Sunbeams illuminating a coastal forest in Port Orford, Oregon

Chuggnutt!

Category: Holidays

  • Pi Day

    For the mathematically-inclined, today is Pi Day. Because today is 3-14. Get it? Even better, the celebration begins at 1:59 p.m.

    Curiously enough, today is also Albert Einstein‘s birthday. Odd coincidence, considering.

  • Obligatory post-Christmas post

    Okay, I freely admit I stole the title from Jake. Everyone have a good holiday? Mostly? Good.

    There’s no denying it, Christmas is for the kids. We had more presents under the tree than ever, I think, almost all for them. And, they’re just at that age now where Christmas is a Big Deal, possibly the Biggest Deal of the Whole Year, so it was full frontal X-Mas this year. (Yeah, I chose that phrase deliberately, just to weed out the pervs. I’m watching you.)

    So, here’s a (mostly boring) list of what I got this year, both for my birthday and Christmas (no particular order):

    After the morning of opening presents and ooh-ing and ahh-ing over new toys and cleaning up and everything, we went out to my parents’ house to spend the rest of the day eating and visiting in our traditional Christmas manner. This is actually my favorite part of Christmas, I think, family and friends getting together to celebrate the holiday.

    This year we caught up with a family friend we hadn’t seen in four years, with an interesting backstory: he’s a forensic criminalist based in Ontario, Oregon. That’s right, he’s a CSI, although, as he put it, without the guns, the drama, or anything like that. He wants to get transferred to Portland because there’s not enough homicides in Eastern Oregon… seriously. Mostly it’s lab work, identifying meth and other similar drugs.

    What’s funny is that I was under the impression for years now that he was a forensic psychologist, which is what I’d been telling people. Doesn’t that seem more exciting or interesting somehow? I don’t know, but I was pretty amused by the thought of him matching wits with the Hannibal Lecters of Eastern Oregon…

    Ah, such is Christmas. The most wonderful time of the year!

  • Merry Christmas

    Charlie Brown:
    [shouting in desperation] Isn’t there anyone out there who can tell me what Christmas is all about?
    Linus:
    Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you.
    [walks out to center stage]
    Lights, please.
    [a spotlight shines on Linus]

    “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the lord shone round about them, and they were so afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you this day is born in the City of Bethlehem, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men’”.

    That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

    That’s probably my favorite quote about the holiday, pulled of course from the classic “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”

    Merry Christmas, everybody!

  • My birthday is one of the "Lost" numbers…

    So yeah, it’s my birthday today. Just thought I’d let everyone know.

    I get the day off from work, too. Score!

  • Christmas with the bloggers?

    So earlier in the month Shannon floated the idea of a Bend Blogger Christmas party. Not too many people responded, but since then we at least decided on a date if we’re going to do it: Saturday, December 10th.

    Would there be any interest to this among our local bloggers? I’d emailed a few to test the water, and got some encouraging response (Jake, Wendy…), but I figured it’s time to make the general call.

    C’mon, Bend Bloggers, let’s get some response! Who wants to join us for a Christmas party—gift exchange and all? The sooner we know, the better!

    And hey, even if you think it’s a lame idea, at least give me some pushback on it! :)

  • Gruesome

    Halloween blogging #5

    Here we go, courtesy of Simone, a picture of me dressed up as a vampire for the Halloween party Saturday night. If only I could look so good in real life!

    Jon dressed as a vampire

  • Emoticon pumpkins

    Halloween blogging #4

    Pumpkin carved with an emoticon faceBeing a computer geek, I wish I’d thought of this when carving pumpkins this year: carving an emoticon face instead of a traditional jack o’lantern. That’s just cool. The only question would be, which emoticon?

    The “mean” face, befitting the holiday: >:-(. Or, perhaps, the squiggly face: :-S. Or, just the good old standard: :).

    Something to remember for next year…

  • The Screamstress

    Halloween blogging #3

    I’ve really been liking what Rhys is doing over on The Screamstress blog. The Top 13 Worst Halloween Costumes posts are funny as hell, and the Top 13 Scariest Horror Movie Moments are—well, I don’t know what exactly, but I’ll just say that wow, this is a girl that knows horror movies like I know… beer, I guess. That’s kind of scary in itself. :)

  • Monsters in classic works of art

    Halloween blogging #2

    Scream mashup: the movie and the Munch paintingShamelessly lifted this link from Boing Boing, but it was too cool not to: Worth1000’s monsters/classic artwork photoshopping mashup contest. I’ve done some basic graphics munging here, producing such altered classics as Bayer Heroin, Jedi Master Kermit and the Nebraska State Quarter, but my image manipulation powers pale in comparison to what these guys have pulled off. There’s some serious image kung fu here. It’s brilliant and topical! They’re all really good, but I particularly like the “Scream” painting (which I excerpted) and “The Ring” riff.

  • Haunted Bend

    Halloween blogging #1

    The Fall 2005 issue of Bend Living (no link love, their site sucks and the “current” links point to other articles) has an article titled “Ghost Stories” that explores some of the supposedly haunted places in Bend and Central Oregon. And on the radio last week, they were asking for people to call in to name the haunted places we have around here, so I thought it’d be fun to blog it a bit.

    The Bend Living article mentions the Deschutes County Historical Society building, the old Reid School in downtown Bend. Supposedly the ghost of George Brosterhous, who died there in 1914, haunts the place.

    The Shadowlands Haunted Place Index for Oregon (which I can thank Rhys for mentioning, if I remember correctly) mentions five for Bend:

    The Congress House: This was mentioned on the radio, and is 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,” which is identified in the ghosts book as the McCann 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.

    The O’Kane Building: Mentioned in the Bend Living article, too. 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: They must mean in the Old Mill District, which isn’t relevant anymore since they’re building it out… But it sounds like teenagers would sneak in there at night to see if the place was haunted.

    The Pilot Butte Cemetery: Also mentioned in Bend Living. Reports of ghostly blue orbs floating around.

    Independently of these sources, I’ve also heard the Lara House Bed and Breakfast is haunted. Ironically enough, it’s located on Congress Avenue… just like the Congress House mentioned above! (Cue cheesy horror music.)

    Other places mentioned in the Bend Living article include the Downing Hotel building in downtown Bend, current site of The Grove restaurant, Bronco Billy’s in Sisters (the old Hotel Sisters building), Sunriver Resort’s Great Hall, and the New Redmond Hotel in (you guessed it) Redmond.

    Shadowlands mentions Redmond, too. In addition to footsteps, there “have been pictures taken and in the pictures there are clearly orbs in the lobby hall. Feelings of a strange presence in the rooms in the middle of the night. Apparitions of a woman have been reported.”

    So, what else have we got around here? Anyone know of any haunted places I didn’t mention?