THE SCOPE | st. john’s arts and entertainment magazine | SEPTEMBER 2011 | Volume 7, Number 8 | Issue 122 | www.thescope.ca
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I saw you playing with your two trained cats at the War Memorial last night. Then you clapped, started walking and they followed you down Water Street! COOL!
I saw you smoking at the public memorial service for a man who died of cancer. I understand you have an addiction, but I still thought it was pretty disrespectful.
thescope SEPTEMBER 2011
issue 122, volume 7, number 8 Online www.thescope.ca E-mail inbox@thescope.ca Listings listings@thescope.ca Mail PO Box 1044, St. John’s, NL, A1C 5M3 Phone 709-726-8466
Publisher Bryhanna Greenough publisher@thescope.ca Editor Elling Lien editor@thescope.ca Listings Editor Nathan Downey Editorial Assistant Sarah Smellie Production Assistant Morgan Murray Advertising Sales Elaine Pond (709) 699-7299 elaine@thescope.ca Advertising Sales Lisa Cook (709) 693-5028 lisa@thescope.ca
COVER ART
Cover illustration by Ricky King
More contributors Andrew Harvey, Adam Clarke, José González, Kelly Bastow, Michael Butler, Nathan Downey, Taryn Sheppard, Ricky King, Andrew Wickens, and Rob Brezsny. The Scope is St. John’s arts and entertainment newspaper, published by Scope Media Inc. 24,150+ copies of The Scope are printed monthly and distributed throughout the metro area. The Scope seeks to publish a newspaper that will entertain, inform, and foster cultural development in the St. John’s metropolitan area. The Scope claims absolutely no responsibility for the City of St. John’s plans to seek corporate sponsorship to help fund its school crossing guard program, nor for the inevitable appearance of video-screened safety vests commanding drivers to drink more Ovaltine. All rights reserved. © 2011 Proudly independent and locally owned. Founded way back in 2006.
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Back feed
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Who'll let the dogs in? Huh? Huh? With rent on the rise and the increasing landlord reluctance to allow pets, poster Dee went on a rant, and thescope.ca readers responded... Rant by Dee: Anyone else desperately trying to find an apartment for this fall? Anyone else feeling the pressure of the 0.5 per cent vacancy rate that’s plaguing the greater St. John’s area? Day and night I’m consumed with this task, lining up appointment after appointment, only to be called an hour before and told that it’s taken. And God forbid I have a dog! She hasn’t made a noise in her life, but because she’s a dog I’m some kind of ****ing skeet who’s out to destroy carpets and laminate flooring, I am therefore unrentable. The fact that I work full-time and have great references means jack s***. Comment by G: Well said. You could always buy an overpriced piece of crap with warped floors from someone who paid less than half for it a few years ago. Then you could rent out the basement for $850 POU and get the tenant to pay your mortgage. I truly think that no one should be allowed to profiteer off of the need for a living space of others in an advanced society. People with “income properties” are leeches, sucking the life out of students and the lower-middle class. 9 Anonymous's reply to G: Actually, income property owners provide people with places to live, usually nice places. They are not leeches, they are providing an essential service and they deserve to be compensated well. Would you prefer a completely socialized housing system? Let me tell you, I would trust any of my landlords, past or present, much more than some government bureaucracy. I have never felt ripped off by a landlord, nor have I ever had trouble finding a decent place to live in St. Johns. I’m sure there are bad ones out there, but that’s no different than anything else. Comment by Cotter: Well, ignoring reality isn’t going to work. If a landlord doesn’t want animals, then it’s their right. If the vacancy rate is low, then renters compete and you have to make yourself a better candidate. In a few years it’ll swing around and landlords will be competing for tenants. Comment by Anonymous: I almost felt sympathy for you until I got to the part about
your dog. Landlords don’t owe you anything, if you don’t own a house you have no business owning a dog. It’s always, “I can't find a place to live, but...” and they start whining about their dogs, or cats, and how they demand a place where they can smoke and party, how they won't live in a basement, how it needs to be really nice place for penny rent downtown. My advice is to put the dog up for adoption, and don’t get another one until you have stable living conditions. 9 Gus's reply to Anonymous: Wow, it’s true, the nouveau riche really are a bunch of douche bags. Comment by Dog Gone: I’m in the same boat. I’m living in a little tiny apartment with my boyfriend and our four-pound Chihuahua. We’re lucky we got this place, our land lady is a dog lover. But I'm looking around now, for something in the East End, with two rooms, and an actual kitchen. And it's impossible. The prices people want are insane. Comment by No Pets Please: Speaking for ourselves, the reluctance to rent to people with pets is due to having our property damaged by the pets of previous tenants. The damage deposit only goes so far, and it is not usually worth the hassle to chase after a former tenant for the balance of the cost to fix the problem (which they are responsible for). If you have a pet and have rented, do what another poster mentioned and call anyway, you may get lucky. And if you don’t, it’s likely because the only way to guarantee no property damage from pets is simply to not allow pets in the first place. Comment by William: I, for one, will likely look for work outside Newfoundland after school, not for lack of work, but because the cost of living doesn't match the average salary in my field. If I'm going to pay the same rental rates as major cities across Canada, without the rights, or protections (i.e. rent control), then I'm going to look for work in other cities. If St. John’s wants to charge rent like a big city, then they should act like a big city. The debate rages on, have your say at goo. gl/krHaj
SEPTEMBER 2011
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the scopeˇs
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besT OF
st.johnˇs Readersˇ survey Have your say...
The Scope's Best of St. John's Readers' Survey is back. Now's your chance to have your voice heard about your favourite things in the St. John's Metro Area (that includes you too Mount Pearl, Paradise, Torbay, Portugal Cove-St. Philips, and CBS.) As always, the best of each category will be decided entirely by your votes. The results will be published in a special print edition of The Scope. By voting you'll automatically be entered in a draw to win this year's grand prize: a gift certificate to Raymonds Restaurant valued at $250. Ten other lucky ducks will win gift certificates to Pi Gourmet Eatery valued at $30 each. Fill out your ballot online at thescope.ca Polls close Monday October 31 at midnight.
CITY LIFE
Best Steep Street Friendliest Local Best Animal For a St. John’s Mascot Best Little Reason to Live in St. John’s Best Newfoundland Tradition Due For a Revival Best Underappreciated Grassroots Organization Best Volunteer Opportunity Best Local Employer Best Place To Talk to Strangers Best Local Moustache Best Office Space for the Officeless Best Twitterer Best Athlete Best Place To Be Naked Outside Best Bus Route Best New Building Best Summer Destination Best Winter Destination Best Local Slang Best Spot for a Secret Web Cam Best Townie (F or M) Best Bayman (F or M) Best Place To Set Off Fireworks Most Photogenic Spot Best Beach For Sunbathing Best Student Hangout Best Playground Best Queer-Friendly Hangout
vote now at
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Best Place To Take Kids BEST Unique Place to Take Out-Of-Towners Best Road Trip Best Thing To Happen To St. John’s In A Long Time If I Was Mayor, I Would…
ARTS & MEDIA
Best Photographer Best Festival (Non-Music) Best Voice on Radio Hardest Working Journalist Most Addictive Local Website or Blog Funniest Local Best Local YouTube Video Most Captivating Play Most Exciting Visual Artist Best Exhibit Most Informative Local News Source Most Intriguing Outdoor Sculpture Most Thought-Provoking Author Smartest Local TV Personality
SHOPS & SERVICES Best New Shopping Experience Best Mom & Pop Business Best Place to Spend $20 Best Window Display Best Local Advertising Slogan Best Entrepreneur Best Service (Non-Restaurant) Best Clothing Store (Women) Best Place to Buy Accessories Best Place to Buy Sneakers Best Hair Salon (Female) Best Place for a Haircut (Male) Best Yoga / Pilates Studio Best Dance Studio Best Wax Best Cell Phone Provider
Best Wedding Photographer Best Realtor Best Accountant / Tax Preparation Best Tailor Best Car Wash Best B&B Best Sporting Goods Best Home Décor Store Best Garden Supply Best Daycare Best Place to Buy Newfoundland Kitsch Best Store St. John’s Needs
MUSIC & NIGHTLIFE Live Show of the Year Best Music Festival Musician of the Year Best New Band Best Straight Up Rock Best Alternative Rock Best Folk Best Punk Best Metal Best Jazz or Blues Best Traditional Session Best Tribute Band Best Band Name Best Band with the Worst Name Best Album Artwork Best Show Posters Best Place to Hear Live Music Best Dance Floor Best Bang For Your Night Out Buck Best Non-Drinker’s Night Out Best Place to Meet a Sexy Someone Band/Musician You’d Like to See in St. John’s Best Late-Night Walk
OTHER
Best Category We Missed What The Scope Needs More Of
I saw you texting in the passenger seat, while your dad was texting while driving! Example of a great role model!!!
september 2011
jordan bennett
hot tickets Our picks for the month. Written by Nathan Downey.
THINK GLOBAL ACT LOCAL
refugee camp in the heart of the city September 8 to 11
As drought and famine grip the Horn of Africa, hundreds of thousands of refugees are fleeing the lethal food shortage and taking up residence at camps in parts of Kenya and Ethiopia. For a taste of what life is like for these, and 43 million other refugees worldwide, Doctors Without Borders is setting up a mock refugee camp in Bannerman Park. This international event has been going on since 1995. Visitors to the exhibit will receive an interactive tour of the camp, learning about the daily perils and challenges faced by refugees, including access to medical care, food, and clean water. Refugee Camp in the Heart of the City runs from Thursday, September 8 to Sunday, September 11 in Bannerman Park.
refugee camp in DR congo
art (Not the john ritter movie)
problem child September 10
When applied to the world of arts, the French term enfant terrible seems to rise above its negative connotations of unruly, embarrassing behaviour, instead describing avant-garde innovation. Which, in art, is a good thing. This fall, The Rooms is hosting an exhibit of art from four Canadian enfants terribles. Their art is transgressive, challenging, and unorthodox, from the queer performance art of Newfoundland-born Mikiki to Jordan Bennett’s sculpture and paintings that interpret and depict Native Canadian culture in fascinating new ways. Problem Child runs from September 10 to December 31. album launch
Mark Bragg: Your kiss September 16
It’s been nearly seven years since the release of Bear Music, Mark Bragg’s sophomore album, but he hasn’t
been twiddling his thumbs. This month, Bragg is back with Your Kiss, an album recorded with his backing band, The Butchers. “This record is a lot more bombastic," he says. "The songs are more intense and lively.” Your Kiss features nine songs which run the sonic gamut from proggy suites to Springsteen-esque fist pumpers and loungey ballads. Mightypop is throwing the release of Your Kiss on Friday, September 16 at the Rock House. Doors are open at 10:30pm. He'll be joined by BA Johnston, Hamilton’s weirdo emeritus, and former Bragg right-hand man Brent Randall and His Pinecones. book LAUNCH
Joel Thomas Hynes: Straight Razor Days September 13
It’s been a busy year for local actor, filmmaker, and writer Joel Thomas Hynes. He recently released a saucy chapbook called God Help Thee: A Manifesto, and his film Clipper Gold, which he wrote and directed, will debut at the 2011 Atlantic Film Festival. This month will also see the release of Straight Razor Days, on Pedlar Press, Hynes’ first full-length, nonnovel book. It's an intimate collection of short narratives, prose poems, and dramatized non-fiction, including “Conflict of Interest”, a story for which Hynes received The Telegram’s 2010 Cuffer Prize. Straight Razor Days explores themes of male identity, fathers and sons, vintage motorcycles, book burnings, addiction and recovery, and rural life. The official launch takes place on Tuesday, September 13 at The Ship, at 7:30pm. books on film
jane eyre
September 29 There’s no point denying that St. John's lacks certain cherished institutions common to other provincial capitals. Like an art house movie theatre. The closest thing we've got is the MUN Cinema Series, a weekly dose of limited-run films that ordinarily wouldn’t grace the Empire Theatres’ projectors. On September 29th, the series brings the 2011 reboot of the oftremade-but-seldom-done-well Gothic classic Jane Eyre, in case you missed it when it didn’t play here in March. The MUN Cinema Series runs every Thursday evening at 7pm at Empire Theatres in the Avalon Mall. Tickets are $10, and $9 for students and seniors. Visit www.mun.ca/film/ for a full list of showings. mark bragg
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your city WILL a connected Council make a more efficient council?
T
he torrential rains on the Friday night of this year’s Folk Festival did not bode well for festival organizers. On Saturday morning, when City Parks and Recreation staff took a look at Bannerman Park, they made the hard decision to close the park to prevent permanent damage. What could have been disaster for one of St. John's most beloved festivals turned out to be a manageable challenge for Anita Best and the festival team. Ward 1 Councillor Danny Breen says he got a call from Best on Saturday morning after the show was called off in Bannerman Park. Breen is council's representative on the board of St. John's Sports & Entertainment Committee, which is responsible for running Mile One Centre. By fortuitous circumstance, there Andrew already happened to Harvey andrew@thescope.ca be a stage and lighting set up from the night before, when Pitbull played to a sold-out crowd for Summer Blast 2011. Breen says that after making a few quick calls to make sure they could staff an event of this size, the show was back on. “It’s a great example of how people in St. John's pull together when someone experiences a problem,” he says. One operations manager even came back from vacation in Marystown for the event. “They did whatever they could to make it happen.” Of course the move to Mile One did have an impact on the festival, as beer and food sales were not allowed due to existing contracts. In a special message of thanks on the Folk Festival website, Anita Best says they “miss[ed] the revenue from the beer tent and our attendance was not what we were hoping, but as it says in the old song 'we will not be cast down.'” Breen says the city knew, financially, this move was going to hurt the organization, so council decided they “[were not] going to hand them a bill after that.” After a quick email poll of council, the decision was made to waive any fee to the Folk Arts Society for the use of Mile One. Breen says the cost for the rental would have been in the range of $7,000. Breen also says that technology was a huge help in this case. In matters such as this, where a quick vote from council is required. “Some matters are time-sensitive,” he says. These votes are used for spur of the moment things like saving the Folk Festival and last minute road closures for Republic of Doyle shoots. While we anxiously await the unveiling of the new city website, and the transition from paper to tablet computers for council, we can be glad for the Folk Festival's sake that our councillors at least have smart phones.
Comment on this article online at
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I saw you. But I was mid-bite into a moose burger so I couldn’t say hi. And you walked away. So maybe it’s for the best anyway…
storefront
Local small business news by Sarah Smellie. Read more at thescope.ca/storefront CLOTHING & FASHION
New designer, new shop
Put down that mass-manufactured, genericbrand dress. Melanie Francis, of Melanie Jacqueline Designs, wants to get you into a more creative, better-fitting frock at her sparkly new store above The Ship at 267 Duckworth. “We do very funky, fun, cool, bright clothing,” says Francis. “Dresses, shirts, skirts, leggings, everything. They’re one-ofa-kind designs. The exact piece has never been made twice. It might be the same style, but we always switch the colour or the fabric.” She imports all that fabric from New York. You can browse the selection and buy off the rack, or you can choose a design to be custom made to your taste. Just ask, and Francis will schedule you in for a measure. Her boyfriend and co-conspirator, Darryl Couch, has also set up his Spun T-shirts shop there. Flip through binders of clever T-shirt transfers and design your own custom shirt to be made on the spot. If you’d like one of those designs on, say, your new Melanie Jacqueline skirt, they can do that for you, too. Francis has been designing and sewing her own clothes since she was in high school. She had a successful home-based studio in her native Deer Lake and decided to move to St. John’s last summer. “That’s when things really took off,” she says. The doors to Melanie Jacqueline Designs opened on August first and, according to Francis, business has been fantastic. “Oh my God, I love it,” she says. “It makes it real, for sure. This is a huge passion of mine, and I could stay here for hours and make clothes, it’s what I love to do.” For a preview of Francis’ designs, head to her website at www.melaniejacqueline.com.
CLOTHING & FASHION
YOUNG VINTAGE
And there’s more good news for downtown fashionistas. Rosie the Rebel, St. John’s newest addition to the vintage and retro clothing scene, is slated to open on August 25th at 254 Water Street. “Everything is retro, vintage and vintage reproduction,” says owner Ellen Guthrie. The store offers both women’s and men’s clothing, as well as shoes and jewellery. “I want it to be unique,” she says. “I want people to come in and find something wild that they would otherwise have to buy online or just wouldn’t be able to find at all.” Rosie the Rebel stocks classic vintage, a few
consignment pieces, and vintage reproduction by labels like Sourpuss, Bettie Page and Heartbreaker. “Vintage is my obsession,” says Guthrie, “but vintage reproduction is great because you can worry about not putting too much wear into it. With vintage, you don’t know how much wear has been put into it and you have to be delicate with vintage pieces.” She worked in the vintage trade in Toronto, after studying both business and fashion design. “This has always been a dream of mine,” she adds. “It’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do. Some people want to be a ballerina and then they want to be a doctor, but I’ve just always wanted to own my own store.” Guthrie, who is only 25, moved here three months ago to be closer to her family. After spending a bit of time here, she decided that St. John’s was the perfect city. “I was worried about my age and thought that maybe I was too immature,” she says, “but, hey, look at Twisted Sisters—they opened when they were about my age!” It’s true. Jaclyn and Tennille Ashley were 23 and 25, respectively, when they opened Twisted Sisters. Melanie Francis, over at Melanie Jacqueline Designs, is also 25. “It seems like there’s a good platform for youth to venture into being an entrepreneur here,” she says. “In Toronto, where I was originally going to open, it’s really tough. You don’t see a lot of young entrepreneurs there. Retailers there have all been around for twenty or thirty years, and you’ve got to go head-to-head with the veterans.”
NEW BUSINESS
Fresh business ON Freshwater
When I asked No. Eleven Chinese owner Yang Zhou how long he’d been open, a customer on his way out the door turned and said, “This is the best Chinese in town.” No. Eleven, named after its street address on Freshwater Road, opened at the end of April. Things have been going well, says Zhou. It’s his first restaurant, so the beginning was stressful, but everything has settled nicely. A few kilometers away on Freshwater, Domino’s Pizza opened up in early June. The signature red, white and blue pizza boxes have been marching out of that new locale, at 247 Freshwater, at a solid, steady pace. And at 333 Freshwater, you’ll find the Magic Bean Toy Shoppe. They’ve been open for two months, but they’re having an official grand opening party at the end of September. “We’re a toy shop and boutique selling specialty items for kids of all ages,” says manager Zoë Balsom. “We sell puppets, magic kits, crafts, costumes, BPA-free baby products, organic clothing and towels, and green toys made from recycled materials.” Balsom, who has a Theatre Arts degree, will be designing and leading birthday parties in the Magic Bean’s basement, for which they’ll start taking bookings in October. “We’re trying to give parents an option where they book the party and we deal with the rest,” she explains.
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full tilt
In architectural models of the new MUN residence students can afford nice cars and there is plenty of parking available!
common living sense
S
The new MUN residence goes for sensible over sex appeal.
tudents returning to class at MUN this fall will notice a lot of construction happening next to the duck pond. This is where the long awaited, and much needed, new student residence is being built. In a recent article in The Guardian, architecture critic Iain Borden pointed out that more and more universities, like the University of East London, are using flashy experimental architecture for evil... Surprise! The goal is to “tempt students with radical architecture,” beckoning wide-eyed new undergrads with hip and glamourous constructions. Borden goes on to argue that this is an understandable, and understandably successful, strategy: concentrating hundreds if not thousands of students per year into their spaces, student residences are in a unique position to enhance or detract the school’s reputation. TARYN MUN has been SHEPPARD taryn@thescope.ca pursuing the idea of expanding its on-campus housing for a while, amidst growing concerns from students over the availability of affordable on and off-campus living space. The new residence will provide an answer to that problem, for some at least. The office of John Hearn Architect, who also did the Inco building on campus, started designing the project in 2007. Progress was held up temporarily due to funding issues that were eventually resolved, doubling the size of the project and resulting in the new design that will house up to 500 students. This puts it on par, population-wise, with the entire four-building Burton’s Pond apartment complex, just to the east. On the exterior, the new buildings will take cues from the neighboring Paton College residences, to the north. It will emulate the green mansard roof, brick exterior and window dimensions of those structures. The key difference, however, is scale. The new residence is noticeably taller than its predecessors, occupying two large, six-storey blocks. Each block is, in turn, divided into two dormitory wings that are slightly angled to face in towards one another, with kitchens and common rooms located at the bend. Near
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Livyer’s Loop, the blocks suture together into a grander, glass-facaded-vestibule that, will house meeting rooms and lounging space, as well as the take-off point for a glazed pedway to Paton College. The most attractive feature of the new development for student life, however, might be the dorm arrangements themselves. Although each resident shares a common washroom and vestibule with one other person, each has their own bedroom—no bunkbeds here. Study areas are located at the ends of each wing, and there is wireless internet throughout the residence. There are eight fully accessible units, more than the required amount. There are two ‘single resident’ rooms on each level that are available to upper-year students with high GPAs. Two apartments within each wing are reserved for proctors, and one private single room for residence assistants. The footprint accords to MUN’s masterplan guidelines, which is available on the Facilities Management website. The building is located in what was once a sports field bounded by roads on three sides. The designers paid extra attention to connecting the building to its surroundings, since it is in such a central and prominent location. The wing formation of the building creates an enclosure, similar to the traditional university Quad. This central courtyard has been designed to accommodate student events, including a covered stage area. The new residence building, while not yet completed, is seeking to attain a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) silver rating. LEED is a certification body and rating system that rates buildings according to thier ‘greenness’. MUN could have created a ‘publicity stunt’ building to get the attention of potential students worldwide, like the universities mentioned in Borden's Guardian article, but it looks like the new complex is going to be a great addition to the campus—at this point anyway. While it’s not an exhibitionist piece of architecture, it is a conscientious design that pays attention to the things that should matter for students. Comment on this article at thescope.ca/fulltilt
make your own CAT comics at thescope.ca/cat
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I saw you making us omelettes while cec yapped on about the pavement
NEWS
COOL PLAN, BRO The provincial government was pleased to announce the release of their 2011 Climate Change Action Plan in mid-August this year. It is the follow-up to the 2005 Climate Change Action Plan. Both plans include outlines of how the province could reduce greenhouse gas emissions and encourage sustainable development. In honour of the release of Action Plan 2011, we took a look at Action Plan 2005 to see how its deliverables delivered. By Sarah Smellie
F
irst up is the Sustainable Development Initiative. That established the Sustainable Development Act, which then led to the Round Table on Sustainable Development, which finally led to the writing of the Strategic Environment Management Plan, in 2008. Whew. The result of all that? “Not much at all,” says Fred Winsor, Conservation Chair of the Sierra Club’s Atlantic Chapter. “The whole issue of sustainable development has been put on the back burner. Meanwhile, we continue to build car-reliant suburbs.” Next, there’s the promise of the Natural Areas Systems Plan, which strives to create protected ecological areas that could be used as research sites to study climate change-related phenomena. That plan still doesn’t exist in any finalized version. In fact, it’s part of Kathy Dunderdale’s 2011 election campaign to get one on the go. Action Plan 2005 also promised an Energy Plan, which was released in 2007. This was to outline, in part, how the energy sector could help the province grow a bit greener. Focus-
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ing mainly on the importance of developing the Lower Churchill hydroelectric project, the Energy Plan says the Newfoundland and Labrador government will work to reduce its level of greenhouse gas emissions to 10 per cent below that of 1990 by 2020. But according to Action Plan 2011, that goal will be impossible to meet. Greenhouse gas emissions have gone up since 2005 and, with projects like Hebron set to go ahead, the greenhouse gas emissions are only going to get worse. “It’s hard to tell the difference between the 2005 plan and the 2011 plan,” says Winsor. “They’ve done so little. Especially in regards to greenhouse gas emissions, which are especially detrimental to Newfoundland because of all the ocean acidification that occurs because of it.” Winsor would like to see a climate action plan with more concrete emphasis on renewable energy sources, sustainable development and energy conservation. That, he says, might result in some real action. Comment on this article at thescope.ca.
I saw you walking alone again yesterday. Every day. Every time I see you, you’re all by yourself, but you seem like a nice person. How does someone like you not have anyone in her life?
HOLD-UPS in St. John’s: 2011 Towards the end of July StatCan released the latest numbers that said crime across the country in 2010 was the lowest it has been since 1973. 1973! There were 12 million less of us, Trudeaumania hadn’t become completely creepy, and brown plaid slacks were all the rage. 1973! They didn’t even have the internet back then! But these same peachy stats weren’t so peachy for Newfoundland and Labrador. Apparently here in 2010 the crime rate has soared. Well, 2010 was last year. What about this year? What’s the crime climate like out there? The numbers relative to previous decades are still being crunched, but here, to help you not sleep at night, we have compiled a list of all the armed robberies and significant break and enters in the metro area that have been reported by the RNC, or the mainstream media, thus far into 2011. By Morgan Murray
C
onvenience stores and gas stations (particularly on Elizabeth Avenue)–the longstanding preferred targets of armed bandits–are still the most frequently robbed. Add to this a couple of Subways, a double-dose of West Side Charlie’s on Torbay Road, and an increasing amount of perscription drugs from pharmacies, and you’ve got a crime wave. This list might seem burglar alarmingly long, but most of these robberies are somehow drug related–either stealing drugs or stealing money to buy drugs–and their victims are mostly businesses and their employees. So if you don’t work at a convenience store, gas station, or pharmacy you probably don’t have too much to worry about.
highlights
• In something resembling Bonnie & Clyde or the opening scene of Pulp Fiction, a couple entered the the Brookfield Pharmachoice on Topsail Road on January 8. The man doused the two teen-aged clerks in gasoline and made his way to the pharmacy to steal a pile of pills, while his lovely lady held the clerks at knife and crowbar point, and threatened to light them on fire. The couple made off with a few thousand dollars worth of pills and a couple of hundred dollars cash. They were caught a few days later, holed up in the Captain’s Quarters Hotel on King’s Bridge Road, hours after robbing the Subway on Kelsey Drive. • Three robberies were reported on February 6.
• James Calvin Greenham robbed $110 from a Subway in Paradise with a crowbar. He was later sentenced to 21-months in jail when his “low IQ” defense didn’t pan out.
• Other stories, as you might imagine, are even sadder. Jamie George Fitzpatrick, who had waited four years to get into a methadone rehab program, missed an appointment, got booted out, and was going through rough withdrawal a few days later when he went into Campbell Avenue Convenience to buy a pop. His debit card didn’t work so he asked the clerk to change a couple of quarters into nickels. When the clerk opened the till he grabbed about $100 and ran out of the store. He was caught not long afterwards and ended up with 29-months in jail.
• Though, you have got to give it to St. John’s bandits, they are creative in how they arm themselves. In addition to the teens who robbed the Super 8 on Higgins Line with a what-turned-out-to-be-fake musket last December and the gasoline bandits from earlier in the year, a man held up Ches’s on Freshwater Road with a syringe on June 12.
HOLD-UPS SO FAR January 1: Needs on Topsail Road in Paradise 2: Esso on Blackmarsh Road 8: Brookfield Pharmachoice on Topsail Road 12: Subway on Kelsey Drive
February 6: B&E at a house on Cookstown Road 6: Marie’s Mini Mart on Topsail Road 6: Jackman & Greene on Cookstown Road 8: Convenience store in the East End
13: Marie’s Mini-Mart on Gleneyre Street 22: Subway in Paradise
March 8: Jewelry store in the Village Mall 18: B&E at a house on Mullock Street
April 13: West Side Charlie’s on Torbay Road 27: A woman was robbed at the Ultramar on Waldegrave Street 29 to May 9: Five house B&Es reported in St. John’s, Mt. Pearl and CBS
May 12: Bar on Water Street 18: B&E at a house on Primrose Place 20-21: Four house B&Es reported in the Bally Haly area
June 2: Campbell Avenue Convenience 4: Craigmillar Avenue Convenience 10: Ultramar on Elizabeth Avenue 11: B&E at a house on MacDonald Drive 12: Ches’s Fish and Chips on Freshwater Road
17: Irving on Elizabeth Avenue 21: West Side Charlie's on Torbay Road–again. 27: B&E at a house on Larkhall Street 29: B&E at a house on Dumbarton Place 30: Irving on Elizabeth Avenue–again
July 7: A woman was robbed outside the Scotiabank on Cornwall Avenue 7: Several boat B&Es at the Foxtrap Marina 10: Ultramar on Elizabeth Avenue– again
16: Convenience store in Torbay 19: A guy robbed another guy with a knife while sitting in a car 20: Prescription drugs from a house in St. John’s 21: B&E at house in CBS 26: Octagon Pharmachoice in Paradise 27: Queens Road Convenience
August 5: Green’s Drug Mart in Kelligrews 7: Irving on Frecker Drive. Visit goo.gl/JbRVK for sources
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#thingsiloveaboutstjohns BAD WEATHER
ericdunne-smith Eric Dunne-Smith Juneuary, Fogust, Septvember. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
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#DEALWITHIT
Vickis_Mad Vicki Madison Downtown to berry picking heaven in 10 minutes. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
glennnnnnnnnnnnn Glenn Gross “You at, budday?” #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
DouglasSugarSnap Douglas Snapp In a city famous for having, like, six bars per person, there’s no gay bar?! #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
ginagrrlNL Gina Roland Who needs a gym membership if you can move to the top of Long’s Hill instead? #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
A quick primer, for the CFA: CFA—”Come From Away.” Anyone who’s not a Newfoundlander. “I heard she’s shacked up with a CFA.” Deadly—”The gear.” “B’ys, dat band is deadly.” Gear—Friggin’ deadly. “It’s the gear, b’y.” A Time—A good time. “We was havin’ a time on George Street when buddy had the lips smacked off ‘im.” Whadayat?—Not much, b’y, you at? Whereyato?—Where are you? “Whereyato?” “Me mudder’s.” “Where’s she to?” “Kilbride.” Townie—Not a bayman. “Friggin’ townie!” Bayman—Not a townie. “Friggin’ bayman!” The Overpass—To a townie, this is the end of the universe and the beginning of The Void. Mysteriously, these days no one knows where this point begins or ends. “Beyond the overpass, there be monsters.”
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A definite requirement for any utopia worth it’s salt, booze availability at corner stores is surprisingly rare in Canada: only the governments of Newfoundland and Quebec are enlightened enough to allow it. “Years ago, there was a system called the Brewer’s Retail,” says Steve Winter, President and CEO of the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation. Basically, he says, each of the three main breweries in St. John’s at the time—Molson, Labbatt, and Carling O’Keefe, at the bottom of Sudbury Street—had to set up their own retail stores to sell their beer. “All the other means of buying beer were either through a liquor store or through a brewer’s agent who almost sold it out of his garage or his house.” By the early 80s, the brewers were pretty sick of being in the direct retail business, and the provincial government wanted to help out convenience stores who were struggling to compete with big grocery stores. So they let the convenience stores sell beer, so long as it was brewed by a local brewery. And it was good.
DATING
AlanPearl1234 Alan Pearl India: not just an Asian country, but a beer with a dog on it at the corner store. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
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Ingredients An afternoon spent picking a peck of fresh Signal Hill blueberries Splash of lemon juice Bit ‘o butter Package of Pectin A lot of sugar 6 small mason jars
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BEER AT CORNER STORES
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SIGNAL HILL BLUEBERRY JAM
#thingsiloveaboutstjohns
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THE LANGUAGE
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Instructions Pick dirt and leaves out of berries. Boil jars to sterilize. Smash berries without mercy until you have 4 cups worth of berry goo. Mix-up the berry goo, butter, lemon juice, and pectin. Get it boiling and stir in the sugar. Boil for one hard minute. Remove from heat. Scrape off foam. Ladle hot jam into hot jars, leaving ¼-inch room. Use non-metallic something to poke out the air bubbles. Screw on hot tops. Boil the whole kit-and-kaboodle. Remove jars. Let cool for 24 hours without touching. Try not to eat the entire batch in the next 24 hours.
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St. John’s has the crappiest weather in the entire country. And we’re not just saying that out of frustration because there were only six rain-free days this July. No, Environment Canada actually compiled thirty years of weather data to determine the Canadian cities with the “toughest” - ie, cloudiest, windiest, wettest, foggiest, snowiest, iciest - weather and guess what? St. John’s won. Followed by Gander. “Anecdotally, there’s a lot more Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) here,” says Sarah MacAuley, who is just about to finish her PhD in Clinical Psychology. She completed her pre-doctoral internship at the MUN Counselling Centre and has a specific interest in the student experience. “When we have less sun, that becomes a real issue. And SAD can definitely lead to major depressive disorders.” That’s not the only perk of experiencing 215 days of precipitation each year. “There’s new research suggesting that Newfoundlanders are chronically Vitamin D deprived, due to the lack of sunlight,” says MacAuley. The MUN Counselling Centre has a full-spectrum SAD light in their waiting room, ready to make you feel less crappy. Regular, ten-minute spells under that light should make your winters (and springs) far more bearable, psychologically-speaking. Vitamin D is cheap and available over the counter at most drug stores. Talk to your doctor about dosage, do a little research yourself, and see what you feel comfortable with. Otherwise, MacAuley stresses that the best way to get through the months of lousy weather is to take care of yourself: get outside, get some exercise and keep socializing, even if you swear you’re happier at home with carbs and Arrested Development DVDs. In the long run, you won’t be.
WILD BERRIES
Welcome students and other newcomers! Here’s a quick primer on our marvellous terrible city, by Sarah Smellie, Morgan Murray and Elling Lien.
We asked a few people to sum up the St. John’s dating scene for you. Here’s what they said. “Be prepared to be diplomatic if things don’t work out. You will see your exes everywhere, and awkwardness and animosity is your worst option.”—Female, 25, queer
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“This town is too small sometimes. Dating someone is challenging if you’ve already heard rumours about everything they have ever done wrong!”—Female, 21, hetero
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“Text me when you get downtown.”—Male, 28, straight
eastofedenspiritofthewest Ada Sung You’re already Facebook friends with everybody he’s ever slept with. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
“I think the dating scene in St. John’s is pretty dismal. The best way to have regular sex when you’re single is to find work in the restaurant industry and hook up with coworkers: it’s harder to avoid each other if things start to get awkward, so mounting tensions just lead to more sex.”—Female, 27, straight
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yesbynuttingtoit Jean Karlop-Smart It’s Monday night but I can still go out and see live music. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
“I think Jody Richardson captured it best when he said, “No one gets laid lying on the couch. Get out and lower your standards.” No truer St. John’s words have ever been uttered.”—Female, 25, straight
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QUEER-FRIENDLY EVENTS
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Okay, so it was already a little depressing to have only one gay bar here in the City of Bars, but now we have none. Zone 216 shut its doors for good on January 1st of this year and, since then, nothing solid has come up. Zone DJ Fabian Fitzpatrick has been organizing parties at the Bella Vista and the Majestic (check out the Zone216 Facebook group to stay abreast), which is good, but it’s not the same. “We at LBGT-MUN sympathize with the frustrations within the queer community in St. John’s over the lack of an explicitly queer bar,” says Kyle Rees, Director of External Affairs for LBGT-MUN. “The closure of the Zone made St. John’s seem much less accommodating to their needs. What we wish to say to the community is this: don’t be discouraged. While yes, we have lost one gathering place, many more exist and many more will come if we demand recognition, respect and are insistent.” For students, the LBGT-MUN Resource Centre, in UC6002, is always open. They also host coffee houses, mixers and the annual Queer Prom party. In the meantime, says Rees, keep frequenting queerfriendly businesses in the city and head out to queerfriendly events like Planned Parenthood’s LBGTQ youth groups and Zone216’s nights.
HILLS
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#thingsiloveaboutstjohns Our challenge: Figure out how many calories it takes to propel oneself up Prescott Street and Long’s Hill. Our challenger: Rick Kelly, local runner. Kelly’s got some crazy microchip in his shoes that can calculate the number of calories he burns in a given peripatetic excursion, based on his body mass index, heart rate, and distance travelled. To give you an idea of how well his heart works, Rick ran the Tely 10 this year in 90 minutes and 42 seconds, and he weighs 154 pounds. The result: Long’s Hill took 18 calories of love out of Rick. Prescott Street took 20. Not great, but just think of the butt muscle toneage!
“If I were single and looking for a long-term mate, I imagine I’d be kissing quite a few toads. The casual sex scene, on the other hand, is occasionally top notch. Occasionally.” —Male, 26, queer
MUSIC
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#thingsiloveaboutstjohns For a small city on a far flung island, St. John’s punches above its weight in the live music department. Dave Lander, music aficionado, ethnomusicologist, Lawnya Vawnya Festival organizer, and owner of the most impressive indie rock beard in Town agrees: “The greatest strength of the St. John’s scene is the sheer number of people interested in music and the overwhelming number of musicians. It’s amazing to see so many people going out to shows and so many people being able to jump on stage to play,” he says. The downside? Perhaps too much of a good thing. “While there are lots of great artists,” says Lander, “some types of musics are a bit over saturated in St. John’s and some scenes that thrive in other cities are very small here.” Not that that’s the end of the world. “That said, there are lots of people in this city who would love for you to go start a horror-core rap collective or post-rock project with them. Go! Find them and do it!”
JOBS
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#thingsiloveaboutstjohns You want a job? Stay in St. John’s. Thanks to the power of Have, and according to the city’s Economic Outlook 2011 report for the metro area, employment in the city is expected to increase by 3.8 per cent this year. The unemployment rate should drop by 1.1 per cent, and personal income should go up by 5.8 per cent. This is good news if you’re in the booming sectors like construction, finance, real estate, insurance and leasing. According to The Telegram, the entire province should expect 70,000 jobs to open in the next 10 years. And according to the CBC, Newfoundland and Labrador will be leading the country in wage increases for the next two years: 2011 should bring about a 3.5 per cent wage increase and 2012 will increase that by another 3.4 per cent. Ahhh, the power, THE POWER! Muahahaha!
scott_smith_yes Scott Smith Recession? What recession? #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
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TravistyOfJustice Travis Thompson Cocaine is easier to find than marijuana. WTF?! #thingsiloveaboutstjohns #bizarroworld
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ILLICIT DRUGS
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The coke problem: Does it really exist? Is it really getting worse? Doesn’t this discussion happen every year? Sandy Chisholm, owner of CBTG’s bar, is about to celebrate his 21st year working on George Street. He’s got a lot to say about all this. “It’s not just coke,” he says. “There’s an overall escalation of chemicals, it’s practically all there is. The coke is probably the single biggest problem, but to me, it’s everything: it’s the oxycontin, it’s the crystal meth, it’s the E. People pop E like it’s Aspirin, they don’t even hide that anymore. And it’s not restricted to a certain age group or type of people—it’s everybody.” He thinks that it is definitely getting worse. It’s affecting his business and it’s affecting his enjoyment of his business. “People wasted on this stuff don’t buy drinks,” he says. ”Between the chemical culture and the late hours, I’m probably the most serious that I’ve ever been about trying to find another line of work.” And does he really think that it’s harder to find pot than it is to find the other stuff? “Yes. I can’t tell you how often people approach me at the bar, looking for something to smoke because they can’t find it anywhere,” he says. “But I don’t think that there’s ever an issue finding chemicals.”
ARTS FUNDING 11
The_Harry_Higgins Harry Hensley The provincial government just gave me three grand to make a YouTube video!! #thingsiloveaboutstjohns #godblesstheNLAC
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ImportanceOfBeingErnieStJohns Ernie Chafe Same ten bands playing the same ten songs. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
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bullockofearl Earl Bullock Your mortgage payment is cheaper than rent for a onebedroom. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
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BrittMalo Brittany Malone You never have to worry about getting lost in an Ikea. #thingsiloveaboutstjohns
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We’re not saying it’s easy to make a living as an artist, but you might have just an easier time of it in Newfoundland. According to StatsCan’s Government Expenditure on Culture, The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador allocated an amount equivalent to $139 per person in the 2008-2009 fiscal year. That was the highest per capita amount in the country. For comparison, B.C. came last at 62$ per person. If you’re an artist looking for money to help your project, you can avail via the bi-annual Newfoundland & Labrador Arts Council project grants programs (www.goo.gl/k3ivH), the Arts and Letters Awards (www.goo.gl/qqRHg) or the Cultural Economic Development Program (www.goo.gl/ OLzJd).
DIY CONCERTS
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There are about 30 weekends to fill between the first and last day of lectures in an average academic year. That’s 240 weekend nights over the course of an undergrad degree. With only 50 or so pubs ands clubs in the downtown area, you’re going to have to get creative in order to avoid Same Old Bar/Same Old Band Boredom. Some nervy households are taking the house party to the next level and holding full-blown house concerts. The head of one such household—who’d like to remain nameless in case his landlord gets upset—got his start hosting shows by the Wiles. “We have a nice big living room, with a big fireplace,” he says. “We always had a potluck at supper time and then a few hours later we’d have a show. And we never have loud shows, we’ve only had folkier stuff.” His advice? “There doesn’t need to be much planning, really. The more effort that we put into them, the more stressful they were. If you can get a good group of people together that are going to be respectful and quiet regardless of whether you’re drinking or not, and invite one or two musicians that don’t require a lot of gear and can play acoustically, pass the hat around for pay-what-you-can donations for them, and you can have a really beautiful night.”
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CHEAP HOUSES
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#thingsiloveaboutstjohns St. John’s is one of the few remaining Canadian cities where you can buy a house, a whole house, for cheap. Now, they aren’t all cheap. It is a boom town after all, and people are paying top dollar to live in giant McMansions in Paradise. But a lot of pretty row houses downtown can be had for a song—a $150,000-or-so song that is. With a 5 per cent down payment on that $150,000 house in Georgestown—with the 6 foot ceilings, 90year old wall paper for insulation, one leaky toilet that doesn’t flush, 100-year old knob & tube wiring, and knobbly upper floor that makes you seasick to walk on it—you will have mortgage payments of less than $700/month, around the same as rent for a onebedroom apartment of equally dubious quality. The only catch is that 5 per cent. You’ll need $7,500 for the down payment (it can’t be borrowed from a bank), and another $2,500-or-so for the lawyers and such.
FURNITURE
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With the nearest Ikea some 2,500 km away, there is no chance of inadvertently losing an entire day in a warehouse full of cheap furniture. Instead, you can spend that time hunting for bargain treasures here in town. The best deals are always those left on the curb. But if you prefer to shop for free stuff from the comfort of your unfurnished home, Freecycle is an online place where people post all sorts of free things for the flock of Freecycle Vultures waiting to swoop in and take any old crap for nothing (www.goo.gl/nk5bF). Other online classified sites, like Kijiji and NLClassifieds have some free stuff, as well as plenty of cheap rundown furniture that is suitable for “students or cabin” since being a student is a lot like living in the woods with no running water or electricity. If you can’t find the perfect couch for free on the internet there are a variety of places to find them around town. Salvation Army, Value Village, and Previously Loved are all out by the Avalon Mall. Furniture, Oddities, Antiques & More at 1 Colonial Street and the row of antique stores on the west-end of Water Street have deals on furniture too. There are also a variety of larger stores that sell new and used furniture, like East Coast Liquidators in Mount Pearl, or XS Cargo on Kenmount Road.
SEPTEMBER 2011
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7 Under $7 A commonly heard complaint around St. John's is that the city lacks good, cheap, convenient food options. If you’re hungry and in a hurry, it often seems like your choice is limited to burgers, pizza, cold sandwiches, or fish and chips. With that in mind we scoured the city to bring you seven affordable restaurant or take-out recommendations under seven bucks. All prices before tax and tip.
Falafel sandwich
Mohamad Ali’s Farmer’s Market (Saturdays) & 364 Duckworth Street (The Sprout, off-hours on Friday to Monday nights) Take out only, $5 with tax St. John’s has long lacked a decent falafel-kebob-gyro place where the food is always good and always cheap. Until Mohamad Ali’s started selling such things out of a truck, and now The Sprout on off-hours. They don’t have the giant revolving punching bag-sized pillars of meat that make kebobs such a thrill, but they do make a mean falafel pita sandwich. The veggies are fresh and delicious and the falafels are crispy on the outside and scrumptious and warm on the inside. It’s a knockout. morgan murray
turkey pie (hot)
Fabulous Foods 166 Merrymeeting Road Take out only, $4.85 before tax I placed and received my order in about three minutes, and when I felt the weight of this bad boy, I knew I was in for a stodgy, yet comforting experience. The pie was piping hot. As I cut into it, I could see a generous amount of turkey, potato and gravy. The pastry was flaky, buttery and perfectly salted. The gravy was so good, I would freebase it if I could figure out how. The turkey was mostly dark, but super moist. Noshing on this pie in the afternoon put me in a turkey coma, but it was well worth it. Two thumbs way up. elaine pond
Rice & Veggies with beef (Com thit bo) Loong Wah Restaurant 13 Lemarchant Road Eat in or take out, $7 before tax
Despite my initial confusion—it’s listed as a Vietnamese dish on the menu but I couldn’t tell it apart from other bits of meat, veggies, and mysterious clear viscous sauce on a bed of steamed rice dishes that are the staple of hole-in-the-wall Chinese food places—the meal wasn’t bad st all. It was made fresh and came out piping hot. The bits of beef were small, and the veggies were about 70 per cent bok choy. This also comes in a sweet and sour rib or chicken version. morgan murray
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I saw you drivers of St. John’s. Relax.
Student Biryani (chicken or beef) Shalimar Restaurant 272 Duckworth Street Eat in or take out $5.99 before tax
Hefty bobs of boneless chicken float in a sea of basmati rice in this traditional South Asian dish. While it didn’t seem much care was taken in the assembly, the food itself was good. The curry flavouring the chicken was light with just the right amount of hot, and the rice enhanced with fennel, cloves and the odd cashew. While the Student Biryani is considered a half portion of the regular biryani, it’s still enough to fill a take out container. It’s listed in the ‘Fast Food’ section of the menu, and it’s true to fact. Mine was prepared in less than 10 minutes. BRYHANNA GREENOUGH
Vegetarian chili The Sprout 364 Duckworth Street Eat in or take out $5.75 before tax
This is a lot of chili. The bowl is half a butter knife tall by two-thirds a butter knife wide, and it’s almost full. It comes with two home-made multigrain buns, which are ice-cream-scoop-sized and delicious. The chili is thick and chunky, and the vegetableto-kidney-bean ratio is spot on. Flavour-wise, it’s spicy enough, but it could use a boost. I recommend some dairy, like extra old cheddar, which you can add for $1.50. All in all, though, a wicked deal for the price. sarah smellie
half hot turkey sandwich Breen’s Bakery & Deli 44 Elizabeth Avenue Eat in or take out $6.99 before tax
Out came a mound of pipin’ hot grub, looking extra fine. It consisted of fresh whole wheat bread—white if you prefer—stuffed with all white turkey breast and crispy homemade fries, piled high. The whole plate is drowning in a rich brown gravy. At first I thought they were a little stingy on the dressing, only to find it hiding under the pile of fries. It was tasty and also very fresh. Overall this was a great meal, and it might even rival mom’s hot turkey sandwich. I imagine the sight of the full sandwich would toss you directly in a turkey coma. lisa cook
Chicken biryani Taste East Inc. 62 Allandale Rd Eat in or take out $5.99 before tax
This being my second chicken biryani in less than 24 hours, I was surprised by the different character this simple dish can take on. I popped open the lid and said hello to a whole section of halal chicken—skin and all in tact. Manipulating this hunk of meat with the plastic fork and knife was clearly going to require my A-game. Combined with the lot of basmati rice, and a dab of snappy green curry condiment, this is almost enough for two meals. Cruise their grocery section while you wait and find everything from Syrian pickled turnips to frozen naan to henna hand dye. BRYHANNA GREENOUGH
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SEPTEMBER 2011
make your own CAT comics at thescope.ca/cat
SEPTEMBER 2011
thescope
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I saw you swimming in the ocean today, in Bay Bulls and off the coast of Cape Spear!! I saw you, ya bunch of wonderful whales!!! Thanks for showing yourselves to us!! The Rock rocks yet again!!!
weekend music listings
Music events on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. For more, go to thescope.ca/events
Thursday Sep 1 Allan Ricketts, Erin's Pub Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub Carl Peters & Bob Taylor (7pm), Middle Tickle (11pm), Shamrock City Pub Chris Ryan, Konfusion Craig Young (solo acoustic) no cover, Fat Cat Blues Bar Des Gambin, 7pm, West Side Charlie's-Kenmount Rd Downstairs Mix Up, Hosted by Steve Abbott, CBTGs Jerry Stamp (solo acoustic), midnight, no cover, Bull & Barrel Karaoke, 10pm, Big Ben's Pub Karaoke, 10pm, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Karaoke, West Side Charlie's-Torbay Rd Kitchen Party, 7pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub Noise Terror, 10pm, $5, Headquarters North Atlantic Duo (jazz), 7pm-9pm, free, Rocket Room Open House: Open mic with Jason LaCour, 9pm, Brimstone Public House Rob Cook & Greg Tobin, Trapper John's Pub Stephanie O’Brien Band, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge Tino Borges & The Incident, 10pm, no cover, Martini Bar upstairs Titanium Thursdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's Two Oceans (indie), The Kyle O'Grady Band (singer/ songwriter), John Feltham (acoustic), Obsessive Compulsion (rock), Time For Jessica (alt/pop), 9pm, $5, The Levee
Friday sep 2 709, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place Beauwater (blues), 5 O'Clock Shadow, Trapper John’s Pub Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub
Saturday sep 3 709, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place Beauwater (blues), 5 O'Clock Shadow, Trapper John’s Pub Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub Bump, 10pm, Martini Bar Discounts (hip hop/reggae), The Ship DJ Nu Rock, Martini Bardownstairs Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V Ennis (folk), 8pm-10pm, $17/$15, Five Island Art Gallery-Tors Cove Fallen Abbey (rock), From Great Heights (alt/jam band), Rock House Homegrown Dope Jam #6: Featuring The Discounts (hip hop/reggae), Baytown Connection (beach rock), Xpress Musica (Afro-beat/reggae/hip hop), The Skylarks (ska/reggae), 10pm, $10, The Ship Hugh Scott (5pm); Bob Taylor, Carl Peters & Pat Moran (8pm); Nuttin Fancy (11pm), Shamrock City Pub Irish Session (5pm); Open mic (10pm), Nautical Nellie's Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub Karaoke, Hosted by Murf, Darnell's Pub Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar
Young Performers Jam (1pm); Rob Cook (5pm); Fergus O'Byrne (8:15pm), O'Reilly's Irish Pub Sexual Saturdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's
College Fridays, Konfusion
The Thymes (pop/rock), The Domestics (alt-country), Texas Chainsaw (rockabilly), Andreu & The Dipsydoodles (acoustic), 10pm, $10, Fat Cat Blues Bar
Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V Great Balladeer & The Rebel, 5pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Thee Internet (alt), The Ship
Des Gambin, 7pm, West Side Charlie's-Kenmount Rd Downstairs Mix Up, Hosted by Steve Abbott, CBTGs Jerry Stamp (acoustic), midnight, no cover, Bull & Barrel
Friday sept 9 All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place
Karaoke, 10pm, Big Ben's Pub
Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub
Karaoke, 10pm, Karaoke Kops Party Bar
College Fridays, Konfusion
Kitchen Party, 7pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub
D'arcy Broderick & Ron Kelly (5pm); Barry Kenny, Glen Harvey & Sonny Hogan (8pm); Dungarvan (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
Noise Terror, 10pm, $5, Headquarters
DJ Slim Macho, Martini Bardownstairs
North Atlantic Duo (jazz), 7pm-9pm, free, Rocket Bakery
DJ Scrappy, Turkey Joe's
Karaoke, West Side Charlie's-Torbay Rd
Open House: Open mic with Jason LaCour, 9pm, Brimstone Public House Rob Cook & Greg Tobin, Trapper John's Pub Stephanie O’Brien Band, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge The Wiles (Painted CD release) with special guests, 8pm, $15/$10, Rocket Room Tino Borges & The Incident, 10pm, no cover, Martini Bar upstairs Titanium Thursdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's
Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V Great Balladeer & The Rebel, 5pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Nothin Fancy, Darnell's Pub Terri Lynn Eddy Band, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge The Celtic Connection, Club One The Living Daylights (acoustic rock), Fat Cat Blues Bar The Monday Nights (folk rock), Rock House The Quidi Vidi Dirt Band (rock), 10pm, Martini Bar
tratchke ofday
bridge ian Leth by Dam
june 16-JUly 15
TOP 5 based on web VIEWS thescope.ca/hear
Mirgens Hollow, Darnell's Pub
The Insiders (cover rock), Club One
DJ Scrappy, Turkey Joe's
no cover, Fat Cat Blues Bar
Ladies Block Party, Konfusion
Colleen Power (folk rock), 10pm, Rose & Thistle
DJ Slim Macho, Martini Bardownstairs
SEPTEMBER 2011
Traditional Music Session, 8:30pm, Erin's Pub
Bump, 10pm, Martini Bar
D'arcy Broderick & Ron Kelly (5pm); Barry Kenny, Glen Harvey & Sonny Hogan (8pm); Nuttin Fancy (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
thescope
Todd Scott (alt/rock), Darnell's Pub
The Andrew Butler Band (alt/pop), The Worst Kind (alt), The Levee
Concert for Africa Fundraiser (bands TBA), Rock House
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The Insiders (cover rock), Club One
NUMBER ONE
HARDSHIP POST COLOURBLIND Hardship Post consisted of Sebastian Lippa (guitar, vocals), Alyson Macleod (bass) and Mick Pick (drums). The band started out in Newfoundland and became quite influential in the early 90s. When attention to bands like Sloan and Thrush Hermit earned Halifax the nickname “Seattle of the North,” Hardship Post moved on to greener pastures. The band released three albums on Sloan’s Murder Records label and even went on to win an ECMA in 1993 for Best Alternative Band. In 1995 they released their swansong Somebody Spoke on Sub-Pop and then pretty much vanished. “Colourblind” is from their 1993 Hack E.P. goo.gl/zKWQO
NUMBER TWO
Thursday SEP 8 Allan Ricketts, Erin's Pub Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub
Hey rosetta! young glass goo.gl/3FNZp
NUMBER THREE banded stilts anything with legs goo.gl/VxDuv
NUMBER FOUR
Carl Peters & Bob Taylor (7pm), Middle Tickle (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
Large, LIVE n’ Direct halfway there goo.gl/yXxrr
Celtic Thunder (Celtic), $65/$55, Mile One
NUMBER FIVE
Chris Ryan, Konfusion Craig Young (solo acoustic)
pat lepoidevin mary goo.gl/IxnYb
I saw you, people posting here, deleting the “I saw you” that appears when you want to submit a post so you can change it to “I seen you.” That’s pretty funny.
The Shore Things, Trapper John’s Pub The Wiles (CD release), The Ship Traditional Music Session, 8:30pm, Erin's Pub
Saturday sep 10 All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub Country Music Cafe: open mic and jam session, 7:30pm, $5, St. Augustine's Church Hall DJ Nu Rock, Martini Bardownstairs
Downstairs Mix Up, Hosted by Steve Abbott, CBTGs Jerry Stamp (acoustic), midnight, no cover, Bull & Barrel Karaoke, 10pm, Big Ben's Pub Karaoke, 10pm, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Karaoke, West Side Charlie's-Torbay Rd Kitchen Party, 7pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub Monsterbator (rock), BA Johnston (Hamilton folk), Brent Randall & His Pinecones (Halifax alt), 11pm, $8, CBTGs Night Music #101: Anchor band Greg Bruce and friends, 9:30pm, $5, The Ship Noise Terror, 10pm, $5, Headquarters North Atlantic Duo (jazz), 7pm-9pm, free, Rocket Bakery
Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V
Open House: Open mic with Jason LaCour, 9pm, The Brimstone
Eddy Blake (Montreal country), The Ship
Rob Cook & Greg Tobin, Trapper John's Pub
Hugh Scott (5pm); Bob Taylor, Carl Peters & Pat Moran (8pm); Dungarvan (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
Stephanie O’Brien Band, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge
Irish Session (5pm); Open mic (10pm), Nautical Nellie's Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub Karaoke, Hosted by Murf, Darnell's Pub Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Ladies Block Party, Konfusion Lori Cooper Band (blues), Fat Cat Blues Bar Overlay (CD release), The Thymes (pop/rock), The Living Daylights (acoustic rock), Those Lasers (indie), 10pm, $7, The Levee The Quidi Vidi Dirt Band (rock), 10pm, Martini Bar
Tino Borges & The Incident, 10pm, no cover, Martini Bar upstairs Titanium Thursdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's
Friday sep 16 All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place Bachman and Turner (Winnipeg rock), $89.50-$49.50, Mile One Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub College Fridays, Konfusion
Young Performers Jam (1pm); Rob Cook (5pm); Fergus O'Byrne (8:15pm), O'Reilly's Irish Pub
D'arcy Broderick & Ron Kelly (5pm); Barry Kenny, Glen Harvey & Sonny Hogan (8pm); Kilkenny Krew (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
Sexual Saturdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's
DJ Slim Macho, Martini Bardownstairs
Southern Accent, Darnell's Pub
DJ Scrappy, Turkey Joe's
Steve Earle & The Dukes (blues rock), Holy Heart Theatre Terri Lynn Eddy Band, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge The Celtic Connection, Club One The Gloaming (Radiohead tribute), Distortion The Motorleague (Moncton rock), Minus A Lung (indie), Release the Hounds (hardcore), 9pm, $10, Headquarters The Shore Things, Trapper John’s Pub Three Centuries of Duos: Featuring Duo Concertantes Timothy Steeves, piano and Nancy Dahn (MUN Music), 8pm, $15/$10, DF Cook Recital Hall
Thursday sep 15 Allan Ricketts, Erin's Pub Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub Carl Peters & Bob Taylor (7pm), Middle Tickle (11pm), Shamrock City Pub Chris Ryan, Konfusion Craig Young (solo acoustic) no cover, Fat Cat Blues Bar Des Gambin, 7pm, West Side Charlie's-Kenmount Rd
Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V Driver, Darnell's Pub Great Balladeer & The Rebel, 5pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub Jamie Dart Band (Oshawa alt), Fat Cat Blues Bar Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Lone Riders, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge Mark Bragg & The Butchers (Your Kiss CD release), Brent Randall & His Pinecones (Toronto alt), BA Johnston (Hamilton acoustic), 10:30pm, Rock House Stixx & Stones, 10pm, Martini Bar The Instigators (blues/ R&B), 9:30pm, $7, Majestic Theatre The Rolling Kings (Irish folk), Trapper John’s Traditional Music Session, 8:30pm, Erin's Pub
Saturday sep 17 Abbey Road: A Tribute To The Beatles, Rock House All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place BA Johnston (Hamilton folk),
SEPTEMBER 2011
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Brent Randall & His Pinecones (Halifax alt), Mathias Kom, $8, The Ship
Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub DJ Nu Rock, Martini Bardownstairs Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V French and Fabulous! Flutist Michelle Cheramy and pianist Kristina Szutor play French repertoire (MUN Music), 8pm, $15/$10, PetroCanada Hall Greg Folger , Darnell's Pub Hugh Scott (5pm); Bob Taylor, Carl Peters & Pat Moran (8pm); Kilkenny Krew (11pm), Shamrock City Pub Irish Session (5pm); Open mic (10pm), Nautical Nellie's Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown
Pub
Karaoke, Hosted by Murf, Darnell's Pub Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Ladies Block Party, Konfusion Lone Riders, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge One Night Stand, Fat Cat Blues Bar Young Performers Jam (1pm); Rob Cook (5pm); Fergus O'Byrne (8:15pm), O'Reilly's Irish Pub Sexual Saturdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's Stixx & Stones, 10pm, Martini Bar The Rolling Kings (Irish folk), Trapper John’s
music venue
directory ARTS & CULTURE CENTRE, Prince Philip Dr, 729-3900 THE ATTIC, 2 George St BAR NONE, 164 Water St, 579-2110 BELLA VISTA, 26 Torbay Rd, 753-2352 BIANCA'S LOUNGE, 171 Water St 726-9016 BIG BEN'S PUB, 55 Rowan St, 753-8212 THE BREEZEWAY, MUN Campus, 864-4743 BRIDIE MOLLOY'S, 5 George St, 576-5990 BRIMSTONE PUBLIC HOUSE, 17 George, 726-0353 St BULL & BARREL, Holdsworth Court, 579-7077 BULL & FINCH, Torbay Rd, 738-7007 CBTG'S, Holdsworth Court, 722-2284 CHRISTINE'S PLACE, 210 Lemarchant Rd, 722-6400 THE CLAW SPACE, 183 A Duckworth St, 764-9636 CLB ARMOURY, 82 Harvey Rd, 722-1737 CLUB ONE, George St, 753-7822 CLUB V, George St 6904355 CROW'S NEST, 88 Water St (by War Memorial), 753-6927 CORNER STONE SPORTS BAR, 16 Queen St, 754-4263 DARNELL'S PUB, 1570 Topsail Rd 782-2440 DF COOK RECITAL HALL, Memorial University 737-4700 DISTORTION, Holdsworth Court, 738-8833/685-1503 DUSK ULTRA LOUNGE, George St ERIN'S PUB, 186 Water St, 722-1916 ESCAPE DANCE LOUNGE, 371 Duckworth St, 725-7806 FAT CAT BLUES BAR, George St 739-5554 GEORGE STREET BEER MARKET, George St, 753-7822 GEORGETOWN PUB, 754-6151 GREEN SLEEVES PUB, 14 George St, 579-1070 THE GRAPEVINE, Water St, 754-8463 GRUMPY STUMP, Torbay Rd, 753-2337 HEADQUARTERS, 208 Water St, 579-2557 HOLY HEART THEATRE, 55 Bonaventure Ave, 579-4424 KARAOKE KOPS PARTY BAR, 10 George St, 726-8202 KELLY'S PUB, 25 George St, 753-5300 KRUGER'S BAR, Kelligrews THE LAST DROP, 193 Water St, 726-3767 THE LEVEE, Holdsworth Court LOFT 709, George St 351-2183 LOTTIE'S PLACE, 3 George St, 754-3020 LSPU HALL, 3 Victoria St, 753-4531 MAJESTIC THEATRE, 390 Duckworth St MARG'S PLACE, Kelligrews MARTINI BAR, George St 739-9180 MASONIC TEMPLE, 6 Cathedral St, 579-3023 MICKEY QUINN'S, 120 New Gower St, 739-6404 MILE ONE CENTRE, 50 New Gower St, 576-7657 MUN MUSIC, 864-4455 MRS LIDDY'S, Torbay 437-6005 THE OLD MILL, 271 Brookfield Rd, 368-1334 O’REILLY'S IRISH PUB, 15 George St, 722-3735 PEDDLER'S PUB, George St, 739-9180 PETER EASTON PUB, Cookstown Road PETRO-CANADA HALL, Memorial University PLAYERS CUE, 50 Commonwealth Ave-Mt Pearl 368-2500 REPUBLIC, Duckworth St ROCK HOUSE, George St, 579-6832 ROCKET ROOM, 272 Water St-upstairs 738-2011 ROSE & THISTLE, 208 Water St, 579-6662 SCANLAN'S, 164 Water st 738-0677 SHAMROCK CITY PUB, 340 Water St, 758-5483 SHIP PUB, 265 Duckworth St, 753-3870 SHARKEY'S PUB, Manuels 834-5636 SS MEIGLE LOUNGE, Seal Cove 744-1212 STANLEY'S PUB, 26 Torbay Rd, 754-0930 STATION LOUNGE, 7 Hutchings St 722-8576 STETSON LOUNGE, 260 Water St, 753-8138 SUNDANCE, George St, 753-7822 TOL'S TIME-OUT LOUNGE, 74 Old Placentia Rd 745-8657 TOPSAIL BREEZE TAVERN, Topsail 781-0010 TRAPPER JOHN'S PUB, 2 George St, 579-9630 TRINITY PUB, George St, 579-5558 TRIP IN LOUNGE, Kelligrews 834-4002 THE WELL, 14 George St YELLOWBELLY BREWERY, 288 Water St 757-3784. Do you host live music or DJs? Joining our directory is free. E-mail listings@thescope.ca
Thursday sep 22 Allan Ricketts, Erin's Pub Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub Carl Peters & Bob Taylor (7pm), Middle Tickle (11pm), Shamrock City Pub Chris Ryan, Konfusion Craig Young (solo acoustic) no cover, Fat Cat Blues Bar Des Gambin, 7pm, West Side Charlie's-Kenmount Rd Downstairs Mix Up, Hosted by Steve Abbott, CBTGs Jerry Stamp (acoustic), midnight, no cover, Bull & Barrel Karaoke, 10pm, Big Ben's Pub Karaoke, 10pm, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Karaoke, West Side Charlie's-Torbay Rd Kitchen Party, 7pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub Mick Davis (rock), 8pm, no cover, Nautical Nellie's Noise Terror, 10pm, $5, Headquarters North Atlantic Duo (jazz), 7pm-9pm, free, Rocket Bakery
DJ Scrappy, Turkey Joe's
Karaoke, Hosted by Murf, Darnell's Pub
Stephanie O’Brien Band, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge
Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar
Tino Borges & The Incident, 10pm, no cover, Martini Bar upstairs
Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V Edison Lane (cover rock), Darnell's Pub Flogging Molly (Celtic punk), 8pm, $35/$30, Majestic Theatre
Kelly Ann Evans (pop), 10pm, Martini Bar Ladies Block Party, Konfusion
Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar
Young Performers Jam (1pm); Rob Cook (5pm); Fergus O'Byrne (8:15pm), O'Reilly's Irish Pub
Friday sep 30
Kelly Ann Evans (pop), 10pm, Martini Bar
Sexual Saturdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's
All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place
LeAnn Rimes (country), $85/$75, Mile One Centre
Shawn Beresford Trio (blues), Fat Cat Blues Bar
The Novaks (rock), Rock House
The Tequila Rockingbirds (rock), Trapper John’s Pub
Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub
The Tequila Rockingbirds (rock), Trapper John’s Pub Traditional Music Session, 8:30pm, Erin's Pub
Saturday sep 24 All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place
Bluegrass & Country Jamboree: Eastern Gate, East Ridge, Albedo, The Spinney Brothers, 7pm to 10:30pm, $12, Comfort Inn Airport
Thursday sep 29 Allan Ricketts, Erin's Pub Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub Buddy Wasisname & The Other Fellers (folk), $33$19, Arts & Culture Centre
Des Gambin, 7pm, West Side Charlie's-Kenmount Rd DJ Mark Power, 11pm, Martini Bar Downstairs Mix Up, Hosted by Steve Abbott, CBTGs
All Request: DJ RocketBoy, Lottie's Place
DJ Nu Rock, Martini Bardownstairs
Karaoke, 10pm, Karaoke Kops Party Bar
Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub
Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V
Karaoke, West Side Charlie's-Torbay Rd
Edison Lane (cover rock), Darnell's Pub
Kitchen Party, 7pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub
Flogging Molly (Celtic punk), 8pm, $35/$30, Majestic Theatre
Noise Terror, 10pm, $5, Headquarters
D'arcy Broderick & Ron Kelly (5pm); Barry Kenny, Glen Harvey & Sonny Hogan (8pm); Hagdown (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
Irish Session (5pm); Open mic (10pm), Nautical Nellie's
DJ Slim Macho, Martini Bardownstairs DJ Scrappy, Turkey Joe's Dr Drake, no cover before midnight/$5, Club V
Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub
Craig Young (solo acoustic) no cover, Fat Cat Blues Bar
Karaoke, 10pm, Big Ben's Pub
Hugh Scott (5pm); Bob Taylor, Carl Peters & Pat Moran (8pm); Hagdown(11pm), Shamrock City Pub
D'arcy Broderick & Ron Kelly (5pm); Barry Kenny, Glen Harvey & Sonny Hogan (8pm); Middle Tickle (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
Chris Ryan, Konfusion
Chasers, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge
College Fridays, Konfusion
College Fridays, Konfusion
Great Balladeer & The Rebel, 5pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub
Jerry Stamp (acoustic), midnight, no cover, Bull & Barrel
Chris Kirby & The Marquee (blues), Fat Cat Blues Bar
Buddy Wasisname & The Other Fellers (folk), $33$19, Arts & Culture Centre
Carl Peters & Bob Taylor (7pm), Middle Tickle (11pm), Shamrock City Pub
Catcher (CD Release), Rock House
Chasers, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge
World Sound '11: Superpickers!(blues), 8pm, $22/$17, LSPU Hall
MOM Fest 2011(Cancer Fundraiser) featuring Evry7th, The Ship
Bluegrass & Country Jamboree: The Parsons Boys, Eastwind with Jimmy Linegar, Scalliwag, The Spinney Brothers, 2pm to 5:30pm, $12, Comfort Inn Airport
Friday sep 23
Titanium Thursdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's
Great Balladeer & The Rebel, 5pm, O'Reilly's Irish Pub
Rob Cook & Greg Tobin, Trapper John's Pub
Titanium Thursdays: DJ JayCee, Turkey Joe's
SEPTEMBER 2011
Rob Cook & Greg Tobin, Trapper John's Pub
Blackie O’Leary, (5:30pm); Anthony McDonald & Steve Davis, (9pm), Kelly’s Pub
Tino Borges & The Incident, 10pm, no cover, Martini Bar upstairs
thescope
Karaoke, 10pm, Georgetown Pub
Open House: Open mic with Jason LaCour, 9pm, The Brimstone
Stephanie O’Brien, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge
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DJ Slim Macho, Martini Bardownstairs
North Atlantic Duo (jazz), 7pm-9pm, free, Rocket Bakery Open House: Open mic with Jason LaCour, 9pm, Brimstone Public House Reba (country), $109-$69, Mile One Centre
Karaoke, Karaoke Kops Party Bar Mainline, Tol’s Time-Out Lounge MissConduct (cover rock), 10pm, Martini Bar Reba (country), $109-$69, Mile One Centre Redline (cover rock), Trapper John’s Pub Repartee (CD release), 11pm, Rock House Ron Hynes Band (folk), Fat Cat Blues Bar The Gaping Lotus Experience (Tool tribute), The DGB (Toronto alt), $10, Distortion Traditional Music Session, 8:30pm, Erin's Pub World Sound ‘11: Duane Andrews - Music from a Paris cafe, Sylvie Proulx - guitar music of South America, Marijn Companjen (Netherlands) - flamenco guitar, 8pm, $22/$17, LSPU Hall
community
community events lectures & forums kids & teens meetings & classes
COMMUNITY EVENTS Annual Fundraising Gala (SPCA) Includes a silent auction, live entertainment, games, prizes, and emcee Ryan Snoddon, $125, Sheraton Hotel 895-2975 (Sat Sep 24 at 6pm) Misty Moon Dinner & Silent Auction (Craft Council) Fundraising dinner, musical entertainment, and an auction of craft items, $65, GEO Centre-175 Signal Hill Rd 753-2749 (Thu Sep 29) Ovarian Cancer Walk of Hope: Largest event in Canada raising money for the fight against ovarian cancer, Bowring Park Bungalow (Sun Sep 11; Registration at 9am) Parkinson SuperWalk: Walk in support of Parkinson's disease, followed by hot dogs, drinks, games, and family fun, St Teresa's Parish Hall-Mundy Pond Rd (Sun Sep 18; Registration at 1pm, walk begins at 2pm) Sexual Violence Awareness Week: T-shirt and poster making at Farmers Market- Lions Club Chalet On Sat Sep 3 & 10 from 9am-12pm; CommUNITY Clothesline at Confederation Building Mon Sep 12 from 3:45pm-5:15pm; Yoga session, location TBA, free with registration on Mon Sep 12 at 8:30pm; Open house tour and refreshments, NL Sexual Assault Crisis & Prevention Centre-360 Topsail Rd Suite 101 on Mon Sep 12 from 2pm to 4pm; Youth night & parent info session, kids make posters, free, Virginia Park Community Centre on Tue Sep 13 from 6pm to 8pm; Wenlido self defence session for women, free with registration, location TBA, on Wed Sep 14 at 7pm; Our Strength men's event featuring presentation and discussion, location TBA, on Fri Sep 16 at 7pm; Public rally featuring guest speaker Debbie Hanlon, location TBA, on Fri Sep 16 at 8pm to 8:30pm; Take Back the Night, women and children invited to march, Bannerman Park on Fri Sep 16 at 7pm; Community reception featuring refreshments and entertainment, location TBA, on Fri Sep 16 from 8:30pm to 9pm. Call 747-7757 for more info
Take Back The Night March: Women and children unite to raise awareness about sexual violence and call for safer communities. Rally and reception to follow, Bannerman Park (Fri Sep 16 at 7pm) Walk for Breastfeeding (La Leche League) Thirdannual walk in support of breastfeeding. Family potluck picnic to follow, Kenny's Pond Playground 722-5815 (Sun Sep 25; Registration at 11:30pm & Walk at 12pm)
LECTURES & FORUMS How Has 9/11 Changed our World?: Maclean's Magazine hosts panel discussion on civil liberties, national security, military enforcement, ethnic, religious and cultural aspects in the aftermath of the tragedy, free, DF Cook Recital Hall-MUN (Thu Sep 8 at 7:30pm) The Architect as Community Builder: Canadian Architecture Public Lecture Series presents Jack Kobayashi and Antonio Zedda, free, Bruneau Centre-MUN IIC 2001 (Tue Sep 27 at 7:15pm) Words in Edgewise: Claire Poirier presents Socializing with the Sacred: The Politics of a Plains Cree Knowledge Practice, pay-what-you-can, Eastern Edge Gallery-72 Harbour Dr 739-1882 (Wed Sep 14 at 8pm)
KIDS & TEENS Duck Feeding w/ Story Time & Crafts (MUN Botanical Garden) Join education staff for a story time, some crafts or a hike to Oxen Pond to feed the ducks, 306 Mt Scio Rd (Sundays from 2pm-4pm) Meet The Critters (MUN Botanical Garden) Meet Squirt the red-eared slider turtle, giant African snails and more. Learn about their far-away native habitats and find out why
these visitors don't always make good pets, 306 Mt Scio Rd (Sundays at 2pm)
Mini-Programs (Fluvarium) Two programs (approx. 15 minutes) about the river ecosystem offered each day, free with admission, Suncor Fluvarium-5 Nagle's Pl 754-3474 (Summer days at 10:30am / 11:30am / 12:30pm / 1:30pm / 2:30pm / 3:30pm) (Ends Sep 5) Open Mic for Young Musicians: Hosted by Denielle Hann, Shamrock City Pub (Sundays at 2pm) Pippy Park Family Garden: Featuring weekly gardening activities, crafts, and snacks, $10 (one-time fee), Mt. Scio Rd (Sundays from 2pm to 3pm) Toopy and Binoo: A modern-day fairy tale featuring music, theatre, dance, puppetry, and multimedia, $25/$30, Molson TheatreMile One Centre 576-7657 (Sat Sep 17 at 1pm)
MEETINGS & CLASSES
Clubs, Groups, Free Classes & Workshops Adult Survivors of Child Abuse: Support group for survivors only, 10 Pearl Pl 7469627 (1st and 3rd Monday of month from 7pm-8:30pm) AIDS Walk for Life: Fundraising event featuring bbq, walk, entertainment, and prizes. Register online at www. aidswalkforlife.ca/StJohns. htm, Marquee Building-Quidi Vidi Lake 579-0559 (Sun Sep 25; Registration at 12:30pm, walk at 2pm) Alzheimer Coffee Break: Make your cup of coffee or tea count by supporting the Alzheimer Society in your community, First United Church-Park Ave, Mt Pearl 576-0608 (Thu Sep 15, 10am) Alzheimer Family Support: Group meeting for family members of people with Alzheimer’s disease, 685 Water St 576-0608 (Third Thursday of month at 7pm) Annual General Meeting: The St John's St Francis Xavier University Alumni Chapter is holding its AGM, SobeysMerrymeeting Rd, RSVP to jkjanes@yahoo.com (Wed Sep 14 at 7pm)
Avalon Wesleyan Church: Weekly meet up in a casual atmosphere with coffee & contemporary music, free, Rabbittown Theatre-106 Freshwater Rd 576-6937 (Sundays at 10am) Breastfeeding Support Group (La Leche League) The topic of discussion will be Advantages of Breastfeeding, babies welcome, free, Sobey's-Torbay Rd 722-5815 (Mon Sep 12 at 7pm) Capital Toastmasters: Improve self-confidence and overall leadership abilities for career and life, free, MUN Inco Centre-2014 687-1031 Caregiver Conversations: Support group for unpaid caregivers 726-2370 (Every third Monday) Coastal Sounds: Nonauditioned community choir with members from CBS and surrounding areas is seeking new members. No prior experience is necessary. www. coastalsounds.ca (Wednesdays 7:30pm to 9:30pm) Comic Artist Breakdown: Come celebrate comic books and try your hand at the world's hottest art-form with Wallace Ryan. We'll supply the paper and pens, free, Anna Templeton Centre-278 Duckworth St 739-7623 (First Friday of month) Conversation Cafe: Group setting for refugees and immigrants learning English as a second language. Centre for Social Justice-204 Water St (Saturdays, 9:30am-11:30am) Fall Fern Hike (MUN Botanical Garden) A nature hike featuring Newfoundland's native ferns. 306 Mt Scio Rd 864-8590 (Sun Sep 11 from 2pm to 4pm) Fall Plant Sale: Plant sale lists will be available the day of the sale, MUN Botanical Garden-306 Mt Scio Rd (Sat Sep 10 at 10am)
12 at 7:30pm)
Overeaters Anonymous: Help is available and it’s free, no strings attached. Weekly meetings in the metro area, 738-1742
Green Drinks: An informal get together for those who work, volunteer or have an interest in environment & conservation related issues, 7pm-9pm, no cover, The Ship (Last Wednesday of month)
Pippy Park Family Garden: Featuring weekly gardening activities, crafts, and snacks, $10 (one-time fee), Mt. Scio Rd (Sundays from 2pm to 3pm)
Helping Hands Reaching Out (RIAC) Two days of professional development and training focusing on refugee and immigrant mental health, free, email projects@riac.ca for more information (Fri Sep 30 & Sat Oct 1) Heritage Crafters (Seniors Resource Centre) Work on an individual or group projects and socialize over a cup of tea. Materials provided. Completed work is donated for fundraising, Sobeys Howley Estates Community Rm 737-2333 (Wednesdays from 10am-12pm) Knit Wits: Drop in knitting social with help to get you started, free, Anna Templeton Centre-278 Duckworth St (Last Sunday of month from 7pm-9pm) Mall Walkers Club (Seniors Resource Centre) Warm up and walk followed by refreshments and guest speaker. Transportation available, 737-2333 (Thu Sep 29) Nar-Anon Family Group: Weekly meetings for those who know or have known a feeling of desperation due to the addiction problem of someone close to them, 726-6191 Newfoundland Horticultural Society: Monthly meet up, St. David’s Presbyterian Church Hall-98 Elizabeth Ave 722-1974 (First Tuesday of month at 8pm) NLOWE Webinar: NL Organization of Women Entrepreneurs is hosting a webinar on Assessing and Acting on Growth Opportunities designed to help women develop and grow their business, free but must register at www.nlowe.org (Thu Sep 1 from 10:30am to 11:30am)
Free Arts Studio (For the Love of Learning) Offering space, materials and advice. Free workshops, art exhibits, a newspaper and writing anthologies, stage plays and short films, Gower St United Church-basement 722-8848 (Weekdays, 12pm-5:30pm)
Not Just for Kids (Culture Days) Try your hand at drawing and painting, free, June Walker Wilson's Art Studio-177 Water St 3rd Floor (Fri Sep 30 - Sun Oct 2 from 11am to 5pm)
Gardening Workshop: Fatima Hammond leads “Build your own scarecrow" workshop, free but must RSVP communitygarden@mun.ca, MUN-Memorial Community
Open Rehearsal: La Rose de Vents welcomes anyone interested in singing in a French choir. Wine and cheese to follow, free, Ecole des grandsvents-65 Ridge Rd (Mon Sep
Refugee Camp Demonstration (Doctors Without Borders) The Refugee Camp in the Heart of the City is a reconstruction of an actual camp, designed to give visitors an idea of what life is like for 43 million people worldwide, free, Bannerman Park (Thu Sep 8 to Sun Sep 11) Seniors Bridging Cultures (Seniors Resource Centre) Share experiences, cook and share recipes and take part in activities that remind us of our origins and help us understand other cultures, St. John's & Mt Pearl 737-2333 (Thursdays, 2pm-4pm) Sing Barbershop: The Anchormen Chorus is seeking new members, Arts & Culture Centre-Rm B rick_e_young@ hotmail.com (Mondays, 7pm) St John’s City Council Meeting: Refer to agenda at www.stjohns.ca, Public welcome, City Hall-Council Chambers, 4th fl (Mon, 4:30) Sunday Morning Nature Hike (MUN Botanical Garden) Explore Newfoundland barrens, boreal forest and bog as you hike nature trails with education staff. 306 Mt Scio Rd (Sundays at 10am) Tenacious String Orchestra: Amateur community orchestra welcomes new members motivated by the pure enjoyment of playing together alison@ nf.sympatico.ca The Pottle Centre: A social & recreation centre for consumers of mental health services, 323 Hamilton Ave 753-2143 The Rooms: Free admission, 9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 (Wednesdays 6pm-9pm) Taoist Tai Chi: Open house, all welcome, Hindu Temple-10 Penny Lane 5795276 (Mon Sep 12 / Tue Sep 13 / Thu Sep 15 at 7pm) Trivia Nights: Rose & Thistle on Tuesdays; Bitters on Thursdays at 8pm Walk on Water: A brisk walk through the nooks and crannies of downtown. All weather, free, everyone welcome. Meet at Fat Nanny's-245 Duckworth St (Saturdays at 10am)
I saw you yelling from the window from a car… “I’m yelling out the window, from a car!”
St John’s Farmers’ Mar-
ket: Local food, crafts and talent. Seed saving workshop (Sep 10), Free admission, Lion’s Club Chalet-Bonaventure Ave (Saturdays from 9am to 2pm)
Garden (Mon Sep 5)
Giant Flea Market (SPCA) Sure to be lots of bargains, $1 admission, St. David's Presbyterian Church-98 Elizabeth Ave (Sat Sep 10 at 10am)
SEPTEMBER 2011
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on screen
Find more reviews and movie times at thescope.ca/onscreen
GO BACK TO SCHOOL Adam Clarke urges you to forget your classes, forget Big Bang Theory, and enroll in the Community cult.
A
Days Later-inspired paintball wars, a stop-moh, the Fall semester brings back many tion holiday special in the Rankin-Bass tradimemories of university. Yes, those halcyon days wherein the noble panty raid tion (Remember the stop-motion Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer?), Levar Burton showing was seen by sororities as a rogueish up to serenade Troy with the Reading Rainbow jape instead of a campaign of fear theme and an episode in which Pierce has a and overt sexual harassment. The days when massive drug trip while dressed as Beastmasthe campus was openly segregated between ter. snobs, slobs and nerds. The days when all of For the uninitiated viewer who hasn’t heard us had a diverse group of friends who only this, Community might seem like pretty tradihad one definable characteristic. In my punk tional sitcom territory on paper. The casting rock days, I shared a dorm with a downtrodof Chevy Chase, the least talented member den alcoholic and a finicky gay man. Collecof Saturday Night Live’s original cast, might tively, we were known as Rum, Sodomy and make you presume it’s on par with Chase’s The Clash... latter-day film work like Snow Day or Man Of Wait a minute! Those aren’t memories, The House (starring Jonathan Taylor Thomthose are just cliches I pieced together from as!), and you probably see no reason to stop such indie hits as Revenge Of The Nerds, watching the immensely successful Big Bang Animal House and Van Wilder 2: The Rise Of Theory, Community’s Taj. None of those things ...It’s the funniest, smartest timeslot competition. happened to me. sitcom since Newsradio and Well, there are Aside from the crippling Arrested Development. a bunch of reasons why depression, my actual uniyou should be watching versity years were pretty Community instead of Big Bang Theory. First awesome. I think. Regardless, my confusion of all, Big Bang Theory’s writing is so bland, it in the first paragraph brings us to the topic at could more accurately be renamed Sheldon & hand, as this blend of warm fuzzies and pop Four Other Characters You Don’t Care About or culture references is the bread and butter of This Show’s About As Funny As Sophie’s Choice. the NBC television comedy series Community. Community, on the other hand, is one of the Community, which begins its third season best-written comedies on TV nowadays. The on September 22nd, centres on an eclectic series can boast that each of its main and group of misfits who befriend each other recurring characters are funny, and that it as they endure the humiliation of attendbuilds many of its jokes using meta-humour ing Greendale Community College. All of and pop culture riffs. the students and staff are there only because Then again, I have a love-hate relationship they’ve screwed up their lives in some way, with Community. On the one hand, it’s the starting with spikey-haired alpha male, Jeff funniest, smartest sitcom since Newsradio and Winger (Joel McHale), a former lawyer who Arrested Development. On the other hand, it was disbarred after it was discovered that he rescued Chevy Chase from obscurity where bluffed his way into his firm without a law he belonged. Still, I can’t fault the show when degree. Winger has relied on his charm to the writing’s so good that it even makes the skim through life, but manages to join a study moldy antics of Chevy Chase seem fresh group with a socially awkward pop culture and reverent. Pick up the first season or the obssessive, a dimwitted ex-quarterback, a September 6th release of the second season racist moist towelette magnate, a directionon DVD. Community is an ideal source of less do-gooder, a high school drop-out, and a procrastination, if you’re looking for that sort cheery, Christian single mom. of thing this school year. Somehow this set-up leads to John Woo/28
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make your own CAT comics at thescope.ca/cat
movies LIMITED RUN Thursday Sep 15 at 5pm Generation M: Sexual Violence Awareness Week organizers present screening and discussion, free, Inco Building-Rm IIC 2001 Tuesday Sep 13 at 7pm Say My Name: A documentary project about women, hip hop, and the pursuit of dreams around the world, $12/$10, Innovation HallRoom IIC-2001 Thursday Sep 15 at 7pm Beginners (MUN Cinema) Upon his mother's death, a young man (Ewan MacGregor) learns that his father (Christopher Plummer) is gay. Before they can get close, however, it turns out Plummer is terminally ill. Directed by Mike Mills (US 2011), $9/10. Empire Theatres-Avalon Mall Thursday Sep 22 at 7pm Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times (MUN Cinema) In-depth documentary on the famed newspaper depicts its day-to-day runnings and woes as filmed with unprecedented access within the newsroom. Directed by Andrew Rossi (US 2011), $9/10. Empire TheatresAvalon Mall
Thursday Sep 29 Cult Film Night: Titles TBA, CBTGs
DAILY SHOWINGS Avalon mall empire studios 12: 722-5775 Mount pearl empire cinemas: 722-5775 www.empiretheatres.com
Apollo 18: Previously, only Gil-Scott Heron talked about the mysteries related to Whitey on the moon. This film reveals how NASA's last manned lunar mission uncovered a supernatural threat. (Sep 2) Shark Night: A group of college students on vacation make the most titillating, 3-D mistake of their lives when they swim into shark-infested waters. And it's not even shark week! In 3-D! (Sep 2) Bucky Larson - Born to be a Star: Discovering his parents' porn tape, a young doofus elects to become a porn star. Laughs ensue. Me?
I would've taken my eyes out. (Sep 9)
Contagion: Matt Damon takes his wife to the emergency room when she has a seizure. When she dies, he's informed that she's a victim of a virus that becomes a global plague. Directed by Steven Soderbergh. (Sep 9) Warrior: Alcoholic ex-boxer, Nick Nolte, trains his son to compete in mixed martial arts tournaments. Nick Nolte? Cast as an alcoholic? It's so crazy it might just work. (Sep 9) I Don't Know How She Does It: Sarah Jessica Parker is the breadwinner in her family and struggles to balance her work and home lives. The title may or may not refer to her mad cribbage skills. Based on Allison Pearson's novel. (Sep 9) Abduction: Taylor Lautner was raised by parents who were not his own and seeks the truth. That truth might involve a complex conspiracy, sniper rifles, high-octane action and shirtless Taylor Lautner. Yesss! (Sep 23) Afghan Luke: Angered when his story about Canadian snipers who may be mutilating Afghans is quashed, a reporter refuses to let this news item die. Directed by Trailer Park Boys' Mike Clattenburg. (Sep 23)
young boy tries to save her with the aid of Dr. Morgan Freeman. Freeman might be able create her a prosthetic tail. (Sep 23)
Moneyball: Biopic about Billy Beane, general manager of the Oakland Athletics, and his attempt to bring them to the big time on limited funds. If you fund it, they will come. (Sep 23) 50/50: Joseph Gordon-Levitt (TV's Tommy) is unexpectedly diagnosed with cancer. So, his best friend (Seth Rogan) and chemo patients Philip Baker Hall and Matt Frewer (TV's Max Headroom) help him out. (Sep 30) Dream House: When a family move in to an old house, they find that previous tenant Peter Ward killed his wife and children there. Gotta be careful reading the Buy and Sell, b'ys. (Sep 30) What's Your Number: Ally (Anna Faris) looks back on her past relationships and figures that, of the twenty men she's been with, one of them must be her true love. (Poor, deluded Ally.) (Sep 30) Capsule descriptions by Adam Clarke.
Dolphin Tale: When Winter the dolphin loses her tail, a
I saw you drop dead gorgeous middle aged men of St. John’s downtown Friday night and I wanted to eat you all up! Yum!
Thursday Sep 29 at 7pm Jane Eyre (MUN Cinema) After her parents die of typhus, young Jane is shipped to a
cold, nasty boarding school. Afterwards, she sparks a romance with her employer and unexpectedly receives a large inheritance. Directed by Cary Fukunaga (UK 2011), $9/10. Empire Theatres-Avalon Mall
make your own CAT comics at thescope.ca/cat
SEPTEMBER 2011
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on display visual art museums
Openings Adrian Norvid: Showstoppers, Whoppers, Downers and Out of Towners: An exhibition of large-scale drawings that break cultural and historical boundaries. Curated by James Patten, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 (Opens Sat Sep 10) Bridging the Gap: A juried exhibition of the League of Artists of Western Newfoundland, a group of visual artists producing diverse and high quality work. Curated by Don Foulds, Eastern Edge Gallery-72 Harbour Dr 739-1882 (Runs Sep 3 - Sep 17) Drawn Words & Written Images: An exhibition curated by Lisa Wakeham, featuring the work of 24 visual artists and six writers who worked in collaboration, free, First Space Gallery-QEII Library (Opening reception Fri Sep 16 from 6pm to 7:30pm) Ex Libris: Rare editions of Desiderius Erasmus and Niccolo Machiavelli in an exhibit that examines early humanist thought as expressed by two of its most famous minds, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 (Opens Sat Sep 24) Fish, Flake and Farm: A collection of photographs by renowned photographer Edith S Watson, who focused on rural Canada and NL in particular, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000
(Opens Mon Sep 5)
Michael Young–Coruscant Altars: Through painting and drawing Young integrates pop and high culture with his observations of the eighties, fantasy novels, and grand adventure, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 (Starts Sat Sep 10) Reversion to the Original Point: Multimedia installations and performances by Dustin Wilson (QC) depict a vision of the future, Eastern Edge Gallery-72 Harbour Dr 739-1882 (Opens Sat Sep 24 with performance on Fri Sep 30 from 12pm to 5pm) No Signal: Sculptural installation by Eleanor King (NS) explores disconnection and nostalgia, Eastern Edge Gallery-72 Harbour Dr 7391882 (Opens Sat Sep 24 with performance on Fri Sep 30 from 12pm to 5pm) Problem Child: Basing their art in what are often considered fringe cultures, Jordan Bennett, Sandi Hartling, Mikiki, and Jesse Walker toy with the threshold of decorum, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 (Starts Sat Sep 10) Short-Sighted II: Oneminute Video Shorts: A juried exhibit of one-minute shorts that tell a story, create a portrait, or animate a new world, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 (Opens Sat Sep 10) The Emigrant Trail: An exhibition of work by Irish
RANT FARM Got an opinion? Need to vent? We want to hear from you. Submit your anonymous accusation or confession at thescope.ca/rant. Submissions may be edited for length, grammar, spelling, legal, or obscenity reasons. One submission will be printed each month, but more submissions to Rant Farm can be found at thescope.ca/rant.
ASPHALT BLUES This is part rant, part question… Everyone HATES when the roads are purposely torn up in sections this time of year and just left for days and days until they can be paved. It’s hard on the cars and I see people weaving in and out of oncoming traffic to avoid driving over the bumpy patches. I know it has to be done, but why can’t they pave as they cut the pavement, all at the same time? — Susan
PHOTO BY STEVE FARMER
GALLERIES
and NL visual artists depicting the Irish emigration to Newfoundland, free, Five Island Art Gallery-Tors Cove (Opening reception Sun Sep 18 from 2pm to 4pm)
Transpositions: An exhibition of jewelry and hollowware by gold/silversmith Donald Stewart, recipient of the 2002 Order of Canada, Annex Gallery-59 Duckworth St (Opening reception Sat Sep 17 from 2pm to 4pm) Waking Dreams: An exhibition of landscapes by textile artist Rachel Ryan which incorporate fabric collage, drawing, and stitched imagery, Craft Council Gallery-59 Duckworth St (Opening reception Sat Sep 17 from 2pm to 4pm)
Ongoing Inner Works: Selections from the People’s Collection: Featuring artists such as Anne Meredith Barry, Peter Bell, David Blackwood, Christopher Pratt, Mary Pratt, Helen Parsons Shepherd, Reginald Shepherd, Gerald Squires & Don Wright, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 Leisure Time: An exhibition of archived photos of recreational activities and games practiced in the early 1900s, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 Metis Carver: An exhibition of Albert Biles' images of the North in bone and antler, Wild Things-124 Water St 722-3123 New Releases: New works by local artist Richard Steele including "Smokin Like a Tilt", "My Radio Flyer", and "Wild Roses over Quidi Vidi", Richard Steele Gallery-63 Harvey Rd 754-6741 New Works: By Gerald Squires, Esther Squires, George Horan, Julia Pickard, Sharon Puddester, Gerald Squires Gallery-52 Prescott St 722-2207 Twixt Mountains & Sea: The Newfoundland Tourist Development Board: Travel photos, brochures, and ads from Newfoundland's first heyday as a tourism hotspot in the 1940s, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 Working on History: Watching Our Stories Unfold: An exhibition of artifacts reflecting life in NL from the 1700s to present day, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000
illustration by RICKY KING
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No Signal, a sculptural installation by NS artist Eleanor King, will be accompanied by a performance on Friday, Sept 30 from 12-5pm at the Eastern Edge.
vision and the 20-year birthday of the Craft Council Gallery and the Craft Centre, 59 Duckworth St 753-2749 (Ends Sep 4)
Painting on Two Coastlines: An exhibition of watercolours by St. John's-based painter Cathy Driedzic, free, Five Island Gallery-Tors Cove (Ends Sep 4)
MUSEUMS Admiralty House Museum: 1915 navy wireless station now communications museum, 23 Old Placentia Rd-Mt Pearl 748-1124 Connections: This Place and Its Early Peoples: Polar bears on tundra, carnivorous plants in a bog, seabirds, sea mammals, sea life plus the people who made their lives here, The Rooms-9 Bonaventure Ave 757-8000 East Rider Motorcycle Museum: Two floors of bikes, memorabilia and biker culture, 205 New Gower St 738-3278 [here]say: A story map of Water Street: Stories and memories shared by people who live here. At each location there is a sign with a telephone number and a 3-digit code. Johnson Geo Centre & Park: See Signal Hill’s 550 million year old geology & specimens of NF rocks, minerals & botanical park, 175 Signal Hill Rd 737-7880 MUN Botanical Garden: Trails, gift shop & tearoom, 306 Mt Scio Rd 737-8590 Railway Coastal Museum: St. John’s Dockyard exhibit of model ship hulls, shipbuilding, dockyard history plus the story of Newfoundland's railway boat service & 1940's train diorama, 495 Water St W 724-5929 Signal Hill National Historic Site: Military & communications history, meet Signalman, watch film, interactive exhibits, Visitor Centre 772-5367 Solo Exhibition: An exhibit of new paintings by Clem Curtis, 5 Island Art Gallery-Tor's Cove 1-866-876-3654 The Fluvarium: A panoramic water view under the surface of Nagle's Hill Brook. Spot fish, insects & plants in natural habitat plus interactive exhibits. Tours every hour on the hour until Sep 5, free with admission, 5 Nagle's
Last Chance
Place 754-3474
20/20 Annual Members' Exhibit: Celebrating creative
Send press releases to listings@thescope.ca
on stage
festivals
theatre dance & Performance spoken & written comedy
Theatre Annie (Theatre St John's) The classic story of Little Orphan Annie, featuring songs like "Tomorrow" and "Hard Knock Life" performed by professional actors and up-and-coming performers, Holy Heart Theatre 579-4424 (Wed Sep 28 to Fri Sep 30 at 7:30pm; Sat Oct 1 at 1:30pm and 7:30pm) Brand New Beat (Rising Tide Theatre) A play about the Art Andrews Dance Party, $30/$25, Arts & Culture Centre 729-3900 (Mon Sep 19 & Tue Sep 20 at 8pm) Dying Hard: Performed and adapted by Michaela Dyke from Elliot Leyton's book Dying Hard: Industrial Carnage in St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, $20/$15, Basement Theatre-Arts & Culture Centre 729-3900 (Fri Sep 23 & Sat Sep 24 at 8pm) Monarita (White Rooster Theatre & She Said Yes!) A surreal story of two close friends at a crossroads. After Mona becomes a mother, she loses herself— and the greatest friendship of her life is in danger of being lost when best friend Rita breaks it off to make a new life without her. Featuring Sara Tilley and Ruth Lawrence with Mark White, $20, LSPU Hall-3 Victoria St 753-4531 (Wed Sep 14 at 8pm)
logue that depicts a woman's struggle with delicious food and self image, $28, Masonic Temple-6 Cathedral St 5793023 (Thu Sep 8 & Sat Sep 10 at 8pm; Sun Sep 11 at 8pm & 2pm)
from 7pm to 9pm)
Book Signing: Illustrators Nancy & Laurel Keating will be signing copies of their new book Find Scruncheon and Touton, free, Costco-28 Stavanger Dr (Sat Sep 10 from 2pm to 4pm)
DANCE & PERFORMANCE Neighbourhood Dance Works Open House (Culture Days) Learn about contemporary dance in NL and see videos of the performers who will take part in the Festival of New Dance, free, 223-233 Duckworth St Suite 205 (Fri Sep 30 from 12pm to 2pm)
Losing friends can be hard, just ask Mona and Rita. The play Monarita plays Wed Sep 14 at the LSPU Hall.
Book Signing: Joan Rusted will be signing copies of her book St. John's: A Brief History, free (Tue Sep 6 from 2pm to 4pm at Downhome Store-303 Water St & Wed Sep 14 from 2pm to 4pm at The Heritage Shop-309 Water St)
September Slam (Legend City Wrestling) Come and witness the Atlantic Tag-team championship be defended. Featuring Kurrgan, Mr. Fantastic, Peter Walley, Too Damn Hype, Ken Doll, Loco, and more. $5, CLB Armoury-Harvey Rd (Thu Sep 8 at 7pm)
Book Signing: Ted Rowe, author of Heroes and Rogues: The Story of Hearts Content, will be signing copies of his book, free (Sun Sep 11 from 2pm to 4pm at Chapters & Fri Sep 9 from 3pm to 5pm at Costco)
Tango On The Edge: A social gathering to dance Argentine Tango, $5, RCA Club-10 Bennett Ave 579-5752 (Thursdays at 8:30pm)
ST John's Storytelling Circle: Featuring Mary Fearon, author of a book of NL rhymes, songs, and language games, $3, Crow's Nest Officers' Club-88 Water St (Thu Sep 8 from 7:30pm to 9:30pm)
Spoken & Written Book Launch: Joel Thomas Hynes will launch his new book Straight Razor Days. All welcome, The Ship-265 Duckworth St (Tue Sep 13 at 7:30pm) Book Launch: Novelist Wayne Johnston will give a reading from his new book
Book Signing: Kate Evans will be signing copies of her novel Where Old Ghosts Meet, The Heritage Shop-309 Water St (Tue Sep 6 from 2pm to 4pm)
A World Elsewhere, free, MUN-Reid Theatre (Mon Sep 26 at 8pm)
Book Launch: Trudy J Morgan Cole, author of That
Forgetful Shore, and Wilhelmina Fitzpatrick, author of Mercy of St Jude will launch their new books, free, LSPU Hall-3 Victoria St (Wed Sep 21
Comedy Nikki Payne: Special Concert Presentation, $27+, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 7269857 (Thu Sep 8 - Sat Sep 10)
Paul Smith & Martha Chaves: Stand up comedy, $20+, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Fri Sep 30 & Sat Oct 1 at 9:30pm) Peter White: Stand up comedy, $20+, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Fri Sep 16 & Sat Sep 17 at 9:30pm) Pro/Am Comedy Slam: Amateurs at 8pm & Tim Nasiopoulos & Mark Debonis at 9:30pm, two shows $20, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Thu Sep 1) Pro/Am Comedy Slam: Amateurs at 8pm & Rob Pue at 9:30pm, two shows $20, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Thu Sep 22) Pro/Am Comedy Slam: Amateurs at 8pm & Paul Smith & Martha Chaves at 9:30pm, two shows $20, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Thu Sep 29) Rob Pue: Stand up comedy, $20+, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Fri Sep 23 & Sat Sep 24 at 9:30pm) Tim Nasiopoulos & Mark Debonis: Stand up comedy, $20+, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Fri Sep 2 & Sat Sep3 at 9:30pm) XM Satellite Radio Comic Competition (8pm) & Peter White at 9:30pm, two shows $20, Yuk Yuk's-193 Kenmount Rd 726-9857 (Thu Sep 15) Send press releases to listings@thescope.ca
Nova Scotia's bluegrass sensations The Spinney Brothers headline the Bluegrass & Old-Time Country Music Jamboree Sep 24 and Sep 25.
Bluegrass & Old Time Country Jamboree: Fans of the blisteringly fast twang of bluegrass and the soulful sounds of classic country will have a chance to gorge on three sessions of live music and workshop at the Comfort Inn. Lineup includes Albedo, Eastern Gate, Ryman Country. Award-winning Nova Scotia Country Music Hall of Fame inductees, The Spinney Brothers, will headline. Tickets are $12 per session or $30 for a weekend pass. For individual show descriptions check The Scope's music listings section or visit www.bluegrass-nl.ca. (Sep 24 & 25) Culture Days: This Canadawide celebration of local arts and culture is based on grassroots volunteer efforts in communities across the country. The fest mandates free, hands-on, interactive activities that allow participants to take part in the many
facets of their local arts and cultural communities. The St. John's Culture Days activities include youth orchestra conducting workshops, performance and installation art pieces, dance and drawing classes, and more. For more info visit The Scope's listings or visit www.culturedays.ca. (Sep 30 - Oct 2)
World Sound '11: The World on a String: Local sonic innovators Sound Symposium present a three day feast of roots and folk music from some of the planet's far-flung reaches and a little closer to home as well. All performances including those by Superpickers, Sylvie Proulx, Duane Andrews, Marijn Companjen, and Jayme Stone will take place at the LSPU Hall. For individual show descriptions check The Scope's music listings section or visit www. soundsymposium.com. (Sep 29 - Oct 1)
I saw you girl waiting to cross at the lights by the village, you were wearing a skirt and a leather jacket and looked drop dead gorgeous
Sex, Pies, and a Few White Lies: Performed and written by Monica Parker, it is a mono-
st. John's festivals july 2011
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KIDDO by Sarah Walsh
FROM EARTH by Ricky King
fromearthcomics.blogspot.com
PERFECT SUNDAY by Michael Butler
localfavorite.blogspot.com
KELLOMICS by Kelly Bastow
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moosekleenex.deviantart.com
DAVE SPENT A FEW DAYS AT THE 6 FORT WALDEGRAVE by José González
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kiddoandother.tumblr.com
elmundodejl.com
I saw you stuck in a basement, sittin’ on a tricycle, girl gettin’ on your nerves. Goin’ outta your mind, you thought she was fine, don’t know if her body is hers.
wha? thescope.ca/answers
A place where people ask questions, share experience and gather information about life in St. John's
Beer Q&A Recently, YellowBelly Brewmaster Liam McKenna answered The Scope's readers' questions about all things beer. Below are some of the questions and answers. For more questions and unabridged answers, visit thescope.ca/tag/beerwha.
anonymous ASKED: Why is beer bottled? And why are the bottles brown? Liam: Beer in bottles is the current norm for consumer trade packages although plastic and aluminium bottles and cans are becoming more popular in certain markets. Cans and plastic have certain advantages to the brewer but consumer acceptance is often difficult. As to the colour question, beer is packaged in brown glass to protect it from light. There is a reaction of certain hop compounds to UV-B light which leads to the formation of a compound known as 3-methyl-2-butene1-thiol (or 3-MBT). This compound is very ‘skunky’ in aroma and is detectable by most at the level of 4 parts per trillion. It is one of the most powerful flavour/aroma compounds found in beer. Brown bottles protect beer better at this blue-green wavelength. The worst is flint glass (clear) followed by green and blue bottles (too close to call), followed by brown and then black. Aluminum cans are of course, opaque to light. anonymous ASKED: Could you describe the fundamental differences between an ale and lager? I can taste it, but what is really going on in the brewing process? Inquiring livers want to know! Liam: The main difference between ales and lagers is related to the types of yeast utilized in fermentation. Ale yeasts, Saccharomyces cereviseae differ from their close cousins the lager yeasts Saccharomyces uvarum or carlsbergensis. Traditionally, ales are fermented at warm temperatures and lagers at cold temperatures. Ale yeast cannot tolerate cold temperatures and lager yeasts can make some pretty objectionable flavours at warm temperatures. Ale yeasts tend to produce more esters (fruity flavours and aromas) and lagers not so much. This low ester level can often allow certain grain based flavours to express themselves. These flavours are often present in ales but
lost in the action of what’s going on. You can think of a lager as a quieter cousin, in contrast to the bash-you-over-the-head lack of subtlety found in many ales. Ale yeast are known as ‘top’ yeasts due to their tendency to rise to the top of a fermentation to form a dense head of yeast. Lager yeast are refereed to as’ bottom’ yeast as they like to hang out down at the bottom of the fermentor. There are many exceptions to this ‘rule’ however. I’ve always felt that lagers are ales missing half their character. I am obviously biased. Ales have been around since the Neolithic Revolution. Very ancient. 10,000 years at least. Lagers have been around popularly only since the Industrial Revolution and the advent of mechanical refrigeration and glassware manufacturing—since the early 19th Century. So it’s a relatively modern trend. Darcy fitzpatrick ASKED: What’s a good general way to gauge the sugar content of a beer? Liam: A handheld refractometer (available at your local homebrew shop) will give you a relative gauge between beers. Cost about $150, easy to use, fits in a jacket pocket. Every beer is indeed different. Most beers are fermented to dryness (read: no simple sugars) before packaging. Beers are balanced and drinkable when the sweetness of the malt is balanced by the bitter bite of the hop. Every style has it’s own particular balance. In the absence of mandatory ingredient labelling on beer (a substance which the average Canadian puts [approximately 80 litres] of into their mouth each year), you’ll never really know. I like to encourage people to contact the brewer directly with questions about their specific products.
Got a question? Got an answer?
thescope.ca/wha SEPTEMBER 2011
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free will astrology by rob brezsny
for september 2011
‘
VIRGO (Aug 23 – Sep 22)
In August 2009, 120 scientists and their helpers staged a BioBlitz in Yellowstone National Park. Their goal was to find as many new species as they could in one day. To their surprise and delight, they located more than 1,200, including beetles, worms, lichens, and fungi that had never before been identified. An equally fertile phase of discovery could very well be imminent for you, Virgo. All you have to do is make that your intention, then become super extra double-wildly receptive.
µ
LIBRA (Sep 23 – Oct 22)
"Two dangers threaten the universe: order and disorder," said poet Paul Valery. I think that's especially true for you right now, although the "danger" in question is psychological in nature, not physical, and it's a relatively manageable hazard that you shouldn't stay up all night worrying about. Still, the looming challenge to your poise is something that requires you to activate your deeper intelligence. You really do need to figure out how to weave a middle way between the extremes of seeking too much order and allowing too much disorder. What would Goldilocks do?
≠
SCORPIO (Oct 23 - Nov 21)
Readers of Reddit.com were asked to describe their lives in just six words. It would be a good time for you to try this exercise. You've reached a juncture in your unfolding destiny when you could benefit from a review that pithily sums up where you've been up until now, and where you've got to go next. To inspire your work, here are some of the most interesting from Reddit: 1. Early opportunities wasted, now attempting redemption. 2. Searching tirelessly
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for that one thing. 3. Living my dream requires modifying dream. 4. Must not turn into my mom. 5. Insane ambition meets debilitating self-doubt. 6. Do you want to have sex? 7. Slowly getting the hang of it. 8. These pretzels are making me thirsty.
∑
SAGITTARIUS (Nov 22 – Dec 21)
Go where the drama is, Sagittarius, but not where the melodrama is. Place yourself in the path of the most interesting power, but don't get distracted by displays of power that are dehumanizing or narcissistic. You are in a phase of your astrological cycle when you have a mandate to intensify your excitement with life and increase your ability to be deeply engaged with what attracts you. I urge you to be as brave as you once were when you conquered a big fear and to be as curious as you were when you discovered a big secret about who you are. For extra credit, be highly demonstrative in your expression of what you care about.
‹
CAPRICORN (Dec 22 – Jan 19)
In his older years, after steadfastly cultivating his vices with the care of a connoisseur, the agnostic actor W. C. Fields was caught reading the Bible by an old friend. Questioned at this departure from his usual behavior, Fields said he was "looking for loopholes." I suspect a comparable shift may be in the offing for you, Capricorn. In your case, you may be drawn to a source you've perpetually ignored or dismissed, or suddenly interested in a subject you've long considered to be irrelevant. I say, good for you. It's an excellent time to practice opening your mind in any number of ways.
π
AQUARIUS (Jan 20 – Feb 18)
I watched a Youtube video that showed eight people competing in a weird marathon. They ran two miles, ate 12 doughnuts, then ran another two miles. I hope you don't try anything remotely similar to that, Aquarius. If you're in the mood for outlandish feats and exotic adventures (which I suspect you might be), I suggest you try something more life-enhancing, like making love for an hour, eating an organic gourmet feast, then making love for another hour. It's a good time for you to be wild, maybe even extreme, about getting the healing you need.
∫
PISCES (Feb 19 – Mar 20)
In the out-of-print book In Portugal, A.F.G. Bell defines the Portuguese word saudade as follows: "a vague and constant desire for something that does not and probably cannot exist, for something other than the present, a turning towards the past or towards the future; not an active discontent or poignant sadness, but an indolent dreaming wistfulness." In my astrological opinion, Pisces, it is imperative that you banish as much saudade from your system as you can. If you want, you can bring it back again later, but for now, you need to clarify and refine your desires for things that are actually possible. And that requires you to purge the delusional ones.
†
ARIES (Mar 21 – Apr 19)
I predict that in the coming weeks, you will be able to extract an unexpected perk or benefit from one of your less glamorous responsibilities. I also predict that you will decide not to ram headfirst into an obstacle and try to batter it until it crumbles. Instead, you'll dream up a roundabout approach
that will turn out to be more effective at eliminating the obstacle. Finally, I predict that these departures from habit will show you precious secrets about how to escape more of your own negative conditioning in the future.
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TAURUS (Apr 20 – May 20)
"Dear Astrologer: My life is stagnant and slow. It suffers bone-deep from a lack of changes, good or bad or in between. Why has my karma been deprived of all motion? Why must I go on frozen in such eerie peace and quiet? I seek your help. Can you cast a spell for me so that I will be happily disrupted and agitated? Will you predict my sorry state of stillness to be ended soon? Arvind Agnimuka, Taurus from Darjeeling." Dear Arvind: Funny you should ask. According to my analysis, members of the Taurus tribe are about to be roused out of their plodding rhythm by a bolt of cosmic mojo. Get ready to rumble—and I mean that in the best sense of the word.
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GEMINI (May 21 – Jun 20)
I found this unusual classified ad in a small California newspaper. "Wanted: Someone to travel backwards in time with me. This is not a joke. You must be unafraid to see the person you used to be, and you've got to keep a wide-open mind about the past -- I mean more wide-open than you have ever been able to. I have made this trip twice before, and I don't expect any danger, but there may be a bit of a mess. Please bring your own 'cleaning implements,' if you know what I mean." As crazy as it sounds, Gemini, I'm thinking you'd be the right person for this gig. The astrological omens suggest you'll be doing something similar to it anyway.
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CANCER (Jun 21 – Jul 22)
Of your five senses, which is the most underdeveloped? If you're a typical Westerner, it's your sense of smell. You just don't use it with the same level of acuity and interest you have when you're seeing, hearing, tasting, and touching. You may speak excitedly about an image you saw or song you heard or food you ate or massage you experienced—what they were like, how they made you feel—but you rarely do that with odors. You easily tolerate an ugly building or loud traffic noise or mediocre food or itchy fabric, and yet you feel a deep aversion to an unappealing smell. Having said that, I want you to know it's an excellent time to upgrade your olfactory involvement with the world. You'd benefit greatly from the emotional enrichment that would come from cultivating a more conscious relationship with aromas.
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LEO (Jul 23 – Aug 22)
"Enlightenment is simply this," said the Zen master. "When I walk, I walk. When I eat, I eat. When I sleep, I sleep." If that's true, Leo, you now have an excellent chance to achieve at least temporary enlightenment. The universe is virtually conspiring to maneuver you into situations where you can be utterly united with whatever you are doing in the present moment. You'll be less tempted than usual to let your mind wander away from the experience at hand, but will instead relish the opportunity to commit yourself completely to the scene that's right in front of you.
Birthdays this month Kathryn Banoub, Jeff Budgell, Mark Callanan, Rebecca Cohoe, Dana Cooper, Jenn Dion, Lara Fraize-Burry, Rob French, Candace Fulford, Jonny Harris, Erin Heys, Joel Thomas Hynes, Cara Lewis, Mary MacDonald, Michelle Porter, Jessica Major, Shawn Meredyk, Mikiki, Logan Murray, Jessica Power, Steve Routledge, Meg Warren. Send birthday info to birthday@thescope.ca
Homework
What's the part of you that you trust the least? Think up a test whereby that part of you will be challenged to express maximum integrity. Testify at Freewillastrology.com.
make your own CAT comics at thescope.ca/cat
I saw you, girl half of hipster couple walking your dogs around Quidi Vidi. I saw you pick up your dog’s poop in the plastic bag you were carrying, and drop it in the trash. THANK YOU!!! You are wonderful!