Romantic rainy Sunday. Alone. I’ve finished up all my work for this week, so I’m just, you know, kicking it back and so forth. What tone am I going for here?

Okay, so a few things on the agenda.

First off, did y’all see the thing I did for CBC? Well, it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen, at least not under this format. I got some fantastic feedback, that I’m still processing. Figuring out what to focus my energy on next.

Second off, did y’all see the interview I did with Nicole Richie? The piece even made it onto Lainey Gossip, which I think might be just the slightest bit more exciting than actually interviewing Nicole Richie.

For the first time in a long, long time, my wire story made it onto the Globe. I think only the online version, which is still a-ok wit me!

What else? My friends Shannon Mendes and Jeremy Mendes, a brother/ sister duo who not only are abnormally stunning human specimens but also jaw-droppingly talented artists, launched this little project, which they worked on with filmmaker Nettie Wild. I went to the launch the other night and it was the first time in a long time I’ve felt inspired and uplifted by a community storytelling project. I’ve been creatively stuck for a while now and this project really helped shift my gears. I dare you not to feel the same. Quite simply, it’s an impressive piece of work. The stories are beautiful.

Okay. Photos…

I went to Harrison Hot Springs for a few days. This was the view from my window. Cheesy, staged wedding photos on the beach.

Running on the beach like Bo Derek. But without braids and with a little dog.

Me smoking a cigar at night. My statscounter shows me search terms and photos people google to get to my site. There’s another photo of me on this site smoking a cigar that brings in a lot of traffic (people have a thing for women and cigars apparently) so that’s the only reason I’m posting this photo.

Me staging my own photo shoot in the forest.

But it wasn’t a vacation. I was there to work. Photographic evidence.

What else?

Did you know Louise Burns released her solo debut? It’s the first album that I’ve listened to in a long time that I can’t stop listening to. Highly recommended. Plus, my name is in the liner notes. Right next to my ex-boyfriend’s. (Hi Dustin!)

That’s about it. Planning an extended trip out east so yah for that. I think I’m going back to bed as I have absolutely nothing else to do today, except eat my favouite new snack that I invented: salted top crackers, Nutella and a banana slice.

Apparently I’m a lot more fun since I started drinking. Here are some photos from lately.

These two are fun, aren’t they? The one on the right gave me one of the best compliments I’ve ever received. (He’s a very talented drummer and he complimented my rhythm during a Christmas party jam session years ago when I was playing shakers.)

I went to a punk show. This guy was really compelling.

Penny can certainly hit.

Katie is so beautiful, I can’t not take photos of her.

I got to see Louise play a show. It was so very fun.

Hung out with Nardwuar. Doot doot.

Now I’m in Seattle. Having the most amazing time.

My hotel is insane.

Home tomorrow. It’s been a nice getaway, no doubt. More to come soon.

I love being busy. I much prefer it to not having anything on the go. Not having anything on the go makes me question myself too much…because that’s all I do.

Last week Hilary Henegar and I went to the opening of SweaterLodge at the MOV. They obviously didn’t have a budget for canapes. (WHAT? I’m a part-time foodie. I’m allowed to judge.) We still had an amazing time.

Us being arty in front of a giant polarfleece sweater.

It’s such an ambitious idea. It takes a while to get over how bizarre it is but I love what the MOV is doing. It integrates community, which is what they’re all about. Keep doing your thing MOV. You’re certainly doing something right.

And keep giving us free drink tickets at all your openings.

Having a giant poster of Miles outside your store is a pretty good idea. Shhhh.

Tourism Vancouver hired me to write about this Secret Soiree event put on by Swallowtail and it was so much fun. Best of all was that Sarah was the bartender! And the wine was soooooo yummy. (Shit. Trying to avoid that word as a food writer. I’ll only use it if I’m talking to four-year-olds.)

I woke this guy up. He was a bit grouchy but wasn’t too bummed.

The gift shop at one of the places we visited was kind of dated.

And now for some videos.

My friend Scott Smith’s newest project, Skins, is airing tonight on MTV in the US and Movie Network in Canada. I’m just using this as an excuse to post that video he did of me and my buds a few years ago. (I had my hair and makeup done by a professional that night and was happy Scott was around to capture that. He’s talented.)

Also, my friend Louise Burns has a new video. And it’s so good! And I’m not just saying that!

(Wish I could figure out how to embed. Just click on the link, will ya?)

Louise Burns – What Do You Wanna Do? from Light Organ Records on Vimeo.

This video made me wonder who I’d want to go down in a plane with…

I think it would be Chris Jacot, for whom I am a muse. Lucky me to inspire such a talented mind. (He previewed something to me today that he’s working on and it got me really excited.)

Today is my one year anniversary of being a dog owner but I’m too tired of blogging to post a cute picture. Ok…I will. Oh, did you know that I started a blog for her too? I’m that girl.

Happy technically the saddest day of the year, y’all. Tell me about one good thing that happened…it would make me happy!

For one, the Waldorf hotel is really spectacular. I wish I took more pictures of the inside because it’s really special. So exciting Vancouver has such a great, versatile new venue. It’s about time.

Okay, here’s some pictures of our costume…

Me posing as a model.

Katie shaking her bangs.

Katie had made an extra emblem so that we could recruit another member. Luckily, Randy was dressed up as a priest so he fit right in. He instantly became our leader. Katie was satisfied that one person knew what we were.

I’m bummed we didn’t take photos with our robes on. They were incredible. Anyhow. Other photos…

The legendary Paul Wong and his super hot young boyfriend (I’m assuming.) He had his videos playing in most of the hotel rooms. I really love his work.

Mr. Milardo went as Epic Beard Man, from the meme. Spot on.

Me trying to get a good shot of these awesome girls but failing.

Friends! L-R: Bec as Edie Sedgwick (you can’t see but she’s wearing undies and tights), Olivia as Amelia Earhard, and Louise as a Flapper

Cult leader and Clinton, whose costume I’m still not clear on. Katie thought it was the lead singer of Suicide.

Then I found myself in a some sort of sex room.

Anyhow. Fun times.  And I think I’ve gotten over my extreme hatred for Halloween. Phew.

Today I went to Steveson with some silly girls…

Broad-shouldered scarecrow.

That’s some heavy shit.

This piece was called Winding Waves or something. It looked like an intestine.

Mel’s metal headband didn’t quite work out.

Mir thought this mini house was hilarious.

That’s it. Happy Halloweener!

Click here to read the latest installment of I’m a Good Story. Click here for the latest episode of the People’s Program Project.

The above photo is dedicated to that fine, young man I met on Friday. That’s about all the effort I’ve got.

Here’s a bunch of photos and attempts of witty commentary of some decent to good times that have been inspiring me lately…

I went to the wiener dog races for the second year in a row…

…with these two fine looking cats…

…wiener, wiener, wiener…

…wiener, wiener, wiener…

…WIENERS!

I hope when I grow up, I turn into this lady.

I spent a lovely afternoon somewhat recently with my two lovely friends and a lovely spread, courtesy of Olivia Mowatt, rad mom extrodinaire.

Did you know that Louise Burns is a major babe? Here’s proof.

Olivia levitated for a bit.

Group shot, which consists of 80% ME!

Ayma and I were in LA……where lots of interesting things happened…

…Matt loves me…can’t you tell?…

…I was trying to make this shot kind of like an upskirt…

Matt threw us a party, that mostly consisted of the Amazing Alphabet People’s Coalition and friends…

…and Nathan (and his roommate Levi, not pictured.)

It turned into a dance party, naturally.

The next night we got to see my friends Wolf Parade perform. I’d never seen them live so it was a real treat. It was the final show of their North American tour.

It had been a long, long time since I was last backstage at a show. How times have changed.

Hi Ayma! Just how big was it?

Speaking of Ayma…I love her. Can’t wait to do more writing. Look out world. Here we come!

I came home to my best friend Chris, who’s staying with me. He leaves me reminders of this fact throughout my apartment.

I think that’s about it. Well, it’s not, my life is waaaay more interesting than a blog entry but that’s all I got for now. I’ll leave you with a video I’m really feeling. I love the story, the costumers, the set design and her boobs.

So the above is a composite of what my summer has consisted of thus far. A whole lot of sitting in parks with dogs, doing a whole lot of nothing. And it’s not that I don’t have anything to do. I have shitloads of work that needs doing. But I just don’t have it in me at the moment. It will all get done but for now, I just want to be bored. (Photo by Abby Campbell, the dog on the left’s mama.)

A few things of note. Remember my husband from this video? Well, he has a show on CBC Radio this summer called This is That, and it’s very funny. Margaret Atwood is a fan (she tweeted about it) as well as the National Post. Kind of like As It Happens meets Punk’d.

Rain City Chronicles had a great meeting this morning. Things are coming together quite nicely. In case you didn’t know, our next event will be at the Anza Club on Friday, Sept. 24th as part of Olio. The theme is…drum roll…SURPRISES! That’s the theme. Surprises. Kind of like Punk’d.

My dearest Louise Burns has posted new music that you should listen to right now.

Remember I told you about my friend Murray’s film Carts of Darkness, which you can watch online for free? Well, it’s been voted as best NFB film online. Holy crap. eh? It even beat the Log Driver’s Waltz! Wha?! I’m massively impressed. You should watch it. It’s profound and inspiring.

I’m doing a bunch of travelling in the next little while. Might be heading to a sweet destination within BC in the next few weeks, then LA, then Montreal, then North Hatley, then Toronto. So mentally preparing for that.

Things that have made me happy as of late…

Light summer lunches.

Two pound Pomeranians, that squeak.

Dutchie being taken for a walk by Olive, the half Boston half Wiener.

This part of my job.

Rukiya Bernard and Malikah!

The park is calling me. I’m out.

Hey! Check out my latest project. Click here now!

Lots of valleys as of late. So let’s focus on the things that make me peak.

This…

Because it makes me  feel like summer, even though that feeling is fleeting these days.

Old people holding hands…

Never gets old.

Louise Burns!

She’s my Buddha babe.

This movie, which says a lot ’cause I have little patience for movies.

This song. It’s currently number one on my Top 25 most played on iTunes. That link is of a sexy, coked up version of the original.

Oh. And this person…That right there is my Jesus. I worship him. It’s his birthday today, so I took the day off to celebrate. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRIS JACOT! I’ll call you for the ninth time later!

Woke up smiling after having an intriguing and delightful encounter the night before. More to come on that one, hopefully one day soon.

Caught up on errands, which felt good. Ate a Vietnamese sub downtown.

Came home and fell asleep next to Dutchie, on the couch. This is Dutchie. Jealous?

Then took her to the park for an awesome park session, where we ran into some new friends.

Then Louise came over and we ate magical food at Chutney Villa. They pour the coffee in such an entertaining way. It’s worth the whole visit.

Then we watched the sky for a bit.

Then we went to this show , Free Life Center, on the rooftop of Lifetime and it was magic. They built a cabin and filled it with their art and played magical music by candlelight. Ben Frey and Jenna Rogers were also there and we all laughed a bunch.

I bought a piece from Mark Warren Jacques that I titled summer snowflake. It’s so beautiful. He wrote me a personal message on the back that made me smile.

Being with Louise is always magic.

Me squinting my eyes ’cause they’re all red and puffy from makeup. Anyone recommend really good eye makeup/makeup remover for the hyper sensitive?

I came home and watched Mad Men. Today my eyes are bothering me but I got my dog a carrying case for public transport so things are pretty balanced out. Going to meet Ayma at Sushiyama, which automatically makes everything better.

This episode featres the second half of a lovely evening called Rain City Chronicles that took place on March 29th at Vancouver’s Western Front. (Phew, long sentence.) The event is a storytelling series that focuses on a theme. The theme this time was luck.

So on this episode/recorded live event, we hear music by (former P3 guest) Louise Burns:

A story by Erin Millar about the time her smooth jazz ex-boyfriend’s luck ran out. (He wasn’t so smooth…)

Colin Horgan reveals why being a Pearl Jam nerd has its perks…

Lana Gay tells us about how she really paid her dues to get where she is today…

And a story  by Pamela Hart about how luck is about perspective.

Pamela chose not to use the mic so I couldn’t use her audio on the podcast. But let that be a lesson to ATTEND THE NEXT EVENT! I’ll be keeping you posted as to when that will be…

At the end of this episode, Karen talks about a bat signal and held up a sign that said #raincity. Basically, we created a hashtag for Twitter so that any time something story-worthy happens to you, you can hashtag it with #raincity. That way, we’re keeping the stories going until the next event. You can find us on Twitter here. We will soon be creating more of an online presence but for now, we greatly appreciate your support and enthusiasm.

Thanks again for everyone who attended, helped out and took part. It was a really special night. This city is full of fascinating people with incredible stories and we plan to hear as many of them as possible. It’s so encouraging to know there’s an interest. Yah for community and storytelling! Hip hip horay!

The line up for the second installment of Rain City Chronicles has been announced! (Coming from a journalism background, that’s not a good leading sentence ’cause it’s past tense. But it’s the sentiment that I’m stressing so forgive me and read on.)

RCC is an on-going storytelling night that was co-founded by Karen Pinchin and Lizzy Karp and me (all pictured above.) Storytellers are given up to seven minutes to tell a story about the evening’s theme. This time around, the theme is luck. It takes place on Monday, March 29th at the Western Front, 7 p.m.

So here’s who’s going to be on the bill:

Actor Nadiya Chettiar
Comedian, activist and author Charlie Demers
CBC Radio 3 host Lana Gay
Communications whiz Pamela Hart
Guardian blogger Colin Horgan
Vancouver Is Awesome founder Bob Kronbauer
Globe and Mail reporter Marsha Lederman
Journalist Erin Millar
Librarian Rebecca Slaven, accompanied by Andre of The Obvious Peaks and Valleys

With musical guest and former P3 interviewee Louise Burns aka Moonshiner!

CANNOT WAIT! ALL CAPS EXCITED!