This past week, Rebecca and Keira teamed up on some baking of all sorts of Christmas goodies. I got to enjoy the fruits of their labour all the while having my camera in tow.
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Archive for the ‘Holidays’ Category
Photos from Surrey Canada Day 2009
Sunday, July 19th, 2009I know we’re almost through the month of July, but the City of Surrey held their annual Canada Day celebrations at Cloverdale Millennium Amphitheatre on July 1st. Miss604.com was an official sponsor of the day’s events (posts: Opening Ceremonies, Performances, Bif Naked), so Rebecca and I ventured out to wander the grounds, see the sights, and, of course, shoot some photos.
Just to highlight the very well organized event, here’s a few of my favorite shots from the day.
It’s a bit of a tradition to bring out a table full of chocolate and vanilla cupcakes with red and white frosting, all arranged as the flag of Canada. Once the day is officially opened by the mayor of Surrey, people can come up and get one from various members of the city council, including the mayor herself, Diane Watts.
Local hip-hop act, Sweatshop Union.
An amazing performance by You Say Party! We Say Die!
Bif Naked was loud and in charge, as expected.
54-40 headlined the main stage and put on a stellar performance.
I have plenty more shots in my set on Flickr. Many thanks to the organizers of Surrey Canada Day 2009 for their hosting and making sure the day was a success. I keep being impressed with the events that Surrey puts on. Their events planning crew really know what it means to have something to do with your family and friends.
A windy weekend in Osoyoos
Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008
We’re back from a (on, off, on, off, and then back on again) trip to Osoyoos for the recent long weekend. While it was great to spend time with some family and get out of town for a few days, it was painful to have barely a cloud in the sky and 40km/hr winds barreling down on the town. Made getting out and enjoying the desert climate a little tough. Even if you could handle the “breeze”, it would get a little tiring of debris blowing around, and that would be in the form of leaves, your towel, or plastic patio furniture.
The part that sucked the most was driving there and having a rainstorm dump enough water to cause some flash flooding on Highway 1 between Chilliwack and Hope. That made the 3.5 hour drive into 7.5.
Still, it was good to get away and disconnect for a few days. Plenty to eat and drink, and I even got to catch a few baseball games on TV.
And wouldn’t you know it, the day we leave was the best, most amazing weather of the entire long weekend. We were able to get in a little beach time before departure, but what a kick in the teeth. Thanks a lot, summer. I stick up for you and this is how you treat us? Yeah, see ya next year.
Photographs from Surrey Canada Day celebrations
Saturday, July 5th, 2008Rebecca was contacted by the fine folks at the city of Surrey to be a media co-sponsor for their Canada Day events in Cloverdale. July 1st saw nearly 40,000 people crowd onto the Cloverdale Millennium Amphitheater grounds to play games, see stilt walkers, get their faces painted, and see a jam packed line-up of musical acts on the main stage, including the likes of Rymes With Orange, The Payola$, and Loverboy.
Events like this tend to find me with media access for the both of us, and of course that means I have to take my camera along with. You can read all of Rebecca’s coverage of the event [Surrey Canada Day 2008: The Schedule, Morning Recap, The Music], but the following are some of my favorite shots that I took.
Will is a really amazing musician. See him live if you can because you must.
That’s Mr. Bob Rock[wiki], ladies and gentlemen, in the flesh.
You can see all 104 photos on Flickr. Shooting outdoor events can be a lot of fun, but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s loud in the photo pit, not to mention the sweltering heat on that day. Sometimes I feel intimidated by being surrounded with folks that have larger and much more expensive photo equipment, but the pictures that come out from my endeavors tend to speak for themselves. It’s not what you got that matters. It’s how you use it, and I’m doing my damnedest to learn my camera and get better with every shot.
The folks at the Surrey Canada Day event were amazing in terms of getting us the media access and letting us know the low down on what was going on, where everything was located, and were just generally awesome people. By far, the best treatment I have ever experienced in terms of media access for new media folks.
The year of the eight
Sunday, January 20th, 2008
For New Years Eve, we ventured out to be with some friends for the occasion. Some were old, some were new, but all of them were people that have become new to our lives. I’ll even say that if it weren’t for blogging, they probably wouldn’t be friends. It’s amazing how that works, and 2007 has been another, amazing example of how life continues to progress.
Hi. This is a delayed, new year post for 2008.
I actually started writing this sometime ago, and it was even late to the mark when I tried to do that. Ever since getting the full time gig of a day job, it’s tough to find a lot of time to do the other things that really interest me. It’s not that I don’t like what I do. I’m just busy.
This last year has been down right insane. It started off with my approval for permanent residency in Canada, and it concluded with probably the biggest thing to happen in my professional career. I’m working for a group of radio stations once again, and the work is nothing short of a walk in the park. It’s one thing to say that it takes time to learn how to do your job. It’s a whole other realm when you work in the 2nd biggest market in Canada, not to mention those winter snow games in 2010 on the horizon.
I suppose that this is the point where I should make resolutions for this year, but there isn’t a lot to hope for other than good fortune and health. We work hard day in and day out, and there are days when that doesn’t seem like it’s enough. And at that point, which is probably what the main resolution I have for this year, is to enjoy time together more with Rebecca. Camping, traveling, and summer days on the beach, all squeezed in between the hectic lives that we have carved for ourselves.
“Get busy living, or get busy dying.“
A Dave Olson original of our very own
Friday, January 4th, 2008
One of the neat things that happened just before Christmas was Dave dropping by to give us this present. An original piece of artwork that pays homage to Vancouver in the only way that makes sense to those who live the true life of a Vancouverite. I’m not sure that I fully qualify, but a combination of Dave and Rebecca has taught me a lot. Very cool.
Happy Christmas Day
Tuesday, December 25th, 2007In celebration of getting a new camera for Christmas, here comes a photo post. Check out more after the jump.
Editors – an end has a start
Saturday, December 22nd, 2007If you’re like me, shopping around Christmas time means one thing. Monotonous Christmas music. That same song that you hear from one store to the next. If it’s not the same exact song by the same person, it’s another version by whatever artist decided to put out their own version of a Christmas album.
And then, it gets stuck in your head. You can’t get it out. The only thing I find myself able to do is to go Weird Al on the tune and make up my own lyrics when “Walking in a Winter Wonderland” refuses to leave the spaces between my synapses.
This tune by Editors did the trick the other day, so I hope it might help you as well. They are coming to Vancouver soon with Hot Hot Heat on the double bill at the Commodore Ballroom on February 5, 2007.
Nuts and dried fruit goes a long way
Wednesday, December 19th, 2007
If there is one thing that everyone should remember, at least during one point in a year, it’s to thank the folks that work hard, behind the scenes, to make things happen. I only say this because when it happens, it makes those people feel good for all the hours of labor that often wouldn’t be possible unless you had people willing to do the task and not demand a lot of credit.
That might sound selfish, but let me be completely honest. I work in radio, and that’s exactly what I do. It’s not a cry for attention or a need to be just as recognized as those people that are on the mic day in and day out. This is more of a plea for the rest of the world, at least those in the working force who rely on people with technical expertise on a daily basis, to just show a token of appreciation.
Perhaps it’s because I’ve had quite the week already, the twelve hour day I just got done with, or the thought of the tasks looming on the horizon. When someone brought the gift basket into our department from the sales folks, it certainly made me feel good, no matter how many fires I have to put out in a day or how much my brain hurts by the time it hits the pillow.
And seriously, if this sounds at all familiar to you, remember to at least thank those people.
Happy Halloween
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007
Hi, my name is John Bollwitt. I'm a broadcast radio engineering/I.T. technician in Vancouver and co-founder of 