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 list 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…

The Scout List

I love September. There is so much going on in these last days of summer…

If you’re free Thursday, you’re invited to have a conversation with City of Vancouver planner Brent Toderian. He’s chatting about Heritage in Vancouver. Get the details here.

Or, if you’re in a literary sort of mood, Annabel Lyon (author of The Golden Mean) does the Robson Reading Series (Thursday September 16, 7pm). I’ve seen Annabel read and she is good. If you can swing it, you should.

And there is a sobering little documentary called Myths for Profit: Canada’s Role in Industries of War and Peace showing at VPL Thursday night. More on that here.

Oh, and the UBC Botanical Gardens throws down with an indoor plant sale on Thursday and Friday. If you can’t make it, hit up the VanDusen Botanical Garden on Sunday to score alpine and rockery plants, perennials, ferns, small shrubs, and seedling trees.

But best of all, The Fugitives are in town and playing at the ANZA club.

On Friday you should make the time to get yourself out to the UBC Farm. Not only will you be treated to live local music (The Agora String Band, The Ruffled Feathers and The Outliers), a BBQ (vegan, veggie and beef burgers), farm-fresh corn (from the UBC Farm!) and a beer garden featuring local, handcrafted beer from Storm Brewing, but you’ll also be supporting the only working farm within the city limits. That, my friend, is some seriously good karma. It might rain a little, so take yer wellies.
Sept 17 | 3-8pm | 6182 S Campus Rd | FREE admission but corn, beer and stuff will cost you

Also on Friday evening, David Suzuki is slated to give a talk at Kits Secondary in support of his book The Legacy: An Elder’s Vision for Our Sustainable Future. It’s David Suzuki.
Sept 17 | 8:00 pm | Kitsilano Secondary School

Blim is showing a flick called The Island at the End of the World. Find out more…
Sept 17 | Doors 9 PM, Screening: 9:30 PM | $8 – 10 sliding scale

For something a little lighter, UBC Film Society hooks you up with some box office gold. Get Him To The Greek shows at 7pm and Iron Man 2 at 9pm. The cost is $5 for non-members and $2.50 for members.

Lighter still?  Spike and Mike hits the Rio. How’s that? Also playing at the Rio is Planet of the Apes, all the way from 1968 and it’s still kind of creepy.

Are you a green cook? Maybe not, but it doesn’t hurt to see what it takes. Make time this Saturday afternoon for a promising lecture entitled “Kitchen Design: An environmentally sustainable approach”. Check it out at the Lighthouse Sustainable Building Centre.
Sept 18 | 2-4 pm | The Lighthouse Sustainable Building Centre | $5

Speaking of sustainability, the Society Promoting Environmental Conservation is hosting a gig on Saturday (10am-3pm) that offers skill shops, local food sampling, live music, an art show and t-shirt screen printing. Take a look with some cash at SPEC’s Sustainable Demonstration Centre, located in Kitsilano at 2150 Maple Street. More info here.

Alternatively, hook up with Heritage Vancouver for a walking tour of the Mole Hill Community. Mole Hill is interesting because it’s a project that successfully realised mixed-income living in some very beautifully renovated heritage houses. It’s one of those rare and inspiring examples of development and idealism merging in to a liveable housing situation. Why? Simply because people cooperated and listened to one another. Amazing. Find out all about it here.

If you make your way up to 57th and West Boulevard (Fraser River Park) on Saturday, where you can tag along with Terry Slack – a semi-retired commercial salmon fisherman, Fraser River salmon conservationist and lifetime lover of river history and archeology – to “explore the watershed and great ravine of this great first nations historic salmon creek…” How awesome is that? “With permission of Musqueam Elders we will enter the mysterious old Village site called “Tsusnahm”. Even better. Details here.

Food On Film – Strathcona’s School of Chalk is organising another free outdoor flick, this one will be kid-friendly.  RATATOUILLE! Bring your blankets and your truffle oil- that’s right, there will be popcorn!
Sept 18 | 7pm | School of Chalk  | 593 East Georgia St. (corner of Princess) | FREE and COOL

Also on Saturday, Gwynne Dyer discusses Geopolitics in a Hotter World out at UBC. As always, these Vancouver Institute lectures are free. Seats, however, are limited, so do yourself a favour and get there early. OK, now I’m going to give you a link to the Vancouver Institute page so you can get the full story, but don’t let the photograph of Mr.Dyer scare you, he is an educated and engaging gentleman (who just doesn’t photograph well or can’t remember how to smile). OK, prepare yourselves. Click.
Sept 18 | 8:15 pm | Woodward Instructional Resources Centre, UBC | FREE

But if all of the above sounds a little too staid and you’re feeling brave, consider Das Oktoberfest on Saturday night.  “Real Oktoberfest by Real Germans [in September]”. It’s a good time.  Or so I’ve heard. Visit the Vancouver Alpen Club to get all the juicy bits.

Sunday is a food-forward day. If you did make it to Oktober Fest last night, head to the Gastown Blues and Chili Festival. Nothing will pick you up like a bowl (or ten) of chili paired with some kickass Red Truck and Tree beer. Add 9 bands worth of live music (my fave is the Skillet Lickers), and you’re golden.
Sept 19 | 11am to 7pm | Abbott between Water and Cordova | Gastown

Also Sunday… the DTES Kitchen Tables Project asks the question: Are pastries, hot dogs and coffee whitener food?
If you don’t already know the answer to that one, or think it might be worth while making sure others know, join the Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood House and the Potluck Café Society as they help the DTES Kitchen Tables Project put healthier (and tastier) food on DTES kitchen tables. Good karma. Most likely good fun. Details here and here.

Celebrate the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival at the Dr. Sun Yat Sen gardens. “Traditionally, farmers celebrate the end of the summer harvesting season on this day while Chinese families and friends gather to celebrate and admire the bright mid-autumn harvest moon and eat moon cakes together. The Garden will be open from 10-4 by donation for everyone to come and celebrate this special holiday. We will have a number of activities, games and traditional decorations…perfect for the whole family!” Where and when and all that here.

There is also the Harvest Festival in Strathcona. Word is there will be a pie contest, and…well…more pie. That’s the main reason this event is hiding down here sort of quiet-like. The less you know, the more pie for me.

Finish the week off with Roast Turkey, Onion Stuffing, Potatoes & Cranberry Chutney paired with a lovely pint
as the Irish Heather’s Long Table dinner series continues introducing neighbours to each other. It’s only $17. I freakin’ love the Long Table.

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Michelle Sproule grew up in Kitsilano and attended Bond 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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