Cover Stories
Sewer Smarts
Over 700 million COVID tests have been performed in the United States as of late November—more than 8 million in Oregon, and while testing is invaluable to monitor the spread of COVID, it requires individuals to get tested. On the other hand, everyone poops, and that poop can help understand broad COVID trends. Oregon State…
Back to Work?
The number of working Central Oregonians exceeds pre-pandemic levels from October 2019 by about 630 jobs, signaling that the economy largely recovered from the shock of COVID. The Oregon Employment Department reported Nov. 23 that the unemployment rate is around 4.9% in Deschutes County, one-and-a-half points higher than pre-pandemic rates from February 2020, but lower…
A Holiday Hot Lap
The slopes aren’t open yet, but the biking is good… and for those who love running or climbing, those clear paths and rocks mean the outdoor season is still in full swing. For those looking for something for the outdoor lover on their gift list, consider shopping local and going for one of these hot…
Cookbooks Make Great Gifts
Maybe you cook, maybe you don’t. Maybe you get your recipes online and don’t see the point of owning a stack of cookbooks. Or maybe you have a bookshelf full of cookbooks and treasure every single one of them. Whichever side of the cookbook fence you’re on, there are most likely people in your gift-giving…
Gifts For Those Who Like Staying In
Our annual gift guide (part 1) is here, and the Bend Marketplace is your one-stop shop to buy what you see here! All the items found on pages 10, 11 and 13 of this week’s issue can be found in the Bend Marketplace, Bend’s site for local shopping. If you see something you like, head…
Source Weekly Update podcast 12/2/21 🎧
The advent of a new COVID variant, more delays for the ski season and an upcoming legislative session to manage the flood of renters seeking to avoid eviction, all in this week’s Source Weekly Update podcast. (Editor’s note: This version of the story on the Omicron variant stated that the variant originated in South Africa—a fact…
Listen: Eliza Wilson of the Homeless Leadership Coalition 🎧
Finding solutions for the unhoused is a hot topic in Bend and elsewhere, as housing gets more expensive and income inequality continues to grow. In Central Oregon, the Homeless Leadership Coalition is at the forefront of the effort to find solutions and to support those experiencing homelessness. In this podcast, Eliza Wilson, a member of…
Letters to the Editor 12/2/21
Editor’s note: This week we roll out Part One of our two-part Gift Guide, where we share some ideas for gifts you can buy right here on the local scene. Our feature pages (pages 10, 11 and 13) display some of the many gifts locals can find on the Bend Marketplace—a one-stop online shop for…
Noticias en Español
El número de trabajadores en el Centro de Oregon rebasa el volumen previo a la pandemia de octubre 2019 con cerca de 630 empleos, lo que indica que la economía se recuperó bastante de la sacudida por COVID. La Secretaria del Trabajo de Oregon (OED por sus siglas en inglés) reportó el 23 de noviembre…
It’s a (OE)RAP
Gov. Kate Brown announced on Tuesday that she will call for a special legislative session on Dec. 13 to address eviction protections. Earlier in the day Oregon Housing and Community Services said they are pausing any new applications for the Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance Program, or OERAP for at least six weeks. OHCS received over…
With the Vets Village Open, an Opportunity to Learn
On Veterans Day, the first of what could one day be a number of villages for houseless individuals in Central Oregon opened on the Deschutes County public safety campus. The 15 armed services veterans who will live there will not only have a place to live, but will have access to social services and other…
Missing Ingredient: The Holiday Cocktail
Buy local. Buy gifts of experience. These are just some of the mantras one might hear from a certain type of shopper this time of year. But by picking up a bottle or two of a locally made spirit, locals have a way to do both things at once. Grab a bottle from one of…
Ski You Later
Mt. Bachelor is again postponing its opening day due to a lack of snowfall and consistently warm temperatures. The mountain was set to open on Friday, Nov. 26, before being postponed to Dec. 3. Now there’s no projected opening date. “Like previous winters when we didn’t announce an opening date, we’ll be ready and announce the…
A Star-Studded Christmas Parade:
For over 30 years the Bend Christmas parade has gotten people hyped, ready and filled with holiday spirit. Known as one of the biggest Christmas parades in Oregon, this annual event attracts Oregonians from far and wide. This year, the Bend Oregon Raider Nation organization invited number-one draft pick from the 1972 Raiders team, Mike…
So Long and Hanks For all the Finch
We now live in a world where there are so many streaming services that even giant-ass blockbusters that a few years ago would be taking up 10 screens at the local multiplex are now unceremoniously dumped online with no fanfare. Cinema is now mostly just a never-ending trickle of content across a dozen or so…
Four Good Reads for Music Heads
Is your uncle always talking about all of the concerts he went to growing up? Do your nieces and nephews make you feel old because you don’t know any of the music they like? And is your cousin kind of a music snob? Well, instead of destroying yourself trying to decide which record to buy…
Disclosure and Real Estate
Every property has a story and its idiosyncrasies. It can be said with complete certainty that every home has flaws. In fact, it is highly likely that at some point during homeownership, something has occurred that will need to be disclosed when the property is sold. As a broker who has spent over a decade…
Bark Ranger
Bark Ranger I’m a divorced guy in my 40s using dating apps. I’m keenly aware of what I do and don’t want in a woman and make it clear in my profile. For example, I write, “If you’re in a weird co-dependent relationship with a five-pound dog,” we are not a match. A friend looked…
Free Will Astrology—Week of December 2
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): “All my days I have longed equally to travel the right road and to take my own errant path,” wrote Norwegian-Danish novelist Sigrid Undset. I think she succeeded in doing both. She won a Nobel Prize for Literature. Her trilogy about a 14th-century Norwegian woman was translated into 80 languages. I…
