Quick to criticize, quick to praise…
I have been known, from time to time, to express my displeasure with-
who am I kidding? I’m a bitcher. I piss and moan and complain about all manner of things. Often. Loudly. Extensively.
And since today I feel like it, here’s a list of things I really like. Some of them are Portlandy and some of them are not. Enjoy.
In no particular order…
Uwajimaya. Best. Store. Ever. A whole row of candy and an appalling array of Sanrio products. They have a wide assortment of fresh veggies as well as all kinds of stuff in languages I don’t know. And even languages I do know! Wasabi Peas AND YOU! That makes me giggle every time.
Mac people. I just read an article about how Mac-ified Portland is, and that is even more obvious when you go someplace else and there is no MacForce or Apple Store or anything, just that sad little section in the back of CompUSA. We have five different dealers I can name off the top of my head, and I’m not trying all that hard.
Wi-Fi. I’m a nerd, so I loooooves me some internets. Finding it all over town thanks to people like PersonalTelco is even better. Have Powerbook will travel and all of that.
Rock Stars. You know who’s been known to spend some time here? Freakin everybody, that’s who. Walk into Music Millennium or Everyday Music and you might just bump into Black Francis, that guy from Gang of Four, or that other guy from the Dandy Warhols. And that’s just the ones who live here, there’s always the story about whoever it was that was just here and went on and on about how much they liked it. Some even move here. And that doesn’t even take into consideration our own Decemberists, or the rock stars to be like Dr. Theopolis, Odds Against Tomorrow, or Charmparticles.
Outside. I love the Portland Building, in all its oddity. Portlandia, too. Those totem pole tiki things on NW 11th, the umbrella guy, the now empty Grand Central Bowl’s tile bowlers, that weirdy green diamondy building near 205 on Division, the Convention Center’s towers, the Rose Garden’s swoopy-ness, the retro-ish Empire State vibe of the Koin Tower, the gorgeous pink of the US Bank Tower, I love them all. I don’t necessarily think each of them is a fabulous thing in its own right, but collectively they make Portland Portland. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Location, location, location. I love that I am about an hour from the beach, about an hour from the mountains, and about an hour from just plain wilderness. Within reach by car, you have Seattle as well as a whole other country! Moments on a plane from Vegas, San Francisco, or LA too. Niiiiiiiiiice.
Options. Not all of you are aware of life outside P to tha D to tha X. I grew up in a very small town, so knowing that this Fred Meyer was just redone and has nicer things now and that Safeway is the only one with Pudding Pops really boggles my mind sometimes. I have a hard time believing I have ready access to A Safeway, let alone several. It’s nice to have my choice of noodle joints, movie theaters, grocers, and convenience stores. I think there might be something to this whole civilization thing after all…
If I’m missing something, feel free to comment and add it to the list. It is by no means complete.
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You are making me miss Portland, if for no other reason than Philadelphia has nothing that can compare to Fred Meyers. Nothing.
There is an Apple store at Pioneer Mall. I walked by it on Tuesday and it was open, there were people in there shopping.
Marisa-
Well what’s keeping you in Philly? I know John Waters lives there-no wait, that’s Baltimore…just because it’s the birthplace of the Philly Cheese Steak-yeah, that one I KNOW is right-well, now that I think about it, I guess I can see why. (:
There’s really nothing like The Fred there? I thought Super Wal-Mart had taken over the whole rest of the world. I guess I was wrong!
Kai-
Every time I’ve been there they have had a fair number of shoppers too. They get a decent amount of traffic at the Bridgeport and Washington Square locations too. My big question about Pioneer Place is this: Do they expect you to buy a G5 tower and a 30″ cinema display and haul them up the escalator to the street? I hope they have some nicer way of getting your hardware out the door with you.