Featured image credit: Highway 99 Blues Club A city's rapid growth has its positives, but often small businesses feel undue pain. Expanding development, rising real estate prices, and unsuccessful lease renewal negotiations shuttered many in Seattle during the past few years. The Highway 99 Blues Club thrives in a brick building built in 1909 on … Continue reading Highway 99 Blues Club closing on New Year’s Day

Featured image from the Apollo/Saturn V Center at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex at Cape Canaveral, Florida (photo by Cheryl Landes) If you're visiting Orlando this week and plan to tour the Kennedy Space Center, you'll find some changes because of the government shutdown. The Visitor Center and Apollo/Saturn V Center are open, but … Continue reading Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex is open during government shutdown, but activities are limited

Featured image by Erika Wittlieb, courtesy Pixabay The Grinch, Cindy Lou Who, and a few elves are coming to the First Congregational United Church of Christ on Saturday, December 22, for a hearty pancake breakfast hosted by the Fort Vancouver Kiwanis Club. Pose with the Grinch for a holiday photo professionally made by Gray Feather … Continue reading Pose for photos with the Grinch at a pancake breakfast in Vancouver, WA

Featured image from a previous Winter Solstice Illiminate Regatta in Salem, Oregon (photo credit: Emilia Brasier) Bring your decorated kayak, canoe, or any other non-motorized boat to Riverfront Park at 200 Water Street NE in downtown Salem, Oregon, on Saturday, December 15. Join the holiday parade of paddlers called the Winter Solstice Illuminata Regatta in … Continue reading Winter Solstice Illuminata Regatta floats Riverbank Slough in Salem, OR

Featured image: The Road Runner catches a ride on a Christmas Ship during a parade on the Columbia River (photo by Cheryl Landes) See the Christmas Ships in one of the few free indoor viewing locations along the Columbia River on Thursday, December 20. The festivities start at 6 p.m. at the Warehouse '23 event … Continue reading See the Christmas Ships at Terminal 1 in Vancouver, WA

Featured image: An animated Starlight Celebration light display at Eagle Creek Resort in Redmond, Oregon (photo credit: Eagle Creek Resort) Walk, drive, or ride a horse-drawn wagon through the animated holiday light display at the Starfest Celebration at Eagle Creek Resort. The annual event runs from the day after Thanksgiving until the Saturday before Christmas. … Continue reading Starfest Celebration’s animated light display sparkles near Redmond, OR

Featured image: Spectators on the Flag Bridge watch paddlers float the Deschutes River during the Holiday Lights Winter Paddle Parade in Bend, Oregon (photo credit: Old Mill District) It's an annual celebration that gets the entire town of Bend, Oregon, in the holiday spirit. On the second Friday in December, more than 1,000 paddlers gather … Continue reading Winter Paddle Parade lights the holiday spirit in Bend

Featured image by juju, courtesy pixabay Find treats for everyone on your gift list while supporting some of Oregon's finest food, beverage, and craft entrepreneurs at the newest holiday market in Portland. Many items aren't sold anywhere else! Eat Oregon Now sponsors this Holiday Marketplace at the Leftbank Annex on Saturday, December 8, from 10 … Continue reading Oregon’s newest holiday market appeals to food lovers

Featured image: A three-dimensional model of the World's Largest Blanket Fort by Rumpl and Murderboat Productions On Saturday, December 8, Exhibition Hall E at the Oregon Convention Center turns into the largest blanket fort in the world. The 7,000-square-foot fort is a series of four geodesic domes connected by tunnels, hidden rooms, and unique themes. … Continue reading It’s party time for everyone at the world’s largest blanket fort in Portland

Featured image credit: Michael Gary Photography Portland prides itself in being weird, and the holidays are no exception. So, what better place than Rip City to get your holiday photos taken with someone other than Santa? How about Krampus? Who? For those who don't know what a Krampus is, it's actually a creature from central … Continue reading Five Nights of Krampus in Portland not the typical holiday photo shoot