I hope this worker gets a paid holiday on Memorial Day.

Riding the bus west across the Hawthorne Bridge, on my way to transfer to a 12 or a 19 at SW 6th and Yamhill to ensure that I get a seat for the rest of the home-bound commute, I saw this man reading. Seeing people reading is not unusual on any kind of mass transit here in Portland. What's unique for me here is the fact that he's obviously a construction worker, reading at 4 p.m., reading David Baldacci, one of my favorite authors. He's intensely involved with Deliver Us from Evil--look at the concentration on his face. When thinking about this now-upon-us-three-day weekend, I remembered taking this photo and wondered if the reader/worker gets a paid holiday on Monday. I hope so. I hope he'll be reading some of that time, spending time with his family, setting an example of a working man who enjoys a good read. I hope he'll join in a celebration of Memorial Day.

TriMet Early Morning Readers--a break from The Big Float

One of the neat things I've noticed over the years as I commute to and from work is the number of folks reading. Not just on their phones or readers, but also from newspapers and magazines. Most importantly, books from the Multnomah County Library!

The morning I sneaked this photo, I didn't get much of a focus on my iPhone. However, you can tell that the two people on each side of the photo are reading hardback books--notice the smudge of gray on the edges of the pages in the woman's book? That's the marking that says MULTNOMAH COUNTY LIBRARY. Take my word for it, the same marking is on the man's book. The fellow in the middle is reading one of the newsweeklies in Portland, the Willamette Week.

Seen on the streets of Portland, No. 2

A bundled-up-book-reader sits a few feet from dazzling full sun, filling the street--that's why she's wearing shades.

I took this photograph walking north on NW 11th Avenue, heading towards the corner of 11th and NW Couch Street, around 2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 7, 2009.

She's at a table outside Mio Gelato. I stopped to look and lust after gelato, knowing full-well that I couldn't have any--doggone lactose intolerance. So I selected a bambino-sized portion of strawberry sorbet. Yummy taste, good texture.

My ultimate destination, Whole Foods, in search of a pecan pie. I couldn't find one--must be a holiday, seasonal item. Drat.