I don’t want that last post to give the impression that JHW and I are ignoring deeper disatisfactions with our experiences here in Portland, and that consequently those disatisfactions may grow, fester, unmoor our excitement. We made the right call, very frankly – not only is there so much here that we love, but just being here, exploring the surrounding areas, hiking and seeing what’s to be seen, profound conceptual and even spiritual (though I hate the connotation that word has come to have inherited from Western junk religions) growths are taking place within us. These had their roots from our time in Chicago, certainly, but the kinds of leaps we’re making now are extraordinary, and have been catalyzed in large part by being here, exploring here.

Yeah, St. John’s – the neighborhood we live in – or our block of it at least kind of blows. It’s a disappointment – it’s too far out of the rest of the city, and geography works against our favor in terms of getting anywhere in less than 20 minutes by car, an hour by bus. That’s certainly frustrating. The neighborhood’s homeless/addict population seems to swell at night and on the weekend days, which accounts for much of the fighting that keeps us up at night. And this has been a traditionally economically depressed part of town that’s seeing increased development…

All of that said, St. John’s has given me a more realistic perspective on Portland on the whole, one that I think the hipster/yuppie/hippie enclaves on the northeast and southeast sides are largely insulated from. While Portland’s attitudes are deeply and progressively green, the city has a significantly large, dirty industrial underbelly that clings to both sides of the penninsula that harbors the “north” section of the city – including St. John’s. My buses trek through a large swath of it daily, and in the afternoons these factories belch out some pretty nasty, oily fumes. That’s just into the air – I can’t imagine what’s being flushed into the Willamette, even if only by the giant sea-faring tankers and shipping vessels that dock there, exchange goods, and move on. It’s convenient, I think, to consider Portland “green” – indeed, we’ve got recycling and compost bins galore, fantastic public transportation and tons of biking – but I wonder how cognizant the locals are of their industrial sectors, which are really only just out of sight.

This weekend, after a trek to Mt. Hood (like so much of Oregon’s wildernesses, fucking fantastic), we finally got around to exploring much of the city. We checked out Mississippi, Alberta, Mt. Tabor and Woodstock, as well as – accidentally – some of Sellwood. All are artier, cleaner, less grungy and chaotic. JHW and I agreed that we’ve paid our dues through the years and are in a place where we should feel no shame in wanting to move to and live in these kinds of places (Mt. Tabor and Alberta get my votes), and indeed we’re planning on exiting St. John’s when our lease is up in March. That said, though, I’m very cognizant of the insultating and consequently myopic power of these lovely liberal enclaves. As much as I want to live there, I don’t want to disappear there, and I don’t want the rest of the world to disappear from me there, either.

Incidentally: JHW’s got a nice write up of our Mt. Hood trip this weekend. Check it out.