The Stumptown Observer

Hello Sunshine, Whatcha Knowin'?

2008-06-16T22:32:00.000-07:00

"I've come to watch your flowers growin',
Ain't you got no rhymes for me?
Life I love you! Feelin' groovy!"

What a day! The sunshine deprived have been renewed! Curfew shall not ring tonight!

Amazing how everybody cheers up when the sun shines.

Don't let me down, Andy Carson! Keep it coming!

"You gotta be tough to live out west..."

The U of O Basketball Palace: The Death of Our American Heritage

2008-06-13T14:39:00.000-07:00

As a Duck I may sound like a traitor, but folks, seriously, WHAT are they thinking? This deal smells. Bad. If everything is so above board, why are Fhronmeyer, Hardy Meyers and Nike working SO hard to keep documents sealed? And is this where the school's priorities should be?

Steve Duin (aka "The Iron Mustache") at The Oregonian has an interesting take on his blog, with a lot of interesting comments, worth looking at.

I'm not a Phil Knight basher. I think he loves his alma mater, as do I, and has been incredibly generous, as I have not. When the private gift starts tangling up public policy and public dollars, it's time to rethink how this is being done.

Besides, I don't care how much money it would cost, they should restore Mac Court. We don't need sky boxes for the elite, with hot and cold running electric dog polishers. We need college basketball being played in venues just like "The Pit" (consistently ranked as one of the most intimidating arenas in college basketball by coaches and players), wooden bleachers, a solid wall of noise on four sides of the court, and a student section that is courtside. If you've never been to a game at The Pit, go while you still can, it is a vanishing opportunity to experience part of our American heritage.

Save The Pit! Go Ducks!

"You gotta be tough to live out west..."

Quit Whining About The Weather!

2008-06-11T05:36:00.000-07:00

I'm in New York, New York, The city so nice, they named it twice. Tired of the rain Stumptowners? "I'm ready for some sun!" I keep hearing. Well, try a day out here. Yesterday it was 4,000 degrees, 80% humidity and no breeze. I'm talkin' Africa hot. Tarzan couldn't live in this heat. Of course the day was capped off by a monsoon-like torrential downpour about 8:30 pm, which was perfectly timed to soak everyone walking home from dinnner, etc. What a miserable climate.

And of course I should point out that during this kind of heat, the City That Never Sleeps offers some stunning new smells that I doubt exist anywhere else.

A trip out here is a powerful reminder to me of how fortunate we are to live in a city like Portland.

So it rains some, and we have cloudy days in the winter. So what.

"You gotta be tough to live out west..."

Doing The Parade Thing

2008-06-07T17:06:00.000-07:00

So we went and watched the Grand Floral Parade this morning.

Did it a little differently this year, went to a viewing party with some of the swells in a building overlooking the Parade, just as it comes off the the Burnside Bridge into Downtown/Oldtown. Although the set up was very nice, with nice catering, and a climate controlled setting at just 20 or so feet above street level, it just didn't feel right. The concensus of the critics I was with (all 11 year-old girls) was that to truly enjoy the parade experience, one needs to get out and rub shoulders with the great unwashed (and that's just the neighborhood for it, believe me!).

It was actually very nice, though subdued. Possibly because of the neighborhood, the crowds were quite thin, but very well behaved. Almost every band played, the PPB was present, and mostly pleasant. It was kind of a low voltage experience.

a couple of quick notes;

- Best Float: The one with the Hippo Ballerina. Really funny.

- Best Band: The One More Time Around Again Marching Band

- Saddest Entry: The Portland Public Schools All City Marching Band. About 20 kids in mixed uniforms from their schools. 20. Nothing wrong with what they were doing, but it is a very, very sad commentary on how far Portland Public Schools have fallen that there is not ONE Portland High School Band in our own Rose Festival. Again. We've decimated the Public Schools, taking us one more step closer to being just another big city, with the usual big city problems.

Nonetheless, it's a nice parade in a still, for the moment, nice city. The kind of city where you could go and stake out a modest viewing area for your family and your fellow citizens would show you the courtesy of respecting that little area of duct tape or chalk. Until now. Thanks Fireman Randy. You Putz.

"You gotta be tough to live out west...."

D-Day

2008-06-06T08:49:00.000-07:00

True then, true now.

"Forty summers have passed since the battle that you fought here. You were young the day you took these cliffs; some of you were hardly more than boys, with the deepest joys of life before you. Yet, you risked everything here. Why? Why did you do it? What impelled you to put aside the instinct for self-preservation and risk your lives to take these cliffs? What inspired all the men of the armies that met here? We look at you, and somehow we know the answer. It was faith and belief; it was loyalty and love.

The men of Normandy had faith that what they were doing was right, faith that they fought for all humanity, faith that a just God would grant them mercy on this beachhead or on the next. It was the deep knowledge--and pray God we have not lost it--that there is a profound, moral difference between the use of force for liberation and the use of force for conquest. You were here to liberate, not to conquer, and so you and those others did not doubt your cause. And you were right not to doubt.

You all knew that some things are worth dying for. One's country is worth dying for, and democracy is worth dying for, because it's the most deeply honorable form of government ever devised by man. All of you loved liberty. All of you were willing to fight tyranny, and you knew the people of your countries were behind you."

Excerpt from President Ronald Reagan's remarks at the U.S. Rangers' Monument at Point du Hoc, France, June 6th, 1984. Written by the great Peggy Noonan.

You gotta be tough to live out west...

ALWAYS Faithful

2008-06-06T08:34:00.000-07:00

Semper Fideilis, not just words. Regardless of how you feel about the war or the military, every single American should look at this slide show.

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2008/06/04/books/20080605_SALUTE_SLIDESHOW_index.html

I cried.

You gotta be tough to live out west....but this is the toughest duty of all. God bless 'em all.

The Roast Vegatable & Fleet Week

2008-06-05T11:37:00.000-07:00

It's Fleet Week in Portland, and thhe first ships have arrived to tie up at the seawall. So far it's the USCG, looks like a couple of cutters and a bouytender. Also allong the waterfront is a WWII PT Boat in the late stages of restoration, which I think is pretty cool.

Of course we are suffering from "Rose Festival Effect" weather, meaning wet and drizzely, with the Rose Festival Fun Center (patrons motto; "Double wide trailers-Mile high dreams") turned into a smelly, muddy muck-fest. Who cares? It's still festival time!

Thos of us who have been here for a long time probably see it a little differently. When I was a kid, the festival meant three things;

1) The Americana Parade

This was one of those great things that was eliminated because everybody is afraid of lawsuits. The Americana Parade was an out and out blast, essentially a two mile long moving water fight. I remember the Gateway Keystone Kops used to have a water cannon mounted on their "Paddywagon". It was like Seaworld, "folks, if you sit in the splash zone, you will get wet. Very wet". Now we have The Starlight Parade. Nice, but a shadow of the revelry that was the beloved Americana Parade.

2) The Navy Ships

Even during Vietnam sailors were always welcomed in this town. I remember touring the ships with my Dad every year. What a great experience. Portland to this day has a fantastic reputation throughout the Pacific Fleet is a great Liberty town.

3) The Grand Floral Parade

The big one. When some celebrity who would not otherwise be caught dead in Portland would come to town to be The Grand Marshall. I remember one year it was none other than Donny Osmond, right at the height of his "Puppy Love" fame.

See you at the parade on Saturday! Bring an umbrella and a blanket!
(You gotta be tough to live out west...)

As my Grandfather used to say.....

2008-06-02T15:14:00.000-07:00

"If you've got nothing to say, don't say it."

I've got a cold, it's grey and cloudy, and my laptop died (and of course, I didn't back up anything, yeah, yeah, I know!).

Tomorrow will be a better day.

"You gotta be tough to live out west."

The Movies List (Part One)

2008-05-31T23:53:00.000-07:00

In no particular order:

10 Movies I Love
1) Animal House
2) It's A Wonderful Life
3) Rio Grande
4) The Ghost and Mr. Chicken
5) Defending Your Life
6) Much Ado About Nothing
7) The Sound of Music
8) The Lemondrop Kid
9) My Darling Clementine
10) While You Were Sleeping

10 Great War Movies
1) Full Metal Jacket
2) The Big Red One
3) 84 Charlie MoPic
4) The Odd Angry Shot
5) The Enemy Below
6) In Harms Way
7) Galipoli
8) The Devil's Brigade
9) Saving Private Ryan
10) They Were Expendable

More movie lists to come.....

You gotta be tough to live out west......

Don't Let The Screendoor Hit You In The Ass On The Way Out...

2008-05-30T23:44:00.000-07:00

Today's Observations;

1) From The New York Post;

SUSAN SARANDON, who appeared in three films last year and won kudos for her TV movie "Bernard and Doris," is still not a contented soul. She says if John McCain gets elected, she will move to Italy or Canada. She adds, "It's a critical time, but I have faith in the American people."

Maybe she can join Alec Baldwin, who swore he would leave the country if George Bush were elected President. Oh, wait, he's still here (Though I do think 30 Rock is pretty dam'n funny, so maybe that's ok).

2) This blog looks promising: Overheard in PDX (http://overheardinpdx.blogspot.com/2008/05/battle-grrrrl.html)

How's this for an entry?

Friday, May 30, 2008

Battle Grrrrl
A girl waits by the door to get off the bus, and her cell phone rings.Girl: I've got Ashley's phone, she's in jail. Yeah, she beat the shit out of the chick....No, she just beat the shit out of her. Nothin' but her two hands. Girl had to go to the hospital...It was over at the 7-11 on 82nd & Powell...Well, you know how she repped the bloods, right?"- On the #4 at PCC-- Overheard by Charlotte

3) This woman can write! Real life, real pain.

Confucious said "Pain makes one think, thought makes ne wise, wisdom makes life endurable."

http://www.nonlineargirl.com/2008/05/i-need-to-get-over-it-i-cant-get-over.html

Peace be with you, my friend.

Rhut Ro, Relroy!

2008-05-29T17:57:00.000-07:00

Anyone who finds their way here should be interested in this story over at the excellent website Mental Floss.

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/15329

"You gotta be tough to live out west."

And away we go.....

2008-05-29T17:12:00.000-07:00

Maybe someone is trying to tell me something. I no sooner created this blog, when suddenly, and without any warning, my laptop died. Great.

OK, a couple of Stumptown observations;

1) Big brouhaha in the the news, instigated I understand by To-The-Right-of-Ghengis-Kahn psycho blogger Michelle Malakin, over the fact that Rachel Ray, in a web only ad for Dunkin' Donuts, is wearing a scarf that resembles the headwear sported by Yassar Arafat and mid-east terrorist-extremists (and for local flavor, the stock footage shot in the background is of the Oregon State Capitol).

So Rachel Ray is advocating/supporting Muslim terrorism, In An Ad For Dunkin' Donuts!?

Talk about your targeted marketing! If you want to see just how deluded this woman is, go here;

http://michellemalkin.com/2008/05/28/the-keffiyeh-kerfuffle/

What color is the sky in your world, Michelle?

2) As I was walking along the waterfront today I watched an engagement between two pirate ships on the Willamette River. That can only mean one thing. Rose Festival time. More on the Roast Vegetable later.

3) Mayor Elect Sam Adams. I had a friend from the East Coast ask me about our recent mayoral election. His question was "So you have an openly gay guy and a Chinese guy running for mayor. Aren't people fired up about that?"

I told him "No. No one cares, it's no big deal." I've been thinking about that ever since. I think it's kind of cool, one of the great things about Stumptown. No right-wingers predicting that our city government will start trying to convince our children to turn Gay, no left-wing lavender mafia types turning this into some big symbolic Mt. Suribachi. No bigots implying that America is in decline and the immigrants are taking over our infrastructure. It was just another election.

That's outstanding.

"You gotta be tough to live out west"