- This weekend only, all Entertainment books are on sale for just $19.99 each with free shipping. Get one for Portland and get one for your next vacation destination like Vegas, Seattle, Orlando and more. Valid now until Sunday, December 19th.

- Portland Mercury online charity auction ends this Saturday at 12:00 noon, please go to the web site to view all the great items. All the proceeds go to help survivors of domestic violence.

- Oregon Ski and Snowboard MegaSale, this Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Oregon Convention Center. Free admission, save up to 70% on a selection of brand-new famous-name ski & snowboard equipment: skis, snowboards, bindings, boots, pants, jackets, goggles, gloves, hats… everything for the snow!

- Fair Trade Holiday Bazaar & Forum this Saturday from 1:00pm – 5:00pm at the First Unitarian Church in downtown Portland. Free, includes the documentary film screening of “The Dark Side of Chocolate” at 2:00pm.

- 20th Annual Tuba Christmas concert at Pioneer Courthouse Square, 1:30pm – 3:00pm this Saturday, free.

- Master Chef Open Casting Call this Saturday from 10:00am – 6:00pm at Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts, don’t forget to bring your one prepared dish for the judges! Please see web site for registration form and complete details on how to participate.

- 2nd Annual Season’s Eatings this Saturday from 12:00pm – 5:00pm at New Deal Distillery. Admission is just one non-perishable food item.

- Crafty Wonderland Super Colossal Holiday Sale this Saturday and Sunday from 11:00am – 5:00pm at the Oregon Convention Center. Free admission for all ages.

- Christmas Carol Sing-A-Long with the Concordia University Choir this Sunday from 1:00pm – 2:00pm at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

- For more great and inexpensive ideas on what to do this weekend, please visit Aroundthesunblog and PDXPipeline!

SPOTLIGHT: HOLIDAY GIFT CARD OFFERS AND BONUSES

It is the season of giving, and also one of giving and receiving if you are looking at gift cards. Select restaurants and retailers are offering some limited-time incentives for encouraging shoppers to give gift cards to people on their lists. Here in Portland, choose from these great offers:

- Red Robin, receive $5 in Bonus Bucks for every $25 gift card purchase. Bonus bucks reward is valid between January 1st, 2011 – February 28th, 2011.

- Pastini Pastaria, now through December 31st, purchase $100 in gift cards and you’ll get a $20 gift card. Purchase online or at any Pastini Pastaria location.

- Noodles & Company, for every $25 in gift card purchases receive a card good for a free sandwich duo.

- Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream, spend $10 or more on gift cards and receive a free scoop of ice cream.

- Jamba Juice, purchase a $25 gift card and receive a free 16 oz. smoothie for yourself!

- Bishops Barbershop, pay $75 in gift certificates and get $100 in services. Eight locations around the Portland area, gift certificates are for Bishops services only and are good January 1st – December 31st, 2011.

- For the Seattle Mariners fan, get in on this deal: a $50 gift pack gives you a voucher for 4 View Reserved Tickets for any Monday – Thursday 2011 home game (except “prime” games) and a $20 gift card for ballpark concessions and Mariners gear. The $120 gift pack offers 4 Field Level Tickets with the the same features above. Available online until 9:00 a.m. December 20th.

- McGrath’s Fish House, for every $25 in holiday gift cards, receive a 20% bonus card (must be redeemed between January 1st, 2010 – February 28th, 2010).

- Burgerville: for every $25 gift card purchase, Burgerville will include a coupon for a free regular size seasonal or specialty milkshake or smoothie while supplies last.

- Chevy’s Fresh Mex, buy $50 in gift cards and get a $10 bonus card (must be redeemed between January 1st, 2011 – February 28th, 2011).

- Buffalo Wild Wings, buy a $25 gift card and get a $5 gift card back (offer not available on gift cards purchased online). Gift card must be redeemed between January 1st, 2011 – February 28th, 2011.

- Del Taco: buy a $15 gift card and receive two free chicken soft tacos; $25 gift card for a free combo meal; $50 gift card for two free combo meals; $100 gift card for a free t-shirt.

- Ringside Steakhouse: purchase $300 in gift cards and get a $50 bonus dining card; purchase $500 in gift cards and get a $100 bonus dining card. Bonus cards are redeemable January 2nd – February 28th, 2011.

- Fuddruckers: for a limited time this holiday season, get a $5 Bonus Gift Card for every $25 in Gift Card purchases.

- Taco Bell: buy a $10 or $20 gift card and get a free large soda. Gift cards are only available at participating store locations.

- If you are a Costco member, you can get two $50 restaurant gift certificates for just $79.99. Choose from Baja Fresh, McCormick & Schmick’s and California Pizza Kitchen.

-Restaurants Unlimited Inc. bonuses for restaurants such as the Portland City Grill, Newport Bay, Henry’s Tavern, Stanford’s, Billy Heartbeats, Kincaid’s and more: Gift card holiday savings at 20% off, now through December 26th, 2010. Receive 20% off any denomination, any combination of denominations, no limits, and no expiration dates! (the discount will not appear until the last step of the order process; on “Review order” page).

- Applebee’s, buy $50 in gift cards and receive a free $10 bonus card. Participating locations only. Not available online. Limited-time only offer. Restrictions apply to the bonus card & gift card. Valid through February 28th, 2011. See card for details.

- Denny’s: buy a $25 gift card and receive a $5 bonus card. Limited time offer, a $1.95 shipping and handling fee is applied to each order online.

- Romano’s Macaroni Grill, get a $5 bonus card with every $25 gift card purchase. Bonus card is valid for redemption January 1st, 2011 – February 28th, 2011.

- Marie Callender’s, purchase a $25 gift card and receive a bonus $5 gift voucher. Fine print: gift voucher is redeemable from January 1st, 2011 – January 31st, 2011 with the purchase of $20 or more.

- Big Al’s Bowling, for every $25 gift card purchased receive a $5 arcade bonus. Big Al’s gift cards can be used for bowling, in the arcade and for food and beverage.

- Qdoba Mexican Grill, purchase a $25 Q-Cash gift card and receive a $5 voucher; the voucher can only be redeemed January and February 2011.

- Sweet Tomatoes: for every $50 in gift cards you buy, you’ll get a free Meal Pass.

- Outback Steakhouse, purchase $100 worth of Outback gift cards and receive a $20 bonus card. The bonus card is valid January 1st, 2011 through February 10th, 2011.

- Claim Jumper Restaurant, for every purchase of $50 in gift cards through December 31st, Claim Jumper will give you a complimentary card for a slice of Chocolate Motherlode Cake (valid for redemption only through January 9th, 2011) plus a $10 bonus card valid January 10th – March 31st, 2011.

- *New addition: Chart House restaurant, for every $50 in gift cards receive a bonus $10 rewards card to use in the new year. Purchase now until December 24th, 2010.

- New addition: At Pioneer Place and Clackamas Town Center, take advantage of “Merrier Fridays” on December 10th and December 17th to receive a $10 Shop Etc. Gift Card by spending $100 with qualified receipts for the same day. Redemption hours are 4:00pm – 8:00pm, see web site for further details.

Did we miss any? We’ve heard mention of gift card bonus offers at Chipotle, IHOP, Reedville Cafe and the Cheesecake Factory, but have been unable to verify. Please leave a comment and share, thanks for stopping by!

- It’s worth mentioning again—this is your last weekend to catch the annual Christmas Ships Parade flotilla on the Willamette and Columbia Rivers. See web site for schedules and viewing locations.

- Thursday is the first night the historic Queen Anne Victorian Mansion hosts the SW Washington Railroaders Model Railroad Display 6:00pm – 10:00pm. The mansion is all decked out for the holidays with over 2 million lights. Admission is $5 for adults, but go to the web site to get a $1 off coupon.

- Presentation Karaoke, Thursday night 6:00pm – 8:30pm at the Someday Lounge. This sounds like it has some hilarious possibilities…if you are brave enough to participate, go up on the stage and provide a presentation to the audience based on whatever slides are showing behind you. Free.

- People’s Food Coop Annual Holiday Craft Fair this Saturday, 12:00pm – 5:00pm.

- We just heard an ad on the radio for Salvation Army Thrift Stores holding a 50% off sale this Saturday. Get great bargains at an even bigger discount; see web site for the seven metro area locations and hours.

- Saturday is also the 4th Annual Working Class Book Fair, 11:00am – 4:00pm with free entrance and free workshops.

- The yet-to-open Hollywood district Whole Foods Market will be giving away 400 poinsettias this Saturday morning starting at 10:00am. (credit: PDX Pipeline)

- Saturday is also Santacon, beginning at 12:00pm in downtown Portland! Click here for information that will be posted on the day of the event. PDX Pipeline also has additional information that should be helpful for first-timers.

- For more ideas on free fun this weekend, please go to Aroundthesunblog.

Spotlight: Gift Card Bonuses and Discounts

It is the season of giving, and also one of giving and receiving if you are looking at gift cards. Select restaurants and retailers are offering some limited-time incentives for encouraging shoppers to consider gift cards to give to the people on their lists. Here in Portland, choose from these great offers:

- Red Robin, receive $5 in Bonus Bucks for every $25 gift card purchase. Bonus bucks must be used between January 1st, 2010 – February 28th, 2010.

- Bishops Barbershop, pay $75 in gift certificates and get $100 in services. Seven locations around the Portland area, please call for specific details and redemption guidelines.

- For the Seattle Mariners fan, get in on this deal: a $50 gift pack gives you a voucher for 4 reserved tickets, plus a $20 Mariners gift card that you can use towards food or merchandise; or get the $116 gift pack and receive a voucher for 4 field level tickets and $20 gift card. You must order online and the deadline is today, Thursday December 17th.

- Burgerville, for every $25 you spend in gift cards, you’ll get a $5 card for free.

- Godfather’s Pizza, buy $25 worth of gift cards and get a large 2-topping pizza free. A coupon is required at the time of purchase; go to RedPlum to print the coupon online or look for the coupon in your mailbox. Or call the restaurant manager to see if you really need the coupon at all.

- McGrath’s Fish House, for every $25 in holiday gift cards, receive a 20% bonus card (must be redeemed between January 1st, 2010 – February 28th, 2010).

- Chevy’s, buy $50 in gift cards and get a $10 bonus card (must be redeemed between January 1st, 2010 – February 28th, 2010).

- Buffalo Wild Wings, buy a $25 gift card and get a $5 gift card back (offer not available on gift cards purchased online). Gift card must be redeemed between January 1st, 2010 – February 28th, 2010.

- Del Taco, buy $10 in gift cards and receive a coupon good for two free tacos for a future visit.

- If you are a Costco member, you can get two $50 gift certificates for just $79.99. Choose from Baja Fresh, McCormick & Schmick’s and Restaurants Unlimited (parent company of Stanford’s, Newport Bay, Portland City Grill, Manzana and more).

- If you are not a Costco member, you can still take advantage of Restaurants Unlimited restaurant bonuses: the Portland City Grill, Newport Bay, Henry’s Tavern, Stanford’s, Billy Heartbeats and Kincaid’s will give you $10 in gift cards for every $50 you purchase, AND they’re giving 5% of all gift card sales in kind to local children’s hospitals.

- Applebee’s, buy $50 in gift cards and receive a free $10 bonus card. Available only at your neighborhood location (in other words, you can’t buy it online).

- Denny’s, buy a $25 gift card and receive a $5 Denny’s card to use later.

- PF Chang’s holiday gift offer: For every $50 in gift cards purchased online, or at any P.F. Chang’s Restaurant, you will receive a $10 Be Our Guest Card for use in 2010. Offer ends 12/31/09.

- Marie Callender’s, purchase a $25 gift card and receive a bonus $5 gift voucher, which you must redeem from 1/1/10 through 1/31/10 with the purchase of $20 or more.

- Qdoba, purchase a $25 Q-Cash gift card and receive a $5 voucher; the voucher can only be redeemed January 1st, 2010 – February 28th, 2010.

- Sweet Tomatoes, purchase $100 in gift cards and receive a free meal pass (value is about $9).

- Outback Steakhouse, purchase $100 worth of Outback Gift Cards and receive a $20 bonus card and a free music download from Sugarland. The bonus card is valid 1/1/10 through 2/10/10.

- Claim Jumper Restaurant, for every purchase of $50 in gift cards through December 31st, 2009, Claim Jumper will give you a $10 bonus card valid January 2nd – March 31st, 2010.

- International House of Pancakes (IHOP), purchase a $25 gift card and receive a $5 coupon for your next visit (coupon expires January 31st, 2010).

- Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, purchase a gift card of $10 or more and receive a free pretzel (you may need to sign up for their ‘Pretzel Perks’ program to get the bonus offer).

Whew! That’s quite a list, but we know it is still incomplete! We have heard of offers from The Cheesecake Factory, Ruby Tuesdays, Romano’s Macaroni Grill, Daphne’s Greek Cafe and Famous Dave’s among others, but we have not been able to verify them. If you know of more gift card deals and bonuses, please share and post them in the comments section of this post. Thanks for reading and for your support (…please forward this post to any friends or colleagues that might enjoy it…)!