#83 - found neverland

no, not the neverland ranch of michael jackson. i am talking about the peter pan neverland. this is a place where imagination and life in a child's eyes thrive. i've heard portland been called neverland by those who've been here for awhile and i really understand it. while i've never seen pirates or fairies, i wouldn't be surprised if they were in portland. one of the most common bumper stickers around says "keep portland weird" and indeed it is weird, but mostly because it's made of adults who strive to stay young and enjoy the individualist life, with other like-minded people.

there are a number of events/activities held in portland that would be great for children but are for adults. sports like dodgeball and kickball (which i do and LOVE), bowling, and ping pong are getting more and more popular. they are a great way to meet people who love to have fun! there are many activities not born and bred in portland but definitely made better. things like santacon (thousands of people dress up as santa and run around the city!), urban golf (golf in the city with tennis balls), urban iditarod (same as the alaskan except people filling in for dogs and shopping cart in place of sled), zoobombers (crazy people on bikes going down the hill from the zoo at midnight), soap box derby down mt tabor, zombie walk, pdx pillow fight, naked max riding, sidewalk ponies (tiny plastic ponies tied to metal rings used for real horses).

neverland is a dream land where only your imagination can take you and it can be whatever you want. there are an endless number of musicians, artists, the older-than-average student, students on the 10-year plan or on their second degree (hello!), and people who dare to be different. there are so many events going on and there is always a good band playing somewhere and usually for cheap. many musicians/bands are from or live in portland (elliott smith, helio sequence, stephen malkmus, pavement, the shins, sleater-kinney, m.ward, dandy warhols, decemberists, everclear, pink martini) and big name bands are always passing through and we've got the trailblazers, lumberjax (lacrosse), winterhawks (hockey), beavers (baseball), timbers (soccer). there is an endless amount of things to do and really something for everyone. we have one of the best library systems in the country and i spend countless hours there!
people in portland are passionate about things. art, music, the environment, outdoors, learning, coffee, bicycles, recycling, food, drink, hobbies, and anything you could think of. you may think that some hobbies are strange but where there is a hobby there is someone with a passion. it may be more than a hobby to that person and you can totally engage them in an interesting, open-hearted and passionate conversation. many of the people i meet are either vegetarian/vegan, bicyclists, musicians/artists, students or any of the above combinations. i was one and all at one point (although not so much musician/artist) and not hard core like most.
portland is a beautiful place with beautiful people (not like fake LA beautiful but real people)! it's separated into east and west by a dirty old river called the willamette and there are nine main bridges, from north to south: st. johns, fremont, broadway, steel, burnside, morrison, hawthorne, ross island, sellwood...there is even a song about them. my favorites are st. johns and fremont. on clear sunny days you can see mountains: hood, adams, st. helens, and rainier. it's a short trip to the beach or mountain, as well as seattle and canada. california is only 5 hours away as well. right now the cherry trees are blooming and you just know spring is here. everything is always green cause it rains a lot but it's great.

in downtown portland stands mills end park (world's smallest city park, ~450 square inches), right in the middle of a street. i kinda forgot the story but i've visited the park. didn't take long to walk across it! there are so many parks and green spaces in portland, it's easy to live in the city. just a few minutes away is the west hills, which contains miles and miles of trails for walking, running or biking. there is just something for everyone.

i never really enjoyed life as much as i do now. i'm not saying i haven't had a good life up to now but every year just gets better. i've appreciated and still appreciate every place i've lived and been but i feel like i belong here, right now. i know i will leave portland someday but i will be here for awhile at least, letting my imagination keep my feet firmly planted in neverland.