Atlanta ain't what it used to be. Since the olympics in what 94? The place has been hit by many northerners who ruined the simple south. Now, there are gang problems in the burbs and the corporations have moved or the .com's folded. The jobs - the extra jobs were swallowed up by the displaced Floridians and Katrina victums post 2 hurricane seasons. There is also a huge illegal population -- but being uncharted I cannot even give you a number.
Atlanta ain't what it used to be. Since the olympics in what 94? The place has been hit by many northerners who ruined the simple south. Now, there are gang problems in the burbs and the corporations have moved or the .com's folded. The jobs - the extra jobs were swallowed up by the displaced Floridians and Katrina victums post 2 hurricane seasons. There is also a huge illegal population -- but being uncharted I cannot even give you a number.
Check it out first
Thanks - we are planning a trip to do just that. My wife and I have narrowed down our possible destinations to only 12 at this point. 5 large cities in TX, two in NC, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, & Richmond, VA. We're actually planning to visit as many of them as we can prior to moving - we're seeking a more abundant life, without having to renew our minds so much.
Here's what a friend of mine posted on another board about Portland.
"This was a nice little write-up on Portland ... meant to entice you all to the great Pacific Northwest....
PORTLAND, Oregon (CNN) -- In the winter, the residents of this Pacific Northwest city hunker down for the gray rain that drills the city sidewalks for days on end. Locals drink loads of strong coffee, read books and take up knitting with zeal reserved in other parts of the nation for church going or clubbing.
But when the sun comes out to stay -- locals say it comes around the Fourth of July and stays till around Halloween -- Portland blossoms and easily assumes its sweet-scented moniker, the City of Roses. Both sunny and rainy Portland are well worth checking out.
Probably the best asset this city has to offer travelers -- no matter how gloomy the forecast -- is its extensive and reliable transit system. Busses, trains and streetcars effortlessly move people from the airport to city center and beyond, and travelers can plan trips ahead of time and get real-time transit arrival times at trimet.org. If your plan is to stay downtown, try parking your bags at the super-hip Ace Hotel (1022 SW Stark Street). Taking up an entire city block, each of it's 79 rooms is uniquely decorated by hand by a different artist. Room prices range from $95 a night for a comfortable multi-bed room to $250 a night for a sumptuous 500 square foot room with a claw foot tub.
Portlanders love to hoof it to their favorite coffee shops and breakfast cafes, so if you want to blend in pass up the bus in good weather in favor of a pair of solid walking shoes. When you do, stroll over to one of the city's five Stumptown Coffee Roasters locations. There is even one at the Ace Hotel, but Portland hipsters boot up their laptops at the downtown location where the art and local flavor mix well with the excellent brew (128 SW 3rd Ave.).
It's true that coffee lovers can find a satisfying Americano on almost any block in this city, but Stumptown's commitment to finding the best beans in the world, along with the company's devotion to sustainability and "green" growing practices makes it especially popular with Portlanders. With coffee in hand, you can walk another block or two to Voodoo Doughnut (22 SW 3rd Ave.). The sign is so small you'll miss it if you're not paying attention, but the smell of dough rising will no doubt lead you in the right direction.
The service can be surly, but the unusual doughnuts priced from 85 cents to $4.95 will leave you salivating for more. The Bacon Maple Bar ($2.50), which has two slices of bacon lopped over the top of an oblong, maple icing-covered doughnut, is divine. Or try a Tangfantastic doughnut ($1.00) which tastes just like the famous orange beverage for which it's named. And if you should meet your one true love on your morning trek for doughnuts, Voodoo offers legitimate wedding services at the counter. You and your betrothed will run up a tab ($175), but the service includes doughnuts and coffee for ten of your closest friends.
For a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast, make sure to drop by Mother's Bistro & Bar (212 SW Stark Street). This local favorite stacks its menu with feel-good foods your mother cooked for you, or at least you wish she had. Try the Wild Salmon Hash ($10.95), a hearty plate stacked with leeks, potatoes and two eggs in any style. Mike's Special Scramble serves up a plate full of prosciutto, roasted garlic, fresh tomatoes, provolone cheese and garden fresh basil ($8.95). Brunch at Mother's is almost a Portland rite of passage, so be prepared for a modest wait on the weekends. (mothersbistro.com)
When the sun goes down, get your groove thing on at the very retro Doug Fir Lounge (830 E. Burnside Street). Part rugged lodge, part Brady Bunch set piece, this hip lounge and adjoining hotel attracts the young and funky. Specialty drinks -- like the tart Blackberry Cosmo ($7) and the Cowboy Coffee ($10) (a melding of Stumptown coffee, Kahlua, Tuaca, Frangelico and a splash of cream poured hot or over ice) -- are served along with breakfast, lunch and dinner from 7 a.m. to last call. The Doug Fir is the place to check out Portland's quirky local music scene and see local bands like The Dimes or Southerly. Tickets to shows are affordable, mostly ranging from $6 to $20, and proper attire is anything from platform boots and minis to jeans and plaid shirts.
If you want to immerse yourself in the hippie scene that Portland has to offer, take transit to the Hawthorne district in the southeast quadrant of the city. Rain or shine, this place is busy with browsers scoping out the eclectic shops. And if you really want to blend in to the local scene, leave the umbrella at the hotel and brave any downpours with just a hoody or a baseball cap. Grab some brunch at the Cup & Saucer diner (3566 SE Hawthorne Blvd) where eggs and tofu are given equal billing on the menu. Try the Spinach and Havarti Cheese Omelet ($7.50) served with vegan potatoes and choice of scone, English muffin or toast. Or try the decadent Mary Ann Sandwich, a vamped up grilled cheese with fried eggs and a choice of bacon, ham, or garden sausage ($7.25).
On sunny days, plan for a picnic in one of the many beautiful parks that dot the city. Flocks of ducks make their summer home in the pond at Laurelhurst Park (Stark and SE 39th). The rolling, grassy hills and tree-shaded areas are perfect for spreading a blanket, and relaxing with a good book accompanied, of course, by the scrumptious nibbles. Speaking of which, just blocks away from Laurelhurst Park is Pastaworks (3735 SE Hawthorne), the perfect venue to obtain all the makings of a delicious outdoor feast. This European-style market features deli items like homemade meat calzones ($5.79), assorted roasted vegetables ($8.95 per pound), and a hearty selection of pates, including pork pate with duck liver and orange zest ($19.99 per pound). On Saturdays from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. they host a free wine tasting from their generous selection of mostly Italian bottles.
Gray afternoons in Portland are well-suited to catch a flick in a dark, comfy theater. Garishly painted in bright neon yellow and red, The Mediterranean-styled Bagdad Theater & Pub (3702 SE Hawthorne Blvd.) serves up cheap cinema ($3 per person) along with handcrafted microbrew and pizza. No matter what the weather forecast -- sun-drenched or soaking -- Portland has plenty of fun to offer visitors willing to snoop out this city's more eclectic and inviting destinations."
I only went wow once but I thought it was kinda cool the way they built up the suspense. Got sent to a college town in MO. My wow training was my intro to several prominent TWI leaders at the time including Vince F and Bob M. By the time I got out of wow training I felt like I could win half the state of MO. Didn't happen, but I didn't mind the suspense of not knowing where I was going until the night before we left.
I didn't care about the suspense one way or another. It was the life I had chosen...to allow them to dictate when and where I was to go. My first WOW year was great, when I was relocated in res. that was great, my second WOW year was miserable. I was sent to a place that would "make or break" me. It did neither, but I wanted to kill my WOW sister...does that count?
I think if they had told us beforehand, they would have lost half the WOWs. Who really wants to go to podunk, South Dakota?
I had grown up on the east coast - the 'burbs of NYC and my family had plenty of friends, etc. there, so I was always going in there - I loved Manhattan and Brooklyn, where my mom and dad's friends lived.
I had requested, for WOW and interim year, the southwest, southeast, south - somewhere different. It would be nice to get away from the east coast for a change.
So, I could not believe when I went WOW that I was sent to - drum roll - a suburb of DC in Maryland. Again, we were right on the border of DC. My motorcycle friend I made would take me cruising Georgetown on hot summer nights. Ok, back to the east coast.
Then I went in the corps. Interim year is coming up, surely they'll send me somewhere different. Well, to my surprise - Brooklyn!! In a way this was bad, since I wanted another area of the country, but it was also just awesome! I loved NYC - Brooklyn!!!! Coney Island, fresh seafood, a hop skip and jump by train to Manhattan, my parents friends, their best friends in Jersey who I spent quite a few weekends with on the Jersey Shore at the end of my interim year. Well, I was ecstatic. But, back to the east coast again. I couldn't figure out why they sent me there since I had grown up there. Oh well, who am I to question God and my good fortune.
DM could not figure out why I was so happy. She years later told me, they thought it would "make or break" me - what douches - why would they want to "make or break" people?
I told her well of course I was happy, I had grown up around there. She couldn't believe it. Neither she nor TWI knew that.
My father's company was transferred from Madison Avenue, NYC, to the Midwest when I was a senior in high school. Since the rest of my family got in the Word - TWI - in the midwest, TWI leadership assumed we were midwesterners.
I wonder, if they had ever bothered to find out, if they would have kept sending me back to the east coast urban areas.
I'm also glad I didn't tell DM I had grown up there, or I can almost guarantee my interim year assignment would have been changed. Can't send someone back to the place they grew up and loved, can you?
Funny how they told us that they were getting revvie from God about placements. What a crock! With me they all believed the cr@p that people say about Reno. Its a wild and crazy town doncha know....BS...its a hick town. Now Vegas...that's a different ball of wax. But Reno was and is still just a hick town, full of rednecks. We hold shows in the Reno Livestock Event Center. Yup it has a dirt floor and smells of hay and cow poop. Anyway they sent me to a tiny backwoods joint on my first WOW year and I loved it, then in res they transfered me from Emporia to Gunnison (oh please torture me some more!) But my interim year they sent me to a state that I had gotten into a very traumatic accident in when I was a child. They new about the accident because I had told someone (can't remember who now) and they had told the great and powerful Rev. Lardbutt. But God had told them to send me there! Oh Horse pucky!
Well eyes, you know darn well you were sent to that last one on purpose. A make or break scenario?
I think they thought I was going to be quaking in my boots - a midwesterner going to the "big city." It was a make or break thing. Although in this case, the joke was on them. That's why DM was so puzzled that I was so happy about it. She thought I was going to freak out or something.
It was later, with corps assignments, many of them were to "make or break" people. What dweebs. Or, if they were grooming a stand out corps man, they'd give him a large assignment to see how well he handled it. Of course leadership was about exhorting those under them to get classes together. They never got one together, but had meetings with underlings to exhort them. Then they could brag how "on fire" their area was. I never, ever saw a leader witness except for VP and JL.
WOW assignments weren't by "revelation" either. From talking to people who did them, it was based on, who had a car, etc. Absolutely nothing spiritual about them at all.
So Eyes, did that last assignment make or break you :)
Thanks - we are planning a trip to do just that. My wife and I have narrowed down our possible destinations to only 12 at this point. 5 large cities in TX, two in NC, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, & Richmond, VA. We're actually planning to visit as many of them as we can prior to moving - we're seeking a more abundant life, without having to renew our minds so much.
There is no place like the Pacific Northwest! Hubby and I are headed to Portland (Vancouver, wAshington) ourselves. We love Seattle too, but it is a bit too large and congested. It is the most beautiful place on earth IMHO!! You have to like lots of cloudy days though and lots of drizzling rain. Trade that for clean air with greenery and georgousness everywhere you look. Portland doesn't get that much snow. It has a lower elevation. I think Seattle is the same too. You MUST go check it out!!
Although I was born in Oregon and am partial to the PNW, I've lived in 5 states (Oregon, Texas, California, Ohio, and Arizona). : I LOVE Oregon the best. San Diego was a pretty awesome place to live too, but it's next to impossible to own a house there now. Since you are no longer a wayfer, surely you will be getting a mortgage, right?? ;)
If you are an outdoorsy person, you can't beat Portland. It has one of the largest city parks with great hiking trails, a zoo, two rivers running through. It's only an hour from the Beach.
We were there at Christmas, and the grass was still green!!!
I just saw the article Dmiller posted. That is a great explanation of Portland, but they didn't mention much about the outdoorsy stuff. If you like microbrew, you can't miss McMennamin's pubs while there. Drink a Ruby for me while you're at it!
Thanks for all of the information on Portland dmiller... We were actually thinking Vancouver, WA where there's no income tax & you're right across the border from no sales tax!
We piced cities with over a million folks & a high growth rate + relatively low cost of living...
continuing advice on the following is appreciated:
Richmond, VA;
Raleigh-Durham, Charlotte, NC;
Atlanta, GA;
Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Austin, San Antonio, TX;
Hmmm, come to think of it, in my essay (Myself as a wow) which they made us write back then I mentioned that I had hitched to all 4 corners of the USA. Wonder if that's why they sent me to MO, right in the middle.
WOW assignments weren't by "revelation" either. From talking to people who did them, it was based on, who had a car, etc. Absolutely nothing spiritual about them at all.
So Eyes, did that last assignment make or break you :)
Neither...joke was on them. I did well there. It was my WOW sister that was f&&99ed up. But they turned it around and kicked me off the field and out of the Corps....But they didn't tell me why until a few months later...after I had been running the Area of Northern Nevada for months at their request...Go figure. They couldn't break me so they kicked me out. They didn't want me to succede there. Hehehehe joke was on them!
I remember well one branch leader who decided to take me on. First the background then I'll bring him into the story.
My then hubby and I were sent to Pocotello, Idaho for our WOW year. NOT exactly the place to send 2 hippies and 2 single women as the only family going there. We were allowed to rent separate places, which was the only good part of the whole WOW experience. The ladies found an apartment and we found a single wide mobile home not too far away from each other.
By the end of the first month there we had our nice rednecked neighbors shooting off their guns at night to get our attention. The next morning we'd get presents from them ... shotgun shells left on the windshield of our car. Next the girls were over one day and when I walked down the hallway back to our bedroom, I encountered one of them near the doorway. She had plastered my hubby against the wall and had one big liplock on him as he struggled to get free from her. (He wasn't a big man physically, she was actually bigger than him in height and weight.) If I wasn't so angry at what I saw I probably would have laughed given how funny it did look. I asked very loudly 'just what the hell do you think you are doing?' and she then realized I was there. She backed off him quick and said 'oh I was just giving him a little hug for being such a great man of God'. I said something like 'yeah, it looked like that too, uh huh, now get the hell out of our house'.
Next I call VP and told him about what was going on. He said 'leave and leave now, you can go out WOW again another year, but that is not the place for you to be this year'. With his blessing, we packed up everything in our car and drove home. We stayed at my mom's house when we first got back till we could find an apartment. Then the branch leader heard we were there and it was just a couple/few days. Next, one morning at like 7:30 am we heard LOUD persistant knocking on the outside porch screen door by someone. We had been out with friends till 4 am so with just a couple hours of sleep it took me a minute to get up, get a robe on and walk outside to the screen door to see what the racket was about. It was the Branch leader, with the local Twig and asst. Twig leaders. I asked them to return later, explaining we had just gotten to bed. He insistsed on talking to us right away. I finally said ok, come on inside and he stomped into the house.
I went in the bedroom and told my hubby to get up and then went into the kitchen to grab a Pepsi to try to get caffine in me to wake me up a little. That totally annoyed the BL because I kept him waiting and he said so. I told him if he wanted to talk to me he could, but he had to let me be coherent or forget it and leave. Of course he stayed.
I sat down, lit up a cig and then he started.....'GET YOUR ASSES BACK TO IDAHO RIGHT NOW!' Yelled at the top of his lungs. I just looked at him and said no, sorry, we aren't going back and VP told us to leave and his word overrules anything you have to say to me as far as I'm concerned. He proceeded to start calling me nice names such as slut, whore, etc and accused me of coming 'home' to where all my friends were so I could sleep around with the guys. I said to him 'Ummm, I am married and faithful, I think you should be more concerned with the asst. twig leader here who's pregnant with a married man's child'. That was supposed to be secret info that only the 'few' knew, but I had learned about it and I wish I had a picture of the look on her face when I said it. She thought I had no idea till I said that about her. It also pretty much the key to his explosive 'GET YOUR ASSES BACK TO IDAHO NOW!' once again.
I said 'if you have nothing more to say than the same things, please leave now or I'm going to help you leave by throwing you thru the picture window'. He saw I was dead serious and while I may not have been able physically to actually toss him thru a window, I could call the police and ask for an officer to come there and escort him off my property. He and the girls took their leave informing me as they walked out that I was banned from every twig in the entire state. I thought that was pretty cool and said so, which just upset him more. Hahaha. We had already decided, due to lack of jobs in that area, we were going to move to the state my hubby was originally from anyway, the BL just didn't know that and I wasn't about to tell him. Being banned from twigs in a state I wouldn't be living in didn't do me any harm at all.
To this day I still don't get it why that BL didn't *get it* that we left the WOW field because VP told us to due to the danger he felt we were in and the exchange between our WOW sister and my hubby. Talk about being on a power trip ... to think that he could order us to go against what VP said to do and we'd obey him. Just totally crazy and this all happened in 1977, long before the face meltings became popular.
I had gotten one from that twig leader a year prior also. Or should I say she tried to give me one. She started yelling and I told her to shove it or something like that and turned around and walked out of her apartment. Next she tried it to my mom, yelling about me and my mom told her to quit calling me names and accusing me of untrue things, none of which was a twig leader's business anyway and then she also walked out of the woman's apartment. The twig leader gave up at that point, there was no one else she could talk to and try to turn them against me. I didn't hang out with anyone from the twig, all my friends were non TWI people.
Anyway, that's how my WOW year started and quickly ended. I never went again, no desire in the least. I never ran into that BL again thru the years, but did get into it years later with one from Florida who had the same attitude. He really didn't like me, but put up with me cause he did love my mom dearly. He only had to deal with me when I was there visiting her anyway and then only if he happened to stop by or we went to some event together and ran into him.
I never did do authority well and I don't do as I'm told to do without questioning it from all angles first to make sure it's something good for me. Needless to say, I spent a lot of my time in TWI upsetting everyone higher up than me, which was almost everyone since I never went higher than the Int. class by choice.
The "revelation" to send you to Idaho must have changed
Physical danger on the WOW field was always downplayed, if not ignored (just believe Gawd) and the idea of two single guys living with two single women shut plenty of doors in some of the areas that WOWs went to.
I was sent to Waco, Texas. Need I say anymore? It was 1984. We stayed for 3 months. Our WFC got kicked out of the Corps and off the field for drinking too much. The remaining 3 of us (two 19-year-olds and I was 20) were reassigned to Midland, Texas, with 2 guys that were 30. I guess I liked Midland. I stayed there for 4 years. But when I was ready to leave, all hell couldn't stop me. I never desired to go back to Texas again. This "yankee" stayed away.
I live in the Houston metro area, actually in the furthest north suburb, The Woodlands. I love living here, and am here by choice, and am not planning on moving away ever. The positives about living here are many for me.
I love the climate, as it is sub-tropical. Yes, it is hot and humid during the summer, but 9 months out of the year are beautiful. The ocean is about 80 miles away, and the hill-country is awesome, and within a couple hours drive. Our family likes horses, so we can ride all year round. Where I live is perfect, because the city (and all its amenities) is just a half hour drive south, and the countryside (full of barns and stables and nice places to keep horses) is about 10 minutes in any other direction.
Bush Intercontinental airport is one of the busiest in the world, in the top 5 anyway, and is a great place to travel from. Easy in, easy out, and because it's a Continental hub, there are many non-stop flights to many major European cities, not just American ones.
Housing prices are low here compared to other big cities. It's still possible to find a great family home for under 200,000 dollars, less than that is some neightborhoods. The public schools here are great. as long as you aren't in the Houston city schools. There is no state income tax. Unemployment is the lowest it's been in decades. Don't know what you do for work, but the Construction industry, commercial as well as residential is booming here.
I love the culture here, being from the South anyway. Folks are quite friendly. There are tons of churches, that play a pretty influencial part in the community, if you are interested. What I love about the "mega-churches" here, is that there is plenty of opportunity to volunteer and get involved in whatever your interest is, whether it's missions, outreach to the community, social programs, medical stuff, whatever. Houston has a professional sports teams for just about everything, a symphony, opera, museums universities. And of course, AMAZING BBQ!!
Of course, like everywhere else, there are undesirable qualities about the place too. Did I mention it's hot in the summer? Hurricanes can be a worry, there are lots of snakes, spiders, creepy crawly things. The illegal population has to be reckoned with. Traffic in certain parts of Houston during peak rush hours can be grueling. If we get too much rain too fast, certain parts of the city will flood, since we are only 40-60 feet above sea level. But that's why I live a bit north of the city. Texans have a fondness for huge pick-up trucks and SUV's that guzzle gas, and don't do much for the air quality here.
Happy hunting for your new home. Sounds like a fine adventure.
ps I went WOW to Portland OR and loved it, except for the lack of sunshine, and having to wear a sweater at the coast during the summer. And it's farther to travel to places that interest me the most.
Went WOW to Dallas as well, and loved it there too. Lotza friendly people, etc., but I love Houston better.
I wish your story seemed unusual. People with little control over thier prior or present life, loved coming into twi to gain power over something controllable... people. It made them feel important... which they were and are not.
ex10 - thanks for the great Houston pitch. Is the humidity bad? Atlanta wasn't a killer for heat, and that's why I liked it... I have also lived in Brisbane, Australia... where the heat was a killer because of the humidity. I figure I could handle a hot & dry summer, but I think that would be more San Antonio - with Houston being wetter.
We're thinking of crossing Portland/Seattle off our lists for the sweater reason. We got the impression yesterday that we wouldn't be swimming there ever.
As for leadership witnessing, I saw some of them do it with me... I'll give them credit where it's due, I actually think quite a few of the top leadership would work along side the workmen. And why shouldn't they? More indians makes for happier chiefs!
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Dot Matrix
Atlanta ain't what it used to be. Since the olympics in what 94? The place has been hit by many northerners who ruined the simple south. Now, there are gang problems in the burbs and the corporations have moved or the .com's folded. The jobs - the extra jobs were swallowed up by the displaced Floridians and Katrina victums post 2 hurricane seasons. There is also a huge illegal population -- but being uncharted I cannot even give you a number.
Check it out first
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dmiller
Going WOW and how did I feel about where I was sent?? One word --- GREAT!
Dunno how it happened, but I requested Duluth Minney-soda (to which I had just moved),
and shore enough -- I was *sent* here.
I might add (as a side note) --- that if they (twi) had decided otherwise ---
I would have told them to stick it where the sun don't shine.
This was in August of 1978.
:)
(Yup -- I can be cantankerous at times!)
;)
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waytrix survivor
Thanks - we are planning a trip to do just that. My wife and I have narrowed down our possible destinations to only 12 at this point. 5 large cities in TX, two in NC, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, & Richmond, VA. We're actually planning to visit as many of them as we can prior to moving - we're seeking a more abundant life, without having to renew our minds so much.
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dmiller
Here's what a friend of mine posted on another board about Portland.
"This was a nice little write-up on Portland ... meant to entice you all to the great Pacific Northwest....
PORTLAND, Oregon (CNN) -- In the winter, the residents of this Pacific Northwest city hunker down for the gray rain that drills the city sidewalks for days on end. Locals drink loads of strong coffee, read books and take up knitting with zeal reserved in other parts of the nation for church going or clubbing.
But when the sun comes out to stay -- locals say it comes around the Fourth of July and stays till around Halloween -- Portland blossoms and easily assumes its sweet-scented moniker, the City of Roses. Both sunny and rainy Portland are well worth checking out.
Probably the best asset this city has to offer travelers -- no matter how gloomy the forecast -- is its extensive and reliable transit system. Busses, trains and streetcars effortlessly move people from the airport to city center and beyond, and travelers can plan trips ahead of time and get real-time transit arrival times at trimet.org. If your plan is to stay downtown, try parking your bags at the super-hip Ace Hotel (1022 SW Stark Street). Taking up an entire city block, each of it's 79 rooms is uniquely decorated by hand by a different artist. Room prices range from $95 a night for a comfortable multi-bed room to $250 a night for a sumptuous 500 square foot room with a claw foot tub.
Portlanders love to hoof it to their favorite coffee shops and breakfast cafes, so if you want to blend in pass up the bus in good weather in favor of a pair of solid walking shoes. When you do, stroll over to one of the city's five Stumptown Coffee Roasters locations. There is even one at the Ace Hotel, but Portland hipsters boot up their laptops at the downtown location where the art and local flavor mix well with the excellent brew (128 SW 3rd Ave.).
It's true that coffee lovers can find a satisfying Americano on almost any block in this city, but Stumptown's commitment to finding the best beans in the world, along with the company's devotion to sustainability and "green" growing practices makes it especially popular with Portlanders. With coffee in hand, you can walk another block or two to Voodoo Doughnut (22 SW 3rd Ave.). The sign is so small you'll miss it if you're not paying attention, but the smell of dough rising will no doubt lead you in the right direction.
The service can be surly, but the unusual doughnuts priced from 85 cents to $4.95 will leave you salivating for more. The Bacon Maple Bar ($2.50), which has two slices of bacon lopped over the top of an oblong, maple icing-covered doughnut, is divine. Or try a Tangfantastic doughnut ($1.00) which tastes just like the famous orange beverage for which it's named. And if you should meet your one true love on your morning trek for doughnuts, Voodoo offers legitimate wedding services at the counter. You and your betrothed will run up a tab ($175), but the service includes doughnuts and coffee for ten of your closest friends.
For a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast, make sure to drop by Mother's Bistro & Bar (212 SW Stark Street). This local favorite stacks its menu with feel-good foods your mother cooked for you, or at least you wish she had. Try the Wild Salmon Hash ($10.95), a hearty plate stacked with leeks, potatoes and two eggs in any style. Mike's Special Scramble serves up a plate full of prosciutto, roasted garlic, fresh tomatoes, provolone cheese and garden fresh basil ($8.95). Brunch at Mother's is almost a Portland rite of passage, so be prepared for a modest wait on the weekends. (mothersbistro.com)
Looking for something good to read? Powell's City of Books (1005 W. Burnside Street) is just the place to find it. Famous for its size -- the warehouse-like building stretches for an entire city block -- this location is just one of five Powell's stores in the city. When Portland skies begin to look moody and gray, duck into this multi-level bookstore to peruse the shelves of new and used books. Powell's allows patrons to grab a book of interest and thumb through it over a cup of coffee in the store's spacious café. No buying required. Powell's is also renowned for drawing famous authors to its stacks for intimate readings.
When the sun goes down, get your groove thing on at the very retro Doug Fir Lounge (830 E. Burnside Street). Part rugged lodge, part Brady Bunch set piece, this hip lounge and adjoining hotel attracts the young and funky. Specialty drinks -- like the tart Blackberry Cosmo ($7) and the Cowboy Coffee ($10) (a melding of Stumptown coffee, Kahlua, Tuaca, Frangelico and a splash of cream poured hot or over ice) -- are served along with breakfast, lunch and dinner from 7 a.m. to last call. The Doug Fir is the place to check out Portland's quirky local music scene and see local bands like The Dimes or Southerly. Tickets to shows are affordable, mostly ranging from $6 to $20, and proper attire is anything from platform boots and minis to jeans and plaid shirts.
If you want to immerse yourself in the hippie scene that Portland has to offer, take transit to the Hawthorne district in the southeast quadrant of the city. Rain or shine, this place is busy with browsers scoping out the eclectic shops. And if you really want to blend in to the local scene, leave the umbrella at the hotel and brave any downpours with just a hoody or a baseball cap. Grab some brunch at the Cup & Saucer diner (3566 SE Hawthorne Blvd) where eggs and tofu are given equal billing on the menu. Try the Spinach and Havarti Cheese Omelet ($7.50) served with vegan potatoes and choice of scone, English muffin or toast. Or try the decadent Mary Ann Sandwich, a vamped up grilled cheese with fried eggs and a choice of bacon, ham, or garden sausage ($7.25).
On sunny days, plan for a picnic in one of the many beautiful parks that dot the city. Flocks of ducks make their summer home in the pond at Laurelhurst Park (Stark and SE 39th). The rolling, grassy hills and tree-shaded areas are perfect for spreading a blanket, and relaxing with a good book accompanied, of course, by the scrumptious nibbles. Speaking of which, just blocks away from Laurelhurst Park is Pastaworks (3735 SE Hawthorne), the perfect venue to obtain all the makings of a delicious outdoor feast. This European-style market features deli items like homemade meat calzones ($5.79), assorted roasted vegetables ($8.95 per pound), and a hearty selection of pates, including pork pate with duck liver and orange zest ($19.99 per pound). On Saturdays from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. they host a free wine tasting from their generous selection of mostly Italian bottles.
Gray afternoons in Portland are well-suited to catch a flick in a dark, comfy theater. Garishly painted in bright neon yellow and red, The Mediterranean-styled Bagdad Theater & Pub (3702 SE Hawthorne Blvd.) serves up cheap cinema ($3 per person) along with handcrafted microbrew and pizza. No matter what the weather forecast -- sun-drenched or soaking -- Portland has plenty of fun to offer visitors willing to snoop out this city's more eclectic and inviting destinations."
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Sounds like a greenie, yuppie, liberal town (just like Duluth) to me.
You might have to work HARDER to renew your minds there, eh??
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johniam
I only went wow once but I thought it was kinda cool the way they built up the suspense. Got sent to a college town in MO. My wow training was my intro to several prominent TWI leaders at the time including Vince F and Bob M. By the time I got out of wow training I felt like I could win half the state of MO. Didn't happen, but I didn't mind the suspense of not knowing where I was going until the night before we left.
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Eyesopen
I didn't care about the suspense one way or another. It was the life I had chosen...to allow them to dictate when and where I was to go. My first WOW year was great, when I was relocated in res. that was great, my second WOW year was miserable. I was sent to a place that would "make or break" me. It did neither, but I wanted to kill my WOW sister...does that count?
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Sunesis
I think if they had told us beforehand, they would have lost half the WOWs. Who really wants to go to podunk, South Dakota?
I had grown up on the east coast - the 'burbs of NYC and my family had plenty of friends, etc. there, so I was always going in there - I loved Manhattan and Brooklyn, where my mom and dad's friends lived.
I had requested, for WOW and interim year, the southwest, southeast, south - somewhere different. It would be nice to get away from the east coast for a change.
So, I could not believe when I went WOW that I was sent to - drum roll - a suburb of DC in Maryland. Again, we were right on the border of DC. My motorcycle friend I made would take me cruising Georgetown on hot summer nights. Ok, back to the east coast.
Then I went in the corps. Interim year is coming up, surely they'll send me somewhere different. Well, to my surprise - Brooklyn!! In a way this was bad, since I wanted another area of the country, but it was also just awesome! I loved NYC - Brooklyn!!!! Coney Island, fresh seafood, a hop skip and jump by train to Manhattan, my parents friends, their best friends in Jersey who I spent quite a few weekends with on the Jersey Shore at the end of my interim year. Well, I was ecstatic. But, back to the east coast again. I couldn't figure out why they sent me there since I had grown up there. Oh well, who am I to question God and my good fortune.
DM could not figure out why I was so happy. She years later told me, they thought it would "make or break" me - what douches - why would they want to "make or break" people?
I told her well of course I was happy, I had grown up around there. She couldn't believe it. Neither she nor TWI knew that.
My father's company was transferred from Madison Avenue, NYC, to the Midwest when I was a senior in high school. Since the rest of my family got in the Word - TWI - in the midwest, TWI leadership assumed we were midwesterners.
I wonder, if they had ever bothered to find out, if they would have kept sending me back to the east coast urban areas.
I'm also glad I didn't tell DM I had grown up there, or I can almost guarantee my interim year assignment would have been changed. Can't send someone back to the place they grew up and loved, can you?
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Eyesopen
Funny how they told us that they were getting revvie from God about placements. What a crock! With me they all believed the cr@p that people say about Reno. Its a wild and crazy town doncha know....BS...its a hick town. Now Vegas...that's a different ball of wax. But Reno was and is still just a hick town, full of rednecks. We hold shows in the Reno Livestock Event Center. Yup it has a dirt floor and smells of hay and cow poop. Anyway they sent me to a tiny backwoods joint on my first WOW year and I loved it, then in res they transfered me from Emporia to Gunnison (oh please torture me some more!) But my interim year they sent me to a state that I had gotten into a very traumatic accident in when I was a child. They new about the accident because I had told someone (can't remember who now) and they had told the great and powerful Rev. Lardbutt. But God had told them to send me there! Oh Horse pucky!
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Sunesis
Well eyes, you know darn well you were sent to that last one on purpose. A make or break scenario?
I think they thought I was going to be quaking in my boots - a midwesterner going to the "big city." It was a make or break thing. Although in this case, the joke was on them. That's why DM was so puzzled that I was so happy about it. She thought I was going to freak out or something.
It was later, with corps assignments, many of them were to "make or break" people. What dweebs. Or, if they were grooming a stand out corps man, they'd give him a large assignment to see how well he handled it. Of course leadership was about exhorting those under them to get classes together. They never got one together, but had meetings with underlings to exhort them. Then they could brag how "on fire" their area was. I never, ever saw a leader witness except for VP and JL.
WOW assignments weren't by "revelation" either. From talking to people who did them, it was based on, who had a car, etc. Absolutely nothing spiritual about them at all.
So Eyes, did that last assignment make or break you :)
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Nottawayfer
There is no place like the Pacific Northwest! Hubby and I are headed to Portland (Vancouver, wAshington) ourselves. We love Seattle too, but it is a bit too large and congested. It is the most beautiful place on earth IMHO!! You have to like lots of cloudy days though and lots of drizzling rain. Trade that for clean air with greenery and georgousness everywhere you look. Portland doesn't get that much snow. It has a lower elevation. I think Seattle is the same too. You MUST go check it out!!
Although I was born in Oregon and am partial to the PNW, I've lived in 5 states (Oregon, Texas, California, Ohio, and Arizona). : I LOVE Oregon the best. San Diego was a pretty awesome place to live too, but it's next to impossible to own a house there now. Since you are no longer a wayfer, surely you will be getting a mortgage, right?? ;)
If you are an outdoorsy person, you can't beat Portland. It has one of the largest city parks with great hiking trails, a zoo, two rivers running through. It's only an hour from the Beach.
We were there at Christmas, and the grass was still green!!!
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Nottawayfer
I just saw the article Dmiller posted. That is a great explanation of Portland, but they didn't mention much about the outdoorsy stuff. If you like microbrew, you can't miss McMennamin's pubs while there. Drink a Ruby for me while you're at it!
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waytrix survivor
Thanks for all of the information on Portland dmiller... We were actually thinking Vancouver, WA where there's no income tax & you're right across the border from no sales tax!
We piced cities with over a million folks & a high growth rate + relatively low cost of living...
continuing advice on the following is appreciated:
Richmond, VA;
Raleigh-Durham, Charlotte, NC;
Atlanta, GA;
Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Austin, San Antonio, TX;
Seattle or Vancouver, WA
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waysider
I specifically remember hearing VPW brag about how assignments were done by revelation.
He bragged because he said it contrasted with the way that mainstream religion assigned missionaries.
(basing them on "sense knowledge" information.)
He even did a little smug, mocking imitation of them.
Anybody remember that?
It wouldn't be so ridiculous if he didn't turn around and do the very thing he mocked.
What a crock!
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excathedra
sunesis my friend, who did veepee witness to ?
--
waytrix, my sister and brother really love raleigh
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ChasUFarley
First time I went out WOW - it was the 2nd wave, from the 1989 Anniverary at HQ - there were maybe about 20-25 people going out...
Anyhow, I remember learning that we wouldn't be told where we were going until the ceremony...
I asked someone how did they know where to send us...
(We were in the WOW Auditorium at the time, on the second floor, looking at the large relief map on the wall...)
I remember he said, "See that map there? Well, they take darts and throw them at that wall. When the dart sticks - THAT's where you're goin'!"
(I believed him for 'bout 30 seconds - wide-eyed (hey, I was only 18, okay?!) then he started laughing his fanny off....)
ha ha
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johniam
Hmmm, come to think of it, in my essay (Myself as a wow) which they made us write back then I mentioned that I had hitched to all 4 corners of the USA. Wonder if that's why they sent me to MO, right in the middle.
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Eyesopen
Neither...joke was on them. I did well there. It was my WOW sister that was f&&99ed up. But they turned it around and kicked me off the field and out of the Corps....But they didn't tell me why until a few months later...after I had been running the Area of Northern Nevada for months at their request...Go figure. They couldn't break me so they kicked me out. They didn't want me to succede there. Hehehehe joke was on them!
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BikerBabe
I remember well one branch leader who decided to take me on. First the background then I'll bring him into the story.
My then hubby and I were sent to Pocotello, Idaho for our WOW year. NOT exactly the place to send 2 hippies and 2 single women as the only family going there. We were allowed to rent separate places, which was the only good part of the whole WOW experience. The ladies found an apartment and we found a single wide mobile home not too far away from each other.
By the end of the first month there we had our nice rednecked neighbors shooting off their guns at night to get our attention. The next morning we'd get presents from them ... shotgun shells left on the windshield of our car. Next the girls were over one day and when I walked down the hallway back to our bedroom, I encountered one of them near the doorway. She had plastered my hubby against the wall and had one big liplock on him as he struggled to get free from her. (He wasn't a big man physically, she was actually bigger than him in height and weight.) If I wasn't so angry at what I saw I probably would have laughed given how funny it did look. I asked very loudly 'just what the hell do you think you are doing?' and she then realized I was there. She backed off him quick and said 'oh I was just giving him a little hug for being such a great man of God'. I said something like 'yeah, it looked like that too, uh huh, now get the hell out of our house'.
Next I call VP and told him about what was going on. He said 'leave and leave now, you can go out WOW again another year, but that is not the place for you to be this year'. With his blessing, we packed up everything in our car and drove home. We stayed at my mom's house when we first got back till we could find an apartment. Then the branch leader heard we were there and it was just a couple/few days. Next, one morning at like 7:30 am we heard LOUD persistant knocking on the outside porch screen door by someone. We had been out with friends till 4 am so with just a couple hours of sleep it took me a minute to get up, get a robe on and walk outside to the screen door to see what the racket was about. It was the Branch leader, with the local Twig and asst. Twig leaders. I asked them to return later, explaining we had just gotten to bed. He insistsed on talking to us right away. I finally said ok, come on inside and he stomped into the house.
I went in the bedroom and told my hubby to get up and then went into the kitchen to grab a Pepsi to try to get caffine in me to wake me up a little. That totally annoyed the BL because I kept him waiting and he said so. I told him if he wanted to talk to me he could, but he had to let me be coherent or forget it and leave. Of course he stayed.
I sat down, lit up a cig and then he started.....'GET YOUR ASSES BACK TO IDAHO RIGHT NOW!' Yelled at the top of his lungs. I just looked at him and said no, sorry, we aren't going back and VP told us to leave and his word overrules anything you have to say to me as far as I'm concerned. He proceeded to start calling me nice names such as slut, whore, etc and accused me of coming 'home' to where all my friends were so I could sleep around with the guys. I said to him 'Ummm, I am married and faithful, I think you should be more concerned with the asst. twig leader here who's pregnant with a married man's child'. That was supposed to be secret info that only the 'few' knew, but I had learned about it and I wish I had a picture of the look on her face when I said it. She thought I had no idea till I said that about her. It also pretty much the key to his explosive 'GET YOUR ASSES BACK TO IDAHO NOW!' once again.
I said 'if you have nothing more to say than the same things, please leave now or I'm going to help you leave by throwing you thru the picture window'. He saw I was dead serious and while I may not have been able physically to actually toss him thru a window, I could call the police and ask for an officer to come there and escort him off my property. He and the girls took their leave informing me as they walked out that I was banned from every twig in the entire state. I thought that was pretty cool and said so, which just upset him more. Hahaha. We had already decided, due to lack of jobs in that area, we were going to move to the state my hubby was originally from anyway, the BL just didn't know that and I wasn't about to tell him. Being banned from twigs in a state I wouldn't be living in didn't do me any harm at all.
To this day I still don't get it why that BL didn't *get it* that we left the WOW field because VP told us to due to the danger he felt we were in and the exchange between our WOW sister and my hubby. Talk about being on a power trip ... to think that he could order us to go against what VP said to do and we'd obey him. Just totally crazy and this all happened in 1977, long before the face meltings became popular.
I had gotten one from that twig leader a year prior also. Or should I say she tried to give me one. She started yelling and I told her to shove it or something like that and turned around and walked out of her apartment. Next she tried it to my mom, yelling about me and my mom told her to quit calling me names and accusing me of untrue things, none of which was a twig leader's business anyway and then she also walked out of the woman's apartment. The twig leader gave up at that point, there was no one else she could talk to and try to turn them against me. I didn't hang out with anyone from the twig, all my friends were non TWI people.
Anyway, that's how my WOW year started and quickly ended. I never went again, no desire in the least. I never ran into that BL again thru the years, but did get into it years later with one from Florida who had the same attitude. He really didn't like me, but put up with me cause he did love my mom dearly. He only had to deal with me when I was there visiting her anyway and then only if he happened to stop by or we went to some event together and ran into him.
I never did do authority well and I don't do as I'm told to do without questioning it from all angles first to make sure it's something good for me. Needless to say, I spent a lot of my time in TWI upsetting everyone higher up than me, which was almost everyone since I never went higher than the Int. class by choice.
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Oakspear
The "revelation" to send you to Idaho must have changed
Physical danger on the WOW field was always downplayed, if not ignored (just believe Gawd) and the idea of two single guys living with two single women shut plenty of doors in some of the areas that WOWs went to.
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Nottawayfer
I was sent to Waco, Texas. Need I say anymore? It was 1984. We stayed for 3 months. Our WFC got kicked out of the Corps and off the field for drinking too much. The remaining 3 of us (two 19-year-olds and I was 20) were reassigned to Midland, Texas, with 2 guys that were 30. I guess I liked Midland. I stayed there for 4 years. But when I was ready to leave, all hell couldn't stop me. I never desired to go back to Texas again. This "yankee" stayed away.
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ex10
Waytrix
I live in the Houston metro area, actually in the furthest north suburb, The Woodlands. I love living here, and am here by choice, and am not planning on moving away ever. The positives about living here are many for me.
I love the climate, as it is sub-tropical. Yes, it is hot and humid during the summer, but 9 months out of the year are beautiful. The ocean is about 80 miles away, and the hill-country is awesome, and within a couple hours drive. Our family likes horses, so we can ride all year round. Where I live is perfect, because the city (and all its amenities) is just a half hour drive south, and the countryside (full of barns and stables and nice places to keep horses) is about 10 minutes in any other direction.
Bush Intercontinental airport is one of the busiest in the world, in the top 5 anyway, and is a great place to travel from. Easy in, easy out, and because it's a Continental hub, there are many non-stop flights to many major European cities, not just American ones.
Housing prices are low here compared to other big cities. It's still possible to find a great family home for under 200,000 dollars, less than that is some neightborhoods. The public schools here are great. as long as you aren't in the Houston city schools. There is no state income tax. Unemployment is the lowest it's been in decades. Don't know what you do for work, but the Construction industry, commercial as well as residential is booming here.
I love the culture here, being from the South anyway. Folks are quite friendly. There are tons of churches, that play a pretty influencial part in the community, if you are interested. What I love about the "mega-churches" here, is that there is plenty of opportunity to volunteer and get involved in whatever your interest is, whether it's missions, outreach to the community, social programs, medical stuff, whatever. Houston has a professional sports teams for just about everything, a symphony, opera, museums universities. And of course, AMAZING BBQ!!
Of course, like everywhere else, there are undesirable qualities about the place too. Did I mention it's hot in the summer? Hurricanes can be a worry, there are lots of snakes, spiders, creepy crawly things. The illegal population has to be reckoned with. Traffic in certain parts of Houston during peak rush hours can be grueling. If we get too much rain too fast, certain parts of the city will flood, since we are only 40-60 feet above sea level. But that's why I live a bit north of the city. Texans have a fondness for huge pick-up trucks and SUV's that guzzle gas, and don't do much for the air quality here.
Happy hunting for your new home. Sounds like a fine adventure.
ps I went WOW to Portland OR and loved it, except for the lack of sunshine, and having to wear a sweater at the coast during the summer. And it's farther to travel to places that interest me the most.
Went WOW to Dallas as well, and loved it there too. Lotza friendly people, etc., but I love Houston better.
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doojable
Why don't you and your wife plan on attending our TEXAS BBQ! It just may be the first of many for you. ;)
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Sunesis
Excie - oops! I made a typo. The only leadership I ever saw witness were JAL and VF, not VP.
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waytrix survivor
Biker babe,
I wish your story seemed unusual. People with little control over thier prior or present life, loved coming into twi to gain power over something controllable... people. It made them feel important... which they were and are not.
ex10 - thanks for the great Houston pitch. Is the humidity bad? Atlanta wasn't a killer for heat, and that's why I liked it... I have also lived in Brisbane, Australia... where the heat was a killer because of the humidity. I figure I could handle a hot & dry summer, but I think that would be more San Antonio - with Houston being wetter.
We're thinking of crossing Portland/Seattle off our lists for the sweater reason. We got the impression yesterday that we wouldn't be swimming there ever.
As for leadership witnessing, I saw some of them do it with me... I'll give them credit where it's due, I actually think quite a few of the top leadership would work along side the workmen. And why shouldn't they? More indians makes for happier chiefs!
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