There is an odd, yet soothing rhythm and clanging at Orion Forge, a 1,000-square-foot warehouse that feels as if it could double as a modern day car garage for Connor MacLeod from Highlander. In the center, a forge blazes at more than 2,200 degrees Fahrenheit and a double-horned anvil is anchored nearby, still red-hot from […]
Section Feature
Posted inNews
Representing Bend
Lawmakers and lobbyists take local concerns to the state capitol
The 78th Oregon Legislative Assembly kicked off just shy of two weeks ago. The lawmaking body boasts a Democratic majority, but Bend’s Republican representatives—and the City’s nonpartisan lobbyist—are wasting no time bringing Central Oregon issues to the forefront of conversations, which are often dominated by Democrats and those living in the western third of the […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Bistro 28 Carries Forward Zydeco’s Style
In an athletic club, but nothing like a sports bar
Plush couches adorn a beautifully restored Bruce Wayne-sized fireplace. Thoughtfully hung bike rims pay friendly tribute to the town’s outdoor culture. And high-top bar tables made of three and a half-inch-thick maple invite both personal and business communions alike to Athletic Club of Bend’s newly opened culinary treat, Bistro 28. Replacing the once popular Scanlon’s, […]
Posted inMusic
More Than Just a Weekend
Carolyn Wonderland kicks off 4 Peaks Music Festival preview By Phil Busse
Named for the three Sister mountain peaks and Broken Top Mountain, which are visible from the venue’s site, 4 Peaks Music Festival has become a highly visible part of Central Oregon’s music scene with its annual summer three-day concert and, now, with a series of preview shows. Still four months from its kickoff, and with […]
Posted inCulture
Finding Art in an Espresso Cup
How Karen Eland uses coffee and beer to paint brilliant local landscapes.
“I find it amazing that I’m doing this full time,” Karen Eland tells me over the phone, en route to Seattle to talk about her “coffee art.” She adds, “It’s just one of those random ideas that popped into my head.” Inspired to go with a wild idea she had in an Oklahoma coffee shop […]
Posted inOutside
What Goes Up
Vertfest celebrates a boom in backcountry skiing
“It’s really a festival of fun,” says Stirling Cobb, the events and sponsorship manager at Mt. Bachelor. He’s talking about Vertfest, one of the few winter carnivals to focus on backcountry skiing, which returns this weekend to Central Oregon for its third consecutive year. “It’s all about the mountain lifestyle where like-minded people can come […]
Posted inCulture
Not Happy, But High Quality
No car chases or punchlines in the Oscar documentaries
There is not as much of a thematic through-line with the documentary selections as the live action narratives, except a subtle one: Regular people dealing with trauma, death and depression and keeping hope alive. While that sounds like a brutal bit of programming (and at times it is), there is always light and beauty; there […]
Posted inNews
Breaking the Cycle
Local programs aim to prevent domestic violence
Last Sunday, an estimated 114 million viewers tuned in to watch the Seahawks and the Patriots battle it out on the Super Bowl field. And many of those folks, on couches and barstools across the country, saw something they’d never seen before—a Super Bowl ad about domestic violence. While the ad has rightly received some […]
Posted inCulture
No Mickey Mousing Around
A somewhat serious collection for this year’s Academy nominees for animated shorts
Taken as a whole, the five entries for this year’s Academy Awards for animated shorts and an additional three “highly recommended” films tell a story that is much different than what blockbusters like Frozen would have you believe about the state of animation. No, instead, these films—a collection that’s enchanting, yet dreamy and at times […]
Posted inMusic
A Philosophical Sage
Wordsmith Sage Francis breaks the mold
Paul William “Sage” Francis lives up to his knowledgeable nickname with his personally and socially brutal and honest rap. His songs and lyricism are aware of his surroundings, and are cut and dried on issues like abuse, personal insecurity, social injustice and empowerment. Striking a balance of content and composure, the sometimes-heavy content of his […]
