Working on the Legs!

One of my goals for this weekend is to get onto the Grouse Grind. It'll probably close for the season soon (does anybody know when this happens?), so I'd better make it up there quick.

There are a few things I love about the Grouse Grind:

1. Passing tourists in flip-flops or dress shoes. Actually, passing other hikers is much more satisfying...

2. The satisfaction that I did it. I find it so hard to motivate myself to even get to the bottom of the mountain, much less the top! So when I actually make it up there, I'm super-proud and post my (not very fast) time to facebook immediately.

3. I heard it burns like a thousand calories. This justifies a feast and a couple glasses of wine with dinner.

4. There are grizzly bears up there!

5. Getting out into nature. It smells nice (like trees and dirt) and it's beautiful. Last time I went in the afternoon and watched the sun set from the top of the mountain. So gorgeous!

What are your favourite workout or nature activities?

Thursday Afternoon Activity

Every Thursday afternoon on my way home from work, I pick up a Georgia Straight and check out my horoscope.

When I was a kid, my mom used to read me my horoscope in the morning before I went to school, and this is something I've always enjoyed doing. I only half-believe in horoscopes, and it's because they are just so accurate sometimes.

Check yours out at the link above and let me know if it's accurate!

My horoscope for the next week says that after Sunday, romance will be pleasing! I'll have to let you know if that's true...

Want to support a worthy cause and have a good time?

Who doesn't?!?!

Check out Bright Nights in Stanley Park: the miniature train guides you through the forest filled with over two million Christmas lights, animated displays and holiday music! All donations given at the event and partial proceeds from ticket sales go to the Burn Fund to help burn survivors and their families.

And the best part? The firefighters who are there, waiting to take your donations!

http://vancouver.ca/PARKS/events/brightnights/

I'm not sure whether to laugh at this or not...

Well, I bet the person who wins the $500 won't be laughing!
You can win $500 just for telling Santa what you want for Christmas at the Cellar's /Sexy Santa Party/! Not bad! This Wednesday, December 16th you can head to the Cellar (1006 Granville Street) to party it up with free gingerbread and fun prizes. As well, they're collecting donations for the food bank, so bring a non-perishable item with you to get in the holiday giving spirit.

http://www.cellarvan.com/clubnights_detail.php?id=62

(Insert Witty Russian Title Here)

Republic (958 Granville Street) will be hosting the Russian Standard launch party - "The #1 premium vodka in Russia!" on Wednesday, December 16th from 10pm to 3am!

Do you, like me, have a secret fetish for all things Russian? That crazy language? Vodka? Snow? Warm clothes? Hunky men named Vlad?

Check out this vodka launch event Wednesday night at Republic, with DJs Supafly, BZ Black and the Boyscouts.

(I wish I knew a Russian word that I could sign off this post with!)

http://www.dhmbars.ca/republic0events.aspx?1=187&2=187&3=3&4=3&6=86&8=86&10=86&12=86&14=86&16=86&17=187&19=187&21=187&23=187&25=187&27=187&18=186&20=186&22=186&24=186&26=186&28=186

You had me at "Complimentary Cover with any canned food donation!"

Dance away the night to Top 40, Hip Hop and holiday dance hits!! It has always been my dream to go to a club and dance to Christmas music. I don't know anyone who loves Christmas music as much as I do, but maybe I could find my soul-mate at Caprice's Winter Wonderland party next Tuesday, December 22nd.

http://www.capricenightclub.com/event3.htm

The Cheap Girl

I know not everyone would be thrilled to be known as "The Cheap Girl!" (I wouldn't want my friends to be saying that about me!) But this cheap girl really knows her stuff!

Wanna know about local sales? How about the Aritzia 25th anniversary sale that starts today and runs till November 22nd? You can find it on her blog! Seriously, my life has improved by 82% since I added her to my google reader.

www.thecheapgirl.com

Happy Portobello Holidays!

The Portobello West Fashion and Art Market has organized a couple of special weekend-long holiday markets!

The market, which usually takes place on the last Sunday of the month at the Rocky Mountaineer Train Station in Vancouver, will be holding additional holiday markets on the last Saturday AND Sunday of November and December, from noon to 6pm.

Check out their website for more details: http://vancouver.portobellowest.com/When/When.php

Trending and Spending

I just added a great-looking event to the calendar (below)!  It's Spend on Trend, a three-day retail event featuring a variety of independent Canadian designers!  Sounds to me like it's going to be even better than Portobello West.  Not that I'm complaining about Portobello West - love it!  

Have a look at the calendar, or go to the Spend on Trend website for more information.

Packed Weekend!

This weekend is packed!  There's not even room to breathe in this city!  Well, actually, everything that this weekend is packed with is relaxing, so you'll definitely have room to breathe and relax.  And shop, and go out, and...  you get the point.

Tomorrow, Friday the 17th, will see a variety of activities going on in Yaletown.  I guess everyone there got together and decided to get their name around.  First of all, it's Hot Friday, which means there will be a DJ, performances and retail promos (from noon to 7pm).  Second, and perhaps more importantly, there's a Shopathon!  Discounts, specials, prizes, cocktails and free swag!  Can you turn that down?  Me neither!

Want to do something more cultural?  It's also the Vancouver Folk Music Festival down at Jericho Beach!  Go see Fire and Wine, the Weakerthans, Dan Mangan and a variety of others (those are just the bands I know from the radio!).

This weekend also sees the arrival of the BC Renaissance Festival, if that's more your speed.  You can make the trek to Langley (!) to go to the Renaissance marketplace, see their performances, and wear your chain mail (because, seriously, how often do you pull that one out of the closet?).

And if you don't want to go all the way to Langley, you can go see the Comedy of Errors in Queens Park!  This one is even free!  Shakespeare?  Outdoors?  Free?  Count me in!

Still haven't found what you want?  No Doubt will be in town Saturday night, GM Place, packed with screaming fans while Gwen and her buddies put on a phenomenal show (just guessin').

For more info about any of these items, check out my calendar at the bottom of my blog.

Have a great weekend!!

Shopathon!

Shopathon? Really? I didn't even know that was a word!

Well, it may not be in the dictionary, but this Friday there will be a Shopathon in Yaletown from 3-9pm! Over 40 stores will have great discounts and specials, prizes, cocktails and even FREE SWAG! The first 250 shoppers will get a free swag bag, but you MUST RSVP (at http://shopyaletown.wordpress.com/rsvp/).

While you're in Yaletown, enjoy Hot Friday, this Friday July 17th from noon to 7pm. Hot Friday includes live music, DJ Wyatt, retail promotions and other performances.

Why not celebrate the end of the work week with a fun day in Yaletown?

More info: www.yaletowninfo.com

I Love You...

This is going to be a short one, because I'm actually blushing as I write this!

The Art of Loving has a variety of workshops and events coming up, for example:

Free Sexy Games Seminar Jul 8 $0

Tantric Massage on Men Jul 14 $30

G-spot and Female Ejaculation Jul 15 $30

How To Have a Great Orgasm Jul 20 $30

Backside Love Jul 21 $30

Nude Photography Jul 26 $80

Check out their website: www.taol.ca for more information.

On Your Feet

I'm currently compiling a list of some hikes & walks that are nice to do, and not too far from the city (Whistler is out).  

Here's what I've got so far:

The Grouse Grind:

No list of Vancouver hikes would be complete without this one.  "Nature's Stairmaster" isn't that what they call it?  Imagine walking up a mountain that's practically perpendicular to the ground.  Sound fun?  Well, I don't know if "fun" is the first word that comes to mind, but by the time you make it to the top you'll feel like you could do anything (maybe after a little nap).  The path itself is only a few kilometres long, but it feels like a lot more due to the severe incline.  If you're going for a lazy Sunday, admire-the-view kind of hike, go somewhere else.

More info here: http://www.grousemountain.com/Summer/summer-activities/vancouver-bc-hiking-trails-trips/grouse-grind.asp

Minnekhada Park

This park is gorgeous, and a good combination of admiring the views and getting a workout.  The High Knoll path is steep, but not too long to handle, and from the top you get a great view of the Fraser Valley, Pitt Lake, Pitt Meadows, etc.  It's gorgeous!  This one is a bit further away, being in Port Coquitlam/Coquitlam.

More info here: http://www.greatervancouverparks.com/Minnekhada01.html

This list is by no means complete, and I plan on continuing to work on it, but if you have suggestions of great local hikes, send them to me or comment!

Gold Diggers

If I was so rich I could spend $130 to go out on a Thursday night (sadly, I'm not), I'd be headed to the Opus Hotel a week from today to check out their Au = Precious Element fundraiser evening for the Arts Umbrella.

The theme is GOLD!  

Your ticket will get you a couple of gold-themed drinks, and you're supposed to dress in gold, too.

You can find all the information you need in my new calendar, at the bottom of this page, or at: www.artsumbrella.com/events/fundraising/preciouselement

And in case you're wondering who they're fundraising for, naturally you can see that, too: www.artsumbrella.com

Vino Italiano!

June 21 to 26 is Italian Cultural Week at the Italian Cultural Centre (www.italianculturalcentre.ca).  They have a variety of events going on all week, including events for the family and events with wine!

Check out the schedule of performances and the information about the dance and banquet at http://www.italianculturalcentre.ca/itoolkit.asp?pg=ITALIAN_WEEK_2009.

Car-Free Vancouver

Sunday is Car-Free Vancouver day and there are a variety of events around the city (Downtown, Kitsilano and Main St).

You can check out carfreevancouver.org for more information.

This day is for having fun, and celebrating the future of our city.  There will be a variety of activities, music and other such fun in each of the areas I mentioned above.  Go enjoy your car-free self (and take transit!).

Getting Organized

As you can see, I've added a lovely calendar to my blog!  I'll be combing a variety of resources that I use regularly anyways and adding to it over time, so you can check out what's going on in Vancouver on a given day.  Of course, I won't be putting ALL the events I find on there - just the ones that are relevant to my blog.

If you know of something that I missed, please e-mail me: ms.michelle.mara@gmail.com, or you can comment.

Enjoy!

What to do with a sunny weekend?

I don't mean to say that it's best to stay inside when it finally turns to summer in this city, that is definitely not what I'm getting at.
What I do want to suggest is checking out the Vancouver Art Gallery for a couple hours, right around mid-day, when you're not supposed to be outside anyways because of the UV rays. You could always sandwich the VAG in between brunch on one patio and cocktails on another...
I'm tempted by the VAG right now because of their Stan Douglas exhibition, which is on until September. Really, just go check out the web site: it's a video and photo exhibition mostly taken in the interior. Gorgeous? I'll bet it is, but I'll have to check it out soon and let you know for sure.

Happy August, Everybody!

This is now going to be the best summer ever:

I've got my new radio station, 100.5 the Peak, to keep me going at work. And they've just announced that the Sam Roberts Band, along with Mother Mother, will be playing at Deer Lake Park on August 3!

I've heard that Deer Lake Park is an amazing venue for concerts, even though I have never been to one there. What could be more delightful or picturesque? I can hardly wait.

Tickets go on sale on Friday, presumably at 10am (because that's when tix go on sale) and also presumably at ticketmaster, the seller of all tickets ever.

See you at Deer Lake Park on August 3!!

Awesome Tunage for the Summer

I don't know how behind I am, but apparently we have a new radio station here in Vancouver!

100.5 The Peak plays aaaawesome rock - Sam Roberts, Modest Mouse, Arcade Fire, Metric, and all sorts of fun and indie rock. I pretty much have this station on all the time at home, and all the time at work - which I can do because you can listen online!

The music you listen to in the summer is so important. It's the soundtrack, right? So if you're listening to crap music all summer, your summer probably won't be so good. I urge you to go turn this station on right now. I would like to guarantee that it will make your summer better, but... I don't have that kind of power.

You can find The Peak online at www.thepeak.fm. And no, they have no affiliation with The Peak, SFU's student newspaper.