Stolen Ballots Recovered on BLM Land
If you haven’t received your ballot for this November’s election, check with the Deschutes County Clerk, as it may have been part of the stolen mail recovered by a Bureau of Land Management Ranger on Monday. According to the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, which received the stolen mail from more than 70 addresses throughout the…
St. Charles to Close Family Birth Center
St. Charles Health System, the largest healthcare provider in Central Oregon, has decided to close its Redmond Family Birthing Center next summer, citing low capacity and volumes that led to staffing changes. “This was not an easy decision to make,” Board Chairman Dan Schuette said in a press release Monday. “But as a health system,…
Investing in community digital skills education
Facebook held a two-day conference in Redmond this week, featuring education sessions about their products and features for small business owners. The “Community Boost” event is one of 50 the company has scheduled this year nationwide. Over 240 people attended the two-day event, which kicked off Tuesday. Educational sessions covered everything from Facebook advertising and…
More Remote Workers = More Co-Work Spaces
Last month, the international company, Merkle, closed its Bend office. The company, which has a total of 4,500 employees around the world, has been a staple in the Bend marketing community for years. Merkle’s Bend employees aren’t losing their jobs, but instead being allowed to work remotely. It’s part of a growing trend of companies,…
Clothing Wars
Under Armour, the third-largest sports brand in the U.S., sent a cease and desist order to Bend’s Cascade Armory Oct. 24, claiming Cascade Armory is creating brand confusion and that Under Armour is suffering from it. In its cease and desist letter to Cascade Armory’s attorney, Leigh Gill of Portland’s Immix Law Group, Under Armour…
Bend Fire Collecting Warm Clothes
The City of Bend Fire Department has a way for people to get into the Christmas Spirit early this year, by donating unneeded winter clothing to help out the less fortunate. This fall marks the third year that Bend Fire and the Deschutes County Rural Fire Protection District No. 2 have collected winter clothes during…
Added Support for Disadvantaged Kids
Incarceration can affect so many more people than just the person serving time. One Deschutes County program is meant to help the children. The Central Oregon Partnerships for Youth program is managed through the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office. The program made their very first mentor match back in 2004, and they’re always looking for new…
Some Things You Might Not Have Known About Voting in Oregon
You’re registered to vote. You know something about the candidates. But with ballots for the 2018 General Election now delivered to most voters in Oregon, Secretary of State Dennis Richardson has answers to some of the 12 most frequently asked questions about the election. Did you know, for example, that 16 and 17 year olds…
County Changes Pot Rules
The Deschutes County Commission has implemented a series of changes to its rules around growing recreational marijuana—and declared an “emergency” to make sure the rules go into effect sooner than the typical 90 days. The rules, which commissioners voted on Wednesday, include new regulations around odor, noise, lighting and reporting, among other changes. Although a…
Student Voices
Just this week, two incidents involving firearms happened right here in Bend. One incident left two men dead. While neither involved local schools, they serve as reminders that firearms pose a constant threat of violence when left in the wrong hands. In light of the multitude of attacks at schools nationwide, students and teachers live…
Trick or Treat?
Many of us grew up with urban legends surrounding Halloween, from spooky houses that you weren’t supposed to go near, to sharp objects and even poison in candy. But are those yet another case of “fake news?” We wanted to find out. Razor blades in candied apples Author Jack Santino notes in his history of…
Show Off Your Sausage
We’re the Würst wants to see your sausage. Well, the owners really want to see what you do with their kielbasa, linguica, weisswurst, bratwurst and boerewors. In November you can participate in their first-ever photo cook-off contest. When I asked what prompted the contest, chef-owner Matthew Fidler said, “We have been having a lot of…
Halloween Picks
Halloween parties are taking place over two weekends this year—here’s what to see and do this week. See more in next week’s issue! FRIDAY 10/26 FRIGHT NIGHT HALLOWEEN COSTUME PARTY AVID throws one of the best Halloween shindigs of the season — and it’s free! Portland’s DJ Wicked will be spinning tunes, who has opened for…
Compassionate Thanksgiving Feast
A Broken Angel is hosting its third annual Compassionate Thanksgiving Feast at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Central Oregon. The feast is a multi-course, family-style vegan dinner celebrating each other, animals and mother earth. Children five and under eat free, if they don’t require their own place setting, and children under 11 are $35. This animal-free…
Curbside Composting?
Knott Landfill—the only landfill in Deschutes County—is getting stuffed full. County officials estimate that if the current levels of garbage continue, it has a life expectancy of 12 more years. Deschutes County Commissioner Tony DeBone said the County’s not looking for another landfill location yet, and the Solid Waste Advisory Committee is looking at the…
Here We Glow Again
My friends tease me, saying that I’m such an obnoxious jerk, but amazingly, everybody seems to love me. Somebody said it’s because I have charisma—like a rock star/movie star quality. Honestly, I don’t think that highly of myself. I’m interesting-looking, outgoing, funny, and relatively talented in what I do. What is charisma exactly, and can…
Vote Jamie McLeod-Skinner for U.S. Rep., 2nd District
Congressional District 2 is nothing if not a vast, disparate district. Its constituents range from the ranchers of eastern Oregon, to the Valley dwellers of Medford, to the outdoor enthusiasts of Hood River and Bend. It’s a district that’s long been represented in the U.S. House of Representatives by Greg Walden (R, Hood River)—but “representative”…
Desert Mystic: The Paintings of John Simpkins
Some artists apply their craft to make a living. Some pay attention to their creative spirit on Sundays, in the spare room, with the good light. And then there are some artists who seemingly walk through the world with creativity and life dripping from their very essence, applying beauty to every moment of their existence.…
Street Beat
There will be plenty of candy around this Halloween, but where are the best spots to Trick or Treat? We hit the streets of downtown Bend and asked local kids, who were eager to share their secrets. Sloan and Kellen Olson said, “The Old Mill! Riverfront and Federal!” You might see the pair on the streets…
Sushi Two Times
Kusshi is the kind of place you hear about through the grapevine. Its Yelp page is unclaimed, and they don’t advertise. Kusshi simply pops up, appearing Thursdays and Fridays downtown at White Water Taphouse. Pop-ups are temporary restaurants typically used to gain exposure before opening a brick-and-mortar location. Chef owner Ian Skomski said he named…
Haunted History
The Deschutes Historical Museum organizes a special ghostly version of its Heritage Walking Tour, only available for two days leading up to Halloween. During those recent seasonal tours, listeners get an earful of history and learn about ghostly encounters that some say they’ve experienced in Bend’s historic downtown. As a TV ghost show junkie with a…
Appropriation vs. Appreciation
It’s almost that time of year again, time to dress up and go door to door asking for tricks or treats—and also to wonder, is this cultural appropriation? The Cambridge Dictionary defines cultural appropriation as, “The act of taking or using things from a culture that is not your own, especially without showing that you…
Does First Man Have the Right Stuff?
Some film critics judge a movie based on what they want it to be, as opposed to what made it onto the screen. Yes, it’s easy to spot missed opportunities, shaky structure and sloppy characterization, but the real central tenet of any kind of criticism should center around whether the artist achieved their vision…whether that…
May the Source Be with You: Halloween edition
I have a bit of an obsession with the macabre year-round, so using Halloween as an excuse to talk about scary stuff is a bit disingenuous. Still, I’ll take what I can get. There are so many different sub-genres of horror that people with a deep aversion to, say, clowns, can avoid Pennywise and all of…
Tokin’ Times
The overproduction myth What do Iowa corn, Idaho potatoes and Kentucky tobacco have in common with Oregon marijuana? All are home-grown natural resources that the residents of the states from which the crops originate could not possibly consume all by their lonesome. Yet, here in Oregon, where our crop arguably has as much or more…
His Truth
Lyrics Born has earned several “first” titles over the years. He takes the title of first Asian-American solo rapper to release a greatest hits record and perform at major festivals including Coachella and Lollapalooza. Now, he also stands as the first Asian-American solo rapper to release a 10th album. This milestone comes as a great…
Bend-La Pine Schools making progress in prevention of school shootings, but missing an important piece
Bend-La Pine Schools has taken swift and important action to help prevent school shootings in our district. However, it has yet to address the fact that the majority of guns used by children in school shootings come from homes in which guns are not securely stored. Clear and consistent messaging to parents about the importance…
Fascination with the Unknown
When Halloween falls in the middle of the week, like it does this year, it means Bend goes big—expanding the tricks and musical treats to the weekends both before and after the spookiest day of the year. This year, for those willing to brave the mid-week hangover, TAUK brings a rock-meets-funk fusion to Volcanic Theatre…
Free Will Astrology—Week of October 25
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): “He believed in magic,” writes author Michael Chabon about a character in his novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay. “Not in the so-called magic of candles, pentagrams, and bat wings,” nor “dowsing rods, séances, weeping statues, werewolves, wonders, or miracles.” Then what kind? Chabon says it’s the “impersonal magic…
Home Sales Volume Related to Supply of Affordable Homes
Looking at reports on national statistics relating to the recent home sales decline, I took another look at the inventory levels for September 2017 and compared the figures to September 2018. Both last year and this year, Bend single family residences on 1 acre or less and priced under $400,000 had the highest number of…
Letters to the Editor
Corrections: In our 10/18 endorsement in the Bend mayor’s race, we erroneously stated that sitting councilors running for mayor who did not win the mayor’s race would be removed from office. Should Bill Moseley or Sally Russell not win as mayor, they will fill the remainder of their term(s) as Councilor—not be removed. If one…
New Deli Opens in Box Factory
The Box Factory now has one more food option: Valentine’s Deli. Opened by native Oregonian Kari Johannsen and her husband Brian Korfhage, the deli serves sandwiches, soups, salads and desserts. I tried the hot Italian, a toasted sandwich with salami, pepperoncini, capicola, ham, provolone, pepperoncini, shredded lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, dijon, seasoning, and oil and…
Revisiting Rogue
Considering that Rogue Ales produced nearly 100,000 barrels in 2017 (according to Brewers Association figures) and distributes its beer, cider, soda and distilled spirits to 50 U.S. states—and worldwide from Thailand to Norway, local Oregonian beer nerds still sometimes treat the brand as something of a joke. Much of this is backlash from the Newport-based…
Sydney the Cygnet Lives On
Eloise, the surviving trumpeter swan from an original pair brought to Aspen Lakes, has lived quite a life. She survived the death of her early partner and has lived long enough to gain some friends among the residents. It was love at first sight for Robin Gold—one of the residents at Aspen Lakes in Sisters,…
