Seen at the Grand Floral Parade, No. 2

I like a confident man. I like a burly, good-sized man. I like dimples. I like LEOs. (Law Enforcement Officers) This man, a Portland Police Bureau officer, wearing an inflated Alaska Airlines airplane hat, fills the bill on all three.



He's got great peripheral vision, too. Four seconds after the first photo, I took this one as he looked straight at me. Doggone cool.

July 4, Waterfront Blues Festival

Portland Police Bureau Chief of Police Michael Reese on stage with the band The Usual Suspects.

Here's the info about the band that I found at a link on the Waterfront Blues Festival's Web site:

The Suspects number around eight pieces on a good day and play an eclectic blend of blues, country rock and classic rock and roll songs. Their original compositions are thought provoking dissertations on daily life, love and finding bail money.

The Line Up

• Mike Reese: Various tattoos and scars tell a sordid tale of life on the edge. Mike is the Suspect’s founder and songwriter/guitarist, and most definitely the “Most Wanted” member of the band. 
• Kari Pearson: Kari is the Suspect’s smooth voiced lead singer with many years experience playing penitentiary gigs. She has a great vocal range and can cover a variety of musical styles according to her probation officer.
• Mel Tellinghusen: Mel just got back from his recent tour of northwest financial institutions where he proved he is a master of the sticks as well as stick-ups. He also loves laying down the groove on people deserving of it.
• Mike Kuykendall: Also known as the “Bass Man of Alcatraz”, Mike has fought the law since getting his first guitar at age 12. His favorite movies are “O Brother, Where Art Thou” and “The Longest Yard.”
• Tracie Andrusko: A concert violinist with a burning desire to jam in a rock band with convicts and play free concerts at local jails. Tracie has added a new dimension to the sound of the band with her subtle fills, soaring solo’s and arrest-free record.
• Steve Andrusko: Steve drove wife Tracie to practice one night and abruptly announced he had a trumpet, could carry equipment and drive the getaway car. He was hired on the spot. Steve and Tracie are the Bonnie and Clyde of the Suspects, making this a truly unique family experience. Steve’s favorite quote is, “I’m just along for the ride.” 
• Nathan Andrusko: Yep, you guessed it. Son of Steve and Tracie, Nathan is recognized state-wide in Oregon high school competitions as a master trombone player, and he recently got time off from the principal’s office for good playing.
• Chris Azorr: Chris is the most recent band member to post bail and brings to the line-up a great keyboard. He loves to play the rockers when he is not actually breaking rocks.

You’re going to love this band….

And I did!

The other few moments that I witnessed during the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon on May 20, 2012, at the intersection of NE Sandy Blvd. and NE 20th Avenue, right in my neighborhood!

The sign boldly states "Street Closed." Well, until the Portland Police Bureau officer (and a nearby, out of the photo TriMet employee) decided that the time had come to let the traffic stopped on NE Sandy flow east and west. Thus, the runners came to a stop, waiting silently, speckled with falling rain. I heard only the sound of tires traversing the wet pavement.
 

This intersection must have been just one of many on the route at which runners had to stop for a short time while law enforcement officers cleared the stopped traffic. NE Sandy Blvd. is one of the major thoroughfares in northeast Portland, used by two busy bus lines, even on a Sunday. Since it was cool and rainy, I wondered whether or not the runners welcomed the short pauses. I have to imagine that, for the most part, they didn't.
 

The intersection is almost cleared now. Runners, ready!
   

There they go, on their way mid-way from mile 10 to mile 11 and beyond!

Sidewalk Entertainment

Thursday evening after I left the waterfront, the fleet and the fireboat, I walked into Old Town Chinatown to catch a bus home. Thank goodness, or I wouldn't have come upon this entertaining scene outside the Old Town Precinct at NW 3rd and Couch.

The policewoman's horse enjoyed grabbing folded boxes from those stashed in another box at the curb. You can see some of them on the street where they fell. Here's how the entertainment started.


I'm thinking this horse is the class clown who thought that since the lady paid attention to the other horse, it was time to get on stage. The boxes provided the perfect prop.


I love the looks the two horses on the left are giving the class clown, just like long-suffering classmates who've seen all of this time and again.


By the way, the lady never noticed the fun-lovin' horse, but I certainly did and enjoyed every moment.

PPB at NW 3rd and Couch

I took this photo on Feb. 15 while I waited for my second bus. Have you ever seen a neon sign for a police precinct?