Win this movie!

I just got to watch Confessions of a Shopaholic just out on DVD and I LOVED it!  It’s a girly romantic funny and fun romp of a girl movie.  Plus…How freaking fantastic are those clothes?!?  Can you imagine that pitch to Isla Fisher (star of the movie)?  “Would you like to wear all of the latest fashions and look gorgeous while still playing a protagonist who is funny, identifiable and approachable”?  Geeze!  I wonder how fast she pulled out the pen to sign on that dotted line! 

By the way if you visit the movie website, you can buy clothes seen in the film…anyone want to float me a loan? 

Anyhow, my own personal judge of whether to buy a DVD is whether or not it’s watchable on a repeated basis and I think Confessions definitely passes that test!  I will watch it repeatedly and you can too…for free! 

Log on to www.pdxrewards.com and pick up your own copy of Confessions of a Shopaholic 2 disc DVD (with free digital copy) right now!  There are only 7 copies available so pull out your rewards points and get shopping!  Unlike the movie, you won’t have to go into debt to enjoy this one! 

These are teens learning life lessons!

Besides being a clever portmanteau for “Explore Oregon” it’s also a really amazing program run by Campfire that lets you pack your teen up and ship them out on a group road trip where they have a blast, make friends, and oh yeah, learn the importance of leadership, and community service!

and wouldn’t you know it, Campfire is asking for nominations of deserving teens to take part in Xploregon this year!  check out the info and links below!

Assistance requested in identifying youth to be a part of an amazing road trip program this summer.

 

Camp Fire USA’s Xploregon Teen Road Trip Program is looking to engage a cross section of youth aged 14 – 17  in a youth led road trip across Oregon that focuses on youth leadership, volunteer service and outdoor adventure.  Xploregon is a program that last year proved to be life-changing experience for the 60 participants and this year is looking for new participants to come on board for 12 days and 11 nights full of programming, such as:

 

White Water Rafting  ~ Surfing Lessons ~ Overnight to Crater Lake ~ CPR Training ~ Camp Namanu Challenge Course ~ Volunteer Projects with partners like the Red Cross, Surfrider Foundation, Medical Teams International, Habitat 4 Humanity. 

 

As a youth development non-profit who has been serving the Portland area for almost a century, Camp Fire USA works to cut out the cost barrier for those families in need by offering financial assistance on a sliding scale so even those who may not be able to afford the full fee are encouraged to apply.

 

Currently there are slots available on all of the four road trips this summer.  If you can help by identifying 1 or more youth for our program and support them through the application process it will make a huge difference in that teens summer!

 

To do so please visit our program page to find all the information and materials you need to find out more on Xploregon and to apply to this summer’s program: http://portlandcampfire.org/our-programs/xploregon/ or follow the links below to VIEW / DOWNLOAD or PRINT the following Xploregon Materials:

 

PROGRAM BROCHURE

http://portlandcampfire.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/xploregon-brochure-09.pdf

 

APPLICATION FORM

http://portlandcampfire.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/xploregon-application-form.pdf

 

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FORM 

http://portlandcampfire.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/xploregon-financial-assistance-application.pdf

 

XPLOREGON 4 Min VIDEO 

http://portlandcampfire.org/non-menu-pages/xploregon-video/

Waterfall at Oregon Caves Chateau

Scenery from Hellgate Jetboat Excursions

Or West, or East, or heck…you could even head North!  I just did a really fun News story on Souther Oregon Road Trip Destinations, but if you’re looking for a direction to point the car, and a destination to plot a course for, here are a few links that will be of great Road Trip planning assistance!

-Do It NW.com: This is a fantastic resource for all of Oregon and SW Washington.  This website doesn’t just list restaurants, it also lists some attractions that serve food as well!  Plus, if you do pick restaurants from this website to stop at either along the way, or once you reach your destination, you can be assured that they’re locally owned and use fresh NW ingredients!

-Travel Oregon.com: Travel Oregon is a fantastic resource for planning vacations in our home state.  Whether it’s a day trip or something a little longer, you’ll be able to find hotels, attractions, history and more on this site.

-Experience Washington.com: Kind of like Travel Oregon for the Washingtonian side of the river.  This site will help you plan road trips all over the state!

-Rand McNally.com: what better resource to plan a road trip than the folks who publish Road Maps and Atlases?

-Roadside America.com: finally, what would a road trip be without exceedingly strange roadside tourist attractions (big balls of yarn, giant ice cream cones etc) this website lists them all  (Our beloved giant Paul Bunyan is even listed)!

If you’ve ever heard that song in real life…let me assure you it will be stuck in your head forever!  Especially if you get to hear it being sung by adorable camping kiddos!

I got to shoot at Campfire Oregon’s Camp Namanu last year, and it was such a great experience.  Campfire’s mission is to help children become good citizens and get to them before they become “problem kids”.  They give children skills in leadership, communication, community service and more, and at Camp Namanu, it’s all done within a fun camp setting (kind of like those idyllic camps from all of those 1980’s movies, when kids were kids and fun was harmless)!  =)

I just got an email from the Namanu folks that registration is open for this year, and there are still some discounted registrations available! 

Here’s all the info right from Campfire:

A Northwest Tradition since 1924, Camp Namanu is a 552-acre property located one hour east of Portland, on the shoulder of majestic Mt. Hood. From this site, Camp Fire USA Portland Metro Council operates Namanu for youth ages 6-17 each summer, hosts our annual Memorial Day Family Camp Program, and offers facility rentals and challenge course programs for adult and youth groups.  Each summer youth have the opportunity to explore the vastness of the 552 acres, sign up for out-post high adventure activities or attend our ranch camp.  Discounted registration rates are still available! For more information on how your kids can experience the magic of Namanu visit our website at www.portlandcampfire.org.  

Up through the atmosphere, up where the air is clear…. Flying on a wing and a prayer, Who could it be….

O.K. super bonus points for all of you who can name all 3 of those songs right now…Anyone?  O.K. answers are at the end of this post, but in the meantime, As you may have guessed this little blog entry is all about flying! 

I got to go out to Hillsboro Aviation recently, and fly around in a helicopter (my first mid-air interview)!    I also got to try out the helicopter and airplane flight simulators on the ground level (Thank-goodness they didn’t let me drive the real thing because I crashed both of the simulators)! 

I visited Hillsboro Aviation to learn a little more about their flight school.  Apparently, it’s the largest flight school on the West Coast, and they’ve taught pilots from 71 countries around the world!  Graduates can earn everything from a private pilot’s license, all the way up to a commercial pilot’s license.  It takes from 8 to 12 months to earn a commercial pilot’s license, and as far as tuition goes, Hillsboro has a “pay as you go” program, or they also have a partnership with PCC wherein you can enroll at PCC and apply financial aid to courses at Hillsboro Aviation. 

In addition to learning about the flight school at Hillsboro Aviation, I also got to learn a few fun facts during my flight.  I learned about some of the instruments on the control panel (ones that tell you whether you’re level or upside down were especially of interest to me)!    I also learned how a helicopter hovers.  I always thought that if you wanted to hover in a helicopter, you just stopped steering forward and floated above the ground…not so much!  Check out this link to see what I learned about Hovering!

If I thought for a moment that I would make a good pilot, my tour at Hillsboro Aviation would have made me enroll right there!  Everyone we talked to was very knowledgable, but they also seem to be a family too!  While I was on my tour, everyone seemed to know everyone else and be real friends.   I kind of like that vibe in a place of higher education! 

O.K. Songs were:

Come Fly With Me (I was humming Frank Sinatra’s version)

Let’s Go Fly a Kite (from Mary Poppins)

Greatest American Hero Theme Song (from the coolest superhero sitcom ever)!

This sounds like so much fun that I’m even willing to stay up to watch a movie that doesn’t start until 11pm!  Dress up and sing along to Dirty Dancing?!?  Seriously!  Yes Please!!!  In high school, my two best friends and I used to cruise up and down mainstreet with the windows rolled down blasting this soundtrack (on cassette) and singing along at the top of our lungs!  I have been preparing for this moment since 1995!!   

Wear your twirly party dress and sing along!

“Nobody puts baby in the corner”

In 1987 few things made a woman’s heart flutter ( and a man’s eyes roll)
like the dance moves of Patrick Swayze.
On June 19th @ The Mission Theater we celebrate summer love, swiveling hips and the magnetic power of ‘The Swayze” with a special showing of “Dirty Dancing”

This screening kicks off our “Original Motion Picture Soundtrack” series at The Mission Theater.
This collection of 4 of the finest soundtrack films of the 80’s will have you singing along and dancing in the aisles-and since they are brought to you by Fleur de Lethal – you’re allowed to !

So get out your black leather jackets, practice your lifts and rehearse your “Hungry Eyes”.
It’s the kickoff to Summer @ The Mission, you’ll have the time of your life.

*Bring a watermelon and get $1.00 off…and yes, you have to carry it.

Fleur de Lethal Cinematheque Presents
“Dirty Dancing”
Friday June 19th,2009
The Mission Theater
1624 NW Glisan St
Portland, OR 97209
(503) 223-4527
Doors @ 10:00pm
Film @ 11:00pm
$5 per person

Me and Jerry at Dash For Cash game at Winterhawks

Last week I hit the ice…but my hit was figurative and far less painful than the literal hit taken by Jerry from the Winterhawks!  If you’ve been to a Winterhawks game, you know Jerry!  He’s the super-energetic and fun to watch emcee of Winterhawks festivities.  He’s the guy in bright red pants and a Winterhawks jersey talking to fans, and hosting on ice entertainment. 

Jerry is also an incredibly dedicated member of the Winterhawks organization, but I didn’t know how dedicated until now! 

I was at Mt. View Ice Arena in the ‘Couv to shoot some segments with the Hawks on their summer youth hockey camps.  We had a couple of cute kiddos lined up for the shoot along with coach Kyle Gustafson (who teaches ice hockey camps), and Jerry (who teaches floor hockey camps). 

While we were waiting for the shoot to begin, the guys from the Winterhawks started talking about 15’s and 16’s and 13’s (that’s the amount of time in seconds that it takes you to skate around a hockey rink).  One of the kids from the shoot had been skating around the rink in 15 (which I gather is pretty darn good for an 8 year old)! 

Jerry was joking with the pint-sized skating phenom that they needed to race (Jerry just finished his first course of ice-skating lessons by the way).  So after we finished up our shoot (in which surprisingly, I didn’t fall down) Jerry and the kids lined up for a race around the rink.

The video of that fateful race is here sans audio (as my photographer had turned off the  microphones at that point), but you can fill in the sounds yourself  Cheering for the racers, the collective Oh Oh OHHHHH as Jerry hits the ice, and a chorus of “Are you O.K.?  Is he O.K.?” 

Jerry bounces right back up after his tumble and I even made a joke about Jerry being the only grown-up I know made of rubber!  Only after the shoot I find out that Jerry broke 3 ribs in this tumble!  Jerry may not be made of rubber, but he is definitely a trooper!  With that sort of dedication the Winterhawks better at least frame an xray of his ribs to hang in the office, or rename the employee of the month award “the jerry” or buy him some pads for his next shoot with me! 

Thanks for the unforgettable shoot Jerry, and thanks to the Winterhawks for asking me out to cover their summer hockey camps! 

By the way, your kiddos will have padding & helmets for the hockey camps, and if they fall, they won’t break ribs!  The 2 little guys who were shooting with us fell down a few times, and they were fine!  =)

A few easy tricks can keep your puppy occupied and out of trouble

I happened upon this post in the most unusual way; I’m featuring a very cool South Waterfront townhome/apartment building called The Ardea next week.   While I was on The Ardea’s website looking at beautiful pictures of beautiful people and beautiful living rooms, I happened upon the blog section of their site, and found this fantastic article about keeping your puppy mentally stimulated so he/she is happy & healthy instead of bored & getting in trouble!  These ideas are so good (and easy to do) that I’m even thinking of adapting some of them to my cats (practices of mental stimulation in domesticated animals must be somewhat universal, right)?! 

Anyway, check it out

I’ve been meaning to blog this for quite awhile.  I’ve got to share my biggest pet peeve in the whole wide world!  ;)

PERSONAL SPACE in public places!  It creeps me out when someone  you don’t know invades your bubble in a public setting (especially when there is no need to do so)! 

Let me give you a few “for instance” examples: 

Public restrooms:  If you are in a public restroom in a stall, and there are several other empty stalls, and someone comes in and takes the stall right next to yours?!?  What is that about?  Excuse me, random stranger, Do you really need to sit right next to me while I’m already trying to pretend I have some modicum of privacy in this large echoy puddly substitute for my own quiet little restroom at home?!?  Seriously, how does proximity to another person in this situation not bother you?

The Gym: I already have a strong belief that gyms are horribly infested germ-filled petrie dishes.  I bring my towel, I wash my hands, I don’t touch my face after touching gym equipment.  But it still bothers me when I’m on an eliptical trainer, or a treadmill or a stationary bike, or a stairmaster and someone takes the machine right next to mine!  There are plenty of other machines!  Why doesn’t this person go sweat, and cough and breathe through their mouth a couple of machines down from mine?!?  Give the germs a nice little buffer between this person’s mouth and my nose!?!  I swear I spend half of my cardio time with my neck crained away from the person who’s decided to occupy the machine next to mine just trying to get some less infected air!  Shudder!

The Movie Theater: Let me preface with the line my professor always used to toss out in college:  “Movies are a communal experience.  They are meant to be enjoyed in the public setting of a theater instead of holed up alone on your couch.”  Be that as it may, I’d rather enjoy that communal experience with at least a one seat between myself and everyone else!  Am I the only person to be upset after finding the perfect seat in the movie theater, getting my coat situated just right in the seat, arranging my candy and popcorn and soda in a perfect little lap picnic, settling in with the friend/loved one I chose to sit next to at the movie theater, only to have some stranger invade on my communal movie-going experience by sitting right next to me?!?  Why do complete strangers feel the urge to invade the six inches of personal space that those movie seats give you?  Why should I have to fight with someone I don’t know over the right to use my arm-rest?  Yes!  I said it, MY arm-rest!  I was here first after all!

O.K. I realize that this may make me sound like a cranky-pants hermit who doesn’t like meeting new people, but let me clarify; I do like to meet new people, I enjoy parties and events and gatherings where I expect to be involved in a crowded public situation.  I guess what I hate is the unexpected and uninvited invasion of my percieved personal space by people I don’t know and haven’t even made intentional eye contact with.   

I’m writing about this in hopes that you’ll share a few words of solidarity or drop me a line with a list of your own pet peeves!   I promise, sharing does make you feel better…as long as it’s not sharing a gym or a movie theater or a bathroom with someone you don’t know! 

No, this headline is not a drunken re-write on Snow White & The 7 Dwarves.    ;)

Yes, they really are made with Beer!

Rather, this headline is a very apt description of a novelty potato chip flavor that started right here in Portland: Beer Chips!  That’s right, Beer flavored potato chips, but local inventor, Brett Stern, doesn’t stop there, he’s also created Bloody Mary flavored, and Margarita flavored chips to round out your alcaholic beverage flavored snack experience!    Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, the cooking process eliminates the alcaholic content, and just leaves the flavor!

I first saw Beer Chips at while grocery shopping and had to pick them up  for my husband immediately.  The hubby and I loved them!

I got to try the Bloody Mary flavored chips when I interviewed Brett for a Beer Chips story on the 8 O’clock News.  They reminded me of the ketchup flavored potato chips they make in Canada (only spicier).  I still haven’t tried the Margarita flavor.  If you’ve tried any of the trio, I’d love to know what you think!  Drop me a line, and in the meantime, check out the Beer Chips website, there’s a fun little spoof video explaining how Beer Chips are made.  =)