Portland
So we went to Portland. There is a Portland besides the one in Oregon you sons of bitches. But we did see an Oregon license plate there and assumed the driver was terribly confused.
I also forgot to take any pictures.
We stopped at Wendy's before leaving Bangor, and I have to say it's not easy dipping chicken nuggets in barbecue sauce while accelerating along the on-ramp. I just needed a phone in my other hand and a newspaper propped on the steering wheel and I'd be your average driver. I'd also have to run more red lights.
So then I drove for like two hours and Kat fell asleep and eventually we got to Portland. We took a downtown exit and I must confess, so far I've never met a downtown area that didn't irritate the crap out of me. Why the narrow streets? Why the random one-waying? Why the totally inadequate public parking? Why the pervasive threats of towing? Well, I guess I can answer the latter two: because it's a huge source of revenue, and they're unable to measure the cost of people too pissed off to ever visit there again and therefore don't take it into account at all. But anyway, eventually we found a place to park and had to walk like a mile to where we actually wanted to be, but that's all right. Kat promptly ran into someone she knew from high school which happens at least once every time we go anywhere. Someday we'll be checking into a hotel in Japan and the guy ahead of us will be from her geometry class.
While walking we were accosted by some jovial and probably homeless guy who asked us for a dollar because it was all he needed to buy some beer or something, I wasn't really listening. I told him I had no cash (I had $42 in my wallet, lolz) and he seemed satisfied, told Kat she was pretty, and wandered off yelling to his friend (apparently nicknamed Alligator). At the next crossing he stared at Kat again and then invited us to walk ahead of him, which thoroughly creeped us out. We hurried a few steps ahead of him as he yelled to his buddy Alligator something about elevators, I'm not sure, I think he's kinda crazy. And actually I'm still not entirely sure he actually knew the guy. At another crossing he caught up to us again, stared at Kat some more, then told her her ankles must be cold and "Get some socks, sweetie." Why do these people exist? After that we finally went our separate ways.
We explored some used book stores and a couple random houseware shops and then a scandinavian food place where she bought something which I don't even know what it is. After that we pretty much decided it was too damn cold to walk around and went back to the car, which by some miracle had been neither towed nor ticketed.
After that we made our way to the Maine Mall, which involved surprisingly little getting lost. Nowadays Bangor has pretty much the same stuff but the mall has a bit more, and they're currently adding a pretty nice restaurant which seems sort of odd, but maybe the place is getting classier. There is one dark corner that is particularly sketchy where some sort of drug deal was probably occurring on a bench. The sketchy corner is the one next to JC Penny, which is directly opposite from Macy's and all the nicer shops, so we assume there is some steady gradient of sketchiness occurring across the length of the mall. Kat found a skirt that was originally $80 and ended up paying like $15 for it, and then we went up the escalator in Sports Authority where about six guys all gathered together promptly fell silent as we came into view and stared at Kat for a while. Being female is overall a pretty creepy experience I guess.
Then we went back downtown to find this thai place we wanted to try, which we actually found really easily. And here I could insert another rant about parking but I've probably said enough on that topic already. Then we ate some food and found that sticky rice with mango is pretty good.
At that point it was around 8pm and about time to leave, so we went away singing the Futureheads' cover of Hounds of Love and then I drove for about two hours and Kat fell asleep, and then we were home. I'm allergic to certain brands of soy milk.
I also forgot to take any pictures.
We stopped at Wendy's before leaving Bangor, and I have to say it's not easy dipping chicken nuggets in barbecue sauce while accelerating along the on-ramp. I just needed a phone in my other hand and a newspaper propped on the steering wheel and I'd be your average driver. I'd also have to run more red lights.
So then I drove for like two hours and Kat fell asleep and eventually we got to Portland. We took a downtown exit and I must confess, so far I've never met a downtown area that didn't irritate the crap out of me. Why the narrow streets? Why the random one-waying? Why the totally inadequate public parking? Why the pervasive threats of towing? Well, I guess I can answer the latter two: because it's a huge source of revenue, and they're unable to measure the cost of people too pissed off to ever visit there again and therefore don't take it into account at all. But anyway, eventually we found a place to park and had to walk like a mile to where we actually wanted to be, but that's all right. Kat promptly ran into someone she knew from high school which happens at least once every time we go anywhere. Someday we'll be checking into a hotel in Japan and the guy ahead of us will be from her geometry class.
While walking we were accosted by some jovial and probably homeless guy who asked us for a dollar because it was all he needed to buy some beer or something, I wasn't really listening. I told him I had no cash (I had $42 in my wallet, lolz) and he seemed satisfied, told Kat she was pretty, and wandered off yelling to his friend (apparently nicknamed Alligator). At the next crossing he stared at Kat again and then invited us to walk ahead of him, which thoroughly creeped us out. We hurried a few steps ahead of him as he yelled to his buddy Alligator something about elevators, I'm not sure, I think he's kinda crazy. And actually I'm still not entirely sure he actually knew the guy. At another crossing he caught up to us again, stared at Kat some more, then told her her ankles must be cold and "Get some socks, sweetie." Why do these people exist? After that we finally went our separate ways.
We explored some used book stores and a couple random houseware shops and then a scandinavian food place where she bought something which I don't even know what it is. After that we pretty much decided it was too damn cold to walk around and went back to the car, which by some miracle had been neither towed nor ticketed.
After that we made our way to the Maine Mall, which involved surprisingly little getting lost. Nowadays Bangor has pretty much the same stuff but the mall has a bit more, and they're currently adding a pretty nice restaurant which seems sort of odd, but maybe the place is getting classier. There is one dark corner that is particularly sketchy where some sort of drug deal was probably occurring on a bench. The sketchy corner is the one next to JC Penny, which is directly opposite from Macy's and all the nicer shops, so we assume there is some steady gradient of sketchiness occurring across the length of the mall. Kat found a skirt that was originally $80 and ended up paying like $15 for it, and then we went up the escalator in Sports Authority where about six guys all gathered together promptly fell silent as we came into view and stared at Kat for a while. Being female is overall a pretty creepy experience I guess.
Then we went back downtown to find this thai place we wanted to try, which we actually found really easily. And here I could insert another rant about parking but I've probably said enough on that topic already. Then we ate some food and found that sticky rice with mango is pretty good.
At that point it was around 8pm and about time to leave, so we went away singing the Futureheads' cover of Hounds of Love and then I drove for about two hours and Kat fell asleep, and then we were home. I'm allergic to certain brands of soy milk.