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EXTRA EFFORT GOES TO THE TOP

With a little extra effort, an image of the Fox Theater in Portland, Oregon could be an entire universe. I’ve heard stories, read interviews, of famous directors who said movie theaters were their whole world growing up. I saw a movie about a kid whose whole world was the village theater. With a little extra […]

PORTLAND PICTURE TO THE REST OF THE WORLD

The Portland picture shows up after you forget about the beach, the river, the mountain. People show up to see the city sparkle and shine like the pictures they’ve seen in tourist magazines for fine living in the great Northwest, Portland pictures that seem to say, “Join us in reverence of our beautiful discovery.” Portland […]

UGLY BUILDING IN PRETTY CITIES, PT 1

An ugly building grows on the people who see it every day. Living near ugly architecture doesn’t make anyone ugly, but it’s not wonderful reflection, either. Imagine seeing the same eye sore every time you went to town. You’ve got one where you live? There’s at least one for every city. Portland has one, Paris […]

TOM McCALL WATERFRONT PARK SUNDAY

We’ve heard the same thing all out lives: Get outside. More than once we’ve said it to others. How often do we tell ourselves to ‘get outside?’ That’s what I told myself Sunday and outside meant Waterfront Park in downtown Portland, Oregon. I knew my audience.

BOOK REVIEW: BLACK TAR HEROIN, SAM QUINONES, AND DREAMLAND

Do Millennials Hear Boomer Parents Talk About Black Tar Heroin And The Damage Done? Sam Quinones Says Not Much. The movie Traffic isn’t about black tar heroin. It’s heroin, though, and shows a group of affluent young people dealing with a friend’s drug overdose. They drop him on the sidewalk outside an Emergency Room and […]

Learn The Tools, Then The Gun

War does one thing well, it gives a new vocabulary for death. One young man knew it front to back. “You’ve caught the best weather in Portland,” he said.  “Been too hot or too wet.  Not like this.” The weather?  It’s a start. He was built thick, maybe six feet tall. “Nice. After this I’m back […]

PORTLAND FUTURE: WHAT TO EXPECT

What I want to see happen How many times have I driven over the Willamette River and looked at the Eastside thinking of what a Portland future could be? Every time. Early morning works best, especially if you’re leaving town for a short time. When I get back I don’t expect the freeway to be […]

WHO LIES ABOUT ABANDONING NYC

I spoke to a woman recently who moved to Portland Oregon from Brooklyn New York, just casual conversation in a Safeway line. We had something in common since I moved here from the same place, though she didn’t start in North Bend Oregon. She was big city all the way with no perspective on the […]

DIN TAI FUNG FOODIE NEIGHBORHOOD

      Din Tai Fung is the foodie choice. What I expected when I first heard of Din Tai Fung: A luxurious restaurant fit for an emperor jammed into a suburban mall near a vacant Sears store. What I experienced going to Din Tai Fung? The company story printed in the menu called their […]

HUBERS HISTORY, PORTLAND HISTORY, AND THE GREAT JAMES LOUIE

Walk into any gym with a weight room to go along with a dance studio, yoga retreat, therapy rooms, pool, hot tub, and you’ll fine exceptional people under the bar. Strong people, men and women who decided to build and rebuild, and continue building their bodies to meet every challenge they face. It works like […]