As noted earlier, we decided to take 101 south rather than I5 from Portland to San Jose. One of the things about taking 101 is that you get to see some of the cities along the way. Sometimes *way* too slow, but you get to see them.
Observations:
1. I'd rather drive in deeper snow with people who know how to deal with snow than light snow with those who don't. Driving over the Grapevine in snow flurries and dealing with crazed Angelinos was a lot rougher than 4 inches of snow in Northern Oregon. Portland doesn't get *that* much snow, but the locals don't treat it like fallout.
2. SW Oregon and NW CA have a lot more to do with each other, marketing-wise, than with their own states. The easiest way to check is by looking at the local supermarkets . I watched "Ray's Food Place" appear on the Oregon coast, and continue on through Cloverdale. When we pulled into Santa Rosa, the local was a Raley's. When Albertson's, Safeway, and Kroger end up owning all the supermarkets, that marker will go away.
3. Fred Meyer's (not the same as Meijer's, for those of you in the MichIana region) may not have stores in California, but they've gotten awfully good at building a goodly sized store as close to the state line as they can figure out.
4. Where the heck are the Starbucks in Eugene?
5. Could someone still in Portland tell me what the heck the Mordor Moka sold at Motor Moka has in it? Or was someone just being clever at advertising "one drink to rule them all". I'm rather hoping for a quad or quint mocha.
6. I do love the "wall of syrups" at the drive-through espresso stands I frequent in the PNW. Even though I'm likely to stay with the hazelnut syrup in my "how big can you make that latte, anyway?".
7.Satellite radio is made for the SW OR/NW CA area. Not because there are no radio stations, it's that if I'm going to listen to whatever is syndicated and shoved down via satellite, I might as well have 100 choices instead of 5. I would like to thank the ionosphere for opening up on time--we were dx'ing Las Vegas and LA.
Posted by lsefton at January 1, 2004 04:08 PM