In Lake Tahoe, CA my girlfriend and I packed up our two cars, said goodbye to friends and drove to our new home: Portland. We arrived in the city at night and drove through downtown excited to feel the vibe of the big city. We felt nothing of the excitement we sought.
Exploring and apartment searching for three days, we really tried to manifest enthusiasm for this destination that we’d researched and chosen, however could not muster the least bit of a captivating twinge.
So we decided to get back in the cars and keep driving north to find the vibe; we found it in the City by the Sound and have been Seattleites for three weeks now.
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Samantha and I found a great place in the Upper Queen Anne sandwiched between athletic fields, a Trader Joes, and the restaurants and bars of its avenue namesake. On an early walk on a clear morning we literally stumbled upon Kerry Park and were met with the Seattle Cityscape with a transplanted Japanese volcano behind it. And we were enthralled.
On our third night in town we scalped tickets and watched the Sounders win their third straight U.S. Open title over the Chicago Fire at CenturyLink Field. Standing the entire game, we drank beer, sung songs, and were captivated by both the on-field precision and teamwork of our local team as well as the precision and teamwork of our local fanatics. (What an environment for us mountain-folk whose old village’s population couldn’t even fill up the Hawk’s Nest!) The Sounders took the lead with some deft offensive play and Casey Keller made a couple great saves to preserve victory and secure the championship. For an hour after, CenturyLink switched from athletic stadium to event venue hosting a party of 35,000 in electric green. And we were enthralled.
A lover of the mountains and the sports they foster, Samantha and I were stoked to check out a ski film premiere at King Kat Theater. We’d been to premieres held at the base of mountains skied in the movie and with athletes from the movie in the audience, so we thought we knew what to expect. We showed up about ten minutes before the 8:00pm show and were shocked to be met by a crowd of about a thousand ratty and natty looking snow-sport enthusiasts. We knew entry into the show was not going to happen, but the scene outside the theatre was more exciting to us anyway. Such a show of force by lovers of the mountains filled our hearts with the joy of family in this exotic place. And we were enthralled.
One night Samantha and I got dressed-up and caught the bus downtown. Amongst the buildings and the lights Sam and I walked around like Forrest and Jenny and just absorbed the atmosphere. We got some drinks and dined on succulent sushi around midnight, three hours later than the restaurants closed up back in the mountains. And we were enthralled.
A couple days later I found myself at Alki Beach in West Seattle, and felt like I was back in the California beach towns of my adolescence – cruiser bikes and rollerbladers, coffee shops, and tall boy PBRs. The sun set behind the Olympics and skyscrapers to the east caught the final light of the day. I looked at Samantha, smiled, and gave her a big hug.
We were once again enthralled by this magnetic city. And we had found home.
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