One month, three concerts

Madeleine Peyroux at the Vancouver Centre for the Performing Arts. Opening was Vienna Teng.

Sufjan Stevens at St. Andrew's Wesley Church. Opening was My Brightest Diamond.

Jamie Cullum at the Commodore Ballroom. Opening was Josh Ritter.

One week, three new Vancouver restaurants

Rodney's Oyster House - raw Metcalfe Bay and Fanny Bay oysters, steamed mussels, pan-fried oysters, garlic shrimp, tossed salad, cheesecake.

Sanafir - Tuna: (1) smoked albacore tuna loin, saffron celeriac puree, organic micro greens, (2) ahi tuna spring roll, mango, shiso leaves, strawberry-ginger salsa, (3) seared big-eye tuna, thai black rice lemongrass cream; tapas dessert: (1) chocolate rice pudding fruit sushi roll, (2) meringue napolean, red wine marinated berries, whipped cream, (3) pecan praline, cardamon baked yogurt, grape granite.

Figmint - Starters: (1) Cheese, twice baked gruyere souffle with roasted pears, rocket, and walnut emulsion, (2) Beef, AAA beef filet tartare with purple mustard dressing and crisp potato; Main: Trout, Rainbow trout on squash risotto.

I'm back (maybe)

When I was picking up some supplies at the bookstore the other day, I had a conversation with a girl about talking to oneself. We justified our habit of speaking to no one in particular by giving it merit for working through problems, understanding what is really going on, and ultimately, keeping sane in an insane world.

Well, since I like to maintain an appearance of normal behaviour and I don't have the excuse of "I was talking to someone on my headset," I look to this blog to be my outlet for remarks on the things that I'm seeing, hearing, and doing. It's going to be my scrapbook of sorts for ideas I want to remember, thoughts that I want to share, and random pieces of inspiration from my friends, Friendsters(?), family, and strangers.

And this way, maybe you won't be as likely to see me walking down the street alone but in full dialogue. However, this in no way will tackle the problem of me singing along when Custard blares something that I like into my ears.

By the end of this entry, you should be able to...

Spending three intense days learning how to teach was eye-opening and even fun... sometimes. There came a moment on the second day that one of the people in my "class" recalled some technical jargon that was part of my lesson. The thing is that this "student" got it right. She was able to remember, 24 hours later, something that before my lesson she had not known or considered. Because of this realization, the eager eyes and questions during my lessons, and the positive feedback after my lessons, I could feel a warm feeling growing inside of me -- teacher's pride. I almost considered the option of staying in academia post-graduation. NOOOOOOOO!

This workshop provided some skills that don't just apply to the classroom setting. For example, the setting of objectives applies to why I'm writing this blog. I am definitely not becoming much more tech-savvy and my writing is becoming more apparently random blatherings. What measureable marker am I trying to reach by creating these posts?

My best wishes go out to JoAnn, Scott, Crystal, Alain, Van, and Rachelle. The teachers in this bunch are going to be great.

8 months in links

If I thought really hard, I would probably be able to list these in chronological order. Because I don't want to think that hard, I haven't. (Due to this same reason of my laziness, I've probably missed things that should be in this list as well.)

Oliver
Silver Sage Winery
Fidgital
Silent Sam
Before Sunset
Air-cum-The Morrissey
Starsailor
Blonde Redhead
CSPS
Illuminaires
Bard on the Beach
Quidam
The Secret Machines
The New Pornographers
Fiery Furnaces
The Shins
Liz Phair
Jamie Cullum
Mt. Revelstoke
The Whip
The Grouse Grind
Canadians baseball
Jazz Festival
Cypress Mountain
Celebration of Light

Cambie Street Yak

Black Dog Video - the best video store that I've found in my area - has given up on keeping up their online newletter. (Imagine that... starting something online with the expectation of keeping it updated regularly, then allowing it to go ignored for long stretches of time. Shocking!)

Instead, they are releasing the Black Dog Yak. It looks like random ramblings from the good folks on Cambie Street, but there are some interesting and funny tidbits. It will be interesting to watch how this new format works for them and how long they will keep it up.

Rufus clinches title in the 12th

Thanks to Clearlake, Ween, TSOOL, New Pornographers, Weakerthans, Meg & Jack, Modest Mouse, Kathleen, REM, Radiohead, Hawksley, Sarah, the Dears, the Postal Service, Spiritualized, and Broken Social Scene. Your discs and shows provided an incredible 12 months of music. Special mentions should go out to Neko and Carl, Thom, and Michael - for the past few months, it really looked like you had cinched up your hold on the best concert title for 2003. However, Rufus came out with the final concert punch and with his incredible (incredible!) show, he's tops in my books once again.

The best lines from tonight's show:
Martha: "... and I'm happy. There is no need to worry about me. With my family history, I know that you may worry, but I can tell you I'm happy."
Martha: "I brought EPs that are for sale. I thought I would help you out with it being the holidays and all."
Rufus: "I go back and forth between dedicating this song to Jackie Onassis and Michael Jackson. Well, there are a lot of similarities. They kind of complete a circle."
Rufus: "I think of this as my Richard... I mean, Gene Simmons moment. Well, there again are a lot of similarities - Richard Simmons and Gene Simmons."
Rufus: "All of my songs refer to the Wizard of Oz in some way." (Just before performing a song where Rufus and the entire band reenacted the melting of the Wicked Witch.)
Rufus: "I wrote this song for a straight guy. After he heard the song, he slept with me."

Everyone that missed out on this show, watch out for Rufus in 2004. With the release of Want Two in February of the new year, I'm certain he'll be back in Vancouver (I predict about July-August). There was one hint of what can be anticipated with the new album - a single entitiled "Gay Messiah."

Refine before year's end

I just read that the Sugar Refinery will be closed down at the end of December. Most people wouldn't consider eating in the 1100-block of Granville street (even the $.99 pizza looks a bit sketchy), but the Sugar Refinery is a hidden gem in this tough neighbourhood.

The good news is that they are looking at reopening at a new location.

I suggest that you visit them in their current location, you'll be glad you did when you are able to say, "I remember at the first Sug on Granville Street..." It's one of those places you may have walked past several times, but other than the sandwich board out front, there is nothing about the narrow stairway leading up to the restaurant that would make you think to stop and grub up. If you do visit them, remember to take cash - they do not accept any cards.

Chairs

A note to myself (and this way it doesn't end up on a scrap of paper that I can't find when I want it): A manufacturer of restaurant chairs that also sells to the public - corner of Clarke and E. Pender Streets (1-2 blocks north of Fujiya).

Volition Attitude

I love Steven Garrity's attitude and philosophy regarding music - "Here are songs that I like, that I think you should like because I have good taste and maybe you haven't heard enough music." He is the mind behind Acts of Volition.

His taste in music seems to be a good mix of indie rock and electronic music (and his source for discovering new, great things is a good one), with the bands being just mainstream enough that you can find their albums in the best record stores around town (or you can order them through the big chains (shudder)). Some of it is familiar to me, some of it is not. I love that!

You can listen to see if you agree with my opinions of his music on his weekly radio session. Check it out.

Crossing out X(-FM)

Who has checked out 104.9 X-FM lately? I just read an article that described how the station isn't getting enough listeners and isn't picking up enough of the marketshare (blah blah blah) due to the competition from good ole 99.3. Therefore they have completely done away with the alt-rock. I'm sure that this has pissed off a lot of pimple-faced, already raging, gangster-wannabe, teenaged boys.

So, if you are dying to listen to that Mariah Carey Christmas album that I hear so much about, but don't want to be caught with the album in your collection, I'm guessing you may hear it on X-FM if you stay tuned for long enough.

I guess that this is the conclusion to the question of which is the better station for alternative rock in Vancouver - an issue that seemed unnecessary even at the time of X-FM's inception. The Fox Rocks!

Highlighting

I suppose this is a question that I am firing out to all of you undergrad students (and some of my fellow graduate students that never quite figured out the efficient ways of studying). My question is "why the hell are you highlighting the entire chapter?" Seriously, I have seen so many students on the bus busy doing their readings, but highlighting at least 80% of the material. This is not highlighting and this is will not help you to identify the key points when you review the material!

When you're highlighting, think of what they do on Sportsnet or TSN. They don't show ever single play of the evening's Canucks game. No, you see the goals scored for and against, you see a few great saves by Cloutier or Hedberg, you see a pretty play by Bertuzzi as he mights his way to the net, and you see a crushing hit by one of the d-men. That's it. Those are the highlights.

You can thank me when you get your degrees.

Blog-head?

It is thought that the positive rewards of taking drugs (e.g. the euphoria, the increase in energy, the increased ability to concentrate, the reduction in worries) reinforce the behaviour, leading to further drug-seeking and drug-taking, and leading to drug dependence.

I have been looking for some positive reinforcement in regards to this weblog and tonight I found it. "Someone" is reading this and posted the first comment. I guess that this is something that I have been looking for - to know that I have written something that someone else has read and in some way identified with it, had an opinion about it, or had some sort of reaction to it.

More than anything I would love to hear about your reactions, your opinions, your thoughts and feelings. So, if you are reading this and perhaps something does strike some chord with you (whether it be that pretty G major 7th or a nasty augmented 5th), comment away and have fun with it. Once you try it once, you'll be looking for your next hit. Trust me.

Going through the polka-dot

You remember the Polka-Dot-Door, right? The show that had the Polkaroo, the stealthy green creature that nobody ever saw, and the door that revealed the inner workings of different industries and worlds. I used to love being able to find out how things worked with a trip into one of the door's polka dots.

I don't remember the Polka-Dot-Door ever revealing how Lego bricks are produced, so you can now satisfy that long-lasting curiosity. Check out "The Making of a Brick."

Spiritualized

Spiritualized played an free acoustic set (well, I wouldn't normally consider three, maybe four, songs a set, but I guess they have to save their throat and chops for the paying listeners tonight) this afternoon at Virgin Music Megastore. The showstopper was the final song they performed. What at first seemed like the band just tuning up turned into this mesmorizing soundtrack-ish exercise in dissonance and consonance. (How's that for finally putting to use those months/years of studying music theory?) Very cool.

I don't know much about the band, but I think I will be finding out more very soon.

Not quite "See Dick run. Run Dick run."

Matthew Kennedy has written a less elementary version of the Jane/Dick/Spot readers that I remember from the primary grades.

Be warned that this is not the story of seeing, running, and going that you may remember of this girl-boy-dog trio. When it comes to censorship of books in elementary schools, parents or school boards may have a legitimate case of keeping this book away from the kids.

Afterglow

Imagine that favourite warm fuzzy blanket that you had several years ago, but stuffed into your closet and had forgotten about since then. Imagine wrapping that warm blanket around yourself while you curl up with a nice warm drink. Imagine how familiar and comforting it all feels. You've just imagined the feeling that Afterglow gives.

If you want some of this coziness, you can get the CD for a cheap price at A&B Sound right now.

Great Italian Pie

Rebellious Tomato makes incredible organic gourmet pizza. Believe me when I tell you that I was a skeptic at first. It does cost a bit more, but it is so worth it. The thin crust is the perfect amount of crisp and tenderness, and the toppings are fresh and tasty. Plan on picking up their daily specials to make it a little bit more affordable.

I am so taken with the pizza that I'm ALMOST thinking about reconsidering some of the other random stances I've taken. I'll have to carefully consider adding Lululemon to my wardrobe ("But I don't do yoga!") and soup to my diet ("But it's just a hot liquid!").

(Yes, I know that garzpacho is served cold.)

Naked Chefs... and it's not about the food!

Jamie Oliver made famous the idea of a stripped down cuisine with his Naked Chef schtick. (Try his recipe for Squashed Cherry Tomato and Smashed Olive Bruscetta - so simple and tastes pretty good.)

Well, Vita-Mix has taken the naked chefs idea to the next level with their 2004 calendar. I'm surprised that Rob Feenie doesn't appear to be listed among the chefs featured. I thought that guy would do almost anything to make himself even more famous.

Drug Music Webcast

The Sounds and Visions of Tomorrow Today offers streaming hour mixes of music that should be listened to like a drug. So many names that I don't recognize, but a quick listen to a couple of shows from the archives make it sound like a place where you will find some new bands that will be new and cool for you and your indie music friends.

In the last couple of months some of their shows have included Broken Social Scene. This is all I needed to convince me that they are cool.

The Mean Pull-Out

Jason Salavon, an American artist, takes popular culture and uses mathematical computation to create artistic representations from the mass media.

In one of his recent exhibits, he has taken all the Playboy centerfolds from each of the last four decades and shows how they appear when averaged into a single photo for the decade. It's interesting to see the subtle differences that are evident between the four photos.

Main Street ups and downs

I was sad to see that the Starry Dynamo Cafe was serving its last coffees and teas this evening. There was no better place where you could sit down at a sewing machine table, sip a great chai latte, and catch a little bit of evening jazz.

On a happier note, I was happy to see that the Montmartre Cafe (Le Cafe Parisien), a little bit further up the block, was packed for this evening's show. If you get a chance, I highly recommend both Jeremy Fisher's solo show and a stop by the Montmartre, either together or separately. (And if you want to show others how uber-cool you are, study up the lyrics to the Bob Dylan standards before you get out to be in the audience for Jeremy's shows.)

Nicotini

This is insane! For the smoker that doesn't want to step outside for to satisfy their addiction, they can now have their nicotine fix via a martini.

A quick look into a pharmacology text shows that the fatal dose of nicotine is only 40 mg (= 1 drop of pure nicotine). Heck, the stuff is used in insecticides! Smoking limits the amount of nicotine that reaches the systemic system by either burning the chemical or cause it to leave via the second-hand smoke. With the risk of serious toxic side effects such as CNS stimulation, convulsions, respiratory arrest, and cardiac arrythmias, I sure wouldn't want to have to rely on my bartender to mix them light if I was out for the evening.

Don't let the dinosaurs into the deep end of the pool

Research at the University of Calgary has shown that a modified respiratory system that included balloon-like air sacs could have allowed some dinosaurs to float. When they could reach the bottom with their front legs, they could propel themselves along. However, if they couldn't reach the bottom, they could have tipped over and not been able to right themselves.

Pointy eared creatures potentially brought SARS into homes

Everyone always laughs at me when I talk about the evils of cats and how this should be so obvious by their pointy little ears. Well, it took what was probably a lot of expensive scientific study and an article in Nature, but I think I now have evidence to support why I don't love the house variety of felines. (I do feel sorry for the critters though if their susceptibility to infection leads to their use as an animal model for SARS studies.)

Keep your eyes on Science because it won't be long before they publish results showing that children have increased secretions of sticky substances from their skin surfaces.

Return of the Canadian chanteuses

DJs and television music departments must be licking their lips right now. Sarah is going to be releasing her first album of new material since Surfacing next Tuesday. After hearing remix after remix of Building a Mystery, Sweet Surrender, and Hold On; and having a tear jerked out of my eye with I Will Remember You being played in every second television season finale, it will be refreshing to hear her voice with some new music and lyrics.

She IS the classiest of the recent gang of Canadian stars turned moms that are returning to their art. Don't expect to see her doing Vegas or giving a way too perky "Hey, Vancouver/Calgary/Winnipeg/etc!" (lift arms to reveal midriff) anytime soon.

Shades of scorpions?

My first exposure to Greek mythology was through the 1960s produced cartoon, The Mighty Hercules. This must have been a quality cartoon to last over two decades. I haven't heard of C.O.P.S., Inspector Gadget, or another of the cartoons I grew up with being played today.

What is bugging me about remembering watching Herc is that I cannot remember what the line he uses when he meets one of his many challenges (many winged creatures, fire-breathing monster, etc). I thought it was "Shades of scorpions!" but when I scream it out in my best "mortal born by the gods" voice, it doesn't convey the same sort of desperate situation.

Those bottom replying bastards!

For the sake of saving the sanity of the Red-Haired Girl, NOBODY should be adding their replies to email AFTER the original message, then sending it.

Think about it. Your response to the message is the most important part of the email, so it should be on top where it will be most easily read and the first thing that is read. Don't just take my word for it, it appears that it is commonly accepted that "on top is better."

The Biggest Trick of their Trade

Warning: This post may reveal some background information that reduces the pleasure of watching Trading Spaces.

If the rumour I heard about the two carpenters on the show, Ty and Amy (I think there are some new carpenters too, but I haven't seen the show in months), is true, I am going to consider the release of this book to be a blatant money grab.

My Neal Pollack post

After hearing continued complaints about the transit system (not enough routes, not enough buses, expensive, crowded buses), I decided that I would find out myself how the transit service is doing by riding the bus to do all my daily errands.

It was raining, so I drove to the nearest bus stop (2 blocks from where I live). I parked just steps away from the bus stop and made a mental note of how considerate it was for them to reserve and clearly mark the curb near the bus stop as being for the bus and its passengers.

The bus took a short while to arrive at the stop, but I figured that word must have been given to the driver that I was waiting at the stop and he had decided to allow the other passengers some time to be within my presence. Again, very considerate.

Once the bus did arrive, I decided that I did not want to be recognized and quickly sidestepped the woman in the wheelchair that was at the coinbox and took a seat on the first bench. It was nice to see that I was going to get a good seat for my bus ride.

The driver called back to me, obviously having recognized who I was. "Sir...," he yelled, pointing directly at the coinbox. I ignored him, hoping that he would realize I didn't want to be identified and deal with the regular onslaught of fans.

-"Sir!"

I reluctantly surrendered and went to the front of the bus to speak to the driver. I rummaged through my bag and took out the bus route map that I had expertly revised (a wonderful trip through surburban and city areas that visited all of my favourite stores and restaurants) and laid it out on the coinbox. The driver looked at it increduously (he recognized the genius in the revisions very quickly) and by the time I gave him some short explanations, he had his arms up in the air signalling to the heavens his thanks for his good luck.

It didn't take long before the other passengers vacated and left me sitting alone on the bus. I merit my route changes for getting them to their stops so quickly.

There isn't too much more I can say about the bus ride. The only annoying thing I encountered was caused by motorists on the road. Especially on the more narrow surburban streets, they would honk at the bus showing they had recognized me. I figure on the narrower streets the motorists were closer to the bus and could verify that they were actually seeing who they thought they were seeing. I gave a wink and nod to the lady drivers, and a too-cool half-salute/half-wave to the men.

Overall, the bus system isn't all that bad.


In his Anthology of American Literature, Neal Pollack describes how he brings great literature to the world; a saviour and hope to impoverished nations; intelligence, beauty, and culture to the American public; and great love and sex to women. I found it to be a hilarious read while the novelty lasted. Unfortunately, it doesn't last long enough to reach the last page, by which time hearing about all his gifted talents is tiring and old.

CSI

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is the most watched television show in the entire world right now. Having been exposed to some of the scientific aspects of forensic science, I have to think that the development of sophisticated instrumentation and analytical techniques gives law enforcement a huge edge in apprehending criminals. However, with potential criminals having such easy access to learning the trade-secrets used to recreate and understand a crime scene, and thereby figuring out how to better cover their tracks, I have to wonder if crime labs are losing their upper hand in exchange for public entertainment.

Vancouver New Music

I wish I had heard about the Vancouver New Music Festival (Oct 22-25) a bit earlier. I guess it will be another one of those things that I'll look out for next year so that I can plan to check it out.

Their website is incredible. I haven't had a lot of time to check it out, but it looks as if they have some concert series that will be happening throughout the year. I'll be back to explore the site more real soon.

Western alienation

Rufus has started to announce concert dates for the Want One tour. Montreal, with two dates, and Toronto, with one date, are on the list. I'm waiting to see Vancouver added to the list for a show before the end of the year.

Well, though Rufus may be ignoring some of his fans (for now), it's nothing like "the f-ck you" that Ryan Adams gave to his fans when he decided to tour the UK rather than his home country.

Live Concert Recordings

CBC offers live recordings from some recent concerts and festivals.

Among the offerings, I've noticed ones that I've been at (Young and Sexy as part of New Music West 2002, The White Stripes at the Plaza of Nations); some artists that I look forward to seeing (Mogwai); and some that just sound damn interesting (The Sexareenos).

There are also some videos and audio available from a live studio session by the New Pornographers. Cool.

Potluck

L'Auberge Espagnole is a fun romp through Europe. It made me miss having roommates, want to find a sleazy neighbourhood club where you know the staff and meet the locals, and want to dance and sing in the streets into the morning hours.

Oh yeah, it also reassured me that the split-screen can be used properly by today's directors. I wasn't so sure after the disappointing summer blockbuster, The Hulk.

Driver boogie

When I was driving around today, everyone I saw seemed to be in great moods. The sun was shining, the rain had finally stopped - it was a gorgeous fall Sunday.

Having a grand ole time in his Honda was the guy behind me. I saw him in my rearview mirror and noticed he was bobbing and singing to his music. That's cool, I do that all the time. Then, when we stopped at the light I noticed that he had his arm out the window, doing a finger point a la Travolta-Saturday Night Fever! I didn't believe what I was witnessing, but at the next light, yup, the arm was out again and the finger was waving. Wow.