page contents Google

PORTLAND TRAVEL NOTES: THE BOOKENDS

This is the flat spot in the river bank where people used to take a break.
Whether coming up from the Columbia River, or down on the Willamette, this was the original rest stop for paddlers.
Then it grew, grew some more, and for those of us who’ve traded punches on her streets, it’s all grown up.
And it has bookends on the part people think of when they hear the word ‘Portland.’

[Read More…]

MISTAKEN IDENTITY? MAYBE NOT

It could be a case of mistaken identity if you’re in an outfit led by a naked lady and winged horse all clad in gold.
Where’s the plan? What’s the goal? Is it safe?
No one gives a good answer.
Where’s your plan, what’s the goal, is it safe?
If the plan is to paint yourself gold and get a winged horse you might want to take another look.
[Read More…]

TO BE INTERESTING BE INTERESTED

It can’t be just in my individual baby boomer blogger brain, but these guys are famous in every form you see them, hear them, feel them.
I was driving around town, passed through a parking lot, and there they were on the wall looking like an Andy Warhol fever dream.
Were they trying to be interesting?

[Read More…]

COUNTING YEARS, ADDING TIME

Counting years, birthdays, anniversaries, is easy math even for non-math people.
One day you’re logging miles and running races and getting a new t-shirt.
The world is fresh and waiting for what you have to offer so show up and do your best.
Then the race changes, but the task is the same: show up and do your best.

[Read More…]

CONNECTING DOTS FOR A BIGGER PICTURE

When freedom is just through those two doors you’d better start connecting dots for a plan to get there.
That’s if you want to go, if you want to leave the cozy warmth of where you are.
Cozy warmth where you are? Are you cozy? Of course you are, and so is everyone you know.
America is all about cozy warmth, isn’t it?

[Read More…]

More Posts from this Category

toughen up

YOKE BUILDING PULLS A BETTER LIFE, BUT HOW

If you’re called yoked it’s not a joke, and it’s not about woodworking. It’s a compliment. Someone noticed your gains. They think you’re strong. You look strong, feel strong, and it’s because you lift weights. Whether a fitness lifestyle or just trying it out, lifting changes your body. Strong as an ox? Not a bad […]

CDC SAYS OPIOIDS SHOULDN’T BE FIRST CHOICE? THAT HURTS.

Pain relief moves from legal heroin to physical therapy, exercise, and over the counter pills? Who knew? I wrote a post about an author’s reading called BLACK TAR HEROIN, SAM QUINONES, AND DREAMLAND. Sam Quinones showed up in Powell’s City of Books and talked about pill mills supplying zombie customers with their opioid prescriptions; about […]

CIGARETTE SMOKE ‘EM IF YOU GOT ‘EM? DON’T DO IT

    Tobacco and cigarette smoke, the stuff of dreams and nightmares.   The dream part comes first. Light a stick and enjoy. All you’ve got to do is breath in, breath out, and watch the cigarette smoke curl into shapes. Later comes the nightmare part, the regret, the tubes, the hospital smell, the faces […]

More Posts from this Category

boomer years

HIGH GROUND TO VIETNAM VET MEMORIAL: a photo essay

“The high ground is good.” That’s what the old timer said. “And there’s not so many people.” I found him under the Vietnam Veterans of Oregon Memorial bridge, sitting in a lawn chair and handing out pamphlets on Veteran’s Day. Had his car parked on one side of a flowerbed and a walkway without a […]

BOOMER GENERATION BREAKS AMERICA ON TIME COVER BUT NOT IN OUR HEARTS

    At some point every generation can take credit for breaking America. The pinata of democracy is strong enough to take a few whacks.   It helps that those swinging the stick are usually too old to do much damage, but watching them still hurts.   Steven Brill explains it all for baby boomers, […]

121212 And The Baby Boomer Soul

Mick Jagger’s no Baby Boomer.   Too old, just like the 78 million born between 1946-1964. He showed up in 1943.   This is what I heard from Mick Jagger, “We’re glad to be here, but you’ll have to do us the same favor if it rains in London.”   He gets it, but it’s […]

More Posts from this Category

buckle up

BOOMERPDX ON THE ROAD TRAVEL ADVICE

How To Find Places To Stay On The Road. If two people travel together, one is planner. They’ve got the calendar, the days, the stops, and how long you’ll be in each place. Two planners are a problem. With two planners it won’t be a trip, it’ll be a hostage negotiation where one or both […]

SUPERIOR ARIZONA AFTER APACHE TEARS SEARCH

    One of the most impressive rocks I’ve knocked out of a rock wall? Apache tears.   Just another rock until I held it up to the sun for my own solar eclipse.   What’s going on in there? See through rocks in Superior Arizona.

Get Your Medical History In Another Language

In The Hospital And You Don’t Speak The Language. Now What? Do you like new places, the sort where you step off a plane and think, “It looks normal enough,” but you know it’s not? You know because you showed up after language immersion and Rosetta Stone, and you still don’t understand what anyone says. […]

More Posts from this Category