I'm curious about the reactions ordinary people have to being trapped in extraordinary situations. Events that, although not catastrophic, register beyond the scope of our experiences, and our basic grasp of the social contract.It's probably safe to predict that when met with the unexpected, people automatically default to a right or left brain response –... Continue Reading →
How to Go Make-Up Free This Summer (But Not Really What Are You, Nuts?)
If you're old, chances are you're also ugly. At least, that's what Crystal Martin, Fashion & Style writer for the New York Times believes. Martin's article “How To Go Makeup-Free This Summer” cautions that summer’s heat and humidity can make a makeup-laden face feel oppressed, which is why she's compiled a sponsored list of pricey... Continue Reading →
Of Faith and Lavender Gods
Earlier that day I'd headed to Point Grey Village for chocolatey croissants and a higher order of coffee. Instead of walking up 10th, the main road, I chose 11th. With its canopy of billowing evergreens and row upon row of perfectly manicured yards, 11th offers a peaceful, prettier stroll. Four blocks up that street and... Continue Reading →
A Bittersweet Device
https://youtu.be/qKYQNtF11eg This song's POV? What a choice. And that snappy tempo? Brilliant. With a simple pivot from first to third person and a jaunty back beat to drive it all home our narrator instantly manipulates the way we perceive his story so he can pummel himself mercilessly while the rest of us are distracted by... Continue Reading →
Nomadland Could Use A Little Minari
Minari and Nomadland are two movies currently earning all kinds of praise and pre-award season accolades that triggered in me diametrically opposing feelings. I hated Nomadland (only lasted 20 minutes before shutting it off), and I loved Minari (sat there staring into the closing credits just thinking about it all.) The movies share a similar... Continue Reading →
The Egg Of Perdition
Watching Master Chef and doing my best to hold back the tears. Such a touching moment in history. And I mean all of history, including the beginning of time (as opposed to just a moment in history, or some obscure event in the middle of time.) Becky poached an egg, and she looked worried. "What's... Continue Reading →
How to Make the Most of Your Boring, Broke-Ass, Totally Meaningless Day
Are you in-between gigs? Figuring shit out? Ruminating that stupid-ass English degree that sucked the pocket beers straight out of your soul? If your decision to honour your passion for the liberal arts meant turning your back on the same 8-month Real Estate certificate program that catapulted Cletus the undead dud into a 7-room mansion... Continue Reading →
The Strange Courtship of Abigail Bird: An Homage to the Endearing Outlier
Witty and complex yet masterfully distilled, The Strange Courtship of Abigail Bird sets the reader on course for an eventful face-off between our protagonist Ishmael (who, much like his unbiblical counterpart in Herman Melville's Moby Dick is a bit of an outcast), and, a hugely daunting, wholly unpredictable aggressor called 'life.' Compliments of his socially... Continue Reading →
If You Wanted Him to Write Warmly About You, You Should Have Behaved Better
After reading Jacob Silverman's Down and Out in the Gig Economy I thought about doing him a solid by sending him a copy of Dan Lyons' Disrupted: My Misadventure in the Start-Up Bubble. Both writers share a similar lament, but only one of them gets the message across without sounding like the entitled child of... Continue Reading →
Nebulous Ties
Like any close-knit community, Point Grey is home to a few friendly cliques... You've got your cycling crowd of super-warriors who push themselves to their limits every Saturday and then gather outside the local Starbucks to leak sweat; the early morning coffee ladies at Bean Around the World who sit at the window counter and... Continue Reading →