Down on the corner of Main St. and St. Mary Ave, is the dingiest little club in the whole city, Times Change(d) High and Lonesome club. It’s crowded, it’s noisy, and it’s small. It’s also one of the best bars in Canada. Times Change(d) is a great venue to go to if you’re in the mood to [...]

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not that cultured. Given the choice between, say, attending an opera, or going to roller derby match, I wouldn’t have to think hard about my choice. I’d be strapping my skates on before you had even finished the question. But there are some things I never hesitate to [...]

Over the last three months, I’ve spent more time in the Winnipeg Art Gallery than in the last year. I realized this the other day, at the WAG – where else? – and I was taken aback at first. But after a second to think about it, it dawned on me how great that was. [...]

There’s something about the Oscars that screams ‘community event.’ Sitting down with friends to watch the nauseatingly long ceremony is a tradition for many people, myself included. For the last ten years, my friends Mike and Alanna have hosted an Oscar themed pot-luck party. There are prizes for the best movie related dish, and everyone gets [...]

I think the best thing about the Freeze Frame International Film Festival has got to be that it’s not all about the films. I know that sounds weird, for a film festival, but hear me out. In addition to the movies they bring in, Freeze Frame offers up workshops and classes for kids and parents [...]

I’ve mentioned on this blog before how fancy I feel when I’m in an art gallery. Well, take that level of fancy, and double it. That’s how fancy I felt when I was in the Winnipeg Art Gallery, listening to chamber music. That’s right, chamber music. The Winnipeg Chamber Music Society performed a concert at the [...]

There’s something about throwing yourself so deeply into a project that you become immersed in all aspects of it, isn’t there? It’s intense and wonderful to be so consumed with something, especially something you create. Watching pilgrIMAGE at Cinematheque this past weekend made me think of that feeling, that feeling of being taken over by [...]

I have this thing about one-man shows. It’s not that I don’t like them, exactly. It’s just that…they can get a little grating. I mean, listening to one person talk for two hours isn’t very exciting. It’s like a school lecture, only you don’t have to take notes. Lawrence and Hollowman at Prairie Theatre Exchange is [...]

“…Blackbird singing in the dead of night/Take these broken wings and learn to fly/All your life/You were only waiting for this moment to arise…” Blackbird. That’s one of my favourite Beatles songs.  I grew up listening to the pop super group, as both my parents are fans too. I learned to feebly strum out the [...]

This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend the Gemini Writer’s Retreat here in the city. There were eight writers there, and two well-known Manitoban authors – David Elias and Susie Molony – who acted as our teachers/guides/therapists. I applied to go because of a book I’m finishing. This past summer, I traveled across Canada [...]