About Oregon Expat
Sometimes the best view is from the outside, and an American expatriate living in Portugal is, in many ways, outside of both nations. The views can be spectacular. I’m also a science nerd, Mac dweeb, grammar geek, and science fiction author, so the posts in this blog tend to be eclectic.
Click the “About” tab if that wasn’t quite enough detail — or go to my official author website.
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Recent Posts
- Hope, an unfamiliar emotion
- Pompeii takeout and American assumption
- Far Enough
- I have an issue with Netflix’s “Away”
- Now, about *that* topic
- The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
- Alsea Rising: The Seventh Star is in the wild
- Alsea Rising is out and #1!
- Coming soon: Alsea Rising
- On his terms
- Beyoncé: Homecoming
- UPRISING and balance
- The brain radio
- Alsea lovers: This is the one you’ve been waiting for
- The chicken church
Recent Comments
- Fletcher DeLancey on Porto’s most famous bookstore
- pablohaake on Porto’s most famous bookstore
- Alberto on Throwing flowers
- Rael on Portuguese idiom of the day: Lança perfume
- Rael on Portuguese idiom of the day: Lança perfume
- Fletcher DeLancey on Hope, an unfamiliar emotion
- Miriam English on Hope, an unfamiliar emotion
Categories
Monthly Archives: February 2012
Without a safety net, ctd.
Yesterday’s post got an interesting comment conversation going, so I thought I’d add in a bit of data. The term “safety net” is more applicable than some might think. Because most Americans get their health coverage from their employers, being … Continue reading
Posted in USA
8 Comments
Without a safety net
Portugal certainly has its share of problems, but one thing its citizens don’t have to worry about — even if they have lost their jobs in this miserable economy — is the “luxury” of basic health care. This narrative, written … Continue reading
Posted in life, USA
11 Comments
Wallpaper Monday
National Geographic captions this photo: “African buffalo create tracks in the salty mud at the edge of a crater lake in Queen Elizabeth National Park.” Uganda isn’t a nation I hear any good news from, so it’s nice to be … Continue reading
Tax culture
For those who keep up with the EU economic situation, it will probably not be news that one of Greece’s biggest ongoing issues is the (non)collection of taxes. But it might be news that at one point, the Greek finance … Continue reading
Posted in culture, Europe
2 Comments
Porcelain Unicorn
The contest: “Tell it Your Way.” The judge: Ridley Scott (director of Alien, Blade Runner, Thelma & Louise, Gladiator, and Black Hawk Down, to name just a few). The rules: Make a film of no more than three minutes in … Continue reading
Posted in culture, video
5 Comments
The constellation has no clothes
To my surprise and glee, I learned this morning — courtesy of web comic xkcd — that I am not the only one to have made a certain observation about a certain constellation. They told me it was a sword, … Continue reading
Posted in humor
4 Comments
Adopted English
I’m often startled by the English (or American) words that are incorporated into the Portuguese language. For instance, “okay” or “OK.” There is no letter K* in Portuguese, and yet “okay” is a word in frequent usage, meaning exactly what … Continue reading
Posted in language, Portugal, USA
10 Comments
Wallpaper Monday 3-for-1
Two weeks ago I said that if I were an astronaut, I’d spend all my time with my nose pressed against the window. So it was with considerable enjoyment that I found this on NASA’s Flickr page: astronaut Tracy Caldwell … Continue reading
Posted in wallpaper
6 Comments
Headline of the day
(I just found this in my Drafts folder, from mid-November. The news content isn’t current anymore, but the fun is.) MacDuff Marine Aquarium is preparing to release Rip, a 6-foot (1.8 meter) conger eel, so that he can migrate to … Continue reading
Gecko adhesive
This is the Mediterranean house gecko, Hemidactylus turcicus, which runs rampant all over Portugal (including at least one living around my veranda container plants). Anyone who has ever seen a gecko in action knows that their ability to stick to … Continue reading
Posted in science, tech
2 Comments