Reaction to Olympic mascots typical in Blandcouver

The longer I live in Vancouver, the more I realize why people call this the no-fun city. Personally, I think it’s partially due to an aging populace whose opinions dominate the major media outlets in the city. This week’s unveiling of the 2010 Olympic mascots demonstrates this type of literal, provincial and regional way of thinking. In most of the articles I read and opinions I heard, people and opinion makers dumped on these cute, and obviously commercial, mascots. Here’s one column that pretty much sums up what I’ve heard.

To me, these mascots do a good job of representing what Vancouver is becoming – a city that’s identity is in flux due to the fusion of cultures and ideas. In my opinion, the designers did a great job of mixing popular, modern design with First Nation motifs in a fun and playful way. As much as I realize these are merely cute and fuzzy creatures meant to fly off store shelves, I hope they represent a break from the conservative and conformist mindset that has held this city back from becoming a truly cosmopolitan and fun place.

Product recalls lead to Canada/China agreement

Canada has signed an agreement with the Chinese that aims to ensure imported products are safe and recalls are dealt with effectively. From a parent’s point of view, this is good news. The Chinese are obviously willing to enter into these agreements to save their economy from consumer backlash. I hope the Americans will also look at striking a similar agreement, since their market is much larger and many of the large corporations outsourcing manufacturing are U.S.-based. Such a deal would benefit consumers around the world.

CBC loses the Grey Cup…too bad they still have Hockey Night in Canada

Today marked the end of the CBC’s 55-year relationship with the CFL. Next year, TSN will take over with a five-year deal that includes rights to all playoff games and the Grey Cup. I like tradition as much as the next sports fan, but I’m not sad to see TSN take over. It may mean a nice cohesive package of games that could bring a lot of young fans back to the league.

After last night, I wouldn’t mind seeing Hockey Night in Canada on a new network as well. At 4 p.m., I turned on to watch the dismal Leafs lose to the Phoenix Coyotes in Glendale – last time I checked Glendale isn’t in Canada. During this game, the best Canadian team, Ottawa, was playing against an exciting, young Philadelphia in Ottawa – I believe Ottawa is a Canadian city.

As I see it, HNC games in Canada should be broadcast before games in the U.S. And great teams, like Ottawa, should be shown before teams that didn’t even make the playoffs last year – or there should at least be an effort to show an equal amount of games of all Canadian teams, especially if it’s a tax-payer funded network that is broadcasting the games.

West Coast Canucks fans are lucky to see a game in a month, where as the Leafs are on the early game practically every week. It doesn’t make sense, and it’s not fair to Hockey fans across the country.

Gem sweater art

With this kind of entertainment available, who needs TV or cable anymore? I love the fact artists (Hall is a an fine arts graduate) can use the Internet as a tool to distribute their work. It’s great they don’t have to rely on galleries or record companies to buy into what they are doing before people get to see it. Her gem sweater images kind of remind me of Cindy Sherman’s work.

The Last Waltz

The Band played their last live show 21 years ago today – U.S. Thanksgiving, 1976. Flip through some of the clips – the performances and music is amazing – then buy the video and play it loud.

Gone skiing

Whistler-Blackcomb opened today. Unlike last year, there’s not a ton of snow, but El Nina is supposed to make it a great year. My fingers are crossed, as we’re taking Baby G up to the mountain in January. We’ve booked a daycare for a weekend, so Momma J and I can finally get together to do some boarding again.

Kids and scraps, all a part of the daycare experience

After putting away Baby G’s food this morning, I walked out of the daycare kitchen to find the little guy in a full-blown scrap with his buddy. They were wrestling over who was going to be able to sit in one of two vibrating chairs that were sitting side-by-side.

As a father, I must admit I was a little proud the little guy was holding his own against a kid who can walk and is about two inches taller. However, I was wondering if I should step in a stop them. After looking over at the daycare worker who didn’t seem all that concerned, I walked away chuckling to myself, thinking the kids must do this all the time. As I was walking out the door, Baby G’s buddy came running across the daycare crying. I guess the little guy got the best of him.

I felt a little bad for not stopping them, and told Momma J about the incident. We’ve both heard Baby G takes stuff from one of the girls in his group, and we are getting a little concerned he is a bully.

When we returned later on, the daycare workers said not to worry, as the kids tend to work it all out themselves. Apparently they all come up on the short end of the stick from time to time, which results in some crying and a few minutes of being upset. In the end, it all evens out.

Hipsters take on Alberta

Vice Broadcasting System Television (vbs.tv) made a visit to Alberta’s oil sands to take a look at the environmental impact of oil exploration in the province’s north.

The online station is the brainchild of Vice Magazine co-founders Suroosh Alvi, Eddy Moretti and Shane Smith. The New York Times tells the story of how this new online tv station came to be, and the video about “Toxic Alberta” speaks for itself.

I like the concept and the way the stories are put together. It’s a good mix of first person experience and point-of-view reporting that takes on a subject that I haven’t seen covered by any Canadian broadcast media organization in this way. It’s also pretty amusing to watch a Williamsburg hipster freeze his ass off in Northern Alberta.

I miss authentic Japanese food

It’s pretty easy to get half-decent Japanese food in Vancouver. However, there is no substitute for the real thing. I miss the array of great restaurants Tokyo offers, and it’s great to see the city getting some international attention as one of the best places in the world to eat. I’ve been to Paris a number of times, and I lived near Tokyo for a year. I don’t know if one is better than the other as far as restaurant offerings, but Tokyo is definitely one of the world’s great culinary capitals.

Tainted toys being resold on Internet

What are people thinking? According to CBC people are selling toys on the Internet that have been recalled. As a parent, it seems strange that anyone would do this. I cringe when I hear stories in the news about kids who have been injured or killed unnecessarily. I guess greed trumps common decency other times, so why should this be any different?

If you’re unsure whether or not a used toy has been recalled, you can check out this site. It’s nice to see the government stepping up to the plate on this issue.