Monthly Archives: July 2020

Beerchaser Miscellany – Lockdown Version III

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(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this through an e-mail, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking on the title above so the post is not clipped.)

Pandemic Age Procedures

Whether it’s a simple trip to pick up groceries, getting a haircut or even an overdue appointment at your friendly urologist….formerly routine tasks and activities are a lot different during the Pandemic.  They require more planning, enhanced awareness and even paradigm changes especially on those where group gatherings used to be the norm.

The new normal…..

I know a slew of people who are primarily or exclusively working from home – another example requiring changes in ingrained routines ranging from attire, work companions i.e. wife and family members and work furniture to on-the-job accouterments – for example, having a mug by one’s side.

An April 23 (even in the earlier stages of this crisis) Oregon Live article entitled, “Almost half of Oregonians are drinking while working at home during coronavirus pandemic survey says.” talks about a new phenomenon.

It’s 10 AM somewhere…..

Multiple national surveys affirmed this trend and it’s probably not surprising that:

“Advertising and marketing agency employees had the highest percentage of employees answering with ‘Yes’, with 49.14%” and “North Carolina, Oregon and Connecticut were the biggest drinkers, each with 47% partaking on the job.” 

Of course, this raises other questions such as:

“Will growlers in the refrigerator, replace the water cooler during breaks?” and “Will employers need to install breathalyzers as a supplement to passwords before computers can be accessed” and “Will growlers and the contents thereof qualify for a home office deduction under the Internal Revenue Code?”

This would really be safe!!

So many questions, but unfortunately, so much time…..

The Legion of Zoom!

And Zoom, Microsoft Teams or other video platforms which are now main (live?) stream are a blessing although not without their negatives.   I  have attended services at multiple churches – even noon prayer at the Mount Angel Abbey, Happy Hours, book club sessions, non-profit Board meetings and even had a routine physician visit by Telemedecine – all of which went pretty well and were safe.

(And since I am on the Abbey Foundation of Oregon Board, I will put a plug in for the short and inspirational video messages by Abbot Jeremy Driscoll.   Regardless of one’s specific faith or lack thereof, the Abbot conveys messages of hope and comfort that are superb.)

Abbot Jeremy Driscoll – a wonderful Man of God

But two June International Rotary Club presentations on the nine-year story of my blog, Thebeerchaser, were quite different and a lot more challenging than the two I had done in prior years at Rotary Chapters in Lincoln City and West Linn. 

For the separate presentations at Lake Oswego and Bend, Oregon, I pre-tested the technology to ensure my PowerPoint would be visible to the audiences which averaged about eighty attendees.

Since everyone except the speaker(s) is supposed to mute their microphone, Zoom results in no audio feedback from the audience – something which normally helps to encourage or alert the presenter that things are either going well or he/she is crashing and burning.

Note:  There have been some embarrassing incidents where a participant forgets that “mute rule.”  The most publicized was when the US Supreme Court was hearing oral arguments by phone and livestream and in the midst of the proceeding, during a pause, a toilet was heard flushing.  The case was Barr v American Association of Political Consultants regarding the issue of robocalls.

He dealt  a straight flush?

This led one analyst to opine, “I bet that was one of the guys….”   Later speculation was that Associate Justice Stephen Breyer was the offender although there was no rationale for that conclusion.

However, in an article in Slate – an online publication associated with the Washington Post: “Investigation: I think I Know Which Justice Flushed,” the author presents a “scholarly” and exhaustive case as to why Breyer appears to be the culprit.

With the absence of auditory cues on Zoom, I decided to get some visual calibration on Rotary Club attendees’ reactions by looking at one of the four panels on the right of my computer screen in which I could gauge the ongoing response by the expression on their faces.  I focused on one middle-aged guy and about half-way through, I got concerned because he seemed totally passive – no reaction when I mentioned an historic dive bar, nor a smile or even a grimace when I told one of my bar jokes.

Notice the panels on the right of some attendees

Then I realized that the guy was using a photo as his “background” – some people use landscapes or photos,etc. rather than appear live so they can multi-task without appearing rude….I learned a lesson.

This PowerPoint slide from the computer of a friend who “attended” – shows the number of Internet views for the blog each year since its inception.

Dr. Cameron Bangs continued……

Dr. Bangs in his younger days.

In my first Lockdown Miscellany post, I ended the post with my own story when he was my personal physician and some of the remarkable history of his medical career and adventures.  He was an icon in the Oregon medical profession.

Dr. Bangs said, “I have never treated more sunburned breasts and penises or LSD overdoses

Cam Bangs was the supervising physician at  Vortex 1: A Biodegradable Festival of Life held at McIver Park near Estacada in 1970.

As stated in the previous post, Vortex I hosted between 30,000 to 100,000 protesters – against President Richard Nixon, who was scheduled to appear at an American Legion Conference to be held in Portland. “……it remains the only state-sponsored rock festival in United States History.”  (Wikipedia) 

It would appear that today’s political leaders at the national, state and local level, could learn some useful lessons from the creativity, courage and cooperation evidenced exactly fifty years ago in light of the ongoing violence and ham-handed (or perhaps that should be small handed) tactics to quell it in Portland for the last 50 + days!

Listening to rock music rather than destroying property…….

Oregon writer, Matt Love, wrote a book entitled “The  Far Out Story of Vortex 1″based on Bangs’ “entire 20,000 word-in-the-moment diary of Vortex.”   (More on Matt Love and his publishing house on the Oregon coast below.)  He also wrote an article for Vortex Magazine (Vortex I – A Strange Oregon Trip) of which every Oregon Baby Boomer or student of Oregon history or leadership should read.   Some  excerpts:

 “McCall, a Republican, was facing a tough a re-election vote later that fall. When he approved the festival, he said, ‘I’ve just committed political suicide.’ He won a second term by a landslide and became an Oregon legend for his visionary leadership.”

 “The state’s most powerful corporate executive of that era, the Cascade Corporation’s Robert Warren, drove a pickup truck full of licorice out to the park.”

“Several Oregon National guardsmen stationed around the park stripped off their uniforms and swam across the Clackamas River to join the party.”

Governor Tom McCall – The epitome of leadership….

“At the festival’s end, McCall visited the park, hugged some hippies, and then joined them holding hands in a circle. They chanted ‘oms’ for a few minutes and then recited the Lord’s Prayer and a few lines from William Blake.”

Dr. Bangs medical career including his research on hypothermia and his long involvement and activities in mountain-rescue medicine saved many lives.  This 2015 Oregon Live obituary gives a full account of his contributions to medicine and society.

And I have been fortunate for my friendships with two other physicians who are in the same category as Cameron Bangs – Oregon medical profession icons – both now retired and living in Portland – Dr. Fran Storrs and Dr. Doug Walta.

Dr. Doug Walta

Doug is now retired but founded the Oregon Clinic and served as CEO of Clinical Services for Providence Health & Services.   He has dedicated many years to serving others outside his time as a leading Northwest gastroenterologist. 

Doug served on the Oregon Board of Medical Examiners,has been active in legislative efforts to combat big pharma and has championed efforts to expand affordable medical care at both the state and national level.

He has been a board member for the Oregon Transition Projects advocating for the homeless and most recently spent many hours working on the successful campaign to pass the Metro Housing Bond Measure at the Primary Election.  Doug has always worked in a low-key but influential manner behind the scenes, and is known for his effective advocacy.

He is also an avid hiker, outdoors-man, skier and international traveler.

Dr. Fran Storrs   

Fran was the daughter of two physicians and she graduated from Cornell University’s Medical School. She is a charismatic woman who is known as a trailblazer – the first to complete a residency in dermatology at Oregon Health Sciences University.  She later joined the OHSU faculty and is now a Professor Emerita.

A life-changing incident in her career occurred at Portland’s Arlington Club in 1971:

“When she was asked to leave a meeting of prominent dermatologists being held  (at the) males-only establishment, Storrs got mad. ‘I had a curtain going up (on my consciousness) …. For me, it was a dramatic experience with being excluded for an irrational sort of reason. It changed my life.'” (OHSU Blogspot)

Fran, in a 2007 interview stated: “Through these experiences, a lifetime of conservative influence dissolved, and I saw the world through a suddenly opened window shade. I got to feel what it was like to be an outsider…..I also learned that in my community I couldn’t be ‘prominent’ because I had no penis.”  (The Dermotologist – April 2007)

Site of Fran’s epiphany – The Arlington Club – Males only bastion from 1867 until 1990 – that’s 123 years!

After that incident, she became passionate about civil liberties joined and became a board member of the ACLU.

She was elected President of the City Club of Portland in 1997-98 which is where I first met her when we served on the Board together.

Interestingly enough, the City Club, founded in 1916 excluded women from membership until 1993.  (Unlike the Arlington Club, it only took them 77 years to come to its senses.)  Her creative and colorful introduction of Friday Forum speakers was another example of creativity and dedication to excellence.  And her impersonation of NPR reporter, Sylvia Poggoli in one of those introductions was one for the archives.

Fran served as chair of a citizen’s committee for the City of Portland that resulted in a ballot measure and creation of an oversight committee for the Internal Affairs Division of the Portland Police Bureau.  While her immersion in other civic activities and non-profits such as Outside In, Planned Parenthood of the Columbia-Willamette and the Portland Baroque Orchestra, are remarkable, (she is evidently a woman with poor refusal skills…) it is her achievements in the medical field which deserve more comment.

“Her skills in the classroom have earned her many teaching and service awards. She is known nationally and internationally for her work in contact dermatitis and discovering new workplace allergens. She has received virtually every honor her specialty can bestow.”

Dr. Storrs’ mentoring, especially for women emanated, in part, from the Arlington Club incident and “It is the teacher and mentor whom generations of OHSU residents celebrate.” (Fran Storrs M. D.- A Lasting Legacy”)  In fact, my current dermatologist, Dr.Patty Norris,was a mentee of Fran’s.  Each time I have a visit, we spend the first five minutes telling Fran Storrs’ stories.

“She takes pride in the mentorship program of the Women’s Dermatology Society that she initiated. It pairs young men and women with senior women dermatologists. Almost 400 young dermatologists have participated in the program and most other dermatology sub-specialty societies have since copied it.” (OHSU Women in Academic Health and Medicine)

David Brooks, in his remarkable book The Second Mountain has a chapter entitled “What Mentors Do,” and states:

“Good mentors teach you the tacit wisdom embedded in any craft…..they give us the freedom to not fear our failures, but to proceed with a confidence that invites them, knowing they can be rectified later on….Finally, mentors teach how to embrace the struggle–that the struggle is the good part.” (Page 104)

And my younger daughter, Laura, got to witness Fran’s influence first-hand in 1997, when Fran, notwithstanding her incredibly busy schedule, spent an hour with her on a fifth-grade school project where she was researching Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell – another female trailblazing physician who was the first woman to receive a medical degree in the United States.

The interview had an impact on Laura who is now a Pediatric Emergency Department Nurse at Randall Children’s Hospital in Portland.

Sixth grade school project in 1997 had an impact.

All three of these physicians (Cameron Bangs, Doug Walta and Fran Storrs) knew each other and I have been the beneficiary of their friendships.  I had dinner with Doug Walta in January and a beer with Fran Storrs at the Gemini Bar and Grill in Lake Oswego in early March – right before the lock-down.  Both radiated enthusiasm and had insights that make me yearn for the end of the pandemic and another round…..

Oregon Tavern Age and Oregon City Pioneer Memories

I quoted prolific Oregon writer Matt Love, both in this post and my previous one regarding Cameron Bangs.  I first became aware of Matt’s work in 2011 when I started Thebeerchaser blog and I discovered his blog Let It Pour.net – a wonderful blog on his adventures in bars on the  Oregon Coast.  It was both an inspiration for my own exploits and a great resource which I cited often.

I reconnected with Matt while doing the post on Dr. Bangs.  He now is the owner of a small publishing company on the Oregon Coast, The Nestucca Spit Press. Matt is an incredibly talented writer and anyone who enjoys good narratives and essays on Oregon, ranging from a chronicle on the filming of Ken Kesey’s novel Sometimes a Great Notion to poetry and fiction should check out his website.

I am ordering The Bonnie and Clyde Files – How Two Dogs Saved a Middle Aged Man, after vociferously digesting two other publications I just received and will cover in my next blog post.  Matt states about this book:

“In 2017, at the age of 53, I experienced an extinction of self. For the first time in my life, I could not get a job, I was nearly broke, and I had no freedom of movement or conscience…..I learned important lessons of faith, friendship, family, face-to-face encounters and the timeless remedy of nature, lessons I intuit can enlighten others who experience a cataclysmic personal event.”

The “Oregon Tavern Age” should be read by any person who appreciates the history, rich character and the legacy of the regulars in these unforgettable (and endangered)  watering holes on the Oregon Coast.  And the pandemic exacerbates this unfortunate trend as stated in a July 14th e-mail Matt sent me stating, “The OTA joints where I am are teetering.  It really is dire.”  The 64-page tabloid was so interesting and compelling that I used a yellow highlighter when reading it so I could come back and review.

I was also delighted and surprised when I discovered one work – “Pioneer Pride:  An Oregon City Memoir” written in 2020 about Matt’s time at Oregon City High School.  (He graduated in 1982) Nostalgia washed over me as I’m also an OCHS alum – although sixteen years before Matt.

His account of sports, classroom antics and the days when many Pioneer grads went to work at one of the two paper mills – Publishers in OC and Crown Zellerbach in West Linn – also will elicit smiles and recollections of the travails of adolescent education.

Cheers and Stay Safe

Beerchasing Miscellany – Lockdown Version II

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We can still enjoy a pint a home – Ryan Keene exemplifies…

(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this through an e-mail, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking on the title above so the post is not clipped.)

In the last post, I covered a number of miscellaneous categories – most of which were not related to bars or breweries, but since my Beerchasing expeditions to new venues are temporarily on hold, please pardon my editorial license

But

As I mentioned in the last post, rummaging through some of my old files has uncovered some “treasures” and elicited some laughs when I harken back.  Consequently, I have reviewed some older Beerchaser posts in light of current events.

The First Tuesday After the First Monday……

One of my first jobs out of the Navy was in the Clackamas County Elections Department where we administered not only the Primary and General Elections, but hundreds of school and special district measures.   Understandably, most citizens have no comprehension on the amount of detail, technology and legal compliance required to manage an election.

On election nights, I still have some empathy for election officials who are trying to maintain the integrity of their systems while concurrently being pressed by print and broadcast media and candidates to give them immediate returns.

While the initial data are always qualified as preliminary and un-audited, that disclaimer is often forgotten.

Back in 1976, when my hair was almost as long as it is now (No  haircut for 4.5 months. ) Norma Paulus then served two terms as SOS.

Oregon Law (ORS 254.056) states the General Election is held as stated on the day in the caption above in even numbered years – and that, my friends is only 109 days away.

Since this is a blog about bars and beer, I typically refrain from political topics, but unless one has been living under a rock for the last 18 months, it’s difficult to stay above the fray.

A Precursor to the “Digital” Age  (Excerpted, in part, from Thebeerchaser May 18, 2017)

And we know from the 2020 Primary, campaign divisive politics will be unceasing and brutal going forward.  It causes wishful thinking about the civility and at least reasonably bipartisanship approach of leaders from past decades that characterized Oregon politics e.g. Tom McCall, Norma Paulus, Hector MacPherson, Vera Katz and the US Congress e.g. Senator Mark Hatfield, Speakers of the House Sam Rayburn and Tip O’Neill.

Senator Mark Hatfield in his DC office in our visit in 1993

Wendell Wyatt – Statesman and Lawyer

And don’t forget my late friend and law firm colleague, Wendell Wyatt, who served from 1964 to 1975 and was an effective Congressman, a wonderful person and skilled attorney at Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt.

 

Yet, based on the nature of the beast, there were times years ago – even in a more refined era (without 24-hour cable news coverage) when emotions overcame propriety – something which lent some humor and excitement to the news.

Such was the case on September 16, 1976, when Vice President Nelson Rockefeller was campaigning with Sen. Bob Dole, who had been selected to be President Gerald Ford’s running mate.

A student in a group of hecklers gave the finger to the VP and he immediately reciprocated the gesture — with gusto!  I’ve kept the picture below from the newspaper for all these years thinking I could use it at some point and the excerpt below describes the incident: 

“At the time, Rockefeller’s finger flashing was scandalous and the gesture was referred to thereafter as ‘The Rockefeller Salute.’  Rockefeller refused to apologize for his outburst. ‘I was just responding in kind’ he said, neatly avoiding the point that the apology was not expected to go to the hecklers but to the general public.”

Statesman and war hero with a dry sense of humor

Bob Dole was asked by a reporter why he didn’t join Rockefeller in “the salute”.  “I have trouble with my right arm,” the wounded WW II veteran replied. (Rarehistorical photos.com October 16,2016)

This Beer Really Hops….

And since limited activity during the pandemic results in time to free-associate, seeing that image brought back the memory of one of my business trips in the late ’80’s which I recounted in Thebeerchaser on February 8, 2013. (Excerpted below)

Laura loved frogs in 1990

Thebeerchaser’s youngest daughter, when she was in grade school, had a wonderful frog collection – ceramic amphibians, posters, stuffed frogs, etc.

Each time I had a business trip, I would seek out and bring home an addition to that collection, which grew to be almost 100 in number.

The remnants of a once great amphibian collection…..

On a business trip to Chicago, I consumed an excellent light-colored amber beer from a brewery in Michigan and decided that the empty bottle with the amazing Bad Frog Logo would be a unique supplement to the group of cold-blooded amphibians in my daughter’s room.  The bottle survived a suitcase ride home and my daughter liked it.

Now married and a pediatric ER nurse

Thebeerchaser’s spouse, however, had better judgment – much better! – and you will probably understand why.  She refused to accept my assertion that our young collector did not yet understand the underlying message conveyed by this rebellious frog. 

Jim Wauldron, the founder, was not a brewer, but a graphic artist and t-shirt designer, who created the image and merchandise – but initially – no beer.

The Bad Frog story is quite interesting and you should visit this link to their website to see their story and perhaps even purchase a sweatshirt:

“Well we did learn about beer and started brewing in October 1995.  Then the whole thing went BESERK!  We’ve expanded to 25 states and overseas.  We were BANNED in 8 states.

The banning of the Beer and the non-stop legal battles with each State prevented the expansion of the Beer, but BAD FROG fans all over the world still wanted the BAD FROG merchandise.  We’ve been featured on CNN, CBS, NBC, FOX, and ABC. BAD FROG was even featured in PLAYBOY Magazine TWICE.”

From the Bad Frog Brewery

The legal challenges resulted because of the frog’s none-too-subtle extension of its middle digit.  Liquor Commissions in multiple states banned the beer.  Eventually the US Second Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the New York State Liquor Authority‘s ban on selling Bad Frog Beer in an interesting and extremely entertaining  First Amendment case Bad Frog Brewery, Inc. v. New York State Liquor Authority 134 F.3d 87 (1998).

Lawyers would love the language from the court opinion which has some great footnotes and includes,“…..(The logo) is patently offensive’ and presumably a suggestion to have intercourse with oneself.”

It appears that one can still purchase Bad Frog merchandise, but the beer disappeared a number of years ago, in part, because of the problems associated with all the legal issues.

The Pandemic

While current headlines are shattering, we can also view many wonderful acts of kindness, sacrifice and charity to help those who have been affected by the virus and these unselfish deeds continue to occur.

A novel of suspense (and spice….)

And though all of this, we need to maintain a sense of humor and optimism and realize that life is filled with joy and tragedy.  I thought a good quote to reflect the ups and downs, was from Joe Lansdale’s novel Bad Chili which I mention in my post entitled Books and Brew published in November, 2018.

The action is innovative e.g. an early encounter with a “vicious, angry, bloodthirsty, rabid squirrel.”  The author’s dialogue is unique and rich with quotes such as this one from Jim Bob Luke, a primary character:

Texas Chili – tasty and spicy ….

“Life’s like a bowl of chili in a strange café.  Sometimes it’s pretty tasty and spicy.  Other times, it tastes like shit.”

Now while the next quote has nothing to do with the pandemic, it always causes me to smile and at least it’s related to bars.   I originally covered it in a 2011 post about one of my first Beerchasers-of-the-Quarter.

James Crumley was a Montana author who taught at both the University of Montana and Portland’s Reed College.  Some critics describe his final book The Last Good Kiss as “the most influential crime novel of the last 50 years.”

Crime Novelist James Crumley

Others maintain that initial sentence of the book is the best first-line ever written in an American crime novel.

“When I finally caught up with Abraham Trahearne, he was drinking beer with an alcoholic bulldog named Fireball Roberts in a ramshackle joint just outside of Sonoma, California, drinking the heart right out of a fine spring afternoon.”

Fireball Roberts ??

At the time, I suggested that you could toast Fireball Roberts with a pint of In-Heat Wheat Hefeweizen from Flying Dog Brewery in Denver.

It appears that this beer is no longer available but they certainly have some of which Fireball would approve.  (For example, Raging Bitch Belgian IPA at a robust 8.3% ABV – strong enough for any mongrel….)

Cutting to the Chase

With the lockdown, many of us have transformed wardrobes to sweats or “quarantine casual wear” especially when working at home. Even when one has a Zoom meeting, there’s always the tactic of using a landscape or photo as background rather than a live shot.

Second from left in 1968 in Washington DC with then Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird

But it is entertaining to see the impact that the absence of haircuts or styling for about four months has wrought.   From the requirement to have “stunted” hair during high school basketball and then during NROTC all during college, my locks have undergone a number of transformations over the ensuing years.

I even tried the beard and mustache route in the late ’70’s because of a misguided belief that it was cool.

Last week, I was scheduled for a haircut and as I pulled into my guy’s parking lot, he called my cellphone with this information:

“Don, I have a story for you.   I got a call one hour ago from a couple whose hair I cut last week.  They have Covid, so I’ve been exposed.   I get tested tomorrow.”

I thanked him for the call and reflected on the good timing and decided to let things stand for awhile.  This sentiment was reinforced after I saw some former male colleagues in a Zoom meeting this week who are of about the same demographic.  One looked like a Mountain Man and the other essentially had bangs, but both looked good.

Go for five months??

My daughters are urging me to continue to let it grow, but for both time management and economic purposes, I’m seriously contemplating returning (maybe regressing) to the crew cut and black Chuck Taylor Converse All-Star High Tops.

According to the Converse website the Chuck ’70 has:

“More cushioning, tougher canvas, same versatility…..is built off of the original 1970’s design, with premium materials and an extraordinary attention to detail…… No reason not to wear them all day, every day.” 

And Finally…..

Even before all of us are able to frequent bars and breweries again when it is safe and permitted, we can still support these establishments by buying their products and using takeout options – many of which are innovative.

A friend with strong knowledge of the hospitality industry stated in an e-mail about watering holes on the Oregon coast:

“The joints are teetering. It really is dire.”

The Old Oregon Tavern in Lincoln City – a classic dive bar

And even in Portland, one of my favorite breweries Old Town Brewing, which I reviewed last year, was forced to temporarily close their Old Town location since many people are not traveling downtown because of the violence occurring with the continuing protests.

Entrepreneur Adam Milne

Owner Adam Milne showed innovation and collaboration with other breweries early on in the pandemic by hosting a Brewers Market  at their second location and brewing headquarters on NE Martin Luther King Blvd.

It’s a weekly assembly of booths offering various breweries’ beers to-go in a drive-thru meets farmers-market setting.  Adam turned the parking lot there into a mashup of a drive-thru and a brewer safari.However, as reported in a July 12th Willamette Week article:

“‘The moment of a temporary closure became, sadly, clear on Thursday when our revenue for the day was $18.75,’ he says. ‘I spent the last week trying to get a rent reduction from our landlord, but was unsuccessful. We really need help from the city. Downtown businesses have been hit especially hard with the high density, vandalism and tents in front of our business.'”

This is just one example and all of us can help support OTB and other small businesses.

Cheers and Be Safe!

 

Beerchaser Miscellany – Lockdown Version I

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Image created by and courtesy of Pam Williams

(Welcome back to Thebeerchaser.  If you are seeing this through an e-mail, please visit the blog to see all of the photos and read the story by clicking on the title above so the post is not clipped.)

Since my exploits to new bars and breweries are essentially locked-down temporarily, the next several posts will be entitled “Beerchaser Miscellany” – tidbits I wanted to share – some related to beers and bars and others which, in my opinion, deserve to be told.

We salute the medical providers during this crisis.

The pandemic causes us to reassess priorities, relationships and future goals.   We are all adapting to new restrictions, routines, ruminations, regimens (dietary) and responsibilities – to do our part to stay safe, to help others who are struggling and to use the time we have as productively as possible.

Having two daughters who are nurses, I salute all the healthcare providers and pray for their safety.  Also for parents struggling to balance work and childcare and business owners who face financial jeopardy.  (And speaking of healthcare providers, see the end of this post for a narrative and pictures of one Oregon physician who left a lasting legacy.)

But I’ve been trying to move forward by reading – new material rather than my standard escapist trash fiction, exercise daily, reach out to friends and former colleagues to check on them, expand the scope of movies and documentaries I watch (will still not watch soccer…..), listen to new music genres and even do jigsaw puzzles – we did four 500- piece and then tried a 1,000 piece enigma –  named “The Pottery Shed.”  (Going through old files has also been productive – see below.)

Pontificating on Puzzles

The Potting Shed – Agony or Ecstasy?

I checked on Google to see how long, on average, to complete a 1,000 piece puzzle and the first cite stated 3 to 4 hours which is absurd in my opinion. After reading another post by the Puzzle Warehouse that opined 10 to 24 hours, it made our collective approx. 40 hours over two weeks seem more reasonable and I reflected:

1. After agonizing over the features of a bunch of flowers which predominated, I am comfortable with my intent never to have gardening as a hobby.

2. If one assumes an average reading speed of 70 pages per hour, I could have, for the same investment of time, read each of the books in the photo below which are still unread on the shelves of my home library.

A Must Read!

(“On Bullshit,” is not unread and worth reading again and again – 27 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List in 2005! And if you want more of a justification of that last assertion, check out this former Beerchaser post)

https://thebeerchaser.com/2020/03/12/bs-revisited-if-only-i-had-known-in-2012/

3. After spending several hours and telling me “I’m done!”, Janet was eventually lured back and we finished it together – time we spent together which would not have been the case if we had read separate books.

2,860 pages of great reading….

Bar and Brewery News

Fly Boy’s Artistic Logos (And the Pilot’s Peach is a great beer….)

Fly Boy Brewing and Cascade Brewing – I was pleased, but not surprised because of his entrepreneurial spirit, when Mark Becker joined three partners to buy Cascade Brewing, known throughout the Northwest for its sour beers.

Mark, who began brewing in his parents’ house while still in high school, founded FlyBoy with his wife, Kristi, in 2014 and it was featured in Thebeerchaser in 2017:   https://thebeerchaser.com/2017/05/25/navigate-a-course-to-flyboy-brewing/       

Mark Becker – followed his high school passion and took risks

FlyBoy is one of my favorite breweries in the Portland area and Mark is an engaging guy.  Although I had been to the Cascade Barrel House, in 2017, I was not as enamored with its ambiance and sour ale – although I’m in the minority on the beer. I’m looking forward to returning to see what the new owners concoct.

 As  reported  in  BrewPublic  (April  2, 2020)

“(Cascade founder Art Larrance) helped pass Oregon’s Brewpub Law, paving the way for scores of pubs since. He founded Cascade Brewing in 1998, and in 2006, worked with his brewmaster, Ron Gansberg, on an aging and blending program that would lead to countless awards and an entirely new style of beer known as the Northwest Sour Ale.”

Flat Tail Brewing in Corvallis – As I reported in my last post, I was sorry to hear that the cherished Corvallis Flat Tail Brewery appears to have permanently closed – not because of Covid 19 – but because of a dispute with their landlord over their lease as chronicled in a BrewPublic.com post on June 15th entitled “Flat Tail Brewing Closes its Doors in Downtown Corvallis.”

Rooting for its return in a new location

It showed its mettle when it took on Bend’s 10 Barrel Brewing on use of Flat Tail’s slogan “Dam Good Beer.”

“(Dave) Marliave was dismayed when he learned that 10 Barrel Brewing Co. — a Bend brewer now owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev, the largest brewing company in the world and the maker of Budweiser and Bud Light — had taken the slogan for itself.   A semi-trailer from 10 Barrel with the phrase even drove right past the downtown Corvallis brewery earlier this week, Marliave said.”

“Dam” pleased with their slogan…..

We certainly hope the ten-year old brewery with the slogan “Dam Good Beer,” finds a new location and reopens in the near future.

Renner’s Bar and Grill – This historic dive bar in Multnomah Village – opened in 1939 – which closed after a disastrous fire in April 2018, just reopened in June as reported in Portland Food and Drink.com   

Just around the corner from another one of my favorite bars – The Ship Tavern, I reviewed Renner’s in 2017 and unlike the stereotypical dive bar, it has great food.

Re-opened. Go check out the food!

As stated by co-owner, Josh “Uncle Stumpy,”,  “My goal is to maintain the dive bar experience, but offer superior food from scratch and a neighborhood bar charm.”

And the food is inexpensive and delicious with a surprisingly varied menu.  And, of course, a short walk to The Ship, which made my list of Best Dive Bars in Portland in 2019 is also a must for a nightcap.

One of Portland’s Best – especially if you go on a Sunday during a Packers’ Game

The Standard – This classic made the list as my top dive in the 2019 post for a reason best stated by Mathew Korfhage, former Willamette Week columnist, when he stated:

“The bar is cheap, no-nonsense fun in a way that takes all comers and yet is loving towards its long-time regulars.  These days in Portland that makes The Standard not very standard at all.  It makes it a GD treasure.”

Gone but not Forgotten

Fortunately, The Standard reopened on June 19th.  Unfortunately, it’s trademark Happy Hour and all-day Wednesday $1 Hamm’s Drafts are gone but not forgotten – thanks to their insurance company and its lawyers.

WWeek told the story in a July 2019 article, “A Beloved East Portland Dive Bar is Being Forced to End One of the City’s Cheapest Beer Deals.”

Owner Reed Lamb said, “After over 11 years with no claims, zero OLCC violations, & a spotless payment history, they chose not to do business with us anymore.”   Hamms’ Drafts are now $2, but they could be twice that and The Standard would still be a must.

And Speaking of Lawyers

Although not an attorney, I worked with lawyers for over forty years in three different organizations and loved Legal Management and the lawyer personality. The Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt firm from which I retired in 2011, after twenty-five years, was a wonderful firm with lawyers who were skilled advocates and with great character. (Okay, there were some exceptions, but very few…  You’ll have to wait for my book to see the specifics….)

I was therefore surprised when the Oregon Supreme Court in a 4 to 3 vote, approved waiving the bar exam – not just temporarily, but permanently, for any 2020 law grad in the State of Oregon.   The Washington “Supremes” took the same action for grads to the North – a benefit that the State of Wisconsin has long offered their grads.  Law School Deans lobbied for this course of action which was opposed by the State Bar.

I have not talked to any of my friends, but it would not surprise me if many practicing lawyers – who went through the long and arduous prep and grueling two-day exam (with an average pass-rate of 75%) have the same opinion as a July 1 Oregonian editorial entitled, “No bar exam – no problem – except for the public.”

And Files to Go Before I Sleep

Since a good part of my career involved communication – most notably with lawyers who were trained in the nuances of the language and relish analyzing and attacking, others’ oral and written discourse, I saved many e-mails, memos and articles from my 40+ years working with attorneys.

For future social science classes??

Also pictures and memories from college days, civic work, grad school papers, newspaper articles on travel and entire newspaper editions on significant events such as the Fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the attack on the World Trade Center in 2001, the OJ Simpson Trial in 1995 and the Impeachment Trial of Bill Clinton in 1999.

I also saved a number of Newsweek Magazines from events of similar magnitude.

From the garage archives….

And at a charity auction, I even paid a relatively handsome amount for the January 1, 2000 Editions of seven notable US Newspapers – the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Washington Post, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Dallas Morning News, the Boston Globe and the Miami Herald.

I can’t remember if I told her how much I paid, but it did have a Certificate of Authenticity!

My wife, Janet, insisted with good reason during the lock-down, that I start going through and recycling at least 50% of the eleven file-cabinet drawers and multiple boxes I have filled with this (junk?)  She even helped me and one day when I was in doubt, she said, “Don, we are not going to use an 1998 article about a brewery in Des Moines for a future road trip.”

Just part of the “collection” in the garage…

And when I asserted that our grand kids could use the historic newspapers in their future social science classes, she just rolled her eyes and laughed.  (And the Kodak carousel trays with slides from my Mt. Hood climbs and Scout backpacks had to go since I had not looked at them in over fifty years.)

Janet wouldn’t let these slide…..

 

So with some diligence, I began attacking this mass (mess?) so our kids would not have to in the future……  Some of the job-related material I’ll save for the aforementioned book, but even the bulk that I recycled gave me a good chuckle that was welcome during a pandemic.   One of my favorite examples is below and I’ll save some others for the next post.

An Oregon Medical Icon – Dr. Cameron Bangs

Cam Bangs, who passed away in 2015 at the age of 78, was a unique individual and physician who practiced for thirty years in Oregon City.  I had the privilege of having him a my primary-care physician for a number of years.

I loved Dr. Bangs and one of my most prized letters was from my home medical records file following a physical exam in 1990 when I was 42.   But, first, a few words about Dr. Bangs.

Mountain Man and Medical Expert

In his younger days, he had the appearance of a Mountain Man – a big red beard and long untamed hair, and he usually wore wilderness duds.  That’s because he essentially was a Mountain Man – climbing major peaks all over the world and developing the expertise to become one of the worlds’ expert in mountain medicine and hypothermia.

Not Dr. Bangs but a similar experiment

In fact, I remember one time that I saw him, he had just participated in a hypothermia research project in which he immersed himself (I think with a companion researcher) in a tank of freezing water so his bodily responses could be monitored.

Southcoast Today 10/31/2015 – “……with a renowned expertise in mountain medicine, cold weather injuries and treatment, and mountain rescue. He participated in more than 50 rescues of climbers and skiers on Mt. Hood, in Oregon, and set up the local hospital’s frostbite and hypothermia treatment facility.

In the 1970s, he was given national recognition for his work in mountain medicine and was awarded Oregon Doctor of the Year.”

Photo by Don Williams on backpacking trip

Dr. Bangs was generous with his time – helping others and also a non-conformist, of sorts, who railed against the establishment and ostentation as evidenced by this article from People Magazine in 1977:

“The 40-year-old internist is a member of Oregon’s mountain rescue service. Usually working as part of an Army National Guard helicopter squad (nicknamed the “Flying St. Bernards”), he has helped save an estimated 75 lives in 55 rescues over the past nine years, and has treated hundreds of cases in hospitals for climbing injuries and exposure…..‘I deplore the kind of thing where a doctor joins this or that because he might pick up a few referrals. And frankly, many of my colleagues bore the hell out of me.’” (emphasis supplied)

And any Baby Boomer Oregon resident will remember the 1970 rock festival held near Estacada – Vortex 1: A Biodegradable Festival of Life at an Oregon State Park that hosted between 30,000 to 100,000 protesters – against Richard Nixon who was scheduled to appear at an American Legion Conference to be held in Portland.

Based on the courageous decision of then Governor Tom McCall’s – a Republican who showed remarkable foresight and integrity throughout his term – “it remains the only state-sponsored rock festival in United States History.”  (Wikipedia)

And Cameron Bangs was the supervising doctor for all medical care at Vortex 1 as written in the Clackamas Review by his friend, Matt Love, to whom Dr. Bangs gave his “entire 20,000 word-in-the-moment diary of Vortex” for a book this prolific author wrote  entitled “The  Far Out Story of Vortex  1″                                       

Not your average Doc. In younger days at Vortex. (Courtesy of Matt Love)

“Dr. Bangs joined me at several events to promote the book and charmed audiences with his candid and humorous memories from the festival, particularly his assertion that he had set a world record for treating the most sunburned breasts and penises in a single time period…..

A lot more people should know what Dr. Bangs and many other Oregonians did at McIver Park 45 years ago. It was so much more than just a big party to avert potential violence. And Cameron Bangs was so much more than just a doctor.”

A State-sponsored Rock Festival!

He also served on the Portland Trailblazers’ medical staff during the ’70’s and had a 45-acre farm outside Oregon City where he raised a variety of farm animals.  His herd of cows started when he took a pregnant cow as payment for a medical bill.  https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2015/09/cameron_bangs_hypothermia_and.html

So what story do I have that can contribute to the engaging accounts above.  Well, in 1990, I was having a lot of intense migraine headaches.  My wife and I both had demanding jobs and were the parents of two fantastic young girls in grade school.

Migraines and out of shape….

I got little exercise and hadn’t had a physical exam in awhile, so I made an appointment with Dr. Bangs, knowing this visit would be a lot more pleasant than our previous appointment.

It should make any person who complains about the current prep process for a colonoscopy think of one word and thus be thankful for progress in medical technology i.e. “sigmoidoscopy” but that’s another story……

Not Thebeerchaser – I was only 42 at the time!!

He decided I should have an electrocardiogram – a treadmill test – after the rest of the exam and lab tests.   (Keep in mind that I was 48 years old.)

Afterwards we went into his office and he said, “I’ll send you a letter, but I can tell you now how you did on the treadmill.”  Our conversation went like this:

Dr. Bangs:  Your results compare to an average 35-year old male.

Beerchaser:  That’s encouraging news.

Dr. Bangs:  That’s one way to look at it.  Personally, I wouldn’t be satisfied with average anything!

Beerchaser: Dr. Bangs – this advice from a guy who just got back from a trip to Asia where he climbed several peaks over 15,000 feet and ran a marathon before that?

Dr. Bangs:  (Smiles) Get out of here!

So a week later I get a letter – excerpted as shown below. (Note that this was before e-mails, when a mailed letter took a lot more time and effort).

When I saw the P.S. above I started laughing, but the next day joined the 24-Hour Fitness near my office and began a regular exercise regimen (and subsequently lost seven pounds).

Well Beerchasers.  I hope you had a Happy Fourth of July. Stay safe, wear a mask and catch more Beerchaser Miscellany in the coming weeks..

A Monumental Day for America!