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Canadian Voices Rise Up to the Sky

National news can be learned directly from children, which was the case in my household regarding a new song my kids are learning at school. The song I.S.S. Is Somebody Singing was collaborated together by Astronaut Chris Hadfield and Barenaked Ladies frontman Ed Robertson and with how interactive Hadfield has been from space – the kids rate this partnership as something very cool! Officially commissioned by CBC Music, the goal is to bring attention to the importance of music education in Canada. The debut of the song Is Somebody Singing happened in February with the glee choir of Wexford Collegiate School for the Arts and not only is it a great song (and Chris Hadfield can really sing!) but it’s a coalition spreading a great message of unification through music across Canada. Music history was made when the song was recorded both on Earth and Space while Hadfield is in orbit on the International Space Station. Have a listen below!

Astronaut Hadfield helped co-write the song and I love the line “You can’t make out borders from up here.” Ed Robertson from Bare Naked Ladies has a wonderful quote about how we can all feel connected, even the wonder of what Chris Hadfield experiences in Space. Robertson’s quote is here:

“I wanted it to be a celebration not about the remoteness of space, but about the connectedness of a human being on the I.S.S. who looks down and sees the whole planet in a way that, from our perspective, we don’t have the opportunity to.”

I love listening to music that my kids enjoy and the goal for May 6 is to have the entire country united in song across the different time zones and have Hadfield hear the voices while still in space. It is the official song for Music Monday to promote and celebrate music education in schools. Share this message so that children that are home schooled, school music departments, and music makers of all backgrounds learn the song together and lend their voice in May.

Access free downloads and lyrics through the Coalition’s Music Monday website, and join the coalition to fill the skies with music. There are some great Music Monday ideas for getting started:

• Music Monday in a field
• Joint School Event – organized with multiple schools
• Community Wide Event – community partner with a senior music group, local choir, etc.

Play the video, learn the lyrics and help bring awareness for music education in your communities with this special song. Champion children to believe that anything is possible – whether it be travelling to space or hearing a song there.

For the Love of Granny Sofas

They’re often curvy, decoratively carved, relatively small, sometimes have button tufting, and I think they’re fabulous. And though they may stir up images of old lady decor they can look fresh, cool, and modern if handled correctly.

If you’re really gutsy, and have the right look in your home, you could embrace the velvet, the wood, and the tufting and go all-out glamourous:

But most of us aren’t that gutsy, nor do we have the soaring ceilings and decadent crown moldings of an old Victorian home to pull this look off. So I think there are two other ways these sofas can be redone to work in a home. One is to neutralize it with solid, pale colours like this one upholstered in a white denim:

It still looks pretty, and has a ton of personality – but it’s a bit more subtle.

The other approach is to juxtapose the sofa’s old-fashioned lines with a really modern fabric – whether it’s a punchy colour or a geometric or whimsical pattern.

Here the vivid blue upholstery pops against the painted wood, and paired with the chartreuse walls it looks modern and fun.

A whole set on UsedWinnipeg

And how about this curvy set from UsedGatineau?

To me this sofa on UsedCalgary looks like one big fancy hug.

a channel-back sofa on UsedOttawa

If you're the fabulous Hollywood movie star type, this chaise on UsedNanaimo is right up your alley!

Or for something more affordable: a sofa for $195 on UsedRegina

And here are a few more inspiration pictures so you can envision how you might use one of these great pieces in your home!

Photograph by Monic Richard for Style at Home Magazine

From Crown & Crumpet Tea Salon in San Fransisco

Design by Graham Moss via GlamLamb

Design by Jen Ramos, via Style at Home

Design by Stacey Smithers, Photograph by Donna Griffith for House & Home Magazine

Photograph by Ted Yardwood for House & Home

Granny sofas and settees are usually on the small side – so they don’t necessarily have to live in the living room – they could make a great entry bench, sit at the foot of a bed, look beautiful in a nursery, or even pull up to a dining table!

Cross-Canada UsedSites Tour of Awesomeness

From top left to bottom right:  Mid-century Danish modern teak cheese board, Scandinavian Porsgrund porcelain trivet, 1953 Eames fibreglass chair, vintage spice tins, 1960s Vanity Fair children’s record player, original Beverly Hills 90210 lunch box

Better than a Papier-mache Cornucopia

Vintage pottery crying out for fall foliage via UsedWinnipeg.com

I love this. I want to fill it with pine cones or decorative corn or teeny gourds or all of these things at once. I do.

Spotlight on Winnipeg: Fat Boy Burgers

Photo: Brodie Aikman | Dairi Wip Drive In in St. Boniface, Winnipeg

Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada. It’s home to the beloved Winnipeg Jets, the Golden boy and a thriving French community. It’s also home to the best burgers in the world. It’s true and I’m not just saying that because I lived there. I say this because I lived there AND I ate the best burgers in the world…a lot of them…back when my metabolism allowed for such things.

Like many prairie folks, I steadily made my way to the West Coast where I now enjoy some of the best cuisine in the world. West Coast fusion, world-class sushi, etc and so on. No doubt, there’s good food here… But, the burgers? Meh. Sure, there are some good burger joints here. But more often than not, the good burgers are fancy burgers. Like, $15 fancy. And sometimes they even come with salad by default. Pffft. Please.

In Winnipeg the name of the game is the “fat boy”– a hamburger with one or more (usually more) patties, topped with chili, tomatoes, lettuce and mayonnaise. They’re messy and wonderful and I want one right now. And as I can smell the ocean air from my window, clearly I can’t have one. So, what’s the next best thing to getting what you want? Writing a top-ten list about what you want!

And so, in the spirit of meat-craving induced civic patriotism, I present to you my list of the top-ten fat boys in everyone’s favourite, centrally-located prairie city!

1.  Red Top Drive-in Restaurant – Time stands still in this old school diner in St. Boniface.
2. Blondie’s Restaurant – Burgers of epic proportions (there’s a 9-lber) and an infamous curmudgeonly owner … It’s more than a meal, it’ an experience.
3. VJ’s Drive Inn –  This is where I had my first fat boy!  You always remember your first. Very, very, very, good. Very.
4. Juniors Restaurant – Once upon a time I only ordered the hot dogs here. And then I ordered a burger. Never looked back.
5. Salisbury House –  ”Sals” is a Winnipeg institution. The Cheese Nip, while not technically a fat boy, is just plain good and tastes like childhood. Plus, Burton Cummings is one of the owners. Come. On.
6. Super Boy’s Restaurant – Pure greasy perfection! Home-cut fries and massive burgers… Love.
7. Mrs. Mike’s –  Every burger at this St. Boniface diner is out of this world, BUT the King Burger will change your life. Don’t eat for many hours before you go. Like, a day.
8. George’s Burgers & Subs –  With several locations, this is classic diner food at it’s best. I recommend the original location in St. Vital. I also recommend that you try their greek salad. Do it.
9. The Dairi Wip –  Another legendary St. Boniface burger! Take-out only, the crazy-efficient counter staff pop your fat boy and chili fries (if you’re smart) into a to-go box and bob’s-yer-uncle – you’re in fat boy heaven.
10. The Burger Place –  Okay, so here we have a true example of saving the best for last. Located in St. James (my old stomping grounds) the burgers here make me weep with nostalgia. Best served with a vanilla milkshake and good friends.

Goodbye May, Hello June!

May just flew by, didn’t it? I can hardly believe it is already June! I think I say this every month! But honestly, the speed with which these monthly wrap-ups seem to pop-up is intimidating! Well, can’t stop time, can we? So let’s get on with it!

What happened in May? This was admittedly a slow month, which I will attribute to having to adjust our bodies, minds, and clothing choices to fluctuating temperatures as summer hesitantly takes the stage.

The top blogs this week were from Andrea, who wrote two very interesting posts in the same vein of roadside treasure hunting:

The Symbiotic Act of Garbage Picking

Garage Sale: Lost in Translation?

On Twitter, @helpimahostage alerted us to an ad with a sweet Acura X-Wing for sale, and the fact that we are seriously lacking some important categories on our site:

Finally, the big Facebook announcement this month came yesterday when the good people of the world found out that Winnipeg, (you know that city in Manitoba?), is getting an NHL Team! Go Canada! Go Jets Go!

Thanks for another great month everyone!

April in a Flash

April went by super fast, but so much has happened!

First of all, on Facebook all of you out there helped me think of ideas to send Jordan and Brian something “West Coast” for their In Spirit Project.

While dead salmon and spirit bears were both valid options, I decided to go with the original driftwood idea, the results of which you can see here.

Perhaps the second most popular thing on Facebook this month was our poll about the Royal Wedding:

So much love, so much hate, so much indifference for the Royal Family. I am apathetic to announce that I didn’t watch the wedding, though I hear it was lovely.

We also had a couple exciting announcements this month! First off was the launch of our new iPhone viewing app, the Used Viewer!

We would love your feedback on the new app, but please don’t ask us when the UsedEverywhere app for Android or Blackberry are coming out. Trust us, as soon as we know, we’ll let you know.

The second launch of the month was our new site in New Brunswick, UsedMoncton.com!

High five Moncton! Post away!

Next, we had a lot of fun across Canada for Easter Weekend. Earth Bunny took things over for us on Good Friday/Earth Day and helped promote our super fun Easter game (hidden on your local UsedXYZ.com site after searching for “easter”).

UsedOttawa.com

UsedWinnipeg.com

UsedVictoria.com

Our most popular blog of the month was Andrea’s post about retro/vintage board games! Does Candy Land count as vintage? That was where it was at when I was a youngster. That and Mouse Trap. Or the Grape Escape. Or the play dough playset where you cut the play dough hair, which doesn’t qualify as a board game at all, but it sure was a blast.

And finally! The best of twitter all month? Apart from Earth Bunny tweeting pics of himself, it was this tweet from @randyam88. He sent us this gem of a link from UsedVictoria.com.

Thanks for one heck of a month gang!

Winnipeg Wolves Bottle Drive Fundraiser

The Winnipeg Wolves Basketball Team is having a Bottle Drive Fundraiser to raise some money! All proceeds go to the team for things like tournament fees, gym rentals, and training equipment. Do you have any beer bottles or beer cans waiting to take back to the store? Why not save yourself a trip and help out the Winnipeg Wolves by leaving your empties out for the Wolves to pick up in Sunday June 5, 2011. Look for this flyer in your mailbox!

Update: UsedWinnipeg.com Spam Attack

As of approximately 4:00 pm GMT +8 UsedWinnipeg.com was attacked by pornographic spam. The attacker posted several featured ads that were by means family friendly. As a result we have immediately taken down UsedWinnipeg.com until the issue has been resolved.

Are the Jets coming back?