From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver from August 21 to August 27, 2019. Note that you can also get the Scout List – with a few extra pieces of intel included – sent to your inbox every Thursday. Sign up for your subscription in the sidebar.

HARVEST | We have arrived at that delicious point of the summer when tomatoes are at peak perfection. Take full advantage and gobble them up while you can. Want to take your love of the tasty orbs to the next level? Hit this weekend’s Tomato Festivals! Get yourself over to Trout Lake Farmer’s Market on Saturday or Kits Farmers Market on Sunday and go big: check out the display of 100+ varieties of heirloom tomatoes; try samples; talk to tomato farmers and tomato lovers; stock up on cute little cherry tomatoes and armfuls of romas. The window of perfection is open and it’s time to jump through! Find out more.

ART SALE | Chinatown studio/venue for emerging artists, Ground Floor Art Centre, is celebrating its first anniversary with a two-day original art sale that’s actually affordable. We don’t need to tell you that this one-year milestone is no small beans in Vancouver. Since accessible spaces like this only stand a chance of making it another year in part through organizing events, consider redirecting some of your weekend fun money (if you’ve got any) into scoring a new piece for your abode or wardrobe. Even if you don’t have it, you can still contribute good vibes by hauling your bod down to GFAC for the music, booze and fun times. Find out more.

FRESH AIR FILM | Stake-out a spot on the lovely green grass amphitheatre at Ron Basford Park this Friday night because it’s movie night on Granville Island. Put on by Reel to Real (a non-profit dedicated to showing the best culturally diverse, authentic programming for youth), this fresh air film experience is not your average Disney situation. They’ll be shaking things up with a thoughtful cross-section of outstanding Canadian short films with the extra bonus of free pre-screening animation workshops. Extra super mega bonus: free parking. Find out more.

THE HORROR | Vancity Theatre is screening Apocalypse Now this week. The phenomenal Francis Ford Coppola classic starring Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper, Laurence Fishburne – and yes, even Harrison Ford – should always be viewed on as big a screen as possible, so getting out of the house and hitting a real theatre with comfy seats and popcorn is definitely in order. This version of the 1979 American epic war film about the Vietnam War is “The Final Cut” From VIFF: “Apocalypse Now turns 40 with what Francis Coppola says is the definitive version, some 20 minutes shorter than the Redux released in 2001, 29 minutes longer than the original release, and all of it restored and polished for 4K digital projection, with 7.1 sound, bells and whistles.” Seriously, I could watch this movie 1,000 times! Find out more.

KARMA | Roll up your sleeves and join the shoreline cleanup at Jericho Beach this Saturday. Super sexy swimwear company Ocin and Surfrider Foundation – a non-profit grassroots organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of our world’s oceans, waves, and beaches – are rallying troops to hit the shores and pick up sad pieces of foam and plastic, nasty discarded bottles, and other gross bits of trash that should never have found their way to the shoreline in the first place. Reusable gloves, buckets and litter pickers provided. Bonus: post-pick-up social and all the karma. Find out more.

SECRET SUPPER | Just heard the news that there are still a few seats available for the Swallow Tail New Orleans Secret Supper this Saturday. The ’Deep South’ menu includes fried baby zucchini with buttermilk sauce; marinated heirloom tomato salad; shrimp & grits; oyster po’boys & sweet potato fries (as well as Beignets for dessert). “Five lovely courses under the magnolia tree…” sounds divine. Find out more.
Sat, Aug. 24 | 6:30pm | Secret location is secret until you purchase your ticket | $69

GET SPORTY | Can’t decide whether you should go to the gym or just kick back and drink some beer? Problem solved: head on over to Strange Fellows for their Strange Sports Day patio party. No actual athleticism is required is enjoy this day of games, tacos, face-painting, beer and general fun, but you can work out your beanbag-tossing beer-drinking muscles! Find out more.

GIG | Calexico and Iron & Wine play the Vogue Saturday night. Sadly, this show is sold out. If, however, you were in a hunting mood… this would be a show worth scouring Craigslist to find tickets to. Why?  Well… the co-headliners know a thing or two about delivering a tight set, but the real reason we’re stoked to see this concert is for the local opener: Ashley Shadow. All kinds of things happen on the last two weeks of the summer, people go away and have to unload tickets – check Craigslist here! Find out more.

EXPLORE | Got kids? It’s Family Day at the Contemporary Art Gallery this Saturday. The fun-filled afternoon includes exhibition tours and art-making activities inspired by themes found in the current show (right now, that’s Deanna Bowen | A Harlem Nocturne). From our friends at The CAG: “Responding to Rolande Souliere’s Frequent Stopping V, join us to create your own abstract work in paint and paste, weaving lines and colours together to form a bold, patterned work.” Get a little messy making some art! Find out more.

MEDITATE | This time of year can really screw with your head; switching your brain off of summer mode usually means reactivating a lot of stress. We’re right there with you. The good news is there’s an event happening at the Polygon Gallery this Sunday that could help facilitate a more calm and contemplative transition. Breathe Out, Listen In: Music About Time is a five-hour-long free music event featuring two live performances perfect for rumination. The show kicks off with a short contemporary piece by up-and-coming musician/composer Edzi’u. Then, a trio of musicians will perform the hypnotic four-hour-long piece Morton Feldman: For Philip Guston, a renown composition designed to dissolve the parameters of time and potentially take some of your anxieties with it. Whatever your head space, a chill Sunday in North Van sounds like a great idea (we suggest following up the performance with some beer at House of Funk or Beere Brewing). Find out more.