Author Archives: Abby Hunt

Wordle Sold to New York Times

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What started out as a fun little game turned into a source of income for this software engineer.

The New York Times has bought Wordle. The Times, which announced the purchase of the game on Monday, is adding this word game to their stack of digital games. The company is on the quest to increase digital subscriptions to 10 million by 2025.

The sudden hit, Wordle, is a daily word game where players get 6 chances to guess a 5-letter word. With each guess the letters get highlighted a different color. Green means the letter is correct and in the correct place, yellow means the letter does exist in the word but it is not in the correct spot and black means the letter does not exist in the word at all. A new puzzle is posted every day and players can share how quickly they can solve the game on social media without giving away the answer to the challenge.

Part of the fun of this game is knowing that you can only play once a day and this creates more competition amongst family and friends.

Wordle was originally created by a software engineer, Josh Wardle. The game, which was a play on words from his name, was made to keep him and his family busy and entertained during the pandemic.

Amidst the pandemic, Josh Wardle stated that him and his partner found themselves occupied with the Time’s crosswords and spelling bee games.

“New York Times Games play a big part in its origins,” Josh Wardle stated, “and so this step feels very natural to me.”

Although the price at which Times bought it at has not been disclosed, it is stated that it falls in the low seven figures.

Black History Month in Vancouver

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February is Black History Month in Canada and it’s extremely important for people in Canada to take this time and use it as an opportunity to educate ourselves about the history, the culture, achievements, and contributions of Black Canadians.

This year’s theme for Black History Month is: “February and Forever: Celebrating Black History today and every day,” which focuses on honouring and recognizing the daily contributions that Black Canadians make for Canada.

It is not just enough to celebrate Black History Month once a year, but it is crucial that every day we are honouring, uplifting and respecting the voices and lives of members of the Black community.

To help honour, educate and celebrate, compiled is a number of informative Black History Month events taking place in Vancouver.

 

BC Black Awareness Society hosts a zoom conversation with Dr. Cornel West

Being a Hope Amid Crisis: A Conversation with Dr. Cornel West, a professor at Union Theological Seminary and Professor Emeritus at Princeton University. Dr West has authored 20 books, including Race Matters, Democracy Matters, his memoir, Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud, and his newest book, Black Prophetic Fire.

The discussion takes place over zoom on February 16th, 2022 from 5-6pm and it is completely free to participate. Visit here for more information.

 

Vancouver Mural Festival’s Black Strathcona Resurgence Project

Vancouver Mural Festival partnered with local Black artists, curators, businesses and communities to embark on a project showcasing Black storytelling through the visual impact of public murals.

To experience the murals, visit the South wall of the BC Hydro Murrin Substation building on Main Street & Union Street – the intersection of Hogan’s Alley & Chinatown. Visit here for more information.

Black History Month at VIFF Centre

The Vancouver International Film Festival Centre presents a month of movies that highlight Black voices from around the world. Films include Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America and Music. Money. Madness – Jimi Hendrix: Experience Live in Maui.

The VIFF Centre is located at 1181 Seymour Street, Vancouver. You can find more information about the event and purchase tickets here.

 

Artists Removed Their Music from Spotify

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You may notice some iconic songs missing from your playlists. A number of notable artists have removed their music off of the major streaming platform, Spotify.

Spotify has been in the throes of controversy since the famous artist Neil Young forced the country’s largest streaming service to choose between him and the popular podcast host, Joe Rogan. Joe Rogan has a $100 million contract deal with Spotify who has exclusive rights to his show, “The Joe Rogan Experience”. In the past two years, Joe Rogan has been repeatedly sharing and providing a platform for misinformation on Covid-19 and vaccines to his audience and Spotify has failed to take action against it.

Neil Young demanded last week that his music be removed from the service over the ongoing controversy. Most known for his songs “Harvest Moon” and “Heart if Gold”. The musician stated “(Spotify) can have Rogan or Young. Not both,” in a letter written to Spotify Jan. 24th. On Jan. 26th Spotify said it had agreed to remove Young’s music.

In stance with Young, friend and musician Joni Mitchell decided to also remove her music from the platform. The Canadian artist is famous for many songs and her most notable album “Blue” which is held in high regard and thought of as one of the greatest albums of all time.

This movement was then followed by other artists including India.Arie, Nils Lofgren and Young’s former bandmates David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash.

After the backlash, Spotify announced that it would add content advisories to any podcast episodes discussing Covid-19. In response to Spotify’s announcement, Rogan defended himself in a video posted to Instagram but he promised to “try harder” to offer more balance on his show, which is estimated to reach 11 million listeners each episode.

The 2022 Winter Olympics Have Begun

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The 2022 Winter Olympics have officially kicked off in Beijing.

The Opening Ceremonies took place on Friday February 4th with a beautiful show with the theme of “Together for a Shared Future”. Beijing is the first city in history to host both a Summer and a Winter Olympics. The Opening Ceremonies were held at the National Stadium, also known as the Bird’s Nest, which was originally build for the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Team Canada dawned their red lululemon kits and were definitely the comfiest and coziest of all the teams. Lululemon was named the official outfitter for the next four Olympics replacing Hudson’s Bay 16-year run. Jaws were dropped over their new fits and fans were raving about it over social media.

Two of Team Canada’s most accomplished athletes carried the maple leaf flag into Friday’s Opening Ceremony. Short track speed skater Charles Hamelin and the captain of the women’s hockey team, Marie-Philip Poulin. Hamelin, who is 37 years old, is competing in his fifth Olympic Winter Games and holds five Olympic medals. Poulin was Canada’s gold medal hero at Vancouver 2010 and Sochi 2014. She scored the game winning goal to defeat the United States during sudden death overtime in the finals at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

To start off the competition, Isabelle Weidemann captured bronze in the women’s 3000m speed skating event which would be Canada’s first medal of the 2022 Winter Olympics.

In addition, Mikaël Kingsbury takes home a sliver medal in the men’s moguls.

The 2022 Winter Olympics will run from Friday, February 4th until Sunday, February 20th. After that, the 2022 Winter Paralympics will run from Friday, March 4th until Sunday, March 13th.

See the medal count and standings here.

 

12th Annual Hot Chocolate Festival

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Do you need an excuse to devour some delicious cocoa? Look no further!

The Vancouver Hot Chocolate Festival is a local excuse for all to treat themselves to mugs of gourmet hot chocolate.

2022 is the 12th anniversary for the festival and the dates are January 15th to February 14th.

Although it is not a traditional festival due to COVID-19, there are 44 venues participating. Each one of these locations offers an exclusive selection of hot cocoa creations. This festival is not like most where you may find parades in the streets, live entertainment or lineups down the sidewalk, it is really just an excuse to try a really tasty and unique cup of cocoa.

Use this as an opportunity to explore your city with a cup of tasty hot cocoa warming up your hands. Be prepared though, most of the concoctions are not like your average cup of cocoa. Each café might have their own twist such as white chocolate, smores, cookies, whipped cream and so much more.

Here are a few of the locations participating in the City of Vancouver.

Cadeaux Bakery – 172 Powell Street in Gastown. They are offering two drinks, a caramelized strawberry hot chocolate and another infused with pear, figs and ginger.

East Van Roasters – 319 Carrall Street, Vancouver. They are offering a dairy-free passionfruit and white chocolate drink and a caramel hot chocolate.

Mink Chocolates & Café – 863 West Hastings Street, Vancouver. They are offering a milk chocolate with marshmallow truffle and a ruby chocolate ganache.

Thierry Chocolate Patisserie Café – 1059 Alberni Street, Vancouver. They are offering a hot chocolate that features coffee cream, black pepper and mint and the other is an almond, chocolate and cinnamon beverage.

 

Check here for more information and a list of cafes, bakeries and restaurants that are participating.

‘Pam and Tommy’ Miniseries Controversy

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A new show is creating controversy, but what good show doesn’t?

Pam and Tommy is a new miniseries that showcases the whirlwind romance between actress Pamela Anderson (played by Lily James) and the Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee (played by Sebastian Stan). The series goes into detail about the infamous unauthorized sex tape scandal that was made public at the time. The show is also starring Nick Offerman, Seth Rogen and Taylor Schilling.

Although the new series has created lots of buzz, there is lots of negative backlash due to the nature of the show.

Pamela Anderson revealed early on in the making of the show that she finds the series very painful as it retells real life, private, intimate moments that will be shared and seen by millions without her consent therefore bringing up lots of past trauma.

Although the show legally does not need her consent or permission, there are limitations that the series can’t defame the subject.

It is a bit ironic that the show tries to be taking a feminist stance and does a great job at humanizing her and rightfully placing her as the victim to the whole scandal but then you learn that she never gave her blessing to the show and all the feminism suddenly feels all a bit fake.

I must admit they did a great job at casting. I never could have pictured Lily James as Pamela but they completely transformed her and she really takes on the character well. Sebastian Stan also feels right as Tommy Lee, a much different role from his Winter Soldier character. His chemistry with Lily is what really sells it. Their scenes together feel real and really draw you in to the show.

If you’re still interested the series is available to stream on Hulu in the United States and on Disney Plus in Canada.

Super Bowl 56 hosts Rams vs. Bengals

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Next weekend calls for the most beautiful time of year. No, not Valentine’s day, the Super Bowl duh!

The 56th Super Bowl will be taking place on February 13th, 2022 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

This year’s match will be between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals which will be the first time these two teams have actually ever met in a championship game. This will also be the Bengals’ first Super Bowl appearance since 1988 when they met and lost to the 49ers. The Bengals have only appeared in three Super Bowls total including this year and both times they were matched up against the San Francisco 49ers and lost both times.

The Los Angeles Rams on the other hand are making their fifth Super Bowl appearance, with the last one being in 2018 against the New England Patriots where they were defeated 13-3. It is known as the lowest scoring Super Bowl of all time.

Not only will the game be worth watching but so will the halftime show. This year has quite the iconic lineup. Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Kendrick Lamar and Mary J. Blige will be taking the stage and between the five of them, they have a collective 45 Grammy wins. I feel like the five of them are a perfect fit for the California vibe.

Go get a case of your favourite brews, some snacks, some friends and sit back and enjoy the big game. Tune in at 3:30pm Sunday, February 13th, 2022.

Lunar New Year in Vancouver

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Chinese New Year is officially upon us. February 1st, 2022, marks the start of a new lunar year and the celebrations last for more than two weeks. This year, 2022, is the year of the tiger.

The last year of the tiger was 2010. There are 12 different animals, each of them are associated with positive and negative characteristics. The tiger represents strength, power, resilience, courage and bravery.

 

Here is some information on some local lunar new year events happening in Vancouver.

New Years at the Chinese Garden

Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden hosts celebrations over the weekend, February 5th and 6th between the hours of 10am to 5pm. Activities include storytelling, crafts and calligraphy. The City Opera Vancouver is scheduled to perform at 4:30pm on the Saturday.

Admission to the garden on both days is by donation.

 

LunarFest Celebrations

On February 5th and 6th from 11am to 6pm, LunarFest Celebrations by the Asian-Canadian Special Events Association takes place at the Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza. There will be live performances, community booths and it all will be free for visitors.

Takes place in Šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énḵ Square which is on the north side of the Vancouver Art Gallery – 750 Hornby Street.

 

Lunar New Year with Bob Sung

Popular local foodie and guide Robert “Bob” Sung and the Chinatown Storytelling Centre share Chinese New Year traditions, stories, tips and recipes in a virtual event to celebrate Lunar New Year.

The zoom call with take place on January 29th from 2-3pm and its completely free to register.

Lunar New Year Workshop

Learn about the history, customs and traditions behind Lunar New Year celebrations at a Coquitlam Heritage workshop. The instructor Jessica Yue will demonstrate a handful of traditional dances and also a cooking demonstration of sesame balls and baked rice cakes.

The workshop takes place January 29th from 1pm to 3pm and its completely free to register online.

 

Chinese Restaurants in Vancouver

Bao Bei – at 163 Keefer in Chinatown. Affordable yet delicious Chinese restaurant.

Dynasty Seafood – 777 West Broadway. An upscale award-winning Chinese restaurant famous for its dim sum.

Kirin – 102-1172 Alberni Street. Another award-winning upscale Chinese restaurant.

 

Super Bowl 56 Announces Halftime Show Lineup

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I’ll be honest, I’m not a big football fan. I don’t pay much attention during the season, I don’t know many of the teams, the stats or even player’s names but each year when the Super Bowl comes around, I’m always watching.

My family is much more of a hockey family but regardless every February we all get together, cook up some good food, pour up some drinks and watch the game. I think it’s just become a bit of a happy family tradition that we don’t want to break.

I’ll admit, I’m mostly there for the food, drinks and of course the half time show. This year’s lineup blew me away. 5 iconic rap and R&B legends are performing. Mary J Blige, Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Kendrick Lamar will be taking the stage. The five artists have a combined total of 43 Grammys and have released 19 No. 1 Billboard albums.

In 2021, The Weeknd was the only headliner for the halftime show. Although he was the sole performer, he still put on a show worth the watch.

Super Bowl 56 will be taking place at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. It’ll be the first Super Bowl in Los Angeles since 1993. Having this lineup seems pretty fitting for California. Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre and Kendrick Lamar are all from Los Angeles.

Although we don’t yet know who will be playing in the 56th Super Bowl, at least we know we’ll be having a star-studded half-time performance.

Check out the trailer “The Call” for Super Bowl 56 halftime show here. In this quick tease, each of the headliners receive a call from Dr. Dre recruiting the quintet with a medley of their most popular and well-known tracks, guaranteed to get you hyped for this year’s show.

The 56th Super Bowl will be taking place on February 13th.

What The Heck is Wordle?!

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I’m sure you have been seeing those green, yellow and black squares all over your social media recently and wondering why the heck the word “wordle” is trending on Twitter. Well, you’re not alone, I too, was wondering the exact same thing.

Consider this your introduction and guide to “Wordle”, your new daily addiction.

“Wordle” is a free online game where you must guess a five-letter word in six tries. You only get one chance a day and everyone across the globe gets the exact same word. If you don’t get it in six tries, you don’t get to find out the word. The new word is released each day at midnight.

Each time you guess a word the letters may turn green, yellow or black to indicate if it is in the correct position. If you get green, it means that the individual letter is correct and in the correct spot. Yellow means that the individual letter appears somewhere in the word but not in that current spot. And black means that the individual letter does not appear in the word at all.

Everyone has their own strategy to solving the daily puzzle, mine is to use a word with a bunch of vowels to knock them out of the way. My go to word is arise, feel free to use it!

The origin of this fun language game is quite a sweet story. A software developer, Josh Wardle created the game for his girlfriend to play during pandemic as she was bored with the usual word games. In October 2021, he released the game to the rest of the world, and it now has more than two million players across the globe.

The game is available here. And if you’re looking for something a little less mature, check out “Lewdle” here. The game has the same rules, but the words are a little more on the crude side, so tread lightly!