Portlandia

[RadicalModerate]

First there was Elaine May and that sidekick dude .... Mike Nichols?
Then there was Lorne Michaels . . .
Then there was Larry David/Curb Your Enthusiasm (and that jerry "seinfeld" guy) . . .
Then there was that whole string of movies from Spinal Tap to A Mighty Wind . . .
[Then there was Trailer Park Boys (from Canada)] . . .

And now there is Portlandia.
(The apparent model for OKC Development)

On Netflix . . .
Almost for free.

[Lord Helmet]

Great show. Very funny...though it won't be for everyone.

[RadicalModerate]

See . . . It IS possible for us to agree on something. =)

Portlandia: Don't miss it.
(Or wait about 10 years and it will be all around us in real life. =)

[FritterGirl]

I love this show and its parodies of modern hipsterism. Think the allergy parade was one of my favorite sketches, and Fred Armisten is win. Truly a must-see, but I agree it's not for every audience.

[RadicalModerate]

I've only seen two or three episodes . . .

I think my favorite so far involves those over-sold "Organic Chickens" that left the waitress standing at the table wondering something along the lines of "WTF??? Where's the Trolley" while waiting for them to return and actually order something. It was like The Bizarro World version of that scene in "Five Easy Pieces" that is so famous. Or the Dumbass Sunglasses Losing Guy on that rinky-dink oriental car commercial. =)

The Gift Shop Owners are a hoot. (As is the Mayor depicted)
(Like I said: Mike Nichols and Elaine May)

So have you watched the entire Trailer Park Boys series from first to last?
Canada is not far from Portland and the US is being invaded by Video Home Improvement stuff from there... =)

It also is not for General Audiences--whatever that means . . . =)

[citizenkane]

The episodes, for me, are hit and miss. I love the organic farmer/cult leader, feminist bookstore, and the "cacao" scene, but some of the episodes aren't that great at all.

[HewenttoJared]

I have only seen the battlestar clip. Looks damn funny!

[Double Edge]

I watched the first two episodes last night. Love it!

[White Peacock]

Put a bird on it!

I love Portlandia. Having lived in Portland for a while, it's fun to see the playful jabs at the Portland stereotypes.

As an aside, if OKC did take more cues from PDX in our attempt to better ourselves as a city, as somebody who lived there and loved every second of it, I think it would be a great direction for us. However, the people here are just far too different from the typical Portlander. Portland wasn't designed to be awesome, it became awesome on its own, organically. OKC's government and management is trying to engineer something in that manner, but the people here are far too conservative to really foster an environment like that. Portland is what it is because it's always been attractive to the liberal arts mentality: poets, writers, musicians, visual artists and so forth. OKC doesn't have that attraction. In fact, its only real attraction is the cost of living, at least for outsiders. The cost of living is the reason I moved back. But the cheaper living has costs of its own, unfortunately.

The ever-growing image of Oklahoma being a theocratic state of fundamentalist Christians is working efficiently to counter any attraction this place has to the creative class. Which is a shame, because the city could be great; we're just falling victim to the Christian majority's insistence on imposing religious values in a venue that truly should be at all times secular and reasonable. You don't have things like this in Portland at all. It's just an entirely different world, and I'm afraid that's why any attempts to emulate Portland will fail. You have to change the people first, then the rest will evolve naturally.

[mcca7596]

Put a bird on it!

I love Portlandia. Having lived in Portland for a while, it's fun to see the playful jabs at the Portland stereotypes.

As an aside, if OKC did take more cues from PDX in our attempt to better ourselves as a city, as somebody who lived there and loved every second of it, I think it would be a great direction for us. However, the people here are just far too different from the typical Portlander. Portland wasn't designed to be awesome, it became awesome on its own, organically. OKC's government and management is trying to engineer something in that manner, but the people here are far too conservative to really foster an environment like that. Portland is what it is because it's always been attractive to the liberal arts mentality: poets, writers, musicians, visual artists and so forth. OKC doesn't have that attraction. In fact, its only real attraction is the cost of living, at least for outsiders. The cost of living is the reason I moved back. But the cheaper living has costs of its own, unfortunately.

The ever-growing image of Oklahoma being a theocratic state of fundamentalist Christians is working efficiently to counter any attraction this place has to the creative class. Which is a shame, because the city could be great; we're just falling victim to the Christian majority's insistence on imposing religious values in a venue that truly should be at all times secular and reasonable. You don't have things like this in Portland at all. It's just an entirely different world, and I'm afraid that's why any attempts to emulate Portland will fail. You have to change the people first, then the rest will evolve naturally.

[Celebrator]

I am very familiar with Portland as well. And while I love how walkable it is and what they have done with public transportation and the arts, etc., I love the people here so much more. I am Christian, I am conservative (not from the religious right, though), but I am also in favor of high environmental standards and developing a diverse cultural scene here. I want to prove that a very RED city in a very RED state can be a "cool" place to live for the young, creative class. I think it is possible. I will probably get clobbered for that on here, but I don't think a place has to be "liberal" to be cool and attractive towards the demographic that cities so covet. Maybe I'm dreamin', but I don't think you have to change the people to emulate what Portland has done. Let's prove the trends wrong!

[lasomeday]

Put a bird on it!

I love Portlandia. Having lived in Portland for a while, it's fun to see the playful jabs at the Portland stereotypes.

As an aside, if OKC did take more cues from PDX in our attempt to better ourselves as a city, as somebody who lived there and loved every second of it, I think it would be a great direction for us. However, the people here are just far too different from the typical Portlander. Portland wasn't designed to be awesome, it became awesome on its own, organically. OKC's government and management is trying to engineer something in that manner, but the people here are far too conservative to really foster an environment like that. Portland is what it is because it's always been attractive to the liberal arts mentality: poets, writers, musicians, visual artists and so forth. OKC doesn't have that attraction. In fact, its only real attraction is the cost of living, at least for outsiders. The cost of living is the reason I moved back. But the cheaper living has costs of its own, unfortunately.

The ever-growing image of Oklahoma being a theocratic state of fundamentalist Christians is working efficiently to counter any attraction this place has to the creative class. Which is a shame, because the city could be great; we're just falling victim to the Christian majority's insistence on imposing religious values in a venue that truly should be at all times secular and reasonable. You don't have things like this in Portland at all. It's just an entirely different world, and I'm afraid that's why any attempts to emulate Portland will fail. You have to change the people first, then the rest will evolve naturally.

I too lived in Portland and I don't think what attracts people more than the liberalism is the scenery and things to do. I feel that OKC could have just as much or more arts/scene if cultivated more. We are on the right track except the busting of the food trucks. Portland's food truck scene is amazing! Austin is the only place that compares in that sense.

There are a lot of conservatives (nothing like the conservatives here) in Oregon that hate the liberals moving in and how they have altered their state. They are ready for them to leave. They HATE the liberals from California and the east coast moving in. They didn't have any problems with conservative me from Oklahoma.

The city of OKC pushing things down our throats will backfire. I see it happening already. If they don't listen to what the people are saying there will be some people out of office soon. I hope.

I disagree with the Christian blah blah blah. Liberals are more judgmental than the mass of Christians in OKC. In the state that is a different story. The fact that you say the "fundamentalist Christians" shows your bias.

I don't want OKC to be like Portland, but a more friendly open place. People in Portland can be downright hateful. Not as bad as in Oakland, but close as more Californians move there. I almost got in a fight with one mean lady that confronted my friend. She just started screaming at her in the middle of the street. It was not pretty! We were just walking down the street. That would never ever happen here.

Salt Lake City actually has radical Christians and radical liberals that have melted together to make a great city. I have spent a lot of time there and it embraces the arts and musicians. It is the stereotype of your "fundamental Christians". Yet it has one of the best urban environments with an insane farmers market and other great attractions that you would not expect like you do of Portland. So your blaming the Christians is off base and a liberal means of blaming them for not having the same stuff.

OKC is 20 years behind Portland in development. They have the street cars and the urban growth boundaries that created the urban density. The urban density is what attracts the creative class. We are just now realizing this. The mindsets you mention have nothing do with it. It is planning and economics that have more to do with attracting the creative class. And I feel once we have an economies of scale downtown with enough business and people living downtown, things will start growing like crazy. Look at Midtown...

[lasomeday]

I am very familiar with Portland as well. And while I love how walkable it is and what they have done with public transportation and the arts, etc., I love the people here so much more. I am Christian, I am conservative (not from the religious right, though), but I am also in favor of high environmental standards and developing a diverse cultural scene here. I want to prove that a very RED city in a very RED state can be a "cool" place to live for the young, creative class. I think it is possible. I will probably get clobbered for that on here, but I don't think a place has to be "liberal" to be cool and attractive towards the demographic that cities so covet. Maybe I'm dreamin', but I don't think you have to change the people to emulate what Portland has done. Let's prove the trends wrong!

You are totally right. I has nothing to do with Liberal or Conservative. Salt Lake City is a great example! I love that city. It is very urban and very very very conservative. They make Oklahoma look blue! The people are there are very friendly as friendly as here and it is a very clean and diverse downtown that is exploding with development.

[White Peacock]

My statement wasn't an attack of any sort, so don't misread me. It was an observation from my vantage as a somewhat-liberal, non-Christian Oklahoman. And to put it plainly, I emphasized fundamentalist Christians because by and large, with their hands in the state's political game, they have the biggest voice. I agree that outside of OKC is where the bulk of the issue lies, but any city is bound by the laws of its host state. And with all these fundies in office from all over the state coming to the capital and dishing out ridiculous laws that make international news (no babies in our food, please), that's the impression of our state as a whole - OKC included - that's impressed upon everybody who may be considering this as a potential relocation site.

I'm not saying that it's one's belief in Jesus, or one's right-leaning political views, that's responsible for the unattractive atmosphere, but the fact that as a whole, the scales are very lopsided toward the right. And frankly, that's unappealing to the creative class. If we want our cities to attract the creative class, our lawmakers and policy makers are simply going to have to make some sacrifices. If I'm looking to relocate to a new city, I look at the scenario holistically. And the stricter a place's policies are regarding things like alcohol, marijuana and other hot-button social issues, the less likely I am to look further into it.

lasomeday, in what part of Portland did you live? I lived along Hall Blvd. in Tigard. Ten minutes up 99W to downtown PDX. It was great! I experienced perhaps one event that felt threatening to me while living there, and I spent almost all of my available time either in downtown or in the Hawthorne District. But of course, mileage may vary. I didn't frequent Felony Flats...it was far too much like SE OKC.

It's true that the landscape surrounding Portland is a major attraction for people. 1.5 hours to the coast and one hour to be deep into the Cascades, it really can't be beat.

[Celebrator]

I too lived in Portland and I don't think what attracts people more than the liberalism is the scenery and things to do. I feel that OKC could have just as much or more arts/scene if cultivated more. We are on the right track except the busting of the food trucks. Portland's food truck scene is amazing! Austin is the only place that compares in that sense.

There are a lot of conservatives (nothing like the conservatives here) in Oregon that hate the liberals moving in and how they have altered their state. They are ready for them to leave. They HATE the liberals from California and the east coast moving in. They didn't have any problems with conservative me from Oklahoma.

The city of OKC pushing things down our throats will backfire. I see it happening already. If they don't listen to what the people are saying there will be some people out of office soon. I hope.

I disagree with the Christian blah blah blah. Liberals are more judgmental than the mass of Christians in OKC. In the state that is a different story. The fact that you say the "fundamentalist Christians" shows your bias.

I don't want OKC to be like Portland, but a more friendly open place. People in Portland can be downright hateful. Not as bad as in Oakland, but close as more Californians move there. I almost got in a fight with one mean lady that confronted my friend. She just started screaming at her in the middle of the street. It was not pretty! We were just walking down the street. That would never ever happen here.

Salt Lake City actually has radical Christians and radical liberals that have melted together to make a great city. I have spent a lot of time there and it embraces the arts and musicians. It is the stereotype of your "fundamental Christians". Yet it has one of the best urban environments with an insane farmers market and other great attractions that you would not expect like you do of Portland. So your blaming the Christians is off base and a liberal means of blaming them for not having the same stuff.

OKC is 20 years behind Portland in development. They have the street cars and the urban growth boundaries that created the urban density. The urban density is what attracts the creative class. We are just now realizing this. The mindsets you mention have nothing do with it. It is planning and economics that have more to do with attracting the creative class. And I feel once we have an economies of scale downtown with enough business and people living downtown, things will start growing like crazy. Look at Midtown...

Really, some excellent points here; and I hadn't thought of SLC as an example, but it's a brilliant one. And urban density will do the trick, that is the key. The Blvd. really is a pivotal project. That single strip of development holds so much potential for being a catalyst for changing downtown forever. I can't wait to see how it transforms. We only have one shot at it.

[Celebrator]

My statement wasn't an attack of any sort, so don't misread me. It was an observation from my vantage as a somewhat-liberal, non-Christian Oklahoman. And to put it plainly, I emphasized fundamentalist Christians because by and large, with their hands in the state's political game, they have the biggest voice. I agree that outside of OKC is where the bulk of the issue lies, but any city is bound by the laws of its host state. And with all these fundies in office from all over the state coming to the capital and dishing out ridiculous laws that make international news (no babies in our food, please), that's the impression of our state as a whole - OKC included - that's impressed upon everybody who may be considering this as a potential relocation site.



I'm not saying that it's one's belief in Jesus, or one's right-leaning political views, that's responsible for the unattractive atmosphere, but the fact that as a whole, the scales are very lopsided toward the right. And frankly, that's unappealing to the creative class. If we want our cities to attract the creative class, our lawmakers and policy makers are simply going to have to make some sacrifices. If I'm looking to relocate to a new city, I look at the scenario holistically. And the stricter a place's policies are regarding things like alcohol, marijuana and other hot-button social issues, the less likely I am to look further into it.

lasomeday, in what part of Portland did you live? I lived along Hall Blvd. in Tigard. Ten minutes up 99W to downtown PDX. It was great! I experienced perhaps one event that felt threatening to me while living there, and I spent almost all of my available time either in downtown or in the Hawthorne District. But of course, mileage may vary. I didn't frequent Felony Flats...it was far too much like SE OKC.

It's true that the landscape surrounding Portland is a major attraction for people. 1.5 hours to the coast and one hour to be deep into the Cascades, it really can't be beat.

I see validity in these points here as well, and I don't think their truth can be denied. As I stated above, I am a Christian, but sometimes legislation here is over the top and does not reflect my vision for society (and this city) through my Christian lens. I often am frustrated at how the Republican party has been hijacked by the Radical Right. And I do think, since the creative class tends to be more liberal, I can see how the media coverage of some of our political activities here does not have a positive impression on them...causing them to not consider OKC a city that appeals for relocation.

Good discussion here.

[White Peacock]

I see validity in these points here as well, and I don't think their truth can be denied. As I stated above, I am a Christian, but sometimes legislation here is over the top and does not reflect my vision for society (and this city) through my Christian lens. I often am frustrated at how the Republican party has been hijacked by the Radical Right. And I do think, since the creative class tends to be more liberal, I can see how the media coverage of some of our political activities here does not have a positive impression on them...causing them to not consider OKC a city that appeals for relocation.

Good discussion here.

If more people realized that religion was one's personal relationship with whatever deity they worship, rather than a springboard for political influence, it would improve things for all parties involved. It would strengthen the meaning and purpose of religion, and it would not cause social disruption when the natural evolution of society moves it further away from the established religion of the culture in question. But as it stands now, it's vitriolic. The major religions are at odds with this evolving world culture, and rather than adapting, or at least accepting the change, they are fighting to maintain control of the population, and this has only bred resentment between religion and the secular.

I get the impression that you're a pretty open minded and reasonable Christian with more of a live and let live philosophy. More of that from those who claim to be your leaders would do wonders to reverse the sullying of the image of the faith.

Regarding urban growth boundary - that's definitely the way to go. You don't see much in the way of run-down, abandoned buildings in Portland, because obviously any new business is forced to find an existing structure to set up shop in, or build within the city limits. It really makes the people feel better about their city, that everywhere you go there is life. I see great strides in that direction with the Midtown Renaissance. But I do think it still has a decade or two to go before it's as vibrant as I'd personally like. It's somewhat like the construction of artificial coral reefs. You can set down the structure, but it takes some time before you know if the coral will take to it. That's why Midtown is a big gamble. If everything just remains steakhouses and services (such as insurance, etc.), then your coral simply haven't taken to their artificial reef. I'd like to see it become a real, walkable strip where I can spend my day going in and out of unique shops, have a cheap lunch and a cider at a non-chain, non-upscale restaurant or cafe, and maybe catch a concert at the end of the day. If I can make a day of this without having to drive anywhere but that district, then I'll believe that we're really on our way.

This is my take on it as a resident. Using cities with which I have direct experience and would use as models, Portland has downtown, Hawthorne, Belmont, Nob Hill, and the Pearl District, and they're all very vibrant destinations within the city. Edmonton has Whyte Ave./Old Strathcona and it also more than fits the bill. London, you have the original Nob Hill, Picadilly Circus, Camden Town, Covent Gardens, and a load of other such spots. I'd like OKC to have a few of these destination neighborhoods.

EDIT: I'm not a marine biologist, so apologies if my analogy wasn't on the mark.

[RadicalModerate]

I have the feeling that members of the "creative class" who live in Oklahoma City would sort of resent the idea that Oklahoma City doesn't cater to "creative types."

[bbhill]

I would highly recommend Portlandia to anyone who would like to waste away a good weekend. Season 1 is on netflix. Season 2 is in progress, so you'll have to obtain it by "other means".