New Wildfire in Central Oregon: 1,600 acres burned thus far
Update: The Deadman Canyon Fire northeast of Madras has grown to 1,600 acres as of Tuesday night. ODOT is closing Hwy 293 to Antelope (from the Hwy 97/293 junction).
Horner Hospitalized, Season Over
The injuries from Chris Horner's violent crash in last month's Tour de France continue to surface. Although Horner's most obvious trauma following the crash appeared to be a concussion, he can now add a blood clot to the growing list of injuries.
The Shins to Play in Bend Next Week
No, that’s not an August Fool’s Day joke. This is for real.
Volcanic Funk, Mosquito Eruption and More
Sunday night LA-based Orgone rounded out two days of funkiness at the Volcanic Funk Fest. From what we could tell, the music was good but at $30-35/day the price may have proved too steep for many.
Sam Adams Says He Won’t Run for Re-Election
This just in: Portland Mayor Sam Adams has reportedly been calling his opponents with the announcement that he will not seek re-election in 2012. Here’s a statement just released by Adams: Dear Portlander,
I am finishing a long-scheduled, and much appreciated, week-long “staycation.
Whisker Wars: The new reality show features plenty of Bend
Remember last year when we devoted nearly an entire issue to beards, mustaches and the men who wear them? A year ago, Bend was hosting the Beard Team USA National Beard and Moustache Championships. And we definitely had beard fever.
Jerry Joseph Tonight in Bend
We highlighted this show in last week’s Picks section, but by and large, Jerry Joseph’s show tonight at the NEW Astro Lounge location on Bond Street has flown under the live music radar. If you don’t know, Joseph is the leader of The Jackmormons as well as a member of Stockholm Syndrome.
Portland’s Next Mayor: The Contenders
Will it matter to Central Oregon who Portland’s next Mayor is? Maybe not, but to keep our readers current, the incumbent Sam Adams has had some PR difficulties since taking office centered around the fact he lied about having an affair with a young man before his 18th birthday during Adams’ first campaign. In 2009,…
Trying to Steal Our Stash: Imposters in our garage
Imagine our surprise when opened our garage this morning, and found a neighborhood character happily helping himself to beer from our kegerator! In nice weather, we typically leave the garage door up, but we had foolishly left the kegerator, which is normally kept close to our desks, in the garage. We didn’t realize we were…
Weighing Benefits of Medical Marijuana Dispensaries
We’ve done quite a bit of reporting on medical marijuana over the past couple of years and recently ran this story on Bend’s marijuana collectives. The issue isn’t always easy to understand, given all the gray area that exists in Oregon’s medical pot laws.
New Brett Dennen Video Features Bend, Oregon!
I was just taking a look at the new Brett Dennen video for his song “Comeback Kid (That’s My Dog)” and all of the sudden was all like, “Whoa, I think I just spotted someone I know!” That’s because parts of the video were filmed at Dennen’s early June show at the Athletic Club of…
Win Tickets to This Weekend’s Volcanic Funk Fest
This weekend, the Century Center in Bend is transforming into a little slice of New Orleans with the Volcanic Funk Fest, which I previewed in this week’s issue. The festival, taking place on Saturday and Sunday, features some big names in the funk world, including Big Sam’s Funky Nation, Orgone, Cast of Clowns and plenty…
Locked Back In: I was actually kind of looking forward to a season without the NFL
There was a buzz of relieved excitement in my office on Monday morning when news came across the wire that the NFL and the players union were about to approve a new collective bargaining agreement that would effectively end the great lockout of 2011. In short: there will be NFL football this year. But I…
Rattlesnake Hysteria Calm down, snakes aren't that dangerous
Every year at about this time, rattlesnake hysteria breaks out all across the West. Just the other day one person was bitten by a rattlesnake in one of the national parks in California, now parks personnel are going out in the field wearing snake protection on their legs and footwear. Last week, I received an…
Taming the Risk: Fear can be overcome, but accidents will always happen
As I sit here with a chipped tooth – the bizarre souvenir from a group road ride a few days ago when a rock shot out from under another rider's rear tire like a BB and nailed my front tooth – and having religiously watched this year's Tour de France, which was rife with an…
Weenie Dogs are Worse
Look, I have nothing against Shark Week. Indeed, this annual weeklong television tribute to those finny, ass-chomping murderers of the deep is just as anticipated in the Humpy household as Christmas, Easter, and all those other made up holidays. HOWEVER! All I'm saying is that the Discovery Channel could devote the occasional week to a…
Giant Robot Rumble!: Machines go to battle in Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3 is a game about giant robots fighting each other. And yet, at the beginning of the game, these giant robots ask “Why fight?” To that, I ask: What else do giant robots do? For more than 30 years, giant robots have been fighting in the Gundam manga and anime series. (Technically…
Battle of the Casual Sexes: Friends with Benefits takes on No Strings Attached and both prove there's no such thing
After watching Friends With Benefits I walked down the street and rented No Strings Attached. I needed a refresher on what exactly happens in that movie. If you've seen the trailers for both, or as you can easily deduce from their titles that these are basically the same movie – just released six months apart.…
Blockbuster Fatigue: How Captain America got me back in my nerd groove
I don't think I'm ready for this yet. Superheroes have been such an integral part of my life for so long that I don't even know who I'd be without my love for Captain America, The Punisher, X-Men, both Green's (Arrow and Lantern, screw Hornet), Batman, Spidey and The Avengers. I know these people better…
Blowing Hot Air: White knuckling through a ride in a homemade balloon over Bend
Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip… Sing to yourself “a three-hour tour, a three-hour tour.” Oh sure, it looks like the cats meow from the ground with the fun shapes, colors, and smiles, but once you've taken to the skies in one of these “wicker baskets…
Stranger Than Fiction: Bang! Bang! You're Dead shows a very real side of teen violence
“Everyone has been bullied at some point in their life. Yes, I’ve been bullied. But I’ve learned to recognize when I have taken the actions a bully is known for,” says Trey Hansen, the earnest young director of Bend Experimental Art Theatre’s (BEAT) new student-run and produced play, Bang! Bang! You’re Dead. Sitting in on…
High-Elevation Funk: The Volcanic Funk Fest brings a New Orleans-style party to Bend
In 2009, Gabe Johnson was down in the Crescent City for one of that town's biggest parties, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. The Bend-based concert booker had a hell of a time hopping from concert to concert and club to club into the wee hours of the morning, listening to some of the…
Our Picks for 7/27-8/4: Volcanic Funk Fest, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Attorny General John Kroger and more.
Cherry Poppin Daddies thursday 28 There was a time, back in the mythical 1990s, when Cherry Poppin' Daddies had one of the hottest singles in all the land. Fueled by America's sudden interest in swing music and the dancing that often accompanies the style, “Zoot Suit Riot” became a massive hit and made the Eugene-based…
Deschutes County Shoots the Messenger
In ancient times, the legends say, potentates used to execute messengers who dared to bring them bad news. The custom of literally killing the messenger appears to have died out, but they're still metaphorically killing messengers in Deschutes County. The Deschutes Economic Alliance is a group that's trying to find some way for Deschutes County…
Certified Fresh Straight Poop: It’s Good For You
Monday, July 18Stranger and stranger: John Hoare, former reporter who first blew the whistle on phone-hacking by Rupert Murdoch's News of the World, found dead in his apartment … John Yates, assistant commissioner of Scotland Yard, quits, following lead of top cop Sir Paul Stephenson … Pranksters hack website of Murdoch's The Sun tabloid, post…
Wasca-We Wabbits
Hooray for Jim Anderson for the great article on our jackrabbits. I hope it is read by millions and that every hunter in Central Oregon lays off killing them.
Cutting Kermit and His Friends
If you wanted to reduce the federal debt, would your top priorities be eliminating public television, pollution controls, and head-start programs? These are strange times in all capitols, but perhaps the strangest in Washington is the disconnect between the stated objective – restoring fiscal balance – and the means the House of Representatives has chosen,…
Some Drivers Are Bikers, Too
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Shout Out to Juniper
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On the Mariners Losing Streak
Update: At about 1:15 local time, the Mariners 17-game losing streak came to an end with a 9-2 win over the Yankees. Consider this an obituary to the worst run of loses in Mariners history.
