An evening with the Wells’ almost always leads to a chiding from Chris to update this site more often. In an attempt to inspire more frequent updates, he has attempted to link this page to my Facebook profile, with the thought that it will reach more readers… let’s see if it works. If it doesn’t, I’ll just blame the copious amounts of wine consumed over the course of the night.
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The people (specifically, two people) have spoken, and as a result I bring you this non-sports related update. After all, this isn’t a sports blog, it’s supposed to be about my life, and a clearinghouse for my thoughts, adventures, misstatements and awkward encounters. It just so happens that the last several posts have been about sports… well, this one will bring us current on my life and times.
With a new year comes reflection on the past year - so with that, I will bring you a look back at my 2008, and a brief look to the future…
The Texas Schoolbook Depository
The year began like many others - in January. At the beginning of the month I was asked to travel to Dallas, Texas by work to attend a series of meetings aimed at improving the way large loss property claims were handled. The meetings were successful, and resulted in the creation of a position I would assume in March, however the real story is that I got to explore the city of Dallas, including the former Texas Schoolbook Depository - the site of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. As a history and politics geek, and as a kid who grew up idolizing Kennedy, this was a very special trip for me. What’s strange is that through all the television shows and movies documenting the assassination, it seemed as though I’d already been there. They’ve done a masterful job of creating a museum documenting the President’s trip to Dallas, the events leading up to it, and of course, the events of November 22, 1963. I was surprised at the impact that the visit had on me, and I’m very thankful for having gone.
Nothing happened in February. Literally. March saw my second trip to Arizona for Spring Training. This has already been documented, and it’s sports-related, so never mind.
April saw the first full month in my new position at work. This was significant because it meant I was no longer traveling for work - everything (in theory) was now being handled from my desk, and specifically, from my dining room. I still have mixed feelings on this transition, as I really enjoyed seeing the western US on the company’s dime, but I felt a responsibility to take the position that was offered to me, as I was instrumental in its creation. I took the position after I was assured that I would still get to travel on occasion and would still have the ability to go into the field on my old claims, which I was keeping.
President Bill Clinton in McMinnville, OR
April also saw the visit of former President Bill Clinton to my former high school to campaign for his wife, then-Senator Hillary Clinton. Although I was already an avowed supporter of Barack Obama, the prospect of seeing a President in the McMinnville High School gymnasium was too much to pass up. I attended with my mom and seemingly the rest of the town. As a liberal who grew up in a rather conservative area of Oregon, it was very encouraging to see a line wrapping around the entire school waiting patiently to be led into the gym. It was during this campaign rally that it really began to sink in that the Democrats may actually win the election in November (foreshadowing!!!). It was also encouraging to see that although the rally was a Hillary Clinton event, it became clear through talking to most of those in attendance, they planned to support the Democratic candidate - whether it was Clinton or Obama. It was also encouraging to hear the little girl in front of me chant “O-Bam-A” when the crowd was instructed to chant the name of Hillary Clinton.
Sen. Barack Obama in Portland, 5/18/08
May saw another campaign visit - this one almost epic in scope, as Barack Obama packed an estimated 72,000 supporters into and around Tom McCall Waterfront Park in downtown Portland. I attended with Wells and his family, and braved the sun and 90 degree temperatures (as well as the horrible sunburn I picked up the previous day during a cleanup of the Willamette River with my dad) to be among the throngs welcoming Senator Obama to Portland. The crowd was like nothing I’ve ever experienced in person - literally people filling every possible area, including the boats on the Willamette. The official estimates were that 60,000 people were actually in the bowl area watching Obama, and another 12,000 filled the streets around the park. It was here where I became certain Obama would easily carry the Oregon primary election two days later, which he did. The future President did not disappoint, delivering the standard campaign speech, punctuated by exclamations of “wow” when face to face with the crowd. The biggest takeaway from the event wasn’t in anything Obama said, but rather the enthusiasm for the candidate, and for the democratic process as a whole. Never in my life had I experienced anything like this in a political campaign, and it is doubtful that this type of enthusiasm will be matched in the near future (now that the inauguration has passed). More than anything, it was extremely refreshing to see the type of hope and promise for the future that was encapsulated by crowd - especially after the last eight years.
Brittany and I near Sedona, AZ
June passed by like an old man in his slumber as I waited for my July vacation, a second trip to Arizona for 2008 - this one to spend time with Brittany, who I reconnected with during my Spring Training visit. Most of the trip was spent just going around town. We visited with Vanessa, Eddy, and North, and went to her brother’s place for the 4th of July. While attempting to jump into a swimming pool that evening I managed to knock my leg against a submerged rung of a pool ladder, causing a massive gash in my right leg, just below the knee. As a result, I spent about 6 hours in the ER, received eight stitches, and now sport a wicked scar. Following the debacle with my leg, Brittany and I took off for the cooler climate of beautiful northern Arizona, specifically Sedona. I was able to find a timeshare that provided us with a deeply discounted room and dinner (we only had to pretend that we were a young about to be married couple interested in a timeshare… the ruse worked perfectly - we are apparently good actors), and the rest of the time was spent hiking a few trails around Sedona and visiting shops - all the while trying to keep my bandage clean. Despite the leg debacle, it was a great trip and one that made me realize I could in fact live in Arizona, if I wanted to. I later decided that was probably a vacation high, but then again, housing prices are great near Phoenix…
Me and the Bean, Millennium Park, Chicago
In early August I visited Kayla in Chicago, however much of this visit was centered around various baseball road-tripping, so I will briefly cover where that aspect of the visit took us - Wrigley Field and US Cellular (New Comiskey) Park in Chicago to see the Cubs play the Astros and the White Sox host the Tigers respectively, Elfstrom Stadium in Geneva, Il where we saw the Kane County Cougars play the Beloit Snappers, Alexian Field in Schaumburg, Il to see the Schaumburg Flyers play the Kansas City T-Bones, and Miller Park in Milwaukee, WI to see the Brewers play the Nationals.
We also spent time enjoying some of the other things the city had to offer. For instance, we took in our first day at the races at Arlington Downs, where we won about $20 combined on the ponies. A day was also spent wandering the city, specifically the loop, Millennium Park and the generally everything that downtown had to offer. This included, of course, pizza followed by drinks at Harry Carey’s. If it weren’t for the extreme humidity in the summer, and the extreme cold in the winter, I would love to live in Chicago.
Just prior to my trip to Chicago, Miller arrived in Portland. As such, he was allowed to “house sit” my apartment - basically, move in for a month. It was great - we went to games, hung out like we did in college, and I got to witness a budding romance between he and Meredith (otherwise known as “Team Wilt”). Unfortunately, he had to return to New York for the start of the school year, but if everything goes according to plan, he’ll be coming back permanently sometime later this year.
Las Vegas Strip (file photo)
With September came MusicFest NW, and four days of live music at various venues throughout Portland. During the event, I was able to see Norfolk & Western, the Old 97s, Britt Daniel, Built to Spill, Nick Jaina, the Builders and the Butchers, Blitzen Trapper, Fleet Foxes, and many other less impressive bands. I was also able to spend some quality time with my pal Sarah, and reconnect with Julie as well as meet a few new people. September also saw a trip to Las Vegas with Derek, Esther, and Patrick during which I won $200 playing War (who knew that was a casino game?), $250 on a slot machine, and about $50 on college football games. In short, I became a gambling degenerate.
The end of October saw the return of Peter from his six months spent wandering Europe and Africa, so a lot of time was spent hanging out with him and hearing stories of the adventures he experienced. It also brought the beginning of the Blazers season and the heart of the Ducks football season, but again, this is not a post about sports. The fall was actually quite relaxing - most of my vacation was spent with my earlier travels, so the daily routine really took hold during this time… in other words, I spent a lot of time working. When I wasn’t working, I was either at a Blazers or Ducks game, a concert, or hanging out with Peter, for the most part. There were a few hikes, a few short road trips to see Wells or go to the coast, but aside from those, and the election of Barack Obama, it really was the dog days of fall. One definite plus what that I was once again promoted at work, attaining the level of Large Loss Property Claims Specialist, which is pretty much as high as I can get for the foreseeable future (or unless I go for a management position) - this is assuming we all still have jobs in the foreseeable future, since the company was recently purchased by Liberty Mutual. I’m not too concerned though.
My car, buried.
December brought the holidays and a MASSIVE (6-8 inches) of snow and ice in the Portland area. I spent the time wandering around the town, taking photos, and thinking of how to dislodge my car from its wintry, plowed-in grave. For a while it looked as though I wouldn’t be able to make it home for Christmas due tot he fact that my car was still buried under a foot of snow and ice, however my dad came to the rescue and helped me big out the car. Maddie the dog even came along for moral support. Although the car eventually got stuck several more times in my parents’ neighborhood, at the end of the day, I was able to spend Christmas with the family, eat too much ham, and make it back home safely.
So that was 2008 - hopefully 2009 will be as eventful, but I have the distinct feeling it will involve much less travel. Check back soon - this should be the last massive update, as I’ll be making more frequent contributions now that the site is re-designed and more user friendly.
Fall is nearly here, and with it comes my yearly reflection on the summer months – the time when I invariably failed to regularly update this site. Which really commemorates the even more time-honored traits of procrastination and sloth, which have been part of the Pratt repertoire (or reprattoire, if you prefer) for a little over 25 years now (it’s our silver anniversary!).
This summer started with a sputter, finding me attending the occasional Portland Beavers game, renting movies here and there, and exploring Portland via Max. In all, it was relaxing, which was needed after what has been a year of essentially one family tragedy after another. Things sped up quick in July, with Wells’ bachelor party and subsequent wedding. The bachelor party was held at Safeco Field in Seattle, where about twenty of us pitched in to rent a luxury suite for a Saturday evening game against the Baltimore Orioles, narrowly missing Rafael Palmeiro’s 3000th career hit, which would have been great to witness, especially since that was in the days when we all simply thought he was on the juice. The evening was filled with memorable moments, from Miller’s antics to the appearance of the Moose, who subsequently mauled Wells, to a game winning RBI single by Mike Morse in the bottom of the ninth (himself a ‘roid casualty by early September). Most importantly, it was our formal send-off of Wells into the married world.
The actual send-off came July 23, 2005, when Wells married girlfriend Jessica on the grounds of her family’s ranch in central Oregon. I took a week off from work the week of the wedding, hanging out with Miller for the first few days before traveling with Wells and his cousin Jaeger to Redmond to help with setting up the wedding and reception site. It was a beautiful ceremony, with the backdrop of a canyon during the ceremony, and with the Three Sisters of the Cascade Range serving as background for the reception. As best man, it was my duty to eat my prime rib in the seat to Wells’ immediate left at the reception, as well as stumble through an ad-libbed toast to couple’s new life together, making delicate jabs at Wells’ many foibles over the years, while trying not to disparage him too much in front of the people who now found him to be a member of their family. I think I did ok, but I can really only remember bits and pieces of what I said. On the bright side, I didn’t freeze under the pressure, nor did I cry, so that’s always a plus.
A vacuum of sorts appeared in the wake of the wedding, and August was dedicated mostly to relaxation when not at work. I was able to get in some much-delayed reading, as well as a little writing – the fruits of this work will likely appear here in the next month or so, after some fine-tuning.
So after a brief August slumber, September is here, and with it comes one of the most eagerly anticipated happenings of the year – Oregon Ducks football. I once again have my season tickets (courtesy of my mom… I imagine I will someday have to actually spend money on tickets…). Through three games, all is seemingly good, with the Ducks undefeated, but staring tenuously at the upcoming home contest against USC, which has evolved into what is simply the most dominant college football program in decades. I will be in attendance this Saturday, expecting the outcome that most level-minded analysts are predicting, but hoping for another Michigan-like miracle, that is as long as Sports Illustrated promises not to put Oregon on its cover if the unthinkable happens.
In other news, after a false start last year, I am actually serious now about trying to buy a home. I am having a lender look into what I can be approved for, and hopefully, if all goes well, I will have a home of my own by December, when my current lease will expire. Hopefully, I will know what I can realistically spend within the next week or so – from there, the search should come to life. Currently, I’m looking as far west as Newberg, south to Woodburn, and north and east to their prospective sections of Portland. I guess we’ll see if anything turns up.
That’s it for now. As always, I’ll work on updating more regularly, but again, I probably won’t…
Spring is here again, and with it comes another road trip, with another sorted cast of characters and tall tales. A few weeks ago, Wells and I embarked on a tour of the Great White North. Two ferries, two states, one island, and one province later, I can honestly tell you I like Ketchup potato chips. Oh, and one shouldn’t try to bribe border guards… we’ll come back to that one.
The trip came about in a rather haphazard way – Wells still has a Spring Break, so he had a week to play with. I fell into having a few days off (persistent checking of the vacation schedule pays off).
Together, we searched for the perfect place to escape with a few friends for a weekend, maybe more. Then the friends idea fell through – apparently they’re not up for planning a vacation three days before taking it… the nerve!
After a lengthy whittling down period of about 30 hours, we chose British Columbia from a list of suitors that included Las Vegas and New York, and briefly discussed an itinerary. It consisted of: 1.) Drive to Port Angeles, WA. 2.) Get on a ferry to Victoria, BC. 3.) See Canada. 4.) Come home a few days later.
We left Woodburn (I had to pick Wells up) at around 6:30am on Sunday and headed north on I-5, arriving obscenely early in Port Angeles. We proceeded to eat at a restaurant next to the ferry, then got our place in line for the next boat off the mainland. In other words, we sat in my car for an hour and a half playing Oregon Trail on my laptop (for example “The wagon tipped over while floating. You lose 449 pounds of food, YOUR MOM (drowned).” Thankfully, I managed to avoid cholera and made it to the fertile Willamette Valley.
Eventually the ferry came, we boarded, and began our adventure out of the US. This is where the first misadventure officially took off. You see, I am a magnet for really outgoing, really odd people. Wherever I go, I always end up having someone who’s not exactly “all there” befriend me. Examples include Bruce Miller and the crazy woman outside Safeco Field the last time I went to a game with Lauren. This time was no different. I was standing at the bow of the ferry with Wells, minding my own business, watching the slowly approaching island grow in size, when I overheard a woman talking WAY too loud on her cell phone. Of course, I turned to Wells and mimicked her in my best woman voice, which in turn drew the same reaction from Wells. Here’s where the story is supposed to end.
In this case, the girl eventually sidled up next to me, and began to talk. I wasn’t really sure at first if she was talking to me, or just talking, so I did what anyone would do – I ignored her. Eventually, it became clear she was indeed talking to me. I responded the requisite series of “oh yeahs” and “reallys” and “uh-huhs” – the types of comments that clearly have no other outcome than to provoke further conversation. “Where are you from?” she asked. “Portland,” I responded.
In the next half hour I learned the following things:
- She is originally from Port Angeles, but is going to a college in Victoria, where she has no friends because the girls are really snotty.
- She is meeting a friend in Victoria, where her friend happens to be vacationing.
- The friend is with a fiance, which this girl feels is insane because the friend is entirely too young to be getting married.
- The Port Angeles native misses her boyfriend, who lives in Utah.
- A boy on the ferry looks like her boyfriend – this depresses her.
- She will be turning 20 in five days.
- She really has no plans tonight, aside from seeing her friend and the fiance.
In this half hour, I really didn’t say much… Wells can attest to this. She mentioned how much she liked Portland, and all its lighthouses (?), and how her friend was going to the University of Oregon – the one in Corvallis – the Ducks.
I really didn’t know what to make of her. She looked rather Eskimo-ish in nature, with her giant parka ensconcing any hint of a figure, or face that she may have had, and her ramblings made me think either she was crazy, or lonely, or friendly, or desperate. After a while, it began to seem as though she just wanted to drink with someone, and I was the lucky guy.
About the time this realization came to mind, Wells had overheard that people with cars could go to the lower deck to prepare for landfall. We made our escape, and proceeded to reminisce about what had just taken place. Essentially, I learned everything about this girl, save for her name. Wells was fairly certain she was crazy, or in love. I wasn’t sure on either, but I did think she wanted to get together to drink. Regardless, we were on the lower deck, in my car, and she was somewhere up above. Soon we were on Canadian land, and the girl was in my past.
Wells and I had talked about how every trip ends up having a story – I suggested that possibly my would-be suitor had the makings of a story. He scoffed, and hoped out loud that this was not the most interesting thing to happen on this journey.
We made it though the Canadian border checkpoint with nary a word from the nice Canadian guard, and began to search first for gas, then for a room to sleep in. After getting both (though I still have absolutely no clue how much gas I got, or what it cost, for that matter) we decided it was time to explore.
Downtown Victoria was very different – it was sort of the way I imagine some parts of Great Britain would be like, the downtown parts, I guess… There were pubs, and tobacconists, and more pubs. There was the parliament building with its copper-topped dome and the Empress Hotel with its copper roof accents, and the charming street people begging for pieces of – you guessed it, nickel-plated steel, which Canada has used for most of their coins since 2000.
After about an hour or so of wandering, and accidentally stumbling upon, of all things, John Lennon’s Rolls-Royce, we decided it was time to find food. After debating the merits of various menus, we settled on Elephant and Castle, an establishment at which Wells had previously dined. The evening was off the a good start – I was cruising through my Barbeque chicken, garlic potatoes and green beans, when I suddenly had my breath taken out of me.
I was working on a mouth full of green beans and was mid-chew, when I looked up from my plate to see a familiar face – the woman from the ferry.
She had been escorted by our waiter to the table beside ours, and soon took up residence with her friend and the ill-advised fiancé. It was like seeing old friends, only we really knew nothing about each other, and had only one memory upon which we could reminisce.
“How weird!” she exclaimed. “Sure is,” I mumbled, still chewing.
The waiter asked if we knew each other, and she replied that yes, we did. We rode the ferry in together this afternoon. How strange it would be that we would eat at the same restaurant, in the same section, seated by the same waiter, sitting right next to each other.
I smiled, and asked for another gin and tonic, and began to reminisce with my old acquaintance about that sea voyage we had shared way back in ought three o’clock pm. The friend thought this was the strangest occurrence as well, though funny-strange, as opposed to the creepy-strange I was feeling. The fiancé looked ambivalent to the whole situation, and Wells, he looked rather amused.
Dinner progressed, as did the conversation. She learned my name while introducing Wells and I to the friend and fiancé, and I learned hers while listening in on a phone call the friend was having with her mom. Her name was Carly, and she looked significantly thinner, fit, and more feminine without 40-some odd pounds of parka and a fur-covered face. Still, the situation was simply too strange for me to get over. I had another drink – a rum and coke, and Wells continued to get a sick pleasure out of the non-sequitors being thrown my direction by Carly, who a that time was frustrated by the fact that she someday wanted children, but hated babies – a feeling being stoked by the crying infant near the entrance to the restaurant. From the tone of the conversation, she really hated babies.
Wells began to play with his cell phone – odd, I thought, until I caught on to what he was doing.
Carly continued to talk, about something, I imagine… I was drinking, you see. Wells proceeded to put away the cell phone, eventually drawing out his digital camera.
“Oh, you have a camera?” Carly asked, somewhat excitedly. “Yeah, want me to take your picture?” asked Wells, while pointing it at her. She struck her best “I’m sitting at a table” pose, and in an instant, Wells had documented the surreal moment.
Another half hour or so went by, filled with musings on how much schoolwork sucks, and how much Carly wanted to drink when she got back to her place, which was not far away. Oh- and how she was going to be twenty in five days. Wells and I were videotaped by the fiancé, I imagine for the same reason Wells took Carly’s picture – to document an odd encounter with a stranger, who for some reason, was not a stranger, despite being more than strange.
After a few more drinks, and within about twenty minutes of the restaurant’s closing time, I decided it was time to move on. Carly was not yet done eating, so our paths would soon be diverging, however, I felt if it was meant to be, they would meet again, as they had already once before. Wells and I left, walked around the corner, and quickly burst into laughter. Somewhere between the fit of laughter and the hotel room, I vowed that if I were to bump into Carly again, in a town of roughly 75,000 on an island upon which I had never stepped before, I would at once propose marriage, because while I was not terribly attracted to her or enthralled by her conversation, it would undoubtedly be destiny.
Alas, that third meeting never came. Wells and I left Vancouver Island the next day, bound for mainland British Columbia. With the mainland came the realization that my search for divinely placed love would have to continue – perhaps a blessing in disguise, as I would have a hard time explaining to the United States government which portion of my $800 customs exception the bride was occupying.
Speaking of customs – one should not try bribing US border guards.
One final misadventure came via Chris Wells, who, upon re-entry to the US, produced his passport and handed it, via my window, to the waiting customs agent. The agent, upon opening the front cover of the small booklet, shot me a look of utter contempt.
“Is this yours?” the agent asked. I looked at Wells, then back at the agent, in time to see him slowly tilt the passport in my direction, exposing a neatly folded one dollar bill tucked inside the front cover of Wells’ identification.
“Oh yeah, sorry,” Wells replied, reaching for the bill. After a careful once-over, and a question of if we had anything to declare, (“some chips, a bottle of Jägermeister, and this hat” was my reply. “A bottle of whiskey… and a teddy bear” was Wells’… yeesh…) he waved us through the border, and back onto familiar ground. Looking back, I think Wells’ goal was to have the car searched. If at first the dollar bribe (unintentional, he insists) didn’t work, the teddy bear comment would surely do the trick.
Ultimately, we made it home safely, without any body parts being violated by the US government, and with only one of us engaged. I’m just glad Wells hadn’t pulled that crap with a Looney.
This week, post-election Pratt operated in much the same manner as pre-election Pratt. Shower, eat, work, eat, sleep, repeat… sure, depression was a little easier to come by, but really it was just more of the same old, bad news. So, what better to cure what ails you than a massive road trip?
Derek, Wells, and I took off on Friday for Berkley, where we all watched the Ducks come up short against Cal, making it a disappointing climax to a trip that started and finished with two eleven-hour car rides. At least it was sunny while we were there. We met up with Giovanni before the game, and afterwards, Wells and I got to meet Mr. and Mrs. Crotti for the first time. Gio ended up taking us to this place that he described as an adult Chuck E. Cheese’s (no, not adult as in strippers… although naked mechanical animals would be interesting…) Basically, it was half classy sports bar, half classy arcade bar… in other words, like nothing I’ve eve seen before. It was very fun, except for the stupid horse racing game… just ask Derek about it.
We didn’t really get to do much in San Francisco, or anything really, but that’s what return visits are al about. Hopefully, driving will not be part of the next trip, and again, hopefully Miller will be.
Really, that was the big event of the last week… this week will be filled with a few things- first, I’m still waiting to hear back from the mortgage lady to let me know what I can afford now that I’ve bought the new car… maybe then, I’ll be able to get serious about moving. In the meantime, it’s time for bed. Check back soon for more updates throughout Saturatedpratt.
After four weeks, the reality of living as a regular working stiff is beginning to set in. Sure, I was going to work daily before I left for Seattle, but I wasn’t really working. Now, I am actually doing something- talking to people on the phone, listening to the various excuses people give in an attempt to let me know that it’s not really their fault for hitting that car that was parked and minding its own business on the side of the street… it’s gone quite well so far- I’ve only been cussed at a few times, been hung up on twice, and heard one lecture on Benny Hinn. Then again, I’m only getting a paltry three claims a day, so I still may crack when I’m upped to unlimited.
Normally I would have started a post with something non-work related, but really my life has been consumed with work of late. I leave the house in McMinnville at 6:40am, arrive in Lake Oswego at about 7:45, work until 4:30pm, hit the road immediately and arrive back at home in McMinnville anywhere between 5:30 and 6:30pm, depending on traffic. In other words, I don’t do a whole lot more than work during the week. As a testament to this, I have gone out precisely six times on weeknights since starting my job on December 15 (not counting the Seattle excursions). This must change- and to facilitate change, I must move out of McMinnville. This would free up the roughly three hours I spend in my car each day for fun stuff, like Blazer games, riding bikes, looking at stuff, and most importantly, NOT cursing at the jackass trying to merge into the right quarter panel of my car on highway 99w east of Dundee every night at 5:15pm. What a life it would be… hopefully it will be a reality by March 1.
Despite my commute, I have managed to have a pretty good time the last couple of weekends. Two weekends ago I traveled to Eugene with Derek and went out with Miller, Wells, Autumn, and last but certainly not least, Gio. We didn’t do too much- hit a few bars, talked a lot, and I lost my requisite three games of pool, but it was great to see Gio again. That Saturday was Valentine’s day, and the evening was spent by first going to ice cream with Vanessa, then picking up my honorary Valentine Leah and going to Sam Bond’s Garage to see one of her co-workers’ bands. It was pretty fun, but I didn’t know anyone so I was a little on the quiet side… but it was live music, and Leah, so I had fun nonetheless.
There have been a few adventures, I guess… traveling to Portland one Sunday with Miller to partake in “Sunday Sportsday,” for instance. We first saw the Blazers beat the Seattle Supersonics at the Rose Garden in what was to be Rasheed Wallace’s last game as a Blazer, then we walked over to Memorial Coliseum where we purchased tickets to the Portland Winterhawks game against Moose Jaw. In other words, we saw two sporting events in the span of six hours, interrupted only by the hour or so we had to kill by walking around the Oregon Convention Center and MLK Boulevard. It was a busy, full day that in turn led to a couple hundred miles of driving over the weekend, but it was really fun, and I got to buy my discounted Bonzi Wells #6 jersey at the Blazer team store.
Aside from that, I’ve really accomplished very little in the last month. I went out with Bambi on Saturday (nothing beats the McMinnville club scene… sigh.) and I saw Neil Young with Wells and Ma and Pa Wells on Friday, but aside from those outings, it’s really been a so-so couple of weeks in the northern Willamette Valley. I guess that’s the reason I’ve chosen the picture that I have for this update. I snapped it out the passenger side window of the Bimmer one morning on my way to work. Really, it’s not all the good of a picture- it’s all blurry, and the colors aren’t quite as brilliant as they were in person. However, it’s a good reminder of what it is to live here. However little a photo of Mt. Hood against a sunrise may mean in the scheme of things, it’s something that you just can’t see in Eugene, and it’s just one little reason why I’m glad to be back in the Portland area.
Sorry- no introspective diatribe on this round of Saturatedpratt… I guess I’ll save that for the next time, although I have appreciated the feedback from the last update. As for the things I am working on for this site- I’ve been gradually adding to three major projects, and I think I’m beginning another… the only question is whether or not I will actually progress far enough in any of them to put anything online. I suspect I will, at least with two of them. So in case you‘re at all interested, feel free to check the writings page for one short story, and possibly a longer story, or series of stories in the near future… I don’t know what it is really, it’s still taking shape. That’s it for now.
It’s been a little while since my last post, and really it’s been a rather eventful couple of weeks. First was the snowstorm, or rather, snowstorms. You see, it all begins with the simple fact that really, I’m not very smart. As a consequence, I decided that it would be nice to go down to Eugene for New Year’s Eve, seeing as I didn’t have to work the next day.
It had been cold for a couple days, but the freeze had for the most part passed, and it had been raining all day throughout the Willamette Valley. I picked up Wells, and we headed to Eugene to possibly go out with Leah and her friends. Upon arriving in Eugene at about 11:30, I decided that I was really too tired to out, and instead decided to go to bed. In actuality, I ended up talking to Kayla for about an hour and a half on the phone, but that doesn’t matter- I was still tired and that didn’t require much energy. Anyway, that’s beside the point. The real issue here is that I drove to Eugene to go out for the night, and I ended up staying in. That’s what I get for getting an office job with regular hours, I guess.
Any other time, this would have been fine- just a road trip that didn’t really have to happen- no big deal. This time, the sky opened and God himself decided to screw me… at least that’s how my version goes.
At some point between midnight and 7:00am, a typical misty 43 degree Oregon night turned in to eight inches of snow, at least at the elevation of my house in Eugene. As a consequence, Wells and I were stranded. In my infinite wisdom, I had turned down my dad’s offer of the use of his pickup for the trip and had instead made the trek in my Bimmer, which was now buried, with no chains, and absolutely no traction in my neighborhood. Attempt upon attempt was made to try to get the car out of the neighborhood, each one ending with the car threatening to slide perilously to the bottom of the hill in front of our house.
After a day and a half, and after missing my Friday at work, my dad finally came and towed us out using the pickup that I previously decided I wouldn’t need. There was more involved in the story, for example, a set of new chains that didn’t actually fit, a pizza delivery dude who wouldn’t actually deliver our pizza, and a fridge that was more or less empty, but writing in greater detail would simply anger me again, so I won’t. Besides, there’s more stuff to write about.
On Monday, I made the trip to Seattle for three weeks of claims school. Upon arriving in town, I went out to Pizza with Lauren, shared stories, and generally made her miss me… I think. Again, that’s just how my version goes. That night I returned home on what was now a 40 degree Seattle night. Of course, I awoke to find some four inches of snow the next morning. My hotel is located atop a big hill, and, you guessed it, I was again stranded. At least they cancelled the first day of claims school, so I didn’t miss work this time. Most of the snow was gone by the next day, and having no transportation to dinner forced me to get to know my fellow stranded classmates, which was probably a good thing anyway. In addition to making new friends, it’s good that I was in Seattle, as the thaw didn’t reach the Portland area until Friday morning.
The next day class started, and so far it has gone well. I have passed all of my tests, and I’ve had a really good time with the people. We go out as a group to dinner almost every night, and the week was capped by a trip out on the town Friday night. Today the same eight who went out on the town also went tubing on the nearby mountain pass (Snoqualmie?). It was very fun, though now I am sore in muscles I forgot I had. It’s really weird, but in many ways it’s like being back in the dorms, as the group of us all live in the same building and always eat and go do stuff together.
Well, that’s a fairly decent summary of the past week. As far as the coming week is concerned, I’ll be attending more classes, and hopefully passing more tests. On Tuesday I’ll be seeing LeBron James play against the Sonics, and on Saturday I may be going to Canada with the claims school people. That is if I can get a copy of my birth certificate up here.
It has been brought to my attention that I have not kept my oft-repeated, oft-broken promise of updating my website. For this, I am utterly indifferent. Strangely though, I feel that I should provide an update, if for no other reason than continuing to reinforce my personal belief that throngs of people base their lives on what my website does or does not say. To assist those people on moving forward in their lives, I will provide a concise rundown of the last several months of my life, which will then (maybe) be followed by an update pertaining to the present. So, without further delay, the spring, summer, and subsequent fall of Chris. March 5, 2002- woke up, read for Ken’s class. This pattern continued until the end of the term, which I finished in respectable, if unspectacular fashion. Spring break. Worked as an on-duty RA for a few days, then went to McMinnville. I traveled to the redwoods with my family and looked at several very large trees, as well as the Oregon caves. I angered my mom by wearing shorts in the caves, which were 40 degrees. After the vacation, I returned to Eugene for a day or two, then departed with Lauren on a pilgrimage to the Bay Area. Saw Paul McCartney kick off his US tour in Oakland, wandered around San Francisco, then saw Carlos Pena beat the Rangers in the bottom of the ninth as the A’s squeaked out their second victory of the season. Returned to Eugene following the game, and promptly went to bed. Fell behind in class, then caught up. I Dropped Ken’s other class, but not much else happened in April.
In May I worked, a lot and tried to make it through some tough times with friends, with mixed results. I’m still not sure when I became a villain, seeing as I never really chose a side, but I think that I just tried to please too many people. In the end, I settled on just being Chris, and let the cards lay where they fell. Through silence, I probably made the wrong choice, but that’s what regrets are for. Forgiveness though, is a trait certainly in short supply today- at least in some of my former friends. Worked on my uncle’s campaign for Lt. Governor of Idaho. Found myself writing campaign literature for a Republican, which was an interesting proposition. Made statements about issues often ignored by Republicans and somehow made it through the experience without feeling like a whore. Uncle lost primary, but got over 5 per cent of the vote in a field crowded with people spending hundreds of thousands of dollars. Turned 22 on the 29th of May.
In June I finished spring term, as well as my career as an RA. It was time for a welcome change, and independence gained from being able to live and work at separate locations. The deer to the left are being viewed from my new bedroom window. Hired as a temporary public safety officer at the University of Oregon Department of Public Safety. Issued a badge, uniform, and bulletproof vest. Feel awkward, but hey, everyday is Halloween. Good thing since I would later work on Halloween. Assumed life of 40 hour a week worker for the first time since my detailing days, though now worked at 6:00am. Money good, hours bad.
Not much happened in July- Independence day came and went with little fanfare as I had to work, and my brother turned 14 on the 2nd. Startled by the revelation that my brother was going to be a freshman in high school in September, and suddenly felt old. Classes began for me near the end of the month, and I visited a hot spring with Mary. Fun experience, though some people really should keep their clothes on…
In August classes continued, as did work. It was an uneventful month until about halfway through, when there was suddenly a flurry of activity. First came a hellish five-hour wait for Lauren at PDX to welcome her back from France. I got there at 10:00pm; she got there at around 3:00am. I had to be at work at 6:00am. Obviously, I was more dedicated then than I am now, as I would now call off tired as hell. This didn’t occur to me though, as I somehow made it through the next day at work. A bout a week later, and a week or so shy of our anniversary, Mary and I broke up. This came as an unexpected cap to what had been a pretty good evening- I guess she wanted to get me full of dinner so I couldn’t really defend what was to come. Shortly after the end of one, I witnessed the beginning of another relationship, as my pal Melinda was married.
In September work yet again continued, and the “temporary” position was beginning to feel a bit less so. The first couple of weeks were spent simply working overtime and basking in the warm sun of a deserted pre-term campus. Of course, this “basking” was spent wearing about five layers of colors alternating from black to LAPD blue colored fabric, so broiling can probably be substituted for basking. Football season started and the Ducks won their first several games. Baseball season continued, and a strike was averted, thank God. With about a week to spare before school started, I took off with Lauren to Seattle and spent my “Anniversary with Mary” money on a delightful trip to see sights and baseball. We stayed in an inexpensive but nice hotel downtown and wandered the city for three days. We saw the Experience Music Project and the Pike Street Market (for the second time with Lauren) as well as the zoo, where we were able to look at several young gorillas, including a baby that had been born just two weeks before. The A’s lost to the Mariners that night, thanks to a A’s inconsistent bullpen, but it was fun. The rest of our time was spent eating and drinking in various establishments and visiting with assorted friends (Shannon, Shelby, Josh) of Lauren’s.
Upon my return to Eugene, I learned that I would be needed at work through the next term, though I would now be working graveyard. Money good, hours worse. This began ominously, as there was a large riot one block west of campus on my first night on the shift.
October continued in the same manner as September ended, as my shift made several arrests and was involved in as many physical takedowns in the span of two weeks as are usually expected in about a full year. I was suddenly feeling even more fortunate that I was no longer an RA, as this class of freshman seems especially angry. The A’s were knocked out of the playoffs, something that came as no surprise given the bullpen woes that I had witnessed in Seattle, and the Ducks followed their 6-0 start with several losses. Class continued, sort of, as I only had one class that actually had a regular attendance. I again saw Paul McCartney with Lauren, only this time in Portland. By the end of the month events at work slowed, though I was now completely prepared for the bad stuff. I went through defensive tactics training over the course of a day, allowing me to carry an asp baton and OC spray. Of course, as part of the OC training, I was sprayed in eyes with the stuff and commanded to complete a course using each of the defensive tactics that I had learned throughout the day. By about the second of five stations I was pretty much blind, as well as screaming expletives at a rapid-fire pace. I made it through, though I’m surprised that my lieutenant did, as I hear it was quite dangerous for him to be holding one of the pads that I was forced to attack. The day was successful, though the illusion of mid-mannered Chris Pratt was gone for all who witnessed my rampage.
Work, sleep, school, and repeat. November was a drag. Nothing happened in November. My work schedule caught up with me, and much of my free time was spent sleeping. The Ducks’ collapse culminated in losing six of their last seven, and I had to work on Thanksgiving. School went well though.
December came with the promise of less school, more work, and more money. I could now return to working the 40-hour week that I had enjoyed during the summer, as student employee restrictions are lifted during break. The department took full advantage of this, as I worked the first 14 of 16 days of break. I also found out that I would be working both Christmas and Christmas Eve, as well as New Year’s Eve. In between though, I enjoyed a Blazer game with Wells and my brother, as well as a nice post-Christmas visit to McMinnville. I was quite disappointed with working the holidays, though not as much as I’m sure my mom was. Through it all though, she was pretty cool and didn’t let what I’m sure was a fair amount of anger come to the surface. I did well on Christmas, getting a lot of good clothes, CDs, books, a new watch, and the promise of new brakes for the Mustang, so long as I help my pa with putting brakes on my mom’s bimmer. I did however anger my mom by wearing shorts for the duration of my stay. December ended with my equivalent of the ball dropping in Times Square- the Department of Public Safety’s FCC-required call of “zero hundred hours, Wednesday, January 1, 2003. KVD770.”
Well, that was the last nine or so months, I’ll return shortly with a real update, but this week will be busy as I will be starting classes again and studying for the Praxis test on Saturday for the education program. Stay tuned… there’s more to come.
Happy New Year!!! hehehe… yeah. So I’ve been gone a while… you’ve noticed. You’ve questioned me, harassed me, some of you have even stopped coming to this site. Does the fact that it hasn’t been updated in six months make it any less relevant? I say no!
So here I am again, and as if I never went away, I am once again procrastinating. It just wouldn’t be right any other way. With that statement, many could be asking “Chris, has nothing changed?” The short answer would be no, and being as I am a very lazy man, I would normally be apt to give that answer.
However, as I am currently putting off reading 70 more pages in “Black Mass” for Ken’s class, I will give the more in-depth answer of no. You see, it isn’t that things haven’t changed, it’s just that indeed, the more things change, the more they stay the same. For instance- I am in a relationship with Mary. While this may be no new thing, we also broke up. Now, had I updated on December 7, 2001, this page would have said that I was single until the update of March 4, when in fact, the single period ended on December 18, 2001. This could have had disastrous effects on both my relationship, which was on the mend, as well as the scores of would-be heartbroken women who had been led to believe that I was available. Sally comes to mind.
However, that would not have been the only problem. Perhaps I would have posted an angry reaction to my pal Curtis’ semi-forced removal from staff. I could have written an expletive-laden update directed towards University Housing in regards to both Curtis and the creator of the wonderful picture of my selves above, Chris Wells. Perhaps I would have posted something about my desire to find a way for the RAs at the University of Oregon to organize, a la those at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Oh wait, that update may yet come…
But those are currently cold topics on my mind, waiting to be stoked at a later date. I’ll have to weigh the amount of trouble I could get in for simply exercising my 1st amendment rights. Anyhow, it should be an interesting update.
As far as other happenings in the life of Chris, yes, me and Mary are once again happily together, and we celebrated our sixth month together just a week ago, on February 26. Don’t bother me about the math, we don’t count the earlier break up. In other news, it is now official, in case you couldn’t tell, that I will not be returning as an RA next year. I have decided to take the high road, and get out while I am still at least as sane as I was when I came in to the job. This will mean that I will be living off campus this summer, as well as next year, in a yet to be determined place with yet to be determined people. I am looking forward to the change, and it should dramatically lower my stress level, although I’ll have to work more.
In more recent news, it looks as though I will be going to Oakland to see Paul McCartney with Lauren on or about April 1. That is, of course, if we can find tickets. It will be a challenge, but it’s probably my last chance to see a Beatle live that’s not Ringo. After all, if my theory is correct, Ringo will never die. (Rest in Peace, George) In addition to the concert, we will be in town at the same time that the Major League Baseball season starts, so I’ll force Lauren to watch the A’s kill the Rangers in the season opening series. It should be an awesome road trip, if it happens.
But it remains to be seen if that will indeed take place. I am also planning on going to the Redwoods and several other attractions in northern California and Southern Oregon with my family over Spring Break. That should be awesome, especially since I’ll actually get to see stuff this time, unlike last summer’s late night/early morning jaunt down to (What’choo talkin’ bout) Willits with Mary and Christina. It’ll be nice to get to spend a period of time longer than an afternoon with my family for once, which is also a plus about not being on staff next year… OK, enough with my work frustrations.
Now that the months of summer are upon us, I’m deeming this evening’s update to be the one that finally deals with the world-shaking events otherwise known as Chris’ birthday. After all, as Ham Staff knows, birthdays last but three months of the year. So, in keeping with recent tradition, let us wish Chris a happy birthday, July 5th style!
Hey- it’s not that I’m really intending for people to continue the celebration, it’s really just that I now have time to reflect. Besides, I’ve pretty much been called out by Vanessa. Between pistols at dawn and a website update a month late, I pick the update (primarily because I do not own a pistol.)
The day started as other- with a midnight trip to Albertsons to buy some Weinhards. With this, I was able to exercise my new found responsibility to both buy alcohol, then later consume it. I couldn’t believe the actual transformation that my body went through at precisely 12:01 am, May 29th. It was as though I was suddenly a grownup. I cast aside my childish dreams and immediately grew a mean beard. Most of all though, from 11:59 to 12:01, I officially became responsible enough to be trusted with fire water. I couldn’t even imagine what would have happened had I possessed alcohol before I reached the age of 21. I promptly returned to my room and basked in the moment with Chris Wells. About 30 minutes later I retired to bed. I guess it was my age catching up with me.
In the morning I went to class, like most other days- though I left early. I proceeded to walk to 13th street, where I met Vanessa, as well as DPS Eddy and Joey for lunch at Sy’s. It was very nice and low-key, though Vanessa was pissed since I had received a 35 (out of 35) on my geography midterm (half of which I was not in class for), while she received, well, I can’t remember what she received. Anyway, she was not happy. She did get to laugh at me though, as I proceeded to drop sausage all over the place as it fell off my pizza. Lunch only lasted about a half hour, and following its completion I returned to my room, where I basked in the first day of what I now simply refer to as “birthday.”
The rest of that day was spent more or less relaxing, later traveling to McMenamin’s where Brian and Lauren treated me to a burger and a beer. This was good, and Brian and I were able to talk for about an hour about cars and other miscellaneous things while Lauren looked on. I’m not sure how entertaining it was for her, but hey, this is MY birthday, so there. After dinner, I returned to my room where I waited for an impromptu staff meeting. While waiting for the meeting to commence, I was graced by the appearance of Jessie Kirk and the lovely Josh Christiansen. Wait… I think I reversed those. Anyway, they brought me a Corona and happy birthday wishes, while helping me watch Traffic. After the meeting, I retired to my room, where I eventually went to bed. Nothing much happened on my birthday, but more was to come, with a promise from Vanessa for a full day of birthday celebration.
On Saturday I arrived at Vanessa’s place at roughly noon only to find her laying in bed. This was ok though, as it was my day and she in turn had no right to feel as though her privacy had been invaded by my presence at the foot of her bed. After about a half hour of conversation, she finally rose from her slumber and we were ready to start the day. She proceeded to make breakfast for me, consisting of toast and sausage, which was very good by the way. After doing the dishes, she began working on what was soon to become my birthday cake. While the cake was baking, we worked on cleaning the kitchen and continued talking. When the cake was done, we commenced our day out. The first stop was VRC where Vanessa searched through racks of discount clothes, somehow finding outfit after outfit that looked great on her. I’m not sure that I can count all of the articles of clothing that she pulled off of racks, but the whole trying-on process probably lasted upwards of 20 minutes. It was ok though, as I knew that this was at least in preparation for what was to be our evening out. In all I think she bought something like $100 in clothing, which I think is more than I have spent in all my years in Eugene.
We walked around the mall for a while, but didn’t really buy anything else. From there, we drove to Dairy Queen where we sat in the parking lot and ate hotdogs, which, if it were not with a beautiful woman, would sound very pathetic. We then drove to some cool neighborhood in the area of Coburg Road and looked at big, cool houses and just talked. The day soon took a turn for the serious though, when while shopping at Wal Mart, we found what seemed to be an excellent engagement ring- and for only about $7.00! It seemed perfect, not to mention the fact that I wasn’t all that sure that I had asked for her hand in marriage. However the joy soon turned to sadness when we realized that there were no rings in her size. Disappointed but not defeated, we ventured to Target where our luck was better. Secure with our newly discovered engagement, we separated for a while when she had to make an appearance at work. I used the opportunity to change my clothes and shave, as she had made a vow to “be the most beautiful date” I’d ever had. I decided that I should probably look decent as well. (At least I tried.)
She returned to my room at about 9:30, and we decided to go out shortly after 10:00. Where she had attempted to become the most beautiful date I had ever had, she largely succeeded. In truth, I was pretty surprised that I was going out with this woman for a night (as were my residents, who, as I was told, actually watched us leave the building and continued talking about us quite a while after we had left.) Vanessa wanted to go to a place where we could dance, but I’m not really much a dancer, so we seemed to settle on a sort of middle ground. We went to Diablos, where we sat at the bar for a while and ate, (as well as drank). After eating and watching the bartender spit fire, we went downstairs to the dance floor where I proceeded to watch her and many other people dance. It was actually quite fun, even though I was mainly in an observatory mode. She would come over to me every now and then and talk, but for the most part I was just glad that she was having fun for my birthday. Perhaps the best part was watching all of these guys making passes at her, then looking slightly dejected when they realize that she was in fact with me. In a few cases, guys even came up to me to comment on my “fine” girlfriend. I, of course, nodded and smiled.
We were there until about 2:00am, when we returned to her place and just sort of relaxed for a while. Nothing much was said at this point, but I think that we both were in agreement that it had been a very good day. I guess that perhaps the best part was that she did so much for my birthday, especially when she really didn’t have to. I mean, she baked a cake and took me out to lunch, which is where most people would stop. However, she went head and shoulders above what she needed to, and I really appreciated it. Even now, a month later, I look back to that day and it really means a lot to me. I’m really glad that I’ve grown so close to her, and it is times like that one Saturday that remind me of exactly how good she has been towards me in the year that I have known her. I’m just glad that she’s my fiancé.