h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I was reading Lady P's journal, and saw that you mentioned the view you have over the Columbia into Washington, which of course means that you're somewhere near (if not in) Portland. Since I'm going to be up that way next month, and have already arranged to meet with 1 h2g2er, I was wondering if you'd like to join in? We're harmless, I promise! (I *was* going to say 'normal' but I've been on here for 3 1/2 years and GT's been on longer than that) Of course I'll understand if you're a bit hesitant--after all, I came out of nowhere

Anyway, just curious Have a mufflewhump!

Hi, Amy: What a pleasant surprise, your message, with a little Mufflewhumps on the side...[sounds like something that could be out of Winnie The Pooh]...I would love to meet you & other hootoos....sounds like fun....Yes, I live in Portland...and am a real web-foot....as I was born here.....I live in the NE part of town, near the airport.....But I have a car & can find my way about most anywhere.....On March 22 I have to report for jury duty................If you would like to use E-mail to tell me time & place [or we may have people from all over the world showing up....Great Fun....]
[email protected] .....How ever you want to communicate, is fine with me....By for now.......

I don't mind discussing here--that way I can get GT over here to this thread, and we can all plan together

I'm going to be flying up to visit my grandma in Salem (which, of course, has no commercial airport) on March 5th, and flying back to Sacramento on the 12th. So far, the plan is that GTBacchus is going to meet my daughter and I at the airport around 3 and take us to Greyhound probably around 6 on the 5th, and then on the 12th, will be picking us up at Greyhound around 1 and taking us to the airport just before 3:30 on the 12th. Might be going to the Children's Museum and the Rheinlander sometime during those times. Really firm plans, as you can see

Your planes will all fall into place with time & work.....The Rheinlander is just a short hop,skip and a jump down the "lane" from me.....Does GT Bacchus knew Portland??? and about our Max line to & from the airpot??? It pulls up right under a covered area outside the baggage pickup area...Max is great. new & nice..... .... ....by for now....Await the news of your plans ...as they unfurl..or unravel.........and do not forget your ... ................................ ................

Well, he's been going to PSU for a while now, so he probably knows Portland fairly well (though it's probably safe to say not as well as you do) He *does* know about Max, but I'm going to have a bit much luggage-wise to use public transit--a big suitcase, port-a-crib, carry-on, diaper bag, and carseat (my daughter will be 20 months, and so still flies free!) I've pointed GT in the direction of this thread, so he should be wandering this way soon

There is a good view of Mt. St. Helens today....It changes by the hour............A LOT of steam rising from the dome in the crater today.........................http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/

I remember when it blew its top in '80--I was in kindergarten at the time. We lived just outside Salem, and we got ash even that far away!

Hello, Gingersnapper! Nice place you've got here. Hi, Amy!

Amy pointed me this way. It appears that our micro-meet is becoming a mini-meet; I'm looking forward to it.

There *is* the Max line from the Airport, and the Max *is* very good, but I thought that, with bags to carry, it would be easier to just toss them into the back of my van. I live in NE Portland, so the Airport is nearby, along Columbia and 82nd, and the bus station is just across the Broadway Bridge.

I have yet to figure out where the Rheinlander actually is...



GTB

http://dinesite.com/info/rstrnt-287590/??&t=0

In that case, I know exactly where the Rheinlander is. Come to think of it, I've driven past there many times.

We may have to juggle everything around.

I'm married, but Tom (my husband) isn't going to be able to join Faith and I on this trip, because he doesn't get paid time off. The original plan, before I remembered that GT was up there, was for Faith and I to fly up and then take the shuttle from the airport to Salem--in fact, the flights were scheduled around that. (Grandma doesn't drive any more, and while my aunt and cousin live with her, my aunt will be just out of back surgery and so unable to drive out of town, and I don't think my cousin is old enough to drive.) Only problem was that the roundtrip cost for the shuttle was over half the cost of the flight! Grandma offered to pay, but she doesn't have all that much money, either. I'd been grumbling for awhile over the fact that Greyhound hasn't a station at the airport, so when GT mentioned that he still had his van, I asked if he could give us a ride to/from the bus station (at that point, we'd agreed to meet, but hadn't even decided *which* Saturday, much less to meet on *both*). He said yes. At that point, I figured I'd better mention to Tom that I had a friend up in Portland, who was willing to take Faith and I to the bus station and how much money that would save. Since I know and used GT's real first name, it was immediately obvious he was a he Tom rather surprised me then by raising no objections--but then again, I'd gone back east a couple years ago to meet with some h2g2ers, which involved carpooling with tac and Paul from New York, NY to Lancaster, PA, a 4 hour drive. But this past weekend (the same day I started this conversation, actually) Tom started asking some questions and realized that 1) I don't know GT as well as I did tac and 2) I haven't even spoken with GT on the phone before. If plans hadn't fallen through, GT and agcb would have visited us when Faith was a couple months old, but plans *did* fall through, so this trip will be our first meeting.

Tom has let me know that he is extremely uncomfortable with the idea of Faith and I relying on a man I don't know well for transportation. He acknowledges that it's extrememly likely (99.9%, to quote him) that GT's a perfectly nice, safe guy, and that he (Tom) may be being overly cautious. (I think he is, for what it's worth.) (Both 'he's ) Now, this may seem inconsistant with the fact that the 4 hour drive of a couple years ago he didn't object to. One reason may be because that, until the last minute, there were going to be more in the carpool... Another may be that, between now and then, Tom could have heard some scare stories about internet friends meeting. But I think the biggest reason is that Tom has gotten a little more protective since he's been a Papa. Which is a good thing. Until it messes stuff up So now the options are these: Either we go back to the original plan of meeting at the airport and finding out if I can keep the luggage there until the shuttle leaves while we go on Max, and if I can't, staying at the airport (since there are a few restaurants there) since Tom says he'd rather pay for the shuttle than worry about his wife and daughter. Or I could impose on a lady I've literally only been talking with for less than a week and ask gingersnapper for a ride. Or I suppose all 4 of us piling into GT's van (or gingersnapper's car, if the trunk's big enough) and hanging out both Saturdays would work, as well. And since I'd rather have the tickets mailed to me instead of having to be at the bus station an hour early to either buy it on the 5th or pick it up after paying online, I'd need to pay for it by the 17th...

Anyway, sorry to through a monkey wrench into things

Amy, I still have an old phone number of yours from when I was wandering around California. Shall I try to call you tonight?


GTB

Sure, though not between 8 and 9, because I'll be givng Faith a bath and putting her to bed then.

Whew..!! I read through it real fast....I will go back again & digest it.....Yes, I agree with Tom....If it was just you alone, you could think on your feet & make on the spur,last minute decision...But even then, I do not know.....I will show this to my son, He is very wise....He has sailed on 3 replica ships, where when you get in port ,no one has a car...,excetp the owner of the ship, and you have to make a lot of arrangement for every one to go this way & that,for time off, supplies,.etc..It would take some doing.....And there were always people in port happy to ask the crew to dinner and help with transportation.....He was down the California coast in '88 with the Golden Hind from England...In about March when the next stop would be L.A. He was ready to come home...He said , 'I can not take 6 weeks of tourist in L.A....Then 2 summers ago he went down the coast with the Nina...They were in San Diego, and had the ship in dry dock there for repairs.....and on to the Caribbean,swam with the sting rays in the Caymen Is. [No way could we afford this on our own]......
*************** I would be glad to meet you at the air port and help you get to the bus depot....What are hootoo for....If I do not look like what I say I am...Or you are not comfortable, I will surely understand....
If you have read my space....You know I have a 24 year old granson, so I am of an older age...
But I am still in very good health...But creaky..a bit....[not cranky or creepy].............................
***************Let me know if you have any questions.....Too bad there is not a centrol clearing house for this sort of thing.....
************** It would still be nice to meet GT, [at a restaurant]as from his space he sounds very, very interesting.....If you can figure out how to work that all in....
I wonder if there are any more of us in Portlanf or there abouts??
***********By for now....talk to you later.............

That would be great, gingersnapper, thanks! I just didn't want to impose by asking outright, since we've never spoken before this weekend I should be pretty easy to spot at the airport--I was already planning on wearing my h2g2 t-shirt. Plus, I will *try* to get the backlog of over 6 months worth of pictures online, so you'll definitely know what Faith looks like, anyway There may be a couple of me, as well, but since I'm generally the one behind the camera...

We could probably caravan... Or for that matter, there's still lots of time for you two to meet for lunch or something before I come up and decide if we all 4 (OK, so Faith won't exactly be helping decide) want to be in 1 vehicle.

*ponders* I *could* do a search and see how many h2g2ers are in and around Portland, like I did when I tried to organize the Garlic Meet... Heck, I may set up a page just to get listed on the upcoming meets page

If it were *my* wife and daughter, I'd be very protective, too. Just thought I'd say that.

Gingersnapper, maybe we can figure out a carpool or rendevouz or whatever is required. It sounds like we're both mobile and familiar with Portland. Would you like to get in touch sometime before then? The email address on my space should work (gtjacobs at hotmail dot com), and I'd be happy to communicate with you about plans. If there turn out to be a collection of Portland hootooers, then we might develop this into a proper Oregon Researchers Meetup!

Oh, BTW, I also exist online at http://www.mth.pdx.edu/people/. There's not much there, but it's something that verifies (I guess) that I am who I claim to be.


GTB

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For a second there I thought you'd beaten me to putting up a meet page (which I'm putting together as soon as I can remember where I can grab the blob number for Roosta's towel) The name of the meet is (tentatively) going to be 'The Soggy Towel Meet' because I hopped onto IM and ran into someone who stated that not only is Portland the City of Roses but also the City of the Soggy Towel (knowing him, 'twas pulling my leg, but I like 'Soggy Towel Meet' better than 'Rose Meet')

Yeah, Portland in June would be the 'Rose Meet', but 'Soggy Towel' it is!

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