DOUBLE DECKER STEEL BRIDGE TURNS 100!

Come celebrate one of the world's masterpiece structures at PDX Bridge Festival's annual FREE All-Ages Block Party on Saturday, July 7, 2012, 5 pm until midnight, at the Slate, 2001 Northwest 19th in Portland. The Block Party features an amazing live music line up (8 bands), two stages, 22 food and craft vendors, a double-duty birthday cake, and a raffle for all-things-bridge goodies. Join us at 5:30PM as the American Society of Civil Engineers Oregon Section presents the Steel's Bridge commemorative plaque to the City of Portland. Music Featuring: Solovox www.solovox.com Excellent Gentlemen http://excellentgentlemen.com Quick & Easy Boys http://thequickandeasyboys.com Tango Alpha Tango http://tangoalphatango.com Symmetry/Symmetry http://www.myspace.com/symmetrysymmetry Violet Isle http://www.violetislemusic.com/ Worth http://worth-music.com/fr_news.cfm Andrew Paul Woodworth http://www.andrewpaulwoodworth.com/ PDX Bridge Festival is also sponsoring six pay-as-you-will bridge walks between July 13 and August 11, all fundraisers for The Big & Awesome Bridges of Portland & Vancouver--A Book for Young Readers, another PDX Bridge Festival project. (For more about the book, and how to get your name listed in Big & Awesome's acknowledgement page, visit www.pdxbridgefestival.org.) Bridge Walks: Saturday, July 21, 9 a.m. until noon, the day the Steel Bridge turns 100, join guide Nathan Hoover for a walk across the Steel Bridge and other downtown Portland bridges. Begins at Floyd’s Coffee, 118 NW Couch, Portland. Includes a visit to the Morrison Bridge to meet the operator and tour the bascule pit. No advance reservations necessary. www.willamettebridgewalk.com Saturday, August 11, 9 a.m. until noon, join Sharon Wood Wortman and Ed Wortman, authors of The Portland Bridge Book, for a walk across the Steel Bridge and other downtown Portland bridges. Includes a visit to the Morrison Bridge to meet the operator and tour the bascule pit. Begins at Floyd’s Coffee, 118 NW Couch, Portland. No advance reservations necessary. Friday, July 13, and Saturday, July 14, join Sharon for one-hour walks across the Steel Bridge as part of Union Pacific Railroad’s two-day 150th anniversary celebration at Portland Union Train Station. The Steel Bridge walks, also pay-as-you-will, begin at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., both days, and begin and end at Union Station. No advance reservations necessary. For more about the UP celebration, visit http://up150.com/events/portland-display. More info @ http://pdxbridgefestival.org

On the Road

I travelled to 15 countries around the world before I turned 20. While in Asia in the late 70's and early 80's, my family would summer vacation in exotic spots while working in the requisite stops in North America to visit family in Canada and the Southern US. Since becoming a part-time touring member of MarchFourth Marching Band, I've logged about 20,000 road miles over five tours. While the foreign travel has since paled by comparison, domestic travel with the band has taken me up and down the incredible American landscape numerous times. As much as I love visiting other parts of our fair nation, you'd have a hard time convincing me that there's a more beautiful place than Oregon. Some spots in California might be in the running - especially on the account of better weather. However, for diverse geographic majesty, just keep me on the Trail. Play by play for the record: Thu 5/31/2012 CONFIRMED Arlington TX Levitt Pavilion Fri 6/1/2012 CONFIRMED Ozark AR Wakarusa Sat 6/2/2012 CONFIRMED Ozark AR Wakarusa Sun 6/3/2012 CONFIRMED Memphis TN Levitt Shell Mon 6/4/2012 Tue 6/5/2012 Wed 6/6/2012 CONFIRMED St Louis MO 2720 Thu 6/7/2012 CONFIRMED Bloomington IL Castle Theater Fri 6/8/2012 CONFIRMED Chicago IL Martyr's Sat 6/9/2012 CONFIRMED Minneapolis MN Cabooze Sun 6/10/2012 CONFIRMED Madison WI Marquette Park by Lake Mon 6/11/2012 Tue 6/12/2012 CONFIRMED Indianapolis IN White Rabbit Wed 6/13/2012 CONFIRMED Pittsburgh PA Altar Bar Thu 6/14/2012 CONFIRMED Harrisburg PA Appalachian Brewing Fri 6/15/2012 CONFIRMED Columbia MD Columbia Fest of the Arts Sat 6/16/2012 CONFIRMED Columbia MD Columbia Fest of the Arts Sun 6/17/2012 CONFIRMED Columbia MD Columbia Fest of the Arts Mon 6/18/2012 FLY HOME

Jamsonite - Bring It!

The speaker case is not a new concept, but this little guy's built into my old projector case and is most certainly a one-of-a-kind sound brick. Folded up inside the case was a Columbus, Ohio newspaper from 1948. The headline caption read, "Tojo and 5 Japanese Officers Sentenced to the Gallows". I'm not exactly sure, but that crusty old yellow newspaper has probably been folded up in there since around that time - 64 years! He's a feisty little dude - little, but packs a punch! A big shout out to Brent King for the design and construction.