Oregonlive

You can almost visualize it.  Hundreds of families lining up to get into the Portland Art Museum, the first few pressing against the glass at the ticket counter.  When from the back of the room strides a local couple . . . they wave everyone inside, crack open their wallet and say “We got it.”

OK, maybe it didn’t happen quite like that, but a $1 Million donation by Robert and Sharon Miller will cover admission for every family at the museum four Sundays a year.  

This isn’t the first donation made by the couple but certainly the largest.  Word is some kids questioned why they couldn’t donate the million to Chuk E Cheese or Oaks Park.

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When Daniel Rice gets out of prison a little over a year from now, he’ll have to call a buddy to come pick him up.  And when he goes to the grocery store for the first time “on the outside” he’ll have to take a cab or the bus.  And Ten years from now, when he wants to go to the mall, he’ll have to walk.

Daniel Rice is never driving a car again.  Why?  He has SEVEN DUII convictions.  And not just seven in the past few months.  His habit of popping the cork before hopping behind the wheel spans 15 years.  Looking at that pattern of behavior, a Yamhill County Judge finally said that Rice just doesn’t get it.  His latest conviction gets 14 months in the slammer and a permanently suspended drivers license.

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This one is just too good.  If you’ll recall, cops statewide were hunting down people who were not driving their seat belts the past two weeks and handing out fines.

Well, during the blitz they spotted Alex Park in Salem.  It turns out Mr Park was on probation for cocaine and not properly buckled into his car.

When cops pulled him over for the seatbelt ticket, they checked out his ride and found 33 grams of cocaine and 11 grand in cash in a hidden compartment.  Even better, Park was within 1,000 feet of a school.

Between the probation violation, lack of seat belt, driving with a suspended license, possession, manufacture and delivery of cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school, his bail added up to over a million dollars.

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People in Portland and Vancouver are spending less time sucking exhaust and listening to honking horns these days.

A report by Inrix out of Kirkland WA (they’re a group that monitors traffic patterns all over the country . . . kind of like Tom Cruise in MI3) says Portland is the 23rd worst city in terms of congestion these days.  Last year, we were 21st.

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We’re all afraid of Identity Theft.  Beyond the financial hardship it can cause, when someone else runs around with your credit card YOU wind up sentenced to months and months of constant phone trees and customer service reps as you try to untangle the mess left behind.  Just stealing from someone is bad enough, but condemning them to a year of phone-tree hard labor is downright inhuman.

So when cases like Christina Foos’ cross the GoodNews desk, we can’t help but cheer a little bit.  The 35-year-old admits she lifted credit cards from the Sherwood City Hall and went on a shopping spree.  Then, she hightailed it to Arizona (a violation of her parole for previous crimes).

But running from the law doesn’t always work.  Cops stayed on her trail, tracking her down and hauling her back to Washington County where she pled guilty to multiple counts.  Hopefully her victims will have sorted through their credit hiccups by the time she’s released in three years.  

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Carb-watchers beware.  Today, our nation pauses to pay tribute to that perfectly round, golden, flaky confection that, when properly drenched in butter and syrup, satisfies nearly any set of tastebuds and can slay any pang of hunger.

Yes, it is National Pancake Day.

To celebrate, IHOP’s nationwide are offering guest a free short stack (the flap-jackers ask that diners make a donation to the Children’s Miracle Network as a thanks for the free grub).

Now, if you’ll excuse us, there are more than ten IHOP locations in the Portland area and the GNPDX staff missed breakfast . . . . Pass the syrup!

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Megan Mylan wins for her short documentary

Oregon has a history of flirtation with film.  Ed Asner recently joined the state film board.  Gus Van Sant regularly wows the Hollywood set with films shot in the Rose City.  High Profile flicks like Untraceable are using Portland as a backdrop while more rural areas of the state are getting play in movies like Jennifer Aniston’s Management.

And, on Sunday night, Salem got a moment in the spotlight.  It turns out Megan Mylan, the mind behind this year’s Best Short Documentary (”Smile Pinki” about a little girl who undergoes surgery for a cleft lip), spent a chunk of her childhood in Salem and her folks still take vacations in the state capitol.  

Mylan now lives in New York but plans to return to her roots in April, showing Smile Pinki at the Salem Film Festival.

GNPDX also speculates that the win may make it a bit more tempting for Mylan to return to her 30-year elementary school reunion.

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Picture your average morning.  You wake up, shower, brush your teeth and reach into the closet.  We bet that on a “good morning” you have your favorite outfit, freshly washed and hanging right up front.  It’s the professional, presentable, perfect fit pairing of a top and bottom.  

And on a “bad morning” you’re stuck stuffing into the uncomfortable old pants and wrinkled shirt that you hide in the back of your closet for emergencies only.  Sound about right?

Now imagine you’re heading for a job interview, but you don’t have that “good morning” outfit.  In fact, you may not have the “back up” either.  Might hit your confidence just a bit, huh?

That’s why we at GoodNewsPDX love Dress for Success so much.  Women who are looking for work can visit and pick out an entire outfit, assisted by a personal shopper to make sure they leave looking like a million bucks.

Once they land the new gig, each shopper can come back for a second trip through the aisles of jackets, pants and skirts.  

But while the new clothes are nice, it’s the sense of confidence that seems to be the biggest value the store offers.  Some customers say they’ve searched for jobs for months with no success . . . only to find employment a couple weeks after visiting the Northeast PDX shop.

Despite the spike in need, organizers say supply is hanging in there but they can always use more donations.  There’s a huge piece in The Oregonian about their tenth anniversary if you’d like details on how to help out.

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For the first time since 2007, both Oregon and Oregon State nailed wins against Pac-10 opponents on the same day (The Ducks topped Stanford breaking a 14-game losing streak while the Beavs knocked off Cal to hit .500 on the season).  The Blazers went Tyson-Mcneely on the Clippers (116-87 on Sunday).

And Howard “yes I’ve had sex with underage girls before” Avery Howard “I admitted to John Canzano that I had sex with underage girls, something the Oregonian news department also documented” Avery is back behind bars on fresh charges.  Read more on that one here.

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This could be the spot of the first Pearl District public school

Like a child growing before our eyes, plans are now in place for the Pearl District’s first day of elementary school.

It seems like just yesterday the first condo tower’s doors opened and only moments later, the streetcar began to run past the hip eateries and trendy art galleries.

Now, as all those young, hip couples grow into young, hip families, their young hip children need a place to learn within reasonable distance of their front doors.

The plan would open a satellite school at NW 13th and Raleigh, starting with only a few young grades in 2011.  Long term, the goal is to take some of the pressure off of Chapman Elementary (about a mile from the heart of the Pearl) which is in danger of reaching critical mass in a few years.  Read more here.

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