Morning, campers! We’re warming our hands over the fire of a Wednesday, February 27, 2019…the second-to-last day of a strangely cold month…and we’re beginning the day under a possibility of an inch of snow, a promise of diminishing winds, and highs around 40. For now, the main feature is a vigorous Gorge wind; it’s gusting to 38 MPH at PDX at 3 AM, and creating a roar among the trees. Temps in the metro area are between 28 and 32. But here are some indicators the show this morning isn’t so bad!.
Alerts from NWS: A winter weather advisory for the southern Willamette Valley…but they’ve dropped it for Portland. There’s a flood warning on the Coquille River…
Schools…I’m seeing two-hour delays in Santiam Canyon, Sweet Home, and Scio. And Jewell’s schools are closed because of “a high incidence of illness among students and faculty.”
Power outages…a little over 3K in PGE territory, mostly Clackamas County…200 for Clark Public Utilities…and 22,000 Pacific Power, mostly around Cottage Grove and Sweet Home.
My deck has zero snow on a patio table that should be in spring training for IPA duty about now. But the winds knocked over my rain gauge.
So we’ve seen worse. But things can change. As always, the best information comes from you, the Daily Drip Storm Team. Kindly report what you have, and that’ll help me present the illusion of knowingness on the radio!
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The folks on the Coast Starlight will always tell tales of their night in the Oregon mountains on a train that was dead in the snow, with miles of fallen trees blocking the tracks each way. But as they limped into Eugene and disembarked together, you could tell that a lot of friendships were made among people who shared their phones and their snacks and their companionship. And all have high praise for the patience and professionalism of the crew. Everyone is OK, everyone’s getting refunds and compensation, and I’ll bet everyone will be back on the rails. In the summertime.
Rent control in Oregon? Done deal, as soon as Governor Kate Brown inks the bill that House members passed yesterday, completing a sprint through the legislature with not a single Republican vote. What Senate Bill 608 does is the following: it caps annual rent increases at 7 percent plus inflation. So basically 10. But It imposes no limit at all for new buildings for 15 years. And landlords would be free to raise rent without limit if tenants leave of their own accord.
It’s Michael Cohen Day for television viewers across the land, as Trump’s former legal eagle sings to the House Oversight Committee, whose members will, depending on party, either torch him or toast him. Lots of showboating there, from both starboard and port, but I recommend listening to the guy himself, and making up your own mind. An advance copy of his opening remarks was released overnight, showing that he will call Trump a “racist” and “a con man” who repeatedly lied about business dealings with Russia, and that he knew in advance about Wikileaks release of hacked DNC emails, but he makes a point of saying he has no “direct evidence” that Trump or the campaign colluded with Russia.
The president is, at this writing, meeting with N. Korea’s Kim Jong-un in Vietnam. Kim was seen laughing as reporters shouted questions at Trump; just try that it North Korea!
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The Portland Trail Blazers received a weird welcome in Boston, where they play the Celtics tonight. Seven members of the team were stuck for half an hour in an elevator at Emerson College, their practice site. These giant strapping guys had fun with it, cracking wise (“This is not how you treat a former No. 1 team in the West! We deserve better!”), swiping each others’ energy bars, and singing along with Coldplay’s “La Vida Loca,” until a maintenance crew cracked open the doors, and the team executed a fast break.
Longtime Portlanders remember the Jantzen Beach Carousel…and today, we’ll hear an update on efforts to bring those 72 painted ponies back to life.
One hundred years ago today, John Michael Paveskovich was born in Portland. He played high school ball at Lincoln, then rattled around some amateur teams including the Silverton Red Sox, which was owned by the guy who owned the Boston Red Sox, and that led to a ten-year major league career and a lifetime association with Beantown. Headline writers shortened his name to Johnny Pesky and he made it his legally, and though Pesky never made the Hall of Fame, the right field foul pole at Fenway is named in his honor.
The English musician Joe Jackson plays to a sold-out house at the Aladdin Theater tonight. He’s known for catchy hits like 1979’s “Is She Really Going Out With Him” and the 1982 top ten “Steppin’ Out.”
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Here are today’s TMSG headlines, and in an effort to make the stories more accessible to folks, I am posting the Coffee Cup link separately from the Daily Drip. It should, in fact, come up first, if I post it correctly.
–“Woman Experiences Act Of Kindness On The Worst Day Of Her Life”
–“Confused Beaver Becomes Unexpected Leader Of 150 Cows”
–“Thoughtful mother hands out 200 bags of candy and earplugs to fellow plane passengers in case her baby cries on board”
–“NASA’s Newest Photo Of Jupiter’s Swirling Clouds Is Simply Breathtaking”
–“A dog caught an 83-yard frisbee pass at a game, and it was awesome”
Links to the full stories are in the Coffee Cup, which I’m still trying to get right. So again, I’m putting it up as a separate post, easily found on my timeline, and easily shared!
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Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born this day in 1807 in Portland–Maine. Quoth he, “For age is opportunity no less/Than youth itself, though in another dress, And as the evening twilight fades away/The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day.”
John Steinbeck was born this day in 1902. He gave us these words to remember, in this chilly February of 2019: “What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness?”
The month of March would like you to know that it’s in the green room, vocalizing and stretching and taking deep breaths in preparation for taking the stage–the day after tomorrow!
Sunrise today is at 6:52 AM, and sunset 5:54 PM. See you on 103.3 5-9 AM!
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