If you’re headed downtown on Sunday – remember that the Race for the Cure – the annual breast cancer fund raising walk – is going on. It doesn’t seem to impact traffic nearly as much as some other events because they cross no bridges – it all stays downtown – but Portland’s event is the 2nd largest in the country and brings in a huge numbers of survivors, families and friends walking to help raise awareness (accomplished!) and funds for research (never enough!)

There can be controversy sometimes in these events; there have been issues in the past of the exclusion of men – although I have a friend whose father had a double mastectomy; or because the Komen organization has been so successful at raising awareness, people affected with other forms of cancer have felt some lack of support – my mother had thyroid cancer and was told by more than a few people ‘at least it’s not breast cancer’ which doesn’t really help someone deal with a scary situation. But regardless of those things – it is a good cause and it’s amazing the way Portlanders turn out for this sort of thing.

I know of one team consisting of approximately 50 people who will be walking in support of one of our friends there who is a survivor. And my 13-year-old niece is skipping out on a birthday party/slumber party Saturday night because she already committed to, and fundraised for the walk Sunday morning.

So if you get stuck in some slow traffic – try not to get too upset, it’s all for a good cause. And if you want to help out, it’s too late to register to walk – but you can still donate to the cause – and apparently you can also sleep for a cure too!

Seen! Christmas @ Macy’s

Originally uploaded by dieselboii.

September 21 people. Have YOU gotten all your holiday shopping done yet? Seen @ Macy’s at Lloyd Center. Oy vey!

Westerner sign in fog

Originally uploaded by dieselboi.

I noted a few months ago when I acquired the Marino’s Furnitur sign that we’re in for a change on Interstate. What is going to happen to all the cool neon signs when the re-development starts? Well, I read the new zoning proposals the other day and along with the possibility of 9 story buildings, the document recommends either re-using the current historical neon signs or incorporating new neon into any projects.

The few remaining, classic neon motel signs on Interstate should preferably be preserved. Their preservation can be achieved through incentives or requirements

I think that is way cool. The zoning doc implied that it could either be forced upon a developer or made as an option. I vote for force in this case. If you make it an option, many of the signs will end up in the dumpster. I’m looking forward to the open house they are planning on October in order to ask questions and give my input on how the neon should be used on the street.

SAVE the NEON!

With all the hype being generated about Portland it seems like more people are flocking to the city to work, live and basically hang out. A big chunk of those people happen to be single. The age may vary but the fact stays the same no matter what age; you’re in the dating pool and it can completely suck sometimes. I have heard horror stories about people meeting online and then taking the risk of meeting in person where their date’s picture and description in no way reflected the person seated across from them. There are also situations where you may have ended up at someplace like the STD infested Barracuda out of desperation, did way too many body shots, and woke up the next day to someone who looked a lot different the night before when your goggles were on.

The Rejection Hotline has now given the people of Portland a new tool in dealing with those situations. They’ve added an Oregon number to their list, 503-207-0299. The hotline is a number you give to someone you really don’t want to hear from again, as your own number. When they call they get a recorded message that explains possible reasons why you didn’t want to give out your real number. It’s actually pretty funny, and shows that you have at least made an effort instead of just writing down some random ficticious number. This of course should only be used as a last ditch effort if all else fails, or if the person immediately gives off a creepy stalker kind of vibe. Good luck out there!

It’s been a while since I watched G-bustaz, so I forgot about stream-crossing. Today, I remembered when I crossed the Odwalla/Calistoga MINERAL WATER stream. Do not do this. You drink the Calistoga straight or with a some juice (my preferred method), but never, ever, ever, EVA cross that stream.

By the way, I capitalized MINERAL WATER (Lesson of the Day 2) up there b/c when I ask for this drink people seem to think I mean “Vitamin water” or whatever. Dude, look at the picture…it comes from German (Mineral Wasser) and French (eau minerale – please turn up your nose when saying this). Them bubbles is good for ya, therefore, it is mineral water, and apparently that mineral is sodium :)
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What happens to abandoned bikes?

Originally uploaded by dieselboii.

We all know what happens to abandoned cars in the city, but what about bikes? This cool but sad bike has been locked here for at least a month if not longer. The tires are flat and it is dusty/dirty from the construction. I wonder if the city or Pioneer Place Mall security will eventually cut the kryptonite lock and take it away? I kinda like it there as it is a cool older bike. Hmmmm.

Once upon a time, a local office in the land of NoCoffeeShopsNearbyForYou! had a real problem. Their employees – most ravenously fiendish yet very particular coffee consumers – were forced to live with a coffee pot that regularly “include(d) lava overflows of coffee grounds into the pot below, switches that no longer stop the flow of coffee when you remove the pot before it’s done, and an overall brewing process that’s slower than molasses.” And when they ran out of beans (which happened on a fairly regular basis)? One intrepid employee would be forced to venture out over hill and dale and/or busy highways on foot (or bike) to replenish the supply, lest the natives grow even more restless. (No, throwing herbal tea bags and pointing them at the ready supply of hot water did nothing to calm the crowd.)

So one fair maiden* took it upon herself to start a Quest – she started searching for a coffee making system good enough for a crowd, yet within a budget that’d pass the scrutiny of the eagle-eyed company finance guru. So she Googled… she made some phone calls… she talked to friends and former colleagues… she scouted out restaurant supply stores… and finally, she went to the Oracle: the readers of Portland Food and Drink’s Forum, where she laid out her Quest: Good coffee maker for the office?
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Sure, it’s not nearly as warm and fuzzy as the late lamented Mr. Rogers – but Rotten Neighbor performs an equally valuable welcome wagon service nonetheless – by letting you know in advance just what you can expect before you move in, or who you really don’t want to have living next door to you.

You can also provide valuable information to those who come after you, of course – and provide a much-needed warning to future landlords, in some cases.

Sure, it’s all user-contributed information (which means you ought to take the data provided with a huge grain of salt.) But I’d rather be armed with a false warning than to find out after the fact that my new neighbor’s got a fetish for metal music cranked up to 11 at 3 in the morning, wouldn’t you?

(Hat tip to Lifehacker for the heads-up here…)

Back in July, we reported that Jantzen Beach mall will be demo’ed to make way for a newer larger more modern mall. The big question was if they would save the antique carousel. In last week’s O, a story ran that the developers would indeed save the carousel and move it to the Children’s Museum. Now that is a wonderful plan. Jantzen Beach mall has been an sunken ship of a mall for so many years, I can’t believe parents make it a destination spot for kids. Now the Children’s Museum is a different story. Once there, the carousel will be enjoyed by many many more kids. Way to go people for finding a great solution to this challenge.

Carousel’s Move

In Portland at least – and it seems to be spreading – Pirates are the new black.

Today – September 19th – is International Talk Like a Pirate Day – and it all started with a couple of guys from ’round these parts! Two guys – who refer to themselves as Cap’n Slappy and Ol’ Chumbucket started doing it back in the ’90s and it was just kind of a fun local thing – but it’s gaining more and more press every year. One of the founders and his wife were even on an episode of the total guilty pleasure TV show ‘Wife Swap‘ trying to convince another family to live life like pirates. (Yes – I saw it – it was horribly wonderful!)

Have you notice all those cars driving around town with the ‘Eat a Lime‘ bumper sticker? That’s in support of Captain Bogg & Salty – Portland’s own pirate band.

We had a couple of pirate ships floating down the Willamette during Rose Festival – and who knows how many pirates were running around town during each of the Pirates of the Caribbean movie openings the past few years.

In other words – Portland LOVES its Pirates!

This weekend at Cathedral Park in St. Johns – there will be an entire pirate take over at the 2nd Annual Pirate Festival. Pirate battles, jet boat rides, food and grog, music and more – with proceeds going to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Oregon.

So ahoy matey- and join in the merry-making – or ye will be walkin’ the plank!