On the Road in Oregon

This is an archive of the original Bastard Quarterly newsletter, edited by Damsel Plum and Charles Filius. It was published in print and on the web between 1997 and 2002.

On the Road in Oregon
by Ron Morgan rhyzome@best.com

(This feature first appeared in the Fall 1998 issue of the Bastard Quarterly.)

Denise Castellucci and I entered Oregon from the south, under cover of
darkness like two thieves in the night, undercover Bastards on a
mission. We didn't know what to expect, we'd been sitting in front of
our computer terminals for months, biting our fingernails to the
quick, trying to glean the temperament of the Oregon electorate from
afar. It was a relief to actually be in the place that had been our
focus for the past year.

We were greeted the next day by a dedicated volunteer force from all
over the southern part of the state, coordinated by Colleen Pettit.
These volunteers, too numerous to mention by name in this article,
aided by their spouses, partners, friends and neighbors, really made
the difference for M58 in the vast parts of Oregon where personal
connections outweigh the flat opinions of newspaper pundits. I believe
one of my favorite pastimes was driving down beautiful country roads,
surrounded by trees swabbed in autumnal reds and oranges, counting the
M58 lawn signs that reflected the work done by these Oregonians.

Our second week was spent in the more cynical and difficult to read
urban environs of Portland. The volunteer effort there was spearheaded
by the indefatigable Aaron Varhola, who day in and day out beat the
streets and waved signs on bridges with us.

On election night we all got together at the Mallory Hotel. Many, like
Victoria Seaton of Bend, we had known by name, but had not met. Most
of the volunteers had not met one another. The emotions were high as
the first tentative results came in, showing us ahead 52-48, and
stayed high as the night progressed and our lead slowly increased.

Earlier that day I had read the incredible post from Helen that
generously gave the Measure and the subsequent victory to all of us.
I'm grateful to have shared the last two weeks of the campaign with
the incredible volunteers of Oregon who did so much to move our dream
to their reality.

(This feature first appeared in the Fall 1998 issue of the Bastard Quarterly.)