I'm lifting this from my "Haunted Bend" post on my other blog from last year... thought it'd be fun to run here. So, just in time for Halloween, it's a list of places that are allegedly haunted here in Bend (most of these are pulled from the Shadowlands Haunted Place Index for Oregon):

• The Deschutes County Historical Society building (the old Reid School): Supposedly the ghost of George Brosterhous, who died there in 1914, haunts the place.
• The McCann House: The subject of the only ghost story for Bend found in Ghosts and Strange Critters of Washington and Oregon. According to the Shadowlands site, "there have been a few families that have lived there that have either died or something tragic has happened to them due to living in the cursed house." I don't know about cursed; the book simply mentions that sometimes figures are seen in the upper story windows, and gives a short history of it. Listed as the "Congress House" on the Shadowlands site because the house itself is on Congress Avenue.
  
• The O'Kane Building: There's "ghostly smoke, weird lights, footsteps, and voices," and occasionally a voice that calls out orders in the restaurant.
• Old Mt. View Hospital: I'm not sure where this is, the site says it's now an apartment building next to Drake Park. Floor creaks have been reporting, like someone's walking around.
• The Old Smoke Stacks (Old Mill District): Teenagers would sneak in there at night to see if the place was haunted.
• The Pilot Butte Cemetery: Reports of ghostly blue orbs floating around.
• The Lara House Bed and Breakfast: Located on Congress Avenue, like the Congress House.
• The Downing Hotel building (current site of The Grove): Historically this was a brothel. Haunted by a woman?

Any others I'm unaware of?

The Bulletin surprises me today and publishes a really good happy hour guide. Almost all of what they cover is in Bend, but they also hit a few in Redmond, Sisters, Madras, Prineville, and Sunriver. They don't just cover who has happy hours (and they admit it's not a complete list, either), but they make sure to list what days and hours they take place, and the prices of drinks and food on special.

Oh yeah, the Bend listings are divided by "upscale" and "casual" dining. At first I thought they had omitted a bunch of places but no, just read farther down.

There's apparently a new radio station starting here soon, 92.7 FM, and it looks like they're soliciting listener input on what kind of radio station they should be:

We're about to sign on a new radio signal in Bend at 92.7 on FM.
Does anything frustrate you about radio?
We want our station to be part of the solution rather than the problem.

They're inviting visitors to fill out a survey online—with questions along the lines of whether you'd prefer talk radio or music, what kind of music you'd like to hear, what stations you listen to already, etc. So this could be your chance to help hack the radio... so to speak.

Need costumes and stuff for Halloween in a pinch? Check out the Halloween Headquarters, located in the Factory Outlets next to Nike. This close to the end of the month, they're probably getting limited on the costume selection, but they're still quite impressive.

That's also the location of "The Haunt," a haunted house/interactive mystery which sounds interesting. The only thing I can find about it online comes from The Peak radio station's website:

...benefiting the Oregon Athletic & Educational Association. Join us, if you dare, and help solve the Mystery of Juniper Hollow. Open October 19-21 and 26-31 nightly at 7pm. Admission is $9. The Haunt is located next to Nike at the Bend Factory Stores (61334 S. Hwy. 97 in Bend) and is not recommended for young children.

Another place to check out is Party & Cards, on south 3rd Street next to the Grocery Outlet and Rite Aid. I can't vouch for their selection, but I heard their ad for Halloween on the radio.

Any other good places—besides the box stores?

Shannon sends along this tip: "cheapest gas in town is at Hertz on Hwy 20 ... $2.56." Cool... I didn't know Hertz sold gas. (Or do they only sell to customers?)

It's also worth pointing to the Bend page on the Oregon Gas Prices site. According to that (it's driven by user-submitted prices, and isn't completely comprehensive), the (next) lowest price in Bend is $2.61 at the Space Age up north of town. That's about the cheapest place I know, too.

A few weeks ago at the Bend Fall Festival, I picked up the "premier issue" of a small zine/chapbook from a local non-profit arts group: Artists Local 101. The zine is named "Guerilla." It was one of those weird little finds that make you scratch your head. (Plus, it was free.)

The zine is full of black-and-white photos of artwork by the group (presumably), and events they're associated with. It's clever and a fun idea; I haven't seen a bonafide zine in ages. Based on the wording on the back ("Enjoy the premier issue for FREE"), I'm not sure if they will charge for future issues... though it seems that would defeat the purpose, so who knows.

As to this Artists Local 101 group... I can't find any website for them other than a few references online. From this booklet, though:

Who are we? A 501C3 non-profit. A group of hardworking contemporary artists. An on-going 'barrel of monkeys' reverence for the local art scene.

Artists Local 101, continuing our mission of instigating and exhibiting contemporary/outsider arts in your community.

To find out more contact art101@bendcable.com or call 541-350-2159. 

It's roller derby time again, Saturday, October 21st, put on by the Renegade Rollergirls. This month it's Halloween-themed—"Fight of the Skating Dead."

It's at the Indoor Sports Center in northeast Bend, with doors opening at 7pm and the action starting at 8. Cost of admission is $6 for general, $12 for VIP (which gives you premium seating and two drink tickets). You can get tickets at Oxygen Tattoo.

You can check out the Renegade Rollergirls MySpace page here. And here's the Bulletin blurb.

Following up on my last Trader Joe's post, my wife found out the following information yesterday (she was at Trader Joe's in the valley): the Bend store is slated to open third quarter of 2007. There's been some holdup with the lease: some sort of snafu or conflict. So that means—ideally—this time next year they should be open for business.

I heard on the radio on my way to work this morning that Newport Avenue Market is having a Friday the 13th sale—"reverse the karma" or something goofy like that. Anyway, everything in the store is 13% off today.

Of course, I bought beer there yesterday. Go figure. :)

I can't help but notice (from downtown) that it's really hazy from smoke this morning... you can see the smoky haze on the butte(s), and the air is a bit brown on the horizon. Smells strong, too. Since it seems a bit late for field burning, and I don't know of any forest fires, did everybody wake up this morning and decide to fire up their woodstoves?

Ah, here's the source: Worried residents told: Smoke just planned burn. A 200-acre controlled burn near LaPine. KTVZ and Barney come through!

Thursday—tomorrow—is the opening night of the BendFilm festival, which runs this weekend with movies all over town. No, really—at the Tower Theatre, McMenamins theater, the Old Mill, and Banter.

I'm sorry to say I have no idea where "Banter" is, though.

(It would appear to be the Bend-LaPine Education Center, across from the Library.)

I have to say, I just don't go ga-ga over BendFilm like other people here do. I think having a local film festival is a good thing, generally, and it's good for the economy and downtown, etc. etc. And I admire what they've managed to build in the past three years. But since I'm really not a movie buff, it's not something I've gotten interested in.

Anyone want to send me reviews for this year's films? I'll post them here in their entirety.

Just a reminder that the "Web Professionals User Group" inaugural meeting is tonight, starting at 6 at Edge Wireless. I'll be there. Check out Jen's post here and the Upcoming.org page for it here for details.

Images from KTVZ

Friday afternoon I noticed the sidewalks had been stenciled up for the upcoming BendFilm event (more on that later); all over downtown, the BendFilm logo and the phrase "what is it to you?" have been painted in white "chalk paint" (according to the Z21 report). All over. My first thought was, did they have permits for this?

It's generated a bit of controversy; you can watch KTVZ's online video report here, where they touch on it a bit, plus raise the interesting question, who's going to clean it all up? And then there are a couple of craigslist postings criticizing the graffiti: here, here, and here. Rebuttal here.

Personally, I think the paint-stencilling-graffiti is pretty clever; it's definitely generating attention. I just wonder about the cleanup and responsibility, though. Will it wear off on its own, weathered by rain or whatever? Or will it need to be cleaned up manually—and by whom and at what cost?

It's been awhile since it was officially announced that Trader Joe's would be coming to Bend, and I have yet to hear anything more about it. Here's what we know for sure:

• It will be in the Cascade Village Shopping Center
• The new building will replace an existing vacant building adjacent to Food4Less
• It's to be a 13,000 square foot building

What we don't know is more tantalizing. I found a comment here that says "a manager at a Portland area store told us that the store would open in Q1 2007 'if there are no hangups with the permits.'" And I personally remember a conversation with a Trader Joe's employee who confided that the reason (up to that point) that TJ's wasn't in Bend was because members of the (City or County?) Council had financial stakes in Wild Oats, which would be a big competitor... all hearsay, of course.

Another bit I remember hearing was that it would take two years for TJ's to open a store here once they got rolling, largely because they would have to build a distribution center as well. Still hearsay.

I filled out the contact form on the Trader Joe's website asking about the Bend location. No reply yet, but I'll post it when and if I get one. Has anyone else heard anything new?

Update: Got some more dirt here.

I got this in email yesterday...

The Nature of Words, Central Oregon's Premier Literary Event, will take place November 2 through 5, 2006 in Bend, Oregon. Highlights of the weekend include readings by eight nationally acclaimed authors and poets at the Tower Theatre, two days of writing workshops held at the Oregon State University/Cascades Campus, and a sit-down dinner and panel discussion at the High Desert Museum. An open mike for regional writers, with the visiting authors in the audience, is the concluding event of the weekend.

Anyone with questions can contact us at 541.385.7025, via email at info@thenatureofwords.org, or the website http://www.thenatureofwords.org/

You can follow the links on their website for buying tickets... in short, though, readings are $12, workshops are $45, and the reception and dinner is $65 and $85 (for different tables). The workshops are generally limited to 15 participants, so you'd better buy your tickets early.

Yeah, it's festival season. While not quite the Central Oregon pumpkin patch, the Original Pumpkin Festival is coming up on Saturday, October 21st, from 10am until 4pm. Here's the blurb from KTVZ:

Come out to Tillicum Ranch and pick out your perfect pumpkin, go on a hayride or pony ride, pet the farm animals, enjoy the treats and live entertainment, visit the spooky barn, take home seasonal crafts, search the ranch for treasures in the scavenger hunt, and participate in the many other fun activities. This event is designed specifically for families with young children. High Desert Museum brings out their creepy creatures and Bend Science Station launches rocket ghosts. This Pumpkin Festival is no sleepy hollow.
$9 for an all day pass (includes pumpkin) or .50 cents per activity tickets.

Directions: 18144 Couch Market Road. Take Hwy 20 six miles west toward Sisters, turn left on Couch Market Road and follow the orange signs.

The High Desert Museum angle sounds cool; they'll probably have reptiles on hand for the "creepy creatures."

Yes, Bend has festivals for each season, and this weekend it's the Bend Fall Festival. Taking place October 7th and 8th, it "promises a fabulous array of music, art, food, and fun" in Downtown Bend.

And yes, that means they're closing the main streets downtown to fill them up with two music stages, artists selling their wares, and the food court. Also look for Fall-themed contests (pumpkin carving, pie baking, pumpkin painting) and a kids area replete with pony rides, apple bobbing, an inflatable "playground" and more.

I don't see hours listed on their website, but I'd imagine 10am or so until evening.

So yeah. The Fall Festival. At this point I'm waiting for Bend to start having monthly festivals... NovemberFest, AprilFest, etc.

If you're looking for a fun excursion with the kids (or even without), you might want to check out the Central Oregon Pumpkin Company's pumpkin patch throughout the month of October. We went yesterday (the 1st) and it was a good outing that we enjoyed quite a bit.

Located near Terrebonne and Smith Rock (north of Redmond), they offer not only a vast pumpkin patch from which you can select the perfect pumpkin to purchase, but also have a giant corn maze, a harvest market, hay and wagon rides, a pumpkin cannon (no kidding), weekend pony rides, and more. Their hours are noon until 6pm during the week, and 9am until 6pm weekends. There's no charge to get in and check things out, though everything else will cost you.

We had a good time, and picked out our pumpkins (25 cents a pound, we ended up with nearly 60 pounds of pumpkins which came out to $14.50). Want to see pictures? Click on through...

More...

This Saturday, the 7th, is the Friends of the Bend Library Fall Book Sale. They have "Thousands of books of all kinds for sale: fiction, nonfiction, travel books, children's books. Music CD’s and free books too!" It's taking place at the Library Administration Building (507 NW Wall Street, just down from the main library building) from 10am until 4pm.

These are usually pretty good sales; the quality of books you'll find at one depends on both how soon you get there and what you're looking for. So get there early! And the deals are unbeatable, too. I'll definitely try to make it.

Bend Brewing Company has won a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival this year! The winners at the GABF were announced yesterday, and in Category 39, American-Style India Pale Ale, Bend Brewing took the gold for their HopHead Imperial IPA. Awesome! That's a huge honor in the world of beer; Bend Brewing beat out 93 other contenders for this medal.

I believe that HopHead was one of the first (if not the first) beers that they bottled for general release (being a brewpub, they only serve on-premise). It's currently on tap right now, too, so now is as good a time as any to visit the brewery—they're located at 1019 NW Brooks Street downtown, just half a block down from the Pine Tavern restaurant.

Sometime soon I hope to write a more in-depth post about them. For right now, congrats!