Tag Archives: games

Octopi Vancouver – Soccer Round Up

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Over the next couple months, Kurt and John will be bringing you a series of updates of Octopi Vancouver, Urban Rec’s premier soccer team. No we aren’t a team of Brazilians and no, you shouldn’t expect this segment to be a chronicle of countless victories. What you can expect is an ongoing narrative of community building on and off the pitch.

This week’s game was the first of our two month season. We are playing the whole season in Thunderbird Stadium. The games are seven aside and we were excited to bring together a dozen and half folks from different communities. Our team is made up of people from all walks of life including video editors, advertising executives, post-secondary career dudes (that’s you John), budding architects, reporters, and even political operatives (not me… I swear).

The diversity of the team was exciting. So was the positivity. Our crew arrived hungry and 45 minutes early in an eerily empty stadium. When the whistle blew, we came out of the gate strong. Within 10 minutes, star striker John Horn had managed to slip by the defense and crack a shot to the top right corner of the net. We were ahead one nothing. The crowd (composed of team’s two other subs) went wild. We were on our way. 

The moment of victory lasted for about five minutes until Nomads FC (our opponents), dressed in maroon bright orange, managed to slip by our team for a quick goal. “Bam,” as Emeril would say. After an initial rush of winning adrenaline, we were tied and could feel the momentum shifting. Our winger, architecture-student-by-day, soccer-star-by-night, Stew Burgess hustled back and forth down the field but couldn’t find an opening. Around then is when star midfielder Erin took a twist and a turn that sent sharp pain throughout her ankle. She’d be sitting off on the sidelines for the rest of the game. Meanwhile, the defense captained by Brenton and Roger were able to close down the Nomad FC’s constant strikes until 20 minutes in and a header off a corner kick that could have been lifted straight out of the World Cup. That’s when we started to realize the team we were playing was full of Englishmen. As usual, they displayed the latent skill in “football” of their countrymen and by the late part of the first half, their prowess was on full display. 

As the cold biting air ate away at our team in the second half, the team capitalized on Octopi‘s mistakes and notched three more goals. By the third goal, our back was broken. Despite repeated miraculous saves by Octopi goaltender David Willensky, the English “beast” would not be satiated. A late “dribble around the goalie” goal by John Horn could not inject any life into Octopi. We lay mangled on the plate like some calamari served up at White Spot. Pass the tatziki sauce boys. 

The final score was 5-2 (at least that’s what I’m going to say the score was). Miraculously, despite the drubbing on the field, spirits were not significantly damaged. I’m going to chalk that up to the perservering spirit inherent in the group of people that we’ve brought together. In fact the teams positivity remained well after the final whistle was blown. After a brief “people’s mike” session, the team decided to take their “game” to the next level with the commissioning of some hot pink t-shirts. Stay tuned for a brief of our next game.

Stag & Does/ Jack & Jills/ Socials

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Over the past weekend I went to a Stag & Doe, my second since moving to Southern Ontario.  Stag & Does, also known as Jack & Jills or Socials (in Winnipeg) are a central Canadian pre-wedding tradition.  Basically, the idea is an engaged couple will throw a fundraising party to help cover the costs of their upcoming wedding.  It’s a way for the couple’s community to come together to support them while having a great party.

While like any wedding tradition there is a lot of room to customize the event, Stag & Does seem to have some common general features (based on the two I’ve attended and my limited internet research).  They are held primarily as a fundraising event.  And as the name suggests, they are co-ed.  To attend you usually need a ticket and you need to be prepared to take part in some games and draws over the course of the party.  Stag & Does tend to be organized by the bridal party, but sometimes the bride and groom themselves will host them.  And the invitations for Stag & Does often go much further than the wedding invitation list so it is a way for acquaintances and colleagues to celebrate the upcoming wedding along with closer friends and family.  Hosting a Stag & Doe doesn’t preclude you from other wedding traditions (like Bachelor/Bachelorette parties, bridal showers, etc.) although sometimes it will take the place of an engagement party. 

The two Stag & Does that I’ve been to were quite different.  One was a backyard, afternoon barbeque/keg party in suburban Toronto and the most recent one was held at the Legion in Waterloo (adding a whole other layer to the southern Ontario cultural experience).  The first Stag & Doe I attended was fairly casual and admission was the main component of the fundraising with food and beer included.  Last weekend was a more structured event with fundraising included in admission, drinks and games.  The games included a entrance draw, mini-golf, horse races, Canadian Tire money jar guess, draw for a lottery tree, and draws for a range of prizes (we tripled our number of board games in that draw – we now have 3). 

In both cases, one partner in the to-be-wed couple was still a student, so a bit of fundraising actually sense.  However, according to my Winnipeg expert, Socials are held for everyone regardless of whether a couple actually could use a bit of extra cash to have a wedding.  I’m not sure if that is the case with Southern Ontario Stag & Does or if they are done on a more “as needed” basis.  As well, in both cases, while I know the couple I had/have no expectation of a wedding invitation.  The draw is a great party with lots of people, a unique experience and chance to win prizess while experiencing a regional wedding tradition.

Hipster Bike Polo Comes to the Drive

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What do you get when you combine trash talking, Marxist philosophizing, skinny jeans wearing hipsters, bikes, trendy bowl helmets and plastic mallets? Why hipster bike polo of course.

Yesterday afternoon I had the fortune of pitching a lawn chair, beer in hand to watch a group of 12 guys (and a couple girls) zoom around the south side of three parallel tennis courts mounted on there trusty “steeds”. I was stationed on the grass above the tennis courts of Grandview Park  on the drive and was fortunate enough to take in several matches.

Each game was three aside. Each side’s goal was marked by two cones a few feet apart, that like hockey stood several feet from the back wall allowing polo players to zip around behind the goal and even pass the ball, backwards through the cones, to players waiting in front.

As a sipped my beer, loud Arcade Fire and other indie beats blasted from a boom box (that’s what we’re calling it these days!) on the other side of the tennis courts as the waiting polo players drank beers, smoked a joint, mowed on snacks and fixed upside down bikes that had been jostled during the last match. Inflatable rubber tubing was everywhere.

So was hardcore hipster sports action.

The whole scene was a groovy window into a community I’d never really witnessed first hand before. It had its own culture and its own vibe. I was surprised to see that despite one handed steering and the somewhat limited mobility of a bike, no one was splayed out on the concrete from a “hardcore” crash. In fact there were hardly any collisions at all. Perhaps its the sport itself, or maybe its the hipsters that were playing it. Could these fine young lads be far off from the upper crust British polo fore-bearers of centuries past? You be the judge!

Torch Travels Across the Communities of Canada

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Hudson Bay Olympics

Hudson Bay Olympics

As the torch slowly winds its way across the country, here in Vancouver, it’s increasingly tough to get away from the reality that the Olympics are coming and coming soon.

Indeed, you’d have to be on the moon here in Vancouver to not notice that the city is starting to feel awash in Olympic-boosterism.

Almost everyday there’s a new story coming out of one of the major new media outlets about the Olympics. A trip to the Bay reveals a store jammed with an entire new section of Olympic themed swag. Outside, in the downtown core, huge banners of athletes hang proudly as city work crews frantically  finish the last bits of construction in advance of the coming tourist hoards.

But for many of us who won’t be enjoying the party but will be feeling the hangover the next day, their are mixed feelings about the whole thing.

Torch to torch across Canada

Torch to torch across Canada

On the one hand, it’s an exciting time. Thousands of international guests, dignitaries, and visitors will be visiting our city from around the world. The business opportunities could well be stellar. Plus, even without tickets, it’s likely that most people will be able to find their way to at least one Olympic related party (there will certainly be enough of them going on). Worse case scenario – there’s always the big screen TVs in community centres. Plus the opportunity to watch or participate in the biggest winter sporting event in the world is pretty nifty – especially if Canada manages to win big.

On the other hand are the list of potential headaches. There’s the traffic congestion, the security hassle, and the general feeling that most tickets are going to companies rather than fans. Add to this that our own government recently dropped over $1 million for 2010 tickets which will be turned over to “foreign dignitaries, international investors, and BC’s biggest customers and future customers,” and it becomes apparent why many Vancouverites are feeling a bit left out in the cold (no pun intended) over the whole two week long event they will be hosting.

Where's the torch heading next?

Where's the torch heading next?

I won’t lie – the whole thing had left me a bit ambivalent.

Yet as the Games get closer, the Olympic Fever is becoming increasingly contagious.

The other day, cloistered in a small pub in Gastown, I had a chance to chat with several torch bearers about their whole experience. Both felt incredibly proud about the opportunity to participate in the ceremony and they both spoke glowingly of the feeling of unity they felt as part of the relay. Their enthusiasm for the whole thing was infectious. And it wasn’t enthusiasm culled from any type of Quachi-inspired boosterism. It seemed like it was coming from some place much deeper. An opportunity to participate in something enormous. To be a small cog in a big machine that slowly winding its way through Canadian communities far and wide.

In the end, the 106-day Olympic torch relay will span 45,000 kilometers and visit more than 1,000 communities with the help of 12,000 torch bearers. Just the thought of the geographic breath of the whole thing is startling.

And, truth be told, it’s kind of exciting.

Online Gaming Community

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When I was a youngin, I used to be deeply involved in the online gaming community. I played religiously, placing myself in front of the computer for 3-4 hours on end each night. Throughout high school, homework got done, but it was secondary. While other kids experimented with weed, drinks, and the opposite (or same) sex, I spent my time online. The “real world” wasn’t really a priority.

I played all sorts of games, but the majority of time was spent on Starcraft, Diablo II, Age of Empires and Half Life’s online team component.

The gaming community (and I don’t use the word community lightly) drew me in because of its inclusiveness. Unlike the social exclusion of high school, I felt accepted by my fellow anonymous mystery gamers who had user names like Morlock67 and CommanderCXX8X. We were all connected in our love of play. We chatted, played together, swapped stories of the past (gaming experiences) and joined into groups (clans) adding pals that you wanted to play with in future games. After a while you’d get to know some of the more familiar faces.

Once you jumped into a game, one of the first questions you might be asked (prior even to where are you were on the game’s map) might be where abouts everyone was from? San Diego, Virgina, Korea, Frankfurt might all pop up and in an instant you’d see just how far ranging our online community was.

The community of online gaming was recently chronicled by the London Times, though in a different light. According to a new study quoted in the article, 1 in 10 American kids are pathologically addicted to computer games. These kids display the symptoms of addiction including lying about the number of hours spent online, using games to escape their problems, and becoming irritable and frustrated when not playing games.

The article goes on to declare 90% of the children admitted to playing at one time or another with the average for boys of 16.4 hours spent online a week. The study further connected “pathological addition to video games” with poor school marks and generally with social dysfunction.

While few people would argue that maintaining a work ethic (and some perspective) is important while indulging in any community, I tend to wonder whether many critics of online gaming and its effects on youth give the idea of community in the online gaming world much credence. Is it just wasting time playing games or is there something more at work here?

Often the amount of time kids play online is lamented by critics. While I would certainly not argue that when you start lying about the amount of time you’re online or can’t function in everyday life without playing games is problematic, I think it behooves us to take a step back and sperate the idea of addiction from the connection to community that it is often masked by.

I don’t doubt that sports, theatre, television, or other hobby enthusiasts would feel similar feelings of irritation should they be told constantly that they should not be indulging more than an hour or so a day (if that…) in their chosen hobby and passion. Further, the sportstar would probably be even more non-plussed by the social and communal ramifications of his scaled down participation in the team.

Gaming, and the community it fosters no different than this in many cases. In the end, many critics – and parents – to paraphrase Carmine Falconi of Batman Begins, “will always fear what they don’t understand.” But by not trying to understand the unique online community and its draw to young people, many critics are doing a serious disservice to their children and themselves. The end result can put strains on the partent and child’s relationship, while at the same time disconnecting the teen from one of the few communities they still feel a connection to. Not a good thing for anyone.