Friday Photo: Seattle

Enough time in Portland makes you forget that it’s really not a big city… and then you take a trip up to Seattle with its many busy streets and numerous high rises, and you’re quickly reminded of what a large metropolis really feels like.

Scandinavian Electronica: Röyksopp

One of my favorite electronica groups, Röyskopp, who hails from Norway, recently released their new album Junior. This live version of “The Girl and the Robot” features Swedish singer Robyn. Definitely dig it!

Other excellent songs from the album include “It’s What I Want” and “Happy Up Here” (in the video above). Check out Röyksopp’s main page here.

Friday Photo: Spring on the Coast

There’s nothing like a Saturday at the coast to enjoy spring sunshine. Indian Beach happens to be one of my favorite spots that’s not too far of a drive from Portland. Hit up the farmers market on your way out of town to stock up on goat cheese and fresh bread, and an afternoon picnic overlooking the seastacks could be my favorite way to spend a weekend.

Plastic Can Be Beautiful

Plastic is plaguing the environment and our health, but in celebration of the big Ban the Bag event that we put on this Tuesday (which Portland’s mayor Sam Adams spoke at), I decided to put plastic to good use. A big event calls for big jewelry, so I knocked out a necklace and bracelet, proving that single-use plastics can be turned into something more worthwhile instead of merely being thrown away.

The above necklace is a plastic bag cut into strips and then knitted into three separate squares. The bracelet is cut from a plastic cup and then held together by silver wire.

Want to hel get the single-use plastic bag banned in Portland? Sign the petition!

Friday Photo: Eco Style

In the past couple of years we’ve seen eco-style go from the stereotypical hempy, sack looking garments to the chicest forms in fashion. One of my favorite brands, Nau, is at the forefront of sustainable design. Not only have they developed over 300 sustainable fabrics that incorporate alternative materials like recycled polyester, but everything they make looks cool. And that’s what makes or breaks an eco-fashion line now isn’t it?

I took this picture at a recent event at Lizard Lounge in Portland, which also houses the Nau team.

French Flavor: Camille

Camille is one of my favorite French pop singers; love this video for her song Ta Douleur on the album Le Fil. Her latest album, Le Sac Des Filles, is another excellent collection, perfect for warm spring afternoons. Or for dreaming about being in France with a good cafe au lait…

JunkRide + Ban The Bag Event in Portland: Help in the Battle Against Plastic Pollution

Great event next week to educate about the evils of plastic pollution and work on getting the plastic bag banned in Portland.

What: The Portland Surfrider Chapter welcomes Anna Cummins from Algalita Marine Research Foundation and Dr. Marcus Erikson of JUNKride, an educational tour by bike from Vancouver B.C. to Tijuana, Mexico. The duo will highlight the voyage of JUNKraft, a recently completed trip from California to Hawaii on a raft made of garbage. In addition to JUNKride, Jessica Hamilton, Natural Resources Policy Advisor to Governor Ted Kulongoski, will present on the West Coast Governors Agreement to reduce the western seaboard’s impact on the oceans, with regard to marine debris. Entertainment by singer/songwriter Micah Wolf. Beer and wine will be available for purchase, with all proceeds going to benefit Portland Chapter Surfrider’s BAN THE BAG campaign to ban single-use plastic shopping bags in the greater Portland area.

When: Tuesday, April 21st, 2009. 6:30pm to 9:00pm.

Where: Keen Footwear, 926 NW 13th Ave #210, Portland, OR 97209

For more information on JUNKraft and JUNKride, visit www.junkraft.com. To keep up with Ban the Bag, follow them on Twitter.

Bikes Power People and Businesses

A little over a month ago I wrote a story called “Pedaling to Profit: The Upswing of Bike Powered Business.” It got picked up by the Huffington Post, and then today none other than Boing Boing decided to give it a mention. Needless to say, I’m stoked.

This can only mean one thing: bikes are hot. And if businesses are running their operations on two wheels, you can too. Even fair-weather cyclists no longer have an excuse, it’s finally spring! So pump up your wheels and take your classy ride out for a spin. Need help? Read this great article on Chelsea Green called “Spring Has Sprung: Now Get Off Your Fat Ass and Bike to Work.”

What can bike commuting do for you? Apparently:

* add over 2 years to their life expectancy
* have the general fitness and health of someone 10 years younger
* are 50% less likely to experience depression

Go get on it!

7,800 Miles Across the Andes: An Interview With the First Two People to Trek the Entire Andes

I recently got to interview two of my adventurers, Gregg Treinish and Deia Schlosberg. Early last year they returned from a two year trek where they hiked the entire length of the Andes. Impressive. Plus they’re both fabulous people.

Here’s part of the interview, you can check the rest out at Matador Life.

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AB: You decide to take off from your regular lives and trek the Andes. What goes through your head and heart before embarking on such an adventure?

Gregg: To me, the unknown has always been incredibly exciting. Not having any clue what lay around the next corner captures this special place inside my head that is very deeply attached to a visceral feeling of being alive, of doing something worthwhile.

Oftentimes, I find myself saying that had I known what was in store I might not have gone; this is certainly the case with the Andes as the challenges were far greater than either of us anticipated. Before the journey, there was a lot of fear, which my mind somehow translates to excitement.

I think that it would only be fair to say that there was a high level of disillusionment as well. While I obviously thought about what it was going to be like, I somehow let myself believe that it was going to be fun day in and day out, this despite a cognitive recognition that it wasn’t going to be fun in many cases.

I think that in order to follow through with something that you know could very well be your demise requires a certain level of denial.

Check out the rest of the interview here. And you can listen to a podcast with Gregg and Deia reading the first installment of their story in Wend Magazine here.

Friday Photo: Le Cafe, C’est Ma Vie

“La vie est belle, et le cafe, c’est ma vie.”

This stamp from the Fresh Pot on the back of the bags of Stumptown Coffee that the coffee shop sells is so great: Life is beautiful, and coffee, it’s my life.