Seven months after John and I were married in 2006 we conducted our first band interview together. Using my blog as a written outlet and our music podcast for publishing the audio, the trend continued over the years. However, we’ll never forget the first time we were ushered through the back hallway of Richards on Richards to hang out with Jim Ward from Sparta. We talked about music, sushi, Vancouver, and the show he and Matt Miller (bass), Keeley Davis (guitar), and Tony Hajjar (drums) were about to rock out for us.
The following spring, we interviewed Keeley in the green room of the Commodore Ballroom – another first for us – and about a year later Sparta went on an indefinite hiatus. Some of the members worked on other projects like Sleepercar (Jim Ward) or Denali (Keeley Davis) and reunited old bands like At The Drive In (Jim Ward, Tony Hajjar).
After announcing an ‘awakening’ in 2011, the whole band came together and returned to the studio in early 2013. They are now setting out for a Canadian tour, with Whistler and Vancouver being the first two stops. Learning this news, I knew I had to connect with the band to talk about their return so I arranged a call with Matt Miller to chat about his time off, the return to the studio, and hitting the road once again. Continue reading this post ⟩⟩
BC will have its first Family Day stat holiday on Monday, February 11, 2013 and with that comes the scramble for activities and events to keep all those with time off from the office or school occupied. In anticipation of the new holiday, local attractions have been posting special offers for families to enjoy together:
Vancouver Giants Family Day Game
The Vancouver Giants take on the Portland Winterhawks at 2:00pm at the Pacific Coliseum. TELUS is sponsoring Family Day festivities that include autograph sessions, live music, interactive games, colouring, popcorn, hot chocolate, and more — all included with your game ticket.
Vancouver Aquarium for Family Day
The Vancouver Aquarium will be open extended hours all weekend and on Monday the 11th for Family Day including the new exhibit “The Secret World of Sharks and Rays” that opens February 7th.
Parks Canada Free Entry for Youth Parks Canada sites across the region will have free entry for youth 16 years old and younger on Family Day and throughout the weekend (February 9 to 11, 2013). The sites include Fort Langley National Historic Site, Gulf of Georgia Cannery National Historic Site, and Fort Rodd Hill & Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Sites.
BC Sports Hall of Fame
Enjoy half price family admission to the BC Sports Hall of Fame (Gate A at BC Place) on Family Day. Special activities will include colouring, scavenger hunts, random free membership draws, and all that the hall has to offer like the 2010 gallery and the participation zone with a climb wall, track, kick ball, and more.
Vancouver Art Gallery and Robson Square
Join Juno Award winners Said the Whale at Robson Square and enjoy other musical performances, face painting, a hockey shoot out, educational activities from Britannia Mine Museum, the Royal BC Museum, Science World and more. Ice skating is always free but there will be free skate rentals on Family Day too. Activities and events inside the gallery and out in the square will take place 11:00am to 7:00pm.
Vancouver Lookout Family Weekend
The Vancouver Lookout is hosting a Family Day weekend of events that include scavenger hunts and orienteering. Hours will be 9:00am to 9:00pm from Saturday to Monday that weekend.
Family Day at the Carousel in Burnaby Burnaby Village Museum is hosting Family Day at the Carousel from 11:00am to 2:00pm, a special program for youth and children. Play with creations of a balloon artist, get creative with a children’s art activity, join in some heritage games, and have unlimited carousel rides! Drop-ins are welcome provided there is space. Pre-register to avoid disappointment. $6.50 per person ($7.28 with taxes).
Local Mountains for Family Day
Many BC ski resorts are offering up Family Day promotions. Locally, Mount Seymour is hosting a Family Day contest, Grouse Mountain is having a pancake breakfast, sleigh rides, scavenger hunts, snow painting, and offering 50% off lift tickets (for BC residents) and general admission. Whistler Blackcomb, Mount Washington, and Sun Peaks are also offering 50$ off lift tickets (for BC residents).
New Westminster
The City of New Westminster in partnership with the Fraser River Discovery Centre, School District #40 and RiverMarket, are offering the following Family Day activities and entertainment from 11:00am to 3:00pm at the Fraser River Discovery Centre: Mike’s Critters (see live animals such as parrots, frogs, lizards, snakes, turtles & more), ExploreGreen (an environmental educational arts & crafts program), Youth Lounge (featuring video games, table top games and more for ages 11 and up), New Westminster Museum & Archives programs & artifacts, guided tours on Samson V, outdoor sports for all ages on boardwalk (weather permitting), a variety of youth musicians, fitness participatory demonstrations, magic shows, CoCo the Clown, children’s meal specials at RiverMarket food vendors. The first 50 families to arrive will receive gift certificates for local services and products. Free parking will be available on the Front Street Parkade.
Richmond
The 5th annual Children’s Arts Festival in Richmond will be happening on Family Day at the Richmond Cultural Centre from 10:00am to 4:00pm following an opening ceremony at 9:45am. There will be Creativity Classes led by accomplished artists in the realm of dance, musical theatre, puppet making, cartooning, animation, circus, and more. Eric Litwin, New York Times #1 bestselling author of Pete the Cat picture books, will share musical stories for kids of all ages. Pre-registration is required to meet Eric Litwin ($10 per ticket) and to attend Creativity Classes ($10 per class). Book online or call 604-276-4300. Registration includes a wristband that provides access to performances and many fun, hands-on Imagination Stations to explore origami, balloon twisting, and more. In addition, wristbands give free admission for families to skate at Minoru Arenas and swim at Minoru Aquatics Centre. Wristbands can be bought separately on site for only $5.
Should you know of any other Family Day events and activities, please feel free to leave a comment or contact me with the details.
The Vancouver Giants continue their season of Hockey with Heart offering opportunities to engage with the community and providing even more entertainment for fans at game time. On Friday, February 1, 2013 they’ll be hosting Joe Sakic Hall of Fame Night as they take on the Kelowna Rockets at 7:30pm.
He is a CHL Player of the Year, winner of Conn Smythe trophies, two-time Stanley Cup champion, and Olympic gold medalist. The Giants will be hosting a celebration of Burnaby Joe‘s recent induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in a special pre-game ceremony. You could also be one of the 119 randomly-selected fans who get to meet Joe Sakic.
According to the Giants’ online poll, Joe Sakic Hall of Fame Night is the most-anticipated special event in the coming months. To purchase tickets, call 604-4-GIANTS (604-444-2687) or order online. Don’t forget, you can also purchase Vancouver Giants White Spot Family Packs that include tickets, burgers, gas, and parking.
I have a 4-pack of tickets to give away to Joe Sakic Hall of Fame Night as well. Here’s how you can enter to win:
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Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win 4 tickets to the @WHLGiants Joe Sakic Night from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/h86AG
I will draw one winner at random from all entries on Wednesday, January 30, 2013. Update The winner is Darcy!
The other night I was randomly barking commands at Siri on my iPhone 4S when I landed on the phrase: “Show me bears”. Instead of pulling up a search window and finding an image of a bear, Siri showed me the current roster of the Chicago Bears football team.
I tried something else: “Show me Canucks”. Siri popped up the latest Canucks roster and did it again when I said “Show me Whitecaps“, “Show me Lions”, and “Show me Giants”. The latter two came up with mixed results from Detroit, New York and San Francisco but it was great to stumble upon the MLS and NHL options.
It turns out that Siri is quite the sports fan if you have upgraded to iOS6 last fall (and perhaps you’ve already noticed this). You can use any of the following commands to get information on the go, adding in the name of your favourite professional sports team:
“Show me hockey scores from yesterday”
“When do the Whitecaps play next?”
“Which Major League Soccer team won the championship?”
“Show me statistics for David Booth”
For more information, you can click on the “i” in the bottom right corner of the search results and that will prompt you to open (or download) the Yahoo! Sportacular app. There you can select your favourite sports teams – including everything from NASCAR to women’s basketball to the English Premier League – setup alerts for specific events, and more. Yahoo! Sportacular is also available for Android, although Siri is not.
Despite the fog and rain, Vancouver Farmers Markets are still going strong this winter as they setup every Saturday outside Nat Bailey Stadium. For the month of February they’ll be trying something new by adding a Food Truck Festival – doubling their regular number of food trucks.
Visitors are invited to vote on their favourite “new recruit” food trucks and the top selections will be invited to join the roster as regulars at the busy summer markets. There will also be live music, covered seating, and the usual fresh, local offerings that you can find at the market each week.
Food Truck Festival: New Recruits
Ze Bite: Ze bite is Vancouver’s premier French cuisine food truck featuring delicious stews and speciality sandwiches made from scratch with locally sourced ingredients.
JJ’s Trucketeria: The brightest yellow food truck you’ve seen yet, serving seasonal creations made from scratch with a unique cultural mix of flavours.
Slavic Rolls: Slavic Rolls offers a great tasting pastry, made fresh in front of customers.
Feastro The Rolling Bistro: Feastro is the famous purple truck with the fabulous and award winning seafood tacos, fish and chips, salads, chowders and daily specials.
Old Country Pierogi: Old Country Pierogi brings to market homemade pierogies (regular and gluten-free) with sweet and savoury fillings.
Food Truck Festival: Market Regulars
Blue Smoke BBQ, Chilitank, Crêperie La Bohème, Eli’s Serious Sausage, Vij’s Railway Express, Le Tigre, Pig on the Street, Taser Grilled Cheese, The Kaboom Box, Transylvania Fresh.
Stop by the Vancouver Farmers Market (winter market until April 27, 2013) at Nat Bailey Stadium, 4601 Ontario Street. The new food trucks will be there starting Saturday, February 2, 2013. Follow the market on Facebook and Twitter for market information and updates throughout the year.
Despite the fog and rain,