Tell the City of Salem How to Spend Money

Doesn't that sound fun?

I was at my neighborhood association meeting last night (yes, I do go to these meetings and you'd be surprised all the interesting info you can find out!) and one of our city's fine City Councilor's, Chuck Bennett, was in attendance. He mentioned that the Salem is planning its budget for the next year. Budget Committee meetings don't sound like the most exciting things to me, but I do care that our city is spending money on things I think are important.

So, when Chuck mentioned that citizens are allowed to come speak at the meetings, AND that you can give your opinion at the beginning of the meeting instead of waiting for lots of boring budget talking first, I was very excited. I have lots of random opinions important ideas!

One thing Chuck mentioned was that the Budget Committee is always very impressed when a citizen takes the time to come speak at the meetings because not very many people take this opportunity. Since it is unusual, they really take the citizens opinions seriously.

I think this is a great way to get involved in your local government - without even having to make any long term commitments!

Let's just admit it. Salem is awesome!

****************************

Budget Committee Meetings

Wednesdays 6 PM

(for the next few weeks)

City Council chambers at City Hall

News Flash: Salem Has a University!

Okay, so it's not actually new information. Willamette University claims to be the oldest university west of the Mississippi or something. Its been around for....pretty much ever. Yet, it seems strangely detached from the city it lives in.

There is often consternation in people's voices when they talk about the lack of interaction between Willamette University students and downtown Salem. This detachment seems to be a mystery no one can figure out.

A couple of things happened recently which made me realize maybe there is a solution to this issue:

1. I visited a military town
2. I saw a conversation on Twitter about deals for college students

If you've ever been to a military town, and many college towns do the same, you'll notice that military/college deals are prominently advertised.

Why don't Salem businesses cater to the Willamette crowd with special nights, deals, percentages off, etc. 

What do you think? Would this actually entice Willamette students to come downtown? What about state workers? Would the same things work for them?

Welcome to the Future, Salem!

I went to a meeting with some folks from the city last week and heard a presentation from a group University of Oregon communications students. The presentation focused on how to keep neighborhood associations active and relevent in this modern era of technology. I thought it was good information with some good ideas.

Although it would have been nice if the people making the presentation had actually been to a neighborhood meeting, like, ever.

Anyway, the interesting point was that most of the people in the room are in what we'll call the "older generation" and pretty resistant to the ideas in many ways. And yet, we ended up spending the entire 1 1/2 hour meeting talking almost exclusively about this subject and how to make it work, concerns they had, some successes, and creating a smaller group to plan and discuss it. The city even sounds like they will get involved in figuring out how to use social media to communicate with citizens better.

As a blogger, a citizen, and a social media junkie I am very excited about the prospects! What do you think? How could neighborhood associations or the City of Salem use social media to get your attention?

City Politics

Yes, even small little cities like Salem have city politics.

Of course they do. Every group of people gathered together to form any kind of organization finds that there are dynamics between people and groups that create what we consider "politics". Who's in charge of what? Who holds power in this or that area? Who is in the "in" crowd? Who has the ear of the decision makers? Heck, even families have political dynamics.

Well, there's a new mayor in Salem. Anna Peterson was sworn in as the mayor earlier this month. So that means its time for people to vie for her attention. We also have new city councilors, the other decision makers people like to try to influence. It will be interesting to see how everything turns out.

All I really want out of this whole thing is some twinkle lights downtown. Now I wonder who the decision maker is on that?

Salem Neighborhoods

So, I had an interesting conversation with Nancy (one of the owners/managers?) at Super Pho in the new downtown location the other day. She mentioned that she has noticed what a close knit group the downtown people are.

Everyone seems to know each other, or at least know of each other, and people talk to each other a lot. The first time I went into the restaurant, for instance, I knew two of the other patrons. We talked about a third person who has an office down the street and had become a regular.

Personally, I love living downtown and it feels a lot like a small town in a lot of ways. I enjoy running into other people I know, chatting with people in downtown businesses, waving to acquaintances on the street. I'm sure its lack of anonymity isn't for everyone, but it makes it feel like home to me.

It's not something I think about a lot until someone mentions it, but it got me wondering. Are the other Salem neighborhoods like this? Is it unique to downtown? Do people from other Salem/Keizer neighborhoods feel the same about their little corner of the city? Tell me your thoughts on this.

Loving Salem

It's not always easy to do, to love your hometown. When you know it inside and out and can see all its flaws its often easier to criticize and complain than it is to love. Last night, though, was one of those nights that reminded me of my great love for this quirky little place.

I met with two retired coworkers/mentors for happy hour at the Wild Pear. We sat outside, enjoying the fine weather, catching up on our summer escapades, and just enjoying each other's company. Then we wandered over to Venti's for a glass of local cider and two of us stayed and ended up spending hours sitting on the sidewalk, talking, meeting people that I'd seen around town but never talked to, people watching, and enjoying summer.

We split up around 9, but I still wasn't quite ready to go home because the weather was so perfect for walking around, so I ended up stopping by Clockworks for a little bit of the open mic night and heard some GREAT guitar music.

Then, as I wandered along the streets, I ran into some acquaintances sitting outside at Brown's Towne who asked me to sit down and quickly moved from acquaintances to friends.

I finally wandered home around 11:30 and fell into bed. Happy.

Really Salem? Really?

Okay, so I usually try to be pretty upbeat about Salem and all that is available here in our little city, but the last few days I've been feeling a little negative about life and people and everything.

So here goes.

Really? First y'all are scared of the pitfalls of backyard chickens and now you can't stand to have music after 10 pm? I listen to the cars and trucks (yes, the big semi trucks with their grating brakes and all!) every night, all night as they pass my house on the city street that just also happens to be a state highway. I listen to sirens, trains, my neighbors vacuuming at odd hours. I hear crazy people yelling at themselves, people yelling at each other, and people yelling into cell phones as they pass my window. I hear dump trucks and street sweepers. I hear cars in need of new mufflers and motorcycles that don't have mufflers. I hear it all. All hours of the day and the night. Why? Because I CHOOSE TO LIVE IN A CITY!

That's my choice. I could live in the quiet country. I could live out in the suburbs where all I would hear was dogs barking. I could live in a small village where everyone slept on the same schedule. But, I want to be close to things, have the convenience of being central, and be in walking distance of almost everything I need. You don't get lots of people in a small area AND no noise. Sorry.

I would dearly love to hear some loud music late at night instead of the trucks outside my house.

A Neighborhood Harvest in Salem

I was contacted recently through the neighborhood association about a new project called Neighborhood Harvest of Salem. I think this sounds so cool!

Basically, people sign up their fruit trees or gardens if they have more than they can harvest, and then volunteers organize a harvest party to pick the fruit. Much of the harvest is donated to Marion-Polk Food Share and the rest is split among the volunteers.

What a great way to have fresh, local fruits and veggies at the food bank! Plus, all those extra cherries on that tree in your backyard can be split among people in the community. And you won't end up with a tummy ache. Win-win, I say.

Look What I Won!

I was so excited to hear that I won this necklace on the salemites.com contest! I love Jessica's designs and I was excited to get one with our own gold man on it.

Is Salem Really "So Lame"?

I took my students on a field trip around downtown Salem last week. It was a beautiful day and we got to walk around and through the streets and alleys, take some pictures, and see what was going on. Afterwards when the students wrote about their little jaunt around town, I noticed something very interesting. Those teens who had grown up in Salem had the "So lame" attitude, while the 4 or 5 students who had recently moved to Salem thought it was a really cool place with pretty buildings, lots to do, and cool shops.

So, where are the kids who live here getting this idea that Salem isn't fun or interesting? Is it just because they know it too well and have grown up around here and don't appreciate it? Or are they hearing it from their parents or older siblings?

Now, I grew up in Salem, and I'm well aware of its issues and shortcomings, but compared to the way it was when I was a teenager, Salem is downright cool. But that's another story and I'll have to save those musings for another post.

Location, location, location

You know what they say about real estate? It's all about the location. And I guess if that's true then Salem, Oregon is about the best real estate you could buy. Just think about this location.

We are one hour from the Pacific Ocean, sand dunes, beach walking, surfing, storm-watching, whale-watching, clam chowder, fresh fish, and all the rest that goes with the rugged Northwest coastal experience.

We are one hour from the mountains - meaning skiing, snowboarding, snow-shoeing and cabins with fireplaces in the winter. And meaning hiking, camping, mushroom hunting, boating, and all the rest of the mountain activities in the summer.

We are one hour from Portland and Eugene which are both big enough cities to have all the amenities you might need, basically at your fingertips, but without the high cost of living and the traffic problems.

We have access to national forests and state parks. We have a valley overflowing in vineyards and wineries. We have local beer, wine, and cider makers. We have fresh, local produce available nearly year round.

Okay, so we have a little rain. But, that's a small price to pay for a good location. :)

Hello, High St.

So, I went to DaVinci's for Happy Hour the other day with "the ladies" to whom you'll be introduced at a later date. It was delicious and fun and a great time, but what struck me was how cool that whole High St block is becoming. It used to be just DaVinci's and Fuji Ricetime with the Elsinore to back up their coolness. Now we've got La Capitale on the corner, Capitol Dog (which sells borscht and other delicious central European goodness!), Jonathan's which is looking pretty snazzy from my peeks in the window, Sushi Topia - the sushi train, and Pita Pit. I mean, my goodness, that's enough for dinner every night of the week plus an old time movie on Wednesday at the Elsinore. What a cool little block in an even cooler city. You rock, Salem Oregon!

Salem Creative Pub Crawl = FUN

Have you ever gone downtown Salem on a Friday night only to see empty streets and half-full bars and restaurants. Everyone who has been in Salem for some time has probably experienced that at some point. But this was not the case last night.

This is the second month that there has been a pub crawl downtown on the third Friday of the month. And let me tell you it has turned into a major event. It seemed like it was almost twice as big as last month, although it's hard to tell with all the people milling around and coming and going. Although there is a map and an order to the event, lots of people go off on their own and do the route their own way. It was so fun to catch up with some of the people from last month, have some drinks, some laughs, some food specials, and support our local businesses.

The group is a big mix of people, ages, styles, etc, so if you are inclined to come along next month, don't worry that you won't fit in. You can come for as many or as few of the pubs as you want and you can even choose to stay at one the entire night if you find that you really like it. You can come for the drinks or the friends or the food specials, or you can just come for the people watching.

Most of all, the pub crawl is about getting out and doing something quirky and fun in Salem. It's about meeting other people from Salem and building a community of people that support the downtown businesses.

The Lancaster Dancing Lady

Do you know this woman? She stands on the corner of Lancaster and Silverton with a sign for a shoe sale almost every day.

Let me rephrase that: she dances on the corner of Lancaster and Silverton. I can't believe how much energy this woman has. She's all smiles and waves and fun little dance moves. Pure entertainment.

I have noticed a steep increase in the number of sign-wavers advertising businesses lately. Is it the economy perhaps? It's pretty good advertisement for a local business. Perhaps it's cheaper than radio or newspaper spots.

Whatever it is, it has given this dear, dancing lady a job and she sure looks like she's happy in it.

Down Home Fourth of July

I must admit I've been slightly jealous of my friend who lives in Willamina. Over in smalltownville they have these great holiday traditions. It's like a little slice of Americana. There's the mud drag races to raise money for the fireworks, then the town barbecue put on by a local restuarant, the annual parade, the bingo down on main street, the fireworks and the traditional family get-togethers after the town events. Everyone is involved, and everyone has a grand ol' time.

I almost made me want to move to Willamina. Instead, I decided to make the most of my own hometown. And I must say it was pretty all-American.

I ran some errands in the morning, then headed down to the farmer's market for a some veggies. Once there, I had to stop by the baked goods section and ended up with some snickerdoodle cookies and a loaf of zucchini bread. MMmmm.

Then I met a friend and a neighbor and we went to dinner at the Best Little Roadhouse, which was surprising unpacked at dinner time since everyone seems to be out of town this weekend. Or possibly everyone was stuck on Hwy 22. Either way, we got seated immediately and had a great dinner.

On the way to the fireworks show we stopped to pick some cherries from a friend's backyard tree. What's more American than a fresh cherry snack while watching fireworks, huh?

We decided to skip the Union Street Bridge and head to the top of the Chemeketa Parkade. We got a prime spot and set up our chairs. I had run into a neighbor watering flowers in the yard earlier in the day and so they showed up as well.

So there I was, enjoying freshly picked, delicious Bing cherries, watching fireworks with my neighbors on a beautiful summer night. My own little slice of Americana.

And suddenly I wasn't so jealous of smalltownville anymore. Salem is exactly what you make it.

Salem's Strange Reaction to Hippies in Eugene

So the burlesque show Pretty Things at the Roxxy Thursday night was an absolute blast. It was fun and glamourous and full of pretty things. But that's not really what I want to talk about...

Something strange happened and I still don't know quite what to think of it. The MC was making jokes and trying to get the crowd riled up and as MC's do he yelled out questions about whether we wanted to have fun and then would get a yell.

"Are you getting drunk tonight?" and the crowd yells.
"What? I can't hear you!" and the crowd yells louder!
and then he says...
"The hippies in Eugene were louder than that last night!"

Dead silence.

Seriously, not a single yell, boo, or clap. Just utter silence. Like he hadn't said a word. It was so weird. Just...silence.

So, apparently thinking he had hit on something with the hippies, a little later he tried some hippie jokes. People laughed a little, even though he wasn't a spectacular comic. I don't think he could quite figure out the crowd. And truth be told, I couldn't quite figure it out either. I reacted pretty much just like the rest of the crowd, but I don't know why.

Does Salem hate hippies? Do we hate Eugene? But there wasn't even any energy put into booing.

Maybe it was that we don't like being compared?

Is that it? We feel like we're just ourselves. We're from Salem. We don't care to be like any other city. And if you try to make us compete, we'll just stare you down. Is that what the silent treatment meant?

I'm not sure exactly what it meant. What do you think it meant?

Graduation at the Elsinore on First Wednesday

I just barely got to enjoy First Wednesday as I walked over to the Elsinore last night. As I walked though, I could hear music from different street corners and there were people filling pretty much every outdoor table I could see, from Starbucks to Grand Vines, and from La Capitale to The Six. It gave me a little taste of the potential (there's that word again!) we have in this town. It was like everyone had come out to celebrate with us at the Roberts High School Graduation!

Now, the potential of the graduates at the Elsinore last night was on full display and was fully realized. If you've never been to a graduation at an alternative school, you can't really understand the tears that are shed every year there. Graduation at any school is a great accomplishment, but for students who feared they would never make, for the families for whom this is their first ever graduate, for the staff who labored for months or years to keep the students coming to school, it is nothing short of miraculous.

The stories behind each of these graduates are amazing. Some of them have fought against odds that I can hardly imagine in my safe little life. I am constantly amazed at the resilience of these young people and I feel blessed to encourage and help them along the way. It may have taken extra time, there may have been roadblocks and rough patches along the way, but they kept at it and they finished!

And that's why I keep doing this job. The rewards may not come every day, but when they do, they are inspiring.

One more thing to love about Salem: awesome alternative programs for the kids who just don't fit the mold!

Wandering Aengus and a Revolution at Venti's

Finally. I have been hearing wonderful things about Wandering Aengus Cider and I got my first taste of it at Venti's last night. They are not only have it on tap, but are selling bottles of it so that you may enjoy the delightfully refreshing drink at home, as well! It went very well with my Morroccan Beef Plate, which was oh, so satisfying.

And then, off in the other corner was a swelling group of people who sounded like revolutionaries. I'm pretty confident that Salem is going to see some changing times because of this group. It was their first meeting and I think, from the sounds of it, they could slowly, silently rock the boat of the status quo here in our town. And I love it.

Rock on!

Jaywalking in Salem, Oregon

It's so Salem. I got "pulled over" for stepping into a crosswalk on my way to work yesterday before the light had quite turned to walk. Another woman and I were walking across the street and suddenly I heard a whoop of sirens and the officer pulled into the parking lot beside us and asked us to talk.

Now Officer Croll was very nice about all this. He explained that this was technically a fine for crossing against the light. He understood we were intellegent women who had probably looked both ways. He was just concerned that we were being a bad example for the kids who walk downtown. "There are a thousand people watching you, and a thousand people watching what I do," he said. Apparently he felt that if he didn't stop us then people would get the idea it was okay.

Now, here's my issue with this whole thing. It is actually legal to step outside the crosswalk and cross the street against the light, but you may not cross against the light inside the crosswalk.

So, apparently we think people are smart enough to look both ways and cross when there is no crosswalk, but not if there is one. What??? Does this make sense?

Chickens in Salem?

I went to the city council last night to support chickens. Yep. I said it. I support chickens. I don't even want chickens right now, but someday I think I might, and when that day comes, I would like to be able to own chickens legally.

Actually, I lived in Scandinavia for awhile and the people I lived with had a nice little coop with about six hens. The hens ate leftover scrap food, ate the bugs in the yard, laid nice fresh eggs, and yes, eventually ended up in stew.

It's just common sense to me to allow people to have small farm animals, as well as domesticated pets.

And the people involved in CITY are about the most organized group of volunteer advocates I have ever seen. They have their ducks in a row (yes, I see the pun) and they can back up their statements with research. I sure hope the city listens to this group and takes their advice on chicken ownership.

There were probably about 50 people at the City Council meeting, including quite a few families with children, that showed up to stand in support of Chickens in the Yard. Listen up City of Salem, your people would like chickens!