The hugely successful YYC4Haiti fundraising event for Haitian relief efforts didn’t just take over Flames Central on Thursday night. It took over the entire Canadian Twittersphere, too.
You see, when a particular event, topic or newsy tidbit is getting a lot of chatter on Twitter, it starts to show up on the ‘trending’ list. What just so happened to be trending in the top spot throughout most of Thursday evening and right into Friday among a country of tens and thousands of tweeters, was YYC4Haiti. Named as such because Calgary’s airport code happens to be a common way to reference something Calgary-related on Twitter.
Without nerding out on those details any further, we’ll sum it up by saying a simple idea started by a few local women the day of the Haiti earthquake turned into something truly remarkable this week, both in turnout and financial tally.
With a reported $25,000 worth of government-matching funds raised through something that started as one little tweet is truly remarkable, and once again, proof that in this town, anything is possible.
Calgary’s Iron Chef
Post-Grammy Awards on Sunday night, tune in to the Food Network to watch one of Calgary’s finest foodies battling it out on Iron Chef America.
Calgarian Paul Rogalski — Rouge Restaurant’s chief culinary officer, which for simplicity sake we’ll assume means head chef — will be serving as right hand man to Michael Smith, Canadian star of Chef at Home and Chef Abroad, as they battle it out with Iron Chef Bobby Flay.
Perhaps more important is the news that you, too, can taste real Iron Chef cuisine, as Rogalski will feature one of the Iron Chef America dishes on his menu a la Rouge in the spring.
Gunning for Greatness
Props to 17-year-old Calgarian Megan Gunning, who’s currently destroying the competition at the Winter X Games in Aspen, Colo.
The Grade 11 National Sports School student has been blowing away the established field since Thursday in the Women’s Half and Super Pipe Ski events, despite being the youngest female competitor. Calgary’s Smalltown DJ’s, meanwhile, made their way to the X Games on Friday, though not to land the same huge airs and cork 900’s as their fellow Calgarian.
Proving Canadians aren’t the only ones addicted to their noise, the HiFi Club’s resident music-makers have got both the X Games and Olympic Games covered, performing a number of shows on and off Aspen’s Buttermilk Mountain ski hill Friday and Saturday, before heading to B.C. mid Feb. to play a few gigs, including Peak Season mainstay Maxx Fish on Feb. 17.
Go, Smalltown, go.
More Music News
After nearly 26 years, Calgary’s most notorious private nightclub closed its doors on Thursday.
The Warehouse and Underground were forced to permanently shut up shop after what owner Chris Hewitt calls a “surprise suspension” of their liquor licence, courtesy of the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission.
For their part, the AGLC claims the venue was no longer operating under the restrictions of its class C licence, issued in 1984 under terms requiring them to remain a not-for-profit and members-only venue, meaning no public advertising allowed, for starters.
A loss of liquor licence meant a loss of business licence, and, it would seem, the perfect window for red-tape wielding city officials to swoop in with requirements for re-zoning, re-licensing, re-inspection and renovation expenses the club would, quite simply, never be able to afford.
“With so many unanswered questions, resistance from every form of bureaucrat imaginable and a need for far more money than the club will ever have, The Warehouse has had to call it a day,” Hewitt told hundreds of supporters via the club’s Facebook fan page, boasting hundreds of messages of frustration and condolence on Friday.
“There will be a massive hole in the Calgary nightlife now, no matter how anybody felt about the club.”
May Marathon, Anyone?
Precisely four months away as of Saturday, the Calgary Marathon will be celebrating its 46th annual run.
This year’s race is on Sunday, May 30, with organizers aiming for 9,000 participants and more than $130,000 in charitable donations, while allowing runners the opportunity to fundraise for the official charity of their choice through the race’s Scotiabank Group Charity Challenge program.
Distances range from a 5 km walk/run to the full length 42 km marathon.
To sign up visit CalgaryMarathon.com
