Finally returning...

Thanks for the comments you've posted since I've been in Portland. This week is the first time I've been back to Limited White Space since before my move. Now that I'm finally settling into life here, I'm going to make a concerted effort to write more.

Portland has been both everything I needed it to be - and nothing like I expected it would be. Moving here took a huge leap of faith in myself, and my resolve to start a new life away from the comfort and familiarity of Moscow has been put to the test to an extreme degree.

Life here is profoundly different than life in Moscow. Not just my life - all life. I never dreamed there was a city that was as environmentally friendly/demanding as Portland is. I moved from a place where recycling was an afterthought that very few of my friends even considered. Here, if you do not recycle every possible recyclable commodity, you are single handedly making a declaration of war against the ozone layer and our natural resources. Winco is not the shopping destination of the common man here. Oh no. Trader Joe's, New Seasons, and Natural Foods are where any self/earth/animal/farmer/citizen respecting person goes. Don't get me wrong, I've come to love those three stores - but only because I feel the societal pressure to save our environment one can of soup at a time.

The Portland obsession with organics is only the smallest example of the differences between my two hometowns (old and new) and while it might be irritating at times, I appreciate where my fellow Oregonians are coming from. If more cities across America had the attitude of Portlanders, there might be vague hope of crushing corporate stores like Wal-Mart and saving our ever decreasing natural resources. The most obvious difference between the two towns that I've noticed however, is the vastly differing policies on what is socially acceptable. And this difference - I wholeheartedly accept, love, and support.

The third day I was in Portland I set out from my friend's place with no known destination, no map, armed with very little cash and a desire to meet my new home city. I learned several things that day: 1. Avoid eye contact with the crazies. 2. Maps are very important. 3. I couldn't have made a more perfect choice of a place to live. I got lost for almost 3 hours my first day alone in the city, but as cliche as it sounds, I found what I'd been looking for for the last eight years. As I traced and retraced the steps of million of lost people before me, I could breathe in and feel the tangible differences of Moscow and Portland. I'd found a place to start my life as a clean slate - in a city where literally anything and everyone is accepted. Coming from Moscow where if you don't fit into a certain category you might as well leave - this was a feeling that can only be described as novel and irresistibly welcome.

The demands of my job have kept me from exploring the city as much as I would like, but I'm settling into life here more everyday. No amount of new experiences and friends can take away how much I miss all my friends from Moscow and Boise though - so be sure to give me a call if you're coming through my neck of the woods anytime soon! Write more soon...