The Vancouver 2010 mascots were revealed in 2007 as Sumi, Quatchi, Miga and their unofficial sidekick Mukmuk appeared in a West coast inspired cartoon introduction. The London 2012 mascots have been presented with a similar way, with a full background story about the chosen pair, Wenlock and Mandeville. They came from the molten steel in Bolton that was used to build the Olympic stadium and were lovingly hand-crafted for two lucky children. They then sprung to life thanks to a magical rainbow and are now blogging up a storm.
Now the mascots feel the need to be in London for 2012 – and the creative teams are working on the journey they’ll make to be there in time for the Games. As I’ve said before, the mascots are entirely owned by the London Organizing Committee (Locog). But we’ve been aware for some time of what was being planned and – if creatures made from steel can be said to evolve – we’ve followed their evolution. So do I have a view on them? Well, in this case it’s irrelevant what I think. The judges are the people of Britain and beyond.
Matt Dunham/AP Photo
Miga, Quatchi, and Sumi made it across the province, were the highlight of the Olympics for some, and wound up in some pretty interesting places around town. In fact 42% of my readers said the mascots were their favourite symbols of the Vancouver 2010 Games.
I’m curious to see how the one-eyed Wenlock and Mandeville will be accepted but for now, I can follow both on their official Twitter accounts (@iammandeville @iamwenlock) to see what they get into leading up to 2012.
Sex and the City is returning to the big screen and even here on the West Coast gals and guys alike are getting ready for the glamorous sequel.
To help build the excitement for this film, BCLC is launching a series of Sex and the City themed scratch and win tickets, available in lotto stores now.
The film will be in theatres May 27th and there are some exciting events happening around Vancouver (which I’ll profile in another giveaway post next week). However, to get everyone warmed up BCLC has offered my readers not one but two amazing gift baskets filled with…
… A copy of the first Sex and the City Movie on DVD
… Ten scratch and win Sex and the City tickets
… Goodies from the SJP NYC fragrance line
… Four movie passes so you can catch the new film at Cineplex
… A special charm from Tiffany’s
The total value of the prize is $400 (each basket).
Here’s how to enter to win one of two gift baskets:
Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
I entered to win the ultimate Sex and the City gift basket from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/1NebG
I’ll draw one winner tomorrow morning at 9:00am and arrange delivery of the gift basket by Friday, May 21st. The other will be drawn May 31st. Please note, you must be 19 years or older to enter since this is a BCLC contest.
Update May 20th The first gift basket winner is Jessica Adamson, congratulations! I will also be sending 5 x $3 Sex and the City scratch & win tickets to Sue, Donna, @Leftcoastmama, @andi_fisher, @pcumming. All entries will still be counted toward the second drawing (except for Jessica’s, since she’s already won big!)
Over the next week or so (and on Friday afternoon) I’ll be doing random draws from the entries and will send out 5 x $3 scratch & win tickets to those winners. Their names will be kept on the entry list for the big basket prize as well. Thanks for making this contest a success!
Update May 21st I did a draw for some scratch & win tickets so I’ll be sending 5 of them out to Sarah@EmergingMummy, Mama in the City, and @VancityKavita.
Update May 31st A few more scratch & win ticket winners: Del, Jenn, Allison, and Catherine.
Update May 31st I just drew the winner of the second gift basket and it’s Leslie R. Congratulations!
Update June 6th I still have a pile of scratch & win tickets so here are 5 more winners of 5 tickets each: Susan Sandulak, Venessa, Iain, Cassie Gill, and @thetinyfig.
Fine print: Must be 19 years or older to enter since this is a BCLC prize pack. Also, in order to claim any prizes on the scratch & win tickets you must be a resident of BC.
Tinhorn Creek Vineyards presents Wine Tasting with a Social Twist May 26th at the CBC Audience Lounge.
The event will consist of a staggered wine tasting — think timed speed-dating but with wines. Each participant will have five minutes at each tasting station to swirl, sip, and sample. When the bell sounds, they move along.
The catch is that the labels will be covered, only to be revealed at the end of the circuit by winemaker Sandra Oldfield. She will also go through the nuances of each varietal once everyone has completed their tastings. If you play along and make some correct guesses while you go through the blind tastings, you could also win some prizes, courtesy of Tinhorn Creek.
FreelanceCamp is coming to Vancouver May 29th at the Network Hub on Richards and Hastings.
I have been attending “camps” for the last five years as I’ve found a large part of being in the social media realm is actually getting out from behind the computer screen and meeting, networking, and just hanging out with others. The beauty of “camp” is usually the loose unconference format (see: BarCamp). You show up and anyone could be a presenter as each attendee can pitch a talk and then the schedule is made on the fly.
“Freelance Camp is an opportunity for freelancers to get together, to learn from each other best practices and to share their experiences,” said organizer Minna Van who also operates The Network Hub co-working space.
I asked Minna about bringing FreelanceCamp to Vancouver, and who would benefit from attending. “Too often freelancers are working by themselves and with this event we want to send the message you can be in business for yourself but not by yourself,” said Minna. “There is a community of freelancers in Vancouver and at this event; we will meet, learn and support each other.”
“It is more of a discussion format than it is formal presentation format. Everyone is expected to be an active participant.
She added that the event is for any kind of freelancer, not just writers. Everyone from developers, consultants, real estate agents and musicians are likely to attend. “We encourage people from different industries to come out so we have a more balanced perspective about business.”
This is the very first FreelanceCamp in Canada and Minna is excited for what will transpire during the discussions and presentations. Tickets are currently for sale online for $10.00 and you can find out more about featured guests, sponsors and activities on the FreelanceCamp Vancouver website.
After hearing the loud rumble that caused the curtains to blow in my mother walked over to the crib to check on me. It was Mother’s Day. She thought the noise came from someone slamming lids on dumpsters but soon found out on the news that Mount St Helens in Washington State had erupted. I was 5 months old and fast asleep so this is where my personal account ends.
This was the deadliest and most economically destructive volcanic event in the history of the United States [source].
Fifty-seven people were killed; 250 homes, 47 bridges, 15 miles (24 km) of railways, and 185 miles (298 km) of highway were destroyed. The eruption caused a massive debris avalanche, reducing the elevation of the mountain’s summit from 9,677 ft (2,950 m) to 8,365 ft (2,550 m) and replacing it with a 1 mile (1.6 km) wide horseshoe-shaped crater [source].
The eruption came with an earthquake that rocked 5.1 on the Richter scale [source].
The largest landslide in recorded history swept down the mountain at speeds of 70 to 150 miles per hour and buried the North Fork of the Toutle River under an average of 150 feet of debris. Some areas are covered by as much as 600 feet. In all, approximately 23 square miles of material was removed from the mountain [source].
The volcano, which was actually named by Captain George Vancouver [source] still has recorded volcanic activity. This includes steam clouds that sent everyone in this digital age over to the Volcanocam to check out the volcano in 2004, 2006 and 2008.
Thirty years later, National Geographic reports that Mount St Helens is still highly dangerous and that Washington State is the second biggest threat when it comes to potential volcanic activity. Mount St Helens is also only second only to Hawaii’s Kilauea when it comes to a “very high risk” of volcanic activity.
Today you can still get out and enjoy the area, filled with hiking trails, recreational activities, and amazing lookout points.
