UPDATE - Sights around Portland that I miss right now.

UPDATE: Still sleeping about three hours at a time. Not as much aching in the knees, thank goodness! Still experiencing peripheral neuropathy, though, with the humming mostly on the shins and down into my feet right now, not as much in my hands right now. Still wobbly and feeling out of balance when I walk, but with this perfect-size-for-me studio apartment, there is a sturdy piece of furniture or a wall within easy reach, no matter where I go. I am not dizzy, either.

So far, hallelujah, I have noticed no taste alterations nor have I had enough nausea to result in what could follow it--you know what I mean.

Thank you for your continued prayers, love, and concern.




I took this photo on June 21, 2012, because I happened to notice that the lights were on in the evening at Albertina Kerr, making a lovely backdrop to the rose blossoms. It's not often that there is an evening event going on there, so I count myself blessed to have been able to get this photo.



I took this photo on March 19, 2011, while I waited for a bus at the roundabout where NE Glisan St. and NE 39th (also known as NE Cesar E. Chavez Blvd.) intersect. I love vintage vehicles and couldn't resist this one tootling along.



Here's a view that I'll miss forever, of The Big Pink and the Portland, Oregon neon sign--I took this photo on March 18, 2011, years before the construction of a 19-story building got started. It makes me so sad to realize that when I get well enough to return to work and riding the bus each morning, I won't see this view. I hope to goodness that the building is worth it, as in OK to look at on a week-day-basis which is when I'm most likely to be here. The building is going up at the east end of the Burnside Bridge, smack up against it on the north side of the bridge. I imagine it has already increased by several stories since I was last there and took a photo or a video--probably did that in June, is my best guess.

Autumn colors and the not-so-pink Big Pink.

Looking south towards downtown from the pedestrian bridge over the railroad tracks next to Union Station. I thoroughly enjoy looking at The Big Pink, no matter the perspective, even when it's not so pink. I have no idea why all of those posts and cables are on top of that building. Anybody know? I took this photo on October 25, 2008, while on the bridge walk.

Neons are in! No street visible this time, just a glorious giant boot! No. 10

Thanks to the map, you can tell that we're now on the northeast corner at Dr. Martens. We've made it around the entire intersection now. I took these photos on October 16, 2010.
    

I cannot resist the chance to say this, "I fell head over heels for the giant boot at Dr. Martens!"
 

The laces, stitching, and writing on the loop at the back of the giant boot certainly are neon yellow.
 

For you who frequent Portland Oregon Daily Photo, a perspective which shows the location of Dr. Martens, on the northeast corner of NW 10th Avenue and West Burnside, in relation to the Big Pink, for me another oft-blogged-about-iconic-Portland sight. The Big Pink is at SW 5th and West Burnside, five blocks east of Dr. Martens.

Hope you've enjoyed the Neons are in! as much as I have. Thanks!

Seen from the MAX Yellow Line, Portland's Big Pink.

Saturday on the way to get my flu shot at Kaiser Interstate, I decided to try holding the camera next to the window of the MAX train, pointing it up towards The Big Pink. Oh, joyous serendipity! I got a decent photo of the building and the parking garage next to it. Read below so you'll understand why it doesn't look pink at this particular moment, and why it has that nickname. The yellowish rectangular spot is the reflection of a fluorescent light in the MAX train.

From Wikipedia: The US Bancorp Tower is the second tallest skyscraper in Portland, Oregon. It stands at 536 feet (163 m) with 42 floors. The building has nearly 1.1 million square feet (69,000 m²) of office space inside, making it the largest office building in Oregon in terms of volume, and the second tallest building in Oregon, with only the Wells Fargo Center exceeding its height.

Designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) with Pietro Belluschi as a consultant. The tower opened in 1983 with construction costs of $128 million. At first the building served as the national headquarters of U.S. Bancorp, then the regional headquarters of that organization after a 1997 merger moved the corporate offices to Minneapolis, Minnesota. U.S. Bancorp has 480,000 square feet (45,000 m2) leased until 2015.

Perhaps the most unusual features of the building are its shape and color. Pietro Belluschi was most concerned about the play of light and shadows on its surface; meanwhile, the SOM team had to work with a uniquely shaped lot due to the street grid. The meshing of these two concerns led to what has been called Portland's most dynamic building. Because of the street grid, the tower features no right angles in its parallelogram footprint. This, in turn, makes it look either extremely slender or wide depending upon your viewing angle. Belluschi carefully selected the glass and granite for the exterior facing. The windows can absorb or reflect light depending upon how much light is upon them, while the surrounding granite may appear darker or lighter than the window pieces depending upon the time of day. The building can be described as being pink, orange, purple, or even gray all in the same day. The unusual pinkish color earned the building the nickname "Big Pink", after an album by The Band.

During the 1980s and 1990s, the top floors held the headquarters of Louisiana-Pacific. Since a $4 million renovation in 2002, the thirtieth floor of the tower has been occupied by the Portland City Grill, Portland's top-grossing restaurant. It is often cited as the restaurant with the best view in Portland. (Lamont and Leland both used to work at Portland City Grill.)

The building was purchased by JPMorgan Asset Management in August 2006 for a price of $286 million. It was previously owned by Unico who purchased it in 2000 for a price of $165 million. Currently, 92% of the building is occupied.
On September 9, 2008, LaSalle Investment Management entered a purchase partnership with Unico Properties for $285 million to acquire the building.