Day 147
Is this like a cattle brand?
August 20th, 2010
I'm walking across America.
That's the idea, at least. I'm walking westward from New York City for nine months or so. If everything goes according to plan, I'll be in Oregon when the clock runs out. If nothing goes according to plan, maybe I'll end up in Peru or Mongolia or Pennsylvania. You can read all about the details of my trip if you're so inclined.
Email me at matt@imjustwalkin.com
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Here's my progress so far:
Yeah, the polyethylene gangs are horrible in Oregon!
yO yO yO… YOU AND YER POSSE DON’T RECYCLE NUMBER 7 PLASTICS..ESE?
THEN YOUR NOT DOWN ‘WIF US BRO…
TAKE YOU AND YOUR NON-OLIVE COLOR GLASS RECYCLING A$$ BACK
OVER THEM TRACKZ BEFORE I PUT A CAP IN ‘EM.
YOU HIPPY BEOTCHES!
(GREEN GANGS GONE WILD!)
Yup, mark em so they don’t get stolen or mistaken for a neighbor’s! Oregon loves recycling!!
You’re right, Jennie. Matt should feel right at home in Oregon, because it’s the most GREEN state I know! ;-}
Looks like love is in the air for the trash cans.
There’s always something in the air around trash cans.
Yup, two big trash cans fall in love and before you know it you have a bunch of little waste cans all around.
LOL!
LOL !!!!!
Moooo!!
Does that recycle bin say “Cloudburst Recycling”? Strange name….
If you lived in Portland, you wouldn’t think it was strange. In Western Oregon, people don’t tan…. they RUST!
too cute!!! i like that!!!
I guess you have to identify your cans somehow.
Boy, I hope there isn’t a law against copying someones words on their site. Is there? If so, I am very sorry and won’t do it again. Promise.
But I was totally curious why anyone would name a recycle business Cloudburst. So of course, waiting for Matt’s next picture means sitting here doing nothing, so I looked it up. It is a big site and ends with this:
(Names) recognized the need for a home pickup service to make recycling a convenient part of everyone’s life. (They) saw this as an impending need. There was a pent-up desire for many people to change the way we lived to become more environmentally responsible, and begin to reverse the damage our economy was doing to the natural environment.
The image of an approaching “cloudburst” seemed to represent this desire for imminent change, an unstoppable force, as well as the water cycle itself as an essential part of our living planet.
So now we know! A good name I think!!! OK does Matt have another photo up? Where is Matt now?
I love recycling. Nice brand. Maybe a Garbage Tatoo…that’s the ticket.
Yeah. I mean, guys get their girls name tatooed on their cans all the time, right? So, no difference.
Ha ha, Michael in Atlanta. Good one.
This could be used as a cattle brand. It’s a bit unconventional, but it’s up the livestock owners.
It would be amusing to see some cattle roaming out in the middle of nowhere with little hearts and arrows on their rumps (except for the obvious pain being branded causes them, which is in no way funny).
oh this is nice. I recycle too!
I *heart* recycling!
Ditto !!!
We’ll keep an eye out today. We live ’bout a half mile west of Mt. Tabor. Glad you’re enjoying the walk and Portland.
I have been doing some research while waiting ….. and wonder which bridge he will cross. There are about 10 bridges just in the downtown area. I favor him walking across the Sellwood. But not sure. He might use the Burnside Bridge, or maybe the Steel Bridge. Actually most will put him into the main part of the city, but getting out might be a bit hectic. If he uses the Sellwood Bridge, he can then sort of go ….. I don’t know. It is quite hilly no matter how he goes. Will he skirt the city, or just go through…which is sort of impossible. Lots of traffic. Want to keep him out of that. Guess no choice but wait and see!
Hawthorne bridge is by far the prettiest, has bike/walk lanes and just celebrated its 100th anniversary. That’s the way to go.
It appears that his planned route is over the Burnside Bridge. At least he’ll get to walk through the Pearl District. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Portland, the Pearl is where a lot of old building were converted into lofts, art galleries, shops, some micro-brew pubs, etc. Plus there has been a ton of new construction in the Pearl for some beautiful condo buildings.
I am trying to fix dinner AND watch the site! My laid back husband is getting frustrated…but I had a thought. I bet he crosses over the Burnside Bridge. Hobos do. They also go up Burnside. I lived off Burnside in NW Portland and it was commong to see Hobos walking up and down. Only they pushed unsophisticated Fred Meyer Grocery Carts! (Oh the stories I could tell). Anyway, if he goes Burnside, and if he is a reader, then he is probably right now in Powell’s Bookstore on Burnside. Powell’s. The biggest bookstore this side of the Mississippi. Wonder….off to keep the onions from burning.
If you look at the route in his trip details it shows him going over Burnside and if you look at the picture map he’s heading north towards Burnside.
I must have been typing when you were, lol!
Well, I guess Matt will be a” true” ” hobo” when he walks on “Burnside”, ha ha! But, I know he will be a very “sophisticated Hobo” when he pushes his “Mattmobile” on Burnside. No “Fred Meyer” grocery carts for him”. He has “status”! He has the “Mattmobile” custom made cart for him, He’s put well over 3000 miles on that cart. I think the manufacturer of that cart should use “Matt’s Journey” in their advertising.
I wonder how many “real” hobos he has come across? I think he’s stayed away from them and any dangerous areas though. (It’s a good thing. I know he has his “bear spray” and I think he has a can of mace on his list.) It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s come across a few “real” hobos in his walks. I’d sure like to see a book written from his notes in his journal.
I have absolutely NO idea how he is going through Portland, but I have been thinking which is dangerous. Here is my bet: He will go through Washington Park, past the zoo. He will cross over Sunset Freeway into Cedar Hills. He will find his way to Murray (Or Canyon). My bet is that he will find Farmington Road and go to Aloha. And if I am right, I then will tell you why I have had this sudden idea!
Karin, if you go to his home page, on the top right hand side, above the little map, click on “details of my trip”. When that page opens, click on “route and timetable”. Keep zooming in on the map, and you’ll see his route.
Thanks Donna in MI…..my computer is sometimes very slow downloading. But it was worth the wait. I know now where he will be going. Know the area well. It is somehow not the way I originally thought he would go. Now we will see if he keeps to this route. It definitely is the way to Tillamook at the coast and then just around the bend, Rockaway! Thanks again.
My mind just had a cloudburst thought and … well here it is….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9fwjox49Wk
After all, one mans trash is another mans treasure.
Don, I know you put that on for all of our little hobo’s. I remember watching that with my six month old son!
Hi Hobo Matt, Nation and Planet,
I have been following Matt’s magical journey for months and this is the first time I have blogged!(My kids won’t believe it) I check the site many times a day for the fabulous pictures and I just love the comment section. Don, you are just hysterical! I always smile after opening this site.
Matt, I know we all hope you continue your adventure and don’t leave us hanging in Hobo-ville. Thanks to everyone for the positive energy expressed daily and Matt I hope this trip brings you closer to your goals and aspirations . To your Mom, Dad and family you should be very proud of Matt his sensitivity, humor and his love of America shines through daily.
Wow, that’s back when Oscar was orange before he turned green. What a blast.
Having a ‘brand’ on them helps on those really windy days when everyone’s bins get blow down the street and you come home to find them in a pile at the end of the block. Not usually a big problem with the large bins but the little glass bins can really fly if they catch a good gust…
Nice little graphic. I like those people who go all year and only have a few pieces of trash to throw away…I want to be like that but it’s hard not to buy anything with packaging.
I just got back from a trip to Paducah, Ky to take a trunk full of recycling. We had a bin where I live and someone starting putting their garbage in it, so the county did away with it. Unreal. It like the people who throw their trash out along the road. Maybe I lived up in Minnesota for too long!!!!! Big on recycling.
I think your county should have hired the “GREEN” Oscar to guard your recycling bin and keep the dirty trash out.
Look were missing something important here ! He is about 90 miles from being done, That means by Wed. at the latest we have no updates…..We have to get him to do something else, My entertainment rest on Mats shoulders. I am glad for Matt that he is almost done but i am also sad that he is almost done.
That’s a good one Gary…the hundreds and maybe thousands (who knows) of people’s happiness and contentment now are ON Matt’s shoulders…I love that…I don’t know if Matt figured on THAT when he planned his trip…
Matt’s planning session: Let’s see, do I have water, snacks, the Mattmobile, pepper spray, sleeping bag…oh ya, I need very broad shoulders for all those who follow me on this trip…and count on me to help them through denial and recovery…check, got that…
I think that is the least he could plan for…
I have tried to go ALL day without looking. I am trying to slooowly wean myself off of this site. I know that he is not done yet, but I am going to make myself do something productive today. I am as addicted to you guys as Matt’s pics. Who would’ve known that could happen. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. :) :) :)
That’s 90 miles of mostly uphill ground…not flat land. He has to go over the coast range first. So, it could be a lot longer than we all think!
Matt!! Where are you? Hoping you’re making it through downtown Portland without any issues.
Get Along Little Doggie!
I need to keep this high going! here’s an idea. who’s up for convincing matt to walk from portland, OR, to portland MAINE!!!
Ya, he could take a wrong turn…maybe Google will do what the do so well…send wrong directions…though I do think Matt may think…”What a minute, isn’t this the long way to Rockaway Beach???”…
I was hoping to see piccs of the people he stayed with. He indicated he had places to stay in Portland, but, alas, no pics —yet.
Me too EDL. The people pics are so intriguing! Tick tock, waiting patiently……
Oh, Matt, you are so close now! You really have done it! Thanks for sharing along the way.
Julia
How are those Dawgs going to be this year? I am afraid we may need to recruit a few more Volunteers to be competetive this year, thanks to Lane ()Brain) Kiffin. We have a good series going with your Dawgs. GO SEC!!!
OH- and what is the talk about Derick Dooley being our new coach with his Dad Vince Dooley being the head coach and AD for so many years at GA. I heard Vince speak a couple of weeks ago at the Knoxville Sports Hale of Fame inductions. He seems lioke a class act!
Ahtens, GA is a pretty town. I went to a banking school in 1980 and 1981 at UGA. It was a fun place.
Should have learned to spell Athens!
Keep on point DnT, keep on point. Football blogs are 6 clicks in the opposite direction. :-)
I know what you’re getting at. It’s OK if Don gets “off” point” once in a while. No harm. I think Don is one of our best regular posters. I think we all get “off point” at some time in our posts. Give him some slack.
Donna
Thank you. College football is huge in the South just like it is in Wolverine Country! It is almost college football season and I am excited. After all I live 20 miles from Neyland Stadium (seats over 100K) and I have season tickets. If you click on Julie’s name it goes to UGA football, so I know she has to be a big fan. Pro sports are not a very big deal in the South!
Thanks again and GO VOLS and go BIG BLUE for you!
Awww..It’s a love tag! How cute. Around here we put our addresses on our cans. Makes it easier that way when you have some of the same cans for each house. We don’t have all the same garbage cans like some communities do but it’s still good to have them marked. When the wind blows here in the winter, our cans go down the road if not careful. I’ve lost cans that way, brand new ones and lids. I finally did what others do and put my house number on my cans. Now no one can say that my can is their can. lol.
As for recycling we don’t have curbside any more but we do have 2 large bins each, plastics and glass and then paper and cardboards. People really use them too. They’re constantly full and constantly being emptied. I think it’s great.
I wonder if the yellow bin has a baby heart…I love recycling.
My son said he should start walking south? Just saying :)
I agree Saun! Since we’ll be heading into fall and winter months, he should take the southern route back east!
I was looking for local news about Matt and found this youtube video. Not sure if it’s been posted before, but fun to see video of Matt. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nKDInwp0G3E
I am glad I go to the bottom of the comments from time to time because I had not viewed the youtube video of Matt, and since he hasn’t posted any new pics this video was just the ticket!
Alisa 11 ~ Thanks so much for this link! It was so fun to hear Matt talk about his trip and see a “typical” day for him. Also it was cool to hear his voice in explaining his walk. We all know he is a cool guy with a great sense of humor and it comes thru on the video really well. The Hobo Planet inhabitants are wonderful resourceful folks who post the best links to educate us all. Thanks again….
Alisa 11 that is such a cool video. It was good to hear Matt’s voice. Thanks for posting this.
Thank you for posting the link Alisa, it was so cool seeing Matt sitting down and talking about his walk.. and the cows were so close ;)
Wow. Thanks for that Alisa 11. As long as I’ve been following Matt’s blog I’ve not seen that! Go figure! I guess I’ll have to start over from the beginning again when this is over and click on all the different links people have posted. I don’t think this was posted before?
That was awesome Alisa!! I typically look at the links people have posted because they are usually interesting, funny or cool…this one was tops!!
Hail to our Chief Hobo! :)
wow, that was so neat, hearing his voice!
Thanks Alisa, I had never heard Matt talk before, so that was neat. Also, in his last sentence he says something about maybe just walking the country the rest of his life. There is hope!!!
John in Mi I heard that too. I bet that if he does he takes the winter off!!!!!
That was a great video…and it wasn’t tooshort…it covered lots of stuff…and lots of questions people have about Matt…
It’s funny but I never doubted or had any questions about Matt or his walk after I read his “Why” on his home page way back…I guess I accepted it…and him…it seemed honest and a bit funny…and straight…this video was the same…it has just built from there…I think Matt is genuine, real…”Just as he seems to be”…that’s enough for me…
Thanks for the video link. It is amazing how little you need to get by….a tent and some groceries. I found my extravagances have become clean laundry and a shower. : )
I’ve been thinking about branding my “yard trash” containers for awhile now, and I guess I’ll have to come up with a brand/logo. Mainly to identify them, if after they’ve been emptied, they get blown away, someday.
Another good photo! You see stories everywhere! Portland is a lovely city. Hope you have a chance to go up to the Japanese garden to the west( I think) of town. Lovely place, with great vistas.