WHERE TO SHOP
The city's most interesting shopping street is Northwest 23rd Avenue (a k a "Trendy-third"), just north of the downtown core. Here you might see a pigtailed mom in cowboy hat and blue boots window shopping while walking a dog - and her young daughters in matching outfits.
I remember living in Portland for about 18 months, in 1982 and 1983. I had two interesting things happen to me while dressing somewhat similarly as noted above.
First, was at the Halloween party at my step-daughter's elementary school. Although the child went dressed in costume, neither her father nor I were in costume. Being from Los Angeles, I was dressed in cowboy boots, a mini-skirt, and great sleevless top, with a leather jacket. I can't tell you how many people approached me and told me to my face, in front of my family, how much they loved my costume. Of course, only my family knew I wasn't in any costume, so that kind of unnerved me.
The second incident was when I got fired from my legal secretary job ... for the clothes that I wore. They instituted a dress policy after that. I didn't wear enough polyester, and the cowboy boots bothered them.
Ever since that time, I added "I will not change the way I dress" as a condition of employment whenever I went on an interview, along with my other two non-negotiable conditions: I will not sleep with you, and I will not balance your checkbook.
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