Sandy River Flooding, Sunday January 16

Reflecting on the campaign

Our campaign for Troutdale City Council is now complete. There is little to do now but wait for the election results tomorrow night. The past few months have passed in a blur. Some days I literally could not remember what day it was. Thank goodness for calendars, eh? Anyway, here are a few things I've learned about campaigning in Troutdale.

• You can't count on the same people to support you from election to election.
• Troutdale is bigger than you think when you're going door to door.
• The best ideas come in the middle of the night.
• People in Troutdale are friendly. Except for the guy who told my wife I'm a "bad guy".
• It's no fun going door to door in the wind and rain.
• Everyone in Troutdale has a dog.
• People think Troutdale City Councilors get paid big dollars.
• Yard signs are the sacrificial pawns of local campaigns.
• Coffee is the mother's milk of campaigning.

Friends of Troutdale Police ask you to Vote Yes on Ballot Measure 26-116!

East Metro Association of Realtors Endorses Canfield For Troutdale City Council

The East Metro Association of Realtors (EMAR) endorsed Robert Canfield for Troutdale City Council position #5.  EMAR stated it chose Canfield because:

"He understands Metro and need for a cohesive voice. He is focused on economic development policies  for the City's final build-out."

In its endorsement letter, EMAR said its objective was to lend support to "candidates who are knowledgeable of,  and in sympathy with,  issues concerning the protection of private property rights, major issues affecting the East County area and who are open to studying all sides of the issues."

Thank you, EMAR!! 

Roof Collapses At Troutdale's Cherry Park Safeway

The roof collapsed at Troutdale's Cherry Park Safeway Store on Christmas Day, causing significant damage according to a manager I talked to. The store is currently closed. Hopefully the news media will provide more details.

Troutdale's Roads Still Treacherous

After 2 days of being buried in snow and ice, we took our car for a little drive around Troutdale this afternoon. Troutdale Rd. was packed snow and icy. Stark Street was in the same condition. 257th north from Stark St. was a mix of bare pavement and packed snow with ice. 257th was also filled with plenty of tailgating, speeding idiots. Sure, you can go 45 mph on ice. But try stopping! One idiot in a Range Rover was so close behind us that I couldn't see his headlights. I was travelling at a very prudent 30mph on the icy street. This is always the dangerous part of driving in the ice and snow.

It's not the ice and snow that are dangerous- it's the idiots who don't drive too fast, or tailgate, or take corners too fast and slide into oncoming traffic (we witnessed two of these close calls in a 30 minute time period this afternoon- one at 257th & Columbia River Hwy, and another at 257th & Cherry Park Rd.)

Slow down, people. Don't tailgate. Take it easy round those corners. Or stay home.

Tri-Met's Service Reductions Limit Troutdale Commute Options

How would you like to walk anywhere from 3/4 mile to 3+ miles through 2-3 foot snowdrifts catch a bus to work? That's what most Tri-Met riding Troutdale residents might be facing tomorrow morning if Tri-Met continues its reduced service levels. As of this afternoon/evening, Tri-Met is not running their 80, 81, or 77 buses. The only bus serving Troutdale now is the 20 Burnside/Stark Street bus which only goes as far as Mt. Hood Community College at 257th & Stark. And that's how bad conditions are here.

You can't blame Tri-Met for its decision to reduce services when faced with all the snow out here. But I feel bad for anyone without access to a 4WD vehicle. So nothing will be changing as far as work travel plans are concerned. A lot of people in Troutdale won't be going anywhere tomorrow.

"Special: Pumpkin Blizzard"

A pumpkin blizzard at the Troutdale Dairy Queen sounded good, but the place was closed! The Mrs. and I walked to the corner of Troutdale Road and Stark to see what the road conditions were like. Both Troutdale Road and Stark Street are packed snow but sanded. It's the side streets- 42nd, Sweetbriar Lane, SE Evans, etc. that are in poor condition. On those side streets, the story is the same at most driveways: snowdrifts and parked cars coated with snow and ice.

There are quite a few 4WD vehicles, ATV's, and even snowmobiles travelling the streets. Most traffic on Troutdale Rd. and Stark St. consisted of 4WD's and pickups. We saw very few passenger cars. Also on the streets are lots of people walking. They're just out for a stroll like us, or going to or from the store. Most businesses at Troutdale Rd & Stark Street were open, except for the Dairy Queen, although their sign promoted Pumpkin Blizzards.

We got the blizzard, that's for sure. But I'd rather have the Dairy Queen kind.
(FYI: current conditions: 6 inches of new snow overnight, 22 degrees F., wind chill 10 degrees F. wind 11 mph)

It's Like Trying To Bury Someone At Sea

When I was a kid, I read a funny line about burying someone at sea in MAD magazine: "As soon as you take one shovelful out, the hole just fills back in!" That's what many Troutdale residents are experiencing right now with their front walks and driveways. Yesterday I wrote about shovelling off our driveway and our car out of 2+ foot snowdrifts. Guess what! Last night's new snow filled it all back in! That makes us officially snowed in. We're not going to shovel our car out again. If we have to go anywhere, we're going to slog through the snow on foot or take the bus.

My Driveway Is Shovel-Ready

When we woke up this morning from our snow bunker (aka our humble Troutdale abode), the snow had stopped falling. But I got a surprise when I looked out the window- my Sunday Oregonian was on top of all the snow in the front yard! This was truly amazing, because we didn't get a newspaper delivered to our house for much of the week, when conditions were better than yesterday or today.

But the bad news this morning wasn't just in the newspaper- looking out of our living room window, I also saw our car in the driveway surrounded by 2+ foot high snowdrifts. And between the car and the street? More snow. 12 inches of snow. So after reading the paper and having some apple pancakes for breakfast (thanks, Mrs. C!), I headed out to begin the shovelling of snow. A mere 90 minutes later, the snow was cleared around the car. In a little while, I'll shovel the rest of our driveway off so we can get to the street, which is fortunately well sanded. Let's just hope the ice pellets that are falling right now don't get too much worse. At least the wind isn't blowing so much and it's a balmy 20 degrees!

More Snow, More Cookies, More Kahlua & Coffee

10:45pm - It's 15 degrees. Winds 25 mph with gusts over 40mph. Visibility is still a problem due to blowing snow. It's still snowing, the wind is still blowing, and we've battened down the hatches for the evening. The latest measurement in our backyard shows 10 inches of snow. It looks like our front door and porch will need to be cleared in the morning- there's quite a snow drift developing there. But all is not bad news! The Mrs. made cookies this evening. And we topped off our dessert with some Kahlua & coffee. Now that's the way to endure a winter storm!

Troutdale's 2008 Blizzard

If you're in Troutdale right now, you wouldn't want to be outside. It's 19 degrees. The wind is blowing a steady 28 mph with gusts over 40 mph. The snow continues to blast from the sky sideways, exceeding the 25 mph speed limit in our neighborhood. I estimate there's about 6 inches of snow in our front yard right now. The wind is truly howling, it's snowing constantly, and whiteout conditions exist. You literally can't see down the street more than 100-200 feet, and when the wind gusts come, the blowing snow prevents any visibility.

We went for a short walk all bundled up, but with 25-45 mph gorge winds and the blowing snow, you really need ski goggles when facing the wind. We kept our heads down and our eyes half closed walking into the wind for the miserable trek back to the house. We wondered what the heck did we go outside for, anyway? It was like stepping onto another planet. A very cold planet.

Our dog George loves the snow, though. He can't get enough of it! We've been tossing him snowballs to chase in between his sprints through the drifting snow. When he stops running, he has jumped in the air several times in an attempt to catch the snow in his mouth. He loves this weather! But it's so bad outside, there will be no more outside play for dog or human tonight.

Tonight, staying inside is the place to be. With I-84 eastbound currently closed between Troutdale and Hood River, the truck stops will fill up with semi rigs quickly. On the news just now, there's a reporter doing her TV reporting thing down at Flying J. What a way to make a living. I bet the TV stations don't pay them extra, either. I feel sorry for the gas station attendants at the truck stops down there. I would imagine that the Holiday Inn Express and the Comfort Inn will fill up fast with stranded travellers tonight.

And it's supposed to get worse. The forecast calls for freezing rain tonight and tomorrow. What a mess!