6/4 First Friday at BICA

Bend's only gallery devoted exclusively to independent contemporary artists - no "tourist art" here! -hoc

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New Exhibit showing thru June 2010, ‘Departure Point’ featuring bold, abstract landscapes by Portland Artist Kentree Speirs. Continuing thru June, ‘Mixed Media’ a collection of paintings by Justyn Livingston and Randy Redfield. First Friday Artist Reception, June 4, 5-8 PM. Come meet the artists and enjoy drinks and eats.

Kentree Speirs paints from an instinctive response to the natural world. The feelings he experiences in wilderness settings act as a compass; as they are dynamic and real. He strives for this aliveness in his art, appreciating the sweeping gestural paint strokes, thickly applied, as much as the thin translucent layering. Organic shapes predominate in a delicate balance of serendipity and intention creating a provocative assemblage of color and form.

Randy Redfield has been collected for over 30 years. His recent paintings titled “New Worlds” are very active renderings mixing the use of oil, acrylic, pencil and spray paint creating a surface full of information about the paint. The compositions all follow the theme of 'places in space' almost planet like shapes following an orbit into their own creation. Some resemble landscape others more of a riotous array of color intersecting with hand drawn lines that create a "quiet but tense moment”

Justyn Livingston approaches a blank panel without any particular imagery in mind. However, there is a particular emotion or impulse upon beginning, which may or may not be carried forward. Through the movement and layering of materials and colors, the painting ‘comes to’ on its own with an underlying meditative quality; an unfettered focus she experiences in this process. It is this unexpected and cathartic exploration which motivates her to paint.

BICA Gallery | 2748 NW Crossing Drive Suite 130 | located in NorthWest Crossing | Bend | 541.788.4623 | www.bicagallery.com

6/12 Let's Pull Together - Community Noxious Weed Pull

Fishing in Montana made me realize how important it is to take invasive weeds seriously. Some river banks there have become completely choked with Knap Weed. Let's keep this from happening to Deschutes County! -hoc

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Noxious weed pull events begin Saturday, June 12 and continue through June 19 during Noxious Weed Awareness Week. Called Let's Pull Together, the annual weed pull events will help to preserve Central Oregon's ecosystem from noxious weeds while offering a time for the community to connect afterward at a free BBQ lunch. 

Let's Pull Together is a countywide noxious weed-pulling event. Participants include neighborhood and homeowners associations, city and county government and boards, park and school districts, utilities, private and public entities, businesses and incredible volunteers. All events are family-friendly. 

After the weed-pulling events, all volunteers are welcome to feast at the complimentary volunteer appreciation BBQ lunch, held in each participating community (Bend, Redmond, La Pine, Prineville, and Sisters). Festivities include entertainment and great prizes. 

Noxious weeds are non-native invasive species that threaten the ecosystem. They not only crowd out native plants, but they starve wildlife, use water and create allergens. Noxious weeds also provide tremendous ladder fuels that can radically change the speed and fury at which wildfires burn. 

The Deschutes County Weed Advisory Board and Let's Pull Together event organizers sponsor annual weed pulls. In recent years, the weed pulls have been some of the best-attended community service projects in the county. We are hoping for another good turnout. So, Let's Pull Together!

For more information about weed pull locations and how to participate, please visit the Let's Pull Together event web site at www.letspulltogether.com  or contact event coordinator Cheryl Howard at howard@bendcable.com or (541) 815-5558. 

For assistance and information about noxious weeds, please visit the Deschutes County web site at www.deschutes.org/weeds or contact Vegetation Manager Dan Sherwin at (541) 322-7135.

Mixed Media Beard & Mustache Competition at Thump Coffee

Already hanging entries at thump - come by and check them out! -Harold
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Thump Coffee Mixed Media Beard & Mustache Competition

* Use the provided face template to bring your bearded/mustachioed person
to life.
* Embellish with color, texture, whatever materials you see fit.
* Make sue to give your character and his/her exceptional hair feature a
name.
* All entries due on or before Sunday, May 30, 4pm. Bring it in and clip
it up!
* Entries will be judged by members of Bend's COMBS club.
* All entries will be on display at Thump through Sunday, June 6.

First place wins $25 in free drinks at Thump, plus a feature on Thump's
Facebook page (facebook.com/thumpcoffee).

Age Group Categories:
beard
mustache
freestyle

Winners will be contacted by phone or email, so make sure to fill out the
back. We won't use this info for any other purpose.

Please retrieve your art after the competition between Monday, June 7 and
Friday, June 11.

Most important thing an SMB can do to improve organic traffic?

It's all about the words + ideas! -hoc

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(excerpt from interview with Bryan Eisenberg, co-founder of the Web Analytics Association)

Q: What is the most important thing an SMB can do to improve organic traffic?

A: Focus on regularly producing relevant, timely and engaging content that meets the buying needs of your target market. Spend time every day tweaking and continuously improving the visitor experience on your website. If you build a reputation for quality and  relevant content you will get the traffic and conversions you are after.

Read more: http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/5974/SEO-Is-Evolving-But-Relevant-Content-Is-Still-King.aspx?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+HubSpot+(HubSpot)

Central Oregon Trail Alliance’s 11th Annual Spring Fling: Community Trail Party

Trail users - here's your chance to pitch in and contribute back to our famed Central Oregon trail system. -hoc

Bend, Oregon, Saturday, May 22nd, 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. Bend, OR May 22nd, 2010

Central Oregon Trail Alliance is looking for volunteers for the 11th annual Spring Fling work party. This event will be held at Wanoga Sno-Park on May 22nd, 2010. Meet up at the old Mt. Bachelor park and ride at 9:00 a.m. to sign waivers and get into a trail crew, then enjoy a breakfast provided by REI. We will then carpool from the parking ride to the trail projects. This community effort will focus on expanding this new trail network, with an emphasis on maintaining existing trails and expanding new ones. Come join COTA to help in expanding this new riding area. Show up in pants and long sleeves, and bring gloves, eye protection and a helmet. Children under 14 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. COTA will supply tools, direction and refreshments. Bring your friends and family to help contribute.

Those of you who have ridden the Wanoga trail system realize the potential of this terrain and these trails, but upkeep, maintenance, and further improvements are needed to keep this area running all season long. Trail work will go on from 9:30 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. then there will be an after party at Pine Mountain Sports, with a barbeque and a raffle. So come on out on May 22nd , with nothing more than a positive attitude and motivation to contribute to the improvement of this new and expanding trail system. We'll see you there! For more information, and/or directions visit us at http://www.cotamtb.com.

6/1 Deadline: Photo Submissions for ONDA's 2011 Wild Desert Calendar

Some of Oregon's best photographers donate their shots to this effort every year. -hoc
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There's still time to submit your photos for ONDA's 2011 Wild Desert Calendar. Each year ONDA produces a beautiful full-size calendar with photographs taken by people like you. The chosen photos will be put into our calendar, which we plan to release in August, 2010.

We are looking for photos of some of Oregon's most unique and solitary high-desert landscapes:

High priority areas are:

1. Badlands Wilderness Area
2. Alder Springs or Steelhead Falls WSA
3. South Fork Crooked River WSA
4. Owyhee Canyonlands
5. Bully Creek/ Malheur River
6. Gerry Mountain WSA
7. Spring Basin Wilderness Area
8. John Day River, especially Cathedral Rock & Horse Heaven Proposed Wilderness
9. Sutton Mountain & Pat's Cabin WSA
10. Native wildlife/wild flower photos
11. Hart Mountain Refuge
12. Area between Hart Mountain and Sheldon Refuge

Here are the submission guidelines:
Please submit no more than 10 of your highest quality photographs. The guidelines for submission are as follows:

Transparencies: 35mm, 2 1⁄4, 6x7 or 4x5.
Digital images: Minimum 300dpi 9"x12" images in .tiff format
Mandatory: include printed proof sheet(s) with 2"x3" (or larger) thumbnail images for digital submissions.

Please send large-scale, horizontal, landscape images (which may include people as small elements) for the large (9x12) full-page sheets, and smaller scale vertical or horizontal (details of flowers, wildlife, etc.) for the inset images on the calendar grid. Be sure that a description of each photograph is provided, either on the photograph itself, or on a separate sheet with corresponding numbers.

The calendar will be printed in CMYK, which has a smaller color gamut than the RGB palette. Therefore please be conservative with saturation increases and do not sharpen files.
Please include a self-addressed envelope with your submission to ensure proper protection and return of your images.

Please submit images by no later than June 1st, 2010. Images can be submitted to:
ONDA
c/o Calendar Images
33 NW Irving Ave
Bend, OR 97701
OR Email devon@onda.org

For questions contact ONDA at (541) 330 2638 or devon@onda.org.

Bike Films Wanted: Bend Bicycle Film Festival, May 22

Just got this from my friend Renee Davidson at Grassroots PR. Let your light shine! -hoc
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Bike Films Wanted for Bend Bicycle Film Festival Second Annual Event May 22

BEND, Ore. – Local filmmakers and photographers are invited to submit their films for consideration in the second annual Bend Bicycle Film Festival, slated for May 22. The fundraising event is part of a full weekend of biking activities, including a Volunteer Trail Work Party for Central Oregon Trail Alliance, followed by a BBQ and Awards Ceremony.

"Last year, we raised $3,500 for Central Oregon Trail Alliance and the Bend Cycling Club, and we debuted a full-length mountain biking feature film," said Paul Lissette, festival organizer. "This year, we're going 100% local, and we're hoping to beat last year's fundraising amount."

To that end, the Bend Bicycle Film Festival has issued a 2010 Call for Submissions. To be considered for the Bend Bicycle Film Festival, the short film must have something to do with cycling, and it must have a local connection, however tenuous. Artistic and "outside-the-box" submissions are encouraged.Submission guidelines have been posted to the organization's website.

This year's event will be held on Saturday, May 22 at the Tower Theatre. The second annual Bend Bicycle Film Festival will benefit Central Oregon Trail Alliance and Bend Endurance Academy. Event sponsors include Pine Mountain Sports, 92/7 FM and Cog Wild. The 4:00 p.m. showing is open to all ages, and doors open at 3:15. The 7:00 p.m. show is 21 and over only, and doors open at 6:15. Both shows will feature 2.5 hours of films, with a 20-minute intermission. For more information about the Bend Bicycle Film Festival, visit http://www.BendBicycleFilmFestival.com.

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