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Pride in Numbers Survey to Provide a Comprehensive Look at Life for LGBTQIA+ and Two-Spirit Oregonians
Central Oregonians who identify as LGBTQIA+ and Two-Spirit have a unique opportunity to have their voices heard and let their artistry resonate as part of a statewide art project and online survey that’s nearing completion on May 31. Pride in Numbers takes a two-pronged approach to gather data and recognize participants with its community art…
Star Skirmish
Whether you enjoy “The Mandalorian and Grogu” depends entirely on what you want from your “Star Wars” these days. Don’t get me wrong, the film is entertaining and it’s easy to get lost in director Jon Favreau’s version of Star Wars, where every frame is packed with stunningly designed aliens and monsters. Yet, it’s hard…
A Low-Key Summer Pride Celebration
The annual Bend Summer Pride event is returning to a grassroots community gathering. It’s unclear what to expect. Unlike years past, this year is a “self-organized” event. A post on the Bend Pride web page says: “We know this looks a little different from years past, and we want to be upfront about that. The…
A New Happy Hour Spot & A Mercantile That’s Expanding its Food Menu
A Toast to Happy Hour The Hudson in downtown Bend has launched its Happy Hour menu. It will feature new small plates, specially priced oysters, crab claws along with cocktails, beer on tap and wine by the glass. Happy Hour is Wednesday through Saturday, 4-5:30pm. The Hudson is a live-fire chophouse and social club on…
A Critically Sick Orphaned Foal Needs Help
A critically ill newborn colt has inspired a community fundraising effort. The young horse has been receiving care at Bend Equine Medical Center since May 13 for complications related to being malnourished and dehydrated including persistent pneumonia, swelling in his hind legs as well as having six broken ribs. So far, his treatment has exceeded…
Free Will Astrology, Week of May 28
GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Among the Dogon of Mali, Sigui so is a secret language. It’s used in a sacred ritual when people gather to retell their beginnings and patch up strains in tribal harmony. I’m borrowing “Sigui so” here as a symbol for a way of talking that I hope you will specialize in…
Letters to the Editor, Week of May 28
Happy about new ordinance Thank you to the Redmond City Council for stepping up with the new ordinance, 2026-2, in prohibiting motorcycles in city parks. This will increase safety for many older and younger residents while they enjoy our parks and benefit from being outdoors, in nature, exercising and relaxing with family, friends or alone.…
Smoke Signals on Galveston
Everybody in Bend seems to be talking about Runaround Sue Barbecue right now. Either they’re planning their first visit, raving about the brisket they inhaled over lunch, or comparing the smoked turkey to the barbecue they grew up with back in Texas, Memphis or the Carolinas. Around here, a new restaurant that’s generating this much…
Bend Approves Plan to Expand Water Plant, Waits on Forest Service Land Transfer
The Bend City Council on May 20 approved a master plan to expand the facility that filters Bend’s main water source for drinking. The plan provides the roadmap for future upgrades including a new pretreatment system, hydropower generation facilities, future storage reservoirs and other infrastructure City officials say is critical to ensuring long-term resiliency in a major water source for residents. Approval of the Outback Facility Plan comes as the City awaits a final decision from the U.S. Forest Service on the transfer of a 48-acre piece of land north of Skyliners Road. Some…
Redmond Designing Outdoor Ice Rink for Downtown
The City of Redmond is moving ahead with plans to demolish an old police station downtown and build an outdoor ice-skating rink expected to open by Thanksgiving next year. Project meetings kicked off earlier this month after the City Council, sitting as the Redmond Urban Renewal Agency Board, awarded a design contract to Kirby Nagelhout Construction Company. The City expects the rink to cost between…
Four Takeaways from the May Primary Election
The May primary election has come and gone, and in Deschutes County, much of the oxygen went toward the races for the Deschutes County Board of County Commissioners. That body will see two additional members next year. In the wake of the election, these are some observations we’ve made about our region’s changing political landscape.…
Navigating Difficulties After Ceremony
Q: “It’s been weeks since my ceremony, and I’m experiencing depression, anxiety and disconnection that feels worse than before I started this work. Is this normal integration, or could the medicine have triggered something harmful?” A: I hear you. I’ve witnessed this territory before. The weeks following ceremony can sometimes feel like being suspended between worlds.…
The Realities of Being a Full-Time Bus Rider in Central Oregon
My Timberland boots crunched against the highway gravel as I marched to the Riverhouse Lodge bus stop, my breath visible. I checked my watch: 15 minutes early. I was up an hour earlier in efforts to get a jump on the North Bend route 4 bus — my veritable ghost ship. I’d missed it almost as many times as I’d caught it, and to my horror I saw it barreling down the highway, moments from passing…
Bend Residents Will Get a Say About More AI Surveillance Cameras
Because of pronounced “public interest,” Bend City Manager Eric King will bring the decision to install stationary automated license plate readers to a City Council vote, allowing the public to offer input beforehand. During the May 20 City Council business meeting, Mayor Melanie Kebler, in response to a public comment made by a privacy advocate who mentioned the Source’s reporting on the matter, said the public would be able to give…
What Actually Causes Mortgage Rates to Move?
If you’ve followed the housing market over the last few years (or even the last few weeks), you’ve probably heard some version of this sentence: “Mortgage rates went up because of the economy.” While technically true, that explanation doesn’t tell the full story. Mortgage rates are influenced by several moving parts at once, and many…
Cacti in the High Desert
Can cacti survive in the harsh climate of the High Desert? The long, cold winters make it seem unlikely, but a recent visit to Smith Rock Cactus Company in Terrebonne dispelled any of my doubts. Cacti fascinate me, so when I heard about a place where they are purposely grown in our region, I had…
This is Not AI, It’s Real Human Music
Jessy Ribordy says this about his Portland-based band, The Chilling Alpine Adventure: “TCAA is a pop rock band that leans cinematic. [We] infuse wistfulness, nostalgia and a twist of retro into our emotionally centered songwriting. If we had to name a band that closest resembles our sound, it would probably be early Coldplay.” The name…
Be an Ally: Books to Support Your LGBTQ+ Family, Friends and Peers
Pride month is just around the corner, observed in June to commemorate the Stonewall Uprising of June 28, 1969, when patrons of the Stonewall Inn in New York City resisted a police raid, sparking days of protests and riots that ignited the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement. The first Pride marches were held in June 1970…
Deschutes County Commission Goes Democrat For the First Time In Three Decades
When Keith Rockow moved to Deschutes County in 2003, one of the first ways he got involved in local politics was by planting a yard sign in his front lawn for Gene Whisnant, a Republican who represented part of the county in the Oregon Legislature for 16 years. “We were a good, strong Republican force then,” said Rockow, who is now…
