in defense of netflix.

dear netflix,

you and i have been together for a long time. since november 2004 actually. that’s longer than any relationship i’ve ever been in. and so far, you’ve never really let me down. sure, occasionally i’ve gotten a scratched disc, but you always dispatch a replacement within 24 hours. and yeah, sometimes you take an extra day or two to get my movies to me… but that could just as easily be the fault of the postal system. what i’m saying is that overall, it’s been good. really really good.

and then last year, we decided to take it to the next level. i purchased a roku, so that i could take advantage of your unlimited streaming. and i STREAMED. i streamed so hard. remember that time we watched all 7 seasons of buffy in a row? you’ve always known what i like.

2 dvds and unlimited streaming, all for a mere $15.74 a month. life was good.

but then, last month you announced that things were going to change. and at first, i felt hurt, betrayed… how could you do this to me after all of our good times together? 7 years of history, and you’re jacking up your rates?! $19.98 for my current plan to continue?

for a while, i stamped around like a spoiled brat.

but then, i realized something: netflix, you’ve been very good to me all these years. we’ve had 7 glorious years together, where i’ve taken all that you’ve had to give. and you only increased your prices once.

the reality is that our relationship has changed over the years. it takes me longer and longer to return my dvds (i’m pretty sure i had “logan’s run” for like 6 months), while i bask in your streamy goodness, every single day. maybe, it’s just time that we reconfigure the way that we do business.

so, i’ll make a deal with you. come september, i’m going to downgrade to streaming only. $7.99 for all the movies & crap tv that i can digest is a really really good deal. a great deal. a deal with a future. as for new releases and other various holes in your streaming library… (it’s hard for me to say this), i’m going back to videoport. it’s close to my house, and i’ve been feeling really guilty about not showing them more love over the last few years.

but i just wanted you to know how much i value our time together, and hope that we can continue seeing each other on these new terms for many years to come. i’ve paid a lot more for a lot less from other services, and it’s time i started giving you the credit and respect that you deserve. i took you for granted, and i will never let that happen again.

i love you netflix. i love you forever.

xo.

-a.

portland’s greatest hits.

remember that time i posted about all the things in portland that have been going out of business lately, and how bummed out about it i am? well, i’m still bummed out about it (north star- nooooooooo!), but i’m willing to let  it go… as long as the following 5 businesses promise me (blood may be required to seal the deal), that they will always be here. ALWAYS.

now, i didn’t just go for places that are fancy or popular. in fact, many of my favorites didn’t make the list (i’m sorry caiola’s and rosemont market, there just isn’t room for everyone!). i wanted places that were iconic, and integral to the structure that makes portland porltand. do you remember when jennifer grey got that nose job, and then she looked like nobody anymore and we all forgot about her? that’s what would happen to portland if these businesses went away. i’m THAT SERIOUS.

in no particular order…

1. material objects: first of all, we are extremely lucky that there are a lot of great consignment shops in this town, especially now that shit is going down with the economy. but material objects is the king of them all. i love that it still looks exactly like the 90s in there. i also love the fact that pretty much everything in the store is less than $20. friendly, unpretentious, and always stuffed full of dirt cheap fashiony goodness. love.

2. paul’s food center: ok, totally shifty- i would probably/definitely never buy produce there… but there’s just something about a sketchy independent grocery store plopped in the middle of town that warms my heart. it feels like the land before time in there, but with more drunks.

3. bill’s pizza: hub for late night wasted snackage, this is another kind of gross one for the list. their pizza isn’t very good (so salty), and kind of pricey (for a single slice of kind of shitty pizza), but they have beer and orange soda on tap, and if you’re lucky, you can hear drunk people having sex in the bathroom.

4. videoport: as a complete netflix whore, one wouldn’t figure that i’d be singing high praises to a video store,  but videoport feels like home. probably because it consistently employs the very best people in town, and last time i checked, netfilix didn’t have an “incredibly strange” section. it’s a cinematic archeological dig in there. i don’t care if all video is going online, videoport needs to stay open FOREVER. are you listening dennis?

5. yes books: YES. BOOKS. everywhere. piled into corners and on the floor. dusty and disorganized, like a vaguely alphabetical treasure hunt. i love the musty used book smell and the ornery owner. to me, it’s portland’s own tiny musty version of the embryo concepts bookstore from funny face.

honorable mentions: the eastland park hotel, geno’s, old port candy, and ferdinand.

what local landmarks do you refuse to live without (you don’t even have to live in portland)?