Thought Provoking, if not Entirely Enjoyable

Posted inCulture

Thought Provoking, if not Entirely Enjoyable

Rachel Purcell

You’re right, they do smell like peanuts.Seven Pounds is a film that you will think about long after you leave the theater. Conversations and phone calls that were so frustratingly unclear in the midst of the film must be re-conjured, mulled over and made sense of long after the final credits roll. This film is shrouded in mystery, from the main character's tragic past to his plans for the seven strangers he has chosen and the roll they will play in his redemption.

A gaunt and disheveled Will Smith plays Ben Thomas, an IRS agent looking to change people's lives, to "drastically change their circumstances." While not equal to his Ali brilliance, the film is sustained by Will Smith's ability to be at once cold and ambiguous without the audience losing faith that his intentions are ultimately good. More than one supporting character asks, "Who are you?" a question for which he has no answer. The audience will ask the same: Is this a megalomaniac or a man seeking to repay an impossible debt?

Posted inFood & Drink

Recession-Proof Rolls: You’ll want to try Tomo in the New Year

Eric Flowers

Place your zen here.If Bend’s boom years produced Deep and Kanpai, then perhaps the fine new Japanese-style dining at Tomo is the product of our collective belt-tightening. From owners Howie and Di Long, also the proprietors of Central Oregon Asian-themed restaurants BaBa, SOBA and Szechuan, comes Tomo Japanese Restaurant, a really good, reasonably-priced sushi bar and an extensive dine-in menu matched by take-out options, including sushi ranging in price from $2 for Inari (tofu skin) to $10 for two kinds of Tempura rolls.

Tomo’s focus is traditional and modern Japanese dishes, like sashimi, Ramen noodles, Tempura shrimp and veggies, and Edamame, as well as the Bento lunch option, prepared with fresh, organic produce “as often as possible,” according to the restaurant’s web site. It also has a full bar.

Posted inFood & Drink

Recession-Proof Rolls: You’ll want to try Tomo in the New Year

Eric Flowers

Place your zen here.If Bend's boom years produced Deep and Kanpai, then perhaps the fine new Japanese-style dining at Tomo is the product of our collective belt-tightening. From owners Howie and Di Long, also the proprietors of Central Oregon Asian-themed restaurants BaBa, SOBA and Szechuan, comes Tomo Japanese Restaurant, a really good, reasonably-priced sushi bar and an extensive dine-in menu matched by take-out options, including sushi ranging in price from $2 for Inari (tofu skin) to $10 for two kinds of Tempura rolls.

Tomo's focus is traditional and modern Japanese dishes, like sashimi, Ramen noodles, Tempura shrimp and veggies, and Edamame, as well as the Bento lunch option, prepared with fresh, organic produce "as often as possible," according to the restaurant's web site. It also has a full bar.

Posted inNews

Top 10 Local News Stories From 2008

Eric Flowers

1. Juniper Ridge Buyout: After earning the ire of the local business and real estate development community, the city of Bend cuts ties with its "Mater Developers" at the beleaguered Juniper Ridge high tech business campus. Juniper Ridge Partners agrees to hand over its "Master Plan" for the project in exchange for a roughly $2.6 million buyout and retains a portion of the profit from some future real estate sales. The deal follows reports that one of JRP's principals was negotiating side deals with property owners adjacent to Juniper Ridge. Who you calling "Good Ol' Boy"?
2. Merkley - Smith Campaign: In the most costly and arguably snarkiest campaign ever conducted in Oregon history, Former state representative, Jeff Merkley rides a wave of voter discontent with Republican rule to victory over Sen. Gordon Smith.
Careful what you wish for… Smith's name has been floated as the likely Republican candidate for governor in 2010 when incumbent Ted Kulongoski will have to step aside because of the state's term limit law.
3. Obama Mania: Okay so this isn't a local story per se, but the fact that Barack actually came to Central Oregon during the primary campaign stoked local Obama mania, helping "Obama 08" officially unseat Not Another Wal-Mart as the preferred bumper sticker of Bend progressives.

Posted inOpinion

A Word On Internet Shopping: Charity Auction results, iPod “excessories,” and adios Homer

Eric Flowers

As a newspaper supported entirely by local advertisers (i.e. mom and pop businesses) we're not huge fans of Internet shopping, which serves as a giant cash vacuum, siphoning dollars out of the local economy to some faceless corporation. The notable exception is our annual Charity Auction, which turns the whole Internet cash vacuum model on its head.

Each year the Source, working with local businesses that donate all of the items for the auction, donates all the proceeds from the annual bid-fest to a local non-profit. This year the auction raised almost $4,000 for the Partnership to End Poverty, a local umbrella group that works to coordinate and fund local initiatives aimed at addressing the root of poverty in Central Oregon. It's an issue that's come into sharp focus as of late as the local and national economy falters, unemployment climbs to double digits and families are having a hard time making ends meet.

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