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It's True, I Swear It is


Last Friday I watched the first episode of Portlandia, the new tongue in cheek parody of life in Portland, Oregon, my fair city. Funny? Yes, in parts. A little over the top? Definitely.
Today I read a bit of a review from Newsweek which contained the following:

There are certain things every Pacific Northwest native knows:
* You must love the outdoors.
* You must eat local and organic.
* You must brake for pedestrians, even when you’re in the middle of an intersection with a green light.
Now here’s what a Pacific Northwest native who returns home after living in another city knows:
* You will hold back your frustration after 45 minutes in the checkout line at Trader Joe’s, because the cashier will insist on having a conversation with everybody coming through the line.
* You will experience uncontrollable road rage, because in the Pacific Northwest, there is no difference between the right and left lanes.
* You will spend 10 minutes standing in front of a row of trashcans, trying to decipher which of the five recycling bins and three compost piles your candy wrapper should go in.

Trust me when I tell you I agree with everything on this list. On the eve of my 5th year living in the city of roses, I find all of the above to be the absolute truth.
Why, just yesterday I went to my local New Seasons grocery store. You know, the one with the row of trashcans referenced above. I had only a few things and found a checkout line with only one person in front of me. She was right out of the casting call for Portlandia in appearance, but that's no big thing, especially in these winter months. Currently I'm seeing all manner of colorful winter leggings under skirts which are over pants. This 20 something in front of me was only purchasing one thing, a small jar of some henna hair product with which to treat her raspberry colored hair, no doubt. I waited until the conversation between the clerk and the customer ended. That's what we do up here. Our grocery clerks ask how our day is going, what we have planned, if we have tasted one of the newer products we may have placed on the counter, the weather, and any number of other possibilities.
Not everything depicted in Portlandia is a stretch. Ask anyone.

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