Oregon Brewers Festival

Barbara's favorite event of the year is the Oregon Brewer's Fest. Celebrating their 21st year this is one of the premier beer fests in the world. This year there were 72 craft breweries serving beer from 18 different states. Admission is free, but you have to buy a mug for $5 and tokens cost $1 each. One token gets you a taste of the beer and four tokens get you a full glass. A good strategy is to try a few different brews before you commit to a full glass.

All the beers are from mico-brewers, so no big guys like Miller or Bud. The breadth of choice is pretty amazing with everything from light summer pilsners to watermelon flavored beer to hoppy ales and dark stouts.

One of the keys is to get to the event early as it gets really crowded as the day goes on. This year there were already a few thousand people there when we arrived at 2:00 PM on Friday. It also gets a little rowdy as the night goes on, although there are a lot of "alcohol monitors" and they close at 9:00 PM.

We were missing a few regulars this year. For the last dozen years Barbara has met Mark Ebsen and Jeff Foster there on Friday afternoon, but they were both absent this year (this is like the Lakers missing the playoffs, we were pretty shocked). These two are both beer affectionados and home brewers, so we called Ebsen a couple of times to taunt him.

While beer is the main attraction, there is also food and live music at the festival as well as home brewing info, etc. The best part however is the crowd. The brew fest attracts some pretty interesting people. If you are into utility kilts you will have plenty of company here. There are also a lot of great t-shirts: "Beer, helping ugly people have sex since 1862." Instead of "I (heart) beer" they had "I (beer can) Beer." Barbara wants to design a shirt for some of the bigger guys that says, "Beer Baby."

Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited

How to choose one Bob Dylan record without freaking out all the Bob fans? I am going to leave myself an out and say I might add another one later. First I have to admit I am not the hugest Bob Dylan fan. Like the Beatles, he is revolutionary and he changed the way we listen to music, but he also put out a lot of crap. I love Blonde on Blonde, John Wesley Harding, Nashville Skyline, Blood on the Tracks and Time Out of Mind, but there are a lot of filler songs on all of them. I am going to give the nod to Highway 61 Revisited because it has my favorite Dylan song of all time - "Like a Rolling Stone" - and it has a great rocking sound. I would say Dylan is at his best when he's rocking out, in fact the best Jimi Hendrix songs are all Dylan songs, i.e., "All Along the Watchtower."

My Brother's Crawfish

My Brother's Crawfish is a new place that just got mentioned in the Best of Portland section of Portland Monthly, so we tried it out. It is in a crappy strip mall off of 82 St. (or Ave. of the Roses if you like), strike one. When we got there all the folks cooking the food were Asian (I like to see a black guy or a scary looking white guy when it comes to Cajun food), strike two. We ordered a bunch of sides: jambalaya, gumbo, crawfish etouffee and some boiled crawfish. The good news is that the food saved the day. Apart from the fact that there is oregano in the jambalaya it was all really tasty. If you are a big crawfish fan you are going to have to adjust your expectations. It is not boiled in Zatarain's, they had a spicy sauce on the outside that was nice, but to expensive to order again. They have three different Abita beers which is a nice bonus. You also get a lot of food, we ate well and had a lot to take home. It's not a NOLA substitute, but not bad for PDX.

My Brother's Crawfish
8220 SE Harrison St

Portland, OR 97216

Phone: (503) 774-3786

Christophe and Alan's visit to Portland

My cousin Alan and his son (my godson) Christophe were in Portland last weekend for a short but fun visit. We kicked off Friday night with a walk around the Pearl District and dinner at Sinju Japanese restaurant. Unfortunately Barbara was not able to join us as she had a gala event at work.. Saturday we watched the British Open for a little while then took off to the Nike Employee store for a little shopping spree. Following that we drove out to Hood River and had lunch at the Full Sail Brewery before we took in some of the Gorge Games. The wind surfing and kite boarding looked really cool, but most of the competition was over before we got there, so we decided to drive back on the Washington side and get some pictures of Mt. Hood. We closed out the day with dinner at Esparza's Tex-Mex.

Sunday was an all golf day. We watched the British Open and they went out and hacked it up ourselves. You can check out the great swing shots at "My Photos" any comments and advise is welcome. We capped the day with some great Indian food at Bombay Cricket Club as Alan taught us the finer points of the game.

On Monday Alan attended an open source conference and Christophe came to work with me. He got to see how we make TV commercials and attend a creative presentation with the Nike Golf client so maybe now he knows what not to do when he grows up. At the very least he got to eat an awesome burger at Fullers Diner for lunch.

Band of Horses - Everything All the Time

Here goes another fudge. I think you should buy both Band of Horses records; I am recommending Everything All the Time because it came out first and I heard it first, but Cease to Begin is equally excellent.

The band is from Seattle and I think they had a couple of independent releases before they hit it big with this record. These guys are college radio darlings and the music is amazingly accessible. I always love bands who treat he vocals like another instrument and I think both these records fit the bill. Give them a listen, definitely one of the best bands of the 2000's.

Gearhart Trip

We took our second annual Barbara's Birthday Trip to the Coast last weekend, with the dogs in tow. We left on Friday afternoon and got down to the coast around 9:00 p.m. About an hour after we got settled in we took the dogs out in the backyard and managed to lock ourselves out of the house. Of course none of the neighbors were there or if they were they were visitors too, so no spare keys were easily accessible. Since my cell phone and everything else were all in the house, I had to walk into town to try to use the phone. The only place still open at 10:30 p.m. was the bowling alley, which technically was closed but they let me in.

After a few calls, I was able to get a 24 hour locksmith to come out to the house, which was not so easy as I didn't know the exact address. The guy who showed up did not exactly inspire confidence as he tried to get a credit card in the lock to open it. Finally after an hour or more of messing around trying to pick the lock, he had to drill one of the locks to get in. I was pretty amazed to find out that with a high quality drill, you can break into almost any house. I also got a lesson on all the different kinds of locks you can buy. So close to 1:00 a.m., we finally got back in the house although we still had to have the guy come back the next day to replace the old lock he had destroyed with the drill.

The rest of the trip went a lot better. We had a couple of great dinners at the Pacific Cafe (see review: http://kennethwilliamsmith.blogspot.com/2007/07/pacific-way-bakery-cafe.html) and had some awesome long walks on the beach. The weather was also great the majority of the time, although there was a thick fog on Sunday and Monday mornings. Overall another great birthday trip.

The Judy's - Washarama

The Judy’s first full-length and most popular recording, Washarama was a watershed event in the Texas new wave scene and solidified the band’s status as the state’s most original and daring musical provocateurs. The album perfectly captures the band’s quirky sensibility and their signature minimalist sound. The twelve-song, 35-minute album includes some of The Judy’s most popular songs including “Her Wave”, “Man on a Window Ledge”, and the legendary “Guyana Punch”. This was the first time that the band had spent an extensive (for them) amount of time on a recording project including a total remix of the album after its initial completion. The album was officially released in 1981 at a record release party at Houston’s Agora Ballroom and literally became a top seller overnight. Sales were later bolstered by Wasted Talent securing distribution from a major regional distributor. Despite it’s age, Washarama still holds its own as the classic Texas new wave album.

You can order all the Judy's recordings at: http://www.wastedtalentrecords.com/

Kauai - June 2008

A little late in getting to this, but last month Barbara and I spent a week in Kauai, Hawaii. It was our first time in Kauai; we thought we'd mix it up a little after two trips to Maui. We stayed at the Hanalei Bay Resort in Princeville, which is in the northern part of the Island and is one of the prettiest places I have ever been to. The airport is very small, but nice. The drive to Princeville is 30-45 minutes depending on traffic and you will need a rental car. The Princville Resort is nice, but we heard mixed reviews on the rooms, so we rented a condo from vrbo.com (for rent by owner) which is a great site that has worked out really well for us so far. We were very happy with the room and the Hanalei Bay Resort was great, with a nice pool, friendly bar, several tennis courts and a short walk to the beach. The beach is shared with Princeville Resort, and you can eat at their restaurant, but you may not want to as the are way more expensive.

The first day there, the resort had an orientation and presented all the fun trips you can take (not a heavy sales pitch). Barbara won a half price trip on the kayak trip we wanted to take, so it worked out well for us. We took two great excursions - one kayak/hiking trip to the waterfall and a boat trip around the south part of the island to a great snorkeling spot. The kayak trip was great and not too strenuous. We journeyed up the Wailua River for about an hour, then hiked for another hour to swim in the Secret Falls (which are not very secret). The falls were really beautiful and worth the hike; the rain forest along the way is also really great to see. Barbara and I finally got in sync on the paddling on the way home.

The boat trip was great on the way out. It was a pretty big boat and the crew were really nice. We cruised from the southwest side of the Island along the Na Pali Coast, where we saw some amazing mountains and caves. Along the way we also ran into a pod of bottle nose dolphins (the most common and familiar species of dolphin). When we got to the Forbidden Island we dropped anchor and went snorkeling. When we were in the water we saw a stingray and a monk seal swam right up to us. The amount of fish was amazing and the colors were all very cool. Once we got out of the water they served a nice lunch, but I think I swallowed some sea water, because I was not feeling very well. Unfortunately this was the precursor to much worse. The ride back to the dock was very rough and I threw up the entire way. I have to say the crew was very nice about it as they kept bringing out water and napkins. I have never been more happy to get off a boat, but it was still a great trip.

On the way home we stopped at Scotty's BBQ, we had heard it was a must visit and it paid off. The food was great and they have a nice view of the beach as well. While the prices were a little high compared to the main land, they were very reasonable for Hawaii. Overall the restaurants in Kauai were very good. The town of Hanalei is a 10 minute drive from the resort and it has a lot of good restaurants. The Dolphin is one of the best, it is a little spendy, but the fresh fish is very good. On the low end there's Bubba's Burgers. The teriaki burger is awesome, go next door and get some shaved ice for desert. I would avoid Sushi Blues, the food was OK, but is too expensive for what you get. The Paradise Cafe has great Kaula pork and there is a Chinese takeout that is OK. The grocery store is worth driving to as well as the prices are much better than Princeville. There is also a little camera store (in case like me you forgot your charger) and a couple of good surf shops with cool T-shirts.

The best thing about Kauai is the beaches. Several of them are world class and the funnest part is the ones you can hike to; you get away from the crowds a little and you get some exercise. The most famous hike in Kauai is the Kalalau Trail which provides the only land access to the northwest part of the rugged coast. The trail traverses five valleys before ending at Kalalau Beach where it is blocked by sheer, fluted pali. The trail drops to sea level at the beaches of Hanakapi'ai and Kalalau. The 11-mile trail is graded but almost never level as it crosses above towering sea cliffs and through lush valleys. We only did a couple of miles and it was pretty hard going. You should be prepared to stay overnight if you do the entire hike (and be in good shape). When we got back to the beginning of the trial, we spent the day at Ke'e Beach, which is nice, but easily the most popular beach in Kauai.

Hideways Beach is one of the nicest sandy beaches on the North Shore with good swimming when the surf is calm. There are actually two small beaches here separated by a rocky outcropping. A ten minute hike makes this beach more secluded than other, more easily accessible beaches on the island. Another popular beach with great snorkeling is Tunnels Beach, which is a little hard to find as it is not sign posted, so check the guide book. The beach down at the Princeville Resort is also great, Barbara saw a shark (up close and personal), a sea turtle and hundreds of other fish. The best thing about all these northshore beaches is that you can stop and get lunch at Red Hot Mama's which is located on the road midway between Hanalei and Ke'e Beach. They offer great burritos, tacos, wraps, salads and sides to go; there is also a little grocery store next door for drinks, etc.

A really nice surprise was the Kilauea Lighthouse which is at the northernmost point of the main Hawaiian Islands. Built in 1913, it was had the largest lens of it's kind and guided ships heading to and from the Orient. Native vegetation and an informative visitor center attract thousands of tourists to this site to bird watch, view the sweeping cliff and ocean vistas, and revel in Kaua's past. The main light was turned off in 1970 and replaced with an ugly modern light, but is still a must see.

The mountains in Kauai are the wettest place on earth and the rest of the Island can get a lot of rain too, so check the weather patterns before you go. I am sure you'll have a great time.

See all the pictures at my flickr site http://www.flickr.com/photos/musingsandwanderings/sets/72157605903870238/.