Filed under: lists, reflection | Tags: bullet points, coffee, life, new, portland, unemployment
at muddy waters coffeehouse, sitting at the table on the mini-stage next to the window wall. I guess the novelty of portland’s weirdness hasn’t worn off yet, so staring out onto the street is still really fun. distractions are everywhere – counting the ever-increasing number of cigarette butts in the ashtray outside, trying to figure out why this guy has been standing in the middle of the coffeehouse for the past 20 minutes, enjoying my coffee – so here’s some short-attention span writing.
on portland:
- people wear those beanies with ear flaps often. and without a sense of irony.
- most people I’ve met came to portland from elsewhere. I may have met one or two native portlanders.out of eight people hanging at the Horse Brass on tuesday night, seven were from other states – maryland, new york, alabama, kansas, california, and arizona – and all pretty recent transplants at that. definitely makes for some great “back in my state..” stories.
- the weather, I’ve been told, has been uncharacteristically dry. although I was mentally prepared for the rain, I count myself fortunate to have avoided much of the rain. of course, the NWS predicts rain for tonight and tomorrow.
- oh yeah, I moved into a more permanent living situation. the 100-year-old house is located right between hawthorne and belmont and is pretty much the type of house I had hoped to move into. my two roommates are great, and a fat, fluffy cat named Edie rules the household.
- smokers. many.
- I’m regaining my walking legs. the walkability of the city is no joke. according to walkscore.com, Portland is the 10th most walkable city in the country.
- everyday is still an adventure.
on unemployment:
- my more general thoughts on this time in my life have already been laid out.
- I’ve had two interviews with the Boys & Girls Club of Portland. though I don’t want to get too ahead of myself (and trust me, I’m trying really hard not to), I keep thinking how thankful I would be to work at such a wonderful place. to be a part of an organization that meets the needs of kids in a practical, everyday way… wow, that would be great. anyway, fingers crossed, but fists unclenched.
- trust. in these times, who or what do I trust? my resume and cover letters? the people who are reading them? my unmatched charm? (gag). don’t, can’t, and come on, respectively. I am small, but my God is not. fingers cross, fists unclenched.
- in going through unemployment, I think I feel an extra surge of joy for friends who find jobs. sharing frustrations and misery is good, but sharing in happiness and thankfulness is better.
- budget budget budget.
on making a new life:
- being able to navigate myself to a previously unknown location without the help of google maps was a breakthrough moment. it helps that a lot of the streets here are numbered and attached with intermediate directions.
- I’m slowly making new friends, and I am thankful for each one of them. they bring stories, laughter, lessons, and a willingness to love. at the same time, this makes me extra thankful for the friends I have back at home.
- the lack of a routine, I think, has been a minor hurdle toward full acceptance of this new life in this new place. at the same time, routines tend to choke away newness. hm.
alright, time to go pick up an end table. woot.
Filed under: reflection, updates | Tags: about me, books, life, music, non-profit, nonprofit, portland, san diego, work
existence:
yeap, i still exist. this blog still exists. as i wrote in my first post, this blog remains a place to write whatever i feel like, and i’ve taken the liberty to make this blog a virtual place in which i can write whenever i feel like. so here i am on a coldfreezing wednesday afternoon in portland, warming my feet with the warmth of my laptop’s battery.
san diego:
on november 26, i reluctantly broke away from my life in san diego. saying goodbye to my dearest friends one-by-one was perhaps one of the most gut-wrenching experiences i’ve had in my life as a young adult. no matter how much i wished for the contrary, that wednesday saw me cry. a lot. with the apartment mostly clean and wholly devoid of my belongings, i drove northward in a car weighed down by the material crap i deemed slightly worthier than all the other material crap i ended up throwing away. every foot of nondescript I-5 pavement that passed underneath my car was a step away from the life i’d spent six years carefully nurturing. sure, the prospect of moving was reason to be excited and anxious and hopeful, but in all honesty, there was very little, if any, joy in the leaving.
thanksgiving:
thanksgiving weekend in milpitas was wonderfully calm and enjoyable with my family. the older i get, the more i’m able to pick up on the humor of my parents. they’re weird, zany folks and i love them for it. i picked up on the fact that i get my playful self-aggrandizing tendencies from my dad; twice during the weekend he said something along the lines of “i’m always looking good.” from my mom, i’ve inherited a general playfulness that i never noticed until the last few years. more than anything, i think she truly enjoys the act of laughing, and it’s an absolutely beautiful thing to witness.
portland:
after a great but altogehter too-short stop in sacramento, i set out on the long drive up to portland. 11 hours, two audiobooks, seven energy drinks, and one instance of peeing into a bottle later, i made it to the city.
the most common questions i’ve answered over the past couple weeks is “why?” and i’ve resorted to answering with “why not?” i’d been in san diego for six years, and while i simultaneously grew into community as it grew into me, i knew in the back of my mind that i needed to be stretched, challenged, and, hell, broken. if i didn’t do it now, the skeptical/scared voice inside would only have gotten louder, and i would probably have ended up laughing away the opportunity.
in the many nights i spent trying to decide whether or not i should move, i’m afraid that i antagonized the concept of comfort. comfort, i decided, meant stagnancy, a conclusion with which i’m already in disagreement. whereas comfort and being comfortable aren’t bad in and of themselves, i think there are particular times in one’s life to embrace them and particular times to eschew them. for me, it was simply the time to deny them, a difficult decision as i feel as if i’ve been on a six-year journey to create for myself nothing other a comfortable niche in this world.
portland is a good place with good things and (hopefully) good people. i think this place can become home. this, of course, won’t happen overnight, but i like my chances.
as of this entry, i’ve been here for 16 days.
work:
my last day of work at einstein industries was the 17th, and i spent the following week-and-a-half packing up my life and cutting some severe deals on pieces of furniture in an effort to sell them before i left. i could write more about that place, but i think the linked site is sufficient.
i came to portland without a job, but a much clear(er) idea about what i wanted to do and for what i have a passion. for the past month or so, i’ve been applying to nearly every non-profit job for which i’m sorta qualified. no big breaks yet, but i’m praying, hoping, and dreaming that i’ve got one coming on the horizon.
shameless request: if you know anyone in the portland area who is involved in non-profit work, please let me know or pass on my resume/information to him or her. a million thanks!
residence:
through the friend of a friend of a friend, i found a room to sublet through the middle of january. the house is absolutely charming and i’ll be sad to move out when the time comes. i’m starting the process of looking for a new, more permanent place in southeast portland, and am keeping my fingers crossed for something good. in the meantime, i’m enjoying having a basement.
music:
bands i’ve been listening to the past few weeks include
- band of horses
- thrice
- blitzen trapper
- the snake the cross the crown
- fleet foxes
- colour revolt
- tv on the radio
- bon iver
- ida maria
- denison witmer
- rosie thomas
books:
well, during my drive, i listened to stephen colbert’s I am America (And So Can You!) and david sedaris’ Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. i guess that sorta counts.
this past week, i’ve been on a wendell berry kick. he’s the author of my favorite poem ever, and is a profound essayist with ideas and convictions that make so much sense that they sound crazy to most. on saturday, i stopped by the ever-amazing powell’s books and picked up three of his works: Standing by Words, What Are People For?, and Sex, Economy, Freedom & Community: Eight Essays. i’ve started reading all three and am blown away not only by his thoughts, but also by his ability to bring biting wit to serious subjects and to inject gravity into humorous constructions.
. . . . . .
so there it is – a part-encompassing update of where, what, and who i am at this time.
’til later.
