Friday October 31, 2008
From 8:00pm - 11:59pm
McMenamins | Kennedy School
5736 NE 33rd Avenue
Portland, Oregon 97211

Portland's Underground

Ever hear about construction equipment falling through sink holes around Portland?  They’re not sink holes, they’re the Portland Underground, also called the Shanghai Tunnels.  Long ago basements all over Portland were connected through a vast network of tunnels.  Allowing merchants to bring goods from the docks into the city, avoiding muddy unpaved streets.  Of course, where people go, crime goes.

Kidnapping, opium dens, brothels, boot-legging, it was everywhere.  As roads were paved it was used less but the crime remained, Shanghais continued until World War 2 began.  These days it is all but gone, between earthquake proofing, businesses closing it for security reasons, and people simply not knowing it’s there, it is slowly being destroyed.

For a long time I’ve wanted to go see it, there are tours.  Finally this last weekend I went with 9 friends, the tour was almost 40 people total.  Being close to Halloween, the tour-guide told us about all of the ghosts and paranormal activity.  For someone who grew up around Portland it was well worth my $17, but the normal tours cost less.  Check out www.shanghaitunnels.info if you want to see more about it.

Leo is 37 years old, from the Fillippines, and is making waves in the Hair Cut industry, taking on the big guys like Super Cuts.  He was recently quoted by the Oregonian, saying “I have fears every day,” Rivera said. “I wake up scared every day. I don’t want to wake up in 20 years and be Supercuts.”

Is there enough room in the industry for Bishops to go Nationwide?

Leo sure thinks so, it’s a $55 Billion industry and the typical American gets their hair cut every 4 to 6 weeks, spending over 80% of their money on the extra stuff.  The Oregonian article also said: There are 850 CostCutters, with “a relaxed hair care experience with no appointments and no hassles;” 200 Pro-Cuts, where “you don’t have to pay very much for the look that you want;” and 2,100 Supercuts, where the mantra is “Style it up with a suped up cut from Supercuts.”

How Did Bishops Get Started?

Rivera, with no business experience, cobbled together $40,000 of his own money and friends’ to open his Hawthorne store. It attracted about a dozen shaggy customers its first month. But the company earned $600,000 its second year, and sales have increased sixfold since then.

Rivera’s business experience boils down to three main skills: hustling, gambling and sales. Specifically, he sells himself –to a circle of friends at upscale country clubs, to the lowlifes at Portland’s dingiest watering holes.

“I understand people,” Rivera said, explaining his success. “I’m really good at doing things that I don’t like, but what other people want. If it were up to me, the whole world would be strip clubs and dive bars.”

Treating His Business Like Family

A main concern is also keeping the Bishops family ethic strong, Farina said. By all accounts, working at Bishops is like having a dysfunctional but loving family. Some company employees have been there since Day One in a high-turnover industry.

Rivera knows just about each of his 80 employees by name. He’s familiar with their personal issues, for better or worse. As soon as Farina arrived at Bishops in 2005, she left on a family emergency for four weeks. Rivera paid her salary the entire time.

“I have great loyalty to Leo. He’s been like a cousin,” Farina said. “We have a good family here, and there’s a lot of trust.

“But the bigger it gets, the farther it gets from us.”

Bishops will debut at the West Coast Franchise Expo on Nov. 7. Within five years, the company hopes to have franchises in 15 markets in the U.S. and Canada and, eventually, more than 200 stores.

David Huether, Bishops’ director of franchising, said it’s a perfect time for Rivera to franchise. Real estate is cheap. The unemployed are looking for opportunities. But is there such a thing as too many Bishops?

“When McDonald’s had 7,000 stores in the 1970s, we said, ‘Geez, how can they build any more McDonald’s? Will people eat that many french fries?” Huether said. “Now, there are three times the number. So, obviously the answer is, yes and they can.”

Rivera prefers to let his minions handle the tough questions. He’ll take care of protecting the brand.

(Original Oregonian Article)

In this talk, I will give the rationale for Factor’s creation, present an overview of the language, and show how Factor can be used to solve real-world problems with a minimum of fuss. At the same time, I will emphasize Factor’s extensible syntax, meta-programming and reflection capabilities, and show that these features, which are unheard of in the world of mainstream programming languages, make programs easier to write, more robust, and fun.
Thursday October 30, 2008
From: 10:30am - 11:30am
AT: Galois
421 SW 6th Ave., Suite 300
Portland, Oregon 97204

http://factorcode.org

Cocktail Cabaret offers its audience a unique experience rarely found today. The show is reminiscent of days past when vaudeville and cabaret were the veins of entertainment. They combine dance, song, risqué innuendos, great costumes, loads of energy, and downright funny stuff to create a new era of cabaret. Cocktail Cabaret specializes in themed shows such as Tropicana, Viva Las Vegas, Broadway Baby, and Follies Bergere along with their more mixed shows that they fondly refer to as A Barrel Full of Monkeys.

Cocktail Cabaret has performed in many of Portland’s favorite music venues, including Lola’s Room (Crystal Ballroom), McMenamin’s White Eagle Saloon, and the Mississippi Pizza Pub. Because the members of Cocktail Cabaret are committed to service, the ensemble also performs for fundraisers and other charity events throughout the year.

Saturday October 25, 2008
from 8:00pm - 11:00pm
Mission Theater & Pub
1624 Nw Glisan St
Portland, Oregon 97209

Salut! Wine Port Tweet Up

This is an informal tweet up event. Invite any local Twitterers who would enjoy great company and a great tasting event. Dave at Salut! does an amazing job running this. It actually runs Friday thru Sunday. Our “unofficial” tweet up is Saturday from 3 to 5ish.

The northwest’s biggest port tasting event! 24 different Port and dessert wines from around the world will be sampled for three days of enjoyment. Your $10 tasting fee provides you with four Red ($2) tickets and a white ($4) ticket. Blue ($6) tickets also available. Each 1 oz. pour uses 1 ticket. Wines are listed in Red, White & Blue level categories. Buy additional tickets as you wish!

Saturday October 25, 2008
from 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Salut! Wine Company
16020 SE Mill Plain Blvd., Suite 105
Vancouver, Washington 98684

Here is some foreclosure data of homes on the market in Portland.

Pending = Area
12% = North Portland (73 of 599)
11% = Northeast Portland (143 of 1264)
12% = Southeast Portland (237 of 1943)
9% = Gresham, Troutdale (108 of 1254)
11% = Milwaukie, Happy Valley, Clackamas (157 of 1369)
7% = Oregon City, Canby (65 of 963)
7% = Lake Oswego, West Linn (82 of 1155)
11% = West Portland (217 of 1977)
12% = Northwest Washington County (82 of 673)
13% = Beaverton, Aloha (172 of 1321)
9% = Tigard, Tualatin, Sherwood, Wilsonville (140 of 1535)
10% = Hillsboro, Forest Grove (106 of 1111)

“After nine months, “Steeped,” the first Portland-made narrative film produced by wideshot studios, is making it’s long-awaited debut. Produced by Diana Bayless and directed by Peter Hermes, “Steeped” is a short film focusing on the routines of the modern relationship. Stuck in the hum drum of their daily existence, Jake and Dana both need something to spice up their lives and each find refuge in unexpected ways. It will be screening alongside other films and music videos made by the wideshot team.”

Apocalyptica Music

Friday October 24, 2008
at 9:00pm
The Roseland Theater and Grill
Eight N.W. Sixth Ave.
Portland, Oregon 97209

Since 1996 and the release of their debut album ‘Apocalyptica Plays Metallica By Four Cellos’, Apocalyptica - graduates of the prestigious Sibelius Academy in Finland - have been developing a style that is tough to put a name to… ‘Heavy Cello Mayhem’? ‘Rock’n’ Resin’?!… The possibilities are vast, but whatever the latest tag, the fact remains that never before had a group of classically-trained cellists, metal fans to a man, attempted to fuse together the seemingly disparate worlds of classical music & hard rock…of Prokofiev & Pantera… Shostakovich & Slayer… to seek out the middle ground between the mosh pit & the orchestra pit, the dinner jacket & the denim jacket, whilst being 100 per cent respectful to both camps.

Cobra Starship/Forever Music

WONDER BALLROOM IS NON-SMOKING & WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE. CAFE WONDER IS OPEN FOR DINNER & COCKTAILS

GENERAL ADMISSION TICKET
US $16.00

Friday October 24, 2008
at 7:00pm
Wonder Ballroom
128 NE Russell St
Portland, Oregon 97212

First of all, don’t believe all the media reports you read on the housing markets these days.  If you look around and ask a few questions, the answers may surprise or even shock you.

Here’s an Example of a Portland Foursquare Home:

I was out researching the market here in Portland this last weekend to see if how much truth there is to all the media reports on housing.  I focused on the inner neighborhoods of Portland to see how they compared to the doomsday reports we have been reading about in  Clark County, Happy Valley, and other “burb” locations.

While doing my research, I came across a builder that appears to be breaking the mold. Actually, he is not only breaking the mold, he is crushing it.  This builder had signs up everywhere in these areas, and most of them said “sale pending”….Windermere signs with Debi Robertson and Shauna White plastered on the side.  Extreme curiosity at this wonder caused me to call the President of this company.  When I called, a deep voice of what sounded like a younger gentleman answered, on the 1st ring!  “Palazzo Custom Homes this is Randy”.

I disclosed that I was simply a curious statistics hound, not an agent, appraiser, buyer or seller.  He immediately said that he would be pleased to tell me all about the inner Portland neighborhood market.

I asked him to give me his view of the current market conditions.  In a matter of fact tone, he told me that “there is nothing wrong with today’s market at all.  I have been working in these areas for over 20 years.  The market of 2004 and 2005 was an absolute nightmare waiting to happen.  The principles that were heavily pronounced for so many years simply vanished.  Buyers were getting ridiculous loans, properties values were skyrocketing, and no one was acting realistic.  I had to step back and wait until we went back into a normal market.  Back in the late 80’s to early 90’s, you couldn’t get a conventional loan without a minimum 10% down.  The market was good, and interest rates were at 12% in 1988, and when they dropped below 10% in the early 90’s, we thought that we all had won the lottery.  Then, the conventional loans changed; you could now get one with 5% down!  Over the next 10 years, I saw some pretty ridiculous things happening, peaking when anyone with a pulse could get a loan.  I saw the demand for housing go through the roof, and knew that supply would eventually exceed demand if the loan programs tightened up.  Sure enough, they did.

I asked him what he meant by saying “there is nothing wrong with the market today”.  He shot back and said “today’s market is a normal market, just a bit more supply than I would like to see.  As far as availability of loans, it is no different than the late 80’s to early 90’s.  If you have a small down payment, a decent credit score, and 2 years of employment history, there are many banks that are doing loans.  Wells Fargo is one of the banks I think of.  They are a healthy bank with excellent service and several quality programs.”

I then asked him a question that I was sure that he would balk at; I asked “how many homes have you sold this year, Randy”?  He said “58″ (I did a double take when I heard that).  I asked him to confirm…fifty eight homes in the first nine months of this year?  He said “yes, and we should be at 80+ by years end”.  I asked him to elaborate.

“At Palazzo Custom Homes, we take a different approach than most builders.  First and foremost, we are building infill, so we build homes that look like they belong next to a home that has been there a hundred years, not one that look like it should be in a subdivision in Tualatin!.  We build vintage reproductions, like Old Portland Four Squares, Bungalows, Craftsman and, I am in the middle of designing an English Tudor and Colonial Revival.  I also designed some great homes with vintage charm for smaller, narrower lots.  We are selling over half of our homes presale; before they are completed.  The other half are selling within 30 days, only because we have to keep some models available.  The key to selling so many houses is that we put the absolute best product on the market, at the absolute best price in the current market.  We do not price homes more than 10% BELOW the today’s current market.  An example is that if we start a property today, and the market states $390,000, we will price it at $349,900, and will even discount it further if we sell it to a buyer on a pre sale basis.  This gives buyers the absolute best home on the market, at the absolute best price.  There are a lot of people that have bought from us this year that in my opinion, will have a huge chunk of equity once the market mentality starts to get better.  We also build every home green certified.  Palazzo Custom Homes has never built a home that is not green certified.  We do not charge extra for this; we pass it on to the customer at no cost.  Don’t get me wrong, it is difficult to sell so many houses when the mentality is not realistic.  When we factor in superior customer service and professionalism, it makes it a lot easier to sell our product.  We stay true to our customers wants and needs, which is one of the best traits of our company.  We are the number one builder in the City of Portland, and all of these reasons add up to the how and why”.

Despite his needing to bring the conversation to a close due to his busy schedule, I was able to ask him one last question - What do you see the market doing over the next 12 to 24 months?  Randy said “I am beginning to see a change in the market.  Prices are already bottoming out, and we have sold a few more houses each month over the last few months.  The news you hear or statistics you read are always 3 to 6 months behind what the market is doing today.  The best kept secret is that by next spring, it should be a nice healthy balance between a buyer’s market and seller’s market, as long as inventory continues to dwindle.”

Randy Palazzo of Palazzo Custom Homes satisfied my curiosity.  He really knows his market and certainly helped dispel many of the “poor housing market” reports we are reading today!

Join us at the OEN SwapMeet, a networking program specifically for people looking to connect with entrepreneurs, early-stage companies, and the people who can help Oregon businesses grow. There’s no entrance fee, and no pressure. Just networking, connecting, and a no-host happy hour! We hope to see you there.

Thursday October 23, 2008  from 5:00pm - 7:00pm
Someday Lounge
125 NW 5th
Portland, Oregon 97253

Every month Meet In Portland has a “Mingler” evening which is just for hanging out at a bar, meeting new members and other friends. This is very relaxed, friendly and informal - so just come along for a drink or two and meet new people!

Thursday October 23, 2008
from 7:30pm - 10:00pm
The Crown Room
205 NW 4th Ave
Portland, Oregon