WE Vancouver, December 20, 2012

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Also: End of the world revisited 5 Ski holidays 6 What’s open Christmas day 13 On The Plate’s Best of 2012 14 Nutcracker romance 17

HOLIDAY CHEERS

What wine to give? House Wine’s Michelle Bouffard and Michaela Morris share their top picks. What gift?

We have lots of last-minute ideas 8 - 13 Rob Newell photo

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Signoffs

December 20 – 26,12-12-10 2012

3

1:13 PM

Who

are

Publisher Anne Devereaux • 604-742-8684 publisher@wevancouver.com

the week ahead

Dec. 20 - 26

Dance away Boxing Day Wake up on Boxing Day, shop the sales or spend the day relaxing on the couch with that last box of chocolates and then get ready to dance. More than 12,000 people are expected to converge at BC Place on December 26 for Contact, billed as the biggest electronic music show in Western Canada.

Culminating with an unhooked performance by Deadmau5, whose new album, > album title goes here <, is up for a Grammy for Best Electronic Album, the festival also includes Nero, Alesso, Chris Lake and Lazy Rich.

Deadmau5 is no stranger to Vancouver.

Known to his mother as Joel Zimmerman, he played in multiple arena events for Blueprint and a LiveCity event during the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. The only tickets remaining are Final Tier ($99) or VIP ($150), available at Contact-Festival.com/tickets.php. Supplied photo

Managing Editor Martha Perkins • 604-742-8695 editor@wevancouver.com Editorial staff Kelsey Klassen • 604-742-8699 kelsey@wevancouver.com Photography Editor Doug Shanks • 604-742-8691 photo@wevancouver.com Advertising Manager Gail Nugent • 604-742-8678 admanager@wevancouver.com Classified Advertising 604-575-5555 classifieds@wevancouver.com Creative Services Supervisor Robbin Sheriland Creative Services Staff Tara Rafiq

Free ice skating at the Square It doesn’t quite feel like the holiday season until you can stroll by Robson Square in the heart of downtown Vancouver and hear the whooshing of ice skaters. The best part about this festive, family-friendly Vancouver winter tradition? It’s free. While visitors in NYC have to pony up $19 to skate at the iconic Rockefeller Center Ice Rink, and it’s $20+ to skate the Natural History Museum Rink in London, Vancouver’s Robson Square Ice Rink (800 Robson) charges for rentals only. And at $4 (cash) for blades, it’s really not steep. The skating rink at Robson Square will be open every day until the end of February from 9am to 9pm daily, with Fridays and Saturdays staying open to 11pm. Last winter over 100,000 people visited the plaza for ice skating, concerts and other special events. Aside from skating there will be Friday night DJ Series, free concerts Saturday nights, photos with Santa, 12 days of Christmas festivities, a family friendly 2013 New Year’s celebration, and a Valentine’s Day skating competition. A concession stand with snacks and warm drinks is also available at the rink.

RobsonSquare.com Rob Newell photo

Home-spun holiday gold

Circulation Miguel Black • 604.742.8676 circulation@wevancouver.com

Consistently one of the most popular Vancouver vocal ensembles, Musica Intima’s staging of Home for Christmas will elevate the true serenity of the holiday season amidst the rush.

Traditional spirituals, audience favorites as well as two 17th-century Canadian Ursuline carols celebrate Christmas in all its appeal. Soft lingering notes from classics such as Carol of the Bells and Do You Hear What I Hear will follow you home long after you spill from the doors of the church. Both remaining dates (Dec. 21 at Christ Church Cathedral and Dec. 22 at Knox Presbyterian Church) are close to sold out so advance tickets are highly recommended. Tickets are $35 (adults), available at MusicaIntima.

Evenbrite.ca or 604-731-6618. Wendy D. photo

205-1525 W. 8th Avenue, Vancouver, BC, V6J 1T5 Facebook.com/ WEVancouver @WEVancouver Member of Black Press, B.C. Press Council, Canadian Community Newspapers Association. Published at Vancouver by the MetroValley Newspaper Group a Division of Black Press Group Ltd. Editorial submissions are welcome but unsolicited manuscripts will not be returned. Submissions may be edited for brevity and legality.

Opinions in columns are not necessarily shared by the publisher. Copyright and/ or property rights subsist in all display advertising and other material appearing in WE. If, in the publisher’s judgment, an error is made that materially affects the value of the advertise­ment to the advertiser, a corrected advertisement will be inserted upon demand without further charge. “Make-good” insertions are not granted on minor errors which do not lessen the value of the advertisement. Notice of error required before second insertion.

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WEVancouver.com

To Mayans, endings always lead to new beginnings

By Julia Kalinina

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he latest countdown to doomsday — as the Mayan calendar reaches an end this Friday — has thousands of doomsday tourists flying to southern Mexico and Guatemala to observe ceremonies at Mayan archeological sites, and millions of others making plans to party like its the end of the world.

But perhaps you should to reconsider plans to tell a peevish boss where to go as you leave work this Friday.

“The Maya never said the world was going to end,” says Felipe Garcia, a Guatemalan Maya man who now lives in Vancouver. “What’s going to end is one cycle, one calendar, and we’re going to start a new cycle.”

The ancient Mayan understanding of time differs from the dominant, Western version.

“This particular calendar has no beginning and no end,” says Marvin Cohodas, a professor of art history at UBC specializing in con-

temporary Maya art. “The ancient Maya thought time was infinite and the universe was created and destroyed an infinite number of times. But for recording purposes, they used the last creation as the starting point.”

Because time is understood as infinite, each ending signals a rebirth, a transition that is never final.

“After each destruction, time continues and the universe is recycled,” says Cohodas. “So the idea that the world is ending was not developed by the Maya people.”

Furthermore, the calendar estimated to end on December 21 is only one of several calendars the Maya use to record time.

Media attention has helped Mexico and Guatemala attract scores of end-of-the-world tourists.

On December 11, Garcia’s daughter travelled to Guatemala to visit family but could not find a hotel room in the capital city because they were all booked.

Last month, professor Cohodas partnered with a Mayan associate and held two talks at Science

Twitter takes on the end of the world

S

ince the end of the world will also mean the end of the Twitterverse, we asked @ WEVancouver followers to let us know where they’ll be or what they’ll be doing on December 21.

The ancient Maya thought time was infinite, with each ending signalling a rebirth, says UBC professor Marvin Cohodas. Rob Newell photo World to share his knowledge of the Mayan calendar. He encountered curiosity at the events, but no doomsday angst.

“Some people are making money off of [the end-of-the-world theory], but I don’t know any one who is anxious,” says Cohodas.

Asked why he thinks the apocalypse so often captures the human imagination, Cohodas suggests anxiety about the future and a search for simple solutions.

“In a way, there is a kind of apocalypse now,” he says. “But it’s constant. Environmental destruction, climate change.”

Neither Cohodas nor Garcia have made special plans for December 21.

“On Dec. 22, you won’t see big changes,” says Garcia. “Everything is changing all the time.”

Perhaps an end is not the end and maintaining a good relationship with one’s boss remains a good idea.

If the world doesn’t come to an end on December 21, why not head to the HR MacMillan Space Centre that night for a screening of Hollywood’s take, 2012. It’s at 8pm. Tickets are $10.75. SpaceCentre.ca

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WEVancouver.com

@PJCavan: Transatlantic flight, because the people in airplanes always do best in apocalypse movies. @WFLBC: Probably laundry. @TUCircus: Going out with style! @earthchild93: Going out to buy a “new” calendar!

Lol @MondayMag: Naked yoga? @thenetworkhub Watching Star Trek. @derma_store: I’m not sure, but i know I will be mani/pedi ready! @VicArtsMrktg: Yikes, I’ll be flying back to #yyj from Mexico City.

Will I have the Gods protecting me? Promise to bring sun home! @CraigRMcCulloch: Among other things, checking my calendar and looking forward to December 22. @Rockford_Grill: Eat cuz it’s goin out of style!

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Follow us on Twitter: @DigitalComBC December 20 – 26, 2012

5

How about a ski-cation?

School’s out and many people have the week off work. Why not go skiing? If you don’t have a favourite slope, here are a few ideas of where to go, both in our backyard and farther afield, and why.

Whistler Blackcomb

Whistler Blackcomb photo

Getting there: It’s 562km from Vancouver, so a good six-hour trek by car. Or you can fly to Kelowna and then take the Revelstoke Connection, with multiple departures daily.

There’s also a Greyhound bus service. Once you’re there, there’s a city bus service and a ski shuttle that runs a loop to and from the ski resort.

Distance from Vancouver: one of the best two-hour drives in Canada along the Sea to Sky highway. Pacific Coach Lines and Greyhound buses also offer transportation, as do operators such as Land Sea Tours.

Claim to fame: They might have officially been called the Vancouver Olympics, but Whistler played a starring role in the 2010 Winter Games.

Claim to fame: It’s the only resort in the world to offer lift, Cat, heli, and backcountry skiing/ snowboarding from one village.

Who you’ll meet on the chairlift: Its festive atmosphere at night makes it particularly popular with the younger party-going crowd.

Price range: Christmas holiday stay-and-ski packages start at 7 nights/5 days from $175 per person/per night (based on two adults sharing a hotel room from Dec 22 – Jan 4. Visit Whistler.com/winter_packages#offer_01.) It’s strongly recommended that you pre-purchase an Edge card online for the biggest savings on lift tickets, which are $98 a day plus taxes.

Who you’ll meet on the chairlift: Almost half Sarah Windsor photo the terrain is classed as intermediate, and the area gets an average of 30 to 45 feet of snow, so Revelstoke tends to attract advanced skiers and snowboarders. Most range in age from 25 to 40.

Disposable income helps, too, if you want to take advantage of the Cat and heli skiing.

Price range: Ski-and-stay packages starting from $275 per person, based on double occupancy at The Sutton Place Hotel (the signature, luxury ski-in/ski-out property) and from $139 per person, based on double occupancy at the downtown Sandman Hotel from December 25 – January 6.

One more reason to visit: Many foodies drive to Whistler just for dinner at Araxi. Another option: every Sunday night, the ski and snowboard school puts on a show of tricks, fire spinners and fire works.

A non-skiing reason to visit: Revelstoke has more than 100 years of history so it’s got an authentic, real-town charm. Natural hot springs are a plus, as is the aquatic centre with waterslide.

Whistler.com | 1-800-WHISTLER (944-7853)

RevelstokeMountainResort.com

Apex Mountain Resort

Sun Peaks Resort

Distance from Vancouver: 405km4.5 hours east of Vancouver; 33km west of Penticton.

Distance from Vancouver: 400 km/5 hours, primarily along Hwy 5

Claim to fame: Wine lovers may flock to the Okanagan in the summer, but skiers love the appeal of a 2,000ft drop, 67 trails (48 per cent intermediate and 36 per cent advanced) and an average snowfall of 19ft. They even call it “dry” powder. You know, dry powder — it’s not as cold as wet powder.

Claim to fame: Third biggest ski area in Canada (after Whistler and Mt Tremblant); the longest green run (8 km from top to village); an average of 2,000 hours of sunshine a year (hence the name).

Who you’ll meet on the chairlift: People who know the Okanagan doesn’t just mean “wine country”.

Apex Mountain photo

Who you’ll meet on the chairlift: Sun Peaks is family friendly, with more emphasis on things that appeal to all ages and skill levels. (You don’t have to be a skier to enjoy your time there.) There’s dogsledding, snowshoeing, snowmobiling and lift access to the nordic trails.

Sun Peaks/Adam Stein photo

Price range: Day lift passes are $65. Over the holidays there are two-night accommodation packages for $229, which includes $50 meal voucher and family tubing pass. There are also group lodge and condo packages.

Price range: A day’s lift pass is $76; there are value packages. Accommodation ranges from $89 in low season and $229 a night in high season.

One more reason to visit: If there’s a non-skier in your group, try the one-kilometre adventure ice skating loop or take the lift up to the tube park.

One more reason to visit: Winter Festival of Wine, Jan. 12 to 20. Packages include two nights’ accommodation and three events starting from $295 per person.

ApexResort.com

SunpeaksResort.com

JJ Koeman photo

Evan Chandler-Sloans photo

Grouse Mountain photo

Cypress Mountain

Grouse Mountain

Mount Seymour

Getting there: There’s no public transportation to Cypress but there is a contracted express bus: CypressCoachlines.com.

Getting there: There’s regular public transit to and from the base of Grouse Mountain every half hour. Catch Bus 232 - Phibbs Exchange or Bus 236 - Lonsdale Quay.

Getting there: Public transportation reaches the bottom of the hill and there’s a shuttle bus service from Parkgate Community Centre for $6 one way, making it convenient for parents who want to drop off their kids.

Claim to fame: Some of the toughest black runs on the North Shore (Purgatory and Hades are particularly challenging); Terrain Parks voted some of the best in Western Canada; and on a clear day The Cut is everyone’s favourite run with breathtaking views stretching all the way to Washington State and Vancouver Island.

Claim to fame: The first local mountain to allow snowboarders, Mt. Seymour was recently awarded a top-three spot in the west (behind Whistler and Olympic Park in Alberta) by Snowboard Canada Magazine. It hosts many high-calibre national events from the Canadian Shield to Vancouver’s Hi-Standard.

Who you’ll meet on the chairlift: Any Vancouverite who looks with yearning at the twinkling lights of Cypress at night.

Who you’ll meet on the chairlift: All ages and abilities with a strong emphasis on families.

Who you’ll meet on the chairlift: Not surprisingly there are a lot of young freestyle skiers and snowboarders, although families also love it.

Price range: A day lift pass is $60 but also check out the $67 Gold Medal Card which gives you 20 per cent savings.

Price range: Ski & Board lift tickets (9am to 10pm) $58. Night lift tickets (4pm to 10pm) $48. Plus snow packs for five to 10 days a season.

Price range: $51 lift pass from opening to 10pm and $39 from 4 to 10pm.

Claim to fame: Who can forget the look of sheer joy on Alexandre Bilodeau’s face when the freestyle skier from Montreal became the first Canadian to win a gold medal at an Olympic Games in Canada.

He won the hearts of a nation atop Cypress in February 2010. For non-Olympians it offers the largest night skiing and riding operations in Western Canada.

One more reason to visit: Cypress offers Vancouver’s only cross country ski area, not to mention a snow tubing park and night snowshoeing tours.

CypressMountain.com

6

Revelstoke

December 20 – 26, 2012

One more reason to visit: A fun way to enjoy the view on the way up — the Skyride is North America’s largest aerial tramway.

One more reason to visit: Families can ring in the new year at Family First Night in the tubing and tobogganing area with a child-friendly countdown at 9pm.

GrouseMountain.com

Mount Seymour.com

WEVancouver.com

Give the gift of disappointment Vancouver comedian Charlie Demers has experienced Christmas morning displays of childhood greed from both sides of the tree

By Christine Lyon

I

n a Dec. 24, 1984 home video, a young Charlie Demers rattles off an extravagant list of all the toys he thinks Santa is going to bring him while, in the background, his father raises his eyebrows and breaks out in hysterical, but silent, laughter.

“It’s going to be a very disappointing Christmas,” his dad pipes up after regaining his composure.

Demers, a writer, comedian and regular on CBC Radio One’s The Debaters, was one of the storytellers at The Flame: Holiday Season Edition at The Cultch, where he suggested a Christmas letdown might be just what children need.

“For gentile kids in North America, Christmas morning is, of course, the gold standard for childhood magic,” Demers says.

But in that magic, he explains, lies the threat of grave disappointment that comes from reality failing to live up to childhood imagination, and, more importantly, childhood avarice.

Demers recalls one Christmas when his aunt received a Care Bears piggy bank in her stocking.

“I was convinced that this had to be

WEVancouver.com

Charlie Demers was making his family laugh from an early age, especially the year he listed off all the things he was expecting Santa to bring him.... some kind of clerical mixup. Obviously this piggy bank was meant for me, because I wanted it.”

Demers stamped his feet, cried and begged, all to no avail. In the end, though, he was glad his aunt didn’t just hand over the gift, because seeing it in her room served as a reminder that you can’t always get what you want.

In later years, Demers became an olderbrother figure to his aunt’s two sons, 14 and 16 years his junior, and bore witness to their Christmas morning greed. One year he gave the boys glossy Harry Potter calendars.

“The gifts were no sooner opened

than discarded … swallowed up in this avalanche of wrapping paper and merchandise,” he recalls. “Hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars worth of presents did nothing to satiate the invincible want of childhood.”

Once his cousins had unwrapped everything, they launched into a “litany of wrongdoings,” listing all the items they had not received. Demers was horrified, his Christmas morning stripped of joy. “I had to rush to fill the void with gravy,” he says.

The following year, a very broke Demers bought cheap Hindu icons he had found in his Little India neighbourhood for his cousins.

He was so dreading his cousins’ reactions that he barely noticed how much things had changed.

“They were opening their presents more slowly this year,” he says. “Their eyes were pie-plated in excitement and gratefulness.”

The boys seemed genuinely thrilled with their Ganesha figurines and it occurred to Demers that kids are ever changing. They may be overcome by greed one year, but it’s up to those who love them whether they stay that way.

Demers concluded his holiday tale with a piece of advice for the audience: “Give your child the joy and the gift of disappointment, because this year’s Christmas disappointment is next year’s Christmas miracle.”

The Flame: Holiday Season Edition is presented with Metro Vancouver as part of its Create Memories, Not Garbage campaign.

Watch local performers tell their memorable Christmas stories at MetroVancouver.org.

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December 20 – 26, 2012

7

Give stodgy winter footwear the boot

H

ail, snow, storm-ravaged seawalls... Welcome to December in Vancouver. While you’re out looking for last-minute gifts (see page 12), pick up a pair of boots for yourself that will make dashing store to store a little more comfortable and a lot more stylish. — Kelsey Klassen

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December 20 – 26, 2012

SCRATCH & WIN! Buy a pair of Boulet Boots and get the chance to WIN a 2nd pair FREE!

Women: 1 HUNTER Original (gloss), $160; socks $50, GetPlenty. com 2 WONDERS Spaniel/Baltic, $399, Ella-Shoes.MyShopify. com 3 STEVE MADDEN Colateral, $160, GetPlenty.com 4 SOREL Gergel, $150, LittleBurgundyShoes. com 5 ALDO Araneo, $100, AldoShoes. com 6 UGG Estelle, $325, GravityPope. com 7 AIGLE Ms. Juliette (short), $155, GravityPope.com, GetPlenty.com 8 ILSE JACOBSEN Hornbaek, $154, GravityPope.com 9 KODIAK Bisset, $210, GravityPope.com Unisex: 10 NATIVE Jimmy, starting at $90 (online), NativeShoes. com, Homewerx.ca 11 NATIVE Fitzsimmons, starting at $90 (online) NativeShoes.com, Homewerx.ca Men: 12 F AS IN FRANK and LOVE JULES LEATHER limitededition MCM Cookie Boot, $650, FAsInFrankVintage.com 13 PATAGONIA Tin Shed, $240, GravityPope.com 14 GENERIC SURPLUS Mojave, $160, GenericSurplus.com

WEVancouver.com

gifts for the GEEK

Technology wins race in Christmas Cold War

By Frank Klassen

A

ccording to a recent Insights West-6S Marketing Christmas gift survey, 20 per cent of adults in BC would prefer technology gifts, edging out 12 other suggested categories, such as clothing, gift certificates and household items. Not surprisingly, that number increases to 59 per cent amongts teens.

WE Vancouver asked Black Press’ chief information officer, Frank Klassen — the man in charge of, you guessed it, company-wide technology — to offer up his top 10 ‘Techmas’ gift ideas:

throughout Vancouver, you can pick up an iLP Digital Conversion Turntable ($100). This handy gadget features an iPad, iPhone and iPod dock built-in right next to the turntable, letting you convert your records straight to the portable device. The same is true for cassette tapes with the Tape 2 Go and Tape Express+ units from ION. IONAudio.com • Talk about your 3-D puzzle — this 1300-plus-piece Lego build will result in a customized remote-controlled rock crawler or straight off-roader (or whatever crazy twist you want to put on your

Lego Technic 4x4 Crawler). Available at the Lego Store in Oakridge Mall or online (Technic.Lego.com) for $200.

• This may be one of the oddest tech toys I’ve seen in awhile, but given the amount of rain and leaves that fall here in BC, it could be just the answer for homeowners who clean their gutters regularly but don’t want to risk falling off the ladder. iRobot has added the iRobot Looj 330 to its arsenal, which automatically senses leaves and debris in any normal gutter while the detachable handle doubles as a remote control up to 50 feet away. You re-

ally have to see the movie to understand how it works. $300, iRobot.com • And finally, it’s low-tech meets hightech with travel-friendly winter boots. If you’re planning a snowy vacation, it’s a pain to pack bulky boots.

For $170, the Teva Chair 5 Winter Boots are half the weight of most, yet don’t sacrifice any warmth or protection with 250 grams of 3M Thinsulate LiteLoft insulation. Plus, you can squeeze them down to the size of tennis shoe — perfect for traveller trying to pack light. Available throughout Vancouver. Teva.com

• Become your own personal paparazzi with the world’s first intelligent wearable camera.

The Autographer (pictured above) uses several key sensors — including GPS, accelerometer, thermometer and motion detector — that work together to decide when the camera dangling from your neck should take a 5 megapixel picture. It’s also got Bluetooth and 8Gb of storage built-in. It’s unfortunately not available in North America yet but if you have a friend in Britain you can be one of the first! Retails around $650. Autographer.com • These are not your old man’s snow goggles.

Beyond just looking cool, Oakley Airwaves will reinvent the way you ski or board. With GPS and Bluetooth onboard, you can pinpoint your location, track your friends and even analyze your performance (altitude, speed and airtime). iOS and Android compatible along with a glove-friendly remote. Not inexpensive at $600, but sure to please the hard-core skier/boarder. Ca.Oakley.com • I gave up wearing a watch decades ago. Now I’ve got one on my left wrist which not only tells me the time, but counts my steps and calories as well as calculates the number of “fuel” points I’ve generated daily. The Nike Fuel Band is a motivational tool to keep me active — even letting me compete with friends online. iOS compatible syncs with the NikeFuel app. $149 and available at stores throughout Vancouver. Nike.com • In a city as densely populated as Vancouver, it’s hard to enjoy the full sound of your music or movies without disturbing the neighbours. Sennheiser RS 220 wireless headphones are the answer. Untether yourself from a cable while receiving uncompressed digital signals over 2.4 GHz — the highest quality with no delay. $600-$800. Sennheiser.ca • Take your movies on the road with the 3M Streaming Projector by Roku — available through Amazon.com ($300). This palm-sized box features a single HDMI input filled by Roku’s Streaming Stick, giving you instant wifi access to any online services in Canada. With help from a built-in speaker and rechargeable battery, you can create a movie theatre for up to 2.5 hours almost anywhere.

• Another new camera that’s received some buzz is the Lytro ($400), which captures 11 million light rays of data (11 megarays) per shot (yes that’s a million). It also captures the direction of each ray.

With no focus needed, the image capture is almost instantaneous. The result is a 4-dimensional image that you focus afterwards. In fact you can share your photos with friends who can play with the picture as well. Available in limited quantities from Future Shop and other Vancouver retailers.

• The folks at ION Audio have many great tools for turning your old music collection into MP3 formats that you can play digitally. At stores

WEVancouver.com

December 20 – 26, 2012

9

Grand Opening

MARCH 2013

gifts for the hoST Carmen Ruiz y Laza (right) helps bring cheer to holiday gettogethers with these gift ideas from Karma Exchange partners, such as her sister Rosario (left).

Justin Baker photo

By Carmen Ruiz y Laza

OPENING MARCH 1ST

Register now to choose your view month Rental rates starting at $1700 per all inclusive SENIORS SUPPORTIVE INDEPENDENT LIVING & RESORT LIVING

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Retirement living on the park

I

am president of Karma Exchange, a local company that partners with Vancouver businesses to raise money to support the educational aspirations of young women in Ghana. Our motto is “Shopping with Heart”, so when I was asked to suggest the perfect place to find a gift for your holiday host or hostess, I turned to our Karma Exchange partners.

You get to support charity simply by shopping at these stores.

Now that’s the Christmas spirit!

1 Basket of goodies

I’ll put a package together of Dawn Tea from Bel Cafe, Cookies from Cloud 9 (delicious gluten-free treats) and some wine from Marquis as they sell an extensive collection of exclusive products. Cloud9SpecialtyBakery.com, BelCafe.com, Marquis-Wines.com

Vancouver’s Garden, Fashion, Gift & Home Eclectic Find

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December 20 – 26, 2012

Located on the Hornby bike lane, one block from the Aquabus 1401 Hornby St., VAncouVer 604-662-3303 Store HourS: open Daily 10am - 6pm, Dec. 24th 10am - 4pm, cLoSeD for cHriStmAS • Boxing Week 10am - 5pm

WEVancouver.com

GIFTS FOR THE HOST 2

PETLEY JONES GALLERY

This gallery has an extensive collection of contemporary and historical art works including original etchings, prints and a frame shop — everything you need to find a beautiful piece of art. I have selected my gifts and shall have them framed. Etchings and framing sales contribute to Karma Exchange. PetleyJones.com

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BOOK SIGNING THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20

PARIS CLINIQE

3 MANITO SILK

My bed is all silk and I absolutely love it, so I thought to share this luxury with a few friends. This company has affordable small items such as robes, throws and pillowcases.

Now, only to choose the colours! I believe this company is the city’s only destination silk bedding store and I know this Christmas they’re going to have a number of gift items ($99). ManitoSilk.com

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It’s my fave “spa” because it has an infrared sauna — 60 minutes helps your body detox and lose 600 calories. They sell packages so I like to give this to my extremely social friends — a great way to recover from all those parties. Another option is a bio lift facial. It’s not your regular treatment as this one works on muscle tone, so perfect for my more mature friends. MyParisCliniqe.com

PERSONAL ORGANIZER

My sister Rosario is an organizer, so for some of my friends who have everything, I give them an extra pair of hands for two days. Need to take the Christmas decorations down? New Year’s resolution to clean your closet? Done! This is always a very wellreceived gift. RosarioRL.com

ShopTalk

Retail and fashion news from across Vancouver

By Kelsey Klassen

Across from BC Place Plenty of free parking 750 Pacific Boulevard S., Vancouver edgewatercasino.ca

Edgewater Casino, Vancouver @CasinoEdgewater

Christmas AT

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Unique gifts and fresh food for all your shopping needs. Join us every Sunday on the retail level in December for our Craft Market. All December, enjoy the festive ambiance with live musical performances by local choirs, bands and orchestras. Saturdays leading up to Christmas offer fun activities for the whole family with a holiday centrepiece workshop, Santa photos, Christmas stories and kids crafts!

Visit www.lonsdalequay.com for full holiday schedule.

West Elm opens first Market

WEVancouver.com

6PM TO 8PM

Your Holiday Destination for...

Heritage Leather; soaps, room sprays and incense crafted by Juniper Ridge; organic blended heirloom tomato sauces from Balkian Farms; and artisancrafted items from Mikuni Wild Harvest and Noble Handcrafted. WestElm.com

Home furnishings retailer West Elm will open its first West Elm Market store in Canada on Dec. 20. Following the opening of West Elm Market’s inaugural store in Brooklyn, this second store is slated for 2915 Granville Street, in the same block as the brand’s décor store. The Market will focus on functional design with a collection of household goods, offering customers a total home toolkit in kitchen, garden, care and repair and personal care. The store will feature a café in collaboration with neo-traditional coffee roasters La Colombe Torrefaction and there will be community-driven events and classes held at a communal table in the centre of the store. The Vancouver assortment will include regionally-sourced products from the West Coast and Canada, including tool bags and belts by

VUE BAR & LOUNGE

One-stop artisan shopping For over 30 years, Oh Brothers has been bringing the work of Canadian artisans to the West Coast.

The shop moved from their original Kerrisdale location to 2575 W. Broadway in 2010, and, with its spacious, friendly, gallery-style environment, created the “Granville Island of Kitsilano” — embracing art and art-lovers of all shapes and sizes.

Playfully dubbed “art that works,” the pieces are curated to provide a unique yet functional addition to any décor. Get to know a new Canadian artist this holiday season, with upwards of 75 glass artists, jewelers, leatherworkers, metalworkers, painters, potters, printers, textile workers and woodworkers awaiting discovery. OhBrothers.com

For each $25 Gift Certificate purchase up to December 31 you are entered to

WIN $500 to spend at Lonsdale Quay Market!

ENJOY EXTENDED HOURS DECEMBER 14 - 23

December 20 – 26, 2012

11

GIFTS LAST MINUTE Julie Wu, co-owner of Gastown’s Orling & Wu, gives a selection of decorating tips to make each present look unique.

Rob Newell photos

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Harbor Health & Wellness Harbour News Harbour Printing Mobile Korners (Bell) Mobilicity Morgan’s Battery Store

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rapping the gift is usually the last thing you do before giving it, and that last minute pinch can make it hard to think outside the box when it comes to presentation. Orling & Wu’s Julie Wu has created some festive and fun ways for WE Vancouver readers to do Christmas wrapping a little bit differently this year:

1. Use tea towels as gift wrap and sew on some vintage buttons for decoration.

2. Make origami boxes from scrap wallpaper and finish with our double sided colour ribbons.

3. Use hemp yarn to tie little gifts, such as a trio of spoons, together — no paper required!

4. Add a stem of artificial winter berry plant to the bow tie of your gift.

5. And if this is not Christmassy enough, add some glittery gold and silver stick on stars, available for purchase at Orling & Wu (28 Water).

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December 20 – 26, 2012

FOR HIM Cross emergency-preparedness off the to-do list for someone you love, by giving them something you hope they’ll never have to use. The handy EvacPac Series (pictured left) comes with supplies for up to six people, and due to its compact, portable nature, is ideal for a home or vehicle kit. Starting at $114; Available from Braidner Survival Kits (Unit 410, 1000 Parker). PrepareCentre.com

FOR HER The décolletage of every woman this season deserves an eye-catching statement necklace: • Silver wings of flight (pictured middle, also available in gold), $35, Shine Jewels (4307 Main) • Brass Breastplate Necklace Gold by Wolf Circus (pictured right, also available in silver), $45, The Board of Trade Co, Fine Finds, Sitka, Lut Boutique and WolfCircus.com

WEVancouver.com

HOLIDAY Gift Guide What to do when Dec. 25 isn’t ‘Christmas’

By Deanna Cheng

L

ooking for something to do on Dec. 25? Not everyone celebrates Christmas but at times, with most businesses closed, it seems like the entire city is. However, there are still a few places open to the public.

Ski

Ready to hit the slopes? Grouse Mountain and Cypress Mountain are ready for you! Skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing will be available. At Grouse, they will remain open from 9am to 6 pm but you can go snowshoeing until dusk. The chalet and Observatory restaurant will be open until 10pm (6400 Nancy Greene Way, 604-980-9311, GrouseMountain.com). Cypress also offers crosscountry skiing and snow tubing from 9am to 4 pm.

(6000 Cypress Bowl Road, 604-926-5612, CypressMountain.com).

Watch a movie

As the saying goes, misery loves company. And what can be more uplifting than another movie adaptation of Victor Hugo’s classic novel, Les Misérables? Starring Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway and Amanda Seyfried, it comes out in theatres on Christmas Day. Cineplex.com

Vist the Aquarium

Make your way down to the Vancouver Aquarium.

Since it is the African penguins’ first winter in Vancouver, why not celebrate their presence with a bit of holiday cheer? The aquarium will be open from 11:30am to 4:30pm (845 Avison Way, 604-6593474, VanAqua.org).

Swim

A couple community centres will be open. The pool at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre will be open from 12 to 5 pm (1050 Beach Ave., 604-665-3424).

The fitness centre at Kitsilano Community Centre will be open from 9 am to 5 p.m. (2690 Larch St., 604-257-6976).

Skate

In the downtown core, amongst the glass towers and the sprawling concrete grounds, Robson Square Ice Rink beckons for people in ugly Christmas sweaters and red mittens, remaining open from 12 to 5pm. (800 Robson, 604-646-3554)

Books for the home chef

H

undreds of new books enter our shop, Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks, every year. These are just the books about food. Please note, I don’t actually refer to these books as cookbooks as many of these gems are not necessarily to be purchased for their recipes. I am sure you can imagine that as a bookseller of books about food, I cringe when people say they have too many cookbooks, and they don’t use the recipes in the books they already own.

Long gone are the days when the average home had one book in the kitchen, filled with text only, short recipes to get our mothers and grandmothers through the daily regime of feeding their families. So many of the books published today are dedicated to ingredients, cultural differences in food, foraging, technique, and history. Then there are books to advise you about raising your backyard chickens and goats, growing your own vegetables, keeping bees, composting, making wine, and fermentation – probably the most important knowledge we can ingest today.

This short list I present to you today is a wee representation of the books I love, and am proud to sell.

Every Grain of Rice, Simple Chinese Home Cooking by Fuchsia Dunlop.

Bloomsbury. British Edition $53. Fuchsia is both a brilliant cook and writer of Chinese cuisine, being the first westerner to train at the Sichuan Higher Institute of Cuisine, and travelled and cooked around China for two decades.

Burma, Rivers of Flavour by Naomi Duguid. Random House Canada. $39.95 This book is a treat for us to discover the lives of Burmese people through the food they cook and eat.

Skate AND EAT

At the Hillcrest Community Centre, skate to Jewish music! At the annual Post Chanukah On Ice event, there will be hot latkes, doughnuts and gelt.

Kids can also craft to their hearts’ content. $10 in advance or $12 at the door; the price includes skate rentals. To register, go to ChabadEastVan.com/Chanukah or call 604-2669841. (4575 Clancy Loranger Way).

Roots: The Definitive Compendium by Diane Morgan. Chronicle Books. $40. When I realized that I could make pesto with the greens on the carrot root, and a delicious soup from the radish leaves, I knew this incredibly educational guide to root vegetables from around the globe was the perfect book to become number 456 on my shelf at home.

By Barbara-Jo McIntosh

The Art of Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz. Chelsea Green Publishing. $45. With an introduction by Michael Pollan, and 14 chapters beginning with Fermentation as a Coevolutionary Force, everything you need to know about fermentation, is between these 500 pages.

Whole Larder Love — Grow Gather Hunt Cook by Rohan Anderson. Powerhouse Books. $39.95 The title and sub-title say it all about this book, but the tummy began to growl when I saw the recipe for Wild Duck Arancini.

Barbara-Jo McIntosh owns Barbarajo’s Books to Cooks, 1740 W. 2nd, 604688-6755, BooksToCooks.com.

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The sport centre, located on the obscure Mitchell Island underneath Knight St. Bridge, will be open from 9am to midnight. (13100 Mitchell Road, 604325-5128, Badminton-Vancouver.com).

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Like water fountain shows with lights and Christmas songs? A pit stop at Aberdeen Centre in Richmond may be in order,. The mall will be open from 11am to 6pm. (4151 Hazelbridge Way, 604-270-1234, AberdeenCentre.org).

WEVancouver.com

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December 20 – 26, 2012

13

Top 10 new restaurants of 2012 8. Merchant’s Oyster Bar | 1590 Commercial | 604-258-0005 | MerchantsOysterBar.ca

OnThe Plate

Merchant’s is from Gastown’s Cork & Fin crew, so they know a thing or three about relaxed vibes and seafood. Bivalve options are plenty and quickly shucked, but the kitchen has game beyond (try the parmesan scalloped potatoes).

Interesting list of pairing white wines by the glass. The best restaurant to open on Commercial Drive in a couple of years.

Favourite dish: oysters!

By Andrew Morrison

I

t was another solid year for Vancouver’s restaurant scene.

As usual — try as I might — I wasn’t able to get to every new restaurant that I wanted to (I’m looking at you, Heirloom, The Parker, Forage). In my defence, we welcomed so many new ones that I was never at a loss for where to go.

It took all of 10 minutes to come up with 30 eateries for an initial shortlist. Whittling them down, however, has taken well over a week. Here they are, in order, my personal picks for the Top 10 Best New Restaurants of the Year.

9. Fat Dragon | 566 Powell St. | 604558-0880 | FatDragonBBQ.com I’ve only just learned that Fat Dragon — the critically acclaimed Chinese BBQ joint that opened on the DTES this past April — will close for good just before Christmas. Very sad news. Though it never caught on with the public, it remains on my list. They earned the spot fair and square. May it rest in peace, covered in tasty drippings.

1. Wildebeest | 120 W. Hastings | 604-687-6880 | Wildebeest.ca Wildebeest was hands down the best restaurant to open in 2012.

From its thoughtful wine and cocktail programs to just about every beautifully presented plate on the menu, it was an exceptionally well put together, expertly run, and delicious tour de force. It might scrupulously duck the conventions of fine dining (no tablecloths, staff uniforms, complex table settings, soft music, etc.), but it’s still as fine a dining experience as can be had in Vancouver, and without any pretentious bullshit.

Favourite dish: tie between the pork loin schnitzel with house mustard and the bone marrow with obligatory sherry luge.

2. The Acorn | 3995 Main | 604-5669001 | TheAcornRestaurant.ca Wait, a vegetarian restaurant cracked this list? Well, there’s a first time for everything. Honestly, The Acorn isn’t all that different from Wildebeest. Both kitchens have a fetishist’s yen for attractive but understated presentations, unique preparations, local ingredients, and taste, taste, taste.

Wildebeest has a superior beverage program, but The Acorn — much smaller and just as packed — is

Acorn is the first vegetarian restaurant to crack On the Plate’s list for best new restaurants. Supplied photo more lively with a neighbourhood feel. (I love them both, but only one allows bacon).

Favourite dish: ricotta gnocchi with bitter rapini on a strip of sweetened marinara sauce.

3. La Pentola | 350 Davie | 604-6420557 | LaPentola.ca Chef/owners Lucais Syme and Adam Pegg of West Side’s awardwinning La Quercia have another winner on their hands with La Pentola. I had my concerns about them partnering with the Opus so I was glad to have those anxieties calmed by the same great service and sumptuous Northern Italian cuisine that made me fall for La Quercia.

Favourite dish: Rosemary, pancetta, and potato risotto.

4. Espana | 1118 Denman | 604-5584040 | EspanaRestaurant.ca The turnover of restaurants on Denman is notoriously quick and vicious, but this small Spanish tapas/wine bar from front-of-house veteran Ed Perrow (ex-Bin 941, La Brasserie) and former Cibo chef

Neil Taylor should stand the test of time. Menu of snacks short and sweet with bright and spicy flavours predominant. Service is fast and casual but dependably expert.

Favourite dish: crispy chickpeas with mint and paprika.

5. Tacofino Commissary | 2327 East Hastings | 604-253-8226 | Tacofino. com I’ve long been a fan of the Tacofino food truck’s restorative tortilla soup and crispy fish tacos, so when they launched their bright and woody brick-and-mortar restaurant in the summer it was a homecoming of sorts made all the more enjoyable by an expanded menu and — yea — a vernacular cocktail list. Awesome brunches, and top marks for the Omer Arbel light installation.

Favourite dish: still the fish taco, but the banana churros are catching up.

6. The Union | 219 Union | 604-5683230 | TheUnionVancouver.ca

food effort in Chinatown came from the same folks that gave us The Cascade Room, El Camino’s, and Habit. Accordingly, everything — including the design and table service — is pretty well dialed tight. The menu breezes through Thailand to China, India, Indonesia, and beyond, and is shockingly consistent in quality. Killer bar program (the more inventive cocktails are served in mason jars).

Favourite dish: Nahm Jim-glazed chicken wings.

7. The Sardine Can | 26 Powell | 604568-1350 | TheSardineCan.ca Another Spanish restaurant? Yes, please! This Gastown slighter really packs them in (hence the name) and hits all the traditional tapas notes with chalkboard specials, buckets of napkins and cutlery on the high top tables, a lengthy kitchen/bar front, and deft service. Versatile list of wines, beers, and sherries.

Favourite dish: the little meatballs (“albondigas”) in zippy tomato sauce.

10. Portland Craft | 3835 Main St. | 604.569.2494 | PortlandCraft.com A craft beer-centric restaurant inspired by the food renaissance in Portland, Oregon? I must admit that the concept sounded like a hokey homage at first, but I’m loving the place, and so is the Riley Park neighbourhood (it fills up fast every night). Expect friendly service, much better than average pub grub, and one of the best beer lists in town.

Favourite dish: fried chicken on waffles with gravy and maple syrup.

Correction An editing mistake was made in last week’s On the Plate column. SoL Sun Belt Cookery in Coal Harbour is still open. The sole owner is Abdel Elatouabi, who is also the restaurant’s executive chef. WE Vancouver sincerely apologizes for unintentionally implying that the restaurant is closed.

This very lively pan-Asian street

h o l i d ay d i n i n g

CASUAL

FINE DINING

BISTRO

LOUNGE

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at the Holiday Inn Vancouver Downtown Join us on December 25th for a traditional Christmas dinner with all the fixings, $32.95.

Seatings at 4pm and 7pm.

Reservations recommended.

1110 Howe St. 604.623.6856

14

December 20 – 26, 2012

FINE DINING

BISTRO

LOUNGE

CAFE

TAPAS CASUAL

FINE DINING

Pink Elephant Thai marries old world Thai culture and tradition with all that is fun, sexy and hot—hot pink, that is. Book your Christmas dinner party with us! Enjoy authentic Thai cuisine with our signature cocktails and martinis. DJ every Friday.

1152 Alberni Street 604.646.8899 www.pinkelephantthai.com

WEVancouver.com

T’was the night before Christmas CityCellar

And you know what happened? Both worked like a charm!

By Kurtis Kolt

T

(With apologies to Clement Clarke Moore) ’was the night before Christmas, when all through BC We wanted some wine, and not just some tea.

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.

The winemakers nestled all snug in their beds, While visions of Malbec danced in their heads.

And Ma after Merlot, and I after Cab, Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap.

When out by the vines there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.

Away to the window I flew like a flash, Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow Gave the lustre of midday to where the grapes grow.

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear, But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer.

With a little old driver, so lively and quick, I knew in a moment it must be St Nick.

He hoped for Syrah (“Shiraz” is the same) And he whistled, and shouted, and called for our fame!

“I’ll have Pinots of Blanc or some Gris or some Noir!

Please give me a wine that presents your terroir!

Whether barrel-fermented or stainless-steel, too, I want a wine that shows off the place where it grew!”

He untwisted a cap, and pulled out a cork.

To find a good wine, to go with grilled pork.

He tried Tinhorn’s Merlot and Rosé from JoieFarm

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around, Down the chimney St Nicholas came with a bound.

He was muttering something about Mission Hill wine He’d flown past their bell tower at quarter-past nine He was heading down south, more toward Wild Goose Having heard of their Chardonnay, and then of their Gews His eyes-how they twinkled! His dimples how merry!

Having also tried wines made by Stag’s Hollow’s Larry!

There was also some Chenin, made at Road 13 Oh, and Riesling from Tantalus; it was so fresh and clean!

Sampling Blue Mountain Gamay, full of plums &nice cherries Photo courtesy And then Meyer Chard, so bright and so British Columbia Wine Institute. pear-y He popped open the cork from the Steller’s Jay Brut Enjoying the biscuit-y nose, and the loads of fresh fruit He closed out his wine tour with some nice Painted Rock A Syrah, he recalled, from a small vineyard block And then one last quick splash, a Cab Franc made by Nichol So herbaceous and fresh, it gave him a tickle He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, as he drove out of sight, “Happy Christmas, BC! Your wine made my night!”

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December 20 – 26, 2012

15

The perfect holiday wine Michelle Bouffard and Michaela Morris of Vancouver’s House Wine give their wine gift picks

By House Wine

T

he best gifts are those you’d like for yourself. And who doesn’t want a good bottle of wine? When you bestow a bottle on someone tell them why you bought it for them. The story behind it is part of the gift.

When they open it, the person will remember that story and feel a special connection with the bottle. It’s a gift that will create a moment filled with lasting memories. Below are our picks for gifts, all available at BC Liquor stores.

Michaela Morris and Michelle Bouffard of House Wine give readers a few ideas of which wines make the perfect gifts. Rob Newell photo

New Year’s Eve 2013

at Brock House Restaurant!

White

2011 Abbazia di Novacella, Pinot Grigio, Alto Adige Valle Isarco DOC, Italy $24.99 (SKU #171744) A stand out among the sea of Grigios that crowd the shelves. Intense and expressive aromas and flavours of ripe peach, melon and pear with a touch of honey. On the palate, the richness of fruit is cut by steely acidity. Absolutely made for turkey dinner.

Red

2008 Canta Perdices, Ribera del Duero DO, Spain $15.99 (SKU #16733)

New Year’s Eve 4 Course Dinner 1st Course

2nd Course

Please select one: Scallops Supreme Cheesy Mushroom Caps

Please select one: Seafood Chowder with Puff Pastry Spinach Salad with Bacon and Candied Pecans

Entrees

Please select one: Stuffed Butterfly Jumbo Prawns Baked with a crab meat stuffing and garlic butter, served with vegetables

You don’t need to spend a lot to impress. Spain is our go-to for well-priced and characterful wines.

Made from Tempranillo, this full-bodied red from the region of Ribera del Duero is packed with black currant, leather and meaty notes. A great match with meat of all kinds.

2010 Gianni Brunelli, Rosso di Montalcino DOC, Italy $34.99 (SKU #851501)

plus 12% HST

Group Discount

$

Groups of 6 or more, receive 10% off the food bill (seating from 8:00pm)

55 /person 5:30-7:30pm seating.

Must depart by 7:30pm.

95

RESERVE YOUR TABLE NOW! To view our menus, go to www.brockhouserestaurant.com

RESERVATIONS: 604-224-3317 or catering@brockhouserestaurant.com

3875 Point Grey Road, Vancouver (at Jericho Beach)

A fine Champagne from a stellar vintage. Where richness meets raciness. Think freshly baked croissant and red currants with a creamy, nutty finish. This is a gift for someone you REALLY like.

Hopefully they’ll share with you.

John Clerides, owner, Marquis-Wines.com 2010 Tetramythos Roditis | Patras | Greece The Ultimate in Indian Cuisine Since 1986

(Seating at 8pm) DJ Entertainment from 8:00pm & dancing after dinner in the Conservatory.

Includes hats, noise makers & a glass of sparkling wine at midnight!

NYE Early Bird Special

Bubble

2002 Pierre Paillard, Grand Cru Brut Champagne AC, France $79 (SKU #163071)

Wine merchants’ picks...

Decadent Dessert Buffet

7495/person

You can never go wrong with a fine Burgundy when seeking to impress the wine lover or collector on your list. Jacques Lardière, the longtime winemaker at Jadot, told us that 2009 was one of the best vintages he has encounter since the 1970s.

Enjoyable now, it has the genes to age for another 15-plus years if well stored.

Read more of Morris and Bouffard’s thoughts on wine at HouseWine.ca

Portobello Florentine with Roasted Vegetable Couscous Roasted portobello mushroom topped with spinach & cheese

$

2009 Louis Jadot, Beaune 1er Cru Clos Les Couchereaux AC, France $59.99 (SKU #488841)

Brunello on a budget, this Rosso vastly over deliv-

8oz AAA Filet Mignon Served in a merlot sauce with mashed potatoes & vegetables

Profiterole Tower, Creme Brulee, Cheesecake, Apple Pie, Fresh Fruit Platter, Assorted Cookies & Squares Coffee & Tea

ers offering exceptional elegance and class. Precise, feminine and savoury with juicy flavours of orange peel, cherries and leather. The Audrey Hepburn of the Italian wine world?

BOOK YOUR CHRISTMAS PARTY WITH US! Special menu for any size group.

2313 Main St. (at 7th) 604-872-8779 Order at www.nirvanarestaurant.ca

Mon-Fri 11:30 am-10:30 pm • Sat & Sun 3:00 pm-10:30 pm DINE IN TAKE OUT DELIVERY

I love being an iconoclast, and the wine business is the perfect venue for empowering our clients in stepping outside the Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio realm. This is the perfect gift for those who have visited Greece or wish to do so. Enter Roditis, an almost lost, indigenous variety on the slopes of Mount Helmos. All we need now is some sun, a plate of Calamari, some good friends and plate of olives and feta cheese. If this can’t start a conversation at a party then you need to find new friends.

Barbara Philip, portfolio manager for wines of Europe, BC Liquor Stores Musella Valpolicella Ripasso 2008 | $29.99 | +806224 This Ripasso is a delicious and savoury wine to match with winter fare or keep you warm on chilly nights this holiday season. It is also a unique gift that your host/hostess might not buy for themselves and, while it can be opened and enjoyed immediately, it can also be held in the cellar for 1-1/2 years.

Robert Simpson, general manager, Liberty Wine Merchants Graceland 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon | $34.99

604 801 6669 | 1050 Hamilton Street | YaletownDentistry.com 16

December 20 – 26, 2012

With its dark, cherry red tones, it’s no surprise when the aroma of red fruits with a hint of licorice hits the nose. This is a very elegant South African wine with black cherry, plum and layers of chocolate. It’s got subtle French oak nuances with fine tannins. If your host says you’re having a beef, lamb or game dinner, this is the wine to bring. Or your host can keep it in their wine cellar until 2018.

WEVancouver.com

Sarah FortisBC, Dispatch Coordinator

A safe holiday is a happy holiday

Annabelle Ip and Michael Dirk met at Goh Ballet’s Nutcracker.

Four years later they’re engaged and about to dance together in the opening party scene.

Photo @ John Granen.

Make safety a priority this holiday season with these simple tips: • Never kick or hit your meter if ice builds up. Call us for assistance at 1-888-224-2710.

A romance made in Sugar Plum Fairy heaven

By Martha Perkins

I

n this love story, Cupid was waiting in the wings of Goh Ballet’s Nutcracker.

Three years ago this week, Annabelle Ip was stuck behind a huge timpani in an elevator at the Centre in Vancouver for the Performing Arts.

The 32-inch drum was too big go through the stage doors so a plan was hatched to bring it up on the elevator and down the aisle of the theatre before gently dropping it through the opening of the orchestra pit, where she’d play it as part of the Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra’s live accompaniment to the Vancouver ballet school’s magical performance.

Ip got on the elevator, the timpani followed, the doors closed and... now what? How was she going to get off the elevator, she thought, feeling very much like a damsel in distress.

But when the elevator doors opened, a knight in shining armour was waiting for her. “He was wearing black, actually,” she says with a laugh.

Coming to her rescue was Michael Dirk, a professional musician who had been asked to help conduct a guest children’s choir at the end of the first act. As he freed Ip from the confines of the elevator, she recognized him from their days at UBC. They chatted but then it was time to get to work.

Ip followed her timpani into the orchestra pit where all she got to see of the performance was the bottom of the conductor’s baton and tiny little feathers wafting down from the dancers’ costumes every time they leapt across the stage. Dirk was on stage, hearing the music waft up from the orchestra.

It took a few months for this love story to heat up, though. Ip got distracted by the Olympics, and the exciting opportunity to be one of the musicians on stage in Whistler. Given their hectic schedules — they’re both teachers with the Vancouver School Board, have professional music careers and teach music — it took a few months for Dirk to get her to commit to a day for their first date.

Fast forward to December 2011. Ip is an avid skier. Dirk is an avid dancer. Their deal is that he throws her into dance classes and she throws him down black diamond ski hills. She’d taken a salsa cruise with him and now it was his turn to be atop her favourite place in the world — Whistler.

Ip pauses in the telling of this story to explain that she was never a girl who had dreams of getting married. The fluffy white dress, the walk down the aisle — a wedding just wasn’t a big thing for her.

So there they were at the top of Whistler’s Sunset Boulevard, two years to the day after their last

WEVancouver.com

performance of The Nutcracker. When Dirk dropped down on one knee, her first thought was that he’d broken his back, or at least broken something.

Even when she saw him fumbling through his ski jacket and pulling out a small box, it simply didn’t compute that anything was happening other than a medical emergency.

“Buns for life?” Dirk asked, using their code word for honeybun, and holding the ring up to her.

“I looked at him, looked at the ring, looked at the situation and thought, ‘Is his back okay?’ I was confused,” she says. “It came as a complete shock.

‘Oh,’ I said, and just waited for the longest time.”

“So, do you accept,” Dirk finally had to ask.

“Oh, oh. Okay. Yeah,” she responded — not the most romantic of replies! (“It was a complete airhead moment,” she says with a laugh.)

The ring is not only symbolic of their love, but also a testament of how much detail each of them puts into everything they do. Dirk had told Goh Ballet that he was going to propose and they suggested he go to Lugaro jewelers, a title sponsor of The Nutcracker. Together they designed a gorgeous ring with a trinity of diamonds — a large diamond to represent the timpani, and then one diamond to represent each of them.

The story doesn’t end there. From December 19 to 23, the couple is once again performing in Goh Ballet’s Nutcracker. Dirk’s dance instructor asked him if he wanted to be one of the dancers in the opening party scene and Dirk not only agreed, but said he already had the perfect partner.

“It’s an absolute thrill,” he says, delighting in the opportunity to be part of an entirely different aspect of the performance. “What I love about Goh Ballet is that they never underestimate a student’s potential. They rise to the expectation and then supersede it. They know what a privilege it is just to even be a part of it.”

Since he’s performed as a dancer before, he’s not at all nervous. Ip is not as sanguine. But, he confidently reassures her, “as long as I lead with the right steps, it will be fine.”

Ip knows she’ll be as beguiled by what’s going on on stage as the audience will be. “I feel privileged to be in the midst of it,” she says. “It’s nothing short of magical.”

Goh Ballet will be joined by principal dancers with the New York Ballet in six performances of The Nutcracker, Dec. 19 to 23 at the Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts. (There’s a 2pm matinee on Dec. 22.)

For tickets and information go to GohNutrcracker.com.

• After a snowfall, brush snow away from your meters by hand and clear a path for the safety of our meter readers.

• Around your fireplace, consider using a hearth safety gate to help protect small children from the heated glass.

For more winter safety tips, visit fortisbc.com/safety.

FortisBC uses the FortisBC Energy name and logo under license from Fortis Inc. (12-336.4 12/2012)

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Enter to win an iPad

Vote for your favourite local people and places.

Go to www.WEVancouver.com and click on CONTESTS.

December 20 – 26, 2012

17

rant/rave!

Free Will Astrology

E-MAIL: rantrave@wevancouver.com Please send your rants by email only (comments can be kept anonymous). All rants are the opinion of the individual and do not reflect the opinions of WE. The editor reserves the right to edit for clarity and brevity, so please keep it short and (bitter)sweet.

Focus on the real issues

use. I’m tired of trying to get out of the way of the bikes.

Senior West Ender

What is up with Vancouver City Hall spending money on projects that are totally unnecessary, and then doing them in such poorly planned fashion? The announcement of the Comox-Helmcken streets greenway, at $5.5 million is just another ridiculous waste of money that could be spent better: the pedestrian-heavy West End streets already have numerous crosswalks whose paint is nearly worn away, there are places where crosswalks should be but don’t even exist; and already existing infrastructure maintenance has been neglected for years. There is nothing pressing to be done to Comox-Helmcken. It is a minor mixed-traffic route, among many, bisecting downtown. It is not a necessary commuter route to anywhere in particular. Please stop the wasteful spending.

Paul Richards

Proud grandpa apologizes

Bikes off the sidewalk!

I understand there is a rule that bikes are not to be ridden on the sidewalks in Vancouver — the sidewalks are to be used for walking and for those who use a handicapped scooter to get around. It is very disconcerting to have to avoid bikes on the sidewalks and especially when they ride right past you at a pretty good speed, not taking into account that they should not be there in the first place. Perhaps we need some bike controls that are actually put into

I would like to apologize to the anonymous person complaining about a right-hand turning incident at W. 2nd onto Burrard. It was me. My daughter was having a baby at St Pauls... I did create my own rules to make it to her big event on time! So sorry.

Anonymous

The felt-tip pen brigade Re: A pedestrian fights back, Rants Dec. 6. Awesome article, PJH. I thought I had written it myself!

I have asked Santa for four black felt-tip pens as a stocking stuffer.

Just one more point about laneways and alleys. Do drivers think that there are never any pedestrians crossing here as well?

Wilhelmina West Ender

Don’t shoot the messenger One hundred years of prohibition of drugs but they can’t ban guns? I don’t get that. You can ban marijuana and people’s other bad habits but how about guns as a bad habit? That would be a good place to start.

Anonymous

By Rob Brezsny • Week of December 20 ARIES (March 21-April 19): Isaac Newton is regarded as one of the most influential scientists in history. But the time he spent as a member of the English Parliament was undistinguished. The only public comment he ever made while serving there was a request to close the window because he was cold. Basketball star Michael Jordan had a similar schism. In the prime of his outstanding career, he took a year off to try playing baseball, which he did poorly. After analyzing 2013’s astrological aspects, Aries, I’m guessing that you should cultivate a firm intention to avoid doing what Newton and Jordan did. Keep playing to your strengths and emphasizing what you love. Don’t get sidetracked by peripheral concerns.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In 2013, I’d like to help you cultivate an even more reliable relationship with your intuitions and hunches than you already have. You may not need much guidance from me, since the astrological omens indicate this will happen quite naturally. There’s another kind of inspiration I hope to offer you in the coming months: clues about how to be “bad” in ways that will give your goodness more vigor. And when I say “bad,” I’m not referring to nastiness or insensitivity, but rather to wildness and playfulness and experimentation. Here’s one further service I want to provide, Taurus: helping you build a greater capacity to receive gifts, blessings, and support.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): In the year 1900, few people believed that human beings would ever fly through the sky in machines. Most scientists thought that such a feat was impossible. For years, the Wright Brothers had a hard time convincing anyone to believe their flights were actually taking place, even though they had photos and witness reports as documentation. Although the leap you’ll be capable of in 2013 isn’t quite as monumental as the Wright Brothers’, it could be pretty important in the history of your own life. You may also have to deal with skepticism akin to what they had to face. Be true to your vision, Gemini!

CANCER (June 21-July 22): In 2013, I predict you will see why it’s wise to phase out an influence you have loved to hate for far too long. Uncoincidentally, you will also have a talent for purging emotional burdens and psychic debris that you’ve been holding on to since the bad old days. No later than your birthday, if all goes well, you will be free from a subtle curse you’ve been casting on yourself; you will finally be attending to one of your longneglected needs; and you will have turned some rather gawky, half-assed wizardry into a smooth and silky magic.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): In 2013, I pledge to help you raise your lovability. It’s not that you are unlovable now, of course, but there’s always room for improvement, right? And if people become even more attracted to you than they already are, then you’re likely to get a lot of collaborative and cooperative work done. You will thrive as you and your allies work on projects that make your corner of the world a better and more interesting place. So what are the first three actions you could take to raise your lovability?

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VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): First question: Have you ever thought to yourself, “I’m afraid I will never achieve my noblest dreams or live according to my highest ideas”? Answer: There’s a very good chance that in the coming year you will banish that fear from the sacred temple of your imagination. Second question: Have you ever wondered if maybe you unconsciously undermine the efforts of people who are trying to assist you? Answer: In the coming months you should discover exactly what to do to prevent such a thing from happening. Third question: Do you know the single most important question you should be asking in 2013?

Answer: I predict you will figure that out sometime in the next three weeks.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): In 2013, I will be encouraging you to journey into the frontiers and experiment with the unknown. I will seek to inspire you to go in search of teachings you’ve needed for a long time. Are you ready for this expansion, Libra? Are you feeling a natural urge to explore forbidden zones and discover missing secrets and

mess with your outmoded taboos? As you might imagine, doing this work would motivate you to develop a healthier relationship with your fears. To bolster your courage, I suggest you find some new freedom songs to sing.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In 2013, I will do what I can to ensure that your fiscal biorhythms are in close alignment with the universal cash flow.

You should have pretty good instincts about this worthy project yourself, Scorpio. And so there’s an excellent chance that your wealth will increase.

The upgrade will be especially dramatic if you are constantly scheming about how you can share your riches and benefit other people with your generosity. I think there will also be an interesting fringe benefit if you maintain maximum integrity as you enhance your access to valuable resources: You will develop a more useful relationship with your obsessive tendencies.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In 2013, I pledge to conspire with you to achieve more mixtures, connections, accords, and unifications than you ever thought possible. I will furthermore be a fount of suggestions about how you can live well in two worlds. I will coach you to create a peace treaty with your evil twin and your nemesis, and I will help you develop a knack for steering clear of other people’s bad ideas and sour moods. I can’t of course guarantee that you will never again experience a broken heart, but I swear I will do everything I can do to heal the broken part of your heart that you’ve been suffering from.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): When he was 21, the Capricorn writer Jack London set off to prospect for gold in the 1897 Klondike Gold Rush.

He had a rough time there. Malnourished, he suffered from scurvy and leg pain. To make matters worse, he didn’t find much gold, and returned home broke. On the other hand, he met scores of adventure seekers who told him stories of their travels. These tales served as rich raw material for his novel The Call of the Wild, published in 1903. It made him famous and is generally regarded as his masterpiece. I’m guessing you will begin a similar trajectory in 2013, Capricorn. Events that may at first seem less than successful will ultimately breed a big breakthrough.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): I can’t force you to seek more pleasure in 2013. I won’t nag you to play harder and explore the frontiers of feeling really good. However, I will say this: If you don’t plan to put yourself into at least partial alignment with the cosmic mandate to have maximum fun, you may not get the best use out of the advice I’ll be offering though my horoscopes in the coming year. Please consider the possibility of ramping up your capacity for pure enjoyment.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): The study of ancient Mayan civilization owes a lot to the fact that Americans started buying lots of chewing gum in the late 19th century. Huh? Here’s the connection: For a long time, chicle was one of the prime ingredients in Chiclets, Juicy Fruit, Bazooka bubble gum, and many other brands of chewing gum.

Chicle is obtained from the sap of sapodilla trees, which grow in abundance in Central America and Mexico. Over the decades, workers harvesting the chicle accidentally found many Mayan ruins covered in overgrown vegetation, then told archaeologists about their discoveries. I foresee a metaphorically comparable sequence happening in your life during 2013. In unexpected ways, you will be put back in touch with and benefit from lost, forgotten, or unexplored parts of the past.

Homework: What’s the best gift you could give yourself this holiday season? Testify at FreeWillAstrology.com.

Why does Rob Breszny provide a horoscope for the week when some people are predicting that the world is coming to an end on December 21? Read his thoughts on the misinterpretations of the Mayan calendar at WEVancouver.com. Put his name in the search window to read the story, It Ain’t Over Yet, that we first published in January. You can also read how Free Will Astrology got its start.

WEVancouver.com

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Should-be holiday classics

Movie Reviews This is… a hilarious cautionary tale This Is 40

By Curtis Woloschuk

O

nce the stockings have been ransacked, the dinner table has been decimated, and all of the guests have been ushered out the door, there’ll be some of us who’ll opt to ward off the onset of a turkey coma by firing up a seasonal flick.

And while the likes of Miracle of 34th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, and Scrooged will undoubtedly spring to mind, why not consider one of these should-be holiday classics?

Die Hard

Who hasn’t bemoaned being sent on a December 24 grocery run by their better half? Well, battling tooth and nail for the last litre of eggnog pales in comparison to the Christmas Eve travails of John McClane (Bruce Willis), who must contend with a skyscraper stocked with heavily-armed, hostage-taking terrorists in order to reunite and reconcile with his estranged wife.

Gremlins

Yes, there’s some sly, subversive anti-consumerism commentary in Joe Dante’s horror-comedy about an adorable critter that’s bought as a Christmas present but ends up spawning a horde of destructive creatures. But more importantly, there’s the sight of that horde of destructive creature laying waste to snowy, small-town America while going on the holiday bender to end all holiday benders.

Bad Santa

Continuing in that all-Id vein: ‘Tis the season to bite your tongue and put your best foot forward.

Consequently, you can’t deny the cathartic appeal of watching Billy Bob Thornton’s debauched department store Santa forego any semblance of impulse control while drinking, screwing, and thieving his way to some approximation of an epiphany.

The City of Lost Children

Another unsettling vision of St. Nick makes a cameo in Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro’s phantasmagoric tale of a scientist bent on stealing tykes’ dreams. However, the remainder of the film pulses with the unbridled sense of wonder and warm sentiment that are the lifeblood of the holiday season.

By the end credits, viewers are left believing that just about anything is possible.

Love Actually

And speaking of miracles: While this crusty critic would rather swim through a pool filled with broken glass ornaments than sit through “the ultimate romantic comedy” again, he’ll concede that many of you will find your fourteenth viewing of Richard Curtis’ tangle of cloying contrivances as cozy as a Colin Firth sweater. If that’s the case: Knock yourselves out. I’ll keep my “bah, humbugs” to myself until 2013.

Directed by Judd Apatow Starring Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann Judd Apatow’s fourth directorial effort features the hallmarks we’ve come to expect from the contemporary filmmaker — several laugh-out-loud moments, poignancy tinged with cynicism and a runtime that’s about 20 minutes too long.

In what is billed as a “sort of sequel” to the director’s hit Knocked Up, This Is 40 examines the life of married couple Pete (Rudd) and Debbie (Mann, Apatow’s real-life wife) as they deal with hitting their respective milestone birthdays while balancing the pressures of raising two daughters (the director and Mann’s actual children). The film is a more mature outing than previous efforts; we see the real-life constraints begin to mount on

all sides as the family contends with everything from absentee dads to dwindling finances to keeping the spark alive in a marriage.

In fact, This Is 40 may bite off more than it can chew from the narrative tangents as things begin to feel tedious around the two hour mark. However, the movie is full of enough heart, one-liners, pop culture references and fine acting to satisfy even the toughest comedic critic. Rudd and Mann are in top form and play off each other beautifully, both with hilarious and Thor heartbreaking results; but, as good as Diakow the two leads are here, they are nearly overshadowed by a scene-stealing Albert Brooks (Pete’s father) who displays both acerbic wit and expert timing.

This Is 40 isn’t a groundbreaking film but does prove that the Apatow camp still knows how to push the right buttons.

Taratino rubs our faces in the past DJANGO UNCHAINED

Starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio Directed by Quentin Tarantino Writer-director Quentin Tarantino has never made any bones about his love of Spaghetti Westerns, loading his previous films with extreme close-ups indebted to Sergio Leone and repurposing Ennio Morricone’s twangy scores whenever possible.

Even Kill Bill, his two-part martial arts epic, drew equally from the Old West and Far East for inspiration. And so, as he enters the third decade of his career, it seems long overdue that the former enfant terrible should make an honest-to-goodness “oater.”

In 1858, Django (Jamie Foxx), a slave, is recruited by King Schultz (Christoph Waltz), a German dentist turned bounty hunter, to help him track down three fugitives. Impressed with his charge’s knack for killing white men, Schultz frees Django and makes him his partner (albeit one with only a 33 per cent share of profits). Utilizing Schultz’s aptitude for playacting and ruses, they infiltrate the palatial home of Calvin Candie (Leonardo

DiCaprio), a silver-tongued monster who’s keeping Django’s wife (Kerry Washington) enslaved.

While Django is bursting with stray ideas, signature indulgences, and inspired set pieces — including a comic vignette featuring the Ku Klux Klan and a shootout that gives The Wild Bunch a run for its blood-soaked money — it’s perhaps most notable for its one key absence. Marking Tarantino’s first outing without the guiding hand of his late editor Sally Menke (who he often credited with shaping his work), this marks a decidedly loose, rambling, and borderline freeform entry to his filmography.

Consequently, it lacks the devastating incisiveness that graced 2009’s Inglourious Basterds.

However, it retains a keen understanding of how to wield filmmaking as a weapon. If Basterds evinced cinema’s capacity to rewrite history, Django reminds us of its ability to rub our faces in our collective chequered past.

And whereas Steven Spielberg offered a measured and studious portrayal of the slavery era in Lincoln, Tarantino’s approach is visceral and unrelenting, leaving little doubt that he’s our leading popcorn provocateur. — Curtis Woloschuk

Cirque movie not quite like being there

Bullying damages our kids.

Do something about it.

Give. Volunteer. Act. uwlm.ca/prevent

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL: WORLDS AWAY

Starring Erica Linz, Igor Zaripov Directed by Andrew Adamson

From its opening frames, it’s apparent that this 3D offering from Cirque du Soleil isn’t aiming to have viewers claim, “It’s just like being there.” And

while Shrek co-director Andrew Adamson commendably strives to deliver a cinematic experience, his misguided creative decisions ultimately detract from Cirque’s most appealing elements.

A flimsy music video-like setup introduces us to Mia (Erica Linz), who falls for a circus aerialist (Igor Zaripov) and pursues him through various fantasy worlds that end up being nothing more than a “greatest hits” package of the Montreal troupe’s ongoing productions.

As a result of being steered by marketing rather than storytelling concerns, this high-profile enterprise feels like a shameless informercial.

Perhaps even more problematic is Adamson’s reliance on tight shots, which allows little opportunity to appreciate the scope of these productions and invites unnecessarily close scrutiny of movements, performances, and costumes intended to be admired from afar.

Furthermore, when split-second aerial and acrobatic feats are constantly saddled with slow motion, close-ups, and frequent cuts, they’re deprived of their immediacy and peril.

Alas, what’s electrifying and unique when performed live becomes nothing more than a grab-bag of garden-variety big-screen stunts.

— Curtis Woloschuk

4121-1212

20

December 20 – 26, 2012

WEVancouver.com

out after dark OUT AFTER DARK is a weekly feature highlighting social and cultural events around Vancouver. Got an upcoming event? E-mail us at outafterdark@WEVancouver.com. On Twitter: #OADVan

1

with

MAY GLOBUS

2

3

1 Performer Nicki B and her backup dancers got set to per-

form at The Real Deal music showcase at Joe’s Apartment on Dec. 6, with partial proceeds going to Long and McQuade’s annual Musical Therapy Drive. 2 Richard Kay and Gillian Maxwell make a pact with friends: we’ll feed you at our Christmas party if you help feed the people who come to the Vancouver food bank. This year’s party at their Strathcona home raised almost $15,000. 3 Baby bow tie maker Angela Doliente happily sold her creations for dapper little boys at the Got Craft? fair. 4 Hawksworth Communications principal Annabel Hawksworth and Redfish Kids Clothing co-founder Kristy Brinkley (left to right) were full of holiday cheer at the Hawksworth Communications Holiday party on Dec. 12. 5 Modern Art Gallery director Nailia Minnebaeva and artist Stewart Stephenson at the opening Wed, Dec 12 at the Listel Hotel on Robson 6 Bronwen Jones and Erin Ryan dressed in gorgeous vintage for the Modern Art Gallery reception Dec. 14.

WEVancouver.com

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December 20 – 26, 2012

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22 WEVancouver.com

Thursday, December 20, 2012 WE Vancouver

FAMILY ANNOUNCEMENTS

INDEX IN BRIEF FAMILY ANNOUNCEMENTS . . . . . . . . . 1-8 COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENTS . . . . 9-57 TRAVEL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61-76 CHILDREN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80-98 EMPLOYMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102-198 BUSINESS SERVICES . . . . . . . . . . 203-387 PETS & LIVESTOCK . . . . . . . . . . . 453-483 MERCHANDISE FOR SALE . . . . . . 503-587 REAL ESTATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 603-696 RENTALS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 703-757 AUTOMOTIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 804-862 MARINE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 903-920

7

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134

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627

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By virtue of WAREHOUSMAN’S LIEN for DRAKE TOWING LTD., we will dispose of the following units to recover the amount of indebtedness noted plus any additional cost of storage, seizure and sale.

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• Twins • Fulls • Queens • Kings 100’s in stock! www.Direct Liquidation.ca (604)294-2331

CARS - DOMESTIC

13-003D 2003 PONTIAC VIBE V.I.N.: 5Y2SL62883Z415346 Registered Owner: ARROWLOU, YUALCHEN ACHMAD and ROYAL BANK OF CANADA Indebtedness: $5420.80

GERMAN SHEPHERD PUPPIES P.B. $1200: Born Sept. 29th.

2 Male, 1 Female. (778)863-6332

548

818

Day of sale is Thursday January 3, 2013@ 12:00 NOON. Absolute Bailiffs Inc. 20119 113B Avenue, Maple Ridge, B.C., V2X 0Z1 Contact: Sheldon Stibbs (604) 522-2773.

13-003C 2005 SUZUKI GRAND VITARA V.I.N.: JS3TX92V254110104 Registered Owner: WIWCHAR, DEAN MICHAEL Indebtedness: $1814.40

European German Shepherd pups, 12 weeks, nice, classic colors. Lrg dogs CKC + all shots $1000/ea & up. 2 F. 604-538-4883

NEED A GOOD HOME for a good dog or a good dog for a good home? We adopt dogs! Call 604856-3647 or www.856-dogs.com

BUY & SELL USED STUFF ONLINE, FREE!™

HOT TUB (SPA) COVERS. Best price. Best quality. All shapes & colours available. 1-866-652-6837 www.thecoverguy.com/newspaper?

PETS

CATS OF ALL DESCRIPTION in need of caring homes! All cats are Spayed, neutered, vaccinated and dewormed. Visit us at fraservalleyhumanesociety.com or call 1 (604)820-2977

2 hr. Service www.a1casper.com (604)209-2026

The Scrapper

Serving The Lower Mainland Since 1988

AMERICAN COCKER Vet ✔, cuddly, family raised, paper trained.

Exc pet! $700. 604-823-4393 Chwk.

CATS GALORE, TLC has for adoption spayed & neutered adult cats. 604-309-5388 / 604-856-4866

SCRAP CAR REMOVAL

TOP CA$H PAID TODAY For SCRAP VEHICLES!

220.JUNK(5865)

AMERICAN BULLDOGS $1200 Ready for Xmas 4 females, 3 males 1st shots dewormed(604)230-1999

845

A virtual curb for your unwanted couch

AAA SCRAP CAR REMOVAL Minimum $150 cash for full size vehicles, any cond. 604-518-3673

604.

477

TRANSPORTATION

AUTO FINANCING

GREAT GIFT IDEA!!

ChillSpot is The COOLEST Dog Bed-A new and innovative, thermodynamically cooled dog bed, that enhances the cool tile surfaces our pets rely on during the warm weather months.

Use promo code COOLGIFT For 10 % off! www.chillspot.biz

On Time, As Promised, Service Guaranteed!

604.587.5865

WEVancouver.com 23

DreamTeam Auto Financing “0” Down, Bankruptcy OK Cash Back ! 15 min Approvals

1-800-961-7022

www.iDreamAuto.com DL# 7557

940 ADULT PHONE SERVICE

940 ADULT PHONE SERVICE

THE AMAZING iPhone 4S. $ NOW 0.

Get iPhone 4S today at any Virgin Mobile location, give us a shout at 1.855.BE.VM.VIP (1.855.238.6847) or visit us at virginmobile.ca.

Offer valid for a limited time only. One-time activation fee ($35) may apply to each line. Taxes extra. 911 monthly fees apply in NB (53¢), NS (43¢), PEI (70¢), SK (62¢) and QC (40¢). iPhone 4S 16GB pricing available with new activation on a 3-year term or Virgin Mobile SuperTab™ with a Combo plan. Some phone models and colours may not be available at retailers. TM and © 2012 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. The VIRGIN trademark and family of associated marks are owned by Virgin Enterprises Limited and used under licence. All other trademarks are trademarks of Virgin Mobile Canada or trademarks and property of the respective owners.

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