What ghostly tales and phantoms hide behind the curtained windows of Jacksonville’s historical homes? Find out, if you dare, with a nighttime ride on a haunted trolley. This year’s haunted trollies have surprises galore for the unsuspecting rider. Two storylines run through the narrative—one true and one pure fiction, with special […]
Debbie Carruthers, owner of Country Quilts, inherited her store and her ability to mend beloved heirlooms from her mother Marge Wall, who started the family business in 1987. Unfortunately the condition of Jacksonville’s oldest surviving retailer calls for repair beyond the power of needle and thread.
“We’re struggling. We’re trying. I […]
It’s soup season! This year I present a personal favorite of mine—Mulligatawny soup. It’s a yummy, curry-flavored cream soup with so much complexity that your family will think you slaved for hours. And yes, there are a fair amount ingredients, but don’t let that scare you. The […]
Well my friends, here we are. As I write this in early September, the light has taken on that warm, melancholic hue that signals the end of summer. Every year at this time I find myself in a reflective reverie and this year has not a little bit to reflect upon: […]
Well. I think we all experienced it: the end of August was a real doozy.
I think by now, everyone has heard that Britt canceled four shows due to smoke. What a heartbreaker! We had a gorgeous season, but those four shows constituted 10% of our total programming. Like all […]
You know that television commercial that seems to get recycled every few years? The one where the old lady pitifully moans, “Help! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!”
This isn’t about that. Although it might as well be.
Our personal pitiful moan this month is: “Help! We’ve traveled and we can’t […]
Fall is the time of year when pumpkins and squash are harvested, ciders are brewed, and the leaves turn from green into a beautiful array of vibrant reds, warm oranges, golden yellows, and rustic browns—making the landscape look like a painting. October and November are a delight to our senses […]
As homebuyers adjust to mortgage rates that have climbed to their highest level in more than two decades, it has led to some real transitions in the housing market. Home affordability has emerged as a major issue due to low inventory and increased borrowing costs. Although average home […]
The broader US economy is built upon the successes of small businesses. In fact, there are nearly 27 million small businesses nationwide! And Jacksonville is no exception. As anyone can tell from walking down California Street, small businesses are the lifeblood of our community. As an entrepreneur, you work […]
At the end of the September 6 City Council meeting, I left the building with a heavy heart, after the Council had to vote on a difficult agenda item. At this meeting, your City Council had to make yet another decision regarding our current Tennis/Pickleball courts at […]
Gather your family and friends and lace up your sneakers. It’s time for the first Jacksonville 1851 Gold Rush Run/Walk in the Jacksonville Woodlands, with 10K, 5K, and 2K course options. The Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce and co-sponsor Public Lands outdoor store, located at 293 Rossanley Dr. in Medford, are excited to launch this new […]
Linda Davis, Jacksonville’s Firewise Coordinator, received the highest honor granted to a civilian by Oregon’s Office of the State Fire Marshall for her extensive volunteer work throughout Jacksonville. The Silver Sparky Award “recognizes a civilian or civilian agency for outstanding achievement in fire prevention or public safety education.”
The description of this […]
Charcuterie is raging these days and we’re often presented with large, gorgeous, over-the-top boards brimming with tasty nibbles. As a host you may be tempted to create a charcuterie platter that could feed an army when all you really need to do for a simple occasion is […]
As you read this, another Britt season is drawing to a close. It’s been an incredible summer of performances: The Princess Bride with the Britt Festival Orchestra; Diana Ross; Ringo Starr; Kelsea Ballerini; Tig Notaro; Ashley McBride; Buddy Guy; and so many more We’ve welcomed almost 60,000 people to […]
Reading is a big deal in my family’s life. Reading is a daily pleasure for us, and I don’t know if I could go to sleep at night without reading for a while. As a family without a television until 1958, my parents read to my siblings […]
In fall 2022, I was contacted by a property owner whose property had not sold with another agent and he wanted to relist the property in Jacksonville with me. I sell a lot of property in Jacksonville so did not find this request unusual, but thought it was […]
Secret Beach is part of the Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor, a protected area along the Southern Oregon Coast known for its breathtaking scenery. The corridor offers several hiking trails and viewpoints that provide stunning vistas of the Pacific Ocean, tree-covered sea stacks, tide pools, and sandy beaches. Secret […]
Hi.
Terry here.
Paula has the month off—except that she rewrote, edited, and grammar-corrected this into readability, so, “Thanks, Paula.”
Anyway—recently I’ve been reminiscing about facts that seem, to me at least, stranger than fiction. For instance:
During the first two years of my life, the President of the United States was named Franklin […]
Jacksonville pioneer Peter Britt would be proud to witness the booming success of the local wine industry. In 1858 he decided that wine grapes might do well in the region, along with pears and peaches. He was so right. Swiss-born Peter Britt was drawn by the gold, but excelled as a photographer, horticulturist and lays […]
August means watermelon, figs, and peaches in the Rogue Valley so let’s design a menu featuring these show-stopper fruits.
Cold Watermelon Soup
3 cups cubed watermelon
1 celery stalk
1 medium tomato
1 cucumber
1 red bell pepper
2 garlic cloves
1 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
Juice of 2 limes
Handful fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon apple […]
Since I am in the midst of a significant major life transition—taking my son to college this month—I am sharing this piece originally published in 2017. Except for the zodiacal reference, I think it as timely as ever. Enjoy.
While this is the Year of the Rooster, I’m thinking about other birds […]
Purchasing a property is one of the biggest purchases most people will ever make, and your real estate agent is essential to making it happen. But it takes a team of professionals who work with your real estate agent, and a good Realtor will have an established team […]
The Federal Reserve’s recent tightening cycle, initiated in 2022, is making waves in the everyday lives of ordinary Americans—from Wall Street all the way to California Street, here in Jacksonville. The rate hikes, aimed at curbing inflation and stabilizing the economy, affect everything from car loans to credit card […]
The Upper Klamath River’s “Hells Corner Gorge” is one of the nation’s newest federally- protected “wild and scenic” waterways. The Upper Klamath River is in a remote canyon right on the Oregon-California border, beginning in the southern tip of the Cascade Mountains in Oregon and concluding at Copco Lake, California. […]
I have been reflecting lately on how many interesting activities we, and our visitors, enjoy in Jacksonville. My most recent thoughts of appreciation are of our partners: the Britt Music Festival, the Jacksonville Boosters, and our many Jacksonville volunteers who make many of these activities possible.
Britt’s latest […]
Forty-two.
Yes, it’s the ultimate answer to life, the universe and everything. But more importantly, it’s the number of years since we first met Indiana Jones—archaeologist/professor/badass, with a bullwhip at his side and a well-worn fedora on his head.
Over the years, we’ve watched him battle his way through hostile natives, fascistic […]
Our saga of William T’Vault (or Tevault, or Teevault, depending on his current persona) is drawing to a close. An individual who regularly reinvented himself, we’ve traced T’Vault through legal and political careers in Indiana, Arkansas, and Oregon; a marriage to the supposed “granddaughter” of Daniel Boone; a jail break following […]
Easy Recipes from the Pot Rack – July 2023
So here we are with two serious questions; is a marionberry kinda like a blackberry (yes), and is a buckle the same thing as a cobbler (no). Bottom line on the berry question, not all blackberries are marionberries, but all marionberries are a type of blackberry. You […]
My son, Aidan, has been planning on attending the local university this fall. It’s been a long journey of many disappointments this past year, as my regular readers will recall. But just when we were settling into this next chapter, Aidan received an email. The arts conservatory on the East coast […]
I previously helped clients with the purchase of their first home. As a part of the due diligence process, I went into the planning department to inquire about permits on the property and any long-range plans for the area. I was told that the vacant lots next to […]
The housing market in the US and locally has been on an interesting journey, experiencing a large drop in demand, a limited supply of homes for sale, and a quick run-up of mortgage rates. The result has been somewhat predictable but not without a few major surprises.
Home Sales—The result […]
Asset allocation—it’s a term you may have come across in conversations with financial advisors, CPAs, estate attorneys, or while watching business news channels. But what exactly does it mean, and why is it important for your investments? This month let’s go back to basics and talk about portfolio construction.
At […]
This article is not written by a robot. At least, not yet. But we’ve all heard about the coming “artificial intelligence” revolution. ChatGPT, the language model now owned by Microsoft, has in just a matter of a few months exceeded 100 million users. But, unlike social media (which makes […]
“The Fed will keep raising rates until something breaks!” is an often-repeated Wall Street axiom. Well, this past quarter when Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) failed, something broke. But can it be fixed?
The stress in the banking sector is not entirely surprising. Nearly all of us are aware that our […]
The song, “Summertime” by George Gershwin, written for the opera Porgy and Bess, reminds me of long, lazy summer days and nights. The line “summer time and the living is easy” might be written as “summertime and the living is busy” here in Jacksonville. With an influx […]
It’s been nine months since we parted company with William Green Hamilton T’Vault, aka TeVault or TeeVault, but that hasn’t prevented him from getting in trouble or reinventing himself. We’ll encourage you to go online and read the first two installments in the September and October 2022 editions of the Review.
In […]
(In which your Unfettered Critics attempt to convince Our Readers that meteorology can be a form of entertainment.)
“Sure hope it doesn’t rain on Ringo,” we recently took to saying. Our concerns weren’t so much for our favorite drummer as for ourselves. Sir Ringo would stay dry on the covered Britt […]
Britt is well underway, and there’s lots of updates on the hill! We’re composting our food waste this year, and at the end of the season all that compost will be used to fertilize our gardens and lawn. We have amazing food trucks to complement our longtime concessions vendor, […]
Easy Recipes from the Pot Rack – June 2023
This is a super easy recipe with very simple ingredients but… you can’t do it right until you’ve mastered the art of searing a large sea scallop. So pay attention!
Ingredients
12 large sea scallops (about 1-1.5 lbs) pssst… I buy 14 in case I screw a couple up.
Salt […]
You remember M.A.S.H., right? That viewer favorite ran for eleven seasons, an unusually long run, as most shows at the time said goodbye after six or seven seasons. Eleven wasn’t the record, of course—Gunsmoke had survived a then-unprecedented twenty seasons—but producers and marketing execs took note anyway. And today, a […]
“I would love to live like a river flows, carried by the surprise of its own unfolding.” ~John O’Donahue
The following is a bit personal: more personal, even, than I normally am, which is quite a bit. But, after 13 years writing this column, I’m taking some liberties and honestly, vulnerable is […]
After you have entered escrow, you will receive a “preliminary title report” from the title company. Most of you are probably wondering: What is this, and why do I need it? The title report is the title company’s agreement to issue a title insurance policy for the property […]
Our rental company manages over 40 nightly and monthly furnished rentals in Jacksonville that are filled with guests from out of the area. Whether they are staying here for one night or for one month, they invariably ask, “What is there to do in Jacksonville?” After years of answering […]
It’s the beginning of summer and there’s a lot of activity in our little city. School will adjourn for the summer in a few days. Our children will be out and about, as will tourists and local folks, enjoying our beautiful weather. Please be aware that Jacksonville […]
Britt kicks off this month, and we start with a sprint! I hope by now you’ve heard about our neighborhood kick-off party on June 8: an admission-free concert for YOU, our fabulous neighbors. We’re calling it, “The Hill is Where the Heart Is,” and we’ll have three terrific local […]
Tuesday, May 9, 2023. Jacksonville, OR: Teddy Abrams, the widely-acclaimed music director of the Britt Festival Orchestra has announced his departure at the end of the 2023 season in July.
Abrams first joined the Britt Festival Orchestra (BFO) in 2013 as Music Director and this summer marks his 10th season with the orchestra. In those 10 years, […]
There’s a new, intimate gathering spot in town. Perfect for a light nosh and cocktail with friends, it’s Courtney Christiansen’s SuraTini. Sura is Thai for “crafted alcohol” and tini means “right here.”
Courtney’s path to fruition has been a rocky one. “It’s a long story. Kind of a roller coaster. I signed my lease right before […]
The Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce has cooked up another delightful inaugural event for the merry month of May. Celebrate spring with the “Parade of Inns: A Walking Tour of the Charming Inns of Jacksonville,” on Sunday, May 21, from 1-5pm. Ticketholders can enjoy a self-guided walking tour of five of Jacksonville’s prominent historic inns plus […]
There are a few things everyone needs in their culinary wheelhouse. Good soup is one of them. The other is a basic Frittata. Why, because both are a terrific way to clean out your fridge and create something absolutely delicious. For breakfast, lunch or dinner… a frittata […]
If you are in the market to buy a home, a home appraisal is likely going to be an important part of the process, especially if you are getting a loan. An appraisal is a process where a licensed real estate appraiser determines what they believe to be […]