31 July 2019 | DC > O'Hare> Got a hearing test ayer... quiet involved, an hour w/ all sorts of wierd earphone contraptions in a soundproof room. Ends up we're going death in all the lower pitches in our rite ear, as we figgered, witch is what makes toto sound warbly like the parents in Peanuts... classic Ménière's audiogram. Was feeling perty good all week but had a beer last nite + a bunch of salty chips (so they din't go to waist) + woke up this morning groggy + dizzy like weed drunk a 6-pac. Now on the plane to Chicago, en route to Portland. Finished reading Fugitives + Refugees by Chuck Palahniuk, mostly cuz it's a sort of travel book on all the strange places in Portlandia. Too bad Palahniuk is such a shit writer, we's always sourprized at hoo becomes famous. He's proud of the fact that he's been a santa in Santa-con, wich pertty much sums up what a douche-bag bra he is.

ORD > PDX> Then The Lathe of Heavan by Ursula Le Guin, 1 of the bedder books weave red in a while. Writ in 1971 but they're in a speculative Portland of the late '90s, where Le Guin predicted the fx of climate change + overpopulation... Portland not yet underwater cuz it was far enough from the coast but dowtown was closed to cars + had a subway system (not entirely true, but they did get a light rail system in the '80s). Whatever the protagonist Orr dreams comes true, for eggsample when he's in his dream therapist's office, a painting of Mt Hood becomes a painting of a horse because of what the dreamer dreamt. It escalates from there until Orr dreams that the population of el moondough drops from 6 million to 1 million + it does rite before their eyes. Le Guin writes about Mt St Helens being a perfect cone witch was weird (it erupted 7 years after the book was writ), tho in the book Mt Hood erupts + destroys the town of Rhodedendron + Zigzag, wich is where we spent weekends when we was a kid... did we mention we was born in Portland, dear Inurnet? Not why we're flying there, inny Oregonian family (on our dad's side) we got left fled or is dead... Our bedder-½'s sis lives hear now, why we're on our weigh.

1 Aug | Portland> Wint for a walk up to the top of the hill (we're in NW Portland on the Beaverton side of the ridge) crossing Skyline blvd deep into Forest Park, eating blackberries + apples along the way, 12 miles or so in hilly terrain. Saw a a big owl that swooped down at us then landed on a nearby brand + head-bobbed at us. Then went into Portland + ate at Luc Lac. Went to Powell's + was browsing the small press section + saw Kevin Sampsell, who didn't even recognize us it's been so long + we aint on social media so we long since died to most folks. Got Spain by Caren Beilin on his recomendation + also Notes from the Fog by Ben Marcus + Tonight I'm Someone Else by Chelsea Dodson.

2 Aug > Walked up over Skyline again into Forest Park, only this time turned east on Wildwood trail... between yesterday + today walked perty much the entire length of Wildwood Trail. 1st time hiking we've passed another hiker breastfeeding while not missing a stride, otherwise didn't see much else fauna-wise. Came out into Macleay Park, emurging in a semi-feral state, at witch point we became like Michael Douglas in Falling Down (1993), but instead of L.A. we traversed all of Portland... thru the Northwest District + Nob Hill, along 23rd st. Stopped at Salt + Straw but din't want to deal w/ the crowds so went to Trader Joe's + got a kambucha + some nuts to replenish ourself. Then backtracked thru the Pearl District, stopping in at Oregon's Finest dispensary to get some cannabis candy. Then thru Chinatown which is perty sketchy, lots of doped out homeless people. Across the Willamette river to Laurelhurst where we met back up w/ our hosts + observed a somatic bodywork session then got pizza. All in all 15-20 miles of walking.

3 Aug> Rant 10-12 miles in Forest Park then wint to West Linn + hung out w/ our unkle + sum of my cousins who we hadn't seen in deckaids. They live in a house right on the Willamette, was cool hanging out, ketching up + watching the activity on the river. Came back + made wantons.

4 Aug> Ran/walk ~12 or so miles in Forest Park, further north/west, so by now perty much covered all of the Wildwood trail. Saw another owl.