Well, I'm not actually in the city limits of Portland itself, and I'm not even in the same county that Portland is in......but my hosts Ken & Gillian have their mailing address as being in Portland. They live about a mile or two north of Beaverton, in an unincorporated area of Washington County.
This is not my first time here. In fact, I can't remember how many times I've been here before now. I do know that I was not here last year, but was here the year before.
Years ago when Ken told me that he had gotten a job offer in Portland, I advised him to take it. His family moved up here in either late 2001 or maybe early 2002. The move was pending when I visited him in San Jose in October 2001, and I remember telling him that when you get on the freeway that takes you out of San Jose, it's going to be a weird feeling knowing that this time you're not coming back. I know all about that feeling, having experienced it on 2/23/99 when I left to start a new life in Arizona.
But getting back to Portland, I really like it here. I don't know if I would like living here since I'm better suited for sunshine and warmer temperatures, but at the same time I really appreciate the beauty of Oregon. I've been out to the coast before and have spent a few days in Neskowin. I've been up and down the Columbia River Gorge a few times, and across the river at Mount St. Helens. I'm thinking of driving down to Salem on Monday to check out the state capital, but the Multnomah Falls (which I've seen before) are tempting. It isn't every day in my life that I get to see another part of the country, and whenever I'm on trips I definitely like to play "tourist".
I think I can also understand why coffeehouses are popular in the Northwest. It's due to the climate. When it's overcast and cool, you don't feel like being on your back patio knocking off a beer. Instead you want to be on your back patio knocking off a cup of Joe, and with the view Ken has from his back deck I can hardly wait to be sipping a cup of that kind of brew sometime tomorrow afternoon.
Interestingly enough, microbreweries are big in Portland. I was up here twenty years ago at a brewer's festival during July. I enjoy a great beer now and then, and you can't beat a nice handcrafted brew on some days.
But in October, it's coffee weather, and even though it's rare for me to drink coffee, the thought of having a cup tomorrow is something I'm looking forward to.
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It's really been interesting to have watched Ken's children grow up over the past several years. All three of them are musically talented and I'm hearing his oldest daughter practice the harp as I type this. They're also a real joy to converse with. They've asked questions that I wish more adults were capable of asking.
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I return home to Tucson on Monday evening. Hopefully. Yesterday when taxiing away from the gate the pilot brought us back to de-plane us due to what may have been a computer glitch or a mechanical problem. I was re-booked on to a later flight, but I don't think I have the later flight option on the way home. I connected in Phoenix on the way up and will be connecting in Phoenix on the way back down.
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That's it for now. Don't forget to pet a dog or a cat.
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