Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt

VIFF Closing Gala Party - The Dress

2008-10-11T20:36:46Z

Copyright © 2008 Miss604 - Rebecca Bollwitt. If you are not viewing this post through the Miss604.com feed then this content has been republished without permission. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2008/10/viff-closing-gala-party-the-dress.html.

The final day of the Vancouver International Film Festival was cause for celebration. Over the course of about two weeks, 140,000 people sat in on screenings, took part in discussions and enjoyed cinematic masterpieces from around the world.

I’ll have a full report on the awards ceremony on E! early next week but since I had originally put the party call out on my site, I thought I would update my readers on my dress success.

Thanks to the fine people at Hbc (otherwise known as Th Bay) I was set up with a personal shopper who was kind enough to find me a dress for the VIFF Closing Gala Party. There’s nothing like walking into a store and having someone hand-pick items for you to try - there’s also nothing like them telling you exactly when something doesn’t work at all for you. Thanks to Sarah (at the downtown location) and Neesha, we were able to find a garment that was a deep greenish-blue (”peacock feather” colour), figure-flattering, and that I was totally comfortable wearing.

I’ve always been a huge fan of The Bay, usually because when you grab a designer item (like my Nine West tunic) off the 30% clearance rack and take it to the till, it’s marked down an additional 10-15%. Not sure how that always seem to happen to me but I’m not going to complain.

Full disclosure: The dress is going back today (no, I didn’t purchase it, keep the tags on, etc.), it was just a loaner from Hbc, but thanks to this experience I’ll probably head back to The Bay for my holiday dress needs (there was an amazing black dress number JS Collections that I fell in love with but just wasn’t right for last night).

More disclosure: The gala was great, the food was amazing, however the best part was spending time with my lovely sister. We caught up on her trip to Germany, ranted about strata councils, and enjoyed a nice healthy helping of the Wild Horse Canyon red that kept magically appearing in our wine glasses.

Giving for Thanksgiving in Vancouver 2008

2008-10-11T17:57:26Z

Thanksgiving is usually a time of reflection on my blog; memories of heading to my Oma and Opa’s house for a big turkey dinner, raking the leaves in the front yard and then riding the BMX straight through the pile. Eating so much at supper time as Oma tells you to keep going, “you’re too skinny!” meanwhile you just know the next time she sees you she’ll comment on how she thinks you’ve gained weight.

There’s a lot going on around town this weekend and while memories like these make me smile, I’m also reminded of those who probably won’t be able to enjoy a warm meal come Monday (or any day next week). Here are a few events and details about how you can help out this season:

Photo credit: Sean Orr on Flickr

John Chow, our local, infamous, million dollar blogger, is encouraging his readers to donate to the Union Gospel Mission. He’s even offering to match every donation up to $1,000. “All readers making donations will be recognized in a blog post this Friday. If you have a website or blog, I will link to it. If you think about it, this is a pretty inexpensive way to get a link on this blog.”

The UGM also had a radiothon with JRfm yesterday and even though country ain’t my thing, the listeners of that station raised enough to supply 7,416 meals. “Our goal is to raise enough to server 10,600 meals: about 3000 of those meals will be served this Monday for Thanksgiving, and the rest will be served to Vancouver’s hungriest people throughout the fall season.” Donations are still being accepted and the cost of a UGM turkey dinner is only $2.59 (less than a Grande Mocha at Starbucks)

On Monday there is also the Turkey Trot 10km on Granville Island, benefiting the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. “As always it is one of the best deals going for a 10k run as your sign up includes a PUMA long sleeve tech top, personalized bib and great music and prizes.” [604HomesBlog]

I would also like to note that the Surrey Food Bank operates separately from the GVFBS and that donations and contributions are also being accepted in preparation for the season ahead. “1 in 4 children in Surrey live below the poverty line and 45% of our clients are children and babies.” [AboutSFB]

October 12-19 is also Homelessness Awareness Week in Vancouver, which will incorporate the United Nation’s observation of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17th.

Update: A few hours after writing this post I received a reminder from the Blog Action Day team (and a few other bloggers as well). October 15th is “Blog Action Day” which is, “an annual nonprofit event that aims to unite the world’s bloggers, podcasters and videocasters, to post about the same issue on the same day. Our aim is to raise awareness and trigger a global discussion.” This year’s theme is poverty.

Although their website is fantastic, you can’t easily search the list of participating bloggers, and sifting through the 350 pages of listings might be a bit daunting. As such, I’ll try to have some coverage up here - highlighting some regional bloggers that are spreading awareness about these issues on Blog Action Day.

I have also signed up for a Change.org profile, that connects bloggers with non-profits for fundraising and look forward to trying out the service in the future.

Matthew Good Live at Massey Hall

2008-10-10T00:44:35Z

When I was interviewing local filmmakers Colin Cunningham and Madison Graie earlier this month I used Matthew Good as an example of an artist that has had great success with iTunes since they were excited about their short film’s premiere later this month. As it turns out Matt has done it again with his latest digital release.

Through hard work, self-promotion, and the power of the internets, his latest album Live at Massey Hall has climbed the iTunes charts, just days after becoming available.

October 7th iTunes Release: The entire album will be released internationally and the first 12 tracks will be available in Canada.

October 7th Physical Release Pre-sales: Pre-sales for the limited edition double CD will begin on October 7th through the Matthew Good online store. Note that the store is able to take international orders.

November 4th Physical Release: 10,000 limited edition double CD’s will be released at retail in Canada. Availability of the vinyl release will also be available on the online store and at retail. The remaining 8 tracks will also be available on this date on the Canadian iTunes store for $6.99.

You can listen to some preview tracks on his site but if you are familiar with any of his music or live shows over the last decade, you certainly will not be disappointed with this 20-song, double-sided gem.

Stanley Park Ecology Society Events in October

2008-10-09T19:20:28Z

For the last few years the Stanley Park Ecological Society has offered up an educational, yet equally fun, alternative to the Stanley Park Train. Last year during the Christmas season’s Bright Nights, the SPES ran the Humbug Hike and this year in October you can check out the Creatures of the Night walk.

Stow yer candy and batten down yer hatches matey- this year’s theme for the Ghost Train is “Pirates” and the Stanley Park Ecology Society will be offering a “Creatures of the Night” walk that’ll knock the parrot off yer shoulder! Bring an eye patch and yer best “Yarr” and join us to navigate the nocturnal creatures of Stanley Park in a search for buried treasure. Bats, owls, and flying squirrels ahoy! [SPES]

The walks will take place every 30 minutes, starting at 7:00pm and ending at 9:30pm, on the following dates: October 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 23, 24, 25, 30, 31 and November 1. The cost is $5 for adults and $3 for kids (compared to the $9.00/$5.50 for the train ride).

If you’re looking for a little more interaction with the park, on October 25th the SPES along with the Vancouver Aquarium will host “Fish or Treat“, which consists of a two hour walk followed by a themed sleepover at the Aquarium.

Finally, on October 26th from 1:00pm until 3:00pm at the Stanley Park Dining Pavilion, Jean Barman, author of “Stanley Park’s Secret: The Forgotten Families of Whoi-Whoi, Kanaka Ranch, and Brockton Point” will lead a talk about the forgotten women of Stanley Park. Admission is by donation.

Vancouver Blogger Profile: Joe Solomon

2008-10-09T17:30:08Z

It’s been a little while since I added to the Miss604 Vancouver Blogger Profile series but I’m picking it up with someone who is far more than simply a blogger - Joe Solomon of EngageJoe.

Photo credit: Tris on Flickr

Who are you?
I’m a social media consultant for nonprofits and social change projects, which basically means I help people, organizations, and start-ups use the web for good.

Most recently, I’ve been working on a few web applications. For example, I wrote to Knowmore.org in February with the idea for the Knowmore Firefox Extension - which we then built - and it now alerts thousands of people to the social and environmental impact of products and companies as they browse the web.

I’m currently helping to spearhead Social Actions Labs with Peter Deitz and Eric Cooper.

I used to be an EMT, stand-up comedian, and professional bookseller.

Where do you blog (which sites)?
I’ve posted a bunch of times on the NetSquared and Social Actions Blog. I aggregate my feeds @ EngageJoe.com. I’m also an avid micro-blogger and Twitter away @EngageJoe.

Are you originally from Vancouver?
I’m originally from New York. About two years ago, I decided to enroll in a month long renowned clown workshop in Toronto. In between exercises I fell in love with another clown-in-training, my now girlfriend. She had flown in take the workshop from Vancouver and six months or so after the workshop I moved to Vancouver to be with her.

Do you still clown?
We still have a bunch of red noses hanging around, although ironically and perhaps sadly, we haven’t done much clowning since. However, I do compare my experience with clowning with the work I now do in Web 2.0. Just google “clown” and “Web 2.0.”

Why do you blog? and what’s your unique angle? Do you write for yourself, your readers, for Google, for a living?

I blog to share my experiences and lessons learned trying to harness the web for social change and to be transparent about ideas I think could light things up.

Recently, I’ve been doing roundups for SocialActions – weekly news summaries of the online social activism sector.

I definitely don’t blog as much as I’d like to. Usually I have a couple titles in my head for posts I want to write but haven’t gotten around to yet. Right now the two titles that are swimming around are: “How Your Nonprofit Can Unite Your Sector With(out) Using Twitter” and “An Idea: Micro-Lending for Green Entrepreneurs.”

Whatis the BEST part of blogging… or if you prefer, the worst?
For sure, the best part is publishing a post late at night and then waking up to a few comments. That just rocks.

Photo credit: Sherrett on Flickr

PC, Mac or Speak n’ Spell?
I use Vista, which absolutely sucks and makes me think I have a martyr complex. My goal is to one day be cool and ride Mac style – but I can’t reconcile the single click mouse. I even worked in an Apple store once, and would often get into arguments with the sales people about the default one click mouse (I was only allowed to sell iPods). One day I’ll have the Mac epiphany, though, and understand. Then everything will be OK in the world.

Blogs you read or would recommend?
A lot of the blogs I read I get from Twitter mashups. I found I was reading a lot of posts based on people tweeting links – so I created @nptechblogs, which is a feed of top nonprofit technology blogs. I also collaborated on @changeblogs (social change blogs) and @vanpoverty blogs, news, & social media of poverty and homeless issues in Vancouver). I want to work on a green Twitter mashup next – potentially with a bonus iGoogle widget. Note that Twitter mashups are super easy to make – using TwitterFeed.com.

I think it would be awesome if everyone created a public feed of their favorite blogs. For example, what if you started @Miss604blogs – and combined the feeds of all the blogs you read most often. That way I could read what you read – and discover awesome new blogs in the process. Similar to how Google enabled anyone to follow what the Obama and McCain campaigns are reading.

What’s next?
I have this idea for saving the planet, inspired by Kiva.org – basically micro-lending for people who want to start green & sustainable businesses. If nobody else is working on that, I might have to kick start it.

Working with Social Actions Labs – we’re about to launch a few crazy mashups – including one that will enable anyone to easily use their Twitter account for a cause and a “Take Action on Poverty” widget in collaboration with Blog Action Day.

Otherwise, I’m not sure what’s next. My life right now is turning into the classic Google Homepage – a white canvas on which anything could be painted. Suggestions welcome!

You can get in touch with Joe and learn more over at EngageJoe.

Centigrade Blazes a New Trail for Canadian Films

2008-10-09T15:31:48Z

Update: I originally wrote this piece for E!Online, so you can check out a slightly different version of the article over there.

It’s the most decorated Canadian film of 2008 and it’s about to make motion picture history thanks to the efforts of producer Madison Graie and Colin Cunningham who wrote, directed and starred in this suspenseful short, Centigrade.

“It’s is a good old fashioned entertaining thriller,” noted Cunningham, he and Graie met at Vancouver Film School years ago and since then they have grown into a successful film-making partnership that Cunningham describes as, “kind of like the Coen brothers. I’ll begin a sentence and she’ll finish it creatively.” Seeing the accolades Centigrade has received over the last year the 17 minute short has definitely taken the partnership for a thrill ride.

With a budget of $20,000, and the finished product having such a polished look, Graie admits that when it comes to film production in Vancouver, a little money goes a long way. “Vancouver really is kind to independent film makers - so when you ask, Vancouver usually gives back, which is nice,” Cunningham added that as such, they were able to put together “a real A-list” crew.

Centigrade premiered at the World Film Festival and since then it has been screened at numerous other film events. It also took home five Leo Awards this summer and the momentum is still growing.

They had won at the Cinequest Film Festival, and as that was that this was an Academy Award qualifying event, Centigrade then became the first Canadian film to be considered for the 2009 Oscars.

“We hoped at the time a calling card if we were lucky,” Cunningham added. “We’ve done a lot of projects in the past, everything from music videos to feature films and we’ve never got any kind of heat like we have off this little 15 minute movie.” Within the last year the pair has gone from completing the film, to festival showings, winning awards, and now they’re about to make history.

Cunningham noted, “we’ve also been accepted to iTunes so Centigrade is now going global this month.” Centigrade will be the first Canadian live-action short ever on iTunes and will be available mid-October on iTunes USA, Canada and UK. Find out more details over on my E!Online article…

Dress Me, Vancouver

2008-10-08T23:17:27Z

Photo credit: Duane Storey on Flickr

First off, I’m not naked as the title of this post may perhaps suggest. Secondly, this is an uncharacteristic post as I’m not going to talking history, hockey or about the latest Twitter applications.

Admittedly, girlie matters are not my strong suit. I can only remember wearing a dress twice in the last year (and the last time I wore my LBD I was also wearing a conference lanyard) so it’s rather apparent that I don’t have much of a selection in my closet.

Months ago Keira and I went shopping for the perfect LBD or “little black dress”. Since we waited until after Christmas and were too early for Grad season, the pickings at local dress shops were slim. As such, I’m a little gun shy this time around but I desperately need something sensational for this Friday night (that could also carry over into the Christmas party season).

So it’ll put it to my readers: What does a budgeted blogger like myself wear to a fantastic, fantabulous gala event like the closing celebration of the Vancouver International Film Festival? More importantly, where do I look in this city for something cocktail event-worthy?

Hockey Night in Canada Anthem Challenge

2008-10-08T15:21:15Z

There are only five songs left in the search for the next Hockey Night in Canada theme song. John and I were going through them the other day and I believe we both have the same favourite. The semifinalists have all had their entries beefed up by producer Bob Rock but you can still view some of the original entries.

Anthem #1 is called “Ice Warriors” and was composed by Gerry Mosby from Toronto.

Anthem #2 is called “Sticks to the Ice” and was composed by Robert Fraser Burke - a thirteen year old from Toronto. This is his original submission but you can check out the Bob Rock-ified version here.

Anthem #3 is called “The Eleventh Hour” and was written by Graham McRae who is a Surrey school teacher (from Richmond).

Anthem #4 is called “Let the Game Begin” and is by Christian St-Roch and Jimmy Tanaka from Chateauguay and Verdun, Quebec.

Anthem #5 is “Canadian Gold” by another elementary school teacher, Colin Oberst, from Beaumont, Alberta.

Although semifinal voting ended last night, once the two finalists are revealed on October 9th you can vote up until the winner is announced on Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday, October 11th.

“The winner will receive “$100,000(CDN), and half of the royalties for public performance of the Theme will be paid to the Songwriter(s), and half will be donated by CBC to minor league hockey.”

I’d love to hear what you think, which one do you want to be our next hockey anthem?

BC By-Elections for Vancouver-Burrard and Vancouver-Fairview

2008-10-08T00:58:05Z

The fall of October 2008 is official struck with election fever especially if you live in Vancouver. Not only are we all closely watching the proceedings one hour south in the United States, we’re also gearing up for civic elections and the federal election. If that wasn’t enough, there are two BC by-elections happening on October 29th.

Vancouver-Burrard became vacant in September after MLA Lorne Mayencourt, a B.C. Liberal, resigned to run for the Conservative Party in the Oct. 14 federal election.

Vancouver-Fairview became vacant in July after MLA Gregor Robertson, a B.C. New Democrat, resigned to run as Vision Vancouver’s mayoral candidate in the Nov. 15 civic election. [The Tyee - The Hook]

I’ll certainly be keeping my eye on Vancouver-Burrard, not only because I’ll be voting, but because of the star-studded list of candidates.

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

Liberals: Former Vancouver Canucks owner Arthur Griffiths. He was also owner of General Motors Place, served as Chair of the Millennium Skytrain Line, was a leader in the establishment of Canuck Place Childrens Hospice, and chaired the 2010 Vancouver Olympic bid. You can also read the write up I did about the Griffiths family on Metroblogging Vancouver.

Green Party: Drina Read. She’s been actively involved with the Pride Parade, the Car-Free Festival, the Stanley Park Ecology Society, the Fur-Bearer Defenders, and Greenpeace. She’s also got a blog.

BC NDP: Vancouver parks board commissioner Spencer Herbert. He was behind many fundraising drives for the restoration of Stanley Park, and fought that nasty proposal that would have seen mechanized, animatronic dinosaurs in the park. He’s known to read my blog and leave comments so perhaps I could even get an interview, eh? His website also features a blog and the BC NDP sites are built with Joomla (because I look at those types of things).

In Vancouver-Fairview we have, Margaret MacDiarmid for the Liberals, Jenn McGinn for the BC NDP, and Jane Sterk who is the current leader of the BC Green Party.

I’ll be hitting the polls three times this fall and each trip will be as important as the next. I encourage everyone to get informed about the parties, the candidates, and of course - to get out and vote.

Spot The Crazy Canucks Contest

2008-10-07T20:02:43Z

A few weeks ago we mentioned a special photo shoot we had at GM Place and now you are able to see JJ, Alanah, DaveO, John and me as featured bloggers and podcasters on the Canucks’ official website.

As it turns out, they’ve extended the FanZone campaign to outdoor advertising, including bus stops, Skytrain stations and even buses themselves. So far we’ve only spotted John’s poster at the Granville Skytrain station but we know we’re all out there… somewhere. This is where our podcast listeners and blog readers come in.

If you see us, snap a photo of you with us, where ever that might be, and submit it to The Crazy Canucks Flickr Pool. Your photo will have its opportunity to show up on the front page of our site, but there’s more!

Submitting a picture to the Flickr pool enters you into a draw for two tickets to the Canucks Open Practice on October 26, 2008. [The Crazy Canucks]

The Canucks Hockey Blog was nice enough to donate the prize and I’m also going to throw in a copy of the Sidney Crosby, On the Ice and Beyond DVD.

So keep your eyes peeled and have a camera handy, spot The Crazy Canucks posters and you could win.

Misss604 Ad Space: UQ Events

2008-10-10T00:16:04Z

As stated when I first started making my site open for advertisements, I will always disclose when a blog post is a part of a paid ad placement. As I choose my advertisers probably as carefully as they choose me, I make sure to remain above board for my readers.

UQ Events is the latest company to take up real estate on my side bars so I have conducted an interview with Michelle Lanthier of UQ Events to find out a bit more about who they are and what they do.

What is your website/url
The website is www.uqevents.com

What is your role/involvement with the business
I would say that I mostly deal with marketing related tasks. However, when you work for a smaller company it seems that you are constantly multi-tasking in order to accomplish 5 things at once (many of which are not at all marketing related).

What does your site/service offer
UQ Events enables anyone who uses our website to post, find and share events in Vancouver (at no cost to them). What this means is that people can POST their events in our database through their dedicated event calendars. Individuals who visit the website can then FIND these events and SHARE them through the website, through email or calendar apps, or by posting them on social websites like Facebook and Digg.

How long has it been around
We launched the website this past summer.

Why/how would people be use your site
Anyone who is looking to publicize an event (bands, theatre groups, artists, charity organizations . . .) can benefit from our website, as can any member of the public who is looking for something fun to do in Vancouver.

What is the ultimate goal for your site, how would you like to see it grow
Our goal is to grow the site to a point where we can help as many people as possible connect to and engage with events in Vancouver. UQ Events is all about sharing events and connecting the community through entertainment and we hope that people enjoy our service and continue to use it for many years to come.

How can people find out more
People can find out more by going to www.uqevents.com or by emailing info [at] uqevents.com with any questions they may have.

Update: You can now also find them on Twitter.

October’s Third Tuesday Food Drive

2008-10-08T23:24:57Z

During National Digital Media Day I started collecting food donations for the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. I still have the items sitting at home (about two bags worth) and I thought to myself that it would be really great to have more than this when I drop off the donations.

I knew I had to arrange some type of in-person event and get a food drive going and this is when I asked Tanya and Monica to have it at Third Tuesday on October 21st, an event I have been livebloging over the last year. Being the wonderful women that they are, they accepted without hesitation.

Third Tuesday is a monthly meetup or bloggers, social media experts (and newbies), professionals, consultants, students, marketers and PR gurus. We get to enjoy a presentation from a speaker (this month it’s Mhari Petrovic) followed by after-hours networking. It’s a great way to get out and meet the community, talk to colleagues, make new acquaintances and hopefully some business connections as well.

The attendees of this event each month are all so talented and motivated I thought they would be a great group to approach. Everyone is welcome to come to the meetup and bring a non-perishable food item for donation.

The GVFBS helps feed more than 9,000 people each week in 16 depots located in Burnaby, New Westminster, Vancouver and the North Shore. Additionally, the GVFBS aids over 100 agencies within these areas, providing help to another 16,000 individuals weekly.

Along with knowing you’re helping out those in the community that are in need, you will also get your name in a draw for some excellent prizes when you bring in your donation.

There will be additional information revealed closer to the date (venue etc.) and this will also be added to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank’s calendar. If you’d like to help out, please leave me a note in the comments. Thanks in advance for your support.

Update: Prizes are confirmed for those who donate to the Food Bank at Third Tuesday! The first will be a gift pack of CARE by Stella McCartney skin care products and the second is a ticket voucher for a regular season Vancouver Giants game.

The History Boys at The Arts Club

2008-10-06T22:23:05Z

After catching The History Boys last week at The Arts Club Granville Island Stage, I have to agree wholeheartedly with Jon from Beyond Robson who wrote, “the play is easily the most intellectually engaging thing I’ve seen on a Vancouver stage in years, and is almost flawlessly delivered by director Dean Paul Gibson and his cast and crew.”

The cast of the Arts Club Theatre Company’s production of The History Boys.
Photo by David Cooper.

For those who may not have already deduced, I love history and for that matter, I loved history class. From AP European History to Canadian Studies, I ate it all up in high school. In The History Boys, classmates at the all-boys school are clever, intelligent and incessantly witty while their teachers attempt to mold them into perfect Oxbridge material. Oxbridge being a mashup of Cambridge and Oxford, as the play is set in England.

Mrs. Lintott: And you, Rudge? How do you define history?
Rudge: Can I speak freely without being hit?
Mrs. Lintott: You have my protection.
Rudge: How do I define history? Well it’s just one f’ing thing after another.

The passionate debates, the laugh out loud and groan-worthy humour, and yes, even the pantless scenes were all priceless. Matter of the heart, matters of art, and talk of Auden, Orwell and Hardy - I was so inspired by The History Boys that I went to my bookshelf (parted the frames that held our lovely wedding photos) and dusted of The Return of the Native, Far from the Madding Crowd, and Jude the Obscure.

Hector: The best moments in reading are when you come across something - a thought, a feeling, a way of looking at things - that you’d thought special, particular to you. And here it is, set down by someone else, a person you’ve never met, maybe even someone long dead. And it’s as if a hand has come out, and taken yours.

It’s also worthy to note the production value of the play, the stage setup and the music. If you’d like to check out this Tony Award winner for yourself, it will be showing until October 25th on Granville Island. Tickets are available online or at the box office.

Monday Morning Link Fest: Getting Down to Business

2008-10-06T17:21:57Z

Mondays and Tuesdays are my big writing days where I prepare my contributions for E!Online as well as HockeyStars. A big part of my new ventures into the realm of self-employment is freelance blog writing. Our company, sixty4media, offers tutorials, training, setup, coding, themes, podcasts, screencasts etc. but we can also find the right person to create your content. If that person happens to be me and you’d like me to write (transparently) about topics you’d like me to cover, feel free to drop me a line.

Now down to the link fest for this Monday morning, or as I like to call it, “one week til turkey day”.

Jeremy Lim is the winner of the software license that was donated to WordCamp at Barcamp by the fine folks at Artisteer.

Gary from Bluefur has some great tips and links with regards to self-employment, freelance, and working for the man in his latest “In the Sphere” post: Salaries and Millionaires.

I just wrote about the Twitter for Business over on the sixty4media blog.

Twitter can be professional and also productive, as with any service you need to know when to ignore all of the noise and find out how this powerful tool can work best for you. [sixty4media]

John sent me this link over delicious, where is your username registered? Thanks to that extensive list of services and sites, I discovered Corkd, a great social network for wine lovers, and that I am also f’ing awesome (and you can be too).

Vancouver’s own “Interesting” event will be taking place October 24th. This premiere event, held around the world, “is a multi-disciplinary conference for and by the curious and creative minds of Vancouver. Speakers come from a host of backgrounds such as sciences, academia, marketing, technology, art, and more.” Additional information is available on the Interesting Vancouver site and you can register through the Eventbrite page.

Last week Liz Strauss, a leader in blog and social media consulting for business, named me as one of her “Successful and Outstanding Blogs” of the week (which is very cool). At Blog World Expo a few weeks ago she made the following comment with regards to PR companies only contacting the high-rollers of the blog realm: “The thing I know about bloggers is that if you talk to them and they’re little bloggers, they grow - and they become bigger bloggers.” She also noted, “I want a relationship, not a one link stand,” when it comes to building blogger relations.

Change of Seasons in Stanley Park

2008-10-06T14:51:38Z

Yesterday our morning workout turned into a 2 hour power-walk in and around Stanley Park.

I packed a camera with me since it had been a while since I was able to check back on the restoration progress in the park and more specifically, I wanted to see how the Merilees Trail looked now [see Update from April 2008].

Merilees Trail - April 2008

Picnic time along the Merilees trail - October 2008

The “Siwash bunker” has new access; we no longer have to scale, jump, or crawl across roped bridges to take in the great views from the top.

Siwash Bunker Access - April 2008

Siwash Bunker Access - October 2008

The Prospect Point parking lot is now relocated away from the cliff (where they clearcut all those trees) with plenty of room for tour buses and paid parking.

The clearing at Prospect Point - January 2008

Where the road used to be at Prospect Point - October 2008

Hollow Tree looks like it’s in its worst shape yet. The tree behind it has been cut down, there are more cables wrapped around it and two pillars holding it up at the front and quite frankly it looks hideous.

The Hollow Tree - April 2008

The Hollow Tree - October 2008

I didn’t get the chance to follow up on “my spot” on the sea wall that I’ve been tracking over the last few years but John said it still hasn’t been repaired.

For a bit of back-story… in December of 2006 a great wind storm tore through they city’s most prized natural wonder and it’s been in a rebuilding and replanting phase ever since (you can browse John’s archives or mine for coverage of the storm in 2006). My photos of the park are available in my Flickr set.

Palin on Foreign Policy and Tina Fey on SNL

2008-10-05T02:49:47Z

I was just talking to John about Halloween costume themes this and I have a hunch that “The Palin” might just be the frontrunner for women this year.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on SNL

Sarah Palin and Katie Couric

Gibson’s Finest Iron Bar Competition at Players Chophouse

2008-10-04T17:44:39Z

Thanks to Kevin from FoodVancouver, I attended the Gibson’s Finest Iron Bar Competition at Players Chophouse yesterday afternoon.

I admit, I’m not a big whisky drinker but I knew I couldn’t pass up this event (especially since I had such a good time at the Grey Goose Arbiter of Cool earlier this summer).

After a quick education in Canadian whisky, the four mixologists / bartenders that were vying for the title and a spot at the Canadian championships took their places for the competition.

Sophie Taverner of The Cascade Room

Frank Plater of the Fairmont Waterfront

Ryan Cheverie of Hamilton Street Grill

Justin Tisdall of Boneta

The judges were Raj Taneja of Urban Mixer (it was great to finally meet him in person), Jay Durant from Global TV, and Michael Schratter from 24 Hours.

The idea was to do a sort of “Iron Chef” competition; there were three rounds with three different mystery ingredients which ended up being ginger (candied, fresh or ale), orange (fresh, marmalade, or juice) and lemon (fresh, soda, or juice).

Each contestant also had their own signature drink so we got to sample “The Justin”, “The Sophie”, “The Ryan”, and “The Frank”.

Justin ended up being the champion, receiving an oversized novelty cheque, a trip to Montreal for the Grey Cup and a spot at the national finals. His signature drink contained: 2oz Gibson’s Rye, 1/5th oz Amaretto, 2oz apple cider infused with orange dulce tea, and a chopped bird’s eye pepper.

Thanks to Gibson’s for the successful event and to Players for the delicious pairings. My photos are available in my Flickr set and Raj was also taking photos which will be up on his Flickr as well.

Handi Mobility Launches Next Bus for Translink

2008-10-03T20:41:15Z

Local mobile technology company, Handi Mobility, just launched Translink’s new “Next Bus” service for the iPhone.

“Every second person coming to TransLink’s mobile site uses the iPhone, so we had to create an amazing experience for these early adopters. Our goal is to make commuting even better - by providing complete schedule information, alerts, GMail-style favourites and transit maps.

The next release will provide additional features - we’re going to add the Buzzer, rider feedback and location-based functionality.” [From Igor at Handi Mobility]

I’ve known of Handi Mobility since DemoCamp in May of 2007 and since then have regularly used their MyBus Facebook application.

NextBus is a free download for the iPhone that will be available in the iTunes app store at the end of the month and you can also access features by going to m.translink.ca from your mobile device (that URL also appears when you use Translink’s text service).

TweetDeck is Your All-in-One Twitter Manager

2008-10-03T19:34:43Z

A few months ago I wrote a post about some useful Twitter apps. I still use Twitteriffic however when traveling to Blog World a few weeks ago Tris introduced me to TweetDeck. Ideal for following conversations and topics (perfect for a big conference like Blog World Expo) it’s a great all-in-one device.

It’s a dock that you can customize with various panels; follow specific conversations with search, have all of your replies visible alongside direct messages, shorten URLs and add Twitpics on the fly and of course, update your status.

TweetDeck is a little overwhelming for regular use but it’s a great when you need to follow conversations and topics such as the debates in Canada or the US or if you have a business and you’d like to follow industry updates.

This Adobe Air desktop app is available for PC or Mac from TweetDeck.com.

When Bears Attack

2008-10-02T20:26:42Z

Each year housing developments in the greater Vancouver region creep higher and higher up the side of the mountains, encroaching on wild animal habitats. Combine that with global warming and every other element under the sun and we have a clash.

Photo credit: John Bollwitt on Flickr

The 25-year old Australian was bitten in the leg by a black bear as people crowded around the animal to get pictures. The tourist was lucky, according to the Province newspaper, because his injury was minor. The bear wasn’t so lucky. It managed to escape, but was shot the next day when it came back into the village. [News1130]

Nature and climates are changing and I’m certainly not the person to offer any expertise as to what solutions, alternatives and options there way be. However, I know bears are being shot and killed because of their contact with humans, and people are getting hurt. In many instances, common sense comes into play; don’t feed the bears, don’t leave your garbage out overnight, and don’t approach bears for cutesy photo opportunities.