Bernard Smith leaving Spring Garden Area Business Association
After nearly seven years in the position, Bernard Smith is leaving his position as manager of the Spring Garden Road Area Business Association. “The organization is on solid ground,” he says, “and it’s time for me to find something else to do.” Smith brought his immense talents to Spring Garden Road, stewarding the street into…
Ring of Fire
I left my frggin’ chapstick at home. I feel like I’m being tortured for information or something but I don’t know the information I’m supposed to be telling…. If I start blurting out random things I know about people, will you please get me my chapstick? I’m not using someone else’s that’s GROSS! Ohhh gawd,…
Hit and run in my own driveway!
To the asshole that hit my car in MY OWN FUCKING DRIVEWAY last night: Thanks, way to not leave a note or even knock on my door. Happened sometime between 5 and 7 pm at my house on Dutch Village. It’s people like you who remind me why I have no faith in people having…
Insulted
Dear Co-worker, Maybe I’m overreacting, but the way you say things sometimes just makes me want to punch you in the windpipe. Especially when you asked me if I was going to go to break with you or just “stuff my face”? WTF is that supposed to mean? Bitch! —I’m not a big fattie that…
Bring Back the Death Penalty
…for the sleazy bastards like that fucking murderer Williams or any child molester. —Tired of Supporting Inhuman Monsters
CR, you are beautiful
I love you and miss you like you don’t even understand. You are one of the most amazing people I have ever known and will ever know. See you after Christmas! Mmm, pizza. —HM
Don’t forget, Rememberer launches tonight
Tonight is the launch for Invisible Publishing’s Rememberer, at the Allan Street Reading Series. Edited by Jenner Berger, Allan St.’s lovely host, tonight’s reading will include Andrew Hood, Laura Dawe, Geordie Miller, Joshua Tibbetts and Berger. If you can’t make it, be sure to stop by the Invisible table at Saturday’s Zine Fair, where they’ll…
I fancy your style
Dear tall bloke whose name I have yet to attain: I’ve been seeing you around, each time you’re better looking then my brain’s able to retain. Saw you in the north end of town. Maybe it’s just me but I think we’ve shared a few glances,not so sure how great my chance is. I think…
Smile and a wink
Thanks for the extra cookie, sometimes a wink and a smile and a free cookie can really perk up someone’s day. —Red Coat
Amazing HPX ’94 Video
Rad Halifax local Mary posted this on halifaxlocals.com the other day. It’s a video of Muchmusic clips from Halifax Pop Explosion in 1994. Within lies footage of Sunny Day Real Estate, Stereolab, Treble Charger (good Treble Charger!) and a host of faces you may recognize. I was twelve when this was shot and watching it…
Swoon grand opening
Brant Eisner, formerly the assistant director at Argyle Fine Art is starting up his own ambitious new space in a nine-room Victorian farmhouse. Swoon – Fine Art, Antiques and Fashion (1410 Hammonds Plains Road, 404-2888) is… well, maybe it’s best if we let Eisner explain: “Swoon will feature not only fine art and craft but…
Laura Chenoweth’s last show of the season
Local eco-clothing designer Laura Chenoweth is back with her fall collection. Continuing her fashion of having trunk shows at Heroine (5775 Charles Street), the Creative Crossing space is once again hosting the show, taking place October 23 and 24, 11am to 6pm. Available will be purple cord skirts, charcoal tunics, blue-black printed jumpers, charcoal cord…
Night Stalker
I do not like having this ‘Night Stalker’ guy around. He’s climbing in your windows and snatching all your peoples up. —Hide yo kids, hide yo wife
I hate women…
who make men into fathers without their permission. My father is only around because my mom legally held him to it. How does this benefit me? —He made his choice
Morning Smiles
Thanks for the smile every morning when I get my coffee! —Makes my day 🙂
Hair raising tale
To the pubic hair in my soap. Get the fuck out. You’re ugly and annoying and starting to piss me off. I tried to dig you out but ended up with blobs of soap under my nails and you squirmed around, burrowing like a fucking groundhog and seem to be permanently imbeded in what used…
Fat Cat Fur Face
I love you my snuggly kitty. It’s been a long mutually happy relationship. You’ve recently turned 9 and I’m still amazed all the time just how loving you are. Yes, you’re a little obsessive sometimes, and have a huuuuge loud voice in the middle of the night when you want something, and you have an…
Dear Thesis Supervisor
I realize that your busy, but I need to defend my thesis. I also have a job which I need to work around too and I have a couple of appointments which impact how long we can leave this. I have been busting my ass on this long enough. —Tired
Shadows and lies
I wish for once in your life you would just tell me the truth, just to think outside of yourself and think of the child we are trying to raise. I left you for good reason, and one day she will see it too. She will see you are abusive, she will see you are…
Thanks for the phone, ride and puff!
I just wanted to send some much deserved love out there to the girl standing in line at Shoppers Drug Mart in Fairview a few weeks ago. Thanks for letting me use your phone when I couldn’t find a working payphone, then for picking me up and offering me a drive, and then again for…
This fucking year sucks!
It started out great, got better, than bam, all goes to fucking hell. 2010 you can go fuck yourself! —2009 was just fine
Confidence Booster
Dear guy who asked me to dance not once but TWICE: I know you were probably drunk, but that didn’t matter to me. You were fun. You told me I was pretty. I’ve been down lately and having you dance with me really made my night. Thanks Dude. —JD
Why is food inflation overlooked?
I keep hearing that inflation is low in this country and the States and yet people are struggling to feed themselves because of ever increasing food prices. I know that so called “core” inflation is what’s counted and hence inflation is considered low. Core inflation basically is the rate of inflation for big ticket items.…
Take your car garbage home!
For all you a#*holes who think it’s just fine to empty your car garbage at the store, it’s not! I suppose you feel great about how little trash you put to the curb every two weeks – you’ve off-loaded it on someone who has to pay to have it hauled away, and none of it…
Heart on the mend…
We’ll always have the bench, the Jubilee Extension, Freemans, Denman, the UMU field, the bank vault and the playground at St. Mary’s Elementary. (etc. etc. etc.) The only thing we’re missing is.. each other. A wise man once wrote me many notes saying all you really need is love… No matter what is said over…
Tattoo you
To the chick on the #52 Mon around noonish, with her four letter L name tattoed on her left ankle, thanks for making my day! Hubba FREAKIN’ HUBBA!! —Smilin’ across the aisle
Dear Friend
You are dating-down. Way down. You can do soooo much better. —…seriously?
A bit cautious
When I met you you were reading this paper beside me, so I hope this gets to you: For most of this year, I have been feeling a bit jaded to the majority of the female gender. Burned, to put it lightly. Our 3 hour conversation ended abruptly, but left me reassured that there are…
Noctume
I’d like to thank all the organizers and participants off Nocturne! Saturday was incredible. People were open minded, smiling, happy and truly appreciating the art culture we have in Halifax and beyond. As a returning volunteer I was thrilled to give back to the Halifax community though this event and enjoyed being a part art…
City’s convention centre costs balloon
The provincial government dropped two bombshells on Halifax council Tuesday. The deal in the works for the new convention centre proposed for downtown includes two provisos: that the city exempt the new convention centre from property taxes, and that the city buy the existing World Trade and Convention Centre. Either or both proviso could kill…
Remembering Take Back the Night
Better late than never… First of I would like to thank the organizers of this important night who let me take part in such an important protest. Second of all, I believe that this evening was meant to inform the public of the abuse that women have had to face along with the idea that…
You Don’t Deserve That Baby
To the father & grandma of the 3 year old boy who my mom found wandering a busy Clayton Park street ALONE today: How in the fucking HELL do you not even notice your small child isn’t home? It was easily a half hour between the time this baby was discovered walking in his socked…
Halifax Drivers
To the old man driving the lexus: next time YOU decide to NOT check YOUR blind-spot and almost hit my car I’d appreciate it if you didn’t start screaming at me through your open window because I’m a younger drive and it must be my fault. Go home and choke on the dust eruption from…
We knew Jessica Paré back when
Before she became a “breakout star” thanks to her role on the just-ended season of Mad Men, Jessica Paré was a Canadian actor with over a decade of work under her belt. Last year The Coast’s Carsten Knox had a chance to talk with her because she was in two movies showing at the Atlantic…
POd at the Post Office
For different reasons, I have to collect parcels almost everyday at the post office and I am getting well fed up with the customers. When there is a huge lineup: – Don’t ask how much it costs to send “something” from the UK to Texas – Don’t stand there chatting about the weather – Don’t…
Treading Water
I owe $50,000 after graduating from university last year. I can’t seem to score a job other than minimum wage slave labour. This begs the question: how does this fucking country think it’s going to populate itself if its citizens can’t afford to assume a mortgage or have a family? People of my generation are…
You’re fucking with Fall
You can relax any day now wind. It would be nice to be out enjoying the sun without feeling like I’m going to be blown away. —I haven’t had a good hair days in weeks
The Smoking Litterers!
How is it that you throw your cigarette butts out your car window, or next to the front door of our buildings, without considering you are just littering. I hope you all get your asses fined! —Stuck in a city full of cigarette butts
Harper Is A F*cking Jerk
O.K., so what this icy-eyed jack-off wants to do is offer immigrants who are, say 62, full old age pension at 65 (at present it’s 10 years) when born Canadians have to work a lifetime before receiving this privilege. This fucking sucks big time. —Why Are Immigrants Getting All the Perks and Canadians Have To…
School Blocks
They block everything they shouldn’t and don’t block everything they should. Agree or Disagree? —IHateNetsweeper
Shove your paperwork up your…
I may be 19 and naive about all the rules of my first “real” job but you can’t expect me to get hurt on the job and just walk away like nothing happened. Let’s go over the facts just so we can get the paperwork straight. You used a ladder, heard a loud crack and…
Under the Sea
To the power-tripping bouncer who kicked me in the head at the tavern on Saturday night, Fuck you! What started out as a night of fun, and having some drinks with friends, turned into a black eye and a busted up face. Thanks for nothing, asshole.—Beaten Up Guy
Halifax Loves Ideas!!!
Hey Halifax, If you had 160 million dollars to finance a revitalization of the downtown core, how would you spend it? Include ideas, initiatives, organizations, and whatever all else, you would support – and why you think they’re important. We can create a strong strategy incubator, just by putting our thoughts out there, to oppose…
Torche extinguished at HPX
Sorry to be the bad-news bearer (yep, that’s TWO torch puns in less than 20 words) but Miami’s Torche, whose new record Songs for Singles has been getting great notices, has had to cancel its Paragon appearance tonight. Locals Broken Ohms will round out the lineup, which includes High on Fire and Kylesa. The Halifax…
One Stop Wood Shop moves to Bishop’s Landing
No longer a denizen of the north end, One Stop Wood Shop(Bishop’s Landing, 1475 Lower Water Street, 209-2731) still offers all the custom furniture and home decor pieces to your hearts delight, but added to the new location is a gallery space, The Coal Wynd Gallery, now showing an exclusive series of paintings by UK…
Big Fat Jerk
Thanks for wrecking my belief that there are still some nice guys out there. You were my bf for almost 6 years, and you cheated on me with her the whole time. How can one man be so calculated, so EVIL? I am still considering telling YOUR PARENTS what a JERK you really are since…
Please – get your $ elsewhere and leave me the hell alone.
I am so sick of these endless well-meaning but extremely annoying school and/or community groups of teens, kids and their parents and chaperones or leaders or whatever AND various well-meaning charities too: they are constantly ( 7 days a week) coming to my door seeking money or even just my spare change, to sponsor them,…
Honestly Awesome
To the lovely ladies who found a phone at the Seahorse this weekend and returned it to my home the next day. Thanks for working hard at getting my phone back to me. Your karma is through the roof! A big shout out to the many lovely friends we have in common as well -…
Strollers should not be allowed in the market
The market is super busy, we don’t need people pushing huge ass strollers around. Look around at the considerate parents who have their kids in carriers so they don’t take up a ton of space and annoy the hell out of everyone. —Market lover, Stroller hater
ISP Ad
The ad with the highschool kid downloading her email before the school bus shows up in the morning. She has such a superior look on her face. “I have high-speed and you don’t – looser”. I just want to bitch slap the bitch. —Pobody’s Nerfect
The call of adulthood
To my neighbor down the hall who smokes enough pot to float a frat house: I don’t care if you want to spend life in your perpetual adolescence, but this is a building of grown-ups, mostly: have the decency to throw a towel under your door, you fuckwit. My partner with asthma and my three-year-old…
DAMN YOU
DAMN YOU MIX FOR RUNNING OUT! OK so now I have to shoot my whiskey, alright fine we can do this! Still if I’m done you and I need more fuck last call, fuck the fact that there is a time where I cant drink anymore. That is total BS. —Need More
Pacifico Love.
You, beautiful curly hair. Big eyes. White scarf, 3 girlfriends. I didn’t belong there, but the few songs spent with you made it worth it. —Oct 16th
What political correctness does to free speech
When I go out and speak to individuals, in a safe area, they all agree with my views. Doctors, Lawyers, Military personal of all ranks (NCO and Officers), professionals, labourers, everyone in all social classes. So everyone who agrees, (the majority of whites) need to ask themselves, why their views are not be represented in…
Your car is too big and you’re too stupid to drive it
Did you ever hear that the size of your car is inversely related to the size of your shlong? For all you morons driving around in your huge cars with your Bluetooth in ( yes we all know you’re soooo important): Stop riding my ass while I’m on my bike. I take up the whole…
To Ma’am Butterfly
You should know that I love you, and have loved you since we met playing that game. I’m sorry that it took me so long to get back in touch after we split, but I’m glad you’re giving being friends a chance again. —The Frog Prince
To the drivers of Route 41
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Bus Drivers of route 41: You say good morning to me when I rush to class, you hold up the bus for that routine late student making an effort to get to you, you have the common courtesy to say thank you even though I show you my student ID every…
Move your lazy ass!
This bitch goes out to all the lazy fuckers on the bus that won’t get out of their seat to let the person on the inside seat out. Are you really that fucking lazy that you can’t stand up for 5 seconds to let me out? Instead, you turn sideways so I can squeeze by…
Good Dog, Bad Owner
Why don’t you leave your dog at home instead of taking it to the cafe and leaving it tied to the BIKE RACK???I’m not comfortable locking/unlocking my bike with a strange dog that sees you entering his territory. Yeah, I know, ‘he doesn’t bite’. —Halifax Biker Person
Con-victions
Hey Oprah! Next time you feel the need to make grilled cheese sandwiches on national TV maybe you could choose a better grill mate than convicted felon Martha Stewart. Maybe then your sanctimonious posturing at other times wouldn’t seem so hypocritical. —Cheesed
Thanks For Paying Attention!
As much as I bitch every day (in my head) about the Hfx drivers, I have to thank the van and truck behind me on the newly paved section of the 102 today. They were paying attention, noticed, and backed off when I hydroplaned, COMPLETELY lost control of the car, went back and forth (sideways…
Coffee Shop Love!
To the hoodie-wearing Coffee Shop employee working this morning: you served me a coffee/hot chocolate and you were so great. Your friendliness made my rainy midterm morning so much brighter. This is why your coffee house is always my favourite place to be. —Studious customer
How did I use to tolerate you?
You’re a spoiled brat who doesn’t know the meaning of hard work. You have had everything handed to you on a silver platter your whole life. You have the worst attitude of anyone I have ever known. I once considered you a great friend but you let your personality shine through and killed our friendship.…
BoycottGayJokes
Enough is enough. No more gay jokes. Stop using the word gay in a derogatory way. And for all the replies to this bitch that uses the word gay GROW UP. Gay people are killing themselves so you get a cheap laughs. Enough is Enough. Join facebook/boycottgayjokes —ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
Pitch-er, please
I’m so glad you moved to the city! You made me realize how wonderful Halifax is again by getting to show you around and going to some of my favorite spots. I forgot how much some of them meant to me and we even got to discover some new ones that we can now share…
One-way Bitch
I live on the corner of a one-way street. Now, don’t get me wrong, people gotta pay attention, but that lil black and white arrow doesn’t seem to get the point across that you’re turning the wrong way down the street. How come there’s no big red NO TURN sign? or a WRONG WAY sign…
Busy Bitcher
Yup, I know I’mma get flamed for the selfishness of this bitch but here goes… I have been so. f**king. busy. For the last three weeks doing stuff for other people (important life-event stuff you can’t really say not to) and I will be just as busy for the next couple weeks. But I am…
I Love Friday
So much. —Weeekeeend
Hey B00
You talked me into moving here three years ago this coming Spring. I just want to thank you for taking me with you. We don’t always see eye to eye but we love and play hard and we like the same things. You set up my tea mug in the morning and wash apples for…
Wooden Monkey to open second location
The Wooden Monkey (1707 Grafton Street, 444-3844) is looking to expand. “We’ve got a possible site in Bedford,” says co-owner Lil MacPherson. The new restaurant won’t be as big as the present successful downtown locale. Partner Christine Bower “is a monster when it comes to having another restaurant, and to make a good living for…
Whet Cafe at FRED changes hours
The Whet Cafe at FRED. Beauty Food Art., the north end hotspot that is a salon, a gallery and a cafe is extending its hours on Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays, “as a response to the need for more evening spots in the north end.” Expect to find the regular favourites as well as evening specials,…
Pro Skates is open
After many months of renovations, Pro Skateboards (6451 Quinpool Road, 429-6788) has taken the content of three stores, Pro Girl, Pro Skates on Blowers and Pro Skates on Quinpool just down from Video Difference and moved it all to the swanky new, split-level digs with floor-to-ceiling storefront windows, sandwiched in between Subway and Tim Horton’s.…
Smiley Samaritan in Creepy Dentistry Hallway
Thanks for the knock to let me know that I’d left my keys in my office door! —Absentminded Grad Student
Oh sweet fellow bitcher
You’re always sweet, never mean, you’re cute and funny and don’t attack… <3 —Me
HR, ML, HM I love you and I miss you
Whenever I need you, you are there for me. We finger paint, go for walks and dance in the grass together. I feel so alive when we are all together, like nothing in the world can hurt me. It is amazing that we found each other, considering that we quickly moved on from the place…
Continents divide us, but our love grows strong
From the moment I first saw you I knew that you were the one. You had such a beautiful smile and when we talk everything around us disappears. I didn’t know what true love was until I met you. I know that you have no hope of reading this, for you are home in your…
Intellectually Challanged Motorists
To the fucking retard driving the white Honda: The other day you almost drove me off the fucking road – retake your fucking driving test! —HatesBadDrivers
Cranky Old Bitch
Yesterday while having a walk , I saw the worst and most disrespectful attitude towards an Arab lady. The lady was covered with a veil, which I guess is religious wear and an fucking old bitch lady stopped her – yelling at her to take that shit off her head and accusing her for being…
Park Lovin’
A few weeks ago, while walking through a South End park, you stumbled upon an unusually sight. But you didn’t veer away from your chosen course, and you didn’t cry out and shout and make a scene or get angry. Really, you didn’t interrupt the fornicating couple rolling around in the grass probably about 8ft…
Strange twist in 10-year legal battle, Ocean vs. Economical
May Ocean attempts to withdraw from participating any further in her lawsuit against Economical Insurance after 12 days of hearings in the NS Supreme Court.
Why the convention centre sucks, part 3
One of the most bizarre arguments in favour of the proposed convention centre is that it will increase tax revenues. “Generating perpetual tax revenue for the federal, provincial and municipal governments, a new convention centre will help fund valuable provincial infrastructure like roads, schools and hospitals,” says an online petition, echoing sentiments expressed by any…
Photog: An Imaginary Look at the Uncompromising Life of Thomas Smith
Halifax got a special sneak preview last week of a new work by Vancouver theatre company Boca Del Lupo thanks to the Prismatic Festival. Photog: An Imaginary Look at the Uncompromising Life of Thomas Smith draws on the real-life experiences of photographers who travel to war-torn and impoverished parts of the world to capture and…
City of stumps
The roar of chainsaws and wood chippers has finally begun to subside as the post-Earl clean-up winds down, but tree service companies throughout the city are still swamped. According to Ben Perry, owner of All Green Tree Care, the hurricane triggered a flurry of tree-cutting requests from nervous home owners. In fact, the spate of…
Hawny
To my hawny, you’re coming all the way from Ontario to visit lonely old me. You’re going to love it here, and our dreams of living together and getting a fat puppy will soon be everyday life. I can’t wait to squeeze your cute little bum in front of everybody! —Stinker
Creepy Bubbles
To the asshole who followed me home last week: You had the audacity to watch me wait for the bus, watch me on the bus, and follow me as I zig-zagged through my complex. Fuck you. I am new to the city, I am a tiny girl, and it was late at night. Go get…
Chef fires employee over FACEBOOK status!!
Today I was on the waterfront and witnessed a horrible confrontation. An individual was screaming he was fired over a facebook status update that another coworker informed the Chef about. At what point do we draw the line I must ask myself? Is it right to fire an individual because they expressed discontent over lowered…
Pop Goes the Hurl
A few people have asked me what I’m going to see next week at the Halifax Pop Explosion so I thought maybe I’d throw the olde list onto the blog-thing. I’m not telling you what to do, though – you are the master of your own destiny. I am merely the keymaster. Together we can…
An Evening With David Usher
never trust a man who’s prettier than you are Yuppers. A solo acoustic show, folks! It’s on Monday, October 25th, Seahorse Tavern, $25 bucks, get your paws on tickets here or by calling 1-888-391-9090.
Dear guy who lives above me:
You live one floor up from me and apparently you make guitars…that’s actually really cool. Even better if you’re the hot guy I see walking from the white car inside with a guitar case all the time. BUT, is it really necessary to be sawing away and making guitars from 11p-5am RIGHT ABOVE my bedroom???…
Visiting Love
To my exotic/erotic french Princess: You were here for Thanksgiving, what a weekend; adventure, relaxation, sex and family. Bird and Cheesy Potatoes. We will co-habitate soon. Dropped you at the airport and felt strange. Missing your new thigh highs and perfect butt. —Canadian Boy
True Love
You make me better<3 This is the real thing Xx —Baby T
CLIP. CLIP. CLIP.
…To the woman who was on the number 10 Dalhousie the other morning clipping your Nails. I’m not sure if you were aware but that is disgusting. Not only did you clip and File your nails you left them laying all over the floor, for the poor bus driver to clean up after you. The…
Long Haired #1 Bus Driver
You’ve told me your name a few times, but I cannot seem to remember. Your cheerful disposition, stories, conversations and general kick ass attitude make riding the bus safe. You always take the time to talk to passengers, wait for us at stops and wave/honk as you drive by. Thanks for making the city pleasant…
#9 Bus driver
Thanks for waiting at my stop on the mornings I’m too dazed to see you pull up. And thanks again for remembering who I am and telling me not to worry about showing you my SMU pass on mornings when I’m juggling 3 bags of donations, my course readings, book bag and hot coffee. Your…
Nice Catch!
Mad Love to the sexy metal boy who caught my glasses in the mosh pit @Black Label Society, children of bodum and clutch concert. Your reflexes save my specs and my wallet 300$. You must have caught them out of the air, because they are completely unharmed. I wish I had gotten the chance to…
Maybe I should have served donuts
This evening I had a visit from one of Halifax’s Finest. The visit left me wondering when the motto, “to Serve and Protect” was changed to ” to Scoff and Dismiss”. Earlier today, I phoned to report that the so-called Sleepwatcher may have paid me a visit. I say “may” because at the time I…
Kind students
My huge heart-felt thank-you to the college student who took the time out of his busy day to let the security know that I had a flat and then took me to the people who could help me. It was so very nice of you. Thank you also to the two friendly students in the…
Chocolate Milk Bubble Blowing Contest
Thanks for all the KitKat bars and cups overflowed with chocolate milk bubbles. We laugh so much. We’re not perfect, but we’re still great. Thank you. —Normal Like You
A Helping Hand on the Bus
An elderly lady was struggling with her walker to get off the bus. You walked from the back of the bus to go help her. Thank you for being fearlessly kind. I know I definitely felt a little bit ashamed for just watching her struggle. I’ll remember you the next time I see someone who…
Highway robbery
OK, here comes my $250- million question: Who the heck is running this province, fat-cat business tycoons or our new NDP government? Warning: Before answering, consider the evidence presented two weeks ago to the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board. It concerned the huge profits the auto insurance companies raked in after the Tories and…
Free Will Astrology
LIBRA(September 23-October 22) Usually you specialize in having a light touch. You’d rather nudge than push. Nimble harmony is more interesting to you than brute force. You prefer your influence on people to be appreciated, not begrudgingly respected. And I certainly don’t want you to forsake any of those inclinations. But I would love to…
Soaring across The Wooden Sky
Gavin Gardiner’s having a rough phone call. A few minutes in, The Wooden Sky’s harmonica player disappears from the other end of the line in Quebec City and there’s a scuffle. When he gets back, he breathlessly explains: “I just got accosted by a pedestrian! By a man in a wheelchair—he pushed my suitcase along.”…
Hot Hot Heat turn it up
For a little more than a decade, Hot Hot Heat’s been radiating its energy all the way from Vancouver. But with the release of the album Future Breeds earlier this year, band members Luke Paquin, Steve Bays, Louis Hearn and Paul Hawley discovered a new temperature. “Musically, for lack of a better word, it’s a…
What’s up with Downie?
On a Friday night in September Gord Downie and his band, The Country of Miracles, performed at Market Square, Victoria, BC, as part of the Rifflandia Festival. It was the beginning of an eastbound Canadian tour supporting a new record, The Grand Bounce. Downie stepped on stage, as he always does, feeling the heavy weight…
HPX preview: The Superfantastics
While nursing post- Thanksgiving turkey hangovers, celebrated Halifax indie-pop duo The Superfantastics chat over the phone from their respective abodes. But shortly after the call gets underway, things get awkward. It’s the “third member” question that did it: the one that explorative couples often broach, surely with the same bashfulness. Lead singer and guitarist Matthew MacDonald…
Nocturne spotlight: Coast picks
Night Twitters The Letterpress Gang, Dawson Printshop, 1895 Granville street, Zone 1 “It’s an old technology that takes a long time to learn. We want to pass it on,” says Katie Tower, representing The Letterpress Gang. Tower is talking about the printing equipment at the Dawson Printshop, a teaching printshop that’s existed here for over…
HPX preview: Mark Sultan goes solo
It has been a tumultuous few months for Mark Sultan. After spending the better part of the last decade as the “BBQ” half of the King Khan & BBQ Show, Sultan left the band amid swirling blogger accounts of cancelled shows, wild drunkenness, trashed apartments and screaming arguments between the two musicians across a Pacific…
We are all junkies
Before my son was born I was asked what I most wanted for him. “I want him to know who he is and where he belongs,” I said. Maybe that sounds more strict- father wannabe than liberal columnist. But I’ve come to believe that what sociologists call dislocation—essentially the loss of a sense of belonging—is the…
HPX preview: New town for New Pornographers
“That’s crazy,” he says on the line from Woodstock, New York, where he bought a house last year. “We should mark that,” he says, recalling the debut album came out in late October 2000. The collection of roughed-up new wave was released by the Mint Records label in Vancouver, the city where Newman grew up…
Nocturne spotlight: Ursula Johnson: Elmiet
The headpiece rests on a bust in the window, a superhero’s costume without a secret compartment in the hideout. Facing the street, it’s perhaps being hidden in plain sight. Passersby don’t recognize the mask, which will be worn by Ursula Johnson during Nocturne, as part of the Prismatic festival. It’ll cover her head and eyes,…
Carbon copying the Morris building
Walking by the boarded up and relocated Morris building the past few weeks, you may have noticed artists Sarah Haydon Roy and Charley Young tacking sheer white fabric onto its sides and frottaging the building’s facade; the two have been working on their Nocturne project, Carbon Copy: The Charles Morris Building. “Both Charley and I…
Chloé comme Parris goes to Toronto
Toronto Fashion Week is one of the biggest in North America: a chance for style editors, buyers and Rachel Zoe-elbowed socialites to jostle for front-row seats at the prestigious runway shows. Even Joe Fresh Style debuts its collections here. And on Wednesday, Chloé comme Parris will make its first appearance at a sold-out show, after…
It’s Kind of a Funny Story sweetens the plot
The writing and directing team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck announced itself as one of consequence with Half Nelson, the 2006 drama that introduced Shareeka Epps and produced an Academy Award nomination for Ryan Gosling and his portrayal of a crack-addicted teacher. It was followed by the well-received Sugar, the star-free story of a…
Nocturne spotlight: Window Ballet
Artist and musician Lisa Lipton originally conceived of the idea of a performance art piece that would play itself out through the windows of a house four years ago, where each window would serve as one act of a play. She initially intended it as a long-term solo project, but following rejections for government funding,…
Nocturne spotlight: City Mail
Last May, a few handcrafted mailboxes mysteriously cropped up around north end Halifax—mounted to lampposts, nestled discreetly in bookshelves in local coffee shops and art galleries. The idea was not to replace Canada Post, but to encourage people to examine their relationship to their community and to each other through letter writing. It would be…
Not all Ducky
The sky is grey, heavy with the threat of rain, reflected in the cloudy silver splashes of the harbour waves. Gulls float and bob nearby, gentle sprays of water flicking from their wings as they take flight. Azure dimples break up the clouds, a hint that the sun may smile down after all, so I…
Fear, hatred and “gay kids dying”
Q I was listening to the radio yesterday morning and I heard an interview with you about your It Gets Better campaign. I was saddened and frustrated with your comments regarding people of faith and their perpetuation of bullying. As someone who loves the Lord and does not support gay marriage, I was heartbroken to…
Nocturne spotlight: A Year In the Making
As I turn on my recorder, Scott Saunders leans in to ask, “So, uh…This isn’t gonna be coming across as anti-government, eh?” It’s a fair question. Saunders has been “battling,” as he puts it, with the Halifax Regional Municipality for just under a year over his desire to curate an immersive art show in the…
Keeping Hamlet traditional
Halifax has experienced quite the year for Shakespeare. There’ve been two Twelfth Nights, two Julius Caesars, a Romeo and Juliet and now, a terrific Hamlet. Acting-wise the cast (a mix of amateur and professional actors) is a bit uneven, but a tour-de-force performance by Gregory Slack as the titular character goes a long way to making…
Food Fight for Feed Nova Scotia
Warm up that food-fighting arm for Feed Nova Scotia today: A coast-to-coast food fight starts at 6pm, where Halifax competes against both Regina and Victoria to see which city can collect and weigh the most food in 48 hours. It’s Halifax’s first year participating—Regina and Victoria did a day-long challenge last year, and Regina won…
