Three Wishes from the Ghost of College Past

Thinking back to the classes I took as an undergrad, I didn’t actually learn a single thing about business or being a professional of any kind. I learned how to write my way into corners and out of paper bags. But when I think back to some of what I...

Our Donut Shop

NOTE: I've chosen the colloquial “donut” over the more grammatically accepted “doughnut.” I hope this decision does not prevent you from enjoying the following piece. My first year in Portland, I couldn’t find a donut shop. I knew there were shops somewhere. I kept seeing donuts in grocery stores, and...

Uncovering Language from Baseball to Brand

Ahh baseball, where the known and unknown worlds sit together like two children on a dock. The sport where the essential ingredients include a ball, a stick, and a leather glove. Sure, it helps to have a few players, at least three to really make it work: one to throw...

Portland-fied Disney Princess

Our first Disney princess showed up in the mail a few weeks ago: Anna from Frozen. A week later came her sister, Elsa. As brands go, it's safe to say that Disney is one of the world’s most pervasive and persuasive. (And I’m pretty sure they know their way in...

Lines over time

Our lives unfold in the seasons within seasons, familial moments we return to as the calendar ticks away. Each fall I return to mushroom season, a three-week window my father introduced me to, first with his weekend disappearing acts throughout my childhood then later as his picking partner on the...

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