Blondie and Cigarettes

About ten years ago my best friend and I went through a phase. It sounds kind of funny to start a post like that because after being friends for fifteen some odd years we have been through many (many) phases together, but this particular phase always seems to stand out in my mind. I don’t know who got their hands on the song first, but it all started when we just couldn’t stop busting out to Blondie’s “Heart of Glass”. We listened to it everywhere we went; her red Camry, my red Camry, dorm rooms, house parties…it was like nothing we had ever heard. Suddenly we both became very retro, in that sort of innocent way that only 19 year olds can pull off.

I ‘m reminiscing about this particular moment in time because in just about a week and half I will be reuniting with my very dear best friend back East where we are both from. In fact, my bestie now lives in the very town where part of our 60’s/70’s glam transformation took place. I honestly don’t know a lot about the town of Northampton. My brother lived there for quite a few years after he finished high school and my best friend has now lived there for a few years as well. When I was still living in Massachusetts, Northampton was always the place I escaped to when I was feeling “funky”. It was always kind of stifling living in our quiet little farm town on the Connecticut River. In NoHo, there were bookstores, record shops, coffee shops and most importantly vintage boutiques. It was heaven for a small –town girl with stars in her eyes and dreams of the big city.

But let’s get back to the matter at hand, the phase. Looking back, I think the phase was actually about being different than everyone else, which both of us had always been really good at. After about the 85th-hundred time of hearing “Heart of Glass”, the two of us decided we needed a new look to go along with our newfound retro music. Enter Roz’s Place, the most amazing vintage store my teenage eyes had ever laid eyes on (and the inspiration for our obsession with vintage that still exists today). It’s been such a long time since I have set foot in the place, but I can still see it like it was yesterday; tall mannequins dressed from head to toe in vintage fashions, racks and racks of dresses and bell-bottoms, hair-dyes in every color of the rainbow, funky jewelry, sunglasses galore, tons and tons of printed silky scarves, and fancy old-school silver cigarette holders. It’s the scarves and cigarette holders that somehow commanded our attention, and for us seemed to go perfectly with our musical obsession. We left the store with one of each a piece, and in fact I still have the very scarf and now semi-rusty cigarette holder that I bought that day…

Were we really retro? Probably not. Did we look somewhat ridiculous as we jumped back into one of our Camrys, tied our scarves around our heads and smoked out of our cigarette holders for the first time (while listening to Heart of Glass)? Probably. But honestly, that didn’t matter to either one of us at all. We were being different, we were having a blast and most importantly, we were together. This is what I think about as my vacation back East quickly approaches. I’m so excited to visit Northampton, see my friend, and be crazy in a way that only we can pull off. Who knows, maybe this visit will be the beginning of another phase that we will go through together. And you better believe I’m going to be checking out Roz’s Place…so don’t be surprised if I come home with hot pink hair.

I Left My Heart in New Mexico

With so much time on my hands lately, I have been doing a lot of reminiscing about past seasons, and especially last year at this time. Around this time last year, I was hopped up on painkillers, strapped in a wheelchair, being pushed through the Albuquerque Airport by a crazy dude who barely spoke English and didn’t give a crap if my broken ankle slammed into everything in our path along the way. I can still see the image of Shawn running behind us, dragging our suitcases and trying to catch up, worrying that this guy was seriously going to hurt me. When we finally got to security, I had to go through a special line where they inspected me thoroughly with a huge beeping wand to make sure I had nothing illegal hidden in my cast. It was all pretty mortifying, as was the plane ride home, where I sat uncomfortably wedged against the window of the plane, banging my numb purple foot into the seat in front of me, over and over and over.

So it might not really sound like I have much to miss about New Mexico or last fall in general. Believe me, when we returned home it got much worse, as I realized I would need surgery and I was going to be out of work for much longer than I thought. In essence, it almost would have been nice to be trapped in that bubble of time that was our trip to New Mexico last September; reality barely setting in, the haze of Vicodin to ease all sorts of pain, and a doting Mother-in-Law to make me tea and play cards with me. She even gave me the quintessential bell to ring if I needed anything. However, what I really miss about New Mexico are the sights, sounds, tastes and smells that make it so utterly southwest. If you’ve never been to the Land of Enchantment it’s impossible to know what I’m talking about. Even if you have been to Albuquerque, Las Cruces or even Las Vegas, New Mexico, you still might not be able to fully grasp the beauty that is Santa Fe and Northern New Mexico in general.

Just sitting here now, I can almost smell the smoky scent of green chile roasting in the outdoor markets. The smell is so distinct it makes your mouth water. I can see vibrant red ristras hanging from adobe buildings and taste the flaky buttery deliciousness of fresh sopapillas melting in my mouth. The tastes and smells are so unique; when I was there it honestly felt like I had traveled to another country. These are the images of New Mexico that I keep in my memory and close to my heart. It truly is a magical, exotic and enchanted place that I wish I had much more time to explore. There is a certain beauty to the landscape, the artwork, and the people that Santa Fe encompasses that can instantly make you feel at peace. The majestic mesas, earthy red rocks, bubbling hot springs and mystical forgotten pueblo towns truly took me back to another place in time. The rich scenery and deep history of New Mexico reminded me that this is one of the places where our country got its start. It’s all kind of breathtaking and extremely humbling to be smack dab in the middle of all that culture. That’s the New Mexico I miss, and the one that’s still tugging on the strings of my heart.

Goodbye Summer?

Well if you live in Portland the question mark needs no explanation here. "What Summer?!?" is the question we have been asking ourselves since June, and sadly, this year,the season never really materialized. Now the rain is back and I'm not ready for it, but it's Portland and I guess we really don't have a choice. So break out your hoodies, Portlanders,(no umbrellas for us locals),Autumn is here...whether we like it or not.

Okay, so I know it's been a while, quite a while, but I am finally back and ready to tackle Pdxpectations head on. I don't know what it is about Fall, and in general the changing of the seasons, that always fills me with the need to create, embrace change and embark on something new, but I do know that it happens every year, and that it's a good feeling. Along those same lines, I recently realized that I completely abandoned my blog last year after I broke my ankle. Back then, it was hard to find the motivation to do anything,let alone write. I mean seriously, I couldn't even make it from the couch to the computer. A lot has changed in the past year, and the experience of "being broken" has been quite an eye-opener. I have also realized that last year at this time I was so preoccupied with being hurt, that I payed no attention to how slow and depressing work can become during these weird off months between the start of school and the holidays. For those of us in the hospitality industry this is most definitely the roughest time of the year to get through. As most of the population is buckling down and trying to establish their "winter routine", we are all scrambling for money and asking ourselves how Summer can really be over already. (What Summer?!?)

Goodwill runs, solo sushi dates, and pouring over the Willamette Week have been the activities that have been rounding out my days as of late. It's all about finding inexpensive but fulfilling ways to entertain myself while I adjust to suddenly only having a twenty hour work week. Believe me, it's really not as fun as it sounds. Just a few days ago, I stumbled upon a new thrift shop here in Portland, and I instantly fell in love. Bearly Worn Resale is located on the corner of 50th and Division, and the place is totally awesome. There is no official website, but the link under "My Favorite Portland Places" will take you to it's page on Yelp for address information and reviews. There are two separate stores in the same building, and I recommend checking out the boutique for really great deals on brand name jackets, boots, purses and more. Seriously Ladies, if you want a cheap way to spend a few hours on a rainy Portland afternoon you have to check this place out! The super-cute cropped leather jacket I scored for $7.50 is proof enough. Bearly Worn definitely gives other Portland thrift stores a run for their money.

Visiting thrift stores is just one of the many ways I plan on making it through the rainy season. Stayed tuned for more of my thoughts and ideas,as well as a facelift to this site coming soon. It feels great to be writing again, and I hope you all will continue to follow me on my travels and adventures in PDX.