Contrary to the title of my blog, I’m not actually very optimistic. So it might be surprising that I happily embraced the only positive outcome of my stolen wallet – having the excuse to shop for a new one. Over the weekend, I perused the selection of Matt & Nat wallets at The Plaid Giraffe [...]

I took my sisters to Strawberries in January (Stage 6) today. There was quite a bit of buzz surrounding this romantic comedy before the festival even began (directed by Mieko Ouchi, starring real-life couple Chris Bullough and Jana O’Connor), so I had high expectations going in. There was just something missing about the production, but [...]

My third day at the festival was a morning-to-night affair. While many of the Fringing public prefer wandering the grounds in the evening, I can honestly say I like arriving on site early. To grab a coffee and a paper, walk the alleys before a single vendor has opened, and appreciate the quiet before the [...]

Walking the grounds this year, it appeared that vendor numbers are down, with less food and merchandise kiosks on site. At least, the glut that usually line Gateway Boulevard and 104th Street are missing; I wonder if less permits were distributed this year? I asked Dickson and Mack to join me for two shows on [...]

Back in December, I vowed to overcome two challenges. The first, to maintain this blog for three months, which I reached back in January. The second was to accumulate three hundred posts. This is post #300. It seems that I reflect too much on the nature of blogging, especially considering the life span of this [...]

The long-awaited sequel to High School Musical premiered on Friday to tweens armed with VCRs, parents enjoying the wave of non-threatening, family-friendly entertainment, fans of Zac Efron (Dickson), and those curious to see if the film could possibly live up to the expectation and hype (me). It failed to deliver. Despite being nearly two hours [...]

What did you eat today? For breakfast: Apple cinnamon cheerios with milk Snack: Chocolate chiller from Second Cup. Late night dinner: Seafood fettucine from Milestones. What do you never eat? Because of allergies..all nuts. With the exception of Sharon insisting she knew how to read the french/italian ingredients on the back of the hippo shaped [...]

It is no secret that the Fringe is my favorite time of year in Edmonton – I can just about hear Julie Andrews’ voice in my head as I pass the painted busker squares, jewelry vendors, and mini-doughnut stand. Of course, the main attraction being theatre, I was interested to see if the vibe of [...]

I believe I was still wearing white jeans and listening to Hanson the last time I ate at Chili’s (or was that last weekend? Haha). In any case, it has been a while. Bettina and I ended up at the Whyte Avenue location (8217 104 Street) tonight for a pre-Fringe show supper. The restaurant is [...]

Well-respected theatre tour-de-force Ken Brown collected his observations on the changing philosophies of the Fringe, printed in the Letters section of the Edmonton Journal today.   I didn’t get a chance to stop by the festival grounds of the Calgary Fringe on the weekend. I did read about it though, and it seems this is [...]