The Skeleton Key Odditorium is Keeping Portland Weird

Portland’s unofficial motto is “Keep Portland Weird” something stolen from Austin, Texas. And Portland certainly marches to the beat of its own drum. One place that is helping keep Portland weird is the Skeleton Key Odditorium, a 2,500 square foot museum filled with oddities, spooky treasures, and best of all, a spirit board collection. Visitors pass…

McMenamins Grand Lodge: 100 Year Old Freemason Retirement Home Turned Whimsigoth Hotel

As mentioned earlier, we returned to Oregon for Patrick’s sister’s wedding. She chose to get married at a local campground with a beautiful lake. As her and her friends adore camping, many opted to pitch tents right on site. As for me I chose for Patrick and I to stay at McMenamins Grand Lodge, a…

Idle Hour: Eat Inside a Giant Hidden Dog at California’s Last Barrel Restaurant

As many of you know I’m an architecture junkie, and one of my favorite forms of architecture is programmatic, or fondly known as “California Crazy” that is to say, buildings that are constructed to look like something, which California was wildly known for. Sadly, there are very few examples left, but at Idle Hour you…

A Peek Inside one of Americas’ Oldest Letterpress Studios: Hatch Show Print

Promoting a concert is important, it’s part of how you get people in the door. As Nashville emerged as “Music City” artists flocked to perform at the variety of venues, and for many of them, they turned to Hatch Show Print to make their posters. Reverend William T. Hatch moved to Nashville with his two…