Yesterday was an amazing day for me on a number of levels. A lot of it had to do with my relationship to the written word.
I started the day at a luncheon (regular readers here know that's usually my first meal of the day) at which the featured speaker was Michael Powell. Powell's Books has long been the true cultural soul of Portland, and its owner, who seems a relatively humble, down-to-earth man, told a few of the many stories surrounding his phenomenally successful business.
I've grown tired over the years of listening to the Republican version of "small business." The "ownership society" people, who whine about the wealth transfer taxes and make it sound like this country has been so unfair to them, leave me cold. Powell didn't complain about taxes. He didn't complain about land use regulation. He didn't complain about the union that he lives with. He didn't complain about anything, really. He was mostly about thanking all the people who have gotten him to where he is. Genuine gratitude.
Powell illustrates, to me at least, that love for one's trade and respect for one's employees and customers can overcome all obstacles. I had been impressed before I heard him speak, and I'm even more impressed now.
One thing he's worried about these days is the part of the Patriot Act that lets the FBI throw him in jail if he doesn't tell them, on demand, which books you and I purchased in his store. He doesn't want to cooperate with them on that. I don't blame him, and I'm grateful for his advocacy on my behalf.
Most of all I liked Powell's style. He knows who he is, and who he isn't. Portland is lucky to have him.
After a brief nap -- dreaming and drooling on the couch while thunderstorm warnings squawked away in the background over the kids' TV show -- I had another brush with literary greatness. I was privileged to dine in the company of not one but two Pulitzer Prize winners, in connection with this weekend's "Wordstock" festival here in town. It was a delightful dinner on a number of levels, but most intriguing to me was the accessibility of the most highly honored guests -- they were more real than most of the rest of us in the group.
Then I came home and, after tucking everybody else in, I read this. And I was reminded of two things. One, those who tell stories like that one are among our society's greatest assets. And two, people like the lady about whom the story was written are ever greater.
I'll never make it into her league. But I'm proud to be somebody who's trying, once in a while, to tell a few stories that might matter almost as much as hers.
Comments (10)
When I first encountered Powell's, it was located in a small storefront several blocks further west up Bunside. One main floor, and a loft. Browsing around the curiosities therein, my reveries were disturbed by an older guy, dragging a tall set of shelves out of the back.
He wanted to get this and a couple more up to the loft. Clearly, he needed a hand, so what the heck. With me bearing most of the weight on the downslope of the stairs, we got them all into position up top. I went back to perusing through the books. Decided to buy half a dozen, total.
When I headed up to the counter, the old guy said "You helped me; I help you. Those are yours." Never even looked at the prices.
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Some kind of planet pattern yesterday, maybe, when I also was deeply touched by words in writing, the same as Jack. Here they are. (Including some in latin, Ne te quaesiveris extra, I translate as 'Not be you the quasi-verity outside you.')
At the bottom of the article, in case when you get there your eyesight is blurred by tears, is a Table of Contents link to more such literature.
Funny thing: Neptune this month is at the exact same point in its orbit (returned for the first time -- it's very slow) around the sun as it was positioned when "Self-Reliance" appeared.
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I'll forego a discussion of unions till another time. I was in Portland this last week, and thrilled to notice the Portland Trib's front-page piece on panhandlers. Quite a number of years ago now -- 10 maybe? -- Michael Powell tried to engender a similar movement, to give to agencies and not street people. It was quite controversial as I recollect.
I have all kinds of problems with the increasing wealth divides in Portland, where even the new study Jack posted a week back showed the lower income classes taxed at #5 in the nation while those higher at #6. But the street people and panhandlers do nothing to enhance the city for anyone.
I sure wondered what Michael Powell's thoughts were this go-round.
In the talk I attended Friday, Michael Powell mentioned aggressive panhandling, graffiti, and a general perception of crime downtown as threats to his business and to the overall economic health of the city. As readers know, I agree.
I don't understand why the city doesn't do something about the panhandlers downtown. I'm talking about the younger kids who sit with their legs stretched out so that you have to step over them. Vera lost no time in setting up a sit/lie ordinance to chase thehomeless out of downtown/oldtown. So why hasn't something been done about htese kids? I lived downtown for about 5 years back in the '80's and I loved it. Now, it's an ugly unfriendly place I can't stand to set foot in.
Haven't you heard, Lily? Aggressively scaring the crap out of people downtown is a protected form of free speech, as long as you don't actually hurt them. It's also okay to curse at, hiss at or in other ways verbally harass honest, hard working folks who try to ignore you when you shake them down for money. It's part of our vibrant downtown culture.
Charamba, Douro 2008
Horse Heaven Hills, Cabernet 2010
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills Pinot Grigio 2011
Avignonesi, Montepulciano 2004
Lorelle, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2011
Villa Antinori, Toscana 2007
Mercedes Eguren, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Lorelle, Columbia Valley Cabernet 2011
Purple Moon, Merlot 2011
Purple Moon, Chardonnnay 2011
Abacela, Vintner's Blend No. 12
Opula Red Blend 2010
Liberte, Pinot Noir 2010
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Indian Wells Red Blend 2010
Woodbridge, Chardonnay 2011
King Estate, Pinot Noir 2011
Famille Perrin, Cotes du Rhone Villages 2010
Columbia Crest, Les Chevaux Red 2010
14 Hands, Hot to Trot White Blend
Familia Bianchi, Malbec 2009
Terrapin Cellars, Pinot Gris 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2009
Campo Viejo, Rioja, Termpranillo 2010
Ravenswood, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2010
Waterbrook, Reserve Merlot 2009
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills, Pinot Grigio 2011
Tarantas, Rose
Chateau Lajarre, Bordeaux 2009
La Vielle Ferme, Rose 2011
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio 2011
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir 2009
Lello, Douro Tinto 2009
Quinson Fils, Cotes de Provence Rose 2011
Anindor, Pinot Gris 2010
Buenas Ondas, Syrah Rose 2010
Les Fiefs d'Anglars, Malbec 2009
14 Hands, Pinot Gris 2011
Conundrum 2012
Condes de Albarei, Albariño 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2007
Penelope Sanchez, Garnacha Syrah 2010
Canoe Ridge, Merlot 2007
Atalaya do Mar, Godello 2010
Vega Montan, Mencia
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir, Marlborough 2009
Portuga, Rose 2011
Revelation, Chardonnay, Pays d'Oc 2010
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 2005
Monte Alto, Tinto Reserva 2005
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Cabernet, Indian Wells 2009
Espiral, Vinho Rose
Vin-Koru, Pinot Gris 2011
14 Hands, Hot to Trot Red 2009
Rodney Strong, Cabernet, Sonoma 2009
Abacela, Vintner's Blend #11
Portuga, White 2010
La Bourgeoisie, Red 2009
Januik, Red 2009
Three Rivers, River's Red 2008
Kirkland, Alexander Valley Merlot 2008
Muga, Rioja Rose 2010
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2009
Mauro Molino, Barbera d'Alba 2009
Garda Chiaretto Rose
Columbia Crest, Two Vines Vineyard 10 White
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Pinot Gris, Columbia Valley 2009
L'Hortus, Rose de Saignee 2010
Maculan, Pino & Toi 2008
McKinley Springs, Bombing Range Red 2008
Trader Joe's Pinot Gris 2009
Montes Alpha, Cabernet 2007
Gran Sasso, Sangiovese, Terre di Chieti 2009
Garda, Classico Chiaretto Rose
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 1999
Picos del Montgo, Tempranillo 2008
Chateau de Montmirail, Vacqueyras 2008
La Granja 360, Syrah 2009
Montgras, Carmenere Reserva 2009
Lange, Pinot Gris 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet 2008
Kirkland, Pinot Grigio 2010
Trader Joe's Coastal Syrah 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Merlot 2008
Trader Joe's Coastal Chardonnay 2009
Vieux Papes Red
Domaine de l'Aujardiere, Chardonnay 2009
Santa Rita, Cabernet, Medalla Real 2007
Penfold's, Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet 2008
Guild, Red, Lot #02 2008
Dievole, Dievolino Sangiovese 2008
Laforet, Burgogne Chardonnay 2009
Columbia Winery, Merlot 2007
Bonterra, Cabernet 2008
Elk Cove, Pinot Gris 2009
Maquis Lien 2006
Scott Paul, Pinot Noir, Le Paulee 2007
The Occasional Book
Hope Larson - A Wrinkle in Time, the Graphic Novel
Rudyard Kipling - Kim
Peter Ames Carlin - Bruce
Fran Cannon Slayton - When the Whistle Blows
Neil Young - Waging Heavy Peace
Mark Bego - Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul (2012 ed.)
Jenny Lawson - Let's Pretend This Never Happened
J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey
Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol
Timothy Egan - The Big Burn
Deborah Eisenberg - Transactions in a Foreign Currency
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. - Slaughterhouse Five
Kathryn Lance - Pandora's Genes
Cheryl Strayed - Wild
Fyodor Dostoyevsky - The Brothers Karamazov
Jack London - The House of Pride, and Other Tales of Hawaii
Jack Walker - The Extraordinary Rendition of Vincent Dellamaria
Colum McCann - Let the Great World Spin
Niccolò Machiavelli - The Prince
Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird
Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus - The Nanny Diaries
Brian Selznick - The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Sharon Creech - Walk Two Moons
Keith Richards - Life
F. Sionil Jose - Dusk
Natalie Babbitt - Tuck Everlasting
Justin Halpern - S#*t My Dad Says
Mark Herrmann - The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law
Barry Glassner - The Gospel of Food
Phil Stanford - The Peyton-Allan Files
Jesse Katz - The Opposite Field
Evelyn Waugh - Brideshead Revisited
J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
David Sedaris - Holidays on Ice
Donald Miller - A Million Miles in a Thousand Years
Mitch Albom - Have a Little Faith
C.S. Lewis - The Magician's Nephew
F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
William Shakespeare - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Ivan Doig - Bucking the Sun
Penda Diakité - I Lost My Tooth in Africa
Grace Lin - The Year of the Rat
Oscar Hijuelos - Mr. Ives' Christmas
Madeline L'Engle - A Wrinkle in Time
Steven Hart - The Last Three Miles
David Sedaris - Me Talk Pretty One Day
Karen Armstrong - The Spiral Staircase
Charles Larson - The Portland Murders
Adrian Wojnarowski - The Miracle of St. Anthony
William H. Colby - Long Goodbye
Steven D. Stark - Meet the Beatles
Phil Stanford - Portland Confidential
Rick Moody - Garden State
Jonathan Schwartz - All in Good Time
David Sedaris - Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
Anthony Holden - Big Deal
Robert J. Spitzer - The Spirit of Leadership
James McManus - Positively Fifth Street
Jeff Noon - Vurt
Road Work
Miles run year to date: 29
At this date last year: 66
Total run in 2012: 129
In 2011: 113
In 2010: 125
In 2009: 67
In 2008: 28
In 2007: 113
In 2006: 100
In 2005: 149
In 2004: 204
In 2003: 269
I started the day at a luncheon (regular readers here know that's usually my first meal of the day) at which the featured speaker was Michael Powell. Powell's Books has long been the true cultural soul of Portland, and its owner, who seems a relatively humble, down-to-earth man, told a few of the many stories surrounding his phenomenally successful business.
After a brief nap -- dreaming and drooling on the couch while thunderstorm warnings squawked away in the background over the kids' TV show -- I had another brush with literary greatness. I was privileged to dine in the company of not one but two Pulitzer Prize winners, in connection with this weekend's "Wordstock" festival here in town. It was a delightful dinner on a number of levels, but most intriguing to me was the accessibility of the most highly honored guests -- they were more real than most of the rest of us in the group.
Comments (10)
When I first encountered Powell's, it was located in a small storefront several blocks further west up Bunside. One main floor, and a loft. Browsing around the curiosities therein, my reveries were disturbed by an older guy, dragging a tall set of shelves out of the back.
He wanted to get this and a couple more up to the loft. Clearly, he needed a hand, so what the heck. With me bearing most of the weight on the downslope of the stairs, we got them all into position up top. I went back to perusing through the books. Decided to buy half a dozen, total.
When I headed up to the counter, the old guy said "You helped me; I help you. Those are yours." Never even looked at the prices.
That was the original Mr. Powell.
Posted by some guy | April 23, 2005 9:41 AM
-
Some kind of planet pattern yesterday, maybe, when I also was deeply touched by words in writing, the same as Jack. Here they are. (Including some in latin, Ne te quaesiveris extra, I translate as 'Not be you the quasi-verity outside you.')
At the bottom of the article, in case when you get there your eyesight is blurred by tears, is a Table of Contents link to more such literature.
Funny thing: Neptune this month is at the exact same point in its orbit (returned for the first time -- it's very slow) around the sun as it was positioned when "Self-Reliance" appeared.
-
Posted by Tenskwatawa | April 23, 2005 1:01 PM
If I remember correctly, Michael Powell was against letting the union setting up at the store.
Posted by Lily | April 23, 2005 4:30 PM
Oh, he definitely was against it. I would not have expected otherwise. But he seems to be living with it o.k.
Posted by Jack Bog | April 23, 2005 6:30 PM
I'll forego a discussion of unions till another time. I was in Portland this last week, and thrilled to notice the Portland Trib's front-page piece on panhandlers. Quite a number of years ago now -- 10 maybe? -- Michael Powell tried to engender a similar movement, to give to agencies and not street people. It was quite controversial as I recollect.
I have all kinds of problems with the increasing wealth divides in Portland, where even the new study Jack posted a week back showed the lower income classes taxed at #5 in the nation while those higher at #6. But the street people and panhandlers do nothing to enhance the city for anyone.
I sure wondered what Michael Powell's thoughts were this go-round.
Posted by Sally | April 23, 2005 10:59 PM
Oh ... ps .... great story, "someguy."
Posted by Sally | April 23, 2005 11:00 PM
In the talk I attended Friday, Michael Powell mentioned aggressive panhandling, graffiti, and a general perception of crime downtown as threats to his business and to the overall economic health of the city. As readers know, I agree.
Posted by Jack Bog | April 24, 2005 1:27 AM
I don't understand why the city doesn't do something about the panhandlers downtown. I'm talking about the younger kids who sit with their legs stretched out so that you have to step over them. Vera lost no time in setting up a sit/lie ordinance to chase thehomeless out of downtown/oldtown. So why hasn't something been done about htese kids? I lived downtown for about 5 years back in the '80's and I loved it. Now, it's an ugly unfriendly place I can't stand to set foot in.
Posted by Lily | April 24, 2005 3:31 PM
Haven't you heard, Lily? Aggressively scaring the crap out of people downtown is a protected form of free speech, as long as you don't actually hurt them. It's also okay to curse at, hiss at or in other ways verbally harass honest, hard working folks who try to ignore you when you shake them down for money. It's part of our vibrant downtown culture.
Posted by Dave Lister | April 25, 2005 1:30 PM
Amen, Dave!!
Posted by Lily | April 25, 2005 10:17 PM