Doug Hoschek is banking on Bendites giving a hoot about where their gear is made.

Hoschek, the man who created Polarfeece, is opening a factory store in the Old Mill Marketplace, next door to Oregon CrossFit and just east of Strictly Organic where he will sell Made in the U.S.A. long underwear, sleeping bags and insulated jackets. He hopes to open by Nov. 1.

The appeal, according to Hoschek is that the products are made in America and cheaper than their off-shore counterparts, often sold by REI and others. According to Hoschek, REI sold his brand of synthetic long underwear for years before opting for an even lower-cost option made in China.

Hoschek said that it's not uncommon for the outdoor industry to look to Asia for manufacturing not only for their cheap labor but also for their relaxed environmental standards—a topis he's recently taken issue with in his new memoir Polar Pollution.

Last month I went to Portland's Doug Fir Lounge for a show by Australian troubadour Angus Stone. As is a usual practice of mine when I have not heard of the opening band, I did not do any research on Oakland group Tumbleweed Wanderers. When I can, I like to experience a band for the first time in concert and am often times pleasantly surprised. 

More than any time in recent memory, that outcome happened that night with Tumbleweed Wanderers. 

TW are a collective of dudes from the Bay Area, initially started by high school friends Jeremy Lyon and Zak Mandel-Romann. Today they are touring in support of their debut album So Long-- which I bought on vinyl at the show, and likely winning over way more people than just myself. 

Check out the album the fellas recorded at John Vanderslice's Tiny Telephone studio in San Francisco below and sink into their soulful rock sound. (for those of you who saw Pickwick at McMenamin's earlier this year, you'll know the sound I'm talking about)

Last night, BendFilm announced the winners in 12 categories for the 2012 festival. Check out the favorite films below or at bendfilm.org

Best Student Short, $500: "Kiss Me," Jules Nurrish, writer, director. 

Best Short, $500:“Far (Daddy)”, Per Dreyer, writer, director

 Best Cinematography: “A Little Closer,” Matthew Petock, writer/director

 Best Ensemble Cast:“A Little Closer," Matthew Petock, writer/director

Metal, country, bucket and slide, bells. We've got you covered.

The Source Weekly listed Flannel Bandana as playing tonight at Broken Top Bottle Shop. That show has been canceled and we regret the error.

If you want to insert a little hard rock and desert metal into your weekend head to the 3rd Street Pub for Halo Haven, Tentareign, Sons of Dirt, and ManX. 9pm.

Married country music duo Cloverdayle plays Mavericks. The NW couple are celebrating the release of their first album 9 Miles Down a 10 Mile Road. $8. 9pm.

Portland based Sassparilla plays jug band, folk punk, rockabilly, punk blues, cowpunk and psychobilly. Whatever you want to call it, their sound crawls under your skin and sticks in your craw long after the show is over. $5. 8pm.

Heads up if you're headed to the valley tonight.

A serious injury crash has shut down Highway 20 near Santiam Pass, according to state emergency officials.

Here's a link to a nearby webcam. Loooong line of cars...

After a 36-hour marathon negotiation session, months of tense negotiations over a new three-year contract for nurses at St. Charles in Bend have drawn to a close.

Contract negotations, which began in May, appeared at times to near complete breakdown. In September, nurses took to the streets to protest St. Charles proposals. Shortly thereafter, St. Charles hired a firm to assist in hiring temporary nurses should the union go on strike.

But the hospital and the local branch of the Oregon Nurses Association union announced Friday that they had reached a tentative agreement. 

Here’s an overview of that agreement:

• Charge nurse positions will remain intact, though those nurses will focus more on working closely with patients and less on administrative duties, said Lisa Goodman, communications director for St. Charles.

• The critical care float nurse positions will be cut through a pilot program, which will help determine whether those rapid response positions should be eliminated permanently, said hospital communications staff.  

• Nurses will receive a two percent raise each year for the three-year term of the contract, according to a joint press release from the hospital and ONA.

• Nurses accepted changes to their healthcare options, which were requested by the hospital, said a spokesperson for ONA.  

Though the agreement must still be ratified by the nursing union, representatives from the union and the hospital said both sides were pleased with the outcome.

While compiling a short list of the best ski/snowboard films EVER for our annual SnowRider's Issue (on stands Oct. 18) we came across some real gems.

Mostly there involve late-80's ski legend Glen Plake, who is (still) the man.

Here are a few others that are on the list. What's missing?

If you've been wandering through Tin Pan Alley recently, enjoying a coffee at Lone Pine, catching a movie at Tin Pan Theater, making a sketchy drug deal or just doing some good old fashioned dumpster diving, your photo may have been snapped by an anonymous documentarian somewhere above you. 

BackAlleyBlog.com is an archive of the happenings in the alley between Thump Coffee and Connecting Point Computers, photographed and narrated from somewhere above street level.

Posts date back to July so if you've been doing anything note worthy in the alley, you're probably busted and all over the internet. Check out the "tales from between two dumpsters."

Keep 'em coming! 

(Thanks for the tip Jared Rasic!)

The Liquid Lounge has the Keaton Collective tonight with special guest All You All. The Keaton Collective is the result of three bands combining to form one super group that generates a unique indie-rock sound with strong harmonies and thought provoking songs like Hitler Doesn’t Own That Mustache and 1800 Pounds of Fur and Thunder. $5. 9pm

Celebrate the 12^th anniversary of the Red Dragon Restaurant on Third by attending a free show by local band The Neck Tie Killers. Have some moo shu and dance to the funk, ska and rock beats that have made the Necktie Killers a local favorite. Free. 6:30pm.

The Horned Hand has ambient, new wave, orchestral indie-pop band Little Owl. Santa Barbara based Little Owl recently recorded a full length album and our touring the West Coast in preparation for the album release. RIYL Arcade Fire and Animal Collective. 8pm.

Imagine Paul Simon and Cheryl Crow had a baby. That baby (musically speaking) is Andy Hackbarth. Hackbarth mashes flamenco and classical guitar with upbeat, contemporary-folk songs to create a smooth, sweet sound that is both original and appealing and definitely worth a trip down to the Silver Moon Brewery. 9pm.

Our piece on Seattle rapper Macklemore is out now ahead of his show at Midtown Music Hall next week. If you're planning on going, you'll probably want to look your best when you do. That may mean some shopping. Well, how about taking some advice from the artist you'll be going to see? Check out his music video for "Thrift Shop" below.