Today marks an entire week that we've been in Portland for Dallin's internship. It's my first time living in (or even visiting) Portland or any city in the Northwest, but I'm already in love. Here are a few reasons why:
1. I love the stereotypes about Portland, and I love the fact that all of the stereotypes are true. Before we came here, Dallin and I did a little "research" (aka watch shows on Netflix that have to do with Portland). We started watching "Portlandia," a show all about the quirkiness of the city. We stopped watching it because it was getting a little too weird, but we really enjoyed this sketch about free-range chickens. Sure enough, one of the first billboards we saw as we drove into the city was one about free-range, local chickens.
2. I feel like I'm saving the earth every day that I live here. I'm sure it doesn't make a huge difference, but I love the feeling that I get when I pull out my reusable grocery bag at Trader Joe's. I love the fact that there's an option for having your own shopping bag even at Wal-Mart. I love that by riding my bike (something I genuinely enjoy doing), I'm not considered a nuisance - instead, I'm applauded. In fact, the city of Portland is finishing the construction of a bridge that is only for bikers and public transportation.
3. Portlandia is its own kind of "trendy." Portland is probably one of the few places where I could walk outside in hiking boots, leggings, and a long Columbia coat with no make-up on and my hair falling out of a braid and it's trendy, not trashy. Love it!
4. Portland is probably the only place where I've felt overwhelmed by green. Living in Utah for the past few years, I've always felt there are never enough trees. Here, I feel like there are more than enough! Apparently there are laws in Portland against removing trees (even dead trees!) unless you have multiple specialists approve it, proper paperwork is filled out, yadda yadda yadda. Basically they've made it such a pain to remove trees that nobody wants to. So there are these ancient behemoths of trees everywhere - they're beautiful, but almost suffocating in some places.
5. Portland is a living network of parks and walks and bike paths. In Georgia, my family would often visit a patch of woods close to our house called "Simpsonwood" for spiritual and emotional refuge. It filled my soul to be among the quiet trees in Simpsonwood. Here, places there are hundreds of Simpsonwoods, all offering the same kind of respite from daily life. I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be doing things on my own all day than in a place like Portland, a place that offers refuge in solitude.
I'm sure this list will grow longer as the weeks go by. Portland, we are so happy to be here!
Here are some pictures from my walk in my new Simpsonwood a few days ago:
1. I love the stereotypes about Portland, and I love the fact that all of the stereotypes are true. Before we came here, Dallin and I did a little "research" (aka watch shows on Netflix that have to do with Portland). We started watching "Portlandia," a show all about the quirkiness of the city. We stopped watching it because it was getting a little too weird, but we really enjoyed this sketch about free-range chickens. Sure enough, one of the first billboards we saw as we drove into the city was one about free-range, local chickens.
2. I feel like I'm saving the earth every day that I live here. I'm sure it doesn't make a huge difference, but I love the feeling that I get when I pull out my reusable grocery bag at Trader Joe's. I love the fact that there's an option for having your own shopping bag even at Wal-Mart. I love that by riding my bike (something I genuinely enjoy doing), I'm not considered a nuisance - instead, I'm applauded. In fact, the city of Portland is finishing the construction of a bridge that is only for bikers and public transportation.
3. Portlandia is its own kind of "trendy." Portland is probably one of the few places where I could walk outside in hiking boots, leggings, and a long Columbia coat with no make-up on and my hair falling out of a braid and it's trendy, not trashy. Love it!
4. Portland is probably the only place where I've felt overwhelmed by green. Living in Utah for the past few years, I've always felt there are never enough trees. Here, I feel like there are more than enough! Apparently there are laws in Portland against removing trees (even dead trees!) unless you have multiple specialists approve it, proper paperwork is filled out, yadda yadda yadda. Basically they've made it such a pain to remove trees that nobody wants to. So there are these ancient behemoths of trees everywhere - they're beautiful, but almost suffocating in some places.
5. Portland is a living network of parks and walks and bike paths. In Georgia, my family would often visit a patch of woods close to our house called "Simpsonwood" for spiritual and emotional refuge. It filled my soul to be among the quiet trees in Simpsonwood. Here, places there are hundreds of Simpsonwoods, all offering the same kind of respite from daily life. I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be doing things on my own all day than in a place like Portland, a place that offers refuge in solitude.
I'm sure this list will grow longer as the weeks go by. Portland, we are so happy to be here!
Here are some pictures from my walk in my new Simpsonwood a few days ago:
Love it! So happy that I get to come visit you in two-and-a-half weeks! -- Love, Dad
ReplyDeleteForever in love with the Pacific Northwest!
ReplyDeleteAnd I do think those little things make a difference for our environment, so good job!
ReplyDeleteNice, you make me want to move to Portland right now. Michigan has been a hard place to naturally make recreation part of life, in other words, you have to go to a place designated for recreation and while there are many places they aren't connected to each other or as accessible as in other places we've lived.
ReplyDeleteSharon and I also enjoyed many of the Portlandia skits, but also felt the same as you guys.
I love that you feel so at home there! I'm a huge fan of the Northwest.
ReplyDelete