🧹 The mayor is cleaning up Portland (literally)

How To Protect Yourself From Ticks This Season

Warmer and longer days are right around the corner, but tick season is already in full swing — and will continue through June. Just last year, a friend of mine was bitten by a tick in our glorious Columbia River Gorge, and I decided to read up on how to protect myself. So, as you're planning hikes through our lush forests and camping trips in the woods, remember these tips to keep you and your outdoor friends safe from diseases.

• To avoid tick bites: Stay on the trail and avoid resting and walking through high grass and leaf-littered areas where ticks thrive. And if you can't avoid that, you can wear multiple tucked-in layers — tuck your pants into your socks, regardless of how dorky it looks. You can also treat your clothes, shoes, and gear with 0.5% permethrin spray and use EPA-approved oil of lemon eucalyptus spray on your body. Tip: always apply sunscreen first and then bug spray second. [USDA / CDC]
• Before you leave the area: You should always check for ticks on your body, pets, and gear. Ticks typically hide under the arms, in and around the ears, inside the belly button, back of the knees, in and around the hairline, between the legs, and around the waist (and they can sometimes be as small as a crumb). [USDA]
• If you find a tick: In the unfortunate case you find a tick on yourself or others, be careful to pull it straight out without twisting and smushing (ideally with a set of tweezers), and dispose of it properly. The sooner you find and remove the tick, the better, but it's important to monitor yourself for flu-like symptoms in the days after. [USDA / Multnomah County / CDC]
• One final tip: Make sure you shower as soon as you're able, after coming back from the outdoors. Always wash your clothes and gear in hot water if you can; if not, dry them on high heat for no less than ten minutes. [CDC]

Portland's Impressive Thai Food Scene

Food reporters (and friends of the show) Alex Frane and Brooke Jackson-Glidden recently wrote about where to find the best Thai food in Portland and how the scene has grown. Their top picks include:

• Thai BBQ restaurant Bangkok Belly (Sunnyside)
• OK Chicken & Khao Soi (Richmond), which filled the old PokPok space
• A personal late-night favorite of mine, Somtum Thai (PSU)
• Related: Jackson-Glidden joined us on the show last week to talk more about her favorites. [Portland Monthly / City Cast Portland]

Governor Kotek Pressures Schools on Instructional Time

Late last week, Governor Tina Kotek put her foot down on Oregon School districts cutting instructional time to save money. Gov. Kotek's executive order comes after districts, like Portland Public Schools, are using furlough days to cut the school year short, in an attempt to manage a multimillion-dollar budget gap — and avoid hundreds of faculty layoffs. [OPB]

Road Repair Fees Are Coming to Portland

In an effort to dig the city out of a multi-billion-dollar road maintenance backlog, Portland City Council directed the city to create a new fee on contractors and utilities to repair roads and sidewalks damaged during construction. A council committee also moved forward on a new “transportation utility fee,” which would be paid monthly by residents and businesses. That proposal now heads to the full council. [Oregonian]

How the Mayor Is Literally Cleaning up Portland

Today on the podcast, we're looking into how the mayor’s Sunday routine often involves cleaning up Portland himself — and how Governor Tina Kotek is blocking school districts from cutting instructional time to balance their budgets. Plus, we’ll have picks for the best pizza in town. Joining host Claudia Meza are food and drink reporter Alex Frane and myself. [City Cast Portland 🎧]