The Opportunity of Dreams

February 7, 2008

Photos and blog by Stephen Landau of Substance


Oregon is a strange, wonderful place. One minute, you're sitting and enjoying coffee in one of the greatest cities on earth, Portland, Oregon. Less than 90 minutes later, you're sitting and enjoying the view while riding up Cascade Express at Mt. Hood Meadows. This story is about those minutes. And like all stories, it started once upon a time.

Once upon a time, I looked east and saw the snowy peak of Mt. Hood. And I realized I wasn't spending enough time there. What a shame, living in the shadow of the mountain, that we could never find the time to make the trip. So I decided to become the co-founder of a company which allowed me to say, "Let's take the day off and go snowboarding." Like I said, Oregon is a strange and wonderful place, the kind of place that enables dreamers to start a company based around the culture that sometimes it's better to be on the slopes than in the office.


A year after starting this company, we decided it was about time we practiced what we preached about a results-only work environment (explained by Mavericks at Work). The company closed for the day, and with the sky a vibrant cobalt, we headed for the mountain. The drive was easy; the anticipation was the difficult part. Finally at the lodge, we grabbed our equipment, our lift tickets, and walked right up to the lift. No lines.

It was like that all day... empty runs, no waiting, no crowds... run after run after run. Sure, the snow was a little old (it hadn't snowed in a few days). Yes, there were some icy spots on some of the more vertical terrain. But what would you rather be doing: dealing with work, or dealing with the fact that your legs are burning from so many consecutive runs?


And like all stories that start "once upon a time," this story ends, "...and they lived happily ever after." At least for this day. No one got hurt, everyone had a great time, and the pure enjoyment of one of Oregon's outdoor wonders is reason enough to be happy.

I realize now this really isn't so much a story about going snowboarding. It's a story about embracing the opportunity of dreams. Sometimes you only realize it when you're making big carves in the side of a mountain. And that's why Oregon is great. There's always a dream to be realized. The dream of empty runs, the dream of starting your own business, the dream of happily ever after.

The End.

P.S. Of course now that there's been tons of snow dumped on Mt. Hood since our trip, we're ready for Book 2 in this series.

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About Stephen Landau: Stephen moved to Portland nine years ago for the microbrews, the proximity to mountains and the ocean, and a way of life. Since then, he has become the co-founder and Creative Director of Substance, a digital brand strategy and design studio located in Portland, Oregon.

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