Uninhabited Spaces

[Geek Alert] A few pics of production shots from "The Hobbit" have been released to Entertainment Weekly magazine. I unashamedly confess my heart was so moved to see Ian McKellen back in the distinctive robes of Gandalf the Grey. I have always thought that his performance in the movie adaptation of "The Fellowhip of the Ring", for which he justly received Academy Award and BAFTA nominations, was the heart of the movie.    Indeed, there were few dry eyes when Galdalf fell in Moria at each of the three showings I attended back in 2001 (has it already been 10 years?!). This is because we cared deeply for Gandalf, thanks to a phenomenal performance from McKellen. Perhaps it is his British heritage and training, but one of the things that makes the role stand out is McKellen's incredible vocal subtlety and nuance.  While all were happy to see Gandalf resurrected in "The Two Towers" Gandalf the White is a very different being altogether.  Although ...

Chances are if you've taken a road trip anywhere across Canada you've seen the iconic brown beaver signs on your travels. The symbol represents a place that is designated as being historically important. In order for places to be designated a National Historic Site they must must have "profound importance to Canada. They bear witness to this nation's defining moments and illustrate its human creativity and cultural traditions. Each national historic site tells its own unique story, part of the greater story of Canada, contributing a sense of time, identity, and place to our understanding of Canada as a whole". Parks Canada is celebrating 100 years of identifying and preserving Canada's cultural and physical heritage. For many of us, these places and sites are links to our national patrimony and sense of identity. Given its age--settled by Europeans in 1673--it's not surprising that Kingston has dozens of historic sites with civic, provinci...

If I look out our back windows I can see the curved roofline of the K-ROCK Centre , Kingston's largest sports and entertainment complex. Opened in 2008, the 5,700 seat K-ROCK Centre (KRC) was likely the most controversial civic project in the city in at least 50 years. There was very vocal support and equally vocal derision of the compromise location, design, size, cost, etc. of the complex. The KRC was built so that the main tenant, the Ontario Hockey League franchise Kingston Frontenacs , could finally move out of the embarassing and decrepit Kingston Memorial Centre , which had been built in 1950.  The Memorial Centre certainly had its own charm and ambience but its best years had long passed. So when the much-maligned KRC opened in February 2008--with a nice inaugural concert by local heroes The Tragically Hip--the city held its breath to see what kind of venue this $46.5M project would become. To the KRC's great credit it was named "Major Facility of the Year...

Beguiling. Compelling. Mysterious. These are the words that come to mind as I think about HBO's "Carnivale", a most intriguing show about the endless fight of good versus evil writ in the form of a travelling carnival show. Set during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, the show is a mix of mysticism, magic, and allegory as we learn about the forces of light and the forces of  dark that arise in the most unexpected of places. " Carnivale " reminds me of Stephen King's "The Stand" for its epic themes and strong fantastic elements. It is certainly bizarre at times and down right weird. But it is compelling viewing at every turn, and one of the most visually original works to ever come across our TV screens.   

I had the pleasure to get out on the water today with a friend named John P., who kindly offered to take me sailing off Kingston's wonderful harbour. Here are a few pics from our day out on the water...