The Hole, Jenn Grant, Timber Timbre

What an exciting end of week I've been having. The guest speaker we had in from Portland was incredible. If only Halifax was as proactive about cycling issues. As soon as I'm able to get those videos digitized, I will post a link to them.

Before I go further: I have a little bit of an update to show you, my pretties! The hole is being filled! The Trillium is really starting to come together. I pass the whole weekly on my bike, and to be honest, I've joined the habit of my fellow neighbors. First I get off my bike and take slow careful steps to the edge. When I'm close enough to the fence, I reach out and curl my fingers around the cold metal mesh and take a long, hard look down.

I think I wouldn't mind living here when it's done.

But I went to a show last night with my friend, Jables. It was part of HFX Pop Explosion 2009. The artists of the night were Timber Timbre and Jenn Grant. Jenn was marvelous! She came out in the audience to play her last song, and I was able to snag some very neat photo's of her while she was closeby. A couple are below. I really like how they turned out.

I used to go to Jenn's shows on a weekly basis. There was one night that she performed at Queen Elizabeth High School before it closed down (Jabes came out with me on that night as well). Anyways, this was a CD launch party. I really liked the show, but my heart broke a little because I knew she was going to fly away and do tours all over the place. I was pretty bang on. Up until tonight, I hadn't seen her at a show for nearly 3 years.

I was very happy to see her again.

The opener however was very impressive! Timber Timbre was the name of the band. I haven't heard anything like it. It seems like they concentrate meticulously on the most miniscule things in their songs. They are very good at establishing a very macabre tone in their audience, not just through the lyrics of the songs, but through the composition as well. I will try to set up a link to the recordings I subversively and secretly made during the show last night.

I saw a great band on Friday night as well! They were called the Stogies, and in the right hands, they will make a big impact in Canada music scene. I'd suggest you check out their MySpace page, but the recordings they have on there really do not do them justice. If you do check it out, make a point to write down the time and location of their next show... go to WalMart and buy a protective face mask and birth control... and then attend the show. Why the face mask and BC, you ask? Because if not, the sheer awesomeness of their sound will blow your face off and get you pregnant!

Good night everyone!

Rough Ride for Halifax Critical Mass

Last month's Critical Mass ride got tangled up with the police last month. I can't say I'm surprised, as police involvement is usually involved in many rides to some capacity. What frustrates me is the borderline split personality disorder of Halifax Police. Some months they are kind and courteous towards the Mass, and even escort us during the ride. Other times they are aggressive and very grabby, which is a scary thing when you are on a medium-paced ride with two wheels. I've even had one officer on a motorcycle come up from behind me while I was stopped and try to push me over. I know enough at this point that if you get nabbed by the cops, you get asked 20 questions, none of which you can really give a good answer to, they get frustrated, ask for your ID, rifle through their little law book in their cars and promptly fine you for something. In response to his push, I steadied myself and busted out of there.

Three people were fined last month however, which lead to a "Critical Mass Meeting". A handful of people including myself showed up. It was nice to see that people care about what happened and want to help out the people who got fined.

On another cycling note, the Halifax Cycling Coalition was contacted by the US Consulate General last month about a city planner that will be in Halifax at the end of the week. Roger Geller has been the Bicycling Planner for the City of Portland, OR for the past 15 years. If you don't know about Portland, it's essentially THE cycling Mecca in the US. It will be nice to see and hear what ideas would be feasible in Halifax. He's also meeting with the HRM Active Transportation Advisory Committee. I hope he inspires them to invest their efforts into getting Halifax a Bicycle planner of it's own. I made a poster for this event that I will try and attach below.

That's about it from me. Keep it real you guys!

Duathlon, Bikes are Cool, Nice House

I went and did another race this weekend. It was pretty alright --a duathlon in Riverport (about an hour or so away). Lots of crazy expensive and good looking bikes. Even though I find my own bike quite fetching, there were some very cute other bikes there. At the end of the day, I wished I had a good $10 000 to drop on a sexy carbon fiber bicycle. Something fast and firm!

If you would like more double-entendres, please leave a comment.

The above pictured bike is my OCR3. The OCR line was meant to be an entry level competitive road bike, which has since been discontinued, and revamped into the new line: Defy. It's kind of like the Toyota Tercel transforming into the Toyota Corolla. The 3 (inversely) indicates the degree of performance you will get out of the bike. The OCR2 for example has lighter wheels and some more carbon fiber than the OCR3, making it a little stiffer as well (stiffness = more power transfered directly to the drivetrain). My bike makes me sad however. I don't really think of it as a "he" or "she" as some people tend to see their own bikes. I have not named it either. I sometimes think "What if my bike does have a personality that it wants to have expressed." If this is true, it must be depressed.

On another note, I met an old friend for supper in Bridgewater the night before the race. We used to go to classes at Dal together, and he's just gotten back from a big trip up north. Upon telling him that I was planning on roughing it in my car by the start/finish line, he urged me to stay at his brothers place for the night. My biggest props go out to you big guy! What a dynamite house!

Well that's it from me. Stay real everyone! I mean it... if anyone wakes up as a mannequin tomorrow, I will flip the fuck out.