A Gigabyte of Beauty

No, it's not another post about Jake Gyllenhaal. Besides which, they're measuring him in Terabytes now. I'm referring to the fact that on today's sojourn through the city I filled my entire 1 GB memory card with photos and video.

A change in work situation, as well as a shift in seasons, seems to be mandating a change in focus for us here. So for the next little while I'll be posting more photos, more of my own videos, as well as original fiction. There'll still be snide commentary on celebrity culture, just less of it.

Instead of reflecting the culture that is popular, I've decided to take a more assertive stance, and highlight culture which ought to be popular, namely mine. I've never been much of a cultural warrior; this is my first salvo to that end.

Who knows? I may even spot some celebrity flesh while out on one of my walks, in which case, you'll be the first to know. There's a first time for everything.

Speaking of which... Nine years I've lived in Vancouver and I've never seen one of our legendary bald eagles. Until today! This is a first for me as a twitcher as well, since I've only ever seen golden eagles before. I have to confess, when I finished taking his picture I had a little cry. After the last couple of weeks, it was a nice omen for me, that there's still so much to discover.

I also bought "Robson Arms", one of the first sitcoms ever shot in Vancouver. Not only that - it's actually set here as well. I once wrote a pilot called "Wacky Neighbour", which was set in a small apartment block and told from multiple points of view, except the title character was never seen. The plot of "Robson Arms" is that it's set in a small apartment block and told from multiple points of view. I was never able to catch it when it was first broadcast, so I'm looking forward to seeing it now.

Enough chatter! I have work to do!!

Vancouver Views 6 - Downtown & the West End

This was a bitterly cold and windy morning. It took three attempts mostly because of the wind, and I needed to go inside and warm up between each take. It starts at the Granville Street Bridge and ends at the Burrard Bridge, facing north.

K N U T !

This is Knut, currently the star of the Berlin Zoo. Since being rejected by his mother (what a mother, indeed) the debate has raged: let Knut starve to death to teach children how cruel Nature is, or save Knut and turn the ensuing frenzy of publicity into the kind of attendance numbers usually reserved for pandas. Hmmm...

Well, humans have already interfered with animals to such an extent that I see no reason to stop now. Like we even could. Normally, I would never side with humans against animals, since I am on record (frequently, loudly) declaiming that 99% of humans are hideous, but in that one percent are 600,000 people in the world with the compassion to save the animal species that remain. I say Humanity has a chance to be kinder than Nature for once, and we should take it.

Plus, think of the marketing tie-ins. Plus, he's so cute. Plus... Well, I'm sure there are others, but this is coming dangerously close to math now, so I'd better stop now.

(So there's no question: polar bears aren't endangered. They're powerful swimmers and fearsome predators and the rulers of the Arctic. As this is not an ecology issue, it comes down to animal rights activists longing to see this little guy starve to death to prove some agenda. A couple of years from now, the same people who advocated for his death should only answer their front door to find a 12 foot tall 800 pound bear standing there. Be prepared - he'll be hungry.)