Author Archive for Kim

Please Pardon the Schmaltz…

Published
by
Kim
on February 12, 2010
in Uncategorized
. 2 Comments

Up until the last few days, the 2010 Olympics seemed like some vague concept, rather than the massive event that it really is. I’ve been pretty blasé about it, mostly thinking about the Olympics in terms of how badly they’re going to screw up my commute. Of course, there have also been controversies aplenty, from massive budget overruns to concerns about the treatment of people in the Downtown Eastside. Suffice it to say, my feelings about the Olympics could be summed up as: Meh.

But then the travel stories started popping up, replete with recommendations for things to do and places to see and restaurants to eat at. And the slideshows. Oh gob, the slideshows. It’s gotten to the point where I click on every Vancouver tourism story I see, just for a quick pick-me-up. You know, Vancouver is an amazing city. Where else do you have a cosmopolitan, multicultural city centre in proximity to the ocean and oodles of park space, with beautiful mountain views to boot? There is just so much to see and do here – I’m lucky enough to play tourist whenever I have out-of-town visitors, so I’ve seen and done a lot – but there’s still so much more!

And then this morning, my bus came to a full stop at Georgia Street downtown. At first, there was confusion; then we realized we couldn’t go any further because of the crowds that had gathered for the torch relay. My pal Hannah and I stood there just reveling in the energy of the crowd around us, dancing along with the music pumping from the trucks preceding the torch runner, and finally cheering when we saw the flame approach. For a couple of minutes, I felt like I was seven again, watching another Olympic torch pass me by on its way to Calgary. It was exhilarating!

And that, boys and girls, is the story of how the Grinch caught Olympic fever. To the rest of the world, whether you’re visiting Vancouver or watching the games from home, welcome to my adopted hometown. I hope you love it as much as I do.

Memory is a strange thing

Published
by
Kim
on August 25, 2006
in Uncategorized
. 0 Comments

(I’d hoped my first post as a Soda Crazy would be about something fun, like giant bugs or gay cartoon characters. However, those topics have been taken [shakes fist], so I’ll have to air my un-fun thoughts instead. Sorry.)

Today I’m wearing a bead necklace that a friend brought me from Mexico a few years ago… I remember the exact booth in Kelsey’s where we sat when she gave it to me, and I remember that she teased me for choosing a fruity dessert when there was perfectly good chocolate to be had. I remember the feeling of triumph when I got a near-perfect score on a “how well do you know your friend” quiz just months after we met, including the exact number of piercings she had in each ear (five). I remember the saltiness of the poutines in the bar on campus where we’d go for “vent sessions”. I remember how quickly she swerved into the Dairy Queen parking lot when she realized I was upset and needed to talk. I remember sitting in a movie theatre all the way across the city, laughing our heads off at a Bollywood movie, thinking up ways to get troupes of backup dancers to follow us around, and stuffing ourselves with saltwater taffy. I remember my ear growing hot from having hours-long conversations on my cell phone. I remember flicking ash off her wedding gown, and I remember the chauffeur digging around in the limo for scissors to remove the veil from her tiara because the wind kept whipping it into her face. I remember how she always tried to smile, even if she was unhappy. I remember her hugs, and how I felt totally enveloped in them. I remember our friendship, both in the details and in the broad strokes, and as much as it hurts sometimes, I know I am lucky to have those memories.