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!

WALK | Beautiful even when covered with a sheet of ice, Lost Lagoon is a perfect break from the business of the city without having to leave it. One slow, contemplative lap is enough to make you feel like you’ve had a healthy dose of the outdoors (but not so long that your fingers freeze).

DO IT | Brave the icy shores of English Bay to participate in a Vancouver tradition on New Year’s Day. Yes, it’s time for the Polar Bear Swim. Costumes and the Peter Pantages Memorial 100 yard swim race are the highlights. A few swigs beforehand can help boost courage (not that we encourage that sort of thing). Registration begins at 12:30pm at the English Bay Bathhouse, but the actual plunge takes place 2:30pm. See you there!
Thu, Jan 1 | 2:30pm | English Bay | DETAILS

FIRST FOOT | Heads up, it’s important to think about who will be your “First-Footer” this year. In Scottish folklore, the first-foot is the first person to cross the threshold of a home on New Year’s Day and a bringer of good fortune for the coming year. The first-foot is traditionally a tall, dark-haired male who brings with him coal (for warmth), a coin (for prosperity), some bread (full belly), and a drink (whisky seems like a pretty good idea) for good cheer.
Thu, Jan 1 | Think this one through and choose wisely | DETAILS

HIBERNATE | Cold winter days offer a perfect excuse to stay in and watch the tube. Grab a few blankets, a seat on the couch and tee up a movie marathon. Go for a classic trilogy like Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, or Mad Max — or line up your own theme (eg. gangster films of the 80s, a Woody Allen retrospective, Wes Anderson love-in). Add a big bowl of buttered popcorn and you’re golden.

BEGIN | If you’ve made yourself a promise to change a few things this coming year (“2015 is the year to get in shape, for real this time”) – a good place to start is at your local community centre. From yoga and martial arts to Hawaiian dance and badminton, the Vancouver Parks Board can sort you out. With 24 community centres at various locations throughout the city, the likelihood of there being one in your neighbourhood is pretty high and classes are reasonably priced. DETAILS 

MAKE | The Chinatown art and craft facility Blim is offering a beginner’s screenprint workshop this weekend. This three hour class will walk you through the process of burning an image to a screen with photo emulsion. This image can then be used to print on paper or textiles. The cost of the workshop includes an 8×10 screenburn of one as well as 10 prints, 3 color changes, and a lifetime membership to the Blim studio. Make something!
Sat, Jan 3 | 2–5pm | Blim (115 Pender) | $75 | DETAILS

DUDE | The Rio Theatre presents a late night screening of the Coen Brother’s The Big Lebowski this Friday. Not only is this a great flick, but showing up in film-related costume is always an awesome way to go (you’ll get $2 off at the door). So pull out your bath robe, Dieter suits and/or viking headgear and get yourself to the Rio, because that rug really did tie the room together.
Fri, Jan. 2 | 11:55pm | Rio Theatre (1660 E Broadway) | $8 ($6 in film-related costume) | DETAILS

SAY GOODBYE | For those who’ve been holding on to the Christmas dream, it’s time to move on. At its arboreal end, your tree has become a crispy version of its original self, so take the ornaments off and get that sucker to a chipper. Both Saturday and Sunday offer options:
Sat & Sun | 10am – 4pm | Kerrisdale Community Centre (5670 East Blvd.) | DETAILS 
Sat & Sun | 10am – 4pm | Kits Beach parking lot (Cornwall @ Arbutus)  | DETAILS 
Sat & Sun | 10am – 4pm | Sunset Beach upper parking lot (Beach Ave.@Broughton St.)  | DETAILS 
Sat & Sun | 10am – 4pm | Rona Home and Garden, Grandview Store (2727 East 12th Ave)  | DETAILS 
Sunday | 10am – 4pm | Kingsgate Mall (370 East Broadway) | DETAILS 

SCIENCE | The Beatty Biodiversity Museum begins 2015’s Way Cool Biodiversity series this Sunday with a lecture about what makes wrasses so cool. “Come learn about how wrasses and their cousins the parrotfishes use of tactics like sex change, female mate choice copying, male sneaking, and cooperation among dominant males in their quest to raise young.” Picking up a little extra knowledge about the natural world is only ever going to work to your advantage (if not in practical application, at least it will amp up your conversational entertainment value at cocktail parties and coffee breaks).
Sun, Jan 4 | 1pm | UBC Biodiversity Museum | Free with $12 admission | DETAILS

SHAKESPEARE | Vanity Theatre is screening an ’Original Practices’ production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night this Sunday. ’Original Practices’ means every attempt is made to “replicate as closely as possible the music, costumes, dance and scenery of Shakespeare’s time.” Among other things, that means an all-male cast. Directed by Tim Carroll and starring Mark Rylance and Stephen Fry. By all accounts a fine film worth venturing out in the cold to see.
Sun, Jan 4 | 2:45pm | Vancity Theatre (1181 Seymour) | DETAILS

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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 streets with her best friend – a beat up, sticky, grimy (but faithful) camera.