to get to you.
Is that alright?
I drove all night."
-Celine Dion
This basically sums up my Monday evening. Drove all night, only to arrive in Portland at 5am, waking Andrea up from her dream-filled slumber. My friend Andrea, who is basically my sister because I've known her my entire life, recently moved to Portland and I've missed her like the dickens. I had never been to Portland before and thought that Thanksgiving break would be the right time for a visit. Wanting to spend the least amount of money possible for transit up there, I looked into rideshares on Craigslist. Found a couple from Portland heading back home on Monday which was the day I wanted to head out anyways. They already had two others riding with them, but said I was welcome to squeeze in the back. The only other alternatives were a $200 flight or 18 hour train ride. Rideshare please!
We ended up heading out a bit later than expected. Ok, a whole 3 hours later! They already had one of the riders in the car with them, and his name is Don. Don is a total stoner and sounds like it too. Most definitely smoked a fatty bowl prior to the trip because it reeked in there. I don't blame him though - there's nothing else to do during a long road trip in the dark. It made me guarded about the snacks I brought, however, because I knew he'd eat any and all that was offered to him. He only got a few cherry tomatoes and 2 cookies out of me. He was basically a total moron so I did my best to ignore him and his stoner laugh until he was picked up by his grandma in Redding.
Next stop was Concord to pick up yet another Don. Word on the street is that this Don drove his girlfriend's car down from Ashland, OR to his current location and just couldn't get back home. He was stuck. We arrive in Concord and park in a Denny's parking lot, which is where he suggested we meet him. An old Buick finally pulls up alongside our car and a man and woman in their early 60s exit, taking a bag out of the trunk. Perhaps I should back up a bit. The rideshare section on Craigslist is typically used by young twenty-somethings looking to save some money getting from one place to another, or in the case of the driver, to share the cost of gas. Or so I thought. Therefore, I had in my mind an image of Don #2 as a mid-20s dude who just wanted to get the hell out of Concord. I wouldn't blame him. Fast-forward to the Denny's parking lot and the Exit of the Elderly. After stretching I scanned the scene for this mid-twenties dude but alas, he was nowhere to be seen. Then, much to my surprise, the 60 year old man throws his bag in our trunk and heads for the back door of OUR CAR. "So thiiiis is Don #2," I thought. My first rideshare experience just went from weird to weirder.
I have this problem where I expect everyone to be young, hip, and attractive. Needless to say, I'm most always disappointed. So naturally I was extremely thrown off by this elderly ex-hippie who sported a thick mustache and reeked of cigarette smoke. I maintained my side seat by letting him get into the car first. At least I wasn't packed in the middle of two stinkin' hippies.
We got to Redding and Don #1 left us. More room for me, hooray. Picked up something to eat and then headed off for Eugene. The couple, who I guess I could now name Kirk and Abigail, played a few podcasts of This American Life and I fell in love (with the podcast). Learned about the phenomenon that is Hell House. Now that's some freaky, fucked up bullshit. Finally we got to Ashland and dropped Don #2 off at some hippie commune/spa resort/campground/trailer park/shit hole which he calls home. He resides in one of the trailer-looking homes he likes to call his "Craigslist home" seeing as though he constructed it out of various scrap materials picked up from Craigslist ads. Enough said.
Finally, I got the back seat to myself. After listening to a little more This American Life, I sprawled out across the back seat to snooze the rest of the trip away. Woke up periodically to the couple switching between driver-passenger roles and bickering about how terribly she drove. To be honest though, she really was a terrible driver. Got into SW Portland around 5am and crossed the river to SE Portland by way of one of the 7 bridges. Dressed in a pink robe, Andrea opened the door and welcomed me to Portland. Stayed up for a while talking, then crashed.
Woke up the next morning to an overcast sky and cold weather. She got off work early and brought me to a clutter-counseled thrift store I wouldn't hesitate to call my heaven. Got Philly cheese steaks, Voodoo Donuts, and soothed our bulging bellies with some tea at a cute cafe (filled with cute men). I swear, there are so many attractive men up here. Bearded, well-dressed, and tattooed. Perfect. After it got dark (4:45 pm) we went to Andrea's local library branch to pick up some movies. They have an amazing collection of zines you can actually check out! So inspired. Oh boy. Spent the rest of the evening watching movies. I was exhausted from the trip and was thrown off by it having gotten dark that early in the evening.
I'm currently sitting in a Portland cafe called the Southeast Grind, pretending to conduct research but really just drinking tea and blogging. Looking forward to checking out a tattoo shop called Oddball Studios and more thrifting. My friend Ryan's bands Dominant Legs and Girls are playing at the Doug Fir Lounge tonight! Can't wait to hang out with him, hear him play, and meet some of Andrea's new friends.
My current future goals: move to Portland, work as a case manager, be an active member of the extensive crafting community, snag a tattooed hubby who will wear our children in a Baby Bjorn, buy an adorable cottage, and open an Antiques or Kittens, Whatever shop.
We ended up heading out a bit later than expected. Ok, a whole 3 hours later! They already had one of the riders in the car with them, and his name is Don. Don is a total stoner and sounds like it too. Most definitely smoked a fatty bowl prior to the trip because it reeked in there. I don't blame him though - there's nothing else to do during a long road trip in the dark. It made me guarded about the snacks I brought, however, because I knew he'd eat any and all that was offered to him. He only got a few cherry tomatoes and 2 cookies out of me. He was basically a total moron so I did my best to ignore him and his stoner laugh until he was picked up by his grandma in Redding.
Next stop was Concord to pick up yet another Don. Word on the street is that this Don drove his girlfriend's car down from Ashland, OR to his current location and just couldn't get back home. He was stuck. We arrive in Concord and park in a Denny's parking lot, which is where he suggested we meet him. An old Buick finally pulls up alongside our car and a man and woman in their early 60s exit, taking a bag out of the trunk. Perhaps I should back up a bit. The rideshare section on Craigslist is typically used by young twenty-somethings looking to save some money getting from one place to another, or in the case of the driver, to share the cost of gas. Or so I thought. Therefore, I had in my mind an image of Don #2 as a mid-20s dude who just wanted to get the hell out of Concord. I wouldn't blame him. Fast-forward to the Denny's parking lot and the Exit of the Elderly. After stretching I scanned the scene for this mid-twenties dude but alas, he was nowhere to be seen. Then, much to my surprise, the 60 year old man throws his bag in our trunk and heads for the back door of OUR CAR. "So thiiiis is Don #2," I thought. My first rideshare experience just went from weird to weirder.
I have this problem where I expect everyone to be young, hip, and attractive. Needless to say, I'm most always disappointed. So naturally I was extremely thrown off by this elderly ex-hippie who sported a thick mustache and reeked of cigarette smoke. I maintained my side seat by letting him get into the car first. At least I wasn't packed in the middle of two stinkin' hippies.
We got to Redding and Don #1 left us. More room for me, hooray. Picked up something to eat and then headed off for Eugene. The couple, who I guess I could now name Kirk and Abigail, played a few podcasts of This American Life and I fell in love (with the podcast). Learned about the phenomenon that is Hell House. Now that's some freaky, fucked up bullshit. Finally we got to Ashland and dropped Don #2 off at some hippie commune/spa resort/campground/trailer park/shit hole which he calls home. He resides in one of the trailer-looking homes he likes to call his "Craigslist home" seeing as though he constructed it out of various scrap materials picked up from Craigslist ads. Enough said.
Finally, I got the back seat to myself. After listening to a little more This American Life, I sprawled out across the back seat to snooze the rest of the trip away. Woke up periodically to the couple switching between driver-passenger roles and bickering about how terribly she drove. To be honest though, she really was a terrible driver. Got into SW Portland around 5am and crossed the river to SE Portland by way of one of the 7 bridges. Dressed in a pink robe, Andrea opened the door and welcomed me to Portland. Stayed up for a while talking, then crashed.
Woke up the next morning to an overcast sky and cold weather. She got off work early and brought me to a clutter-counseled thrift store I wouldn't hesitate to call my heaven. Got Philly cheese steaks, Voodoo Donuts, and soothed our bulging bellies with some tea at a cute cafe (filled with cute men). I swear, there are so many attractive men up here. Bearded, well-dressed, and tattooed. Perfect. After it got dark (4:45 pm) we went to Andrea's local library branch to pick up some movies. They have an amazing collection of zines you can actually check out! So inspired. Oh boy. Spent the rest of the evening watching movies. I was exhausted from the trip and was thrown off by it having gotten dark that early in the evening.
I'm currently sitting in a Portland cafe called the Southeast Grind, pretending to conduct research but really just drinking tea and blogging. Looking forward to checking out a tattoo shop called Oddball Studios and more thrifting. My friend Ryan's bands Dominant Legs and Girls are playing at the Doug Fir Lounge tonight! Can't wait to hang out with him, hear him play, and meet some of Andrea's new friends.
My current future goals: move to Portland, work as a case manager, be an active member of the extensive crafting community, snag a tattooed hubby who will wear our children in a Baby Bjorn, buy an adorable cottage, and open an Antiques or Kittens, Whatever shop.
I love your plans! Enjoy!
ReplyDelete'Anonymous' is me: Lisa G
ReplyDelete