Taking The Sprawl's Pop-Up Press out of winter storage later this week. So I spruced up the webpage this morning, in anticipation of a new season. Join us Saturday, Apr 25, outside Shelf Life Books for Canadian Independent Bookstore Day! Will be there from 11am to 1pm.
Ha! At this rate, you are right.
For better or worse
Like three times a week I announce at home that I will be tendering my resignation from The Sprawl
Ah! It was a different shop. Sidjak met Tom Williams at the Book Shoppe, and then went to work for Tom at his shop (not the same as the Book Shoppe) on 17th Ave. Which was wiped out by the flood. The Booke Shoppe was before my time and I don't think I ever went to Tom's shop, alas
For the physical media enjoyers: stories of running bookshops.
Four of my favourite bookshops in Western Canada are run by people who grew up in Calgary, though not all of them stayed. I wanted to find out how they got bit by the bookselling bug—and what keeps them going today. So I asked them.
I am on track for that if I keep adding more clips like I am today
Totally. I think making a print archive - literally printing out all The Sprawl's stuff - would be worthwhile. But also a nightmare because even printing our articles from the website doesn't work properly. I should find a way to fix that...
This is the way!
Tomorrow's Sprawlcast is clocking in at 1:03:50. That is: 1 hour, 3 minutes and 50 seconds. There is no filler that I can hear. I want it to be an hour or less. My wife says I should let go of my arbitrary goal. The problem is I keep adding clips...
😬
I think of this often. It stresses me out. I put it off. And then the backlog of Sprawl stories that should be archived grows. It worries me, especially because so much of my reporting draws from the local printed historical record. What will future researchers have to draw on from this era?
This weekend's Sprawlcast is a true labour of love.
Oooooh I definitely need to hear this!
Yes!! We shall see. Also - did not intend to throw shade at you with my most recent bleet (or whatever it’s called). They were talking about weather “events” at council this morn and I fired it off as snippy city council commentary
Since I'm apparently cranky and grousing about overused terms—enough with appending "event" onto everything! Weather event, snowstorm event, flood event, drug overdose event... the list goes on. It's empty filler. You can cut "event" and lose nothing. Weather, snowstorm, flood, overdose. See? 😀
This morning at Calgary city council, mere seconds into the meeting: we are on a “flood resilience journey!” 😞🤣 #yyccc
Yikes. "Comfort items!"
Lol. Amen to that! I mean, presumably "journey" was useful as a metaphor before its current overuse. But when everything is a journey... nothing is.
Yes! Infantilizing. Although this seems to be where we are headed culturally. Yesterday I was at an info session for my Gr 9 son's upcoming school backpacking trip and the teacher kept referring to it as pretty good "babysitting" of our teenagers for a few days... felt I was gonna snap
Everything at Calgary city council is a "journey." Reconciliation. Recycling. Arena deal. Budget. You name it. No matter what it is, we are on a "journey." Oh it's a trip all right... #yyccc
Wish I'd seen it as a library... it was before my time in Calgary. Where we live now in Renfew, we aren't close to any library, unless you consider downtown close. But, as you say, convenience matters and it's often not convenient to pop downtown.
I used that branch from 1981 (when I first moved into Crescent Heights) to 1993 when it closed. I remember the community's reaction (including John McD's). Its closure basically stopped me from using the library ever again. Convenience matters.
This would have been my local library branch. Walkable and bikeable. And while I am sad about its disappearance, I had fun digging into this bit of local Calgary history! #yycbike #yyccc
I do! Painstakingly
I genuinely want to write this but am too busy working on my podcast 🙃
Angels v Braves fight has renaissance painting potential
Got this assigned, thanks everyone who shared this around!
jeremy@sprawlcalgary.com - thank you!