Sabrina Miller’s “10 Fun Things I Did In 2009″ List: Part 2 of 2

And here’s the rest of the fun and amazing things I did for the first time in 2009, in the greatest city I’ve ever known…

05. Portland Retro Gaming Expo – Games, games and more games! That was what the PRGE was all about. My Nerd Report co-host Emily and I spent 6 hours broadcasting live from this event and had a blast. We talked to lots of kids and adults that were hard core gamers, most of them spending the entire day collecting games, talking with vendors, playing games (duh) and just having fun. Some of the highlights included talking to a kid (he’ll tell you he’s not a kid though, he was 15), that did impressions of video game characters, chatting it up with the event organizers (who did a fantastic job btw), talking with the costume contest winner, Mr. Mario, and of course, getting sucked into a cool gaming obsession.

04. Food Cart Experiences – One of the best overall experiences I’ve had this year. I was really skeptical to try any of them at first but once I dove in, it’s been hard to stop! I’ve had a couple of bum meals, sure, but nothing beats a Parkers Waffle, or a burger or taco salad from Chopollos, or a pulled pork sandwich from the Q cart, or the teriyaki from Dosirak’s. I just wish there were more carts in my area and that I had time to go further everyday and try something new. I still have never made it to Whiffies, (I know, I know, bad Sabrina) but Potato Champion….. I’ve only had it once and it’s probably the one food cart that I crave the most. I love that Portland has its food cart scene and can’t wait for new ones to pop up throughout the year!

03. Baconfest – It’s amazing to me how an idea from out of the blue can be organized, hyped, and put together as quickly as Baconfest was. About 2,000 people showed up, gave to the Oregon Food Bank, and had a wicked good time. It was all about having fun and eating the almighty bacon in all of its forms, but the warm fuzzies I was feeling wasn’t from the bacon infused beer, it was from the simplicity of seeing Portlanders like you, dropping a few cans of food in the barrel to help out a great cause. I heart Baconfest and I can’t wait for the next one.

02. Oregon Ballet Theatre and Dance United – Call me a goob, but ballet is in my heart and in my soul. It’s been a part of my life in some way shape or form since I was 3 years old. I danced throughout high school and probably could have (should have?) majored in it in college. I’ve worked with the Oregon Ballet Theatre a couple of times in the past for some shows because when you can’t dance, you tech! When I heard the news that OBT was having financial problems and the result of that could have been no more ballet in Portland, my heart sank. It made me really sad to think that we might not have this really great art in our community anymore and I wanted to do something about it. Thus, OBT Radio was born. I had the opportunity to talk to some amazing dancers, educators, behind-the-scenes artists and to the artistic director about their goals and what makes OBT so special. I ended up buying a ticket to Dance United and was completely blown away by all of the dancing that took place at the Keller that night. Members from ballet companies from around the country gathered to support our local ballet as did our local community. As an outsider looking in I was overwhelmed by the support that was shown. I can’t imagine how company members of OBT felt. As it turns out, ballet will live in our city again and for that, I’m certainly thankful.

AND FINALLY, THE #1 FUN THING I DID IN 2009…….

01. Attending Portland Timbers Games – Make sure you read #7….then read this: I’ll be honest, I knew dick about soccer before about 12 months ago. I knew that we had a soccer team here in Portland, but didn’t know anything about them or who the Timbers Army were. That all changed once I attended the rally last March. I started digging into who the Portland Timbers were, what made them great and made the decision right there standing in that room that I MUST attend some matches for the season. In total I went to 5 of them. I know, I know, it’s not a lot, but it’s something right? My first match consisted of learning the game, asking questions and observing from seats midfield.

My second and third matches were much the same, but this time, it was in General Admission. Listener-turned-great friend Steven Lenhart invited Robert and me to a game where we promptly stood in the first few rows of GA. I don’t think I’ve ever in my whole life felt such energy, such power in numbers…and quite frankly such balls as I did during that game. I could barely pay attention to the actual match itself, I was in awe of the people that make up the Timbers Army. There is something to be said about hearing and feeling that raw emotion from these fans during a match – a feeling I’ve never experienced in many years attending pro sports games. Needless to say, within about 10 seconds, I was hooked. I was there for the stinky Seattle match and even though it was from mid-field seats again, I couldn’t even hear the Seattle Fans….just the TA. I spent my birthday evening with the Timbers and members of the TA too, for one of the most memorable birthdays I’m sure I will ever have.

I know that so many of the fans travel from places like Salem and the outskirts of the city to make Timbers matches. Some even travel out of state in support of them and some have never missed a game. Fans and Timbers Army are there match after match, spending their hard earned money on gas, tickets, beer & food, with a single goal in mind…to show their support and their love for their Portland Timbers. The Timbers kicked some serious ass this year and made it to the playoffs and it was great to see even more fanfare rise up from our awesome city. So thank you Portland Timbers, and thank you to the members of the Timbers Army and the fans that have made this past year one of the most memorable for me. I had quite a year in 2009 but nothing compared to the raw energy, passion, and emotion that I experienced hanging out with the Timbers Army.

RCTID!

Related posts:

1. Sabrina Miller’s “10 Fun Things I Did In 2009″ List: Part 1 of 2
2. Jacob Joseph Reeder: Cialis Abuser, Sounders Fan
3. 200 Angry Sounders Fans Can’t Be Wrong… Or Can They?
4. There’s Still Hope For Sports in Our Fair City… Really
5. MLS in PDX? A 99.9% Certainty!