It’s Wednesday! Hi, there, and welcome to the Daily Drip for December 18, 2019! Fun fact: as of today, the sunsets in Portland are actually getting later! But first, we have winter to contend with, and in the Northwest that sometimes means ferocious storms that marshall their forces in the far Pacific and fling themselves upon our beaches, valleys, and mountains. One such event is just a day away from storming ashore, and precipitation totals for today through Saturday are impressive indeed: they could range from 2″ to 6″ for the interior lowlands where most of us dwell, to up to 10″ for the Coast Range and Cascades, where a plummeting snow level would bring an immense amount of snow starting late tonight. Sunrise 7:45 AM, sunset 4:28 PM…which is one minute later than yesterday!
President Trump will almost certainly be impeached today by the House of Representatives, setting up a January trial in the Senate. This morning will be filled with at least six hours of partisan debate, parliamentary moves and rhetorical theatrics, with most network coverage beginning at 6 AM. Reporters who cover the beat expect the actual votes on the two articles to occur between 1 and 3 PM Pacific, though nobody can say for sure. All Oregon and Washington representatives are expected to vote with their parties. Last evening’s pro-impeachment rally–one of 500 nationwide–brought hundreds to the downtown Portland waterfront. The event was peaceful as organizers cooperated with police; similar rallies happened in Salem and Medford.
Under heat from climate activists, neighborhood representatives, and finally Governor Brown herself, the Oregon Transportation Commission is tapping the brakes on a plan to widen I-5 through the Rose Quarter. They’ll slow down to take a harder look at the environmental effect on the immediate area, consider tolling to control congestion, and think about covering the freeway so buildings can be erected above it–reconnecting a neighborhood that was split when I-5 plowed through there in the 1950s.
Storm-watching aside, one of the reasons to love the Oregon Coast in the winter is the southward migration of gray whales…and we hear that it’s underway. I wonder what whales do in a storm like this: dive to the bottom and ride it out? Or hang ten?
Today is the birth date of Oregon legislator and educator Nancy Ryles, the 1955 Rose Festival Queen who became a key figure in Oregon leadership until her untimely death to cancer at age 52.
Tonight at the Schnitz it’s The Oregon Symphony Presents Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in Concert.
This is the second anniversary of that awful scene on a railroad bridge over I-5 near Olympia, where a speeding Amtrak Cascades passenger train skipped the tracks on a tight curve and crashed onto the freeway, killing six people, and injuring 70 others.
On this day in 1620, the Mayflower docked at modern-day Plymouth, Massachusetts.
The Golden State Warriors come calling at the Moda Center tonight at 7.
Happy birthday to Rolling Stone Keith Richards. That indestructible dude is 76.
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Something good?? Check the Cup…
–“This 14-year-old beat stage 4 cancer, just in time to make it home for Christmas”
–“Family adopts neglected dog after she wandered into their home”
–“Police surprise motorists with gift cards instead of tickets during traffic stops”
–“Twice as many monarch butterflies are in Pismo this year. Here’s why that’s ‘great news’
–“‘Piece of my heart’: Teacher has three students with disabilities in wedding”
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Three more days, friends, and then it’s Back to the Future for this radio daddio. Or at least back to bed! We’ll have more information today on Friday’s festivities, so stay tuned!
Portland's Daily Drip 