Fredrock has come and gone and, despite some of the worst conditions imaginable, the boys pulled it off pretty well.
Friday night we started off with a tour of the Picaroon's brewery and then headed over to the Exhibition Center for the DJs that were kicking off the weekend. The room was vastly oversized for the crowd but Scratch Bastid managed to get everyone going. Nikki Awesome and the Royal Society killed that buzz but then Team Canada got everyone going again with a great set.
Saturday morning the skies were dark but it wasn't wet. That changed around 2 and what started as a drizzle was a steady rain by the time the first band hit the stage around 4. The crowd was just trickling in as Ross Neilen hit the stage but he put on a typically rockin show, dirty and raw. The Respectables were next as the crowd started thickening as did the rain. They were the best surprise of the day solely because I knew little about their music. They were also a rocking outfit who sang partially en francais and were helped by a guest appearance from Gordie Johnson. By the time Matt Mays hit the stage it was a full on downpour but the crowd was big and boisterous. Matt reminded the crowd that a little rain never stopped a maritimer from given'er. True to his word he stepped right out in it and let'er rip. He now has a repetoire of songs that the whole crowd was helping him with. He's hit his stride.
Miraculously, after about 7 straight hours of rain, the rain stopped for the Crowes. The opened with one of my favourites, Wiser Time. True to their Southern Rock heritage they jammed everything out a bit. I didn't get to see as much as I would have like because I was working the bar and that's when it was busiest. They sounded good anyways and the reviews I got from my friends were very positive. And best of all I only had to walk a few blocks to see them in my hometown. How sweet is that?
I spent the aftermath surveying the damage to the field, which was extensive, and talking with the promoters. They got about 5000 paid attendance for the day and, while that was well below their hopes, were ecstatic that they got that given the conditions.
The next day was less wet but far more windy. So windy in fact that the back of the stage came down and required almost 3 hours of work to repair it so the openers were delayed by almost 2. All the sets were therefore shortened to keep the lineup intact. Brad Cain's band, Awake by Sunday kicked it off and he (and they) didn't look (or sound) at all out of place on the big stage. The rest of the bands had some highlights but were on and off too quick for any real review. Age of Daze was the final opening act and they were very well recieved by their hometown crowd. Finally, Live hit the stage and played one song after another that I knew. I truly forgot how many hits they had through the 90's. More importantly they played the shit out of them and were tight enough to keep them true to what I remembered them sounding like. I didn't expect much of them so they were probably the biggest surprise of the weekend. The crowd seemed to agree and that was that. This event was a major leap of faith by the promoters but it looks like it paid off. Maybe not in return on investment for this year but if they try again next year, continue with quality acts, and maybe get a little cooperation from the weather, this concept will work.
Tay Creek and the greater Fredericton region are all ecstatic about Matt Stairs and Philadelphia Phillies making it to the World Series. We are even more ecstatic about the role that Matt played in getting them there with his two-run homer heroics from Game 4. Stairs came on as a pinch-hitter in a tie ball game and swung for the fences, connecting for the winning runs. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Stone Cold Stairs will go down as one of the best ballplayers this country has ever produced. And now the world knows his first love is hockey.
So with his heroics that have put his team one step closer to baseball heaven the Hammerin' Hoser has had increased media attention which lead to him uttering what is being called the MLB quote of the year, with good reason. Of his reception at the dugout Stairs said - “When you get that nice celebration coming into the dugout and you’re getting your ass hammered by guys — there’s no better feeling than to have that done.”. I says pardon?
Regardless of that little gaffe I love that this guy is getting the attention he deserves. It gives me goosebumps when the announcers say where he's from. "That's where I'm from!"
Here's a message from his coach for Flashback Friday:
I mentioned the new bike lanes popping up around the city the other day and yesterday the Gleaner had a more comprehensive article on the city's overall plans for alternative transportation options. On the whole, the plan lays out a variety of recommendations for adding new and improving existing trailways throughout the city, with the aim of making the trails not only and enjoyable addition to the city but also vialbe transit routes for residents. Among the recommendations are more staging areas where people can leave their cars and hit the trails on foot or bike.
For me, though, the most interesting recommendation was the need for further study of the viability of making a second walking(/biking/whatever) bridge using the Carleton St. bridge piers. They figure the initial costs of ready-made spans at $4 million. That's a lot of money but I love the idea because it would complete the loop with the train bridge and do wonders for the neighbourhood at the foot of the old bridge on the Northside. That used to be the Northside commercial center and it could (and should be) again.Southside, Northside, Oneside, Strongside.
I missed this when it came out in the press but I noticed a paint crew lining York St. with strange lines I hadn't seen since my days in Vic. Yep, Fredericton is finally moving from talking about sustainable transportation to doing something about sustainable transportation. The time for lip-service is over.
Looking closely at the plans for bike routes/lanes in the city, it appears that they are just taking baby steps at this point but even that is to applauded. They are working alternative methods of transport into the development plan and hopefully these initiative continue.
I haven't had a bike for years but the fact that they have also made city buses bike friendly means that I could hop on the bus in front of my place and get a lift up the hill and then cruise down a bike lane to get home. It might be the right time to invest, nevermind the price of gas.
My cousin Jane (2nd girl from left, first girl facing the camera) bought her ticket to her Olympic dream today with a win at an Olympic qualifier in Poland. She and her 8 teamates in the Canadian Women's 8 boat beat The Netherlands to the line and therefore qualified for Beijing along with them.
This is a huge step on the road to fulfilling her dream. Now that they've secured their spot they can focus on training for this even specifically in the hopes their performance can complete dream sequence. In the meantime I hope she keeps us posted on her diary at the Globe - www.theglobeandmail.com/blogs/WbBeijing.
I'm not sure how you can measure how big of a CONGRATULATIONS I want to extend to her but here's hoping that there will be an even bigger on in store for August.
I mentioned the sounds of the seasons last week and with the trees at full foliage that summer has arrived. It arrived full on over the weekend with temps topping 35 degrees. This isn't entirely rare; we get a couple of weeks worth of stinkers every year. This year may be a bit early (and may have actually broken records) but the weather itself is not uncommon. What is uncommon is that along with the warm weather came the associated thunderstorms warnings and this time, when the warnings appeared on the weather network, they came with the little icon above. TORNADO WARNING!
This is new...I have heard of tornadoes touching down in NB - I think there was one somewhere in the Miramichi basin last year - but it was like a freak occurrence. This time the weather system blowing through actually warranted a warning. It was the first time I had to consider a twister in my plans. We were thinking of going for a walk last evening and saw the storm clouds gathering on the horizon and thought "I'd love an ice cream but a tornado would ruin my hair". We decided against the walk. Of course, the tornado never came and I still crave ice cream.
Next time I'm taking my chances...what's the worst that could happen; end up in Oz? I've got an uncle I would like to visit there so, hey, free trip.
I make no secret of the fact that I am very happy to live here is New Brunswick. Its the people that keep me here but I also have a great love of the place itself. It is my comfort zone.
One of the things I like best about the Maritimes is that we do, indeed, enjoy 4 distinct seasons. Each of these seasons has its own sensory indicators from the colors - white in winter, green in summer - to the smells - stale dog shit and lilacs in the spring, fresh cut grass in the summer. But my favourite of these senses are the sounds of the seasons.
In summer its the sounds of the breeze cutting through sticky air ruffling the full foliage on the trees and the intermitent sound of thunder and rainstorms falling on my rooftop. In fall its the sound of dried leaves trembling on the trees and crunching underfoot. In Winter its the sound of snow falling (Normy swears he can here this - must be a Norwegian thing), the different crunch of snow underfoot, and the sounds of car engines struggling to start. In Spring its the squishy sound of slush and, later, the sound of the trees filling up. Sometime around the end of May, when we get a good rainfall, the trees suck up that water and their leaves go to full bloom. Although that probably takes place over a matter of weeks I've associated a sound with it; PHOOOMP is the best way I can descibe it. Once I hear that sound (or imagine hearing that sound) it means summer has started. I heard it after the rains last weekend.
So despite summer being a couple of weeks away on the calender its underway in my eyes. Time to dust off the flip flops. Sweet.
Leonard Cohen played at the Playhouse a couple of weeks ago. I am a fan of Leonard Cohen but not to the extent that some diehards are. Tickets to his Fredericton show sold out in a matter of minutes. It is also important to remember that it he hadn't toured in 14 years and this was the opening show of the tour. Whatever the reasons, I missed the boat and didn't see the show.
One of my friends did see the show and I spoke to him last night for the first time since and this little anecdote make me very disappointed that I missed the show. He relayed to me that Mr. Cohen said that he was happy to be in a historical Canadian literary hotbed and the home of Desmond Pacey. The actual quote can be seen here.
Cohen is first and foremost a poet. I'm never entirely sure what it was my Grandfather did but I do know that he was a champion of Canadian literature. I also don't fully understand the literary world and the relationship between writers and critics. Needless to say, though, critics and the people who compile anthologies (antholigizers?) are integral parts of the process. I guess respect, sometimes begrudging, would be the best way to describe it. Either way, it makes me proud.
The skateboarding community, and larger slacker community (of which I include myself), mobilized today in a show of solidarity for Lee Breen. Lee is making a stand against Fredericton By-Lay S-9 which states that "No person shall coast or slide on a slide, toboggan, wagon, skateboard or other device on a street in the city." This is obviously close to my heart because it would seem to make my favourite winter sport, bumper sliding, illegal.
Lee was ticketed some weeks back and indicated that he would not be paying the fine. He decided that he would prove a point and do 5 days of hard time in Saint John. The punishment does not fit the crime and that's Lee's point. Skateboarders have been give places to do their thing if, that is, half pipes and rail slides are their thing.A certain segment of the slacker pop actually uses their boards to get around town. In a city that champions itself a green leader Team Breen is asking why their environmentally friendly means of transport is being demonized. Well played sirs, well played.
I, of course, agree with Team Breen because they are pretty much family. I do however remember that I can't even think about gliding smoothly on a long board without losing my balance so I won't be changing my habits if this protest leads to any change. I do, however, agree that using a skateboard to get around should not be a crime.
Fredericton has been in the national news in the last couple of weeks thanks to the big river overflowing its banks. This is some serious shit (even more shitty that is literal in some cases) for many residents of our little Burg and will cause them headaches cleaning up the mess well into the summer. Some of them might even be thinking that they made a mistake living here, although more likely that they made a mistake living so close to a river that floods, to some extent, every spring. The former feeling won't last though as summer blooms and the city gears up for tourist season.
Most of the residents are here because the love this place and many of the tourists marvel at its quaint, clean charm. I like it mostly because it's where the people that make me laugh are. Either way, it's nice to be able to shut the hell up and let someone else say how great of a place it is. And this article from the TJ shows just that. "Best of" lists are always a bit spurious, and I probably won't be trumpeting the ones that rank Fredericton near the bottom, but in my continued efforts to spread the gospel I will continue to throw it out there. Here is the full list. Interestingly, the cities that rank 1 and 2 are both cities that tend to make people like me say "Good town, reminds me of home".
This follows this good news and this good news so it's all good. I sometimes wonder if I should be happy here or if it's just a case of setting deeply into my comfort zone. These lists help reassure me that it is indeed a great place to be; so I can keep on laughing guilt free.
The picture below was taken on Friday and by yesterday afternoon that underpass was passable again.So just like that the worst of the flooding is over here in Freddy Beach. Now the cleanup begins and for many people it will be a very expensive cleanup indeed. The various levels of government have already begun their haggling to see who foots the bulk of the bill but hopefully they get it sorted out for the folks that need it most. I must reiterate that, from my perspective, the authorities did a wonderful job of keeping the public informed and allocating resources to minimize disruption and any sense of panic. Kudos again, whoever the hell you are (I would only know if they screwed up royally).
As I said on Friday, the annual thaw typically brings out the River City Gawkers and for this, the biggest flood of my lifetime, it brought out the biggest flood crowds of my lifetime. That also meant that there were thousands of photos and any number of videos. This one is probably the best one I saw but this one uses Iron Maiden so it gets the stamp of approval: Many people have asked how things are at my place and they are fine. There was some minor damage to my back door but that can be attributed to a wintertime flood of rum rather than the spring freshet. The Rugby Club, given its locale, should have been in trouble but it turns out it's an island; Loyalist Island. It always felt that way to me anyays.That water is now gone as well and just like that it's time to get on the field and play again.
We get fairly used to the annual swelling around here; the waters rise and rise but usually fall. This year they kept rising and it was nightmare fuel for a few folks before it fell again this year. As it falls now the weather will warm, it will resume its leisurely pace and go back to being our river of dreams.
When I was grabbing a coffee on the way to work this morning I saw this picture of Barker's Point in Freddy on the front page of the Gleaner:Despite the fact that this is obviously a very serious situation the first thing that came to mind was what the bizarro newscast of this event might open with: "There was no banging in Hammertown last night as the water of the Saint John river spilled its banked into the Fredericton neighbourhood". I'm a dork, what can I say.
The flood levels are starting to recede but it is still a carnival like atmosphere as the River City Gawkers make their way to the scene. I am going to head down myself in a few minutes (or at least to a patio nearby).Beyond it's sheer size, what's made this particular flood interesting is that what caused it, save for one night of heavy rain, has been good weather. The warm weather came so quickly that the huge snowmelt up North is what is causing most of the runoff. So as this disaster strikes people are walking around in shorts sunning themselves. Weird.
The weather for the weekend looks warm and sunny but the experts are saying that should will not be enough to continue the rising. Unless we get more rain the waters should recede. The floodgates are still wide open at Mactaquac but the worst of it should be over by Sunday.And then the cleanup begins.
This is a big flood; the biggest of my lifetime. Texas sized you might say:
So the prophets were accurate and the flooding is indeed as bad as ever recorded. It's kind of neat to see the river so high but it's also a monumental pain in the ass and, for some, an incredibly expensive emergency. Besides the straightaways the ramps to the Westmorland St. Bridge are shut down which would have been a traffic nightmare if most of the people in the city didn't listen to the Emergency measures folks and stayed home. Thankfully they did...except to go take tons and tons of picture.The Princess Margaret is still open but it essentially a bridge to nowhere as Riverside Dr. in Hammertown is closed and the old TCH through Maugerville>McGowan's Corner>Jemseg is where the worst of the flooding is going on and is closed.Closer to home, Union st is closed past Gibson st. but my house (and basement) has been spared so far. Overall 50 streets have been closed including many in the University Ave. area (aka the nice part of town). The latest info I have seen says that it got up to 8.33 meters which is still about a foot below the '73 flood. Regardless its still as much water as I've ever seen in (and out) of my old friendly river.I have to say that in terms of preparedness the city has done a very good job of keeping the public informed and having resources at the ready to deal with any drama. Well done to whoever the hell takes care of that kind of stuff.
So last night the rain came and came in buckets. Fredericton saw good steady rainfall but the Northern part of the province saw even more. The thing is that it all ends up in the same place (at least on the West side of NB). So the experts are now expecting flood levels to exceed the levels of the Great Flood of 1973.
I'm really not sure what this means for my place but I am hoping that we are just high enough that the basement will stay dry. The ramps to the Westmorland st. bridge are filling up and they expect it to lead to major traffic snafus come morning. Who knows it could mean that flood day will replace the snow day as schoolchildren's favourite day.And who knows maybe the next time the snow falls some smartass will use the line "At least you don't have to pump it out of your basement".
In a scene reminiscent of The Day After Tomorrow, global warming has hit full force and the melting polar ice caps have cause oceans to rise and flooding all the way the St. John River to Fredericton. When I saw this pictures in the Gleaner I didn't even bother to read the whole story and went out to take some pictures. Here is what's going on at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery today:Priceless! And this is the view from the old Embassy at 877 Union:Crazy!
Update: It turns out that all this high water is actually a result of the annual swelling of the river due to snow melt. Not so swell if you ask me; this year's record snow and the warm couple of weeks we've had caused it to melt quickly and speed up the process. If we happen to get any rain we may be in for a big one. We could see some water in the Bakery's basement.
In other news that could actually be related to global warming, it seems that Jonesy is having some difficulty making it to the North Pole because of all the open water on the Arctic Ocean. Read the full story here.
In continuing with a recent theme around here, last week Freddy Beach was named one of the world's top seven smartest communities. I don't really have a concept of how they determine such things but wouldn't doubt that it has something to do with my recent scores on travel triva sites.
It would also appear that the supposed 'brain drain' for the promised land of Alberta is working in reverse; my friends leave town and we are named on of the world's smartest cities. Concidence? I think not.
I would also guess there is a correlation between this and Saint John being named one of the countries happiest cities. Ignorance is bliss as they say! Hiyo!
In a recent study Canada was ranked as the 10th happiest country in the world. The study incorparated a wide range of criteria to come up with the list. There are not too many surprises; the expected quasi-Socialist Northern European countries, the Luxo-Swiss-trian yodel triangle, and the two countries where drunks are treated the best - Ireland and Canada. They all share low crime rates, four distinct seasons, and liberal prescription drug policies. That appears to be the recipe. The suprises among the top 10 are The Bahamas, Brunei, and Bhutan. Besides the letter B they have little in common. I tend to think any tropical paradise nation would rank higher if they bothered leaving the beach to answer a survey (Bula! Fiji) and Brunei is basically an tropical paradise with oil so the only surprise is that they don't rank higher. Bhutan is the only real surprise but I don't know enough about the country to offer an informed opinion beyond saying it's amazing what a little coercian can make people say. Either way, I am happy to live in any country included in this list. Now let's aim for those plucky Danes' knees!In a related story, in a recent survey on the Quality of Life in Canada showed that those of us in the East were the happiest in the country (Thanks to Chris at The Perfect Balance for pointing this out). The factors that the top cities had in common appeared to be a sense of community so it shouldn't be surprising that the smaller communities were at the top of the list while Canada's biggest centers were left out. Initially I was disapointed that Freddy Beach didn't make the list but then realised it probably didn't earn a spot in the voting. I'm not the least bit surprised Saint John won; I've always said that it is the city in which you are most likely to talk to a complete stranger or get punched in the face by a complete stranger. Happily, I've only ever experienced the former (note - if you punch me because you read this you are no longer a complete stranger). It's easy to generalize but I lived on the West Coast and it was the people on the East Coast that drew me back. Now I just wish I could convince some more friends to move home...
So just three days after I post about the winter wonderland that is Freddy Beach a warm wind blows in from the west and, quite literally, rains on my parade. I got out skiing yesterday so that fulfills my yearly quota but I hope to surpass that once the rain stops. Luckily there is too much snow for even a lot of rain to get rid of in the woods. But enough about the weather....
In an effort to brighten my mood I went looking for the funniest site on the web and was given not one but ten in this list of The 10 Funniest Sites on the Internet. I am particularly enthralled by The Subserviant Chicken, which they tell me is somehow a Burger King spokeperson...or spokeschicken.
Crabbe Mountain's website is showing the year to date accumulated snowfall to be at 194cm. Typically I would not have any clue what that meant in feet but it just so happens that's the one metric lenght measurement I do know; it's 6'3", just like me. In other words that's a lot of snow. That's more snow then has fallen in the last 3 winters combined (so I heard someone say). And the craziest part is that it's only the first week of January. This picture may look the same as the one from mid-December but it's actually from the New Year's Eve storm. Another storm followed on Wednesday and as of today we are still digging out.
This much snow reminds me of two things: 1)my youth, I'm sure this is the kind of snowfall that I grew up with. I bet that there are kids out there who don't even konw that King of the Mountain is, and not just because of PC safety BS. 2)Ski Towns - I remember visiting the ski bums in Fernie or Nelson and being amazed at the sheer amount of snow. Well that's what Freddy looks like right now - a little ski town. It's awesome.It made for the best Snow Bowl in recent memory too!
I like to correct people when, once it gets cold in early December, they say "It's definitely Winter now!". Well, no it's not. Winter comes the same time every year, 3 or 4 days before Christmas (December 22nd this year). Right now it's Autumn; making Autumn the most schizophrenic season of the year. On September 27, the first week of fall, it was 30 degrees in Freddy Beach. 10 weeks later it was -21 degrees in Chilly Beach. That's 50 degrees difference not to mention fucking insane.
There is no question that those same people I correct in regards to what season it is are absolutely right in their sentiment. Winter weather has come early this year. On the plus side we've got a lot of snow, it's very pretty and a White Christmas is almost assured. On the negative side, well, it's Cold as Fuck( swearing added for emphasis)!
Quite a weekend! 
The crowd was just trickling in as Ross Neilen hit the stage but he put on a typically rockin show, dirty and raw. The Respectables were next as the crowd started thickening as did the rain. They were the best surprise of the day solely because I knew little about their music. They were also a rocking outfit who sang partially en francais and were helped by a guest appearance from Gordie Johnson. By the time Matt Mays hit the stage it was a full on downpour but the crowd was big and boisterous. Matt reminded the crowd that a little rain never stopped a maritimer from given'er. True to his word he stepped right out in it and let'er rip. He now has a repetoire of songs that the whole crowd was helping him with. He's hit his stride. 
