- ITâS HIGH TIME, TOO: Well, that didnât take long. Barely two weeks after Oregon voted to legalize marijuana, Portland is scheduled to host the stateâs first Cannabis Cup in July 2015. High Times, the publication of record for pot enthusiasts, stages the event, which has been referred to as âthe No. 1 competition and expo for cannabis in the world,â for close to three decades in Amsterdam and more recently in cities such as Denver, Seattle and San Francisco. âAs soon as you guys legalized, we got it set up the next day,â says Rick Cusick of the New York magazine. No specific details are available, but Cusick says they will âcontact every grower in the stateâ about displaying their wares. Sometimes called âthe Academy Awards of marijuana,â last yearâs gathering in Colorado drew 37,000 attendees.
- OTTERâS PIZZA PARTY: The P.R.E.A.M. Wu-Tang-themed pizza night at Ned Ludd is leaving the nest, The Oregonian reported Nov. 17, and moving into the old Tennessee Redâs space at 2139 SE 11th Ave. When restaurant investor Kurt Huffman originally applied for a liquor license for the location, he called the place âOtterâs Sausagefest.â Thatâs an inside joke: Noble Rotâs Leather Storrs wrote an article on a local blog saying he knew Huffmanâs biggest openings of 2015, including spots called BRODOJO, Salt and Schmaltz, and, yes, Otterâs Sausagefest, which was meant to feature beards and assless pants. The chef-owners at the former Otterâs Sausagefest promise more pizza and âlouder musicâ than P.R.E.A.M. Hopefully, the Otter name will live on in the sausage pieâs name.
- BIGGER BIT: You can now buy or sell Bitcoin virtual currency at Pioneer Place, thanks to the new ATM installed in the mallâs food court by local company BitcoinNW. Bitcoin is an electronic currency not tied to any state government, making it popular among Web libertarians. Until recently, Bitcoins could be traded only on the Internet, and are accepted as currency only at a small number of businesses, such as Whiffies Fried Pies food cart, Kit Kat Club and Overstock.com. Itâs the most prominent such alternative currency, though a Beaverton programmer designed another cryptocurrency called Dogecoin that briefly had more trading volume than Bitcoin. Users of the Pioneer Place ATM can trade the virtual currency for $20 and $100 bills. The worldâs first Bitcoin ATM was installed in Vancouver, B.C., in October 2013, and Seattle got one in May, but this is by far the most prominent location for a Bitcoin ATM.
- STILL STANDING: Five Portland comics were recently called down to Los Angeles to audition for Last Comic Standing. After advancing past a regional round in Seattle, Amy Miller, Nathan Brannon, Bri Pruett, Barbara Holm and Lonnie Bruhn all performed short sets for a panel of NBC producers and Wanda Sykes. âWe enjoyed a very nice time at the Hard Rock Cafe afterward, stress-eating an ice cream sundae and, in my case, a lot of white wine,â Miller says. No word yet on whoâs through to the show. Speaking of Portland comedy, WW has again polled the local scene to determine this cityâs funniest people. (Miller, Brannon and Pruett all landed on the list last year, as did Shane Torres, who appeared on Last Comic Standing last spring.) The winners will be revealed in next weekâs issue, and weâll hold a free showcase featuring all five at 7 pm Sunday, Nov. 30, at the Bossanova Ballroom.
WWeek 2015