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I keep my travel logs here. It's simpler to use than turtlemadness when it comes to quick postings and stupid things.

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Jun
17th
Tue
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Hilarious Times with Dom

This is Dominique:

Dominique


This is a post about the hilarious times with Dominique.

You see, Dom is from Switzerland. That means she’s Swiss. She came to the US to study English in San Francisco, and then made a trip out to the Rockies. She has a distaste for Amtrak, and, like me, doesn’t understand why everyone in the US drives, eats fast food, destroys the envrionment, and tips.

Let’s start there, with tipping. We go out to a bar, I order a Sunshine, she orders a Coke. She pays, then puts the remaining $.50 in change down on the bar. “Like this?” she asks. I tell her no, we’ll tip when we leave. “You’re sure?” I smile and laugh. A little earlier, we were at a Chinese place, and at the end of the meal, she gives me $10 for hers, I put down my card, and then leave a $5 tip, which surprises her. “Really? A whole $5?” Five bucks was the smallest denomination I had, and the bill was something like $25 anyway, so, it made enough sense to me. We open our fortune cookies and read them aloud. She asked if I believed in that kind of thing. I told her I’ve got a fortune on my desk, just because I like it. (Note: It says, “From now on your kindness will lead you to success.” I found it interesting, because the one I got at the Chinese place said, “You will soon be repaid for your kindness.”)

Later on at the bar, this crazy black guy from Cinncinati (which, he informs me, is a big town with no mountains) puts his hand on Dom’s back. She’s visibly uncomfortable with this, so I take his hand and remove it…from her back. I’m pretty sure the guy still has his hand. He starts in on a story about how he respects me, shakes my hand, talks more and I can’t hear him very well. I finish my pint, drop a dollar tip, and we head out.

Earlier in the day, Dom wants to go to the Hot Springs, and I want to get a snack and go for a walk. I drive her down to the pool, and she comments on how everyone has such big cars, and was glad that I drove a little German car. As I’m walking down the street to grab dinner, I see Dom on her way back to the hostel. I ask if she wants to get dinner, she says, “You’re getting food, and I come with, so that way, I am not alone, and neither are you!” She then told me a story about how some creepy old guy tried to pick her up at the pool, he wanted to take her up the canyon on his motorcycle. “In Switzerland, you just wouldn’t see that.” I’m surprised. “No one tries to pick you up?” I ask. “Not like that,” she says.

We hung out at the hostel and talked about politics, how I need to visit Switzerland, how it’s hilarious that I got my learner’s permit at 15, license at 16, car at 18, and can’t drink (legally) until I’m 21. She commented on how she “wants to go out, because it’s been probably a lot of weeks since I have gone out, even just to sit in a bar or something!”

We also played with this kitteh that was six weeks old and living in the hostel. The crazy black guy also tried to pick up Dom, and so did some other creepy guys outside of a place we went to. She also didn’t cross the street against the signal, even if there were no cars coming. I literally stood in the middle of Grand Ave (SH-82) and shouted for her to cross. The language barrier was postively broken when I said, “Entschuldigen Sie mein schlechtes Deutsch.”

Jun
16th
Mon
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oh hello

That last post about my vacation was an outright fabrication. I’m headed up to Glenwood Springs this Monday, though. I’ll post pictures and things. I’ll be staying at the Hostel Colorado, located on Grand Street.
May
28th
Wed
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hello tumbles

Next vacation is scheduled for June 23rd - 27th. I have no idea what I’m going to do.
Apr
26th
Sat
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Powell’s had a display of old tech, this Mac Portable caught my eye.
Powell’s had a display of old tech, this Mac Portable caught my eye.
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This is (part of) the Manga section at Powell’s. There were also a bunch of carts that had manga on sale, and apparently the coffee shop had bunches of graphic novels and such.
This is (part of) the Manga section at Powell’s. There were also a bunch of carts that had manga on sale, and apparently the coffee shop had bunches of graphic novels and such.
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This is a really cool bridge (I think it’s the Sunset Highway) between the Goose Hollow MAX station and the Washington Park MAX tunnel. Honestly, this picture doesn’t do it justice.
This is a really cool bridge (I think it’s the Sunset Highway) between the Goose Hollow MAX station and the Washington Park MAX tunnel. Honestly, this picture doesn’t do it justice.
Apr
24th
Thu
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Awesome. Found this on NW 18th and Flanders.
Awesome. Found this on NW 18th and Flanders.
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P-P-P-Powell's

Powell’s is the greatest place in the entire world. Have I ever said that before? It’s true. I’m sitting in Powell’s Technical Books (Park and Burnside, or Park and Couch, depends on how you look at it. Definitely between the two.) because the PC at the hostel is pretty awful, so I paid $5 to get some time in on a decent computer.

 Rode MAX up to the Lloyd Center (lol shauna?) only to find out that the Stumptown Comics fest isn’t until this weekend. Nick (of PBF fame) is making an appearance tonight at Floating World Comics, so I might go check that out.

Last night, it started to rain pretty hard around 8:30p. I grabbed my umbrella and went for a walk in the Alphabet District. It was great, I saw a bunch of places where there were signs saying “Apartments Available.” Maybe this housing slump is good for something after all. Hopefully it’s still like this in September/October.

I still worry about finding a job here, but I really don’t think it will be all that difficult. If I have some money saved up (a few thousand at least) before I move, I’ve got a feeling that I’ll be fine. No car, and no insurance payments, so I don’t have to worry about that. Instead, it’s a $76 TriMet pass. That’s a bit cheaper than what I’m paying now.

I’m kinda tired. Cool Portland Fact: There’s no sales tax in Oregon. WYSIWYG when it comes to prices.

I’m off for now, maybe I’ll post a little more tonight, or at least upload some more pictures to Flickr. Takes a long time, though.

Neat: I’m halfway through Max Barry’s Company right now. Great book. 

Apr
23rd
Wed
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Holy Crap, Batman!

So, I think I’d like to live anywhere in NW Portland when I move here. I’m staying at the NW Hostel (425 NW 18th) in the Alphabet District. There’s an awesome coffee shop across the street, it’s great. Downtown is well within walking distance, and it’s maybe a five minute walk down to Powell’s. When I move, I definitely need to be close to Powell’s. You can grab one of any thousands of books and read it for free, regardless of if you buy the coffee or not!

I got a call from Jesse, who says they punk’d Jeremy when he called in for some DSL problems. Lulz! Jesse says he’s headed on vacation the day I get back.

There’s a few places around the Alphabet District that are advertising apartments, there’s one on 17th and Davis (i think) that’s only $350. That’s good - other, nicer places will likely be $400-$500. With no car payments or insurance, I think I can manage that.

I think I might go find someplace close by to read. The coffee place closes at 8p, so I left around 7:50.

Tomorrow, I’ll explore more of NW Portland, and maybe go hang out in Washington or Forest Park.

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This was my dinner today. Ran to some Mexican place in the Pearl district. I think it was on 11th and Burnside. Sounds right.
This was my dinner today. Ran to some Mexican place in the Pearl district. I think it was on 11th and Burnside. Sounds right.