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LISTEN: Waterfront Blues Festival
Celebrate the Fourth of July (and the 5th, 6th and 7th of July) at the 36th anniversary of Portland’s Waterfront Blues Festival. Founded in 1988, this four-day festival features a lineup of 64-plus blues, soul, funk and R&B artists—with headliners that include Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, Greensky Bluegrass, Lucinda Williams, Margo Price, St. Paul and The Broken Bones; plus performances from local legends like Curtis Salgado, Mel Brown and Norman Sylvester. Oh, and there’ll be food and beverages from plenty of the Rose City’s finest food trucks, wineries and breweries. Yeah, we can get behind patriotism for the sake of the blues. Tom McCall Waterfront Park, 98 SW Naito Parkway, waterfrontbluesfest.com. All day Thursday–Sunday, July 4–7. $150+.
WATCH: Blockbuster Weekend Fun fact: “Club Classics” by Charli XCX was actually written about PAM CUT Tomorrow Theater’s upcoming Blockbuster Weekend…OK, maybe it wasn’t. But now that we’ve got all you Brat-heads’ attention, listen up: Tomorrow Theater will screen some absolute classics this weekend, and we’d be remiss not to fill you in. There’s The Goonies on Friday (shout-out to Astoria), Jaws (very on brand for Fourth of July weekend) and Twilight (a Pacific Northwest classic, at the very least) on Saturday, and Jurassic Park and Twister on Sunday. Plus, there’s gonna be blockbuster trivia accompanying each screening that will “challenge even the biggest of film buffs.” PAM CUT Tomorrow Theater, 3530 SE Division St., 503-221-1156, tomorrowtheater.org. Various showtimes Friday–Sunday, July 5–7. $5–$15.
DRINK: Portland Craft Beer Festival
Portlanders sure do love their beer festivals. Almost as much as they love their beer…almost. But the cool thing about the Portland Craft Beer Festival is that it only features beers, ciders and wines made in PDX. And there’s a lot of ‘em—more than 30 Portland breweries will be serving brewskis at PCBF (cider and cocktail girlies, have no fear, there’s delish options for you, too)—plus grub from Portland food carts like Urban German, Yoonique Phở & Grill, Cousins Maine Lobster, and Voodoo Doughnut. So, kick off Oregon Craft Beer month at PCBF, and celebrate one cool thing about America: Beer! Elizabeth Caruthers Park, 3508 S Moody Ave., portlandcraftbeerfestival.com. Noon–10 pm Thursday–Saturday, July 4–6. $40–$50.
SHOP: St. Johns Farmers Market
There’s nothing better than strolling through a Portland farmers market on a summer morning. Picture this: You’ve got a cute little outfit on, a soon-to-be-filled-with-veggies tote on your shoulder, and a poblano pepper breakfast burrito in hand. Life is good. The St. Johns Farmers Market is open now through November, and this Saturday’s vendor lineup has got it all: fresh-caught native local fish, cocktail bitters, vegan doughnuts, Peruvian drinking chocolate, floral bouquets, handcrafted skin care products, Mexican pastries, fruits and veggies from Pacific Northwest farmers, of course, and a whole lot more. North Charleston Avenue and Central Street, stjohnsopportunity.org. 9 am–2 pm Saturday, through Dec. 14. Free.
GO: Lavender U-Pick
One cool thing about Portland is that you can be downtown ordering a bougie lavender latte one minute, and at a nearby local farm picking your own lavender the next. Wayward Winds Lavender Farm is one of the largest u-pick fields in Oregon, and it’s open to the public now through Aug. 11. You can pick your own lavender bouquets, explore the lavender-a-maze, and peruse tons of the farm’s small-batch-crafted lavender products—they’ve got lavender syrups, loose leaf tea, lavender honey, soap, lavender scone mix, the works. Wayward Winds Lavender Farm, 17005 NE Courtney Road, Newberg, olfactorywarehouse.com. 10 am–5 pm Saturday–Sunday, through Aug. 11. Free.
DANCE: U.K. Garage Night at The Six
Y’all know the GarageBand app, right? Well, this is…not really the same thing. U.K. garage is actually a genre of electronic dance music that began in England in the ‘90s. And this Saturday, The Midnight brings that U.K. sound to Southeast Belmont Street with a night of two-step, garage house, speed garage, and more. You’ll even hear live performances by Pacific Northwest dance music heavy hitters like Seattle’s Mirin Doja, and Portland artists Emoji Heap and Goodwill. The Midnight PDX, 3341 SE Belmont St., themidnightsocietypdx.net. 9 pm–1:40 am Saturday, July 6. $10-$12.
GO: Trivia Tuesday at White Owl Social Club
In Portland, it seems like there’s trivia happening every night of the week. But Trivia Tuesdays at White Owl Social Club are a can’t-miss—and we’re not just saying that because our team got second place (and a $15 gift card) last Tuesday. Untapped Trivia is some of the best trivia in the city. Prizes are awarded to the top three teams, the topics and themes change weekly, and there’s birria tacos for $3.50 each and frozen margaritas for $5. Huge slay, we know. White Owl Social Club, 1305 SE 8th Ave., 503-236-9672, untappedtrivia.com. 7–9 pm Tuesday, through Oct. 1. Free.