What I Think About Portland (and Comparisons to Austin)

Well, Portland...weird is a fitting term for you, indeed...and you like it like that! You are weird in that ultra-hippie, wear whatever feels good, moody and care-free at the same time kind of way.

You are a mix of nature and man coming together to live in complete harmony. The only city (I know of) that has its residents save food scraps to make a compost pile (in addition to garbage and recycling).

Sometimes you seem light as a feather, at peace with the chaos around you...

Other times your mood shifts to the dark side as the rain and the fog sets it.

You seem to embrace your mood swings, enjoying the yin and yang of smiling and sulking.

You are interested in different cultures, but maybe not so interested in people from other states moving to your newly popular territory.

Well, Portland, you'll have to deal with that reality; all the great cities are found out eventually and you are one of them. 

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And of course, I had to eventually talk about how Austin compares to Portland. These are the two cities in the States that proudly display the bumper stickers and signs that proclaim: "Keep [city name] Weird. So who is weirder?

Portland, hands down, is the weirdest city out of the two. Don't get me wrong, Austin is quirky...but it's only "weird" in comparison to the rest of Texas. Austin still has that velvety Southern charm, a necessary trait of the cool kid. Portland, however, is more of the strange loner in the corner of the classroom, only inviting similarly loner-ish kids to his clique. I met more "interesting" folk in Portland than I have...well...anywhere!

So keep up your weirdness, P! And know that even as your population grows, you're only going to attract those as equally strange as you!