Big landscaping changes at my former apartment building

Sometimes I get homesick for the neighborhood where Mama and I lived before she died in January, 2011. So, I drove by when I had a vacation day and a Zipcar on April 14. Was I ever shocked at the changes to the landscaping at our former home, the Presidential Court Apartments in Northwest Portland's Alphabet District!



I took these two photos from the car after pulling to a stop at the curb, ignoring the no parking sign for a moment or two. Our top floor apartment is visible in this photo--we had the entire sort of pale olive-colored section as well as the brick part with the pointed parapet, the entire front section of that top floor from corner to corner. Our bathroom window is the small one at the corner inside corner. The apartment around from us to the right--that's its bathroom window across from ours. Mama's bedroom has the three windows at the corner of the pale olive section of the wall, next to the bathroom. The living room is behind those windows in the brick section.

Here are four photos that I took in May, 2007, looking down from our bathroom window. We had moved into that apartment, perfect for the two of us and our little dachshund Duncan, in October, 2006.



Here's the look that used to be on the right side of the entrance, as you're looking at it from the curb.



This photo shows the landscaping directly beneath our bathroom window, to the left of the entrance.



A street-level view of the landscaping to the right of the entrance.



To the left of the entrance.

Fall Foliage, 2011. I found some! In my old neighborhood!

After spying a photo on Flickr taken at the intersection of NW 23rd and West Burnside, I knew I had to get over there soon, before the leaves got rained or blown off the trees.


So Friday after work I took the 15 bus and traced my old route home, thinking of Mama and how much I miss her. How much I miss that part of Portland. Not that I don't adore where I am now because I do. I just miss the Alphabet District. These trees lining the sidewalk at a shopping center parking lot go a long way to explaining one of the reasons I miss my old neighborhood. I'm standing on Westover Road looking south towards West Burnside.


I took this from the upstairs balcony at the shopping center.


From 2006, through 2010, these beauties trumpeted the arrival of autumn for Mama and me. We never got tired of seeing them. They're in the parking lot in front of Zupan's. The red car is on SW Vista at its intersection with West Burnside. It was someone else's photo of them that got me on the bus.


You see, the trees where I now live have not changed much, yet. At least I'm hoping for yet because there are a lot of trees in my neighborhood. These trees are very near my apartment. I took these photos last Sunday afternoon as a way to gauge the arrival of what I hope will become glorious color.

Autumn Lining the Streets

This is our street in the Alphabet District of Northwest Portland. Our building is on the right on the corner. That wall with the windows that you can see is across the side street. to the east of our building.


This is one street to the north of our street. In both photos I'm looking eastward.


A final photo for today's post, taken from the northern sidewalk on our street, looking through an opening caused by a space between an office building and an older house that now is a law office, and looking to the northern side of the street that is just north of ours. The tree on the right amazes me every time I have looked at the photo since I took it on October 23--the vivid color peeks out from the corner of the house wonderfully.

Autumn Interlude--Sky, Sidewalk, and Vehicle

A tree across the street from Lincoln High School, Saturday afternoon

A tree on NW Flanders at NW 23rd Avenue, Saturday afternoon

The tree to the left of our building's front door, before sunrise.

Nearby sidewalk, #1

Nearby street level matching accessory, #1

Shrub on nearby sidewalk, #2

Nearby street level matching accessory, #2, on NW 23rd at Glisan

Nearby sidewalk, #3

Nearby street level matching accessory, #3, on NW Glisan near NW 23rd Avenue

Nearby sidewalk, #4

Nearby street level matching accessory, #4, the corner of NW Davis and NW 22nd

NW Davis, a view I enjoy every afternoon after I get off the bus, taken Oct. 29 before it started to rain which knocked lots and lots of leaves from the trees

NW Everett, a view I enjoy every morning when I walk to the bus stop--although I took this photo in the afternoon on Oct. 29--it's too dark now to get a good shot in the AM

Part of the price for our autumn beauty--cars blanketed with leaves

The same car, different view

One last view of the autumn bounty.

All of these shots are within a four-square-blocks space, except for the one by Lincoln High School. They provide emphatic evidence of the necessity for Northwest Portland Clean Sweep--for us, the next one is Dec. 5--nearby streets either the week before or the week after. I found this on Portland Online:

PDOT and Neighbors West-Northwest have successfully collaborated for the past 15 years to clean the streets in NW Portland. Residents and businesses are notified in advance to remove their vehicles from the scheduled sweep area by 7:30 a.m. because City sweepers cannot make their way down NW Portland's narrow streets with cars parked.

Can you imagine how many leaves we'd have here if they didn't clean off the streets three times a year?

Mt. Hood from our neighborhood, Portland's Alphabet District

On Feb. 18 after Kay and I had gone to pick up Mama's prescriptions, we walked an extra block on our way back to the apartment. That's when we saw this fantastic view of Mt. Hood from a sidewalk. That big ol' mountain is over 60 miles away! It's great that the mountain is so large because we can see the snow without having to buy snow tires or chains!