I Wanna Move To Portland, Give Me The Full Story

[Minervah]

I think the OP gets it by now. Portland is largely overcast. It rains a lot. No one is saying it's sunny and dry. Endemically or otherwise.

[UniversalMan]

Originally Posted by ramedud

Not a stereotype, it's called being flaky or fake. It's very common in CA, more so than in Portland. Some people are just like that. You just have to call out the b$ before it stings you first. My advice? Try not to put your eggs in one basket, and don't invest much stock in what a person says. Especially if you just met them.



With that income you can settle on a nice comfy apartment with lots of room. When you get more established in Portland you can start thinking about that nice downtown waterfront view. KOIN Tower or South Waterfront are perfect places for those views!



There are brothas in NE Portland, but sadly the economy and gentrification has pushed a lot of black folks out. There's still a sizable (for Portland IMO) and active community, though.



Yes, take that timeshare if you need to. It helps to soak up some rays in the winter. Keep in mind Portland is nothing like Buffalo, much milder and a lot less snow (if that). I don't mind the cold weather in Portland as long as I can go out and enjoy it.



You'll have little trouble finding new friends, even if you're more on the reserved side.
People in Portland are so friendly you can strike up random conversation with complete strangers.



If you have the means and can afford to do so, I'd say go for it.



You're welcome!

Thanks. Helped me to see some different sides of Portland. Yes, the California b.s. first hit home for me when I met a female from Riverside, CA who moved to Buffalo and literally I found out after 6 months of "knowing" her that she lied to me about EVERYTHING she ever told me including having a dead boyfriend who was alive and well and living with her. That was surreal. I don't think that was a Cali thing, but a character thing on her part and having Cali influences didn't make it better. Anywho, yes I have become familiar with Portland's mild temperatures in comparison to the northeast lake effect weather and I think I'll like Oregon's weather more. Not too hot, not too cold. I'll miss the close proximity to Toronto, 1.5 away from me and Niagara Falls 20 minutes speeding, but I'm sure I'll love making up for it with weekend trips to Vancouver or Victoria, BC. I also like the fact that there is a strong Asian population there as I have an affinity for Asian women. As far as the black population, as long as I can meet some black women throughout the city and there is at least one club that caters to the black community, I'll like it. For example hip-hop/r&b every once in a while. As you all can probably see, I'm not stuck on black living, or else I wouldn't be strongly considering Portland, lol, but I do appreciate some type of identification heritage wise. I appreciate diversity from films, to fine opera, fine wine and fine women among many other tastes. I've lived in the Buffalo inner-city my entire 28 years and look forward to spreading my wings. People find it hard to believe I'm from here from the section of town I was raised in because of my different tastes. We've got taste here, plenty of it btw. I love my city. Thanks again.

[UniversalMan]

Originally Posted by ca_north

I'd like a tip on what sort of business that is, because it sounds almost too good to be true! Something with no commute would be ideal.

As a Californian who's given Portland a serious look, the biggest drawback is the gloomy weather. I think there's endemic denial about how bad it is, for a city that claims to be outdoor-oriented. Sunlight and temperatures at least into the 60s is half the appeal of being outdoors for me. But, being from Buffalo (I visited there) you've already dealt with a similar lack of sun, and Portland will have much milder temperatures.

Thanks. The business focuses primarily on informational product sales that I manufacture and distribute electronically. Very simple management now but it took almost 6 months for me to make my first grand in a month. It feels great and I love that I have diversity in my schedule! I wake up around 9 casually, meditate then hit the gym from around 10:30-noon. At noon I go to work on my online venture till about 5 making updates to the site, responding to emails and creating new informational products. I take a nap from around 5:30-6 and then usually go back to work on creating new material for a couple of hours. By 8, I'm hanging out, watching a play, at a bar, or studying something interesting in science. No technology during this time. All the while eating some great homemade foods or stopping by a nice restaurant in Buffalo for lunch. Then it's pretty casual through the night and I crash watching a movie at a female friends house or they'll be over mine. Actually, I don't fall asleep from the movies. lol. It's a balanced lifestyle for me and I like it and am grateful to have it. Making around 66k on average the past two years, I'm not rich by any means, but I travel to film festivals, visit family in Cleveland in the drop of a hat and go to DC area regularly for trade shows and entertainment. Home based business is the way to go. Just create something that you would like, find a way to create a delivery system for it and find others who will like it as well and treat them like gold without letting them run your time. I am honored to escape the 9-5 grind as most of my jobs were $11 an hour on average my entire life. It's pretty dead here as far as income growth is concerned so it's ideal to find your own way if you can. In fact, the recession didn't hardly effect anyone here until 201o because a huge chunk of the city was alread used to living in poverty. Low cost of living, excellent food and schools and close proximity to everywhere in the U.S. is most of what Buffalo offers. Yeah the brisk unforgiving temps in the single digits and below zero will be a nice break. Thanks.

[UniversalMan]

Originally Posted by HonuMan

The notion that it drizzles continually for weeks or months on end is a myth. Yes, we do get a lot of rainy days (this past year in particular), but the rain generally is sporadic. It can rain for a while, stop for a while, start up for a bit, stop again, and so on throughout the day. Much of the time, it's more of a mist than a drizzle, and people don't even bother with umbrellas. I work in downtown Portland and like to walk on my lunch breaks, and there are very few times when it's too wet and nasty for me to want to walk. Gloomy, gray skies, on the other hand – that part is true. During the winter months, it's usually overcast. We get occasionaly sun breaks, and even occasional sunny days, but it's mostly cloudy. During fall and spring, it's a mixture of clouds and sun. Our brief summers are gorgeous, with little rain.

I spent my childhood in Rochester, NY, and I remember it being overcast for much of the year. I've met several transplants here from Upstate NY, and the consensus is that the Oregon is similar, but with blessedly moderate winters. The scenery here reminds me a lot of Upstate NY. So if you're okay with the cloudiness and raininess of Buffalo, you should be fine in Portland, and you won't have to deal with Siberian winters anymore.

I can't speak much about the Black cultural scene. Portland has a higher percentage of Whites than most cities, but I've had several Black friends here over the years. Most have been professionals I've met through my job and my wife's job. There is prejudice everywhere, but Portland has a reputation for being more tolerant of diversity than most places.

Thanks. An upstate guy huh? Greetings. The racism thing wouldn't bother me because Buffalo embraces more then it's fair share and i'm sued to it. I love living around all types of people and can mesh well with them but it would be nice to know there's a soul food place around, lol. Thanks for your feedback and yes I think I can handle the temps of the northwest. If I don't even wear a hat or gloves in Buffalo winters, I'll be fine.

[HonuMan]

Originally Posted by UniversalMan

Thanks. An upstate guy huh? Greetings. The racism thing wouldn't bother me because Buffalo embraces more then it's fair share and i'm sued to it. I love living around all types of people and can mesh well with them but it would be nice to know there's a soul food place around, lol. Thanks for your feedback and yes I think I can handle the temps of the northwest. If I don't even wear a hat or gloves in Buffalo winters, I'll be fine.

When I lived in Rochester, Buffalo was the only place we could think of that got more snow than we did! I haven't been back since 1972, when my parents moved us to Atlanta for warmer winters and better job opportunities, but they've been back a couple of times to visit my dad's relatives. I wouldn't mind visiting one more time. I was a science and nature geek as a kid, and I loved to go hiking in Upstate, and collecting fossils in places like Lockport.

Portland has just about every kind of food you can imagine, and there are at least a couple of soul food places. There's a really popular Southern restaurant called the Screen Door (you have to get in line outside before they open if you want to be seated immediately) that has great fried chicken and waffles, collard greens, cornbread, jambalaya, and other good stuff. In Atlanta, it would be considered just "everday food," but in Portland, it's considered exotic. We're also known for our cheap and plentiful outdoor food carts, which are clustered in various "pods" around the city.

I moved to Portland 14 years ago, and I love it. It's big enough to have all the cultural diversity I need, but small enough that it lacks the hassles that go with living in really big cities. I spent a year in Seattle before settling in Portland (at the time, I had a job that allowed me to work from anywhere), and while I loved Seattle, it had too much of what I'd left behind in Atlanta: urban sprawl and gridlocked traffic. It was also more expensive than Portland. Some people, though, do prefer Seattle's more cosmopolitan vibe and faster pace, so it ultimately comes down to personal preference.