Today I’ll be out and about around town using a Camry Hybrid to get around, thanks to @ToyotaCanada. I have a few destinations and I’ll be blogging throughout the day with updates on the events. The first stop on my Earth Day tour of Vancouver today is King George Secondary in the West End.
The high school is participating in Best Buy’s “Tech it Away” event where you can bring in your electronic goods for recycling.
Accepted items include computers, monitors, cables & accessories, laptops, printers, fax machines, TVs, cell phones, batteries, DVD players, and VCRs.
In exchange for these recycling efforts at schools by student volunteers, Best Buy will award grants for the purchase of electronic gear to participating schools (19 in total) in recognition of their environmental efforts.
Participating schools in Vancouver:
Lord Byng Secondary (3939 West 16th Avenue)
King George Secondary (1755 Barclay Street)
Sir Winston Churchill Secondary (7055 Heather Street)
They will be accepting your electronic goods for recycling all day today from 7:00am until 7:00pm.
Our home team is undefeated thus far in the 2009 Stanley Cup playoffs and while they fought hard against a strong young St Louis team, Canucks fans were calling the sweep days ago (and I was hoping no one was going to jinx it).
It’s been an up and down season (and man, were we down – even with a losing streak at home at one point) but we’ve been able to rally thanks to a lot of heart and a phenomenal goalie – making this a great playoff run so far.
We’re still uncertain of our next opponent but until that match up in round two, our boys will get some rest. Check out our latest episode of The Crazy Canucks podcast for more tasty Canucks chit chat.
Tris by
jmv on Flickr
Here I thought March was a busy month — April has just passed by so quickly that it’s already time once again for Third Tuesday. Tonight’s event will take place at Republic on Granville @ 7:00pm with feature speaker, Tris Hussey.
Topic: “Do you get the message? At any given moment we can use a myriad different ways to get a message out, but which ones work best and when? Also, have our expectations of communications kept up with our technologies?”
I forgot that it’s the first game for the Radio Rockstars slo-pitch team that I have joined this season with John so I will be unable to attend. However, Raul will be liveblogging and I am also sending along two tickets to the Vancouver Giants playoff game this Saturday. If you’re in attendance tonight you can leave your business card and I’m sure one of the lovely organizers, Tanya or Monica, will be able to do the draw for me.
I also hear there will be a pre-meetup get together at Doolins on Granville @ 5:00pm to catch the Canucks game. Have fun everyone and I look forward to reading all of the tweets and comments from tonight’s events.
Each year in Vancouver the Canstruction competition and exhibition showcases talented individuals and teams who can design and create magnificent structures and sculptures by using nothing but cans of food.
What Canstruction Vancouver – Public viewing of the exhibition
Where The new Vancouver Convention Centre, use Thurlow street entrance
When April 26 – May 3, 2009 daily from 10:00am to 6:00pm
Admission By donation (though keep in mind that for every $1 donated, the Food Bank can purchase $3 of food)
Photo credit:
sonson on Flickr
It’s a great outing for all, especially families and children who might get a kick out of some of the creations. This year’s theme for the competitors is “Throughout History: from Caveman to Spaceman“.
After the week-long event, the structures (that can be up to 2 meters high and contain thousands of cans) are disassembled and all food items are donated to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society.
The Food Bank is currently looking for volunteers to help out next week during the exhibition. You can find more information on their website or follow @VanFoodBank on Twitter for updates.
As we were taking a stroll down Dunsmuir Street in Cumberland this weekend, Keira was filling me in on all of the regional history. I realized that even though I’ve profiled the origins of street names in Vancouver, I have never mentioned Dunsmuir and the family’s impact around the province.
Aside from the street traversing downtown Vancouver, I’ve noticed the Dunsmuir name in a few other locations so here’s a brief introduction to the family and their legacy.
Robert Dunsmuir was a coal baron whose family ruled the industry in BC from the 1870s until the turn of the century. From railroads, the formation of towns, and even government office, the Dunsmuir name helped shape the province in many forms. Although the reign was not without scandal, such as the Dunsmuir’s opposition to organized labour, Dunsmuir was an economic force to be reckoned with for decades.
In the 1890s Craigdarroch Castle in Victoria was built for Robert’s wife, Joan Olive (White) Dunsmuir.
Son, Alexander Dunsmuir
Robert’s son, Alexander, moved to the San Francisco Bay area in 1878 to manage the family business and built Dunsmuir House for his wife Josephine in 1899.
Son, James Dunsmuir
Heir to the Dunsmuir business fortunes, James managed the Dunsmuir coal empire from 1876 until 1910 and sold his Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway to the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1905.
James was elected to the BC legislature in 1898 and also served as the Premier until he resigned in 1902. “Appointed Lieutenant-Governor in 1906, he was an uneasy occupant of the Vice-Regal office. The criticism he received when he refused to give Royal Assent to anti-Oriental legislation turned to howls of outrage when it was discovered he was recruiting cheap Japanese labour to work in his mines.” [Hatley Castle]
James had Hatley Castle / Hatley Park in the Colwood area built for his family in 1908. You may recognize it as the home of Lex Luthor on the series Smallville, where they use exterior shots as Luthor Manor. The X-Men films were shot inside Hatley Castle as it served as Professor Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.
In 1909 James also founded the town of Ladysmith, naming it after the victory at the Battle of Ladysmith during the Boer War (the first war in which Canada participated).
Hatley Castle is now the home of Royal Roads University and a museum that runs tours as well as bookings for private functions. Members of the Dunsmuir family are scattered across the globe yet in recent years several have been back to the Castle to visit and reminisce. [Royal Roads]
I would highly recommend checking out these two castles and while you’re in the Greater Victoria area, Fort Rodd Hill & the Fisgard lighthouse offer up some excellent local history as well.
