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CANCER STORIES: FEEDING PUBLIC FEAR AND PRIVATE WOE

Things you’ll never know until you get cancer, any cancer:   You’ll either be an object of sympathy, or an antenna of sympathy. Or both.   “Keep up the fight,” or, “You’re a fighter,” or “You look like you’ve got this thing whipped.”   That’s what I heard after running Hood To Coast at 49 […]

POLICE STOP TRAFFIC TICKET SAFETY DRILL

A traffic officer pulled me over coming down the ramp to the straight stretch to the Portland (PDX) airport. Of course I didn’t think it was fair, just an opportunistic wrong place, wrong time deal. And I was ten mph over the limit. In the van were my two kids, wife, and a French exchange student late […]

BABY BOOMER MUSEUM

The take away from a Baby Boomer Museum is awareness. A visit to a big museum should make you ask, “How do they decide what to keep?” It’s the same question you’ll ask later, wondering why you bought anything in the gift store. Unless you say, “I needed another tea towel,” you need a better […]

FIRST BOOK YOU FELL IN LOVE WITH?

Not the first book you read, the first book you loved. Mine was Wizard of Oz, a beautiful edition with pictures. Not a comic book, but a good transition from comic books. It was Grandma’s book. I told her I loved her book. And I did, loved it enough to get one for a birthday, […]

CATCH PORTLAND FEVER

Once you catch Portland Fever you’re doomed. Drug stores don’t advertise shots in case you catch Portland Fever. It’s not shingles, pneumonia, or the flu. On the other hand it’s not polio, malaria, of tuberculosis. While not fatal, if you do catch Portland Fever, your life is ruined. After a few years in Portland, maybe […]

A PERSONAL BEST FROM PORTLAND’S CINEMA 21

  From Personal Best on the screen to personal best on the street.   NW Portland had a few more movie theaters when I moved there. One more. The Esquire on 23rd closed in 1987. Cinema 21 is the last silver screen standing. That’s where I saw Eraser Head with a date who said the […]

IN PRAISE OF CANAPRENEURS AND THE OTHER SPOT

Canapreneurs manage risk with cannabis business. The Other Spot was part of it. Who remembers their favorite bar? Was it on a college campus? In your neighborhood? Maybe you’re still looking. Here’s one blogger’s list: J.C. Dobbs, South Street, Philadelphia. Long and narrow with a band playing in the back. It was the ‘go to’ […]

DR. LIDIA YUKNAVITCH GOES TO CHURCH

Lidia Yuknavitch spoke to Willamette Writers at the Old Church. All three are resting well. New rule: All posts start with a theme song reflecting the topic at hand. This one starts on the second verse. New rule #2: Click the Lidia link. Here it is. Little Feat’s Willin’ via lyricsmode.com: “I’ve been kicked by […]

HIGH GROUND TO VIETNAM VET MEMORIAL: a photo essay

“The high ground is good.” That’s what the old timer said. “And there’s not so many people.” I found him under the Vietnam Veterans of Oregon Memorial bridge, sitting in a lawn chair and handing out pamphlets on Veteran’s Day. Had his car parked on one side of a flowerbed and a walkway without a […]

WINNING THE PAIN GAME

Beat The Pain Game, Then The Withdrawal Game. One of the regulars came in today, though not on his cherried out Harley. Wet and cold is no way to ride a hog if you don’t have to. Said he’d been out a couple of weeks for shoulder surgery. Five places on his shoulder got opened […]