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Yankeemama, I think that the rich people here, surrounded by the large amount of poverty-stricken and homeless, feel like actual royalty. The West Hills is far removed from the realities of Felony Flats or even Pioneer Square. In places where New York, there is more "mixing"... even the 0.0001 percent has to come into contact with the unwashed masses simply by walking out of their apartments.
But it's all a matter of perspective... someone in the West Hills might buy a $2 million house and feel like a king, while a house in the Hamptons could cost $45 million.
I really like Portland - it has a lot to offer. It is beautiful, green, livable, full of great culture and food. However, I think the superficially polite, passive-aggressive culture often conceals repressed anger. Also, I wonder if this reserved, indirect culture literally drives some people crazy because of a lack of social connection. For a place that is all about community, there are a lot of isolated people muttering to themselves on the street.
Yes, Turquoise! I feel and think exactly what you wrote. The passive aggressive stuff drove me insane when I first moved here. Yes, I agree there is so much anger and hostility. If I told you some of the nasty things other mothers have said to me, you would think we were in junior high. Hostility is quite veiled, though. I do think all of the West Coast is passive aggressive but Portland has made a fine art of it.
Having said all this... I have made a few good friends that I can be myself with. I do think when you go to a less affluent neighborhood, you hear a lot more "thank you"s and people tend to be more real. The more I get out of my little world in close-in NE the happier I seem to be. I just like to be exposed to different kinds of people on a regular basis. It helps my psyche. We should meet at Whole a Foods Hollywood sometime, Turquoise so I can show you the kind of behavior that makes me nuts! Better yet, come to our Trader Joe's. Unbelievable. The entitlement is epidemic.
Well, yeah. If you're going to make sweeping (negative) statements about "long time residents" it probably would be helpful to know that you're talking about a few of them, in your neighborhood ... not all of us.
There are more than a few. Try over 100. But yeah, my sweeping generalization does hold truth. That's my story and I am sticking to it. Have a great day!
The Trader Joes is on Halsey across from the 24 Hour Fitness and the Hollywood a Transit Center. I had a few places in Astoria that I would get Greek food. Really miss it. Have you had any good Greek here?
I do love this city in many ways, but lately a few things have really irked me.
1) The transit sucks
Sometimes it takes 2 hours to travel ten miles, and the MAX is really just a showpiece. Lines have been cut, prices raised. Some hours it's typical for the busier lines to be double capacity. Sometimes it's actually quicker to just walk than to wait for the next ride.
2) Poverty
Oregon has a lot of poverty. While I appreciate that the homeless are welcome here and not driven out of town, I wish they were better taken care of. I also find that if I go downtown for any period of time it's almost inevitable I will be asked for money. I'm not rich myself and while often I am willing to give them a dollar or at least a quarter or two, sometimes I feel like it's a tax. The job market also sucks; Portland isn't a good place to live if you want to make decent money.
3) The food, music and nightlife aren't that great
This town totally shuts down at 2:30 AM, and even though there are a lot of bars, they're honestly all pretty much the same as the next. Same with the food carts - I like gyros, but how many gyro carts do there really need to be? The Chinese food sucks too, now that Fujin is gonna be gone I'll pretty much be "done" with Chinese food.
Also what famous bands does Portland have that still make music or are relevant? None?
4) THE WEATHER
In theory I should like Portland's weather, but in practice I do not. The rainfall distribution is horrible for your health. I wish there was more winter sunshine and more summer rain. The mildewy winter gives me bronchitis and then when summer comes I get horrible allergies and can't breathe which is even worse.
It's also not as mild a climate as you'd think. While winter is usually above freezing, it's only a few degrees warmer than cities like New York and DC on average, and unlike back east you don't get days that are actually warm during the winter. The winters are LONG too - sure extreme cold is almost unheard of, but you can go like 5-6 months without it ever reaching 70F. The snowlessness is depressing, snow is fun and I feel like a climate as chilly as Portland deserves more of it.
Summer can also get quite hot and muggy at times, despite popular belief. 90 degree days that fail to get below 60 at night are quite common and the humidity tends to be around 35-50% during the day. The fact AC is rare in Portland and houses are poorly insulated combined with my allergies mean that July, August and most of September are not a good time for me. I am always aware of how the heat makes me unhappy during those months. By August it gets really brown and dusty too, I wish Portland had more summer rain.
I have often heard nothing but praise heaped on the Portland transit system. Thanks for the info on that if I ever visit. I would likely walk a lot there. As for the town closing at 2:30 AM, that is sufficient enough for someone like me. If I have not been able to eat, drink and/or socialize with someone by that time, no point in staying out much later, anyways. Of course I am 53 now and don't do the early morning hours out on the town as often as I did in my 20's/30's. Some cities close it down at 1:00 AM. 2:30 AM seems adequate for me at this point in my life. However, if you are used to 24/7 access or places being open until at least 4 AM, that is understandable.
Those summers sound uncomfortable. I am sure people use some of their travel time and summer weekends to go to the coast where it is cooler.
1) So walk. It's better for you. Drive. Ride a bike. Stay home.
2) Don't like the homeless or the poverty they represent? It's a worldwide problem. But as for Portland's ... what are you doing to alleviate it? Why not invite a homeless person to come and live with you. Or just over for dinner. don't make decent money in Portland ... how, and who, is it you expect to be supporting everyone who doesn't want to (or can't) work?
3) Aren't that great? Please. No one expects "great" nightlife in Portland. Besides, no one needs to be out after 2:30 drinking and carousing. Perhaps that's why you're having problems with #2. Go to bed, get some rest, so you can get up and go to work.
Gyros carts? I've never been to one. If you think there are too many, don't go to them. Why worry about something you're not forced to go to. Chinese? Not one of my favorites, but maybe try Shandong, Wong's King Seafood, Lucky Strike. As for bands? Again, who cares if the bands are from Portland, or passing through town from elsewhere. Or even if they're "famous." There's plenty of good music to be heard.
4. Oh dear. If you have health problems, visit a doctor. I have no ill effects from the winters. Or from the summers. Or from the lack of snow. I'm not depressed. I have heat and air conditioning, and have had in almost every house I've ever lived in.
5. It's obvious you're just trolling with yet more "complaints" about Portland. If you don't like it in Portland ... MOVE. Find somewhere else you think is more perfect for you. Seriously, life is too short to spend so much time dwelling on what you don't like about people, places, things.
The OP started the post by saying he loves the city, so I would put it at a higher level than "trolling". You countered with some good facts, although I am sure the "Invite a homeless person to live with you" was sarcastic humor (not practical in reality). Portland does have a panhandler problem higher than other cities its size, because I have a good friend that lived there for 12 years that said so. He also praised its walkability (his neighborhood, especially), parks, bookstores and coffeehouses. Not everyone with a critique is trolling so long as they are fair and not exaggerating.
I also should add that a traveling musical group performing is entertaining, but is even more special for the audience when they are from your particular region. Usually, homegrown talent will socialize more with the locals (not my thing...but for a lot of people) and be more willing to sign autographs and also may do benefit concerts for the community's charities on occasion.
New freeways help for a short period of time, but it just encourages more people to drive, then the problem is back where it was. 8 lanes in each direction haven't fixed LA traffic. Portland does have a problem where areas bottleneck but adding lanes wouldn't fix the over all problem long term.
What does LA have to do with this? Does Portland have the same pop. as LA? Building more roads would solve the problem for a while, unless u see Portland getting 10 million more people in the near future.
I do love this city in many ways, but lately a few things have really irked me.
1) The transit sucks
Sometimes it takes 2 hours to travel ten miles, and the MAX is really just a showpiece. Lines have been cut, prices raised. Some hours it's typical for the busier lines to be double capacity. Sometimes it's actually quicker to just walk than to wait for the next ride.
2) Poverty
Oregon has a lot of poverty. While I appreciate that the homeless are welcome here and not driven out of town, I wish they were better taken care of. I also find that if I go downtown for any period of time it's almost inevitable I will be asked for money. I'm not rich myself and while often I am willing to give them a dollar or at least a quarter or two, sometimes I feel like it's a tax. The job market also sucks; Portland isn't a good place to live if you want to make decent money.
3) The food, music and nightlife aren't that great
This town totally shuts down at 2:30 AM, and even though there are a lot of bars, they're honestly all pretty much the same as the next. Same with the food carts - I like gyros, but how many gyro carts do there really need to be? The Chinese food sucks too, now that Fujin is gonna be gone I'll pretty much be "done" with Chinese food.
Also what famous bands does Portland have that still make music or are relevant? None?
4) THE WEATHER
In theory I should like Portland's weather, but in practice I do not. The rainfall distribution is horrible for your health. I wish there was more winter sunshine and more summer rain. The mildewy winter gives me bronchitis and then when summer comes I get horrible allergies and can't breathe which is even worse.
It's also not as mild a climate as you'd think. While winter is usually above freezing, it's only a few degrees warmer than cities like New York and DC on average, and unlike back east you don't get days that are actually warm during the winter. The winters are LONG too - sure extreme cold is almost unheard of, but you can go like 5-6 months without it ever reaching 70F. The snowlessness is depressing, snow is fun and I feel like a climate as chilly as Portland deserves more of it.
Summer can also get quite hot and muggy at times, despite popular belief. 90 degree days that fail to get below 60 at night are quite common and the humidity tends to be around 35-50% during the day. The fact AC is rare in Portland and houses are poorly insulated combined with my allergies mean that July, August and most of September are not a good time for me. I am always aware of how the heat makes me unhappy during those months. By August it gets really brown and dusty too, I wish Portland had more summer rain.
does having two project runway winners in a row count for anything?
What does LA have to do with this? Does Portland have the same pop. as LA? Building more roads would solve the problem for a while, unless u see Portland getting 10 million more people in the near future.
What you're failing to realize, is that no matter the size of the city, adding extra freeway lanes only forces the lanes to get full as people are then able to live much further out in the suburbs. This is called "Induced Demand." Los Angeles, in fact the entire Valley, is the perfect example of this and has been the subject of numerous traffic studies. Atlanta is another example with it's Super Freeway and how congestion is now worse then it was before the highway was built.
Locally, you just need to look at Highway 26. We've added another lane from Sylvan Hill all the way East to 185th. After the third lane was added, traffic was better for about two weeks. Now traffic during rush hour is just as bad.
If you want to look back 30 years, I-205 is another prime example of this in action. It was meant to be a bypass of I-5 and to relieve congestion of vehicles going through downtown Portland. Now it's as busy as I-5 is AND has negatively affected nearby surface streets such as 82nd and 122nd. Yet East Portland has not grown significantly population wise like the West Side has.
This is one of the reasons why many cities, Portland among them, is embracing "urban intensification," or "smart growth." This is why we're seeing the "Apartment Bunkers," and why we're seeing rapid expansion of the street car and MAX.
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