Portland is Awesome

Let’s face it. When the weather is this nice, Monday isn’t a day to which we exactly look forward. Let alone a day that has us considering uttering anything other than expletives while we roll out of bed.

But all of that changes now. Because now you know about another awesome Portland blog: Yay! Monday!

Yay! Monday! is designed to provide you with exactly what you need to break through your Monday haze. And you’ll find it hard to keep your inspiration in check after reviewing the collection of nine inspiring sites, carefully selected by your curator Chris Kalani.

A weekly collection of Design, Art, and Photography that I like and want everyone to know about.

Even better? It changes every Monday. Get it?

So take a few minutes out of your hectic workday to head on over to Yay! Monday! another awesome Portland blog.

(Okay, so technically, Chris is from Vancouver, WA. But he works in Portland and he’s working on Refresh Portland. And besides, Yay! Monday! is way too awesome not to share. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.)

Every time I swing by Culinate, I find something mouthwatering or brain-stretching or just plain yummy. And that’s usually just me looking at the pictures. Then I start reading the brilliant prose and my mind is doing somersaults all over again.

Beautiful, exceptionally well written, and just downright interesting, Culinate is one of the best forward-thinking food blogs anywhere. Which is why it’s extra cool that it’s from Portland.

Next time you’re looking for a recipe, curious about food, or simply just looking for examples of beautiful preparation—be that food preparation or blog preparation—swing by Culinate, an awesome Portland blog.

If there’s one thing we like in Portland, it’s free stuff… err… it’s utilitarianism. Make it useful—and affordable—to the largest subset of the population and we will forever be enamored of your contribution.

Blogs are no different. And so, I give you the misleadingly named Around the Sun.

Around the Sun promises a veritable treasure trove of money-saving ventures in the Portland area. What’s more, there’s a regular feature on “free things to do this weekend in Portland” which is—ironically—priceless.

I am not a financial expert; I’m just a regular girl who wants to make the most of my money and share what I learn along the way.

Why spend time looking for something to do when Around the Sun does the due diligence for you? I mean, really.

Every week, I find this blog chock full of interesting stuff in Portland, for which I have to spend nada, zilch, zero.

If taking a look at Around the Sun doesn’t give you some good ideas for something to do, I’ll give you your money back.

That’s right. It’s that good.

[NOTE: I spend a lot of time combing through Portland blogs. A lot of time. And as I wander through various RSS feeds, I tend to find a number of really interesting---and, well, awesome---blogs that I don't really have the opportunity to share. So, now I'll work on sharing these "Awesome Portland Blogs" with you.]

Seems I can’t swing a piece of bacon without hearing rave reviews for Portland Food and Drink. And with good reason. For a town of awesome food and awesome “blogginess,” it seems only appropriate that we would have an awesome food blog or two.

And, perhaps more than any other, Portland Food and Drink typifies that “awesome Portland food blog.”

And here is the foundation of why Portland Food and Drink is so amazing, and so amazingly popular:

I am passionate about food, passionate about wine, and passionate about anonymity. I have a wide-range of food experience from my earliest years growing up in a food-obsessed family. During college, I worked in the restaurant industry on both sides of the house, later in the wine industry, and finally traveling/tasting my way around the world. My first few years in college were related to agriculture, so if necessary, I can prune your orchard, manage your vineyards, or back your baler through one side of a barn and out the other, without any problem. This site is a labor of love – I spend my own money reviewing restaurants because I am passionate about food and want to share my experiences with others. Whether you agree or disagree, you can always count on my unbiased opinion. I don’t take free meals, and the restaurants don’t know when, or if, I am coming.

If you happen to eat—ever—then you should be reading. Check out Portland Food and Drink, an Awesome Portland Blog.

Back in the days when I used to ride the school bus to school, I was told by a fellow classmate that if you put your finger on a screw (in the bus) and lifted your feet while the bus drove over the train tracks, you could make a wish. Strange? Yes. But I wasn’t going to question the possibility of getting a wish.

I no longer ride a school bus, but whenever my husband and I head in to Portland we pass by the Portland Aerial Tram. If one (or both) of the trams is out, I get to make a wish.

Silly? Yes. But who doesn’t want more opportunities for wishes?

This Saturday was, as we all know it, almost too gorgeous to be true. That afternoon, I went to sit in the Tanner Springs Park with a friend, doing my nonrequired reading, observing an eagle swooping down to catch a fish then fly back out behind the highrise (no, really) and seeing people generally enjoying themselves and soaking up the sun.

But, you see, I have a habit of refreshing Twitter’s website every time I connect to see if anyone posted an update. On a work day, I would usually refresh every 20 minutes or so, and see at least several updates from the regular Tweeters (you know who you are.) But quick observations showed that Friday was less eventful (I did less checking and found less updates), and Saturday was practically quiet

Almost too quiet. Heck, I didn’t miss anything by sitting at the park all afternoon, with one exception, of course.

So I checked out our leader board yesterday night and today, compared it, and saw that something was clearly afoot:

Notice that Portland’s ranking actually went down by two positions (from #12 to #14,) narrowly surpassed by Seattle and Toronto (cities that were below us on weekdays,) and its count declined by 54%. In comparison, Seattle was down by 42%, Toronto by 38% and other cities at the top five were down by an average of 20–30%.

Sure, we may postulate that this decline showed that we are very easily distracted by nice weathers, or that we aren’t as productive in the weekends when compared to other cities.

But that’s not what I believe.

I believe that this Saturday, we collectively went outside, enjoyed the day and slept early while not bothering with our constant Twitter updates.

And I believe that this decline showed that we have kept our priorities right. That we believe in the equal importance of hyper-connectivity and having real-life conversations. This decline showed that the much anticipated ‘Portland Creative/Tech Renaissance’ is going to be a different sort of movement. One where work and life are balanced and weekends reserved for having fun. This decline showed that Portland’s real edge will not necessarily lie in its technological or creative breakthrough, but in its humanity and genuine willingness to connect with others.

The decline in Tweet count this weekend may be what set us apart from other places. And that, if you ask me, is a good thing.