My snail-mail box has been deluged as of late with coupons and annoucements for the newly remodeled Safeway in Rose City on Sandy Boulevard. With this and the recent renovation to the Lloyd District store, Safeway is trying to upscale their clientele with a mix of low prices and artisan items. End result? Pretty appealing.
Pocket overflowing with coupons and grocery list in hand, I joined the madness at the grand re-opening this afternoon. It took a while to secure a parking spot, but I got in! Couldn’t push my cart more than a few feet without running into another sample station. I tried everything from fresh cantalope to New York steak. It was fun to comiserate with my fellow customers about the crowds, and several staff members commented that they hadn’t expected such a huge turnout.
Once I was finally done with my shopping, the checkout lines were eight- to ten-carts deep. Several staffers functioned as “checkout hosts” and kept the area in front of the stands clear for cart traffic while the rest of the line extended into the grocery aisles. I strategically chose the one in the “Magazine and Greeting Cards” aisle because there was no avoiding the wait, and at least that would keep me entertained. I flipped through a copy of a home deco mag and people-watched. Since they were ready for crowds, it didn’t as long as I thought. Kudos to the staff for being well-organized and polite even after being on their feet all day.
It took about two hours altogether for me to emerge triumphant, saving a whopping 48% on my groceries. Complimentary Starwhore’s frapp-a-chino in hand (wouldn’t drink if I had to pay for it!), I dodged the cars headed in for their turn at the shopping adventure, loaded my rig, and headed home.

What a great weekend to be out and about! There was a parade on MLK, square dancers in huge swishy skirts all over the Lloyd District, and folks out enjoying their neighborhoods.

Always was a girl with an eye for a bargain
When it comes to trawling vintage, antique, thrift, consignment, recycle, and junk shops, I’m a seasoned amateur. The pros are out earlier than I am and have already bought what they consider to be the best stuff. Fortunately, since they are often in a hurry to cherry-pick and my tastes are not always mainstream, I’m still able to find some pretty amazing stuff. Decent knick-knack and clothing finds are possible at most shops, but for furniture I’ve always been more impressed with the Salvation Army on MLK than any of the Goodwill shops for one reason: Particleboard pieces are rare, and I’ve seen some pretty amazing pieces of vintage furniture going for a song. (Okay, that wound up being two reasons.)

SCRAP held their free stuff giveaway to clean out their storage space this morning, and I am very glad that I showed up early. It was the most orderly descending of vultures I’ve ever seen! No fighting, and everyone was pretty polite while elbowing their way into the fray. There was tons of terrific stuff, but I kept my limited storage space in mind and only picked up half a grocery bag of stuff. The free stuff giveaway is continuing throughout the weekend, so if you want to check out what’s left get going! Lots of fabric and paper supplies still available when I left.

Summer at the cinema
We checked out Batman Begins at The Roseway last weekend. It was my first trip there, and I want to see all of my first-run movies there from now on! Gorgeous locally-owned theatre with reasonable ticket prices. No advertising. Few if any previews. I think I was in high school the last time I could buy a first-run movie ticket for $6.50. Maybe even junior high. It’s the only place where I don’t mind the concession prices because that is where they make the money to keep the theatre alive, and they collect popcorn and candy boxes for paper recycling after every film. Tickets over at the mega-multiplex are $8.25 and I’m forced to wait through the most obnoxious commercial crap if I want to arrive at the theatre in time to get a decent seat. Support the locally-owned theater alternatives!
Clinton Street Theatre (home of the longest running showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show) has just opened their theatre pub, featuring pub food, an assortment of microbrews, and a different house-brewed beer each week. The official grand opening party will take place on Friday, July 1st.

WOO! Free craft stuff available at SCRAP this weekend! Like I really need more craft supplies, but I would much rather make use of it than see it go to the landfill. They are also looking for volunteers to help them organize the stuff that they are keeping. This is a really worthwhile community group – they help teachers, classrooms, and artists while diverting perfectly great stuff away from “the unmentionable hole in the ground.” Please help to support them!

For the past year, we at SCRAP have been fortunate enough to use a huge warehouse space behind our shop free of charge. Unfortunately, the time has come when we have to give up the free space and actually organize the storage space that we’re keeping. Help us downsize by taking away goodies from our gigantic free pile. We’ve got everything from fabric, frames, stickers, binding combs, folders, shelving, chairs and more. Come on down to SCRAP this weekend only and take it all away (everything in the free pile that is). This is your only chance to score some free SCRAP. After this we’ll be recycling as much as we can and then it goes to the unmentionable hole in the ground (GASP!!). We want to see it all find homes. Tell your friends, your family, anyone you see on the street. It’s FREEEEEE!!!
Saturday, June 25th, 11am – 6pm
Sunday, June 26th, 12pm – 5pm
Now, to squash any rumors before they begin. SCRAP is NOT closing. We are giving back the free storage space we’ve been using. We got a little too comfy and now we need to get it together and squish everything into our real storage space, which will soon be all organized and fabulous. Materials in the shop are not free. Only the free pile.

My, what a busy weekend! We had a mom and an aunt in from out of town. They needed an introduction to our fair city, and this is how the itinerary went: Continue reading 'Portland according to Jenn and Aaron'»