An Open Letter to Portland, Oregon

Dear Portland,

We did not start off on the right foot. As a matter of fact, you were kind of a sloppy second. Our original plans included going to spring training in Phoenix, Arizona… But that was cancelled so we ended up with you.

One thing you’ve gotten right Portland, is the love of books. Anywhere else, and a place like Powell’s bookstore would go out of business. Instead, it’s a monstrosity of a building that I could get lost in for hours. It was everything I’ve ever wanted a bookstore to be! And despite all the panic regarding coronavirus, that store was still pretty full with customers. Quite the feat!

And you had some pretty incredible vinyl stores too. We stopped by both Everyday Music and Music Millennium and were shocked to see such large spaces dedicated to ALL the LP’s. We picked up two albums–“Red” by Taylor Swift and the “Guardians of the Galaxy” soundtrack.

But yes, I get that you want to “keep Portland weird” but there is a difference between “weird” and “get your $hit together.” You have some of the coolest looking buildings I have ever seen–but they were all dilapidated and out of use. And they were EVERYWHERE. Your city isn’t gritty with character. It’s just… dirty. In a very unappealing way.

The homeless situations is out of control. The inn we stayed at had homeless people coming in to get free breakfast. The staff expected you to present a food ticket but these people were coming in, giving the hostess death stares, then snagging biscuits. When we went to Voodoo Doughnuts there were two dozen homeless people camping right outside of it–and we got to bear witness as one of them emptied out the tip jar while challenging the employee to stop them. It was the first time I travelled somewhere and didn’t feel safe. I kept thinking we were in the bad part of town before it struck me that, no, we were just in Portland.

Yes, Portland, you have some awesomely weird things about you–I particularly enjoyed the murals everywhere which were both creative and quirky… I just think you’re city needs some rehabilitation.

Love,

Kristen.

P.S. I feel terrible, like I just left you a LOT of hate Portland. Rest assured, it’s not like that at all. It’s more like a “mama bear-love” that wants to see you go onto greater things while still keeping your charm. Hugs?

P.S.S. I know this sounds pretentious of me, coming from someone who had the gall to travel during a pandemic. I shouldn’t have been there anyway making me a super-big jerk. I was just afraid it would be my last time to get out before everything shut down for a loooong time. Plus, it helped us practice “social distancing” and I was more than happy to spend my money to support the local economy.