I will be finishing up some work in Salem on Thursday afternoon around 4 p.m. and then driving back to PDX to spend the night by the airport before my Friday a.m. flight.

N866DA and I had chatted about grabbing dinner that night and I thought it would be nice to meet some of the other PDX flyers (or anyone else floating through) as well.

Any takers? I'm open to time and place since I do have a car... I figure I could do 6 pm or later.

D a m n!

I have a long-standing commitment on the third Thursday of every month!!! Otherwise I'd be there in a heartbeat!!!!

Yeah, and while techgirl is in Salem, OR surrounded by their 1,874 acres of park and open space areas with 29.53 miles of trails (okay, so I realize you probably won't see the light of day while you are there), I will be hanging out in Metropolis, IL whose biggest claim to fame, as far as I can tell, is Marvin's Marvelous Maize Maze (so much for that ball of twine, Jen).

Um... who got the great account in Colorado Springs in the middle of ski season?

And who will be getting the primo account in Northern California near wine country?

Uh huh... that's what I thought.

I just got back from SIN and am heading to TPE next weekend so I guess I too am "floating through." I'm flexible regarding time and place and I too have a car.

Essxjay, there are more important things than long-standing commitments, you know!

Lawlord, are you around?

Awh! And you were one of the FT diehards I've so much wanted to meet.

Well... I am probably doing dinner in PDX tomorrow night when I get in before I continue on to Salem. My UA flight is in at 7....

techgirl and LarryU, I'm here and available Thursday night, starting at about 6:45 if downtown, 7:00 if near the airport, and always pleased to join an FT get-together.

Techgirl, since its your party, is there any special locale or cuisine you have in mind? Expensive or inexpensive, Northwestern or ethnic? For the latter category, there are some great Vietnamese restaurants on Sandy Blvd, not even 10 minutes from the airport. In any case, just name your preferences and we PDXers will be happy to come up with some palatable recommendations.

In the past, my PDX dining experiences have primarily centered around either Jake's or this little Mongolian BBQ in Beaverton, so I'm game to try anything new.

Expense and cuisine are both things I'm flexible on. I love the variety of both the seafood and Asian offerings in the region, but like I said... new is good!

I would say that 7 is a great meeting time... that would give me time to drive in from Salem, check into the Sheraton, and get out of the suit.

techgirl and LarryU, how about one of:

- Kells Irish Restaurant/Pub, downtown
- The middle eastern place that's on the east side of SW First Avenue (I think) across from Sungari, at about Yamhill Street
- Higgins, Broadway at about Jefferson Street
?

Guys... you pick. I'm game for anything. As long as someone e-mails me driving directions from PDX, I'll be fine!

On a side note, I'm safely here in Salem now and the rain has finally stopped! I have my schedule now and I *do* finish up on Thursday at 4, so I'm set for 7 with no issues.

Okay, barring strong objection, let's meet at Seges (the middle eastern place I mentioned), at 7:00. It's on the east side of SW First Avenue in the middle of the block between Taylor and Yamhill Streets. techgirl, you can get there on light rail to the First/Second Avenue and Morrison Street stop (it's about two blocks south and one block east), or by car easily from the freeway. Take I-84 into town, then I-5 south, but instead of actually getting on I-5, take the City Center exit. That leads you to the Morrison Bridge and SW Washington Street. Turn left on 3d Avenue (the second traffic light) and look for any convenient parking space; you're within walking distance at that point. (From Washington Street south, the streets are Alder, Morrison (light rail), Yamhill (light rail), and Taylor.)

I will try to be there, probably without MrsOpus.

Ok, I'll see you all there at 7:00PM Thursday.

Incidentally, Seges is actually African/Caribbean.

http://segesportland.com/1.html

Happy hour runs through 8:00PM.

Is there room for another to join the group? I have to go to PDX to do some ticketing on Thursday so I will be in the area.
Dan