Civic Pride

I have never made a secret of my support & admiration for the openly gay Mayor of Portland- Sam Adams. Back when the Mayor was a city commissioner, I sat on a committee that he chaired- Keep Portland Moving. I always arrived early enough to insure that I would sit next to him. I understood that he would one day be the Mayor & I had designs to be the First Lady of Portland, a dream dashed when I realized that I was decades too old for his taste. But, I was never bitter. Sam Adams has always had my support, even if he ended up not supporting me in the style that I fantasized about: going shopping in foreign cities while Mr. Mayor was speaking at conferences, cutting ribbons & christening ships, standing beside him at press conferences, fashion spreads in details.

It is a bit of thrill when the Mayor of Portland calls me by name. Yesterday, I was in attendance at a meeting of The Downtown Retail Council where Sam Adams gave an engaging, witty, upbeat update on the Occupy Portland situation. He got angry at a question once & I became so excited that I was unable to stand up from our table. He was strongly stern a few times, making my head spin... Yes, I was in a room with another 50 retailers & I was stuck being hard & dizzy at the same time, not at my best.

Just a few hours later, I stood with The Husband, Jake, & The Boys' Fort Artists as Mayor Sam Adams gave a speech about the holiday season in Downtown Portland & the opening of the 3 Pop-Up Shops. Standing at the door to the store, while thanking him for his words earlier in the day, I just tossed off that my Husband happened to be one of the 2 partners of Boys' Fort.

Mayor Sam Adams (looking mayoral & handsome): "Really? That is so great. May I meet him, Steve?"

Stephen: "Of course, Mr. Mayor... you know I would do anything for you." (the Mayor & Stephen walk together across the atrium, seemingly aglow, as if in a Merchant/Ivory film)

Stephen (in a cornflower blue shirt to bring out his eyes): "Mr. Mayor, this is The Husband..."

Mayor Adams (reaching for The Husband's hand & seemingly brushing up against Stephen): "So very good to meet you & congratulations on Boys' Fort. By the way, you have excellent taste in men." (the crowd goes silent as Stephen levitates)

The Husband: (dry & weary) Oh, don't I know it..."

Portland is all about Bikes & here is a nice shot of The Husband, The Mayor & Stephen getting ready to ride.

The Trouble With Poultry

I stood on the Max Train on a recent warm summer morning, on a day when the temperature would eventually inch up to the high 90s. I shared the platform with the Mayor of Portland, who is my neighbor & an acquaintance. He had a briefcase, a backpack & a cloth satchel bag, each looking pretty darn full. He was standing with eyes closed, seeming to be meditating. As I passed him, he looked up & wished me- "good morning, Stephen". I didn’t want to bother him in any way, but he started the chatting, so I asked him- “does your house stay cool on days like this?”, & the Mayor stated that he shuts his house up when it is hot & that it stays cool until he can get home & open up the windows & doors. He then said- “it is weird though… my chickens keep looking at me like this heat is my fault. I think they really suffer even with the shade & water that I provide for them, but they look at me like they are unhappy”. I paused & then retorted- “Mr. Mayor, I don’t think that you should be guilt tripped by POULTRY”. I moved along, so as not to be a bother & to let him get in a bit more meditating before the train arrived & he started another day of running Portland.

Hiz Honor

This Morning I saw the Mayor of our city riding on his bicycle when I was on my way to the MAX train. Not that unusual a sighting… he lives in my neighborhood. I voted for him, gave money to his campaign & I know him slightly. I served on a committee that he chaired- Keep Portland Moving (2005-07) when he was a city councilman. I would always get to the meeting room at City Hall really early so that I could get the seat next to him. I would write Sam + Steve all over my Pee Chee folder. It was common knowledge, in my circle, that I had designs on becoming the First Lady of Portland (I didn’t know that I was born in the wrong decade). When he rode by, my heart still fluttered & it made me consider… is Sam Adams still hot? I decided to contemplate three other Mayors of major US cities: Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles, Adrian Fenty of Washington DC & Gavin Newsom of San Francisco. Do you think any of them are hot, or not?