According to The Prids’ myspace page, here’s the latest posted on there:

“Our dear friends The Prids – David, Mistina, Joey and Maile – and two of their significant others – Kristin and Chris – were in a serious accident early Sunday evening while en route to Los Angeles on tour. A tire blew and they lost control of the van and it rolled several times. David was airlifted from the scene of the crash, he suffered a broken collar bone, broken ribs and has 6 staples in his head. Chris broke his arm and may have spinal injuries. Maile has a broken vertebra and toe and a severe cut with stitches on her knee. Joey broke ribs, Mistina suffered a concussion, and Kristin is in similar shape.

As of late that night, everyone had been released from the hospital but David had to go back in the middle of the night and was released Monday afternoon. Maile had to return to the emergency room Tuesday afternoon but was released later that day. She will be staying in Fresno for a short time then flying home. Friends of the band, Marshal and Kiisu, drove down from Portland and will be driving the rest of the band home today.

A special paypal account has been set up to help out and donate directly to The Prids. There have been so many generous donations made already as well as fundraisers organized and the band is extremely thankful! However, help with mounting expenses is still badly needed. There are still thousands of dollars in hospital bills to help cover (most of the group doesn’t have health insurance!) If you can’t help out monetarily, please repost this info on your blogs, etc. Thanks! ”

Also, I’ve been informed by several people (Divebarwife included) that there will be a benefit this Sunday at one our fast becoming favorite little places to hang, Plan B, for The Prids.

More on that here

Don’t forget – well be drinking tasty beverages and having a good time socializing tonight at Plan B on SE 8th & Main.

Come on by anytime after 5pm – we’ll snag a table on the patio and save a spot for you!!

One of the few people I’ve met in my old visits (you know, before I moved here) to Portland was Mistina, the bassist for The Prids. She was kind and friendly and she drank with me, which is always a sign of a good friend to be, no?

Well today I have to sadly report that The Prids, whilst on tour in California near Fresno, were in an accident that was really quite bad. The van, I was told, blew a tire and they lost control of it. The van went off the highway and rolled several times leaving the van wrecked, the equipment broken and the band members rather beat up. One band member, when last I was given information, was still in the hospital, but the others were released after being treated for various broken bones, cuts and bruises. Unfortunately, they are left with little to no money to get them home, pay hospital bills and buy new equipment, not to mention a van.

A couple of close friends of theirs rented a van to drive down to see what they could help possibly salvage and to see what help they could be. Any help would do and if you’d like to donate to the local band you can contact donate@theprids.com.

Channel 12 ran a small story on it here

Yup – it’s the time again!

Tuesday, July 22
5pm – ???
Plan B
SE 8th & Main

We had a great group of people last month – including several of our new authors and commenters, as well as our old friends and regulars. And what do we do at these things? Let’s see, we talked about about: beer, bikes, bacon wrapped foods, vegetarian restaurants, crazy neighbors, kids, iPhones, Zip Cars, blogs, bands, humidity, why we live in Portland, the East Coast…..

We hope to see you all again next week. Come on down for some food and drinks and talk about all things Portland…or anything else!

The boyfriend and I attended the adults’-only night at OMSI this week and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves – even moreso than I had hoped. This is a truly fantastic idea – the request came for those 21 & over (though I did spy some teenage-looking peoples) to enjoy OMSI without the presence of the younguns. The tickets were $10 per person (free for members), which is cheaper than the normal fare of $11, and local businesses offered free samples of wine, liquor, beer (duh), chocolate, and other misc. foodstuffs, plus there was a snacky buffet with cheese, crackers, fruit, and veg. Though I am fond of children, it was incredibly awesome to walk about without tiny-people shrieks and having to keep an eye out for knee-level heads. Plus, we were able to play with a lot of the stuff the kids normally monopolize, like the ball room (we spent a good 20 minutes in there). This is supposed to be a monthly gig, so we’ll definitely be going back when the next exhibit opens. I found out about this happening via the OMSI email list (which is actually quite informative and useful). I don’t see a site up for this specific event just yet, but hopefully there will be one soon.

One downside – being One Without A Motor Vehicle, I took TriMet to OMSI, a first for me. As OMSI is one of the big draws in the city, it seems strange to me that there isn’t a bus line or stop closer to the museum. There are stops on the Hawthorne bridge itself which are about 5 blocks from OMSI’s main entrance, but they put one who may not be at ease with the traffic and use of the Eastbank Esplanade in a precarious place. From what I understand, this will eventually be resolved with the planned pedestrian/streetcar crossing over the Willamette, but that’s not going to be started until lord knows when. Walking isn’t a big deal to me, but I can see how it would be a deterrent for someone with less mobility and/or children.

So today was one of those days that most people would say was a “nice” day. I’m going to have to disagree here because a)I got a sunburn, despite the sunscreen I put on, b) it was horribly hot when not in the shade and c) the allergies kicked up like CRAZY!

Anyway, this “nice” weather found me accompanying a friend to the farmer’s market downtown. It was lovely and, quite thankfully, nestled in under many trees and tents! This was where I found solace from the heat, with shade and some delicious blackberries and raspberries.

I have always tried to support my local farmer’s market. I prefer the produce and it’s nice to see who you’re getting your produce from. There’s something very fulfilling in getting my produce from a person and not just a store. ‘Sides, have you seen the size of some of those things? The produce is huge!

Personally, I like doing my shopping a little bit at a time, and a week’s supply of stuff for 2 from the farmer’s market is easily doable. I try to change my selections each week to up the variety, depending on what catches my eye. Still, sometimes I just want to take it all home!

I highly suggest you check it out, or find one near you. The one downtown is every Wednesday through the end of October from 10am to 2pm.

So it’s time again for my annual DCI post – this year we are lucky enough to have both the Blue Devils – the 2007 champs – and Phantom Regiment who brought in 4th place last year. Our own Oregon Crusaders will of course be there, and this year it’s the only show in Oregon and Washington.

Words cannot explain… just watch…

P.S. none of that footage is sped up. They really move that fast.

Tuesday – July 8
Hillsboro Stadium
8pm

So I’ve been staying at a friend’s place whilst I find a) a job and b) a place to call my own (our own… I’m willing to share with the boyo, I suppose…)

It’s a nice little neighborhood that’s generally quiet, or so I have to assume.

How do I put this?

So I lived in the city of Long Beach in California right on Ocean Blvd. (so chosen for being right at the end of the route of the pride parade) Since we were right on a major street in downtown LB, it never surprised me when the drunks passed by at 3 in the morning, or the random screamer came by letting all the world know exactly what was on his or her mind… nor if there were fights right below the window. It was, of course, the LBC (just ask Snoop!).

That sort of thing here where I’m staying, however, seems out of place. Not so much because it happens on the street here in this seemingly quiet little area, but because it’s all coming from certain someones in this very building. So, while the rest of the street is nice and quiet… there have been things going on here… in this building, putting it out of sorts with the rest of the street… not to mention scaring the hell out of us!

I was reminded of a post that dieselboy posted about incidents on the MAX. There’s all sorts of shenanigans coming from certain someones in this building and it’s pretty obvious that things could go wrong at any minute… and yet none of the neighbors call the police, ask if my friend is ok in her unit, or say one damn thing to the authorities/landlord/anyone. Are they just waiting for things to go too far? What needs to happen before someone gets involved? Could it be that people are so used to their peace and quiet that, unless their peace is specifically interrupted, they don’t want to interfere in case it shatters their own little bubble?

I guess… I guess this was the sort of thing I expected living in the LBC, but never expected here in Portland. Well, at least not in this neighborhood.

Don’t forget to come down to Plan B (SE 8th & Main) tonight around 5:30ish to ??? and chat with your fellow Portlanders. We’ll get a chance to meet some of our new folks – and maybe even some of our friends at Our PDX Network (welcome to the Portland blogosphere – we’re loving it!) will come out and say hello and catch us up on their new endeavor.

The sun is shining, the patio is beckoning, and so are the bacon wrapped kosher dogs and ‘The Lemmy’ (vodka, lemonade, and raspberry liqueur.)

See you tonight!

One of the many things that makes Portland great is fondness for beer, and the many festivals we have to celebrate it. In a single year, we’ve got the Holiday Ale Fest, the Spring Brewer’s Fest, the International Beer Fest, and the biggie – the Oregon Brewer’s Festival. Add to this the mighty Oktoberfest in Mt. Angel and a number of smaller fests and, well, it’s enough to make a beer lover proud to call it home.

Now in its fourth year, the North American Organic Brewfest is returning to Overlook Park in North Portland this weekend. The weather is going to be sunny, and there is easy MAX access, so there’s no reason for you to not come out and enjoy some fantastic beer. The list of brewers is impressive, and is presented by Roots Organic Brewing, one of my favorite local brewers. Me? I’m looking forward to sampling the locals, plus trying the Pinkus UR Pils from Germany, and the Sarah Buckwheat Ale from Belgium.

So what’s the difference between organic beer and regular beer, you ask? Well, according to the O Mama Report, “the ingredients must be grown without toxic and persistant pesticides, synthetic fertilizers and in soil that has been free from such chemicals for at least 3 years. No genetically modified (GMO) ingredients can be used in the brewing process. Studies show that organic farming reduces erosion and ground-water pollution and that it significantly reduces the impact on wildlife.”

Good beer, fantastic sunny day, a good cause. What’s not to love?