The Traveling Camera: Colombia
We spent some time in Colombia’s Amazon Basin in December shooting for our upcoming book on Colombia. The area where Brazil, Peru and Colombia meet has some interesting native villages that are open to visitors.
Coachella Announces Lineup
FINALLY! We have a lineup to look forward to for the 2012 Coachella Music Festival in Indio California. It’s the first of the big Western music festivals and this year, will spread itself out over two weekends with identical lineups.
This Weekend: First Friday, Blazers, Roller Dolls, Matt Hopper and more
You’d think that there would be a post-New Year lull in the events happening around town this weekend, but that’s hardly the case. There’s actually a crap ton of stuff to do.
Another One Bites the Dust: Maragas Taverna closes its doors
Bend lost another restaurant/wine tasting room this week when winemaker Doug Maragas decided to close up the little Taverna on Colorado Ave. and consolidate all operations in Culver, where the Maragas Winery (rhymes with “asparagus”) and vineyard is located.
City Releases Employee Kick-back Investigation Results
The city has released a three-page summary of a controversial disciplinary action that drew the ire of the Bend Bulletin’s editorial page. The summary was released today as part of an ongoing tug of war between the paper and the city over an investigation involving a public works employee who was accused of providing preferential…
Tonight’s Free Music: Tony Smiley
I had a blast of a time chatting with Vancouver-area one-man rock band Tony Smiley for the feature we ran this week about his insane mastery of the loop pedals and am still wondering how the hell he makes the sounds he does. Tonight, Smiley plays a free show (and it’s all ages, kids) at…
10 Barrel Brewing to Boise: We’re coming!
The nearly six-year-old Bend brewery, 10 Barrel, is planning on opening a brewpub in Boise, Idaho as early as this summer. The Galveston Ave.
10 Days, 5 States, 2,037 Miles
With little desire to indulge in the feeding frenzy that is the holiday season, I decided to head south to climb. Often I think about my life and feel half crazy for what I do.
Late To The Party; Here’s My Best Music of 2011
Seems like it was just yesterday I was proclaiming Anais Mitchell’s album Hadestown, the best album of 2010 (and believe me.
Enjoy Free Kicks with the Timbers in Bend
Soccer fans rejoice. The Portland Timbers will be kicking it in Bend later this month as part of a statewide “meet the fans” promotion.
Enter the Ninja: Tony Smiley is just one guy and he likes it that way
Tony Smiley has always wanted to play rock music, but he doesn't want to be in a band. He's been there, done that and the rock band dynamic just isn't for him. This would be the end of the line for most aspiring rock musicians. Time to clip on the Guitar Center nametag or start…
Clams, Creole and Crème Brûlée: A downtown date night in three parts
There's a calming sense of symmetry when doing everything in threes and last Tuesday marked my third year of marriage to my lovely wife, Gwendolyn. To celebrate our anniversary, we decided that instead of going out for a nice meal, we would go out to three: One place for appetizers, one for the main course…
Little Bites: Sours, Trippels and Stouts, Oh My!: New brewery in Bend promises to fill a hole in Central Oregon's beer scene
On the last business day of 2011, three men smashed through a wall of an old transmission shop with golden-painted sledgehammers, much to the delight of the gathered crowd. “Come on, Sidor!” shouted one bystander, encouraging the craft beer maestro to swing his hammer with gusto. The wall-breaking ceremony was meant to celebrate the start…
A Tale of Two Movies: Spielberg delivers not one but two holiday treats with Tintin and War Horse
Lots of film enthusiasts like me are licking their chops in anticipation of Steven Spielberg's biopic, Lincoln, set to arrive this year and likely win every Academy Award shortly thereafter. But the filmmaker, who hasn't directed a film since the embarrassing fourth installment of the Indiana Jones franchise, has brought a double dose of holiday…
Jingle Bells, Santa Smells, Aliens Are on their Way: The Darkest Hour is a dreary yet hilarious hour and a half
The genius in opening a movie like The Darkest Hour on Christmas Day is that it gives somebody like me a chance to see something a little creepier, rather than all the family friendly, Spielberg-saturated, over-produced, holiday schlock. It's clear within seconds that The Darkest Hour is a movie that's going to cut corners… practically…
Pity the Poor Beaver: Getting reacquainted with our state's namesake critter
Aside from the coyote and wolf, no other mammal – including cows – has figured so dramatically in the commercial history of the state of Oregon as the North American beaver. Wars were fought over the beaver and much of western Oregon was impacted by the trapping of these animals and the sale of their…
A Real Dud: Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One doesn't do its franchise justice
This should be called Ratchet & Clank: Play With Your Kid Brother. The duo of cat-like critter and his mini robot sidekick are a natural fit for co-operative multiplayer gaming. In All 4 One, Ratchet and Clank are joined by Quark (a green, jutting-jawed cartoon space hero) and Dr. Nefarious (a green-brained evil robot). Instead…
Year of the Dry Bone
Welcome to 2012 – and I've got another New Years' resolution all ready to add to your list. I think you need to do a better job at expressing affection – primarily towards me. This can be accomplished in a number of ways: 1) Erotic poetry and/or fan fiction. Send me more erotic poetry, or…
A Resolute New Year: Plenty of outdoors and volunteer opportunities await in 2012
After weeks of prayer and breathless anticipation, Mother Nature finally responded with a quality snowfall to finish off 2011. Saturday's reported foot of snow (depending on whom you ask) and morning temperatures in the single digits meant I was heading to Todd Lake for my final ski of the year. Trading my usual ski partner…
Game Time, Fat Time: Why we eat what we eat when we watch sporting events
On Christmas Eve, I – and my parents, siblings and our spouses – attended a football game in Seattle. The Seahawks were playing the 49ers in what was supposed to be a playoff-deciding matchup, so the family donned matching blue-and-green Santa hats (the too-cool-for-school 16-year-old hipster who lives inside of me cringed just a little…
Our Picks for 1/5-1/12
Tony Smiley thursday 5 Once there was a man who came to Bend from the other side of the mountains and began playing a weird, one-man-band sort of rock and roll. His name was Tony Smiley and they called him the Loop Ninja. We profiled the Ninja himself in this week's screen section. Free. 7pm.…
What's Wrong With Siri?: Apple's personal assistant doesn't mean to be sexist
If you tell Siri you've been raped, she wouldn't tell you to go to a hospital, or to the police. If you tell Siri you want some Viagra, she knows where you could get it. Tech and feminist blogs recently erupted with a startling story: Siri, the iPhone 4 app that responds to voice queries…
Weathermen Who Don't Know Which Way the Wind Blows
Global warming skeptics (aka deniers) have their forum: it's called AM radio. So it's curious that the Oregon chapter of the American Meteorological Society has chosen to give several prominent skeptics a platform to espouse their misinformed ideas.
This Is the First Straight Poop of the Rest of Your Life
Monday, Dec. 26 Guess they're considering the alternatives: Gallup Poll finds 47% of Americans approve of President Obama, first time since last summer that positive rating's been higher than negative … Now this is a shocker: Independent panel finds Japan wasn't prepared for disaster at Fukushima nuke plant … Arab “Spring” in December: Arab League…
Bogged Down on Mirror Pond
A river wants to be a river, not a pond. You can make a river behave like a pond for a while by putting a dam in front of it, but sooner or later – sooner if the pond is shallow – the area outside of the main channel will fill up with sediment and…
In reply to: Don't surrender Our Surface Water (The Mailbox, 12-21):
Sorry, Mike. I think you are well meaning here but incorrect on this matter. I’ll take just one issue of your essay as others have addressed others. To say the city needed to take the woefully bad, and as judgment I’ll say arrogant, approach they did to avoid a “slam” up against a Federal deadline…
In reply to: In Search of a Silver Lining: You don't need snow to celebrate the solstice (Outdoors, 12/21):
Who woulda thought that in late December the trails at Phils would be terrific and the trails in the desert would be sandy.
Ring Out the Old Straight Poop, Ring In the New (12/28):
Wow, I always read this section hoping you’ll at least write Ron Paul’s name somewhere in the column. You know the “kooky, crazy, Uncle Paul who supposedly “can’t win” (aka won’t be allowed to win) the GOP nomination because of his crazy non interventionist foreign policy, his views on the Federal Reserve, his ideas about…
Same Name, New Game: Redmond's Clock Tower Pub gets a menu makeover (12/31):
Added more tvs and games shuffelboard tourneys on thursday exel food thanks Redmond.
