Can’t get to Portland?

The last time I tried to go to Portland, we never left Raleigh because of the weather in Minneapolis. I ended up not going, as the proposed replacement itinerary wouldn’t get me there until most of the planned meetings were over. So I charged some extra batteries for my handset and joined from home.
I boarded today’s flight four hours ago, but that didn’t work out. For now I am hoping that my new Raleigh-Chicago-Dallas-Portland itinerary works out.
Based on my own limited data points, the most reliable way of getting there is to get in the back seat of a 1973 Pontiac Catalina and spend the next few days looking at every license plate for my favorite car game. I hope that observation doesn’t hold up much longer.