Current Entries April 30, 2010. Here's a terrific opportunity for a rural property holding, on special Salt Spring Island! Fenced veggie garden, fruit trees, meadow area, forest perimeter for privacy, pleasing A-frame style home, plus detached garage/workshop. On main level, home offers sunny porch, mudroom entry, country kitchen with laundry/storage off, large living room with sliders out to deck, dining area, full bath. Upper level (storey and a half design) offers 2 large bedrooms and half bath. Lots of options, here, to make this generous space "your own"! Sunny land, close to lake and to ocean beach accesses, a quiet area, and waiting for your enjoyment. A best buy on this year round lifestyle Gulf Island! April 29, 2010. Pick up this week's Driftwood, and enjoy their Springtime Home Improvements feature insert. Emphasis on growing our own veggies, too! (Remember: the newspaper is online, too). This Friday is the grand opening of Country Grocer, in its uptown location. So many new things -- if you're a seasonal resident, and just about to arrive for that delectable May to October timeframe (the very best months to be on the Pacific Northwest Coast, of course!), you will be amazed at the significant changes to this Upper Village plaza. If you're around on Friday, enjoy the on site broadcast from the new community radio station, cfsi-fm.com on streaming audio, and have some cake! Don't miss the upcoming Potters Guild exhibit at Mahon Hall -- May 7th, 5 to 8 p.m., and May 8th, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Very talented artists here! Don't forget the 6th Annual Women in Business, May 13th, with a reception at ArtSpring. A great networking opportunity for all those with an entrepreneurial spirit! (Call the Driftwood newspaper, for more details). May 4th, amazing dance, Cock-Pit, choreographed by Wen Wei Wang, at 8 p.m., at ArtSpring. Call ticket centre at: 250-537-2102. Live music at Harbour House Hotel, on Friday, with Paul Bram, and again on Saturday, with Paul Mowbray (6:30 to 9 p.m.). Tree House Cafe features Terry Warbey tonight, and Lee Roy Stager on Friday, Lee's Hill on Saturday. Music from 6 till 9 p.m. Enjoy! Be inspired with Songs of Life at ArtSpring on May 1st and 2nd, with the Salt Spring Singers. Saturday show at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. So much to do and to see...winter cobwebs are totally erased, and Spring Flings are with us! April 28, 2010. Did you know that the Cowichan Valley folkfest group is having a songwriting contest? It's open to all Islanders -- Gulf Islands and Vancouver Island both. The idea is to create a song that sums up Island life...so, all you creative beings, get with it. The contest is open for entries until May 15th. And your song idea is????? A terrific line-up of events, for the month of May, at ArtSpring. Call for details on these offerings...theatre, dance, music, photography exhibitions, etc. We are so lucky on this Island, to be able to enjoy artistic endeavour of an inspiring quality. Remember to support the arts, with your attendance. As I often say to people, it needs two aspects in artistic creation...the creator of it and the audience to enjoy it! (I fall into that latter category!). If you haven't caught the Spring show at Gallery 8, in Grace Point Square, you are in for a treat...don't miss this. Exceptional artists on Gallery 8's roster, and the entire space has been reconfigured, with an upper level, too. Very pleasing, indeed, and the ability to really "see" the works on display, as their essential selves. Great options, on this year's Studio Tour, too. Pick up the map/brochure at the Chamber office, in "downtown Ganges". Try to discover "your island", too, if you're a resident...one way to do this is to take that studio tour. You will be amazed at the variety and at the scope/quality of the artistic visions you'll encounter. In Ganges Village, wander Steffich Fine Art Gallery, Gallery 8, Starfish Gallery, Frankly Scarlett, the Upstairs Bears (all in Grace Point Square), plus Jill Louise Campbell Gallery, across from Treehouse Cafe, in the Mouat's Boardwalk area, plus Pegasus Gallery on the Boardwalk, and the Salt Spring Gallery of Fine Art on McPhillips Avenue, just steps from ArtSpring, plus various artists showcasing their works at Salt Spring Roasting Company, at Cafe Talia, at Rendezvous Cafe, at Jana's Bakery, at Bocados Bistro, at Calvin's Bistro, and, of course, the shows at ArtSpring's Gallery. Lots to do and to enjoy...make sure you take a day, and give yourself the gift of time and inspiration. May has lots of events in it...Mother's Day (brunch is offered at several venues, including Hastings House, Harbour House Hotel, Calvin's Bistro, etc.), and there's our Victoria Day holiday weekend and the U.S. Memorial Day holiday weekend. The natural world is lush and beauty is everywhere...warmer temperatures, maybe even swimming in the lakes....it's late Spring/almost Summer, and Salt Spring Island and the Southern Gulf Islands are gems indeed, all year round, but especially at this time of the year. Breathe in....and out....and remember to really "look". Lucky us! April 27, 2010. Such changes in real estate...the business itself, at an industry level, is dramatically shifting. The reason for all these changes is, of course, a result of the consumer-centric business model that is the outcome of our technological change. As Marshall McLuhan said, back in the 1960s/70s, "the medium is the message". Our technology has changed us, as people, and thus our culture has shifted, too. The other wise saying of McLuhan was: we now live in a "global village". The internet erased time, geography, gender, race, age. It is an information medium, and it is about intellect to intellect. The recent BBC Super Power series was of great interest, as it maintained that the global citizens, working and thinking and playing off and on the Web, are truly where the future lies, and thus control the power position, globally. If this doesn't yet seem evident yet, it will certainly become so, soon. In Canada, the Ottawa realty company that sued CREA (Canadian Real Estate Association) through the Competition Bureau, maintaining that the consumer did not have unencumbered choice, due to CREA's control over the mls system, did win their suit. The head of the Competition Bureau didn't feel that the suit went far enough, and she intended to open up even more avenues of change, to benefit the consumer. This is profound, and will make certain, then, that suites of services will be open to the consumer. The search methods of the internet had already replaced much of what used to be accomplished by a realtor, in the first place, and these mls changes will further offer the consumer the ability to do many things, without necessarily having to contact a real estate agent. It calls into question many things that even five years ago were seen as "the only way to do it", in real estate sales. Certainly, advertising is one area that has dramatically changed; print, no matter how targeted, is not a valid medium of attracting a buyer, today. Those realtors who had thought of specializing as buyer's agents are finding that this doesn't attract a buyer, in the first place. In the great wash of searchable information, it's listings that attract buyers, and so we find even more competition among realtors, to get that listing. Some realtors will say/do anything to get a listing; if you find yourself being solicited by someone who is "badmouthing" another realtor, just know that it is because of that drive to be the listing agent, and one should weigh all comment from a competing realtor, for that listing. Ethics and character do count, in the long run. Also, some realtors only seek listings, and then wait for other realtors to sell their listing...make sure you connect with a realtor, if you're a seller, who also seeks a buyer. More info about all this? Call me! Since late October, 2005, there has been a "pause" in action in all secondary home/discretionary markets. It is only in the last month that we have seen renewed action in the upper end property category. From early 2009 into the first months of 2010, it was entry level properties that saw activity. Undeveloped land, higher end residential options, and commercial properties did not see action. The response from some realty companies/realtors was to start a massive price reduction move. This did not result in sales. When a buyer says: "I don't know, I'll think about it", they mean that. If a buyer doesn't act, then nothing can happen. Lack of sales, then, in the past two to three years, in the upper end, was a marker of buyer disinterest in the purchase of a secondary home property. Since last Fall, I've been waiting for the buyer who was resting heavily in cash to realize that this was not the thing to do; to preserve capital, in response to the immense printing of paper currencies, it was important to return to hard assets. As usual, I'm a good six to eight months ahead of the trend. In the past month, we have seen an eruption in the higher end sales segment, even in our discretionary marketplace, and this is now receiving media attention. More information on this? Call me! Different days, once again, in this very volatile and cyclical industry. liread33@gmail.com April 26, 2010. The Islands Trust is the form of government that "looks after" the Canadian Gulf Islands. Created in 1974, by the B.C. Provincial Government, to "preserve & protect" the environmental beauties of the Gulf Islands, for the benefit of all B.C. residents, the Trust capped growth on all the Islands, via strict zoning/density bylaws. As one drives around the Southern Gulf Islands (Salt Spring, Galiano, Mayne, Saturna, Penders), they are very close to what I call the "wall of no more", in the sense of having almost reached the end of their developable envelopes. In capping growth, and preserving huge tracts of park and ecological reserves, the Trust effectively created an "enclave area" for these Islands. Simple economics reminds us that low supply plus desire to attain usually results in higher price points being paid for the object. Although real estate is a cyclical marketplace, with highs and lows, and brief moments of being "even", over time it is on a consistent upward trajectory, particularly in areas where growth is curtailed (either topographically or via government measures, such as the Islands Trust). The photo below, with a vista of just one part of Salt Spring, shows the huge tracts of preserved land. Yes, we have seen a reduction in prices of a significant nature, over the past two year period. These islands are a secondary home/discretionary marketplace, and no one "has to" buy a second home option. In downtimes, then, such areas falter in buyer activity. In 1993, prices on Salt Spring rose by 60%, and by 1994 we had begun a slow slide that lasted until 1999. Prices which had gone up now reduced, over a period of three years, by 30%. Sounding familiar? Prices on Salt Spring, between 2002 and 2005 rose 60%. Appraisers now feel that prices have softened by 20 to 25%. Hmmm....economic distress still "out there", with Greece, Spain, and Ireland the most visible euro countries affected. Anxiety remaining in the U.S., and concern about China's expansionary nature (bubbledom coming?)....more paper money to be printed, to continue the effort to offset collapse/major deflation/depression? What about the value of that paper money? Perhaps a return to hard asset investment, while cash heavy positions seek safe haven opportunities? Where is that crystal ball, anyway! What is evident, locally, is that there is a resurgence of interest in the upper end property segment, and that's something new, in 2010. April 25, 2010. "Magic doesn't work in this new place. Native poetry has lost rhythm and rhyme, Familiar food is labeled a curiosity, And hostile stares replace familial love. To be an immigrant Is to be solitary in the midst of millions." (Deng Ming-Dao: "Tao....Daily Meditations"). April 24, 2010. Wow! Stellar home and exceptional viewscapes! Sunny, private acreage, close to all amenities, yet wonderfully "itself". Architect designed home, with a Dwell Magazine flair! Two master bedrooms, with sitting areas, dressing area, beautiful bathrooms, both with gas fireplaces. Guest bedroom, separate bath. Lots of storage! Designer kitchen, dramatic living room, feature (gas) fireplace. Oceanview dining! Amazing design ethic, here, and the wondrous ocean, islands and mountain views are truly breath-taking (270 degree sweep of views, with sunrises and sunsets. Expansive decking for al fresco living pleasures, and lap pool off on master suite. This is "the" best oceanview property on Salt Spring Island! Enjoy! April 23, 2010. BBC news reports : Greece calls on EU-IMF rescue loans President Obama attacks critics of bank reform bill Microsoft profit up 35% thanks to Windows 7 profits Credit rating firms criticised over financial crisis Nasa's Solar Dynamics Observatory returns first images Facebook's bid to rule the web as it goes social 'Texting eclipses calling' among US teenagers Vatican says US lawsuit against Pope 'without merit' April 22, 2010. Mark your calendars time: May 1st, at 8 p.m. and May 2nd at 2 p.m., at ArtSpring, it's Songs of Life, presented by the Salt Spring Singers. Director Mitch Howard and accompanist Jennifer Howard. Call ArtSpring ticket office for more info (250-537-2102). This Sunday, it's Gwynne Dyer, presenting Climate Wars, at ArtSpring, starting at 7:30 p.m. April 30th, Pegasus Gallery presents "As I See It", an exhibition of new works by Lady X, with opening reception that evening (5 to 8 p.m.). Did you know? Janthra is back! Gourmet Thai Meals, prepared and/or served at your home or at Janthra's home! Up to 10 people. Call Janthra for more info at: 250-653-9654. This Sunday, April 25th, it's the Bess Durey Band, featuring jazz pianist Amanda Tosoff, at ArtSpring, 2:30 p.m. concert. Zav RT & Daniel Huscroft present a CD Release, May 1st, at Mahon Hall (Doors at 7:30 p.m., Tickets $15 for adults & $8 for students). This Saturday, catch five of Canada's leading jazz improvisors, at All Saints by the Sea, when the Kelly MacNayr Quintet performs...showtime at 8 p.m. Tickets at the door. Tonight, at Tree House, it's Tess Fama, tomorrow Steph Rhodes, Saturday the great Darryl Chonka...6 to 9 p.m. Hats off to the Treehouse for consistent live music presentations! Don't miss the Spring Show at Gallery 8, in Grace Point Square...totally renovated and expanded space, and incredibly talented artists on display. Enjoy! Tonight, at Moby's, it's Blues Night, starting at 8 p.m., with Soul Shakedown. Tomorrow, Friday, it's Live Music with Kemel Evans Band, starting a 8 p.m., and Saturday it's the amazing and talented Planet Music (8 p.m.). Wave, if you see me! Catch the Painters Guild show at ArtSpring Gallery (runs till April 29th, 10 to 5 p.m. Such talent on this Island, both acoustically and visually...lucky us! April 21, 2010. It's amazing the difference in our natural world, between the beginning of April and the end of April. In my Pacific Northwest Coast area, one discovers anew the meaning of the word "green". So many shades, intensities of "green" out there, as foliage unfolds on the Maples, the Alders, the fruit trees....beauty everywhere! A good time to check out the areas on Salt Spring that we rarely visit, in our busy "local" lives. A trip to the top of Mount Maxwell, on a clear day. A picnic at Ruckle Park. A drive out to Musgrave Landing, with a stop at the Mill Farm Park (old growth and first growth forest has been preserved, here!). How about enjoying the sunsets from Vesuvius Beach? Or, walk the dog along Walker's Hook and North Beach Road. Don't forget Beddis Beach! So many special places to catch up on, and to be enchanted by, in these fresh Spring moments. Have time to go off island, and to visit another Gulf Island gem? Check out the Japanese Memorial Garden, at Dinner Bay, on Mayne Island...worth the short trip! How about Cowichan Bay, on Vancovuer Island, with its cheese artisans, incredible organic bakery, nearby vineyards to explore? Known as the Warm Land, the Cowichan Valley offers lots of day trip choices to feed your Spring Fever moments! Don't overlook the tried and true of a day visit to the fabulous Butchart Gardens, in the Saanich Peninsula, near Brentwood Bay, just outside Victoria. So many ideas, if you're a gardener, too. Pack a picnic, be fancy free, enjoy the freshness of the air, allow Nature to allure us to creative thoughts....be like a bear and shake off Winter's doldrums....breathe in, breathe out...enjoy the display. April 20, 2010. Looking for an opportunity to enjoy an almost turnkey business, on special Salt Spring Island? Here is the busiest restaurant in Ganges Village -- Calvin's Bistro's owners are retiring. They are willing to stay on for up to six months, if desired, to train a new owner. The locals and the tourists go here! A year round business, and the hours could certainly be expanded. Currently, owners are only open for lunch and dinner. Al fresco dining on their Harbour view deck, plus elegant dining space with terrific location...great walk by and drive by visibility. Perfect for a husband and wife, or for a chef/waiter combo. Excellent lease in place. More details? Call me! An opportunity to be able to live on Salt Spring, and to enjoy a profitable business, awaits you..... April 19, 2010. "Never jump out of the same hole twice." (Deng Ming-Dao: "Tao...Daily Meditations") April 18, 2010. Interested in a terrific holding property? An investment on Salt Spring Island, over time, will appreciate. The Islands Trust, created by the provincial government, in 1974, capped growth on all Gulf Islands. Salt Spring is the island with all services/amenities, including a hospital, and thus enjoys the year round lifestyle. This dramatic lot offers a wide-angle panoramic vista of ocean, islands, and mountains. Arable land, some open space and with still a lot of forested areas, this sunny acreage (s/sw/w exposures) offers privacy, quietness, and great sunsets! Zoned for main home, separate guest cottage, separate studio. Driveway roughed in, plus capped off drilled well developed. In a peaceful area of fine homes, this 3 + acres awaits your building plans. Close to golf, hiking/walking trails, park, and to lovely beach accesses (warm ocean swimming in this area!). Develop now, or hold for the future...a great opportunity! Bring your architect, and let's look at this beauty soon! liread33@gmail.com April 17, 2010. That expression "and then it came right out of left field" has a meaning...it's always the unexpected, the thing no one figured on, that creates unforseen, and thus dramatic, change. Right now it's the old message: the power of Nature. Earthquakes here and there, but not in our area (yet!), tsunamis that make us shrink in horror, in our cosy living rooms, watching the t.v. news, are pocket reminders. The Iceland volcano eruption has a different impact. To date, the casual nature of air travel has been stopped, and all countries are affected. There is nothing that can be done, either. If the eruption continues, it has a climate change potential. It would be a cooling trend, and this would affect agriculture. This has happened in the past. In the 1820s, the last time this volcano erupted, it caused a cooling trend that created crop failures, due to lower temperatures/plant growth blighted. Was this the cause of the potato famine, in Ireland? Vulcanologists are saying that this eruption may continue for weeks or even months. They don't think for long enough to cause a halt to global warming, but it's too soon to say. At the same time, these volcano experts point out that a much more massive explosion, from a volcano 11 km distant from current eruption, is also a possibility. If that happened, the plume of ash would definitely impact all life/all countries. So there it is...the "just came out of left field" scenario. It's not that I refute climate change, but with the tunnel vision emphasis on it, I often wonder what it is that our periphery vision would only catch, if we were just able to shift our field of vision to this perspective. Is the real problem food production? And now there might be a volcano's impact on growth patterns? Short-term, let's make sure we're growing veggies in our gardens this year, and not just flowers! Hmmm...and what about the ripple effect from the Goldman-Sachs fraud charge? More "left field" stuff? April 16, 2010. Entertain with style! Exceptional outdoor kitchen, woodburning fireplace, expansive decking with dramatic oceanviews...sunsets! Hot tub, too! This dramatic home enjoys a private 5 + acres, and is zoned for separate guest cottage and studio, as well. A cook's dream kitchen, fine finishing choices, stone feature fireplace, easy access from principal rooms to sunny view decking, separate office, library/den, guest "wing", private master suite, amazing storage, superb bathrooms, wine storage options, exercise room...a home for a discerning owner! The plus? It's on special Salt Spring Island! Enjoy.... April 15, 2010. Mark your calendars: April 20 and 21, ArtSpring, an exciting dance/theatre show about the night the Titanic went down. Show begins at 8 p.m. Pegasus Gallery presents "As I See It", an exhibition of new works by Lady X, Friday, April 30th. Opening reception 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Catch Blues Night with Soul Shakedown at Moby's, tonight, starting at 8 p.m. Saturday, catch Tal Bachman and The Imposters, at 8 p.m. Sunday, it's Jazz, with Randy and Karen, show beginning at 7 p.m. Don't forget Friday's "Music Without Borders", at Mahon Hall, starting at 8 p.m. Tree House Cafe offers live music, 6 till 9 p.m., with Richard Cross on Friday, Owen Mathieson on Saturday. Enjoy! Look for Kevin Snook's A Boy After The Sea: An Amazing Story, a lovely book dedicated to his late son, who loved the sea and loved to cook. The book collects seafood recipes donated by some of the world's top chefs. A secondary goal is advocating for sustainable fisheries. A world class chef, who once created delicacies at Hastings House, Snook has created the Dan Snook Trust Foundation. The book is available, locally, at Salt Spring Books. April 17 to May 16, with opening reception April 17 (5 to 8 p.m.), catch the exciting Grand Opening Exhibition at Gallery 8, in Grace Point Square. See you there! Also on April 17, at Salt Spring Centre of Yoga, Ravi and Anjali, a santoor and tabla duo from Seattle, perform an Indian classical concert. Concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Call for ticket info (dinner and concert, or concert only): 250-537-2326. Foxglove Farm is now offering a limited number of shares in its new community supported agriculture (CSA) program. For more information, contact Pauline at 250-537-5336. Spring pleasures continue to unfold..... Remember Bruce's Kitchen (farm to table), Eat in, Take out, Catering, and their Saturday Night Communal Dinners! Enjoy! April 14, 2010. Maple leaves have unfurled from their tight buds, apple blossoms are fully frothed, now drifting to the ground, and the early flowering cherry blossoms are "over". Daffodils are waning and the tulips are out. That slow evolving from very early Spring into full bloom of almost summer is well on the way, in these microclimate Island gems. It always amazes me, this transference from tight winter to profligate summer, in about a 6 week period...beauty everywhere, Important, in the middle of our many daily duties, wrapped up in our heads, that we remember to stop and to look and to savour. This is when the natural world does its dance for us. For me, driving along Long Harbour Road, right around Fruitvale, with the heirloom orchard in bloom and the Harbour sparkling beyond the pasture, is always a place to stop and "view". Lots of other small gifts, of course. The Canadian poet W.H. Davies summed it up best, I think: "A poor life this, if full of care, We have no time to stand and stare." Enjoy the artful displays wherever you live! Spring has sprung.... April 13, 2010. "I want to make myself an empty room: Quiet whitewashed walls with slant sunshine And a fresh breeze through open windows." (Deng Ming-Dao: "Tao...Daily Meditations") April 12, 2010. Change continues...with both uncertainty and opportunity trailing in its wake. Change is like the universe: it's not personal. Its individual outcomes certainly affect everyone's personal sphere, but essentially it ignores "us". Its happening anyway, whether we like it or not. Best, then, to discover the core of the shift, and to readress how we do things. Really, there is no choice -- you're either in or out. Attitude, then, is a key component to a successful transference from one style to another. Let's focus, then, on the "change is opportunity" mantra. Real estate, as an industry, is far down the road of change. Although some people who have successfully been in the biz for some substantial time are loathe to admit that technology has changed the business irrevocably, it has. Marshall McLuhan alerted us back in the 60s that the medium is the message. We are changed, as people, by our technology. Initially, the opening years of the Internet Age saw people stuffing old methods into the new format. This is typical of a transition period. With new gizmos every week, to facilitate the immediacy of the binary world, it means that we have to all be like Alice in Through The Looking Glass, and run very fast just to stand still. A different kind of transition period, then. This one is where we still have a couple of minutes to arrive at the platform of our culture, in the "now". The point: the internet erased time, geography, age, gender, race...it's really about intellect to intellect, on a global scale. Suddenly, here we are, in the midst of McLuhan's foretold "Global Village". Recently, BBC did a series called SuperPower: it was about the Internet Generation. Thought it was very interesting, as it emphasized that this global village was recreating society. Try to catch this series! So, with the essential shift of the consumer to the forefront of a real estate business model, at the same time as technology delivers the ability to the consumer to "search everything", at their own speed, we have profound change. For a seller, they can now place their listings on the MLS, without benefit of a realtor, if they so choose. Some realtors are answering this new challenge, in Canada, by offering a suite of services: around $600 gets the listing on the MLS. Around $1600 gets you more services from the realtor. Around $4500 gets you full service listing options. It doesn't cover off a buyer's side of a gross commission, however...presumeably this is still paid by the seller? The Vancouver realtor offering this suite of services is new to the biz, and sees this suite of services menu as a way to get himself established in a real estate career, after the results of the Competiton Bureau's lawsuit with CREA. Maybe... NAR noted that a buyer begins their property search about 8 months before they're ready to view/buy. They don't necessarily call a realtor. As they get closer, say 4 weeks out, they intensify their search/finetune. When they see something of interest, they call that realtor. Not about agency, then, or about agent expertise, etc. Just about the facts, ma'am! So, if sellers are out there, too, along with realtors, that will definitely give the consumer more choice, and that's the point of the consumer centric business model. The traditional role of a salesperson, though, as a link between two people (buyer/seller), a link that allowed a flow through of information via the interpretive link of the salesperson, is gone. A Google search, an MLS search, a Yahoo search...and coming soon, ability to use Trulia and Zillow, in Canada. What is the role of the middleman, now, in a sales process? Oh, yes...forgot to mention the Redfin model, which returns half the gross commission (paid by the seller) to the buyer...now there's a consumer oriented business model! To catch the attention of the global village citizens, it's important to be where they are: currently, Facebook et al. Social Media is really just getting started. Ah, change....so, practice your periphery vision, don't rush down the trap of tunnel vision, check the edges of your viewscape so you locate the real whispers of change. Then, bring your creativity to it. There really is no choice....change is with us, and our creative response to it will be the way through to the (inevitable) "new". And your ideas are? Always welcome! April 11, 2010. What? A "west coast contemporary" design home, currently a main residence and attached (rented!) suite (easy to re-include in main home floor plan, if desired), plus a separate studio (also tenanted), with easy access to beach, and perhaps potential for a dock, and listed at only $998,000? This is the proverbial deal! In an area of fine homes (2 listed at 1.98 and 2.99, and a "sold" at 2 million). On community water. Close to all amenities, and yet wonderfully "apart" and private. Panoramic ocean, island, and mountain vistas! Sunny (s/sw/w exposures). Truly, it's that "best buy" deal! (And, motivated vendor). Call me! liread33@gmail.com April 10, 2010. Dinner Bay, on Mayne Island, has an appealing topographical "allure" to it. There is a wide meadow area, picnic tables and an outdoor barbecue space, plus children's playground, and a lovely west facing beach. Old growth trees dot the forested trail that leads from this destination play space to the walled/gated Japanese Memorial Garden. With all the elements of the traditional Japanese garden design ethic, this is a very tranquil space, indeed, and very beautiful. Easy to get to Mayne Island from Vancouver's Tsswassan ferry terminal and also from Victoria's Swartz Bay terminal. Also easy to get there from Salt Spring Island. A lovely moment, regardless of the season, but there is something magical about being there in early Spring, as the magnolias and cherry blossoms, and the rhododendrons and ground cover foliage all blossom forth. Don't miss this gem, right on our doorsteps -- a great "day trip" gift awaits! April 9, 2010. Remember to mark your calendars....Earth Day is April 22nd, and lots of events on Island. On April 17th, it's the grand opening of Gallery 8 (formerly J. Mitchell Gallery), in Grace Point Square. On two levels, now, this totally reconfigured gallery is a stellar experience. Reception on the 17th, from 5 to 8 p.m., and the theme of the exhibition is "Symbolically 8". See you there! Tomorrow, at Fulford Hall, it's a fundraiser for Christopher Jason...tickets at Island Star Video or at the door. Silent auction, cash bar, door prizes, 50/50 draw. The Brent Shindell House Band with Dave Roland, Matt Steffich & Lorne Burns, plus Auntie Kate & the Uncles of Funk, plus Stephanie Rhodes. Be there, and help Christopher Jason and his family out! April 10th, tomorrow, it's A Toast to the Coast, at the United Church, at 8 p.m., tickets at Raven Street Cafe, Acoustic Planet, or at the door. Swing Shift and The Sue Newman Trio play the music of the West Coast Canadian composers! Wave, if you see me! Live music tonight, tomorrow, and jazz as usual on Sunday, at Moby's! Tonight, at ArtSpring, it's Helix dance theatre (with GISPA dance)...show starts at 7:30 p.m. Live music tonight and tomorrow evening at Treehouse Cafe! April 16th, at ArtSpring, it's An evening of Music Without Borders, a unique blend of Latin jazz, Eastern, and Celtic folk music, with Prevedoros, Golden and Joy. Show starts at Mahon Hall, at 8 p.m. Advance tickets at Acoustic Planet Music. Painters Guild April show, at ArtSpring Gallery, is a welcome annual event on Salt Spring...A Patchwork of Colour opens on April 16th, and runs through to April 29th. First two days of the show offers a Silent Auction. Salt Spring Concert Band, under Dawn Hage, Music Director, presents Classic Winds on April 24th, at 8 p.m., with special guests: The Salt Spring Pipers and Drummers. Ticket information at ArtSpring (250-537-2102). Show starts at 8 p.m., at ArtSpring. Lots to see and to do, as April unfolds on special Salt Spring Island! Enjoy! April 8, 2010 Mayne Island was a stop-over during the Gold Rush era of the late 19th Century (Miner's Bay!), and was one of the first Gulf Islands to be settled. A vibrant Japanese community was also on Mayne Island. Recently, in commemoration of the families who lived and worked on Mayne, the Japanese Memorial Garden was created, at Dinner Bay, on Mayne Island. It is a very peaceful space...pleasing forest walk between giant cedar and fir stands arrives at the distinctive gate. Through the gate, pathways meander along a pond, over bridges with running water/small waterfall, with seating to ponder the viewscapes, carefully nurtured, the entire garden privately enfolded with Japanese style fencing. Rhododendrons, tulips, star magnolia trees, ground cover in purple and white and pink flowers,,,early Spring, and serenity everywhere. If you find yourself on Mayne Island, do not miss this treasure! Beauty...... April 7, 2010. "Trust the gods within, Accept given boons. Illusion is reality's border: Pierce fear to go beyond." (Deng Ming-Dao: "Tao...Daily Meditations") April 6, 2010. So many changes in the real estate industry, globally, as a result of the true impact of the Internet Age: it's now a consumer centric business model, no matter the type of business involved. It was evident much earlier in the car industry, the travel industry, and in the stock market side of investment. These businesses were completely changed by the impact of the Internet. Real Estate, as an industry, was late to the table of change, then. In Canada, CREA (Canadian Real Estate Association) which manages the MLS system, has been involved in a law suit brought by an Ottawa realty company. They had wanted to use some of the marketing changes offered by the Internet, and had been stopped from doing so, by CREA. This company sued, then, under the Competition Act, and their complaint revolved around the control by CREA of real estate in Canada. Their suit was simply that this control hampered the freedom of the consumer to choose models of real estate. After this lengthy time period, the Competition Bureau found in favour of the Ottawa company and against CREA. There will be appeals, of course. Apparently, the current head of the Competition Bureau also felt that the original suit did not go far enough, and would apparently want to see more changes as to how real estate is offered to the consumer. We will all be hearing more about this, in the weeks and months to come, as it does go to the heart of how real estate has been practiced in Canada. Immediately, there is more opportunity for a seller, and the control of real estate information, via the MLS system, is altered. Once a door is opened, of course, it's not just some things that burst through, but "everything". Realtors have known for some time that things are not "as usual". Again, it's because the consumer is discovering information in places that are aside from the traditional ways of marketing. The recent economic downturn (fully in place by Fall, 2008, but actually softly underway since 2006) may have exacerbated the issues of change, but it would have come in any event. Economics always pushes societal change at a speedier rate, but the change was underway, anyway. The Internet erased time, geography, gender, age, race...it is about information sharing. As Marshall McLuhan noted, back in the 1960s/70s, the "mediium is the message", and he alerted us that in the "global village" we would be changed in all venues of life, including business processes. The consumer is now in control. Before 1976 (the year that Dave Liniger and his wife began Re/Max, as a real estate business model), it was a company that was in control of a real estate process. After 1976, it became an agent centric business model in real estate, and Century 21, Sutton, Prudential, Coldwell-Banker, NRS/Block Bros, Royal Lepage, etc., followed the format introduced by Re/Max. More recently, Sotheby's, 1% Realty, and MacDonald Realty (all franchise models, based on that agent-centric former model) had come to the fore, too. Post internet, though, it has become a consumer centric business model. This shift is profound. Buyers can find out everything on the internet that used to be the province of the realtor, and do not have to contact a realtor at the beginning of their search process. Sellers, with a loosening of a realtor control of the MLS system, can also choose to act more on their own behalf. Completely new models, such as RedFin, return half the commission earned by their company format, paid by the seller of course, to the buyer. Now there's a true consumer-centric model! It took the car industry, the travel industry, the stock market investment industry about three years of shift to become totally different...or, they were out of business. Things continue to speed up, in execution, now that we are more entrenched in the "real" 21st Century. Perhaps within 2 years, we won't recognize the terrain of the real estate industry. It's not biz as usual for anyone, already -- not for the company, the realtor, or the consumer. The consumer is in control. For a realtor, this means a totally different method of marketing from what "worked" even three years ago! Some companies, and businesses that are affiliated with real estate marketing, will disappear. Others will come into being. Both scary, then, and exciting...opportunity is everywhere, but it's "different". More information? Call me! liread33@gmail.com April 5, 2010. Here is a very best buy in the heart of Ganges seaside village...elegant two bed/two bath, dream kitchen, formal living, gas fireplace, dining, spacious pantry, sunny decking (Harbour and garden views), privacy and excellent all day sun exposure, on upper level (stair access and also elevator access). Lower level offers large retail space, plus work area (full bath, here), plus outdoor fenced garden area (sell garden statuary? ponds? deck/patio furniture? decorative items?) with access from retail and from workshop area. Rear parking, and lots of storage! This gem has excellent driveby and walkby visibility, and is in the heart of the Village....across from Ganges Marina, the Boardwalk Park, and the "Mouat's Square", and with great Harbour views. A successful gifts, jewelery, art gallery previously flourished in this location (owners have retired). So many options, here: could do weekly rental in the upper level elegant suite (this property is commercially zoned), or could live/work here, as did former gallery owners. Antiques/collectibles, art gallery, home decor, linens....or something completely different, such as an Italian restaurant! Lawyers or architects office? Now vacant, and easy to show. It is very difficult to be able to be a landlord in Ganges Village....the Trust capped growth on the Gulf Islands in 1974, and the Village cannot expand its boundaries. This opportunity also has great visibility exposure! Call me, for more information. liread33@gmail.com April 4, 2010. Happy Easter! April 3, 2010. Mark your calendars for the Music and Munch at All Saints by the Sea, on Wednesday, April 7th. The free performance begins at 12:10 p.m., and it's followed by an optional light lunch ($5.50), put on by the Anglican caterers. It's a unique presentation by two very accomplished pianists: Simon Rook and his 98 year old mother, Doris. Doris, who recently arrived on SSI from England, will perform old favourites from musicals of the 30s and 40s; Simon will offer selections from the classics of Beethoven and Liszt. Don't miss this! Three Salt Spring authors are on the list of top 10 best sellers in B.C. -- Brian Brett's "A Rebel History of Rural Life", Carol Evans' "The Shores We Call Home", and Marilyn Horsdal's "Sweetness From Ashes". Congratulations to these accomplished writers! Cowichan Folk Guild has just announced the first "Islander exclusive" song contest. Contact them for more details at: www.folkfest.bc.ca (you've always fancied being a poet of the song? Here's your chance! Dare, and go for it!). Tune into my Monday a.m. live radio show (www.cfsi-fm.com or 107.9 FM, 7 to 9 a.m.) -- email me your "interview" ideas or music requests (liread33@gmail.com). Appreciated! (This Monday, a surprise guest...on the Island, as is a holiday weekend). Tune in! Enjoy the celebrations on Easter Sunday, at Salt Spring Island Cheese Farm, on Reynolds Road. It's an annual event...Easter Egg Hunts, baby animals, Easter Bunny! A family fun day...10 a.m. to 4 p.m., April 4th. Calvin's Bistro is open on Sunday for Easter Brunch and Dinner. Harbour House Hotel is offering Easter Dinner. Hastings House (just reopened for the season) offers Easter Sunday Brunch and Dinner, too. Today and Sunday, enjoy the 4th annual Artists Studio Tour. Tonight, at Mahon Hall, 6 to 9 p.m., it's a reception -- meet the artists and enjoy the showcase work of Eric Klemm, fine art photographer. See you there! Saturday Market in the Park opens this morning, for the season! Summer's next, right? Happy Easter! Li April 2, 2010. "Sun shines in the center of the sky. All things turn their faces toward the light." (Deng Ming-Dao: "Tao...Daily Meditations") April 1, 2010. Islands call to us...they shimmer, here, in the Salish Sea (the historic name for the Georgia Strait region). Salt Spring and the Southern Gulf Islands nestle into the east coast of the much larger Vancouver Island, and so they benefit from the "rain shadow" effect. A wonderful microclimate benefits us...called "cool Mediterranean". It supports vineyards, olive groves, orchards, a foodies paradise! The Islands Trust has protected the Islands, retaining their park-like features, at the government level. So many beautiful things to enjoy, regardless of the season. This Easter weekend, though, we've got the 4th annual Artist Studio tour, with 75 artists involved. On Saturday evening, a reception at Mahon Hall, in Ganges seaside Village is an opportunity to meet the artists, and to enjoy the fine art photography of Eric Klemm, the showcase artist this year. Saturday Market opens, too. Rain or shine, see you out and about! It's Spring -- enjoy!

Entries from Past Months