If you’re looking for your newest TV obsession, you won’t have to look much further than Portland’s own iAmMoshow the Cat Rapper. He is featured in the new Netflix series “Cat People,” and it could be exactly what you need to make your life complete this summer.

Feeling a bit lost since Covid lifted? We might be on track to returning to business-as-usual, but what does that even mean anymore? During Covid, many creators bonded online through collaborations, impassioned venting, or showing support to each other when an emphasis on art quickly vanished from the radar of public concern.

Welcome to A Walk On The Weird Side – Mermaid Edition. For this adventure, the Barbie Corvette is staying in storage, and we are borrowing Cher’s mermaid car from the movie … Mermaids. You will also be issued a mermaid tail, shell bra, and trident.

Una The Mermaid has been bringing magic and entertainment to the Pacific Northwest since 2012. She is the organizer and host of the annual Portlandia Mermaid Parade, Siren’s Ball, and The Traveling Fanta-Sea Cove.  She performs live underwater shows in her traveling mermaid tank, and if that wasn’t enough, is currently completing her PhD in Transformational Psychology.

The St Johns Neighborhood in North Portland is one of those neighborhoods I often kick myself for not visiting as often as I should. It’s a quirky little neighborhood with lots of history and nooks and crannies needing attention and frequent visits.

When most people think of mermaids, they tend to think of Disney’s Ariel; a pretty maiden with
long flowing hair, sea shells, and a glittery tail. However, this is a western romanticized version
of what is really an ancient elemental being that has been in existence since the first drop of water. Merfolk exist in almost every culture around the world, and they vary in their historical and mythological depictions.

This month’s A Walk on the Weird Side is a request from a WPU reader named Carl. It makes me happy he reached out and suggested it because that means people other than my mom are reading this column. Not that my mom reading this is a bad thing, but she is required. Hi MOM!!

The Goose Hollow Neighborhood is one of Portland’s oldest neighborhoods with a rich sense of history and place. Remnants of the neighborhood’s history can be found on the sidewalks, MAX stations and art installations. For this trip to Goose Hollow, I suggest leaving the Barbie Corvette in the garage and taking the MAX as parking is at a premium. Tri-Met has a very informative guide to the art installations along the MAX lines and I recommend you pick up a copy.

Portland, we love you and all that you have stood for over the last few months. Weird Portland United has granted over $3,000 to Portlanders dedicated to bringing joy to our community during COVID conditions. However, we feel we can do more. We will be looking into how Weird Portland United can support our community in the current climate. 

Beside the occasional drug bust and abandoned meth house, ours is a fairly quiet place. The neighborhood is a mix of old and new construction. The houses behind ours are older homes with large, spacious backyards which are often the settings for loud, drunken social gatherings and forest fire-inducing bonfires. If you look at the grass in the southwest corner of our yard, you will see a small path leading from one fence to another. We call this the Kitty Highway and it is used by the neighborhood cats and trash pandas to get from point A to B.

We were very pleased to announce the inductees to the Weird Portland Hall of Fame at the Weird Portland Gala on November 7th. The crowd went wild when we announced each of the names, echoing our love and respect for each of the individuals. Read more about our inductees here!

This adventure starts with my friends Rick and Janet. As transplants to the area, they have embraced the weird and unusual sights and neighborhoods in Portland and take newcomers on a tour called The Rick and Janet Alternative Tour. Their goal (and mine) is to go beyond the hipster attractions and donut shops and show visitors a different side of Portland’s history and businesses not often seen in the glossy travel magazines or online travel guides. When I was offered an opportunity to write for Weird Portland United, I immediately thought of Rick and Janet and modeled this piece after their tour.

With a host of his favorite weirdos, The Unipiper successfully launched an organization to support the colorful characters who make living in Portland unique. With their non-profit Weird Portland United, he and many Portlanders look to retain the spark of artistry, different perspectives, and the fun-loving attitudes that have been carefully cultivated in our weird little city. They look to recognize the past, present, and future of offbeat arts that usually don’t receive mainstream attention.

Portland Brewing and Portland’s beloved celebrity, The Unipiper, announced today the upcoming release of a new collaborative beer–Unipiper Hazy IPA. Through its beer sales Portland Brewing will raise support for The Unipiper’s newest initiative, Weird Portland United (WPU), ushering in a whole new chapter of Portland weirdness. Unipiper fans and craft beer drinkers can find the beer starting with a small run of limited-edition 22 oz silk screened bottles, featuring artwork by local artist Beth Kerschen, as well as draft throughout Portland beginning on January 25. 12 oz cans of the hazy IPA are planned for a March release.