fourONEsixSTYLE

If you’re one of those people who, all winter long, talk of nothing but the crappy weather there might be something you can do to turn that frown upside down: snowboarding. All summer long while everyone talks about how beautiful it is I’m secretly wishing snow would fall, and keep falling.

Finally the wait is almost up. This weekend’s Toronto Ski, Snowboard and Travel Show marks the unofficial start to the season. From today at 3PM through to Sunday at the Automotive Building, Exhibition Place, you can find all the snowgear you’ll ever need and plan any winter getaways too. Gear is usually last year’s stock and priced to fly. It’s not just boards and bindings, great deals can be found on sporty winter jackets and “underwear” too.

All that’s left to consider is where to board when the flakes start falling. Mount St. Louis Moonstone offers great beginner “discovery” packages which include a lesson, rentals and lift all for under $55, but if you’re serious about the white stuff Blue Mountain’s selling a 5×7 - all nights and weekdays lift pass - for $164 until October 22nd. Last year I waited too long and had to pay double - still worth every penny. This time, I’ll pick up my pass at the snowboard show. They’ll take my picture and I’ll be done with it - no hour long lines when I’m busting to get on the hill.

Admission to the show is $15.

Island residents be warned, Wakestock is back bigger and badder than ever. The event is celebrating ten adrenalin filled years and promises to be a huge blow out, mixing punk and hip hop culture under a banner of edgy board sport (and bikini) competitions.

There’ll be no shortage of eye-candy - you can check out motocross, skateboard, wakeskate and of course wakeboard events. Last year I wasn’t sure what to expect, I thought I’d be stuck in the stands miles from nowhere hoping for a glance of the action. Instead I was knee deep in warm water leaning on a rail while riders landed sick tricks right in front of my face. You’ve got to be able to appreciate what these kids can do.

Just as hype as the sport side is what’s happening on stage all weekend. Wakestock seems to be pushing the Grammy angle, bringing big names to perform music at this summer’s show. I’ll be getting jacked on beats by De La Soul, Lupe Fiasco and Del The Funky Homosapien while taking a schoolin from punk pros Goldfinger and The Deftones.

With such a wicked mix of events on the island it’s really as good as it gets for those of us in TO who love beach life. You can wander the island, watch the waves and get some sweet inspiration from athletes who’ve trucked in from all over the world just to show you what they do best. If that doesn’t get you jacked maybe a dunk in the lake will do it for you.

Wakestock starts today, runs until Sunday. Ticket prices vary. Catch the ferry to Centre Island.

(photo Wakestock 01 by hotmshr)

gardiner museum
Originally uploaded by wvs

Turns out my favourite Toronto building of 2006 was the same one everyone else voted for in the latest annual round up of the best and worst of Toronto architecture. I’ve always been a fan of modern design and architecture, so I’m very pleased the Gardiner Museum got top scores from the Pug Award panel and public. I’m also thrilled that I’m not the only one out there with a vision and desire for a city focusing its attention on modernity with some complexity, while also building up around playful public spaces.

One big loser in the competition was the Pug Award site itself, as is evident from the feedback on the blogTO entry I’d written called Who Cares About Architecture? It’s functionality and design scored super-low among site visitors who were expecting something more from a competition that favours design and interactivity in the real world but couldn’t live up to those virtues in a virtual one.

Since the Pug Award site was designed in a way which didn’t allow me to link to the results page, and also doesn’t keep results archives, I’ve decided to share some of the info here with you on fourONEsixSTYLE.

Here are the 22 buildings in the competition and their rank from Best to Worst as reported on the Pug Awards results site 2007:

The Gardiner Museum
One King West Condominiums
The Leslie L. Dan Pharmacy Building
Tip Top Lofts
The Federal Court Building
Home Condominiums
The Four Seasons Centre
Downtown’s Next Address (DNA)
The Hudson Condominiums
One Six Nine Condominiums
Quad Lofts
Aquarius and Atlantis Condominiums
66 Portland Condominiums
The Carlyle Condominiums
The Ryerson School of Business
Jazz 1 Condominiums
North Beach Condominiums
Harbour View Estates Condominiums (C & D)
18 Yonge Condominiums
Zed Condominiums
Pinnacle Centre Tower One Condominiums
Be Bloor Condominiums

It’s not often Toronto’s Terminal One at Pearson inspires me to break into song and dance. That might be different after watching Feist’s new video My Moon My Man. Next time I find myself strolling down the moving sidewalks looking at our sparkling city under a full moon I don’t know if I’ll be able to hold back. I just hope there’ll be a few others that join in.

The jetsetting Canadian singer songwriter has been away for awhile. I’m happy to hear she’s just moved back to Toronto where she’s filmed a few videos for her upcoming album The Reminder, scheduled for release in Canada and the US today. For now Feist is working solo but her past musical collaborations led her to work with with Broken Social Scene and former Toronto roommate Peaches.

My man Craig Williams, Location Manager on Feist’s recent videos which were shot over several nights at the airport, said they were ton of fun to work on. It’s a catchy song too. See what people are saying about the video on blogTO.

Signs had been up for awhile, announcing the sale of the building on the corner of Peter and Richmond, formerly known as nightclub Fez Batik. I passed often on my way up to Queen wondering what the next incarnation would bring. Maybe it would be another stuffy joint catering to lines of men in black leather, or a techno club for kids jacked up on Red Bull. If we were lucky, I’d thought, it would once again find the laid-back vibe of those who loved Fez, and the summer scene would once again jump to life on its patio. Seems though, that future plans may bring an entirely different kind of crowd.

The City is in the works to purchase the site in the hopes of facilitating the needs of homeless and displaced people in the downtown core. The centre would be open around the clock and provide beds and counseling to get people back on their feet. In theory it sounds like a beautiful thing. However, in reality, I can’t imagine a worse place for these kinds of social services. I can just imagine, with music pumping and littering drunkards spilling out of clubs looking for confrontation, that comfort and stability would be the last thing one would find in the middle of our Entertainment District.

A community meeting to discuss the plans will be held tonight, 6:30PM, at Metro Hall - Room 308.

Last night champagne flowed and painted-white cirque-robats glowed while media types mingled in an interior design fantasy world at the preview for the Interior Design Show 2007. I was fortunate to gain entry into the magical kingdom for a sneak peek at the fanciful design in store for us this year.

As expected, the usual design stars - Debbie Travis, Lynda Reeves and Brian Gluckstein - will be there peddling their wares, but none seemed to offer any notion of innovation or inspiration, except perhaps what we can expect the next hot colour of the season to be. Travis’ “no photographs please” living space was decked in spooky black and orange. All I can say about that is “Boo!”

Moving away from the dens of domesticity, local Toronto designers were making a splash. Here are my top picks for Toronto design talent.

1. Adept with porcelain, artist Ken Gangbar, creates fluid sculptures and installations for clients from TO to HK. If you want to give ceramics a whirl too he offers workshops from his studio in Liberty Village.

2. Everything Queen East shop Up to You showed, I wanted to buy. Coolest are the wood carved clothes hangers depicting New York, Tokyo or Paris skylines, though they are $120 a pop and there’s no deisgn for TO. There is an “I Heart ______(blank)” sticker though. That’s where TO can go.

3. I was seriously blown away by the modern stand-alone apartment and eco-friendly fireplaces made by Ecosmart. No gas, no hard connection. Great for any place that needs a little warming up.

4. Utillity in a tile? That’s where Utilitile comes in. I found these walnut wood tiles in the prototype section. Following form and function is truly the way to a Danish girl’s heart.

5. Simple, practical shelving by Sheridan made a big statement. The statement is “I’m fun, and smart, dammit!” Made by, and for, students so it’s got to be.

The Interior Design Show takes place this Saturday and Sunday at the Direct Energy Centre, CNE Grounds. Tickets are $16 online or $18 at the door.

The journey starts in the Toronto office of Vice, in Parkdale, where Derrick Beckles is doing an impression of God creating woman (read boobs). It’s the intro to Beckles’ piece on Paraguay for the Vice Guide to Travel, out on DVD. Sitting with him is Johnny Knoxville to whom he reveals he’s heading to Nueva Germania to see what still remains of the place that survived briefly as an “Aryan utopia” in the 1800’s and later became a refuge for exiled Nazis after the war. The answer is not much, just a couple bricks left to disintegrate.

With no real story to follow Beckles piece starts falling apart here too. To keep it going he finds some backwoods brothers rumoured to have turned to cannibalism. He asks the geezers a few questions, none of which get to the heart of the dark deed. It’s journalism-lite but Vice seems happy just to prove to us they can look danger in the face and take us along for the ride.

In the guide, which Vice co-founder Suroosh Alvi calls a “60 Minutes meets Jackass” kinda thing, Vice correspondents take us on a tour of 7 not-so-hot tourist destinations like the most radioactive place in the world, Chernobyl’s Red Forest, and then a Pygmy village in the heart of the Congo in search of a dinosaur.

Finding a prehistoric beast or a wild boar with two heads presents a serious challenge and the guys in Vice don’t always get their goal. Maybe that’s why I was most impressed with Suroosh’s own segment in which he hooks up a visit to the largest illegal gun market in the world in Darra, Pakistan, a place where we see kids casually making bullets by hand. The BBC couldn’t gain access to this dangerous place but Surroush walks in, charms the locals, buys a gun and gets his money shot.

It’s gonna be a wet and chilly day out there Toronto. Try and make it special by doing something a little extra for yourself or your love(d ones) for Valentine’s.

Here are a few ideas, 416style:

Make your teeth sparkle.

Buy a bouquet of kumquats in Kensington Market.

Check out the new fitness facilities at 99 Sudbury.

Declare your love in the comments section of 416style and leave the page open on a shared computer.

Make your morning Eggo waffles into ooozy sweet tasting hearts.