Earlier this summer, Anthony of Farmstead Wines won tickets to a Canadians game through my website. After chatting with him a bit I learned more about Farmstead, and a great cause that they are supporting out at the UBC Farm this Saturday, September 20th. I asked Anthony if he could send me more info and so instead of butchering the details, I’ll pass along his words:

I think that many people do not even realize the farm exists, let alone that it is under intense developer pressure. While the University has promised to keep the farm in some capacity, maintaining it in its current size and location is vital for two reasons. One, the farm has spent 20 years building and maintaining soil vitality and the area is a complex, interconnected ecosytem with forests and fields included in the 24 hectares. Second, at its current size, much of the work and research that the Farm does is directly applicable to farms in the Fraser Valley. As such, it serves as a center for regional understanding of the potential of sustainable and organic agriculture.

Photo credit: bbqmag on Flickr

Aside from the political issue, the fundraiser itself is one which is quite unique. On Sept. 20, participants will be picked up at their homes, brought to the farm for a tour and reception with wine and canapes. Then, not knowing ahead of time where they will eat dinner, the attendees will venture off to a five course meal featuring ingredients from the farm paired with naturally farmed wines. Participating restaurants are West, Gastropod, Cru, Fuel, Chow and La Quercia.

Tickets for this event are $250.00 and are available through Books to Cooks at (604) 688-6755. Attire is farm-formal. 100% of the net proceeds from ticket sales and the auction will be entrusted to the Save the Farm Campaign and its efforts in raising awareness for this vital issue.

To make sure that we can raise as much as possible for the Farm, a 10-day auction begins on Sept 10 at FarmsteadWines/UBCFarm. The winning bidder will get a five course meal paired with wines for 8 people, in their home, cooked by me and Barbara-jo McIntosh (of Books to Cooks).

Kelly over at Full Bodied also has some details up on a blog post and you can also check out the Books to Cooks blog for more information.

A while ago I mentioned a photoshoot that us Crazy Canucks had at GM Place along with Richard Loat, well the pics are now up on the official Canucks website in the FanZone section.

You can listen to our first podcast of our third season, which was recorded and published Monday night with everyone on the line (JJ, Alanah, Dave, John and me).

Also, please browse the other bloggers and podcasters listed on the website as they all offer incredibly witty, smart, and insightful commentary throughout the NHL season.

In town for an event tomorrow night, David Jones of Hill and Knowlton will be speaking to the Third Tuesday crowd in Vancouver tonight.

We hear the horror stories of fake blogs, spam pitches and general ignorance of the social media community by PR practitioners who leap into the online space without first understanding what it is and why it’s different. David will talk about how Hill & Knowlton approaches the online space and how it’s incorporated into virtually every PR program they execute on behalf of companies like HP, Motorola, Bayer and Molson. [ThirdTuesday]

I’m lucky to have been pitched by several great PR and marketing firms and professionals, and I’ve written my share of proposals. Within this month alone I have worked with the fine folks at Zipcar for National Digital Media Day, DreamBank for the Blog World Expo and I have ongoing partnerships with organizations like Fitness World, which is keeping me healthy over the next year.

I am once again a media sponsor (by way of liveblogging) thanks to the lovely organizers Tanya and Monica. The liveblog will begin around 7:00pm so check back soon for updates on the go. Continue reading this post ⟩⟩

With National Digital Media Day only 10 days away, my grand scheme of being mobile and liveblogging across the region wouldn’t be coming to fruition without the help of Zipcar.

Thanks to the car sharing network, I’ll be able to cover more than just Vancouver in the spirit of this national celebration of digital media. As such, I had a quick interview with the General Manager of Zipcar in Vancouver, which you can download, play and listen to over on RadioZoom.

Here are a few key points about National Digital Media Day:

If you have a suggestion for one of my stops on National Digital Media Day (from Langley to Richmond and everywhere in between) please submit it in the comments below.

Update: The Vancouver Park Board has voted unanimously for a 1,900 square foot addition to the Brockton Totem Pole Interpretive Centre. [News1130]

It’s one of the first stops all the tour buses make as they cruise around our city’s beloved Stanley Park and recently there’s been a proposal to expand the totem pole visitor centre to accommodate all of its visitors.

“The argument is we need to provide a washroom, bigger washroom, for the tour buses and the tourists that come through there because it can get congested at the busiest times. So, it’s a big project. They also want to expand the gift shop by about 1,400 square feet.” [News1130]

“The totem pole display area at Brockton Point is the most visited tourist attraction in all of British Columbia and it has an interesting history,” and contrary to popular belief, they were not native to the park. They were purchased and placed by the parks board over the last century [VPB].

Photo credit: David Drucker on Flickr

If you’ve been a reader of mine for a while, you’ll know I’m never really a fan of more paving, building, and demolishing nature for the sake of “tourism” in the park, and this is no exception.

I love the totem poles in the park, however if you would like to learn more about the history, culture and traditions behind them, I also recommend the Museum of Anthropology at UBC or the Royal BC Museum in Victoria.

I believe Stanley Park should be enjoyed as a park in all its natural beauty. I like that it’s a city park with amenities but when they start ripping up the entire reason we were drawn to the spot in the first place, it seems a bit silly.

Luckily there are some Parks Board members like Spencer Herbert who feel the same way: “My main concern is green space in the park,” Herbert told the Straight. “Stanley Park isn’t expanding but buildings in the park are.”

Running through the park this morning we saw tents and makeshift campsites all over the place. It sure would be nice to find homes for these people before we build another washroom with handsfree faucets for the next busload of tourists.