An older acquaintance of mine died last month, after a long and fruitful life. She was, imo, a ‘saint’ of a human being; so I thought I’d share her loving #Obit here for all to see. In my part of #SouthernOregon Joyce Hailicka was a legend, the queen of Butte Falls, OR - a small rural town nestled in the Cascade Mountains. Joyce was responsible for just about everything good that happened in that town for the decades she lived there with her husband Ron. But she didn’t stop there, no… she spearheaded county, regional and state programs that yielded real results. Her presence and impact were immense and she will be missed. #RIP#ButteFalls#JacksonCounty#Oregon
So my husband gave me and our daughter an epic Christmas present - tickets on Amtrak's Coast Starlight train from Portland, Oregon down to Los Angeles. Here's what to expect if you want to try it, in my latest for the Perceptive Travel Blog:
Fedifolk! The students at University of Oregon students have a venmo if you want to aid your comrades from beyond the campus! SJPUO is also documenting their encampment on Instagram, if you want to stay up to date with what's going down on campus. Same with Reed, Lewis & Clark, and PSU! Educate, unite, support!
"#Oregon is shipping air conditioners, air purifiers and power banks to some of its most vulnerable residents, a first-in-the-nation experiment to use #Medicaid money to prevent the potentially deadly health effects of extreme heat, wildfire smoke and other #climate-related disasters.
If Oregon can help enrollees avoid a costly trip to the doctor or the ER after #ExtremeWeather, other state Medicaid programs may ask the federal government if they can adopt the benefit."
What kinds of roads we choose to build (and for whom we build them) is relevant to creating a future we can thrive in.
Back in the #USA, #Oregon Metro planner Robert Spurlock calculated a complete linked 1,000 MILE network of low-impact regional walk/bike trails would cost $500M. That's half the cost of expanding a mile of I-5 freeway. Admittedly that's just for 3-meter ribbons of asphalt, not beautiful Dutch fietspad with complex crossings and community input.
Since this is critical infrastructure for #Oregon, you'd think the State would subsidize it.
"The Port of Portland says it cannot afford to keep the state’s only shipping container terminal open past September after a deal with a third-party operator fell through. Despite more business, costs have gone up, pushing the port’s container facility into the red.
The Port of Portland has lost more than $30 million during the past three years, the agency stated in a news release in March. That includes a projected $14 million shortfall for this year."
(paywall-free) https://archive.ph/ncZpd#selection-2775.0-2785.110
2021 heat dome fuelled by climate change, intensified wildfire risk: study
The study, published Monday in Communications Earth and Environment, concluded the heat dome in June and July 2021 was 34 per cent larger and lasted 59 per cent longer than a similar event would have without global warming
"Here’s a Clever Way to Uncover America’s Voting Deserts:
Mathematicians are using topological abstractions to find places poorly served by polling stations."
Sure, this is clever. But you know what's even more clever? Eliminating polling places entirely and switching to 100% vote-by-mail like in Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Vermont, and Hawaii.
(With some in-person polling places as needed for accessibilty reasons)
"Join us this Thursday and Friday for our final #TechNow dates celebrating Earth Day and our 24th birthday! We'll be at The Wings Conference at the PSU Viking Pavilion on Thursday (4/25) and at KGW Studios on Friday (4/26)."
"Free Geek TechNOW Drive will only accept laptops (including their power adapters), tablets, and cellphones"
Helen Cruz racked up more than $2,000 in fines for sleeping in Grants Pass parks when she was homeless for about six years but now lives at a church feeding others who live on the southern Oregon city’s streets.
Almost half of Cruz’s fines came in 2022.
The Eugene Symphony is having a family concert today. They’re advertising it with “Wigglers and dancers welcome,” and I LOVE IT. I’m going to a chamber music concert which will 100 percent NOT welcome wiggling or dancing, but as an adult who sat, wiggled, and probably made noise through a lot of music as a kid - and got in trouble for it - I appreciate my local #orchestra. #music#children#Oregon
The water is high enough at Lake Owyhee that the ring gate spillway, affectionately called a "Glory Hole" and rarely put to use, is overflowing with water. An oddly cool thing to see. #Oregon
Reminder: Free Geek is accepting equipment donations at several locations in the Portland metro area this month.
From one of their emails:
"Please note: In order to focus efforts on the devices most in demand, the #TechNOW campaign will only accept laptops (including their power adapters), tablets, and cellphones."
The Supreme Court has made horrible decisions in recent years, and it's impossible to top Dobbs for harm caused ... but I’m scared that the decision in Grants Pass v. Johnson and what comes after will break my heart completely 😢
I had an amazing weekend, I’m so happy spring is finally here. It’s so freeing to carry everything you need on your back and be completely surrounded by nature. I feel so much safer alone in the middle of the forest than camping along forest roads. I’m considering this spring training while the Cascades are still covered in snow. This trail is ideal for that.
On Saturday I did over 6,200 feet of elevation in under 18 miles. I was very tired at the end but I was rewarded by staying for the first time at a secret campsite I found a year or two ago. It’s above the official end of the Elk Creek trail on the right. No marked path but once you make it through the brush there is a forest road that leads to it. Pretty nice and private.