Portland Business Alliance Business After Hours Hosted at AMPM PR headquarters

AM:PM PR Hosts Portland Business Alliance’s September After Hours Event

Who:

Come one, come all!

What:

Portland Business Alliance events  are among the highest-quality networking and professional development gatherings in the Portland region. Each month a different member hosts Business After Hours. These evening events offer attendees the opportunity to create new business relationships by networking in a relaxed setting that offers delicious appetizers, door prizes, and refreshments.

When:

September 12th, 5-7pm

Where:

AM:PM PR

2006 SE Clinton St.
Portland, OR 97206

Why:

Burrasca PDX Cyrkus Inc and Willamette Valley Pinot

It will be fun and worthwhile, of course. Also, this month’s raffle prizes include a magnum of Willamette Valley Vineyards 2012 Elton Pinot Noir donated AM:PM PR’s officemates/digital agency partner, Cyrkus Inc. and a $100 gift certificate for Portland’s best Tuscan soul food donated by AM:PM PR neighbor, Burrasca.

 

New Seasons and Fifty Licks Ice Cream Division Clinton

Thanks to our another generous neighbor and the friendliest store in town, we’ll be serving fresh fruit, mezze, beer and wine from New Seasons. And, just to sweeten the deal, Fifty Licks, will be sharing their famous ice cream as a sweet treat. That’s right. We like to spoil people that come visit us. It’s the neighborhood way.

Want to come? 

Learn more and register here:

 

 

Dissent is Patriotic

STORIES FROM THE FRONT LINES OF THE MOVEMENT – What ACLU-Oregon, IRCO & NWGSDPDX can tell us

Have you felt a chronic sense of anxiety over the last 100 days? Has the last 100 days felt like 300? Does a feeling of dread come over you every time you see another “Breaking News” alert? Well, we might have just the thing for you.

 

AM:PM PR Speakeasy Panel Discussion with ACLU and Nasty Women

 

Come join us at am:pm PR this Thursday, April 20th at 4:00 pm to hear from some of the heroes fighting for us on the front lines of the movement. Come to listen, come to learn, come to support, come to help, or come for the feeling of solidarity.

Our Inspiration

A recent New York Times (NYT) article referred to this as the “political age of anxiety” in response to a poll taken by the American Psychological Association where nearly 60 percent of Americans said the current political climate is a very or somewhat significant source of stress and the level of stress is rising.

Dr. Stephen C. Hayes, a psychology professor interviewed by the NYT, advised Americans, “Use your anxiety to motivate you. Think about what you value most and take action.”

Hayes goes on to say that taking action gives you a sense you have some control over your environment. That perceived self-efficacy can relieve stress and help you feel empowered. Whether signing a petition, participating in a march, making a donation, joining a group, hosting an event or just taking the time to be a better person – action at any level can provide a sense of purpose and hope.

So, you could say this is a selfish effort. I admit, I wanted to be in a room of like-minded and inspiring people. I also wanted to meet my new heroes – the Nasty Women who created the “In Our America” you see multiplying everywhere, members of the ACLU who are fighting harder than ever to preserve and protect our civil liberties and those at the Immigration and Refugee Community Organization (IRCO) who are working with those that feel most threatened right now.

Thankfully, representatives from each of these organizations have agreed to join us a for a panel discussion on just what the hell is happening right now, what they are doing about it and what you can do to help, if so inclined.

I hope you can join us for this group therapy session, but whether you are able to or not, here’s a list of videos, articles and sites that might give you the same feeling of hope and inspiration they give me:

 

 

The Resistance with Keith Olbermann

 

Full Frontal with Samantha Bee

 

Melissa McCarthy as Spicer

 

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

 

The Daily Show with Trevor Noah

 

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

 

 

Listen Learn Lead with Nasty Women Get Shit Done PDX

 

Anti-Trump Resistance School Starts at Harvard - CBS News

 

Recover Resist Reform - Anti-Trump - American Prospect

“I can’t overstate how unprecedented the grassroots energy of this resistance is,” said Anna Galland, MoveOn’s executive director.

 

American Prospect - No Factions in Foxholes in Anti-Trump Movement

 

Indivisible Group Guide

 

 

Portland Mercury Resistance & Solidarity Calendar

 

Resistance Calendar

 

 

 

Michele Kim Carter and Jay Carter on Great Day Houston

August Speakeasy: Pro Secrets for Making Powerful Videos

Part 1 of our 2 part series of video secrets from the pros

Having just one video about your business or organization isn’t enough any more. Now you need a series.

At our next Speakeasy event, hear from the team at Beyond Measure Media.  Jay and Michele
Next Speakeasy - Pro Secrets for Great Videos Part 2
Carter are award-winning video producers that specialize in telling documentary-style “stories from the heart” for businesses and nonprofits.

Drawing from years of experience in front of and behind the camera, they share:  

  • The types of videos every organization needs right now, and why.
  • The most common mistakes businesses make when creating their first video(s), and how to avoid them.
  • How to turn a mundane video interview into a magic moment that viewers won’t forget.
  • The one production element that is even more important than video quality.
  • Creative ways to boost your organization’s video output, including how to turn your entire roster of employees into lean, mean, powerful video production and idea machines.

All across the web and social media, your future customers and raving fans are out there — waiting to see, hear and connect with your brand and your mission.  A series of clear, carefully crafted videos is the most powerful way to tell your story, build loyalty and grow your tribe.

Join us October 5th for Part 2 of Pro Secrets for Making Powerful Videos.


About Beyond Measure Media & Michele Kim Carter and Jay Carter

Michele Kim Carter has worked on documentary films, most recently co-directing Southern Fried Fencing, now available on Amazon.  She was local producer for Beer Is Cheaper Than Therapy, which was broadcast on TV networks around the world.  She produced TV newscasts in Texas, and won the Edward R. Murrow Award for excellence in broadcast storytelling.

Jay Carter is a former Texas TV news anchor and reporter, with numerous awards from the Associated Press and the Edward R. Murrow Award for excellence in broadcast storytelling. He has worked as a radio news anchor and voiceover talent. He also co-directed the feature-length documentary Southern Fried Fencing with Michele.

At Beyond Measure Media, Jay shoots and edits video, and helps craft the overall tone and narrative flow of video productions. Michele produces, handles logistics, conducts interviews and helps clients tell stories that resonate.

badger and boar razors

Badger & Boar: A New Barber Shop in SE Portland

“Everybody has the perfect haircut and it’s my mission to find it.”

I first met Sean Gronich several years ago when he worked at a popular local barber chain and we bonded over a supernatural horror novel by local Portland author Todd Grimson. After losing touch for awhile, I ran into him again several months later at the Alberta Street Pub where he was hanging out with some mutual pals. We realized our friend circle overlapped with a Port Townsend connection, and he’s been my “stylist” ever since (I put that word in quotes because I’m not sure if you can categorize the lack of attention I put to my head as style-anything).

Just a little over 9 months ago Sean started his own business, run from his home, and now he’s finally got a location on one of Portland’s hottest avenues. He said the opening came about randomly, but he leapt at the opportunity.

Named after the animal hairs that make up the finest shaving brushes, and harkening back to his British roots, the Badger & Boar barbershop is now open for business at SE 33rd and Division. Just follow the stairs between St. Honoré and Salt & Straw and take a right when you get to the top. Gronich says Badger & Boar will have a casual, friendly feel and that he’s trying to avoid the trendiness of other local barber shops, if only to suit his own personal style.

I recently interviewed Sean for my Podcast and asked him about his passion for cutting hair. Strangely, his passion began when he was actually working on the set of a popular TV show on the Discovery Channel called Worst Case Scenario. He said sometimes he’d work 85 hours per week, not including LA traffic, and to relax he’d cut hair. 

“[Cutting hair] put me into Zen, I liked the conversation, I got to relax. And when I’d see my work on the street, I just loved it.”

We welcome him to the neighborhood and wish him nothing but success in the future. Congrats, Sean!

To hear more about his philosophy, career and experience cutting hair, please click on the image to enjoy a recent interview:

sean gronich badger and boar

Professional With An Edge: A Lunch Break Haircut at Rudy’s Barbershop

– by Dustin Nelson

The world of PR can be pretty busy, and so can a social life in Portland.

The combination of these two things made it difficult for me to find time for a haircut. This left me with the option of racing against the clock during my lunch break. Per the recommendation of our co-ringleader Allison McCormick, I ran up Division St. to Rudy’s Barbershop.

RudyPic5-300x183The first thing to know about Rudy’s is that it’s cool.

If you’re looking for a serene, spa-like, salon where they serve bottles of Evian and play music by Kelly Clarkson or Taylor Swift, this is the wrong place for you.

However, if you’re looking to get your hair cut in a garage with mismatched, vintage barber chairs, and an ancient Pac Man arcade game, by a group of hip, rockabilly, tattooed Southeast Portlanders then run, don’t walk to Rudy’s Barbershop 3015 SE Division St.

RudyPic2-300x300Actually, you may not have to bother with running, because these barbers are FAST. As I mentioned, I was in a bit of a hurry, so when I sat down with Sam and she got right to work with precision and speed worthy of a superhero, I was impressed. What’s even better, we had a great chat. We talked about some of the different neighborhoods in Portland, the Pride events that we did or did not attend the previous weekend, and the fact that thanks to Nicole Richie, blue hair is going to be the new lavender this year (sorry Kelly Osbourne.) Pretty impressive for the twenty minutes I was in her chair.

On top of that, she gave me one of the best haircuts I’ve had in recent memory. I always want to look professional, but I’m young and I’d like to think hip (hold your comments on that please) so I need a hairstyle that’s professional with an edge. Sam achieved these results even after I stammered a string of adjectives to semi-describe what I wanted. I guess it’s possible that mind reading may also be in her arsenal of super powers.

RudyPic4-300x300If you need to change up your look and want an all Portland experience that results in a bouffant Elvis would be jealous of, I can highly recommend Rudy’s Barbershop.

RudyPic3-300x300

P.S. their Instagram is pretty rad http://instagram.com/rudysbarbershop

And if you haven’t followed our new Instagram account yet, make a life choice and check it out http://instagram.com/ampm_pr

Papa G’s: All Organic, All Vegan, All Delicious

– by Dustin Nelson

Lunch is something we take very seriously here at AM:PM, and our neighborhood is full of some of the best food in town.

Today we took a walk up to Division Street to stop into an old favorite of Alexis’, Papa G’s Vegan Organic Deli. Regarded as “the most organic vegan” restaurant in Portland, it’s easy for an out of towner like myself to assume that may be the equivalent of chewing on grass. Happily I could not have been more wrong.

We caught up with Grant Dixon, the owner of Papa G’s who gave us some background on his small, but significant business. Papa G’s began in 1999 as an offshoot of the Daily Grind, an independent natural food store in Portland with an impressive 35 year history, and eventually transitioned to the small vegan cafe on Southeast Division.

papa gs chalkboardGrant told us about  the popularity of their tempeh reuben with scratch made sauerkraut and Thousand Island dressing and their variety of seasonal, rotating specials. For vegan newbies like myself who may be scared off by the likes of tempeh, he recommended their burrito special, which I gladly indulged in. Full of corn, beans, flavorful cilantro, and a sauce made of something I can’t pronounce, this burrito rivaled any I’ve had. And I’ve had a lot of burritos. Grant also kindly advised that a nice transition dish for my next visit would be the popular potato salad and BBQ tofu.

It was refreshing to hear Grant talk about his commitment to keeping organic, vegan options affordable, “we never want to be elitist,” he said. It was also nice to learn that he takes organic cooking so seriously that his dishes are organic down to the oil they’re cooked with.

papa gs vegan meal 1

At Papa G’s it was easy to forget about my carnivorous ways and truly enjoy one of the best lunches in a long time.

Alexis went with her old stand-by of the Epic Nocho taco salad while Mike had the garden plate which he described as “tasting like Thanksgiving.”

papa gs vegan meal 2

While we may disagree on what Thanksgiving is supposed to taste like, I’m sure it was delicious. 

I’m not considering becoming vegan anytime soon, but Papa G’s is a great place for herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores alike to dine together and set aside their dietary differences and it’s most definitely a place our team will be grazing again.

Spielman: Our Team Stops in for Coffee, Bagels, and Second Breakfast

by Dustin Nelson

In a town like Portland, where it can feel like there are more eateries per capita than anywhere else in America, food is frequently on the mind. The AM:PM team found ourselves in such a state this morning during a hump day office pow-wow. What began as complaints about the parking on Division street due to constant construction quickly turned into us lamenting the decline in business for many of our favorite neighborhood eateries due to the constant city projects.

As we rattled off our favorite neighborhood spots, we worked up a frenzy of appetite and decided to take an impromptu office field trip a few blocks to Spielman Bagels and Coffee Roasters. A beautiful, perfectly temperate Portland morning and the promise of a variety of bagels and hot coffee made the short walk a perfect mid-week break.

spielman bagel sign

mike and alexis at spielman bagelsHaving already eaten my 7 a.m. bowl of Frosted Mini-Wheats, I wasn’t about to let that stop me when I saw the   highly recommended salt & herb bagel in the display case. It was a perfect time for second breakfast, as the Hobbits would say.

I must say the service was much friendlier than I expected considering I was busy Instagramming the shop instead of listening to the cashier or heaven forbid deciding what I actually wanted. I settled on a skinny vanilla latte (afterall, I needed to off-set my second breakfast) and the coveted salt & herb bagel with…wait for it…lox, cream cheese, capers, red onion, and thick slices of tomato. #heaven.

photo-4-300x300

Back at the office, Alexis and I swapped our food finds while we got back to work. She also enjoyed the salt & herb bagel, but switched it up with white cheddar, eggs, and vegetarian sausage (I’m from Montana so don’t ask me what that means.) She swears it was delicious and I’ve come to trust her taste.

Overall, we got a much needed break, got to walk the Southeast Portland neighborhood we’re lucky enough to call home, and found a new favorite coffee shop to add to our neighborhood favorites.

If you want to see more of our neighborhood favorites, check out the new AM:PM Instagram:  ampm_pr

P.S. Spielman’s has a pretty slick website for a bagel shop. Check it out here and have a great rest of your week.

Fifty Licks (or 100, please?)

Fifty Licks Portland OregonIt’s been a while since the AM:PM PR crew has updated the masses with a note on what’s happening in our ‘hood. We’re hoping to rectify that. Enter: Fifty Licks. As one would imagine by its name – it’s an ice cream shop that we’re lucky enough to be just across the street from. They also serve up superb Cuban coffee and inventive and splendid sorbet cocktails.

What started as a cart operation is now a full brick and mortar ice cream shop, complete with gleaming white tile, an adorable striped awning out front and tables to make it easy to enjoy the sun and a frozen treat at the same time.

Some standouts include the lusciously creamy Coconut Lemon Saffron sorbet and a Clyde Common New Orleans classic brunch cocktail-influenced ice cream, the Brandy Milk Punch. Its 5% alcohol content and just right sweetness level left us drooling for more (Literally. Mike was embarrassed). Who knew you could get more than a sugar buzz from an ice cream cone? We didn’t, but we’re pretty happy such a thing exists. They also have daily happy hour from 4 to 6 p.m., so we’ll be test driving those sorbet cocktails soon!

With spring on its way, you may want to think about checking this place out, and swinging by our office for a high-five while you’re at it.

City Reader Offers Respite For Journalists, PR Professionals

Our recent Facebook post about The Oregonian’s move to cut their weekly community section inspired some raucous debate about the state of the media in America. Most of us seem to yearn for a golden age of journalism when newspaper rooms bustled with chain-smoking overcoat-clad reporters who weren’t constrained by advertising dollars or internet measurements like clicks – and who had more bandwidth (and salary) to craft in-depth original reporting.

broken heart fix
While the recent online debate grew heated and participants grew frustrated it became increasingly clear that change causes a torrent of emotions that can become difficult to navigate. It’s no wonder either, because if you think about it too much, the future of the media can seem quite bleak. Consider for a moment that Dennis Rodman is still able to command headlines across the country for being an arrogant drunk, and pop culture icons (*sigh*) like Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus can earn tens of millions of dollars in ad equivalency by having identity crises or drug-fueled meltdowns.

To those suffering from media inspired anxiety, worry, fear and depression – I offer – a tonic.

 

karin city reader portlandWhile on a walk last week with my dear colleague Alexis, we came upon a woman named Karin who has recently started a magazine stand, located in the new D Street Village Development on Southeast Division Street. A magazine stand! With a handmade sign that reads “The City Reader” and an enthusiasm for selling her product, Karin was refreshingly excited about her media collection, and upon further discussion, it was clear that she had personally curated her entire selection. She enthusiastically answered my questions as I fished for leads on undiscovered publications that might aid in my PR efforts. It was clear too that she was inspired by a classic era of journalism, and she was doing something about it. I ended up buying two magazines.

 

city reader standTo me, Karin’s business is just one symbol of la resistance to corporate-controlled media in the internet age, and an inspirational serum for all ye dour, downtrodden diggers of the truth. If you keep your eyes peeled there are other green shoots sprouting from all corners of the digital media landscape. That’s one of the great things about the internet, isn’t it? Check out Medium, Quartz, Grist or eBay founder Pierre Omidyar’s new project “The Intercept” by whistleblower Glenn Greenwald. Check out Seattle’s Crosscut, or closer to home, check out OPB’s special reports, or the latest pieces by Nigel Jaquiss, Richard Read, Jeff Baker or other key figures in the local rebel movement (my words, not theirs). Our traditional media model (which had its own long list of problems) may be dying, but its death will only serve as fertilizer for the next generation of muckrakers and entrepreneurs.

So next time you’re feeling down-in-the-mouth about a local paper that outsources much of its content, or you’re driven crazy by Facebook friends who are sharing posts from so-called “trusted” media sources on topics like FEMA Death Camps, just remember that you can do something about it. Change can be a little messy sometimes, and it may take awhile to see who the winners are, but you can influence the winners pool with your dollars. Donate money to your favorites, and if you’re in need of a quick-fix palate cleanser, go buy some magazines from Karin this weekend.

North St. Bags

It’s no secret the AM:PM PR crew loves its neighborhood. While we typically talk up the local bars and eateries, there are other less calorically detrimental businesses that we think are equally neat. Just up Clinton St. from our offices, perfectly positioned just off one of SE Portland’s main bike boulevards on 23rd and SE Clinton, is the factory showroom of North St. Bags – a really cool bike bag and accessory company.

A well-made bike bag could come in handy for some of us, Pat: I’m looking at you. Others of us just drink coffee delivered by bike. If any of you saddle up frequently, just know that North St. is producing some solid bike gear. The company’s website makes it easy to choose your own custom bag color combos, including the base color, trim and lining. It’s these kind of details that I’m a real sucker for. A handful of bike shops in town carry the bags, but ordering online allows you to be the architect of your perfect pack.

While the waterproof designs are ideal for serious all-weather cyclists (ie. not me), I’m contemplating picking one up for use on hikes, and other upcoming summer adventures. Check ‘em out, and let us know what you think.

north-st-bag-dude