Sometimes just when you feel the busiest and most overwhelmed, the best thing to do is leave town. So this is what we did this weekend, and it turns out that spending the weekend exploring Portland with friends was just what I needed.

Staci, Rebecca, and I spend a leisurely couple of days getting acquainted with Rebecca’s new home turf, ,mostly by eating good breakfasts, strolling around Mackworth Island, skipping rocks, drinking smoothies, meeting Matt and Carmen for dinner, playing trivial pursuit, and seeing Spiderman 2. I left with good feelings about Portland, with its ample coffeeshops, its walkable downtown, its Old Port shopping district, and good breakfest venues. But of course Rebecca was excuse enough visit, and if we have any sense at all we’ll be making more Portland getaways before long.