Life has been so crazy lately, I fear that if I don’t do a ‘Dear Diary’ style post then I might forget everything since so much (yet nothing at all) happens every day. Here goes.
Today was a Monday, but I had taken it off since Andrew and I had planned on a long weekend trip up to Vancouver BC. Canada had just opened up it’s borders last week and we were excited to head north to see friends we haven’t been able to hug in over two years! But on Friday, surrounding wildfires, toxic air and a heatwave had us questioning our plans and then a positive covid test popped up in the friend group so we canceled the trip. I don’t know what it is, but this past year has really got me accepting defeat more gracefully. No Panama sailing trip? Okay maybe later. No bachelorette or engagement party? Fine. No big wedding? We’ll do it bigger in the future. Climate change? We’re doomed for the next thirty years and even more if we don’t immediately stop burning fossil fuels which isn’t going to happen. It’s all whatever to me now, but whenever I remember the reason that we’re STILL in this pandemic I want to strangle someone. Peace, love, unity. Breathe. Get vaccinated.
Anyways, since I had the day off I decided to get a haircut. I went to see Tammy my hair stylist in the NW, she’s become more like a dear friend. She’s an older Vietnamese lady, and I wish she was my actual aunt. She almost cried with joy over my news, and made me teary too. We realized that I’ve been going to her for almost eight years now! She told me how she’s been telling all her clients to get vaccinated, and laughed when she told me that some haven’t been coming back but she doesn’t care. “It’s not just about them, it’s about the community.” Before I left she told me to come back more often, just to say hi, even if I didn’t need a haircut, cause seeing me made her so happy. I hope everyone has someone like Tammy in their lives.
It’s Burger Week in Portland, usually a very anticipated event full of $5 special burgers from establishments all around town. This year, it’s just not the same. Well, it’s $6/burger this year, which is totally warranted, but other things too. Indoor mask mandates went into effect again last Friday, so there are less dining options and there’s overall collective exhaustion and sympathy for service and hospitality workers. Renette though, had a list of burgers she wanted to conquer so after my haircut I joined in on her quest and met her up at Laurelwood Brewery for lunch. Since I had skipped coffee that morning, my head was bursting by the time we sat outside and I nursed a coffee while we chatted, sharing a burger and some veggie bowl (split on to separate plates of course). The burger was pretty dismal. Afterwards, we stopped by Arium Botanicals, one of her favorite plant shops to support them since they had gotten broken into twice in the past month. I cannot imagine how hard it is to run a small business in Portland right now. Thankfully, she told me, none of the plants were stolen. The shop displayed gorgeous cacti and huge jungle forest-y plants facing their open garage store, and I picked out a kokedama fern to display on my living room bookshelves.
If there was one hobby I lay awake in envy wishing I could do, it would be fostering kittens. My friend Rachelle does this, and I think she’s on her fourth batch now? This time, she has a sweet blind kitty and the brother, a feisty-wiggly one that I’ve been adoring via her IGS (up for adoption soon!). I stopped by her place this afternoon for kitty snuggles and to hang for a bit, and ended up helping her pickle cucumbers and green beans from HER garden. Rachelle is one of those friends that I’m always learning new things from and I love that about her. I can go to her with any problem and she’s so happy to share her knowledge or offer solutions, and she’s only four days older than me.
I rushed home before 4pm as per my promise to Andrew to help him drop the FJ cruiser off at the body shop. We have too many cars and I feel like such a wife saying this but if anyone wants to buy my husband’s impractical, play-cars they WILL be posted for sale soon! It’s just annoying that we have a one car garage and I can’t even park in the driveway. He’s selling a white convertible Miata and a silver FJ cruiser (the off-road square, not the one that looks like a hearse that’s a PT cruiser lol). Then we’re gonna get a minivan! JK. Maybe a Tesla but he changes his mind every other day. I want a Subaru just like every other cool woman in Oregon.
Oh! So I posted a coat rack on FB marketplace and this lady was supposed to pick it up at 5:30 so when I heard a knock at the door at 5:30 I opened it but it was a canvasser for Amnesty International! They are a global NGO focused on human rights. I thought for sure this would be about Afghanistan, since they JUST fell to the Taliban over the weekend but to my surprise the guy didn’t even know about it. He told me he had turned off his social media over the weekend, it was just too much and I totally forgave him. Seriously, that is such a 2020–2021 move. He was knocking on doors to collect member sign ups, their focus this time was police brutality and the movement was to ban qualified immunity. What was their plan for doing this, exactly, I asked with a smile, and what was his stance on Ted Wheeler? It appears that NO one in Portland, on either political sides, heavily support our Mayor and his handling of the police force. I had him promise me I wouldn’t get an onslaught of paper mail and then signed up to give a monthly donation. I still don’t understand how taxes work, but apparently none of the charitable donations I made last year made any difference when Andrew and I filed as a married couple. The psychology of fundraising and collecting donations is so interesting to me. Anyways.
There was plenty of food in the house but nothing I wanted to eat, so I headed down the street to New Seasons and realized they also had a $6 special burger for Burger Week, and since my earlier burger was such a disappointment I decided to give it another shot. Their burger was better by far, but still just a burger I absentmindedly munched on with a side of kale salad on their rooftop. I enjoy eating alone sometimes, it makes me feel like I’m traveling. On my way out of New Seasons, there was a shirtless dude at the door collecting signatures to recall Ted Wheeler. I’ve been seeing them a lot lately (usually with shirts on), and the last thing I read about this effort is that they were falling extremely short of their goals, with only a tiny fraction of the signatures needed and less than two weeks.
I don’t know if it’s just living in Portland, but there is no way to avoid getting into politics lately, it’s like I have absolutely no choice but to be informed and to take a stance, but the fatigue IS REAL. However, I run out of fucks when it comes to Mayor Ted Wheeler. This is an unpopular opinion within my social group, but I honestly just feel bad for the guy. He’s basically caught in the middle of fiercely-opposing parties, blamed for everything bad happening in Portland, everything he does is either too much or too little, everyone hates him and I think anyone in his position would want to quit. He’s only human, and I waved a masked ‘No Thanks’ at the dude on my way out of the store. *8/24 edit: https://www.portlandmercury.com/blogtown/2021/08/22/36118630/far-right-antifascist-protesters-fight-in-ne-portland-police-refuse-to-intervene?cb=6aeee26cf3f427aa34d5183cb07689ef Okay this is dumb. I’ll sign the petition next time.
Eh, that’s pretty much been my day so far. The weather has been wonderful so I’m out back in the patio typing, watching Ole gnaw sticks on our almost-yellow back lawn while Andrew is having dinner w his guy friends. After this I might attempt hanging up a gallery wall — I don’t know if if it’s harder to hang up the frames or to continue living with a blank dining room wall…
Chat soon, stay well x
