The selection of books was amazing! I had never been to a Powell's Books within all of my life…read moreliving in southern Washington. Due to an appointment in Oregon I got the pleasure to finally swing by and check one of them out... and WOW! I was in readers heaven. I felt like the pricing was a bit steep on some books but for the most part it's kind of worth it. The only weird vibe I had here was the staff. Yes, they were polite, but they were all so robotic. There was one lady who I swear asked me every four minutes without ever looking up at me "are you finding everything okay?" and even checking out the man at the counter hardly acknowledged me or spoke so much as the price my purchase was. Just a weird vibe to me, but then again, everyone has bad days.

I love this outpost of Powell's. It's a smaller (though honestly still pretty big) and more relaxed…read morecounterpart to the downtown "City of Books." They've got a curated selection of fiction, nonfiction, fantasy, kids books, and souvenirs/tchotchkes. These days I mostly borrow Kindle library books. If I'm getting a physical gift for someone, I'll come here, or if I want to see what their staff is recommending in any given category to figure out what to read next. There is free street parking in the neighborhood north or south of Hawthorne Blvd. Plenty of options to eat, drink, and thrift nearby, including the attached cafe Fresh Pot.

Every once in a while you hear about a product that you just know is going to make a great gift -…read morefor yourself or others. And Im always looking for a fun gift idea. So when I heard Dave from 33 Books being interviewed on NPR I just knew I had to check it out. It's a great story too, which I condense below, and I promise is directionally correct if not totally exact. Man likes beer. Man decided to try a different beer every day for a year. Man forgets which beer he likes most (maybe testing too many?) Man creates a small "beer book" (as opposed to "black book") that he carries with him and makes notes on each beer in. Man gets requests from friends for their own books. Man can't get a smaller printing than 500 (? 1000?) Decides to go for it and print large number. Man gives some to friends and puts the remaining on-line for sale. Man finds sales go well and people ask for books for wine, cheese and chocolate too. And other things. Meanwhile man keeps day job. And wife. After a few years and other 33 books, many sales, and even some maps (wines of France) he takes the plunge and quits his "day job" to focus solely on 33 Books. Still has wife too. Sales continue to go well. He gets on NPR. Sales see big jump. Including from me. I got my books today. Yeah! I can't tell you about all of them because some are slated as small gifts for some select fellow Yelpers. But here are some specifics. Each book fits in your pocket easily. Or purse. You will need a writing utensil though. Come to think of it, be great if these came with one of those super thin pens you can get these days. Dave - hope you already thought of that. I added some pics so you can get an idea of what the booklets are. You can put in start and end dates. Each page is for a different beer, with different rating options - sweet or sour, malty, toffee, citrus etc. and how did it come - draft, bottle, can etc. and of course name and price. And section for notes, where, if you are like me and remember places by meals you add in that type of info. Or perhaps who you were enjoying it with. And of course a 5 star rating system (Yelp probably influenced that). The books are made from recycled paper and use soy based ink. The beer books all have a touch of California Common Brewed beer too. The wine books have a few drops of wine. You get the idea. This is a fun and creative product that's sure to please any recipient. Even if they won't use it they are sure to know someone who will. Go visit 33books.com and check out your options.

Just Out is a very well put together bi monthly magazine that caters to the LGBT community in the…read morePortland area. It covers topics going on in the city as well as performance arts and design. A well put together magazine!

Just Out is a bi-monthly (no pun intended) local newspaper here in Portland that emphasizes GLBT…read morenews and issues, but is a great read for anyone who enjoys great writing and (occasionally) risk-taking journalism. My company (a high-end car dealership) has advertised with Just Out for several years, and this review is limited to my experience advertising with the paper. I love reading it too, but that's another review.... What we sell, primarily, is the high end of mid-range cars. BMW 3 series, Audi A4's, Volvo's, C-Class Mercedes, etc. We've tried several ad venues over the years; what we've found is that in addition to the flexibility, attention to our needs, and on-the-spot professionalism we've experienced with the Just Out staff, the return is simply unbeatable. Every time one of our Just Out ads comes out, our phone rings -- and we are able to connect with people who want to buy our cars. I think our success with Just Out has a lot to do with their demographic, which is both relatively better educated than average and relatively wealthy, and our style -- Just Out's readers are smart and looking for both value and quality -- but if you can please their readers consistently, they will send you more business than you can handle. When you're considering the circulation vs. $$, they seem a bit pricey, but if you look closely at the return (as all of us business owners have done these last two years, if we're still business owners) you'll see that they're the most effective and cheapest way to get your name and your product/service out there. We'll continue to advertise with Just Out as long as they continue to rock like they have for us. Personal props to Larry Lewis, the sales director, for all the time he's taken to give honest feedback on our ads, and his staff who have helped him make our relationship so successful. Oh, and if you're wondering if you have to be a gay business to advertise, the answer is no. You should know a guy who knows a guy who knows how to speak "gay", though.