Shouldn’t be this hard: But then again, I’m not that bright . . .

With all the great fall weather we’ve been having it doesn’t seem possible that it’s almost Christmas…The Oregon Garden will be lit by a new record 1 million lights, Silverton and Mt. Angel shoppers will be Shop Hopping for the record $1000 prize, and The Man’s favorite, the tree in Towne Square park will be lit. As if all this wasn’t enough to melt your heart of coal, a new addition to the tree lighting this year is the Children’s Lantern Parade. There will be a Lantern Workshop prior to the lighting where you can purchase or build your own Dec.7, 3 -6 p.m. in the pavilion in Coolidge McClaine Park. Call 503-873-5615 for details….See, you feel warmer and fuzzier already.
So sad to see the recent closing of the Seven Brides Taproom. Following Portland taproom giants like Portland Brewing, Alameda, Bridgeport and even Widmer have either closed or limited operations, all citing the “challenges” of the restaurant business. The Man still recalls the smiles on the boys’ faces after the very first bottling session ten years ago in the back of what was then Curtis Almquist’s photography studio… Seven Brides beer will be for sale at the usual outlets for awhile but it’s a shame we won’t be able to enjoy a cold one sitting around the fire on their patio anymore.
Well, the frost is on the pumpkin and the hay is in the barn… so it must be time for the Mt. Angel- Silverton Hazelnut Fest and German Holiday Market. The festival of the filbert will be held Dec. 1 – 2 at Mt. Angel’s Festhalle featuring arts and crafts, Oregon wineries and breweries, and of course, the ever popular Hazelnut Run known as a “Run for your Nuts” 5K….
Speaking of farmers and their markets, the Silverton Farmers Market, long a staple of summer Saturdays, is moving all your favorite artisans and vendors indoors at the Silverton Friends Church at 229 Eureka. The indoor market will be open 10 a.m. – noon, thru Dec. 15 and then February through the end of April…
After several months of new equipment installation and a long trip through contractor hell, Obed and Angelina Lopez are happy to announce Water Mountain Restaurant is back open for your dining pleasure… And as if you needed another reason to support this family-run business, even though they have been out of commission for a while, the Lopez family is still offering the community their annual Free Thanksgiving Dinner, this year Nov. 19. Call 503-873-6089 to reserve your spot
From time to time, no matter how mellow The Man tries to be, something comes along that really bugs him… and if it bugs him, he’s gonna do his best to make sure it bugs you as well. Today’s “How did this get so complicated” topic? Light bulbs… Not all that long ago when your lamp didn’t work you went to the store and had the choice of 60 watt (so you still couldn’t see very well), 75 watt (so you could see just fine) or 100 watt (which would pretty much guarantee blindness) and they were cheap, too … That’s it, problem solved. Have you tried to buy bulbs lately? Now you got yer incandescents, yer halogens, yer linear fluorescent, yer compact fluorescent, yer LED, dimmable or non-dimmable, yer 3-ways and that’s if you just wanted to do something simple like read a book. The specialty bulbs of odd shapes and sizes round out the rest of the loooong aisle. The Man asks you, what the heck is a “lumen” (sounds like a small forest creature to me) anyway and how many do I need? I know all of these “improvements” are supposed to save energy but after all these decisions The Man doesn’t have the energy left to read now anyway…. Think I’ll take a nap….with the lights off…
See you on the street…