So, yesterday was the official kick-off of the Keep Portland Weird festival here in Paris, which meant that I had a reading/screening in the...
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I just finished reading this book and had to immediately say something about it. It really makes you think twice about how we go about economic development incentives, how people perceive "success", and what defines happiness. Too often, Americans think about accumulating "stuff" to make them happy. But as this book notes, there is a different perspective in Portland. Here, people are more likely to drive a 15 year old car but drink craft beers, eat high quality bread and get fresh produce from the farmers' markets. But it's also pointed out that you don't even need to make sacrifices like that to participate in the artisan economy, as the assumption that artisan=expensive is not always the case. Ok, maybe it is for the bikes featured in the book, and the brandies made by Clear Creek, but not for music, bread, arts, fashion, coffee, and many of the other aspects of the Portland scene.
If you live in Portland, this helps explain why you like living here. If you don't live in Portland, this book will inspire you.
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Brew to Bikes: Portland's Artisan Economy (Openbook) by Charles Heying
strathkinnessjb, November 11, 2010
I just finished reading this book and had to immediately say something about it. It really makes you think twice about how we go about economic development incentives, how people perceive "success", and what defines happiness. Too often, Americans think about accumulating "stuff" to make them happy. But as this book notes, there is a different perspective in Portland. Here, people are more likely to drive a 15 year old car but drink craft beers, eat high quality bread and get fresh produce from the farmers' markets. But it's also pointed out that you don't even need to make sacrifices like that to participate in the artisan economy, as the assumption that artisan=expensive is not always the case. Ok, maybe it is for the bikes featured in the book, and the brandies made by Clear Creek, but not for music, bread, arts, fashion, coffee, and many of the other aspects of the Portland scene.If you live in Portland, this helps explain why you like living here. If you don't live in Portland, this book will inspire you.