If you were taking a 13-year-old to Portland...

[AmandaMI]

...around May, what would you do?

MrMI graduates in a few months, and has always wanted to live in Oregon or Washington, so we're planning a trip to check things out. I want to be sure the almost-teenaged boy has a good time, since if we were to move, he'd be the most opposed to leaving Michigan.

Ideas?

[La Végétalienne]

Leave Michigan?!?

[michiganveganchick]

whoa, how exciting!

i'm guessing the vegan strip mall won't be a big selling point for him, eh?

wow, i hope you guys hate it so you don't move away (/selfish request) have an awesome time.

[bekah-chan]

i don't know portland well enough to give you an answer for that, but if you're coming to washington, too, i can help

[AmandaMI]

Leave Michigan?!?

whoa, how exciting!

i'm guessing the vegan strip mall won't be a big selling point for him, eh?

wow, i hope you guys hate it so you don't move away (/selfish request) have an awesome time.

The chances are slim, but I hate anything below 32 degrees and MrMI hates anything above 80 degrees, so we've always talked about going somewhere with less extremes. We're pretty stuck with this house in this economy, but if the right opportunity presented itself jobwise, we wouldn't want to make a decision having never been there, ya know?

Vegan strip mall is a must-visit, whether the boys care or not.

[Miso Vegan]

Surely you're heading N from there, right?

[bekah-chan]

Surely you're heading N from there, right?

good question

[AmandaMI]

We weren't, until MrMI talked to a friend of his last night who told him Seattle is better than Portland. Now I think we're going to have to rent a car and check out both. Said friend lived in Seattle at least 20 years ago, and lives completely differently than we do, so I'm not convinced his opinion matters, but I'm up for more vacation.

He's finding shockingly few nursing jobs online in Portland. Almost everywhere else he's looked, there are literally hundreds of listings. That might be limiting factor, I guess.

His real aspiration, that I keep ignoring like I don't even hear him, is to live in the town that The Goonies was set in.

[Miso Vegan]

We weren't, until MrMI talked to a friend of his last night who told him Seattle is better than Portland.

'Tis true!

[gladcow]

the one thing that popped into my mind when you said 13 year old boy is:
http://www.excaliburcomics.net/

at least, it's my brother's favorite

also: meetup? yes? eating? say yes.

[AmandaMI]

'Tis true!

I'll have questions.

the one thing that popped into my mind when you said 13 year old boy is:
http://www.excaliburcomics.net/

at least, it's my brother's favorite

also: meetup? yes? eating? say yes.

Thanks! And yes, definitely!

[gladcow]

[MissLovely]

There's more than Excalibur if you like comics! Darkhorse is based in Milwaukie (ie milwaukie not ee milwaukee.) heh. Downtown they they have the predator and alien figures in the window.
OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) is fun for all.
You could take a factory tour of Bob's Red Mill!
We'd totally meet you for breakfast and go.
I'll ask around about fun and being 13.