Morning, Drip Team! It’s Thursday, November 15, 2018, halfway through one of the driest Novembers we’ve ever had, and following yesterday’s spotty rainfall, we’ll get back to it today with partly sunny–and partly smoky–skies, and highs in the 50-55 range. Sunrise 7:10 AM Sunset 4:40 PM. It’s the 319th day of 2018, with 46 to go.
Late word from Butte County in Northern California is that 8 more victims were found in the ruins of homes in Paradise, bringing the total to 56.
We’ve been breathing the worst air since summer in the Portland area, as wildfire smoke has filtered northward from California. That may continue occasionally for days. If someone in your family is vulnerable to this, it’s smart to keep on top of it by googling…or asking Siri…”How’s the air quality in Portland?” Siri’s answer, at 0330? “The air quality is unheathy for sensitive groups in Portland at 138 right now.”
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler’s moonshot at stopping the tiresome and outrageous scheduled rumbles between Patriot Prayer and Antifa was grounded after the City Council voted 3-2 to deny his bid for the authority to tell demonstrators where, when, and in what numbers they may protest. The ACLU opposed giving the mayor this power on First Amendment grounds, and various constitutional authorities who were interviewed in the news, to Ted’s unbecoming annoyance, had the same problem. Commissioner Nick Fish, undecided until yesterday, came off the fence and said, “I’m not convinced we’ve done everything we can with the tools already at our disposal.” The cops have tools, that’s for sure. The defeat of this ordinance sends the matter back to the Police Chief along with her boss the Mayor, to figure out how to use existing laws, and stay true to Portland’s pro-protest municipal ethos. They might get a chance really soon because the next rally by Patriot Prayer is supposedly happening Saturday. Wish these good Christian out-of-state gentlemen would go to a truck rally instead. (Portland’s mayor has no more power than any other council member. But he sure gets the blame. It’s why we’ve had a string of one-and-done mayors. They’re asking a lot for $143K).
A Tigard homeowner shot and killed an intruder. No conclusions, but there might be more to it. The two knew each other.
A woman who was peeved by where a man parked his car was arrested for pulling out a pistol and firing shots that didn’t hit anyone.
Those scooters zipping around the city center, and up onto the sidewalks where they’re not supposed to be, will vanish from city streets next week as the 4-month trial period is coming to an end. The city will decide early next year if they’ll be back. Fun to ride on, but annoying to everyone else.
Props to a sheepish Beaverton police officer for admitting that after stopping somebody for speeding, he locked his keys in the patrol car. Cops say there’s a non-embarrassing way of getting out of that jam–just go to the car-to-car channel on your packset and get a buddy to help you out on the down low. But this officer tweeted about it. Love it when people are human.
There’s a half-moon tonight. Which means there’s a full moon on Thanksgiving, in one week, and believers in all things lunar–who point out it’s the root word of “lunacy”–say this could bring about some interesting conversation over Thanksgiving dinner.
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The Portland Trail Blazers dropped their second straight game to the Los Angeles Lakers 126-117 last night. A late rally by the Winterhawks came up short as they were beaten Everett 3-2 last night; the two teams play in Portland tomorrow in a game that features the Les Schwab Toy Drive.
Seahawk fans are clutching their “12” pennants and hoping their team rediscovers its mojo, in a home game tonight against the Green Bay Packers on Fox 12 Oregon. I’d love to be surprised by the outcome.
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They’re still counting votes in Florida and Georgia. President Trump accuses people of changing their clothes and returning to cast additional ballots in disguise. “Sometimes they go to their car, put on a different hat, put on a different shirt, come in and vote again,” he claimed. He also said we should be required to show our ID when voting just like we do when we buy cereal.
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Sometimes the news is like broccoli, and not the kind that really good cooks stir up in a wok with hot garlic oil. Let’s see if we can sizzle up something good.
–“Horse Survives California Wildfire by Hiding in Backyard Pool”
–“California couple ‘adopts’ a 93-year-old veteran after his town burned to the ground”
–“Homeless Edmonton man discovers rare Disney art in ‘ratty old plastic bag’ is worth thousands”
–“Special bacteria turns waste into clean energy”
–“World’s funniest flight attendant leaves passengers in stitches”
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Time to roll! I’m taking–guess what–all of next week off. But I will be here tomorrow, on Friday for a change. And the Drip will appear regularly, in some form, so Dripfolk can correlate.
Portland's Daily Drip 