"The Home of Our Governor and Other Decent People"

I know that I have been a little lacking on sewing content lately, but that's because nothing's worked out the way I planned.  I have one dress that still needs to have the lining finished and another that has turned into a muslin because of a problem with the fitting of the bust.  I've got it figured out, but I'll need to re-cut the whole dress to make it work.  However, I worked all weekend on a new pattern and just have the hem left, so I hope to have something pretty to show off before the end of the week.

Until then, here's how Mr. flyskim and I spent part of our holiday weekend.  Walking around Northeast Portland.  Irvington, to be exact.  We took the first half of Walk 4 from Portland City Walks by Laura O. Foster.  According to Ms. Foster, the title of this post is how the Irvington neighborhood used to be described in the first decade of the 20th century.

But for me, Irvington will always be the neighborhood where I lived when I first moved to Portland.  I'd like to say that I remember it fondly, but this is where I studied for a major licensing exam and where I spent nearly six months looking for work afterward. 

This is my old building.  I had the crappiest apartment in the place, because that was the only way I could afford the area, and between being right next to the metal security door that people slammed all night and day, the laundry room at the end of the hall and the carpenter ant infestation, you couldn't pay me to ever move back.  

But the area is beautiful, and the homes are sometimes breathtaking.

This Queen Anne is a stunner.

I don't think we have enough stuff to fill up even one floor.

This home isn't made out of stone.  It's actually cement.

We checked out a few home sale flyers, and, well, I was going to say that I nearly had a heart attack, but I'm very aware of what homes in this area cost, so it wasn't a surprise.  However, it did raise the question (again) of how people out there afford these homes.  Particularly people in their 20s and 30s.  Do people really make that much money?  Or are they spending every dime that doesn't go to utilities, gas and food on their mortgage?  I bring this up because we know no one like this.  None of our friends are rolling in cash and none of our friends are house poor either.  I know that there are people out there who bought before the neighborhood exploded, but I'm not talking about them.  I mean the people out there buying today.  It's a favorite topic of mine, and I don't think I'll ever get a handle on the answer.  People who can afford houses that are substantially more that we can afford will continue to astound and amaze me.

Anyway, I'll leave you with a couple of things that I thought were particularly interesting.  First, bushes.

This is what I hope our hydrangeas grow into someday.

Second, a fully-plumbed tree.  I think this is where the Keebler Elves must spend the winter.

Any ideas of what this pipe was or is for now that it's a part of the tree?

So, that was our Labor Day weekend activity.  I'll be hemming later tonight, so I have great hopes for my wadder streak turning around.