Grants Pass Part Two

Grants Pass does autumn up right

After I left the woodcarver, I took myself out for a little lunch at a charming cafe called Cultured Palate.

I was the only person to walk through the door and the owner, Angela, greeted me warmly. She’s of Cuban extraction and obviously loves her little restaurant.

We talked about food, of course – she makes a fine chimichurri – and about how she should  promote the fact that she has vegan food (she makes a great picadillo) on the menu on Instagram (that was my idea).

We also talked about Grants Pass. She talked about how small businesses like hers survive on summer tourist traffic. Grants Pass is known for its mild summer climate, much cooler than some other areas of Oregon.

Cultured Palate

But for the past few years, there have been giant, long-burning wildfires in the summer, driving the tourists away, and she and her fellow downtown business owners are hurting. She used her fingers to tick off friends who had closed up already, some who had been in business for decades.

It struck me for the first time how climate change could just decimate a town in a short period of time, and how we’re all going to be dealing with this from now on. I don’t mean to be depressing, but with fires raging all over California and people choking in clouds of smoke from Los Angeles to San Francisco to Sacramento, it’s hard not to be sobered.

i hope Grants Pass survives. It’s a nice town full of nice people. I hope we all survive.

The former Grants Pass Steam Laundry