Good morning, and welcome to the first working Monday, of the New Year! It’s January 7, 2019, with morning showers from the tail end of our weekend windstorm, and highs of 45. The snow level is a low 1500 feet this morning, so that means a snow shower or two could sparkle up the morning commute. And there’s a chance of black ice developing, particularly on roads leading out of the Coast Range into the Willamette Valley. Tune in 103.3 FM for morning traffic updates. Sunrise 7:50 AM, sunset 4:44 PM. We’ll gain almost six minutes of daylight this week!
Both Portland and Seattle were pruned by Saturday night’s windstorm, which raced from the south to the north, blinking out the lights for tens of thousands of people in both metropolitan areas, and drafting a lot of us into cleanup duty on Sunday. A quick check of the local utilities this morning reveals 56 PGE customers in West Portland, a handful of Pacific Power folks outside Albany, and zero clients of Clark Public Utilities waiting for crews to light up their lives. As always, we holler up a sincere “thanks” to the men and women in the bucket trucks–hope you got triple time! And this year we add our appreciation to the meteorologists of the National Weather Service, whose predictions were right on, and who diligently cranked out forecasts and social media updates despite the government shutdown, which has them operating with short staffs and, for some, no paychecks until this is settled.
Other scenes from the windstorm: PDX shifted to the north/south runway, creating a fairly infrequent near-jet experience for certain Vancouver neighborhoods…at least a few incoming flights attempted to land in Portland and found the experience too hairy…they aborted their landings and skedaddled to Seattle… and yes, some of those airsickness bags did get used….a guy was driving on the Banfield when suddenly a beach ball flew over the hood of his car…a discarded Christmas Tree blew by like tumbleweed in SE Portland… a friend who went hiking in Forest Park early yesterday morning reported snow coming down…people are complaining about wind chimes, but they’re a lot less annoying than chainsaws…after the storm blew through, skies cleared, and where neighborhood street lights were blacked out, the star show was spectacular…Any storm stories to tell, beyond those recounted on our Sunday thread?
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Today is what, day 17 of the partial government shutdown, and while talks are going nowhere between House Democrats and the White House, President Trump says he may “declare a national emergency” and divert funds from somewhere else to build his wall.
Oregon’s new Labor Commissioner, Val Hoyle, will be sworn in today by Governor Kate Brown and Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum. Those three are making history today: it’s the first time a majority of Oregon’s statewide elected offices are held by women.
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I know the story is about “A Star is Born”‘s snub, and the big wins for “Bohemian Rhapsody” and a very surprised Glenn Close, but did you see all those pretty people last night on the Golden Globes? Everybody was so famous! Bottles of Moet & Chandon Imperial…on every table..When one empties, another appears! ($40 at Tarjay). I tuned in long enough to see Christian Bales thank Satan for giving him the inspiration to play Dick Cheney, but overall there wasn’t much political commentary or boozy mischief. What made this show worth tuning in to, for me anyway, was the Jeff Bridges salute, the montage of the wonderful movies he’s played some version of the Dude in, all narrated by Oregonian Sam Elliot. Loved Bridges’ existential reminder: “We’re alive, right here, right now! Hear what I’m saying!”
The new president of CBS News is longtime “48 Hours” producer Susan Zirinsky. She was the inspiration for Holly Hunter’s character in “Broadcast News.”
Happy birthday to Everett native Kenny Loggins!
Tonight the Portland Trail Blazers, fresh off their robust win over Houston on Saturday night, host the New York Knicks at the Moda Center.
College football’s Bowl Championship final is tonight, Alabama and Clemson, again. 5 PM on ESPN.
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Let’s finish (or start) with some good news!
–“Missing Dog Rescued by Coast Guard”
–“Muslim youth group cleans up national parks across the country amid government shutdown”
–“Wounded tiger ‘finds humans to ask for help’ after being injured”
–“Why Foley Artists Use Cabbage and Celery to Create Hollywood’s Distinctive Sounds
–“Family Adopts The Pig They Planned To Eat For Christmas”
Details are linked at the Coffee Cup, first up in the Comments Section.
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Nice start to this Monday: I slept dreamily through my first alarm, incorporating its wind chime sound into my reverie, together with the nice foot massaging my back, which grew more insistent as my wife booted me out of bed. I appreciated that, along with the extra minute of sleep, and now I’m rested up to begin the first full week of the New Year!
Portland's Daily Drip 