What would it look like to get real with kids about cancer? Or depression? Or failure?

A group of Portland dads is trying to find out. Yesterday, they launched a line of children’s books that make big topics feel a little less daunting, and several of the authors are local celebs.

The whole thing started when Jelani Memory, an African American dad with a blended family, wrote “A Kids Book About Racism” to help him start a hard conversation at home.

He only printed one copy, but friends and family soon began asking him for copies of their own — and suggesting other topics he should tackle next.

That was the genesis of “A Kids Book About,” the company he launched this week with fellow Portland dads Alex Trevor Devine and Jonathan Simcoe.

What topic would you like to see tackled in a book? Hit reply and let us know, and we’ll get started on a wishlist for the guys.

In other news…

The “nighttime nailer” has finally been busted. The Oregon City man had been driving around at night and littering local streets with roofing nails, which punctured bike tires and ticked off the cycling community. But yesterday he was arrested and charged with four counts of disorderly conduct. (BikePortland)

Portland restaurants can no longer hand out plastic straws, coffee stirrers, or other single-use plastics unless a customer asks for them. The city says the new rules that took effect yesterday are a first step toward reducing plastic waste. (OregonLive)

Feast Portland might be over, but the food festivals go on. Up next is Roux, a two-day festival that celebrates “influential women in the food industry,” including local chefs and famous food bloggers. (Eater)

We published a series this spring about what Portland can learn from the Bay Area’s struggles with growth, and one of the people Ben met on the reporting trail is Ernest Brown, a housing advocate with East Bay for Everyone.

Ernest is speaking in Portland tomorrow at the Housing Policy Forum, so we caught up with him for a sneak preview — and to ask him a burning question: How do you talk to people (and even change their minds) about an issue as divisive as housing?

For one, Ernest says he likes to have conversations in person, instead of trying to score points on Twitter.

“The humanizing element is super important,” he says. “It doesn’t solve all the actual disagreements about what we should do, but it keeps them from seeing you as some flat person who’s just inspired by making snarky comments on Twitter.”

Ernest also tries to help progressives understand how values like inclusion play out in housing policy.

For example, yard signs about “welcoming all people” don’t mean much, he says, if communities don’t also embrace zoning codes and affordable housing investments that make it possible for more people to live there.

Want to go deeper? Check out what Ben learned this spring about the connection between affordable housing and homelessness in the Bay Area (and how it relates to Portland), or head to Redfox Commons tomorrow to hear Ernest give a keynote speech at the Housing Policy Forum.

🍽️ Tuesday, October 8: Join us for a dinner conversation about “invisible labor” — and why our society undervalues it (NW Portland)

✊ Friday, October 11: Discuss building an inclusive political and professional landscape with Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and other womxn of color leaders (SE Portland)

🎓 October: Take a course on financial freedom, memoir writing, or improv at the Portland Underground Grad School (Multiple locations)

Want to see your event listed here? Hit reply or email [email protected] to chat about a promotion partnership.

Dame Lillard has the step-back three and “the wave.” Dame D.O.L.L.A. has the diss track — and his latest one is, objectively, straight fire.

But hey, decide for yourself if Dame or Shaq won this battle between two basketball stars with side-hustle rap careers.

We’ll see you tomorrow. ✌️

–  Bridgeliner