September Issue Is Online

Our September issue went online today. It is also at the printer, but due to the upcoming long weekend, we likely won't be able to distribute the hard copy until later next week. In the meantime, you can download the entire paper and read it here.

Gearing Up for September

Well, it's that time again: time to put the next issue of BMC News together. Most of the articles are in, and right now I am working on what I call a "mock layout" for Vikki. Basically, I take all the articles and place them into one long Word document, specifying approximately where I want everything to appear on the pages. We have a "code" we use on the document to specify where the photos should go and how certain elements are to be formatted. We will start the actual layout this week.

A Stubbing in McCauley

A stubbing took place early this evening in McCauley. The incident happened at about 5:10 p.m. on 95 Street near the corner of 106 Avenue. The victim, a woman in her mid-thirties, experienced pain, loss of balance, and extreme embarassment when the big toe on her right foot hit a crack in the sidewalk. The woman, who works as the Editor of area's community newspaper, was reportedly on her way to Padmanadi to meet family members for supper. As of this evening, she is still experiencing discomfort, numbness, and difficulty walking. The sidewalk was unavailable for comment. No charges have been laid.

Flowers

  One of the things I most enjoy about hanging out in McCauley, is taking long walks through the neighbourhood and gazing at the incredible landscapes and flowers that many of the properties have. The residents of this area take great pride in gardening and the result are some colourful and beautiful displays, like these tiger lillies.


  There was a hard rain right before I took this one. I think you can see some of the raindrops on the flowers.


  I don't think I have ever seen this flower with this particular colour.


  A simpler approach by using bedding plants in planters.

McCauley Clean Up - I Really Did Help

  I really believe in immersing myself in a story. That is exactly what I did in late May when I covered the McCauley annual clean up. I was on site for most of the day taking photos. However, sometimes my camera got away from me, and I ended up the centre of attention. Someone dropped off a skateboard that I decided to try out, while Diana took a shot of me. Cowabunga, dudes!

  Then, I went out in one of the trucks with Tim and Andre to scour the neighbourhood for discarded items. Yes, that is right -- dirtaphobic me actually handled garbage. Tim felt this moment should actually be captured for posterity, so here I am with a community member, enthusiastically cleaning up.

  This is the colour shot of the main photo in the spread on the clean up that appeared in the July/August issue. That's Tim in the foreground, as well as a very full trash bin. I was amazed at how much these bins could actually hold.

  Here I am again, at the clean up site unloading the trees I had gathered. All in all it was a very fun day. It was great to be a part of such a well-organized and worthwhile community event.

Paula at Heart of the City

  This is for those of you who asked why there was no photo of me included in our multi-page spread about the 2008 Heart of the City Festival in the July/August issue. We had so many great photos of all the performers, that it was a struggle to get in as many as we could. I was not about to take space away from another act or artist. Besides, my photo appears in every issue along with my Editorial. I am not a *complete* narcissist, after all!

One Year of Proofing

  The June issue marked one year that my mother has been doing the proofreading for the paper. To honour her contribution as a volunteer, we got her a thank-you card and a bouquet of flowers from Zocalo. She really appreciated the gesture.