Portland in the NY Times again: "Hotbed of all things hipster" (crime, neighborhoods)

[gma221]

Originally Posted by khyron

What amuses me about a comment like that is that everything that person said, even the way they said it, pretty much sums up to me the most commonly used pejorative definition of hipsterism itself. It's like this person has absolutely no idea that they sound like a pseudo-intellectual douche. It's the cherry-on-the-sundae that they're from LA, that actually made me laugh out loud.

I found the irony amusing, as well. She outed herself as the stereotypical hipster-hating hipster.

[Winnyard Bletch]

I was at a party. The transplants outnumbered the locals. Most of us transplants were from Denver. The Denverites socialized, mingled around and had fun meeting new people. The Portlanders sat on the couch, discussing how awesome the bar they frequent is, and (quietly)criticizing the transplants, for being too friendly and genuine. Portland must seem pretty weird and sophisticated (if youre from Omaha or Boise), but if you have lived in a real city, then Portland is disappointing in terms of meeting open minded, interesting people. If you like restraunts that close at ten, casual racism, and nativist elitism, then Portland is the place for you!

[Nell Plotts]

Someone is obviously inviting the wrong Portlanders to parties. Diagram the social relationships and do some trimming on the next invite list.

[EnricoV]

Wow. Denver sounds so much more awesome with such neat non-judgemental (except when to comes to judging Portland natives). What are you doing in Portland?

But I am curious ... did you take an inventory of everyone at the party to find out where they were from, or did they just wear nametags.

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by Winnyard Bletch

I was at a party. The transplants outnumbered the locals. Most of us transplants were from Denver. The Denverites socialized, mingled around and had fun meeting new people. The Portlanders sat on the couch, discussing how awesome the bar they frequent is, and (quietly)criticizing the transplants, for being too friendly and genuine.

So these Portlanders were native Portlanders(or Oregonians) who were born and raised here or were they simply other transplants who'd been here longer than your Denver clique and you're now calling them Portlanders? Because I've experienced both--I've been to social events where the group of people from Boston or Michigan or Denver or wherever sort of just huddle in their own group of people they knew from college back wherever and I've met locals who just wanted to just talk to people they knew from high school.

On the other hand I've been here over nine years now(over 14 years in Oregon, though not) and a good number of my best friends are originally from the Portland area. I find it harder to relate to the younger transplants, but that's just a fact that comes with getting settled in somewhere. Once you have a close group of friends for a while, you're just not as motivated to really try hard to meet new people sometimes--it happens everywhere.

What I here more often from many people who were raised in Portland, is that they often go out and people are surprised because there's so many transplants around from California, the Midwest, or the Northeast that they haven't ever even met a native Portlander.

Portland must seem pretty weird and sophisticated (if youre from Omaha or Boise), but if you have lived in a real city, then Portland is disappointing in terms of meeting open minded, interesting people. If you like restraunts that close at ten, casual racism, and nativist elitism, then Portland is the place for you!

You must have a great job making over $150,000 a year to have the motivation to stay in such an awful place that you hate so much...

[pdxMIKEpdx]

Originally Posted by Winnyard Bletch

I was at a party. The transplants outnumbered the locals. Most of us transplants were from Denver. The Denverites socialized, mingled around and had fun meeting new people. The Portlanders sat on the couch, discussing how awesome the bar they frequent is, and (quietly)criticizing the transplants, for being too friendly and genuine. Portland must seem pretty weird and sophisticated (if youre from Omaha or Boise), but if you have lived in a real city, then Portland is disappointing in terms of meeting open minded, interesting people. If you like restraunts that close at ten, casual racism, and nativist elitism, then Portland is the place for you!

Last year I got invited to a new neighbor party where all their friends came from places east.
My neighbors and I felt like we were the "token Portlanders".

It's hard to socialize when everybody is reminiscing about where they came from and you have no clue about what they are talking about.
We sat with and talked amongst ourselves because at least we knew what we were talking about.

Did anybody ask us about any insider stuff about Portland?.........No.
Did anybody ask if we have ever been to (insert transplant's city here)?....................Just about everybody.

We tried to include ourselves in discussions, but alway felt like we were the outsiders.

[GatsbyGatz]

Portland is for people who want to experience an urban environment without having to be around all the blight, poverty, or non-whites that most big American cities are composed of. Its "livability" that is constantly attracting acclaim is mostly due to the city's provincialism. This is not a cosmopolitan environment. This is a city where the people don't want outsiders coming in.

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by GatsbyGatz

This is a city where the people don't want outsiders coming in.

Yet the city is pretty much all outsiders these days... So ironically it's a city full of transplants that hang out with other transplants that somehow you claim is unfriendly to other transplants.

There is also the irony that hip white people move from the East Coast to Portland and complain "Where are all the black people at?", yet they are often the same people who helped gentrify N and NE Portland--where Portland's black community lived for 50 years, and basically made inner NE just as white as SW Portland. Meanwhile the areas that are diverse in Portland--like SE 82nd or further out NE Sandy, these same people even exist...

[Beenhere4ever]

So that's why the Chinese hacked the Times. To find out more about this place called "Portland' before it infects their country with "weirdness".

[pdxMIKEpdx]

So that's why I've been seeing so many "KEEP POLAND WEIRD" bumperstickers lately.

A clever redirect!