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Thoughts on Portland | Optimizing

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Every city, according to Paul Graham, tries to tell you something. For instance, walking around New York you might get the sense you need to be more fashionable, or make more money. A stroll through downtown San Francisco might prod you to join a startup, or at least work in technology. The culture of a city tugs at you, hinting you should be more X and less Y. It’s the place softly whispering what it wants. Like all cities, Portland whispers something in your ear. Unlike most major ones, its message is leisure-oriented. Where Cambridge will whisper you should read more books, and LA will urge you to be more attractive, Portland says you should indulge. It tells you to visit the most delicious food cart or the tastiest fusion restaurant. It says life is short, so you shouldn’t pass on that craft beer. Even the city’s emphasis on outdoor activity is tied with pleasure. Hikes in Forest Park or the Columbia River Gorge are only incidentally about exercise, and much more preoccupied with i

Thoughts on Portland | Textures Thoughts on Portland 2021/08/10 Every city, according to Paul Graham , tries to tell you something. For instance, walking around New York you might get the sense you need to be more fashionable, or make more money. A stroll through downtown San Francisco might prod you to join a startup, or at least work in technology. The culture of a city tugs at you, hinting you should be more X and less Y. It’s the place softly whispering what it wants. Like all cities, Portland whispers something in your ear. Unlike most major ones, its message is leisure-oriented. Where Ca

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