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Cosmic ChrisC

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Everything posted by Cosmic ChrisC

  1. I was in NO about 17 years ago. At the time it was close to the being the murder capital of the States. It probably still is. We stayed in a motel in the French Quarter in July. It was freaking hot but it was low season then so it was cheap. I met up with a friend who was born and raised there. She gave us tips on where not to go. She even went so far as telling us not to make eye contact with black people. I was shocked to hear that from an educated person! We don't hear that in Canada! We did go to a few areas she told us to stay away from, because of bars we wanted to visit, and I don't remember feeling unsafe. I'd go again and would love to go the jazz festival one day. Wonderful city and wonderful countryside too. I figure it's possible to get in trouble in any city. Common sense is the key. I'd stay away from the Middle East right now, for example.
  2. yeah that's what happens to me at work...the only way I can log in is if I clear my history etc. I use Explorer at work.
  3. Intruments for Africa hits right note BY PATRICK SMITH, OTTAWA CITIZEN DECEMBER 28, 2013 Ottawa’s Todd Snelgrove recently delivered more than 200 musical instruments to schools in Zambia and Namibia as part of his Instruments for Africa campaign. He said the students couldn’t wait to get the instruments out of their boxes so they could start making music. Receiving a guitar with no strings attached sounds like the setup for a bad joke, but for schools in a country in Africa, it was a dream come true. When Ottawa guitarist and music teacher Todd Snelgrove visited the Republic of Zambia in May 2012, he was shocked to find that Linda School, a public high school he visited in the city of Livingstone, didn’t have any musical instruments at all. This was despite a curriculum that saw about 300 students take a music class every week. “I found that out by walking into one school, where I donated one single guitar,†Snelgrove said. “But in this last trip as I visited more and more schools, I found out that that’s absolutely the norm in that country.†Armed with this knowledge, Snelgrove returned to Ottawa with the idea to gather instruments and help these schoolchildren learn music with the right tools. It took one of his guitar students, a former ambassador to an African country, to hold him accountable. After weeks of being asked for an update on the project by his student, Snelgrove sent an impassioned plea for people to donate their new and slightly used instruments and help the kids at Linda School get a proper musical education. He called this project Instruments for Africa. The initiative, which started as a drive to collect enough instruments to create a full concert band for Linda School, quickly took on a life of its own. “Things started flooding in and, in no time, we got way more instruments than we needed for this one school,†Snelgrove said. More than 200 donated instruments were sent to 10 primary and secondary schools across five cities in Zambia, as well as one school in Namibia, a bordering country. Despite a five-week delay in the shipment due to a holdup at the African border, ukuleles, keyboards, guitars, violins, recorders and more made their way into the hands of eager students. “I’d just be trying to put the instruments on a table in the case, and I’d turn my back and they’d be open. The kids would have them, and they’d be putting all these things together.†Their eagerness even led to an impromptu musical interlude, Snelgrove said. “There’s the drummer, and he’s playing the drums, and there’s five or six guys with all these horns, and they’re jamming,†he said. “And they haven’t had the instruments out of the cases for 20 minutes!†Surprisingly, he said, the most popular instrument seemed to be the recorder, and he hopes to gather many more for the next shipment. “They love it,†he said. “And the thing is, you can’t break a recorder and to ship them, it is the smallest, easiest, lightest instrument to ship. I would love nothing more than to ship 10,000 recorders over there.†Snelgrove plans on returning to Zambia in the spring, to ensure that students are getting the best possible use out of the instruments. But, even once he returns, he’s not done giving students the gift of music just yet. He’s taking the coming year off work to dedicate himself full-time to his initiative. “It’s not called Instruments for Zambia,†he said. “It’s called Instruments for Africa.†“The idea is to try to take (the program) where it’s needed within the continent,†he added, citing neighbouring countries Mozambique and Malawi as potential future destinations. As for long-term goals, Snelgrove hopes to evolve Instruments for Africa into a charity. The initiative has already been designated as a not-for-profit, but the next step is proving to be challenging. “I’m hoping to find some legal counsel that will donate their time to help,†he said. “With the charity stuff the tax people are involved because you’re issuing tax receipts. It’s a lot more involved.†More information can be found at intrumentsforafrica.com . © Copyright © The Ottawa Citizen
  4. You might wanna go to this in March then...you can meet Ethan here in Ottawa: http://shenkmanarts.ca/en/events_evenements/march_mars_2014/ethan_russell/
  5. Speaking of awards, congratulations for winning the Emmy for Supporting Actor In A Drama Series! Miss you Gyp! "What’s that? A gun? I got a gun. He got a gun. He got a gun… Everybody got guns!"
  6. Yeah, I usually look for outdoor shows on Canada Day...like the jazzfest free shows. So the above show would be a rainy day show for me.
  7. Westfest is 5 minutes walk from my place, so I have no excuse. I'll be there!
  8. Ticket info: http://www.ticketweb.ca/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eventId=3529234&pl=Zaphod
  9. That was fun! We need to have more parties at the Carleton. Good seeing y'all!! On my way out, I ate a piece of cake really quickly and it was pretty tasty!
  10. I just read that Vieux Farka Touré (son of Ali Farka Touré) is playing at Zaphods on July 1st. Do you know anything about him Velvet? That would probably be a pretty good show to see. He's playing at 2pm...sounds like a great thing to do on Canada Day!
  11. Cosmic ChrisC

    Ramps

    Oh man, you guys are talking about "ail des bois"! That stuff was free when I was growing up and everyone ate it. The guys in grade school used to go home at lunchtime, eat tons of it, and then blow their sickly breath in girls' faces. Because of that, I have no desire for this stuff. There's a man near my work who sells that stuff on a street corner for cheap, but that's in Vanier.
  12. Tell him to call this place, CAPS. I think they hire students there. http://capsparts.com/
  13. A store opened in Hintonburg too recently. I haven't been yet but would like to splurge and buy high quality oil to see if it's worth it. I guess I wouldn't use it in regular cooking though, but more for dressings and such, where you can really taste it. http://www.ottawamagazine.com/tag/olive-oil/ Does your family ever mail you some of their oil Phorbesie? Pretty nice to have family in the South of France!!
  14. That's kind of exciting...is it advantageous to get there early...the earlier you get there, the better the seats, or is it just pure luck? Don't know why I care...I don't have tickets.
  15. Scotiabank Place tweeted this today, so I guess he'll be playing there: Count down is on! In two days we will be making a major concert announcement. Follow @ScotiabankPlace to be the first to know! #OutThere
  16. Are the $85 tickets on the floor, GA? I see that there were $70 tickets, now sold out, but no seating location specified. Ah well, I didn't know tickets were going on sale today.
  17. Come Stomp Along: An Evening of Music for Charity Paying Tribute to Stompin' Tom Connors Presented by the Ottawa Citizen’s The Big Beat (Peter Simpson) and Guerilla magazine, this rollicking night of live performance will feature some of Ottawa’s most beloved performers covering Stompin’ Tom tunes and playing original songs in the spirit of the late, great Stompin Tom Connors. All proceeds from the event will support the Shepherds of Good Hope Ottawa Soup Kitchen. Performers confirmed thus far: Juno-award winner Lynn Miles (will cover Old Flat Top Guitar) Lynne Hanson (will cover The Hockey Song) John Carroll (will cover The Singer is the Voice of the People and Tillsonburg) Ashley Newall (will cover Bud the Spud) John Allaire (will cover Sudbury Saturday Night) Stoney Martins (will cover I Am the Wind) Big Jesus Truck ... and more! Besides great music, there’ll be lots of excitement: Win the event’s official Stompin’ Tom stomping board featuring an illustration of Stompin’ Tom and autographed by all performers Win other great draw prizes and bid on items in a silent auction Help us pay tribute to a great Canadian—and support a great cause http://blogs.ottawacitizen.com/2013/04/16/stomp-along-with-the-music-of-stompin-tom-fundraiser-april-19-in-ottawa/
  18. That's exactly how I got to see the Stones for the first time...surprise Christmas gift from my parents! Guess that can't be done now!! This is the worst way to sell tickets. I hope it doesn't survive.
  19. Ah, I could've driven you there. That's another great thing about last night...Good Friday, no traffic, small show, no parking lot craziness. Who's the local metal band you saw?
  20. Wow! So bloody happy that I went to this show! It blew my mind. I have no idea what songs they played yet I loved every second of this performance. Unexpected for me. I was thinking it was going to be way mellower than it was. Those guys are pros. Every sound they make is there for a reason. I hear they play by volcanos in Iceland. If Iceland is anything like the magic I've seen tonight, I have to go there. Thumbs up to the audience as well. Respectful. Not many cell phones to be seen.
  21. Anyone else going? at Scotiabank Place tonight. Not sure why I'm going! I loved their 1999 and 2002 albums but haven't listened to anything new until last night. I think it will be a very mellow show. I might want to curl up in a corner of the floor and dream of the Senators winning the cup.
  22. tweet from the Elmdale: Tomorrow night (Friday the 29th), New Brunswick's The Lonesome Line are playing. Acoustics sets from 930 - 1am. $5 www.thelonesomeline.com
  23. I pulled section 305 about twenty minutes ago but released them. That's too far for me. Was in section 200something for Sex Pistols years ago and that felt too far.
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