The PNW Podcast
A daily podcast covering the stories that matter most across the Pacific Northwest, with a primary focus on Oregon and Washington. Each episode delivers a concise roundup of the day's biggest headlines, local news, sports, current events, and the conversations shaping the region—keeping listeners informed, engaged, and connected to what's happening close to home.
The PNW Podcast
Goats, Greats & The Blazers’ Big Question
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Drew and Marcus dive into the latest chapter of the Portland Trail Blazers saga after Portland City Council approved a $120 million contribution toward the planned Moda Center renovation. But while the vote was a major step forward, the future is far from settled. The city’s offer sheet still has to make it through negotiations with the Blazers, and several of the proposed provisions have already been viewed by the team as non-starters.
From there, the conversation turns to one of the biggest questions in Blazers history: Is LaMarcus Aldridge a Hall of Famer? That debate quickly turns into an even bigger one — who belongs on the Mount Rushmore of Portland Trail Blazers?
And finally, because this is Portland, we wrap things up with the viral video of two goats casually attempting to board a TriMet bus. Yes, goats. On a bus. In Portland. It may be the most Portland story imaginable.
Blazers drama, all-time greats, and goats riding public transportation — just another episode of The PNW Podcast.
Portland. Be in Portland again, Marcus, as I saw a video yesterday of two, they look like mountain goats.
SPEAKER_00Were they mountain goats? Actually, they were pygmy goats. So they're they're a little bit smaller breed of goat, uh maybe about knee high to you, maybe a little taller. They were very goat though. They were a hundred percent goat. They looked like they knew what they were doing. They boarded a TriMet bus um on Tuesday morning during the commute. So, like rush hour, they had places to go and they were trying to get there on the bus. Um, the pair can be seen in a video stepping onto the bus during a bus stop. Then a lady tries to shoo them off, which automatic worst citizen of the year in Portland award to that woman. Um, let the goats ride, lady. It's Portland, okay? There's other people moochin' rides out here. Exactly. The goats are the least of our worries. They'll probably respect the bus. I mean, what's the chance one of them pees on the bus? Probably about the same chance that somebody else that got on without a ticket's gonna pee on the bus. 50%.
SPEAKER_01All right, it's the PW podcast. Back again, hanging out. Drew Titeman here with Marcus Bridges. I am inside the Stafford Hills Club and the most beautiful facility I've ever worked out at, Saltwater Pool. Great places to pump some iron, also just a supportive staff here. Um, you know, I was dealing with some health concerns we talked about on this show, and I'm walking through the lobby, and the general manager of the building walks right up to me and gives me a hug and tells me that she's thinking about me and this, that, and the other. And you know, I'm just another guy here. And so that just speaks volumes to the kind of people we're dealing with here at the Stafford Hills Club. So if you want a sense of community, you want a sense of family, and you want to get shreds McGriff. At the same time, you can do it right here at the Stafford Hills Club. Hit him up today at StaffordHills.com. Tell them Drew sent you for half off your initiation. You won't be sorry, and we can hang at the pool and have a burger and a cold drink. Marcus, so glad to have you back in here. And um, there's a lot to talk about. Now, since we sat down last, we did have a critical day on August 12th in which the city of Portland, the city council, was gonna sit down and vote on funding for the Blazers. Now that's in a critical part of the 596 million, we've rounded it up to 600, that's needed for the renovation for the Blazers. And it looks like good news, my brother, they have approved the money. So that's that's actually the final step because that state money was there, uh, the county money has been pledged, and now Portland putting its money in as well. But of course, it can't always be so easy because it's not gonna be that easy because that's not the final deal with this. I don't know if you knew that or not.
SPEAKER_00I I'm a little bit lost on the entire process. I haven't followed it quite as closely as you have, and I'm glad that I have you because you filled me in on it at every turn. And uh I I was excited to hear the news, but I still don't know if that means that I should be fist pumping and and you know, skipping out of the stadium holding your hand again.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so here's the issue. So they have approved the money, and that's big, but there is so they're looking at a 20-year lease. Is the proposal now back to the Blazers? So think about it like this the city's approved it, they've passed it back to the Blazers for their stamp of approval or a denial. Now, a lot of the same things on this term sheet were originally considered non-starters for a conversation for the Blazers. So that's a little sketchy. Now, this lease is not 30 like we'd hoped. It's a 20-year lease, and of course, that's a lot better than they're out of here in three years. Right. So it gives us that. But here's the deal, Marcus, that a lot of people don't know. Actually, let me get to this first before I tell you the exact terms. The vote was eight to four. That's the final vote. And they actually put each of their mugs up on a screen, and I saw check marks of this, that, and the other. And it looks like um, of those who voted no, were three female members and a male member, um, just for food for thought, so you know what you're dealing with there. I was annoyed, I would say to say the least, that it was such a close vote at eight to four. It feel you hear eight to four, you think landslide. But you move two of those votes to the other side, and we have a tie, and a tie goes to a no. And so we would have a no deal, and then you get sucked out of the room because that's what I don't love about not just the Portland City Council, but city councils in general, that just a few people's minds can alter the course of history dramatically.
SPEAKER_00And sometimes just one person's mind, Drew. I I described in an earlier episode covering the Eugene City Council years ago and watching the mayor be the swing vote every time. And that to me means that whatever the mayor wants goes. This is no longer being voted on by the population. This is you see your city council split down the middle, and you get to decide every single time with impunity what happens or what doesn't. And uh, in my opinion, that's way too much power for one person to hold. Now, I know it doesn't work like that in every city, in every every municipality, but I watched that happen for a long time and uh my teeth are shorter because of it, because I would grind my teeth for an entire city council meeting, Drew.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and I I feel those frustrations because, you know, and a lot of the things they're arguing about, and we've dealt with this in the comments of a bunch of our posts recently where uh someone said about you and I the other day, this is why you're a podcast and not a broadcast. And it's like, well, actually, probably because we want to make more than 30 grand in our life. So just go ahead and pump the brakes on that, dude. But also, I'm not sure we said anything to the contrary of what are the actual facts. He was commenting on us just talking about the facts of the situation. It wasn't even opinion. And so I know a lot of people are jaded and they're like, you're not gonna fix the homeless situation and you're gonna play basketball. These are people who haven't been to games, don't go to games, are jaded, they're finger pointers, they're woe is me people. And you know, there are just some people who do believe we need to fix infrastructure and schools and all those things, but it all goes hand in hand. If you can't overstress a community without a sense of relief. And I'm not even saying as far as work hard, play hard. I'm just saying give people some reprieve. You know, their cost of living is up, the cost of gas and food and everything else, and and to keep a family together just might give you a heart attack. Why not let somebody just go and watch a basketball game, something that's been a staple here forever. And one other thing I'll point out about it is it is one of the most diverse audiences we experience as a community. You know, a a lot of different ethnic groups or whatever, they go to certain events together, or certain things are for certain people. The Blazers are for everybody. It's a love, see no color, love see no accent type of a situation. And I think we need more of that as a community. And we talked about it in the past that you know, you hug a stranger in the Moda Center. When's the last time you walked out on second and burnside and just threw a belly to belly with a stranger?
SPEAKER_00That was a rough night, I'll tell you. I remember it like it was yesterday. But, you know, to the gentleman in the comments, Drew, uh, and and great, you're exercising your right to comment, just like Drew and I happen to be exercising our right to put together a broadcast, whether you like it or not. Uh, we were not available to as many ears when we were on terrestrial radio. Anybody can pick us up now, anytime they want to. And um, so I would fundamentally actually call it a broadcast. Just because it's not on uh a licensed station doesn't mean anything. We're on the interwebs, baby. We're worldwide. And I'm glad that you're calling it out. If you're if you disagree, that's great. Let's hear it in the comments. If you agree, I want people to interact with this. Um, but coming at Drew and I uh, you know, in that fashion isn't gonna, it isn't gonna do anything for you, bro. I'm sitting 20 feet from my refrigerator right now. It's really hard to upset me um with anything you say. I mean, I I just go downstairs, pet a couple of corgies, and give my wife a kiss on the cheek, back upstairs, back behind the microphone. There's no stopping us at this point. So um, but look, I understand everybody has their thoughts on this. Everybody wants something to change in Portland. And uh right now, this is the one that's at the forefront. So it's what we're talking about, and you and I happen to have a very special connection to it. So um, you know, we're gonna share those opinions, and and just like sharing the opposite opinion, that's totally okay. Don't let it uh take any sleep from you, bud. And not you, obviously.
SPEAKER_01It is so true that, you know, there are there are people who let this truly get at them, and a lot of them are not sports fans, so they don't even see a reason for it. But also don't say things like, here's another comment where it's like, well, let's fix everything else, and who can afford to go to a damn game anyway? Okay, well, don't deflect your personal problems on others. Can I afford to go season tickets right now? No. But I the few games that I go to, I use that as a as a standing point of why I really enjoy the experience. Do like the rest of us and watch it on TV. If you can't afford cable, go to a place to watch it. If you can't afford that, then go check it out in a newspaper. They're still dropping them off at my dad's house three times a week.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and and don't forget the ripple effect. We talked about this before. Those businesses down around uh the Moda Center, gone. A lot of other businesses gone without the Trailblazers, without the influx of energy and um, you know, expenditure that it puts in the community. You're right, not everybody can afford to go to a professional basketball game. And you and I sit firmly within that. I couldn't afford season tickets either. Uh, but if I happen to get up for a game every now and then, it is a really big deal and it's really exciting. And I encourage the people to buy the $17 preseason ticket and go sit in the nosebleeds and don't go just for the game. Preseason basketball is just like preseason anything else in sports. It's kind of boring. It's probably not all the players that you want to see, but what you should experience when you're sitting up there in the 300 deck is the community because there's not a lot of that happening right now, maybe even across the United States. But it's a very kind of rough time. Like we're down kind of bad in the U.S. right now. And one of the great places where you could go meet a stranger and make a friend, even if it's just for a couple hours, is the 300 level at almost any pro sporting event. You don't even have to have a Blazer shirt. Wear your favorite plain black t-shirt and red hat. I promise you, you'll be the most popular guy in the room.
SPEAKER_01And you and I have talked about how much we enjoy the 300 level. And so don't get it twisted for a second that you can't afford a game. There are times where we're playing a lowly team or maybe we're on a skid, or like you said, a preseason game. You wait to just before tip-off. You can get two tickets for 40 bucks. And now, granted, that's not necessarily cheap for everyone, but don't tell me that's completely out of the realm of possibility that something you could save up for to get into the game. And you will experience it up there the same way they experience it in row five. Now, you might not be able to see the sweat on Damian Lillard's forehead, but you can watch it on the Jumbotron. The whole thing is built for all seats to enjoy themselves. So I just feel like some people are like, no, this isn't fair. Exactly. And that's when you close your eyes to it. Now, before we take a break, I gotta tell you the rest of the terms, which kind of make it a little unnerving. So the Blazers have been paying just over three million dollars in rent at the Moda Center every season. I don't know if you knew that, but they do have a rent check just like anybody else. Well, in the new proposal sheet, that rent more than doubles to just over six million dollars per season. And on top of that, a three percent raise in rent per year over the course of the contract. That's pretty substantial.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and considering the deal that the city of Portland got on the Motor Center when it was sold back to them by Jerry Allen for one crisp dollar. Paul Allen. Jerry Allen's the voice of the duck. Yeah, my bad. I have ducks on the mind right now. It's getting close. Thank you for correcting me there. But by Paul Allen for that one crisp dollar, and then you turn around and you want to increase the rent twofold plus three percent year over year, I feel like they're kind of kneecapping them right now. Like, is this a Sopranos episode? You what's next? You're gonna demand protection from the Blazers too, or you're going to demand some type of stipend from every ticket? I mean, come on. Like, I get it. I understand it's expensive. I don't believe a 50% rent increase at any time for anything, Drew, whether it's a tiny house or a basketball stadium. I don't think there's ever a market over the course of just a couple years that will support a 50% rent increase. It's just, I think it's garbage, but it doesn't surprise me.
SPEAKER_01And it's it's one of those deals where like, are we strong arm negotiating right now? That's what I feel like. We don't have five teams coming in to do a negotiation. It's us with one team, our team. Let's point that out. So there should be a little bit more grace there. There's also some discrepancies in what the renovation plan looks like. Because, yeah, it's $600 million, but where is the money going? What goes to what? You know, the Blazers might have an idea of what's going to help in this area, and the city or the Motor Center might think what's right in another area. I'm going to point something out also for those, and I'm just going to be like those people who are uninformed about what this means for the Motor Center. If the deal does not get done, there's been a bunch of people back in the comments. Feel free to leave us a comment. We do like, and we will next episode, I will read them verbatim on here. Concerts. I was told by someone who works closely with the Blazers that concerts are in peril at the Moda Center. And it's not just because of the size of our city, Marcus, it's because we don't have the resources to bring in the big axe. So say you're going to bring in the Bruno Mars, you want to bring in the ACDCs of the world, you want to bring in Morgan Wallen, you want Taylor Swift, the big dogs. You have to have special equipment for that. We are completely outdated on that front. So I guess what's been happening is we're still saying yes to the biggest acts that'll say yes. And then we're going out and renting all of the equipment. And so when we rent the equipment, we're paying a fat tax on that. It's cutting at the bottom line. They're barely making money on the biggest acts they are able to wrangle. And so in the end, the people are like, well, let's just do concerts there. You're not listening. The bottom line is without the Blazers, this all goes away. All of it. You can't find the mark, you can't find the margins.
SPEAKER_00And if you haven't experienced a really good metal or punk rock show in the theater of the clouds and the motor center, like that will be almost as big of a loss for me if it happens as losing the Blazers. It's a phenomenal venue. It's very affordable. There's not a bad seat in the house. Like the furthest seat away, you could still lob a Loogie on stage. Like it's a great spot. And then when you get in there for the full show, I think you and I got to see the Foo Fighters there years back. Great shows at the Moda Center. This, like you said, like we've said so many times already, ripple effects. You gotta think about them.
SPEAKER_01And you get out of the Bay Area and south of Centralia in Washington, it's your only massive venue. Look at Marcus, perfect example. Guy lives in Eugene. You you decide you want to go to a show. Your wife also likes a good rock show. You make it a date night event where you come up and you have a special time, and it's not just for Portland, it's for everybody who can come from far and wide. You know, in Bend, of course, they've got the the amphitheater there on the water, but it's pales in comparison in size.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and no concert venue that has a uh what is it, like a uh uh what's the word I'm looking for here? They've got a a statute basically where at 10 p.m. they've got to shut it down. And I've been at shows where they've said, sorry, we have to stop this punk band that's playing right now because they didn't get done before 10 o'clock, which means you're missing your you're missing your encore songs under my skin. So great venue, beautiful out there and bend, but still it's got its flaws, and it'll never be big enough to host some of the acts that we're talking about here. So the ball is in the uh Blazers Court.
SPEAKER_01They've been offered this offer sheet. We got to wait to hear what they say. I hope they don't just crinkle it up and throw it over their shoulder uh because people have put in work. I'm gonna give credit where credit's due. The city said yes, I wasn't happy with the vote count, eight to four. Um, I think that and they those people have been identified. I think we should double check why they're on the city council, triple check it. Right. And I don't care. They're like, well, you don't understand. I understand. Born and raised here, I've seen what's happened. It your history of decisions are not to be trusted. Right. So, you know, I'm not saying all decisions are bad. You make great decisions sometimes, but this one, eight to four, not a positive situation. So let's hope the Blazers can kind of help us uh motivate this and move it forward.
SPEAKER_00We'll take our two-thirds majority, Drew, but we'll also be voting again next year. So that's just the way I'll leave it. That's true.
SPEAKER_01And uh, we're gonna take a quick break, but we're coming back and we're gonna talk goats. That also means goats, as in the greatest of all time is Blazers and one trying to get himself into the Hall of Fame and goats boarding buses in downtown Portland. The PW podcast is brought to you by a group of amazing people and companies. I am so prideful of the people I get to work with on this program and this weekend with my health concerns. That was no exception. Personal messages from the man who runs Stafford Hills Club, just an incredible human, Evan, checking on me. And it's part of the reason why this place is rated the best health and wellness facility in the Portland area. I was laid up at a hospital less than a mile from here, and they were doing nothing, but caring about me, it's a sense of community down here. You gotta check it out. You've got to see them when you get a chance. Staffordhills.com. Tell them Drew sent you for half off your initiation. It's so much more than a health and wellness facility. It's a family down here at Stafford Hills. Same goes for my people over at Motorsport Hillsboro, where I'm always talking about how they can get you the easiest and best financing and how they work hard to get the job done, but also compassionate people as well. The owner Scott messaging me, telling me to get well soon, worrying not about business, but about his relationships with a human being. That's what I'm talking about with these sponsorships. And right now, you can get the ultimate deal down there. The Gas Gas eAssist Mountain Bike, the G Light Trail 2.0 e-bike is now just $21.99 at Motosport Hillsboro. That's up to $3,000 off MSRP, where they're always taking care of you. Check them out today at Motosporthillsborough.com. And finally, my people, Bruce is the leader over there, but his whole staff's so incredible at Axiom Plumbing, Sewer, and Septic, where they take care of business and they will make sure they take care of you. 10% off if you say that I sent you. And you could also get $500 off a water heater where they take care of their people. And this is why I work with the people that I do. Anything to do with water and waste, they got you at Axiom. And remember, it's not private equity. This is a homegrown boy. Bruce is my favorite in the business. So check him out today, axiompdx.com. All right, Marcus, we're talking goats for a second. And, you know, we'll get into the situation in downtown Portland with goats in a second. But first, one of the greatest blazers of all time. I wouldn't put him on Mount Rushmore necessarily, especially since he uh walked out on us and my feelings are still hurt about it. But there is a conversation going around about Lamarcus Aldridge, LA, who was a staple here in Portland, and you know, I'd say top two or three power forwards we've ever had here. And he, you know, we went from having Zach Randolph, who was a stud at Power Forward, and we actually traded Randolph because we had Aldridge. And it that's how good he was. But now the conversation is as he is becoming eligible for the Hall of Fame, is Lamarcus Aldridge a Hall of Famer, Marcus.
SPEAKER_00In my eyes, as a as a Blazers fan for all these years and how important he was to that squad uh when he was on it, you know, he his time, if I'm not mistaken, Drew, goes from like Brandon Roy all the way to Damian Lillard, if I if I remember. Correctly. And so there was a lot of really important Portland teams that he played on that uh that we were following, whether we were watching in bars or watching at the stadium. He's a Hall of Famer in my heart. Now, I'm not a diehard NBA fan. Um, I don't even really have a take on the LeBron versus Michael Jordan uh debate. But I'll say as far as Portland's concerned, that guy's a Hall of Famer and uh would love to see him uh weasel his way in there, even though I do have a bitter taste in my mouth. You could have left us for anybody, and you left us for the San Antonio Spurs. I mean, I just that's that's almost worse than the Lakers, Drew. If you'd have left and gone to the Lakers, I would have been, you know, tangentially more pissed off. But this one really hurt.
SPEAKER_01And then there was an opportunity, if you remember, where he had the health issues, he stepped away, was released from his contract, and then he's like, I'm gonna make a comeback. And I'm like, oh, he's gonna come back to Portland. It it only makes sense. Dame's here, it's gonna be the sweetest reunion, and then he picked another team. Yeah. Now, granted, he had to retire five minutes after that, but it would have been it would have been enough for me. I mean, Dame's home and I'm feeling good about it.
SPEAKER_00Oh man, it feels so good to have that guy back. And especially, you know, nothing really happened for him in the place that he went, and to think that somebody actually wants to come back here, yeah, a round of applause.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we'll take it. Especially we just spent a whole segment about what the hell are we doing in this city? Somebody came home? Now, I granted, he lives in the suburbs near me in a serious compound. There's not much of him battling uh homeless people downtown, but I didn't even realize how good the numbers are. He's got 20,000 career points and 8,000 career rebounds during his 16-year career. The only people on that list are LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and the Greek freak.
SPEAKER_00That's pretty high company to be in when we're talking about Hall of Fame, because I would think three out of four of those guys are shoe-in Hall of Famers, and the other one just hasn't played quite long enough yet to be a shoe-in first ballot Hall of Famer. Um elite company, Drew.
SPEAKER_01And the only I guess there's one other retired person, and that's Antoine Jameson, who also has those numbers, but of the rest of them, they're all still in the league, and they all had to have massive careers to do it. Um, so there's that, and there's also this. He has better stats than um Blake Griffin and Amari Stodemeyer. And you look at both of those guys, they had pretty, I mean, I guess polarizing careers. They fell short of the championships and all that, but you think of them as borderline hall of famers. And I don't think that's as powerful a stat as the first one where we're naming Durant and LeBron and the Greek freak. I mean, those guys, they're Mount Rushmore of 2026.
SPEAKER_00Well, I'll tell you this. We went to uh the the last Rose Bowl that the Ducks played in that wasn't a part of the college football playoff, is right before 2020 and the world fell apart. So it's like January 1st, 2020. We were in LA. We decided to look up one of the hot spot celebrity bars and go down there and see if we could spot some celebrities the night before, Drew. The only son of a bitch that walked into that place that I recognized was Blake Griffin, and I was bumped. So that's that's all I can tell you about my relationship to Blake Griffin. Uh I was a few feet from him and I was not impressed. Big dude, great smile, uh, was hoping for Jennifer Aniston or somebody of that ilk to walk in, and it didn't happen. So, but if Lamarcus Aldridge had walked in by comparison, I'm probably gonna be pretty pumped. So get him in the Hall of Fame.
SPEAKER_01And some of the other people who are up for it are like uh Andre Iguadala, Joe Johnson, Kyle Lowry, Sean Marion. But I don't think I'm naming these people, and I I know them all. Chris Paul, he'll get in. Yeah. But most of those guys, I think Aldridge is in before them.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I think maybe uh with the exception of Iguadala, because of all the titles. He was on, he was in that run with the Warriors and he was a linchpin. He was. You took you take him off the court while he wasn't scoring all the points, he was kind of the heartbeat of that team. Joe Johnson should get in just because didn't he win like a ton of six man of the year awards? Wasn't that him? I could see Joe Johnson. I mean, God, that guy could shoot too.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, some other ones. Russell Westbrook, he'll get in. Yeah. He has some of the best numbers of all time. Derek Rose, maybe.
SPEAKER_00On his name alone, though. On his name alone, if he does, Drew, just because he came out of college with all that hype, but uh never a guy that was just running roughshore over the league, that's for sure.
SPEAKER_01And what's funny is, and he's probably fine now, but I was like, oh, well, College Hall of Fame, is he banned from college?
SPEAKER_00I'm pretty sure he is when he was caught cheating on all of his stuff. Yeah, that's true. They're probably not gonna put him in the College Basketball Hall of Fame. But hey, the College Basketball Hall of Fame is interesting because they can put people in for contributions to the basketball community. So they might just forget that the word college is even attached to that and put him in there anyway. Who knows? That's true.
SPEAKER_01And so we'll find out. One of I will call him one of the greatest Blazers of all time. We don't have the Celtics history, but he is one of the best.
SPEAKER_00You've mentioned something that really made me think at the beginning. You said, I don't know if I'd put him on the Mount Rushmore. I feel like we got a couple of minutes here. My Blazer's Mount Rushmore, Lillard, Drexler, Roy. This is a tough one.
SPEAKER_01Walton. You gotta put Walton on. I think you have to put it on the phone. He left, but he I mean, he's the championship. And at the time he was so freaking dominant. That championship season, we won the trophy. I mean, we had great players around him. He is the reason. Yeah. And he was and he was tripping his ass off the whole time going to Eugene. The team would have to seriously, they'd have to go get Bill Walton and bring him home. And he'd be like, I lost my bike. He lost his bike during the championship parade because he rode there on a bike because of course. And then he goes to give his championship speech and he opens it with, hey man, someone took my bike. Um, can you bring that back? And he was just peace, love, happiness, and a big smile. I'd have to put him on the Mount Rushmore.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, Hall of Fame indeed. Uh, and and R.I.P. in peace to that guy, too, because uh kind of a sudden loss there, and and I think probably hit everybody from the Blazers fans of the 70s all the way to college basketball fans of today. Uh, losing that one was it was a big loss, man. So yeah, I think I mean for me, I like that Mount Rushmore. Walton, Drexler, Roy, Lillard, and you're right, just on the outside, there's gonna be Aldridge, gonna be guys like Terry Porter, guys like Kevin Duckworth. I mean, there's a lot of names.
SPEAKER_01If you're gonna go Mount Rushmore, though, and you have to only put one power forward on there, we're leaving one guy out. Rashid Wallace.
SPEAKER_00We are, man.
SPEAKER_01I mean, Rashid was unstoppable on the court. And if those, if that 2000 Blazer team wins the championship, you put Pip in there, you put Rasheed there. You're never gonna put Damon Stodemeyer on the rushmore, but all those guys just jump way up. If the Lakers don't steal our soul right out of our chests, I'm still I can still taste the tears on my cheeks.
SPEAKER_00Dude, I still I still remember the hotel room I was in in Tri-Cities, Washington. I believe I was up in Kennewick, Washington, watching that game uh with a friend, and uh it was just a heartbreaker. And I'll I will say, just because we're talking about it, and this is what dudes do, we bring up random athletes and talk about how good they made us feel at a period of time. One of my favorite all-time Portland Trailblazers, and it always will be my boy Cliff Robinson, man.
SPEAKER_01That's Uncle Cliff.
SPEAKER_00Uncle Cliffy. Loved him, and another great power forward. Yes, R.I.P. as well. Uh it sucks to have to talk about how many of these guys we've lost. Um, you know, drunk and curse. Yep, Duckworth. So uh there's there's so many names, Drew. But if if nothing else, we just took you back, gave you a little paint of nostalgia before we really spin the wheels off this thing.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I'm gonna go and drink a cold beverage this evening in honor of them out of a Dairy Queen cup with Clyde Drexler's face on it. I've got mine right over there. I've got four of them on my shelf. I can see them from here. That's right. I got the old school ones and now they're plastic, but I got the glass um tucked away with some old newspapers dug in there that might even have some stats from victories. So, you know, I'm I'm with you. It always feels good to talk about the glory days, and I hope we can get the Motor Center thing done so we can get back to that. Stop worrying about politics and money and just get back to wins and losses and what it's like to draw up a quality play. And our new coach, the new coach of the Blazers, they they liken him to Ted Lasso. He's got this, he's got you know quotes and he's that player's coach, and I really can't wait to see what he does. Am I not happy about his one-year contract? 100%, but I can't control that.
SPEAKER_00Well, I'm glad that they can compare this coach to Ted Lasso because the last guy was getting compared to Donnie Brasco and not in the right way. So um Oh well, but you're not talking about you're talking of a too of a goat. Yeah, Chauncey, I guess. While uh we picked up the pieces around him out of it. Chauncey Bills uh is who I'm referencing there. Of course, we all know how that ended.
SPEAKER_01So before we go, uh from one group of goats to a couple of goats that made national news. Portland be in Portland again, Marcus, as I saw a video yesterday of two, they look like mountain goats.
SPEAKER_00Were they? They were pygmy goats. So they're they're a little bit smaller breed of goat, uh maybe about knee high to you, maybe a little taller. They were very goat, though. They were a hundred percent goat. They looked like they knew what they were doing. They boarded a TriMet bus um on Tuesday morning during the commute. So, like rush hour, they had places to go and they were trying to get there on the bus. Um, the pair can be seen in a video stepping onto the bus during a bus stop. Then a lady tries to shoe them off, which automatic worst citizen of the year in Portland award to that woman. Um, let the goats ride, lady. It's Portland, okay? And uh there's other people mooching rides out here. Exactly. The goats are the least of our worries. They'll probably respect the bus. I mean, what's the chance one of them pees on the bus? Probably about the same chance that somebody else that got on without a ticket's gonna pee on the bus. 50%. Um, I I will say this though, the operator, I think, had to take control of the situation, opened the door, shooed the goats off. The operator has to. And then kind of drew the goats just vanished. That is what I don't know the story.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so where do they come from and where did they go? Now, I think when you and I were talking before we started the broadcast, you made a good point. It's probably some homeless guy or some tweaker who's like, goats, and you know, they got away, and maybe he found them again and it just was viral for a minute. Did you notice when the goats got on there, there's like a guy just inside the door and he's just sloughed out in his chair. He does not move a muscle. And I don't know, is that just being desensitized to the weirdness of Portland that you don't even move? Yep. Like you just like and then somebody opens the door from the front, and they're like, Oh yeah, oh yeah, about you should get off.
SPEAKER_00But the thought for him was like, let's just do this. Yeah, let's party. Well, you you asked where did they come from and where did they go? I'm sure they're owned by a guy named Cotton Eye Joe. I promise that that will be the case. And and I got to thinking about it here. Well, actually, first, before I get to that, the one thing that was very Portland about this story that I saw was that there were multiple, multiple 911 calls. Okay. We reserved 911 for emergencies, people. And trust me, emergencies happen on the TriMet. Okay, so we need to keep those open. There is a non-emergency number in every police department all over the country that you can call to talk about the goats on the bus. Please reserve 911 for dire emergencies.
SPEAKER_01Marcus, I had a heart attack last week and refused to call 911 because I wanted to leave it open for bigger emergencies. Yeah. You know, it's like, granted, I had a driver and I would have probably called with no one there, but leave it alone. Would have hate to see what you did if two goats walked into your house. Yeah. Like I live in a place where people call 911 at the drop of a hat, and it's a very safe place, and I appreciate the safety. But when something goes down, I don't even call because I know they've been called ten times. Yeah, exactly. Like it's just not a chance they haven't been called.
SPEAKER_00Well, I put together a little list here, Drew, real quick before we get out of here of uh some cities throughout the Pacific Northwest and what I thought their security cameras in those cities might catch jumping on a bus. Um, we got a little bit of guff uh after the first episode for not talking about Seattle in the Pacific Northwest podcast. So I'm gonna start with Seattle, okay, uh, where in breaking news, two salmon have been spotted uh boarding the Seattle City bus. Um they did not get kicked off. In fact, the guys from the Pike Street market threw them off, like Uncle Phil. Uh yeah, and actually a guy caught them out at the bus stop with a bear paper. Right. Yeah. Uh in Boise, I uh you know, it was actually a couple stories I found. Um, a couple buck deer and also one where a couple potatoes just rolled on there. I don't know how that happened. Um in Eugene, definitely going to be potleaves. No question in my mind. Maybe maybe a sheet of acid. Um but Yeah, I could see someone dressed as a weed leaf just meandering to work. Yes. Like like uh our our neighboring town in Springfield, you'd see a couple stolen bikes hop on that bus, I feel like.
SPEAKER_01And I've cleaned it up a little, Marcus. It's not as bad as it was, but still you can find a stolen bike pretty quick.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and last but uh certainly least is Tacoma. And um what I Tacoma? Yeah, I I for I found in Tacoma boarding the uh city bus two felonies. Not two felons, Drew, but two felonies. Sounds about right. So is Tacoma kind of like um what Springfield is to Eugene? I would say that Springfield um it doesn't even chum in the waters that Tacoma lives in, man. It's bad in Tacoma.
SPEAKER_01I went to But there is I'm saying there is some beautiful stuff there. Both my broth older brothers went to the University of Puget Sound. The Puget Sound itself is beautiful. Uh so there are areas that are kind of rank, but then there are areas that are really nice.
SPEAKER_00It's pretty for sure. It's I guess my experience, most recent one, was a couple years ago. We went up there to catch uh No FX's last tour, and uh it was like a two-day brew fest punk rock show. And uh we were staying in West Seattle, so quite the commute to get down to Tacoma, but we would always have to park kind of in that Tacoma Dome area, and that is where like if I wasn't with four other able-bodied males walking back to the car after midnight that night, I would have not felt very safe. But I think there's a place like that in every city, right? I mean, yeah, as just how big populations happen. And I, you know, it's getting close to football season, so I'm gonna have all sorts of bad things to say about the state of Washington before too long. I should give them their credit where credit is due. It does get pretty up there every now and then.
SPEAKER_01Well, and it's kind of like it's a perfect example about Portland, right? Like people are like, Portland's a disaster. Well, you're talking about a neighborhood. You're not five square blocks. You're not talking about a city that is divided by a giant river, and it's impossible for it to be exactly the same over here as it is over here. Right. That's just not even possible. So um when when I meet people from other states, they're like, how's it like living in hell? Well, calm down. That's across the river. Yeah. Half the time they're from Texas, and you know, they're like, come down and see us, y'all get a felony.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and that's actual hell because it's 110 all the time.
SPEAKER_01So uh no thank you. So uh thanks for uh joining me, Marcus. We'll be back on Wednesday with a brand new episode. Remember, every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we get it done right here on the PNW Podcast, where we broadcast live from the Stafford Hills Club in Twalton, Oregon. Check them out today, staffordhills.com. They've got everything you need to get your life in order and to build a community in your life. It's PW Podcast. We'll talk to you next time.