Where to head now that the rain has let up and the sun is tempting you to indulge in an afternoon of “me, me, me!” time?
Tell the office you’re taking care of some long-put-off dental work, then drive the “This is What Norway Must Look Like!” expressway (a.k.a. I-84) and spend three or four hours shopping in Hood River, Ore.
You’ll have an all-day smile when you return to your desk—promise!

CHIC SHEATHS AND SOLES FROM NEAR AND FAR
It feels big-city inside the small but well-edited PARTS + LABOUR (112 Third St., 541-387-2787
or parts-labour.com), the “modern lifestyle boutique” that Casey Cunningham (above and right, with designer Jennifer Thomas) dreamed up after spending years as an orthodontal assistant.
  “I wanted to have my own business, so I considered going to dental school, but I have a 9-year-old son and I didn’t want to spend eight years in dental school,” says the Sandy, Ore., native, who also designed the shop’s copper display racks and metal-legged tables, which are topped with reclaimed wood from a 1920s building. “I’ve always been into fashion., so I worked up a business plan for a clothing boutique that would be inspired by nature—I like to sell the work of fashion designers who work with organic fabrics—and modern design, and, three years later, here I am. I like to wear clothes that are funky but not over-the-top.”
  Her sustainable style mix of progressive urban clothing and accessories for women includes dresses from JT Designs ($224 for the gray wool Empire Dress, above; $128 for The Mod Mini in white bamboo, right)—the creations of Thomas, a Hood River, Ore., designer—Free People ($129 for a sundress), the Swedish brand Odd Molly, Brave Belts, Tano handbags and 100 percent rubber Melissa Shoes ($43 for a peek-a-boo toe pump with a wedge heel), which are made in Brazil. “Casey has such a great sense of style,” says Thomas.
“And Hood River is an amazing  nest to grow in. So many stylish people live here.”