Education.com has put out a new article on the top high schools in Portland.

I took a look at my old high school, Clackamas. I really like the individual school pages (with test score data!) and how you can search for your school.

From their article, here are the top 10 high schools they picked in Portland:

• Arts & Communication High School
• Cam Junior Senior High School
• Lake Oswego Senior High School
• Lakeridge High School
• Lincoln High School
• Riverdale High School
• School of Science & Technology
• Sherwood High School
• Vancouver School of Arts and Academics
• West Linn High School

New trends are always being created in Portland, without effort or when others are deemed old and out-of-date. For example, the stickers that have been circulating various bumpers of hybrids, Subaru’s and fenders advising others to “Keep Portland Normal,” prove that change is consistent. And this originality makes Portland distinct from other places, giving us a television series on IFC and a nationally known doughnut shop that specializes in unconventionally flavored (and shaped) baked goods. Portland is weird, normal, perpetual, and the list of adjectives will continue for years to come. Here are a few things that you may have not known about Portland because let’s face it, it is difficult to keep up with this place.

1. Benson Bubblers were created to discourage employees from drinking alcohol during working hours. Simon Benson developed the idea to put 20 of the freshwater fountains we see today, scattered throughout the city of bridges and beer, when he smelt the strong scent of alcohol in his mill one day. The workers used the excuse that there was no fresh drinking water around the city, so they were left to drink what flow from Portland taps. Once the fountains were distributed around the city, beer consumption decreased by 25%. Today there are 41 Benson Bubblers, with one in Portland’s sister city, Sapporo, Japan.

2. The city was almost named Boston. But after a coin toss between Francis Pettygrove, a man from Portland, Maine, and Asa Lovejoy, from Boston, Massachusetts, the city was named “Portland” by chance. Or was it fate?

3. Portland grew so quickly that the stumps of trees were left in the middle of roads, because no one had the spare time to remove them. Local residents found they could jump from stump to stump to avoid the muddy, unpaved streets, hence the nickname “Stumptown.”

4. Portland has its own roller derby team called the Rose City Rollers. You may have seen them around town. Because how could you miss a flock of women in roller skates and fish net tights?

5. What is the naked bike ride supporting, anyways? Portland annually participates in the World Naked Bike Ride, which happens in cities all over the world. Some riders are protesting oil dependency, but many others just enjoy the thrill of riding on a bike naked through our beautiful city. Being naked is indecent exposure, according to Portland law, but police turn their head on this one day of the year when thousands (an estimated 13,000 in 2011) gather to strip and ride.

6. Portland is one of the few destinations outside of France where you can take your dog into pubs.

7. Northwest Portland’s Forest Park is the largest urban area in the country.

8. Portland’s governor from 1967 to 1975, Gov. Tom McCall, developed the Oregon Bottle Bill, which was the first of its kind. It allowed bottles of certain materials to be returned for a profit to recycling centers. The law is credited for reducing litter and increasing recycling. Thank you Governor Tom McCall, we love your waterfront park.

9. Voo Doo Doughnuts offers legal wedding ceremonies. They can make special wedding/doughnut cakes too, just for your special day.

10. Word on the street is, Montage has the best bowl of Mac n’ Cheese in Portland. Taste for yourself by visiting its industrial location beneath the Morrison Bridge.

11. SE Grind is the only 24-hour coffee shop in Portland. Located on 12th and SE Powell, near the Aladdin Theater.

12. Portland has its very own library on wheels for people who live outside. It’s called Street Books and the librarian is Laura Molten, who has been dubbed Portland’s “street librarian.”

13. The Pillar of Books at Powell’s Books’ NW entrance comprises eight of what Powell’s believes are the world’s great books, each titled in their original languages. The pillar includes: Mahabharata, an epic poem of India; 1000 Nights and a Night, a classic collection of Arabic Tales; Hamlet, Shakespeare’s play; War and Peace, Tolstoy’s classic; Tao te Ching, the basis of Taoism by Lao Tzu; Psalms, Hebrew poetry from the Old Testament; The Odyssey, Homer’s epic tale of the Greek world; and The Whale, the original title of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. Around the pillar in Latin, the words, ”Buy the Book, Read the Book, Enjoy the Book and Sell the book” are written.

14. Portland has over 200 food carts, bringing Portlanders delicious food of all kinds for cheap.

15. The Portland Symphony is the oldest orchestra in the west, and was established in 1896.

16. Portland has an underground labyrinth-loving community. Who would have known?

17. U.S. News & World Report rated Portland the fifth best city for public transportation in 2011.

18. The best crawfish in Portland can be eaten at My Brother’s Crawfish in SE PDX. Is this opinion? You decide.

19. Fire on the Mountain’s El Jefe Champion ate 40 wings in one sitting. His name is Paul Kaushal and he is a two-time champion.

20. The Shanghai Tunnels reveal an underground view of Portland beneath NW Couch, Davis and Everett streets. They were once used to transport goods from ships docked on the Willamette to the basements of bars and hotels, and there is legend that the tunnels were used to illegally sell workers to ships waiting on the harbor in the mid-1800s through the early 20th century, giving the tunnels an eerie vibe and Portland visitors a curiosity that leads them to this underground tour.

21. Accompanying the Portlandia statue on SW 5th Avenue is a poem on a plaque by Portland poet, Ronald Talney. The plaque reads:

She kneels down

and from the quietness

of copper

reaches out.

We take that stillness

into ourselves

and somewhere

deep in the earth

our breath

becomes her city.

If she could speak

this is what

she would say:

Follow that breath.

Home is the journey we make.

This is how the world

knows where we are.

Photo by: Wildcat Dunny

I watched the first episode of the new IFC channel show, “Portlandia” on Hulu last night.

Great pilot. Great guest stars. And some truly hilarious moments.

But don’t take my word for it, watch for yourself below…

What I didn’t realize is the executive produce is Lorne Michaels. Yeah, that Lorne Michaels! Of SNL fame.

SkinniDip is a local portland chain of frozen yogurt shops with 3 locations in the Pearl, near Pioneer Square, and near 23rd and Burnside.

This place was heaven for my wife after surgery and before when she couldn’t eat solid foods. They have only a few flavors, I’m a fan of the original, but my wife liked the raspberry. Lots of toppings choices (I like Captain Crunch!).

The yogurt is fresh and I like the tart flavor of the original. It’s not cheap though, expect to spend $5 for a decent medium size.

SkinniDip Locations

In the Pearl District…..

433 NW 10th Ave
Portland, OR
(503) 224-0704

Near 23rd & Burnside

2230 W Burnside St # B
Portland, OR
(503) 222-5230

In SW Portland right across from Pioneer Square…

617 SW Morrison St
Portland, OR 97205
(503) 790-9999

We’ve spent some time compiling a huge list of the top blogs by Portlanders. Congrats to all the blogs that made the cut!

Top blogs written by Portlanders

12 Eyes 60 Toes
A Portland family of eight shares their daily life.
http://12eyes60toes.blogspot.com

503 Blog
Joe Aimonetti, Mac consultant, graphic artist and photographer, writes about interesting and nerdy stuff.
http://503creative.tumblr.com

Art for Homeschool
Art for homeschool is a helpful site for parents who want to use art education in the home.
http://www.artforhomeschool.com

Badinia.com
A blog about art, costumes, comedy, and ephemera.
http://www.badinia.com

BBQ’ing Tips from Deep in the Heart of Oregon
Simple recipes (well not all of them are simple), and tips that will improve your barbecue, grilling & cooking skills.
http://barbecuegrillsplus.blogspot.com/

Betsy & Iya
Independent jewelry designer writes on fashion, life, and love.
http://www.betsyandiya.com/blog

Beyond 50 Radio
America’s Talk Show for Baby Boomers.
http://www.Beyond50Radio.Blogspot.com

Bliss
A Guide to pretty things, by a Portland girl.
http://blissfulb.blogspot.com

Cleeo & Bea
A baby and kid product review blog. They review companies who manufacture child safe nontoxic products.
http://www.cleeoandbea.com

Communist Robot Articles
Pertaining to the upcoming Robot, Space, and Fusion Revolution.
http://www.communistrobot.com

Daily Comics Review
Reviews the worst and the best of daily comics.
http://www.dailycomicsreview.com

The Daily Postcard
Interesting look at a vintage postcard each and every day
http://postcardparadise.blogspot.com/

Daily Portland Photo
Great personal blog with photos of the life of an active Portlander
http://portlandoregondailyphoto.blogspot.com

Extensis Blog – Manage This
The Extensis Blog, covers typography, software, events and items of creative interest.
http://blog.extensis.com

GL Franklyn
Gregory Franklyn discusses Current Affairs, Religion, Politics, Religion, and Media.
http://glfranklyn.com

Green Baby Guide
Ways to save time, money, and the planet.
http://greenbabyguide.com

Hot Butter
All about food…the good, the bad, and the ugly.
http://hotbutter.wordpress.com

Imagine Your Reality
Taylor Elwood offers articles on business, social media and other topics that are of interest to the entrepreneur and small business owner.
http://www.imagineyourreality.com/blog

Improvising Fatherhood
A blog by a dad and the comedy of being one.
http://improvisingfatherhood.com

Indie Blog Shot
Inventive new music is the topic of this blog. It is written by a team of writers and researchers.
http://indieblogshot.blogspot.com/

Inspired2Cook
Offers tips and recipes to cook at home.
http://www.inspired2cook.com

John Heckman Wright.com
From the home of writer DJ John Heckman Wright. Featuring reviews, published work, and commentary.
http://www.johnheckmanwright.com

Luna Café
A virtual café located somewhere along the 45th parallel, with easy access to the sea.
http://thelunacafe.com

My Creativity Blog
Terry Holliday, artist and teacher, writes about creativity, art education, and the artistic process.
http://mycreativityblog.com

Oregon Personal Injury Law
Blog on accidents, discrimination in the workplace, product liability, employment discrimination, medical malpractice and work injury law. Published by the Law Office of Dane E. Johnson.
http://www.oregontorts.com

Organic City Sounds
Each week this blog produces a different portrait capturing a different part of the city. Very cool.
http://www.organiccitysounds.com/

Pangea Interior Design
Portland, Oregon based Interior Designer, Pangaea, shares designer’s secrets, and DIY advice.
http://pangaea-id.com/pangaea-interior-design-blog/

Pampelmoose
A music and MP3 blog who supports independent labels only. By Dave Allen of Gang of Four.
http://www.pampelmoose.com

Planet Mando
All about food, cuisine and nature.
http://planet-mando.blogspot.com

Portland’s Papa Blog
A Portland husband and father commenting on daily life.
http://www.pdxpapablog.com

Powered by Tofu
An around the world trip, documented by a Pacific Northwester who ditched her MBA for a once in a lifetime adventure.
http://www.poweredbytofu.com/

Renaissance Culinaire
A culinary blog with poetry mixed in. Look for great photographs of food and excellent recipes.
http://abstract2collective.blogspot.com/

Salt News
This blog includes recipes, and commentary, about salt.
http://www.saltnews.com

Sinister
A blog of commentary, news, commentary, and snark, from the magical kingdom of PDX.
http://www.sinisterblog.com

Snarke
Erin Steiner uses humor to discuss life.
http://www.snarke.net

Spiritual Development with Intuisdom
Anthony Elohan Byers observations.
http://becomingthenaturalself.blogspot.com/

Street Fashion Worldwide
A worldwide community with no specific base location, last year Buenos Aires, this year Portland Oregon, next year Mexico? This Blog features listings of stores and street fashion photos in cities all over the world!
http://street-fashion.net/portland-oregon-usa/

The Consumer Trap
Exposing corporate marketing, capitalism and market totalitarianism.
http://www.consumertrap.com

The Daily Postcard
The Daily Postcard is a site that explores history through vintage postcards.
http://postcardparadise.blogspot.com

The Virtual Presenter
Roger Courville on the art of web-based presentations via the web.
http://www.thevirtualpresenter.com

This Shape of Jazz
Blogs about music, from the 1960s Also discusses bop, hard-bop, and soul jazz.
http://thisshapeofjazz.blogspot.com

Three On Grove
A family of three on grove street in the PNW…
http://threeongrove.com/

Urban Survivalists
A blog that shows people how to be sustainable using do it yourself projects to improve their home and life.
http://www.urbansurvivalists.com

Wellness Billionaire
Offers comments, articles, links and more on nutrition, health, wellness, fitness, exercise and diet. Advice to help you live better and longer.
http://wellnessbillionaire.com

Blogs about Portland

Following is a list of Blogs about Portland, Oregon. They range from Food and Drink, to news and Sports and everything in between. Enjoy!

Acupuncture in Portland
A resource to learn more about the traditional Chinese medicine – Acupuncture.
http://www.portlandacupunctureblog.com/

Beervana
All about Beer and Breweries in Portland, Oregon.
http://beervana.blogspot.com/

Bike Portland
BikePortland.org is a daily news source that covers the Portland bike scene.
http://bikeportland.org/

Bust A Bucket
A fan site of the Portland Trailblazers.
http://www.bustabucket.com/

Chef Crush
Because cooking makes a person cute and sometimes even sexy! We love good food, and we totally crush on the people who cook it for us.
http://chefcrush.com

Dane Jarecki.com
A place to find out about writing-related events going on throughout Portland, Oregon.
http://davejarecki.com/blog/

Dave Knows Portland
Features events and festivals around Portland, Oregon.
http://portland.daveknows.org/

Dining Out in Portland
A Blog that tracks and comments on food across Portland.
http://dininginpdx.blogspot.com/

Eater PDX
The very latest in all things related to dining and drinking in Portland.
http://pdx.eater.com/

Food Carts Portland
A guide to food carts in Portland Oregon.
http://www.foodcartsportland.com/

Hungry Eyeball
Hungry Eyeball support s visiting and local artists. There is also an online art gallery, where visitors can purchase Portland artwork.
http://hungryeyeball.com/

It’s Pub Night – Enjoying good beer in Portland.
Drinking beer in one of the greatest beer scenes the world has ever known — Portland, Oregon.
http://www.its-pub-night.com/

Journey Etc.
Things to do in Portland, Oregon.
http://www.journeyetc.com/travel-destinations/things-to-do-in-portland-oregon/

Metro Parent
Family fun things to do with kids in the Portland Metro area.
http://www.metro-parent.com/

Portland Food and Drink
An unbiased review of Portland, Oregon’s restaurants.
http://www.portlandfoodanddrink.com/

Portland Monthly
Portland Monthly is Portland’s indispensable news, culture, and lifestyle magazine.
http://www.portlandmonthlymag.com/

Portland Sucks
Rants from the Tree-Hugging, Birkenstock-Wearing, Dope Smoking, Red-Headed Sustainable Stepchild of the Pacific Northwest
http://pdxsucks.com

Portland Comins
Interviews and coverage of the local Portland comic scene by Doug Dorr
http://pdxcomics.blogspot.com/

Shop Vintage Portland
A guide to all vintage things that Portland has to offer.
http://www.shopvintageportland.com/

Silicon Florist
Covering the blossoming startup industry in Portland, Oregon.
http://siliconflorist.com/

The Offside
Site about Portland Timbers Soccer Team.
http://timbers.theoffside.com/

The Portland Press Herald
Portland’s Daily newspaper blog featuring news, weather, sports etc.
http://www.pressherald.com/blogs

Ultra
Blog about art and performance in Portland, Oregon.
http://www.ultrapdx.com/zero/

Uniquely Portland Oregon News
News and information about Uniquely Portland Oregon.
http://www.uniquely-portland-oregon.com/portland-oregon-blog.html

Wrect Angle Apparel
A clothing company in Portland, focused on letting everyone know what Oregon is all about.
http://getwreckt.blogspot.com/

In our continuing series profiling Portland Neighborhoods, enterprising reporter Brittany visited Reed, Brooklyn, Eastmoreland and the Hosford Abernethy neighborhoods in SE Portland last week.

What are you favorite SE Portland Neighborhoods?

Every day this summer we will be sending out Brittany, our intrepid field reporter, to meet Portlanders in different neighborhoods across the city.

Her first report is on Sellwood.

The downtown Portland World Trade Center building was evacuated today due to an apparent cardboard box catching on fire in the basement of the building.

The fire has been contained, no injuries have been reported.

Source: Twitter
Photo Credit: @davedunlap

Bad Photo, Great HD picture at the Bagdad

I went to the free screening of LOST last night at McMenamins’ Bagdad Theater. It was a blast. The episode was little strange (it was the backstory of Smokey and Jacob), but the atmosphere and venue was amazing.

I can’t believe it was free. Well, I did get a hard cider that was $6, so there you go.

Last Two LOST Showings

Tuesday May 18th – 8pm Doors – 9pm Showtime (last regular episode)
Sunday May 23rd – 7pm RECAP 9pm-11:30pm Showtime (Series Finale! 2 1/2 hours)

Are you going?

I visited two co-working offices in Old Town today. Co-working is for people who don’t mind a little community with their work. For the freelance web publisher (me) or consultant it’s a fairly inexpensive way to have an office that’s not your kitchen table.

I was impressed by both NedSpace (Old Town) and Souk. But I got different “vibes” from each place. Mark at NedSpace was very pleasant, and they have a cool old brick building they operate in.

Souk had more of a less-formal feel, and the community manager Brian was a hoot. The space was smaller, but there seemed to be more activity going on.

Gut feeling?

Looking to raise VC? Try NedSpace

Social media consultant? Souk

Me?

Still deciding. The price was right at Souk for a “hot desk” (not assigned, open space) at $275/month, but I need to decide if I need a private space or not. Probably, but I might be able to manage without one for a few months while I get settled in Portland.

Coworking in Old Town/Pearl District

Souk
Full time membership: 275/mo
www.soukllc.com

NedSpace (Old Town)
Private offices from $575/mo
www.nedspace.com