Localities limit use of New Year’s fireworks

It’s illegal in most parts of county, and Vancouver will have teams out to cite offenders

New Year’s Eve revelers, beware.

The beginning of 2009 does not give you license to shoot off fireworks, at least not in Vancouver and most of Clark County.

Just in case anyone inside Vancouver still hasn’t gotten the message, enforcement teams of fire marshals and police officers will respond to complaints, patrol city streets and issue citations.

Novelty items, such as party poppers, are OK. Just don’t pull out the big stuff left over from July 4.

Wednesday’s forecast calls for a chance of showers before 6 p.m., followed by rain, primarily after 10 p.m. — not exactly great weather to be outside at the stroke of midnight.

This is the fourth year that Vancouver will enforce a ban on New Year’s Eve fireworks, which the city council approved in 2004. The change didn’t take effect until 2005 because state law requires a one-year waiting period.

Last year, the city issued five citations for New Year’s violations, a drop from the 10 citations dished out in each of the two previous years.

In Vancouver, the fine for unlawful use of consumer fireworks is $250 for first-time offenders. Second violations are $500, and subsequent violations cost $1,000.

For bottle rockets and other illegal fireworks, a first violation fine is $500, a second violation $1,000 and subsequent violations are $1,500.

Clark County voted to ban New Year’s pyrotechnics more than 10 years ago. La Center also does not allow New Year’s Eve fireworks.

In cities that haven’t specifically banned or restricted New Year’s Eve fireworks, they can be used during hours prescribed in state law: 6 p.m. Dec. 31 to 1 a.m. Jan. 1.

Washougal restricts summer fireworks to a single day, July 4, but the still allows New Year’s Eve fireworks during that seven-hour window.

Ridgefield allows a full eight-day summer season, June 28 to July 5, but the city has gone with a narrower window for New Year’s Eve fireworks, 9 p.m. Dec. 31 to 1 a.m. Jan. 1.

Vancouver is whittling back on summer fireworks. Beginning in 2009, legal fireworks can be used from June 28 to July 4, subject to curfew hours. In 2010, fireworks can be discharged on four days, July 1 to July 4.

Source: Jeffrey Mize, The Columbian

Phones for Fearless! Donate your old phones to change lives

Donate your old mobile phones to help DTES artists share stories, and tap into life, jobs & family

How can you help?

1. Your used mobile phones - preferably with video, camera, wi-fi
2. Cash donations (* tax deductible) or new phone donations
3. Conversation - tell your friends on your blog, twitter, etc. - post a badge

Action Plan:
First, Gather phones!

Collect all the unused mobile phones at your office and home - dig into your boxes of stuff, ask you friends! Digital cameras gratefully accepted too.

Next, Arrange Pick-up:

• Let us know via Twitter: Fearless City, email: info (at) fearlessmedia (dot) ca, Phone/SMS: 604.64..., Voice mail: 604.68... xt 8320
• We'll come by on purple Yahoo bikes on Tues. Dec. 23rd & 30th to collect your devices
• We'll take your photo, bring treats, and thank you publicly with a link

Or, Drop-off (after Tuesday, 23rd) at:

• Roundhouse Community Centre - 181 Roundhouse Mews
• Pathways - 390 Main Street (kitty corner from the Canegie)
• Raincity Studios - 1 Alexander St. @ Water st.

Want to be a drop-off point? Let us know.

Even send by Postal Mail to:

Fearless City
c/o DTES CAN
PO Box 88023
418 Main St
Vancouver, BC V6A 4A4

Notes:

• Remove your chip, and clear your contacts before donating (all phones will be completely cleared before released).
• Please include chargers and accessories - used digital cameras also welcome
• Unusable phones will be donated to FreeGeek for reuse and recycling

Who is Fearless?

Fearless is a Vancouver Non-Profit group providing tools, resources, and cultural outreach to artists and residents in the improverished Downtown Eastside neighbourhood. Fearless is a project of the DTES Community Arts Network (CAN)

More:

• About Fearless City

Plow crews working 24/7, more snow expected

Drivers in Vancouver can expect side streets and alleys to stay slick and thick with snow as plows concentrate on keeping arterials and hills clear.

Another dump of snow is expected on Christmas Eve, and the city is already nearing its snow-clearing budget of about $750,000.

“I’ve been doing this for a very long time,” said Murray Wightman, Vancouver’s manager of street operations. “At no time has city hall ever said, ‘Stop, pull back.’ We do what it takes to get it done.”

Plow crews have been running 24 hours a day, concentrating their efforts on major streets and bus routes first and steep residential streets that feed onto arterials second.

“The regular city side streets will not be treated by us … we have to draw a line here and keep the majors and bus routes free.”

But the snowy side streets are fine with some commuters, including Pascal Wehr, 30, who cross-country skied yesterday from his home in Kits to his work on Main Street.

“It’s awesome,” Wehr said. “It’s such an experience. The roads were snow covered and I figured that the easiest way of getting to work — as I do as much as possible — is self-propelled.”

Metro News

Thin Ice Not Fit to Skate

During the holiday season, Vancouver's community centres, swimming pools, fitness centres and skating rinks will open on a limited or adjusted operating schedule. Patrons are encouraged to check ahead before dropping in for a swim, skate or program. Facility hours can be found on the website http://vancouver.ca/parks/cc/HolidayHours 2008.htm.

The parks board is reminding Vancouver residents that local lakes and ponds are not safe for skating and that pets should not be allowed to venture onto the ice.

"The ice may look thick but the reality is it is very dangerous," said Glenn Schultz, supervisor of beaches and outdoor pools. "Temperatures have not been cold enough for long enough to ensure the ice can support the weight of people or even dogs." Warning signs have been posted at Trout Lake, Lost Lagoon, Beaver Lake, Queen Elizabeth Park, Jericho Beach, Vanier Park and Sutcliffe Park.

The parks board administration office, at 2099 Beach Ave. will be closed from noon on Dec. 24 through Jan. 1, 2009. It will re-open Jan. 2 at 8:30 a.m.

Courtesy of The Courier

Smell like a Whopper, Just don't look like one

Burger King has launched a new men's body spray called ''Flame,'' which it describes as ''the scent of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat.''

The fast food chain is marketing the product through a Web site featuring a photo of its King character reclining fireside and naked, except for an animal fur strategically placed to not offend.

The marketing ploy is the latest in a string of virile ad campaigns by the company.

Burger King is also in the midst of its Whopper Virgins campaign that features an taste test with fast-food ''virgins'' pitting the Whopper against McDonald's Big Mac.

"Flame" can be purchased online for $3.99 USD.

New York Times

'Fire Meets Desire,' promo website

New study finds real estate market downturn helping home affordability in B.C.

B.C.'s real estate market correction is improving home affordability in the province, according to a new RBC Economics study.

The proportion of pre-tax household income needed to service the costs of owning a home has fallen for all housing types in the third quarter. According to the study, owning a standard two-storey home requires 77.7% of a household's income. That's down from 80.9% in the second quarter.

Costs of owning a detached bungalow fell to 69.7% from 73%; the costs for a standard townhouse fell to 53.8% of household income from 55.8%; and the cost for owning a standard condo fell to 38.7% from 40.8% of household income.

But housing in Vancouver remains among Canada's most expensive. In the third quarter, prices are roughly double the national average for most housing types. Home ownership income requirements are still high. A minimum qualifying income of $150,000 is needed to own a two-storey home; $135,000 is required for a detached bungalow.

Given these high requirements, the study said most families in Vancouver are effectively shut out from owning a home and must instead look to the condominium market.

Source: Business In Vancouver

Bank of Canada Cuts Rate to 1.5%

The Bank of Canada has reduced it's over night lending rate three-quarters of a point to 1.5%, the lowest level in half a century. Commercial banks, such as TD Bank, the first to take action, and CIBC have responded by reducing it's prime lending rate to only 3.5%.

The Bank of Canada's next scheduled date for announcing the over night rate target is January 20, 2009.

Bank of Canada
The Canadian Press

Campagnolo Italian eatery now open

Campagnolo, the much anticipated casual Italian eatery from the same people that brought you Kitsilano's Fuel Restaurant is finally open.

1020 Main Street
604-484-6018
No reservations

Police dogs and bike patrol added to Skytrain station to enhance transit security

Translink will be adding police dogs and more bike patrols to Skytrain stations in order to beef up visible security and ease transit rider fears.

Translink has already increased the number of Skytrain attendants as well as transit police presence at major Skytrain stations perceived to be the least safe: Broadway, Main Street, Metrotown, New West and Surrey Central.

Additionally, in a partnership with municipalities and the federal government, Translink will be making improvements to some neighborhood streets creating "Transit Villages" in areas around Broadway and Surrey Central. Improvements will include better lighting, sight lines and amenities that promote safe walking and bicycling.

For more details see Translink and Vancouver Sun.

Uniformed police officers to be redeployed at SkyTrain stations

TransLink says it will address longstanding security concerns by redeploying uniformed staff and police officers at key SkyTrain stations.

The move is meant to give a more visible staffing presence at four stations that were perceived to be the most dangerous in a series of public opinion surveys and focus groups. TransLink says there will now be a round-the-clock presence at Surrey Central, New Westminster, Broadway and Main Street stations. Staff will also be hovering during the evenings at Metrotown.

“This is what I could call reassurance policy,” said Transit Police Chief Officer Ward Clapham. “[It’s] reassuring the public that they are safe.”

Transit Police have already trained 11 officers to patrol using bicycles and hope to add 10 more in 2009, with the belief being that officers on bike can cover more ground than regular officers on foot.

Other safety measures, some of which are already underway, include improving lighting at stations, opening more shops at key hubs and looking into whether using police dogs could improve safety.

Vancouver Kingsway NDP MLA Adrian Dix, a frequent critic of SkyTrain safety policy, said the move is a good step, but wondered how effective it will be without an overall increase in resources.

“If you have the same number of person hours and you’re redeploying them, some places are going to have less of a presence,” Dix said, pointing to Nanaimo and 29th Avenue stations, both stations in his riding that have seen high-profile assaults happen in the surrounding areas in recent years.

“Those are stations where you can go an entire evening without seeing any staff person or police,” he said.

The Transit Police have 154 sworn officers.

Source: 24 hours

Pivot Legal Society calls for ban on DTES private security patrol

Vancouver - Pivot is calling for a ban on private security patrols in public space, and is asking the City of Vancouver to revoke public funding to Business Improvement Associations to pay for private security guards.

The organization is calling for the $1.8 million spent annually by BIAs on private security to be redirected instead into outreach and support services for homeless people.

Pivot's new report "Security before Justice" finds that the poorer you are, the more likely you are to be interrogated, harassed or experience violence at the hands of private security guards. The study, based on surveys and focus groups with over 160 residents of the Downtown Eastside, revealed that homeless people have more frequent and more problematic interactions with security guards than people who are housed.

People on income assistance or disability are also much more likely to be targeted by private security. Downtown Eastside resident Gladys Radek agrees: "They say that private security guards are here to help, but in my case they just decided that looking poor made me suspicious and as a result I was subjected to harassment."

The authors of the study are calling on the City of Vancouver to cancel funding for the Downtown Ambassador program, ban private security patrols on public property, and re-direct the approximately $1.8 million of tax dollars currently spent on private security into genuine homeless outreach services. Public funding for private security amounts to nearly $100 a month per homeless person, money that could be directed to rent supplements that help people secure affordable housing.

"I would like to see my business's tax dollars spent on a more proactive and helpful solution to homelessness than private police" says Swami Lalitananda, owner of Radha Yoga and Eatery on Main Street. "In a truly 'civil city', public money would be spent to support people to improve their lives, not to move them out of business areas."

Source: Pacific Free Press

Elderpost.com, the Craigslist for seniors

VANCOUVER — Seniors are getting their own online free ad website where they can find everything from specialized equipment to home help.

A kind of seniors-meet-Craigslist, the new site at www.elderpost.com was the brainchild of Vancouver's Peter Silin, whose company Diamond Geriatrics specializes in elder care management, counselling and consulting for the elderly, their caregivers and businesses.

"What happened is I saw so many people needing equipment they couldn't afford and if you go to nursing homes or care facilities you find lots of equipment that's no longer needed," said Silin. "I wanted a way to put together the people who wanted to sell with people who want to buy.

"The other thing I saw was people who needed caregivers and they wanted to hire somebody part-time or just by the hour. Their choice was to go through an agency or just put an ad somewhere.

"I know a lot of people who are looking for that kind of service. That was the genesis of it and it just grew from there."

The site was only launched in recent weeks and Silin said he expects it will take some time for the listings to grow as people discover the service.

"I don't have a million bucks or investors," he said. "I just wanted a site where there would be everything for care providers, for product providers and where older people themselves could find what they are looking for."

The site also lists resources such as support groups and services for seniors, their families and caregivers. It also has caregiver circles, exchanges and groups in which people can get together to share their time and talent.

Caregiver circles are groups of people who help each other out, perhaps driving someone to an appointment, visiting or other sharing and exchanging responsibilities. Caregiver exchanges are similar to circles except they are less formal and involve just two or three people.

"The idea of it is to have a very grassroots way for people to find mutual support," Silin said. "I wanted a place where maybe five, 10 people could get together and provide each other with mutual support."

So far, he said, he has no plans to make money doing it; it's an adjunct to his geriatric business.

"It's a Craigslist for eldercare and providers, with a targeted focus," he said. "At some point I'll sell some banner ads and if people want some kind of enhanced listing, there could be a fee. Aside from that, hopefully it will remain free or as low cost as I can keep it."

Silin acknowledges that with seniors often a target for scam artists, the site could attract some ill-intentioned users. He said he has added a warning about safety and users can call on elderpost review, an added service that could check out people they are considering hiring through ads on the site.

He said that could be helpful for people who are helping an elderly relative who lives a distance away.

"If somebody is looking for a caregiver or somebody is looking for work, we will charge for those reviews, so if you want somebody to interview and screen for you, we will do that for an hourly fee."

gshaw@vancouversun.com

Source: Vancouver Sun

BC Ferries reduces fares on all sailing routes, temporarily

Christmas has come early for people riding B.C. Ferries.

From today until Jan. 31, ferry users will get a 33 per cent break on all sailings on all routes.

The temporary ferry-fare cut was announced in October by Premier Gordon Campbell as part of the B.C. Liberal government's efforts to protect the province's economy in the face of a global financial crisis.

The government will pay B.C. Ferries the difference between the full fare and the lower fare, Dan Wong, vice-president of corporate relations, said yesterday.

The corporation has already restored service levels on all routes -- some sailings were cut after the company experienced a significant drop in passenger traffic this fall.

"We hope to see an increase in traffic. That's obviously the intent by an offer like this," said Wong. "It's not a hard science and probably all kinds of other factors -- the price of gas, the overall economic climate, consumer confidence and mood -- will play a part. But certainly our hope is that with this kind of an offer, it will spur people to travel in the holiday season."

And there's more relief on the horizon. Fuel surcharges will be removed on minor routes Dec. 5, and on major routes on Dec. 19.

In August, B.C. Ferries imposed a 10.3 per cent surcharge on major routes.

And fares increased 17.6 per cent on 18 minor routes.

In October, B.C. Ferries announced it would cut its fuel surcharge in half by Nov. 3, to reflect dropping oil prices.

B.C. Ferries estimates at its highest, the price for a family of four travelling between Swartz Bay and Tsawwassen was $91.15. With a reservation fee of $17.50, the total came to $108.65.

Today, B.C. Ferries says, that same family of four will pay $59.60. By Dec. 19, the price for a family of four will be $54.90.

B.C. Ferries is now working on a plan for February, said Wong. "The arrangement will end, but I don't know how. We're working on how to come out of the sales period. There might be a few other things we can contemplate to make the transition," he said.

The ferry-fare cut -- called the "Winter Super Sail" -- applies to all passengers and all vehicles on all sailings and all routes throughout December and January. The only exception is pre-paid paper tickets bought before today and assured loading tickets.

Reservations are recommended Dec. 26 through Dec. 28 -- the busiest days for ferry travel during the holidays.

ldickson@tc.canwest.com

Source: Vancouver Sun

Free holiday shopping trolley along new Canada Line route

To give hard-hit businesses a leg-up, the Canada Line is running a free hop-on, hop-off Holiday Shopping Trolley along the construction route.

Starting this week, and on each Friday, Saturday and Sunday until Dec. 21, the trolley – adorned with holiday decorations – will pick up and drop off shoppers at seven locations along the Canada Line route.

Karen Peterson, independent project director for the business liaison program of the Canada Line project, said this lets shoppers find unique gifts while supporting local businesses.

Many of the businesses along the route have been struggling financially because construction of the line has slowed or diverted traffic.

On Nov. 12, several merchants along Cambie Street filed a lawsuit against the Canada Line asking for compensation for loss of revenue.

Giriraj Gautam, who owns a convenience store on Cambie Street, told Metro last year that his business was kept afloat because his landlord lowered his rent.

“We know it’s going to be a tough year for merchants overall and we thought we’d find a fun way to bring lots of people and come shop the Line,” Peterson said. “(And) you can avoid traffic and parking.”

• The trolley starts today and runs every weekend until Dec. 21.
• It runs from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Fridays and noon to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
• For more information, visit shoptheline.ca

source: metro

Vancouver East Cultural Centre’s completion experiences delays

Theatre audiences will get their first peek at the Vancouver East Cultural Centre’s new Vancity Culture Lab studio theatre when Blackbird Theatre brings its production of Pinter’s Briefs to the venue December 3 to 6. But the official unveiling of the renovated venue is still months away.

Crews are putting the finishing touches this week on the three-storey addition to the site, which houses the new studio theatre, washrooms, and administrative offices. But work on the original theatre, to be renamed the historic theatre, continues.

The 99-year-old venue has been under renovation since August 2007, and executive director Heather Redfern admitted the completion date of the project has been slipping.

“I’m not going to give a completion date because it seems to be a moving target,” she said. “It seems like every time they tell us it’s going to be ready for this time, something happens and they say no, it’s going to be a month later. I’m not even going to guess. We are crossing our fingers and hoping that we’ll be able to do our shows in May in there, but we just don’t know.”

A number of shows scheduled to run in the historic theatre in the new year have been moved. Ronnie Burkett’s Billy Twinkle, Requiem for a Golden Boy and the French Theatre of the National Arts Centre collaboration with Théâtre de la Vieille 17 and Théâtre de Sable Maïta will be at the Waterfront Theatre in January and February; Montréal Danse will perform at the Michael J. Fox Theatre in March; and the Theatre Conspiracy/Rumble Productions coproduction Blackbird will now have an extra-long run in the much smaller Vancity Culture Lab in March.

“We are all over town,” said Redfern, who insisted the Cultch’s finances are secure, despite the added cost of hall rentals.

“We do have a contingency for the project and so this is part of that,” she said. “Our operating budget is horrible because we have no revenue from rental or anything, but we knew that was going to happen and we were able to plan for that.”

Source: Straight

Fundraiser: 3rd Annual AIDS Benedict Brunch this weekend!

Vancouver’s 3rd Annual AIDS Benedict brunch weekend is happening this weekend, November 29th and 30th.

"YouthCO AIDS Society and Camp Moomba, two non-profit organizations that support and empower children and youth impacted by HIV and AIDS, have teamed up for Vancouver’s 3rd Annual AIDS Benedict brunch weekend. Collectively sponsored by local restaurants, this “eggsellent” event blends scrumptious eggs benedict with public education to help raise awareness about children and youth in BC impacted by HIV and AIDS.

Donations from participating restaurants will give children and youth impacted by HIV and AIDS access to year-long programs and supports that they might not otherwise have access to. Participation in the two-day eggs-travaganza is eggstremely simple: fill your belly with eggs benedict or other promotional items at one (or more!) of the participating establishments on November 29th and November 30th."

Participating restaurants in the area include the following:

• Alibi Room 157 Alexander Street www.alibi.ca
• Chopper’s 3298 East 1st Avenue no website
• Main Cafe 4210 Main Street www.themainonmain.com
• Seb’s Market cafe 592 East Broadway www.hotstuffcatering.com
• Slickity Jim’s 2513 Main Street www.findmycraving.com/icrave/slickity
• WaaZuBee 1622 Commercial Drive www.waazubee.com/main.php
• The Whip 209 East 6th Avenue www.thewhiprestaurant.com

For the full restaurant list (thanks Raul), please visit Rauls' blog @ Hummingbird604.com

Rally this Friday at Havana's

I may already have sent you a notice about this... A friend of a friend though sent me this link to a documentary on the Westboro Church and their message of hate on Youtube. Please watch it. It will give you a very clear idea just what sort of hateful verbal assault is waiting for the theatre goers...

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7735501683185935638

On the surface, they seem so wacky and outrageous that they can't be dangerous... The truth is that these people have influence and express the unspoken opinions of a significant swath of America's and even Canada's Evangelical Christian society.

When I first sent out this message I mostly addressed it to friends and contacts in the LGBT community, but i now think it is important to send this out to all our friends and allies...

I am not sure just type of response is best... They are here to get attention and obviously they have already been successful in that. Part of me is thinking that a huge crowd of silent, non-reactive people is the best counter demonstration that we could possibly give back... That if we descend to their level, that we won't accomplish much... My dream would be that we could get such a large crowd out around the theatre that we would be able to keep the Westboro wackos and their anti-gay rants far enough away from the theatre that the people going to see the Laramie Project would be able to see the play in peace. We are not going to change the Westboro people's minds. Their mindset goes beyond fossilization... but if we accomplished that one thing they would have failed to disrupt the play and stopped its important message.

The neat thing is that the show is going on in the heart of Commercial Drive, perhaps Vancouver's most progressive, politically aware and gay supportive neighbourhood... I am confident that we can get a good crowd out there... I am just hoping that our response is articulate and focussed as well as massive and unequivocal.

James Johnstone
703 Hawks Avenue
Vancouver, BC V6A 3J2
CANADA 604-254-4666
www.homehistoryresearch.com

Original message below.

Subject: westboro baptist church rally

Hey everybody
You may have heard that an anti-gay group from Kansas is coming to Vancouver next week to protest the performance of "The Laramie Project" at Havana Theatre (Commercial Drive). I am attending an anti-hate rally that is planned to start on Friday, November 28th at 5pm at Havana's... We have to stand up to these lunatics who show up inappropriately at funerals and other events, carrying signs that read "God Hates Fags". It would be awesome if we all showed up to support our gay and lesbian friends and family. Thanks!

I'm attaching a link to a CBC news article about this :
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/11/19/bc-westboro-church-protest-vancouver-laramie-project.html?ref=rss

I am passing this on - please do likewise!

James Johnstone
703 Hawks Avenue
Vancouver, BC V6A 3J2
CANADA 604-254-4666
www.homehistoryresearch.com

Strathcona Halloween Haunted House 2008

Strathcona Halloween Haunted House 2008
Originally uploaded by DJ_Riel

A ceremonial head on the post out side of strathcona's more festive homes at halloween.

Bell Wireless slows customer internet speeds on purpose

The CRTC has ruled that Bell Canada Inc. is not breaking the law by purposefully slowing internet speeds and will be allowed to continue to do so.

Bell, Canada's largest internet service provider, has two million high-speed customers in addition to smaller companies that rent portions of Bell's network and resells them. “Based on the evidence before us, we found that the measures employed by Bell Canada to manage its network were not discriminatory," said CRTC chair Konrad von Finckenstein in a release. "Bell Canada applied the same traffic-shaping practices to wholesale customers as it did to its own retail customers.”

The regulator's investigation, which began in May, was limited to Bell's wholesale practice and did not consider whether internet throttling should be allowed in general.

As such, the CRTC also announced it was opening a new probe into the larger issue of throttling, which is also done by other large internet service providers such as Rogers Communications Inc. and Shaw Inc. Interested parties will have until Feb. 16 to submit their thoughts and a public hearing will be held on July 6 in Gatineau, Que.

"The broader issue of internet traffic management raises a number of questions that affect both end-users and service providers,” von Finckenstein said. “We have decided to hold a separate proceeding to consider both wholesale and retail issues. Its main purpose will be to address the extent to which internet service providers can manage the traffic on their networks in accordance with the Telecommunications Act.”

Bell and the others say they need to throttle customers who use peer-to-peer applications such as BitTorrent because they are causing congestion on their networks.

For the full story, go to CBC article

Do-Not-Call scam circulating through email

Cellphone providers are warning against a scam circulating via e-mail regarding the CRTC's recently implemented do-not-call telemarketing list.

The e-mail warns recipients that cellphone providers are releasing their customers' numbers to telemarketers, so they should expect calls that will inevitably waste their airtime. Recipients are urged to call one of two phone numbers purportedly attached to the national do-not-call list, which the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission launched on Sept. 30, in order to block such unwanted calls.

"All cellphone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and you will start to receive sale calls," the e-mail says. "You will be charged for these calls."

The e-mail suggests the release of number databases has been confirmed by Telus Corp. and urges recipients to pass the message on to their friends.

Telus, however, issued an advisory on Tuesday evening warning that the e-mail was "fraudulent and dangerous" and urged customers not to respond to it or forward it.

Spokesman Shawn Hall said the company has no intention of releasing wireless numbers to telemarketers.

"We have no plans to do that ever," he said.

Telus is working on determining the source of the e-mail. Marc Choma, spokesman for the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, said a similar scam was run a few years ago in the United States when the country rolled out its own do-not-call list.

One of the numbers in the e-mail is in fact the CRTC's do-not-call contact number, but the other has been linked to telemarketing scams going back a number of years, Hall said.

The do-not-call list allows Canadians to add their phone numbers — both landline and wireless — to a database that is circulated to telemarketers. A telemarketer that calls a number on the list is liable for a fine up to $15,000.

While the CRTC requires landline providers to list customers' numbers in the phone book, it is illegal for wireless companies to release cellphone numbers without their subscribers' express consent.

Telus has polled customers as to whether they would want their wireless numbers published in the phone book but found the majority believed their contact information to be private.

"It came back rather resoundingly that people did not want their cellphones listed in the phone book, and we respect that," Hall said.

Source: CBC

Top Ten Architects Upgrade Gingerbread House for Charity

Creative Room in collaboration with a very cool lifestyle store, Vancouver Special are pleased to announce the first annual Gingerbread Competition and Charity Auction!

Hidden behind a thin veneer of jujubes and smarties, the ubiquitous form of the gingerbread house has stood unchallenged for too long! The malignant plague of cookie-cutter housing, which fouls suburbia cannot be invited into our homes this holiday season. No longer representative of our modern lives, held in place by no more than icing and a repressing layer of nostalgia, the conventional gingerbread house must make way for the gingerbread house of today!

As a Holiday Season homage to the mid-century Art+Architecture Magazine’s Case Study House Program, Creative Room and Vancouver Special are challenging ten of Vancouver’s best architects and designers to rethink the gingerbread house in a form more fitting for our modern life: to reinterpret the gingerbread house within a modern context. The gingerbread house reinventions are to be judged by a celebrity panel based on the following criteria: originality, material expression, edible content, craftsmanship, consideration of landscape, use of lighting, and of course, whimsey. Entries will be auctioned off such that they may grace the living rooms of a select few Vancouver homes this holiday season. All proceeds from this event will be donated to Pivot Legal Society.

Auction runs until November 25th.

Tix & More Info

Source: Eat Communications

Vancouver play a walk on the wild side

Paul Decarie has lived in the rough Downtown Eastside for 15 years, but it wasn't until he heard the music and listened to the lyrics that he understood how his neighbourhood became more than a collection of streets and alleys.

"We live there and we know it is our home and where our friends and family live," said Decarie, 51, who attended the play's recent preview. "We all have our own histories of how we got there, but I don't think many of us knew about the history of the Downtown Eastside."

The story of Vancouver's six-block Downtown Eastside – Canada's poorest postal code, where many residents struggle with addictions and some turn to prostitution – has been put into musical form.

Bruce – The Musical depicts in song and dance the life of resident Bruce Eriksen, who died in 1997 at the age of 67 from liver cancer.

"You only need to say the name Bruce and everyone knows who that is," said Decarie. "He was more important than the mayor or any premier. Still is."

The play, which runs until tomorrow, depicts Eriksen's life in the early 1970s, from his days as an alcoholic and artist living in the area. Eriksen's turning point came after a police officer picked him up off the street and forced him to dry out.

A sober Eriksen returned to the neighbourhood and began organizing for better housing and for the shutting down of pubs that oversold liquor.

Another young activist, Libby Davies, now New Democrat MP for Vancouver East, helped him gather petitions, and the two fell in love.

Davies said she had known that a play was being written about Eriksen which depicted the beginning of their life together.

When the play evolved as a musical, she admitted she had a bit of hesitation. When she saw the production last week, she said the music, which includes songs written by Bill Sample and lyrics by playwright Bob Sarti and the work of composer Earle Peach, helped the story of her life come alive in a different way.

"It's a heavy story. People die. These were real life-and-death struggles with slum buildings and fires, and to see people dancing and singing, it really helped bring the stories out," she said.

The slow struggle to transform the area into a neighbourhood with its own community centre was spearheaded by Eriksen and other activists who became involved in local politics. Both Eriksen and Davies sat on city council in the early '80s and she once ran for mayor.

On the opening night of the musical, Davies said she was touched by the response from the audience, many of whom remember her former partner as an overwhelming force in the Downtown Eastside.

"Every day, I still have people come up to me and tell me about how Bruce changed their lives. That means something to know he still has such an influence," she said.

Playwright Sarti, who first met Eriksen in 1973 when, as a Vancouver Sun reporter, he was sent to cover the activist's work, said people dismiss the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood too quickly.

"They don't realize what it took for someone like Bruce to turn it from Skid Row into the Downtown Eastside and make it into a community," said Sarti. "He's the single most important person to have emerged from there and it took a conscious effort to make this a community."

Source: Petti Fong / thestar.com

Minister not welcome: MP

MP Libby Davies has joined the fight to keep an American church group, which plans to protest a Vancouver play about a murdered gay man, from crossing the border.

“Hatred, bigotry and harassment are not welcome in our communities,” Davies said of the “viciously homophobic hate group.”

The Westboro Baptist Church, which is led by anti-gay minister Fred Phelps, announced on its website plans to protest The Laramie Project at Havana Theatre on Commercial Drive Nov. 28.

“This would constitute a premeditated violation of section 319 of the Canadian Criminal Code, which states it’s an offence to willfully promote hatred against any identifiable group,” Davies said.

“On previous occasions, the government has alerted Canada Border Services Agency of the group’s plans, and instructed CBSA personnel to ensure Canadian law is upheld,” she added.
“We are sending a letter to the current Minister of Public Safety urging him to follow this well-established precedent.”

Source: KRISTEN THOMPSON/METRO VANCOUVER

Aaron Webster Community Forums - Stop the Violence!

The Centre in partnership with the Vancouver Police Department

invites you to a series of forums on violence against & within LGBT communities

Learn about police responses to hate crimes & relationship violence

Tell us about what is going on & what we can do together

to stop the violence & increse safety

Public Forums - all welcome

West End Public Forum: Monday, November 17, 7-9:30pm

Gordon Neighbourhood House, 1019 broughton Street

East Van Public Forum: Tuesday, December 2, 7-9:30pm

North Community Health Centre, 200 - 1651 Commercial Dr

Community Forums

Youth Community Forum: Friday, November 21, 7:30 - 10:00

Coal Harbour Community Centre, 480 Broughton St

TwoSpirit/Queers of Colour Community Forum: Monday, November 24, 7-9:30pm

Mount Pleasant Neighbourhood House, 800 East Broadway

Trans Community Forum, Tuesday November 25, 7-9:30pm

North Community Health Centre, 200 - 1651 Commercial Dr

Information: call The Centre 604 684-5307

email: stoptheviolence@lgtbcentrevancouver.com

Supporters: Little Sisters Bookstore, Safe Choices, West Enders Against Violence

We gratefully acknowledge funding from Safe Streets & Safe Schools,

Ministry of Public Safety & Solicitor General

4 Low Rent Artist Studios Up For Grabs by Nov. 21

In 1996, the City of Vancouver created its first live/work Studio Award. This studio, provided free of rent, recognized distinguished artists like Teresa Marshall, Steven Shearer, Myfanwy MacLeod and Kevin Schmidt and enabled them to explore their creative practice.

In 1999, a second studio was added (made available at below market rents) and this year, two additional studios have been made available.

These four studios will be leased to Vancouver-based, low-income professional artists for a 3 year term beginning February 1, 2009.

The city will accept applications until Nov. 21.

"It's a small but important gesture," said Jacquie Gijssen, senior cultural planner with the city. "We can actually help with the tool kit that we have without people arguing about how much money it costs or doesn't cost."

The city has secured live/work spaces for artists through community amenity contributions that developers make when the city allows them increased building density or relaxed zoning. It owns two of the spaces and leases the other two for $1 a year. They're all in artist live/work buildings with two near Cambie, one near Main and the largest on East Pender near Knight Street. The Artist Studio Award Program was initiated by the city in 1996, and the Contemporary Art Gallery picks the jurors and coordinates the selections.

Professional artists in any discipline can apply for the award. The winners will be announced mid-December and can move in Feb. 1.

The jury of local arts and culture professionals seeks artists who are serious professionals, not hobbyists, Gijssen said. Although most, if not all, of those selected in the past have been emerging artists, senior artists can also apply.

Applicants must show financial need. Three of the four spaces are studios and one is a one bedroom. To qualify to win a studio, artists much prove they earn $29,000 or less per year, and to win the one bedroom, they must earn $32,500 or less.

The first place winner is awarded a free studio apartment for three years and the other recipients will pay $375 a month.

Sculpture artist, Rhonda Weppler, paid $325 a month for her 450-square-foot studio at Cambie and West Eighth Avenue for the past three years. The artist live/work building also includes a workshop. Previously, she rented small studios on the East Side.

"A lot of studios in Vancouver are in bad areas because it's cheap rent," Weppler said. "It was nice to be in a place that you could walk downtown and I wasn't scared to be alone at night or walking home at night."

When her tenancy expires and the end of this year, Weppler expects to move to an artist's space in Railtown Studios or in The ARC on Powell Street at the foot of Commercial Drive.

"Even though it's in a bad area it's around $1,000 a month for rent," she said.

Myfanwy MacLeod, who won a space in 2002, recently won a juried international competition held by the city to create the first Olympic and Paralympic legacy art commission for the main plaza in the Olympic Village in Southeast False Creek.

More info at the Office of Cultural Affairs Awards

Vancouver Courier

Hope In Shadows 2009 Calendar

It’s easy to write and write and write and talk and talk and talk about all the awesome things we COULD be doing to help our brothers and sisters in needs. It’s another thing to actually engage in contributing our time and/or money. Thus, I would like to encourage every one of my readers to purchase a “Hope in Shadows” 2009 Calendar. Consider giving a copy out as a Christmas gift, or a birthday gift.

The Hope in Shadows Calendar is a unique project based around a photography contest for residents in the Downtown East Side of Vancouver. The prize-winning photos are then used to create a calendar that provides a glimpse of the hope, spirit and courage of people living in one of Canada’s poorest neighborhoods. [Paraphrased from their website]

While the calendar is also sold in retailer stores across the Lower Mainland, I personally would prefer it if you bought your calendar from Street Vendors. You’ll see, these people are also residents from the DTES and engage in selling the calendar to make money for their subsistence.

From their website:

The Hope in Shadows calendar is sold by street vendors, community groups and retailers. Trained official street vendors will have a blue and white ID licence with their name and photo on it with the Hope in Shadows logo and “08/09″ next to the logo. The Soliciting for Charity licence number from the City of Vancouver will be displayed on the licence.

The best places to find a street seller include:
- Commercial Drive, especially outside the Skytrain station
- West Broadway & Granville
- Howe & Robson
- Capers on 4th Avenue & Vine
- outside any Choices supermarket
- Shoppers Drugmart on West Broadway

Please consider purchasing a Hope in Shadows 2009 Calendar and contribute to improving the livelihood of the residents of the DTES. Thank you.

Courtesy of HummingBird604

Craft Season Is Upon Us!

It's that time of year again!

If you're looking to buy local and handmade this Christmas, here are some holiday craft shows in Vancouver to check out...

One of a Kind
Thursday, November 20th to Sunday, November 23rd
BC Place Stadium
Thursday and Friday 10am to 9pm, Saturday 10am to 9pm, Sunday 10am to 6pm
Admission $8 online or $10 at the door

Emily Carr Student Art Sale
Friday, November 21st, 1pm to 8pm
Saturday, November 22nd, 10am to 6pm
Concourse Gallery, North Building, Emily Carr University, Granville Island
Admission Free

Maternal Creations Art Show and Craft Fair
Friday, November 21st, 4pm to 8pm and Saturday, November 22nd, Noon to 5pm
Pomegranate Community Midwives, 2647 East Hastings St. (between Slocan and Penticton)

Fab Fair
Saturday, November 22nd and Sunday, November 23rd
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street

Vancouver Etsy Sellers Craft Fair
Sunday, November 23rd
Cambrian Hall, East 17th Ave, just east of Main

Urban Artisans Craft Fair
Saturday, November 29th and Sunday, November 30th, 10 am to 5pm

I Heart Crafts Winter Bazaar
Sunday, November 30th, 11 am to 6 pm
Ukrainian Cultural Center, 805 East Pender St.
Admission $2

Portobello West
Sunday, November 30th
Rocky Mountaineer Station, 1755 Cottrell Street (near Home Depot)
Admission $2

Toque
Friday, December 5th, 6pm to 9pm, and Saturday, December 6th, 11am to 5pm
Western Front, 303 East 8th Avenue

Shiny Fuzzy Muddy
Friday, December 5th, 5pm to 9pm, Saturday, December 6th, 11am to 5pm, and Sunday, December 7th, Noon to 5pm
VIVO (Video In Studios), 1965 Main street (at 3rd Avenue)

Heritage Hall Christmas Craft Fair
Saturday, December 6th and Sunday, December 7th, 11 am to 5 pm
Heritage Hall, 3102 Main Street
Admission $2

Green Christmas Holiday Gift Market
Sunday, December 7th, 11am to 6pm
Cambrian Hall, East 17th Ave, just east of Main

Got Craft?
Sunday, December 7th
Royal Canadian Legion, 2205 Commercial Drive (at East 6th Avenue)
Admission $2

Portobello West Holiday Market
Saturday, December 13th and Sunday, December 14th
Rocky Mountaineer Station, 1755 Cottrell Street (near Home Depot)
Admission $2

Blim Winter Market
Saturday, December 20th, Noon to 5pm
Cambrian Hall, East 17th Ave, just east of Main

Courtesy of Magpie & Cake

Vancouver Park Board Sued Over In-Camera Decision

The second-last Vancouver park board meeting before the municipal election featured an in-camera session in which commissioners voted to re-classify 15 union positions at Vancouver community centres as higher-salaried management jobs. The Oct. 6 decision, according to CUPE 15, violates sections 492 and 493 of the Vancouver Charter.

CUPE 15 has now filed a B.C. Supreme Court challenge to the deal, which CUPE 15 president Paul Faoro said is the only way to gain transparency on an issue that he thinks should have been more open at the outset.

"These in-camera meetings are becoming the flavour of the year," he quipped. "Section 492 and 493 of the Charter effectively says, the park board can spend money, but it can only spend money that city council has approved and funded. Section 493 says the park board can't spend more than the city council has funded."

According to Faoro, the cost of the newly-created managerial positions could be as high as $300,000, putting taxpayers on the hook.

"We have them not yet telling the public about the impact. We have filed an FOI request asking for the in-camera minutes. We've had no response from the park board," he said.

"The NPA park board control made this a political issue. This is the kind of stuff where we think proper debate, respectful discussion would be helpful. But unfortunately, the last three years, it's been absolutely hopeless."

The Oct. 6 in-camera session contained a decision to "kick out or exempt" 15 CUPE members who work as community recreation coordinators, according to Faoro.

The 15 affected members worked at community centres across the city, including False Creek, Dunbar, Kitsilano, Sunset, Marpole-Oakrdige, Douglas, West Point Grey, Hastings, Thunderbird, Renfrew, Trout Lake, Mount Pleasant, Champlain Heights, Kensington, and Strathcona. Following the in-camera park board meeting, the coordinator positions were re-classified as new community recreation supervisor positions, and employees were required to decide whether to accept the new position by Nov. 4. Their new, re-classified positions will be effective Nov. 24.

"A decision like this is taking 15 of our positions out of our union, effecting long-term service employees," Faoro said. "We're taking this very seriously."

Source: Jackie Wong, for the Westender.

MUNCH 13: The Local Creative Economy

City Council candidates in the upcoming civic election will discuss their
election platforms in relation to economic and cultural development in the
Downtown Eastside. Speeches by the candidates will be followed by an open
discussion.

Thursday, November 13, 2008
5:00pm - 7:00pm
Interurban
1 East Hastings Street

Confirmed candidates, in no particular order, are:
Ellen Woodsworth (Cope)
Michael Geller (NPA)
Heather Deal (Vision)
Timothy Wisdom (Work Less Party)
Leon Kaplan (Independent)

MUNCH is a regular series of critical discussions on cultural planning and
arts issues affecting the creative people living and working in the
Downtown Eastside.

Food and refreshments provided.

Free.

EASTSIDE CULTURE CRAWL 2008

This is a once a year opportunity to meet many diversely talented artists and view their creations in the studios where they work. Be part of this exciting event, which brings people from all over the Lower Mainland, and share in the imaginations that enrich our neighbourhood and lives. get more details...

	painters			potters
	illustrators			writers
	jewellers			printmakers
	furniture makers			photographers
	musicians			glassblowers
	weavers			sculptors

From emerging artists to those of international fame... these are just a sampling of the exciting talents featured during this unique chance to meet local artists in their studios. details...

Purchase something that strikes your fancy, commission something to be uniquely yours, or just browse through the studios and meet the artists, learning about their specific works of art, materials and tools, approaches and techniques. details...

Download a printable map here

FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
November 21st	November 22nd	November 23rd
5:00pm - 10:00pm	11:00am - 6:00pm	11:00am - 6:00pm

It's Western Canada's largest studio exhibition and sale, and it's absolutely free-- don't miss it!

www.eastsideculturecrawl.com

Vancouver Archives Fundraising Event; Celebrate BC's First 150 Years

Come out and support this very important fund raising event for the Friends of the City of Vancouver Archives. This is a five hour history symposium on BC's first 150 years by three renowned BC historians and includes a catered lunch.

Cost is $50, and a $25 receipt may be issued for tax purposes.

Three speakers are scheduled to attend:

Sylvia Van Kirk will talk about 1858
Terry Eastwood will talk about 1908, and
Robert A. J. Macdonald will talk about 1958

Catering is by Sherilee Dee Catering Ltd., and that means Yummy!

For more information contact James Johnstone - househistorian@yahoo.ca

American anti-gay, hate-mongers plan to cross border to protest Laramie Project play at Havana Theater

The Laramie Project, a play by Fighting Chance Productions, is being threatened with protests and picketing from an extreme baptist church in Topeka, Kansas. The Laramie Project is a play about the brutal attack and murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay American university student, who was left for dead tied to a fence outside Laramie ten years ago.

According to the Vancouver Sun, the production company who will be presenting the play at the Havana Theater, has already contacted the federal government asking for help in preventing this cross border protest by the anti-gay, hate-mongering Westboro Baptist Church. Vancouver police spokesperson Const. Tim Fanning said steps would be taken by the police should the group be allowed into the country and that the Canada Border Services Agency was looking into the issue. The planned protest is scheduled for Friday, November 28 from 7 PM - 8 PM.

Fighting Chance Production's The Laramie Project runs November 26 to December 6, Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8 PM and Saturday afternoon at 2 PM.

Tickets are $18 for adults, $15 for students and seniors with 2-for-1 shows on Tuesdays. The Laramie Project will show at the Havana Theatre at 1212 Commercial Drive.

This production will feature original material from the Tectonic Theatre Project blog and all-new music created by the cast.

The Laramie Project is directed by Ryan Mooney and Stage Managed by Tamara Harvey. Featuring Matthew Clarke, Christopher Cook, Ira Cooper, Sherry Lynn Friesen, Anna Hassard, Matthew MacCaull, Jeff McMahan, Jean Nicolai, Alicia Olive, Keri Smith, Spencer Snashall, and Nadia Von Hahn.


Laramie Project info.

First Canadian exhibition of Kai Althoff's work at the Vancouver Art Gallery

The Vancouver Art Gallery will present the first Canadian exhibition of German artist Kai Althoff from November 8, 2008 until February 15, 2009.

Althoff is a multimedia artist, however he has received most of his recognition from his work as a painter. Approximately 30 paintings and drawings from the early 1990s to the present and works drawn from noted exhibitions/installations will complete the Gallery’s presentation. This selection of work underscores Althoff’s fluid stylistic approach and masterful way of presenting life’s complex yet fundamental extremes with exquisite intimacy and insight. In its entirety, the exhibition abandons the straightforward survey in favor of a more complex juxtaposition of components, whose subtle connections will be revealed throughout the visitor’s personal experience of the space.

Kai Althoff was born in 1966 in Cologne, Germany and continues to reside there. Althoff travels extensively for his individual and collaborative endeavors, exhibiting his work both nationally and internationally. His artistic output encompasses a vast spectrum of media, including works on paper, painting, photography, music, videos, text, performances and installations. He co-founded the German band Workshop, whose joint efforts figured largely in Althoff’s early artistic practice, and whose namesake—a place that advocates for the creative production of both the individual and the group—continues to play a recurring theme in his work.

Vancouver Art Gallery: Kai Althoff exhibition page

Advanced Voting Polls Now Open

Vancouver Votes November 15

Vote in advance November 5, 8, 10 and 12

Vote in advance from 8 am to 8 pm on November 5, 8, 10 and 12 at:

• City Hall
• Dunbar Community Centre
• Sunset Community Centre
• Trout Lake Community Centre
• Westend Community Centre

Visit the Elections website for more information: candidate profiles, voting details and borrowing questions for the 2009 - 2011 Capital Plan.

For more info on the civic election and the capital plan:
civic election

'Abbott & Cordova' on exhibit in NYC

Vancouver artist, Stan Douglas, will be exhibiting Humor, Irony and the Law at the David Zwirner Gallery in New York City from October 30 - December 23, 2008.

The installation, comprising of video and digital print, depicts moments in time in Vancouver history. One of which, "Abbott & Cordova" highlights a tense scene between hippies and Vancouver police before the now infamous Gastown riot. The final work is composed of fifty different shots taken with the camera in the exact same position.

Gastown Riot history
Archived CBC video


"Powell Street Grounds" depicts a 1912 Industrial Workers of the World Free Speech Demonstration held in the Downtown Eastside just as the crowd is being broken up by the police.
This image is composed of twenty different shots taken with the camera in the exact same position.


Humor, Irony and the Law also includes, "Ballantyne Pier, 18 June 1935," "Hastings Park, 16 July 1955," "Vidéo," and "Les Grands Moulins de Pantin."

12th Annual Vancouver Asian Film Festival, Nov 6 - 9

Today is your last day to get Early Bird VIP passes for the 12th Annual Vancouver Asian American Film Festival!

Opening night starts Thursday, November 6th and the festival closes on Sunday, November 9th.  Closing festivities include a Wrap Party and and Encore Presentations of West 32nd and Permute.

Click here for Program.

Click here to buy your VAFF VIP Pass

More information

Great Beginnings first round project initiative announced

On Monday, November 3rd, Mayor Sam Sullivan and Councillor Elizabeth Ball announced the first round of projects under Premier Gordon Campbell's 'Great Beginnings' $10 million initiative for the province.

According to Mayor Sullivan, the City of Vancouver will allocate its funds to help revitalize Vancouver's four most historic neighborhoods: Gastown, Japantown, Chinatown and Strathcona to mark the province's 150th birthday celebrations.

The city will concentrate on making improvements to public and private property, arts and culture, community living and civic pride. The budget for the first round of projects is over $1.5 million and include employing local residents in easy-to-enter jobs.

First round initiatives are: on:

• Lighting & Signage - retro-style new neon signs at the Pennsylvania Hotel & the Chinatown Plaza Parkade

• Clean Streets Project - expanded street and lane cleaning to 40 blocks within the Downtown Eastside in partnership with United We Can and the Coast Foundation

• Graffiti Removal & Art Project - expanded mural program & removal of graffiti
  

• Community Gardens - convert vacant lots in targeted neighbourhoods into food production spaces and/or artist-designed community gardens

• Building Improvements & Awning Replacements - restoration funding for alcoves and worn awnings on select heritage & non-heritage buildings

• Princess Avenue - interpretive walk for children will includes murals, community markers and a structural children's silhouette sign

• Heart of the City Festival - expanded capacity with a focus on the 150 year anniversary and the vibrancy of traditional founding urban communities

• Blood Alley community greening in Gastown

More information.

Fall Mountain View of WestVan

Fall Mountain View of WestVan
Originally uploaded by DJ_Riel

Another great shot of the mountains from my perch.

I like the cloud ring just below the crest.