Sitting in LRBC right now, having enjoyed my early-morning breakfast of honeyed yogurt and coffee, finishing my final geography paper on the American Community Survey (yay data!). It's all perfect except for...
...the couple sitting in the cafe "enjoying" their breakfast, while the girl continuously berates and mocks the guy for pretty much everything that comes out of his mouth. I think she thinks she's being funny, but she sounds pretty mean to me.
C'mon you guys, don't ruin a good morning! Good music on the stereo, delicious breakfast sandwiches and strong coffee. What more could you want?
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Holy Feet
I got new shoes this week. Behold, the gleaming glory of the New Balance 908 trail running shoe.
I have terrible, awful feet. I get crazy calluses like you wouldn't believe and I have zero arches. Genetics + many summers spent walking barefoot on a pool deck were not kind to my feet. And yet, I have a hell of a time paying more than $30 for a pair of shoes. I hate doing it. So when I do ante up, it's a big deal. But I couldn't wear my 4 year-old running shoes any longer - they were so worn out and uncomfortable. Plus, I will be walking the Portland marathon this fall & need some good fresh training shoes.
I love New Balance shoes - better than Nike, adidas, and all the rest. But still, I almost settled for a pair of $32 Avia shoes from GI Joes.
I'm so glad I didn't. I wore them for the first time to the gym tonight, and OH my gosh what a difference. They make me float - they are so luxurious and comfortable and stable. I feel like I could walk 6 marathons in them. (okay, not really). Anyway, I highly highly recommend them even if you do not plan on doing any trail running (I do very very little). They are good for walking, running, general gym stuff.
I have a crush on my shoes. I will name them...Diana. Beautiful, rugged, purposeful.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Power to the St John's Peeps
I attended the St. John's Community Meeting on Monday evening to discuss the potential new Walgreens. Developer was a no-show which was quite unfortunately. On the plus side, there were a few hundred people there including our State Rep Tina Kotek and City Commissioner candidate Jeff Bissonnette. It was fun to look around the room and pick out other familiar faces. The guy who works at Greg's (but is not Greg), the husband-wife owners of Tres Bone, plus just some folks I know I've seen "around" before. It sounds like we have a very good chance of altering the way a Walgreens would look, and we still have SOME chance at preventing it from going in.
If we can put up enough obstacles that makes it not worth their while, they could withdraw the idea. For example, they have proposed a drive-thru window, which is specifically prohibited by the St. John's-Lombard plan (which has been adopted into city code). It was suggested at the meeting that this could be a major anticipated revenue center for them, and if they can't have the window, it would take away much proposed profit. We need to find what those other things like that are, and see if we can stop them.
I have nothing against Walgreens, per se. But it is the wrong business type for that location. The hard thing is...if Walgreens doesn't go in there, what could go in that spot and actually thrive? It's an oddly triangular-shaped lot that (I don't think) particularly lends itself to the shops-on-the-street vision that the StJ board was talking about. If I were a small retail business owner, that would not be a spot that I would covet.
We all know that Trader Joes is NOT going in there, no matter how much we can all wish for it. We need a business that will appeal (both emotionally and financially) to newcomers and oldtimers on the Peninsula. If there weren't one right around the corner, I think it would be a good spot for a Burgerville. Local & sustainable but not too yuppified. Other pie-in-the-sky ideas:
- another offshoot of Powell's (like the Home & Garden one they have on Hawthorne)
- going with the St John's vintage theme, how about another Red Light or Buffalo Exchange
- a gardening/yard supply store like Pistils
I'd love some cute little shops there as much as the next middle-class-girl-who-moved-to-the-Peninsula-post-2003, but I think we need to be realistic.
If we can put up enough obstacles that makes it not worth their while, they could withdraw the idea. For example, they have proposed a drive-thru window, which is specifically prohibited by the St. John's-Lombard plan (which has been adopted into city code). It was suggested at the meeting that this could be a major anticipated revenue center for them, and if they can't have the window, it would take away much proposed profit. We need to find what those other things like that are, and see if we can stop them.
I have nothing against Walgreens, per se. But it is the wrong business type for that location. The hard thing is...if Walgreens doesn't go in there, what could go in that spot and actually thrive? It's an oddly triangular-shaped lot that (I don't think) particularly lends itself to the shops-on-the-street vision that the StJ board was talking about. If I were a small retail business owner, that would not be a spot that I would covet.
We all know that Trader Joes is NOT going in there, no matter how much we can all wish for it. We need a business that will appeal (both emotionally and financially) to newcomers and oldtimers on the Peninsula. If there weren't one right around the corner, I think it would be a good spot for a Burgerville. Local & sustainable but not too yuppified. Other pie-in-the-sky ideas:
- another offshoot of Powell's (like the Home & Garden one they have on Hawthorne)
- going with the St John's vintage theme, how about another Red Light or Buffalo Exchange
- a gardening/yard supply store like Pistils
I'd love some cute little shops there as much as the next middle-class-girl-who-moved-to-the-Peninsula-post-2003, but I think we need to be realistic.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Signs of Spring
I am sitting in a big picture window at Ladybug Coffee in downtown St J's, looking out over the foot & auto traffic coming and going down Lombard. I'm working on a very tedious project that is making me grumpy. But what is making me happy is the little signs of spring that are emanating here and there. Yes! Spring is coming! My 2nd favorite season in Portland (autumn is first).
1. Okay, this is a big one. It was 62 degrees yesterday! It's 57 right now! That is delightful and wonderful.
2. I can make it home at 5:30 and still take the pup for a walk before it gets pitch black. It's getting dark, but there are still tiny signs of daylight.
3. The asparagus is getting tastier at the grocery store.
4. Those little buds that are coming up everywhere in my garden. Some of them are mystery buds - what will they become? I don't know! I'm gardening-ly challenged. But it's exciting.
5. The earth smells...earthier. Like it's living again. I love that smell of spring dirt in all its loamy goodness.
Yay for Spring! Yay for more daylight hours!
1. Okay, this is a big one. It was 62 degrees yesterday! It's 57 right now! That is delightful and wonderful.
2. I can make it home at 5:30 and still take the pup for a walk before it gets pitch black. It's getting dark, but there are still tiny signs of daylight.
3. The asparagus is getting tastier at the grocery store.
4. Those little buds that are coming up everywhere in my garden. Some of them are mystery buds - what will they become? I don't know! I'm gardening-ly challenged. But it's exciting.
5. The earth smells...earthier. Like it's living again. I love that smell of spring dirt in all its loamy goodness.
Yay for Spring! Yay for more daylight hours!
Friday, February 15, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Health
I've spent the last couple of weeks kind of obsessed with matters of health & nutrition & weight-control, so blogging has been off the radar. But I decided I can combine two things into one here. I've gained about 10 pounds in the past year...not a good thing. And I've been getting some crazy cravings for unhealthy food that I don't even really like, but that I see on a daily basis driving around my neighborhood.
Drive down Lombard for 1/2 mile in either direction and you have...KFC, McDonalds, Dairy Queen, Taco Bell, Domino's, Pizza Hut, Baskin Robbins, and Papa Murphy's. I'm sure I'm leaving something out. Fast food has never ever been appealing to me. On long road trips, if I HAD to stop, I'd find a Wendy's and get a salad or maybe a fish sandwich. Somehow it seemed the least unappetizing of the bunch. But I swear that there is something about seeing these signs over and over and over again to start thinking...hey, maybe some fried chicken or a quarterpounder with cheese. What??! I don't even like that stuff. Whatever.
Anyhoo. Apparently the planning meeting for the St. John's Farmer's Market was last night. I tried to go, but I had it written down as 5:30-7:30, so I showed up at Marie's and no one was there. I guess it was from 6:30-8:30. Oops! (Side note: Marie's is super, super smoky and I would not have wanted to hang out there for 2 hours, especially given that we were talking about fresh fruits & veggies. Just seems like a weird mix.)
However, I'm still going to try & get involved with the planning. A small market is just what this community needs. Lots of potential locations were brought up, but I think the plaza is the way to go. Centrally located, visible for pedestrians & car traffic going through. Someone suggested putting it right off of Fessenden, which I think would be suicide. Visibility will be much reduced at that location. Just my 2 cents.
Drive down Lombard for 1/2 mile in either direction and you have...KFC, McDonalds, Dairy Queen, Taco Bell, Domino's, Pizza Hut, Baskin Robbins, and Papa Murphy's. I'm sure I'm leaving something out. Fast food has never ever been appealing to me. On long road trips, if I HAD to stop, I'd find a Wendy's and get a salad or maybe a fish sandwich. Somehow it seemed the least unappetizing of the bunch. But I swear that there is something about seeing these signs over and over and over again to start thinking...hey, maybe some fried chicken or a quarterpounder with cheese. What??! I don't even like that stuff. Whatever.
Anyhoo. Apparently the planning meeting for the St. John's Farmer's Market was last night. I tried to go, but I had it written down as 5:30-7:30, so I showed up at Marie's and no one was there. I guess it was from 6:30-8:30. Oops! (Side note: Marie's is super, super smoky and I would not have wanted to hang out there for 2 hours, especially given that we were talking about fresh fruits & veggies. Just seems like a weird mix.)
However, I'm still going to try & get involved with the planning. A small market is just what this community needs. Lots of potential locations were brought up, but I think the plaza is the way to go. Centrally located, visible for pedestrians & car traffic going through. Someone suggested putting it right off of Fessenden, which I think would be suicide. Visibility will be much reduced at that location. Just my 2 cents.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
I've Missed You
I've been delinquent in posting of late, but rather than make excuses, here are some links to noteworthy news in and around North Portland.
1. St. John's is considering a Farmer's Market? I say Yes Yes Yes! Give your comments/feedback here: http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/270
2. A shooting in McCoy Park last Saturday evening, in the New Columbia complex. Violence there seems to have calmed for the most part over the past year, but of course this doesn't help to quell anxieties.
http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews/2008/01/update_portland_police_id_mcco.html
3. The El Burrito Loco/Boulevard Tacos feud rages on. Protesters outside BT are still going strong, claiming that BT evicted EBL and then recruited cooks from the the other EBL on 82nd offering better wages, then recreated the recipes. Or at least that is the EBL side of the story. The first burrito I ever ate in Portland was at El Burrito Loco, and it has a very special place in my heart. The burritos may not have been the best ever, but the people were delightful and I really lurved their chorizo burrito. Although I am really not a fan of this quote about EBL owner Alberta Canales:
More here from the Sentinel:
http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/291
http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/276
http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/268
4. North Portland continues to be one of the safest real estate bets in the Portland Metro area. In December, NoPo posted a 12-month price appreciation of 8.5% (2nd only to Columbia County's 11.6% and far above West Portland, Tigard, Tualatin and many other areas). NoPo inventory (Days on Market) was the lowest of all 14 areas measured, at 55 days.
1. St. John's is considering a Farmer's Market? I say Yes Yes Yes! Give your comments/feedback here: http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/270
2. A shooting in McCoy Park last Saturday evening, in the New Columbia complex. Violence there seems to have calmed for the most part over the past year, but of course this doesn't help to quell anxieties.
http://blog.oregonlive.com/breakingnews/2008/01/update_portland_police_id_mcco.html
3. The El Burrito Loco/Boulevard Tacos feud rages on. Protesters outside BT are still going strong, claiming that BT evicted EBL and then recruited cooks from the the other EBL on 82nd offering better wages, then recreated the recipes. Or at least that is the EBL side of the story. The first burrito I ever ate in Portland was at El Burrito Loco, and it has a very special place in my heart. The burritos may not have been the best ever, but the people were delightful and I really lurved their chorizo burrito. Although I am really not a fan of this quote about EBL owner Alberta Canales:
She feels that by opening a new Mexican restaurant, Boulevard Taco, at the same location, Mr Lofti is “raping my business.”I know we probably have English as a Second Language in play here, but I *really* hate it when people use this expression. There are a million other phrases to use. What he is doing may be sleazy, contemptuous, unfair, or predatory. But in no way is it sexually violating you.
More here from the Sentinel:
http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/291
http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/276
http://www.portlandsentinel.com/?q=node/268
4. North Portland continues to be one of the safest real estate bets in the Portland Metro area. In December, NoPo posted a 12-month price appreciation of 8.5% (2nd only to Columbia County's 11.6% and far above West Portland, Tigard, Tualatin and many other areas). NoPo inventory (Days on Market) was the lowest of all 14 areas measured, at 55 days.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
