I Heart Edmonton

Author Thomas Wharton takes young readers on a journey through Edmonton's colourful past by paula e. kirman W HEN I was a child, I was taken to places like Rutherford House, Fort Edmonton, and other places to explore and learn about Edmonton's history. Robin, the main character in Rutherford the Time-Travelling Moose , also gets to learn all about Edmonton's history, first-hand. Written by acclaimed Edmonton author Thomas Wharton and illustrated by local designer Amanda Schutz , Rutherford the Time-Travelling Moose is a whirlwind adventure through the city's history, aimed at young children. When Robin visits Rutherford House with her grandmother, Rutherford (after whom the book is titled) appears. The moose takes Robin to different places and eras, starting with the ice age. Robin is introduced to historical figures and sees how the city has changed over the centuries, before Rutherford brings her back to the present day. The story an

It's never tasted so good to help out those who are less fortunate! by emil Tiedemann I T'S that time of the year again, when Edo Japan does their part to feed those in need! Until January 3rd , Edo will donate 25 cents from every $1.49 spring roll sold to local Food Banks. Last year, Edo raised $76,000 through their Eat A Lot, Help A Lot campaign, providing 39,000 meals for Canadian families! This year, they hope to top even that, but they need YOUR help!! Dedicated to serving affordable, delicious and simply better meals, Edo Japan has quickly become a Canadian favourite. With signature dishes like Teriyaki Chicken and Sukiyaki Beef, and a full sushi offering, there is something on the menu to satisfy every craving. So please stop into one of the more than twenty locations in the Edmonton area and grab yourself something to eat and help those in need at the same time! For every $1 donated to Edo, that's $4 worth of food that goes to families that need it! #

Stevie Raikou 's "Misty" (2015) (feat. Dapper Dan & Loic Moonmattress) (dir. Kamaal Da Koala/ CWC Records)  

How this local second-stage shelter gave one woman her WINGS! by erin hoskins I N 2002, as a pregnant mom on welfare to two boys with a baby on the way, I went to an appointment to meet a woman in an apartment building downtown. I'd been in a local women's shelter for a few weeks and was given details on a place that might b e able to help me and my children. I didn't have a whole lot of hope. I'd just left my abusive partner and hope was the last thing I had. I didn't believe much in myself, let alone anyone else at the time. I felt like a shell of the person I used to be. When I went for my appointment, I was taken into the office where I was offered a drink, a chair, and an ear. It was a quick meeting from what I remember , an insight as to what WINGS (Women In Need Growing Stronger) did , and questions as to what was going on in my world. When I walked away I didn't think anything spectacular, and I definitely didn't think I'd get a p

A group from St. Albert hopes to raise funds for mental health support and a memorial bench in honour of their friend Dynan by michelle landry I N December 2014, our friend Dynan Greaney lost his battle with mental illness . A mural at the St. Albert Skatepark done by artist Justin Moose in honour of Dynan. These are his friends (from left to right) Michelle Landry, Drew Buhr, Warren Ollis, Megan Hobbins, Erin Sharkey, and Lyndon Golanowski. He was always smiling and making people laugh. He had a huge heart and gave the best hugs. Dynan was one of our best friends growing up. He is the reason we have so many good memories to look back on and laugh at. He was a special person and touched everyone’s lives. Dynan did not talk to many people about his struggles. I wish he felt he could have. We as a group want to start today to break the stigma of this unspoken topic. It’s a tough world out there, and we need to feel we can lean on one another. There is not a lot of help

Former #yeg poet laureate Alice Major offers an anthology of profound and often complex poems in Standard Candles by paula e. kirman ALICE Major is one of the most prominent contemporary poets Edmonton has produced. The city's first poet laureate and an inductee into Edmonton's Cultural Hall of Fame, Major's work runs a gamut of themes from family to mythology, to cosmology.  She explores these themes again in her new poetry collection Standard Candles . Using both contemporary and classical poetic forms, Major explores both personal and universal topics. Her language is complex, but not complicated, and the poems often read like mini-stories or windows into the universe – both Major's and the one around us at large.  In fact, many of the poems have an emotional resonance but go further by intersecting with dimensions of space and time, even when specific time periods or places are discussed. The juxtaposition of post-modern free verse and tradition

Retrofile 's "Sleep On It" (2015)

The CBC reveal they're behind the #WhYEG & #WhyWhyC grassroots approach to introduce some big changes to their local news formats! by emil tiedemann     W ELL, the cat's finally out of the bag! For nearly a week, Edmontonians have been trying to figure out who marked a number of our city streets with #WhYEG tags, and what they're all about. Well, the CBC has come clean and taken claim of the mysterious hashtags that have also taken over the streets of Calgary (as #WhyWhyC ).  The CBC was behind the clever #WhYEG grassroots campaign! According to their release this morning, the CBC has moved towards integrated four-platform news coverage, effective Monday, October 5th , providing viewers with the "why" instead of the "what," and emphasizing on local. They will also switch to a digital-first strategy "designed to meet your changing needs throughout the day." "Instead of giving you what you already have, we're now of

Curious Edmontonians have noticed these chalk hashtags throughout Whyte and the downtown, but what do they mean?! by emil tiedemann W HAT does it all mean?! There are some mysterious #WhYEG tags showing up on the sidewalks and walkways of Edmonton's downtown and Whyte Avenue areas that have inquisitive locals wondering what they're all about.  #WhYEG @ Alberta Legislature Grounds They are red and white chalk installations that have all of a sudden shown up around Whyte Avenue between 102nd and 105th Street, as well as various locations downtown, including Churchill Square, the 104th Street Promenade, and the Legislature Grounds.  #WhYEG @ Churchill Square Although I am out of the loop as to #why they are filling the streets of #yeg, I promise to get to the bottom of what they mean! Stay tuned, and in the meantime check out some of the photos I snapped featuring the hashtag!  #WhYEG @ Whyte Avenue

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers gets it right when it comes to how a burger was meant to look and taste! by emil tiedemann W E see ads for fast-food burger joints all the time, promoting their newest slabs of microwaved cheeseburgers slapped together before they even have a chance to ask you if you want fries with that. Get down to Red Robin Gourmet Burgers before November 1st to try their new Oktoberfest-inspired UberBurger! We get our germ-infused trays and go to sit down at one of the ketchup-encrusted tables, and tear open the greasy packaging only to realize that these things look nothing whatsoever like the cheeseburgers you see in the ads, the ones that got you there in the first place. Isn't that false advertising, and isn't that wrong? Yes and yes! That's far from the experience you'll have at Red Robin Gourmet Burgers , which recently introduced a brand new Oktoberfest-inspired menu highlighted by the mouth-watering UberBurger! That's a half-pound

900-tonne machines synchronized to instrumental music will take over Edmonton's night skies for inaugural Nuit Blanche by emil tiedemann " I NITIALLY, when people hear about dancing cranes, they are thinking that it's a joke," Hamilton artist Brandon Vic kerd told reporters at a recent media tour of his art installation " Dance of the Cranes Presented by Ice District ," which will be one of the highlights of the upcoming Nuit Blanche event this Saturday ( Sept. 26 ).  The 'Dance of the Cranes Presented by Ice District' goes 11PM to midnight on Saturday, September 26th at the Ice District construction site. "But when they actually experience the event it creates this huge communal [encounter] where people come together and share this esthetic experience, and it's usually very well received." Picture four synchronized cranes stretched out into the night skies, "dancing" to instrumental music streaming from boomin

Art fanatics, foodies, families and night owls alike are all encouraged to ignore their bedtimes to take in one of the coolest nights in Edmonton! by emil tiedemann R EMEMBER when you were a kid and staying up all night was the greatest thing in the world! Let's be real, it's still exciting even now for some reason, but most of us are more than happy to crawl into bed as the credits of Fallon or Kimmel scroll across our TV screens. The weekends are another thing altogether though, an excuse for us to stay up past our bedtimes and try to invite some excitement into our workaday lives. Well, the mother of excuses is almost upon us, so stock up on Red Bull and mark your calendars! Nuit Blanche , a mesmerizing contemporary art celebration, will take over our downtown core for the first time on Saturday, September 26th from seven in the evening until four in the morning! And there will be something for everyone, so bring the whole family, and come as early or stay as lat

Jubilations invites you aboard the Titanic II with the cast of one of TV's most beloved series by emil tiedemann I 'LL admit, despite Jubilations Dinner Theatre 's flawless track record of quality performances over the years, I was not exactly sure what I was getting into when I went to check out their latest production, Modern Family Vacation . Randy Apostle & Bob Cunningham's 'Modern Family Vacation' runs at Jubilations (in West Ed) until October 25th! Although I didn't really know what to expect, what I did  know is that you can't really go wrong with a show at Jubilations, no matter what the subject. Modern Family Vacation was no exception. To say that the actors were right on mark with mimicking the characters in the famous television series would be an understatement! It's almost as though you stepped onto the set of the Emmy-winning Modern Family , except that Jubilations' version has the familiar personalities on vacatio

Tofield storyteller G.C. McRae takes us back to our childhoods with his collection of contemporary fairy tales by paula e. kirman M ANY people of a certain generation (and beyond) grew up with the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen . Contemporary storyteller G.C. McRae is following in the footsteps of these classic authors. G.C. McRae's 'Seven Tales' Simply titled Seven Tales , McRae took over 20 years to complete this collection of his own original fairy tales. Each story is substantial both in plot and characters, with many surprise twists. Each has its own balance of darkness and humour, with humour tending to win out, as well as endings that are hard to see coming. At the same time, these are good, old-fashioned fairy tales with princes and princesses, kings and queens, giants, frogs, and other figures that people acquainted with the genre will recognize. McRae, who lives on a farm just east of Edmonton, says he is most pr

Braden Gates' "Perfect Shade of Blue" (2015) by emil tiedemann F ORT Saskatchewan singer-songwriter Braden Gates has been reasonably compared to a young Loudon Wainwright ; a storyteller with a voice far beyond his years, and blessed with a songwriting capacity that is sure to get him far in the Canadian folk music industry. Braden Gates has been described as a "born raconteur." In early 2013 he released his debut album Break It to Me Gently , produced by Miles Wilkinson , who has worked with everyone from Bonnie Raitt  & Emmylou Harris  to Willie Nelson & Dolly Parton . Wilkinson returned to the helm for Gates' sophomore effort, 2014's Ferris Wheel . Earlier this year, at the 4th annual Edmonton Music Awards , Gates was named Male Artist of the Year, and his "Life's a Picture" won for Roots/Folk Recording of the Year. Gates - who also plays the guitar, fiddle and harmonica - recently released a video for his new s