The Georgia Straight - Mask Up - July 30, 2020

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020 | FREE Volume 54 | Number 2740

ESPORTS PIONEERS

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There’s growing evidence that shielding your nose and mouth indoors and in crowded outdoor spaces provides a safety net for the community

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CANNABIS

CONTENTS

Vaporizing is more efficient than burning weed in a joint

F

6

Even if you don’t care about your fellow citizens, the latest science on the pandemic should have you scrambling to wear a mask in public places.

by Charlie Smith

or this week’s cannabis column, we’ll take you through the ABCs of vaporizers. Although most weed lovers are aware of these inhalation devices, not everyone has tried them.

According to Simon Booth, sales manager at Puff Vancouver, that’s because they can seem complicated for novices.

In a phone interview with the Straight, Booth said that the first question he asks customers is what, exactly, they want to vaporize. That’s because herbal vaporizers are designed specifically for ground dry herb. Concentrate vaporizers, on the other hand, are designed for what he called “fullmelt cannabis extracts”.

“That means that the cannabis extract will, when heated, turn into a liquid,” Booth explained. “It doesn’t turn into ash.”

Then there are vaporizers for nicotine products, which are irrelevant for pot lovers.

“We do definitely get the odd customer who comes in knowing exactly what they’re looking for or have experience with vaporizers,” Booth said. “But I would say the majority of customers that come in are first-time users.”

After checking to ensure they’re past the legal age of 19—and Booth prefers them to be at least 20—he helps them decide whether they want a multi-use or singleuse vaporizer. Next, he talks about the price and effectiveness of these devices.

Booth pointed out that there are inexpensive vaporizers that don’t function properly. Some deliver very thin vapour or even none at all. “It doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to drop $1,000 on a vaporizer,” Booth stated, “but it is important to get a certain level of quality.”

He said that when shopping for a vaporizer, people are much better off choosing a model with little or no plastic near the heating chamber. Booth said it’s far more preferable that these chambers are made of ceramic, quartz, or glass.

“With cheaper vaporizers, you also see a lack of temperature control,” he noted. “Temperature control is extremely important.”

When it comes to high-end vaporizers, Booth said weed lovers can choose between “convection versus conduction”.

He explained that with convection vaporizers, material is indirectly heated as it passes through hot air in the chamber. In conduction vaporizers, on the other hand, the heat source comes in direct contact with what’s being consumed.

“Convection is a much more effective form of vaporizing, but it’s also a much more expensive way of vaporizing,” Booth said. “So I wouldn’t say that it’s a must.”

Booth said that cannabis affects people

2

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

COVER

July 30 – August 6 / 2020

By Martin Dunphy

4

Cover illustration by Ciele Beau

ESPORTS

Sean Combs, Ashton Kutcher, Michael Jordan, Steve Aoki, and Drake realized before the rest of us that there’s big money in ESports.

By Mike Usinger

8

STYLE

You’ve heard Dr. Bonnie Henry talk about masks on transit. We’ll show you where to find facewear that makes you stand out from the crowd.

By Carlito Pablo and Charlie Smith

e Start Here Puff Vancouver’s Simon Booth says most of the people buying vaporizers are first-timers.

differently, so he wouldn’t make generalizations about the high that might come from using a specific product. But according to him, vaporizing is more efficient than burning cannabis.

“You’re just extracting all of the effective chemicals from the plant in a very specific way—a more nuanced way,” he said.

Booth added that vaporizing is also “less harsh”. And that, he said, enhances the capacity to enjoy the terpenes, which are a class of organic compounds that sometimes emit a strong odour.

“Since you’re not burning it, you’re able to get all the terpenes out of the cannabis plant in a really, really nice way,” Booth elaborated.

“It really does give you a full-bodied flavour of the cannabis that you’re vaporizing.”

Unlike herbal vaporizers, concentrate vaporizers have a filament that is sometimes wrapped in quartz. Booth said that concentrates are applied onto the element, which is heated rapidly, enabling a user to inhale. And most high-quality vaporizers don’t come with preloaded cartridges. Instead, he said, they’re refillable and designed to last longer.

As for his favourite brands, Booth listed a few brands. Storz & Bickel definitely makes his top three list, including its Craft y+, Mighty, and Volcano models. In addition, he named Davinci, whether it’s the IQ or Miqro IQ. He also described the Pax as an excellent vaporizer for portability, offering a “fantastic hit” for the size.

“All three of these are excellent vaporizers, but it really depends on specifically what you’re looking for.” g

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CANNABIS CONFESSIONS FINANCE FOOD ITALIAN DAY LIQUOR NERD MOVIE REVIEW POWELL STREET FEST REAL ESTATE SAVAGE LOVE TRAVEL VINES FESTIVAL

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PUBLISHER Brian Kalish FOUNDING PUBLISHER Dan McLeod EDITOR Charlie Smith SECTION EDITORS Janet Smith (Arts/Entertainment/Style) Brian Lynch (Books) Mike Usinger (eSports/Liquor/Music) SENIOR EDITOR Martin Dunphy ASSOCIATE EDITORS Gail Johnson (Health/Food/Wine) John Lucas (Cannabis) STAFF WRITERS Carlito Pablo (Real Estate) Craig Takeuchi (Health) SOLUTIONS ARCHITECT Jeff Li DIGITAL COORDINATOR Jon Cranny GRAPHIC DESIGNER Miguel Hernandez PRODUCTION SUPERVISOR Mike Correia SALES DIRECTOR Tara Lalanne ADVERTISING REPRESENTATIVES Glenn Cohen, Robyn Marsh, Manon Paradis, David Pearlman, Catherine Tickle

e Online TOP 5

Here’s what people are reading this week on Straight.com.

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Two-bedroom home on market for first time in 50 years sells for $4.45 million.

COVID-19: blueberry-plant outbreak, more flights with cases, and travel guidelines.

Value of Bitcoin rises after U.S. court rules that it’s a form of money.

Nova Scotia mass shooter was a drug dealer and a gun runner.

Nine sunscreens to help you avoid incapacitating burns this summer. @GeorgiaStraight

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3

ESPORTS

ESports has been a magnet for celebrity investors

T

by John Lucas and Mike Usinger

ports betting platform Unikrn. When it comes to the future of ESports, Kutcher is a true believer. As he said on an episode of the YouTube series Hot Ones last year: “This live gaming stuff is just absolutely insane. More people watched the League of Legends finale than the Super Bowl. It’s very clearly happening.”

Kutcher is also a well-known proponent of cryptocurrencies. The Seattle-based Unikrn, in fact, has its own cryptocurrency: Unikoin Gold (UKG). One UKG is currently valued at US$0.01242699. To put that in perspective, a single Bitcoin is valued at US$10,955.70—so I think we all know which one is the real unicorn.

he key to making a boatload of money is often being able to look down the road rather than chase a purebred horse that’s already left the barn. In other words, keep ahead of the curve.

The following five celebrities were groundbreakers in their respective fields, building wildly successful brands for themselves rather than following the pack.

It would have been easy for each to sit around counting their money on a yacht moored off Monte Carlo. Instead, they embraced ESports long before the mainstream had any idea folks would actually pack stadiums and spend hours on Twitch and YouTube to watch their fellow humans play video games.

SEAN COMBS

DRAKE

He might have started at the bottom, but when it comes to ESports, Drake began pretty close to the top. The Canadian music star is one of four owners of 100 Thieves.

(The others, for the record, are superproducer Scooter Braun, former Call of Duty pro Matthew “Nadeshot” Haag, and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert.)

The organization fields teams in CS:GO, Fortnite Battle Royale, League of Legends, and Valorant, but let’s not kid ourselves.

Where 100 Thieves has scored its most impressive wins is in branding and sponsorship. With the likes of JBL, Cash App, and Chipotle on board, Drake won’t have to reenact the “God’s Plan” video by doling out his own cheddar.

Hip-hop has always had a fiercely competitive side. In February of this year, Drake announced that he had signed a multi-year deal with the livestreaming service Caffeine. As part of the deal, he’ll be bringing Ultimate Rap League to Caffeine, which will live-stream its freestyle rap battles.

“I’ve always loved URL and admired what Smack and his team have been able to create, it just wasn’t easily accessible,” Drake said in a press release at the time.

“It’s exciting to be in a position where I’m able to bring Caffeine to the table and help provide URL with the tools they need to elevate the viewing experience and make it more accessible to fans.”

An organized league with a strong presence on a live-streaming channel? Sounds like Drake is turning rap into an ESport.

STEVE AOKI

Steve Aoki has never been content to have “globetrotting DJ” as the only entry on his CV. He’s also a music producer and recordlabel head. Oh, and he runs a foundation that raises funds for research into the human brain. Because why wouldn’t he? You 4

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Drake has had the Midas touch with ESports. Photo by Kathy Hutchins/Shutterstock.com

can add “co-owner of an ESports organization”—namely, Rogue—to that list.

In 2018, Rogue was acquired by ReKTGlobal, with investors including the NBA’s Rudy Gobert, Dutch DJ Nicky Romero, and members of Imagine Dragons. Rogue currently has teams active in the League of Legends European Championship and Ultraliga as well as Rocket League, Rainbox Six Siege, and Apex Legends. Rogue’s Rainbow Six Siege European roster won the R6 Pro League Season 11 this past spring.

Sadly, though, the team went on to a last-place finish at this year’s Six Invitational in Montreal.

As for Aoki, he has also developed a casino game called Steve Aoki’s Neon Dream. In the first-person infinite runner, players collect coins while listening to house and EDM tracks from Dim Mak. Synergy! Basically, Neon Dream is like an old-school arcade game, albeit one that requires players to wager real money.

The Las Vegas–based Aoki told Inc. that this venture stems from his interest in gaming in general. More precisely, it’s a direct outgrowth of his involvement in ESports. “That’s what I like to do,” he said.

“Find little gateways of entry. Once I was in, I found more ways I could get involved in gaming...and the next step was video gambling games and bringing something new to the casino floor.”

MICHAEL JORDAN

Ask a room of hoops fan for a shortlist of the game’s icons and a handful of names will come up over and over again, including but not limited to Magic John-

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

son, Shaquille O’Neal, Larry Bird, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kobe Bryant, and Bill Russell.

But there can only be one GOAT, and when it comes to the NBA, that’s Michael Jordan.

Retired since 2003, Air Jordan hasn’t lost his love of sports. And he hasn’t been a snob about what constitutes an athlete. In 2018, Jordan spearheaded a US$26-million round of funding for aXiomatic, which describes itself as a “broad-based esports and gaming company” with a mission to “connect artists and audiences”.

Positioned under the aXiomatic umbrella are organizations that include the highly respected TeamLiquid, Super League Gaming, and BITKRAFT Ventures. In a statement at the time, Jordan said: “I’m excited to expand my sports equity portfolio through my investment in aXiomatic. Esports is a fast-growing, international industry and I’m glad to partner with this great group of investors.”

The goal? Winning, of course, something that Jordan knows a thing or two about. When you’ve got a reputation as the GOAT, you don’t rest on your laurels once you’re in the game.

ASHTON KUTCHER

When it comes to celebrity investors, Ashton Kutcher is basically the poster boy.

In fact, the artist formerly known as Mr. Demi Moore is the cofounder of a venturecapital firm. Kutcher counts Airbnb and Skype among his more savvy investments.

The actor (along with Mark Cuban and others) has also invested in the ES-

He’s a man known by many names: Puff Daddy, Diddy, Puffy, P. Diddy, Brother Love, and Sean John Combs when in the company of his mother. And like many wildly successful entrepreneurs, Sean Combs has never been content to stick his fingers in a single pie.

After dropping out of university to focus on an internship at Uptown Records in New York, he first cast himself as a top-notch producer. Over the years, he’s branched out into everything from rapping (you might have heard “I’ll Be Missing You”) to clothing design (hello Sean John!) to vodka (Ciroc) to television production (Revolt TV).

It should surprise no one, then, that Puff Daddy was paying attention to ESports long before it exploded into the mainstream. Combs was part of an investment group that ponied up US$30.5 million last year to fund PlayVS. The Los Angeles-based ESports league operates as a platform from which highschool students around the States compete in ESports as representatives of their schools. Getting the chance to build a reputation in gaming is increasingly important, with many universities handing out ESports scholarships as a way to attract students.

That’s right, colleges and universities now actively seek out ESports athletes, with the best of the best encouraged to represent their schools in regional and national competitions. And, hopefully, to not drop out and intern at Uptown Records, even if that worked out okay. g

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THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

5

HEALTH

COVID-19 surge reinforces importance of masks

Even if you don’t care about your fellow citizens, the latest science should scare you into wearing one

by Martin Dunphy

A

Dr. Bonnie Henry, B.C.’s provincial health officer, backs the wearing of masks in enclosed public spaces, especially on public transit, by “everybody who can”. Photo by B.C. government

s the coronavirus pandemic continues, some countries around the world are having to come to terms with a resurgence in new cases after easing lockdown restrictions imposed earlier in the year.

Here in B.C., there has been a gradual increase in the numbers of new COVID-19 cases reported on a daily basis since the province entered phases two and three of its economic reopening. Although the uptick was expected, it is still of concern, as is the spectre of fall school reopenings and the widely predicted and almost universally accepted autumn “second wave” of the coronavirus.

So should you wear a mask when outdoors in crowded spaces or in any public or enclosed indoor spaces? The evidence seems to point to an answer of “yes”, for both personal and social protection. B.C.’s provincial health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, said at a July 16 media briefing about wearing a mask on public transportation: “I absolutely think everybody on transit should be wearing a mask, everybody who can.”

Below are some facts about the effects of COVID-19, including some of the latest science, that might scare you into wearing a mask in indoor spaces even if you don’t care about your fellow citizens’ well-being.

You also might want to check out a July 14 6

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

research letter in the prestigious JAMA publication—cited by Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the U.S.-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—showing that health-care workers in the 14-hospital Mass General Brigham system had reduced rates of confirmed coronavirus infections after universal use of masks.

VASCULAR DISEASE VERSUS RESPIRATORY DISEASE

A paper published in Circulation Research on May 8 established that 40 percent of COVID-19 deaths were related to cardiovascular complications. Another study, published in the Lancet on April 20, found that the coronavirus can infect cells that line the inside of blood vessels in the kidneys, heart, intestines, and liver of people with COVID-19, not just in the lungs.

According to a Johns Hopkins University health bulletin: “Early reports say that up to 30% of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in China and New York developed moderate or severe kidney injury.

Reports from doctors in New York are saying the percentage could be higher.”

RECOVERY TIMES

As more cases are studied by researchers, it has become obvious that many people

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

require an extended period of time to recover, sometimes for several months.

Canadian Broadway star Nick Cordero spent three months in hospital, in a medically induced coma. During this time, this involved undergoing a leg amputation, being hooked up to a heartlung machine, having kidney dialysis, and requiring a tracheotomy before dying at age 41.

HEART ATTACKS AND STROKES

After observing an unusual number of strokes, heart attacks, and pulmonary embolisms in COVID-19 patients who would not normally be considered at risk for such events, especially younger ones, researchers started looking at the causes.

One study, reported in ScienceDaily on June 30, found the possible reason: “Changes in blood platelets triggered by COVID-19 could contribute to the onset of heart attacks, strokes, and other serious complications in some patients who have the disease, according to scientists.

The researchers found that inf lammatory proteins produced during infection significantly alter the function of platelets, making them ‘hyperactive’ and more prone to form dangerous and potentially deadly blood clots.”

OTHER SERIOUS COMPLICATIONS

A whole suite of serious COVID-19–related complications are emerging as the pandemic continues. Other than pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and the abovementioned kidney and heart damage and serious blood-clotting problems, others include acute liver injury and failure, potentially lethal strep and staph secondary infections, sometimes deadly septic shock, multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C, similar to toxic-shock syndrome), and rhabdomyolysis (a rare and sometimes deadly condition where muscle tissues break down and overwhelm the kidneys).

As well, lung scarring can sometimes result in long-term breathing problems.

AMPUTATIONS

When blood clots get stuck in a vein or artery, very serious complications can develop, sometimes requiring amputation of affected extremities.

A Netherlands study published in the Thrombosis Research journal on April 10 showed a rather astonishing incidence of abnormal blood clotting in COVID-19 patients admitted to hospital. The paper concluded: “The 31% incidence of thrombotic complications in ICU patients with see next page

AIRBORNE TRANSMISSION

COVID-19 infections is remarkably high.”

A critical-care doctor—Shari Brosnahan at the NYU Langone Health academic medical-care centre—interviewed for an AFP article said of the clotting she observed in her patients: “I have had 40-year-olds in my ICU who have clots in their fingers that look like they’ll lose the finger, but there’s no other reason to lose the finger than the virus.”

Most scientists and health agencies still maintain that the novel coronavirus is spread through droplets that are coughed or sneezed out by infected persons.

However, there is a growing body of evidence that it can be spread through aerosols—much smaller droplets, less than five micrometres in diameter, that are simply exhaled while breathing and talking and that can even hitchhike on dust particles and travel on air currents— that remain airborne and linger for a long time, especially in poorly ventilated enclosed spaces. (An excellent updated review of the known science in this regard is contained in a July 8 article in the science journal Nature.)

PREGNANCY

Although most researchers thought early in the pandemic that pregnant women were no more likely than anyone else to be hospitalized as a result of contracting COVID-19, the CDC did an about-face after examining data on the subject (although the CDC did acknowledge that there were some gaps in the data analyzed).

According to a weekly (June 26) CDC bulletin, infected pregnant women had a 50 percent higher chance than nonpregnant women of childbearing age of ending up in intensive care, as well as a 70 percent greater chance of being intubated. (Recent studies of intubated COVID-19 patients show a range of survival rates.

One study—published in the journal Critical Care Medicine on May 26—that involved six ICUs in three hospitals found that 35.7 percent of the studied patients who required mechanical ventilation died.)

And a small Italian study recently found that the coronavirus can be passed to the fetus, although all the infected babies tested after birth appeared to be healthy.

AGE AND INFECTION Although sneezed or coughed-out droplets will spread the coronavirus, new research shows that merely breathing and talking can do the same. Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons/CDC

BRAIN COMPLICATIONS

A British study published on July 7 in the neurology journal Brain found that nerve damage, delirium, and strokes can occur in people with even “mild” cases of COVID-19. Brain inflammation and temporary dysfunction were also observed. Delirium, a relatively common affliction for those admitted to ICUs with COVID-19, can lead to “long-term cognitive impairments such as memory deficits”, according to the journal Science.

IMMUNITY LOSS

Researchers are still unclear on how effective antibodies generated by “recovered” COVID-19 patients will be in preventing future infections, if at all, but a British preprint (non–peer reviewed) paper published on July 11 in medRxiv suggests that antibodies circulating in the blood decline precipitously after only about two months. A larger Spanish study that appeared in the Lancet on July 6 showed that only five percent of study subjects maintained antibodies to the virus.

Finally, if you think being under the age of 60—or 50, or even 40—exempts you from having to worry about the virus, you aren’t paying attention. A study from Washington state published in medRxiv on May 20 showed that more than half of the new COVID-19 cases in the Seattle area in March and April were in people in their 20s and 30s. Prominent U.S. epidemiologist George Lemp, in a June 19 article in NPR’s health publication, Shots, said that 44 percent of new infections in California are showing up in those under 35. And new (July 27) numbers from Ontario show that almost two-thirds of all new cases are occuring in those under 40. g

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THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

7

STYLE

Unique and stylish masks can be a fun experience There’s no longer any excuse, as plentiful supplies are available online and in retail outlets everywhere

A

by Carlito Pablo and Charlie Smith

nyone who read Martin Dunphy’s COVID-19 cover story on pages 6 and 7 of this issue now knows that masks are an essential fashion accessory in the COVID era. Not only can they spruce up your look, they can also save your life, as well as those of your loved ones.

Anyone with a brain should also know by now that they’re needed when going to grocery stores and the local Shoppers Drug Mart. But people often overlook the need for masks when they’re in crowded outdoor spaces. Anyone who has walked along West 4th Avenue, Davie Street, or Commercial Drive in recent weeks has likely seen hordes of pedestrians. And they don’t always stay two metres apart from one another, in part because of all those new restaurant patios.

So do your neighbours and health-care workers a favour. Cover your nose and mouth whenever you’re in a crowd, indoors or outdoors.

But where to begin? This week, as part of our effort to get people to mask up on the

MAKE Vancouver’s quirky, fun masks can even be customized with its own printing service, and every purchase sees a mask donated to charity.

public-transit system, in movie theatres, and on busy and narrow sidewalks, we’ve prepared a list of mask retailers.

MAKE VANCOUVER

1648 Duranleau Street, Granville Island MAKE Vancouver is a one-stop shop for the entire family. The store offers masks for adults and kids. With colourful and quirky designs, wearing a face covering makes for a fun experience. Shoppers can also design their own wear, with the store’s custom printing service. It offers a 100 percent polyester mask that is fully customizable. One can use original art or choose from the store’s library of images.

For every purchase of a mask, MAKE Vancouver donates one to the KidSafe Project Society.

ATELIER GRANDI

Ateliergrandi.com/the-atelier/ GRANDI believes that women can still look fabulous with a mask on. As the Vancouver maker of luxury women’s wear declares: “Be stylin’ even with a face mask.”

The boutique shop was started in 2014 by a dressmaker who simply goes by the name of Grandy. The atelier retooled in response to COVID-19 to meet the demand for face masks. Its playful designs include many featuring fulsome lips. The masks are washable and reusable.

AW BY ANDREA WONG

AWbyandreawong.com/ AW face masks are made from 100 percent cotton and designed with a liner pocket for removable filters. Adjustable straps are made from a technical fabric 8

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

for best comfort and fit. AW by Andrea Wong is a Vancouver maker of fashion accessories, ranging from bags to backpacks and clutches. Masks can be picked up at its Chinatown location. The company offers half-price for masks intended for donations.

COASTAL REIGN

104–358 East Kent Avenue South The custom clothing-printing company started producing masks after receiving several requests. For this additional product line, Coastal Reign uses its design expertise and advance printing technology.

Choices include a full-colour twill mask that is suitable for retail environments.

Another item is an athletic microfibre mask that is more breathable and allows for increased airflow during exercise.

Also available is a mask that repels water or rain. There are mask sizes for adults and youth.

GLASNOST

Glasnost.ca/ Vancouver-based Stephanie Schneider started her clothing line in 2006 with a focus on handmade, waxed cotton rainwear. She chose the name of her company after the Russian word that means “openness”. Her masks are 100 percent cotton.

Lightweight for breathability, these also feature adjustable elastic bands for custom fit. Masks include optional filter and nose wire pocket. Shoppers have a choice of watercolour-painted face coverings.

Colours also include black, mushroom, and lilac, and there’s a two-tone mask of black and white. Schneider donates a dol-

lar from every order to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre.

LA MOVIDA FASHION DESIGN ACADEMY

3625 West Broadway This shop is selling colourful handmade cotton masks in adult and youth sizes, which include a nonwoven sewn-in filter top to reduce the penetration of moisture.

The unique nose piece can be put through the washing machine without any damage to the fabric. They come with elastic straps, which can be replaced with shoelaces for those who prefer that method to keep the mask snug on the face.

PRETTY WINGS MASKS

Prettywingsmasks.com Winnie Tan’s Pretty Wings Masks offers a variety of fabric designs. The TriCities–based company also does custom log and personalized designs. Shoppers have a choice of five mask patterns: pleated, single-pleated, 3-D with custom logo, clamshell, and fitted neoprene or synthetic rubber. There are various colours to choose from. Shipping time ranges from three to five days.

BLACKWOOD APPAREL

1015–11111 Twigg Place, Richmond Before the pandemic, Blackwood Apparel was producing aprons, chef jackets, and kitchen staff uniforms for the restaurant business. With COVID-19, the company has added a new product: washable and reusable face masks. The face coverings are made of 100 percent cotton. Blackwood has more than 25 years in the apparel business. g

ITALIAN DAY

Italian Day “love train” benefits mental health

O

by Charlie Smith

n a recent Sunday, pedestrians walking along Commercial Drive witnessed a joyful sight.

Accompanied by a police escort, a musical “love train” travelled north from Grandview Highway, through Little Italy, and along the rest of the street. Signs on the vehicle declared “Italian Day on the Drive for Courage”. And a band on the attached trailer, fronted by singer Federico Fuoco, belted out everything from Italian classics to modern pop, much to the delight of passersby. Then they returned south before ending up at the Il Centro Italian Cultural Centre on Grandview Highway.

Standing on the corner of Commercial Drive and East 3rd Avenue, Il Centro’s executive director, Mario Miceli, explained what was taking place. He told the Straight that Italian Day on the Drive for Courage draws upon the bravery that Italians demonstrated in the midst of their COVID-19 crisis, singing from balconies to cheer each other up.

“This is a way to bring the community together and show some hope,” Miceli explained. “We at Il Centro are very happy to be a partner in this endeavour.”

It may not have matched the razzle-dazzle of the annual Italian Day that has taken place in the past. But it reflected the spirit of a community that has left a large imprint on Vancouver—and particularly Commercial Drive—dating back to the arrival of Italian pioneers in the 19th century.

This year, the Italian Day Festival Society and its partners have turned what was a one-day event into a series of concerts like this. And it’s all to raise funds for an exceptionally important cause: Coast Mental Health Foundation.

Bravery shown by the singing citizens of Italy during their COVID-19 crisis inspired the Italian Day Festival Society’s “Italian Day on the Drive for Courage”. Italian Day on the Drive photo

“We decided to provide music…just to encourage people to still stay courageous in light of what’s gone on,” Miceli said.

“That’s the intention: to spread hope and courage and to make sure that people are donating toward a very worthy cause.”

They can make donations through the Italian Day on the Drive website at ItalianDay.ca.

The executive director of Coast Mental Health Foundation, Isabela Zabava, appreciates how the talian Day Festival Society has stepped up in what has been a very difficult year.

Last year, Coast Mental Health raised $2.5 million by hosting the annual Courage to Come Back Awards. She said it will be difficult to match that this year, given

that it cannot host a fundraising gala.

“They have been great partners for us,” Zabava said. “They were really inspired by our ‘Spread Courage, Not Fear’ campaign and really wanted to expand the reach of it.

And they have.”

This month, Coast Mental Health has announced four winners of Courage to Come Back awards on each Thursday of July. The first was former Vancouver Canucks goalie Corey Hirsch, who struggled with bipolar disorder when playing in the National Hockey League. He has since gone on to become a prominent public speaker on mental-health issues.

In the addiction category, former addict Amanda Staller was honoured for her courageous comeback from an abusive

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past that led her into cocaine, crystal meth, and heroin use.

The physical-rehabilitation category winner was Rumana Monzur, a former UBC student who was blinded and maimed by a relentlessly abusive husband in Bangladesh. She has since become a vocal human-rights advocate. In the youth category, the winner was Andrew Teel.

He’s a former foster kid who endured abuse and signs of posttraumatic stress disorder before finding a loving home. Teel has since created his own brand, Viere, which means “to overcome”, and launched a charity, Toonies for Teens, that has raised more than $60,000 to help at-risk youths.

“They’re extraordinary stories of triumph over extreme adversity, which people can relate to now better than they would have at any time before,” Zabava said. “So we’re receiving a lot of positive feedback from people who are watching the stories and being inspired by them.”

Coast Mental Health has 52 locations across the Lower Mainland, offering a range of services. There are divisions providing housing, support, employment, and education services, including a culinaryskills training program. Coast also has two social enterprises, Social Crust Cafe & Catering and Landscaping With Heart.

Services that were previously delivered through a clubhouse in Mount Pleasant are now being offered over the phone or through virtual means.

Zabava said that when it comes to community mental health, the most important consideration is housing.

“It’s very difficult to recover from mental illness or to maintain your mental health if you are homeless,” she stated. g

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JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

9

FINANCE

Expert emphasizes importance of setting goals

O

by Charlie Smith

ne of Canada’s better-known commentators on personal finance is Jamie Golombek. The managing director of tax and estate planning at CIBC pops up in lots of national media outlets to discuss his specialty. He also teaches an MBA course on this subject at the Schulich School of Business at Toronto’s York University.

So what does he recommend to millennials in his classes when they ask for a book recommendation? “The one thing I just tell everyone to read, of course, is The Wealthy Barber,” Golombek told the Straight by phone. “I think it’s the best book ever written in the history of personal finance.”

Author David Chilton’s book offers a commonsense guide to financial planning.

Released in 1989, it remained on the bestseller list for what seemed like forever.

Golombek said that Chilton’s advice to save 10 percent of one’s paycheque is probably sufficient for any young person to get by for the rest of their lives. Moreover, The Wealthy Barber is written in a nontechnical, folksy manner, dishing out wisdom in the form of a fable.

The CIBC executive is aware that some millennials are caught up in chasing the

The one thing I just tell everyone to read, of course, is The Wealthy Barber.

– CIBC executive Jamie Golombek

CIBC’s Jamie Golombek says it’s silly for those with big credit-card debts to load up on stocks.

hottest stocks, cryptocurrencies, or realestate deals. Others see their friends doing this and wonder if they should get in on the action. To them, Golombek offered this advice: “Speak to a financial adviser.”

But before the first meeting, he recommended that young people first think about their objectives rather than the latest

market tip on BNN Bloomberg.

“Is your goal to buy a home? To buy a condo? To move out of your parents’ home? To pay off your student debt? To buy a car? Go on vacation? Or is it saving for retirement?”

After figuring out the most important goals, people then have to figure out how to get there. And that involves not only looking at income sources but also expense sources.

“Organize that all together and come up with an idea of where your money’s going and how much is left over, if anything, at the end of the month—maybe two, three months at a time,” Golombek recommended.

He believes these steps are far more important than jumping into a stock based on a recommendation on a financial program on TV.

“If you have a credit card [debt], why would you even invest in the stock market?” he asked. “You’re not going to get a guaranteed 20 percent rate of return.”

In addition, Golombek said, it’s important for people starting down the financialplanning road to think about how much risk they’re willing to take. Another important consideration is making a list of one’s assets. There are depreciating assets, like a car or a bicycle, and those that appreciate over time, like a condo or investments in financial instruments.

He noted that when people want to improve, they often hire a professional. It’s no different with financial planning.

“There’s no obligation,” Golombek said.

“There’s no cost. Sit down and talk to them, and share with them some of the ideas you find online and get some validation.

“Because if you’re working with an experienced adviser who’s been doing this for 10, 20, 30 years, they’ve seen every scenario,” he continued. “They’ve been around through up markets and down markets, through high interest rates and low interest rates. They’ve seen housing crises.

They’ve seen it all. That person will be able to guide you.” g

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REAL ESTATE

Compassionate realtors support communities

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by Carlito Pablo

ancouver realtor Tom Choy goes by one principle about giving back to the community.

“Not everyone can be a Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, or Mother Teresa, but all of us can do something to help others,” Choy told the Georgia Straight in a phone interview.

The associate broker with Royal Pacific Realty volunteers at Salvation Army kitchens in Vancouver and Richmond.

“When you feed the hungry, you give them hope,” Choy said.

The former New York stockbroker also raises funds to support deserving but poor students at Ateneo de Manila University.

Choy, of Filipino and Chinese heritage, finished a degree in economics at that Philippine institution.

Karen Conyers of Sotheby’s International Realty specializes in White Rock and South Surrey properties. Because her passion lies in building bonds between people and animals, she serves as the chairperson and president of the Kindred Community Farm Sanctuary.

Conyers recalled that Kindred started out with children from difficult situations.

They were often on the run with their mothers, fleeing from abuse. The kids went to the Surrey farm to learn about planting crops and caring for animals rescued from inhumane conditions.

“Our goal was to break the cycle of violence, which starts at a very, very early age,” Conyers told the Straight by phone.

Kindred plans to move to a bigger location, preferably a four- to five-hectare plot, in order to expand its programs for people of all ages. The charitable organization wants to find land within its means, and it

Realtor Tom Choy says that even small acts of kindness can add up and give people hope.

welcomes support from property owners.

By Conyers’s estimation, about 70 percent of realtors, in general, volunteer in their communities.

“That’s a huge number for any industry,” she said.

Conyers cited a common misconception about realtors: “There’s a perception out there that we’re all about the money, but it’s really about helping people and caring about our communities.”

She explained that realtors do not keep

typical office hours. They enjoy flexibility in how they spend their time. They can devote attention to matters close to their heart, from cancer-fund drives to supporting sports teams.

“The heart of the realtor is very, very big,” Conyers said.

Every year, realtors from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV), Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB), and Chilliwack and District Real Estate Board (CADREB) collect blankets and warm clothing to give away during the winter.

The Realtors Care Blanket Drive marks its 26th year in 2020. The program, begun in 1995, constitutes the largest and longestrunning blanket drive in B.C. Colette Gerber of Sutton West Coast Realty serves as the president of the REBGV, which runs a number of charitable initiatives.

Gerber cited as an example the Realtors Care Shelter Drive, which helps to raise funds for housing-related charities. Every year, three such charities benefit. For 20202021, realtors chose these organizations: Aunt Leah’s Place in New Westminster, Dixon Transition Society in Burnaby, and Zero Ceiling in Whistler.

When the COVID-19 pandemic occurred, Gerber noted, realtors donated masks and money. Some provided food for children who stopped going to school, where they used to get meals.

“We are people persons,” Gerber told the Straight by phone about why realtors are involved in their communities.

In their line of work, according to Gerber, realtors sometimes hear from sellers and buyers about difficult personal issues.

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These include having fallen on hard times or financial challenges in finding an appropriate home for a family.

“These are the kinds of stories you hear, and you go, ‘Oh, my goodness, I want to help,’ ” Gerber said.

Chris Shields of Sutton Premier Realty serves as president of the FVREB, which covers Abbotsford, Langley, Mission, North Delta, Surrey, and White Rock.

“Our board has donated over $182,000 to local food banks since 2011, and many of our members throughout the valley volunteer at local food banks,” Shields told the Straight by phone.

These volunteers include Shields’s business partner, realtor Rob Christensen. “We care about the issues that affect the quality of life in our communities,” Shields said.

He also said that clients want to live in safe, healthy, and vibrant communities, with access to schools, amenities, greenspaces, and public transit.

FVREB programs include Realty Watch, which helps police keep communities safe.

The “extra eyes and ears” initiative started in 1995. CADREB adopted the program in 2003, and the REBGV followed in 2006.

Shields also said that the FVREB received an offer to purchase a 1.4-hectare vacant property owned by the board in the Guildford area of Surrey. If the sale completes, the proceeds will be held in trust in perpetuity by the Fraser Valley Realtors Charitable Foundation to fund various programs.

Vancouver realtor Choy believes that good deeds, whether big or small, transform people and the world.

“Even simple kindness counts,” Choy said. “Those little things add up.” g

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

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11

Scan to convfess

The Georgia Straight Confessions, an outlet for submitting revelations about your private lives — or for the voyeurs among us who want to read what other people have disclosed.

MOVIES

Strong Arab female role set in post-revolution Tunisia

by Janet Smith

Positives It’s been 7 months since I’ve seen my friends, and I’m a calmer, happier more positive person for it. When we wouldn’t hang out I would always hear about work and relationship problems, that was basically it. I don’t think even those people realize how unhappy they are. I feel so much better for the isolation.

Global Megacorps I think Amazon and Walmart are great and buy stuff from them all the time. All hail the giant mega corps, who make our lives easier and provide cheap stuff! I understand many of the arguments against them, but I don’t find them particularly convincing. You can buy overpriced stuff from local small business all you want. I will take my cheap convenience, we can all live together. This doesn’t mean you are better than me, like you probably think you are. Maybe I’m broke and have no choice, its Walmart or I’m sleeping on the streets.

Reality Just doing some math this morning and I wanted to see what I roughly take home annually from my job. I make nearly 50K/year (peanuts). So I took 20% off that right away because that is what the government takes.

Then, my second biggest expense is rent. Take another 15K off for that and I’m left with 20-25K as my disposable income for everything else I need to pay. Bills, food, limited fun, etc etc etc. It’s difficult to live off of such a small amount for 365 days. I’m sure a lot of you have it worse than I do. Vancouver is expensive. Canada takes too much money from us too. - Mike

Here’s the Thing, Entitled Dog Owner Maybe your dog is normally sweet. Yeah, you love your dog. That’s awesome. But if he makes other people feel scared, then you need to deal with that and be respectful of other people’s feelings and experiences.

It’s an animal, and dogs sometimes attack and hurt or even kill people.

If a human being feels threatened because of your dog’s violent and unpredictable behaviour, that’s a serious issue that you should respect.

Sorry but I have a hard time Taking people with tattoos seriously. Especially professionals

Crossroad I’ve been married a long time. We get along pretty well and have similar interests. Sex is pretty much a distant memory, but I’ve gotten used to that. Lately I’ve noticed that our ideas for the future are very different.

I’ve been working hard and full time for 30 years but I’ve had enough of the simple suburban life. I want to shake things up. Sell everything, travel for a few years, have some adventures. Live in different parts of the world. My partner wants to move out of the city and live on an acreage. Settle down in comfort. That sounds nice enough, but I’m just not there. Either one of us is going to have to give up their dream, or we will have to split up. Seems that hard decisions are ahead.

Visit 12

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to post a Confession JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

A very watchable, even magnetic, Golshifteh Farahani plays a chic, tattooed, chainsmoking psychiatrist back in Tunisia after a decade in France in the light and strikingly shot Arab Blues.

REVIEWS ARAB BLUES

Starring Golshifteh Farahani. Screens starting Friday (July 31) via www. filmswelike.com/virtual-cinema-Arabblues, selecting the Vancity Theatre.

d FRENCH-TUNISIAN director Manele Labidi’s light and radiantly shot new look at a decidedly modern but conflicted Tunis may be just the cure for your own COVIDera blues right now.

It follows the chic, deadpan, and endlessly watchable Selma, who has returned to the capital of Tunisia after a decade away in France. She’s determined to set up a practice as a shrink in a culture where secular therapy is strange and suspicious territory.

She puts her couch in her uncle’s rooftop apartment, though he warns her not to tell anyone that the man in the poster that she has hung prominently (Sigmund Freud, in a fez, no less) is Jewish.

What’s important to understand is that psychoanalysis would have been banned before the massive 2012 revolution, and in her own way, Selma is offering a hand to a people grappling with momentous chaos and cultural upheaval after the fall of the

dictatorship. And soon she has a lineup of tormented community members lined up outside her door.

What’s even more interesting is how the chainsmoking, tattooed, and Parisian-chic-without-trying Selma knocks up against the new Tunisia and its ideas about the role of women. Some assume she’s a prostitute for hosting men alone in her abode, on a divan no less; many others treat her like an amusing curiosity.

A lot of the humour surrounds Selma’s interactions with her eccentric stream of patients. But the funniest and most revealing relationship in the film is between Selma and her rebel teen cousin Olfa (Aisha Ben Miled), who wears a headscarf to hide her pink cropped hair. She’s so desperate to leave her isolated world that she’s willing, to Selma’s shock, to marry a gay guy to get out.

Above all, Selma, so magnetically inhabited by Farahani, is a very different kind of female character than we’re used to seeing from the Arab world: strong, complex, happy to be single, and equal parts wry, smart, and anxious. The fact that the film transports you to the sun-baked streets and rooftops of Tunis, as strikingly Mediterranean as it is rooted in Arab culture, is just the bonus. g

TRAVEL

Safety is Whistler’s priority for summer visitors

by Gail Johnson

W

Visitors to Whistler this summer have lots of outdoor space to explore, like the Ascent Trails, but COVID-19 protocols are in full force, so pack a mask. Photos by Mitch Winton/Whistler Blackcomb

ith B.C. travel on the books this year, Whistler makes for an easy, gorgeous getaway for Vancouverites, the stunning beauty of the Coast Mountains all around you. If you’ve visited the mountain resort in summers past, you should know that things look a little different this season, for obvious reasons.

But the pandemic isn’t stopping people from making the most out of the area’s glorious surroundings.

Sightseeing, hiking, downhill mountain biking, and the Peak 2 Peak Gondola are all on offer, in new, safe ways.

“If you can plan ahead and take a look at our safety protocols, you’re going to have the best experience possible,” Jennifer Smith of Vail Resorts Communications told the Straight. “We’re extremely conscious of the health and safety of our employees and our community as well as our guests.

“It’s a new experience for everyone,” she said. “It’s great to spend time in the outdoors right now and enjoy nature. Take a look at what you’re coming up to so you feel prepared coming into it.”

Before you leave home, pack a mask or face covering. You’ll need it for socially distanced lineups, when loading and unloading chairlifts and gondolas, and in indoor facilities. Staff are handing out masks to anyone who doesn’t have one, but having your own reusable one is better for the environment.

“We recycle all of our masks, but obviously the best way to prevent waste is for people to bring their own masks,” Smith said. “We’re really focused on sustainability, so the more that people can bring their own, the better.”

Skiers and snowboarders can use their buffs as a mask; as long as your nose and mouth are covered, anything goes. Downhill mountain bikers are showing their style with all sorts of funky, funny styles, Smith said, and all staff members are donning face coverings.

Capacity of lifts and gondolas is reduced to allow for physical distancing, with every other lift and gondola being loaded. This gives staff time for sanitization and guests more space for loading and unloading.

You’ll only be allowed on lifts with travellers in your party.

The maze lineup for the mountainbiking park might look long, but it’s been reconfigured in such a way that riders don’t have anybody standing beside them while waiting, and it moves fairly quickly.

Food and beverage options at the Roundhouse, Rendezvous, and Dusty’s are grab-and-go, with socially distanced seating inside and plenty of outdoor patio space. Bring a credit or debit card; cash is out in favour of contactless payment.

Recyclable, compostable containers and cups are being used, but you can bring your own water bottle to fill up at stations that have replaced drinking fountains.

“We’re keeping things as touchless as possible,” Smith said.

Consider purchasing your lift tickets online in advance. You’ll still need to pick them up at the kiosk, but advance payment speeds things up for everyone.

Handwashing stations can be found throughout, and high-touch surfaces are being sanitized more frequently. Still, it’s always a good idea to bring your own hand sanitizer.

If you’re looking for places to hike, check out the alpine trail system or Ascent

Trails, a series of three hikes that wind 6.2 kilometres from the base of Blackcomb to the Rendezvous Lodge through old growth forest and three biogeoclimatic zones.

You’ll be rewarded with a great workout

(1,200 metres of vertical rise) and spectacular views of the valley below.

“We’re really excited to be able to get back out with our community again,” Smith said. g

Succeed in music VCC trains you to make the music you want to make, and to succeed in today’s music industry, with an emphasis on practical and performance skills.

In addition to classical and jazz studies, VCC welcomes instrumentalists, vocalists and composers in rock and popular music, as well music traditions from many cultures.

We offer a Preparatory program, Music Diploma and Bachelor of Applied Music.

Accepting applications for September 2020. For more information attend a Zoom info session (Aug 6 or 20), or email: music@vcc.ca vcc.ca/music

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

13

ARTS

Powell Street fest comedy belies deeper purpose

by Craig Takeuchi

T

Hosts Tetsuro Shigematsu (left) and Yurie Hoyoyon (right) will provide comedic relief to the social-justice issues that executive director Emiko Morita says the Powell Street Festival is tackling.

raditional advice recommends always taking the high road. Local playwright, comedic masochist, and accomplished fool Tetsuro Shigematsu, however, is going for the low road—or the lowbrow, that is.

“In my so-called career of humiliating myself on radio, or on-stage, or on localaccess TV shows, the half-life of humiliation is such that…things that are terrible in the moment, that radioactivity somehow alchemizes over time,” he theorizes, tongue somewhat implanted in cheek, during a phone interview with the Georgia Straight. Good times, indeed.

The self-deprecating Shigematsu is waxing unpoetic about his upcoming cohosting gig for the 44th annual Powell Street Festival (PSF). Instead of being held at the Downtown Eastside’s Oppenheimer Park, it will be a live online telethon from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday (August 1) at the PSF website (powellstreetfestival.com/ ).

His inspiration? That bastion of sophistication and understatement: Japanese game shows, renowned the world over for in-your-face outlandishness.

Shigematsu will share the blame with his new partner-in-crime, voice actor and TV reporter Yurie Hoyoyon, whom he says he told, “If you feel an impulse to put me in my place, then you can try to do that.” He adds he wished her good luck in that endeavour.

Appropriately, Hoyoyon consulted her friends in Japan to devise “creative ways to torture” Shigematsu. That will include applying clothespins all over this face before yanking them off or feeding him a mouthful of wasabi. In “Uni or Not?”, a blindfolded Shigematsu will have to eat something that may be uni (sea urchin) or 14

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

something with the same texture (“maybe a slug, maybe some worms”).

“It’s for the cause,” he says she told him.

But there’s a method to this madness.

“You can see the dichotomy between the tasteful cultural output of some of the Nikkei (Japanese diaspora) artists, who are all superstars, versus what Yurie and I are going to get up to,” he says.

Shigematsu says he and Hoyoyon will serve as a counterpoint to the non-stop program of artistic works and entertainment offering “profound meditations on all manner of things”, from a video of the performance piece Winds in the Pines, about the Second World War experiences, to calligrapher Kisyuu and choreographer Shion harmonizing their brush and body movements in a performance piece.

Short films by Greg Masuda and from the Nikkei National Museum, a reading by author and illustrator Jeff Chiba Stearns of his children’s book Nori and His Delicious Dreams, and tunes from art-pop band The Deep Cove, Kaya Kurz, the McGregorVerdejo Duo, and pop and R&B group Banana Bread are also in the mix.

And then there are selections that bridge both the high and low. Clala Dance Project’s comical dance-theatre piece Emergency!! will draw upon a familiar experience: rushing to the washroom and finding it occupied.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Japanese festival without a group dance. For the Paueru MashUp Dance, Company 605 choreographed a dance—drawing upon Rajio Taiso (Japanese morning radio calisthenics) and tanko bushi folk dance—to music by Onibana Taiko. A video will feature clips of workshop participants performing the dance that those at home can

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

follow. (Even Gojira—that’s Godzilla to some of you—makes an appearance.)

PSF Society executive director Emiko Morita says by phone that she’s “very, very thrilled” to have Shigematsu and Hoyoyon “to help us navigate this really complex territory for everyone”, which includes antiracism, housing issues, the opiate crisis, and other socioeconomic issues amplified

by COVID-19.

More than ever...I’ve never been more proud to be Canadian.

– Telethon cohost Tetsuro Shigematsu

“Hopefully, some lightness and, I suppose, the great thing that comes from art and culture can carry us through that,” she says. “For me, it becomes really interesting when you strive to practise art and culture in a way that has a social-justice impact.”

Social justice is at the organization’s core, illustrated by how it responded to urgent needs in the Downtown Eastside (DTES) during the pandemic.

Morita explains that a DTES community-kitchen network that had dissolved was resurrected, and the Powell Street Festival will become a part of it with the launch of the PowellStFest Community Kitchen, for which the telethon is fundraising. The program will employ four neighbourhood

peers to cook meals for the unhoused and precariously housed in the area. (For further details, check out an article about the program at straight.com/food/ ).

She says they’re working to create economic equity, skill-building, and cultural sharing, as the festival is intertwined with the well-being of the neighbourhood. Japanese Canadians who endured the Second World War internment in B.C. understand what it means to be unwanted and displaced—and how to survive such harsh circumstances.

Shigematsu, putting his jokester persona on pause, finds the kitchen project a truly inspiring effort.

“If we can find solidarity amongst our communities…to make things better, then for me, that’s just a really hopeful example of what we can do when we recognize that we all have to work together, all of us who have been displaced, both in the present day and historically, and take care of each other.”

After all, just like how British Columbians are cooperating in order to rise out of the pandemic, collective effort for the greater good is a traditional Japanese value.

“More than ever, I feel, like probably so many, I’ve never been more proud to be Canadian…versus the sort of rampant individualism that we see elsewhere,” Shigematsu says.

That said, his expectations aren’t quite as high for his own hosting abilities.

“I fully expect the wheels to come off,” he jokes, adding that he is expecting people to think, “What is wrong with these two?”

“We’ll be disowned for a good while and Yurie will be sent back to Japan…and I’ll be once again a social pariah.”

With this much fun in the works, one can only hope that’s not the case. g

ARTS

Vines Art Festival gets you outdoors in a different way

by Janet Smith

Coming soon — Opens August 6

SHAME AND PREJUDICE

A Story of Resilience

By Kent Monkman

Nonbinary drag artist Bo Dyp (left, photo by Cole Schmidt) and multidisciplinary artist Mildred Grace German are among those creating sonic performances at this year’s Vines Art Festival.

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ou won’t be able to join crowds at the eco-activist Vines Art Festival this year, but organizers are putting together sonic performances and an interactive map that will help you get outdoors and tune in to the celebration in a different way.

Outside of the online programming as the sixth annual fest runs Wednesday (August 5) to August 15, you’ll be able to explore six parks online through artist Adriana Contreras’s map. It creatively guides you through the green spaces, highlighting things like the indigenous flora and fauna and the geographical history. While enjoying your socially distanced visit, you can download and play specially crafted playlists customized to each area.

You’ll find a wide variety of styles and messages across the soundscapes, from the Queering Histories sonic performances for David Lam Park to the Freedom: Stories of Black Liberation playlist for Creekside Park.

That reflects the sixth annual fest itself, which has evolved to embrace issues of climate change, Indigenous and BIPOC rights, and more. Freedom: Stories of Black Liberation fans out into a full Facebook and YouTube Live event on August 7, with performances including a multimedia work

by Afro Van Connect and storytelling from Siobhan Barker. On August 15 via the same platforms, Resilient Roots returns with a program of queer, trans, and two-spirit Indigenous performances, including formpushing nonbinary drag artist Bo Dyp, from the Musgamagw Dzawada’enuxw nation.

To get an idea of the diversity of voices you’ll find on the sonic performances tailor-made for each park, look no further

than the Trout Lake version, titled Complexity of Together.

“I submitted the song I did because it’s questioning the status quo—and I think that’s one of the fundamental aspects of Vines for me,” says one of its contributors, Zion Fyah, who’s performed live at the event for the last several summers.

His guitar-driven reggae song is called “Free-Dumb”. “It’s a study of how language reflects thoughts and how language is regressing toward a negative hue—like saying something is really bad when it’s really good—like saying ‘You killed it’ or saying ‘That’s sick.’

“That becomes a kind of a cage, a jail where the culture becomes negative in a way that affects you to your core.”

Fyah has a roster of hundreds of songs, but this one seemed to speak most directly to this moment of quarantine and political activism, he says. “My son has a bunch of my songs in his phone and he was playing it in my car,” he explains, referring to his 13-year-old, “and it was like a bolt of lightning—like, ‘That’s the one.’

“These days one of the topics at the forefront of our minds is freedom,” he adds.

“The song is about that too: not being tied down to any nationality or religion.”

Elsewhere on the Trout Lake soundscape, Filipino-Canadian multidisciplinary artist Mildred Grace German, whose work skews more towards performance art, integrates her own voice with traditional bamboo and gong instruments from the Philippines, as well as electro sounds and even sampled animal noises.

Called “Huwag Kang Baby/Year of the Swine”, the work interweaves issues of

The Daddies (detail), Kent Monkman, 2016.

August 6, 2020 – January 3, 2021 moa.ubc.ca This exhibition is produced by the Art Museum at the University of Toronto in partnership with the Confederation Centre Art Gallery, Charlottetown, and has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada, the Canada Council for the Arts, and the Ontario Onttario Arts Council. Lead Sponsor: Donald R. Sobey Foundation.

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JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

15

LIQUOR

Head somewhere truly exotic with a classic cocktail Convincing yourself that you’re in hot and humid Brazil isn’t that hard after a couple of Caipirinhas

P

by Mike Usinger

erhaps somewhat fittingly, the summer of 2020 started out less than spectacularly in Vancouver. Think of it as some ongoing plan by the great God and creator above— the one who’s spent almost all of this year laughing her ass off at the world and the flaming gong show that it’s become. A world where the only thing that gets you through the day is search for endless cocktail recipes online, classic and otherwise.

When that is, you aren’t coming up with your own future-classic cocktail recipes.

At the risk of stating the obvious, there was plenty to endure in the spring. This includes, but not limited to, the cancellation of the NHL season just as the Vancouver Canucks were on a complete roll with one straight win. And also the continued existence of, in no particular order, Hank Williams Jr., Jared Kushner, Ted Nugent, anyone with the last name Trump, and Satan.

Then came a classic West Coast Juneuary, which was to say three straight weeks of weather that made you seriously question why you don’t live someplace where it doesn’t rain from dawn to dusk 365 days per year. Like Mawsynram, India. Or Emei Shan, China. Or Cropp River, New Zealand. They should name a classic cocktail after each one of those places, each one of those classic cocktails should come with a miniature umbrella—but November-skies black rather than Tiki-chic festive. And perhaps festooned with cocktail recipes.

But enough doom and gloom. After a typically grey June, and a decidedly chilly beginning of July, summer finally arrived on the West Coast roughly a month after the official start of the season.

Finally, it’s like being in Brazil, only without the humidity. Without the humidity.

Here’s what’s great about summer finally arriving: from now until the weather turns depressing again—we’re going to guess, given the way the year has gone, sometime around September 5—it’s going to be easy to transport yourself to someplace exotic.

Because God knows that you’re not going from previous page

who passes out in a puddle of your drool after half a wine spritzer, maybe cachaça isn’t for you.

Whereas most rums available in North America are made from molasses, cachaça starts with fresh sugarcane. That makes it more along the lines of a rhum agricole (which for whatever reason remains almost impossible to find on this side of the border).

Even though 99 percent of cachaça is consumed in Brazil, you’ll have little trouble finding it in the Great White North.

Knocked back straight, cachaça indeed tastes a lot like tiger’s breath, although with sweet and fruity undertones. By law it has to come from Brazil, with the ABV clocking in between 36 and 48 percent.

Assuming that aged cachaça isn’t in your price bracket, do like the Brazilians: grab a lime and some sugar, along with muddler and ice and you’ve got a Caipirinha (see recipe below). A couple of easyto-execute steps, and it’s just like being n Rio de Janeiro at Carnival, only without the floats, beads, and endless crush of humanity. Just remember that they go down fast and easy, which is another way of saying that sometimes restraint is important unless you want to wake up with a Christ the Redeemer–size headache.

Here’s a basic recipe for a Caipirinha.

As always there’s nothing to stop you from inventing your own take on the classic cocktail by adding fresh basil, blackberries, or whatever else you’ve got on hand to add to the mix.

CAIPIRINHA If you’ve got a lime, sugar, ice, and Brazil’s national liquor, you can make an easy Caipirinha.

to Brazil anytime soon, especially considering that usually involves a transfer in the States, which basically looks like a real life sequel to Outbreak.

So transport yourself somewhere hot, humid, and exotic with a homebound South American-themed happy hour.

As national drinks go, few are more

global warming, colonialism, forced migration, and police and government brutality, showing how they are inextricably tied together around the world.

Her ongoing project had its genesis a couple of years ago, in her first trip back to the Philippines in 20 years, visiting her home province of Tacloban, where the ravages of 2013’s Typhoon Haiyan could still be seen. Its destructive force was largely attributed to global warming.

“It was emotional for me to see it and witness it,” she explains. “I saw the anguish of the land, there not much rehabilitation. It made me question, how do we really sustain 16

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

idiotically simple than Brazil’s stupidly delicious Caipirinha. To make this classic cocktail, you need only three ingredients. The big one is cachaça, which is also known as Brazilian rum—as well as unofficial names like “heart-opener” and “tiger breath”. All of which is another way of saying that if you’re the kind of person

climate-change-affected areas?”

Around the same time, Canada was under fire for shipping its mountains of garbage to the Philippines. Adding to German’s distress was seeing her homeland under the tightening fist of state-sponsored violence and police brutality—issues she now sees rearing their heads in North American streets.

All these ideas swirl into “Year of the Swine”, as does German’s personal experiences as a forced migrant. She was separated from a mother who came to work in Canada, only joining her years later. “That’s opened my eyes to displacement,” she says. She’s also deeply interested in

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020

1 lime, cut into wedges 2 heaping teaspoons sugar 2 ounces Cachaça 51 Muddle the sugar and lime in a shaker.

Fill halfway with ice, shake, and then pour everything into an old-fashioned glass. g Mike Usinger is not a professional bartender. He does, however, spend most of his waking hours sitting on barstools.

Indigenous claims to land in her adopted home country.

These are the kind of complex ideas that find their unique voice at Vines.

Says German: “My choice as an artist is to show solidarity with what’s happening right now, systemic racism and reflecting in Mother Earth and climate change and how they’re all interconnected.” She adds that she’s grateful for the freedom to express those ideas in a public space—even if that space is a digital one this year. g The Vines Art Festival runs from August 5 to 15 at venues online and around town.

FOOD

Keep your cool with delicious DIY frozen desserts

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by Gail Johnson

e’ll do anything to beat the heat here at the Straight, and if that means cooling off with frozen summery desserts, so be it. We checked in with some of the city’s top culinary talents to get their recommendations for icy DIY deliciousness so you can stay cool.

For Kenta Takahashi, pastry chef at Boulevard Kitchen and Oyster Bar, stone fruits scream summer. “I like other summer fruits, like berries, but stone fruit is such a special thing for me,” Takahashi tells the Straight. “Strawberry season is winter in my home country [of Japan], and berries are still in the market in other seasons, but stone fruits aren’t. I love to taste summer with those fruits.”

One idea is a frozen peach smoothie.

“Pair the sweetness of the peaches with a splash of grapefruit juice, which adds a sharp note that balances out bitterness and acidity,” he says. Blend with ice. For adults, spike it with a shot of Soho Lychee Liqueur to boost fruity flavour.

Railtown Café pastry chef Shelley McKenzie likes to re-create paletas, or Mexican-style popsicles, which she discovered while traveling in Latin America.

I like to have DIY ice-cream sandwiches on hand.

– Amy Ho

Boulevard Kitchen pastry chef Kenta Takahashi loves summer fruit. Photo by Leila Kwok

Simply purée fruit with a touch of sugar and a bit of cream and pour into popsicle moulds or Dixie cups. “Mango, with its natural creaminess, works really well here, but the options are limitless,” McKenzie

says. “You can make some for the kids and not worry about a lot of sugar, food colouring, and artificial flavours. For an adult taste, add a splash of something special, like rum, tequila, or gin.”

Frozen desserts are some of Amy Ho’s favourite summertime treats. “I like to always have individually wrapped DIY homemade ice-cream sandwiches handy, ready to bring to a socially distant barbecue or offer guests after dinner,” says Ho, author of Blooms and Baking.

Ho has a few ways to elevate storebought ingredients for ice-cream sammies; one is using brownie mix. She’ll divide the batter into two prepared pans, with parchment paper hanging over the edges. After they’ve cooled completely, you can scoop any flavour of ice cream on top of one of the layers, spreading with a spatula. Top

with the other slab, freeze, then slice into squares (nine to 12) when ready to serve.

Another is to use cookies. All you need to do is place a generous scoop of ice cream between two of them. “To take your icecream sandwiches to the next level, transfer ice cream of choice onto a sheet tray and spread even with a spatula, wrap tightly with plastic wrap, and freeze for four hours or overnight until firm,” Ho says. “When ready to assemble sandwiches, use a circle cookie cutter that is of similar size to your cookies to stamp out ice cream ‘cutouts’ to sandwich between cookies.”

Ho makes ice-cream “drumsticks” by melting chocolate chunks or chips and coconut oil (about 1 tablespoon of coconut oil for every cup of chocolate chunks) in a double boiler or in the microwave. “Drizzle the chocolate into the waffle cones and swirl around to coat the inside of each cone,” she says. “Place the cones on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for 15 minutes or until the chocolate has set.”

From there, pack ice cream into each cone, then dip the top of each cone into the melted chocolate to seal the cones. Top with nuts or sprinkles, and freeze for at least four hours. g

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To ensure the consideration of your views, your comments, name and address must be received on or before August 22nd, 2020. Please note that your comments may be made available to the applicant or local government officials where disclosure is necessarry to adminstrator the licensing process.

Parkinson Society BC offers over 50 volunteer-led support groups throughout BC. These provide people with Parkinson's, their carepartners & families an opportunity to meet in a friendly, supportive setting with others who are experiencing similar difficulties. Some groups may offer exercise support.

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Residents located within a 0.5 mile (0.8km) radius of the proposed site comment on this proposal by: 1) Writing to: The General Manager C/0 Senior Licensing Analyst Po Box 9292 Victoria, BC V8W 9J8 2) Email to: LCRB.SLA@gov.bc.ca

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604-568-6601 JUNE 25 6– /JULY 2 / 2020 GEORGIA JULY 30 – AUGUST 2020 THE THE GEORGIA STRSTRAIGHT AIGHT 19

N EW H O M E N EW H AVE N

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This is not an offering for sale. Such offering can only be made by way of disclosure statement. E&O.E.

20

THE GEORGIA STR AIGHT

JULY 30 – AUGUST 6 / 2020