Greens with Onion and Garlic
Around the world, culinary traditions are aimed at bringing good fortune into a new year. From breads and cakes to long noodles to pork, cultures spanning the globe celebrate the ringing in of a new year with what are considered lucky foods. At midnight in Spain, citizens eat exactly 12 grapes, one for every stroke…
Cross-Country Skiing, in Town
A 1-kilometer loop groomed for skiing is now packed at Skyline Sports Complex in Bend, seated next to Cascade Middle School. The most recent grooming took place on Friday, Dec. 16. The park lights should be on until 9pm most evenings, allowing for night skiing. “It is a skate pad only as the snow isn’t quite…
Roped Together
I started rock climbing in the early ’80s and took to it as passionately as skiing, the sport introduced to me by my parents, and the first endeavor in which I pursued as a profession. Climbing was still a fringe sport and climbing gyms hadn’t evolved yet. From bouldering anywhere I could find a rock, and…
Pandora the Explorer
Let’s get the elephant in the room out of the way really quick. The original “Avatar” from 2009 was absolutely stunning to look at but was so derivative when it came to the story, dialogue and characters that it left almost zero cultural imprint, while simultaneously making more money than any other movie ever made.…
Holiday Albums to Spin this Season
Whoever says the full-length album is a dying art form hasn’t been watching the Christmas music. This year brings another sleigh full of full-length albums. Here’s my take on this year’s albums vying for your Christmas music dollars. Lindsey Stirling: “Snow Waltz” – Stirling brings her unique signature mix of classical, electronica and pop to…
Spoken Moto Brings a Night of Musical Diversity This NYE
There’s a lot happening on Dec. 31 this year. New Year’s Eve at McMenamins is always a classic. The Malik Friedman Group is playing at the Volcanic Theatre Pub. There are not one but two Masquerade parties (one at Immersion Brewing and one at Seven). And of course, there are the modern primetime Bendlandian staples…
Go Here: Don’t Wing It When It Comes to Waxing
Attention all skiers and snowboarders! For every three to five full days of shredding on the mountain, a wax session is recommended, according to Katie Marvasti, ski and bike shop manager at The Gear Fix. You can never wax your board or skis too many times. It makes gliding over the snow smoother and easier.…
Luces Navideñas: Una guía de apreciación
Uno de mis mejores recuerdos de niño de la Navidad de los años 70s fue viajar en la camioneta de la familia, “Bessie,” para ver las luces navideñas mientras me quejaba con mis padres por querer de nuevo un tentenpié. Había algo mágico en esa tarde familiar en donde el terreno se transformaba en un…
Gung Ho: Bend Keeps Bringing in the Big Names for 2023
It’s not even 2023, and the concert lineup keeps getting better and better with many musicians trying to stop in Bend on tour. Is it the breathtaking location, with the river and snow-capped surrounding mountains? The growth of the city? The outdoor opportunities? The sunny days? Whatever it is, Bend is bringing in some big…
How To Build Community in A New Home
Welcome to Bend! If you’re new here, you’re lucky. We are a thriving community of wonderfully friendly and giving people. You may have seen bumper stickers around that say “Smile. You’re in Bend.” Or “Be Nice. You’re in Bend.” This is not just a gimmick. People often comment and joke about Bend being a bubble…
Horoscope Week of December 22, 2022
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): To inspire your self-inquiry in 2023, I have chosen a passage from Herman Hesse’s fairy tale, “A Dream Sequence.” It will provide guidance as you dive further than ever before into the precious mysteries in your inner depths. Hesse addressed his “good ardent darkness, the warm cradle of the soul, and…
The Third Act: A Column on Ageism and Ageing
For all the commercial hype of merry and happy, and as all sizes and shapes of “family” try to wriggle into the cultural one-size that’s supposed to fit all, for many members of the over-the-hill gang Yuletide can turn out to be more mono than ménage. For a variety of reasons (treacherous travel, illness, family…
Letters to the Editor 12/22/2022
Elections The elections are over, thankfully! The vitriol seems to get worse and the lies are exponential. For example, the overturning of Roe vs. Wade did not mean the end of abortion availability. Trump won! We can save the planet by eliminating fossil fuels. How many votes were purchased with the promise of cancellation of…
Cuisine from ‘The Roof of the World’
The Himalayan mountain range is made up of three parallel ranges that cover approximately 1,500 miles, passing through the nations of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, China, Bhutan and Nepal. The range is bordered to the north by the Tibetan Plateau. It’s the highest mountain range on Earth and is often referred to as the “roof of…
Tableware, Gourmet Treats from Italy Among Items at New Box Factory Store
Tastes of Italy and Europe are among the items available at a new store that opened Dec. 16 in the Box Factory in Bend. Borgo Rosati is a “lifestyle concept store” opened by Mimmo Rosati, featuring collections of tableware and gourmet foods from Italy, artwork from local and regional artists, furniture and even women’s clothing.…
Funky Fauna Celebrates First Four Seasons
From butterfly pea flowers that turn beers purple to Carolina reaper chili peppers that turn beers spicy AF, Funky Fauna Artisan Ales technically is a brewery, but it’s more like an idea factory. Funky Fauna is now celebrating one successful year of ideation. A full year into its existence it likely remains Central Oregon’s smallest…
Latin-American and Japanese Mashup at El Sancho’s Secret Spot
It might be called “the Super Secret Side Street Saloon,” but El Sancho’s latest venture is in the Source events calendar… so, it’s kinda like the best-kept not-kept secret in Bend. Now through March 4, El Kussho, the sushi spot also known as Kusshi NW that previously popped up in downtown Bend, is posted up…
Napoleon Dynamite Turns 18
I don’t think it’s possible to overestimate how influential to pop culture “Napoleon Dynamite” was upon its release in 2004. I was working at a video store at the time and the number of copies I rented to teenagers and proto-hipsters wearing “Vote For Pedro” t-shirts is too many for me to even try to wrap…
More St. Charles Staff Unionize
Home health and hospice nurses at St. Charles Health System voted to form a union on Dec. 8, becoming the latest cohort of St. Charles employees to become unionized. About 40 nurses across Central Oregon will now be represented by the Oregon Nurses Association, who already represent over 1,100 nurses in the St. Charles Health…
We Wanted to Write About 'The Last Blockbuster' the Show, But Then It Got Canceled
As anyone who has watched the documentary “The Last Blockbuster” by Taylor Morden and Zeke Kamm can tell you, Netflix isn’t technically the reason why almost all of the Blockbusters across the world rapidly went out of business. Apparently, it had more to do with the mega corporation getting rid of late fees and the…
Governor Commutes Death Row Inmates
On Dec. 13 Gov. Kate Brown commuted the sentence of Oregon’s 17 inmates on death row and ordered the execution chamber to be dismantled. The 17 prisoners will now serve life in prison without the possibility of parole. Oregon rarely uses the death penalty, executing only two inmates in the last 50 years. Since the…
Christmas Lights: A Judgmental Guide
One of my fondest childhood memories of Christmas in the 1970s was riding around in the family station wagon, “Bessie,” to look at Christmas lights while I whined to my parents about needing a snack – again. There was something magical about a familiar evening landscape transformed to a radiant wonderland at the expense of…
Winter Driving Obstacle Course
When I moved to a mountain town, I thought you folks would know how to drive during the winter. Boy, was I wrong. As a simple Midwesterner, I was used to the occasional snowstorm and how to drive on it — and so were other drivers who, from my limited anecdotal experience, fared better than…
At the Holidays, Make Redistribution of Wealth a Personal Task, Not Just a Governmental One
This time of year is typically a time for people to count their blessings and focus on a measure of gratitude. For homeowners, one needs only to look at the property tax statement that arrived in the mail not long ago to see a dose of that gratitude played out. While it’s true that some…
