🌱 Dark Money Political Website + Vet Visits Unavailable

Happy Friday, Portland. The end to another fine week. I'm looking forward to the weekend, but let me tell you about today.

First, today's weather:

Rain on and off all day and a high of 49. Drier weather is on the way!

Here are the top stories in Portland today:

1. Take care if you're driving around in the St. John's area. A landslide closed Northwest Bridge Avenue on the west end of the St. Johns Bridge Wednesday evening, impacting traffic coming from the southeast. At 6:57 p.m., Portland Fire & Rescue tweeted that crews were responding to a landslide that involved a tree and urged drivers to avoid the area. And that's not the only place affected by the rain. Earlier on Wednesday, wet conditions caused part of Northwest Reeder Road on Sauvie Island to collapse, reducing the street to one lane. (KGW.com)
2. Oregon set a daily record for the number of new COVID-19 cases Wednesday for the third time in a week and health officials said more than one in five tests administered were coming back as positive for the virus — more than double the rate recorded last week. The Oregon Health Authority announced 6,203 new confirmed or presumptive cases Wednesday, smashing a record set just the day before by roughly 1,500 cases. New cases were up 140% from a week ago and hospitalizations were up 57% from the same period last week as the highly contagious omicron variant takes hold. (OPB)
3. Earlier this week, it was reported that a mystery group calling itself Voters for Truth has been pushing negative ads aimed at Democratic State Treasurer Tobias Read, who’s running for governor. The Voters for Truth website feeds readers information about each of the three leading Democratic candidates for governor and employs the gimmick of asking them to respond to “poll” questions about the information. Yet, a question regarding Nicholas Kristof seems to support his run for the governor's seat. (Willamette Week)
4. Instead of throwing out unsold food at the end of the day, vendors in Portland are partnering with an app to help people pick up food at a discounted price. Too Good To Go is a mobile app where people can click on a map and purchase extra unsold food from restaurants and stores in their area. People can buy a “surprise bag” for one-third of the price and pick it up at the end of the day. Claire Oliverson, a spokesperson for the app, said the app has almost 200 partners in Portland, such as Coco Donuts and Stumptown Coffee Roasters. (KOIN)
5. If you're a pet owner, you might have noticed that getting a veterinarian appointment has been darn near impossible. Portland clinics have been averaging at least two weeks behind schedule. People have waited up to 18 hours to make sure their pet is okay. Daniel Lioy-Ryan, manager of Cats in the City, waited six hours for an appointment for Titus, a cat who had a nail infection. (KPTV.com)

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Today in Portland:

• This may seem like a weird question, but are you into lizards? If so, you may be interested in the Northwest Reptile Expo taking place today at the Embassy Suites Hilton in NE Portland. Northwest Reptile Expo was one of the first captive-bred reptile shows in America and is the longest continual running reptile trade show in the Pacific Northwest. 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
• For a rare, musical treat, go to Misdemeanor Meadows in SE Portland to see Grand Head, The Decliners and Howie and the Hot Knives. It’ll be punk and rock. Art show by Summer Thorp. The fun starts at 7:00 PM.
• This holiday season, the Portland Puppet Museum in SE Portland will present "Nutcracker Cracked" by the Olde World Puppet Theatre. Sometimes you just have to leave the kids behind and spend a wacky but enchanting evening with friends, wine, beer and crazy puppets. This show was originally designed and created for a corporate holiday party, based on a parody of the Oregon Ballet's The Nut Cracked. It's so over the top with snarky and fun situations we can't believe it is real sometimes. 7:00 - 8:00 PM.
• From the folks who brought you BASS HOUSE IN THE BASSMENT and BASS HOUSE IN THE BACKYARD: Come one, come all, come as you are! It's a dance party at Moe's Tanker on SE Hawthorne for your post-holiday enjoyment! We'll be featuring Bass house & Tech house favorites from Stunner, Ms Match, NIKKID and Mienne. 9:00 PM to 2:00 AM.
• Yeah, I know that New Year's was a week ago, but don't tell that to the Hawthorne Hideaway in SE Portland. Tonight it's throwing a First Friday New Year Party. Featuring Van's Child with performances by The Deans & The Kelevras. Tickets available online. The music starts at 9:00 PM.

From my notebook:

• Portland Audubon: "Western Bluebirds nest in holes in trees that they aren’t able to create themselves. So they rely on the talents of woodpeckers to make their nesting sites, and also utilize nest boxes. A pair will go looking for nesting sites together, ..." (Facebook)
• Friends of the Children - Portland: "We invite you and your family to get vaccinated or boosted at our Rockwood Friends of the Children—Portland facility THIS Friday, January 7th from 4:00 - 7:00 pm. We will have Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) with Pfizer and J&J..." (Facebook)
• Homelessness is a big issue here in Portland and can, at times, seem like an insurmountable crisis. But Kaia Sand of the non-profit Street Roots has a few words to Portlanders as to some of the steps that are being taken to address the issue. (Street Roots)
• After nearly ten years of informal meetings and town halls, Senator Ron Wyden and Rep. Earl Blumenauer recently released a much-anticipated framework for legislation that will fundamentally change the management direction for Mount Hood and expand protections for the Columbia River Gorge. Here are 10 things that Portlanders should know about how this new proposal will affect the region. (WyEast Blog)
• Local artist community, Art Design Xchange, is turning its Instagram into a showcase for local artists in an effort to keep that First Friday vibe alive, and to allow you an opportunity to support local art while still staying sheltered-in-place. It's free to tune in, so why not check it out and enjoy some local art? (Art Design Xchange)

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That's your Friday everyone! I hope your day is great. I'll see you tomorrow, because I can't stop talking about Portland.

— Dominic Anaya

About me: Doctor, educator and now a writer/artist, I'm just chillin' in Portland, OR with my wife, our ferrets, our chickens and our goats.