This week, Smoke Signals goes around the world in cannabis news, starting in the Great White North: Legalization in Alaska Santa may be extra jolly this year, as last week brought the revelation that the North Pole has a commercial cannabis growing operation. OK, the grow op is not at the North Pole. As far […]
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Posted inNews
How the Fed Interest Rate Hike Will Affect the Housing Market
As anticipated, the Federal Reserve voted Dec. 14 to raise the federal funds rate by a quarter point. I thought it would be “fun” to show the effects of interest rate hikes on a $300,000 mortgage with a 30-year term: As you can see, a quarter point difference is not that significant, but a half […]
Posted inNews
Stay Lit, Central Oregon!
Energy Challenge program extends into Redmond and Tumalo for 2017
Over the past two years, you may have wondered at the crew of people in Americorps gear, riding around Bend on bikes laden with boxes of LED bulbs. Whether in snow or in sleet, the crew has been working to get the word out about the incredible energy savings you can get by replacing your […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Ditch the Kitchen this Christmas
Festive feasts and where to find them
The dog doesn’t have to “accidentally” eat the turkey for you to feel justified in taking your loved ones out to a restaurant to eat this holiday. If the idea of planning, preparing, serving, and then cleaning up after feeding family and friends sounds more like a work day than a holiday, then we have […]
Posted inNews
Show Preview: The Shaolin Warriors Return 2/7/17
The Shaolin Warriors will visit Bend’s Tower Theatre on February 7.
Mount Song sits 4,961 feet above sea level in central China’s Henan Province. Nestled among its peaks sits the Shaolin Monastery, a 1,500-year-old institution of meditation and martial arts. Resorts are popping up in the foothills surrounding the temple, and Shaolin is becoming one of the world’s best known monasteries, bringing in an average of […]
Posted inNews
Nature vs. Nurture
Welcome to Amy Alkon’s HumanLab: The Science Between Us, a weekly show with the luminaries of behavioral science. Twins research unlocks the answers to numerous questions we all have about human nature: •How much do our genes determine who we are? •Can we shift our environment to make the best of the genes we have? […]
Posted inCulture
Picks 12/14-12/21
Thursday 15 – Friday 16 “The Night Before the Night Before Christmas” CHRISTMAS SHOW—This show puts the “fun” back in dysfunctional as we follow an older man on his mission to cancel Christmas. From local playwright Cricket Daniel, “The Night Before the Night Before Christmas” is a reprise of the run that sold out 2nd […]
Posted inCulture
Deck the Hall with Booze and Cocaine
“Office Christmas Party” brings the laughs
Writing reviews of comedies is always a fickle mistress, because it basically comes down to describing very relative crap that makes you laugh. Another interesting aspect to think about is whether to hold comedies to the same standard as other movies in more serious genres. If a comedy succeeds in making you laugh then hasn’t […]
Posted inOpinion
What’s Next, Legislature?
Governor’s budget works to protect seniors and students, but it can only go so far
Early this month, Gov. Kate Brown released her recommended budget for the 2017-19 biennium. The budget’s title: “Strategic Investments for Challenging Times.” “Sustaining hard fought gains is nearly impossible with a tax system that is unstable, inadequate to meet our essential needs, and fundamentally out of balance,” said Gov. Brown. In November, voters approved Measure […]
Posted inNews
The Battle to Smoke in a Public Space
As Smoke Signals noted a few weeks ago, Denver took a big leap forward last month by becoming the first major city to legalize “social” use of cannabis. After Colorado legalized cannabis in 2014, Denverites began exploring the limits of the new law. Like other nearby towns, entrepreneurs in Colorado’s largest city sought to open […]
