So It’s Come to This: An (In)Action Clip Post

2024 is ending so here are some lists, and lists within lists

Dec 23, 2024

Greyhound station in Albany, NY (May 2024).

Happy holidays! Here’s an (In)Action Clip Show some of my favorite posts from this past year organized in Love/Hate lists 2024. Because one hand is always fighting the other hand…

The Top Tens of 2024

1. Taking the Amtrak

I finished 2023 and began 2024 riding the Amtrak from Phoenix to Los Angeles to San Francisco to Portland on an extended holiday trip visiting Taylor’s family and mine. Just wow. What a way to see the Southwest, California Coast, and later Southern Oregon snowy forests.

Then in May, Taylor and I took the Amtrak up from New York City to Montreal, well at least halfway before we had to switch to a bus due to last minute track maintenance. On it I listened to a long podcast interview about a guy who robbed banks because he was the most functional heroin addict of all time. He got caught after robbing the same bank for a third time, but briefly escaped by floating down the Hudson River at night. It felt nice to get a sense of place through audio storytelling.

Then in the summer I went with some friends to Seattle to watch the Mariners beat the Phillies1 on a walk off walk, which was less shameful for the Phillies than for Connor’s pathetic attempt at the 9-9-9 challenge (see more about this in the Portland Mercury). We later returned to Seattle in the Fall for a cold ass Friday night game on Montlake where UCLA lost to Washington (the Horde) on World of Warcraft Night which featured a lot of players as Orcs and Elves or whatever. But a true highlight is getting to sit at a table with all your friends playing Rummy instead of strapped into a car seat belt like a baby.

The group rates are crazy good if you’re planning a trip with friends. For groups of 8 it’s 60% off your tickets!

2. All things Dune

Read a LOT of Dune while I was recovering from injury, then Dune Part 2 came out and it was amazing, also Corbs and Matt Ellis had me on their podcast Pacific Northwest Insurance Corporation Movie Film Podcast to talk about David Lynch’s Dune (1984). All of this and still Patrick (Taylor’s roommate) didn’t invite us to their Dune party that featured a paper mache sandworm and some homemade Water of Life.

The definitive order of how good the books are goes like this: 1) Dune 2) Children of Dune 3) Messiah 4) Heretics 5) God Emperor 6) Chapterhouse

3. Montreal Bike Share

While Portland’s Bureau of Transportation was completely gutting their “Biketown for All” Program, I was in Montreal—a real city. Originally Portland’s quasi-”universal” program of free bike share passes2 was quite remarkable, if extremely means tested. However we continue to find ways to kick ourselves in the balls. The reason the city wanted to slash the program? Well, as Bike Portland reported, because it “has become a victim of its own success.” Yes, too many people were using it.

The article continues, “PBOT says in order to focus on Portlanders with the lowest incomes, they will no longer offer Biketown for All to all college student aid recipients. Only Pell Grant recipients will be eligible. And being a member of the TriMet Honored Citizen program isn’t enough to qualify, you must also receive TriMet’s low-income and/or unemployment assistance.”

Obviously the Nike sponsored, Lyft operated BikeTown for All had problems. Namely the For All part, as this was not a true universal program, but one that was utilized as an alternative to driving by many poor Portlanders (and those lucky enough to live in the Inner Eastside neighborhoods they included). This change however is not only deeply unserious for a city that likes to tout its environmentalism and plans to meet anti-carbon climate goals. I fear it’s a sign of more austerity liberalism to come.

Many climate and transit pessimists like to say we must look to Europe, at cities many centuries older, built without cars in mind, for municipal governments that can accommodate carless city centers, bikes, and other transit forms that are safe, affordable, and green. And while some people are caught off guard upon hearing the odd dialect of French, I can assure you Montreal, Quebec is not Europe. It’s in North America. And it has protected bike lanes in both directions on almost every major street, it’s the fastest form of transportation most places within 5 miles, and their bike share platform Bixi, while not free, is CHEAP. Like $18 /month USD (or $75/6 months) for unlimited rides under 45 minutes cheap. In Portland it cost me half of that monthly fee for one 2.5 mile ride back to my apartment from the Amtrak station. Rush hour in Montreal is a beautiful and haunting reminder of what could be, a line of 20 people at every stop light on the fully concrete protected bike lane corridors. Most people, able to get where they need to go without a car and without breaking the bank. Get real Portland!

4. New Seasons Workers Going on Strike and Customers Who Boycott

I chronicled a lot of the recent happenings in NSLU bargaining for a first contract and industrial action at New Seasons Market: a ULP strike, a Labor Day Strike, a Thanksgiving strike and holiday boycott, an in depth look at How to March on the Boss at your job. New Seasons is a labor fight of cosmic connections. After my latest reporting a guy who has the exact same name as me (and also happens to live in Portland) reached out because a friend forwarded him the article thinking it was his. Well this guy says his mom thinks we're second or third cousins, so now I got a new research project. Please don’t look up or be weird to the other Cameron Crowell.

5. SoHo House and All of Portland’s “Celebrities”

When Portland is a city that doesn’t have rich people like THAT, nor do we have anyone famous-FAMOUS, who tf even goes to SoHo House? My list of suggestions, from Penis Girl to Blazers Twitter Chefs!

6. The From Below Microcinema

Stefan, Hadley, and Charlie do weekly screenings in their NE Portland basement turned microcinema and announce showings every Saturday via an email listserv and Instagram post. A year into their programming I’ve been able to go to five really great movies so far. Check ‘em out.

I also saw It’s A Wonderful Life after this post went up which is maybe #2 or #3.

7. Basketball

Between—Dyke Hoops 3on3 basketball tournament, pickup basketball at various parks around town, rec basketball embarrassment/injury, Saudi Aramco’s Seth Allen’s Secret Basketball Podcast, Gill Coliseum at Oregon State being called “Cameron Indoor West,” Blazer’s tickets being extremely affordable,3 and (another) wonderful Amtrak trip with Taylor to Eugene to watch UCLA beat the Ducks on a banked in three—we have an embarrassment of Basketball riches here in Oregon.

8. Riding my bike again

By spring time my ass was done being constipated from daily opiod usage and playing Baldur’s Gate 3 on the couch of my apartment. It was time to get back on that saddle and make up for lost time biking. I redownloaded Strava and made a goal of getting to 2,000 miles before the end of the year, starting with the LADDS 500 which I wrote about in Bike Portland. [Edit: I hit 2000 miles 12/26!!!) As of writing this I’m at 1,977 miles and have 8 days left. If I lock in, I’m going to make it.

9. Pittsburgh, PA

Have you ever visited Western PA in Fall, see all the colors, chat with some true Yinzers, go to a Steelers game, see a Democrat win back their seat by a 10 point margin, and watch Kamala’s epic flop? It’s a beautiful time to be alive.

10. Family & Friends & Lovers who helped me recover from the most annoying injury ever

Between Taylor loving me and getting me stuff when I couldn’t get up, my mom flying out to drive me around pre/post surgery, my roommate Fiona switching her room for my basement room so I didn’t have to use stairs, grandparents buying me Dune books, and all the homies bringing my stuff or just watching some basketball/movies with me, I felt the love. Thank you!

When there was still hope and possibility in the world (August 2024).

Ten Things I Hate About 2024 (Cause it mostly sucked)

1. Tearing my ACL playing basketball

Okay. Maybe adults should give up on sports altogether. This wasn’t worth it. But pay me and you can see the pictures ($$$)

2. The way a Volcano Public Transit System destroyed my home town

Los Angeles has been completely melted, returned back into the depths of hellfire and magma, and it’s all because you fucking YIMBY liberals wanted to extend the Metro line!!! Talked about Volcano (1997) on Big Corbs’ and Ellis’ podcast.

3. Wicked’s historical revisionism on the oppression and resistance struggle of the real proletarian subjects of Oz—Munchkins

This one should be self explanatory but I see way too many people holding space for literal anti-Munchkin propaganda I thought we were done with after Wizard of Oz (1939). But if I must… There was a recent film that came out, Wicked Part 1, which is the 2.5 hour adaptation of the first half of the Broadway musical of the same name4 (the musical’s entire run time is around 2 hours with an intermission). As you may know this Movie (and the original musical) is basically an origin story for the Wicked Witch of the West, the villain in Wizard of Oz.

This film features some great set pieces (in the first half at least) and some awesome vocal performances.5 With that being said, the premise is essentially to make out the Wizard to be a creepy, non-magical fascist man exploiting the poor, misunderstood witch Elphaba. Okay I’m mostly with you there. But the witch herself is depicted as a pariah amongst the dumb, backwards, racist, animal hating, country bumpkins of Munchkinland—Munchkins. The original songwriter even plainly said he needed to “reimagine” the “Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead” sequence for it being morbid in the original film.

Well yea! Maybe because she was a fucking Witch! One that terrorized Munchkins, every time her or the Wicked Witch of the West got angry they destroyed everything around them, they ruled with an iron fist with their enslaved flying monkey army, and forced munchkins into hiding or played dead like possums when she was nearby. These two witches were the oppressors of the industrial working class of Oz and when Dorothy fell from that star known as Kansas, they sang and danced in the streets. Yea, because they just fucking killed Mussolini!

4. Pittsburgh, PA

Read about how it’s my fault Donald Trump is going to be President again, and other thoughts that union members in Western PA shared with me about the election. We’re all going to die.

Plumbers in the Mon Valley KNOW something we don’t (October 2024).

5. The Gambling Bank Robber Getting Caught

This was truly the best local article and headline of the year for me. What begins as money laundering turns to an addiction, which turns to an even more sinister addiction.

Before there was Luigi Mangione there was…

6. FAKES!!!

While the battle against fake friends is eternal, I wrote about a different kind of “fake” for the Portland Mercury. The copycat: Elmyr de Hory, Orson Wells, The Dare.

7. Food Chain Bosses

I wrote about the ~~(In)Hospitality~~ restaurant industry as the final output of a trauma machine that rings out every last drop of juice from its workers till they’re nothing but a dried up, hollowed out fruit rind. Get involved with your local Food Chain Workers Alliance member group and fight for making it possible to eat in a just way.

8. Strip Club Owners that (allegedly) threaten you when you buy a drink in their bar to ask them about the union

This was one of the wackier stories I’ve come across both as a reporter covering and organizer helping workers form a union. But the Magic Tavern dancers deserve the world, and not union busting where a boss tries to choose to believe the law doesn’t exist.

9. Getting hit by a car & moving

10 out of 10 do not recommend getting hit by a car. And surprise, even if the guy who hits you is an empath,6 that’s still not much of a consolation!

(In)Action