If you love Oregon, at what point did you know? (Portland: houses, weddings)

[gypsydoc]

In 1996 I was on a cross country road trip and when I drove down I-5, it was in the evening and I didn't see much of Portland. I wondered why people spoke so highly of it since it wasn't even by the ocean. Since I had lived in Kansas city and the mid-west, it seemed like such a waste to be so close, yet not go to the shore! What was the point?? Ha!

I spent a few days in Corvallis where I happened to get a copy of an Oregon tourist magazine full of ridiculously gorgeous photos. It had pictures from the John Day Fossil Beds, to the Wallowa Mts., to the coast, Multnomah Falls, Portland itself, the Willamette Valley, vineyards, covered bridges, etc. etc. I had no idea that there was such variety in one state.

When I saw that magazine, that was when I knew I would love to live here. And now I do. There's not a day that goes by when don't acknowledge how privileged I am to live in such a magical part of the world.

So, how did you get introduced to Oregon?

If you are from here, have you always lived here?

Did you leave for awhile and then come back?

What are the top things that you love about this state?

My intention for this thread is to avoid all the crabby, cranky whiners. There are plenty of other threads for that. I just want to share with others who are having somewhat of a love affair with the state... At least with those who enjoy the relationship most of the time.

[Random_Walk]

I got a call from a headhunter, and decided to move out from Salt Lake City (where at this point in my career, only a 'temple recommend' would get me any kind of promotion... don't ask, but I assure you that for most employers, company politics will get to that point pretty quick in Utah, and if you're not a member, you may as well forget it).

So, I moved... and the more I saw, the more I liked. What clinched it for me was the fact that unlike Salt Lake City, downtown Portland is *alive*. It's not a monoculture, dominated by buildings and personalities of beige. It's not focused on any one thing at all. It has a far more interesting history.

And then... you step outside of town. Woods that are just as beautiful, wild, and dangerous as they were 150 years ago. Places where you feel small. Granted, there are many places in Utah that are similar, but nothing on this grand scale, and definitely not nearly as full of life.

I mean, seriously, when I can look out of my window and see a full-grown wild bald eagle skim by on his daily routine, like he did every morning since I moved in? When I can go from surf, to sand, to deep dark forest, to snow... all within one day's driving? The state blows away nearly any other place I've ever lived at.

Outside of PDX, folks are generally far, far friendlier, and none of them predicate their friendship based on whether I have been to church lately (or rather, if I've been to their church lately). Instead, they predicate it on whether or not you're a good person yourself. Here, folks just generally get along, and keep to their own business. As long as you're not bothering them with your ideology/politics/religion, they won't bother you with theirs.

Every morning out here on the coast brings something new. Today, I found a bottle washed up (empty, but sealed and otherwise intact) covered with a Chinese or Japanese label (hard to tell due to the algae crusted all over it). It could have come from the recent Tsunami disaster in Japan, or it could have been casually tossed overboard by a drunk fisherman. No idea, but it's hella cool. Each day (and sometimes each hour) the weather is different, and not always some monotone gray.

There's a sense of civic pride, both in PDX and out here. Folks actually get together and do stuff for fun (reminds me - Garabaldi's annual crab races start this weekend). The majority of people actually get away from the televisions and go do stuff... amazing as hell, IMHO.

I can't say there was any one point in time or any one event that cemented the deal. It was more an accumulation of things that, over time, impressed me enough to want to call the place home.

[gypsydoc]

Thanks, Random Walk... I kinda sorta know what you're talking about re: Salt Lake City. On the same road trip where I fell for Oregon, I had the opportunity to stay at a hostel in SLC. I was taken by the huge to-do over temple weddings... Bevvies of various colored bridesmaids dresses, gray, or black suited men attendants with the center white ensconced bride scurried as one pod, near the temple waiting their turn for the marriages some of them had waited 2 years for.

No, Oregon isn't Utah.
I like your description of the coast and beauty there.

The first time I saw Welcome to Newport's Yaquina Lighthouses - Friends of Yaquina Lighthouses was in the days when it was still free to visit, I stopped my car and cried. Yeah, a bit emotional, but rounding the last curve on the rather non-descript road, that Lighthouse burst into view with the sun full-on and the turquoise/green waves exploding upwards of 50 feet or more. Dorothy, we're not in Kansas anymore.

BTW, have the whales started showing up yet?

[bghouse]

I think my love affair is just starting with the "we seriously like each other" phase :-)

Today I drove from Longview, WA to Newport. (I had a meeting up in Longview). What a wild and cool trip! The variety of scenery from Portland, down the 5, over through the various towns - and that forest corridor thing, wow - that was some intense miles through there. Then, when I finally saw water it was the ocean with life, energy & personality. A little wild, a little blustery and completely glorious.

No rain today, which was lovely for my driving - as I might have been a little frightened in that forest if it had been darker and raining. Yes, there was still a bit of "gray" to the skies, but man everything felt fresh and alive. And the slightly overcast sky is wonderful for my photography - so can't complain about that at all.

I have 3 more days here on the coast, so we'll see how my "relationship" with Oregon progresses...

[gypsydoc]

What a thrill to experience that journey. Thanks for sharing! Will you be going back up via 101?

It is slower, but gorgeous!

[Random_Walk]

Originally Posted by gypsydoc

BTW, have the whales started showing up yet?

Haven't seen any from here, but I'm not near enough to any of the points or cliffs to do an easy watch.

[wanderbygrace]

I first stepped foot in Oregon back in the 1980's as a teenager, and immediately thought of the state as a paradise for this midwesterner from vertically challenged Ohio. Then in the 1990's, I would meet and marry my spouse, who had spent a large part of formidable years in Oregon. When we took trips out to Oregon to meet relatives, I fell in love w/Oregon all over again. When we had to move here due to family necessities last summer, I had no qualms about doing so - it was the only place besides Ohio I could ever have thought to live.

Right now, I'm in the "hopelessly in love and enjoying every minute w/her" stage. Both Oregon and my spouse.

Ohio? Never wanna go back.....

[gypsydoc]

What a great story! I was born in Cleveland and can remember enjoying it as a child because at least it was on the Lake!

LOL re: your hopelessly in love stage! The cool thing is we're heading towards the best seasons with the most daylight in which to play. Yippee!

[bghouse]

@gypsydoc - I wasn't going to go 101 south originally, as it is a much slower trip to get back home. I may change my mind in the next day or two though...

[Terryj]

I was born in Bend, Oregon in 1950, I lived in Oregon until I went into the service. I've lived in different areas of the United States but none of them were Oregon. Oregon has all most everything you could ask for, one of the most beautiful coastlines of any state, moderate climate between the coast range and the cascade range and if you like the desert, we have that also. The people here are friendly, they are not afraid to talk to you.
I grew up in Southern Oregon and have seen allot of changes in this area. I've seen towns like Grants Pass go from a small town of 13,000 to a small city of almost 35,000. Medfrod has gone from a small city of 35,000 to the largest city in Southern Oregon at 80,000. Sometimes I sit back and say, these towns are getting to big for me, but theres no place like home.