July 31, 2007 by Kent Hurl

 July 26, 2007 by Kent Hurl

Back in the glory days of the Winnebago, my entire family went on a summer vacation.  It was a camping trip through Alberta and British Columbia and we did it in style, in a palace with tires.  As far as I knew, an RV was pretty much the only proper way to spend time in a campground.

Years later, I realized that others feel the true essence of camping is found in simpler elements.  Elements like sleeping bags, wieners & beans and flashlights.  Yes, flashlights… used to illuminate a narrow, muddy path to a reeking outhouse in the middle of the night while stealthy, starving wildlife circle you… YOU, the naïve innocent who is supposed to believe the true essence of camping is found outside the comforts of a spacious motor home.

We "camped" somewhere near Radium Hot Springs where we experienced the famously hot water pools.  As we soaked, I was surprised to see mountain goats, 50 feet or so above our heads, precariously perched on a rock face at an almost-90 degree angle, simply staring down at us people.  Was it crazier for the mountain goats to tempt fate by manipulating balance and gravity on the steep face of a mountain, or for us to excitedly submerge ourselves in a nearly-boiling human broth?

Either way, all good holidays come to an end and our vacation was no different.  The very moment the Winnebago rolled to a stop in the driveway of our suburban bungalow, us kids jumped out and ran into the backyard.  We wanted to see how much our garden had grown while we were away.  Our tomato vines were almost as tall as five-year-old me, and greenery from subterranean carrots blanketed the soil.  Our empty, oval-shaped garden plot was no longer simply home to a scarecrow, but now home to row upon row of ripening vegetables which epitomized eating local.

This memory of the pure and simple pleasure of spending time in a garden drifted back to me yesterday while walking through Cypress community garden.

Cypress community garden is in the heart of Kitsilano, along the old train tracks parallel to West 6th Avenue between Cypress and Burrard streets.  Neighbours can tend a plot of edible or floral growth, getting to know each other as they till the soil and yank out the weeds. Everything is organically grown and the garden uses Vancouver's backyard composting program.

A big 'ol garden right in the middle of the big 'ol city.  It has even won awards!  I say go and take a nice, long walk at Cypress community garden because it reminds you what planet Earth should smell like all the time.  Plus, all the different flowers in the garden are about as colorful as the language used these days by Lindsay Lohans' agent.

 July 20, 2007 by Kent Hurl

I seem to be noticing various Vancouver structures this week.  If it's not an upside down church in Coal Harbour, it's a heritage building in South Granville.  Such as the one pictured below.  It's called Douglas Lodge.  Once I found out who used to live there, I was reminded of the horror my parents must have felt when I went to my very first, big, bad, evil rock concert.

My auntie Pam had won concert tickets from K-97 radio in Edmonton to see Bryan Adams on his "Reckless" tour.  Sadly, K-97 no longer exists.  Mind you, neither does my desire to see that guy in concert.

But, there was a time when he was a big ticket.  I guess my aunt wanted to break me in to the rock 'n roll scene.  Of course, I was far too young to be outside after dark, let alone at a concert without a family escort, so that meant the only way to go was by actually hanging with my aunt.  Who was actually very cool.  And still is.  We all have at least one cool aunt, n'est-ce pas?

Bryan Adams was touring for his star-making album, Reckless.  That's the one that gave the world big hits like Summer of '69 and Heaven.  Too bad he didn't keep writing classic tunes like those.  Instead, he later poisoned the airwaves with shlock-rock singles like Everything I Do (I Do It For You) and a duet with one of the Spice Girls.  I'd rather lick a schoolyard flag pole during a prairie blizzard than listen to either of those songs.

During his heyday, Bryan Adams had the hots for a certain female who lived in Douglas Lodge.  One might assume the outcome of that relationship had a lot to do with the crappy music he later produced.  Speaking of women and music, Sarah McLachlan moved to Vancouver and lived in that same building prior to her Lilith Fair days.

Douglas Lodge is a gorgeous, old landmark smack dab on South Granville right at the corner of West 12th avenue.  Its' Georgian Revival architecture equals City of Vancouver Heritage Building status.

Built in 1912, Douglas Lodge has been home to many famous people.  The hilarious John Candy lived here for a long time, as did Ted Danson from Cheers.  So did the parents of renowned Vancouver-born architect Arthur Erickson (he designed our Museum of Anthropology and the Waterfall building beside Granville Island).  When former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau passed away, his son Justin was residing at Douglas Lodge. And, Emily Carr gave painting lessons there to a friend who rented an apartment inside.

Who needs phonics when you can get hooked on South Granville?  Find out more here

Even though ginormous amounts of turkey, stuffing and cranberries seem to fall from the sky every Christmas, I found myself rather peckish late last December when I moseyed into the Hyatt Regency Hotel to look at their display of gingerbread creations.

While I plotted to surreptitiously abscond with one or two sweet, little shingles or perhaps a sugary picket fence, I was distracted by realizing gingerbread is no longer used only to create simple and delicious replicas of houses accessorized with white icing and Smarties in place of real snow and Christmas lights.

There were several stellar creations in this lobby exhibition, but the stand-out was a multi-piece display of Vancouver's stand-out architecture. Imagine all of the following city landmarks, gingerbread-style: Vancouver City Hall (which already looks like something out of Gotham City), Vancouver Public Library (which is cool enough at street level, but really must be seen from an aerial perspective) and the Marine Building (our city's one true testament to art deco, my favorite design style).

This Christmas, I'm hoping to find a gingerbread version of... THIS!:

Device To Root Out Evil by Dennis Oppenheim, an American sculptor with a reputation for the avant-garde. Whether you live in Vancouver or plan to visit soon, you should check it out. It's a 25-foot, upside down and slightly tilted church balanced on its steeple. This sculpture arrived in Vancouver in 2005 as one of 23 pieces in the inaugural Vancouver Sculpture Biennale.

It's one of those things you need to walk completely around to fully appreciate its timeless beauty. Like a '69 SS Camaro. Or Joan Rivers.

While Joan requires needles and knives to achieve that look of eternal surprise, you will not when you see this sculpture. It's located in Harbour Green, an outdoor, public space along West Cordova Street at the foot of Bute Street. It's the surprising and controversial result of blending glass, steel and aluminum with an unusual concept.

Think what you will about Oppenheim's inspiration or intention, but there's no denying its unique esthetic quality and strong ability to cause admirers to bend over sideways and turn their heads upside down in an ultimately futile attempt to perceive the sculpture right side up.

It might be human nature to try that, but there's just no point in trying because you'll never be able to hold that position for very long. It's a good thing then that Device To Root Out Evil will hold its own position in Vancouver for a long time to come.

For a few tiny moments in Grade 7 gym class, I wanted to be a soccer star. This dream came alive during one particular game I'll never forget. The ball was mine and my shot was clear. I knew sending the ball past the goal post would send me into the stratosphere of popularity at school. Girls would scratch each other's eyes out for my attention and boys would high-five me and forever regard my athletic prowess as a force to be reckoned with.

As the dream took hold, everything fell silent and moved in slow motion. My heart pounded in my ears, the hair on the back of my neck stood up, my throat tightened as I tried to swallow. I looked down at the ball and up at the goal post, visualizing the most accurate kick ever. Goal post, ball. Ball, goal post.

With all the strength and intention I could muster, I kicked the field. That's right, not the ball… the field. I connected my foot perfectly with the field and NOT with the stupid ball. The impact of my mistake reverberated up to my knee and deep inside my soul. Immediately, I tried again. And, immediately, it happened again.

I'm sure you can imagine the piercing, stinging humiliation I felt. Not only from making the same, lame mistake twice, but also knowing I was surrounded by low-minded 12 year olds eager to seize my blunder as their prime opportunity to shatter my already-cracked ego. I was teased right into retirement.

While watching the FIFA U-20 World Cup last Saturday, I realized it's fairly safe to assume none of the players ever had a similar experience. Yup, I think it's a pretty safe assumption these guys kicked circles around everyone else when it came to soccer.

The FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007 is the largest single-sport event in Canadian history - 52 matches seen by over 1 million spectators in six different cities and luckily we have it here at Swangard Stadium, just spitting distance into Burnaby as you cross Boundary Road between Vancouver and Burnaby.

I saw two games, back to back. First, Spain vs. Jordan. Spain won 4-2 thanks to a hat-trick from Adrian Lopez. The next match was Scotland vs. Costa Rica. Since I've enjoyed time in both countries, I wasn't sure who to root for until it became obvious the biggest contingent of Scottish fans this side of the Atlantic was in my section. In fact, my seat was right behind Ryan Conroy's proud, humble parents who came all the way from Bonny Scotland to cheer him on, but the final score was 2-1 for Costa Rica.

Tomorrow, Spain is playing again, against Brazil. You can look around for tickets at www.ticketstonight.ca. See ya there.

1971 was quite the memorable year (assuming one is old enough to remember it). That's when cigarette ads disappeared from TV and radio, Led Zeppelin released 'Stairway to Heaven' and Canada's first gay rights demonstration took place on Parliament Hill.

In 1971, while Jim Morrison broke on through to the other side (permanently), Prime Minister Trudeau welcomed a son and the human race welcomed our four-billionth baby. And shock of all shocks, it's also the year Intel released the world's first microprocessor.

Also in 1971, Greenpeace was born right here in Vancouver. A group of environmental activists jumped in an old boat named the Phyllis Cormack and sailed west of Alaska to see what was going on there with some nuclear testing. The rest is history.

Fast-forward to now and another of Greenpeace's most important battles rages on: climate change. As I blog away this afternoon, logging trucks are clearing fallen trees in Stanley Park; still cleaning up from the unforgettable storm of last December 15th. Also today, triple-digit temperatures are blazing up the U.S. southwest. These two examples of wild weather, combined with a rather unsettling accumulation of scientific data, should do a very good job of convincing us all that something has to give. And soon.

Increasing awareness is why history's largest entertainment event is about to take place. Live Earth. 07/07/07. 8 concerts on 7 continents. Some of the biggest music stars in the world are putting on the kind of show that will go down as one of the most important ever. Too many artists to list them all, but watch for Madonna, The Police, Rihanna, Jack Johnson, Linkin Park, Joss Stone, Beastie Boys, Bloc Party and the beat goes on.

You gotta get up early/stay up late to enjoy the global broadcast here in Vancouver, so with that in mind here are some planet-friendly tips for the music-friendly Vancouverite:

• If ogling Rihanna has to be fuelled by coffee because she's on at 4 in the morning, fight the urge for a take-out paper cup and just place a re-usable filter in your own coffee maker. Watch as your garbage doesn't pile up.
• If your favourite artist is on stage when it's dark out, enlighten yourself and your viewing area with compact fluorescent bulbs and save up to 90% of the energy.
• If you snack during the show, go with fruit salad, a veggie platter or trail mix. You'll save all the water and grain used to manufacture meat products.
• If you're getting together with your peeps to watch the show, ride your bike or take public transit to wherever the party is at.

The only reality TV show I watch is The Young and The Restless.

I do realize making that statement could lead you to believe my Brita was hijacked by bong water, but allow me to explain. The Young and the Restless, also known as Y&R, is totally based in reality. Really, it is. Y&R tells the stories of people's lives, simple as that. What on earth could be more real? Their lives show the all-too-real challenges and rewards presented by life with families: spouses, parents and children. Not to mention evil twins, back-from-the-dead cousins and precocious brats who age from toddler to teen in the same time it takes to polish a set of veneers.

Sure, everyone is coiffed, well-to-do and never has diarrhea, but aside from those teensy oversights, Y&R is for real. Besides, I can only take so much of my own personal daytime drama before I need to immerse in someone else's.

Always taking things to a whole 'nother level, Y&R will soon arrive in Vancouver to continue the current tradition of globally significant charitable events, such as last weekend's Concert for Diana which raised funds for landmine awareness, AIDS and youth homelessness. And, the Live Earth concert this Saturday will combat global warming. But, on Saturday the 14th of July, stars from The Young and the Restless take the stage in downtown Vancouver at the Marriott Pinnacle Hotel to benefit the ALS Society of BC.

The event is billed as Afternoon Tea with the Young and the Restless. That's because it was founded by the actress who plays a tea-serving maid on the number one soap opera. The idea is that fans join their favourite soap stars for afternoon tea and get a whiff of life behind the scenes, upcoming storylines and a silent auction with an impressive array of items like autographed scripts, a piece of clothing quite literally off the back of a soap stud and even a trip to Hollywood for a personal tour of the Y&R set.

And the very best part? All the money raised supports the ALS Society of BC. ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, can affect anyone but afternoon tea could be your chance to help prevent that. So, check it out and see what you can do to improve reality.

For details on Afternoon Tea with the Young and the Restless, visit the Vancouver Marriott Pinnacle Downtown.