What’s Been Cut from Brew to Bikes? I’m scared!

I’ve only read the pre-edited version of Ooligan Press’s forthcoming title Brew to Bikes (Fall 2010). I love it. Here we have, in concise book format, a guide to Portland Oregon’s local artisan economy. People don’t ordinarily think of Portland as a place of diverse commerce, and typically if they do then they imagine an overdone, artistic expression of hippiness, but that is not the case with many of the local businesses found in Portland.

Brew to Bikes discusses everything from local microbrews to Portland’s tech industry. I didn’t read anything about those two. I skipped those parts. In my limited time, I focused on several areas that interested me: Portland’s indie media, coffee industry, and fashion designers. I liked that Brew to Bikes expresses the real struggle of someone trying to thrive as an artisan in Portland, especially in a down economy. The book doesn’t glorify these local businesses as thriving green alternatives to corporations, but that these people choose to do what they love over cutting corners to make lots of money. However, because Portland isn’t typically a center for big businesses, smaller, more free thinking and artisan versions of fashion, coffee, and book publishing can stay afloat.

I’m scared for those three Brew to Bikes chapters. I know so many pages and sections have been cut out and consolidated, and I hope that those three are still intact. I have already used the chapter about Portland artisan coffee to become a better barista myself, and in my marketing project for my fake barista book. From the chapter on fashion I decided that I want to get married in one of those artisan wedding dresses. I learned about new bookstores that I need to visit and about the emerging zines-scene, and so many things I want other people to learn about too.

I can’t wait to see the edited version of Brew to Bikes to see if what I considered essential the editors did as well.

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Possible Key Words:

Brew to Bikes

Portland

Local Business

Artisan Economy

Microbrew

Indie Media

Fashion Designers

Urban Planner

Artisan Home and Garden