Portland - The Peculiarium

We recently visited The Peculiarium, perhaps the place that best encapsulates Portland's desire to be kept weird.

We should remember, though, that Terry Currier didn't make "Keep Portland Weird" an official slogan until 2003. The Peculiarium has been around much longer, born the same year as me.

I'm don't know if this is supposed to be Samara from the ring or not, but I'm not going to take any film recommendations from her.

The Peculiarium is reasonably priced: only $5.00, or free with a decent costume. I am not sure how stringent the definition of "decent" is, but the people we talked to were all pretty nice.

I especially appreciated their understanding of consent, because that desire to be edgy and cool can really bring out the worst in some people.

This went beyond reminders not to force people to enter or look at things or get close to things, and included a reminder to not force your kids to sit on Krampus' lap!

That being said, it is pretty awesome that we have a place where you can sit on the lap of Krampus and... do you tell him what you want if you have been naughty? I'm not sure how that part works. Wrong time of year anyway.

Much of the collection were cases of collectibles, like Star Wars contraband seized at Comic-Con, or models of these memorable cars.

Also, it is nice to know where there is a vampire killing kit available, just in case.

Sadly, The Peculiarium was one of those venues where I seemed to get a lot of photographic interference, making many of the photos come out blurred. Bad lighting? or something more sinister?

The Peculiarium has its weaknesses. One is some difficulty in nailing things down. The sign says they were founded in 1972, the web page 1967. The map mentions ghostly bongos, but doesn't give any other details, and web searching doesn't reveal any other references. I want to know where the ghostly bongos are!

In addition, maybe sometimes they don't trust in their own horror. For example, if the dollhouse is really haunted, it shouldn't need all the ghastly room decor, right? So there is some - if you will pardon the expression - overkill, which tends toward silliness.

But it is only $5, and that will allow you time in a coffin, plus pictures with Krampus, Sasquatch, and as part of an alien autopsy.

If the pictures come out.

https://www.peculiarium.com/