01 Nov 2008 all saints day (photos by me)
all saints day, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
It’s been a grey and drizzly post-Halloween in Vancouver.
27 Oct 2008 The Parade of Lost Souls (photos by me, vancouver)
ghoulish barker, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Ah, the Parade of Lost Souls, an annual Vancouver tradition. As is my attempting to take photos of it with a camera never really meant for low-light situations.
photoset
07 Sep 2008 Mogwai at the Commodore (photos by me)
Mogwai at the Commodore, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Saw Mogwai last night, a band I’ve liked a lot since I first heard them on a Matador compilation in the mid-1990s. They put on a pretty good show, but as with their albums, it’s mindblowingly cool at first, and then you just kind of […]
04 Aug 2008 A Public Servics ANNOUNCEMENT!!! (photos by me, vancouver)
A PUBLIC SERVICS ANNOUNCEMENT!!!, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
These appeared in my neighbourhood Monday morning, stuck to pretty much every available surface. Looks like the REPENT SINNER guy has competition.
(Close-up of the poster here.)
11 Jun 2008 The Sand Brochus (+ one Sand Mahoney) (me, photos by me)
sand people, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
I spent most of the past week with the family at Chesterman Beach, on Vancouver Island’s beautiful west coast. Oddly, while the last time I was there was the middle of last winter, the weather didn’t seem to have changed — there were just a few more […]
02 Jun 2008 moved! (me, photos by me, vancouver)
main street, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
This is actually a picture I took a couple of years ago — I really have not had time for photography lately, so I went to flickr and did a search of my photos, looking for my previous impressions of Main Street. My new home looks nothing […]
31 May 2008 moving day (me, photos by me, vancouver)
moving day, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Leaving behind my red, red room.
16 Mar 2008 spiritual (kommune, photos by me)
spiritual, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
A gathering of spiritual friends on the Kommune mantlepiece.
A prize for whoever can name them all!
27 Jan 2008 behold, I have new glasses (plus bonus spaceman) (me, photos by me)
a terrifying glimpse of futures to come?, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
I picked up these frames on my trip to New York last month, but didn’t get around to getting my eyes tested and my new prescription filled until now. I was actually a bit disturbed to see myself in the mirror with them […]
31 Oct 2007 a parade of lost souls (photos by me, vancouver, weird)
parade of lost souls, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Happy Halloween! I’m already sugar-sick and out of costume!
In Vancouver, the Saturday before Halloween is the Parade of Lost Souls, a procession of weirdness and costumes and lots of fire. Anything that makes life a little more morbidly surreal is okay by me.
31 Oct 2007 Caribou in Concert (photos by me, shows)
Caribou at Richard’s, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
I’ve been a fan of Caribou for a while, and his/their new album Andorra is one of my two or three favourites of 2007, so I was pretty excited to see Caribou at Richard’s last night (and pretty upset when I thought I lost a ticket, but […]
25 Oct 2007 pumpkin carving at the kommune (kommune, photos by me)
pumpkin carving at the kommune, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
I love Halloween. It appeals to my perversely morbid sense of fun and love of macabre DIY arts and crafts, including — but not limited to — elaborate zombie makeup. And jack-o-lanterns!
Meghan created a flickr group to which I’ll be adding more pictures […]
07 Oct 2007 Vancouver’s Grey Days (photos by me, vancouver)
Grey Days #1, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
I’m tired of pretty pictures of colourful falling leaves. This is what fall in Vancouver looks like to me. Dark and wet and cold and kind of beautiful.
Grey Days photoset (on flickr)
26 Aug 2007 brrrrrrraaaaaaainnnnnnnzzzzzzzzz!!! (photos by me, vancouver, zombies)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }Zombies of Davie Street, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Despite a bit of makeup-melting rain, Vancouver Zombie Walk 2007 was a moaning, groaning, maggoty good time. Hundreds of zombies descended on the West […]
15 Aug 2007 California Trainscape (photos by me)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }California Trainscape 2, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
11 Aug 2007 SIGGRAPH’d (academia, photos by me)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }SIGGRAPH, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Well, I’m back from SIGGRAPH, probably the coolest Computer Science conference around. And also, I’m tired.
While Graphics tends to catch a lot of flack (not least […]
02 Aug 2007 the trees of august (photos by me, vancouver)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }the trees of august, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
I walked past this scene on my way home from the lab last night. I really enjoy the Vancouver summer colours and the gradient […]
02 Jul 2007 in a gloomy woods (photos by me, vancouver places)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }hikers in a gloomy woods, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Hiking the Baden-Powell trail through the decidedly murky rainforest of Vancouver’s North Shore.
21 Jun 2007 cloudwatching (photos by me)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }cloudwatching, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
11 Jun 2007 evil metal fingers violently probing heaven (photos by me, vancouver)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }evil metal fingers violently probing heaven, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Or possibly, some kind of ventilation.
03 Jun 2007 the ‘S’ stands for ’summer’ (photos by me, vancouver)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }the ‘S’ stands for ’summer’, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
After a long, dark winter and a few false starts, summer has finally come to Vancouver. I caught this little guy out on […]
23 May 2007 the ‘rents (photos by me)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }mom and dad, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
…But my replacement finally arrived (thanks, eBay!), just in time to hang out with ma and pa Brochu.
07 Apr 2007 hello, cherry blossoms (photos by me, vancouver)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }hello, cherry blossoms, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
I’m finding the Vancouver winters harder and harder to deal with. It’s not the rain, which I actually kind of like, and is never very […]
28 Feb 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 10: Osaka, Japan (adventures in asia, photos by me, travel)
The last part of my trip was a few days in Osaka with the charming and lovely Tyler and Carla (yes, charming and lovely, both of them). It was great to see them, and it was also great to be in a country that takes toilet cleanliness and comfort with the appropriate gravitas. […]
19 Feb 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 9: Bangkok Redux (adventures in asia, photos by me, travel)
Ah, Bangkok. The full name is “Krungthep Mahanakhon Amonrattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilokphop Noppharatratchathani Burirom-udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amonphiman Awatansathit Sakkathattiya Witsanu Kamprasit”, which means something about angels and gems. Officially home to 6 million people, but unofficial estimates place it at twice that. Hottest major city in the world, and one of the most densely-populated. […]
31 Jan 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 6: Halong Bay, Vietnam (adventures in asia, photos by me, travel)
Halong Bay
The main reason we were in Hanoi in the first place was to see Halong Bay, a few hours away. The bay contains about 2000 limestone islands, which rise straight out of the water and are topped with lush vegetation. Only two of the islands have enough approachable surface area to be […]
28 Jan 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 5: Hanoi, Vietnam (adventures in asia, photos by me, travel)
I’ve had a wicked case of the flu the past couple of days, and an important paper deadline in less than two weeks. I’ve been trying to work, but frankly I’m feeling too weak and feverish to accomplish anything other than watching House, MD.
24 Jan 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 4: the mighty Mekong, and the Nam Ou, too (adventures in asia, photos by me, travel)
the Nam Ou
As lovely as Luang Prabang was, I was curious to see other parts of Laos. And so I ended up getting up and dawn one morning and dragging Janelle from her hot showers and bacon-stuffed baguettes to the boat dock on the Mekong. We were going to go up the river.
A […]
21 Jan 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 3: Luang Prabang, Laos (adventures in asia, photos by me, travel)
un chat Lao
Well, at the rate I’m writing, it will take me as long to write about Southeast Asia as it took to actually see it. The problem of returning to everyday life after a break is that there are actually things you need to do, deadlines to meet, and, most annoyingly, jet lag […]
18 Jan 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 2: Pai, Thailand (adventures in asia, photos by me, travel)
street scene in Pai
From Chiang Mai, we took a bus trip to the scenic little town of Pai. We took a rickity old bus where we got the extra-cramped seats in front of the rear door, which were several inches shorter than the rest. The bus driver laughed when came to collect our […]
17 Jan 2007 Adventures in Asia, Part 1: Chiang Mai, Thailand (photos by me)
One corner of the old city has become the traveller district, with your typical range of backpacker guesthouses and a couple of hotels, plus restaurants, laundry places (wash, dry, fold for $2/kg), your pirate- and goth-themed internet cafes (yes!), etc. But while the city is very visitor-friendly and has lots of attractions, that’s just one small part of the city as far as anyone living there is concerned, and you can sit in a third-floor coffee-shop or restaurant on the town’s main square and watch the everyday Chiang Mai foot, car and moped traffic go by in front of a 10-meter poster of the king while Thai pop blares from the city gates…. But while they’re always cool and inarguably photogenic, I’m a backwards, uncultured philistine and ended up spending less and less time checking them out as my journey across Asia went on. However, Wat Chedi Luang was the first one I visited for a serious length of time, and, to be honest, probably my favorite, since it’s all old and ruiny.
10 Dec 2006 catch me! (photos by me, vancouver)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }catch me!, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Icicle melting in the morning sun.
26 Nov 2006 midnight snowspirit (kommune, photos by me, things I made, vancouver)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }midnight snowspirit, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
It started snowing last night in Vancouver, and hasn’t let up. Late last night, I went out and made a snowman to greet the winter with […]
18 Nov 2006 but what about the coffee? (photos by me, vancouver)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }.flickr-yourcomment { }.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }we sold out of water, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
…The next day, Starbucks started giving out free short coffees made with bottled water, and most places are now serving espresso-based drinks, but let me tell you, it was a bit of a crisis.Every once in a while nature throws something like this at you to remind you that whatever you may think, once you get past the city limits, you’re surrounded by a few million square kilometers of rather inhospitible wilderness.
09 Sep 2006 The Templeton (photos by me, vancouver places)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }Gillian at The Templeton, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
The Templeton is a little diner on Granville St, wedged uncomfortably into a block of sex shops. It’s been running since 1934 and […]
08 Sep 2006 Five Years! (me, photos by me, vancouver)
I know Vancouver isn’t perfect, and there are things that annoy me, but I love it regardless. Of all the places I’ve lived, Vancouver is the only one that really feels like home to me.
03 Sep 2006 Amy and the Pinata (photos by me)
.flickr-photo { border: solid 2px #000000; }
.flickr-yourcomment { }
.flickr-frame { text-align: right; padding: 3px; }
.flickr-caption { font-size: 0.8em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: right }Amy and the Pinata, originally uploaded by Mister Wind-Up Bird.
Dave and Amy are back in Vancouver for the long weekend. Among other things, it’s the general vicinity of Amy’s thirtieth birthday, so a […]
28 Aug 2006 An Evening with Cat Power (photos by me, shows)
She stopped in the middle of songs to complain about the sound or take cigarette breaks, she forgot the words to some of her own songs, and one time just walked off stage (she came back). All part of the Cat Power experience, and when you can sing like that, with such an achingly beautiful voice, I guess people will put up with a lot of eccentricities.
20 Mar 2006 Oh, The Places I’ve Been (new zealand, photos by me)
Okay, I’ve been back less than two weeks and I’m almost done uploading pictures from my visit to New Zealand. It really was an amazing trip.This is the route I took, starting in Dunedin, and ending in Auckland 16 days later.
09 Mar 2006 pictures, pictures, pictures! (new zealand, photos by me)
It was quite a bit of work whittling down the hundreds I took to a still-volumous subset! And I have several panorama to post as well, should I manage to get some stitching software up and running.Links to photoset, slideshow.
27 Feb 2006 Back to Civilization! (new zealand, photos by me)
I’m sitting in a little coffee shop in Christchurch, across the street from the eponymous Cathedral.
21 Feb 2006 A Tide With Artistic Aspirations (new zealand, photos by me)
On the southern tip of New Zealand’s South Island lie The Catlins, a beautiful and remote landscape of beaches, cliffs, forests and millions of sheep.
16 Feb 2006 Farewell, Canberra. Hello, New Zealand. (australia, new zealand, photos by me)
So long, Canberra, you bird-dominated and oddly silent little town.I went for a jog last night through the city center and saw maybe a dozen people…. The air was humid and smelled nice, and little blue birds fluttered through the park around Lake Burley Griffin.
14 Feb 2006 As Promised, Pics of Yellow-Headed Canyon Dwellers (australia, photos by me)
Muchly delayed, but finally up.Link.
12 Feb 2006 Canyoning and the Blue Mountains (australia, photos by me)
So last weekend I went to Sydney and to meet Amy, and we drove out to the Blue Mountains.
07 Feb 2006 I’m More Ready Than You Can Possibly Imagine (australia, photos by me)
I’m more ready that you can possibly imagine.I found this sign one one of many abandoned buildings in Canberra…. has a certain feeling that it was made to hold far more people than live here.
04 Feb 2006 A Blood-Red Bird (australia, photos by me)
What Canberra lacks in humans, it more than makes up for in the quantity and variety of its bird life. I must have seen a dozen different species while I was out jogging by Lake Burley Griffin.
30 Oct 2005 The Harvest God is Sacrificed to Appease the Spirits Within (photos by me)
I like that a lot more than store-bought cartoon ghosts in the window, so this All Hallow’s Eve at die Kommune, we decided to paganize things up a bit with sacrificial pumpkins and stick men spirits all over the yard.Not that it has anything to do with actual celtic belief, it’s just that I love the idea of Halloween’s primal, pagan undercurrent, and the dark, fall-inspired creativity of the holiday. Usually I get that out of my system with the Parade of Lost Souls, but since it was canceled this year, I had to do it all myself with zombie costumes and creepy yard decorations.Link (via my flickr photostream).
28 Aug 2005 Zombiewalk Aught-Five! (me, photos by me, vancouver)
Yesterday was the first Vancouver Zombiewalk…. I usually zombify myself for I even wrote a short zombie movie back when I was in film school, though I switched programs before I could film it.