Tell me about Portland...

[Lindsey]

A friend of mine and I are planning a short trip to Portland (probably two full days and three nights) to check it out (he's looking for places to possibly move).

I've always wanted to go there. We're coming from Southern Cal.
Can you tell us about:
The cost of living
The housing market
Employement opportunities (we're both college educated-I'm in the education arena, he's in business)
The gay community (I'm a lesbian - he's a gay male)
I know it rains a lot but (and this may not be a fair question) do most people get used to it or do you see a lot of SAD (Sasonal Affect Disorder)?
Anything else you'd like to add.

Thank you!!! :-)

[stevedeshazer]

1. It rains all the time and you can't pump your own gas.

Seriously though, the weather doesn't bother me, but I've lived here all my life. I would think it'd be tough to adjust from SoCal weather.

It's cheaper here in some ways. The cost of living and housing are somewhat less, but so are wages in general.

Portland is one of the most liberal places on the planet. I'm straight, but many if not most of my neighbors are gay, and openly so. In the 'burbs, less gay-friendly. Much of rural Oregon is still solidly redneck.

I read somewhere that Portland has the highest per capita ratio of lesbians in the U.S., but I can't remember where?

Traffic is bad, but better than LA or SF or Seattle.

One thing is for sure...we elect lots of Democrats!

I hope you enjoy your stay. Welcome to Oregon.

[Lindsey]

2. Thank you!

I know about the weather issues. I'm stayin' here to live(in Southern Cal. 'cause I love it) - I don't know how my friend would deal with the weather. I saw a wonderful documentary (I think it was on Sundance) and was so impressed by Portland's efforts regarding Global Warming.

Thanks again for the info.! :-)

[DesEtoiles]

8. but isn't it so expensive to live in So Cal?

[sandnsea]

3. Portland is more individualistic

It's very big on individualism and expression. I grew up in CA, and lived there for a bit as an adult. California is very busy and not so concerned with what other people think, just too many people for that. So there tends to be less judgment and more congeniality, but the depth of issues is usually reserved for like-minded meetings and gatherings. Portland is more open and non-conformist.

The rain would probably bother anybody in the first 2-3 years, but eventually it's kind of like you flip between two seasons - every month. Rain and sunshine, rain and sunshine. The seasons are just a little chillier in the winter is all.

I like to visit Portland, one of the few cities I've ever really liked. I live on the coast.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

4. OK.

The cost of living is higher than the national average, last I checked.

The housing market is tight, and overvalued. Less so than other major west coast cities though.

The Oregon unemployment rate's slightly higher than the average, I don't know more specifics than that. If you're thinking of public school teaching, I know the schools are in deep financial problems.

The gay community? I don't know much, but I know Portland's a very, very progressive city.

The thing about the northwest is that the people who grew up here are used to it, but we see a lot of SAD, mostly from people who move out here. I knew a fella who moved his whole life out here in the summer, and made it halfway through winter before moving back. That's extreme though. As for the climate in the Willamette valley, I guesstimate that in about three weeks from now, it's going to stop raining, and it won't rain again for another four months. Summers here are to die for.

I'd recommend checking out the Japanese Gardens (biggest in the U.S.) and Powell's Books. I'm serious about the book store. Even if you don't like books, check out the store.

[Lindsey]

5. Yikes....

Well, you just about talked me out of even visiting.

[sandnsea]

7. It's not that bad

Oregon is a terrific state to visit and to live. From Portland, you can go to the coast, Columbia Gorge, Mt Hood and Sisters. Portland is a fun place to shop and eat and just walk around in, one of the safest cities in the country. Unemployment is slightly higher here, but has been doing much better in recent years. We were hit with the tech bubble bursting a few years ago. We also have a $7.80 minimum wage tied to inflation and it is required for restaurant workers as well. We have a relatively good social service system too, and the schools here are better than what I hear others have to put up with. At least our kids have books, for the most part. The rain is something you can adjust to, if you think its worth the trade-off of a slower paced life and unbeatable outdoor recreation. If you don't have a specific purpose for moving here, and loooove the sun, I wouldn't recommend it. But I don't know that there's any greater incident of depression here than anywhere else I've lived, I haven't noticed it among anybody I know. Except maybe that poster, hehe, I kid, I kid.

[0rganism]

6. You should visit during the annual rain festival....

...it runs from October through April. Check it out! :D

Seriously, the weather can be tough to deal with at first, if you're used to sunnier climes, but it's great incentive to concentrate on indoor work. If you or your friend are thinking of moving here, you really should visit during December or January. Visiting between May and September usually lands you in a sunlit paradise, and may seriously warp your impression of what it's like here more than half the time.

One thing you might not have thought of doing here is bicycling. Portland is pretty bike-friendly, so give it a try if you're so inclined. The Crystal Springs bike trail is nice.

[Doubtful Optimist]

10. I hope you don't mind if I jump in here.

What are the climates like in the near-coastal areas south of Portland like?

Does the band of rain stop at some point or does it continue all the way down the coast into California?

[0rganism]

11. I'm not really a devout follower of weather patterns statewide, but...

...I also enjoy the occasional baseless generalization, so here goes.

The "band of rain", as you put it, goes from the coast through the Willamette valley to the Cascades. East of the Cascades, you quickly get into high desert country where it doesn't rain nearly as much. Between Portland and the coast is a stretch of largish hills and very small mountains known as the "Coast Range", where the slightly-increased elevation leads to an order-of-magnitude increase in the likelihood of snow during the winter. Of course, the local mountain (Mt. Hood, about an hour's drive SE of Portland) usually gets lots of snow, and has a ski area that's been known to stay open through June.

The coastal towns in northern Oregon tend to be windy year round, and wet in the fall-winter months. Very very wet. During the summer, it's usually quite pleasant, but the water is much colder than what you'd find in southern California. If you want to go surfing in Oregon, expect to use a wetsuit.

As you go south towards California, the amount of precipitation decreases gradually. Don't get me wrong, it still rains plenty there, but a lot of the storm systems that hit hard in northwest Oregon seem to bypass places south of Reedsport.

[Buck Rabbit]

9. I have homes in two different states and it rains less in Portland

(should I mention my other home is in Tacoma?)

[Brassballs]

12. Moving to Portland was a big mistake....

It rains 9 months out of 12! And it is not your quick rain shower type
from midwest or south. It drizzles several days in a row, non-stop!
WInters ar etoo cold for outdoor activities and always cloudy and gloomy.
However the summers are very good, rarely going over 80 and little rain.

[grasswire]

13. Portland is nothing like SoCal

...and there's culture shock, for sure. Too, there is an attitude among native Oregonians regarding Californians. It's legendary, dating back to former governor Tom McCall who pointedly suggested that Californians should visit, not stay. And there's some basis for their dismay -- the tens of thousands of Californians who have migrated here because their own state was so badly damaged by voter choices have brought changes that aren't always welcome.

Portland itself is now highly influenced by young professionals coming from elsewhere who do not support the public schools (hence the enormous damage to the school system -- four elementary schools are being closed this year) and who group together to buy homes and thus price families out of some very traditional old neighborhoods. The gentrification of the old African American communities that's taking place now to provide housing for hip newcomers is quite sad; I don't know where all those people have gone.

Still, some parts of Portland are accepting of newcomers. And some parts are more liberal than others. I wouldn't plan to live in Beaverton or Gresham.

It IS a great place to visit. The Rose Garden is a must.

[Arugula Latte]

14. I have to say, regarding the supposed anti-Californian thing,

I haven't seen any of that. I think that bias is a much overblown myth. I grew up in California, and, if anything, it seems like a huge number of the people I know have lived in California at some point in their lives. I really don't think that's an issue, especially in Portland. I don't know about the more rural parts of the state, though.

[sandnsea]

15. Not like it used to be

It really was a big deal back in the 70's, when I first moved here. It might still be over in eastern parts of the state, I haven't lived there since 88. But almost everybody on the coast is from out of state somewhere, it's our entire economy. Only complaint I ever hear is driving housing prices up, that's a difficulty all over the west. Otherwise, I don't hear it either.

You can tell who the Californians are though, put a nickel in them and they will gab on for hours.

[hamerfan]

18. A great line...

sandnsea writes:
"You can tell who the Californians are though, put a nickel in them and they will gab on for hours."
Love it! I remember the old bumper stickers too, "Don't Californicate Oregon".
My wife and I plan on moving back to coastal Oregon next year. I'm a native, although I haven't lived there in 13 long, ugly years! We vacation at Loeb state park every summer and this December we'll be taking a couple of weeks to visit down that way. My wife is from the Midwest ans has BAD allergies/asthma, but she does well on the coast. I don't understand it either, but it is what it is.
Looking forward to getting out of this place here. Just remember, when they say a place is "affordable to live", it's because no one in their right mind wants to live there!
dumpbush

[0rganism]

19. "I'm not from here, I just live here"

Whenever someone says, "It's just not like it used to be around here," my mind starts replaying that McMurtry classic...
---
I'm not from here
I just live here
grew up somewhere far away
come here thinking I'd never stay long
I'd be going back soon someday

it's been a few years
since I got here
seen 'em come and I've seen 'em go
crowds assemble, they hang out awhile
then they melt away like an early snow

onto some bright future somewhere
down the road to points unknown
sending postcards when they get there
wherever it is they think they're goin'

I'm not from here
I just live here
can't see that it matters much
I read the papers and I watch the nightly news
who's to say I'm out of touch

nobody's from here
most of us just live here
locals long since moved away
sold the played-out farms for parking lots
went off looking for a better way

onto some bright future somewhere
better times on down the road
wonder if they ever got there
wherever it was they thought they'd go

hit my home town
a couple years back
hard to say just how it felt
but it looked like so many towns I might've been through
on my way to somewhere else

I'm not from here
but people tell me
it's not like it used to be
they say I should have been here
back about ten years
before it got ruined by folks like me

we can't help it
we just keep moving
it's been that way since long ago
since the stone age, chasing the great herds
we mostly go where we have to go

onto some bright future somewhere
down the road to points unknown
sending post cards when we get there
wherever it is we think we'll go
---
(I'm Not From Here/James McMurtry/Too Long in the Wasteland, 1989)

[Scott Neelan]

17. It IS An Issue

It may not be that way in Portland, but here in southern Oregon the whole anti-Californian bias is rather strong. And it's not limited to Californians, but actually applies to any "foreigners" from other states. California just gets the brunt of it for some reason.

[ironflange]

16. Hot damn, I love Portland

We've visited several times, and will be again in July. I've often said that Portland is the only big American city we'd like to live in. Powell's Books and Millennium Records are both must-visits for us, and we love the Fruit Loop.