It isn’t about the smell. It isn’t about health. It isn’t even about the second hand smoke. This is strictly about your damn cigarette butts.
I’m not hating on your choice to smoke. I smoke. It’s a terrible habit but it’s our reality. My favorite time to light one up is with my morning joe. I like mine with two packets of sugar, a splash of milk and a side of Marlboro. I’ll take a seat outside of my local coffee shop, light up a smoke, and read the paper in the late morning sun. After about 4 1/2 minutes of bliss my cigarette gets to the end of its rope. What do I do?
I find the nearest puddle on the ground. I look for an ashtray. I step on it to distinguish it and put it in the garbage. No garbage? I throw it (more…)
Deanne Goodman - From News Anchor to Reality Show Victim
It pains me to do this story. It tells two things about me that I should probably keep to myself; I watched a horrific reality show called ‘Dating in the Dark’ and that I actually have an opinion to share about it.
But, it’s not really my fault I got sucked into it. When I saw the preview, I recognized a very familiar face. One of the contestants was past-KTVZ news anchor Deanne Goodman. Really.
Ok, here’s the premise of the show before I get into the Goodman thing. Three guys and three girls are put into separate areas of a house. At first all six players enter a dark room where they introduce themselves to each other and get a feel for which one they have a connection with. Then they are all separated back into their section of the house to decide which of the opposite sex they would like to have a one-on-one date with, again in the dark room. (more…)
In this day and age of food-borne illnesses and constant reminders of the importance of hygiene in the service industry, I’m seriously amazed how many service employees don’t wash their hands right or even at all!
I see this problem the worst at those restaurants that require their employees to wear disposable gloves. I say lose the glove rule. It creates a false sense of cleanliness. More times than not, the employee will take the money, put it in the till then walk over to the glove dispenser, slaps on some gloves and asks you what you want.
Good work, now you’ve infected every remaining glove with cocaine residue and E Coli. (more…)
It seems I’m always hearing stories about the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC). They’re shutting somebody down for selling to an underage customer. They caught a store selling to a minor. A club doesn’t have insurance. And ever since Joker’s Bar & Grill owner Todd Sampson pulled his manuevers, we hear even more.
The latest OLCC-related casualty is the 23-day license suspension of Astro Lounge, beginning May 28th due to an infraction that was ‘commited’ back on November 19, 2008. Owner Josh Maquet “was under the influence of intoxicants while on duty at the licensed premises,” according to the OLCC website. (more…)
The Weapon’s Grade Cynicism Tour is off and running. We’ve got the 5th wheel loaded, cameras charged, and gas tanks full. Our first show is tonight in Montasento, Washington, which is just off the Washington coast. This is a rough draft of the route we’ll be taking… (more…)
America's about to get dealt with. Weapons Grade Cynicism Tour
You may or may not know that along with BendNights.com, I’m also the co-owner of a comedy production/management company called Bolt Media Group. We’re best known locally for our headliner comedy events and, of course, our annual Bend International Comedy Competition.
In a couple of weeks, we’re heading out on the road with two of our comedians on a cross-country comedy tour called the ‘Weapons Grade Cynicism Tour.’ The tour features comedians Joe Vespaziani and Morgan Preston (co-owner of BMG) and will begin on May 16th on the coast of Washington and end May 31st at the PrimeTime Comedy Club in New Jersey.
Fig. 1 - This shows the location of a common 'turn signal.' This is the device that gives other drivers warning of your future turning ambitions.
Forget about swine flu. We’ve got a bigger problem in Bend. One that could possibly land more people in the hospital and even cause… yes, that’s right… get ready for it… death.
It’s the latest Bend phenomenon; The broken turn signal.
Everyday you’ll find me on the streets of Bend filming a new restaurant, signing a new client, or running errands for the boss. In my travels, I can’t tell you how many vehicles I’ve seen with this problem. It’s not that the lens is broken, it’s that the actual turn signal doesn’t flash.
Is this due to our poor economy? I mean, this isn’t just an issue with older cars… I’m even seeing new cars with non-working blinkers. Maybe the big car makers have had to cut corners (more…)
Pastor Estus Washington Pirkle - "Communists will eat your babies."
I love Twitter.
I’m at the office updating the movie theater times on BendNights.com for tomorrow morning and I see a ‘tweet’ come through from a comedian I ‘follow,’ Joe Rogan.
joerogandotnetHoly shit… that might be the most awesome video ever. RT @duncantrussell What heaven is like: http://tinyurl.com/d4s4ac about 1 hour ago from web
As I’m sure you’ve figured out, we here at BendNights.com are huge fans of the comedy genre. There are videos constantly being passed around the office, and there is a sense of glee when one of us discovers a new comedian that we can share with the others. It is now time to share some of these discoveries with you.
You may or may not have heard of any of these guys, as two of them have had a modicum of success, and one (considered a legend in comedy circles) is very successful… albeit in more of an underground way. But he has definitely had an impact on pop culture.
The first guy we are going to shout off the roof tops about is a very strange but extremely talented individual by the name of Zach Galifianakis. You may have seen him in movies. He appeared in the film Into The Wild, on television he was in The Comedians Of Comedy w/Patton Oswalt, and has even been in music videos, like the one he did for Kanye West’s Can’t Tell Me Nothin’. But to experience Zach you need to see him perform.
Galifianakis’ style is so different, and even sometimes off putting, that you can’t help but watch… to see what he may do next (I didn’t use the car accident analogy..it’s over used). His style is now mimicked by a flock of (more…)
Before I get into this quick one about my ‘favorite’ commercial ever, I want to say that I completely support the United Way and all the great work they do. You should definitely go to the local United Way website and read up on how to get involved and donate.
This is the commercial. I know you’ve already seen it.
Look, I’m not saying it’s a bad commercial. It’s the new standard white-screen, Apple-ey shoot with a pretty cool message. They even cast it with a nice, diverse crowd of folks. I guess what I’m saying is if you put your TV on mute when it comes on, it’s not too bad.
It’s that damn song. I can’t stand it. And, I know I’m not the only one. Everyone I talk to says the same thing. What really sucks is you can’t get away from it. BendNights.com doesn’t exactly throw down the huge paychecks so I’m still watching TV using a borrowed pair of dial rabbit-ears. That means (more…)
Taking the Plunge for Special Olympics The Polar Plunge Deschutes is wrapping up a season of Plunges around Oregon to help raise money for the Special Olympics February 26th at Riverbend Park in Bend.
Cap Off Your Fridays at Thump Coffee A Downtown favorite for lattes, mochas, and iced coffee beverages, Thump Coffee is re-introducing Bend to the classic Italian espresso
Our Tamworth Pig: The Process and Benefits Over the summer, 900 Wall Restaurant & Bar purchased a pig in an attempt to gain a better appreciation of where our food comes from.
