Announcement

Oregon State Fair, through Monday

Art, Legos, Pirates and more Labor Day events in and around Portland this year has something for everyone. So, celebrate summers end. Gather the family and head out this weekend for some old fashion fun!

Art in The Pearl Festival
A well-named event takes care of the what and the where. There is also plenty of live music and food. Sat-Mon. Get Map FREE

LEGO Games Summer Tour
Located at Pioneer Square & Director Park (Get Map) - Play with life sized LEGO board games. "Features one-of-a-kind localized gameplay for Portland-area residents." -- Find out what that means! Fri-Sun at Pioneer Square; Monday at Director Park. 9AM-5PM. FREE

Ahoy and Avast!
The sixth annual Portland Pirate Festival invades Historic St. Helens, Oregon this Saturday and Sunday, September 3 and 4, 2011. Get Map. The fest features pirate-themed and non-pirate-themed music, dance and performance, historical reenactments (with cannons!), stuff for kids, and of course there grub and grog! The aaarrrs begin at 10AM both Saturday and Sunday, and continue until midnight pm Saturday and 10PM Sunday. Tickets $12 adults, $6 kids under 12, available at the gate.

Livestock, corn dogs and wild rides
The Oregon State Fair, under way this weekend, has it all. Through next Monday. Hours are 10AM-11PM Friday-Saturday, and 10AM-10PM Sunday-Monday. Where: Oregon State Fairgrounds, 2330 17th St. NE, Salem OR. Get Map. Tickets: $11 for ages 13-64, $6 for seniors and kids ages 6-12.

Chapman Vaux’s Swift Watch 2011
Every September thousands of Vaux’s Swifts come to Portland. They spend their days eating, then in the late afternoon the Swifts begin flying in a giant undulating swirl in the sky about the Chapman School at 1445 NW 26th in northwest Portland. Get Map. Around sunset they swirl more tightly, like a ground pepper tornado, and begin disappearing, down the chimney. On the lawn below, hundreds of Portlanders gather on lawn chairs and blankets to stare at this spectacular event. FREE

Have a great weekend!

National Night Out website

Send criminals a message! When: Tuesday, Aug 2th, 2011 7-10PM Where: Your Neighborhood!

Last year millions of people, from every state, across 15,000 communities participated in events to help make communities safe and raise awareness about anticrime programs.

National Night Out is a time when individuals and groups are encourgaged to gather together after dark in parks and other public places for wholesome activities. The idea is to symbolically reclaim our public spaces by using them, encouraging other people to use them and making the space feel safe, and discouraging illegal and anti-social activity.

Don't let crime control your neighborhood.

How to Train Your Dragon

"Alack, the village of Berk has a dragon problem. Every now and then, a flock of them descends from the sky to snatch a nervous sheep or two or 20. It’s a ba-a-a-a-d situation, particularly for the sheep..." When: Fri, Aug 5, 2011 7PM-10PM Where: Gresham Center for the Arts Plaza NE 3rd Street (between Kelly & Hood) Gresham, OR Get Map!

Pack your picnic!
Head to the Center for the Arts Plaza for Pictures In The Park presenting How to Train Your Dragon, sponsored by Gresham Churches. Live music begins at 7:00PM; movies begin at dusk. Free freshments will be available.

View movie trailer below this break

Freshwater mussel

Volunteer Opportunity! When: Sat, Aug 6, 2011 10AM-1:30PM Where: Ambleside Creek (contact for exact location) Gresham OR Get Map!

Find Freshwater Mussels
The City and Johnson Creek Watershed Council seek volunteers to come learn about these creatures and spend two hours searching for them from 10AM to 1:30PM on Saturday Aug. 6 in Gresham. All ages welcome.

Last year's survey results were astounding. Extensive beds of Western pearlshell mussels were identified. This, and finding four adult Coho salmon last fall, tells us the Gresham reaches of Johnson Creek are able to once again support these native fish. Probably in part due to the cleaning power of the mussels!

Zimmerman House, Gresham OR

Every Saturday through August When: Sat Aug 6, 2011 10AM-3PM Where: Zimmerman Park 17111 NE Sandy Blvd Gresham, OR Get Map!

A lasting vestige of East Multnomah County's agricultural roots

A delightful 1874 Victorian farmhouse
Take a step back into history at the Zimmerman House, a Victorian era farmhouse, built in 1874 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This beautiful farmhouse is a perfect reflection of typical Columbia River dairy farm life in the late 1800s. The Zimmerman Heritage Farm is a unique cultural education and recreational resource that is being created for the benefit of the public on a 5.98-acre historic site in Gresham, Oregon.

Open house and tours every Saturday through August 10AM-3PM

Coalition of Gresham Neighborhood Associations When: Tuesday Aug 9, 2011 7:00PM Where: Gresham City Hall, Springwater Trail Room 1333 NW Eastman Pky Get Map!

Public welcome
The Coalition of Gresham Neighborhood Associations was formed to provide structure and support for the leadership of Gresham's neighborhood associations, enabling more effective cooperation among neighborhood associations in order to achieve desired outcomes. Goals of the Coalition include providing a public forum for the review and evaluation of issues and problems, providing education and information on specific areas such as land use, and providing a unified voice for the neighborhood associations.

The Coalition meets monthly on the second Tuesday at 7:00PM

Ramona and Beezus

Ramona’s 9-year-old life is far from perfect. Everybody loves her teen sis Beezus—with all her straight-A report cards and her gorgeous looks and gushing boyfriend and all. But they hate Ramona. When: Fri, Aug 12, 2011 7PM-10PM Where: Gresham Center for the Arts Plaza NE 3rd Street (between Kelly & Hood) Gresham, OR Get Map!

Pack your picnic!
Head to the Center for the Arts Plaza for Pictures In The Park presenting Ramona and Beezus sponsored by Gresham Churches. Live music begins at 7:00PM; movies begin at dusk. Free freshments will be available.

View movie trailer below this break

Olympic Bed Races, Gresham OR

An Evening of Great Family Fun When: Fri, Aug 12, 2011 7PM-9PM Where: Historic Downtown Gresham Main Street (between Second and Forth) Gresham, OR Get Map!

Bring your chair
Join us on Main Street in Historic Downtown Gresham for the exciting (and always hilarious) annual Olympic Bed Races! The bed races are a fun event where groups from local businesses and organizations race a decorated "bed" (complete with a theme and on rollers of course) to the finish line. It's a great time that's not to be missed!

"Rockin' Round the Block" Car Show

Over 300 Fabulous Cars When: Sat, Aug 13, 2011 8AM-7PM Where: Main Street Historic Downtown Gresham Gresham OR Get Map!

Largest street show west of the Mississippi -- Hot Rods, Classic Cars, Rock-n-Roll and Fabulous Food. Hosted by: Northwest Motorsports Association

Beds, Hot Rods & Classic Cars!
The weekend kicks-off Friday Aug 12th with the Historic Olympic Bed Race down Main St from 7PM-9PM. Saturday Aug 13th features beautiful cars, rock 'n roll, free kids activities, vendor booths and an old-fashioned street cruise!

Calling all garlic lovers! Join the fun

Garlic eats and ice cream! When: Fri-Sun Aug 12-14, 2011 Where: North Plains Elephant Garlic Festival (19 miles west of Portland off Hwy 26) North Plains, OR Get Map!

Fun Stinks!
If you like garlic this is one event you don't want to miss! Each August, North Plains hosts its signature “World’s Largest Elephant Garlic Festival” event. Each year the garlic festival attracts thousands of visitors to the tiny town of North Plains located 19 miles west of Portland, Oregon on Hwy 26.

This free three-day event begins on Friday, August 12th -- but it officially kicks-off Saturday morning with a parade of floats, marching bands and creatively costumed residents, who wave to spectators and throw candy to children along the route.

Garlic eats, crafts and garlic ice cream too!
Food vendors are required to have at least one menu item that contains Elephant Garlic. Garlic wine and garlic beer are offered in the family friendly atmosphere. Garlic ice cream is also available!

The festival features numerous arts & crafts booths, rides for kids and lots of live jammin' blues, and blue grass music from many of the Northwest's best musicians. There's also a car show Saturday hosted by the Northwest Vintage Thunderbird Club.