Eugene’s Most Missed

Katie D.

August 13, 2011 - 7:24 PM

In the almost three years I have been blogging, I have never been away from Eugene for so long. It just hit me today-Eugene has truly become my home. It is both the place from which I launch my adventures, and the place I think about most when I am away. Colorado has gradually faded back, and my childhood home has become very much a thing of the past. I'm a Eugene girl now, full time, just as much as I'm a full time Duck.

So I've missed Eugene. I thought I'd write a bit about what I've missed most:

LTD. I have honestly and earnestly missed the bus system in Eugene. It's not perfect, but it's worlds beyond the systems I've been using this summer, or what's available in Colorado. If we add Amtrak and the Portland public transit system to the list, I am one happy camper. I can't wait to live an easily carless existence again.

Walking in Eugene. I spend so much time walking in Eugene. I know the path to campus so well that I notice when someone does yard work or when a car is visiting. I think Eugene is so beautiful, and I love knowing a neighborhood so well.

The Saturday Market. This idea is not so different than markets in Central America, but there is a level of calm and charm in the Eugene artists' market that I miss so much. I can't wait to get back to those funny booths, and find a new spoon ring, perhaps a new tie-dyed something, and to people watch in my sweet and quirky city.

The people. More than anywhere else I have lived or traveled, I have felt welcome and connected to the folks in Eugene. It's a funny combination of people: the student crowd; the faculty and staff; the aging hippies; the radicals; the non-radicals; the born-and-raised Eugeneites; the West Eugene area sub-industry; the artists; the homeless; the intellectuals; the deliberately strange... It is a funky place, and one in which I feel very comfortable. It is a place where strange and/or wonderful conversations can happen at any moment: on the bus, in the grocery store, or on a bench on campus.

The independent stores. Eugene has its own identity. This summer, I discovered that Eugene actually holds a higher ranking for local and cultural businesses than Tegucigalpa, which is full of fast-food chains and shopping malls. If you are so inclined, in Eugene it is very possible to shop local all the time. I miss the wonderful independent grocery stores, especially Sundance and the Kiva. I miss the bookstores, especially Smith Family. Then there are restaurants, second-hand clothes stores, and Euphoria Chocolate Company. These local stores are what gives Eugene its character and identity, and I miss them dearly for that.

Café Yumm and Prince Puckler's ice cream. These are my two favorite places to eat in Eugene. I haven't had a Yumm bowl in far too long: a meal of rice, beans, vegitables, and a delicious and unique Yumm sauce. Last year, I ate there often enough that the staff knew me and my "usual": the Hot and Jazzy. Delicious. Likewise, I am a familiar face at Prince Puckler's, which has the most delicious ice cream, particularly the Euphoria dark chocolate sundae, with their fudge brownie ice cream. More than anything else, these are the tastes of Eugene for me.

Campus. It's simple: I miss the UO campus. The library, the trees, the individual buildings. I miss my study spots and my accustomed routes. Our campus is so beautiful, and I miss it daily.

I will be back in town the first week of September. I have so much time to make up for! I can't wait to start bike riding again, and to find new Eugene paths to walk. I'm excited for my first afternoon browsing through Smith Family Bookstore, and my first study session at Alann Brother's Coffee. I can't wait for my first time back on campus, and my first ice cream.

Home is waiting! Eugene, I'll see you in September.