Rocky Butte Roundup (A.K.A. Where Santa Claus Spends His Summers)
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Last night on one of my rare evenings off of work, I called up some friends to go for a ride. (I on a little 49cc yellow scooter, they on their red Kawasaki Ninja 500 motorcycle.) I suggested going somewhere to watch the sunset, and they instantly recommended Rocky Butte - a landmark bump on the earth from a long dormant volcano, and the only elevated ground in northeast Portland.
After a scenic ride up to the top we were surprised to find nearly a hundred bikes and their riders pulling off an impromptu sunset after-ride party at the top, complete with a portable stereo blaring dance music, potluck dinner, and all the locally brewed beer that could be pedaled up - in true Portland fashion.
After taking my 70th look back at Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens basking in the sunset to convince myself they weren't just a figment of my imagination, the night was topped off with an impromptu air guitar performance by Santa Claus himself, who, despite popular opinion, is actually a thin, middle aged Japanese man who wears a fanny pack and enjoys spending his summers in Oregon with a bunch of beer drinking, bike riding Portlanders. It appears that he records his good times on home video and then watches them up north during the winters when he needs a break from toymaking. (Probably with a Deschutes River Brewery Cinder Cone Red Ale in hand.)
Posted by Benjamin Washam 1:04 PM 4 comments
Labels: Portland
Temporarily Employed
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
I found work today! I'll temporarily be working for the Muscular Dystrophy Association of Portland, on the phone recruiting volunteers for their annual fund raiser. I figure it's better than telemarketing in a number of ways - I'm not selling or asking for money, and all the participation is going for a good cause - research for the cure and sending local kids with MD to camp this summer. I can live with that for six weeks.
I'm moving out of Church of the Servant King this week, where I've lived my first month here in Portland. I'll be moving into the basement of some new friends until I can find a room to rent (now that I have income!).
These photos were taken from the edge of a bluff about 300 meters down the street from where I'm staying. I look east to Mt. Hood and south to downtown. (For my dear friends in Minnesota: it was a sunny t-shirt day today, at a toasty 62 degrees.)
Next post: all about Mosaic and Evergreen - two Christian communities I'm exploring.
Posted by Benjamin Washam 8:27 PM 4 comments
Labels: Portland
The "Route"
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
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My Tentative 7-Day Route:
Thursday, 1/24: Depart Minneapolis; arrive Grand Island, NE
Monday, 1/28: Depart Grand Island; arrive Rock Springs, WY
Tuesday, 1/29: Depart Rock Springs, WY; BARELY MISS the Sundance Film Festival in Salt Lake City by 1 stinking day! Arrive Nampa, ID
Thursday, 1/31: Depart Nampa, ID; arrive Portland, OR. Find homeless shelter or a friend's parents house to stay at.
Posted by Benjamin Washam 3:31 PM 4 comments
Labels: Minneapolis, Portland, Travel
Living With Artistic License
Monday, January 07, 2008
Most people want to wake up in the morning with a general at the foot of their bed saying 'Go do this.' The problem is there's somebody at the foot of their bed saying, 'Once upon a time. . .' -N.T. Wright
I've spent the last four months in Minneapolis waiting for the general to give orders. Unfortunately, my general happens to be the strong, silent type. In my mind, the general is a Type-A god with a blueprint and checklist for my life, waiting for me to put tab A into slot B correctly. This picture is entirely unhelpful.
Much of my personal development has taken place in a context of Christian culture where "God's individual plan for my life" was the only approved decision making model and ministry/career path. Whether or not this model is accurate, my experience has shown it to be more like attempting to navigate through the Grand Canyon peering through a pinhole. Not only is it extremely difficult to see where I am and where I'm going, but I miss the beauty and grandeur of it all along the way. I admit, there are definite bounds for my wandering, basic Biblical guidelines, to be sure. But within this frame of a bigger picture, I've been finding tremendous freedom to explore my place in God's story - perhaps writing a new chapter of my own.
I realize now that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, is probably more like a novelist than a civil engineer. He cares less about where we go and what we do as long as the characters develop and the story hangs together as a coherent whole. The only way to ruin this kind of story is to forget who the author is.
I used to read the Bible as a scripted play with people simply filling predetermined roles, but now I know they didn't experience it like that when they were kicking up dust on the earth. They simply did what they had to do, and often just what they wanted to do. There was a famine, and people had to go where the food was. Someone got kicked out of the house and had to run away to a new land. Men went in search of a wife, and found one (or two). And sometimes, God spoke directly to a person and told him or her what to do.
I've decided to experiment with artistic license in this story (giving credit to the author, of course). I'm going to kick up some dust - rather, mud, because I'm moving to Portland, Oregon.
Posted by Benjamin Washam 11:18 PM 4 comments
Labels: General Reflections, Minneapolis, Portland
Relocation to Portland
Yes, I'm moving to Portland! Why the 2000 mile leap out of nowhere, you ask?
It's not out of nowhere, really - in fact, many people (myself included) have been predicting it for some time and wondering why it never happened sooner! One of the reasons it took me so long is spelled out in the above post; I didn't know what I wanted, and I wouldn't even let myself want for fear that it would oppose "orders from above," whenever they happened to show up. My trip home to Washington State at Christmas confirmed that I DO truly love the Pacific Northwest (PNW) and want to live there. Unemployed and unhappy in Minneapolis, I figured now was the perfect time to jump! I landed on Portland as a new home by a process of elimination: I knew I wanted the PNW, proximity to family in Yakima and Portland, and that I would probably require a larger city to ensure employment and networking. That left Seattle and Portland. From everything I've seen and heard, Portland is a lot more my style. And the last straw - I was actually born in Portland, at Kaiser Memorial Hospital.
Strangely enough, Minneapolis and Portland have a lot in common; so much so that I refer to them as the "sister" cities. Minneapolis already has a twin, so I guess Portland is fraternal. (Minneapolis is on the left.)
Quick facts:
Both are by far the largest cities in their respective states - states with very few other urban centers.
Both were founded at the confluence of two rivers (Willamette/Columbia, Mississippi/Minnesota) as a result of the lumber and milling industry.
Both cities are very politically progressive and environmentally aware ("green").
Both have a river as the primary feature of their downtown scene.
With the exception of maybe San Francisco, Minneapolis and Portland are known as the most bike friendly cities in the US.
My plan is to leave in the next two weeks, or whenever my car is road-trip worthy, I have enough gas money, and I pack. I am deeply saddened by the thought of leaving my community of friends in Minneapolis, but I believe it is a necessary parting at this stage of my life. The thought of a new start in a place I love, close to family, surrounded by mountains, ocean, and old friends, makes me very excited to get going. If anyone has leads for jobs in Portland (in Communication, Multimedia, Writing, Music, or just whatever) let me know!
Posted by Benjamin Washam 10:51 PM 1 comments
Labels: Minneapolis, Portland
