Etherworks

2006 is over, and I won t miss it. it was a very hard year and one with a lot of change. My dad passing away was an event in my life that I m still processing, and yet there was a lot to celebrate as well. Looking at a year in pictures is comforting - with low times there are good times, times of sadness end, and friends are a source of strength. Thanks to all who were there with Shelley and I through the year. To 2007.

Shelley and I have moved from the appartment we ve had for 6 years

Last weekend Mila directed a music video for Montreal s The High Dials. It was shot entirely on blue screen, in DVCPRO HD, at double speed. We all anxiously await the final product. Click here for the album on iTunes. Note: the real song does not sound like that.

Ooooo boy. Habs gave the visiting Dallas Stars a 4-2 whuppin . Dan. John, Roach and I were there. Truly, Canadian videoblogging has come of age.

to and fro Galiano, via the newly discovered timelapse function of my Canon Sr70 still camera. Unfortunately, we forgot to bring the charger, so it wasn t as, uhm, robust as I d hoped.

So I m trying to get to Vloggercon in San Fransisco. I ve been invited to do a panel discussion on political videoblogging, talking about homeless nation. This video shows what I want to talk about. Thing is, I can t afford to go! Personal financial pressures, plus the non-profit I work for is stretched pretty thin. So I m appealing to the vlogging community - help me get to San Fran from Montreal! It ll cost me about $800, so I m trying to raise $600 to cover most of the costs. Living while I m there will figure itself out. If you can help with a small donation of $30, please visit My Fundable.org site and donate using Paypal. Its totally safe and real, and the money is only sent if I m succesful in the fundraising. If 20 people do it, I m there. Thank you!

A late response to Julien, Ella, Hugh, and everyone else who joined in to whats becoming a cool experiment in trans-geographical awesomeness. Care to keep this up cats? Sorry for the length - I got kind of tired as the day went on - and I was going to end with some sort of statement, but I forgot my camera in my checked baggage.

The carpenters are huge in China. Who knew. So is that wall. videobloggingweek2006

My good ol buddy Scott is finally podcasting! I visited him over the weekend and pointed out that his mp3 blog was 2 clicks away from a podcast, so he s gotten it together. It s pretty fun to hear weekly music from your friends, and its exactly what I love about participatory media. Go check out his bloglabel , blipsandifs.

My buddy Roach is running for Parliament! If you live in Outremont, vote strategically, and elect our man! Check out his blog!

Its pretty crazy - I ve known Scott E Moil, and been collaborating with him, for ten years now. We decided that we d do a collaboration between etherworks and the bloglabel blipsandifs that he does with a bunch of his friends in Vancouver. This time, he provided the music and I provided the vlog. Next time, I provide the vlog, he provides the music. This is from my recent trip to Beijing. This week is also Videoblogging week 2006. And this week is also the 5th year I ve been a blogger. videobloggingweek2006

We had a little pow-wow at Laika about The Open Movement - some tech-heads getting together to think about similarities in Open Source Software, Free Culture, genetics, farming, etc. Nothing was decided, of course - its the start of the discussion. Some thoughts on the way to work - I wish I did this more. Even though watching what I was thinking two days later is sort of embarassing (there are no real thought out arguments), it could be an exciting way to continue conversations. Anyone care to respond via video? This conversation can be followed in text form at hugh s blog. Oh, PS, anyone interested in inserting URLs into Quicktime, this is where I found it. Also - this file is huge because of these links - for a boring technical reason, it can t fast start , so be patient. Again, its meant as a start, nothing definitive. I m actually sort of alarmed at the logical end to my response to what Julien was talking about anyway.

So in November, Mike and I started movl.org, the Montreal Videobloggers group. We had a hamburger at Dusty s and talked about personal media, community space, the next big things and why Montreal was uniquely placed for it all. We decided to start the group to get people together who might be thinking along the same lines. I m really glad we did, and no matter where it goes, the mission has already been accomplished as far as I m concerned. I can now name 3 new videoblogs from the island that didn t exist in 2005. There s Steve s Gallery, from Steve Mansour who also took the job as movl s webmaster and made sure it wasn t just Mike and I drinking alone at La Cabane (and in the future!). My co-worker at EyeSteelFilm John Christou has found the video capture on his new still camera and is taking it into indie-rock dens and film industry schmoozes at Sweet Sweet Heat. And NFB CitizenShift podcastereeno Matthew Forsythe is showing off his considerable design, illustration and video talents in Coming Up For Air. We ll all be meeting at the next movl meeting, Tuesday March 7th, @ Laika @ 7pm.

So in November, Mike and I started movl.org, the Montreal Videobloggers group. We had a hamburger at Dusty s and talked about personal media, community space, the next big things and why Montreal was uniquely placed for it all. We decided to start the group to get people together who might be thinking along the same lines. I m really glad we did, and no matter where it goes, the mission has already been accomplished as far as I m concerned. I can now name 3 new videoblogs from the island that didn t exist in 2005. There s Steve s Gallery, from Steve Mansour who also took the job as movl s webmaster and made sure it wasn t just Mike and I drinking alone at La Cabane (and in the future!). My co-worker at EyeSteelFilm John Christou has found the video capture on his new still camera and is taking it into indie-rock dens and film industry schmoozes at Sweet Sweet Heat. And NFB CitizenShift podcastereeno Matthew Forsythe is showing off his considerable design, illustration and video talents in Coming Up For Air. We ll all be meeting at the next movl meeting, Tuesday March 7th, @ Laika @ 7pm.

Snippets from our honeymoon in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.

Snippets from our honeymoon in Playa del Carmen, Mexico....

My post for the movl.org videoblogging topic for February 2006, which is Montreal is an island . Perhaps the goofiest piece of video I have ever made. And this will probably sound terrible on Laika s speakers. But it was fun Tanya from DNTO was there, recording it for a piece she s doing on videoblogging. I am a nerd.

My post for the movl.org videoblogging topic for February 2006, which is Montreal is an island . Perhaps the goofiest piece of video I have ever made. And this will probably sound terrible on Laika s speakers. But it was fun ...

I ve been quite on the election, mostly because it s really the realm of the bloggers and I ve mostly abandoned the text world. Now that it s over, I think a couple of things deserve to be said. First, it s obvious Canadians...

I ve been quiet on the election, mostly because it s really the realm of the bloggers and I ve mostly abandoned the text world. Now that it s over, I think a couple of things deserve to be said. First, it s obvious Canadians were in need of a change, and as hugh pointed out, those of us who DID NOT vote for the Conservatives can take some comfort in the knowledge that they were elected not so much out of desire to see Canada move to the right, but out of a desire for something different. And second, I think that those of us who identify with The Left have got to get our shit together, and maybe having the Conservatives in power will force this to happen. After all, it was years of nattering away from across the floor that brought in tax cuts, reduced social spending, etc. Perhaps having feet held to the fire will force progressive politicians to express issues in ways that resonate with the majority. And finally, I think this election was interesting in how people s opinions shifted. While I still vote along the same lines as my father (years of your grandfather was close friends with Tommy Douglas, you know ), a lot of smart people I know shifted, and often towards parties whose central message they have traditionally been against. But hey! All this instapundintry is better left to the bloggers. This here is a videoblog! So, I invite you to check out some moments from Roach s Election Party. Roach ran as an independent in Outremont, a riding so Liberal thay say that a mailbox could win, just because its red (ok, you are all sick of hearing this joke from me). He got 101 votes, the 4th most popular, and the strongest showing for an independent. He got the most press out of anyone in the riding, and this article in La Presse sums up his moral victory. Hier midi, en route vers son local électoral, Roach a croisé quatre sans abri devant la station de métro Papineau. Il les a reconnus. Quelques jours avant, ils étaient chez Pops, où Roach donnait un atelier sur le droit de vote. Ils l ont remercié de leur avoir donné une voix. Ça, pour moi, c est une vraie victoire. Une victoire morale. J ai réussi à faire passer mon message. Ça vaut tous les votes au monde

Last weekend Mila directed a music video for Montreal s The High Dials. It was shot entirely on blue screen, in DVCPRO HD, at double speed. We all anxiously await the final product. Click here for the album on iTunes....

Ooooo boy. Habs gave the visiting Dallas Stars a 4-2 whuppin . Dan. John, Roach and I were there. Truly, Canadian videoblogging has come of age....

I m testing how to post a video. CHECK OUT MY VIDEO! :p...

to and fro Galiano, via the newly discovered timelapse function of my Canon Sr70 still camera. Unfortunately, we forgot to bring the charger, so it wasn t as, uhm, robust as I d hoped....

It s 12 degrees in Vancouver, I m sitting outside, and I can make a videblog. Ile sans fil eat your heart out! My dogs are barking from walking over this whole city for 4 days or so, but work is...

Merry Christmas from all your friends at www.etherworks.ca!...

Dan, Francis and I went to Jay Peak a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately we missed all my 540 tail grabs but this gets across the idea. Posted from Galiano, which is +10 celcius! No snow here ...

Michael DID bring a camera! And we ve officially announced the date of the next monthly movl meetup. At Laika, on a tuesday, January 17 to be exact....

So our first ever Montreal Videobloggers Meetup (Movl) was a success, although I didn t bring a camera (groan). Luckily Steven did, so we have a fun little slideshow courtesy of Steve s Gallery. A la prochaine ...

Last week, I took part in an event called L tat d Urgence, a 5 day event organized by Montreal shit-disturbers ATSA - Action Terrorist Socialment Acceptable. It was an event to raise awareness around homelessness by turning one of the...