We’ve played street hockey for charity in downtown Vancouver but it’s now table hockey’s turn to gather players and support two great local causes. Local sports blog and podcast Pucked in the Head is organizing the Vancouver Table Hockey Extravaganza Friday, September 20 and Saturday September 21, 2013.
Vancouver Table Hockey Extravaganza Challenge
On Friday at 1:00pm Whitecaps FC anthem singer Marie Hui will sing O Canada! at Robson Square to start off the event that includes a world record attempt. The attempt will see eight people play table hockey for 30 consecutive hours to raise funds for Canuck Place and food for Five Hole for Food. The public are welcome to stop by, cheer on the players, and make sure they don’t sit, lean, or get any kind of assistance while they try for the world record.
The main event will be on Saturday, September 21st at 1:00pm when an open tournament will begin. You can register in advance online for $25 if you would like to play. Prizes include Vancouver Giants tickets and a Stiga table hockey game signed by many of this year’s Vancouver Canucks. BC Floorball will have a demonstration rink on site both days of the event, allowing passersby and donors the opportunity to play floorball.
For more information about the record attempt and the public table hockey tournament, follow Pucked in the Head on Twitter and Facebook.
Over the years I have profiled bloggers from the Northwest Territories to the Fraser Valley, anyone that interests me and that I hope will interest you as well. A few years ago I started asking a standard set of questions and this week I reached out to a former teacher of mine who is making waves on Vancouver Island. Click, share, explore, and enjoy!
Deidre Tansey
Blog: Just a Pinch of Ginger
Facebook: Justapinchofginger13
Twitter: @PinchOfGinger13
Pinterest | Instagram
How long has your blog been around?
I published my first post on March 3rd of this year, so just under seven months. Wow, time flies!
What is your role?
I’m the whole kit-and-kaboodle. A friend helped me with the original WordPress set up. I am the sole writer and owner, sounds more glamorous than it is.
What does your site do/what is it about?
It’s about family, food and sharing optimistic stories. Originally I simply wanted to write a cookbook, to archive our family recipes and stories. Friends encouraged me to think outside the box and share through a blog instead.
We have six children and have travelled a great deal, I had no idea that other people would actually want to read about our silly family adventures. It has evolved now, I have started to interview chefs and restauranteurs on Vancouver Island. I’ve discovered that their stories are fascinating and people appreciate hearing the background behind their favourite restaurants. For readers who aren’t in the vicinity, I always manage to get a recipe to try at home! I’m a total foodie and chef wanna be, so I LOVE this part of my “work”.
What can people see, read, and do when visiting your site?
Just A Pinch of Ginger features mostly healthy, whole food recipes, some are mine, some are friends and some are from amazing chefs! I also throw in a few fun desserts, birthday party ideas and travel hints for families. People can read about the few things I’ve learned through my own journey as a teacher, mom of six and business woman. There are stories about chefs, business owners and other inspiring folks on Vancouver Island.
Why do you blog?
Well, as I said before…it all started as a personal archive. Now everything has changed. I have received so many beautiful emails from people I would never have connected with otherwise, thanking me for sharing my stories. When something you write resonates powerfully with another person, it’s very gratifying. Cheap therapy actually! I would never have considered myself a writer or ‘reporter’ before. The pleasure I get from interviewing people, listening to their life journey…it gets me every time. I love it.
What is the ultimate goal for your site, how would you like to see it grow?
Now that the site has taken on a life of it’s own, who would have ever thought that people in 95 different countries would read my recipes? I suppose I’d like to be able to support myself from it. Although being a such a noob in this business, I haven’t actually spent the time to figure out how to do that. I’ll have to finish reading your book and take a course from you Rebecca 😉 People always say ‘do what you love, and the money will follow’. I am definitely loving this and my family has been incredibly supportive, so it is a great fit!
Right now though, I’m just enjoying the ride and revelling in all of the wonderfully talented people I’ve connected with. It’s exciting to wake up every day and look forward to finishing a story!
Thanks for the opportunity to do this interview Rebecca (my former student) 😉 and thanks so much to all of my followers near and far. I’m a lucky lady!
Follow
Follow Deidre on her blog, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
Read all entries in my Blogger Profile series and feel free to suggest a blogger for possible feature in the comments of this post.
This post has been contributed by Julie Sims M.Sc., Volunteer Coordinator & Nature House Interpreter with the Stanley Park Ecology Society (“SPES”). I have been following SPES since I moved into the West End almost eight years ago and I recently became a member. I wanted to offer the team an opportunity to share their news, events, and work so I have created “SPES Saturday” where they will be contributing stories with my audience once a month.
Exploring Stanley Park
So you want to explore Stanley Park. And you want to know where all the cool critters hang out. And maybe you wouldn’t mind spending a bit of time in the less frequented parts of our lovely urban park, where it’s quiet and green and it smells of trees and freshness. So where should you go? The short answer is go inside the Park.
Stanley Park boasts some amazing, safe and very well marked trails. One of my favourite walks starts on the western edge of Lost Lagoon at Cathedral Trail. Vancouver Park Board and Stanley Park Ecology Society recently collaborated to rehabilitate a patch of forest and wetland on Cathedral Trail, and there is now an impressive cedar boardwalk there. The boardwalk is great for bird watching. I’ve sometimes heard the haunting song of the Swainson’s thrush here, and the smell from the fresh cedar planking is fantastic.
If you continue up past the boardwalk to the confluence of Lees and Cathedral Trails with Bridal Path, you will have arrived under the largest of Stanley Park’s five eagle nests. Look for an obviously huge Douglas fir tree on Lees Trail (very close to the intersection) looking right from Cathedral Trail. Walk around the base of this giant and see if you can spot the remnants of an eagle’s meal dropped from on high. For a partial view of the nest, walk up Bridal Path for about 500 m, turn around and the nest may be seen high in the tree on the left.
If you continue up past the boardwalk to the confluence of Lees and Cathedral Trails with Bridal Path, you will have arrived under the largest of Stanley Park’s five eagle nests. Look for an obviously huge Douglas fir tree on Lees Trail (very close to the intersection) looking right from Cathedral Trail. Walk around the base of this giant and see if you can spot the remnants of an eagle’s meal dropped from on high. For a partial view of the nest, walk up Bridal Path for about 500 m, turn around and the nest may be seen high in the tree on the left.
If you have at least an hour, I recommend continuing up Bridal Path. There is a good chance you won’t meet another soul, so remember to take it all in, close your eyes and smell the forest, listen for the birds calling to each other or that slightly angry squirrel urging you to keep walking. Bridal Path will eventually take you to Prospect Point, the highest point in the park, where you can take in one of Vancouver’s most spectacular views.
If you would rather a shorter adventure, I recommend Beaver Lake or Lost Lagoon. Beaver Lake boasts a rather large and obvious beaver lodge on the northeast part of the lake where Ravine Trail meets the water. Beavers are crepuscular so if you want good chances for a sighting, hang out at Beaver Lake around dusk (or dawn if you’re an early riser). Quite often during winter one or two eagles can be seen hunting gulls over Lost Lagoon. After a dramatic midair capture, they usually perch on one of the floating logs to devour their prey. Unfortunately for us, eagles don’t hold a regular schedule but I have seen them hunt there almost daily in the winter.
Detailed maps of Stanley Park including all the areas described here are available for free from the Stanley Park Nature House located on the south east shore of Lost Lagoon under the viewing plaza. The Nature House is operated by Stanley Park Ecology Society (SPES) and is open each Saturday and Sunday between 10am and 4pm. SPES also offers naturalist guided walks in Stanley Park almost every Sunday. If the idea of joining a knowledgeable naturalist for an easy two hour walk appeals to you, have a look at the schedule of upcoming Discovery Walks. All walks leave from the Nature House.
In honour of Vancouver Fashion Week, which is coming up September 16th to September 21st, I have scoured the Vancouver Public Library and City of Vancouver Archives for photos of fashions of yore. Today’s “Archive Photos of the Day” theme is Hats:
The Agassiz Fall Fair and Corn Festival is happening this weekend out in the Fraser Valley, celebrating the best of what the season has to offer. This is the 109th Fall Fair and 65th Corn Festival in Agassiz, an amazing tradition of family fun, entertainment, 4-H exhibits, corn husking, educational displays, and much more.
Friday at the Agassiz Fall Fair
Starting Friday, September 13th, the Agricultural Hall ( 6800 Pioneer Ave, Agassiz) will open from 4:00pm until 8:00pm along with the midway (admission is $2.50 plus midway ride tickets/passes). The Agricultural Hall will be full of the latest entries in the baking, canning, vegetable, flower and handicraft sections.
The Beer Garden will open at 5:00pm and live entertainment, music, comedy, and bingo will run into the evening on indoor and outdoor stages. A full event schedule is available online. Continue reading this post ⟩⟩
