🌱 Mount Hood Snowed In + Free COVID Test Kits For Oregonians

Welcome to Wednesday, you crazy Portlanders! Is it wet enough for you? Well, it's nothing we haven't dealt with before, so let me just tell you about what's going on today.

First, today's weather:

It'll be gray and rainy all day, but with a high temp of 42, it'll be a bit warmer.

Here are the top five stories in Portland today:

1. Mt. Hood is getting too much snow! The large storm blanketing the Columbia River Gorge in snow forced Timberline and Ski Bowl to close and Mt. Hood Meadows to suspend lift operations Tuesday. Highway 26 remains closed. A large number of Mt. Hood Meadows staff and visitors traveling on the highway were not able to get to the resort, according to a news release. Mt. Hood Meadows expects to reopen this morning, depending on highway access and conditions. (KGW)
2. McMenamins has confirmed employee data back to Jan. 1, 1998 was compromised following a recent ransomware attack in December. When the ransomware was first identified and blocked Dec. 12, McMenamins said it believed employee data had potentially been compromised. The information belonging to all employees across 56 locations includes names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers, among other things. (KPTV.com)
3. A potential strike of municipal trade workers looms in Portland, threatening to curtail the city’s ability to provide basic services. After over a year of bargaining, the District Council of Trade Unions declared an impasse last month, indicating negotiations with the city over its contract have deadlocked. Combined, the unions that comprise the coalition provide services for every bureau in the city. Union members treat the Bull Run watershed, repair traffic signs, inspect buildings, pay the city’s bills and file police reports, among other functions. (OPB News)
4. That there's been a lot of rain is clear. It's the metro area. It's January. No one is surprised. That said, there's been a lot of it since Sunday. As a result, not only has Portland's Big Pipe sewage drainage system – meant to handle overflows – overflowed, but flood warnings are in effect throughout the area. The overflow forced the Bureau of Environmental Services to issue an advisory urging people to avoid contact with Willamette River water. (Portland Patch)
5. About 12 million at-home coronavirus tests are now making their way to Oregonians. This week, the Oregon Health Authority is getting about 1 million of those test kits. People will be able to get the tests for free from local public health offices, schools, shelters, and other community organizations. (KATU)

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Today in Portland:

• Kevin Kinney's Traveling Magic Show will be performing tonight at downtown spot Al's Den at the Crystal Hotel. Kevn Kinney is the lead singer / songwriter of the Atlanta rock band, Drivin N Cryin. Appearing with him will be R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck. 6:00 - 9:00 PM.
• Powell's Books presents Jessamine Chan in an online conversation with Rachel Yoder. Jessamine Chan’s taut, explosive debut novel, The School for Good Mothers, introduces, in Frida, an everywoman for the ages. Using dark wit to explore the pains and joys of the deepest ties that bind us, Chan has written a modern literary classic. Chan will be joined in conversation by Rachel Yoder, author of Nightbitch. Register online to attend. 5:00 PM.
• Pysfic Wednesdays are back at Rainbow City in SE Portland. Featuring Tinman, Dead Mans Sun and Devistatix spinning psytrance music all night long. The music starts at 9:00 PM.
• The Asian LGBT film Happy Together will be showing at the Clinton Street Theater in SE Portland. Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times described it as "A take-no-prisoners movie from one of Hong Kong's most idiosyncratic, shoot-from-the-hip filmmakers that's the very antithesis of sentimental gay love stories." Showtime is 7:30 PM.
• The Portland Spelling Bee is back at Mississippi Pizza in North Portland. Join Erin Ergenbright as she hosts a number of spelling and spelling-adjacent games. If you’d like to compete in the Bee, sign up between 5:30 and 6, and 20 names will be drawn from a hat for a single elimination tournament. They’ll also have rounds of audience participation. Tickets available online. 6:00 - 7:45 PM.

From my notebook:

• Portland Trail Blazers: "Starting 2022 off with a W!" (Instagram)
• Travel Portland: "In case no one wished you a happy New Year yet... Happy New Year! #ThisIsPortland 📷: @pnwbuns #PDX #PDXNOW #TravelPortland #TravelOregon #PortlandOregon #HereForPortland" (Instagram)
• Portland Audubon: "Little late to the party but we have to know: What was your first bird of the year? It's fun to theorize what the first bird you spot could possibly symbolize for how your year is going to go -- any thoughts/theories to share? 📷: @wa..." (Instagram)
• Portland Police Bureau: "Press Release: PPB Seeks Public Input on Directives (Photo) " (Facebook)
• Friends of Family Farmers: "Great farmer opportunity!" (Facebook)
• And just to make sure that we're starting the new year right, I present to you The Unipiper from 2020. (Imgur)

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There's your Wednesday, my friends. Try and stay dry out there and meet me back here tomorrow for more news of 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.