest to care. That sounds bad, I know. I also know that it will pass, eventually.

Public Transportation

2009-11-12T08:07:00.001-08:00

I have started a dozen blog posts but been unable to finish anything. So, to give myself an encouraging boost, I’ll keep this short and reach the end.

I’ve written before about the trials and tribulations of the bus commute. One of my pet peeves is with people who let their stuff occupy a seat while other people stand. Yesterday afternoon a guy reached a new, unheard of depth in seat hogging.

He was sitting in the aisle seat and left the window seat next to him vacant. Typical. I walked down the aisle, drippy from the rain, breathless from running to catch the #77, and saw an empty pair of seats in front of this guy. As I reached the vacant spot, I saw that there was a backpack and a pair of gloves lying there. I looked back to the front of the bus, thinking that maybe the passenger who was talking to the driver was coming back to this seat. No. The guy in the seat behind reached over and picked them up. He was using four seats! Four! One for his lazy ass and three for his stuff! Argh! It’s public transportation, buddy, not your personal coach service. Jerk.

Temperatures Falling

2009-10-09T09:29:00.000-07:00

The temperature has dropped and so has the number of “travelers” camped along the waterfront. Last week they were spread out like a giant slumber party and this week they are gone. Not all, of course, there are some who are sticking it out in the mist and drizzle and low temps.

Under the Burnside Bridge was a popular spot. The city has built a new venue for the Saturday Market. I’d offer up a review of the space but I think I should visit it first. I can tell you a little bit about the part along the waterfront. There is a large open area with a glass cover. In this area and an adjacent circular area there are water features. These are not fountains in the sense of a bowl of water with some cascading tiers. These are the kind of water features that have jets at the ground level and shoot water up in varying displays. I believe that they designed this so that the homeless wouldn’t camp under the glass cover. I will visit the Saturday Market sometime this fall and get back to you about the rest of it.

Another popular camping spot is on the east side of the Steel Bridge, just south of the Rose Quarter transit center. If you are familiar with the area you’ll know that there is a series of paths and view points along the walkway to the bridge. One of these viewpoints was claimed by a group of homeless with lots of luggage. They kept their goods and chattels bundled up and stowed neatly in the overlook. One of the group would always be hanging out with the stuff in the afternoons; presumably the others were off making a living somewhere. They haven’t actually left the area, but they don’t sleep on the overlook anymore. They’ve moved up hill to be under the trees. I guess it’s just too cold on the exposed viewpoint.

I didn’t intend to write a blog post about the homeless in Portland. I was thinking more about the changing seasons but the tides of humanity reflect the weather here. It’s pretty mild in Portland but it does get cold and it certainly gets wet. We are coming to the season when they all move to California.

I was going to write about trees. You know how I love trees! The color change has begun. The native deciduous trees tend to be yellow or brown. Alders, maples – both vine maples and big leaf maples - oaks. We get the dramatic colors from the fancy fureigners. Outside my window at work is one – I can’t tell you what it is (until I walk over and check it out) but I can tell you that it is glorious. It is a ball of bright yellow and pale green. It is some days ahead of the trees around it, as far as changing color. On some streets in the neighborhood there is one tree that leads the pack and stands out in luminescent splendor. My street hasn’t started yet, but by next week I think we’ll see some color busting out. And after that, the yards, sidewalks and streets are filled with leaves. The raking season is just around the corner. More on that soon, no doubt.

Do you have a favorite tree? Are things starting to look like Autumn in your neighborhood?

Bicycle Buzz

2009-10-01T11:51:00.000-07:00

I have two things to say about the biking.

1) I took a different route home on Monday afternoon. Mostly I took a different route through downtown so that I could observe more of what’s happening in PDX ~ all the better for my reportage. Instead of turning by Terwilliger Plaza and taking 4th through downtown, I went down 6th instead. Thought I’d get a good view of the new Max Green line and see what changes have been made on the bus mall.

Well, that didn’t work so well. The Max tracks are a huge hazard to bicycles and when you are traveling parallel to them, it’s nerve wracking. I could hardly take my eyes off the damn things! I had to get off my bike and walk across them to get off 6th. I turned down SW Market St just to get away from the tracks. Originally, I intended to ride to Salmon and get on the waterfront that way, but I had to escape the hazard and turned right by St Mary’s academy. I took Market down to Second and turned left there. Second is like an alley in size and in repair. Actually, the streets downtown are in terrible shape and it’s a nightmare riding on them.

I will add just one small note of commentary here. This isn’t new but I saw it again and was reminded of how irritating it is: There is a clock by the fountain in the plaza at PSU. The plaza between 5th and 6th, Montgomery and Mill. On the clock are Roman numerals. Now, maybe I’m wrong but I think the number 4 is written IV, not as it appears on the clock, IIII. That bugs me every time I see it. Didn’t anyone proof the design before it was cast in steel?

2) Wednesday was wet! I made it to work fine, dry and cool. On the way home, though, ugh. It rained periodically throughout the day but the afternoon was “supposed” to be clear. Ha! I looked out the window at work about quarter after 3 and thought, I’d better get out of here before it rains. So, I clocked out, got my bike, rode down the elevator and by the time I got to the door, pouring!

I had a choice at that point. Get on my bike and ride or wait to see if it would stop. A toss up. I chose to ride, figuring that I was just going to get wet and so what. I had my raincoat on and that helped some, but my glasses were really wet, my thighs were wet and my butt was wet. The funny thing? By the time I got to the bottom of the hill the rain stopped. Oh well! So, most of me dried out as I rode home… except for my butt. I don’t have fenders on my bike and I don’t have rain pants. I’ll be checking those things out real soon. Maybe you’ve noticed, as you tool along in your car, all warm and dry, that bicycles kick up water from their tires. Well, if you don’t have a fender, all of that water goes right up your back in a dark, oily stripe. Yuck! My raincoat and backpack kept it off my back but my seat area was definitely wet.

I don’t know how much riding I’ll manage to do during the rainy months. It depends on how much I want to invest in gear for me and the bike. I have definitely been enjoying the ride though. It’s good exercise and my pants are fitting better.

The Portland Report reviews The Beach

2009-09-30T10:35:00.000-07:00

Last weekend the lovely T and I headed north and west to Long Beach. That’s right, north and west, not south and west. We spent the weekend on the Long Beach, Washington peninsula.

A number of people warned me ahead of time that there is nothing to do in Long Beach, that there is no excitement, no arcades, no boardwalk, no stuff. That’s ok! I’m not much of a shopper in the first place, and I rarely feel the need for commemorative t-shirts or coffee mugs to serve as tangible evidence that I have been somewhere. So, I don’t mind if there aren’t very many tourist shops on the peninsula, in fact, all the better.

We went after Labor Day, so the tourist population was decreased anyway. There are two stoplights on the Peninsula. One is a blinking red light so that hardly even counts. Suffice it to say, there was no traffic to speak of. We escaped Portland early enough on Friday to dodge most of the outbound rush.

We stayed in a cottage on the main drag. It was small but cute and the bed was extremely comfortable. A funny thing about hotels in Long Beach is that most of them are not on the water. A few of the newer ones are and have the coveted ocean view, but the majority are along the main road or in little forest clearings. I didn’t see any that had the kind of beach frontage where you open your sliding glass door and walk out onto the sand. Of course, there may be some that I missed. I wasn’t there to do a comprehensive lodging review. The cottages we stayed in are for sale but I’ve never been tempted by the life of an innkeeper.

Saturday morning was cloudy and cool but we went to the beach anyway. We’re Pacific Northwesterners! A little moisture isn’t going to keep us indoors! We walked probably a half a mile down the sand and then just sat and watched the breakers. Mostly, it was to give the old dog a rest. We decided that we need to invest in one of those collapsible water bowls that places like REI have. The dogs were thirsty but had to wait until we got back to civilization for a drink.

The sun broke through and the clouds burned off by about noon. By then we had gone back to the cottage, watered the dogs, had a quick pee, and set off again for points north. We went up the ocean side as far as we could and spent some time looking at houses and lots that were for sale. Despite the economy being in the toilet, the prices were out of our range. Saw some beautiful lots with ocean views but 200K is not within our budget. While we were driving around we realized that we were in some kind of residential community. Not just a group of houses that are in the same vicinity, but the kind that requires memberships and dues. No thanks! That kind of thing puts me right off.

We fought our way free of the dreaded homeowners association neighborhood and headed over to the bay side of the peninsula. The Willapa Bay is beautiful! It’s huge, for one thing, and across the water are islands and mountains covered with fir trees. The sun was out and the water was sparkling. It was really lovely.

We drove around a little and found the charming town of Oysterville. It’s on the National Register of Historic Places and they are doing a great job of maintaining it.

It is easily the most appealing town on the peninsula but very small and, unless you own an oyster bed, there is no work at all. Well, I would guess that just about anyone could get a job shucking oysters but that doesn’t really appeal to me. We stopped at a cannery with a retail shop and bought a small container of extra small oysters. We also got their own special brand of breading mix and, for a snack, some smoked salmon spread. So Delicious!

After that T wanted to head back into town but I insisted that we go to the end of the peninsula. Insisted! I wanted to see the end before we turned around. Here is where I realized that my camera was back in the room – we found the road that went as far as it could and sure enough, it said END. It was Washington SR 103.

Actually, you can’t go to the end of the peninsula. It’s a combination of state park and national wildlife refuge. There are hiking trails, though, and we took the shorter loop which skirts along the snowy plover breeding ground and then turns back through the forest. We wanted to take the longer hike which goes across the peninsula, down the ocean beach for half a mile and then back across the peninsula, but we had the old dog with us and there was no way she could have made it. I, for one, was not up to carrying her back to the car. As it was, we stopped and rested several times so that she wasn’t too badly tired out. We got back to the car and loaded up the dogs and I was ready to say, yes, we’ve gone as close to the end as possible.

We ate dinner at two different places. One might have been called Castaways and should have been cast away. Not worth the money. Everything tasted like it had been fried in stale oil. Yuck. The other place, 42nd Street Café, was fantastic. We skipped the sea food – T had county fried steak and I had the pork tenderloin. So damned good! Even the salad dressings were better than usual. I highly recommend it if you are ever searching for a delicious meal in Long Beach Washington.

And speaking of delicious, did I mention that those oysters were outstanding?! We took them home, carefully packed in ice in the cooler, and T pan fried them. Yum. Double yum! No tartar sauce for me, just lemon juice. Holy smokes, my mouth is watering right now!

Sunday was spectacular. The sun was out and not a cloud to be seen. We went back to the beach for another short stroll. It was shorter than we intended because the younger dog is an idiot. She went racing up to say hi to a family, wouldn’t listen when we called her back, and scared the crap out of the people. Well, she is a Rottweiler, so she’s pretty scary when she’s running right at you. It was mortifying. They can’t know that she is obnoxiously friendly. Sigh.

We packed it up and headed out of town. Bought some smoked salmon and smoked tuna before we left and have that to look forward to. Stopped at one of the two lighthouses on our way down the peninsula. What an isolated life that must have been. Cold, damp, remote. Brr… people could easily go crazy in those places.

Just before we crossed the Astoria bridge I insisted on one more scenic detour. There was a sign for “Dismal Nitch” and honestly, how could I resist? It’s only a rest stop now, but it was a place where Lewis and Clark got stranded for a while and uh, they didn’t like it so much. It’s really just a wide spot between the water and the steep mountain behind it. On a bright sunny day it’s fine, but I guess I can imagine foul weather and no nice warm Toyota to sit inside… Again, no camera, so the picture is from the interweb.

We had a grand time and I would definitely go back to the Long Beach peninsula.

Downtown Update

2009-09-16T11:50:00.000-07:00

The Max Green line opened! Yay! This should be a great thing for people living in the further reaches of the metro area, to the north and east; and for anyone heading to PSU. This line runs from Clackamas Town Center to Portland State University. It opened this week and reportedly ridership is already quite high. Well, they tapped into a huge area so it should be filling right up.

The only thing I don’t like about it is the fact that 5th and 6th streets downtown are now nearly impossible to use in the car or on a bike. But, it’s a fair trade off to get all of those cars out of downtown so… I’m not complaining. Really.

Another tidbit of downtown observation: The long empty lot at 4th between Mill and Market streets is being developed. This is the lot bounded by St Mary’s school, St Michael the Archangel Church (site of R & N’s wedding), and the crazy, triangular high rise that B & K lived in briefly.

It has been a parking lot for years and years, and an odd one. The east edge of the parking lot is built up on a rock wall. It had a mysterious, boarded up doorway in the wall that looked like a portal to trouble. Last week a construction fence went up and this week the wall came down. The earthmovers are out there digging like mad. One really good thing: it looks like they are protecting the large, beautiful, copper beech tree that lives in the southeast corner of the lot. I don’t know what is planned for that block, but I hope that preserving the tree is part of the development.

One quick note about the bike commute: I rode down the Hill! It wasn’t as scary as I feared, of course. When I leave my building, the street drops quite sharply. I was riding my brakes down the hill, expecting to see smoke coming off them, but I was being passed by cyclists who were actually pedaling away. Wow! They must have been going 50 miles an hour! Not me, thank you very much. So, I got to the bottom in one piece, had to ride through part of downtown where there are no bike lanes, turned off 4th onto Salmon and rode out to the waterfront. From there, it’s the same commute home. Amazingly, it’s faster to ride down the hill and through downtown than it is to walk to and wait for the Tram.

That’s it for today folks! Hey, you see right below this text where there is a picture of a pen and the underlined words “0 comments”? If you click on the word comments, it opens up a little box where you can type a few words. Try it! I love comments! You can go back and read other people’s comments. It’s all part of the blogosphere…

Work related

2009-09-15T11:28:00.000-07:00

So, the question on my mind today is: can I stick it out?

I am so tired of my job! I am so tired of artificial emergencies, of deadlines that are so important that all other work must be suspended ~ and then when the deadline passes, and the work isn’t done, nothing happens. So tired of management that has so little grasp on the workings of the department. Tired of being delegated to and not having enough staff to pass the delegated work on to. Tired of the world of healthcare in general, and the school of medicine in particular.

Maybe I’m just tired.

I don’t actually hate my job. Most of the time it’s just a job. Nothing special but nothing odious. Lately there has been an increase in the amount of work for us to do, which happens to coincide with a decrease in staffing. Not that I would have gotten any satisfactory work out of The Malingerer, but I could have shunted some of it her way. Now, every team member is working full tilt every day. But, more new and complex stuff keeps landing on our desks.

I’m 50 years old. I have 15 years of service in at the Hill. My plan at this point has been to work until I am 55, when I will have 20 years in and then retire from the Hill and get a part time job with benefits doing something completely different. Of course, I’d rather retire and not go to a job at all, but I’m not sure that’s going to be doable. My IRA was pretty much wiped out last year and while I still have PERS and Social Security… I don’t know. It’s a scary prospect. Let’s see, if I saved a hundred dollars a month for five years and hid it under my mattress… yep, I’d still be broke when I retired.

The thing of it is, if I were to change jobs, I’d be taking home less money, contributing less money to my retirement, paying more for benefits and getting less… all in all, not a good choice. So, yeah, I’ll be sticking it out here. Not because I like it, but because I like having a job that pays the bills. In today’s economy, that’s pretty good.

But, I’m still tired of it.

Bike Commute Update

2009-09-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

I’ve done pretty well this week. I have ridden three out of four days; both directions. Whew!

I got a new seat for my bike, which is wonderful. It’s all wide and puffy and gel-filled (I’d say, just like my butt, except that I have a rather flat bottom – so, it’s more like my hips…). It makes a big difference. The next bike gadgets I will purchase are: a blinking reflector and a headlight. I had a headlight, the kind that has a little wheel that flips down onto your bike wheel and spins something inside and makes the lamp light up. I don’t know where it is, but if I can find it this weekend I’ll use it. Some things I would like to have but probably won’t invest in are: a bell, a rear view mirror and a basket. I’m leery of putting any money into a bike since I have had so many stolen. But, I’m going to a bike shop this weekend and who knows what I’ll leave with.

So, I’m pedaling along pretty steadily, but I have yet to pass another bicyclist. I probably never will. Sometimes I’m hard pressed to pass runners. Sometimes I see other riders like myself, you know, old, fat, out of shape, and they are cruising along at a much faster clip. I think it might be that the bike I’m riding is a “mountain” bike and might be geared lower. At least, I comfort myself with that thought. Yesterday, riding along the waterfront, there was a pretty good headwind blowing and I could really tell the difference. I was going slower than ever!

It’s still taking about the same amount of time to get home. I did figure out the time discrepancy that was bothering me last week though. It’s the danged Tram! Well, it’s the walk from my office to the Tram, waiting for the Tram, riding down the Tram, and then finally getting on my bike. It can easily be 15 or 20 minutes from my office to the street. I haven’t had the nerve yet to ride down the Hill. It’s really steep! I’m going to do it one of these days just to see if it is terrifying and to see how it affects my time. I’ll keep you posted!

One last thing: one morning this week I was just approaching the Steel bridge from the east side when the alarm sounded and the lights started flashing. The gates clanged shut and the lower section, the train track section, started going up. Ok, that’s not unexpected around here. There is plenty of shipping traffic on the Willamette. So I waited, and waited, and waited… a couple other bicyclists and pedestrians were waiting too. Eventually, all of the bike riders turned around and headed down the east bank to the Hawthorne bridge. As I was passing the Morrison a dredging barge came motoring down the river. It must have been up past the Ross Island bridge when they raised the Steel. Ridiculous! I was almost late for work! But, it did give me a chance to try out the east bank and the Hawthorne. I’m going to stick with the waterfront because it’s flatter.

Ok, that’s it for the bike update. A little long, thanks for bearing with me. In other news, the self defense class at Linfield College has started back up again and I have another great group of women. They are all very enthusiastic and willing to try stuff and are already hitting HARD! It’s going to be a great term.

Please feel free to comment… please!

A Beautiful Morning

2009-09-09T11:09:00.000-07:00

I rode my bike to work this morning and was rewarded with a spectacular sunrise. The sky was lit up with gold and orange and pink. As I rode along the waterfront, the river reflected the sky and the world was bathed in beauty. Mt Hood loomed dark against the coming morning, a sentinel overseeing eastern lands. I turned my head and saw the sunrise mirrored in the walls of glass downtown. Street lights flickered out, unable to compete with the dawn.

The sun followed the dramatic heralding, reaching under the low lying clouds. As it rose, the colors faded to white; day restoring vision to the ordinary. And, within minutes, it was a typical Northwest day, cloudy with a chance of showers. And tomorrow a chance at further glory.

Weekend Round-up

2009-09-08T14:28:00.000-07:00

I took Friday off so that I had a four day weekend instead of just three. Greedy? No. Just needed a break. But it wasn’t all spent lying on the couch ignoring the world. Here’s what went down:

Friday ~ errands and a little shopping. My friend Peg came over and did some errands with me. Mostly just so that we could chat. T’s friend Chris came over and installed a printer. I went out to Lewis and Clark with Katherine, Abi and Annie. We were teaching a self defense course there on Sunday and wanted to see the room and figure stuff out ahead of time.

Saturday ~ No classes! The school was closed for the weekend. So instead I did a bunch of laundry and various household chores. Didn’t feel obligated to get anything done, which is a rarity. Watched a couple of movies. Mall Cop, which was silly and innocent and Fight Night, which was poorly written and woodenly acted. Bought a new seat for the bike and T put it on for me. Super comfy!

Sunday ~ Futzed around during the morning. Went back to Lewis and Clark to teach from 2 to 5. We were supposed to have 100 incoming freshmen women but only got 35 signed up. Of those, about half showed up for the course. Our goal is that next year it will be a requirement for all incoming fresh(wo)men.

Monday ~ went to Home Depot for supplies and then came home and insulated the floor of the sun porch – where the hot tub lives. Yeah, that’s a lot of fun, crawling around under a building with fiberglass insulation. OK, I’m not complaining because T did most of the crawling and I did most of the cutting. It felt good to get it done before the temperatures drop. We also got some Tyvek up on the outside of the porch. We hope to have the siding completed within a couple of weeks. I want it to blend into the rest of the house and not stick out like a sore thumb… as it is currently doing.

Now I’m back at work. Almost done for the day and I haven’t even caught up on my blog reading! Z has started a new blog about buying a house, and my good friend RR has started yet another “pop culture” blog. I’ve got to add those to my list.

Tonight I am teaching a class about Intimate Partner Violence. Also known as domestic violence, spouse abuse, etc. It’s pretty grim, but if people have information about it maybe, just maybe it will help them recognize it and strategize ways of escaping. The class I’m teaching tonight is at my martial art school so we have a captive audience there. This is part of my apprenticeship. We reach more people when we teach in the community. It’s good practice, though. I am wishing that I had more time to prepare, but I'm sure it'll go just fine. Send me some luck!

Bike Update, etc...

2009-09-03T13:57:00.000-07:00

Ok, I rode home again yesterday. Two things:

1) My butt hurts! I need a new seat, for sure. One of those wide, padded, “lady” seats. Oh yes I do. I got off the tram yesterday, tucked my pant leg into my sock and swung my leg over the bike. OUCH! When I sat down, I stood right back up. I had to ride a couple blocks putting most of my weight on the pedals until my butt bones stopped complaining. I’m taking Friday off and I’ll be shopping for a comfy seat that day.

2) My timing is off. I said that it took me 40 minutes the first day, well, it took 50 minutes the second day and that just can’t be right. I didn’t wander around in Riverplace, AND I rode up that short steep hill – which has to be faster than walking, right? I’m not sure how my timing got all wonky, but I’m still hoping to shave ten (or twenty) minutes off my time. I hope to get home in half an hour. I think I’ll be able to eventually.

So, part of my ride along the waterfront goes by a hangout zone for the homeless. It’s just a pleasant part of the park a little distance away from the businessy part of downtown (close to the Steel Bridge, by the cherry trees, if you know where I mean). Yesterday there were several people sprawled around in the grass and sitting on the benches. I noticed that there were also lots of pigeons taking a little rest there as well. I wondered, do the homeless ever catch and eat pigeons? They are certainly plentiful (I mean the birds), and surely, surely, they taste somewhat like chicken. But, then, I’ve wondered the same thing about squirrels. Why aren’t hungry people eating them? I’ve never had squirrel before but in my imagination it is a lean, dark meat. I asked T what she thought about that and she said, “Why go to all that trouble when you can panhandle a dollar and go to Wendy’s for a crispy chicken sandwich?” She does have a point there.

In other news, the concert tickets that we won are for tonight. Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal at the Edgefield! Very much looking forward to it! Gates open at 5, general admission seating on the grass, so we’ll be there on time. Really, really hoping that the rain holds off until tomorrow!

I will try to get some blogging in over the weekend, but you know how I am about turning on the computer at home… I’d much rather take advantage of this super fast work connection. If I don’t hear from you, and I hope I do, have a great holiday weekend! And Lisa, rest up for next week!

Bike Commute Challenge

2009-09-02T14:35:00.000-07:00

Yay for me! I rode my bike home from work yesterday for the first time!

So, we’ve got this thing called the Bike Commute Challenge. Maybe it’s going on in your town? Maybe it’s just an Oregon thing… Different businesses compete to have the greatest percentage of employees riding their bikes to work during the month of September. I don’t think you win anything but bragging rights, and all of the actual benefits like better health, less pollution, etc.

For the past year and a half I have been carpooling with T. Since her last layoff, however, she has just been driving me to work and picking me up. I know, I know, how very wasteful that is! I have been talking about riding my bike to work but hadn’t gotten up the courage or motivation to do it. The bike challenge was the impetus I needed.

I had T drop me and my bike off yesterday and today. I feel ok about that. It cut the car commute in half. Next week I aim to ride both directions.

It’s only 5 miles from my house to my work, but it’s through the city, across the river and up a steep hill. Truth be told, I’m not doing the steep hill – not up or down it. Instead, I’m taking the tram up and down. It just feels safer and more doable for me. I made it home in 40 minutes yesterday, which is about 20 minutes faster than the bus. I know I’ll be able to shave a good 10 minutes off that time; I wasted a few minutes riding around one neighborhood looking for the bike path. Also, there’s one short but steep hill that my legs weren’t up to yesterday. It’s only 2 or 3 blocks long but I walked my bike up it yesterday. By next week I hope to ride the whole thing.

It really felt great to be getting home via my own power. Empowering! I’ve walked home before and that felt pretty good, too, but zipping along on my bike was great. And, the whole time I was pedaling I was thinking about how much better my pants would fit in a few weeks. I haven’t been working out for quite a while now and I have gained an unacceptable amount of weight and I just don’t feel good. This will definitely improve my physical and mental well-being.

The unknown so far is how the weather will affect my commute. Portland is known for the rainy weather, and it’s coming. I’m going to check out some rain pants and see if I can stick it out in the upcoming wet weather.

Wish me luck!

First off, I'd like to say

2009-09-02T13:56:00.000-07:00

Hello!

As you may remember, I had a blog on LiveJournal some time ago. I have pretty much abandoned it since no one ever read it and I didn't feel like blogging. But, lately I have had too many words rumbling around in my head and I have felt the need to write them down and ~~force~~ let others read them. Lucky you!

My intention is still to write about the East side of the Willamette River in beautiful Portland, Oregon. Occasionally, the west side will get a mention. Sometimes it will be work related, sometimes real estate, often it will be about my lovely neighborhood, Sullivan's Gulch. Expect me to wax on about flowers in the Spring; to grumble about rain in the Winter (Fall, and Spring); to marvel rhapsodically about the River; to mutter darkly about my employer.

I'm keeping the format simple so that I don't distract you with bells and whistles. There may be an occasional photo to illustrate whatever point I am making, but by and large, this will be a word place.

Feel free to bookmark this page and check back often. And, please comment! You know that I love a lively exchange! I will be taking a page from our good friend RR's book and emailing you all when I have something to post. Just want to be sure that you are paying attention! If you have a suggestion for a post -- send it in!

I think that's it for now, folks. Thanks for humoring me.