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

Good ol’ founding father George Vancouver turns 253. So cheers to him and us. Drink up. (June 22)

Sunday is Fathers Day. Do something to recognize Dad today. Dad’s are super important.

Rocky Horror Picture Show is showing at the Rio on Friday night. Worth a redux. Hot patootie, bless my soul! I really love that rock n’ roll!
June 18 | Midnight | Rio Theatre | $10

The Surfrider Foundation Vancouver Chapter, in conjunction with MEC’s Paddlefest, want you to join in the beach cleanup event they are pulling together to mark International Surfers Day. Think of all the good Karma! Oh, and an afterparty and screening of the surf cult classic Morning of the Earth at Sitka Surfboards is the chaser. Nice. Details here.
June 20| all day (afterparty 7-10 pm, Sitka Surfboards (1864 W. 4th) | Jericho or any beach near you.

It’s B.C.’s Family Fishing Weekend. Check out of this 11th annual “opportunity for families to enjoy the sport of fishing in the province’s tens of thousands of lakes and non-tidal streams with a free three-day licence, compliments of the BC Government”. It goes down in nearly 50 different locales, including many in the Lower Mainland. It “celebrates the sport of fishing, fish, their habitat and the outdoor beauty of the province.” Check out the website for details.
June 18-20 | lakes and non-tidal streams in your neighbourhood | FREE

Point Grey Fiesta! Git yer fill of candy floss and mini-donuts at the carnival in Trimble Park, catch the parade on Saturday or go ahead and “worship” in the park (if that’s you deal). There’s really a little something for everyone – except parking. That’ll be a problem, so consider alternative modes of transportation.
June 18/19/20| Friday night / Sat all day (beginning with a the parade at 10 am) | FREE

There’s a shindig over at the ANZA club on Friday night. It’s also billed as a homo sock hop. The cute Archie comic postcards caught my eye.
June 18 |9pm on | ANZA | $10 – but 2 for 1 before 10:30pm

P.D. is having another one of his kick-ass garage sales. “Buyers and sellers welcome, no surly birds. Bikes, skateboards, skimboards, clothing, accessories, household items, furniture, new, used, everything priced to sell!”
June 19 | 10 am – 3pm | P.D.’s Hot Shop | 2868 W. 4th Ave

I bet “traditional Scandinavian entertainment” kicks ass. We’re talking folk dancing, choirs, and all manner of cultural displays. Highlights have got to be the Wife Carrying Contest (“carry your “wife” and run across the finish line first to win her weight in Carlsberg beer!”) and Scandinavian foods like those tiny, extra-super-addictive Swedish meatballs (note shrewdly that Ikea is a festival sponsor). And yes, the beer garden is totally on. For the full scoop, have a peek here.
June 19 & 20 | 11am – 11pm Friday, 11 – 6pm Sunday | Scandinavian Community Centre (in the land of Burnaby) | $7 for an all day pass

The City of Vancouver is currently undertaking a Master Plan and consultation process to guide the long-range redevelopment of Hastings Park and the Pacific National Exhibition. Review concept plans and offer feedback. The Hastings Park/PNE Master Plan Open House is your chance to get involved.
June 19 | 10 am – 4 pm |Granville Island, Public Market Courtyard (behind the market)| FREE

Hook up with the Vancouver Police Museum for a naughty little walking tour called “Sins of the City” You’ll learn about bootleggers, prohibition, drug trade…riots and murder…the evolution of the sex trade, from brothels to streetwalkers and much much more. Juicy stuff.
June 18,19,23 | 4pm | 24 hour advanced reservation required | Get more info here | $15

Woo-hoo: five street festivals, five neighbourhoods – it’s Car-free Day! Live music, spoken-word performances, dancing, hockey, live music, bike and skateboard demos, good food, locally made trinkets and generally happy people, some of whom indulge in a litle public drinking. More days should be like this. More information over here.

June 20 | 12-6 pm Commercial Drive, 12-8pm on Main Street (between E. 16th & E. 33rd); 12-6 pm in the the West End (Denman Street); 12-6 pm in North Vancouver (Lonsdale Avenue between E. 3rd & Esplanade); and roughly the same in Kits.| FREE & Plenty of fun

Oh – and there’s the regular footy game in Strathcona. Total blast.
June 20 | 12-8 pm (just sort of guessing here) | McLean Park | FREE

Pecha Kucha brings you “Walk the Talk, Green Your City” PK Night. It goes down at the QE. It will sell out. Grab your tickets quick. Read about the line-up here.
June 23 | 7 pm | Queen Elizabeth Theatre | $10

If PKN tickets are sold out (which they almost always are) you can satisfy your design urges at SFU. There’s an interesting lecture going on called Light As It Shapes The Architectural Environment. “Bruce Ramus of Ramus Illumination and Douglas Welch of Eos Lightmedia discuss how digital media has evolved and is transforming architectural space using light and moving images.” So sold.
June 23 | 7 pm | SFU Harbour Centre | $15

Farmers Markets this week! Good places to buy locally grown produce from good people. In season this month: luscious salad greens, green onions, radishes, shallots, spinach, sprouts, sunchokes, tomatoes, apples, delectable rhubarb, fresh strawberries. You’ll also find Bay leaves, chervil, rosemary, sage, delicious dips, sunlower sprouts, crepes, goat and cow’s milk cheese, yogurt, eggs, and an inspiring array of bedding plants, beautiful flowers and, in some cases, fresh pasta from Campagnolo!
East Side: June 19 | 9am – 2pm | Trout Lake | FREE
West End: June 19 | 9am – 2pm | 1100 Block of Comox | FREE
Dundarave (West Van) June 19 | 9am – 2pm | Between 24 & 25 on Marine
Kits: June 20 | 10am – 2pm | 10th and Larch | FREE
DTES: June 23 | 3pm – 7pm | Thornton Park | FREE
UBC Farm Market: Saturdays | 9-1 | UBC Farm

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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 by the beach in Vancouver 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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