Dave Knows Portland

Authors in Pubs (1-October-2012)

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Authors in PubsAuthors in Pubs takes place tonight, Monday, June 4, 2012, at the Jack London Bar (529 SW 4th – in the basement of the Rialto Pool Room).

This month’s lineup:

Hear Authors:
Shawna Reppert – published author, Writer of the Future award winner
Brian Tashima – author, musician, dad
Jennifer Willis – writer, journalist, essayist
Jonathan Ems – author, actor, father
Melina Holl – writer, mother, ‘drama queen’
Mike Ritchey – newspaperman, student, retired
‘Featured Author’, Karen Hagestad Cacy – “Return To Ismailia”
“Guest Artist” – Tara Williams
short break for band to set up
Steve Ryan – essay writing guy. w/band
Grant Keltner – author, artist, wiz. w/band
Adam Daughtery – intoxicated, alone, because of that
Cody Newton – writer journalist, Lego collector
Taylor Patterson – sailor, poet, writer
John Miller – some guy I met in a bar

*PLUS* Hear our four piece band, ‘the Consort Symbiotic’, play before and during the show as authors read.

Show starts at 7 p.m.

Created by local writer Don Van Kirk last September, Authors in Pubs is a First Monday event that aims to give local writers a chance to share their work, and receive feedback. The shows run about two hours, but visitors are encouraged to arrive early and stay late to talk with authors and peruse their books. Visit the PortlandWiki entry and the Yelp event page for more details.

Tuesday Night Free Lecture: Mythology of Voodoo

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The Jack London BarThe Jack London bar (basement of the Rialto, SW 4th and Alder) hosts a free lecture most Tuesday evenings. Free to get in, but must be 21 or over – there’s a full bar!

The topic of the installment this Tuesday, September 25, 2012 is Mythology of Voodoo:

Dr. Kate Bruner will be telling us about mythology from sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean. How are they related? The slaves brought to the Caribbean from Africa brought their religions with them, merged them with Christianity to form, among other belief systems, voudon, AKA Voodoo.

A lot of material is going to be covered, including Muslim influence on African myth, Ethiopian myth, Placatory religion, Deism vs. animisn vs. fetichism. Placatory religion, ancestor worship and fear of ghosts. Caribbean syncretism, voudoun, image magic and curses. The truth about zombies. Santaria. Marie Laveau. And MUCH more.

Doors open around 6 p.m. for this free event (21 and over only). Presentation begins at 7:30 p.m.

Portland Weekend Amusements (September 21-23, 2012)

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Truly the best weekend of the year, the third full weekend in September never quits. My two favorite fall festivals take place this weekend, the Oaks Park Oktoberfest and the Polish Festival, and this year we also have Feast PDX, Rheinlander’s Oktoberfest, train and streetcar events, and lots more – and weather looks delightful!

Ongoing

Swift WatchChapman Vaux’s Swift Watch 2012

Every September thousands of Vaux’s Swifts come to Portland. After spending their day eating bugs, the Swifts coalesce in Northwest Portland, flying in a giant undulating swirl in the sky above the school. Around sunset the swirl gets more compact, like a ground pepper tornado, and begins disappearing, measure by measure, down the chimney. On the lawn below hundreds of Portlanders stare mesmerized at the sky, from the comfort of lawn chairs and blankets. Boos erupt when opportunistic Peregrine falcons get lucky. [more]

All Weekend

Feast PortlandFeast Portland

Feast Portland, a celebration of Oregon Bounty, takes place Thursday through Sunday, September 20 through 23, 2012.

Presented by Bon Appétit, the fest is a four-day dynamic exchange of ideas, inspiration and dialogue that Feast Portland will create with food enthusiasts from Oregon, across the U.S. and around the globe. [more]

Bier!Oaks Park Oktoberfest

The 2012 Paulaner Oktoberfest at Oaks Park takes place Friday through Sunday, September 21 through 23.

This is one of Heather‘s favorite Portland festivals, because of the weiner dog races of course. I’m especially fond of the beer and accordion music! [more]

Friday

Offbeat Belly Dance

Avast! Noble Portlanders!

This Friday! Grab your party hat and head to the Blue Monk for the September edition of Offbeat Belly Dance!

Ah yes, the Blue Monk! Home of delicious beer! Complex and intriguing mixed drinks! Tasty food! Air conditioning! [more]

Friday-Saturday

Der Rheinlander Oktoberfest

Portland, Oregon’s favorite Rheinlander Oktoberfest will be Friday, September 21st & Saturday, September 22nd. Our family day “Family Fest” on Saturday from noon – 5pm.

Raise a Stein in the Rheinlander and Gustav’s Bier Stube’s Oktoberfest beer garden on the corner of NE 50th & Sandy Blvd! [more]

Saturday-Sunday

Heather at Portland Polish Festival 2010Polish Festival

The 17th annual Portland Polish Festival, my favorite local cultural event, takes place on Saturday and Sunday, September 22 and 23, 2012.

Below the masthead on the festival website are the words: the best kept secret of Portland, Oregon. This statement hasn’t been true for several years – the Polish Fest is the premier fall festival in the Portland area. [more]

VegFestPortland VegFest 2012

Oregon’s largest plant-based food event!

VegFest celebrates and promotes sustainable, compassionate and healthy food choices and lifestyles. This low-cost, fun and food-filled event welcomes everyone! [more]

Saturday

Portland Streetcar Central LoopPortland Streetcar Central Loop Grand Opening Celebration

The Portland Streetcar Central Loop Grand Opening Celebration takes place Saturday, September 22, 2012.

As part of the celebration, streetcar rides are free all day Saturday and Sunday, September 22 and 23, 2012. Catch a ride to OMSI between 7:30 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. to attend the celebration. Visit the Portland Streetcar website for a full schedule of celebration events. [more]

SP 4449Oregon Rail Heritage Center’s Grand Opening

The grand opening celebration for the Oregon Rail Heritage Center takes place Saturday, September 22, 2012 from 10am -5pm. “See the three steam locomotives in their new home!”

Giveaways & Prizes * Live Music * Gift Shop * Kid’s Activities * Guides to tell you about us * Light Refreshments * ADA Accessible [more]

Back Fence PDXBack Fence PDX

As always we have an amazing lineup of storytellers ready to tell never-been-told-before true stories based on the theme HASHTAG NERD. From Portland: Iron Man comic book scribe, MATT FRACTION, Best Selling Thriller writer, CHELSEA CAIN, Co-host along with Felicia Day of a Geek & Sundry podcast, KIALA KAZEBEE, and Former High School Mathlete GABE CARLETON-BARNES. From Seattle: Jezebel staff writer LINDY WEST and math genius/creator of video games, BRUCE OBERG. [more]

For even more weekend events and activities, check out the Dave Knows Calendar, and visit Around the Sun, Blogging Portland on the Cheap, and Oregon Events at OregonLive.com.

Feast Portland (September 20-23, 2012)

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Feast Portland 2012Feast Portland, a celebration of Oregon Bounty, takes place Thursday through Sunday, September 20 through 23, 2012.

Oregon’s soil produces amazing fruits and vegetables. Our vineyards grow grapes that make award-winning wines. Our hops are the reason Portland has more breweries than any other city in the world. Our ocean provides sustainably caught salmon, Dungeness crab and tuna. And our beef, pork and chicken are organic and raised to the highest standards. We grow much of the country’s hazelnuts, marionberries and green beans. And our forests are home to so many exotic mushrooms the Japanese have us on speed dial. Best of all, we have marvelous chefs who know what to do with all this abundance. So we decided it’s high time we had our own world-class celebration of food, drink and everything else that makes Portland awesome. We’re calling it Feast Portland.

Presented by Bon Appétit, the fest is a four-day dynamic exchange of ideas, inspiration and dialogue that Feast Portland will create with food enthusiasts from Oregon, across the U.S. and around the globe.

Locally and internationally famous chefs and restauranteurs participating include: Vitaly Paley (Paley’s Place), Naomi Pomeroy (Beast), Andy Ricker (Pok Pok), Cathy Whims (Nostrana), Adam Sappington (Country Cat), Gregory Gourdet (Departure), Jenn Louis (Lincoln), David Machado (Nel Centro), Elias Cairo (Olympic Provisions), Philippe Boulot (The Heathman), Jason French (Nedd Ludd), Stephanie Kimmel (Marche), Ben Bettinger (Imperial), and Tommy Habetz (Bunk) welcome a roster of visiting chefs such as Duff Goldman, April Bloomfield (Spotted Pig), Eddie Huang (Baohaus), Nancy Silverton (Osteria Mozza), Seamus Mullen (Tertulia), Brad Farmerie (PUBLIC), Chris Cosentino (Incanto), Gabrielle Hamilton (Prune), Anita Lo (Annisa), Amanda Freitag, Hedy Goldsmith (Michael’s Genuine), Lee Anne Wong, Matt Lightner (Atera), Paul Kahan (Publican), Daniel Patterson (Coi), Sean Brock (Husk), and Inaki Aizpitarte (Le Chateaubriand, Paris).

The fest consists of classes, demos, presentations, speakers, and grand tastings – check out the website and Facebook page for event details and tickets.

I hope to see you there! I have media credentials and will be attending, and tweeting, many of the events, all weekend!

Attack of the Flix #9 (16-September-2012)

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Attack of the FlixAttack of the Flix, presented by Microflix, is a monthly competition for Portland filmmakers held at the Curious Comedy Theatre (5225 NE MLK). This month’s show takes place Sunday, September 16, 2012.

Submit your film if you are an Oregon or Washington filmmaker! Entries must be 10 minutes or less, and submitted on USB thumb drives encoded as AppleTV (see the FAQ for full details).

Films are shown in the order they are submitted, and screened live on the interwebz!

Vote for your favorite flicks – the first place winner receives a golden trophy!

Admission is free (a donation bucket will be at the door). Curious Comedy Theatre is an all ages venue, and has a full bar.

This recurring show takes place every third Sunday. Visit the Microflix website and the Attack of the Flix Facebook page for more details.