Yow! What an announcement for the week of our Bike Issue:

Evan Manvel, executive director of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, has announced that he’s leaving the organization.

From the BTA blog:

Bicycle Transportation Alliance Executive Director Evan Manvel announced today that he is leaving the organization after two years of service.

“It’s been a wonderful couple of years,” said Manvel. “I’ve been honored to lead such an amazing organization and see it grow so significantly. There’s no doubt about it – the bicycling Renaissance is here, and the BTA is leading the charge.”

It’s an interesting time for Manvel to leave. As we pointed out in our bike issue, Portland is indisputably at a turning point—a transition that’s going to take an enormous amount of leadership and energy to keep the city from sinking into bike mediocrity, or, at best, resting on our laurels.

So, where is that leadership going to come from? Will the BTA find someone to fill those shoes, or will the next generation of bike leadership come from elsewhere?

Update: BTA policy director Scott Bricker is taking over for Manvel on an interim basis. Jonathan Maus has some thoughts on that over at BikePortland.org.

So far, I’ve watched Spike Lee’s incredible documentary about the devestating aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, When the Levees Broke, twice, and despite its four-hour run time, I’m ready to watch it again. Tomorrow night, the Northwest Film Center provides a rare opportunity to see the film on the big screen at Whitsell Auditorium (1219 SW Park, July 21, 6:30 pm, $7). Lee interviewed nearly 100 New Orleans residents for the film, as well as politicians and community leaders, and uses these heartbreaking interviews in conjunction with enraging news reports and amateur video footage to assemble a film that firmly handles the micro- and macro-stories that made Katrina one of the most shameful and despicable moments in our national history.

I had trouble finding a clip online that gave an accurate picture as to the film’s enormous breadth, so I settled on this one, which highlights some of the most horrific and disturbing moments from the movie. (Ignore the maudlin Sia song that the YouTube user slapped on.) You can read my review here for more of my thoughts on Levees.

It’ll all be over soon.

From The Etch-a-Sketchist. He takes requests!

Over at the Gay Rights Watch blog, there’s an open letter to former State Senator Marylin Shannon—who’s currently involved in the effort to roll back the state’s recently passed Domestic Partnership law.

It’s catty, it’s mean, and it’s to-the-point:

My Dearest Schizo Bigot,

I sincerely apologize Mrs. Shannon, but after a long train of thought while taking a pee this morning, I’ve decided we could never be friends.

Here are my concerns.

1.) You think that gay people are immoral, perverted and destroying the world. That’s a pretty big one for me.

2.) On one documented occasion while on the phone with a reporter, you claimed that you could not send a photo of yourself for the paper claiming, “[T]he homosexuals hacked into my computer and now it won’t work.” Mrs. Shannon, this concerns me.

The letter tears apart Shannon’s main argument against Domestic Partnerships:

5.) You claim that Oregon’s new Domestic Partnership law “violates the intent of Oregon voters who in 2004 adopted a constitutional ban on gay marriage.”

If this were in fact the case, file a lawsuit. If in fact it did violate Measure 36, you would win. I will give you some credit here though. You know that Domestic Partnerships in no way violate Measure 36—nor the “spirit of Measure 36”. Hence why you and your fellow self-righteous bigots have failed to do so.

Oh and! I see that you fail to notice that the proponents of Measure 36 have stepped back and are not participating in the referendum attempt. They even know that Domestic Partnerships are a far cry from marriage.

You tell her!

These are two of the films I’m most excited for. Props to Cinematical for the first look at their posters.

Wes Anderson’s The Darjeeling Limited:

The Coen Brothers’ No Country for Old Men:

If answering that question was the entirety of this post, it would be the shortest one I’ve ever published on Blogtown—because the answer is “no one.” At least no one I’ve heard about.

With all the hullabaloo about whether Tom Potter is going to run for reelection—see here, here, and here for a quick tour of a single, uncredited rumor—and what that means for Sam Adams (not to mention Charles Lewis), most people have forgotten that Randy Leonard is also running for reelection next year.

(In fact, he announced it here on Blogtown almost a year ago.)

And yet? I haven’t heard a single rumor of anyone planning to run against him. Is it that he’s untouchable? So popular that nobody wants to see him replaced? Is the problem that people from Vancouver and Gresham can’t vote in Portland elections?

Will he walk into another term unopposed?

“I can’t believe you’re asking me that,” he said, when I asked why nobody was even hinting at lining up against him. “It’s way too early for people to start thinking about running. All this other early activity is interesting.”

“The last time I ran, I was coasting along fine and happy,” he added, “and then on the last day to file, eight neighborhood people all filed to run against me. So, as far as I’m concerned, it could be March before someone files.”

Still, he said, no matter who runs, “I’ll work like I’m going to get beat.”

Sounds like a challenge!

Business owners on SE Hawthorne have been asking bike patrol officers about two recent armed robberies on the retail strip. SE Precinct’s Officer Robert Pickett sent this out to the neighborhood to answer their concerns:

I just wanted you to know that there was a robbery at the Cup and Saucer on July 11 and another one at Bower’s Bakery on July 13. In both cases a white male suspect in his 20’s entered the stores, lifted his shirt to display a silver handgun tucked into his front wasteband, and demanded money.

The suspect in both cases was described as tall (5-10 to 6-0), thin, and pale, almost unhealthy-looking. He admitted to one victim that he was on drugs and needed money. In both cases the suspect was wearing a black t-shirt and dark pants.

One witness noticed a dark color, older import-style pickup leaving the area at a high rate of speed after one of the robberies. It had a canopy over the rear bed.

There is no suspect in custody yet.

I’ve had a soft spot for Free Geek since touring their facility a few years ago. Their set up—recycling and refurbishing donated computers, training volunteers to build/repair electronics, allowing volunteers to earn their own computer systems after clocking in enough hours—is just so smart. Community development, recycling, access to resources, a super-cheap electronics thrift store, all wrapped up into one nerdtastic package.

They’re celebrating their seventh anniversary tomorrow with Geek Fair!, a “community street party” with food, drink, video games, a “Beat the Geek” game show, live music, a silent auction, and a chance to “go all ‘Office Space’ on a printer of your choosing,” plus puppet shows and more for the kiddies.

Free Geek, 1731 SE 10th, Sat July 21, 1 pm-7 pm, FREE

Obligatory picture of a nerd:

(am I making some sort of faux pas by equating ‘geek’ and ‘nerd’?)

This is one of the most amazing YouTubes I’ve ever seen: 1500 prison inmates in the Philippines doing a live dance routine to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” This is… words fail me. Just watch. It’s… astonishing.

And there’s more.

Thanks to RT, who noted that if this is what prisons in the Philippines are like, “sign me UP!”

Here’s the setup, from the Los Angeles Times:

Bush to have colonoscopy Saturday

WASHINGTON — President Bush will undergo a colonoscopy Saturday, and Vice President Dick Cheney will be acting president during the roughly 2 1/2 hours Bush is under the effects of anesthesia, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said today.

C’mon, Blogtown readers. We can’t do all the work.

Tomorrow night’s the July edition of Guerilla Masquerade Party. This month’s theme calls for breaking out those Christmas sweaters, your reindeer antlers headband, and your most ornament-like jewelry.

Details—and more costume ideas—below. And you can always hit up GMP’s mailing list for the full scoop. Since the location is supposed to be somewhat secretive—surprising the venue is half the fun!—I’ve pasted it after the jump

Come celebrate with the rest of the GMP gang on Saturday, July 21st at 10pm!

On a side note, this location was selected b/c it is in biking distance to the GMP house. Why not bike there. If there is enough bikers we will do a costumed bike parade…yay!

Details and ideas:
With Summer finally here we find ourselves thinking back to those rainy days of winter, but more importantly of holidays and days off work. Summer is definitely a great time of the year, second only to the winter holidays with drinking, eating, good friends and merriment. With that in mind, it seems like a good time for all us Guerrillas to celebrate

CHRISTMAS IN JULY!

This is your chance to wear all those great christmas sweaters that you thought belonged only in the bottom of your closet or at Goodwill. Or better yet, decorate yourself as a tree. Bonus points for figuring out how to light yourself up.

Be the star of your favorite holiday movie. Dennis, the dentist elf… the abominable
snowman…ralphie in the bunny pajamas.

Perhaps organize your friends and become a dysfuntional family dinner. Or be cranky
uncle scrooge.

Florida Room 435 N Killingsworth St

And don't forget, every night is SIN at Florida Room, so bring your OLCC or Food Handlers card for happy hour prices all night long.

You may have heard about the July 4th downfall of competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi, who was bested by American Joey Chestnut (USA! USA! USA!) during a horrifyingly gluttonous hot dog eating competition on Coney Island.

Chestnut took the crown by eating 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes—you can read all about it here, including the stomach-churning phrase “tube-steak tussle,” which I think means something else, but whatever.

Kobayashi lost, at least in part, because he suffered a “reversal of fortune.” That means he puked. And now, courtesy of newly local photographer Jeffery Walls, whose wedding photography can be found at jwallsweddings.com, is photographic evidence of said “reversal.”

(The best part: The bits of undigested bun oozing through his fingers.)

TMZ.com says:

Dripping in sweat and barely able to keep his bloodshot eyes open, a handlebar-mustached Nick Nolte stunned travelers at the Kauai Airport this week — by passing out cold on the terminal floor!

….According to the source, Nolte was still extremely friendly despite his groggy state — chatting with fans and allowing passengers to snap photos, however, he wasn’t entirely functional. “At one point we helped him put a dollar in the vending machine.”

All this reminds me that I need to watch this again, and soon:

I’m off to the coast for a week in about twenty minutes. I know, I know…try not to miss me too much while I’m gone. But as a parting gesture, here’s my stack of vacation reading, together with brief pre-reviews for your benefit, based solely on READING THE FIRST SENTENCES.VACATION READING: Contemporary fiction—reduced to superficial first impressions!

Michael Ondaatje’s Divisadero is “a lush, panoramic tale that opens in California in the 1970s and moves to France decades earlier,” according to its publisher. The first sentence is:

When I come to lie in your arms, you sometimes ask me in which historical moment do I wish to exist.

Steven Carter’s New England White is a mystery about a super-wealthy black family in Washington. It’s “the eagerly awaited, electrifying new novel from the author of The Emperor of Ocean Park,” says the Boston Globe. The first sentence is:

On Friday the cat disappeared, the White House phoned, and Jeannie’s fever—said the sitter when Julia called from the echoing marble lobby of Lombard Hall, where she and her husband were feting shadowy alumni, one or two facing indictment, whose only virtue was piles of money—hit 103.

Lastly, Jean-Paul Dubois’ Vie Francaise is the story of a commercial tree photographer “having arrived in middle age more a product of his times, his country, and blind chance than a creature of his own free will,” says the book jacket. The first sentence is:

And my mother fell to her knees.

Have a good week! I’ll let you know if my first impressions were right when I return.

As this Japanese commercial clearly shows, it’s probably not a good idea for children to offer a pedophile candy called “I Love You.” Especially in a hot tub.

You might remember that a couple of weeks ago, I inadvertently signed up for Focus on the Family’s magazine and newsletter, during a brief, ultimately unnecessary phone call.

Well, yesterday, I got my first bit of mail from them, and I can’t tell you how excited I am! I mean, just look at this letter!

Welcome to the family indeed! They hope my initial contact with them exceeded my expectations—boy did it!—and I’m important to them, and they want to make sure things start off right!

They also sent along a brochure, which looks a lot like they want me to join their dental plan.

The brochure is filled to the brim with blessed—as in “blesst”—ironies, none so rich as this one:

Got that? Every family is worth strengthening and defending—even if your child came out an odd shade of brown! How open and tolerant and embracing of diversity!

Oh, wait—what about families with same-sex parents?

Hmmm?

Ohhhh, riiiiight.

When you say “every” family, you mean “every family we approve of based on our selective interpretation of an ancient, contradictory text, coupled with our unrealistic conservative politics.” Gotcha.

Busy morning for local music…

Portland’s soon-to-be-biggest band, Menomena, just announced a whole slew of fall tour dates. Too bad there aren’t any local ones (unless you count this weekend’s sold-out Decemberists show).

If only the band was playing a private show next week at a respectable venue. If only…

07-22-07 Portland, OR - Edgefield Amphitheater
09-01-07 Seattle, WA - Bumbershoot
10-26-07 Boise, ID - Neurolux
10-27-07 Salt Lake City. UT - Kilby Court
10-28-07 Boulder, CO - Fox Theater
10-30-07 St. Louis, MO - Billiken Club
10-31-07 Nashville, TN - Exit/In
11-02-07 Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder
11-03-07 Orlando, FL - Social
11-04-07 Jacksonville, FL - Jack Rabbit's
11-06-07 Washington, DC - Black Cat
11-07-07 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church
11-08-07 Hanover, NH - Dartmouth
11-09-07 Boston, MA - Paradise
11-10-07 New York, NY - Webster Hall
11-12-07 Montreal, Quebec - La Sala Rossa
11-13-07 Toronto, Ontario - Mod Club
11-14-07 Ann Arbor, MI - Blind Pig
11-15-07 Chicago, IL - Metro
11-16-07 Grinnell, IA - Grinnell College
11-17-07 Minneapolis, MN - Varsity Theater

This story—about a Pentagon official criticizing Hillary Clinton for aiding the enemy in Iraq, by exploring the withdrawal of troops. But the best part? The headline: Hil helps enemies, sez Defense big (The New York Daily News is AWESOME.)

Valerie Plame’s civil suit against Cheney, Rove and Libby is dismissed. The judge indicated “there was no statutory or constitutional way for the plaintiffs to obtain damages.”

Fancy robbers hit celebs homes, and run off with “more than $7 million in cash, rare books and jewelry while leaving few clues.”

Smokers rejoice—the TSA’s going to lift the ban on flying with cigarette lighters, starting next month. “a ban on the devices did little to make flying safer, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) said Friday,”

Potter fever: “In Clackamas, Ore., near Portland, Courtney Lanahan is taking fandom to a whole new level. She is getting married tonight at 7, but after the reception, a limousine will take her and her groom, Shawn Gordon, to the Clackamas Town Center Barnes & Noble to get a copy of the book. The store has arranged for the couple to be first in line (Mr. Gordon, who has not read any of the “Potter” series, stipulated that they not wait for hours on their wedding night) to get a copy of the book, as well as a pair of owl bookends.”

Let the glorious countdown to PDX Pop Now! begin! With the festival less than a couple weeks away, the folks behind the best damn local music event in town have announced both the full lineup and the schedule.

PDX Pop Now! runs from August 3-5 at AudioCinema, and as always, it’s free and open to all ages.

Friday, August 3
6:00 - Typhoon (inside)
6:40 - The High Violets
7:20 - Hooliganship

8:05 - Pocket Parade (outside)
8:45 - The Beauty
9:25 - Junkface

10:10 - The Blow (inside)
10:50 - Braille
11:30 - Hey Lover
12:10 - March Fourth Marching Band

Saturday, August 4
12:00 - Pink Snowflakes (outside)
12:40 - Hurah Hurah
1:20 - The Vonneguts

2:05 - Dragging an Ox Through Water (inside)
2:45 - Corrina Repp
3:25 - Gulls

4:10 - AristeiA (outside)
4:50 - Soda Pop Kids
5:30 - Point Juncture, WA

6:15 - Per Se (inside)
6:55 - Ethan Rose
7:35 - Starfucker

8:20 - The Maybe Happening (outside)
9:00 - Swim Swam Swum
9:40 - Hungry Mob

10:25 - The Ocean Floor (inside)
11:05 - Black Elk
11:45 - Copy
12:25 - The Snuggle Ups

Sunday, August 5
12:00 - The Sort Ofs (outside)
12:40 - Libretto
1:20 - Here Comes a Big Black Cloud

2:05 - Bright Red Paper (inside)
2:45 - Kele Goodwin
3:25 - Gejius

4:10 - Daytime Volume (outside)
4:50 - Blue Skies for Black Hearts
5:30 - System and Station

6:15 - Blue Cranes (inside)
6:55 - The Robot Ate Me
7:35 - Laura Gibson

8:20 - Nice Boys (outside)
9:00 - Dat'r
9:40 - The Shaky Hands

10:25 - Evolutionary Jass Band (inside)
11:05 - Yellow Swans
11:45 - Sandpeople
12:25 - Blitzen Trapper

If anyone is looking for evidence that city hall’s current lobbying regulations aren’t strict enough, today’s release of 2nd quarter lobbying reports should provide all the proof you need.

There are currently only 19 registered lobbying entities on the books—and of those, only six lobbied for more than 16 hours during the quarter, the minimum threshold for the reporting requirement. In other words, if a lobbyist spends 14 hours during the quarter, they simply declare themselves exempt.

Here’s who actually had to report who they were lobbying and what they were lobbying about: Bicycle Transportation Alliance, League of Women Voters, Polaris Energy, Port of Portland, Portland Business Alliance, and the Portland Streetcar Advisory Committee.

You only have to spend a small amount of time at city hall to know that these six organizations are not the only groups—or businesses—trying to influence city hall. But the rules as currently written allow countless numbers of lobbyists to skate right under the radar.

Last month, city council accepted a report on recommendations to improve the lobbying regulations, and one of the suggestions was to lower the minimum hours to eight—or even four. Adams says he’s supportive of the idea, but doesn’t think he has enough votes on council to lower the minimum.

But as the rules currently stand, it’s yet another example of local politicians claiming to support transparency, yet doing as little as possible to actually achieve it.

There wasn’t much in the way of excitement with the rest of the lobbying and gift reports (nothing like Potter’s famous pearl necklace), but you can check them out for yourself here.

Little addendum: If you open the master list of lobbyist contacts (requires Excel), you’ll see that Mayor Potter doesn’t really meet in person with many people. In fact, the list only shows him in two personal meetings—both with the Portland Business Alliance. All other contacts appear to be with his staff.

If you have ever crossed paths with Rocky Votolato, you’d know a few things about the Seattle-based troubadour—he’s tiny, very polite and writes one hell of a song. His topics range, but they usually fall within one of three categories: Love, the bottle, and loving the bottle. The Brag and Cuss, his new album, has quite a few amazing tunes on it, my favorite is below…

MP3:
Rocky Votolato - Postcard From Kentucky

Rocky Votolato plays the Doug Fir tonight.

The mayor’s Racial Profiling Committee (RPC) is meeting for its second four hour session this afternoon—its five two hour meetings between January and May weren’t long enough, and members said they wanted to “get something done.” So: the meetings are now four hours long, and the group is splitting into three subcommittees.Racial Profiling Committee: Darryl! Moch, executive director of Brother-To-Brother talks to Sergeant Dave Hendrie in a subcommittee working on how to improve Police/Community Relations.

Next month, the three subcommittees are each going to split into six more subcommittees, and then report back. Just kidding.

While I was tempted to write about the three subcommittees as “forming more committees for committees’ sake,” the mayor’s racial profiling group does in fact seem to be moving towards some concrete objectives, timelines and measures of success, at last—in part because of the decision to break its work down into manageable chunks.Chief Sizer: Shares ideas on police policies and practises with Maria Lisa Johnson of the Latino Network (left) and Maria Rubio from the mayor’s office (far right).

The three subcommittees are: Policy and Practices, with the goal of identifying specific policies and practices that can eliminate or contribute to racial profiling; Data Collection & Analysis, with the goal of establishing a methodology for collecting and analyzing data to measure racial bias in policing in order to determine a statistical baseline to measure progress over time, and publish analysis of relevant data; Community & Police Interactions, with the goal of building a bridge of trust between community and police.

The make-up of the subcommittees is interesting—each has a mixture of community advocates and representatives from the police. But it’s hard not to notice Alejandro Queral of the Northwest Constitutional Rights Center and Dan Handelman of Portland Copwatch went for the “Data” subcommittee. Building relations and changing policies is all very well, but police oversight activists want to be able to measure the success of such initiatives.

The subcommittees’ll all come back together at 5pm to talk about their progress and give an opportunity for the wider group to give its impressions of what they’re doing. In the mean time, somebody just brought some food in. Later.

If you turn on Jammin 95.5 right now, I guarantee one of these songs will be playing: T-Pain “Shawty Snap,” Crime Mobb “Rock Yo Hips,” R Kelly “Same Girl”, Sean Kingston “Beautiful Girls” (AKA the suicide song), Huey “Pop Lock and Drop It”, Shop Boys “Party Like a Rockstar,” or Rihanna’s “Umbrella.” This ultra-limited rotation is—well, it’s totally fine by me, because that’s one of the best clusters of Top 40 songs to come out in forever. (The aesthetic merits of “Rock Star” leave a lot to be desired, but you can unpack the social signifiers in there for days.)

But when I was running the streets at lunchtime, I caught the beginning of the “‘90s at Noon” mix, and holy shit, that was the most grin-inducing bit of radio programming I’ve heard in months. The DJ (Krayzie Kat, the Jammin’ website tells me) started off with a song that completely refuses to age: “Tootsie Roll” by the 69 Boyz, then followed it up with Salt-N-Pepa and Warren G before I had to come back to work. For that 10 minutes, I was 16 again, in southern Louisiana, trying to figure out how my love for this music jived with my love for the Repo Man soundtrack and Dischord Records. But I digress…

I just wanted to say thanks to Jammin for throwing it back like that, and to have any excuse at all to post the “Tootsie Roll” video.

According to Chas Bowie, the fact that I like the Monkees might make me a hipster, although it’s possible that I’m only a hipster if I brag about liking them—or wear the t-shirt.

I don’t know if this post qualifies as bragging, but I love the Monkees, and not in some ironic way. I genuinely think “they” created some of the greatest pop songs of the ’60s—both under the thumb of star-making studio moguls and on their own. And I think their TV show was ridiculously fun. Plus, the whole concept of “the Monkees” is full of questions about the intersection of art and crass commercial manipulation, and what it means to be an “artist.”

That said, their psychedelic vaudeville movie debut, Head, is one of the craziest mind-fucks ever put to celluloid. In a stroke of brilliance, they shattered the sugary-pop realm of AM radio and afternoon television to help create possibly the strangest collection of surreal segments I’ve ever seen. It’ll twist your perception of them, especially if you, like me, grew up listening to your parents’ Monkees records.

And it’s playing TONIGHT—7pm at Mt. Tabor Legacy, formerly Sabala’s, at 49th and SE Hawthorne. Free! Here’s a clip:

Don’t forget about the 4th Annual Hot Dog Eating Contest at Zach’s Shack this weekend! Show up to watch, or lay down a few bucks to take on the big dogs.

Zach’s Shack
4611 SE Hawthorne
Saturday, July 21
4 pm

Changes are afoot at Valentine’s…

We’ve been working away down here to make a great new place to hang out and drink downtown. NOW WITH FULL LIQUOR BAR, A GREAT NEW TAPAS MENU, expanded seating and a wonderful new crew of bartenders

WE ARE OPEN EVERY NIGHT 5 - 2:30
HAPPY HOUR FROM 5 - 8 !!!

Please join us for our OPENING THIS THURSDAY, JULY 19
try samples of our new drink and food

EVENT NIGHTS ARE SUNDAY, MONDAY, TUESDAY
OTHER NIGHTS WILL BE A NICE DOWNTOWN HIDEAWAY—
BRING FRIENDS and/or MEET NEW ONES
232 sw ankeny 503.248.1600

valentines loves you. come support us.
xxx

One of my favorite parts of this week’s bike issue is the roundup of a few in-city bike rides from people who ride every day.

I figured everyone I asked would say “Springwater Trail,” but I was wrong, and I ended up learning about a few routes that I’d never really thought about. So even if you’re a frequent biker, you should take a gander at the shortlist and, hell, you might find a new favorite ride.

Sadly, though, we didn’t have space for this contribution from Jessica Roberts, formerly of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance and now of Alta Planning & Design, which does bike planning around the nation. She compiled the Ultimate Portland Bike Nerd Route, which highlights a bunch of the city’s bike amenities, some of which aren’t found anywhere else in the country.

Check it out after the jump, and feel free to chime in with your favorite in-city routes.

Start at the west end of the Steel Bridge, which is cantilevered for bikes and pedestrians, and took 10 years to negotiate with the railway. Cross over and head up to the Rose Quarter Transit Center to check out the ‘scramble signal,’ which stops all traffic for bikes and pedestrians, but don’t take the signal, because it’s much nicer to head south and loop around to NE Lloyd. Head east on Lloyd to 12th, then make a right and cross the not-very-bike-friendly bridge.

Take a left on NE Irving, then a right on NE 23rd at the hot new one-way ‘contraflow’ bike lane to Glisan. Head east on Glisan to NE 41st and make a right for the bike boulevard. Check out the left-hand turn lanes for bikes at Stark, but keep heading south. Turn right at Taylor, then cross 39th using the bike-only signal (complete with bike-level button). Make a right at 34th and head to Belmont for the brand new on-street bike parking in front of Stumptown.

Head south again on 34th to Lincoln (another bike boulevard), and make a right to cross 20th at a bike-only ‘diverter,’ which keeps auto traffic to a minimum, then take Ladd’s Circle to Ladd and make a right. That puts you at SE 12th, which you can take to Madison, where you turn left to see the blue bike lane at Grand—which gives bikes the right of way—and, soon, an uphill passing bike lane onto the Hawthorne Bridge. After the bridge, you can make a right to catch the brand new Naito bike lane to the Steel Bridge.”

If there’s one thing you can say about New Yorkers, it’s that they recover from tragedy quickly. In this call-in show on NY1, the anchor is desperately trying to get some legitimate reaction to yesterday’s steam explosion that was originally thought to be a terrorist attack. However, getting a legitimate reaction is tough when New York is filled with crazy Mets fans! WHOOOOOOO! GO METS! (“Somebody died, people… it’s funny to you, but somebody died.”)

Harry Potter fans, it’s obvious that we hate you. Our readers say so:

Why does the merc have to fuck around with Harry Potter fans? Obviously it’s very important to many people.

what would it cost the Merc to just leave it alone and respect those people who are really looking forward to enjoying the book?

i think your new “spoiler column” was a downright dick move.

So, if I’m a Harry Potter fan I’m a nerd that deserves to be ridiculed and have a reading experience spoiled…

But now when I start reading it all I will think about is that one page and if any of it is true. That is not the final Harry Potter experience I was anticipating.

After all, we printed this. We clearly, clearly hate Harry Potter, and hate the books’ fans.

I mean, look at how much we hate Harry Potter!

Meet the Mercury’s lunchtime Harry Potter re-read club… whose members hate the book so much, they bring it to work every day to read it. And will be at Powell’s tomorrow night to pick up the entire book seven. (That one page just wasn’t enough.)

Though the pun “Fall” fashion is wildly overused in this clip, I have to admit this runway accident is the best I’ve seen in awhile—and it’s hilarity only increases with the inclusion of these great local news anchors. (Why, oh why, can’t we have these guys in Portland?)

Want more fashion fun? Check out the Merc’s hot new fashion blog, MOD!

I can’t say enough great things about Fur & Gold, the upcoming full-length from Bats for Lashes. More on the album later, but for the time being, take a look at this amazing video for “What’s A Girl To Do?.”

I want a creepy Donnie Darko BMX team to shadow me everywhere I go.

Today we got our last issue of Automatic Merchandiser magazine in the mail. I don’t know why or how the Mercury started getting this sweet-ass magazine about vending machines, but we’ve received a few issues now, and it’s as amazing as one would expect.

Unfortunately, the cheapskate head honchos here at the Mercury refuse to renew our subscription, citing lame reasons like “Why do we need that magazine again?” and “Erik, stop wasting our time, or you’ll be applying at Automatic Merchandiser within the week.” Alas. At least the magazine out with a bang; this is one of the best covers I’ve ever seen.

You can practically hear what the people in the photo are saying! From left to right:

• “Mmmm! Coffee!”
• “Hey! I want coffee too! Which reminds me—I enjoy touching my female coworkers in a super-creepy manner.”
• “Argh! Can’t you see that my coffee mug is upended? I am clearly out of coffee, and require more!”
• “Is that bitch STILL not done?”
• “Grumble grumble grumble!”
• “By consulting my watch I can see that I am late for a meeting!”
• “That chick in front of me has one sweet, sweet ass. Aack! What if she sees my canary-yellow polo shirt and assumes I’m gay?”
• “Oh! FUCK. Back of the line! I knew masturbating in the bathroom stall would take too long.”

Fare the well, sweet Automatic Merchandiser.

My parents flew in from London last night, with a copy of The Sun. Here’s Mercury intern Tom Lundby, waylaid BY PAGE 3—he was just out the door on his way to the PDC to lodge something called a “public records request” (don’t worry, I don’t know what one is, either…) when I asked him if he’d like to “read” a “real newspaper.” PAGE 3: WAY More interesting than Charter Reform…

For those of you who don’t know, The Sun has featured photos of topless ladies almost every day since 1970—when a 40% sales increase followed the paper’s decision to show nipples. Wikipedia has more.

I think we should start doing it here. With men too. So it’s not sexist.

Then, we gradually phase out the men. And BINGO!

Another week, another Mercury music section to read while you wait for the Harry Potter block party to start.

Portugal the Man are clever enough to combine jagged art-punk with feisty ’70s soul. They just can’t garden worth shit.
MP3: Portugal the Man - Sugar Cinnamon

No drum machine is safe! Boy Eats Drum Machine will eat us all!
MP3: Boy Eats Drum Machine - From An Oregon Shore

An article on Maximo Park? It’s like 2004 all over again. Vote Kerry!
MP3: Maximo Park - Girls Who Play Guitars

“If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice.” Like, whoa, Rush just blew my mind with that line.
MP3: Rush - Not Fade Away

I don’t know about anybody else, but I’m going to have trouble sleeping at night after this one:

This man hates us very much.

In case you can’t quite make it out, that’s “Why did the arrogant fucking hipster cross the street? To pick up the Mercury.”

Local designer Magalí Corzo is offering 50% off on every item in her store for the whole month of August. Take advantage of this—she has some great pieces in incredible soft cotton, cute dresses, and all of her clothing is super comfortable. Call to make an appointment: 235-6660.

(Check out M.O.D. for more fashion.)

As Amy mentioned earlier, the New York Times has come out with their review of the newest and last Harry Potter novel (The Deathly Hallows) two days before the book hits the streets. ARE YOU BRAVE ENOUGH TO READ IT? If so, then you’ll also totally want to read the leaked Harry Potter spoiler page (that reveals the death of a major character—hint: rhymes with “Shmamione”) in this week’s Mercury! Read that HERE!
By the way, it has come to my attention that there are a few of you cynical types who would actually accuse us of FAKING this spoiler page just to fuck with the heads of Potter fans. All I can say to that baseless accusation is, “HOW DARE YOU, SIR? What have we ever done to mislead you?”

Just in case you slept in yesterday, here is the slightly cheesy, but still somewhat respectable, Today Show report on the Rock N’ Roll Camp for Girls.

Also, how awesome is that Today Show logo?

Manhattan explodes—or, part of it does.

The Senate Democrats’ efforts to withdraw the troops fails.

Three in four Americans will be fatties by 2015.

The New York Times bought the last Harry Potter book at a bookstore on Wednesday, posts its review today. “In a generally positive review, writer [Michiko] Kakutani gives away some plot details, including how many characters die and what ”deathly hallows” means, but refrains from answering the biggest questions of all.”

20-hour standoff in Vancouver ends with one officer shot, and suspect arrested.

Someone has put a huge doughnut on top of the Space Needle! WHO COULD HAVE DONE SUCH A THING??

And here’s one man’s opinion of this senseless act of vandalism.

What’s hotter than a girl with a mohawk? A drunken girl with a mohawk, silly. Yep, that could be you tomorrow night at Devil’s Point (5305 SE Foster). Every Thursday, Bootstrap Records will be giving away FREE well drinks and beers for every girl with a mohawk—so for the love of booze, get out the Dippity Doo or just grab a wig, and tie one on!

Last week I got an email from PR honcho Brian at PICA, telling me that they had prepared “press book” for September’s TBA Festival. I’ve been covering TBA since its inception, and we never got press books before, so I had no idea what to expect. I guess I was thinking I’d receive a lazer-printed copy of the soon-to-be ubiquitous TBA guides, clamped together with a binder clip. No way in the world did I expect to be gifted this 9 lb, overstuffed 5” binder with Xeroxes of every article ever written about every artist in this year’s festival. In no way am I complaining—this is going to help a lot when it comes time to write the TBA story. I’ve just been wondering how many of these gargantuan books PICA made, and how gushing the letter of recommendation is going to be for the poor volunteer who had to collate thousands upon thousands of Xeroxes to assemble these.

Speaking of PICA, they just turned 12, so don’t be surprised if this year’s festival is marked by a lot of all-night phone calls, boob jokes, and angry poems directed at schoolyard phonies. To ring in this pubescence, they’re throwing a heck of a party tonight at Holocene, with DJ Copy on the 1s and 2s, and performances from badass partystarters Panther, Thunderheist (Montreal), and Plastic Little (Philly). Plastic Little’s kind of a jokey hiphop band, but not really. They’re definitely hit or miss, but they knocked it out of the park something major last year when they teamed up with Ghostface and Amanda Blank to drop the killer single “Crambodia.”

The party starts at 8 pm tonight, Holocene, 1001 SE Morrison, and it’s $5 for PICA members and $7 for everyone else. (Treats by Saint Cupcake. Yum.)

I am actively excited about a musical, not something that happens very often. From Portland Center Stage:

Wade McCollum will join Storm Large On Stage for Cabaret! In what is likely to be the most significant pairing of local phenoms in Portland theater history, it has just become official that Wade McCollum will play the role of Emcee opposite Storm Large as Sally Bowles in the PCS production of Cabaret opening in September. McCollum originally announced his desire to perform the role not long after being invited last spring, but getting a gig on the national Jersey Boys tour presented a potential snag in the original plan. Wade has recently confirmed that he will be available and is eagerly anticipating the opportunity to work alongside Storm Large.

This should be fun. Cabaret is a great show, both of these casting decisions are pretty inspired, and PCS has the resources to make it work.

A craigslist offering had me trekking to the ‘Couv last night—and check out what I found! From a church on NW Lakeshore Avenue:

Here’s another funny/adorable video to celebrate Harry Potter week that’s funny even if you hate that little magical prick. It’s a puppet show featuring characters from the book performing a skit entitled, “The Mysterious Ticking Noise.” Use your magical powers to solve the mystery!

In honor of our Bike Issue, which is set to hit the streets tomorrow morning (or this evening, if you can find an early copy), the BBC’s news magazine has a feature called “A Saint in the Saddle?” on cycling in the U.K.—more specifically, it’s a feature about how cyclists are a bunch of pricks hopped up on their own sense of moral superiority.

(As Amanda Fritz points out—thanks for the link, BTW—this story and its comments could very well have been written here in Portland.)

As someone who doesn’t eat animal products and uses a bicycle as my primary means of transportation—and proselytizes about both on a regular basis—I’ve been accused of bullshit moral superiority by my friends and loved ones more often than I can count. It’s how my friends now say hi to me: “How are you, sanctimonious prick?”

Maybe it’s my own inability to see others’ points of view, but I typically accept these derisions as a matter of fact. I am morally superior. My method of transportation emits no pollutants, requires no foreign fossil fuels, and doesn’t tear up city roads. And it requires effort—not to mention a sacrifice of comfort, especially when it’s raining. But I choose it because, well, it’s fun and I love it, but also because I know I’m doing some small thing to make the world a better place—or at least to not add to its destruction.

Alas, while the shining self-made halo above my head is gleaming in my own mind, it’s apparently a huge turnoff to others—especially dedicated auto drivers—as evidence by the BBC article…not to mention any bike-related blog post that’s ever been written in this town. My personal belief is that the people who most despise those smug cyclists are the drivers who feel guilty about their own transportation choices and are externalizing. But, as a longtime bike activist just told me, guilt and shame are not effective methods of getting people to change their behavior.

I don’t have much of a closing thought, and this is an argument Portland’s been having for years, so please feel free to load up the comments section with a big “bikers are saints vs. bikers are sanctimonious assholes” debate.

Yesterday the Blazers re-signed lanky SF Travis Outlaw to a three year deal worth about $12 million dollars. This most likely means that fan-favorite, and local boy, Ime Udoka is as good as gone. Udoka was the feel-good story of last year’s team, proof positive that the franchise was ditching its not too admirable past, and focusing on community-minded players, who contribute both on, and off, the court.

But, do you know what Outlaw has that Ime does not?
A fancy highlight reel, set to pulsating techno beats. Oh, and $12 million bucks, too.

A new bar called the Morrison Hotel opened yesterday in the SE Morrison storefront formerly occupied by La Villa. La Villa, is missed, of course, but I like the new place—I stopped by yesterday, and it proved a great spot to have a couple beers and enjoy a game of Scrabble (all I want out of a bar, really). The owners have done a nice job dressing up the space a little: there’s now a bar area with a lovely redwood bar and seating, as well as a dining room; the murals are gone, and the walls have been repainted a really pretty dark green; the whole place has a clubby, beer-and-scotch kind of a vibe.
And beer is the thing. The bar boasts over 80 bottled beers, with a few taps as well—didn’t catch what any of the taps were, save for a Caldera amber. The emphasis is on bottles, though. I knocked back a bottle of Hair of the Dog’s Fred, a sweet and treacherous golden strong ale, followed by a bartender-recommended Celis White, a summery, citrusy wheat. Prices range from $2.50 for a Session o $12 for 22 oz of Moylan’s Double IPA (not for the faint of heart). There’s also a full bar, and an as-yet limited selection of food that yesterday included tuna empanadas, $5; pinchitos morunos (marinated pork skewers), $6; and boquerones (anchovies), $6. I didn’t try any of their food, but I look forward to it—all told, it seems like a great addition to the neighborhood. I’ll definitely be back.

Morrison Hotel, 719 SE Morrison, 236-7080; open daily with a happy hour from 5-6:30, according to their sign ($3 wells, $1 off calls), and lunch service slated to start soon. Non-smoking, kids kosher until 9pm

(I stole that image from PDX pipeline, which has some impressions of the place and more photos here)

Good news! City council is finally making good on its longtime promise to hold sessions in the evening, when people who work during the day are able to attend and be part of the ongoing democratic process.

It’s a pledge that has been made by nearly every city council candidate in recent history, so it’s great to see them coming through and delivering on such a noble promise.

There’s an evening session tonight, scheduled for 6pm.

Oh, except:

WEDNESDAY, 6:00 PM, JULY 18, 2007

DUE TO LACK OF AN AGENDA
THERE WILL BE NO MEETING

Bummer! But the good news is that they hold evening sessions once a month. See, here’s the agenda from last month’s evening session:

WEDNESDAY, 6:00 PM, JUNE 20, 2007

DUE TO LACK OF AN AGENDA
THERE WAS NO MEETING

But here is the packed agenda from the evening session before that one:

WEDNESDAY, 6:00 PM, APRIL 18, 2007

DUE TO LACK OF AN AGENDA
THERE WAS NO MEETING

And the one before that one?

WEDNESDAY, 6:00 PM, MARCH 21, 2007

DUE TO LACK OF AN AGENDA
THERE WAS NO MEETING

The last evening session to successfully be held was on February 21, and since last August, there has only been a total of four that have happened, largely for issues like creating the Human Rights Commission and the Children’s Bill of Rights.

Council is right on schedule if it’s aiming for once per quarter—just often enough that they can say they’re holding them, but infrequent enough that nobody actually expects them to happen on a regular basis.

… or will it be Liza Rietz and John Blasioli? The name order has yet to be decided, but the new retail/studio space being opened by the two local design talents is set to be labeled like a law office—simple, and straight to the point. Your first opportunity to check out the space is coming up on the weekend of the 27th-29th of this month, when Rietz is holding a trunk show of her designs (Blasioli’s inventory will come in later, in August). Get 25% off all of Liza’s designs, including “summer linen jumpers, fitted cotton A-line dresses, lady vests, tunics and babydoll dresses made out of bamboo, and one-of-a-kind couture pieces.” From 11-7 all three days at 2305 NW Savier!

COMIC BOOK NEWS! A few days ago, Portland’s Oni Press sent us a review copy of Stephen Colbert’s Tek Jansen, a comic boasting Colbert’s “input at every stage” and featuring Colbert’s character Jansen, a very Colbert-y intergalactic superhero.

This is some rough stuff. Colbert’s done some great things, but I can’t help but feel like his shtick is starting to wear a little thin, and Tek Jansen is a pretty fantastic display of shark-jumping. Featuring Jensen as he cavorts around the universe wooing hot aliens, deposing fiendish dictators, and talking in a way that channels Colbert’s trademark bravado, there are some clever ideas, but most of it’s pretty tired—the same sort of spoofy sci-fi/comic book stuff that, say, The Venture Bros. (which Colbert’s been known to appear on) does a whole lot better.

MORE COMIC BOOK NEWS! Portland comics expert Douglas Wolk will be reading at Powell’s on Wednesday, August 1, 7:30 pm. Wolk just put out Reading Comics: How Graphic Novels Work and What They Mean; I haven’t had a chance to really delve into the book yet, but it looks really promising, with its front jacket boasting that it’s “The first serious, readable, provocative, canon-smashing book of comics theory and criticism by the leading critic in the world.” Should be a good reading.

ALSO! EVEN MORE COMIC BOOK NEWS! SORT OF! Marvel just sent me a press release about some Avengers/Transformers comic they’re doing. Its cover might be the worst image of all time, ever. That is all.

One would think that the makers of SUVs would want to counteract the image that the people who drive them are selfish, meathead pricks. However, this commercial makes the case that SUVs aren’t only cruel to the environment—they kill dogs, too.
“A DOG GETS KILLED? AWESOME! BUY A DODGE NITRO, BRO!”

A Chinese blogger and news anchor has driven Starbucks out of the Forbidden City, where 24 emperors ruled for almost 500 years. Every now and then you see a story like this that show the power of blogs to score symbolic victories over “the man.”

Seven months ago, Rui, an anchor for the state-run China Central Television, complained on his blog that the presence of a Starbucks had “undermined the Forbidden City’s solemnity and trampled over Chinese culture.”

It was as if he had opened the valve on an espresso machine. Reaction from Chinese readers poured forth, hissing and full of steam. Many people, it seemed, were offended by the presence of a shop selling half-caf mocha frapuccinos in the most hallowed spot in China, where 24 emperors had ruled in almost unimaginable grandeur for nearly 500 years. By the next day, Rui says, the item had been read by half a million people and generated “thousands, if not tens of thousands,” of e-mail responses.

On Friday, under pressure from the government, the Seattle-based company closed its small shop inside the Forbidden City, having rejected an offer to continue selling Starbucks coffee under the Forbidden City brand.

In the last few months, Rui has been called many things, not all of them kind. A Shanghai newspaper mocked him as “Lord Rui,” saying his “instigative ranting” was neither fair nor “gentlemanly.” He was branded an ultranationalist, an opponent of free trade and a man out of step with the modern world.

Up to 200 dead in Brazilian plane crash.

Senators debated Iraq all night long. “Ordinary citizens watched, seemingly spellbound, as Republicans accused Democrats of staging a political show to dramatize opposition to the war. Even as Democrats brushed aside such suggestions, the party’s Congressional leaders and many lawmakers took a break from the debate to join a few hundred war protesters at a candlelight vigil outside the Capitol.”

Elizabeth Edwards for President! Yesterday, she took a swipe at Hillary Clinton, questioning her feminist credentials.

Planning to get lost in the wilderness? Plan to be found within 51 hours for the best chance at survival, OHSU says.

Today, more rain.

Are those Harry Potter leaks for real? The publisher won’t say, for obvious reasons. Are the leakers party-poopers? The Chicago Tribune says so: “Did we see this coming? Of course we did. But that doesn’t mean we can’t offer a firm “Phooey” to the nasty know-it-alls who possess updated modems but undetectable consciences. Sadly, what appear to be copies of actual pages of “Deathly Hallows” have shown up on various sites.” (Confidential to the Chicago Tribune: Don’t read this week’s Mercury.)

This piece has an intensely annoying intro which makes me never want to set foot in Brooklyn again, but goes on to discuss the healthy-boozing trend—not exactly news on this coast, but if the Times’ style section says that “the idea of healthier tippling has started to catch on,” far be it from me to ask where they’ve been for the past few years.
There’s obviously an element of willful self-deception to all of this—drinking isn’t good for us, and no amount of prickly pear extract will make it so. But while I could give two shits about the antioxidant properties of my cocktail, anything that moves drinks away from syrupy liquers and mixers and toward fresh fruits and herbs is A-OK with me.

From the NY Times, with a hat tip to Mr. Guilty Carnivore:

In an era of “natural” cigarettes, trans-fat-free chips and low-carb beer, it is probably no surprise that that last guilty pleasure, the cocktail, is trying to atone for its sins. And it isn’t just vegan restaurants serving more vitamin-rich vodka mixes and slinging vegetable gardens in a glass.

Whether absurd or merely inevitable, the idea of healthier tippling has started to catch on among those who have embraced things like organic food and low-sugar diets. Always ready to pounce on a fad, mixologists at trendy bars, restaurants and clubs in New York and Los Angeles have begun creating concoctions from organic fruit and vegetable purées and vitamin-filled sports drinks instead of gooey syrups.

It’s all over the web. But you can just pick up a copy of the Mercury tomorrow to be one step ahead of all the other suckers in line Friday night.

The city’s Immigrant and Refugee Task Force finally weighs in on the Del Monte Produce factory immigration raid—which happened on June 12. Five weeks ago. (Even Mayor Tom “Convene a committee and report back months later” Potter managed to crank out a response on the same day.)

STATEMENT FROM CITY OF PORTLAND’S IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE TASK FORCE ON THE IMMIGRATION RAID AT FRESH DEL MONTE PRODUCE, INC.

The Immigrant and Refugee Task Force is both disappointed and saddened by the recent immigration raid at Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., which has driven an unnecessary wedge between communities in Portland. Portland has always been known as a friendly place where its people generally treat other people and one another with dignity and respect. This raid contradicts the very spirit of Portland. The task force wishes to express gratitude to Mayor Potter for demonstrating leadership in dealing with this crisis, the Portland Police for not participating in the raid, and to the Crisis Response Team and others throughout our community for stepping up to help the families affected by this raid.” —Members of the City of Portland’s Immigrant and Refugee Task Force

Rumor has it the Task Force was divided over whether or not to release a statement at all. But now, by releasing one so woefully late, they just look silly (not to mention useless).

But forget all of that! The statement went out to lots of media, including Lars Larson—who quickly hit “Reply All” and sent this:

ask the family of kimberly powell how they feel about the value of illegal aliens living in Oregon. Lars

Yes. Ask the family of Kimberly Powell—the young woman killed last year by an alleged hit-and-run driver, Rocendo Rosales-Corona, who was just arrested in the past few days, after cops tracked him to Mexico and then to California, where he was working as a laborer. That’s exactly the point of all of this, Lars. Way to refocus us back on your agenda!

Few things in this unforgiving world make me happier than the above clip, where a VERY enthusiastic Flickerstick fan rambles on and on and on and on and on and on and on about her adventures at the band’s concert.

Oh, and yes, I made it all the way through. Best fifteen minutes of my life.

Flickerstick plays the Hawthorne Theatre tonight. Effin’ Awesome!!

Oh, San Francisco, your magnificence is impossible to verbalize, what with the Golden Gate Bridge, the Presidio, Coit Tower, Robin Williams, and, uhhh, this guy, who forced the city board of supervisors to endure a punishing, reimagined cover of Madonna’s “Borderline.”

I’ve seen some side-splittingly cuckoo things at Portland’s city hall—I mean, hell, we even dressed up an intern in a corn suit and sent her in to testify last year—but nothing this totally awesome. At least not since city council sent out a message that nutters are no longer welcome at sessions. ‘Tis a shame.

At any rate, if you need some context, this concerned citizen is singing about Supervisor Ed Jew, who is currently under fire for allegedly not meeting the residency requirement for his position, and then lying about it. Read about the media circus—I mean, trial—here.

Thanks to Best Week Ever.

p.s. Anyone else think that guy looks like a young Brian Wilson?

p.p.s. The organization referenced at the end of the clip is the California Urban Issues Project, San Francisco, which appears to be like a cross between our Portland Business Alliance and Cascade Policy Institute, except fun.