Northwest Institute for Social Change: The Blog

Portland: Love

Hey people!

So I have been thinking about the nine of us as a group… Plus Phil and Ashly. Considering our small numbers, things could have gone wrong. We  all could have hated one another, or liked each other a little too much, if you know what I mean , or we could have been a group of losers, or a group of meanies.. But you know what? We work. And I don’t dislike anyone… In fact I really like everyone! (I would say I love everyone, but I don’t want to freak people out). My point is, I think we really lucked out – we are all reasonable, hard-working, fun, cool people; and, for the most part, we get along. You are probably all rolling your eyes right now thinking, “Speak for yourself Caroline… you are in no way reasonable or cool, or whatever..” Okay, okay, I know I’m not reasonable… But I like to think I’m somewhat cool? Maybe not.

Nonetheless, I am inspired by each and every one of my fellow NWISC-ers in one way or another. This summer I have had more than a few moments of sadness or anger, yet when in the presence of my peers, I am constantly feeling inspired, intellectually  stimulated, supported, hopeful and excited. Moreover, I am having fun! It’s pretty cool to be constantly surrounded by such sweet people – thanks guys.

On another note, my life is being overtaken by chickens. As are Rachel’s and Colin’s – last night, Rachel had three dreams about chickens. Hm. Today, we payed a visit to the Urban Farm Store and saw hundreds of baby chicks. They looked like the ones below:

They were adorable. I hope I have dreams about them tonight in which I play with their furry little selves for hours on end. I wanted to do so today, but had to refrain in order to appear “professional.” Maybe I am on the wrong life-track? Should I be breeding chicks instead of making documentaries? I’ll keep you updated.

- Caroline

Portland: Interviewing – the don’ts

We have quickly been thrown into our radio documentaries – meaning we are busy scrambling for ideas, interviews, and “ambient noises.” Sara and I are working on a radio documentary about the benefits of the streetcar in Portland; currently they are expanding the streetcar route and there is a lot of hype about it around town.

Luckily, we have been able to land some interviews with some pretty key people: the President of United Streetcar (the only company that builds streetcars in the United States), Chris Smith (former chair of Portland Streetcar committee, currently on the board for Portland Streetcar, member of the streetcar system plan, and a well-known “citizen activist” around Portland), as well as many loyal streetcar passengers.

We are satisfied with our interviews thus far, but the process has been astoundingly difficult.

Yesterday we had our first interview, with Chris Smith. We took the streetcar to meet him, (we barely made it on time), made sure all the equipment was working, and began the interview. Chris had a lot of good information and we left with smiles on our faces. As we sat on the streetcar, heading back to PSU, we began to listen to it. This is what we heard: buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz for fifteen minutes and fifty-six seconds. The mic had malfunctioned. But all was not lost, we called him back, apologized profusely, and rescheduled the interview. We re-did it today, and came out with even better material.

Our second interview was this morning at 9:30, in Clackamas, with the president of the streetcar company (Oregon Iron Works). I picked Sara up at nine and we were right on schedule to get there on time. However, after a few wrong turns, we found ourselves among strip malls and Mcdonalds’ – panickly searching for our destination. The receptionist of Oregon Iron Works helped us find the place – but sadly, we ended up arriving thirty minutes late. OOPS. (In our defense – it was actually incredibly confusing!). Luckily, our interviewee was very nice and gave us useful information before running off to meet with Joe Biden!

We sped all the way back to PSU and barely made it in time for our skype conference with Julie Shapiro.

This afternoon, Sara and I hopped on the streetcar and rode it back and forth in fareless square, interviewing people. It went fairly smoothly. We ended when I realized that on this 100 degree day, I had drunk only one glass of water.  I started breaking out in cold sweats, getting dizzy, feeling faint – all the classic signs of dehydration. So we hopped off the streetcar and called it a day.

Despite the obstacles we have faced, I am greatly enjoying the interview portion of this radio documentary. Furthermore, I have learned to test equipment TONS of times, to bring lots of directions, to leave extra early and  to remember that even when there is a lot going on, drinking water is the most important thing!

-Caroline