Two more reasons I heart Portland

    **Note: first off, let me say how sorry and ticked off I am at myself for not taking my camera with me to Portland, so there are no good pictures to go with this post, and believe me, I missed more than a couple of amazing photo opps on Sunday morning., including the most beautiful cup of hot chocolate I have ever seen or tasted**
     Anyway, I hope you're not sick to death of hearing about Portland yet.
     I was back in Portland this weekend, along with my Mom the Sewing Queen no less, to see Norah Jones in concert. The Norah Jones. It was a Mother's day gift to both the Sewing Queen and myself, from my daughters. (are they incredible women, or what?!)
     *sigh* Nora Jones. In the fourth row, no less! I've never had better seats for a concert. (I mean, we could almost touch her)  The concert was held at  Schnitzer Hall which is just such a fabulous place anyhow, with all the ornate detail work of an old building. You know, the kind of building so grand it even has those ornate looking drinking fountains that run water non stip, and elaborate molding throughout. Just beautiful.
     I am not sure if seeing Norah up close and personal was my favorite part of the evening, or watching the Sewing Queen, tickled half to death sitting there that close to Norah.Oh yes, she'll be sharing this weekend memory with her golf buddies for the rest of the summer, whether they know who Norah Jones is, or not. (My kids have a pretty hip Grandma...)
    Sunday morning we decided that we must take the Sewing Queen to Mother's. You remember Mother's, right? Well, I was so ticked at myself for forgetting my camera (I left the batteries charging and the empty camera on my desk as I hurried out the door to Portland) because this trip to Mother's should have been caught on film.
     We arrived at Mother's at 8:40 Sunday morning. Well, they don't open until 9:00, and there were already two groups of people waiting for them to open, so we got in line. The bride-to-be said, "Just wait till they open and see what happens". OK...
     By 9:00 the line for Mother's wrapped all the way around. the. block. There must have been seventy people in line. Just a gigantic crowd of Portlanders, patiently waiting, chatting and enjoying the perfect weather, waiting for the oh-so-incredible Mother's Bistro to open, so they could start thier Sunday off right. These people know how to live.
     The door opened and a very flamboyant host bounded to of Mother's door in a very Broadway play sort of way. In his hand he had a big triangle style dinner bell. He flitted all the way out into the street, and at the top of his lungs (again, with a Broadway style) He began to ring the dinner bell and shouted,(almost sang it really) "Coooooooooome aaaaaaaaaand get it!" and waltzed back inside to the host podium to begin seating people. Is this the right way to start your day, or what?!
     Aah, only in Portland! I tell you, I love this city!!!!!!!