Portland

Immediately after leaving New York, I arrived in Portland on my multi-city tour of the Pacific Northwest before settling down in the corner of Caitlin and Paul’s apartment in Mountainview, California.  I moved between the houses of three sets of aunts and uncles while going on daily escapades with aunts and grandmother to select a wedding venue.  We toured wine country, hiked Silvercreek Falls and Mount Hood, and celebrated with much of my extended family.  Fiancé Ken was (and is) still in New York, so I was given the daunting responsibility of selecting a place that we both wanted.

For over a year, we discussed having a folk-festival wedding with outdoor lawn seating, a lineup of at least three bands, and a merch. table.  It was going to be a low-key affair with food trucks and a wide selection of wine and beer, but in my week of searching, I really didn’t find the right place.  One problem was that a lot of sites are already booked for August 2013 when we are planning to hold the wedding.  I found some places that would work, and I liked them, but I didn’t love them and it would be a huge pain to pull everything off.  I finally found an available winery and olive oil mill that is beautiful, and it reminded me that I kind of do want a nice, fancy wedding and maybe a sensible chamber music festival model wouldn’t be the worst idea.  Folk is now out the window, but I do promise a lovely evening.