This weekend marks 4 years since my brother and sister in-law came to visit me while I was living in Portland. I moved back to Spokane at the end of that year, and there was so much more around the city I’d wanted to show them, or enjoy with them, which was simply impossible during the “great indoor era.”
Since then, I’ve been back to Portland for work, for the retro gaming convention, and as a one night stop on our road trip last summer. While each of these trips was a ton of fun (even work), they didn’t offer me the chance to really dive in and focus on Portland. This Juneteenth weekend, I was able to do just this.
There’s something about being back in Portland, with no agenda (work, convention, itinerary) and no responsibilities that’s just incredibly relaxing. There’s something about seeing Powell’s Book Store fully open for business, the formerly boarded up windows of downtown shops – now wide open displaying patrons enjoying varieties of foods, shops showing everything from handbags to BDSM mannequins.
2025 Portland is far different from the 2021 Portland I left behind in November of that year. There’s more vibrancy, despite the rain, more people out walking, there’s even a Timber’s game happening this evening. I think it’s been so long since I’ve been here to live instead of to make a living, to stop and smell the roses instead of driving by them, to shop slowly with intention instead of rushing to find my Powell’s purchase for the trip because we’re on a schedule.
I don’t even mind the rain, though I’d have preferred a sunny day to go disc golfing. Visiting the Rose Garden, enjoying ramen, discovering the Presbyterian Church’s underground parking is surprisingly hot and humid – but quite affordable, late night Top Golf, an IKEA run. It all sounds like a lot, but truly, we’ve spaced all this out over two and a half days and are still going to go kick it at Hopscotch this evening. It feels like a vacation, not a chore nor race.