Maybe it was the garbage strike, maybe it was just too nice a night to sit about in a giant crowd, but there were certainly fewer people out on the beaches tonight. It was the kickoff of the HSBC Celebration of Light and Spain did a pretty good job of making the crowds ooh, ahh and applaud the colourful display in the sky.

John and I were lucky enough to meet up with our pals Corinna and Adam, walk on over to Keira’s then camp out at Duane’s for a bit before heading down to Sunset Beach. The reason for us all coming together like that was this evening’s special guest star, Tony, who really should spend more time in Vancouver, who was accompanied by Robyn. Good times had by all, lots of laughter and good spirits. I needn’t really say more because as always, there are photos to back this up.

Corinna, Rebecca, Keira – Original by Keira on Flickr

Robyn, Tony Photo credit: Duane on Flickr

Tony, Rebecca, Keira – Photo credit: Keira on Flickr

View Keira’s photoset from the night

Fireworks – Photo credit: Duane on Flickr

View Duane’s photoset from the night

Update: Just found out through the Blogathon website that one of the administrators, Sheana, will be interviewed on 95 Crave tomorrow morning with Nat & Drew. Tune in to find out more about the event which kicks off with me in my pajamas at 6 am Saturday

Since I decided to take part in Blogathon I’ve got some pretty good press for my cause, thanks to Buzz Bishop – local radio guy, tech blogger and proud new papa.

You’ve heard of Walk-a-thons and Dance-a-thons, but what about a Blog-a-thon? This Saturday, bloggers around the world vow to post to their pages a minimum of every 30 mins for 24 hours… …Should the weekend turn out to be sunny, as expected, [Rebecca] thinks the biggest challenge will be “finding a beach with wifi.”

(Hint, the FatPort guys blast Wifi at the grassy areas of Kits Beach along Cornwall) [Cyberbuzz.tv]

This article is in today’s 24 Hours free daily newspaper this morning on page 11, just past the dude with the beard of bees. Download pdf copy.

I have also contacted the Surrey Food Bank to let them know what I’ll be up to this weekend. They seemed pretty enthused and will welcome donations of ANY kind, also any monetary donation over $10 will get a tax receipt.

Here are the details once more.

When: Saturday July 28th starting at @ 6:00 am

What: I will begin blogging and post something every 30 minutes for 24 hours, until 6:00 am July 29th.

Why: For my charity of choice, the Surrey Food Bank. Readers are encouraged to click on my “sponsor” button. This will take you to the Blogathon site where you will need to register so that we can get some totals and stats. From there, we truly hope that you will click through and visit the Surrey Food Bank donations page. I will not be accepting any money, nor will Blogathon, we simply re-route you to the charity so that a donation can be made.

I’m hoping that anyone who would like to contribute for one of my 48 posts will send me any material they wish. I would link back to their blog or Flickr (if you’d like to submit a photo) and share some link love (John, Duane, etc) Also, I’ll be open to suggestions and will be taking requests for post topics.

Today is also the Greater Vancouver Food Bank‘s “Christmas in July” food drive at the Centre for Performing Arts.

..the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society’s Christmas in July campaign is a great way to give. Come visit Santa and volunteers from the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society and the Rogers Santa Claus Parade as they collect non-perishable food items and donations at The Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts, 777 Homer Street, on Wednesday, July 25th from 6-9 a.m.

You can even drive-through your non-perishable food item donations between Georgia & Robson. The summer months are pretty important for local food banks as people are still in need but the bulk of their donations arrive around Christmas time. Join me here on the blog this weekend to help out a similar cause.

Last year I followed Alanah and Yvonne‘s blogathon posts for just a few of their 24 hours of madness. This year, I think I’ll take a swing at it myself and see if I can go the distance.

The goal of blogathon is to blog every 30 minutes for 24 hours (this year being July 28th). The most validating part of the concept is to get people to sponsor your marathon of bloggery. Each blogathon site will have a donate/sponsor button and a charity of choice selected. As you read and enjoy the plethora of content hopefully you will be inspired to donate. Last year I donated to Canuck Place and received a tax receipt along with warm fuzzies. The blogger never processes your money or sees your transaction, it all goes directly through the charity.

This year I’ll be blogging from 6:00 am Saturday July 28th until 6:00 am Sunday July 29th. I will be awake (because that’s a part of the challenge) and fully interactive with commenters and sponsors. My charity will be the Surrey Food Bank, and I’ll put up a nice little badge and link when the fun begins. Until then, stay tuned, the post category will be ‘blogathon’. Who knows how silly things will get at 4:00 am Sunday morning with me running on no sleep, tethered to my laptop.

Update: Click on the banner above to sponsor me, this means money will NOT go to me at all, it will simply direct you to the Surrey Food Bank donation page. You do need to log into the Blogathon site/create a log in first so that they can track how many donations I have generated but Blogathon does NOT collect your payment information they will simply direct you to the charity’s website to donate.

For more info try this brief recap of the event, and view other Blogathon participants here. You can click on the banner in this post or the new sidebar badge I have on the top right of this site.

Last week I wrote about the possibilities of job action regarding city workers in Vancouver and surrounding areas. After the word came down on Thursday, several municipalities are coping with the cutback in service.

Vancouver’s outside workers have walked off the job and the inside workers are planning the same. Unionized workers in Delta have rejected a final offer from the labour relations bureau, but haven’t issued strike notice. It’s the same story in Burnaby; the union has a strike mandate, but hasn’t issued notice. The district of North Vancouver on the other hand has unionized employees “working to rule” with a ban on overtime and plans to walk off the job Monday. [CKNW]

Photo credit: famewhore on Flickr – “The morning after”

With outisde workers on the picket lines, inside workers just might join them. What this means for us, aside from garbage piling up in the streets, is fewer recreation options in the city this summer.

The PNE and CUPE are in negotiations for a collective agreement, but the event will go on as planned. Workers at both the PNE and Playland are members of Local 10-04, but they are part of separate negotiations. …the Stanley Park miniature railway and Children’s Farmyard have been closed because of the city strike and five of the six outdoor city pools are being shutdown. City beaches are staying open with lifeguards on duty.

Pools that have been closed include Mt. Pleasant, New Brighton, Sunset, Second Beach and Kitsilano [Vancouver Parks].

Photo credit: famewhore on Flickr – “The morning after”

Furthermore, if you have a child enrolled in a city-run day camp, be sure to check for updates on the Parks Board website.

As for the fireworks, the sunshine should be back in Vancouver on Wednesday to accompany the kick off display by Spain in English Bay as they are going ahead as scheduled. I’m actually really scared to see what downtown will look like on Thursday morning.

Update: Click here to view the official list of the City of Vancouver’s services that are open/closed

My $10 Aero Shorts

Aeropostale is Coming to Canada – more specifically… Surrey.

Aeropostale is one of those shops in which I can always find a good deal AND something super comfy. When we head on little retail therapy outings to Bellis Fair, just south of the border, we usually have a game plan in mind. Target (for inexpensive household items and kids clothes), Victoria’s Secret (to pay off the credit card), Kohl’s, and Express (for those SUPER hot work pants). We avoid the scary places for Village of the Damned children like Abercrombie and Hollister but always stop in at Aero. T-shirts, jeans, cargo pants, sweaters and tank tops all super soft and a good fit for your body and your wallet.

When I was in Guildford Mall in Surrey yesterday with my sister, friend and niece I noticed the “Coming to Canada” sign in front of some store space. H&M now this? Sweet.

Mall locations in Canada: Dufferin Mall, Fairview Park Mall, Georgian Mall, Guildford Town Centre, Metropolis at Metrotown, Oakville Place Mall, Pickering Town Centre, Vaughn Mills Mall, White Oaks Mall.

To find out more about Canadian locations, check out their website.