Becoming Friends With Oregon

Last night I couldn’t sleep. When I can’t sleep I tend to think about things that make it almost impossible for me to get to sleep. I don’t have the ability to turn off my brain like normal people. Travis has an on/off switch for his brain and can sleep no matter what is going on in the world. It’s very annoying. Anyway, last night was no exception and my mind raced to a million different places. I started out thinking about the Olympics and how glad I am that the stuff I like to watch is pretty much over and I can start going to bed at a decent hour. I thought about our budget and I couldn’t quite remember if I paid our insurance premium. (I did, I checked this morning). I tried reading, but after a few pages I realized I wasn't reading, but sorta skimming the words and flipping the pages. So, I went back to thinking. It started raining so naturally my thoughts drifted to some of the things I loathe about Oregon. (To be fair, I should clarify and say the "Northwest." I lived in Washington for 1 year and although I loved living in Washington a million times more than I love living in Oregon, some of the same horribleness applies to the Evergreen State). As I lay in bed thinking about Oregon, the negativity crept in so quickly and easily I was able to come up with a dozen things I don't like about Oregon in under a minute. When my 2 a.m. "I hate Oregon pity-party” was over I decided it was time Oregon and I became friends. After all, I’ve lived in the Beaver State for a total of 4 years and we’re still at odds with each other. I decided it was time to think about the things I like about Oregon instead. A few minutes later I was still starring at my ceiling. I hadn’t come up with anything I liked about Oregon. It was now 2:30 in the morning and I officially hated my clock just as much as Oregon. Regardless, sleep was still impossible because I was really bothered that I couldn’t come up with anything I liked about Oregon. This was much harder than I had anticipated. Of course, I did come up with the most obvious reason I like Oregon. But, “family” is too cliché for me to really use as a reason I like Oregon. Let’s face it, if my family lived anywhere else, I would still like them just a much. Oregon has nothing to do with it. Then I remembered. There is something I like about Oregon and it takes the #1 spot on my list of “Things I Like About Oregon.”

#1 - Nutria

I was at the dentist in 2004 when I had my first experience with nutria. My appointment just ended and I was getting up to check out when the dentist spotted something outside and said I should look. What I saw was the cutest beaver I had ever seen. When it was very obvious how excited I was about seeing a beaver my dentist explained that what I was seeing wasn’t a beaver, but a nutria. I looked at him like I wasn’t convinced, probably because I wasn’t, and he swore on his life that what I was looking at was a nutria and not a beaver. His testimony on the matter didn’t convince me. I had never heard of a nutria and it sounded like something out of a low-budget sci-fi movie. I didn’t believe my dentist for a minute. What I saw was definitely a beaver. As soon as I got home I called my mom and asked her if she had ever heard of a nutria. She hadn’t so I told her about my beaver sighting at the dentist and how my dentist told me it was a nutria. We both agreed that my dentist was full of it. But, we decided to look up nutria online anyway. And guess what. What I saw at my dentist’s office was a nutria. So there you have it. Nutria is the #1 thing I like about Oregon.

Wondering what a Nutria is? Well, nutria are large semi-aquatic rodents who feed on plants in wetland areas. And I bet you can’t tell which is a nutria and which is a beaver? Can you see why I didn’t believe my dentist?

The nutria is the cute little guy on the top, by the way.