Jeannean Hibbitts on fri 14 dec 07
I'm in Astoria and love it. It's a small town, about 10,000 people, with =
a growing arts community. We have several galleries in town, a beautiful =
restored theater downtown where we have concerts of all kinds, from =
opera to country western. We don't have a university, but we have a =
community college with a small but growing ceramics cult - it's where I =
got my start, and I continue to take classes to not only learn more but =
also to work with other artists. The instructor, Richard Rowland, has a =
dragon kiln at the back of his property, and students and other =
community artists participate in firings. (Maybe you saw the whale kiln =
exhibition during NCECA in Portland? That was Richard's doing.) He also =
brings in other professional ceramists to do workshops - the last one =
was Dave and Boni Deal who do beautiful raku work.=20
We have a Subway, McDonalds, Dairy Queen, KFC, and Burger King, but all =
the other restaurants in town (and there are many!) are locally owned =
and many are world class. Most of the houses in town were built 100 =
years ago or so, and have lots of character. No cookie cutter =
neighborhoods here. Astoria is built on a peninsula between the Columbia =
River and Youngs Bay, and many houses take advantage of the views. The =
best view is from the Astoria Column, atop a hill in the middle of town, =
where you can see for miles and miles. The next best view of the =
Columbia might be from the library at the community college. We have a =
Sunday Market that runs from May through September, which features local =
(within 100 miles anyway) produce and crafts - I've only seen a couple =
potters. Fishing and logging are still part of the community, and we =
have an annual Fisher Poets gathering in the winter. We have fisherman =
from all over the world come here to read their poetry and sing their =
songs in several venues around town. It's a cool thing. We also have an =
annual crab festival in April, which also features crafts booths. We =
have a Safeway but no big box stores, although they're putting in a Home =
Depot just down the road in Warrenton, which also has a Fred Meyers =
(groceries and some clothing, hardware, that sort of thing) and Costco. =
Seaside and Cannon Beach are just down the road - beach towns with lots =
of galleries and summer tourists. And about the beaches - the beaches in =
Oregon are all public. It's not unusual to have a beach all to yourself. =
There are beautiful state parks nearby, and we're in the center of the =
new Lewis & Clark Historical National Park.=20
Portland is about 1.5 hours away, Seattle is about 3. I buy my clay and =
glaze supplies at Georgie's in Portland. We have the Oregon Potters =
Association (I think they're at opa.org) and they have an annual =
showcase and sale at the expo center in Portland - another opportunity =
to sell your wares. It's big.
Politics in Astoria, as in most of Oregon is liberal Democrat, so if =
that's how you lean, you'll have plenty of good company. (I'm =
independent and I stay out of it.) Lots of green attitude, because we =
like what we have and want to keep it.
Our climate is milder on the coast than inland because we have the ocean =
to keep it moderate, so it's cooler in the summer (our idea of air =
conditioning is to open the windows and let the breeze off the ocean =
come through) and warmer in the winter. We do occasionally get snow, but =
it's just enough to look pretty and it melts quickly. We did just have =
that hurricane a couple weeks ago, but a storm that strong is very =
unusual. Our power was out for 4 days, but it was one of those special =
small community kinds of events, where we pulled together and helped =
each other out. If gray skies depress you, this might not be the place =
for you. We get lots of rain, mostly between October and April, and =
probably more overcast days than sunny days. (I'm just the opposite - =
too many sunny days in a row and I get depressed!) But July and August =
especially are glorious - highs maybe in the 70's. Perfect convertible =
weather, and great country roads! In the winter it rarely gets below =
freezing.=20
It's a great place for hiking, kayaking, bicycling, and surfing. You're =
never very far from water here. Also kite-flying, sailing, running, =
fishing. Astoria has a riverwalk on the banks of the Columbia, which is =
very popular among locals, and Warrenton is building the same sort of =
thing along their riverbank. Birdwatching, too. And gardening! It's a =
wonderful climate for growing things, and garden tours are popular here. =
We have a world class museum, the Columbia River Maritime Museum, and a =
historical museum or two. Historic preservation is a big thing here.
This might not be the place for you, but we love it and can't imagine =
living anywhere else. There's so much natural beauty here that's still =
unspoiled. And the people are so nice to each other. It's a =
one-of-a-kind place. Did I talk about the fresh salmon, crab, oysters, =
razor clams, sturgeon? - and Astoria has two coffee roasting companies =
and at least two microbreweries. And no freeways.=20
If you have any other questions, feel free to contact me. I know I'm =
forgetting something.
Jeannean
Spider Hole Pottery
in Astoria, Oregon, near the edge of the continent
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