Some extra storage

April 17, 2018

We’re entering the final countdown. With just over a week to go, we’re cramming in as many visits, cultural events, and meals at our favorite restaurants as we can. Every day there’s something of note. Last Friday was a double date: 13 days from departure, and Friday the 13th. We celebrated with a final gathering of the Hostile Actor’s Club before we go our separate way: the Grumbys to bike the Lewis and Clark Trail; ourselves to Greece, of course; and Bruce and Andrea to stay behind, tend to Pinkie, and give us all one more good reason to return to Portland.

And here’s one more reason to come home and reconvene: to return the Grumbys’ precious bottle opener, which I inconsiderately walked out the door with. As penance for my carelessness, Jen has charged me with taking it on tour and featuring it in the journal from time to time so she can see that I haven’t lost it.

In Amy’s place, on a nice quilt (Jen likes quilts). Not lost yet, Jen!

Dday minus 12 (Saturday): we celebrated by going to a wonderful concert at the Aladdin Theater. The performers were Cry Cry Cry, a ‘folk supergroup’ of three of our favorite performers:Lucy Kaplansky, Dar Williams, and Richard Shindell. They’re on a reunion tour, performing together for the first time in nearly twenty years. For their encore, they sang a beautiful rendition of Auld Lang Syne.

Cry Cry Cry at the Aladdin: Dar Williams, Richard Shindell, Lucy Kaplansky

Dday minus 11 (Sunday): For a belated birthday gift I took my sister Elizabeth to a concert at at Stephens: the Byrd Ensemble performing a variety of chant pieces - a mix of early liturgical works and ones by more contemporary composers (John Taverner, Argo Pärt). A beautiful performance, very moving. Afterwards we met Rachael for dinner at Cibo, a nice Italian restaurant on Division that we discovered when staying at Stacey’s two months back.

At Cibo: Elizabeth, Rachael, and a random cell phone junkie

Dday minus 10 (Monday). Wet, windy. We skipped biking. rachael went to the gym, I went to the coffee shop. Afterwards we had breakfast together at the Daily Cafe, and then followed up on Rachael’s latest brainstorm: we’re renting a bicycle storage locker from the city! I’m excited about this, because for $190/yr (= $.50/day) we have a much better solution for the city bikes than cramming them into the tiny remaining free space at our storage locker.

In the evening, we went over to the Hollywood Theater to see The Death of Stalin. Excellent film, and the second time we’ve seen it. It was the opening film of PIFF back in February, but we were both so tired and stressed that we didn’t appreciate it as much as this time.

Dday minus 9 (Tuesday): we split up, because I have a morning appointment with my dental hygienist. The forecast calls for midday rain, so Rachael leaves for the Columbia at sunrise while I head off to my appointment.

When I return, I find that the weather has unexpectedly taken a turn for the better. I decide this is a good time to check out the new bike storage space, so I head downtown with my camera in case I see something worth snapping along the way.

Our storage unit is on the fifth floor of one of the downtown parking structures. It looks like it will work fine for us - I think both bikes will fit in - and it’s nice that it’s on the fifth story. We’ll get a bit of workout when we come down, and even a bit of a view.

These are a great idea. They seem quite secure, and come at a reasonable rate. Much better than trying to cram our bikes into our storage unit.

It looks like there’s room for a close friend in here.

Morrison Street and MAX, from the roof of our parking structure

The dome of the Pioneer Courthouse - it’s a nice perspective on it from the roof of the parking garage.

I don’t really have a plan for the ride home, so I just follow my nose. It leads me first of all along Second Avenue, where I enjoy a few of its older buildings I haven’t noticed before.

Old and new: the World Trade Center (built in 1977) and the Mikado Building (1880)

Some nice brick, 2nd & Yamhill. Walls like these are becoming rarer all the time in the urban core. A lot of ‘old Portland’ has been razed in the last two decades.

One of a matched set, the Poppleton Building

I’m not really that clear on where I went next. I continued south into the Lair Hill neighborhood we saw a bit of a few posts back. It’s a small area but pretty new to me, and I ended up getting a bit lost. I took an overpass across Pacific Highway/Highway 99 that I’ve never seen before, just to see where it goes.

It goes to NUNM, the national University of Natural Medicine, which I’d never heard of. That’s about it though. If you’re not in a car it’s more or less a dead end, its exits all being access ramps to the highway. Nothing to do but to turn back and recross the overpass. First though, I decide it’s prudent to sit in a sheltered bench and wait out a sudden, intense cloudburst.

Pacific Highway and south end of Naito Parkway from the Hooker Street pedestrian overpass

Back on the east side, I find that I’m still pretty cut off by highways. This is a pretty confusing little neighborhood. I’m going to have to study the map a bit before coming back this way. I finally get out on a small, steep residential street that climbs up the ridge to Terwilliger Boulevard. Back on familiar ground, I head south, drop down to the river through the Cemetary, cross the Sellwood Bridge, and am soon home at Amy’s.

In the evening we have another special Date Night: dinner at Cafe Mingo, and a film at Cinema 21. Both are great, and nostalgic. We haven’t been to Cafe Mingo for at least several years, but early on it was our favorite splurge in town. I think it’s the earliest of our restaurants that we still stop in at. And Underground - good heavens, what a film. Three hours long, amazing, a bit exhausting. We first saw it about the time we moved to Portland, as one of our earliest favorites at PIFF. I’ve been hoping for another chance to see it on the big screen ever since.

The double-hammered portal to Walsh Construction Company

The historic Lair Hill Condominiums - built in the late 1800’s, recently restored

Until coming by here today from a new direction, I’ve never noticed this staircase from Terwilliger to the VA hospital.

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