Things I Miss about Portland

1. Sunday dinners at the Perry-Hanchetts. We love Sundy's Aunt Carla and Uncle Chuck, and her cousins Crystal, Kevin, Kayleen, Bobby, and little Perry, and visiting them on Sunday evenings was always a treat. It's not going to be easy getting used to Sunday afternoons without them. And let's face it - that was the best food we ate all week.
2. The Tigard 2nd LDS Ward. We attended two LDS church meetings today, one for the ward where we are temporarily living and one for the ward we hope to move into (if everything on the rental we want turns out okay). (LDS congregations are assigned by location, so where we attend is matter of where we live rather than where we choose to go). Both were good wards. We felt the Spirit at each, though we felt more warmly welcomed into the second ward (the one we hope to move into) than we did in the first (maybe they sensed that we were short-timers?). But none compared to the feeling of good ole Tigard Two. Maybe it will once we get to know people, but we sure miss the good folk of our congregation back in Oregon.
3. Our friends. The McCollums, the Huffakers, the Rudolphs, our church friends, Sundy's work and school pals, my De Paul buddies - evenings are long without our friends to enjoy them with!
4. Grocery stores. No Winco or New Seasons Market out here. Fortunately, there is a Costco, and we hear there are some Trader Joes (though we haven't yet seen one), so we haven't completely lost all of our favorite stores. What they have here, though, at least what we've found, just isn't the same. Walmart is no Winco, and King Sooper's is no New Seasons (what kind of of name is that for a grocery store, anyway? And what's with the deliberate misspelling of "Super"?)
5. Wooded parks with trails. I really miss running through Cook Park. Jogging on sidewalks through urban sprawl just doesn't compare.
6. Clouded skies. Yes, I'm missing them already. It is nice to see the sunshine, but 95 degrees is HOT (it appears that our time in Oregon has decreased my tolerance for heat). As I sit typing this in our brick oven of a rental home without AC, I really wouldn't mind some 60-degree rainy days.
7. Good, friendly drivers. It may be our out-of-state license plates, but I get the feeling that Colorado drivers don't care for us. And, man-o-man, the jaywalkers! I've almost hit several of them leisurely walking across 7-lane city roads, mid-block.

Not that we aren't enjoying our time out here. It is a fun, sunny, beautiful place, and we are excited for what this next phase in our lives brings.