Last night I was in Downtown Portland to meet clients that were renting my condo for a long weekend and hand over keys. My 15 year old Daughter decided to come along since we hadn’t spent much time together in the past week. I later found out that her real interest was to shop along NW 23rd for a prom dress. We arrived about 6:45pm and I was surprised to find all the restaurants not only busy, but serving outside. Walking from shop to shop we were bombarded by all the great smells and activity on the sidewalks. Shops had merchandise set out next to the restaurants dining tables, music could be heard from a couple of pubs, and all of this on a Thursday night during a recession! How great is that. I sometimes forget that there is a whole other world in Downtown Portland. Best of all, it all had the distinct feeling of Summer which is still a few months away. One bad thing, my parallel parking skills stink.