The Bulletin announced today that they are offering free music downloads on their site: an album's worth of music from local bands, and an album's worth from national bands (15 each). For anyone who's familiar with the usual online offerings/technical abilities of the Bulletin, this is a Big Deal—the web end of things is not their strong point (to put it nicely). However, I've been checking out the site a bit, and so far I'm impressed with what I see.

I had a heads-up that this was coming from the Bulletin's music writer, Ben Salmon; he had reached out to spread the word on this and (I think) was also a driving motivator in getting this launched. He writes:

Basically, we've collected 30 of the best songs of 2007 - 15 from Central Oregon artists and 15 from non-local artists - and offered them for free download (no subscription needed) at www.bendbulletin.com/nearfar. Folks can stream the songs, download individual MP3s, or download each collection in its own .zip file (complete with CD artwork and tracklisting). They're split into:

"Near" - featuring locals like Coyo, Person People, The Mostest, Shireen Amini, The Roe, The Erins, The Bond Brothers and more
"Far" - featuring non-locals like The Shins, Arcade Fire, Aesop Rock, Blue Scholars, Band of Horses, Blitzen Trapper and more

(Please note: Downloading the .zips takes a little while, so patience is needed.)

There are also short write-ups of the bands and/or their 2007 albums, links to band sites, MySpace profiles and record labels, and a YouTube video where we could find one, plus The Bulletin's coverage of the best albums and concerts of the year as well as the favorites of people connected to Central Oregon's music scene.

It's an impressive undertaking for the Bulletin, and like I said, so far I'm impressed with the site. Not only can you download each album (the zip files are 69 and 62 megabytes in size), but you can also listen to each song embedded in the page (or download it directly) via a Flash player—so you can sample the music before deciding to download it (as it should be).

Plus, the fact that the Bulletin is able to offer this music for download for free, in DRM-less MP3 format, is awesome—much more progressive than I would've expected from the Bulletin.

Of course, I'd like to see more of this—especially the local music, which is worth promoting. The Bulletin could move to become the online source for discovering local music by doing so; I don't know of any other site that can claim this (searching MySpace Music is one possibility, but it's not that great an option).

All said and done, I like this idea well enough that I'm going to install the banner graphic in the sidebar of this site for awhile in the adspace. (With the other buttons.) Check it out.

In my Holiday Gift Guide entry for Beer, I mentioned that I didn't know if Wildfire Brewing had beer available to go. (Wildfire is the brewery established by the JC's folks.) Well, Paul (the brewer) was kind enough to write in to let me know:

Growlers can be filled at our brewery, which is located at 20750 High Desert Lane-just up the street from the Indoor Soccer place and directly across from High Desert Beverage.

At present, we don't have our own fancy growlers, but are happy to fill up the container of your choice if folks want to drop by.

Sweet! You should probably call first before showing up, just to make sure: 585-1007.

What: Albums from local bands and artists. Central Oregon has a thriving music scene, ranging in styles from hip hop (MC Mystic) to folk (Moon Mountain Ramblers) to alt rock (KouseFly) to just about any other genre you can think up.

For: Music lovers, anyone who wants local flavors of music.

Price: CD prices—the neighborhood of $10-20 - $-$$

Where: Ranch Records, of course—they have a good selection of CDs from all sorts of local artists. Downtown at 831 NW Wall.

Trivia: For a good sense of just how much local music there is going on, and for a good selection of free samples, check out MySpace Music and search locally.

What: Frontier Doctor, by Urling Coe. One of my favorite Bend history books—this is more of a narrative than a dry history tome and it's a fantastic read. Urling Coe came to Bend in 1905 to practice medicine when Bend was still entirely a frontier town, and his experiences and observations over the years that followed as Central Oregon developed are priceless.

For: Anyone interested in Bend history.

Price: $15.95 new - $$

Where: Try the Book Barn first—they have the best selection of local interest/authors that I've seen in town.

Online:

• Amazon
• Powells

Trivia: Urling Coe (aside from having an unusual name) also served as one of Bend's first mayors and co-founded Bend's first bank.

What: Cog Wild is a local guide company dedicated to mountain biking, and they offer a whole slew of bike tour options as well as gear you can buy directly from them. Tours are available from April to November (mountain biking season), so you won't be riding right away, but you can buy gift certificates and book tours in advance, and get the clothing now.

For: Biking enthusiasts of all types—beginners through advanced—and anyone who's looking for outdoor adventure.

Price: For clothing: Men's and women's shirts, $20; hats, $20; hoodies, $35 - $$-$$$

For tours: They start at $40 for the "Full Moon Adventure" tour, up to $895 for some of the best multi-day tour experiences out there - $$$-$$$$$

Where: Contact them directly to find out about buying gear and setting up tours. They're not always in the office in the off-season, so be sure to leave a message.

Trivia: From their FAQ:"Cog Wild is the only local permit holder offering mountain bike tours in Central Oregon. The Forest Service has issued Cog Wild a wider range of trails that none of the other companies can use."

What: A bottle (or two! or more!) of wine from one (or both!) local wineries, Maragas Winery and Volcano Vineyards. Maragas is the winery that is also attempting to grow vineyards locally, just north of Terrebonne—something that hasn't been done here before.

The available styles of wine are Zinfandel, Pinot Gris, Merlot, Syrah, Viognier, and a Muscat dessert wine. And, you can sign up for a wine club or put together a gift basket if you're looking for more than just a bottle or two.

For: Wine lovers, foodies.

Price: Individual bottles priced at $14 on up to $32 - $-$$$

Where: Maragas' tasting room at 643 NW Colorado Avenue; Volcano Vineyards at 930 NW Brooks Street Promenade downtown.

Trivia: You can visit the Maragas Winery north of Terrebonne on weekends, Friday through Sunday from 11 to 4pm. They're located just north of the Crooked River Gorge.

What: Locally-distilled spirits from Bendistillery. Everyone knows about their Crater Lake Vodka and Cascade Mountain Gin, but they also have a hazelnut espresso and a hot pepper-infused vodka.

The vodka is filtered though crushed volcanic rock—local, of course—while the gin is made from locally-picked wild juniper berries. And the distillery is looking into buying a farm in Tumalo to produce crops for their spirits, further bringing the local flavor to their products.

For: Anyone who wants something stronger than local beer.

Price: Around $20 to 25 - $$

Where: Available at all the liquor stores in the area.

Trivia: For companies that want to "own their own spirit brand," Bendistillery offers private label vodka, and will produce a flavored vodka of any type.

What: A wide selection of bath and body products from Dani Natural Products, including lotions, hand cremes, oils, soaps, and more. All of their "product bases contain 100% vegetable oils with NO petroleum or animal oils" and they do no animal testing.

For: Girlfriends, wives, female friends and relatives. Men can use them too, they just won't tell anyone.

Price: Ranges from $5 to 30 - $-$$

Where: Their store locator for Oregon shows 5 Bend locations: Maragas Wine, Indulgence, Newport Market, Paper Jazz, and Robert Scott Face/Body. You can, of course, also shop directly online on their site.

Trivia: They also produce a variety of soy candles, one of which is "Sweet Osmanthus"—and I have absolutely no idea what that is.

What: Organic and eco-friendly clothing from Of the Earth, who strive "to be the premier resource for fashionable alternative and organic apparel." Organic cotton, merino wool, hemp, and bamboo are among the fibers they use in their products.

For: Anyone wanting stylish clothing and who wants to be environmentally conscious.

Price: "Rock bottom prices", $5 to 25 - $-$$

Where: Check out their outlet store at 542 NW Arizona (just north of the Old Mill District) for those rock bottom prices they promise. Bambini of Bend on the westside also sells their products, but likely not at outlet prices.

Trivia: Among the fibers they use is recycled plastic bottles... the plastics are processed into fiber to make yarn and other textiles.

What: Growlers of beer from one of our local microbreweries, of course! (Oh come on, you knew I'd get to this one eventually, right?) And actually, they don't have to be limited to growlers: Deschutes Brewery, for instance, will fill any (reasonable) container for you. But don't just get any beer you can find in the grocery store (like the main line of Deschutes and Cascade Lakes beers, for instance)—pick something special from the respective brewery.

For: Beer drinkers.

Price: From the $4 minimum for 20 ounces Deschutes charges, to roughly $12 for a "standard" growler, to an ultra-fancy flip-top one (like the one pictured) that Deschutes sells, filled, for $35 - $-$$$

Where: Deschutes Brewery, Cascade Lakes, Bend Brewing Company, Silver Moon Brewing. I (shamefully) don't know if McMenamins or Wildfire Brewing (at JC's) sells growlers, but it never hurts to ask.

Trivia: Both Deschutes and Bend Brewing are medal-winners at the Great American Beer Festival, as well as being the two oldest microbreweries in the area.

What: "The construction toy of the future." That's as good a description as any for Qubits; this creative and educational toy looks to me like a cross between Legos and an Erector set. Each set contains 150 pieces and according to the creator, "will help children develop spatial skills and manual dexterity. The geometry is natural and scientific. The structures can be very architectural, structural, invoke concepts in engineering or touch on basic concepts of NanoTechnology."

For: Kids, particularly those who like building things.

Price: $39.95 - $$$

Where: Order directly online. You might be able to find these at Kids World in the Forum Shopping Center (eastside).

Trivia: The creator of Qubits, Mark Burginger, is a local architect. He and the toy were featured in this Bulletin article (which brought Qubits to my attention).

What: Locally produced "farmstead" goats milk cheeses from Tumalo Farms. They have seven different cheese varieties which you can order singly, and gift packages available too. These are definitely gourmet cheeses; check out the Pondhopper, a cheese made with a "local microbrew" (I'm guessing Mirror Pond Pale Ale) with "a faint hint of hops."

For: Foodies and turophiles.

Price: Ranges from $18 for a single cheese all the way up to $180 for the "Ultimate Gift": a 10 lb. personalized cheese wheel - $$-$$$$$

Where: Order online directly, or call them at 541-350-3718 to find out if you can order and pick up in person.

Trivia: "Farmstead" cheeses are the highest classification of cheese production: the milk is produced on the farm along with the cheese.

What: Men's and women's T-shirts from Bend Blogger monkeyinabox, where he's poking some fun at Bend's expense like the Buzztouch shirts. "In my SUV"? Indeed! I particularly like the Flaming Chicken design, seen here.

For: Anyone with a sense of humor, and who owns an SUV.

Price: $16.99 - 18.99 - $$

Where: Online, at his CafePress store.

Trivia: "Monkey" is one of the earliest local bloggers, and he even appeared in the newspaper a few years ago (with me, even).

What: The Bend 2008 Calendar from the Bend Calendar Company, featuring gorgeous imagery from local photographers. Because everybody needs a calendar, right?

For: Anyone who needs to keep track of the date.

Price: $15 - $

Where: Lots of places; check out the list of retailers to find out where you can get it.

Trivia: They also offer some basic personalization options, though these are more of a business-to-business nature.

What: Gourmet, hand-crafted biscotti from Di Lusso. I can personally attest to how good these are! They come in 15 flavors, 13 of which are dipped and decorated in chocolate. Decadent, and good either on their own or dipped in your coffee (drank from a mug from Mug Revolutions, of course!). These would liven up a stocking nicely.

For: Coffee drinkers—or anyone, really—with a sweet tooth.

Price: $5.99 for a 4-count, $18 for a 12-pack - $-$$

Where: You can pick them up in person at one of Di Lusso's locations, of course, and you can order them online.

Trivia: The price I gave is for their online pricing; if you stop in one of their stores, you can likely pick up individually-wrapped biscotti for cheaper than the multi-packs.

What: Men's and women's T-shirts from Buzztouch Designs; there are several designs all having a bit of fun at Bend's expense. In a good way, of course. The "Poverty with a View" is a popular design.

For: Anyone with a sense of humor, and who doesn't mind poking fun at  Bend.

Price: $18 right now - $$

Where: You can order them online here.

Trivia: Brian, the guy behind these shirts, is also a founding member of KouseFly, and has even more T-shirts and other products available from his CafePress store here.

What: Handmade, wheel-thrown, kiln-fired pottery coffee mugs from Mug Revolution. They're extremely durable, resistant to chipping, microwave and dishwasher safe, and you can even get them customized. A popular custom touch? Your pet's paw print. Really.

For: All those coffee and tea drinkers (and pet lovers) out there.

Price: From $15 to 20, depending on the personalization options. (Not counting shipping.) - $$

Where: Order online through their site. If you're local, you can contact them to set up a time to stop by their studio to pick up your mug(s) in person.

Trivia: Each 16-ounce mug is kiln-fired at 2,350° F for 10 to 14 hours. Mug Revolution was also featured in a nice write-up in the Bulletin last month.

Check this out: the Blacksmith Restaurant is all set to re-open (remember, they had closed down for remodeling), and they have an extensive beer list, thanks to local blogger brewerman. I've seen the tap list (Spence at brewerman gave me a peek—it's not online yet) and I can confirm it's quite extensive—the best tap list of anywhere I've seen in town.

(If I can, I'll post the list.)

I don't know how extensive their bottle selection will be, but I imagine it will be similarly well-stocked. Basically, among other things, the Blacksmith is going to be the best beer bar in town.

What: Bend, Overall, by Scott Cook. One of the best local guidebooks to the area, written by a local, with emphasis on the outdoors. I reviewed it here: "The book is divided into 53 featured outings/destinations, several driving tours, and maps. Each of the outings features exact directions for both driving and hiking, helpful tips like whether dogs are allowed and the price (if any), and is peppered liberally with photographs and tidbits of history and trivia."

For: Tourists and locals alike who want to see what the "Central Oregon lifestyle" is all about. But, if you're looking for a book that also recommends and reviews restaurants, lodging, shopping, etc., then this isn't it.

Price: $14.95 new - $

Where: Look for it at The Book Barn (135 NW Minnesota, downtown), or perhaps used at The Open Book (155 NE Greenwood) or The Bookmark (228 NE Greenwood).

If you're looking online:

• Amazon.com (used)
• Powells Books (used)
• REI.com (new)

Trivia: Trade paperback, 144 pages, guidebook-sized (about 5x8), should fit well in a stocking.

So, starting tomorrow (Monday) I'll be running with the Holiday Gift Guide idea I had last week. Between comments on that post, some ideas of my own, and (hopefully) more feedback as I post, there's plenty to write about.

The idea, of course, is to put together a gift guide for things that are related to Bend and Central Oregon in some way—produced here, are unique to the area, are about the area somehow, like that. In some cases, ironically, there may only be a source for the item(s) online—but where possible, I'll try to point to a local outlet.

I'll be using a price range scheme, too, in the highly (un)original form of dollar signs. Here's my scale:

• $0 - 15: $
• $15 - 30: $$
• $30 - 60: $$$
• $60 - 100: $$$$
• $100+: $$$$$

And if I come across something ridiculously cheap, I'll tag it with the "cent" sign: ¢

I think I'll do one item (or group of items, if they're all from the same vendor or something) per post, rather than do a big post for each possible category.

And maybe if I'm feeling really ambitious I'll turn it all into a downloadable PDF. But don't count on that.

I previously reported that the annual Deschutes Brewery Garage Sale—which is taking place this Saturday, December 8th—started at noon and conflicted with the Bend Christmas Parade. No so! In my email just now, I received their newsletter which says the sale is from 10am to 2pm—two hours earlier than I thought.

(It's on their homepage now, too.)

So there's still a bit of an overlap, but if you wanted to make it to both events, you're covered.

The various goings-on this month downtown at Thump: Art Walk, and a bunch of exhibits.

Click for the full post

Bend Memorial Clinic is having their annual Holiday Bazaar tomorrow, December 6th. It's taking place at their Main Clinic (at 1501 NE Medical Center Drive), from 10am until 3pm.

I don't know any other details, so I couldn't say what to expect. Maybe someone from BMC could comment...?

We were up at the Seventh Mountain Resort over the weekend, at the ice skating rink they have there. It's one of only two "official" ice skating rinks we have in Central Oregon (that I know of)—for an area with such an emphasis on winter sports, it seems like ice skating would be a no-brainer... but  there's really not much.

Seventh Mountain Resort details: Outdoor rink. $8 per session rink admission, $4 skate rental. Hours can be found here (PDF). They also have skating lessons available, at various prices.

The other rink is at the Sunriver Village Mall, during the winter (obviously). It's an outdoor rink also (during the summer it's a mini-golf course). Skate rentals available. Hours are Monday through Friday, 3pm to 8pm, Saturday 11am to 3pm and 4pm to 8pm, and Sunday 4pm to 8pm.

Actually, I use the term "official" kind of loosely here... because there's also ice skating available during the winter at Shevlin Park, on the Pond next to Aspen Hall when it freezes over. So technically, it's not a rink (hence "official"), and it's only available when it gets cold enough for the pond to freeze and stay frozen. Rentals are available there as well.

Last December I wrote up a Holiday Shopping Guide here, and minus a few businesses that closed over this past year (Boomtown, Gambit Games, Vino Mercato), I think it's still pretty relevant and there's no reason to repeat myself.

But I was thinking about maybe doing a Holiday Gift Guide instead. The premise would be gifts that are fairly unique (or are related) to Bend/Central Oregon somehow, rather than just neat gifts you could buy anywhere.

I like the idea—it could be a lot of fun—but I strongly suspect it's not one I could do justice to by myself... so does anyone have any suggestions?