Maybe You Can Go Home Again

I know I'm not FROM Portland but it does feel like home. I arrived on Tuesday and driving here was a long collection of memories. Each sign I passed - the Welcome to Oregon sign,the first sign telling me Portland was 367 miles away, the Multnomah county line sign, the Portland city line sign, and the Made in Oregon deer sign, all made me smile, all made me feel like I was heading in the right direction, and the Multnomah county sign actually made me tear up a bit. But the biggest sign I could be a true Oregonian, the first time I had to turn on my windshield wipers, I laughed. I'm really happy to be here. Here's a post I wrote while living out of state for {frolic!} as a guest blogger.

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{guest blogger ansley: the great nw} -written 7/31/2007

Picking cities to travel to made me think of cities I have lived in and loved. I spent 7 years in Portland, OR which is a beautiful city centered around 2 rivers, equidistant from the Pacific coast and Mt Hood. So what did I love about it...the people, my friends and the other very weird people. There is a whole group dedicated to keeping Portland weird. I love Seaside in the summer and Cannon Beach in the winter. I love all the little neighborhoods, each with their own identity but still united in being uniquely Portland. I love all of Portland's independent shops, Powell's, clothing boutiques, music venues, and art galleries. I love that once you are downtown, you can walk almost anywhere. I love all the bridges and the bike racks that look like my favorite bridge, the Fremont. I love the public Rose Gardens and the private gardens in almost every yard. I love the idea that even I could have a green thumb there. I love having favorite restaurants where I always order the same thing but also knowing almost any other currently unknown restaurant will have something delicious. I loved living within walking distance to a post office, library, Trader Joe's, 2 indie movie theaters, and lots of restaurants and shops. I love the crepe stand. I love Portland's living room, Pioneer Courthouse Square anytime but especially at lunch time or during the KINK free concert. I love the radio stations who mix perfect amounts of old and new and not too much talk. I loved flying back into Portland and seeing the rivers and mountains and when the person next to me told me I was so lucky to get to live here. I knew then that she was right, but now that I'm no longer there, I know it even more.