I Feel Like the Sky is Falling

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Well, today is the day.

The first of several days where I have to stay put, involuntarily.

I’m not looking forward to it.

Still, it has to be somewhere, and Portland is the best available.

I chose the city mostly due to the effect it would have on my schedule.

I need to have my car fixed by the end of August, because the next month will involve a number of dusty desert environments.

I went through the month looking for a chunk of time that covered an area I could drive in a single day.

The drive from Portland to southern Oregon along the coast, for better or worse, is the best thing to sacrifice.

By perfect coincidence, this strands me in the city I called the perfect hangout earlier in the trip (see Chilling In Hipsterland).





Once I knew I would be in Portland, I had to find a mechanic.

I needed one that could do the work within the time I needed (which was the lower limit of the insurance estimate), work on Toyotas, take my insurance, and do a descent job.

The internet really saved me here.

I read a bunch of reviews to make the initial list, and then made a bunch of calls.

I appreciate the shops that honestly told me they didn’t have the needed personnel.

I finally found one that looked over the estimate by email and took the job.

I’m thankful for this, because my next opportunity to get a repair would be just before the long drive to the Black Rock Desert.

Burning Man Clothes Shopping

Since I am stuck in Portland, I did a very important errand.

Burning Man, one of the reasons for this trip, is at the end of the month.

Although burners are welcoming of everyone who follows the ten principles, those who express themselves (WARNING: May be offensive) in creative ways get accepted more readily.

(People who mostly wander around looking at things are just tourists, not participants).

Clothing is one of the more important ways of expression at the event, the more outrageous the better.

Although it’s better to make outfits, buying them is certainly acceptable.

I figured Portland, a hipster magnet, will have what I need.





My guidebook recommended a vintage clothing store called Red Light.

Walking in, I knew I was in hipster heaven, with a wall of ironic T-shirts behind the counter.

Some quick digging produced a rack I have mixed feelings about, one marked ‘Burning Man’.

While it showed I was in the right place, the festival is supposed to be completely non-commercial.





Sadly, the outfits on that rack are either too outrageous for my taste, or the wrong size.

Digging in other racks produced disco wear hideous enough John Badham (the director of Saturday Night Fever) would approve.

While burners love campy irony, this is too campy for me.

I ultimately found some polyester covered in geometric patterns, the sort of thing I actually would have worn in the 1970s.

Much searching in the T-shirt section (some people call this ‘curating an outfit’) completed the look.

The checkout person, who has gone several times, approved of the results.





This time in Portland, I booked a room at the Park Lane Inn.

It’s located on the west side of Portland, roughly an hour walk from downtown.

I chose it primarily because it had the lowest room rate of hotels near bus lines with descent reviews.

I had planned to camp along the coast, so this hotel would do the least damage to my budget.

The room is best described as a minimalist designer motel 6.

It has very little furniture, which is all black.

The rest of the room is white.

It’s not much, but it’s comfortable enough for a few days.





I had dinner at the Bitter End Pub, a Portland bar recommended by the hotel staff.

In Portland interesting beer is a given.

I chose the bar for the food.

They served standard bar fare, but it was pretty good standard bar fare.

The beer was good and varied.

For beer fans, this region really is nirvana.

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