by Michelle Sproule | The main objective of this website is to scout out and promote the things that make Vancouver such a sweet place to be. We do this with an emphasis on the city’s independent spirit to foster a sense of connectedness within and between our communities, and to introduce our readers to the people who grow and cook our food, play the raddest tunes in our better venues, create our most interesting art, and design everything from what we wear to the spaces we inhabit. The Scout List is our carefully considered, first rate agenda of super awesome things that we’re either doing, wishing that we could do, or conspiring to do this week. You can also check it out in the Globe & Mail, from our calendar to theirs…and yours!

MAKE | Scoot in to Homesteaders Emporium for a one hour workshop on Wednesday that will lay out a plan for you to make milk from nuts at home. That’s everything from how to choose and prepare nuts to how to process them into milk.
Wed, March 26 | 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm | Homesteader’s Emporium (649 E Hastings St) | DETAILS

ARCHITECTURE | Get to know a little more about the architecture of the city at an evening lecture focusing on the iconic Vancouver Special that popped up so prolifically across the city in the 1960s. Local architect Stephanie Robb will be at Vancouver Special (the store) on Main Street this Thursday night to discuss the work that she has done in refreshing, updating and transforming a number of these homes in the city. There are no tickets, so just come by. Bonus: snacks and a cash bar
Thurs, March 27 | 6-9 pm | Vancouver Special (3612 Main St) | Free | DETAILS

IMAGINE | Vancouver’s distinct character and urban aesthetic emerged from a series of urban planning policies and decisions that have been made over the years. This Thursday night the Museum of Vancouver, together with Vancouver Urban Sketchers, will take a look at unrealized urban development projects that might have changed the way we see ourselves as a city today. From The Museum of Vancouver:”Vancouver has been shaped by multiple decisions about what we chose to do and not to do. The built environment surrounding us provides clues about the nature of these debates, but it doesn’t tell us the full story. Vancouver Imagined: The Way We Weren’t, guest curated by Jason Vanderhill of Illustrated Vancouver, showcases the work of architectural illustrators and model makers in the context of unrealized urban development projects, and provides a unique way to understand the city. Had these projects been given full assent, Vancouver would look dramatically different than it does today.” You don’t need to be a skilled sketch artist to participate in this event. You just have to be curious. Paper, pens, and pencils will be provided but you are encouraged to bring your favourite sketchbook and preferred drawing implements.
Thurs, March 27 | 6-8pm | By donation | Museum of Vancouver 1100 Chestnut St | DETAILS

FILM | Finding Vivian Maier is playing at the the Vancity Theatre. The story of this exceedingly talented American street photographer is a fascinating one. A nanny for a series of well-to-do families, Maier was the sort of woman who would have been described as introverted and plain. When she died in 2009 those who knew her would never had suspected that the contents of the storage locker that she left behind would soon elevate this solitary and unassuming woman to topic books and films and international gallery exhibitions, but that is what happened. An amateur historian purchased the contents of Maiers locker in a thrift auction to discover in excess of 100,000 photographs (many of them on undeveloped rolls of film) that he immediately saw as significant. Any personality, depth or poignancy that wasn’t evident in the way that the woman presented herself to the world is clearly visible in the photographs that she took. Her images (predominantly in Chicago and New York during the 1950s and 1960s) convey a strong and clear sense of time, place and feeling that have compelled critics to compare her to the likes of world renowned artists such as Diane Arbus, Weegee, Robert Frank and Henri Cartier-Bresson. Finding Vivian Maier pieces together the life and works of this mysterious woman and offers a posthumous guess at the motivations and vision that inspired her.
March 28 – April 09 | Various Times | Vancity Theatre (1181 Seymour St) | $11 DETAILS

SIEZE THE NIGHT | Carpe Noctem is a group exhibition featuring the artwork of 20 talented illustrators. Head to The Fall Gallery on Seymour Street Friday night to catch opening night and enjoy a line-up of diverse works that range from pencil and pen to animation and computer generate images from student artists currently enrolled in Emily Carr’s Illustration Gallery Practices class of 2014.
Fri, March 28 | 7pm | The Fall Gallery (644 Seymour St) | DETAILS

LIPSERVICE | There’s a Jimmy Fallon-style lip-sync battle happening at The Imperial this Saturday night that should be worth a few laughs. Lipservice organisers have wrangled a line-up of brave locals to hit the stage with 30-60 second lip sync performances and have asked Vancouver comedy team The Sunday Service to MC the insanity. Funds raised will be donated to imagine1day (a local charity that supports development in Ethiopia).
Sat, March 29 | 8pm | The Imperial 319 Main Street | $20 | DETAILS

THINK | The Vancouver Institute presents an evening lecture about the sustainability of oceans on Saturday night. Professor Rashid Sumaila is the Director & Professor, Fisheries Economics Research Unit at the UBC Fisheries Centre and he’ll be speaking about global issues such as “fisheries subsidies, illegal fishing and the economics of high and deep seas fisheries”. This is the last Vancouver Institute lecture of the Spring 2014 season. Get in on it.
Sat, March 29 | 8:15pm | Lecture Hall 2 | Woodward Instructional Resources Centre, UBC | DETAILS

EAT LOCAL | The Winter Farmers Market fills the Nat Bailey Stadium parking lot on Saturday. Stinging nettles are just coming in to season and there are usually some kicking around the market. Full of iron and tasting like spring, pick them up and feast upon them while you can. Also hook yourself up with hearty root vegetables, fresh bread, dried fruits and scores of other locally-grown goodies.
Sat, March 29| 10am – 2pm | East Parking Lot of Nat Bailey Stadium 4601 Ontario St | DETAILS

BLIMMERY | It’s time for Blim’s Spring Community Market. There will be clothing, accessories, vintage trinkets, pottery and hand made jewellery as well as live music, gourmet chocolates and the occasional cupcake, so hook yourself up!
Sun, March 30 | 12-6 pm | Heritage Hall (3102 Main) | Free | DETAILS 

EXILE | A new plant forward, ethical, wild, and indigenous eatery called Exile is set to open in the West End on Thursday. Read the full story in Scout’s photo essay here.
Thurs, March 26th | 1220 Bute Street | DETAILS

Check the Globe & Mail every Thursday for our Special Weekend Edition of the Scout List

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Michelle Sproule grew up in Kitsilano and attended University in Australia and the University of Victoria before receiving her graduate degree in Library Sciences from The University of Toronto. She lives in beautiful Strathcona and enjoys wandering aimlessly through the city’s shops and streets with her best friend – a beat up, sticky, grimy, and uncooperative camera.

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