Boulevard Magazine - March/April 2011 Issue

IbouleVard march/april 2011

the magazine of urban living

the arts people food homes

DARK IMAGININGS Don Easton’s undercover years fuel his gripping novels STRINGS THAT SING 25 years with the incomparable Lafayette String Quartet STEAMING HOT PainterFreshen Adam the light fantastic Adventures DESIGN up yourNoonan cuppa joe HOTfinds PROPERTIES A beach beauty on Bazanin Bay ornithology at the annual ChristmasAn Bird Countskewed CASA CRAZY ABOUT PRAGUE insider’s viewMEXICANA of a timeless town Buying a home in Mexico

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92

contents

56

26

boulevard volume XXi ISsUE 3 march/april 2011

features 16 ADDICTION or YEN? Are our bad habits something worse?

By Heather Reid

40 CREATIVE MINDS

26 LAFAYETTE SALUTE

48 FRONT ROW

The LSQ celebrates a quarter-century

By Robert Moyes

Bloomin’ lovely at the AGGV; Emily, like you never knew her; Poet John Keats’ pivotal moment inspires a play; Une fête française; Gimme a head of Hair; and more

By Robert Moyes

96 TRAVEL FAR

56 HOT PROPERTIES

100 LIBATIONS

A sun-drenched haven graces Bazan Bay

By Denise Rudnicki

How green is your glass of wine?

By Sharon McLean

76 HOT DESIGN

104 DINING IN

Coffee makers give your java a jolt

By Elizabeth Levinson

Rethink rabbit as lean cuisine

By Alisa Gordaneer

82 TECHNOLOGIA

108 DINING OUT

Social networking has its perils

By Darryl Gittins

Peter Zambri prepares sablefish

By Elizabeth Levinson

departments 12 EDITOR’S LETTER Branching out

By Anne Mullens

13 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Our readers spring forth 14 CONTRIBUTORS The writers behind the stories 32 COWICHAN SCENE The little theatre that does

By Katherine Gordon

76

A writer’s crime scenes emerge from real life

By Adrienne Dyer

86 BOOK CLUB Great reads for 2011

By Adrienne Dyer 92 TRAVEL NEAR Tulip time in the Skagit Valley

By Suzanne Morphet

A veteran does Prague for newbies

By Ross Crockford

114 SECRETS AND LIES Barb Desjardins, Mayor of Esquimalt

By Shannon Moneo

columns 22 HAWTHORN Every life deserves a good telling

By Tom Hawthorn 46 STATE OF THE ARTS Talent shows win hearts and hope for the arts

By Alisa Gordaneer

112 THE WRY EYE Time waits for no Ed

By Ed Bain

ON OUR COVER Ex-undercover cop turned mystery writer Don Easton Photo by Vince Klassen

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FROM our

It is said that continuity gives us stable roots but it is change that gives us branches to grow and reach new heights.

The theme of building on one’s roots, or history, to go forward into new rewarding terrain emerges in a few of our feature stories and columns this March. Former under-cover RCMP officer Don Easton mined his experiences inside the gritty criminal underworld to create compelling fictional stories — and a new career as a successful crime novelist.

Articles on personal historians, the Lafayette Quartet and the Chemainus Theatre all have themes of being true to one’s history while growing and changing.

Boulevard, too, is building on its established 21-year history and popularity to re-invigorate itself for the years ahead. I am very happy to announce that this issue is the last of our bi-monthly publications. As of May 1, 2011, Boulevard will be published each month, bringing fresh, relevant, well-written stories combined with beautiful photos and production to you, our valued readers. As such, we will provide both continuity with our past and change that allows us to reach new heights in the future.

I want to say a personal thanks to art director Jaki Jefferson who for 21 years has lovingly created Boulevard’s unique graphic style and produced superior layout and design that made the magazine a pleasure to peruse. Staying in the Boulevard family, Jaki is moving on to head some special projects for us in the months ahead. This is Jaki’s last Boulevard issue and we all thank her for her years of creativity and professionalism. Incoming art director Beth Campbell is not new to Boulevard Lifestyles Inc. She designed our Boulevard Home Design Annual. Beth will take over the helm of the monthly magazine. We give her a hearty welcome.

So sit back and enjoy this last, bi-monthly issue of Boulevard and watch your door step in early May for the debut of our new monthly magazine.

Anne Mullens Managing Editor Boulevard welcomes your letters at editor@victoriaboulevard. com or by mail. Submissions may be edited. VB

12 victoriaboulevard.com

Boyd_Ad2Comfort_Boulevard

letters

YOUR

Kerrific Thank you to the artistic team of Gary McKinstry and Jaki Jefferson for the wonderful colours in my photo for the last issue (Designing Diva, Jan/Feb 2011). My family and friends never see me with make-up and styled! Alex Van Tol’s article hit the balance between the human and the professional. One small correction: I have designed for many theatres, but not designed for any place called the Granville Theatre.

Mary Kerr Victoria Inspired to write In the Jan/Feb issue of Boulevard Magazine, I was very excited to see my “Stories By” piece in print (a big first for me); thank you.

I have already begun my new piece on “parties.”

I began writing as a hobby a few years ago, but my youth and naivety prevented me from doing anything with my work. Boulevard has challenged me to use my creative talents in a new form, and I look forward to submitting to you in the future.

Jane White Victoria Fine design Since being introduced to Boulevard when we moved here in ‘97 from Toronto, I have been one of your biggest fans. It is without a doubt one of the

finest designed magazines I’ve seen — in fact I would even go as far as saying THE finest: layout, design, editorial and advertising all beautifully integrated. I was an art director in a Toronto advertising business, so I for one really like the way you handle the creative visual appeal of the advertising. I would like also to compliment the photographers on the superb quality of photography that they contribute to your magazine.

In your last issue you had a splendid interview with Dr. Dave Hepburn (a true character and humorist.) His cousin is a good friend of ours in Toronto and I will be sure to send her a copy.

Richard Brown Cobble Hill Open Chef success I just read the Open Chef piece in Boulevard (Jan/ Feb 2011) and want to thank Elizabeth Levinson for capturing this story so well. Vancouver Island’s reputation as a culinary tourism destination is growing and this unique partnership between the culinary schools and the Westin Bear Mountain really gives these talented young chefs a leg up. Everyone must be very proud and very pleased — especially the student chefs.

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victoriaboulevard.com 13

BOULEVARD

ourcontributors

the magazine of urban living the arts people food homes

Ross Crockford spent four years in Prague in the early

VP Finance Melissa Sands

1990s, teaching English to supreme court judges and cartoon animators, and writing for The Prague Post. “It was the best job a reporter could want,” he says. “I went into coal mines and tank factories and hockey arenas, places that no Western journalist had ever been.” In this issue’s Travel Far section, Crockford explains why he keeps returning to Prague and provides some handy advice for first-time visitors.

Associate Publisher Linda Hensellek

Suzanne Morphet took up travel writing after an earlier

President John Simmons Vice President & Publisher Peter Baillie

Managing Editor Anne Mullens Associate Editor Vivian Smith Art Director Jaki Jefferson Production Jaki Graphics, Kelli Brunton Principal Photographers Gary McKinstry, Vince Klassen Advertising Linda Hensellek, Alicia Cormier Pat Montgomery-Brindle Nicole Stobart Administration Coordinator Janet Dessureault Pre-press Kelli Brunton Printing Central Web 46,000 copies of Victoria Boulevard ® are published bimonthly by Boulevard Lifestyles Inc. Mailing address:1845B Fort Street, Victoria, BC V8R 1J6. Tel: 250-598-8111. Fax: 250-598-3183.

career with CBC Radio News in Yellowknife, NWT. She’s lived on the Saanich Peninsula for the past 16 years and still finds new and interesting places to visit within a day’s drive from home, such as the Skagit Valley for its Tulip Festival, which she writes about in this issue. Her stories and photographs appear in local and national publications as well as on her website, called Secrets From My Suitcase.

Local author and arts writer Robert Moyes has had a decades-long interest in music and other arts. Since he first heard Beethoven’s string quartets, he has been in awe of the technical skill and collaborative intuition required to perform music of such exquisite complexity. Moyes says he felt privileged to meet and interview the members of Victoria’s acclaimed Lafayette String Quartet, who are celebrating their 25th anniversary this year.

Heather Reid is a Victoria writer and photographer who

has, at various times, also been a fisheries observer, a Christmas tree farmer, and an English teacher in South Korea.

She’s also battled addictions to nicotine and jigsaw puzzles.

In this issue, Reid explores whether addiction is a disease or simply part of the human condition. “I’m always surprised when I meet someone who is not addicted to anything — not even to caffeine — and it makes me think there’s a little bit of the addict in all of us,” says Reid. VB

E: info@victoriaboulevard.com W: victoriaboulevard.com Victoria Boulevard ® is a registered trademark of Boulevard Lifestyles Inc. All rights reserved.

YOUR NAME COULD BE HERE as a contributor to our Stories By

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anxiety euphoria comforting numb

addictions fearcalm craving emptiness pleasure control

dopamine

By Heather Reid

Spend, work, drink, REPEAT How do you know if what you are doing is a harmless habit, a great passion or a risky addiction?

Gordon Harper, 63, doesn’t even fight the tears when he tells his story.

For seven weeks he drank alone in his Victoria apartment. He didn’t eat. He didn’t wash. He had diarrhea. There is no question that the word “addiction” was appropriate to describe Harper’s relationship with alcohol.

Rand Walsh, sitting on the patio at an Oak Bay coffee shop, talks about a different kind of addiction.

He gets grumpy, he says, if he doesn’t get a bicycle ride in every day. Since he permanently parked his car six years ago, the 52-year-old pharmacist usually manages that. He says the high cost of fancy bike gear keeps his addiction in line.

But are both of these men really addicts? How about people who play the stock market every day, or cheat repeatedly on their spouse à la Tiger Woods? It seems more common these days to cite addiction to explain things that, in the past, we might have called anything from bad habits to lapses in judgment to passions.

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Researchers today debate the definition of true addiction, but most accept that behavioural addictions are on a continuum, ranging from more than annoying to deadly, like Harper’s alcohol addiction. The term, unfortunately perhaps, is used casually in conversation to describe things — like Walsh’s cycling — that we like a lot, but that do not, in fact, register anywhere on the addiction line.

Generally speaking, an addiction is any repeated behaviour that a person feels compelled to continue, regardless of its harm to his or her life and the lives of others. Not sure if your favourite habit is a passion or at a risky point on the addiction continuum? Does it bring more pain or pleasure? Are you willing to give up the habit in the face of harm it may be doing yourself or others? If the answer is no, you’ve probably crossed the invisible line into addiction.

According to Tim Stockwell, director of the University of Victoria Centre for Addictions Research B.C. (carbc.ca), almost anything can qualify as an addiction. That’s because, as Stockwell says, addiction does not exist as a professional or scientific term, only a lay term associated mostly with substances.

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, better known as the DSM or the bible of psychiatry, doesn’t even use the word addiction. Instead it refers to abuse and dependence and only in relation to drugs and alcohol. In a treatment setting, patients are usually given a set of questions to determine the degree of the problem they’re having.

In Stockwell’s opinion the reward-seeking behaviours that lead to addiction are part of a fundamental learning process that goes back to the beginning of human evolution.

It is a hard-wired survival mechanism that ensures people eat and have sex — one necessary for the survival of the individual, the other required for the continuance of the species — by stimulating pleasure centres in the brain.

Biochemistry has solved the problem by circulating substances through the brain that alter mood. The reward system uses a few tricks: chief among them is the mesolimbic dopamine pathway found deep in the ancient part of the brain, the part we share with lizards.

Food and sex are natural releasers of dopamine, the feel-good chemical. All addictions affect this pathway, from the high of a good cardio workout to the warmth that spreads from the first sip of alcohol. The sensation motivates us to do it again and again.

Apply that biological strategy to modern life, where food and leisure pursuits are limitless, and you get a culture where it seems everyone is addicted to something.

“You get to be called an addict if it’s cocaine or heroin,” Stockwell points out, but few people are free of all vices.

Maybe it’s that morning cup of coffee that calls to you, or

you can’t resist a vibrating BlackBerry. Either could qualify as an addiction. Small wonder some call it a “CrackBerry.”

An addiction that causes intoxication may be more obvious to outsiders but not necessarily more harmful.

The gambler is OK to drive after a night at the card table, and won’t miss work the next day because of a hangover.

That doesn’t make the addiction less problematic for the individual or family.

Similarly, someone with an addiction to buying shoes may end up in financial difficulty, but probably won’t wind up homeless. A person hooked on crack has a higher risk of At the core of every losing everything because the drug takes over in such a way addiction resides an as to exclude all other activities from life. emptiness based “What is it that stops most of us?” Stockwell asks. on abject fear, says The short answer is that the hurts people carry from the past, and their current status, influence Dr. Gabor Maté, how far the addiction goes. Not having emotional needs met in who says he is a early childhood results in a poorly formed dopamine system workaholic. that leaves the individual susceptible to getting hooked on a substance or behaviour that feeds the reward pathway.

When you feel you have nothing to lose, it’s easier to give in to the demons.

Even within addiction an individual can be motivated to maintain some control, leading a few prominent researchers to challenge the idea of addiction as a disease.

The disease model refers to people who’ve taken their habit into turbo overdrive, Stockwell says, but many more addicts go through life holding down a job and raising a family. It’s a social construction to label the junkie as sick while ignoring the middle-class flavour of addiction that goes on behind closed doors in the suburbs. “To say we are all addicts as a society is to say we’re all human,” Stockwell says.

In his book on addiction, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts, Vancouver physician Gabor Maté writes, “I have come to see addiction not as a discrete, solid entity — a case of ‘Either you got it or you don’t got it’ — but as a subtle and extensive continuum. Its central, defining qualities are active in all addicts, from the honoured workaholic at the apex of society to the impoverished and criminalized crack fiend who haunts Skid Row.” And he speaks from experience. Maté identifies himself as a workaholic and unable to stop buying classical music.

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He admits to spending $8,000 on CDs in a single week.

He’s found both problematic enough to begin a 12-step program to deal with his addictive tendencies. He sees the similarity — and the difference in degree — between his addictions and those of the street addicts he treats. He feels ashamed. He lies to his wife. He sneaks around and avoids the disappointed looks of his son.

According to Statistics Canada about three in 10 adults consider themselves to be workaholics. People often say this with a laugh, basking in the admiring stares of the boss, but in truth, that’s 31 per cent of the workforce missing out on other things life has to offer. While heroin, cocaine, nicotine and alcohol abuse have obvious risks of physiological and medical problems, Maté says, nonsubstance addictions can also be highly destructive to physical health, psychological balance and relationships.

The biochemical activity in the brain is the same whether the object of constant desire is a bacon cheeseburger or a cigarette, but addiction is about much more than brain circuits. It’s a complex interaction between human beings and their environment, Maté says, and that’s what makes it difficult to treat. Genetics have far less to do with addiction than many headlines would suggest, he adds. At the core of every addiction resides an emptiness based on abject fear.

Nearly 25 years ago Gordon Harper was saved from his addiction to alcohol by a knock on the door. His cousin kept returning as he continued to drink himself to the brink of death. Eventually she reached him when she said, “What are we going to do about this.” The word we hit him.

Addiction is a lonely place.

Harper has been sober for just over 23 years but it didn’t all happen from the moment he opened the door to his cousin. He went through a series of relapses in the year and a half after his first trip to detox. Today he is the executive director of Umbrella Society for Addictions and Mental Health (umbrellasociety.ca) and his history has become the expertise that he shares with others mired in substance use problems.

Based here in Victoria, Umbrella provides information, options and a non-judgmental ear. “We are the ‘we’ to people who don’t have cousins,” Harper explains.

The role of patient listener suits him well. He’s gentle, soft-spoken and tears often spill down his ruddy cheeks.

“When I cry it’s almost always joy,” he says. For Harper recovery has been filled with profound moments, including the ones where his emotions returned. Addictions bury painful feelings. They swallow up happiness, too.

He’s happy to share the joys of getting unhooked with other haunted souls who reach out for help. “This thing that we’ve started here is so good,” he says. “It’s my dream.” VB

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The aged woman recounted her life story, offering a chronological narrative beginning with a childhood in the Dutch East Indies. One day, she skipped ahead a few years.

The moment had come to talk about a harrowing time.

Pattie Whitehouse listened intently. She was being paid to do so. She learned a lesson from the client about the lives of those she now thinks of as “perfectly ordinary, extraordinary people.”

The woman had been imprisoned in an internment camp after the Japanese occupied the colony during the Second World War. Some 130,000 civilians of European ancestry were interned and one report cites 2,300 children dying of disease and starvation.

“For her it was time to talk about the experience in the camp. She got started. Her memories just flowed. There was no stopping them. But they were painful. She and I sat there, holding hands, with tears running down both our faces, as she talked about that time that was terrifying and horrifying and very hard. And also inspiring.”

The intimacy and trust of the exchange is an everyday part of Whitehouse’s working life. It is her job to help you tell your own story.

She listens to anecdotes and reminiscences, gently prodding for details buried deep in memory, encouraging the recounting of all the unforgettable moments of a life.

Joy and grief. Heartache and happiness.

Good thing she has a masters degree in psychology, though this was not how she planned to use it.

Whitehouse is a personal historian, a specialized field in which the skills of a journalist are combined with the wisdom of a counsellor in helping create a permanent record of a person’s life.

“What personal history does is make sure your children’s grandchildren will know you,” she said.

Sounds like getting your own Pierre Berton to chronicle your adventures.

Last fall, the Association of Personal Historians held their annual conference in Victoria, only the second time the group has met in Canada. With some 540 members worldwide, the group has adopted as its logo a vine climbing a column, a symbol chosen because “vines cling to the past while they reach to the future.” The trade association was founded in 1994 by Kitty Axelson-Berry, a journalist for alternative newspapers in New England who realized that “as important as investigative news stories were, it was time to do my part to build the nascent memoir and life-review movement.” She was inspired to change directions after listening to Tracy Chapman sing, Tell It Like It Is. The conference, which billed itself as “Voices of the Elders,” included such keynote speakers as John Elliott, also known as Stolcel, a Saanich language expert, and Robert (Lucky) Budd, who has an expertise in the finicky alchemy of preserving old recording tape, a “sacred task” when those brown ribbons contain an oral history. Budd is the author of Voices of British Columbia: Stories from Our Frontier (Douglas & McIntyre), based on 2,700 hours of taped interviews with pioneers and elders held by the provincial archives.

With an older, wealthier, and better-educated population than average, Victoria brims with people whose histories hold appeal beyond their own families. A local cottage industry has developed in preserving those stories for future generations. Among locals providing personal history services are the documentary filmmaker Dan Curtis; padre Albert Fowler, an ordained United Church minister and a former military chaplain; former CBC radio journalist Sue Elrington; and David Bray and Edeana Malcolm, who operate a company called TimeSagas (a name that demands punctilious capitalization lest it read TimesAGas). Prices for their services range from a few hundred dollars to tape an interview to several thousand dollars or more to write and research an in-depth memoir.

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Whitehouse, 60, has been preparing personal histories for 18 years. She stumbled into the trade by accident. She had a master’s degree in psychology but found she could not get a job in her field.

Instead, she wound up managing the Island Fantasy shop at Market Square, a place that peddled comics and role-playing games The skills of a journalist to an adult clientele who were, let’s say, eccentric. “They didn’t are combined with the tend to be conformists,” she said. wisdom of a counsellor “Island Fantasy was one of the only places where they felt they in helping create a belonged.” She later put her education to use as a volunteer permanent record of a grief counsellor. She realized there might be an outlet for her person’s life. skills after she helped an elderly man in a retirement home complete his memoirs. Her first client was the woman who survived the war in an internment camp.

She enjoys unraveling the fascinating lives of ordinary people, “the good and the bad and the in-between and the funny.”

Whitehouse knows she is being entrusted with intimate details.

“For me it’s a privileged relationship,” she said. “I’m in the position of establishing the kind of rapport and trust with a person that allows them to explore their lives and feel safe about it; allows

them to share with me some experience they’ve never talked about, never told anybody about.”

For her, it is an exciting and humbling encounter. “This person is trusting their heart to me. I do everything I can to keep that safe for them.”

Among her clients has been John A. Galipeau, who recounted his wartime memories as a tank crewman in Peewees on Parade.

It was published by a Montreal press and received strong reviews in military publications.

Most who hire the services of a personal historian seek a much smaller audience. The more common goal is to create a family legacy.

“Your children’s grandchildren will know you. This is the saving of a life,” Whitehouse said.

That is a melodramatic assertion, but many grieving families realize too late that stories have been lost forever.

Whitehouse’s own life includes maintaining bee hives at her residence in the Highlands and another unexpected tidbit: she played the little-known sport of underwater hockey for more than two decades.

She hopes to attend next year’s Association of Personal Historians conference, which is to be held in Las Vegas.

What happens in Sin City stays in Sin City. Or maybe it winds up in a personal history. VB

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Clockwise from left: Sharon Stanis, Joanna Hood, Pamela Highbaugh Aloni, Ann Elliott-Goldschmid.

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It was dramatic, even for Beethoven. When Victoria school trustees voted to cancel elementary schools’ string programs a decade ago, 50 musicians staged a performance at Alix Goolden Hall, with the climax being the first movement of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. The melody unrolled with its surging power but soon began to falter as different string musicians pulled black shrouds over themselves and stopped playing, crippling the orchestra: point brilliantly made.

Front and centre in that historic performance were members of the University of Victoria’s internationally famed Lafayette String Quartet, which has been the university’s “quartet in residence” since 1991. The quartet went on to establish a mentoring initiative between UVic students and students and teachers in Victoria’s public schools. More than a decade later, that mentorship remains as an important credit course at UVic’s department of music.

“That generosity in sharing with the community was so very typical of the Lafayette Quartet,” says renowned solobassist Gary Karr. “It’s a reflection of how important music is in their lives.” This year, its members are celebrating their 25th year playing together, an exceptional milestone in chamber music.

The quartet includes first violinist Ann Elliott-Goldschmid, violinist Sharon Stanis, violist Joanna Hood, and cellist Pamela Highbaugh Aloni, all of whom are in their early 50s.

“They are one of the truly great quartets, not just in Canada but in North America,” says Karr.

The group had its origins in Bloomington, Indiana. Hood and Stanis met first, both students of legendary violinist Rostislav Dubinsky, of the Borodin Quartet. “I was the hippie from Seattle and Sharon was the nice Midwestern girl with

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cute shoes,” laughs Hood. Dubinsky recommended that cellist Highbaugh create a trio. “We formed a ‘gig group’ to play weddings and such and made pretty good money for students,” recalls Stanis.

In 1986 the three aspiring musicians got summer jobs performing in a chamber orchestra in Detroit, meeting the orchestra’s concertmaster, Ann Elliott. The newly formed quartet sought further coaching from Dubinsky, going on in 1988 to win the grand prize at the Fischoff Competition, the world’s largest chamber music competition. Other awards followed and the group — named after a famous avenue in Detroit — began attracting serious notice. In 1991 all four were invited to join the UVic School of Music. Five weeks of debate over the move ensued, culminating in a vote via secret ballot. The decision was unanimous, and Victoria became home to these four remarkable musicians.

Now the LSQ is the world’s longest-running, all-female string quartet with all-original members. This is a truly remarkable feat, given the short life span of some quartets, which can fall apart because the interpersonal dynamics are so complicated and emotionally fraught.

“We are four people with strong ideas about how things should be,” admits Stanis. Hood adds that all of them were “that bossy kid in school who got everyone else to do what they wanted.” Not surprisingly, they’ve had some big fights over the years about repertoire choices and how certain pieces should be performed. “If you are a musician, then playing music is as essential to your life as eating,” says Hood.

“When you perform with other people, you don’t always get to play what you want. These can feel like huge decisions.”

Some famous quartets developed such poisonous personal relations that they eventually traveled separately to performances. According to Pacific Opera Victoria artistic director Timothy Vernon, the LSQ comprises “four individually wonderful players who have found a great way to work together.” Vernon credits their spirit of cooperation. “Plus they are tuned into the performance moment with a mix of technical fluidity and maturity . . . they’re a terrific quartet,” he continues. “We’re very lucky to have them.”

Quartet repertoire requires great musical finesse and a high degree of rapport. It’s been compared to a single painting being simultaneously created by four artists. “It’s a genre that all composers come to with a certain reverence,” says ElliottGoldschmid. And for the musicians, performance can be sheer joy. “When it all comes together it’s like an out-of-body experience . . . you’re just flying,” Stanis adds.

Possibly because of that intense musical closeness, the Lafayettes don’t socialize regularly (in fact, Hood had to call for directions to Stanis’ house en route to this interview).

“When the quartet started, my attitude was, ‘I want to be a good business partner and a good musical partner, but I’m

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not interested in being your best friend,’ ” explains Hood.

“Of course, after 25 years, they are dear friends . . . my musical sisters.”

Their solidarity was aptly demonstrated several years ago when Highbaugh Aloni was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly before the LSQ was due to fly to Berlin to perform the entire cycle of Beethoven string quartets. The invitation was a fantastic honour and the cellist offered to delay her second surgery, but her colleagues wouldn’t allow the risk. They cancelled the prestigious gig entirely. “That profound sense of support really underlined how we felt about each other,” “Motherhood is hard says Highbaugh Aloni. “It was love in such a beautiful way.” on professional Pregnancy and motherhood have presented their own musicians. Even today challenges over the years, the majority of female ranging from struggling to play a cello with an enormous belly to touring with babysitting string players grandparents. “Motherhood is hard on professional eventually drop out musicians,” sighs ElliottGoldschmid. “Even today the of their chamber majority of female string players eventually drop out of groups after they their chamber groups after they have kids.” have kids,” says Ann As well as performing about 20 concerts a year as part of a Elliott-Goldschmid. touring schedule, the LSQ also runs the string program at UVic. They started with a dozen students and now have a full roster of 32, drawn from across the country. Strains of Brahms and Mozart well up in the basement of the MacLaurin Building, where the string students congregate outside the practice rooms in a stretch of hallway they’ve dubbed String Alley. Although she graduated a decade ago, Mieka Michaux vividly remembers her LSQ teachers. “They were inspiring, they’re really great role models as musicians,” says Michaux, now a core member of the Victoria Symphony’s viola section as well as with several other groups.

Happily ensconced in Victoria, the buoyant and charismatic members of the LSQ are looking at a rosy future. UVic will soon see the debut of a graduate program for string quartet, a first for Canada. A new CD — their ninth — is in process.

And several special guests will be joining them for a trio of concerts celebrating their milestone anniversary (look for details in an upcoming Boulevard Front Row column). “This will be a year like no other,” grins Elliott-Goldschmid. “And we’re going to enjoy every moment of it!” VB

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Mark DuMez on the Chemainus Theatre stage.

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CLASS ACT Murals put Chemainus on the tourist map 20 years ago, but now its theatre is playing a leading role

COWICHAN

By Katherine Gordon PHOTO BY GARY MCKINSTRY

Mark DuMez STANDS in the warm, richly-lit lobby of the Chemainus Theatre, enjoying the energy of the swirling, excited pre-matinee crowd. A grey-haired gentleman accosts DuMez, the theatre’s young, amiable artistic director, shaking his hand vigorously. “Mark, keep up the good work. I just love what you’re doing,” he declares enthusiastically. “I come up for every show!”

The play — a perennial audience favourite, Dickens’ A Christmas Carol — is about to start. The well-dressed audience members drain their wine-glasses and hurry across the plush carpet to find their seats. Several of them have paused to congratulate DuMez on the theatre’s program, and he has warmly thanked each of them for coming to the show.

“These people,” he says to me with deep conviction, “are what this theatre is all about.”

In 2010, the 274 seats in the handsome, art deco-style theatre, gateway to the tiny tourist downtown of Chemainus (population 5,000) were filled more than 60,000 times by a loyal Vancouver Island audience base. Many of them were repeat visitors. Out-of-town theatregoers — comprising roughly 70 per cent of the theatre’s audience — also enjoyed Chemainus’ trademark murals, browsed through its antique shops, art galleries and cafes, and stayed overnight. “The Chemainus Theatre,” says Tom Walker, mayor of the Municipality of North Cowichan, “has become a real economic and cultural anchor in this community.”

It goes both ways, emphasizes Randal Huber, the theatre’s managing director: “The theatre is just part of the whole Chemainus package drawing visitors here,” says Huber. “We really depend on Chemainus being an attractive destination that will draw visitors here to attend plays.” Chamber of Commerce manager Ingrid Rennblad agrees with his assessment: “It’s a symbiotic relationship that works well for everyone.”

It’s also a relationship built on a history of need, and a successful combination of clear vision, calculated risk-taking and smart collaboration. When the Chemainus mill closed in 1982, the economic impact on a community heavily dependent on the forestry industry was devastating. But local entrepreneur Karl Schutz and then-brand-new mayor Graham Bruce teamed up immediately with a vision of rebranding the

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blue-collar town as an artistic community, replacing logging with tourism.

Within months they created the concept of a Festival of Murals, depicting historic and cultural scenes on buildings throughout Chemainus. Five murals were commissioned from BC artists to kick-start the optimistic initiative. Schutz and Bruce also embarked on a campaign to actively encourage artists and artisans to set up shop in town.

As most Vancouver Islanders know, their entrepreneurial optimism paid off. The town’s edifices now sport 39 stunning murals, that along with the many art galleries and studios help attract 400,000 tourists annually to the community.

Chemainus justifiably touts itself proudly in its tourist brochures as “the little town that did.”

In the early 1990s, Christian philanthropists and artists Ken and Ruth Smith took the vision a significant step further. The murals were all very well, but they weren’t keeping tourists in town for long. Hoping to attract more overnight visitors, the Smiths bought the property on which the theatre now stands, developed the graceful building, and opened its doors to the public in 1993. Ownership was vested in the non-profit Chemainus Theatre Festival Society, with membership open to all theatre-lovers.

Part of the founding vision, consistent with the Smiths’ religious principles, was to “provide exceptional theatre that explores and nourishes truth, hope, redemption, love and the human spirit.” Festival Society directors continue to subscribe to Christian beliefs as the “spiritual core” of their work on the board of the organization. How that vision influences the program, says DuMez, is in the selection of works that celebrate those universal values. Like A Christmas Carol, for example? “Exactly,” he replies.

The production of high-quality theatre that will please his loyal audiences is fundamental to DuMez as an artistic director. Recent plays include A Closer Walk with Patsy Cline, Guys and Dolls, and The Wonder Boys. Upcoming shows this season include The 39 Steps (March 4 to April 9), Steel Magnolias (April 21 to June 4) and Fiddler on the Roof (June 17 to September 3).

Luckily, DuMez has excellent resources to work with. Now in its 19th successful season, the Chemainus Theatre Festival is one of the largest theatres on Canada’s West Coast, employing 28 full-time staff, 35 part-time staff and more than 150 contract artists, actors, directors, technicians and set builders. Dozens of volunteers help with everything from costume creation to ushering.

But for the first 12 years of operations, theatre staff worked with cramped facilities that made every production a challenge: costumes stored under the seats, limited rehearsal space, actors squeezed into crowded dressing-rooms and no

proper set production shop. “We realized if we wanted to continue to expand on the production of high-quality theatre, that had to change,” says Huber. In 2005, the organization therefore launched a major fundraising drive to develop a $2-million administrative and production facility close to the theatre.

“It’s made an amazing difference to us,” Huber says enthusiastically, touring me through the premises. It’s not difficult to see why. In the huge workshop, large enough to accommodate a life-size mock-up of the stage, carpenter Chad Hartel oversees the creation of sets and backdrops.

“It’s all lipstick and rouge,” jokes Hartel, who says he is able to recycle as much as 70 per cent of the materials he uses.

The sound of human BC artists are contracted to do voices in a space like any painting required, and materials are almost all sourced this, telling a story — from Vancouver Island.

The building also houses a it’s ancient. large rehearsal space, a laundry facility, a giant costume and prop storage unit, a costumemaking shop stuffed with brightly coloured reels of thread, bolts of cloth and ribbons, and a dance studio that doubles as extra rehearsal space. This sophisticated arrangement now permits the production of shows that are diverse and artistically challenging. The theatre also runs programs and workshops for children, and promotes a ticket donation program for low-income families.

In 2005 the Theatre Society also developed the Best Western Chemainus Festival Inn, selling units in the hotel to repay their investment. “One of the things we always predicted was that the theatre would be a catalyst for building a hotel, which Chemainus really needed,” says Tom Walker “And that’s exactly what happened.”

My tour of the facilities complete, we head back to the theatre, where the play is about to start. Backstage, the flurry of dressing, putting on makeup and checking props has quieted down. A couple of actors are immersed in a jigsaw puzzle, keeping their nerves calm until they go on. The crowd chatters and rustles expectantly as they wait for the lights to dim. A sudden hush falls as “Charles Dickens” strides onto the stage and launches into a soliloquy to open the play.

It’s a scene he has witnessed dozens of time, but DuMez is still mesmerized. “Theatre has such richness and vitality,” he whispers backstage. “The sound of human voices in a space like this, telling a story — it’s ancient. Theatre is the medium through which so many cultures have told their stories and communicated their values over the millennia. It’s incredibly powerful,” he says passionately. “That’s why these people keep coming back. They need theatre in their lives. We all do.” VB victoriaboulevard.com 39

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Working under false identities in multiple countries, sometimes with contracts on his life, Easton’s workaday task was to penetrate and dismantle organized crime rings, relying on his particular talent for deception to survive among some of the most dangerous criminals in the world.

“I still remember the first time “My books are gritty, I found out I had a contract on my realistic, and violent,” life,” says Easton, 60, for whom lying about his true identity Easton warns. became almost as natural as breathing. “I remember the fear in my wife’s face; the fear we felt for our children.” Despite the unimaginable personal toll of his job, Easton and his wife, Brenda, have remained an unbreakable team for 35 years, raising two sons “neither of whom went into law enforcement, thank goodness!”

One only has to look at the heart-felt dedication inside his first book, Loose Ends, to realize the support his family offered Easton throughout his career. It reads, in part: Without you, I would not have survived; Without you, I would not have cared.

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As a child, he watched his father beat textbook lessons into his older brother, and lived in fear of similar abuse. “I pretended to be mildly handicapped. My dad was convinced, so I didn’t get the

beatings.” At school, Easton made sure he barely scraped by with passing grades, keeping up the charade until he left home at 18.

“All my life I’ve hated bullies like my father,” says Easton, who decided to fight back by becoming a police officer. Finally free to exercise his intelligence, he was accepted into the RCMP in 1970 with top scores on his entrance exams. He loved the excitement of his job, and soon displayed a rare talent for undercover work. As professional accolades began to pour in, the assignments across Canada, the US, the Caribbean and Mexico became more dangerous for eager Easton who was now a confirmed “adrenaline junkie.”

“But, time goes on and 10 years later you’ve still got a gun in your face with someone screaming at you to admit you’re a cop.

Another 10 years go by and there isn’t much excitement anymore, except for the thrill of sending bad guys to jail.” But that didn’t happen as often as Easton would have liked.

“Judges’ lack of knowledge and understanding of criminal activity in this province is horrifying to me,” says Easton, who watched more than one “really bad guy” get away with light sentencing or no jail time at all. When he discovered that two professional hit men had prowled disturbingly close to their target — him — Easton knew it was time to get out. He retired from the force in 1995, spent six years investigating child fatalities for the BC Children’s Commission, and then decided to

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finally put his feet up in 2002 in Victoria.

Well, sort of. “I started writing partly as a cathartic release of all the things I had witnessed over the years,” says Easton, who worked on Loose Ends for about twelve years before pitching it to Dundurn Press president Kirk Howard at the Surrey Writer’s Conference in 2003. The pitch won him publication, and a brand new career. But Easton also wanted to find out how the public would react to his own set of ideologies — formulated during his years surviving in the grey zone — as expressed through his Jack Taggart hero. Would readers condemn the decisions he’d made about who should live or die? Would they brand him a renegade cop without understanding why he’d been forced to live by his own set of rules? Instead of criticism, Easton was surprised to discover support.

“The books are gritty and realistic,” says Frances Thorsen, owner of the Chronicles of Crime bookstore. “The Jack Taggart character is well-rounded and we have empathy for him.”

Publication became a form of self-vindication but it was frightening at first. For a man so used to secrecy and life in the shadows, the exposure was daunting. “I’d faced hard-core criminals, yet was suddenly nervous to get up in front of a group and talk about myself and my writing,” he remembers.

The human brain is adept at burying trauma, and Easton says his first three books brought so many horrific memories to the surface that he had trouble sleeping for months during the writing process. Still, “it felt good getting it out,” and Easton hopes his books will help people better understand the humanity living and dying on both sides of the law.

Does he have a target audience? “I don’t want anyone to buy my books if they won’t enjoy them. My books are gritty, realistic, and violent,” he warns. But if you can handle that, Easton will quickly suck you into the story with his crisp, clean prose, fast-moving plots and a gift for dialogue that breathes life into his characters. Though reviewers have compared his work to hardboiled crime writers like Donald Hamilton, Easton has seen enough of the sordid side of real life to steer clear of any type of literature save textbooks, which he reads in order “to catch up on the things I didn’t learn in school.” The result is a rare purity of style, writing untainted by outside influences aside from several creative writing courses which helped him learn to infuse his novels with emotion. Says Thorsen: “He has a big following, including police and RCMP officers. As a Canadian mystery writer, he is one of the edgiest. An author worth reading.”

With his sixth Taggart mystery in progress and a new screenplay freshly polished, Easton’s writing career serves all his purposes without detracting too much from the peaceful life he and Brenda treasure these days. But keep your eye on his career, for Easton and his agent hope to catch the attention of Hollywood producers someday soon. Step aside, Dirty Harry. Here comes Jack Taggart. VB

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State of

TheArts By alisa gordaneer

Local talent shows don’t satisfy anyone’s lust for the avant-garde, but that’s not the point: the joy lies in performance and simply having an audience that cheers for the good and the gutsy

Remember Andy Warhol’s famous statement about everyone getting their 15 minutes of fame? According to that late pop-art icon, 15 minutes is all you’re allocated in this big world, and when your turn comes, you’d better make the most of it.

I don’t know whether that’s true, but it could explain why so many performers leap at the chance to grab that elusive time slot and strut their stuff.

Television programs like Canadian Idol, or the Vancouverbased Talent Time, and local live events that follow the model of these programs are very popular. So now, to leap up on stage and show off has never been more tantalizing to those who just can’t help but want to perform their hearts out in the hopes of impressing audiences near, and maybe even far.

Consider the event that kept Victoria audiences entertained over this past winter, the ongoing Vancouver Island’s Got

Talent series. More than 80 contestants, from Victoria, Courtenay and Nanaimo, took to the stage of the Alix Goolden Hall over a series of a half-dozen shows to sing, play, dance, even juggle, in search of a chance at fame. In this case, the fame wasn’t just the adoration of their local fans, but also a one-night gig at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas — a venue where, presumably, they might hope to attract the attention of those who can extend their 15 minutes into a whole halfhour or more.

The preliminary round performances last fall saw dozens of nervous singers warbling, dancers strutting and musicians playing their best in front of celebrity judges like dancer Christina Morrison, singer-songwriter BJ Cook and producer Craig Fraser, only to be sent home to practice more. Ten successful contestants — including Formally Casual, a band of talented teen musicians; Dylan Smith, a rock-star quality guitarist; and Jordan Scaife, a young woman with a decidedly golden voice — went on to play a holiday benefit concert before competing in a final round in January. And throughout the process, the audiences went wild for their efforts, especially since they’d followed their progress from their first shopping mall auditions back in the summer.

That crowd of followers fuels this kind of show, especially when it takes place in a local community. It’s fodder for weeks upon weeks of suspense, just like on television, where shows like Canadian Idol and Dancing with the Stars draw millions of viewers eager to see which performers will be booed off the stage.

I asked Maria Manna, the producer of Vancouver Island’s Got Talent, what motivated the audiences who packed every performance. “The community comes together to support their contestant,” she explains. “People come to watch, and they don’t even know [the performer]. But they develop a like for these people and they want to come out and support them.”

And there’s a certain appeal to watching your favourite performers be rewarded for a great performance. “I think people like to follow others who might reach success . . . to find stardom,” Manna says. “We want success stories.

People love to watch them. It’s a positive thing.”

Of course, there’s even more positive energy behind something like this, at least on a local scale: the proceeds of the series of events went to a bursary fund that helps kids who can’t afford music lessons to receive training through the Victoria Conservatory of Music. “What’s really important for me is that children have the opportunity to be exposed to the arts,” says Manna, a jazz singer and songwriter who started the bursary fund to help as many kids as possible. “With all the cuts being made to the arts, there will be a time when music will be eliminated from the schools,” she predicts. “But children who are exposed to the arts have a better disposition toward life.”

In a way, popularity contests that focus on performers’ artistic talents can provide that kind of exposure. Even if the audience doesn’t care for the particular genre, I don’t really think it matters. If they’re there, and enjoy the music/ dancing/singing/juggling/trained dog acts, they’re spending their time appreciating the efforts of performers in a live setting.

And there’s definitely effort there. Manna speaks of the drive and determination she’s seen in the contestants, whether they’re like Sky Mundell, a blind and partially deaf pianist whose ability to perform complicated, nuanced piano pieces is profound and moving, or like six-year-old Stacy Farkas, whose cupcake-cuteness earmarks her as a modern-day Shirley Temple (in case we need another one).

“I’m so happy I’m not a judge,” says Manna. “We’ve got some pretty seriously talented people on this island.”

And for those who are still practicing their zither-andxylophone routine, take heart. “We would definitely The proceeds of do it again,” says Manna, adding that she’d like to see Vancouver Island’s it get even bigger and better, if only to generate more Got Talent series cash, and get more kids into music lessons. “It gives a will help kids who sense of hope to people in the arts.”

But does it give a sense can’t afford music of hope about art? Voting, judging, and appealing to lessons to receive the greatest common denominator means the training through the most popular act wins.

That’s the most popular — Victoria Conservatory not the most challenging, most groundbreaking, or of Music. even the most interesting.

The experimental musician with a new take on sonic resonance hasn’t got a chance against a cute kid with an angelic smile and the inability to pronounce the letter R. But who cares? Who needs great art when you’ve got great entertainment for a good cause? When I see audiences cheering for a six-year-old diva, a budding guitar hero or a rogue band of fiddling teens, I can tell we’re happy to see those who take initiative and perform for us, no matter what their level of talent. Because those 15 minutes of fame come with their requisite companion, due adulation from an audience. And as audience members, we’re nothing without those brave souls who have the guts strut their stuff. VB

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FRONT by robert moyes

Row

Emily Carr wearing cape and tam, ca 1890-1902. Royal BC Museum, BC Archives. (Archive no. I-60891)

The Pearl, 2008, oil painting by Manon Elder based upon a historical photograph of Emily Carr as a young woman. Manon Elder collection.

Sombreness Sunlit, oil painting by Emily Carr, 1938-1940. Royal BC Museum, BC Archives. (Archive no. pdp633)

EMILY GETS A MAKEOVER The new Emily Carr statue at the southeast corner of the Fairmount Empress property is duly iconic, showing the artist in a recognizable pose as the larger-than-life bohemian we all know, right down to the homemade clothes and pet monkey. But how well do we know Carr?

The Royal BC Museum (RBCM) hopes to teach Victorians a thing or two with The Other Emily, a unique exhibition on Carr that is literally a portrait of the artist as a younger woman. Begun nearly two years ago, The Other Emily is primarily a dialogue between RBCM curator Kathryn Bridge and local painter Manon Elder, who for some time has been painting portraits of the younger Carr based on photos of her in the Provincial Archives. Using those 22 paintings as a starting point, Bridge went back to the photos and then assembled some of the items depicted with Carr.

“The idea was to make the paintings and photos ‘three dimensional’ by displaying the identical object, or sometimes examples of the types of clothing that the people were wearing,” says Bridge. “We were also interested in giving back Carr her youth, and countering the stereotypes that dominate our sense of her as someone akin to a frumpy bag lady.” The RBCM has the world’s largest collection of Carr material, including diaries, correspondence, sketchbooks, and other revealing artifacts, many of which have been incorporated into a 6,000-square-foot exhibition that Bridge promises will have a partially revisionist take on how Carr was inspired by Europe’s Impressionist art. “This exhibit is an example of how the Archives’ collection can be a present-day inspiration to delve meaningfully into the past,” she adds.

The Other Emily runs at the RBCM from March 2 to October 10. For information, call 250-356-7226. victoriaboulevard.com 49

Morris Gallery 11th Anniversary Celebration & Show March 11th reception 7pm-9pm with all artists in attendance

THE AGGV IN BLOOM

Tara Juneau, Andromeda and the Blue Sky, 23” x 18”, oil on board

Anniversary Show runs March 1 - 31 Gallery artists: Keith Hiscock, David Goatley, Tara Juneau, Linda Skalenda, Deborah Czernecky, D.F. Gray, Jim McFarland, Bob McPartlin, Marie Nagel, Pauline Olesen, Donna M. Southwood, Joanne Thomson, Ron Wilson Also works by: Myfanwy Pavelic, Zeljko Kujundzic

On Alpha St. at 428 Burnside Road East 250.388.6652 morrisgallery.ca 50 victoriaboulevard.com

Art In Bloom first blossomed in 1992 and grew to become the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria’s major fundraiser, a weeklong extravaganza that runs biannually. This year is the biggest Bloom ever and it reflects the commitment of AGGV director Jon Tupper to reach out to the community. Tupper, who moved here from Charlottetown two years ago, readily saw the virtue of tapping into the city’s passion for gardens.

“We are trying to engage Victorians by giving them what they want to see — but we’re also adding some gravitas, and a real learning experience,” he explains. “Think of it as the intersection of art and floral themes.”

One notable addition this year is a quartet of exhibitions that complement Bloom. The Immortal Garden showcases art and craftwork based on the transient beauty of flowers (including works by local artists commissioned for this show).

Named after the Roman goddess of flowers, Flora uses the AGGV’s historical collection to express themes of growth, fertility, and renewal. Down the Garden Path employs video projection and photography to mediate a dialogue between the natural world and artificial environments or representations of nature. And Serenity, the Asian Garden explores the cultural significance of the garden in Asian countries. They’ve also expanded the Floral Interpretation feature, which traditionally involved flower arrangers creating a floral work that was then displayed alongside the piece of art that inspired it. This year’s participants will include architects, interior designers, and theatre designers. “It’ll be fascinating to see what happens when all these different designers vibe off of a painting or a sculpture,” says Tupper.

The enhanced lecture series has 16 guest speakers wrangled by gardening guru Valerie Murray, a 12-year AGGV

Thomas Gore’s House,

Beach Drive, 1931, watercolour on paper, AGGV Collection. Gift of John Adam, Victoria.

David Milne’s Water Lilies 1928, oil on canvas, AGGV Collection.

Gift of Mrs. H.A. Dyde, Edmonton.

volunteer who used to be at Abkhazi Garden but is now the garden advisor to Government House. According to Murray, one of the standouts is Dan Hinkley, a Washington State garden designer she describes as “the best plant hunter in North America.” There will also be huge interest in Tomas De Bruyne, an avant-garde floral arranger from Belgium, who often uses “wild-gathered” materials such as leaves and twigs in his creations. And in a move away from the purely floral, Murray has booked Michael Ableman, an internationally renowned expert in

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Last Night of the Proms april 7, 2 pm april 8 & 9, 8 pm royal theatre the field of urban agriculture, who is originally from California and has now settled on Salt Spring Island. “Michael’s been called a ‘gracious rebel’ and his main focus is food security and sustainability,” explains Murray.

The Bloom climax will be the Hanging Gardens of Babylon gala at the new Atrium Building on Blanshard Street. The $200 tickets aren’t cheap, but the event will be a mixture of hedonism and an immersive art experience: there’ll be video projections, design features exploiting the entire vertical space of the building’s spectacular atrium, yummy wine-and-cocktail pairings, various gourmet food stations manned by local celebrity chefs, and hip music. “The whole evening is designed as a feast for the senses,” grins Tupper. “And I’m sure it’s going to live up to its name.”

Running from March 28 to April 2. Google “artinbloom.ca” for information on events, times, and locations.

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LETTING THEIR HAIR DOWN This is the 20th year that Victoria’s legal community has supported Kaleidoscope Theatre via LOST (Lawyers on Stage), with lawyers annually strutting their fundraising stuff for shows that have ranged from Rocky Horror to As You Like It. This year they’re trading pinstripe suits for tie-dyed T-shirts and diving headlong into the ‘60s via Hair, that quintessential psychedelic musical. “Many of the performers will have been hippies or the children of hippies, so the show should have some resonance for them,” chuckles Roderick Glanville, Kaleidoscope’s new artistic director. According to Glanville, the play’s anti-war theme and celebration of youthful idealism is still relevant. “Hair is currently playing in London and Toronto,” he adds. Glanville, a veteran actor well known for his one-man versions of Moby Dick and the Oscar Wilde tribute Oscar Remembered, very much considers lawyers to be his performance peers. “A courtroom is literally a type of 52 victoriaboulevard.com

theatre and presenting cases is all about becoming a character and production of Hair following a ‘script,’ ” says Glanville.

About 70 hopefuls auditioned — includes lawyers, law including a few judges and articling students, and others students — and more than 40 will appear on stage to belt out Let The who get into the spirit Sunshine In and engage in lots of of the summer of love. un-lawyerly behaviour. According to Glanville, the flexible script allows Photo by Miles Lowry. performers to customize their character with details from their own days of youthful rebellion. “The actors can have as much fun as they want,” he adds. “But I can’t promise any nude scenes.”

Running April 8-9, 8 pm, at McPherson Theatre. For tickets, call 250-386-6121.

The cast of LOST’s

victoriaboulevard.com 53

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Although most people know Janet Munsil as the producer of the Fringe and Uno Festivals and the artistic director of Intrepid Theatre, she is also a nationally renowned playwright who, every five years or so, cranks out a play that is sure to provoke and entertain. The author of Circus Fire, Emphysema, and that elusive spark is back with Influence, which is inspired by the time that a 21-year-old John Keats first saw the so-called Elgin Marbles at the British Museum in 1817.

“Keats was at a turning point in his life, when he was destined to quit medical school and devote himself to poetry,” explains Munsil. “In the play he’s the unsuspecting hero who is visited by the gods of ancient Greece, as represented by the relocated statues of the Parthenon.” Influence was commissioned by Vancouver’s Touchstone Theatre and was first performed on Granville Island two years ago. The play proved unexpectedly popular with young adults, and Munsil thinks that the supernatural backdrop combined with the tale of a young hero at a crossroads resonated with Harry Potter fans. The play has been cut down to 90 minutes and runs for one act, with the visual style changed from naturalism to something closer to the spirit of a graphic novel.

Comic in tone, the play explores how art can unexpectedly become a catalyst for personal change. It also muses upon what happens when art from an earlier culture is borrowed and adapted. “This is the first play that Intrepid has produced in 15 years, because mostly we’ve been doing festivals or have had our ‘presenting series,’ ” Munsil notes. “I’m hoping to make this an annual slot for commissioning and producing new work.”

Running March 4-12, 8 pm (with 2 pm matinees on March 6 and 13), at Metro Studio, 1411 Quadra.

For tickets, call 250-383-2663.

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La Société francophone de Victoria hosts its 14th annual French Fest, a four-day celebration of global French culture that embraces the pleasures of food, music, and art. Many of the events happen at Centennial Square, including musical performances by BC Francophones, several food booths, a beer garden, and a Kid Zone that will attract many of Victoria’s French Immersion students. The food items include such classic fare as tourtière (meat pie) and authentic poutine (made from real cheese curds to satisfy discerning palates). According to Christian Francey, the Société’s general director,

French Fest drew over 6,500 visitors in 2010 and continues to grow in popularity. “We’re getting bigger, which is why we moved out of Bastion Square last year,” says Francey, who notes that over 70 per cent of the people attending are Englishspeaking. The grand opening on Thursday night features a performance by Paris comic Cathy Chabot. Another headliner is Montreal storyteller/hip hop musician/slam poet Mathieu Lippé. “You’ll want to have at least good intermediate French to appreciate Chabot and Lippé,” cautions Francey. What sounds like the sweetest deal will be the inaugural Sugar Shack Brunch at the Square on Sunday, where they’ll be serving up eggs, ham, maple beans, and waffles dripping Paris comic with maple syrup. Yum! Running from March 10-13, with Cathy Chabot multiple events at several venues. For is a headliner details, visit francocentre.com (a button at the annual on the middle-left of the home page French Fest. brings up an English translation). VB

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IHOT

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This unique four-pod home on Bazan Bay features a putting green by the ocean and a tennis court by the road.

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the pergola appears rising from the designer gardens.

The smell of the ocean is next and then, at last, the house — at least part of it. This is not a house that you stand back and admire. It’s too big to take it all in at once.

It’s a house that needs to be entered and discovered — all 8,300 square feet. victoriaboulevard.com 57

The secluded beachfront features a well-used firepit for entertaining guests and family.

Joan and Doug Tocher take in the ocean breeze.

A fully-equipped outdoor kitchen has everything to prepare an

al fresco meal.

Joan Tocher is eager to tell the house’s story. It started life as a one-level cottage in 1974.

Subsequent owners added an upstairs bedroom and an enclosed pool. It spent time as a bed & breakfast, fell into disrepair and was pretty much abandoned when Joan and her husband Doug saw it in 2007.

“It was a mess,” says Doug.

“You could smell the rot. But we fell in love with the view and we could see what the house could become.”

The view is stunning. The wind has whipped Bazan Bay into the colour of grey slate, and the waves look like giant stone dominos, falling toward the beach. The view is east over the Sidney Channel but thanks to the slight point on the two-acre lot, it’s largely unobstructed on three sides. Nothing comes between the house and the ocean except a sloping lawn, a putting green and a seaside fire pit.

The Tochers bought the house in 2008 and hired designer JC Scott to start what became a two-year renovation. Scott is used to taking on big projects. He’s well-known on the West Coast for designing golf and fishing resorts, and nightclub interiors. Tackling a renovation this size was not daunting.

“I wanted to create an open West Coast beach house,” says Scott. “Many West Coast houses sit in forest, overlooking a raging sea. This one is on a slope to the water — more like a Malibu-style beach house. I wanted that sunbleached look.”

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One of the more dramatic changes was the decision to raise the living room floor.

It was a sunken room when the Tochers bought the house, with four steps down.

“It felt like a hole,” says Scott. To decide how high to raise it, Scott got the contractor to build a platform at two levels. The Tochers sat on chairs and looked out the windows on both levels, ultimately deciding to raise the living room floor by two steps.

The curved steps are made of Green Peace Brazilian granite and evoke a gentle wave toward the wall of windows and the sea. “I wanted to create that sinuous element all through the house,” says Scott.

“It’s important to find harmonic themes and stick with them.” Beach-inspired elements include the Israeli silk ceiling light in the Great Room that looks like a

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BARTLE & GIBSON CO. LTD. B AT H A N D K I T C H E N C E N T R E 4248 Glanford Avenue 250-727-9976 FAX: 250-727-0547 www.bartlegibson.com

Granite shown: Typhoon Bordeaux

Granite, Quartz & Marble Countertops

Custom design, fabrication & installation Residential & Commercial

10045 McDonald Park Road Sidney 250.655.6260 www.stonetrends.ca

victoriaboulevard.com 63

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Check list for an Incredible Closet  Only Eco-friendly materials  Lifetime Warranty  Industrial grade 3⁄4" wood and laminates  Prompt, tidy installations  Adjustable to meet current and future needs  Specialists in built-in storage units  Incredible accessories  Made in Victoria by a Victoria company  Incredible service and competitive pricing  Free in-home design and quote  Happy clients and contractors

Showroom 462 Burnside Rd E Tel: 250-381-6511

64 victoriaboulevard.com

The master bathroom has wrap-around views and shares its fireplace with the en suite bath.

The full-size indoor pool also has a hot tub, sauna, steam room and change room.

sea anemone, and the wood ceiling ribs that suggest the structure of a sand dollar.

The house is unusual in that it is made up of four almost round pods: one is a games room, another is the living/ dining/kitchen area, a third houses an office and guest bedroom, and the fourth is the enclosed pool, connected to the other pods by a yoga room, gym and second guest bedroom.

Drafting round spaces and working out the angles was a challenge, says Scott. “I really enjoyed the rounds and played off that by creating angularity in other features.”

That angularity is most dramatic at the entrance to the house, with its cantilevered porte-cochère, made of heavy BC lumber.

Rediscover the joy of cooking.

H a n d cr a f t e d k i tc H e n s, bat H ro o m s & b u i lt- i n s

250.384.4663 • w w w.jasongoodcabinets.com victoriaboulevard.com 65

Job # J103-11718 Client: JASon GooD

Terry Stockus Century 21 Queenswood R ealty ltd.

Helping you find your new front door

MAGNIFICENT UPLANDS HOME

designed by James Grieve, captures the splendor of an old countryside Manor. Historically-inspired detailing with livable family design and all the charm of modern day comforts . . . an architectural triumph of this new home that presents as if it has resided in this neighborhood for decades. $4,400,000. MLS# 278613 Exceptional home . . . on private 1/2 acre lot of terraced gardens in desirable 10 Mile Point.

Built in 2002 with incredible custom detailing and sophisticated design. Warm & sunny exposure. $3,295,000.

World class waterfront property in prestigious 10 Mile Pt. 180° views across Haro Straights to San Juan Islands. South-facing usable lowbank access and boat ramp. 175’ frontage with large building envelope.

Create an incredible new oceanfront estate. $2,995,000.

Terry Stockus terstockus@shaw.ca 250.477.1100 Century 21 Queenswood R ealty ltd.

66 victoriaboulevard.com

That quickly morphs into lighter glass, and beach-inspired colours, materials and lighting fixtures, including a hanging light at the steps to the master bedroom that, from underneath, looks like bubbles from a scuba diver. Every room looks out to the sea; even the six bathrooms have a view.

The only room on the second floor is the master bedroom, which sits atop the games room pod. This room is split in two.

In one half is the bedroom and sitting area with wall-to-floor windows. In the other half is the ensuite, large dressing room and closet, and laundry room.

Scott says he used sustainable products, all natural materials such as BC marble, granite and wood, natural stone on all the hard surfaces, and high-efficiency, low-energy lighting. One of his favourite features is the wood valance in the Great Room that hides the draperies. It’s made of pine beetle wood. There are no plastics in the house, no toxins in the plywood, glues, paints or fabrics.

Doug Tocher’s favourite room is his office, one of the smaller rooms in the house. This is the only room with a leather floor. It is cosy, filled with books, and a desk that faces the ocean. This is where he now spends most of his time. He sold the business, Brew King, that he and his brother started in 1980. They invented the modern wine-making kit, which Andrés Wines then bought in 1997.

Since then, the Tochers have bought, renovated and sold seven times. This is by far their favourite renovation, although they admit that 8,300 square feet is a lot of space for two people. Joan says, “We came from a 1,700-foot condo. That was too small.”

Self-described nomads, the Tochers cannot say how long they will stay. “We don’t stay anywhere forever,” says Joan.

“We’re lucky to have spent time here. But we always say we own the house. It doesn’t own us.” VB Suppliers: Project design/Interior design: JC Scott Design Associates; Contractor/Builder/Cabinetry/Woodwork/Doors/Windows: Anderson Cove Construction; Custom Millwork: West Isle Industries Ltd., Acer Fine Woodworking Ltd.; Closets: Incredible Closets; Adze texture door: Barker Manufacturing Inc.; Stairs: Harjim Industrial Services; Counters: Matrix Marble & Stone; Tiles: Decora Ceramic Tile & Natural Stone; Painting: Mettes Painting and Decorating; Appliances: Trail Appliances; Plumbing fixtures: Victoria Speciality Hardware; Custom shower glass and stair rails: Parker Glass; Flooring: The Finishing Store; Furnishings: Sager’s Home Living; Art glass: Silhouette Glass; Lighting: McLaren Lighting, Illuminations Lighting Solutions, Water Glass Studios Ltd.; Lighting Control: Simply Automated Inc.; Masonry/Stonework: Mammoth Landscaping and Masonry, K2 Stone; Landscaping: Louise Boutin, Ultramarine; Outdoor Kitchen: Capital Iron; Tennis/Basketball Court: BC Sport Court Ltd.; Home Audio: The One Touch House; Alarm System: Price Alarms; Floral design: Flowers on top.

greathomes greatrealtors Boulevard Magazine’s Real Estate Advertising Section March/April 2011

Exceptional south-west facing waterfront home with sweeping views from all major rooms — from the sandy beach at Cadboro Bay to the Royal Victoria Yacht Club and the Olympic Mountains beyond. This elegant 6,551 sq.ft. home with 5 bedrooms and 8 bathrooms has multiple decks and a seaside patio complete with boat launch.

Contact Lynne Sager, RE/MAX Camosun.

PHOTO BY Realfoto

Welcome to Boulevard ’s Great Homes, Great Realtors. This advertising section, showcasing prominent Victoria realtors and a hand-picked selection of currently available property listings, appears in each issue of the magazine. We hope that you will enjoy it!

LYNNE SAGER - RE/MAX CAMOSUN

DALLAS CHAPPLE - RE/MAX CAMOSUN

DEEDRIE BALLARD - RE/MAX CAMOSUN

Named after my father, bandleader Dal Richards, I have a Mass Communications degree from the Sorbonne in Paris.

I’ve been a Victoria realtor for 18 years specializing in Oak Bay and have consistently placed in the top 100 of RE/MAX’s 6,000 agents in Western Canada. My goal is to help clients find their dream home and ensure their decisions are wise, long-term investments. dallaschapple.com

During my 17 year career in Real Estate, I have been listing homes in Greater Victoria. Diversification and knowledge combined with personalized service has made me one of Victoria’s Top Realtors. Giving back to my community has been a vital part of my life, having served on many boards over the past 35 years. When you work with Deedrie Ballard Expect Excellence. deedrieballard.com

LESLEE FARRELL - Macdonald Realty Victoria Inc.

A third generation Victorian, my passions are architecture, design and our fabulous West Coast lifestyle. Working in Victoria since 1990, I specialize in waterfront, unique and luxury properties and have sold many of Victoria’s highest priced homes. My mission is to exceed expectations, rise to every challenge and to always look for innovative ways to connect buyers and sellers! LisaWilliams.ca

I am a Simon Fraser University graduate and passionate about boating, the arts and charity service. After 30 years in my profession, I feel as committed to my clients today as I did on day one. I provide expertise in luxury and waterfront property marketing with a top ranking internet site. My goal is to provide ultimate concierge service to all my real estate clients. lesleefarrell.com

photo by rob d’estrubé

LISA WILLIAMS - CENTURY 21 QUEENSWOOD REALTY LTD.

SCOTT GARMAN - MACDONALD REALTY Victoria Inc.

MARGARET LECK - RE/MAX CAMOSUN

My unique breadth of knowledge and experience in real estate, finance and business, backed by my BCom, MBA and CA, ensures attainment of my goal of protecting and contributing to my clients’ wealth. I provide my clients with practical guidance and advice every step of the way ensuring a sound real estate decision is made. The best is the least I can do . . . scottgarman.ca

A professional career in banking precedes my 27 year career in real estate. Sincerity, passion for life and love of people is apparent in everything I do. I bring a strong work ethic and willingness to spend the extra time and energy to meet my client’s needs. This forms a bond of trust, turning business into life-long friendships. margaretleck.com

photos by bullock & kirstein photography

photo by rob d’estrubé

From waterfront to cabins, I have enjoyed selling unique homes in the Greater Victoria area for over 27 years. I grew up in Victoria and have a vast knowledge of all areas. With a background in interior design and construction (through my family business), I enjoy keeping current with all aspects of the housing industry. I look forward to making your next purchase or sale a pleasant experience. For personal professional service, backed by years of experience and knowledge, please allow me to make your Real Estate Dreams come true. lynnesager.com

2715 Sea View Road

2713 Sea View Road (lot)

11260 Chalet Road

Elegant 6,500 sq.ft. waterfront home at Ten Mile Point. $3,500,000

Available for $1,898,000 with the purchase of adjoining 2715 Sea View Road waterfront home.

Deep Cove waterfront Custom 3,515 sq.ft. $1,750,000

777 Victoria Avenue

3959 Marjean Place

#308 21 Erie Street

1938 character Prime South Oak Bay $629,000

4-bedroom family home Cul de sac, Saanich East $585,000

Inner Harbour condo Breathtaking views $515,000

Proudly serving Victoria for 25 years.

PHONE 250.744.3301 • EMAIL lynne@lynnesager.com • WEBSITE www.lynnesager.com

GreatHomesGreatRealtors

Dallas Sells Victoria/Oak Bay

“My goal, as your realtor, is to find your dream home, and ensure the decision you make stands as a wise investment over the long term.”

! sOLD t s ju

SOuTh OAk BAy! The Goodacre house is one of the turn-of-the-century beauties in Oak Bay! 6 bedrooms upstairs, 4 renovated bathrooms, spacious living room, “Christmas” sized dining room, large recreation room.

The .33 acre garden is stunning! $1,375,000

OAk BAy BORDER! Elegant, private top floor condo with north, south & western exposure. Enjoy the afternoon sun from your deck and dining room.

Like a treehouse, this 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo with skylights is in a magical setting. Eat-in kitchen, spacious master bedroom and living room with gas fireplace. Close to shopping, transportation, Jubilee Hospital and UVic. $359,900

BREnTWOOD BAy RAnChER! Enjoy gorgeous ocean views from the living and dining rooms of this beautiful 5 bedroom, 3 bathroom home.Imagine overlooking the marina from your kitchen window. Level entry with separate suite down. Enjoy dinner on your west facing deck overlooking Saanich Inlet. $699,900

! sOLD t s ju

GEORGiAn STylE EnGliSh MAnOR JuST inSiDE ThE uplAnDS GATES! This stunning renovation by Pamela Charlesworth includes a beautiful kitchen, with granite counters & eating area overlooking the private English garden. The dining room accommodates the largest family dining table & features 2 walls of mullioned windows, oak floors & 9’ ceilings with crown mouldings. The living room with its ceramic heat-reflecting fireplace is 25’ long.

There is a cosy den with fireplace & a sunroom or family room with French doors to the garden.

Upstairs are 3 bedrooms plus a walk-in closet leading to a marble ensuite. $1,395,000

Dallas Chapple, RE/MAX Camosun • Tel: 250.744.3301 • Toll Free: 1.877.652.4880 • www.dallaschapple.com 4440 Chatterton Way • Oak Bay Office: 2239 Oak Bay Ave • Email: dallas@dallaschapple.com GreatHomesGreatRealtors

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LISA WILLIAMS SPECTACULAR 4.8 AC GATED ESTATE w/stunning 5-6 bedrm, 7 bth, 6990 sq.ft. 'Whistler' home — gorgeous S-facing views across Elk Lake to the Olympics, total privacy, 50' lap pool w/hot tub, incredible luxury inside & out and just 17 mins from downtown Victoria in an upscale enclave of million dollar estates! $2,995,000

UPSCALE WATERFRONT property w/fully renovated 3300 sq.ft. hm, in a private & peaceful setting! Enjoy spectacular views & luxury living w/4-5 bedrms incl. a private 787 sq.ft. master 'retreat'! Sunny, open design, hi-ceilings, HW flrs, PLUS 1 bedrm in-law suite too . . .

Make an offer today! $1,885,000

DRAMATIC CUSTOM OCEANVIEW HOME . . . incredibly special with a huge 'WOW' factor throughout! Dramatic hi-ceilings, 3 bedrms plus media & office rms, award-winning kitchen, huge windows, luxurious main flr master, private & fully fenced west-facing patio/gardens & so much more, on quiet & exclusive 'Shore Way' in Gordon Head, just a stone's throw from the ocean! $1,749,000

WEDGEWOOD POINT LUXURY! Gorgeous executive home totally reno’d to the highest level . . . stunning! 3 bedrm + den, amazing gourmet kitchen, top-of-the-line finishing, expansive decks w/ocean views & so many extras! Parks, trails & beach access just mins. away . . . $1,298,000

NEW BEACHFRONT LUXURY home on stunning Cordova Bay! Over 5100 sq.ft. with incredible Great Rm, expansive gourmet kitchen, 10' ceilings, radiant flrs, media rm and a fabulous '5 Star' Master suite to die for! $3,290,000

SPACIOUS GORDON POINT EXECUTIVE HOME w/excellent ocean views & steps to waterfront access! Boasting 5200 sq.ft., 6 bedrms, 7 bths, granite flrs, hi-ceilings, in-floor heating, & super nanny or in-law accom. possible too! $1,498,000

PREMIER 5.17 ACRE QUEENSWOOD property, one of the area's largest holdings! 'Twin Coves' boasts incredible privacy & low bank waterfront access, park-like property, world-class views, 4700 sq.ft. main house & separate guest cottage . . . an amazing opportunity! $6,290,000

UPSCALE MATTICKS WOODS! This lovely 3-4 bedrm hm is nestled in a peaceful & quiet enclave of executive homes in prestigious Mattick’s Woods, a short stroll from charming Mattick’s Farm, Cordova Bay Golf Course & beach access! Bright, flexible design w/main flr master, gourmet kitchen, fabulous adjacent family rm, sunny & private patio & beautiful natural setting! $1,098,800

EXQUISITE COUNTRY ESTATE! Luxurious '07 blt 8500 sq.ft. home on a lovely Saanich West, 5 acre property . . . just 20 mins. from downtown!

Enjoy incredible luxury throughout with tons of options plus a lg home office, super in-law, 5 car garage, 2 stall barn & riding ring too! $2,448,000

PREDICTING AN ACTIVE SPRING MARKET . . .

CALL NOW FOR A CONFIDENTIAL MARKET EVALUATION OF YOUR HOME!

250•514•1966 Direct LisaWilliams.ca

Century 21 Queenswood R ealty ltd.

GreatHomesGreatRealtors

Scot t Ga r m a n & a s s o c i a t e s

Scott Garman and Macdonald Realty are pleased to announce their association with Elkington Forest — an entirely new concept in the creation of a conservation community.

Register for updates at elkingtonforest.com or call 250-896-7099.

AT t InTersecTIon oF oLD GroWTH a sMArT GroWTH. Our Oak house on lot 6 is a classic example of an idea whose time has come. Crafted with both selectively harvested FSC timbers from the land and new world sustainable design, this home is perfectly situated in our Trailhead Hamlet fronting onto a community green and backing onto a ravine, creek and hundreds of acres of private, wild forest.

OAK HOUSE · $629,000 · Homes built to Built Green & Energuide Gold or Platinum Standard · Homes feature Macdonald & Lawrence Timber Framing · Engineered hardwood flooring to all main living areas

· Luxurious Granite or Quartz on all counters · Includes Energy Star appliance package · Geo thermal heating and delux natural gas fireplace with custom wood mantle and fir wrapped or tile surround

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· Attractive fir timber pillars and exterior design details · Landscape architect designed exteriors and spacious patios areas · Access to extensive trails and recreational opportunities

A

LOCAL BRAND • GLOBAL REACH

www.scottgarman.ca | info@scottgarman.ca | 250-896-7099 | 755 humboldt street, victoria bc v8w 1b1 GreatHomesGreatRealtors

CAMOSUN

4440 Chatterton Way Victoria mleck@shaw.ca 250.413.7171 margaretleck.com

SO

LD

Outstanding south-facing 3642 sq.ft. sub-penthouse at Shoal Point This “Sunrise/Sunset” 3642 sq.ft.condo features one level, no stairs luxury living, two master bedroom suites, 5 balconies, 4 fireplaces, air conditioning and private elevator entrance. Spectacular views of Straits of Juan de Fuca, Olympic Mountains and Inner Harbour. The “Great Room” adjoins a unique tower-style office/games room. A spacious open-plan kitchen flows into the family room and spectacular two-storey windowed breakfast conservatory. $2,395,000. MLS#285920

Fabulous Shoal Point 8th floor 2 bedroom suite with exceptional views of the city & Inner Harbour to enjoy both day & night! Unique features include: Two private decks totaling 575 sq.ft., open living, dining & family room with 2 gas fireplaces, galley kitchen w/granite countertops & maple shaker-style cabinets. Master bedroom offers 5pc ensuite with heated tile floors, gas fireplace, & extensive closet space. Second bedroom with 4pc ensuite, 2pc powder room, and separate laundry room with extra storage. Air conditioned. $1,299,000. MLS#287407

Deluxe 2 bed/2 bath condo in Award-winning Shoal Point has been custom decorated including granite countertops & beautiful wood floors throughout. Master bedroom offers built-in king size bed and headboard, walk-in closet with built-ins, spacious 4 pc ensuite with jetted air soaker tub, double shower, granite countertops and heated tile floor. 2nd bedroom/den features built-in wall unit.

Functional floor plan! $670,000. MLS#287269

Sunny south/east/west-facing Shoal Point condo with panoramic views of the Olympic Mountains, Strait of Juan de Fuca & Sooke Hills sunsets! Unique curved glass wall of windows overlooks the courtyard and putting green.

Air conditioned, 2 bed/2 bath suite with open kitchen, family, dining & living room with gas fireplace. Enjoy the community lifestyle of Shoal Point. Walking distance to downtown core, parks & beach! Immediate occupancy! $799,000. MLS#287278

Location, Location, Location! Sunny, spacious second floor one bedroom condo at Laurel Point, steps to the Inner Harbour & downtown Victoria. Stroll along Dallas Rd. to the ocean & Beacon Hill Park. Enjoy the sea glimpses from your suite and balcony. 2008 engineered red oak floors throughout adds to the open feeling. 2010 thermopane windows make this suite warm and cozy.

New washer and dryer tucked away in a separate laundry room. Peaceful, mature, treed landscaping — yours to enjoy! Amenities included: outdoor pool, club room, car wash area and workshop. $314,900. MLS#287428

Desirable Port Royale Estates at Brentwood Bay! The best location for water views in the development! This main level entry suite needs upgrading to reflect your own tastes. Features: sundeck off open kitchen with eating area, living room with fireplace that extends to dining room, a large master bedroom with ensuite, office/2nd bedroom and laundry room. Lower level with bedroom, 4pc bath, large family room w/wood fireplace and view patio, is perfect for guests! Plenty of storage w/workshop!

Large double garage. You’ll never want to move again. $599,000. MLS#287568

GreatHomesGreatRealtors

Your Luxury Waterfront Specialist

LuxuryPortfolio.com

Situated on 2 acres of exceptional west-facing waterfront, Ardmore Hall represents the finest in world-class properties. It is truly a grand manor with a state-of-the-art pool & pool house, plus the restored original guest cottage.

French, Italian and English influences resonate throughout the home. Intricate tiling, rich mahogany, Swarovski crystal chandeliers, silk wallpaper and copper ceilings are but a few of the highlights!

Offered at $10,295,000. MLS# 286684

Situated on a quiet byway on Ten Mile Point, this exceptional half acre oceanfront offers spectacular views of Mt. Baker with the San Juan Islands beyond. The home offers one level living on the main with a full walk-out basement. The kitchen and eating area access an ocean-side deck overlooking the gardens. The master ensuite has spa bath tub overlooking the ocean. A true lifestyle retreat close to University & Village! Offered at $2,550,000.

MLS# 286704

This elegant Maclure, built in 1927, offers the best of classic architecture with modern conveniences. The rooms are of grand proportion with original hardwood floors & panelling, built-ins with leaded glass. The discerning chef will appreciate the new appliances, gas range and beautiful countertops complete with original cold cupboard. The west-facing back garden is fully fenced and beautifully landscaped. Offered at $2,350,000. MLS# 286974

Local Brand • Global Reach

755 Humboldt Street Direct: 250.414.8204 Office: 250.388.5882 Toll Free: 1.877.388.5882

leslee@lesleefarrell.com lesleefarrell.com luxuryhomesvictoria.com

EXCLUSIVE LISTING This 6th floor end

LARGE IMMACULATE “updated” family

BEAUTIFUL 2 YEAR OLD home built for

unit in the world-class “Bayview

home in Tanner Ridge, has it all. Five

the present owner, situated on a

Residences” offers 2 master bedrooms

bedrooms, 4 bathrooms. 3 gas fireplaces,

spectacular waterfront property on

(each with ensuite), superior finishing,

media room, wine room, hardwood

Parker Avenue, in beautiful Cordova Bay.

and ultimate sophistication in design with

throughout, stamped concrete patio,

Featuring 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, a fabulous

south and easterly unobstructed views.

hot tub, and loads of storage, are only

kitchen/great room, meticulously built to

This luxurious building has many

part of what is offered in this home.

high standards with exterior rain screen

amenities including 24 hour concierge

Don’t delay. $749,000

system in place. Balance of 2-5-10

service. $799,999

warranty in place. $1,999,000

Expect Excellence Phone

250.744.3301 deedrie@deedrieballard.com deedrieballard.com

4440 Chatterton Way, Victoria, BC V8X 5J2 TOLL FREE 1.800.663.2121

Camosun GreatHomesGreatRealtors

HOT DESIGN

By elizabeth levinson

If you are like me and cannot think or speak before morning coffee, the good news is we are increasingly blessed with fun ways to brew it. No longer must we resort to plain old drip; a baristaquality espresso can be made á la minute in your own kitchen.

The secret to choosing the right brewing equipment is to know precisely what you want in the end product. Is dripped, pressed, or percolated coffee to your taste? Are you looking to jump-start your day with an espresso or ease into it gently with a creamy latté?

Java

Remember, grinding the beans to the necessary size just before brewing produces a fresher taste. Here’s a guide to some hot choices:

Doing the

Jive

Drip Coffee It only sounds boring.

Drip coffee has a high concentration of caffeine to give you a guaranteed kick.

Krups’ new die-cast brushed stainless construction has produced a professionallooking unit for the home kitchen that caters to the tightly scheduled. You can program this workhorse to have your coffee brewed for exactly when you need to grab it. The reusable filters are kind to the environment and its de-scaling feature keeps the machine’s inner workings free of mineral build-up. $120 to $180.

Vacuum Pot Invented in Berlin in the 1830s, the vacuum pot is making a bold comeback. Bodum’s one-litre model produces clean, “upside-down drip” coffee to rave reviews. First pour water into the bottom orb and place your coffee grounds on a spring-loaded plug on top of the orb. Boiling the water on the stove top forces the water into the upper chamber. Turn off the heat and the contracting air flows perfectly brewed coffee back into the bottom orb, ready for your impressed guests. $100 to $125.

French Press With a simplicity that is hard to beat, the French press or cafetière à piston has never gone out of style. Invented 150 years ago in France, the press is economic and elegant with a rich taste and smooth texture. Its filtration comes from a wire or nylon mesh built into the plunger.

Its long, cylindrical design, usually victoriaboulevard.com 77

Gioco Design Inc. kitchen & bath specialists

typhoon bordeaux

victoria’s stone gallery countertops

onyx velluto

tile

cladding

Granite, Marble, Travertine, Limestone, Slate, Semiprecious slabs & tile . . . 100s to choose from Quartz (Caesarstone, HanStone, Chroma, Diresco, LG Viatera)

Custom Designed Kitchen & Bathroom Cabinets Now offering custom Murphy Wall Beds Free Consultation

juparana delicatus

giocodesign.com

3958 Quadra St. t. 250 881 8500 lexystone.ca

I 250 858 9314

turn your

“It is impossible to overdo luxury.”

Landscaping dreams

- french proverb

reality

into Complete landsCaping serviCes

• landscape design • retaining walls & interlock pavers

160 BURNSIDE RD EAST T:250.382.5421 F:250.382.5441 W W W. W I L K S T O V E.C O M

• ponds and waterfalls • water efficient irrigation systems

viCtoria: 250 727 2262 mid island: 250 954 3834 www.baldeagle .bC.Ca

constructed of glass and stainless steel, is elegant enough to be brought to the table. Try Bodum, the Asian-made Le Cafetière or Café Olé models. $25 to $125.

Stove-top Espresso The Bialetti coffee maker brews a simple true espresso on the stove top. These three-part brewers are made of aluminum or stainless steel, with a vessel for water at the bottom, a basket for ground coffee in the middle and a top carafe that receives the final brew. When you screw on the top section, it tamps the coffee grounds, creating a cream or caramel-coloured head on the coffee. Some find this percolated coffee bitter, but much depends on timing: it’s best drunk freshly brewed. (By the way, don’t be fooled by the term “Moka Espresso” on these units; Moka is not mocha. Moka was an Arabian port from which coffee was shipped years ago before a sandbar effectively closed it.) $22 to $100.

C

Cezve For something completely different, set a longhandled, copper Turkish cezve on the stove to brew a morning java that is a dark, sweet, espresso-style beverage once described as “Black as the devil, hot as hell, pure as an angel, sweet as love.” For an orta sekerli or “middle-sweet” drink, place cold water in the pot, add extra-fine ground coffee and an equal part of sugar, and stir to dissolve the sugar. Set on a lowmedium element, then let the magic begin as you boil the mixture two to four times (that number depends on who gives the instructions), each time taking the pot off the heat and letting the resulting foam subside. Poured correctly, your coffee will have a thick köpuk (foam) on top and no residue from the grounds. $8 to $16.

M

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CM

MY

CY

CMY

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Electric Espresso For the ultimate Kaffeehaus experience in your own home, brew espressos, cappuccinos and lattés with the Saeco Talea Ring Plus.

The godfather of automatic espresso machines, this particular version has a victoriaboulevard.com 79

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250-298-1105 | IN MARKET SQUARE - 517 PANDORA AVE, VICTORIA | WWW.BESPOKEDESIGN.CA

GENERAL CONTRACTING w CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT w CHARACTER RENOVATION

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ColonialCountertops.com

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Also in

Nanaimo Courtenay Burnaby Kelowna

steam setting for frothing your milk, a built-in grinder for your best beans and a handy bypass so that you can switch from caffeinated coffee to pre-ground decaf later in the day. $1,330 to $1,800.

Nespresso Sales are soaring on these handsome, fun-to-use machines flogged

by George Clooney and now available in Victoria. Little capsules of single plantation coffee (with 16 “grand crus” to choose from) are inserted into the top of the machine and perforated to release their contents into the brewing process. The result is a surprisingly good shot of espresso or a lungo (a longer shot of espresso). The separate stainless steel Aeroccino jug makes silky milk to pour in or foam. $300 to $370.

Tassimo Bosch appliance makers and Kraft have joined together to create this home-brewing device that makes lattés, cappuccinos, drip coffee, hot chocolate, tea, and more — all based on reading the bar codes of individual serving T-discs. Tassimo brewers start from $169. While not the most green way to brew coffee, the T-discs with bar codes are available in many grocery stores and coffee outlets or can be ordered online at tassimo.ca. A package of 12 T-discs starts at $10.99.

Find it: Le Cafetière, Café Olé, Bialetti: Cairo Coffee Merchants, 774 Fort St., 250-386-3937.

Bodum, Bialetti: Haute Cuisine Cookware, 1210 Broad St., 250-388-9906.

Krups, Bodum, Nespresso: Muffet and Louisa, 1437 Store St., muffetandlouisa.com, 250-382-3201.

Saeco Talea: Gabriel Ross, 589A Bay St., gabrielross.com, 250-384-2554.

Cezve: Buy the pot at Seven Valley Fine Food, 2506 Douglas St., 250-382-9998. Drink it at Nar Café, 2540 Windsor Rd., narcafebistro.com, 250-598-1085.

Tassimo: London Drugs, The Bay, Sears, Costco, Walmart, and more. T-discs are available at Thrifty Foods, Costco, and other grocery stores as well as online at tassimo.ca. VB

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TECH N OLO G IA

text and photo by Darryl Gittins

Welcome to the perils of

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I recently had to apologize to my Facebook friends after I slammed them with hundreds of messages saying I’d posted new pictures to Facebook. I had just backed up my photos to the new Windows Live Skydrive and didn’t realize that the site includes a new feature to “Share my Windows Live status message and activities with my Facebook friends” It informed everyone on my FaceBook that I’d uploaded a picture . . . thousands in fact. Google’s Picasa does the same thing. Social networking sites tend to share everything with everyone by default unless you change that.

Facebook is all about sharing, right? But sometimes it could be sharing information that you might not expect. The global community becomes a small town where everyone knows everything. Facebook participation is hardly even optional these days. If you don’t sign up, other people may still post information about you or pictures of you that you might want to know about.

Even if you are exceedingly careful, Facebook can get its wires crossed. Once I signed onto my Facebook and was in someone else’s account. I had full access to their page including their messages. It was a wide-spread server error.

Many people were being logged onto the wrong accounts. For a brief time, someone else could have had access to all my messages. Lesson learned: even if your Facebook page is dutifully locked down, it’s still not secure. In fact, nothing you post on the Internet is secure, unless it’s heavily encrypted and stored on a secure server. Even governments can’t keep secrets, so you can assume that anything you post on a social networking site (or in email or anywhere else on the Web)

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could be “liberated.” The solution is don’t EVER post anything that you wouldn’t want shared.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Facebook. Recently I found a fabulous picture of my mother in her bridesmaid dress standing with her sister in her wedding dress. The picture was taken in South Africa in the mid 50’s and posted on a niece’s page in Australia. I have virtually no pictures of my family from that time. Discovering a gem like that makes Facebook more than worth the troubles. I love keeping up to date with friends and family all over the globe in a way that simply can’t be matched by letters or telephones.

A big challenge is how to behave at this virtual party where everyone you know is invited, including your friends, relatives, coworkers, parents, kids, high school buddies, and maybe even your ex, or boss. There’s no way I’d want to be in the same room as all these people in real life, but we do it in Facebook.

One solution is to have two Facebook accounts. Use one for your public persona and a second secret account for your close friends only. It only takes about a minute to create a new account. For your secret account, use an alias instead of your name (spell your name backwards, for example). Then, anyone that “friends” you can be shunted to the appropriate account.

Facebook should be considered an online resume. In fact Facebook’s latest changes make it look a lot more like LinkedIn’s business-oriented social networking site. That could be good or bad, depending on how carefully you moderate your page. We all have our moments, but some

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posts or pictures are not likely to go over well with a potential employer who might make snap judgments.

On the other hand, with some effort, it can be a great tool for marketing yourself.

FIX IT! First, to prevent Windows Live or Picasa from informing everyone you’ve backed up your photos, use an online folder that has the sharing permissions for the folder set to “Private.” Google “Permissions” and “Picasa or “Skydrive” for more on this.

You can’t prevent someone posting about you, but you can take your name off the post in Facebook. Just open the post, and then click “remove tag” directly below the post.

Maybe you have a friend who regularly posts risqué updates that appear on your page. Hover the mouse over the post, and then click the “X” that appears to the right.

Then click “Hide this post” or “Hide all by Naughty Person.”

Don’t worry about offending your spirited friend; they won’t know you did it. You can do the same thing to hide those Farmville posts.

You should make reasonable efforts to lock down your privacy settings. To configure your privacy setting manually, click “Account” in the top right corner, and then click “Privacy Settings”. Then, as best you can, click the various options of settings of what you want to share with whom.

Or go to Reclaimprivacy.org to configure your privacy settings. On its page, right-click the grey box, and then click Add to Favorites. Then open your Facebook page and click “Scan for Privacy” on the Favorites menu in Internet Explorer. The tool shows in red where you should change your settings.

A great new Facebook App is Safego from Bitdefender.

It can help to keep your Facebook profile squeaky clean by scanning for threats and spam, and will also check your privacy settings and alert you of issues. Find it using the Facebook search box.

To see how your Facebook page looks to most people, click “Account”, click “Privacy Settings”, click “Customize Settings” and then click “Preview My Profile”. To see what a specific friend sees, type their name in the box. Or, go to youropenbook.org, and then search your name. Can’t find your profile? Congratulations. Nobody else can either.

I try to post useful information on my Facebook, though I occasionally can’t resist posting silly timewasters. Now if only certain friends would behave similarly when posting on my wall.

Finally, a word of warning. Beware of any Facebook app that pops up and asks for your Facebook password. It’s probably a scam. The only place you should type that is on the Facebook logon page. VB

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BoulevardBookClub

By Adrienne Dyer photo by gary mckinstry

Books courtesy of Munro’s Books

RETIREMENT SALE Our

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wild, fictional mashups to the truly gritty

Looking for some great reads this spring? Feeling a tad overwhelmed by so much choice? I know that for book club members, one of the things talked about most and but most difficult to decide is what to read next. Really, I could just steer you towards the nearest library or bookstore with directions to simply close your eyes and grab something.

But no, you’re right, that won’t do. You need specifics. Titles read and loved by someone else who knows something about books. Someone who has filtered through the reams available and selected the most interesting plots, the freshest voices, the sprightliest prose.

Read on. My various sources have offered up some mustread titles summarized for you here along with, if I may be so bold, a suggestion of my own.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m just about to find out whether Marianne Dashwood will finally realize that Colonel Brandon does, in fact, hold the key to her heart, if only she could look beyond the tentacles covering his face . . . .

The Big House: A Century in the Life of an American Summer Home, by George Howe Colt, 336 pages. Scribner reprint edition, 2004.

Jennifer Down, buyer for Tanner’s Books in Sidney, says people are always thrilled with this title whenever she

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recommends it. “The author is an American poet whose family built a summer home on Cape Cod over 100 years ago,” says Down, who lists this book among her favourites.

After generations of use, the dilapidated house is up for sale. “Colt makes one last visit and tells the history of this home. It is a very moving and personal tale and you meet the many members of his family and their trials and tribulations over the years.”

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The Map Of Love, by Ahdaf Soueif, 544 pages. Anchor Books, 2000.

“One of the most romantic love stories I’ve read, set against the backdrop of 1901 Egypt — a fascinating time in that country’s history,” says Down. “A young woman sets out to trace her family roots and a trip to Egypt leads her to the story of her great-grandmother, a young English widow who had travelled there in 1901. Enamoured with the culture, she falls in love with an Egyptian patriot and nobleman and becomes embroiled in the political sentiment of the time. A wonderful romance and very moving story written by an Egyptian who grew up in Cairo.”

Seven Good Reasons Not To Be Good, by John Gould, 350 pages. Harper Collins, 2010.

Recommended by Colin Holt of Bolen Books, this is the story of Matt McKay’s journey of self-discovery as he travels from Vancouver to Toronto to convince his friend to save his own life. Along the way he must come to terms with the end of his marriage (his wife has left him for another woman) and his father’s decline into dementia.

“Lots of things to discuss, and written by a Victoria author as well,” says Holt.

Bedtime Story, by Robert Wiersema, 496 pages. Random House Canada, 2010.

When a struggling novelist reads a favourite childhood book to his son hoping to kindle an interest in literature, strange things occur. First of all, the boy suffers a massive seizure that sends him into a coma. Then the father realizes that his son’s soul has been sucked into a perilous existence inside the story and only he can save the boy.

Holt says this “great mix of family drama and fantasy by another Victoria author” promises a quick read with plenty to provoke book club discussions.

Room, by Emma Donoghue, 352 pages. HarperCollins, 2010.

Five-year-old Jack has never stepped outside of Room, where his mother has been held prisoner for seven years by her kidnapper, Old Nick. Told from the point of view

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of the endearing and utterly innocent five-year-old, the story follows Jack and Ma’s escape from their tiny world. “Room is exquisitely written,” says local author Pearl Luke, who recently co-founded the author-reader matching site Bookclubbuddy. com. “The characters are fresh and engaging from the first, and appealing most of all for their courage.”

Delivery, by Betty Jane Hegerat, 306 pages. Oolichan, 2009.

When Lynn’s 20-year-old daughter Heather has trouble giving up her baby for adoption as planned, Lynn absconds with her granddaughter before Heather has a chance to change her mind. “Delivery is fascinating for its unique storyline and the complications that result,” says Luke. “As the story alternates between Lynn’s point of view and Heather’s, it is impossible not to get caught up in the equally impossible situation.”

Blue Saltwater, by Dan Green, 214 pages. Createspace, 2010.

“This is the sort of book that keeps one up far too late,” says Luke. “I only have time to read at night at the moment, and for four days I itched all day long to get back to the novel. It is the story of young Métis boy forced by tragic circumstances to attend (or be imprisoned in) a residential school. The appalling sexual abuse and sadistic brutality is skilfully handled, with the boy’s bravery foremost, so the narrative, as in Room, rises above

the bleakness of sick perpetrators. Blue Saltwater should be mandatory reading in our country. It is a book that will change readers forever.”

Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, 344 pages,

by Ben H. Winters and Jane Austen. Quirk Books, 2009.

As a Jane Austen devotee it almost pains me to recommend this book, which seems at first glance to be nothing short of a bizarre mockery of perfect fiction. But take a second look.

Following Quirk’s other wildly successful “mashup” novel, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, this book places the Dashwood sisters into an alternate Regency-era universe plagued by giant lobsters, murderous mermen, and half-sea monster mutants like poor, lovestricken Colonel Brandon, who has the misfortune of being part squid. Of course I could just recommend the original Sense and Sensibility, in honour of the 200th anniversary of its publication.

But the addition of sea monsters is just too weird to resist.

For other thought-provoking titles, including the nominees for Top Five Essential Novels of the Decade, visit Canada Reads at cbc.ca/books/canadareads/ Questions or comments? Want your book club featured in the magazine? Please email Adrienne Dyer at adyer@telus.net for more information. VB

victoriaboulevard.com 91

TRAVELNEAR

In the

text and photos by SUZANNE MORPHET

Skagit Valley, you can walk, run or cycle through the tulips — and sure, tiptoe too

We were expecting to see tulips, fields and fields of tulips, at the annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. So when we spotted a brilliant red in the distance, we knew we had arrived. Still, when we rounded a curve, we were suddenly gobsmacked by a dazzling display of yellow petals.

“Stop!” I ordered my husband, rummaging in my camera bag for the right lens. As I jumped out to take some photos, he muttered, “They’re not tulips. They’re daffodils.” Sure enough, I was about to photograph a field of daffs. Coming from the Saanich Peninsula — the daffodil capital of Canada — this was too funny. But this field was more spectacular than any of the Vantreight Farm fields. (Sorry Ian!) The difference — and this is also the case with the tulips that we would see in abundance the next day — is that most of the flowers in the Skagit Valley are allowed to come into bloom. Very few, less than five per cent, are picked while in bud. That’s because they’re grown mostly for the

bulbs. Vantreight’s is almost the exact opposite, with 90 per cent of the flowers cut in the field before they open.

Visitors less jaded than we would revel in the daffodils here too, and there’s actually more fields of them than tulips (about 180 hectares and 140 hectares respectively, plus 80 hectares of iris) — but we came for the tulips.

We brought our bikes, having heard that it’s fun to cycle the country roads between the fields. But the next morning the weather isn’t cooperating; it’s mid-April, yet it feels more like mid-November. The wind whips across the flat valley; we leave our bikes on their rack and drive.

The Skagit Valley is about a 24-kilometre triangle, hemmed in by the Skagit River, the Swinomish Channel and Highway 20, the highway from Anacortes if you take the Washington State ferry from Sidney.

We pick up a map with the fields colour-coded. I count 11 fields of tulips. We also plan to visit the one-hectare RoozenGaarde

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From left: Most of the tulips are left to bloom in the field. Workers cut late-blooming ‘Ile de France’ tulips. The North Cascade Mountains form a backdrop for the colourful valley’s annual April tulip festival.

Display Garden. It’s owned by the Roozen family, which also owns the Washington Bulb Co. Inc., the largest tulip bulb grower in the US, maybe the world. (Roozen is synonymous with flowers here the same way Vantreight is synonymous with daffodils at home.)

Our first field is just down the road and it’s even better than I expected; brilliant purple tulips form a solid carpet bathed in sunshine in the foreground, which gives way to a swatch of bright red, and beyond that, a ribbon of pale pink. Against the horizon, the North Cascades mountain range broods under a dark sky. The contrast is stunning. We take turns posing for photos with Oscar, our pooch, then drive to the next field.

This one alternates red and yellow with a red barn in the background. Turn another direction and a row of mature poplar trees, not yet in leaf, forms a pleasingly symmetrical backdrop.

I’m beginning to think local farmers have taken design courses. Even the muddy water pooling between some of the victoriaboulevard.com 93

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rows of tulips captivates, catching the image of the flowers nodding above and reflecting it back.

The RoozenGaarde Display Garden offers a different experience.

It’s a mini Butchart Gardens, planted with 300,000 bulbs. More varieties of tulips pop up here in the spring than Haagen-Dazs has flavours of ice cream.

Tulips, daffodils and hyacinth create a colourful geometric carpet under flowering rhododendrons. A river of blue Muscari armeniacum meanders through it.

It seems we’ve hit the nail on the head with timing. Officially, the tulip festival is the whole month of April, but about one week is optimal, when the early varieties are still blooming and the late ones have opened. Those dates vary depending on the weather.

But throughout April, you can take part in related events, such as the annual tulip run, cycling events, an historic quilt walk, a wine festival in Anacortes and more. (For a complete list of dates and registration info, go to tulipfestival.org.)

As aesthetically pleasing as everything is — the tulip fields, the display garden, the historical village of La Conner with its shops and restaurants — what makes me smile when I recall our visit is not tulips, but, strangely, turkeys.

On our first evening, I take Oscar for a walk while my husband warms his feet by the fire in our room at the La Conner Country Inn. As we descend a flight of stairs I notice a sign saying “Yard

closed due to turkey damage.” How bizarre, I think. The yard is thick with overgrown trees, but there’s no sign of any animals, let alone turkeys.

Then we see them in another yard; six big birds with iridescent black and brown plumage, turquoise heads, and scarlet throats.

They stand absolutely still. At first, I think they might be the work of an artist — La Conner was an artists’ colony in the 1930s and still has an artsy side — but then they move. They preen. And they gobble.

“Wild turkeys!” I told my husband, after running back to our hotel. “Come and see.”

By the time we return, they’re gone. A man walking past tells us the turkeys arrived out of the blue three or four years ago. “They’ve divided the town,” he said, when I ask about the sign. “Some people like them, some don’t. Someone once shot one with an arrow.”

This sounds an awful lot like the deer problem back in Victoria.

I have to chuckle. Daffodils and deer on the Saanich Peninsula, tulips and turkeys in La Conner. You just never know what you’ll find when you leave home.

It takes about 3 1/2 hours to take the Sidney-Anacortes ferry and then drive from Anacortes to La Conner. The La Conner Country Inn offers a substantial complimentary breakfast and pet-friendly rooms.

Email: cc@laconnerlodging.com for rates. The La Conner Quilt and Textile Museum features quilts inspired by the tulip fields. VB

victoriaboulevard.com 95

TRAVELFAR

text and photos by ROSS CROCKFORD

Preposterous Prague: this timeless city is still a surreal deal Late one night a friend and I were chatting on a corner in Prague’s old town, when we heard the tinkling of tiny bells coming up the street. A bearded guy was shuffling along — wearing a grubby jester’s costume, made of patchy red leather and fur, with bells on his drooping cap.

The jester shambled up to us. “Got a cigarette?” he asked in Czech.

I offered him one. “Nice outfit,” I said.

“Thanks,” he replied. “I have something for you, too.”

He placed a small green tube in my hand. On it was written:.

German Knockout. Rub end on matchbox. Throw.

“It’s a bomb,” the jester said. “Have a nice time.” And indeed, it was a small explosive. He jingled off into the darkness, puffing on the cigarette.

Only in Prague.

Fifteen years ago the Czech capital was the “It” city of moment, a place everyone had to visit; hardcore travellers notched it on their moneybelts, and then moved on. Prague’s been done, I’ve heard it said. For some reason, though, Prague is not done with me. I lived there for four years in the early 1990s, and I keep returning to it like a fool waggling back to an old flame. As Kafka

said, this little mother has claws. Prague doesn’t let go.

To tourists, the reasons are obvious. With a population of 1.2 million, Prague is just big enough to enjoy the amenities of a European capital (opera houses, extensive subway), and small enough to retain some of its charm. The view of the gothic Prague Castle, rising over the Vltava River, still reduces first-time visitors to tears. Its extensive and gorgeous historical centre, called Old Town, is a UN World Heritage Site.

The beer is as creamy as a vanilla milkshake. (The Czech national anthem, Where is my Home?, takes on new meaning after a night of pub crawling.) The youngsters are so stunning that they could step onto catwalks in Milan, and often do. English is ubiquitous. And, thanks to Czech independence from the Euro, it’s still a bargain. Five dollars barely buys a cup of coffee in Paris, but it’ll get you a steak dinner in Prague.

But there’s more to Prague than that, and the tipsy anarchy promised by the jester has something to do with it. Although Czechs are extraordinarily cultivated (Prague has at least a dozen daily newspapers, and bookstores abound), they’re also possessed with a mischievous irreverence, fostered by centuries of dominance by Austria, Germany, and Russia. Since the Velvet

The church St. Martin’s In the Wall is built into the city’s 13th-century fortifications.

The Old Town beerhall U Medvidku serves the original and superior Czech Budweiser.

A poster advertises the irreverent Museum of Communism.

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make the pilgrimage to Franz Kafka’s grave in the New Jewish Cemetery.

Revolution of 1989, that irreverence has flourished — and run headlong into fussy old habits inherited from Slavic villages and an ex-Soviet bureaucracy, with consequences that are often comically surreal.

You can see it in David Cerny’s gigantic public sculptures, such as his parody of the monument to Wenceslas — the nation’s patron saint — straddling a dead horse, hanging upside-down outside the Lucerna cinema. You can hear it in the beerhall jokes, savaging every form of authority. (Q: How do policemen plant potatoes? A: They pile them in a field and yell, “Disperse yourselves, your gathering is not permitted!”)

There’s tragedy on display at the Museum of Communism on Na Príkope street, but the museum is owned by an American, and above a McDonald’s. In many shops, even mundane items like shoelaces and batteries are kept behind counters, like prescription drugs, guarded by hostile clerks. If Czech parents want to give their child a name (Angelina, Brad) that isn’t on the official list, they need approval from the ministry of vital statistics. According to one story, a Czech émigré returned to Prague to renovate some old family property, but gave up after years of fighting city hall for the permits. “I used to

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Kate Carson Provence, France: Aug 27th – Sept 3rd (with Chef Marcia Kurbis) Liguria, Italy: Sept 13th – Sept 20th Programs are open to all levels

For more info go to: artschoolvictoria.com and click on special events victoriaboulevard.com 97

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think Kafka was a genius,” she said. “Now I know he was merely a reporter of everyday life.”

“It’s really a 21-year-old city wrapped in a 1,000-year-old cloak,” Glen Emery told me as we drank Budvar (the original and far superior Budweiser) in U Medvidku, a big-tabled beer hall near the Národní Trída metro station. Emery is a Vancouverite who’s lived in Prague since 1990 and owned several bars here — an easy matter in a country without liquor licensing. (His latest, Napa, caters to the growing numbers of Czechs switching from beer to high-end wines.)

Emery knows Prague’s weirdness intimately, and we talked about some of its landmarks. Frank Gehry’s dancing “Fred and Ginger” building (best seen walking the car-free “I used to think Kafka eastern embankment of the Vltava River). The cinema of was a genius,” she Jan Svankmajer (look for listings of the latest Czech said. “Now I know he films with English subtitles in The Prague Post). The was merely a reporter dripping grotto walls and owl aviary in the Wallenstein of everyday life.”

Gardens, below Prague Castle.

Even Czech restaurant menus are surreal, Emery noted, joking about their obsessive citation of weights of items, and their wonky translations (200 grams of “pheasant meat esconced in forest aroma”). “In Canada, you wake up and you know what’s going to happen. Here, there still are surprises.”

“Prague: It’s Preposterous!” may not be an obvious tourism slogan, but it certainly provides a market niche. The world will always need a place where one may struggle all day, get legless at night, spin outrageous yarns, and collapse in architectural rapture, without the expenses of London or the dangers of Moscow. A place on the threshold, perhaps, between civilization and chaos.

One loopy evening, I tried the jester’s bomb. It worked: the firecracker bang rattled the cobblestoned streets. Then, a few days later, I saw him again, from the window of a streetcar. It was mid-afternoon, yet he was still wearing the same motley outfit, carrying his groceries home in a plastic bag from Tesco.

Prague’s status as an “It” city may be gone, but that’s fine with me. It’s back to absurdity as usual.

If you go: From Vancouver, the most direct route to Prague is via Frankfurt on Air Canada (about $850 return). If you’re in Europe, grab cheap flights to Prague via Wizz Air. For a sleek room in the Old Town, try Hotel Josef (hoteljosef.com).

La Degustation Bohème Bourgeoise (ladegustation.cz) offers gourmet twists on 19th-century Czech recipes. VB

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Will that be red, white or green?

How to choose wines that are

environmentally friendly

Many consumers want environmentally friendly choices these days, but when it comes to wine, what does that mean? Many ways exist to assess the “greeness” of a wine in the long journey from grape to bottle to glass.

Here are few things to look for and the questions to ask.

Different “green” terms describe how the grapes are grown and the wines are made: wines made from organically grown grapes, organic wines, and biodynamic wines.

Organically grown grapes are grown without the use of chemical or artificial fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides or other treatments. Many winemakers have adopted organic growing standards because of its benefits to healthier soils and vines.

Significantly fewer vintners, however, extend organic concepts from the field into the winery to make organic

wines. While specific regulations vary by country and even by region, organic wines are produced from organic grapes with either no (or significantly reduced levels of) added sulphites, fewer fining agents (e.g., isinglass, bentonite, or egg whites, which are used to make the wine clear) and fewer mechanical processing aids such as centrifuges. The sulphite regulations stop many winemakers from seeking organic wine status. Sulphites help to stabilize the wine and ensure a longer shelf life and most wine-makers, therefore, prefer the option of adding a small amount of sulphites to not being able to add any. (Note — if you have sulphite sensitivities, sulphites are present even in organic wines since they are a natural by-product of fermentation.)

Biodynamic® viticulture is the most extreme ideological, some would say spiritual, of all the approaches to grape growing. It is based on the 1920s work of philosopher Rudolf Steiner, who viewed the soils as an integral part of the symbiosis among planet, air and cosmos. He proposed a holistic approach that sees the vineyard as a living organism that should be a closed, self-nourishing system.

At the very least, biodynamic vineyards are free of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, but the process includes some unusual practices. It is hard not to snigger at Steiner’s instructions to bury cow horns stuffed with cow manure or animals skulls stuffed with oak bark in the vineyard, but the giggles disappear when you taste the biodynamic wines from Chapoutier in the Rhone, Nicolas Joly in the Loire, Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (one of the most expensive wines in the world) in Burgundy, and Domaine ZindHumbrecht in Alsace. Whether it’s the art of biodynamics, or the result of very careful vine husbandry and exceptional winemaking, these wines are outstanding.

One of the challenges for consumers is that producers are not obligated to include any of these terms on the label.

Many, especially small European producers, who have always used organic farming practices, see it as a private matter. The picture is further muddied because not all of the wines from a single producer necessarily have the same status. In the wine store, look for the organic section, or ask if they use a symbol to indicate that a wine is organic.

Beyond farming and winemaking, many wineries are adopting more sustainable modes of operation. Fetzer Vineyards, Torres, Parducci, and Rodney Strong Vineyards are just a few of the wineries that have invested in solar and wind energy as a means of generating the electricity they need. Going further, Torres and Jackson-Triggs have both looked at diverting the mass of grape skins, pips and stems (pommace) left after fermentation, which is usually destined for the landfill, and are working to convert it to methane, which can then be used to generate electricity.

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Check the websites of individual wineries for information on what the winery is doing.

For centuries, wine has been packaged in glass bottles — which is not the greenest solution. Yes, bottles can be recycled many times, but heavy bottles require more energy for transportation and that beautiful green glass cannot be used in clear glass production, which tends to dominate glass manufacture, and that means a lot of waste. Environmentally friendly packaging options include increased recycled content, thinner glass, larger bottles, and switching to clear bottles, or Tetra Paks. Unfortunately, we tend to turn our noses up at these alternatives and view heavier glass bottles as a sure sign of quality. Many environmentally conscious producers have stayed with glass and shied away from alternatives because of these perceptions. If we are serious about being green then we need to be more open-minded — most wines are drunk the day of purchase and long term storage is not an issue; Tetra Paks will work!

From packaging to us — location does matter when it comes to transportation and carbon emissions. We’re lucky to live so close to some great vineyards and, although they may not be organic, the decision to buy local wines can be one of the most beneficial to the environment. Look to the Island producers such as Averill Creek Vineyard, Venturi-Schulze Vineyards, Muse Winery, Alderlea Vineyards and Starling Lane Winery. Also, look for Summerhill Winery in Kelowna, which produces a full range of organic wines.

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For wine lovers, it’s difficult to limit our choices to only BC wines, so when looking for other options ask about how the wine got here: shipping has the lowest carbon emission rates, followed by trucks and then air travel.

The bottom line? Check labels and websites for organic or biodynamic wines and other environmentally friendly production; support local wine, and keep an open mind about packaging for those early consumption wines.

Recommendations:

Villa Teresa, Prosecco, Veneto (organic): A light bodied, great value, Northern Italian sparkling wine. $15.99 French Rabbit, Chardonnay (sustainable farming): A light fruity chardonnay, in a tetra-pak! $12.95 2008 Bonterra, Zinfandel, California (organic): Full-bodied, with intense black fruits, chocolate and vanilla notes. $18.99 2005 Torres, Mas Plana, Penedes, Spain (awarded Green Company of the Year by The Drinks Business): A hugely structured Cabernet Sauvignon with concentrated dark fruit, spice, cedar and vanilla notes. $46.99 2006 Chateau de Beaucastel, Chateauneuf-du-Pape (organic): A full bodied red, that seamlessly blends of red and black fruits with pepper and smoky notes. $91.99 VB

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diningIN

by ALISA GORDANEER PHOTO BY GARY MCKINSTRY

Rethinking

rabbit:

it’s local, sustainable, nutritious – and

delectable

A LIFETIME OF MEMORIES START IN YOUR KITCHEN. BEGIN YOURS TODAY.

Many people I’ve met, even those who eat other kinds of meat, seem to resist cooking and eating rabbit. For a long time, I resisted too, mostly because of the high cuteness factor. But after browsing through some old cookbooks and discovering some tantalizing recipes, I came to realize rabbit has a respected place in world cuisine and its lean, mildtasting meat is an ideal foil for flavourful sauces and tasty side dishes.

A staple of Italian and French cuisine, rabbit rivaled chicken in North America a century ago. Let’s blame its fall from favour on its looks alone, because now that we want more local, sustainable food, rabbit is a very environmentally friendly source of protein.

Rabbits have kept generations of hunters and trappers alive, and as a domestic animal, they’re easily raised, partly because they breed like, well, rabbits. Consuming plain old grass and alfalfa, rabbits are ready for market at about nine weeks of age, making for a far smaller environmental footprint than larger animals like beef or pork.

Nutritionally, rabbit is low in cholesterol, and comparable to chicken at 167 calories and 26 grams of protein per 100gram serving. It tastes like, well, chicken — but it’s all white meat, and always comes skinless, which reduces the fat content substantially.

Rabbits younger than 12 weeks lend themselves to southern-fried treatments, while older animals, since they are so low in fat, benefit from a long braise in stock or white wine to make them tender and juicy. (If you don’t know a rabbit’s age, assume it’s older.)

Good sources of local rabbit don’t have anything to do with visiting the University of Victoria. Leon Zetler, at Aubergine Foods in Fernwood, has no problem filling my order. “Regular or kosher?” he asks when I enquire after its availability. “No problem, I’ll have some tomorrow.” Other sources include Choux Choux Charcuterie, Slater’s Meats, and the Oak Bay Butcher Shop, where a recent foray also turned up fresh local rabbit for $1.77/100 grams, comparable to free-range chicken.

Google “braised rabbit” for a host of traditional French and Italian recipes (Julia Child and Saveur magazine both have a

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great braised rabbit.) Here is my own take on a Mexican-style molé to provide rich, spicy flavour and hint of seasonally appropriate chocolate. Serve with wild rice, baby greens and, of course, carrots.

CHOCOLATE RABBIT Molé sauce Roast the following in a little oil until slightly blackened: 1 Anaheim pepper 1 Fresno pepper 1 poblano pepper (Note that the more seeds you leave in, the hotter the sauce will taste.)

Meanwhile in a food processor, whiz together: 4 garlic cloves 1 tbsp olive or grapeseed oil 1 oz semi-sweet chocolate 1 small onion, chopped 1/3 cup peanut or freenut butter ¼ cup toasted almonds or sunflower seeds 1½ tsp cocoa powder ½ tsp cinnamon ½ tsp cumin 1 tsp salt black pepper to taste

Once blended, add in the roasted peppers, cooled slightly, and one large can diced tomatoes. Whiz until smooth. In a heavy saucepan, simmer until the flavours are mellowed and blended, approximately 45 minutes. This recipe makes enough for the rabbit and perhaps a chicken tomorrow night. It also freezes well.

Rabbit 1 young rabbit 2 tbsp coconut oil or butter 2 tbsp flour pinch of salt and pepper 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock Divide the rabbit into serving pieces, and dredge in flour with a pinch of salt and pepper added. In a heavy skillet, brown the pieces in melted butter or coconut oil and transfer to a covered casserole.

Add two cups of chicken or vegetable stock, and place in a moderate oven (275° to 300°F) for about one hour, or until the rabbit meat is tender. Remove the rabbit pieces, stir half of the molé sauce recipe into the juices, and return the rabbit to the casserole to simmer in the oven for another 20 minutes or so.

Serve with steamed baby vegetables and a mixture of wild and white rice, or red Thai rice for a festive pink backdrop.

Serves four to six. VB

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Find the latest edition online at www.sustainableu.ca Share the recipes and submit your own on the Sustainable U Facebook page.

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Sublime

sablefish

at Zambri’s

diningOUT By ELIZABETH LEVINSON

photo by VINCE KLASSEN

100% organic | Fairtrade | locally owned & operated

Peter Zambri, chef and part-owner of Zambri’s restaurant, loves sablefish. “It’s delicate and buttery with a good fat content and a large flake,” he says.

Zambri’s description lures me into his restaurant’s kitchen early one morning to shadow his preparation of Sablefish with Stuffed Red Pepper in Tomato Passata. In fact, nothing could get me out of bed faster.

Zambri’s has relocated to the Atrium building, downtown Victoria’s new culinary hub. The space is sleek and urbane, punctuated with touches of antiquity such as Venetian masks, gilt mirrors and chandeliers.

Zambri himself is known in the industry for his reverence of the food he dishes up. While he hails from Abruzzo near the Adriatic and his influences are the flavour profiles of Italy, his cooking increasingly reflects locally sourced ingredients.

Zambri aims to create “good food that’s approachable,” which the sablefish (or black cod) entrée exemplifies. The elements are complementary and none overwhelms the dish.

“There will be a lot happening on the plate,” smiles the chef, “so you don’t want one element with too strong a personality to take over.”

Zambri lays down a side of fish and slices it horizontally above the bone. He then cuts a couple of portions from the top of the belly (more fatty and delicious than portions closer to the tail) and sets them aside.

Next he roasts whole red peppers over an open flame until they are singed black and throws them into a sealed container to loosen the skin. When they have cooled, he peels them and makes neat vertical cuts to open each pepper and release its seeds. Zambri fills the peppers with risotto containing raisins, almonds, parmigiano and a little seasoning, and then smoothes over the cut seam to create a neat little package.

The peppers will be sauced and baked in passata di pomodoro (tomato sauce which has been passed through a sieve). “I like the contrasting acidity of the tomato with these fatty fish,” says Zambri. In his kitchen, a vat of tomato sauce is the first thing on the stove every morning. It’s a derivative of the recipe that Zambri’s mother has always made — the essential “mother sauce” from which many other dishes naturally emanate.

While the peppers bake, the fish is slowly cooked in olive oil in a cast-iron skillet “just until it’s translucent and the proteins have firmed up.”

And then comes the plating of this fish dish, which is beautiful but not showy. Zambri pools the sauce on a white plate and sets the fish, half a stuffed pepper, and julienned

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leeks atop it. A few subtle-tasting Picholine olives are scattered about and the result is a colourful, textural invitation to tuck in.

Peter Zambri’s Sablefish with Stuffed Red Pepper Tomato Passata One 68-ml bottle Italian strained tomatoes (Peter likes Italissima) ½ tsp salt ¼ c olive oil 1 c water 4 or 5 basil leaves or a pinch of dried oregano Very lightly simmer all ingredients in a tight pot for 45 minutes, making sure that the sauce does not reduce and get too thick. A thin sauce is perfect for this dish because you will be cooking it again — with the peppers in the oven — so it will have the right consistency as a finished product.

4 small red peppers — charred, peeled, and seeded 200 g risotto 600 ml vegetable stock 1 tsp salt 50 g each of toasted slivered almonds 50 g of Marsala-soaked raisins 50 g parmigiano, grated 20 small olives of your choice Gently cook the rice in the salted stock until soft. This will take about 30 minutes. Set aside until cool enough to handle.

Lightly fold in the slivered almonds and the raisins. Using your hands, fill each pepper with the rice mixture and place in a pan with the passata. Ensure that the filling is not so abundant that it is falling out of the pepper — keep it tight and clean.

Scatter the olives in the sauce.

Place the pan in a 300°F oven to keep hot. Cover the pan so the sauce doesn’t thicken or evaporate.

8 2-ounce pieces of sablefish 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil salt and pepper to taste 1 clove garlic, smashed to flavour the oil In a large pan, gently heat the olive oil with the garlic, making sure it is just warm. If the oil is too hot, the fish will stick to the pan. With this slow cooking method, you are effectively poaching the fish in the oil. Season the fish and place it skin side down in the pan until it releases itself from the pan, up to five minutes. When the skin has crisped, carefully turn the fish to continue cooking.

Set out four pre-warmed plates. Place a pepper to one side and spoon equal amounts of sauce on each dish. Divide the olives equally. Place two pieces of fish on each plate, skin side up to provide a contrasting visual element. Garnish with julienned leeks or something green, again to provide contrast.

Serves four. VB victoriaboulevard.com 111

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“Wow, right now with the wind chill it’s minus 56 degrees!

Holy co…”

My fist hits the snooze button, silencing the all-night announcer on Q92 FM Regina.

If you think losing an hour of sleep when we move to daylight savings time is tough, try hauling yourself out of bed at 4 am every workday morning. On this particular day years ago, I’m exhausted, I’m warm and I’m on the air in an hour.

Why didn’t I get an education?

The sad thing is, I did get a bit of an education. I say “bit of” because I don’t think a nine-month, correspondence-like broadcast course in 1973 can really be called an education.

After all, the real education in the morning radio game comes on minus 56-degree days. Like today!

As I roll over for another 30 seconds of denial I remind myself that this is what I had wanted to do since I was in Grade 7 (for three years) so I kick off the covers and head for the shower.

As usual, I contort myself so I’m able to pick up another five minutes of sleep with my head resting comfortably on the soap dish: ahh, feel that warm water running in one ear and out the other. As great as this is, I realize I may need to start a fire under the car to get it going today so I reluctantly turn off the happy tap and head out.

When I was young, my mom would practically have to roll a grenade into my bed to get me up for school so it’s quite ironic that I’ve ended up in a job that requires me to get up at 4 am.

In the radio business, the morning show is where you want to be. Advertisers pay top dollar here as it’s the most heavily listened-to time of the day for most people. The pressure to perform and get the ratings is huge. And the first thing you have to understand is that you have to get out of bed!

I remember assuring my first boss, Jim Laing at CFSL in Weyburn, Sask., that “I once had a job where I had to be up at 6 am, so four should be no problem.”

“Yeah, well guess what, Eddie: a lot of guys get up at six but don’t wake up until 11.” He didn’t have that problem with me. I was awake . . . just not up . . . until 7:30 on Day Two. I’m in bed very early these days but when I was in my 20s I was convinced I could have a social life and still do the morning show. I figured I could just nap a little longer in the afternoon and everything would work out just fine. (You can’t beat “20-something logic.” It’s also responsible for the classic “it’s 3 am so I think I’ll phone that girl who dumped me in Grade 11.”)

It’s Thursday. I’m in a pretty deep sleep but I decide to flip over as my sleeping bag has bunched up on me and as I do I catch a glimpse of the alarm clock. “Oh no, not again, tell me that thing doesn’t say 6:15. Crap, I’m late again!”

There is no worse feeling than frantically throwing on clothes, running to your car and hoping you can get on the air before the general manager wakes up and starts listening.

I take a quick look in my rear-view mirror. My eyes appear to be in the same socket but I think I can still drive; besides traffic’s never an issue this early.

I’m not a speeder by nature but I’ve got my foot planted on the face of Yosemite Sam on the floor mat and this ‘73 Toyota Celica is moving!

As I turn past the mall I can’t help but notice how many people shop at this time of the morning. “Wow, must be some great sale going on,” I think, and then it hits me. It’s February.

It’s dark. It’s actually 6:15 pm.

Turns out the long afternoon nap plan is not perfect but at least I’m not late!

Thankfully, those days are behind me and in 23 years of hosting The Q Morning Show and 10 years doing weather on CHEK News, I’ve finally learned to get up at 4 am and not wake up at 11. I’m still not used to it: I’m not sure if you ever get used to it. But I’d rather get up before dawn and do something I love than sleep until noon and . . . hmm; I may need to think about that. . . . VB Ed Bain hosts the Q Morning Show on 100.3 The Q FM and is also the “Weather Guy” on CHEK News. victoriaboulevard.com 113

secrets

&lies

By shannon moneo PHOTO BY GARY MCKINSTRY

ESQUIMALT MAYOR BARB DESJARDINS, 55

If Esquimalt were a person, how would you describe him or her?

I think Esquimalt is a young woman.

A bit insecure but starting to realize there’s a lot of opportunities there. I look forward to the growth and maturity.

Will you run for a second term?

To achieve a lot of things you set out to achieve, two terms is the minimum. The first term, you’re learning your role. It takes a while to get comfortable. I would like to run for a second term.

You live in a West Bay float home. Why? We used to live on the Gorge. The house was too big. The float home met all our criteria: not a lot of maintenance, brand new or nearly new, on the

waterfront, a water view. It’s a different life.

We love it. When we made the decision, my husband got rid of the lawnmower as fast as you could believe.

Have you weathered any rough seas?

The first year, 2005/06. We had four windstorms in about a month. We had such movement. In the middle of the night I was holding onto the kitchen cupboards to keep them closed. Now we use duct tape. I tape things up and go back to bed.

What’s the advantage of being Canada’s only floating physiotherapist?

I have a floating office at the marina, separate from the house. People love coming. There’s the best view out my waiting room window — boats in the harbour, otters, seals.

Which takes up more of your time, physiotherapy or being mayor?

Being mayor is a full-time commitment.

At my physiotherapy practice, I have

narrowed my hours to when there are no meetings. Physiotherapy, 15 hours per week; Mayor, 60.

Does working and living on the water influence your views related to sewage treatment?

My feeling is we have to treat our sewage even though the science may say it’s OK not to. We can’t continue to dump in the ocean. If we do treatment, let’s do it the right way. Let’s get the best solution we can. Let’s recover costs and get benefits, heat, fuel, electricity. Let’s not rush to decisions. It’s an $800-million question.

As a hobby seamstress, what’s the sexiest item you’ve ever sewn?

I took a course on sewing lingerie a long time ago. I have sewn some lingerie, satin, taupe-y and pumpkin colours. Shades of orange are my favourite. Right now I’m a jammy-pant factory. I make jammy-pants with specific people in mind. I try to capture their personality in the flannelette.

On your way to a police board meeting in September, police caught you driving with an expired licence. What happened?

I misplaced my licence in the spring.

When I renewed it I understood they would roll it over for a five-year term.

They only gave me a six-month licence.

Normally, it’s five years. And normally you get notification. I didn’t get notification. Do you look at the date on your licence? No. You wait for the notification. I used my licence as ID. People looked at it and not one person noticed it had expired. If there’s one lesson from this, always check your licence. After my experience, I had seven or eight people tell me they had expired licences.

Interview has been condensed and edited.

Familiar Faces, Familiar Places

This is Dale

Henley, Henley & Walden

Photographed at Sidney Pier Hotel by Gary Mckinstry

with his

2011 Lexus RXh 450 Hybrid

Except for his university years, for most of his life Dale has lived and worked on the Saanich Peninsula. Soon after graduation from law school at UBC, Dale returned to Sidney, specifically, where his legal practice with Henley & Walden has evolved with the life course of his long-term, dedicated clients.

Dale is a man with a drive to make the world a better place. Actively involved with many organizations, he is especially committed to the Saanich Peninsula Hospital Foundation, which he sees as a vital part of his community. Dale also worked closely with his friend and client, the late Trev Deeley when his landmark $1 million dollar donation with his wife Joyce propelled the BC Cancer Centre research facility from aspiration to reality.

Now named the Deeley Research Centre and headed by Dr. Brad Nelson, the centre’s creation captivated Dale, who continues to work with the BC Cancer Foundation today.

Naturally, Dale drives a Hybrid — “something we should be doing to lesson impact on the environment,`` he says. He enjoys his Lexus and loves its performance. It is a good fit, but when you start getting to the technical side Dale’s answers show he lacks technical acumen.

“On one of the first occasions I met with Trev Deeley (who was known as Mr. Harley Davidson in Canada) he showed me his home motorcycle collection. Not knowing better at the time, I asked him if some were manufactured in Japan — I think Trev thought I was kidding for an instant.

But then he realized I was serious. He shook his head and suggested that it might be best if I stick to law since my future in mechanics was not promising.” But Dale understands good performance, good value and great service without question. “Bob Marchand and the team at Metro are wonderful, this is my third vehicle from them and I will never go anywhere else — be assured.”

2011 Lexus RXh 450 Very well equipped from $61,500.00 Includes freight and pre-delivery inspection

the pursuit of perfection

Douglas at Finlayson, Victoria 250-386-3516