Samantha Swindler

The mystery of the Les Schwab pinball machine: how a tire company prop ended up in an Astoria arcade The custom game, featuring plastic “free beef” steaks and company slogans, can be played at Galactix arcade on the Oregon coast.

How a Les Schwab pinball game made it way from Portland to Gresham to Olympia to Astoria:

Kombucha girl meme: ice is tear gassing kids/ you get a Springsteen concert

www.oregonlive.com/entertainmen...

Here's your reminder to go eat in Chinatown this week:

🫡

It's weird to be reminded that not everyone is as online as we are. 🙃

My husband asked who Keke Palmer was (I want watch The Burbs) so I just stared at him and said "ROSE," but sadly, this did not help.

A love story on ice: Jerry and Tally’s six decades at Lloyd Center ice rink They’ve skated together at Lloyd Center since 1967. Now their rink is disappearing.

Grab yer tissues before watching the video 🥹
This Portland couple, ages 80 and 75, have been ice skating together at Lloyd Center since 1967.

Amtrak offers first look at fancy new trains. Here’s when they’ll debut in the Northwest The new Airo trains will be coming to the Amtrak Cascades line in 2026.

TRAIN NEWS

Solid piece of Sellwood cat journalism. I'm on Team Batman. But the real heads know about Bella and Nacho.

Stars on Ice in Portland — OSC OSC Members: Stars on Ice is available through your code RQORSKATECOUNCIL on https://www.rosequarter.com/events/group-tickets .

If you, too, are obsessed with skater Ilia Malinin, he's coming to Portland in May:

Astoria’s Love Locks at Pier 39 become a Valentine’s Day tradition On Feb. 14, get married at Pier 39, where an officiant will preside over commitment ceremonies or full weddings — as long as you bring your marriage certificate.

Astoria is for lovers 🫶

I don't actually know anything about how the Packers work, but it seems like the team couldn't just leave if a billionaire gets mad, so that would be cool. I like the idea of a people-owned team. Seize the means of recreation!

Why can't cities or fans own their sports teams? It's a public benefit. (And this is how I learned about the Green Bay Packers.)

It sucks but the alternative is... some other government will pay him

I hope I’m wrong, but this is why I fear the Trail Blazers could be as good as gone | Bill Oram Tom Dundon may not necessarily want to move the Trail Blazers, but he strikes me as agnostic to where the team plays.

Hooboy, @billoram.bsky.social making me care about sports. 😬 (Yes, I had to Google "Clay Bennett.")

Meet the Oregon skiers and snowboarders headed to the 2026 Winter Olympics These four athletes are going from the Oregon Cascades to the Italian Alps for the Olympics.

There are four Oregonians representing Team USA in this year's Olympics:

Like millions of Americans, I’m excited for Super Bowl LX because my husband will be gone for 4 hours watching the game with friends and I can finally finish Heated Rivalry. 🙏

Who was Ah Bing? New children’s book reveals Oregon story behind famous cherry Author Livia Blackburne and illustrator Julia Kuo transform Ah Bing's sparse biography into a fable about family, prejudice and the fruit that changed the global market.

Little is known about the orchardist in Oregon who forever changed the international fruit market in 1875 by cultivating the popular Bing cherry.

But two artists used their keen imagination to grow the few seeds of Ah Bing’s biography into a poignant children’s book

You should check it out! It's ... different, but cool.

U.S. citizen was running errands. After ICE stop, she ended up at the hospital instead The Oregon woman was on her way to pay rent and to buy a cake for her grandson’s birthday when federal agents started following her.

A U.S. citizen suffered a concussion, a torn rotator cuff and bruised ribs after immigration officers stopped her on a Salem street, broke her car window, pulled her out and then left abruptly after discovering her passport in her purse, advocates said.

‘Save Lloyd’ pushes back as owners move forward with teardown of mall and its ice rink The master plan dedicates about 23% of the Lloyd Center redevelopment for courtyards, plazas and green space, including a 2.3‑acre urban park.

Here's the concept for the new Lloyd Center. We also now know the main mall will shut down at some point this year, and yes, the whole thing is slated for demolition, including the ice rink:

Just experienced the most intense tear gassing of my life by federal officers outside the ICE facility in Portland where marchers gathered. There was no fast exit as they indiscriminately threw loads of gas and flash bangs. Children were in the crowd screaming. @oregoncapitalchronicle.com

Oregon animal rights initiative aims to ban hunting, fishing, slaughtering of livestock The measure would criminalize any activity that injures or kills animals.

It is bonkers that they have 79% of the signatures needed to put this on the ballot, and they have until July to get there.

This is how you launder a bribe publicly:

Superintendent links federal immigration enforcement to student withdrawals, warns of staff reductions In a mid-year update to the Forest Grove School Board, Superintendent Suzanne West said the district faced layoffs and that federal immigration enforcement is believed to be driving a spike in student...

In Forest Grove schools: "As a community, I suspect we will be feeling it for a generation. I don't think this is going to end soon. I think we're in it for the long haul, and the long term effects of what staff and students are feeling, we won't know the full effect of that for many years."

Oregon’s second-most famous carpets will be back in the spotlight next month The Oregon State Capitol’s carpets have inspired a popular line of carpet-themed merchandise.

If you'd like a brief intermission from the tragedies, take a minute to read about some lovely carpet.

What appreciate about this is we’re 18 minutes into episode 1 and here we go. None of this Bridgerton episode 5 crap. 😅

Tv with the title card for the first episode of Heated Rivalry showing

It’s happening for me.

The grimness of US history should encourage us. Yes, people used to send lynching postcards. And other people saw that, worked towards building a more just society anyway, and succeeded beyond anyone's wildest imagination. There's more work to be done. What's our excuse for choosing despair instead?

If you're into hyperfixation, have you tried ... journalism? I just spent an hour looking up photos of carpets from U.S. state capitols. For work.