Thursday, April 8, 2010

From The Big Apple To Cherry City

When I flew into PDX to stay I knew that some changes were coming into my life. I was ready for them. At least that's what I thought. I am a native New Yorker and spent 27 years in and out of Queens, Manhattan, Brooklyn and Long Island. I could handle anything...couldn't I?? I had a feeling of suddenly being that little painted metal man who moves up the cliff in the TV game show "The Price is Right" 's famous challenge called "Cliffhanger."  I just needed some serious boots.  Flying in I began to see the terrain and then Mount Hood.  I seriously started to cry.  I wish I was lying because I like to think of myself as one of those cool alternative chicks like the one on the cover of "Salem Monthly" this month.  I was crying because this was the most beautiful vision I ever layed my city girl eyes on. It has been love ever since.
  Sometimes though, in my limited brick and mortar mind, I have trouble understanding the ways of Oregon and my hometown of Salem.  I feel so left out that I don't know who the Oregon Ducks are.  Even my daughter has a sweatshirt by now and I am still clueless! I just don't like sports.  I know-I said it, and I feel I should have some guilt.  I think I was made defective. I am not into fishing either. To make things worse, I am an animal welfare activist and a vegan.  It seems everyone is eating whole cows-not just pieces.  Just a big hunk of dead cow on a plate. And then there is me with my lettuce. There is also this pronunciation thing too like Aloha.  It is not like the Hawaiian "Aloha." It is "a LOH a." I also thought naturally that Portland's "Couch Street" is pronounced like the thing you sit on to watch TV.  I was told this was not so and was reprimanded. It was explained to me that the pronunciation of things was taken very seriously. I once again had guilt. I say this all out of love because I consider this to be my hometown now, and there are many many great things here. What I find to be really cool is that Salem has put in seperate little street signs with so-and-so church down this road or this and that community center down this way.  The wooden signs come with the pointed arrow and everything!  I thought they were only on TV in movies.  They are real!  I love them! I should tell you that many people say "Don't you miss New York?" or "You are crazy for leaving there and moving here!" I tell them that they can have it and they're crazy!
   There is so many nutty things I think or write about in regards to the differences from Manhattan to Salem, but the bottom line is I love it here. All week long I wished I had a good camera so I could take pictures. In case the native Salemites have forgot, this place is like a living, moving, growing, wind-in-your-hair, extrodinary picture. I am so glad I get to live here.I hope I get to write more weird stuff because I love to laugh. I think it makes us all forget for awhile.Mercy Jean

1 comment:

  1. I remember when I first arrived here too, I wrote a poem about it. I saw for the very first time what this side of America looks like when hugging up against an entirely different ocean. It is an entirely different scene from the commercialized boardwalks of the Jersey shore. What an experience! (and that was just the coast, lol)

    Well I'd like to say "Welcome to Salem", you and your daughter. I hope you both like it here as much as I have. It really is a terrific state to live in. And I'm still looking for those things called "friends" too, so if you ever wanna walk around town with cameras in hand capturing time in a digital frame, just let me know, I'd be glad to roll along. Great blog!

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