The Smoke Nazis Are At It Again
The talk about banning smoking in apartment buildings makes my fucking blood boil. It is my residence and I will do what the fuck I want, especially to the tune of $850 bucks a month. I am so goddamn sick and tired of you non-smoking cunts dictating my life. If cigarettes are that fucking evil,…
Monotonix
MonotonixThursday, Oct 23, 1:38, Gus’ PubScott Blackburn
Local doesn’t mean better
To the editor, I’m writing to express my disappointment in our listing in your 2008 Shop Halifax City Guide. My concern stems from the four designations that you apply to the listings: locally owned, Atlantic-owned, Canadian-owned and finally internationally owned. This is presented in a way that clearly favours local over Atlantic and Canadian…and since…
Obama!
This will surprise no one, but I voted for a secret Muslim, America-hating redistributionist as president of the United States last week.
All videos ever, except for almost everywhere
Andy Murdoch dropped a tip bomb on us yesterday that’s sure to halt work the world over: MTV has posted its entire video library. Except that part about “the world” — you can only play them if you’re in the US, just like Hulu! WTF America? WTF!
new dumbass employee
Listen, you damn greasy ginge! you suck, period! so quit! you cant get ahold of the work, your old, and WTF is up with your fingernails? you think by your age you would learn to not act like a fucking child! all we want you to do is answer the bloody phone and deal with…
Speeders
To the many morons who speed past my child’s stopped schoolbus on the Bedford Highway EVERYDAY, can you not see the the huge yellow bus parked in front of you? Can you not see the flashing red lights? Or the stop sign? Or the line of five year olds pouring off the bus? Can you…
Helen Hill doc tomorrow night
Just a reminder that After the Storm, the documentary on Helen Hill’s life and a post-Katrina New Orleans, is on CBC tomorrow night at 9pm.
Security
To the dick and his ego at that security company. Last night I was probally the oldest person at the T-Pain Concert. You check my bag and throw out my tennis grip. I KNOW it’s not a huge deal but when I tried to explain to you what it was you looked at me like…
Contrived pushed back, but just a bit
For all you Contrived fans headed out to your local record shop to pick up the band’s new record (ZOMFG!!!!1!!!), blank blank blank, originally slated to drop today, stay calm: it’ll be out online November 11, and waiting for you when stores open post-holiday on November 12. For now you can listen to a new…
The end of Halifax?
Sunday, I drove through the site of the proposed Melford terminal on Canso Straight, and took photos of the now-abandoned site:If everything goes as planned, a new deep water port will be constructed at this site, consisting of a 315-acre terminal (including 60 acres of fill into the Canso Straight). The principals have announced that…
Thanks for the 44 dollar theft.
Ok. To “Teenie” (who ordered first) and your two short haired blonde friends who sat in a booth at a very popular, busy pub on Spring Garden between 7-8pm on Fri, Oct.17. You asked me for a Ten Penny. You ordered a club w/fries, chicken fingers w/baked potato, and a chicken parm, with two Keiths…
Pet Peeve
Can someone please tell me why some people feel it nessecary to practically lean up against the person ahead of them in the checkout line? Listen, we’re all waiting in the same lineup. It isn’t going to move along any faster if you stand on top of me, and frankly, i find it repulsive that…
Spare us your banter
This one goes out to the two obnoxious twits in Craft & Design History — I paid my tuition so that I could come to class and listen to the professor talk, not your mindless chattering twice weekly. I showed up over an hour early on the day of the midterm, so that I could…
For the Dead
We know Halloween competition is stiff, especially when it’s on a weekend — we are from the country and can recall actual Halloween being moved to a weekday when it was technically on the weekend, so as to theoretically reduce destruction and shenanigans; this is the same hometown that banned Simpsons shirts from school once…
Losing money
Andrew Younger: “I don’t think Ben McCrea’s bluffing,” Younger said. “He’s losing $250,000 a year on these buildings… By this logic, I’m losing a billion dollars a year because the city won’t let me build a nuclear power plant in my back yard. Or, if the argument is that McCrea is “losing” the money because…
bagel bitch
Every day i go into a certain purveyor of coffee and baked goods (rhymes with ‘Dimmies’, which adequately describes the staff) and ask for a bagel with cream cheese on both sides of the bagel. for years, this request has been met with blatant eye-rolling, ‘oh lord..’ glances between between staff members, and downright rudeness,…
shed whore..
i Hate trailer trash fucking shed whore, GO fuck yourself watching subs instead of my man,
grr, my bitch isn’t showing
this is annoying, I can’t submit my bitch.. where did it go? I even signed up for an account and everything With my luck this one will probably show.. great. last time I’m trying this
the dollar drinks
the city of hrm and the province say $1 drinks bring more crime and drunkiness to the downtown.well either find a way to impose some kind of bar tax to go toward paying for more police charged to all liquire places only like $1500.00/month to stop those prices or just DROP THE BITCHING! a frequent…
Are you happy now?
I remember when Brian Mulroney negotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement twenty years ago. The Conservatives won an election on the Free Trade platform in 1988. The people had spoken. The anti-free trade camp accused Mulroney of have sold Canada to the US. And the scoffers scoffed. Free Trade means jobs, they said. The…
Leny and your arm
WOW – What a great concert Lenny K put on. Would have been even better if you had left your fucking arm out of my face for more than a minute. Ya, you in Sec 21, seat 13. FUCK! Everyone was laughing at you. Did you not grab a clue when I hit you several…
The next Trudeau
No, no, not Pierre. Gary: Buoyed rather than daunted by his distant third-place finish in the recent mayoralty race, perennial candidate David Boyd is now throwing his hat into the federal Liberal leadership race.
NASTY SELFISH
You nasty selfish B wanting me to cancel my plans so you can have a day off so you can take your child trick or treating and you take all her candy you fat a$$ed B this is my first day I have had off since June I will now do everything in my power…
Noise
So the guy upstairs has the right to do his business…but WTF?! I pay $1000/month for my “sound-proof” apt and listen to him shit and fart as I brush my teeth every morning. Disgruntled in South End
To Pretentious Hairstylists
Stop acting like you have no knowledge of hair products sold at the drugstore. I know you’re probably making commission off what you’re selling, but would it be too much to ask of you to pick up on my non-verbal cues that this is irritating. I’m not spending $30+ on a haircut to hear you…
Trinity Church gone?
You have got to be kidding. They tore down that beautiful old church to replace it with what????? F*ck this city is uglier by the minute. ugly city blue
WTF, Metro Transit? WTF?
Yesterday morning my daughter got on the #52 with several other kids on their way to Halifax West High School. After all the kids got on, the bus driver apparently decided the bus was too full. “You guys have to get off.” He said to the last few kids. “But I already put my ticket…
Make-up Metro Transit!
I wrote a letter to Metro Transit on September 24th, 2008 at 10:22 am and a month afterwards, have not receive any response, other than confirmation that my letter was received. The situation described in my letter has not improved and the fact that they have not been able to answer within a MONTH, frustrates…
Turn Your Lights Down Low…
What is with everyone driving with their headlights blaring on high beams? Please leave your lights on the regular setting so I can keep my eyesite intact. Blinded by the light
If you don’t know, don’t use it
I heart those self serve check out thingeys at a certain store that is super. What I hate is when people with huge orders go through them, or people who can’t even use a personal comptuter let a computer with a barcode reader and cash machine attached to it. Never fails I get there and…
Building a healthy economy
I’d really like to say: you get a healthy economy, prosperity for all, by doing thing one, thing two and this other thing, #3. Just follow my advice, and we’ll all be rich. Alas, that’s falling into the pony fallacy. Truth is, there are no simple answers, no ponies to magically appear and carry us…
Letters to the Editor
There’s a story that just developed yesterday that the media hasn’t noticed yet. I hope The Coast or someone picks up on this and writes a story about it to bring attention to it. It’s about new Nova Scotia Energuide Zero-Interest loan who’s intent according to the initial media release was to provide “interest-free loans…
to GAIL
to GAIL who didn’t agree with the former nubodys menmber,as a current member i do agree with’em.after consulting with a few trainers in that gym,they do assure me thats its cheaper and better to invest slowly in a home gym since most machines now come with life-time warranties.to protect his identity i will not name…
Ponies!
Yesterday, I used three examples of how Nova Scotian political and business elites have utterly failed in three mega economic development schemes: offshore gas, Atlantic Gateway and the Commonwealth Games. What these schemes have in common is the idea that they’re a simple solution to all our perceived problems— a pony, if you will, that…
DOCTOR DICKHEAD
This is to Dr. Dickhead driving westbound on Bayer’s in your fancy Volvo…. If I had taken the time to fully read your plate it would have read Dr. something that nobody cares about you conceited piece of shit……Here you are taking up 2 lanes of traffic while chatting away on your cell phone and…
Ben McCrea threatens to sue Peter Kelly
According to allnovascotia.com, Bes McCrea, principle owner of the Armour Group, the developer of the proposed Waterside Centre development, is threatening to sue Halifax mayor Peter Kelly for defamation. McCrea alleges that Kelly implied that McCrea “went to the province” to get around the Halifax council’s rejection of Waterside. Seems like a weak charge to…
Letters to the Editor
I recently visited Halifax for the first time and I had a quite unpleasant experience with the Palace nightclub and the police in your city. In less than a week I also met 3 others (two foreigners and one local) who had similar experiences. Outside of Palace nightclub in the downtown area, where I was…
No one wants to hear it
I’m tired of hearing the same old, self woefulness. Everyday I have to hear about how someone elses life is so unfair, and the world is so terrible. Well get over it, everybodys life is miserable at sometime, and most likely there’s a more miserable person out there than you, who doesn’t have a family…
To the Stoners at the Lenny Kravitz concert
Nothing against pot. Smoke it if you want too, I couldn’t give a fuck. BUT SMOKE IT THE HELL OUTSIDE! You were fucking choking everyone on the stench in section 17 at the concert!! How inconsiderate was that? And yes I fucking waved the cops over–you think I’m fucking scared of you? I’m not dealing…
Naughty by Nature. November 20. Marquee.
WHAT IS GOING ON? TICKETS.
SUNDAYSUNDAYSUNDAY
We know it’s hard here on All GZA’s Eve to think of the future, but we must remind you to save some energy for Sunday at the Cunard Centre, when Mr. GZA’s bandmate Raekwon will be joining the honourable Sir T-Pain which is pretty fucking ridiculous if you think about it. Tickets here.
Psst Bitch
To whom wrote ‘Duffy’ the in the psst this week. OBVIOUSLY, you are not as over this person as you say you are. Otherwise you wouldn’t have to write in The Coast to rub it in their face. There’s a saying, “The best revenge is living a good life” no where in there does it…
The downtown blame game
Psychologists speak of “displacement,” a neat little mental trick to blame others for your own failures. We’ve got a pretty nice example of it going here in Nova Scotia. Let’s review. The business and political elites of the province, most of them based here in Halifax, have chased one pipe dream after another in pursuit…
Financial services
It’s was truly a great move to bet Halifax’s future on the financial industry.
none
why must people insist on putting their napkins, gum wrappers, sugar packets and sometimes strangly weird things into a still half full cup of coffee?, yes it makes less mess on the table but anyone would much rather have to clean the table than to dig your junk out of the cup it doesnt help..…
ummmmmm
Where the hell are the oct 23 bitches? It’s after 6 pm and no new bitches! You can’t tell me no one posted ANYTHING today! I know I did and it’s STILL not up yet! Someone dropped the ball… Addicted to LTWWB
Anti-War, more like lets not support the troops.
What the fuck is up with these anti-war retards that have been going around lately. Congratulations you nut jobs, no one likes war… You are so self absorbed in what other countries are doing over there you don’t have a fucking clue what the Canadian Soldiers are doing over there. If you actually got your…
Bus Etiquette
I’ve noticed in the last year or so that if I’m sitting in the “window seat” and need to get off, the person on the “aisle seat” just moves their legs into the aisle. What?! GET UP. It is rude to just move your legs, not to mention you make it difficult for me to…
What “anti-development” means
Have you heard? Halifax is anti-development. It’s a giant conspiracy on the part of heritage freaks and anti-growth politicians to pull the rug out from anyone who wants what’s really, really (really!) best for the city. Or, well, maybe not. Here’s a short list of development projects that have recently been announced, approved or otherwise…
Turn it down!
To all of you obnoxious kids on the bus: I am sick and tired of hearing your gangsta-rap bullshit coming out of your headphones, your cellphones, and your other annoying audio devices. Don’t pretend like I can’t hear you. It’s annoying, and it has got to stop. See that sign on the front of the…
Cheap politicians
I’m always amazed at how little cash it takes to buy a politician. The on-line contribution reports to Nova Scotia political parties only goes back so far as 2005, but here are some numbers of interest: Contributions to the Progressive Conservatives2005Armour Group Limited- $6,823.662006Ben McCrea- $5002007Armour Group Limited- $395.65Ben McCrea- $500 A thousand bucks out…
Breaking news: Rodney MacDonald to overturn Halifax council Waterside decision
allnovascotia.com: Premier Rodney MacDonald said he will overule Halifax Regional Council’s decision to block the redevelopment of part of Historic Properties. MacDonald emerged from a cabinet meeting today resolving to make sure the Armour Group’s 80,000 square foot Waterside Centre goes ahead. “My government’s going to do something about it,” the premier told reporters. “We’re…
Backwards City
Ok, let me get this straight: City Council voted against a guy from developing his property on Lower Water St, probably a sizeable financial expenditure on his part and at the same time the city and the province are looking to spend public money on a new convention center? What the fuck? This city really…
Are you mentally ill?
This is a bitch to my female cousin: What the fuck is the matter with you? We have been living together for 2 months… I have a boyfriend and we have sex fairly often in my room, and we aren’t very discreet about it either! Um… are you listening in on us or something?????? Every…
David Harper and Cathy Busby win art awards
On Friday night at Visual Arts Nova Scotia’s fundraiser, artist and Coast cover animal David Harper received the first-ever Mayor’s Emerging Artist Award. Just like on reality TV shows, Harper kept the news to himself until the big night, even though he was “really happy” to receive the honour. Currently artist-in-residence at the Art Gallery…
“Clear development rules”
Listening to Paul McKinnon on CBC radio this morning, I’m realizing that “clear development rules” = “approve every development that comes before council, no matter what.” I’ll expand on that later today.
W.
George W. Bush Jr. grows up knowing the saying that power equals respect. He gets his power, and that’s the reason Oliver Stone’s W. is a tragedy. Bush is mainly concerned with how he can assert himself. Driven by his father’s expectations, the world turns against him. By affording Bush these attributes, Stone doesn’t take…
Now I eat humble pie
Nobody polarizes people more than Jian Gomeshi, other than shirts tucked in/shirts out (for the record—out. always out). But whether or not you think he’s a dreamboat, a king of Spain, or in the case of halifaxlocals.com, 25 pages worthy of douchebag, dude is the only person hosting an hour-long arts and culture show in…
Danny Bhoy meets world
It’s 2007 and a crowd has filled a college auditorium in the huge, teeming city of Mumbai, India. They’re there to see a young stand-up comedian from Edinburgh—a man who’s never been to India and is the first English-speaking comedian to have ever performed in the country. The pressure is high: The audience doesn’t know…
Halifax Zine and Record Fair
I was going to finish writing about last night’s shows, but it seems I don’t have time to do that or resize my photos down to tiny pixelated things small enough to upload to the blog before I have to leave. I’ll be selling comics all day at the Halifax Zine and Record Fair at…
City Hall’s flat tire
Haligonians re-elected Mayor Peter Kelly with a 16-large margin over contender Sheila Fougere Saturday. And 100,000 bike tires went flat. See, Halifax may have opted for the status quo (actually, Halifax, perhaps, didn’t; the suburban and rural portions of the municipality did), but there’s something significant that will change around council. We can bid farewell…
Friday night downtown
I arrived at St. Matthew’s Church last night midway through the Prospector’s Union, who played this kind of wool-hatted, folk/ country sort of music I’ve been listening to far more than expected for most of this year, reminding me a little of the Great Lake Swimmers. They played some nicely crafted songs about New Brunswick,…
Bringing down the house
Attics are often one of the most neglected places in a house. At best, they become storage spaces for belongings a person can live without but aren’t ready to part with. Otherwise they just become empty crawl spaces. The attic of 6015 Willow Street has had a pretty intriguing existence up until now. There’s a…
What a Genius!
Everyone remembers those albums that their families used to play growing up. In my case, there are a few particulars that have been burned so deeply into my consciousness that I can still recite song lyrics and track listings by heart. These include Sportsby Huey Lewis and the News, INXS’ Kick, and….um….Enter the Wu-Tang. Yeah.…
Sex worker’s rights
“We’re your daughters, your mothers, your aunts and your cousins,” says Valerie Scott, a wavy-haired redhead with a raspy drawl. “Next time someone makes another gratuitous insult about sex workers, challenge them on it. Defend us in public, because that’s how people’s rights start.” Scott is a sex worker herself. A former Haligonian, she is…
The GZA Brings the Pain. So Does Beer.
Today has been nuts, nuts nuts. I have lots of stuff I want to talk about and NO TIME TO DO IT AGGGH! Here’s a really short post until tomorrow when I write about Statues, Bloodsport, almost crying during Islands at the Pavillion this afternoon (beautiful! beautiful! Everyone tonight is in for such a treat)…
Savage Love
Once again, Savage Love is given over to letters from readers who made the largest donations to the campaigns to preserve marriage equality in California (noonprop8.com), protect same-sex couples in Florida (sayno2.com) and defeat Stephen Harper in Canada (better luck next time). I neglected to ask readers to send dough to the campaign against an…
Sometimes bandages are for show and sometimes it’s just tendonitis
I headed out to the Music Room in the far reaches of nowhere last night to see Basia Bulat. It was my first time at the Music Room, which is the most beautiful little venue in Halifax. It says it fits 110 people, though it doesn’t actually look like that many, the acoustics are terrific,…
Sure Thing: Goo!
Sure it does. Like “poo,” the word “goo” provokes giggles. Affixed to a jazz band, “goo” may just as easily provoke giddy excitement for music fans. Really. Goo! is Canadian jazz bassist Graig Earle’s baby. Earle, who’s gigged with former Shuffle Demon Richard Underhill, jazz vocalist Denzal Sinclaire, trumpeter Kevin Turcotte and others, moved to…
Pop n fresh
I was curious about Kill Krinkle Club–a lo-fi Irish-Swedish duo from Dublin, and I always try to see as many of the intenational bands as possible (will anyone ever match Zoobombs, and the Moist Towelettes’ version of “We Are Ninja”? Yeah, yeah Monotonix. Not to be all jealous, but no one who watched that go…
Rock my world!
Laura BarrettYukon ho!, by Veda HilleAn amazing song: her lyrics conjure a whole world, and she creates full-bodied moods from a relatively minimal instrumental setup. I hope that I can approach her talent someday! J-BruCan We Do It Again, by Timbaland and MagooThat song was the first time I heard an MC speak truth. I…
I think we’re just about done here.
I was going to write about White Cowbell Oklahoma but I think I’ll just post photos instead: The Jagerettes bring treats for the band. We did not get any of these treats. So this was not really a night for women’s lib, etc, unless you enjoy dirty, objectionable comments and being sprayed by pumpkin seed…
Pop Explosion: Numbers Game
Thursday Spiral Beach St. Matthew’s Church (1479 Barrington) 8pm, $15 Toronto’s Spiral Beach play with a twinkle in their eye, youthful abandon and confidence well beyond their 20-and-change years. Their show with Polaris Award-noms Two Hours Traffic may just be the sleeper of this year’s Pop Explosion. “We’ve been playing together for almost six years…
Monotonix did not set anything on fire tonight.
I was going to write about some other bands, but then I went to the Monotonix show. I was having a hard time deciding if I’d stay at the Marquee for The Inbreds or head up to Gus’ and hope they weren’t at capacity, but I feel fairly confident that while The Inbreds were on…
Monotonix Video
I saw Monotonix last night. I don’t really have many words to describe what happened, but I did take a video. It’s a bit dark but you get the general jist of what’s going on, I think: It’s all shaky at the end because I fell off the stage. More photos & blather comin’ atcha…
Getting down to the real dirt
When we first see him, Joel Thomas Hynes is lying in a large puddle of water. He’s broken, bruised and bloody. And drunk. But, hold up. It’s not actually Hynes. At least, not literally. It’s Keith Kavanagh, a character he’s playing in Down To The Dirt, the film version of Hynes’ celebrated novel of the…
Fear of Fighting
Fear of Fighting Stacey May Fowles (Invisible Publishing) The prologue to Stacey May Fowles’ new novel starts with the prophetic line, “There are lots of songs that have been written about girls.” The same could be said about novels that explore devastating relationship break-ups—the subject of Fear of Fighting. And yet, we’ll never get sick…
Wednesday Night, Part 2: Bands that didn’t take the show on the road
I headed to the Marquee to see a couple stylish indie bands in Hell’s Kitchen, and generally stray back and forth between floors showing off my press pass. I caught the last couple songs of The Love Machine, who’ve got this sort of timeless movie credit thing going on with their music, that sounds like…
Hiver Nation
Brenna Warren isn’t sure if her bees are alive or not. She checked on them a month ago, but there’s no action around the hive now, except for us. The beehive belongs to SeeMore Green, a gardening collective on Dalhousie campus, and this is the first season it’s lived in their small garden, tucked between…
Taxi to the Dark Side
Taxi to the Dark SideDirected by: Alex Gibney(Paradox) In 2005’s Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, documentarian Alex Gibney accomplished a mightily impressive feat—making the story of energy company Enron’s bankruptcy and accounting fraud surprisingly comprehensible and interesting. With his latest doc, the Oscar-winning Taxi to the Dark Side, Gibney employs the same thoroughness…
I’m Tired
Yesterday was a gong show. It ended nicely, but getting there was a bit of a grind. I was stricken with terminal overambition and am paying for it today. I started off all gung ho and ready to see Spiral Beach at Saint Matt’s. I saw these guys once opening a few years back for…
Damaged goods
Remember Lucy Chapman? She’s the disabled seven-year-old who is supposedly banned for life from entering Canada. A quick recap: After the Chapman family tried to enter Nova Scotia for a vacation last July, the Canada Border Services Agency ruled they would have to return to Britain. Their story touched off a controversy about the rights…
Teenage prodigies and the elusive Marquee pizza slice
I had breakfast yesterday morning with Will Robinson of i see rowboats, who are playing St. Matthew’s Church tonight, and I said, “That’s the perfect venue for you guys.” Which is not necessarily what I’d assume with Spiral Beach, four exuberant Torontonians barely out of their teens who first hit success at age 15 or…
