Hellooooo again!

Just had a real nice dinner at Central at Clarke Quay. While at Central, I saw an ice skating performance! Brilliant, elegant and graceful! They had a dance and song sequence with was pretty impressive. Its the Christmas season people! Check out some of the photos!

The Graceful Spin

The Dance Sequence

 They will be performing till the 24th December, from Tuesdays to Sundays, at 1pm, 4pm (only on weekends), 7pm.

Check it out! Oh yes, they also have this on going promotion where you can send you kids to the skating workshop on the ice platform with a purchase of any amount.

And speaking of Ice…. Ice will too be performing at the Singapore Magic Festival starting next week! Do check us out, we will see you there!

Marco the Adventurer!

Take some notes.
This is among one of my favorite videos posted on here.

I was in a wintery mood today, although I live in Florida and we never get snow. With these past 5 days off from the day job, maybe I’ve gone coo coo or should I say penguin? I’ve got some new printable greetings in the Shop and I whipped up a FREEBIE printable holiday card for you…AND a desktop complete with December 2009 calendar! The cards print one-up on an 8.5″ x 11″ sheet, trim and fold to 5″ x 7″. Cards fit a standard A7 envelope. Desktop is 1680 x 1050. Check out the Freebies tab for more penguins (iron ons), a lovely Winter Pomegranate Scrub recipe with printable tag and some printable Gift Tags. (for PCs right click images below or option click for Macs)

FREE printable greeting card

FREE desktop with calendar

free printables not for commercial use, personal use only.

[artwork © Aimee Elizabeth McEwen]

By Akilah Russell

With Christmas hot on our heels everybody is in the mood for some festive fun, and what better way to bring in the season to be jolly than at three of London’s most famous open air ice rinks as whatsup gives you the grand tour of; Somerset House, Hyde Park, and Canary Wharf, and gives you the low down on which winter wonderland will wow you the most.

Winter wonderland

By far the most beautiful of the bunch comes in the very glamorous form of the very famous Somerset House. Renowned for its striking architecture, the stunning scenery is set to dazzle you into parting with your £7.50 (for students with ID) for a session of skating on the spectacular colour changing ice. Sponsored by Tiffany’s and co, it is clear that no expense for elegance was spared as you are automatically greeted by a colossal Christmas tree complete with gold, silver and platinum trade mark Tiffany charms; as well as being serenaded with classical music while you skate. The rink closes in January 2010, however, don’t rush there just yet as prices for students are dependent on times and dates so make sure you check before you leave the house!

If you prefer something a little more subtle then Canary Wharf ice rink is the surprising surreptitious skating space that sits in the heart of the city, is the place for you. For £9.00 with a valid NUS card you can skate in the modest rink which is open until February 2010. Or if you do not want to get your skates on then you can hang out in the Moose Bar next door, and have a nice glass of mulled wine instead!

Self proclaimed ‘‘winter wonderland’’ at Hyde Park which is open until January 2010 comes equipped with a full market place selling various winter warmers like hot chocolate and comfort foods like steak sandwiches. It even boasts its very own bilingual karaoke singing Reindeer head – yes, you read correctly! However, the ice skating rink itself leaves a lot to be desired. Considerably less pleasing to the eye than the others it seems that the rink was a secondary thought to the rest of the ‘‘wonders’’ that were on offer. And at the same price on as Canary Wharf off peak at £9.00, that prices raises to £11.50 for students with a valid NUS card, it seems that it might not be the best offer of the three.

mf You can buy tickets for all three at ticketmaster.co.uk or you can pay directly at the box office wheb you arrive. So, go on get your skates on! ENDS

Previously:
Justin Collins

This has alot of good spots and alot of good skating in it.

Violet Femmes were leading at half time, only to be narrowlly beaten by the Maidens of Mayhem 101-99.

When Canadian Elvis Stojko was dazzling the figure skating world at the Lillehammer Winter Olympics in 1994, 11-year-old Humberto Contreras was at home in Mexico City glued to the television.

Not in a million years would Contreras have believed that the three-time world champion he credits with triggering his interest in figure skating would 14 years later become his coach at a commercial, undersized rink in Guadalajara, mainly used by Tapatio couples out on awkward first dates.

On Wednesday afternoon, Stojko enters Ice Land, Guadalajara’s sole rink, without fanfare, warmly congratulating his pupil Contreras, who last weekend was crowned Mexican National Champion.

Both have reaped the benefits of a chance encounter in November 2008.

“When Elvis walked into the rink with some friends I was like ‘woo,’ but I didn’t want to act goofy,” explains Contreras, who compares the initial encounter to David Beckham coming to train at a local soccer club. “I told him I would love him to help me in any way he could and I’d love to have a lesson.

“Then he called me and said he’d give me a one-week trial. He told me to just do my thing but my legs were like chicken legs. But we both felt a connection and he said he wanted to work with me and set up a training schedule.”

Stojko had stumbled on the Guadalajara rink after being asked by Lakeside neighbors to give their kids ice skating lessons.

“It’s Humberto who got me back,” explains Stojko, who had put his skates away, seemingly for good, in 2006. “His energy is unbelievable. The ice here isn’t the best but he just gets on with it. Not like some whinging babies who expect to have everything.”

Contreras has had it far from easy and still needs sponsorship to enable him and his coach to travel to the world championships in Torino, Italy in March next year. With very little funding from the Mexican government for the sport, Contreras pays for his ice time by working seven days a week at the rink coaching children. From the same source of income he pays to fly himself to competitions.

And when he gets to the international events he finds a rink much bigger than the one in Guadalajara, ice that is smooth and Zambonis that work. Most of the other competitors also have the opportunity to practice at least twice as much as Contreras.

“I have to adapt,” laughs Contreras. “It’s amazing for me being there. I just enjoy it.”

The pair traveled to the Four Continents Figure Skating Championships in Vancouver in February this year, where Contreras got a rude awakening to Stojko’s popularity in Canada.

“It was so crazy,” says the Mexico City-born skater, now living in Zapopan. “There were people screaming and asking him for autographs. And then when I was in free practice they announced: ‘Humberto Contreras, trained by Elvis Stojko.’ The crowd were cheering and going wild. It was a different energy for me from everything I’ve done before.”

Contreras adds: “No-one knew where he was. It was a big shock for Canadians.”

“I just didn’t tell anyone where I was,” explains Stojko nonchalantly.

The truth is that Stojko purchased a house by Lake Chapala on the second day of a visit in 2001 and, like many from northern climes, simply fell in love with the place.

“I knew my future was to be here,” says Stojko. “I love the weather and the people.”

After announcing his retirement from skating in 2006, Stojko moved south permanently, presumably to seek a degree of normality and escape the media, with whom he’s had a turbulent relationship. He’s even been enjoying the challenge of learning Spanish.

“If I go to a skating event in Canada they all want a piece of me,” says Stojko.

Back in Guadalajara at Ice Land, it’s very much back to basics for the Newmarket, Ontario native.

Aside from training Contreras and passing on words of wisdom to other young Mexican skaters, Stojko has been using his world championship and Olympic experience at the rink to take Zamboni parts to be fixed, advise the owners how to look after the ice and has even installed steps for kids to get onto the ice safely, as well as hooking up a speaker system.

“The facilities need a lot of work, there’s a lot that needs to be fixed,” says Stojko. “Little things they solve by sticking a Band Aid on it instead of completing the repair.”

The Canadian, however, is keen to maintain the focus on what his pupil has achieved despite the problems and gushes unbridled praise for Contreras’ raw skating talent.

“He’s a joy to work with,” enthuses Stojko, for whom Contreras is the first person he’s ever trained on a serious one-on-one basis. “The potential is limitless. He learns well, retains information, stays focused and has all the necessary components. It’s just difficult for him to balance the training with paying bills.”

Aged 26, Contreras is now entering the last stage of his career. He hasn’t qualified for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics even though  coach Stojko believes he’s good enough to go.

The obvious question is what would have happened if the two had met earlier, but with Stojko as trainer and four or five years of competition left in Contreras, who’d bet against some kind of movie script ending to his career at the 2014 Olympics in Russia? It’s already been the stuff of fairytales.

We finally got Abby’s “documents” in the mail, and practiced her alias and alibi a few times.  After a few last minute stops in Seattle to drop off post cards and check out some thrift stores, we got over the Canadian border halfway legal with no problem what so ever.  We got in touch with Leon at Shop-Task and he was gracious enough to host us, but under one condition.  He was throwing a Halloween party so we couldn’t stay without  costumes.  Sounds like a fair deal to me.

Vancouver is a beautiful city, with lots of nice upgrades with the winter Olympics coming soon.  There are also over 40 skate parks in the city, and we made sure to take advantage of a handful of them.  Value Village helped us put together the finishing touches on the Halloween costumes, and we got ready for the party.    We were only in the city for about 48 hours, but it felt like a lot longer.

the view from Shop Task

beautiful city!

these guys do it right!!

keeping it simple… NO CRIME!!

this spot was apparently for the Vistor King

out skating before noon, Canadians are crazy!

Leon pointing out an old stunt he fakee rolled to backflip

testing some RB flatrockers in the bowl

as if 45+ skateparks weren’t enough, skateboarders built this too in their spare time

Leon got the glasses for his costume but could barely see out of them

love it

rejected costume #1

rejected costume #2

Ellie (or Ely?  or Elly?) with the cobweb decoration

spooking up the loft

party time!  costumes below

rooftop view with a fireworks show later in the night

somehow I got cut, and for some reason somebody decided I needed a butterfly stitch haha

caught in the web

we moved the party to something John and Yoko were more familiar with

the vision

me, john, and yoko

zoolander and lady gaga

care bears patrolling the street

peggy bundy brought a pistol too

the old “abby’s face in a bowl”

spent the hangover morning at the elbow room, one of those places where the staffs job is to make fun of you and be as obnoxious as possible.  always a good way to cheer up your day.

Snowshoe tracks in Algonquin Park near Algonquin Log Cabin Lodge

As promised in last week’s post, we’ve got some great ideas for New Year’s Eve this week: a family New Year’s Eve in Niagara Falls, elegant dining north of Toronto and in our nation’s capital and an Algonquin Park wilderness adventure complete with a log cabin lodge stay.

The Americana Conference Resort & Spa in Niagara Falls has “Family Spectacular” – non-stop New Year’s Eve fun for the whole family. It’s a big hit every year with an all-you-can-eat buffet and lots of entertainment like The Smudge Fundaes and the Zero Gravity Circus. More info here.

Water bucket and wave pool at the Americana in Niagara Falls

The Americana also has one- and two-night packages with the new Rink at the Brink. The one-night package includes tickets to the Rink at the Brink which is right by the falls, passes to Americana’s Waves Indoor Waterpark as well as your accommodation. Two night packages are the same except they’ve added a $50 meal voucher for the in-house restaurant and Waves snack bar.

Check out Tourism Niagara for more news on Rink at the Brink and other things to do in the Niagara region.

Holiday decorations at the Millcroft Inn and Spa

In the Caledon Hills, 45 minutes northwest of Toronto, the Millcroft Inn and Spa will ring in the new year with its “New Year’s Eve Gala Getaway”. You get two nights at the inn, a welcome reception on December 30th and then a three-course dinner from their a la carte menu. On December 31st there’s a Country Continental Breakfast Buffet, an Al fresco Lunch (on the Pinnacle or wedding garden, weather permitting).  The New Year’s Eve Gala Dinner has live entertainment with the Brenda Lewis Jazz Band, festive party favours and a champagne toast at midnight. January 1st starts with a light breakfast buffet. But if you sleep in, you can catch the New Year’s Day Brunch a little later.

Gratuities on food and beverages are included. This package starts at $299 CAD per person, per night (plus taxes, based on double occupancy and a two night stay, subject to availability). Valid December 30-31, 2009.

To get in touch with the Millcroft, call them at 1-800-383-3976 or check them out on the web. Also see the post we did on them last August and some comments about their food from last week.

Brookstreet’s four-diamond Perspectives Restaurant

The elegant Brookstreet Hotel might be the way to go in Ottawa. It has a seven course New Year’s Eve dinner planned. The food at Brookstreet is exceptional (CAA four-diamond rating for both hotel and restaurant) and the place has a real contemporary feel. You can get late night seating times for dinner priced at $149.95 per person and, if you decide t0 make a night of it, they’ll throw in a room for $99/double occupancy. Taxes and gratuities are extra. Personally, I have my eye on the 850 square foot Master Suite with Jacuzzi and balcony, but I haven’t called for a price on that yet. There are a lot of package options at this time of year, so check out the website for details and pricing.

The Algonquin Log Cabin

This next New Year’s Eve idea combines a log cabin stay in the Canadian wilderness with traditional Canadian winter activities. The place is Algonquin Log Cabin near Algonquin Park. Nothing beats a jump in the snow fresh out of this lodge’s wood-fired sauna! But hey, that’s just my opinion. If you want black dresses and high-heels on New Year’s Eve, you may prefer the Brookstreet or the Millcroft.

“Snowshoeing, Torch Lit Skating and Backcountry Skiing” are planned from December 31, 2009 to January 2, 2010 at Algonquin Log Cabin. This spectacular split log lodge with its huge fieldstone fireplace is on a lake bordering Algonquin. In winter, the park is a land of frozen lakes, waist-deep snow, and lots of crisp clear air.

Accommodation at the lodge is double occupancy with shared indoor washrooms, as well as a sauna and shower cabin. Group size is limited to 12 guests and two guides who prepare all the meals. After an invigorating day on the trail, it’s the perfect place to hang out. This New Year’s Eve getaway is priced at $475 per person. Add-on activities include ice fishing and dogsledding. Return transportation from Toronto is available for $175 per person. See the website for further details.

Awesome. Apparently, I forgot to post 7 so here it is.

Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy your free meal and go skate. Most places will be closed so the chances of getting kicked out should be down.

Previously:
Lazy Sunday 6
Lazy Sunday 5 @ Ollie’s Skatepark
Rampus Champus
Lazy Sunday 4
Lazy Sunday 3
Lazy Sunday

Electric Skaterland

Austin births a Roller Derby revolution

Over the summer, I had the privilege of tagging along with Brian Tucci and Keir Johnson, kicking it a various skate spots in and around D.C.

Check out this short video, that features some skating, Tucci’s abstract art, and a trip to Fight Club:

For more Skate Videos of Keir :  Check this out

For more Skate Videos of Brian: Check this out

Sponsored by JPSkate and Boardshop

After much back and forth, hemming and hawing, searching the city for classical music cd’s, and listening to much music, I finally settled on my skating program music:

Amazingly this morning we got almost the whole program laid out, once the main elements were decided.  Three spins, a huge spiral sequence up the entire length of the ice (inside edge, outside edge going forwards on right foot) turn a few steps, back left foot.  My coach says the music moves in waves, like water.  It is slow, and fast at the same time so that your moves can use each.  There will be a lot of swoopy edges, and turns, and changes in height up and down like waves.  I’ve always loved the music from the movie The Piano, which is important because over the next few months I’m going to hear it over and over again!  Maybe one of these days we can get Mr. J out to the rink to take a video, once I master all the moves for you Mum!

Alright, music check, program almost check.  Next up is the dress!  When my Mum was here in the fall she made me a simple black skating dress with a tank top.  I’m thinking the dress needs to flow like water, and be a bit wispy.  Blue and silver sequins should do nicely around the bodice and on the skirt, and some short sleeves made out of a floaty material.  Then something sparkly to put in my hair!  Maybe a bit wispy and floaty as well.  Boy oh boy, this is going to be a lot of fun!

Coming out next month.