Portlandia

Have you seen the new comedy series, Portlandia? From the show's web site, they say this: "PORTLANDIA's inhabitants include but are not limited to: the owners of a feminist book store; a militant bike messenger; an artsy couple who attach cut-outs of birds to everything ("put a bird on it!"); an organic farmer who turns out to be a cult leader; an adult hide and seek league; and a punk rock couple negotiating a "safe word" to help govern their love life."

The show is a parody of Portland, Oregon, the state's most populace city. The parody is not far from the truth. I arrived in Portland on Saturday and spent two days with Adam and Annie Fischler. Adam was a former student of mine; he graduated with a master's degree in Instructional Systems Technology (IST) from Indiana University, and for many years has done work in the area of human computer interaction design and research. In addition, Adam engages in a variety of woodworking and crafts projects; he's one of the most creative guys I know -- with a wonderful, dry sense of humor. Elizabeth Boling (former IST Department Chair and now Associate Dean for Graduate Studies in the School of Education), too, is a good friend and former professor of Adam's (they share a fondness for information architecture books). Elizabeth and I attended Adam and Annie's wedding last fall, and some years ago we spent time with Adam in his parents' beach house on the Oregon coast. Annie recently received her doctorate in English and her specialty is writing and rhetoric. Both are perfectly suited for one another.

On Saturday we toured a part of the city while hunting down a restaurant for dinner; in the end we chose not to wait in line anywhere and instead ordered a delicious pepperoni, basil, and arugula pizza and Caesar salad to take home while we watched a movie on Adam's large-screen set-up: "Man on Wire" is the film documentary of Phillipe Petit, who on August 7, 1974, walked on an illegally erected high wire secretly strung between New York's twin towers.

The following day, Sunday, Adam and I shared pastries at a local bakery and then we hiked in a state park. It was great fun walking among the moss-covered trees while we hypothesized the reasons for the popular rise of social networking systems (we discussed the evolution of language systems from ape communities as well as the economic complexities and uncertainties of our current day).

Every Sunday, Adam, Annie, and a small group of friends and family (Adam's sister and niece) gather for dinner at one of the participant's homes. Last night it was at their home and I was their guest. They cooked a wonderful Indian chili and a special slaw, complete with cornbread; it was delicious. After the guests left we watched the first episode of Downton Abbey, a PBS Masterpiece series, suggested by Justin Donaldson; I think we're now hooked!

This morning Adam and I had breakfast at Kettleman Bagels, and then we parted. Adam is a close friend -- someone who understands and lives a "big rocks" life.

Tonight I stayed in Olympia, Washington, the capitol of Washington. Tomorrow I will drive the short distance to Seattle and conclude my three week journey from Bloomington, Indiana.

The trip has both relaxed me, given me the opportunity to reconnect with past friends and students, and allowed me to mentally prepare for the tasks ahead -- the writing of a book on design pedagogy and the development of Glerb with Anoo and Vamshi. I can't wait.