Other Things

I’ve been in a state of sunshine-induced vacation-yearning for the last few weeks. Portland’s endless grey skies tend to do that, but it’s the trade-off I made for access to great coffee and great record stores. Goals for this summer include visiting every single record store in the Portland metro area. By my count, there…

It has been a busy few months of record collecting for me. After the trip down to Southern California, I had to lay off the collecting for a little bit to avoid becoming homeless. But in the last few weeks, I have been reading up on squatters’ rights and have thus been able to free…

Another winter is almost gone, and that means Record Store Day 2026 is right around the corner. If you are a record collector than this is either your favorite or least favorite holiday. For some, it’s a day to grab some unique new releases and stand in line for the festivities and limited releases at…

Portlanders love records. Like, really love records. The record store to resident ratio here is like 10 to 1. This means that there are some great record shows as well. Portland has more than one record show throughout the year, as well as smaller meet-ups/record swaps at places like Gigantic Brewery. The biggest of these shows…

When I was a kid, I was always more interested in the museum gift shop than the museum itself. In many cases, this is still true today. What can I say? I was born to be a capitalist. This fascination with acquiring a physical object to commemorate even the most minute occasions is something that…

I’ve been on a fairly strict budget for most of the summer. This means I am only allowed to buy records when I am feeling manic to swipe my card without checking my bank account first. Sure, I may have overdrawn my account a few times, but that is the price you must pay if…

We’ve all been there. One of your favorite bands is coming to town. The show starts at 9, but it’s a weeknight and you have work in the morning.  Fuck it.  Last time they were in town, you had a different excuse. You keep this up, and the band will announce a hiatus that turns…

The internet has ruined a great many things: mail-order catalogs, adult movie theaters, winning arguments by making things up that sound true but can easily be verified, the list goes on. There are also many, many thousands of little things that were lost as our access to the internet becomes simpler and simpler. One of…

Another Record Store Day has come and gone, and though I wasn’t able to grab everything I wanted, I would still consider this my best ever haul for the holiday. Record Store Day Haul This year, I opted for just two different record stores, mainly because I have been busy as all hell lately and…

It’s Spring time and that means Record Store Day 2025 is fast approaching. Do I normally participate in Record Store Day? Well sort of. Most years the record store day list will have a handful of items I am loosely interested in and this year is no different. If anything, Record Store Day is a…