On the whole, we have it pretty darned good in our community. Compare our environs to, say, Portland, Ore., which one of us visited for a family wedding during New Year’s weekend, and there is, well, no comparison. Portland seems to thrive on being, uh, different. That’s all well and good, but when one sees “Keep Portland Weird” plastered everywhere in the Rose City, it creates an opportunity for pause. Portland is doing just swell in that regard. From municipal values to social tenets, we certainly weren’t in “Kansas” anymore. Next time you think about complaining about road construction here, consider that the gem of Oregon seems to want you to, for starters, prefer dodging potholes and not notice bridge abutments crumbling. The recycling protocol there is off the hook, and we are all for recycling … if the matter truly ends up being recycled. Trying to figure out where to put what is more difficult than solving a Rubik’s Cube. Socially, the fine folks out there could learn a thing or three from Hoosier hospitality. On a walk through the Pearl District, one in our party said, half jokingly, “Are we just going to walk through Portland all day?” That prompted a local to comment: “Get out of my city.” Your intrepid writer here took up the cause and told the gent that he should thank his lucky stars for our tourism dollars (among other perhaps less-pleasant suggestions). There are great eateries and quirky, fun shops, though, and lots of gray skies this time of year. It was just, as they tout, weird, and it’s good to be back home and in our element.