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, from our calendar to yours!
OPENING | Talia Shipman’s photography series Meet Me In The Middle opens at The Back Gallery Project on Thursday night. With this exhibition Shipman explores “an imagined post-apocalyptic world where water and other basic needs are replaced by consumer objects, examining the human and natural world’s propensity to change and transform.” Poke your head into the opening reception. It’s always great to experience a collection of art with the artist in attendance and a room full of like-minded enthusiasts. If Thursday doesn’t work for you, the gallery is open from Tuesday to Saturday between 1pm and 5pm.
Thu, Jan. 5 | Reception: 5-7 | Back Gallery Project (602 E. Hastings St.) | DETAILS
WRITE | January is a good time to write letters and send thank you notes for all the holiday gifts and visits. It’s important to remind friends and family (including those you didn’t have a chance to break bread with) that you are grateful. If the task of sitting down at your kitchen table makes it feel like a chore, check out The Regional Assembly Of Text’s Letter Writing Club this Thursday night. It’s free, open to everyone and supplies are provided. What’s more, all the thankful people writing letters to their pals is a great sort of energy to soak up. Opening mail to find a handwritten note when all you ever expect are bills is a pretty sweet surprise, so be a part of it!
Thu, Jan. 5 | 7:30pm | Regional Assembly of Text (3934 Main) | Free | DETAILS
NATURE | An eagle plucking a salmon from a river is one of those National Geographic moments that you’re able to experience with your own eyes in British Columbia. Take a drive up the Sea-To-Sky highway this weekend and go for a walk along the river bank between Squamish and Brackendale. There you’ll find a raised “Eagle Viewing Dyke” offering a walk with breathtaking views and ample opportunities to see the eagles doing their thing. The mighty birds are in their highest numbers in this area right now, so go say hi. DETAILS
STAY HOME | January is a month of recalibration. If you’ve started a new exercise or diet regime, good for you. If you’re resolved to make even bigger changes and are slowly putting those plans in to action, even better. But if you’re still trying to figure where December went and need some time to decompress, think about leaving a day open to stay home in PJ’s and do nothing. Make a warm cup of something and chill out while you listen to a podcast. If you’re looking for something inspiring, make a listen to An Evening with Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris – two exceedingly articulate people talking about everything from evolution, religion and artificial intelligence to elitism, Brexit and Donald Trump.
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 (Kerrisdale Ice Rink parking lot)
Sat & Sun | 10am – 4pm | Kits Beach parking lot (Cornwall @ Arbutus) | DETAILS
Sat & Sun | 10am – 4pm | Sunset Beach upper parking lot | DETAILS
Sat & Sun | 10am – 4pm | Trout Lake Community Centre parking lot | DETAILS
ESCAPE | More snow is on the way. Can you believe it? If you’re over the magic of defrosting locks and shovelling the sidewalk but can’t quite see your way to buying an impulse ticket to an all-inclusive break somewhere tropical, give yourself a few hours reprieve by hiding out at the Bloedel Conservatory. The delightfully artificial temperature, exotic plants and flowers, free-flying tropical birds and a little imagination — you might just forget how cold it is outside!
Mon-Sun | 10am – 5pm | Queen Elizabeth Park (4600 Cambie St.) | $6.50 | DETAILS
MOVIES | The Rio Theatre has a little something for everyone this weekend: Blade Runner: The Final Cut screens on Friday night at 8:45pm and the sublimely twisted 1971 flick A Clockwork Orange goes down Saturday night at 10pm (with bar service, and bar service is always a good idea with a Kubrick film). Things return to PG on Sunday afternoon with Kiki’s Delivery Service and then the weekend comes to a close with a free, live, Fallon-hosted Golden Globe Awards event starting at 5pm. If you’re cinematically flexible, you could potentially hang out the whole weekend.
Jan. 6-8 | Various times | Rio Theatre (1660 E Broadway) | $10 | DETAILS
LAUGH | Ryan Beil, Caitlin Howden, Kevin Lee, Aaron Read, Taz VanRassel are the five funny Vancouverites who make up The Sunday Service – the local comedy troupe that takes the stage at The Fox Cabaret every Sunday night. If you haven’t had the pleasure of catching the act thus far, maybe a bit more laughing is a good way to roll into 2017. As the Sunday Service website explains, this is a group of comedians known for “favouring discovery over structure”, which means each show is different, as the group “…builds, demolishes, and builds again an absurd patchwork of scenes and stories. Using strong narratives and character work to ground their set, the group dips in and out of meta-comedy, rock opera, word play and even slapstick shtick.” A good good belly laugh sounds like a fine way to punctuate a weekend, so give it a shot.
Sun, Jan. 8 | Doors at 8pm, Show at 9pm | The Fox Cabaret (2321 Main St) | $7 | DETAILS
CHEAP EATS | Kick off the new year by loading up a plate of good food, grabbing a seat at a communal table, and making new friends at Perogy Night. On the first Friday of each month, the Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral off Main St. sorts plenty of people out by serving up an authentic Ukrainian dinner and a warm, fuzzy community glow for cheap. A “Traditional Dinner” consists of 6 perogies, 2 cabbage rolls, sauerkraut or salad and sausage and costs just $13 (upgrade to a Super Dinner for $16 and pick up an extra 4 perogies and another cabbage roll). If you’re looking for something a little lighter, a mini dinner is only $9 (4 perogies, a cabbage roll, and some Ukrainian Koubassa). It’s an awesome deal that could only get better if they had $2.50 desserts. Wait…they do?! See you there.
Fri, Jan. 6 | 5-8pm | Holy Trinity Ukrainian Cathedral | 154 E 10th | $3.50 – $15 | DETAILS
SCIENCE | Head out to UBC and hit the the Beaty Biodiversity Museum for their Way Cool Biodiversity series this Sunday and a lecture about what makes mycorrhizae so cool. “Most plant species interact intimately with beneficial root fungi in symbioses, called mycorrhizae. A mycorrhizal fungal network, the ‘wood-wide web’, is like an underground internet for plants. How are humans impacting mycorrhizae, and how can we conserve these important symbioses? Join our discussion led by Laura Super PhD student, in Forest and Conservation Sciences, to learn about the diversity, interactions, and conservation of mycorrhizae.” Line your brain with some interesting knowledge about the natural world! Because science is rad.
Sun, Jan 8 | 1pm | UBC Biodiversity Museum | Free with $12 admission | 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.