Downtown Portland Living (Lake Oswego: loft, condo, theater)

[HiDesert]

My wife and I are considering a move to Portland. We presently live in the Mojave Desert near Victorville, CA and although we like it here we are now in our mid 60's and can no longer maintain our property. The wife grew up in Mexico City and myself in Michigan, we have been California residents for the past 38 years. We like California a lot but need to live closer to things such as stores and intertainment and the Portland area is still affordable. As a retired trucker I am very familiar with Oregon and seem to remember that Portland is considered a nice city to live in.
We are currently keeping an eye on properties in Portland and Lake Oswego through the internet and are planning a trip up soon to have a closer look.
We would like to talk with those that have made the change to get thoughts on weather etc., we love the rain but get very little of it here so maybe it would be too much for us. We are looking for a nice condo or loft and want something walking distance from stores and such. I am very limited on how far I can walk and often use a wheel chair so need to be close to mass transportation and stores. We are good citizens and neighbors and would get on well with the friendly people of Oregon. We have always liked the NW so maybe this is the time for a move. I hope there are people out there that may have some information for us.
Gary & Estela

[Clear2land]

Hi Gary:

We both lived in the same city for a while. Do you remember WTRX? I was a DJ there in 1967. I think we were calling ourselves the Jones Boys. Everyone seems to want to leave Flint, Michigan. I told the neighbor to turn out the lights when he left.

I did live in Portland and liked it. I know about Victorville and Portland and they are two worlds apart. You are dry as a bone and Portland is wringing wet October to June. It is 10,000% better than Flint in every way. Sometimes change is good and this would be a good move for you. They do have a great bus system and you can live near stores. You will also be living next to neighbors that are willing to pick something up for you at the store.

There is plenty to do in Portland; the rose festival to name one. The zoo to name two and the best ice cream on the planet is sold at Multnomah Falls.

I got to run right now the wife wants to go out to eat. I'll be back to tell you more.

Dan

[Clear2land]

Hi Gary:

My only concern for you is gray skies and rain. The only negative I can think of in Portland is rain. All I remember is rain, rain, and more rain. Me, I would rather have rain than snow any day. A friend of mine recruited me to WTRX in Flint. I asked him how the weather was there? His answer was, "it's just like Oregon. A cloud comes over and it rains." I did not know cold until I moved to Flint. A friend invited me to drive my car out onto a lake. I thought he was crazy but we did it and I'm still here today to tell the story. I don't want to drive out onto the water ever again. You are also dry in Victorville. Your skin cracks. You know what it is like. That will never happen in Portland. You can drink the best water you ever drank right out of the tap. There are waterfalls up and down the Columbia that with take your breath away. If given a choice to live in Victorville or Portland, I'd take Portland. I'm not sure if the people living there appreciate it as much as they should.

Dan

[tiffela74]

Another upside to the rain here, besides all the beautiful greenery, is that we do have many things to do indoors. Several malls, the convention center is always holding something or another, several theaters, both movie and theatrical live shows, Arlene Schnitzer (not how to spell it right, but sounds bout phonically) Concert hall has some incredible music, there is OMSI (Oregon Museum Science and Industry, its an incredible all day trip and has not only hundreds of hands on stuff, but a great IMax theater, and they have all sorts of incredible rotating exhibits, there are art museums, a book store that takes up and entire city block, all the way around!!, incredible little eaterys, funky little shops, and friendly groups that are always welcoming new members. If youre open and friendly, you wont run out of things to do/experience in Portland. - and yes, its very handicap/wheelchair friendly and lots of public transport.
Good luck to you!
Tiffany