April 2007–v2.4 Arts & Entertainment on the Island and Beyond 27,000 copies

Restaurant ReviewWest & north: Indian restaurants on the outskirtsby Stuart Woods

My search for the city’s best Indian restaurants took me wellbeyond a reviewer’s regular downtown and Plateau beat.

An unapologetic urbanite, I have long disdained the suburbsas an undefined halfway point between ski country and myPlateau apartment. Imagine my surprise, therefore, when I wastold of an Indian restaurant in Pierrefonds said to rival the city’sbest – andmy displeasure at making the journey to a godforsakenstretch of Sources Blvd. north of highway 40. continued on page 5

Bead Emporium collects beads from around the world.

Maternally YoursGetting crafty: Part 1 of 2by Annika Melanson

There are so many creative activities forkids (and parents!) to sink their teeth intothese days. With plenty of opportunities to take an art class,stock up on supplies and even host a craft party, getting craftyhas never been easier.

I recently hosted a t-shirt party for my 4-year-old daughterAmel and eight of her most artistic friends. I invited Darryl,the founder of Montreal’s only continued on page 9

by Colette van Haaren

Lively places, where crafters can get together for instructionand to enjoy each other’s company, are sprouting up all overtown. Crafting, it turns out, is no longer a solitary endeavour doneby lonely spinsters.

Samantha Star, who opened Scrapbook Star on Somerled Ave.in NDG last year, says that it is 99% women who are into scrap-booking. Instead of keeping photos in a traditional photo album,they make scrapbooks – large albums designed for artistic dis-plays of photos and other keepsakes.

“Scrapbooking seems new in Quebec,” Star continued on page 10

Crafting captures Montreal

BRIAN, TIMOTHY, JOAN McGUIGANAGENTS IMMOBILIER AGRÉES / CHARTERED REAL ESTATE AGENTS

TRUST. REACH. RESULTS.

www.McGuiganPepin.comSee our listings on the back page.

Check out our Happeningssection to see what’s goingon in Montreal.

From the Blue Metropolis literaryfestival and a workshop withjeweler Myriam Bardoul to theRotary garage sale and CentaurTheatre’s production ofThe Caretaker. pp. 2-3

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See also these Arts & Crafts features:MATERNALLY YOURS Craft parties, scrapbooking and art classesby A. Melanson p. 1DAY-TRIPPING Laurentian artisans by R. Haughey p. 13

RESTAURANTS Bombay Choupati andRestaurant Malhi by S. Woods p. 1

COOKING Easter and Passover fareby A. Howick p. 4

ART Naledi Jackson by Zeke p. 6

WINE Springtime whites and redsby C. Price p. 7

COUNTRY DOCTOR Depressionby Dr. V. Heese p. 8

BOOKS of Mark Haddonby C.McKenzie p. 11

REAL ESTATE FAQs by B. Schreiber p. 12

MOVIE REVIEW Shooter by D. Price p. 13

PRACTICAL POINTS by J. Smith p. 14

TOWNSHIPS CALENDAR pp. 14-15

Crafting

issue Part 1 of 2

Festival City

� Now in its ninth year, the Blue Metropolisliterary festival celebrates the work ofMargaret Atwood. Tickets to the openingceremonies on April 25 are $50. For ticketsgo to www.admission.com. For inform-ation on programming go to www.bluemetropolis.org. Delta Centre-VilleHotel, 777 University St. April 25 to 29.

� Vues d’Afrique presents the 23rd editionof Journées du cinéma Africain & Créole.This year’s event features an hommage toIvorian filmmaker Henri Duparc.Individual tickets are $7. For tickets andinformation call 514.990.3201 or go towww.vuesdafrique.org. Box office, 67St. Catherine St. West. April 19 to 29.

Music

� Espace musique presents Quebecsongwriter Guy-Phillipe Wells, one ofseven artists featured in the Sacré talent!2006 concert series. Tickets are free. Toreserve call 514.872.2157. Maison de laculture de NDG, 3755 Botrel. April 4 at 8pm.

� Singer-songwriter Nedjim Bouizzoul,accompanied by his band, Labess, speaksout against oppression in his nativeAlgeria. Tickets are free. To reserve call514.872.2157. Maison de la culture deNDG, 3755 Botrel. April 12 at 8 pm.

� Spirit of the Sufis. The Farid Ayaz QawwalEnsemble performs a program oftraditional Qawwali music, the devotionalmusic of the Sufis. Tickets start at $25,$20 for students. For tickets go towww.admission.com. For moreinformation call 514.989.5353. The OscarPeterson Concert Hall, 7141 Sherbrooke St.West. April 14 at 7 pm.

� Tadava performs traditional Eastern and

African music. Tickets are free. To reservecall 514.872.2157. Maison de la culture deNDG, 3755 Botrel. April 27 at 8 pm.

Classical Music

� Contrées lointains. Trio Lucia Hall, ArneKirchner and José Gallardo performsworks by Ravel, Shostakovich and AstorPiazzola. Tickets are free. Maison de laculture de Côte des Neiges, 5290 Côte desNeiges. April 11 at 8 pm.

� Passion et poésie. Trio Lucia Hall, ArneKircher and José Gallardo celebrates thelife and work of Robert Schumann and hiscontemporaries. Tickets are free. Toreserve call 514.872.2157. Maison de laculture de NDG, 3755 Botrel. April 12 at 6pm.

� Ensemble Soffio e Voce matches threevoices with three clarinets inarrangements of excerpts from Mozart’soperas. Tickets are free. To reserve call514.872.6889. Maison de la culture deCôte des Neiges, 5290 Côte des Neiges.April 18 at 8 pm.

Dance

� Choreographer Suzanne Miller plays withpacing in Speed, in which a duo performsthe same movement at radically differentspeeds. Tickets are free. To reserve call514.872.6889. Maison de la culture deCôte des Neiges, 5290 Côte des Neiges.April 10 at 8 pm.

� In Perfect Stranger, choreographer IsabelMohn looks at fear of the other in the eraof reality tv, speed dating and instantcommunications. Tickets are free. Toreserve call 514.872.6889. Maison de laculture de Côte des Neiges, 5290 Côte desNeiges. April 17 at 8 pm.

� Les printemps de la danse is a program of

2 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

Happenings Vivva Montreal’s guide to what’s on around the island.

new works by emerging Montrealchoreographers Ghislaine Doté, Jean-François Déziel and Erin Flynn. Ticketsare free. To reserve call 514.872.2157 or514.872.6889. Maison de la culture deNDG, 3755 Botrel. April 17 at 8 pm.Maison de la culture de Côte des Neiges,5290 Côte des Neiges. April 24 at 8 pm.

Theatre

� Centaur Theatre presents The Caretaker, a“comedy of menace” by Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter. Ticketsare $42, $32.50 for seniors and $20 forstudents. Centaur Theatre, 453 St. FrançoisXavier. For more information call 514.288.3161 or go to www.centaurtheatre.com.March 29 to April 22.

� Infinitheatre presents The Facts Behind theHelsinki Roccamatios, a play based on ashort story by Yann Martel. Tickets arefree. To reserve call 514.872.2157. Maisonde la culture de NDG, 3755 Botrel. April 20at 8 pm.

Art

� Former une famille. A painting installationby Geneviève Rocher explores the tensionbetween binary opposites – like fragilityand monumentality, order and energy, thepictorial and the decorative. Admission isfree. For more information call514.872.2157. Maison de la culture deNDG, 3755 Botrel. March 29 to May 6.

� The Canadian Centre for Architecturepresents Clip/Stamp/Fold 2: The RadicalArchitecture of Little Magazines 196X –197X, which collects groundbreakingindependent periodicals from the 1960sand 1970s that influenced the design andarchitecture of the time. Admission is $10,$7 for students and $5 for children under12, and free on Wednesdays after 5:30 pm.For more information call 514.939.7000 orgo to www.cca.qc.ca. The Canadian Centrefor Architecture, 1920 Baile St. From April12.

� Les Paysagistes. Seven sculptors pay tributeto Quebec writer, doctor and founder ofthe Rhinoceros Party, Jacques Ferron, whodied 20 years ago this year. Admission isfree. For more information call514.872.6889. Maison de la culture deCôte des Neiges, 5290 Côte des Neiges.April 19 to May 27.

Cinema

� Films that Transform. The McGill medicalfaculty’s ongoing film series screens Borninto Brothels, the Academy Award-winningdocumentary about the children ofprostitutes in Calcutta’s red light district.Tickets are $10, $5 for students andseniors. Moyse Hall, 853 Sherbrooke St.West. April 17 at 7 pm.

Community Events

� The Thyroid Foundation of Canadapresents the 11th annual Art Exhibition &Sale to benefit Thyroid Disease. The

vernissage is April 7 from 2 to 5:30 pm.For more information call 514.337.7272.Livingston Hall (6th Floor), MontrealGeneral Hospital. April 7 to 13 from 9:30am to 5:30 pm.

� McClure Gallery presents their annualexhibition of student

We need useful, quality and working items:furniture, antiques, paintings, lamps,housewares, toys, books, etc...

100% of the funds raised will be used on community,national and international projects... as we have beendoing for over 75 years. You can helpThe Rotary Club of Westmounthelp others.

For local pick-ups call 935-3344or info@rotarywestmount.org

The Rotary Club of Westmount’sgiant Garage Sale & Auction iscoming again in June.We are ready to pick up saleablehousehold or office articles.

Westmount Arena: Auction, Fri, June 1 – Sale, Sat., June 2

Giveusyourtired...yournearlynew...

continued on page 3

work. For more informationcall 514.488.9558 or go towww.visualartscentre.ca. McClure Gallery,350 Victoria Ave. March 31 to April 18.Vernissage on March 31 at noon.

� The Westmount Horticultural Societypresents a workshop on indoor plants byGeorge Libby. For more information call514.989.5300. The Westmount Library,4574 Sherbrooke St. W. April 10 at 7 pm.

� Bead Emporium presents a weekendworkshop with jeweler and artist MyriamBardoul. Learn how to make brooches,pendants and other decorative objectsusing polymer clay. The cost is $150 plus$20 for materials. For more informationcall 514.486.6425. April 14 & 15.

� Montreal Urban Hikers Walking Clubwalks in Pointe Claire and the West Island.Transportation is available fromAngrignon metro, though confirmation isrequired before April 5. The cost is $6. Formore information call 514.366.9108 or514.938.4910. April 14.

� The Westmount cultural lecture seriescontinues with a lecture entitled FromSand to Sea: The Kingdom of Morocco byFred Hore. For more information call 514.989.5300. The Westmount Library, 4574Sherbrooke St. West. April 18 at 7:30 pm.

� The Westmount Historical Associationpresents a lecture by Dr. Sophie Marcotteof Concordia University on the life ofGabrielle Roy, who lived on Dorchester inWestmount while writing The Tin Flute(Bonheur d’occasion). For more informationcall 514.925.1404 or 514.932.6688. TheWestmount Library, 4574 Sherbrooke St.West. April 19 at 7 pm.

� Stock up on summer reading at theFriends of the Library Book Sale. Formore information call 514.989.5300.The Westmount Library, 4574 SherbrookeSt. West. April 21 & 22 from 11 amto 4 pm.

� The Westmount Library hosts a receptionto celebrateWorld Book Day. Free.For more information call 514.989.5300.The Westmount Library, 4574 SherbrookeSt. West. April 23 at 6 pm.

� Give the gift of life at Mayor Karin Marks’annual blood drive. For more informationcall 514.989.5265. Victoria Hall, 4333Sherbrooke St. West. April 27 from2:30 to 8 pm.

At the New Forum (Bell Centre)

April 1 HSBC Stars on IceApril 4 G3April 5 Nelly FurtadoApril 6 Harlem GlobetrottersApril 7 Gregory CharlesApril 9 SuperdogsApril 10 Il DivoApril 18 John MayerMay 1 Ricky MartinMay 6 The KillersMay 9 My Chemical RomanceMay 12 André RieuMay 25 Fall Out BoyMay 29 Gwen StefaniJune 7 Roger WatersJuly 25 & 26 The PoliceAugust 7 Daft Punk

Send us your Happenings!If you’d like to see an event listed inVivva Montreal for free, send it tovivva@vivvamontreal.com.

Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007 – 3

HAPPENINGS... continued from page 2

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affiliate member of theQuebec Community

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Editor: David Price 514.935.4537

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Vivva Montreal is published by Sherbrooke-Valois Inc. – Locally owned, operated and staffed.

310 Victoria #105Westmount, QC H3Z 2M9Fax: 514.935.9241vivva@vivvamontreal.comCheck out back issues of VivvaMontreal at www.vivvamontreal.com.Copyright 2006. All rights reserved.

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The FunnyHow many readers are you responding for? “Five.”

What do you do for a living? “Supervise the other four.”

4 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

by Andrea Howick

Renovating my kitchen has made merealize how much I rely on household ap-pliances even when making “home-cooked” meals. A couple of minutes in themicrowave to defrost a steak before grill-ing. Grabbing some pre-made pasta sauceout of the freezer for a last-minute week-night meal. A healthy fruit smoothiewhipped up in a handy blender on a busymorning.

Even with the simplest meals, basickitchen appliances – fridge, microwave,blender – play a starring role in gettingfood on the table. Per capita, Canadiansare the world’s sixth biggest users of en-ergy. This high level of use can be attrib-uted in part to our cold climate, but also tothe high standard of living we are used to.

Healthy appliances

Without the household appliances wetake for granted, food preparation wouldbe almost impossible. As a mother ofyoung children, I try to make sure they eatmostly healthy meals. It is so easy to steamsome bright green broccoli, throw togethera stir-fry or rely on a homemade soup sim-mered over the weekend. With the kitchenunder renovation, however, the closest wecan get to a healthy meal are endlesssnacks of cucumbers, cherry tomatoes andeasy-to-serve grapes.

My kitchen was sorely in need of an up-date, so I’m not complaining. But withthings in such disorder, I am anxious tostrap on an apron, dust off the cookbooksand cook some homemade meals again!

A natural sweetner

Part of the reason I’m itching to getback in the kitchen is the beginning ofmaple syrup season. Canada producesmore than 80% of the world’s maplesyrup. Here in Quebec we are by far theworld’s largest producer (about 75% ofworldwide production). I can just aboutsmell the sweet bubbling syrup beingboiled in local sugar houses.

Maple syrup is a versatile sweetenerthat can be used in many recipes – bothsweet and savoury. With Easter andPassover just around the corner, here aresome seasonal recipes to try.

Maple-Soy Glazed Salmon

This recipe is appropriate for children 12months and older. It’s a great way to get kidsto eat salmon.4 6-oz. salmon filletsGlaze:1⁄3 cup maple syrup. cup low-sodium soy sauce1 tsp. grated ginger1 tsp. minced garlic

Whisk glaze ingredients in a shallowglass dish. Place salmon skin side up inglaze. Marinate for 30 to 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425°F.Wrap the salmon in foil, sealing the

edges. Place on a cookie sheet. Bake untilthe fillets are no longer translucent inside,about 15 minutes. (Try roasting the salmonunwrapped for drier texture.) Check care-fully for bones. When serving, the salmonshould flake easily.

Make a little extra glaze, minus the gar-lic and ginger, to drizzle on top beforeserving.

Serves 4 to 6.

Maple-Honey Glazed Ham

This recipe is good for the whole family!5 lb. fully cooked boneless hamWhole clovesGlaze:1⁄3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed- cup maple syrup1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard1 tsp. maple flavouring (optional)- cup honey

Preheat oven to 325°F.Place ham fat side up on a rack in a

shallow open roasting pan. Insert meatthermometer in centre. Bake uncoveredfor 2.5 to 3 hours or until internal temper-ature is 130°F. Remove from oven.

For the glaze, increase oven tempera-ture to 450°F.

Remove meat thermometer. Carefullyremove rind from ham and trim remain-ing fat. Score top of ham in diamond pat-tern (do not cut deeper than . inch). In-sert a clove in each diamond.

Mix remaining ingredients. Spread halfof glaze over ham and bake for 10 min-utes. Drizzle the remaining glaze overeach serving.

Let stand for 20 minutes before serv-ing.

Serves about 10.

Cooking

Yummy in my Tummy maplesyrup for Easter and Passover

Oven-Baked Oatmeal with Mapleand Cinnamon

This recipe is a great make-ahead to haveon hand all week. Suitable for children 9months and older.1- cups rolled oats (use large-flake oats,not quick or instant oats)3 cups 2% or 3.25% milk. cup maple syrup3 Tbsp. packed brown sugar1 tsp. vanilla- tsp. salt1 tsp. ground cinnamon and nutmeg or1 tsp. maple sugar

Preheat oven to 350°F.Stir together all ingredients, except cin-

namon and nutmeg. Pour into a greased8-inch glass baking dish or deep-dish glasspie plate. Bake until the milk is absorbed,about 40 minutes. Sprinkle with cinna-mon and nutmeg or with maple sugar.

Wrap leftovers in plastic and keep infridge. Warm up as needed. Keeps for upto 3 days.

Serves 4 to 6.

Pecan Passover Squares

This sweet treat is perfect for older kids andall the grown-ups!Crust:1 cup matzo cake meal- cup matzo meal- cup brown sugar. tsp. salt

- cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter4 Tbsp. cold waterFilling:11⁄3 cups brown sugar- cup maple syrup2 Tbsp. melted butter1 tsp. vanilla. tsp. salt4 eggs1 cup pecan halves

Preheat oven to 250°F.Crust: Place dry ingredients in food

processor. Add butter and pulse untildough barely holds together. Drizzle inwater until dough forms a ball (you maynot need to use all the water). Press into agreased 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Bake for20 minutes. Let cool.

Filling: Whisk together all ingredientsexcept pecans. Either stir in pecans andpour onto crust or pour filling onto crustand arrange pecans in rows on top. Bakeuntil filling is set, about 30 minutes. Letcool for at least 1 hour before serving.

Andrea Howick is one of the authors ofYummy in my Tummy in Montreal, a

cookbook and nutrition guide for parents of0- to 1-year-olds. She is also a founderof The Liandrea Company, which has

produced the award-winning parentingDVDs Bringing Baby Home and

Yummy in my Tummy. You can catch herevery month on Global TV’s

This Morning Live. Got towww.liandrea.com for more information.

It’s tapping time: turn your kitchen into a sugar shack.

Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007 – 5

AlpenhausA touch of Switzerland

in Montreal –not to be missed.

Alpenhaus is located between down-town Montreal and Westmount inShaughnessy Village. The restaurant re-cently celebrated its 39th anniversary.Alpenhaus is a romantic restaurant thatoffers authentic fondues, as well as otherexcellent European dishes.

1279 St. Marcjust west of downtown

514 935-2285www.restaurantalpenhaus.com

The restaurant is called BombayChoupati and has garnered uniform ravessince it opened 15 years ago. What makesthe trip worthwhile (owner Rajani Sing-nurter claims to attract clientele from asfar away as Ottawa) is that the restaurantspecializes in southIndian cooking – alargely vegetarian cui-sine that does withoutthe tandoor and heavy,meat-based curriesthat are the sine quanon of most Indianrestaurants in Mon-treal. Also, the kitchenprides itself on mak-ing everything fromscratch, right down tothe homemade yo-ghurt and kulfi, as wellas using fresh tama-rind instead of paste to build a fiery-sweetsauce.

Unless you’re looking for it, the restau-rant isn’t easy to spot: its co-tenants in adesolate strip mall include La Belle Pro-vince, a pool hall and arcade, and an adult-video store. Choupati is well known toWest Islanders, however, who reportedlyline up for tables on Friday and Saturdaynights (the restaurant declines to takereservations).

On two recent weeknight visits therestaurant was busy, but not so busy thatSingnurter couldn’t manage the smallishdining room alone. Her presence was aboon, since we counted on her expertisewhile ordering from themenu, which con-tains unfamiliar terms like idli, wala, sam-bar, chaat, puri and dosa.

Southern delicacies

Wala sambar consists of doughnut-shaped chickpea-and-rice patties (wala)submerged in a stew-like sauce (sambar)of chilies, masala, diced eggplant and dhal,and garnished with the aforementionedyogurt and spicy tamarind sauce. A varia-tion is called idli sambar, which has steam-ed, saucer-shaped semolina patties inplace of wala. The slightly sour-tastingdough is a distinct counterpoint to thepungent and savoury sambar.

Less spicy is the Bombay chole chaat, amedley of vegetable patties and chickpeasgarnished in yoghurt, fresh coriander,tamarind sauce and crisp chickpea-flournoodles. The fruit chaat is another species

altogether, consisting of puffed-up ricewafers in fruit chutney and the now fa-miliar yoghurt-and-tamarind sauce gar-nish. The fruit chaat is served cold, thesweet chutney offset by hints of spiciness,with crisp wafers punctuating the mushymelee.

Pani puri is a real crowd-pleaser. Hol-low spheres of deep-fried bread are servedbeside a carafe of fierytamarind water. Din-ers are instructed topuncture the thinshell and insert a mix-ture of potato, chick-pea and fresh corian-der, and then fill atleast halfway with thewater. The resultingassemblage – whichis consumed in a sin-gle mouthful, like anamuse bouche – is

spicy and fresh, an instantaneous, short-lived burst of flavour.

Dosa is the south Indian pancake, acrêpe-thin, slightly spongy rice-dough flat-bread. Masala dosa is similar to roti andconsists of a crisp dosa folded over mushypotato curry. The result is sour andsavoury, an exciting contrast of texturesand flavours. The spiciest item on themenu is fire dosa, which alone is worth atrip to Pierrefonds. It is served with warmsambar and coconut chutney to counter-act the spicy, green chili-laced curry filling.

When it comes to familiar main coursecurries, the kitchen holds its own, whichis remarkable when you consider thatmost of the staff is vegetarian. Suffice it tosay that the butter chicken ranks with thecity’s best. The meat is assertively sea-soned and submerged in a velvety mus-tard-yellow sauce, good to the last bite.

For dessert, the menu lists two items,though it’s possible to conjure a third withsome ingenuity. Take the gulab jamun(fried-dough balls in sweet syrup) andslice. Do likewise with the kulfi (sweet,cone-shaped ice cream dusted with pista-chio) and stack together for a simple,sweet dessert of milk and honey.

Park Ex favourite

Compared to the novelty of BombayChoupati, Restaurant Malhi (also knownas Malhi Sweets), which specializes inPunjabi cuisine, can seem a bit of a let-down. But for classics like samosa, pakora,biryani and chicken tikka, this Park Ex in-

stitution is the place to beat.Located on a stretch of Jarry lined with

curry houses, Malhi attracts a devotedclientele with its low prices and relaxed at-mosphere. Dinner for two, with Cheetahbeer, tip and plenty left over, can run youunder $40. And so you know you’re ingood company, it’s also where CatherineDeneuve spent her birthday on a recenttrip to Montreal. A photo of owner Gur-nam Singh Malhi with Deneuve – de-scribed in a caption as a “famous Frenchactress from France” – is prominently dis-played at the entrance.

Punjabi classics

Channa samosa is a heaping platter ofchopped potato and green pea samosassmothered in a vibrant mess of chutney,coriander, chickpeas and yoghurt. The re-sulting melee is a light meal in itself –spicy, tart and sweet, but not cloyingly so.Another substantial appetizer is vegetablepekora, which is sold by the half-pound.Similar to Southern hush puppies, peko-ras are flash-fried fritters of potato, onionand fresh spinach served with sweettamarind sauce and coriander yoghurt.

Shahi paneer features squeaky cubes ofhomemade cheese in a creamy, bright or-ange tomato curry. Beware, though: thesauce is strikingly similar to that used inthe butter chicken, so be sure not to orderit twice. You’re better off going for aro-matic rice-based biryani or chicken tikka –generous hunks of saffron-stained chic-ken, green pepper and onion served on abed of iceberg lettuce. Sweet and stew-likelamb korma is another winner.

The bold and flavoursome cuisinemakes up for the scattershot decor, which

consists of cafeteria-style seating and ahandful of kitschy embellishments, andthe sometimes brusque, though never un-friendly, service.

Stuart Woods is the assistant editor ofVivva Montreal.

continued from page 1

Bombay Choupati:Worth a trip to Pierrefonds

Where to goBombay Choupati5011 Sources Blvd.514.421.3130Open 11 am to 11 pm six days a week.Closed Mondays.

Restaurant Malhi990 Jarry St. West514.273.0407www.malhisweets.caOpen 11 am to 11 pm six days a week.Closed Tuesdays.

A vibrant mess: Restaurant Malhi’s channa samosa.

6 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

A new exhibition of work by SouthAfrican-Canadian artist Naledi Jacksoncalled “Right of Spring” documentsAfrica’s bloody history and offers consola-tion in nature. I am the first to admit thatI am extremely partial to the show – andthat’s not only because it’s being hosted atmy gallery on St. Laurent.

Peerless talent

Naledi Jackson doesn’t want to be com-pared to Anselm Kiefer. So I’ll get this outof the way fast and early: Anselm Kieferuses mud, dead sunflowers, straw andother stuff to make his paintings, whichare generally pretty big. Naledi Jacksonuses sprouts (sometimes heirloomspecies), oat grass and other living mate-rial to make her paintings, which are gen-erally kind of small.

Right now the whole concept of bio artis hot. The National Gallery of Canada ishosting an exhibition of bio art nextmonth. But despite the fact that her can-vasses are alive, Naledi Jackson doesn’t dobio art. What Naledi Jackson does is usenon-standard materials to make pretty pic-tures that are also pretty darn disturbing.

To my eye, Jackson’s work is reminis-cent of Kevin Sonmor’s. For her part, Jack-son cites Betty Goodwin as a precursor.But, in truth, both of us are wrong, sincethere isn’t any artist who makes anythingeven remotely similar to Jackson’s work.

How does she do it? It all starts with astroke. A stroke heavy and thick enough togive you a heart attack. A stroke so hardand heavy that your standard-issue steam-roller feels insecure. Now that you havethe stroke down, you gotta learn to read.Jackson reads voraciously. And once shehas consumed a great book, she tries to

figure out the best andmost efficient man-ner to comprehend what she has just read.Since she is an artist, drawing or paintingit out of her system comes naturally to her.

Rwanda memorial

Jackson has lived pretty much all overthe world: Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, Italyand Canada, among other places. How-ever, as she states quite categorically, herattachment to Africa, and to the land ofAfrica in particular, is something fierce.You can begin to understand how deep herfeelings for the land are when you realizethat the dirt, oat grass and other living ma-terial in her work is not only there as avariation on the stroke, but as a stand-infor the dirt and oat grass of Africa.

Take Lavinia, for example, a smalldrawing made with oil paint (not toomuch), ink (obviously) and oat grass.Lavinia is a character in Shakespeare’sTitus Andronicus. In the play, she is rapedand has her tongue and hands choppedoff. The whole thing recalls the Rwandangenocide, during which there were count-less stories of rape and abuse.

The centre of the ink drawing is takenup by a very heavy line drawing of a facethat is half obscured – almost crossed out.On the left-hand side of the drawing thereare residual markings of oat grass makinga vaguely abstract and psychedelic pattern.The right-hand side of the drawing is avery flat gray paint, effectively blank. Thepart of the face that is not obscured fadesinto the blank gray part of the painting,suggesting the faceless victims of thegenocide who have been forgotten in theWest. Jackson adds to the story by usingthe residue of oat grass as a touchstone forthe land of Africa and to show that mem-ories of past atrocities linger on.

Art Review: Zeke’s Gallery

Return to the land

Focus on Angola

Miss Luanda is similar in its approachto African history. Unlike all the otherpieces in the exhibition, however, it is notsmall (at 5 feet by 18 inches), it is not hungon the wall (it lies flat on a pedestal), it isan “artist’s book” (not a painting) and theoat grass used to create it is still alive. Infact, for the duration of the show I have tocome in to the gallery first thing in themorning and water the work!

Luanda is the capital of Angola, whichfor about three centuries was one of thecentres of the slave trade. The pages of thebook are made of canvas and interspersedwith dirt, oat grass and orca “friendship”beans, which makes it tough to “read” thebook – in the same way the history of An-gola is tough to read.

Jackson calls herself a “pan-Africanist”

and thinks of the continent as a large con-nected place with many different locales.No matter where she is in Africa her at-tachment to the land is a very strong bond.Also, she does not want anyone to forgetAfrica’s atrocious and deadly history. Butjust as spring is a right and not a privilege,there is always hope that things in the fu-ture will be better.

Right of Spring by Naledi Jackson runsuntil April 15. Admission is free. Zeke’sGallery, 3955 St. Laurent. For more informa-tion call 514.288.2233 or go to zekesgallery.blogspot.com. The gallery is open every day ex-cept for Friday from 3 to 7 pm.

Chris “Zeke” Hand runs Zeke’s Gallery.All opinions expressed herein are his own.

This review is excerpted from an as-yet-unpublished catalogue.

Detail of Checkpoint by Naledi Jackson, on display at Zeke’s Gallery.

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All are welcome Detail of Lazarus Boy by Naledi Jackson, part of a solo exhibition titled Right of Spring.

Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007 – 7

by Carola Price

Whether you celebrate Easter or Pass-over, pairing wines with holiday meals canbe a challenge. I am here to help with sug-gestions for all the traditional holiday fare.

Personally, I enjoy every holiday, espe-cially one where chocolate is involved.Some people take the opportunity to re-flect on the significance of the holiday,while others simply enjoy the company offamily and friends. At my house, Easter is

a time to welcome the spring and enjoy co-pious amounts of wine with the holidaymeal. It’s also a time to say goodbye towinter and welcome the spring.

Easter ham

With Easter ham, lighten your winechoices. Due to the prevalence of heavyside dishes it is wise not to overpower thepalate with a heavy wine. Medium-bodiedchardonnays from Argentina or Canadaand whites from the Pays d’Oc work nicely.

The trick is to check the label foralcohol content of about 12%. Whenchoosing a red, stick to light wines likecabernet franc and tempranillo. Agrenache-and-merlot combo from Langue-doc or a light grenache from Spain arebudget friendly, as these wines tend to bevery inexpensive.

Turkey, lamb and veal

The traditional holiday meat for somefamilies is turkey. Choose light reds andmedium whites to match calorie-ladenside dishes such as scalloped potatoes,creamed corn, turnips, cauliflower andbroccoli au gratin. Pair medium-bodiedmerlots with turkey, as well as low-alcohol-content zinfandels. My advice is to choosea St. Emilion for under $25. The expres-sive plum and black cherry fruit sits in the

mouth, while the body doesn’t take awayfrom the food.

Growing up I ate lamb at Easter. Thesmell of fresh rosemary and red wine waft-ing through the house drove me mad as Iwaited for dinner to begin. Wine pairingswith lamb are easy to choose due to thegaminess of the meat. I like shiraz blendsof no more than 14% alcohol content, aswell as earthy wines of the southernRhone. Blends of grenache, syrah andmourvèdre, along with other grapes, are atreasure trove of flavours. The berry fruitand pepper mixed with baking spice andearthy flavour match lamb beautifully. Adollop of tzatziki brings out the flavour ofthe meat and wine.

Veal, whether stuffed, rolled, braised orroasted, can be a flavourful experience.The tender meat goes well with Spanish

Wines for holiday fare

and Portuguese wines, light Italian winesfrom Valpolicella, and French wines fromBordeaux. If you’re cooking the roast withacidic flavouring like tomato, be sure topick an Italian wine. But if you’re usingDijon and fresh herbs, stick to Canadiancabernets or Bordeaux blends.

Kosher noshLast but not least, we come to brisket.

Brisket is a tough cut of meat that, whenbraised, is known for its tenderness andfabulous attachment to sauce of any kind.In the southern US, it is the meat ofchoice for barbecuing.

Brisket is versatile when it comes towine pairings because the wine canmatchthe sauce and not the meat. There areplenty of kosher reds that work nicely withthis traditional Passover meal. Look formalbec from Argentina, cabernet fromSpain, Israel or Bordeaux, and pinot noirfrom California or Burgundy.

These days, the SAQ delivers when itcomes to good kosher wine. It isn’t sweetconcord-grape juice anymore. Pick up abottle from Galilee the next time you wantto try something of great quality withoutspending a fortune.

Springtime winesWhether or not you get together with

family and friends over the holidays, re-member that now is the time to lighten upyour wine choices in preparation for thesummer. Keep an eye out for sales of heav-ier wines for next winter.

If all else fails, seek the advice of theconseiller en vins at your local SAQ. Theyare constantly trying new products andkeeping up with the wines in stock. Tellthem the flavours you are trying to matchand see what they come up with. Don’t beafraid to try something new on a lark.

18/20 Cabernet sauvignon, Segal’sSpecial Reserve, Israel.SAQ#00387752. $19.70

This kosher wine is a pleasantsurprise. It’s not a heavy cassis-ladencabernet like the Californians, just awell rounded black-fruit- and cedar-

flavoured wine both in the nose and in themouth. Medium bodied with long lastingflavour on the palate. This wine is a greatmatch for lamb, beef, veal and roasted orbarbequed chicken. Bring it out during thecheese course and serve with a nice triple-cream Brie.

17/20 Tempranillo/Cabernetsauvignon, Valformosa GranReserva, Spain. SAQ#00744003.$20.20

This medium-bodied wine hasthe nutty and earthy componentsfound in so many Spanish wines. Its

red fruit and mushroom overtones are notoverpowered by food; rather, it comple-ments poultry and veal with herbs or fruit-and-wine sauces. Look to pair it with ched-dars and medium cheeses like Oka orChaumes.

16.5/20 Chardonnay, Alamos Ridge,Argentina. SAQ#00467969. $15.80

This white is great for all roastedmeats if you don’t enjoy red wine. Afull flavoured but not too heavy andalcoholic wine. Tropical fruit andsome green apple scent come out in

the nose while peaches and a buttery char-acter explode in the mouth. Also a matchwith cheese and fruit, but stay away fromlight goat cheese as the acid will get lost inthe wine.

17/20 Cabernet franc, Inniskillin,Ontario. SAQ#00317016. $12.90

This red is medium bodied and agreat household wine for everydaydrinking. Lots of red berry and cedarin the nose along with some inkyand green pepper flavour on the

palate. It is a match for red meats intomato sauce and herb-roasted poultry.Duck with cherry sauce can work, too. Itis matched to St. Paulin, Tête de Moines,Jarlsberg and Au pied de vent.

Carola Price is a sommelier and chef. Sheis a member of the Canadian Association

of Professional Sommeliers and theInternational Sommelier Guild. She canbe reached at carola@ivvmontreal.com.

White wines and light reds match well with spring feasts.

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8 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

by Virginia Heese

Depression is a common illness that af-fects many folks – it can be life-threaten-ing and hard on personal and professionalrelationships. Happily, it can be treatedvery successfully and sufferers can returnto normal, productive lives.

What is depression?

First off, it’s important to state that de-pression is a medical illness. Some folksmistakenly believe that all depressed peo-ple can recover simply by thinking positivethoughts – but this is not the case. Studieshave shown again and again that depres-sion responds to medications that changethe level of specific chemicals in the brainand that a tendency to depression can be in-herited. These characteristics point to a bi-ologic disorder. You may as well tell some-body to simply shake off a case of diabetes!

Depression is also very common. Therisk of experiencing a major depressive

episode at some time in your life can be upto 12% in men and a whopping 25% inwomen. Yet, sadly, there is still some socialstigma attached to the disease, and manysufferers hesitate to seek the care and treat-ment that would enrich their lives.

Symptoms of depression

Depressive disorders are generally con-sidered to be caused by imbalances in neu-rotransmitters in the brain such as sero-tonin, norepinephrine and dopamine.These chemicals allow brain cells to signaleach other and are necessary for all brainfunctions. However, even as we are gradu-ally starting to understand that impairedinteractions between these neurochemi-cals and brain cells can lead to depression,there is no simple blood test, sign orsymptom that leads to its diagnosis.

Instead, we have to look at clusters ofsymptoms. Making the task even harder isthe fact that people frequently do not rec-ognize they are depressed and that the

Combating depression

Country Doctorillness sometimesmanifests itself throughphysical symptoms, such as weightchanges, sleep changes, and aches andpains. This is very characteristic of atypi-cal depression, which is the most commonway depressed patients present them-selves to primary-care providers.

The symptoms that characterize depres-sion can include low or depressed mood,diminished interest in almost all activities,appetite and weight changes, sleep changes(especially waking early in the morning),feelings of guilt or worthlessness, low en-ergy levels, diminished ability to concen-trate, slow or agitated movements, and re-curring thoughts of death or suicide.

At the risk of stating the obvious, if youor someone you know is having suicidalthoughts, seek help immediately. Eitherget yourself to a trusted doctor or go to anemergency room.

What distinguishes depression fromthe occasional lousy mood or sleep distur-bance is the persistence and severity of thesymptoms. In depression, some or all ofthese symptoms are present every day fortwo or more weeks and are severe enoughto interfere with daily activities and per-sonal and professional relationships.

Winter blues

As a physician advising Canadians andVermonters, I feel obliged to mention Sea-sonal Affective Disorder (SAD). In general,SAD is defined as recurring depressionwith seasonal onset and remission. Themost common is fall-onset SAD, whensymptoms begin in late fall and winter andremission occurs during the summer.

Though there is some debate as towhether SAD exists as a separate depres-sive syndrome, it seems to be characterizedby this seasonality and is associated withincreased appetite (specifically, increasedcravings for carbohydrates), weight gainand an increased need for sleep. Anotherdistinguishing feature is its response to ar-tificial bright light therapy, as well as morestandard medication therapies.

Fall-onset SAD tends to be longer andmore severe at higher latitudes, so if youfind yourself struggling through long,dark winters, you may want to discussSAD with your doctor.

Treatments of depression

The treatment of depression typicallyinvolves psychotherapy (also known as talktherapy or counselling), medication ther-apy or a combination of the two. Psy-chotherapy may lessen symptoms of de-pression and in some people may be moreeffective than drug therapy. What is im-portant is to connect with a trained health-care professional with whom you canestablish a good psychotherapeutic rela-tionship.

Antidepressant medications can help

rebalance the brain’s neurotransmitters,and several different classes of antidepres-sant drugs have been proven to accomplishthis. However, the most successful way totreat depression seems to be a combina-tion of counselling and drug therapy.

Whatever the treatment, the responsetime may be up to 4 to 6 weeks, so be pa-tient with the course of therapy your doc-tor prescribes. If drug therapy is a main-stay of your treatment, medication istypically continued for 6 to 12 monthsonce there is a response. At that point youand your doctor may decide to decreasethe medication or to continue with it aslong as necessary.

Lastly, I want to mention that manypeople fear taking antidepressant medica-tions because they believe the medicationwill make them into a different person. Asreassurance I have to say that patients reg-ularly tell me that, in fact, the medicationmakes them feel like themselves again.

Depression is a serious illness and youshould never face it alone. Many solutionsexist – but the most important first step isasking for the help you need.

Dr. Heese is a Canadian and AmericanBoard-certified family physician and a

graduate of McGill. She resides in Vermont.Dr. Heese cannot stress enough that the

general advice supplied above should not,and cannot, replace the individualized

advice and care of your ownfamily physician.

Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007 – 9

t-shirt-party provider, Creative T-shirt Par-ties, to come over on a Saturday morning.He and his assistant arrived with all-cot-ton t-shirts, pastels, designs for the kids tocolour in and a hot press to adhere the de-signs. I honestly don’t know how every-thing fit so nicely into three crates.

Darryl’s assistant strung up a clothes-line and hung a selection of pictures foreach child to choose from. There were de-signs of fairies, butterflies, soccer ballsand race cars, to name a few. There waseven the option to draw freehand and formummies to join in and have their de-signs pressed onto a canvas bag.

After the colouring blitz, the childrenhanded over their masterpieces to Darryl,who pressed them onto white t-shirts. Theresults were fantastic. And seeing the in-

stant result was very exciting for the chil-dren, who all insisted on wearing theirnew shirts immediately.

T-shirt parties with Darryl start at $100plus $12 per participant. Call 514.933.7034ext. 2 for more information.

Craft-party providers

Creative T-Shirt Parties514.933.7034 ext. 2www.t-shirtparties.comSomething Funky, Jewelry-making514.817.2322www.somethingfunky.caCrazy for Crafts514.624.8590mosaicsbysheba@yahoo.comBeautiful Beads and GiftsChildren’s beading parties514.924.3481 – www.bbgwebsite.comBazoo Teen DécorBuild-a-pillow party514.695.9100Create-a-CritterMake your own teddy bear party514.781.0351 – www.thebearmill.comL’Atelier ToutouMake your own stuffed animal514.288.2599 – www.ateliertoutou.com

Cut and paste

Ever heard of a “scrapper”? That’s thename for someone who’s into scrapbook-ing, one of the hottest hobbies these days.

So gather your little scrappers and col-lect photographs, ticket stubs, newspaperand magazine clippings, as well as sou-venirs from trips, and get scrapbooking!It’s fun and kids can be as creative as theywant – the more creative, the more inter-esting and unique the scrapbook.

If you are pregnant and keeping a preg-nancy journal, why not make it into ascrapbook? You can include ultrasoundpictures of the baby and pictures of yourown growth, as well as clippings of inter-esting articles and souvenirs of prenatalclasses. You and your child will enjoy look-ing back at it in the years to come.

All you need to start scrapbooking is analbum, scissors, acid-free glue and anyother decorative embellishment you canthink of (fancy ribbons, stickers, fabrics,foil paper, etc.). For inexpensive supplies,head to Wal-Mart or Zellers.

Scrapbooking suppliers

Scrapbook Star6252 Somerled Ave.514.543.7827www.scrapbookstar.caScrapbook Centrale3673 St. Jean Blvd. (DDO)514.624.7313www.scrapbookcentrale.ca

Do-it-yourself jewelery

I had been looking for the perfect pairof earrings for ages and in desperation Idecided to have a pair made. But when Iapproached the staff at Bead Emporiumthey insisted on teaching me how to makemy own. I reluctantly agreed and now Iam hooked!

Jewelery-making and beading is mynew favourite hobby. It is fun and inex-pensive (unless you go hog-wild with ex-pensive gemstones – which is also greatfun, right girls?). Plus, it is a fun activityto do with children.

Once you have bought the basics (a pairof pliers, string and beads of your choice),you’re all set. My daughter and I havespent many afternoons making all sorts offun necklaces and bracelets.

A great way for children to begin bead-ing is by separating different beads into anempty egg container. Each individual eggholder serves as a divider. Then they canthread large beads onto a string-like elastic(available at most dressmaker supplyshops). Just make sure that your childrenare old enough to know not to put thebeads in their mouths!

The Bead Emporium offers privatebeading classes for $30 per hour (plus ma-terials) and hosts birthday parties.

Bead stores

The Bead Emporium368 Victoria Ave.514.486.6425.Bead it4912 Sherbrooke St. West514.481.4531www.beadit.comDressmaker Supply2186 St. Catherine St. West514.935.7421www.trimmingsdressmaker.com

Maternally Yours updates

The Visual Arts Centre offers a widerange of creative artclasses for children ages

continued from page 1

Arts and crafts for kids

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10 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

says, “and that’s because we are a Frenchprovince.” Most products are gearedtowards English-speaking markets, she ex-plains, and scrapbooking has been popu-lar in anglophone provinces for years.

Scrapbooking: a new trend in Quebec

The modern scrapbooking trend beganin the 1980s in Utah, whereMormon fam-ilies are required by their church to recordfamily history. The attention one family’s50 albums garnered at a conference onrecord keeping was the impetus to startthe scrapbooking industry, which includesbooks, magazines, stores and supplies.

Star’s store looks like a paper candystore, with pattern paper, stickers, ribbons,lettering and rub-ons in many designs andevery colour of the rainbow. The basic ma-terials for scrapbooking are an album(which runs anywhere from $15 to $45),conservation-grade card stock and patternpaper to make mats and backgrounds.Basic tools include a pencil and ruler, apaper trimmer to make straight cuts andgood, photo-safe adhesives. Star empha-sizes that everything in the store is acid-free, which is necessary to prevent photosfrom yellowing.

At a recent heritage workshop at Scrap-book Star, Sue Palmer walked in with herscrapbooking bag. Palmer’s father, JohnPalmer, served in the Royal Canadian AirForce in the 1940s. She chose to make aphoto of him and his RCAF crest the focalpoint of her album.

According to Palmer, the pages turnedout well: “Before I made this the badge satin a drawer. It’s important to bring it outand show it to my son, so he can get anidea of what his grandfather did.”

Knitting

Knitwear designer Kate Gilbert teachestwo beginner courses and seven work-

shops in knitting at Effiloché. Her goal isto show you how knitting works, how tofix your own mistakes and how to “bendyour knitting to your will.” The most pop-ular workshop is onmaking socks, Gilbertsays. Students make a miniature tech-nique sock that includes a sock’s stickingpoints, such as turning the heel and graft-ing the toe. To see Gilbert’s designs go towww.kategilbert.com.

Crocheting and sewing

Hairpin lace, a crochet technique thatwas popular in the 1970s, is back again.Hairpin lace was invented in the Victorianera, when women wound yarn around theprongs of their hairpins and crochetedthese loops into strips. Off loom, thesestrips were then joined to form lacyshawls. Larger looms, or staples, were de-veloped for the craft; modern hairpin lacelooms can be adapted to various widths.Hairpin lace works up quickly and yieldsbeautiful fabric. To see examples online goto www.stitchdiva.com. (Disclosure: thisreporter teaches the craft at Effiloché.)

“Sewing is a great springtime activity,”says Catherine Lagacé, who teaches sew-ing and crochet at Effiloché. She aims toshow students that sewing does not haveto be complicated and that it lends itself topersonalized projects. In the introductoryclass, students work on small items thatrequire no fitting, such as bags.

Andrew Kerrigan, who will graduatefrom LaSalle College in May, teaches a re-cycling sewing course at Friperie La Gail-larde. The course “facilitates an ecologicalway of living,” he says. “It provides theskills needed to avoid waste, and encour-ages people to reuse clothing they alreadyhave instead of throwing it away and buy-ing more.” Kerrigan says his students aremostly artistic people who like to createunique clothing to fit their personalities.

Colette van Haaren is a freelancewriter who loves textile crafts.

continued from page 1

Arts and crafts for adults

Craft groups

Geneviève Poirier and Mrs. Girard (from left) at the weekly Stitch & Bitch at Effiloché.

Westmount’s Brickpoint Studios recentlyinstituted a Wednesday evening knittingclinic where people can drop in to getknitting help at low cost. Brickpoint’sowner, Penny Papineau, and her daughter,Belinda Fox, are on hand for trouble-shooting and to give a weekly mini-lessonon technique. Papineau also gives privateknitting lessons, which she recommendsfor beginners. Brickpoint Studios, 318Victoria Ave. For more information call514.489.0993. Wednesday evening knittingclinic from 6 to 8 pm.

Effiloché opened six months ago inSt. Hubert Plaza. This sewing roomand knitting lounge provides fibreenthusiasts with a place for learning,gathering and sharing. The philosophy isexemplified by the Friday evening Stitch &Bitch, where francophone and anglophoneknitters of all ages practise their craft andenjoy potluck snacks. The store offerssewing, knitting and crocheting courses.Effiloché, 6252 St. Hubert. For moreinformation call 514.276.2547 or go towww.effiloche.com. Friday evening Stitch& Bitch from 6:30 to 9:30 pm.

Scrapbook Star opened its doors one yearago to aficionados of scrapbooking. Hereyou can buy acid-free supplies andparticipate in workshops. The store alsohosts inexpensive Wednesday morning“crops,” which are informal gatherings ofscrapbook enthusiasts without theguidance of a teacher. “Cropping replacesthe (traditional) quilting bee,” says ownerSamantha Star. Scrapbook Star, 6252

Somerled Ave. For more information call514.543.7827 or go to www.scrapbookstar.ca. Wednesday morning scrapbookingcrops from 10 am to 2 pm.

Friperie La Gaillarde offers in-store sewinglessons. A class on wardrobe recyclingshows how to breathe new life into oldclothes by transforming a pair of jeans intoa skirt or bag. Knitting and crochetingcourses are also available in the winter.Friperie La Gaillarde, 4019 Notre Dame St.West. For more information call514.989.5134 or go towww.friperielagaillarde.com.

Mouliné Yarns stocks a wide variety ofyarns. Owner and knitwear designerSvetlana Kudrevich gives group lessons inknitting on Tuesday evenings from 6 to 8pm, as well as private lessons in knittingand crocheting. Mouliné Yarns, 2679 NotreDame St. West. For more information call514.935.4401 or go towww.moulineyarns.com.

Knit Hook & Give a Little Warmthmeetsevery other Sunday to craft for charity.Projects include blankets and toys forchildren in hospitals and women’s sheltersand hats for premature babies. To registergo to knitting.meetup.com/1069/.

Montreal Knitsmeets six times monthly atCafé Castel (3407 Peel St., 514.288.4141),Caféo (4177 St. Denis, 514.849.5702) andSecond Cup (5550 Monkland Ave.,514.487.9481). To register go tomontrealknits.blog-city.com.

by Catherine McKenzie

The Curious Incident ofthe Dog in the Night-Time by Mark HaddonA Spot of Botherby Mark Haddon

I like to find themes that connect thedisparate works I review: books with theword “little” in the title, for example, ormemoirs about childhood. This month,it’s books with red covers.

Why? Searching the bookstore I noticedfour books that had the same colour cover:a dark wine-red. Is it silly to pick a book byits cover? So long as that’s not how I judgethem, I think it’s okay.

My visual criterion led me to two booksby Mark Haddon: The Curious Incident ofthe Dog in the Night-Time and his most re-cent work, A Spot of Bother. My two “redbooks” for next month are Bloodletting &Miraculous Cures by Vincent Lam and TheTenth Circle by Jodi Picoult.

The colour’s the thing

After beginning The Curi-ous Incident, I realized howfitting it was that I had beenled to this book by its colour,since the book’s narrator,Chris, is a 15-year-old autisticsavant who judges everything

by its colour, texture or smell. He hates allthings yellow. He loves all things red. Heloves math and mystery books. And heloves his caregiver-father in the only wayhe can: without touch or other commonmethods of showing affection.

One day Chris’ neighbour’s dog turnsup dead, stabbed with a garden fork, andhe decides to solve the mystery of the dog’sdeath. As he works to unravel this seem-ingly simple mystery, Chris discoversthings about every person in his life thatchanges all he knows and thinks he hasfigured out about the world.

Sight, sound, smell

This is a truly original and well-writtenbook. While I don’t know what it is like tobe an autistic savant, Haddon makes usbelieve that he does. And in the course ofdoing so he writes some truly great de-scriptive passages that, at least temporar-ily, changed the way I look at the world.The amount of detail I notice. Why I likethe taste or texture of certain foods and notothers. Why we tell lies. Why we feel em-pathy for other people. How lucky I am to

fit in easily with the world, as opposed tothose suffering from autism. This bookdeserves to be a bestseller and deserves tobe read.

Second best

I wish I was as enthusias-tic about Haddon’s secondnovel, A Spot of Bother. Thisbook is about an unassuming62-year-old man who has justretired from a life installingchildren’s playground equipment. He iskeeping busy by building a studio in hisbackyard so he can go back to the paintingand sketching he abandoned years ago.

Then, on the day his daughter an-nounces that she is marrying a man heand his wife do not like, he discovers a le-sion on his hip and becomes convincedthat he has cancer and is going to die. Theidea festers and colours everything thathappens to him in the months that follow.His acceptance that his son is gay. His re-alization that his wife is having an affair.His inability to connect with his daughter.It all pales beneath the weight of his fear ofdeath, as if the sum of the people he is os-tensibly living for is less than the singularimportance of being alive.

I’ve seen this before

While this book is mostly the story ofone man, it is told from the perspective offour characters – the same literary deviceused by Nick Hornby in (the better, fun-nier, but not perfect) Long Way Down.Fresh from his success at recreating alter-native thought processes in The CuriousIncident, Haddon attempts to write aboutthoughts in the way people actually expe-rience them when they are alone. Onethought leads to another and to another soquickly that the reader is sometimes dis-oriented and confused; I had to re-readseveral pages more than once.

The book is well written, but I franklyfound it depressing, as one might expectfrom a book about a man who is very de-pressed. There are parts that are also sup-posed to be funny, but I found themmorelike watching a train wreck. I also foundmany of the characters stereotypical: theuptight, closed minded, middle-class Brit-ish couple; their feminist, hard-as-nailsdaughter; their uptight, middle-class, gayson who can’t commit. It feels like I’ve metthese people before in other books, butnever in real life.Catherine McKenzie is a Montreal lawyer.

Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007 – 11

Book Review

Red letter days (Part 1 of 2)4 and up. Courses include drawing, paint-ing, sculpting, jewelery making, and cos-tume illustration and design. Eight-weeksessions beginning in April start at $135(plus materials). Visual Arts Centre, 350Victoria Ave. For more information call514.488.9558 or go to www.visualartscen-tre.ca.The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

continues to host family Sundays at themuseum. A free art workshop called“Looking at Colour: Creation of a Portraitin Gouache” will be given on April 15 at 1 ,2 & 3 pm. Suitable for children ages 5 andup (accompanied by an adult). Tickets areavailable in the lobby of the Jean-Noel Des-marais Pavillion (south side of Sher-brooke) from 12.30 pm. Arrive early forthe 1 pm workshop as it is the most popu-lar.

The Enigma of Walt Disney continuesuntil June 24. Disney paraphernalia is ondisplay and classic Disney movies arescreened: Alice in Wonderland on April 19at 6 pm; Dumbo on April 22 at 1:30 pm(French) and 3:30 pm (English); Peter Panon April 26 at 6 pm (French); and Bambion April 29 at 1:30 pm (French) and 3:30pm (English).

The exhibition is appropriate for olderchildren and adults, so if you are planningto take your young child try to time yourouting with one of the movie screenings.

The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, 1380Sherbrooke St. West. Admission is $15,free for children under 12. For more in-formation call 514.285.1600 or go to www.mmfa.qc.ca.

Mummieslist boo-boo

I would like to correct an error I madein my March column. The Mummieslistwebsite is www.mummieslist.com, notwww.mummylist.com. By the way, did youknow that in March, $15 of every mummycard sold online was donated to the Mont-real Children’s Hospital? Well done!

Annika Melanson is the author ofThe Montreal Pocket Parent and LeBottin des Bambins and co-author ofYummy in my Tummy in Montreal.

continued from page 9

Updates for mummies

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12 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

by Barry Schreiber

Many readers have called or e-mailedme with questions about real estate, so Ithought I would address a variety of issuesthat often come up. Keep your questionscoming. I’ll always respond.

Negotiating a bidding war

You found the residence you’ve alwayswanted, but by the time you decide tomake an offer, you discover that two com-peting offers are being tendered. Horror!You’re in a bidding war. This can certainly

affect your negotiation strategy.If you’re bidding on your dream home,

you’ll probably want to do your best to en-tice the seller to choose your offer. It’s apoker game and you don’t know the cardsthe other players have in their hands. Butprice is just one card. The others are theconditions you impose.

I’ve seen situations where the top pricewas not selected because the winning buy-ers did not require a mortgage and did notask for an inspection. There were really noconditions to be met.

If you need a mortgage, I advise clients

to obtain a pre-approved mortgage beforethey begin their search – it can stack thedeck in your favour, because the sellerswill know that you are a serious buyer. Butyou should always have a home inspec-tion.

Pre-approval – or not?

Not all pre-approved mortgages meanthat the applicant will receive the fundsasked for. What! How can that be?

A qualified pre-approved mortgage re-quires the lending institution to do an as-sessment of your financial situation, in-cluding your assets, liabilities and creditrating. It’s an involved process that usuallytakes a couple of days.

Even the best pre-approved mortgage isoften contingent on the bank inspectingthe property and agreeing to the amountthe buyers ask for. Sometimes, the preciseamount is not forthcoming if the propertyis deemed unsuitable to the amount re-quired after the inspection.

So, a pre-approved mortgage is a signthat you are a serious buyer, but it does nottell the seller that you definitely have amortgage. However, it is a comfort factorand worth obtaining. Stack the deck inyour favour.

To keep or not to keep the deposit cheque

When selling, you receive a depositcheque with an offer you accept, but thebuyers cannot obtain the financing they re-quire. Do you get to keep the deposit? No.

“The deposit is meant as a gesture ofgood faith,” explains real estate lawyerMichael Concister, “but it is not requiredby law.” It is, however, a common traditionin Montreal. “Virtually all deposits for res-idential properties must be returned.However, if a seller feels otherwise, he cango to court and the decision will be ren-dered by a judge,” says Concister. If youwant to ensure that you get to keep the de-posit, you must ask your agent to put inwriting that the deposit is nonrefundable.

Now, how comfortable would you be asa buyer if the seller required a nonrefund-able cheque? A clause like that, in my view,would need to have good cause. I know ofa situation where a buyer missed the sign-ing because the buyer’s funds could not beacquired in time for the meeting at the no-tary. This buyer also missed the secondagreed-upon signing date. The owner thenasked that an additional deposit be re-quired and that both the original depositand the second deposit be nonrefundable.The buyer agreed. Eventually, the housewas sold to that buyer.

Don’t skip the home inspection

Some buyers can save several hundreddollars by not having a home inspection.This is more common when buying acondo than a house. The thinking is that

with a condo the building is responsiblefor the structure (or envelope) and that lit-tle can go wrong with the inside. This is adangerous assumption. A condo – be it inan apartment building or a duplex – canhave serious and costly roof, foundation,water infiltration and other issues requir-ing unplanned-for owner assessments. Besafe: always conduct a home inspection.

“Here I am, stuck in the middle...”

Yes, it’s part of a song, but these lyricsare sung to me quite often when a buyerhas sold his or her house and can’t find an-other, or when he or she has taken pos-session of a new home without havingsold the original home. “I thought it wouldbe easy to sell,” they say. “I’ve decreasedmy price three times and still no buyer.”

Well, here is what can be done to avoidthis predicament. Find the property youwant to buy, but make your offer condi-tional on selling your home. In fairness tothe seller, you could include a clause indi-cating that, should he receive another offerin the interim, you have the right of firstrefusal – any interim offer can be matchedby you should you so chose. Yes, youmight lose the house, but you will be ableto sleep better knowing that you won’thave to carry the financial responsibility ofowning two homes.

Condos versus co-props

There are advantages and disadvan-tages to buying a condo versus a co-prop,more properly known as divided co-own-erships versus undivided co-ownerships.Which is which?

The undivided co-ownership propertyis taxed by the municipality at a lower rate,but the owners cannot rent it, at least notfor the first five years. This might be con-sidered an advantage depending on yourviewpoint.

The owners of a co-prop must also dealwith the existing lending institution or,if that has not been decided on, with acaisse populaire or the Banque Nationale.In short, the owners are not free to choosetheir lending institution. Another impor-tant consideration is that they must makea 25% down payment.

The situation with condos is different.The buyers are free to choose their lend-ing institution. The down payment forfirst-time buyers is 5% and they are free torent if it is so indicated in the declarationof co-ownership – the document that de-fines the terms, by-laws and responsibili-ties of owners of both condos and co-props.

Barry Schreiber is an affiliated real estateagent with Sutton Centre-Ouest in

Westmount specializing in residentialproperties. He can be reached at

schreiberb@videotron.ca and 514.781.2425.

Real Estate

Real Estate FAQs

$20 CAN PROVIDE THE GIFT OF ALIFETIME TO A CHILD THIS SUMMER!Each year, Welcome Hall Mission organizes asummer camp in a lovely country setting for lessfortunate inner city kids. $200 is the cost for onechild for a week. It only takes 10 people at $20 eachto send one child to summer camp, and 5 peopleat $40. A donation receipt is issued for each gift.Give hope. Give laughter. Give today.Send your gifts to: Welcome Hall Mission

606 De Courcelle StreetMontreal QC H4C 3L5(514) 523-5288

Or visit our secured websitewww.welcomehallmission.com

Hello, RealEstate Agent!

If you are an agent readingthis advertisement, you

are confirming that agentsread Vivva to find out

about what’s happeningin the marketplace.

And often it is anotheragent who sells a listedhouse by bringing theirclient to the table.

So, forget just readingVivva. Advertiseyour listings!

This house is not even for sale ...but you are reading about it!

Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007 – 13

to show their work to visitors. They knowthat education is an important part of theirtrade and are glad to answer questionsabout their craft.

Roger Haughey is a CEGEP professor andthe president of ValoEco, an environmentalorganization based in NDG, where he lives.

by Roger Haughey

The Laurentians have the key ingredi-ents for a perfect getaway – close enoughto Montreal by car or train for a comfort-able day trip and crammed full of thingsto do. That’s probably why the region isalso full of artisans.

There is a lot of talk these days aboutartisanal products – from cultural prod-ucts like art, theatre and music, to spatreatments, household objects and food.Artisanal products are handmade in smallquantities, often with local design or com-ponents. Many people believe they shouldbe preserved and supported.

Artisans at work

There are plenty of opportunities forhands-on experience of arts and craftsyear-round, as the region has camps, daycourses and workshops. The Laurentiansalso offers an impressive array of places towatch artisans at work, view their cre-ations and, if the spirit moves you, pur-chase all kinds of artisanal objects.Whether you are in one of the many beau-tiful villages within an easy scenic drive ofMontreal (St. Sauveur, Val Morin, St.Agathe, Val David or Mont Tremblant) ormeandering along rural back roads, theLaurentians are home to many artisans’exhibits, galleries and studios.

In 2004 there were nearly 100 profes-sional artisans in the region and over 50artisan organizations representing paint-ing, photography, glassworks, ceramics,cabinetmaking and metalworks – and thenumber has grown since then. Majorsummer events like the Argenteuil ArtTour (July and August) and 1001 Pots (Julyand August) highlight the artistic cultureof the region. April is a great time to avoidthe crowds and explore the region’s art andartisans in a relaxed and intimate atmos-phere.

Galleries and studios

Works by Laurentian artisans are onpermanent display throughout the year atregional museums and galleries. MostLaurentian villages have private galleriesof local painting, sculpture and other arts.The largest concentration of galleries is inSt. Sauveur, where a stroll down PrincipaleSt. reveals several galleries of regional art.

The Argenteuil Regional Museum inSt. André d’Argenteuil, theMusée de pou-pées Claire Poirier in St. Sophie and theMusée d’art contemporain des Lauren-tides in St. Jérôme offer permanent col-lections as well as exhibits of local arts andcrafts. In addition, LézArts Loco in ValDavid is a “multidisciplinary creation cen-tre” and cooperative housing complex forartisans with gallery space, workshops andcultural events throughout the year.

For those of you who like to witnessartistic creation, several studios are openyear-round where you canmeet artisans atwork, learn about the techniques and pur-chase finished works of art.

Glass artist Jonathan Léon’s Lolipopboutique and workshop in LézArts Locodisplays hand-blown glass jewelery andobjects in a stylish storefront in the heartof the village. Cabinetmaker and sculptorPierre Trahan in Gore (just past St. Adol-phe d’Howard) features beautiful hand-made furniture, as well as sculptures inwood and clay. Troy Beck’s metalworkingstudio in St. André d’Argenteuil boasts anarray of unique handmade metal objectsdesigned for everyday use, such as fire-place tools, hinges and candle holders, aswell as elegant sculptures made from re-cycled metal and other media. At sculptorSimon Le François’ studio in Grenville,you can see the self-taught artisan’s worksin wood and metal, then take a tour(weather permitting) of a water garden.

Most Laurentian artisans work in stu-dios in or near their homes and are eager

Day-Tripping

The Laurentians: an artisan’s paradise

Where to goArgenteuil Regional Museum44 Long Sault, St. André d’Argenteuil450.537.3861Musée de poupées Claire Poirier667 l’Achigan West, St. Sophie450.432.7954Musée d’art contemporaindes Laurentides101 Curé Labelle Pl., St. Jérôme450.432.7171LézArts Loco / Lolipop boutique1287 Dufresne St., Val David819.322.6379Pierre Trahan, cabinetmaker9 Jasmins Rd., Gore450.562.9842Troy Beck, metalworker73 Wales Rd. N, St. André d’Argenteuil450.537.1743Simon Le François, sculptor3 William St., Grenville819.242.4736

Galerie d’art Michel Bigué is at the heart of the gallery district in St. Sauveur.

By David Price

Shooter

The plot: a US marine sniper (MarkWahlberg) retires from the military afterbeing abandoned behind enemy lines. Afew years later, he is recruited to help stopa presidential assassination – only to findhimself in a plot muchmore complex thanthat.

I wanted to like this movie. I likedWahlberg in movies like Three Kings(1999) and Boogie Nights (1997) – and Isalute his successful transformation fromMarky Mark. The movie had a good feel.By the end, however, I wished that I hadbeen watching the “first draft” that couldstill be fixed and not a final edit.

First draft

If I were reviewing this hypotheticalfirst draft, I would say: This movie couldbe great. It is well acted by Wahlberg,Danny Glover and Michael Peña. It suc-cessfully brings us into the fascinatingworld of the sniper – a profession that hasnot been “movied” to death. And it couldbe an articulate, angry and semi-seriouspolitical movie in the same vein as the ex-cellent Spartan (2004) and Three Kings.

Unfortunately, I was watching the finaledit. Nevertheless, I would have forgivenmany minor sins. For instance, it is bla-tantly unprofessional for our supposedlyultra-professional sniper to break cover inthe opening scene (to duke it out with a

helicopter!). And the movie’s gun expertbrings up unwelcome echoes of DonaldSutherland’s character in JFK (1991), justas a scene betweenWahlberg and themainfemale character (Kate Mara) brings upunwelcomememories of theMeg Ryan-as-widow/Tom Cruise-as-good-soldier scenefrom Top Gun (1986).

Unforgiven

What I can’t forgive was the movie’s de-generation into a Chuck Norris-style ex-plosion-fest. Our sniper sets off somehomemade napalm worthy of what the air-planes unleash in Apocalypse Now (1979).Nor can I forgive the multiple and contra-dictory endings. Towards the end, oursniper has the bad guys in his power andthen lets them go (“I’m out!”) – only to goafter them again. Nor can I forgive someof the silly dialogue. After several betray-als, our embittered sniper eventuallystands at attention and affirms his militaryoath. (Was the anthem playing? I can’t re-member.) As counterpoint, Glover – play-ing the over-worldly insider – crows cyni-cally about “the land of the free and thehome of the brave.” Originality and real-ism were simultaneously and glaringly ab-sent.

The worst unforgivable moment: asemi-courtroom drama at the end of themovie (in front of the attorney general!)complete with a “courtroom” surprise thatwould prove nothing in the real world, butthat we are supposed to believe.

Movie Review: Shoot and miss

There’s no better way to celebrate theend of winter – and nothing more fittingfor a Quebecer – than to visit a sugarshack. And in the Eastern Townships, thesecond largest syrup-producing region inQuebec, there’s no shortage of sugarshacks to visit.

Sugar making is big business in Que-

bec, where over 7,000 producers generate$178 million annually or about 75% of theworld’s supply.

This wasn’t always the case. Formerly,syrup producers in New England and Ver-mont dominated the market. But withwarmer-than-usual winters in the last 30years, as well as generous subsidies fromthe Canadian government and aggressivebranding by the Quebec Federation ofMaple Syrup Producers, the tables haveturned. Nowadays, it’s hard to think of amore quintessentially Canadian exportthan maple syrup.

Miracle of nature

The conditions that make for goodsugar making are manifold and complex,

says Richard Normand of La SucrerieHaut Bois Normand, a 10,000-tap sugarbush in Eastman, Quebec. “It depends alot on temperature,” he says, “but that’snot everything.”

A maple tree can be tapped for its sug-ary sap when temperatures are belowfreezing overnight and above zero in the

day. It helps as well if there is ample snowcover, which insulates the tree’s roots, andnot too much sun in the afternoon. Also,vibrant fall foliage is a sure sign of a sweetharvest.

Visiting a sugar shack

Sugar shacks are living museums ofFrench-Canadian kitsch. Expect to payabout $20 for an all-you-can-eat meal ofsplit-pea soup, baked beans, maple-curedham and oreilles de criss (deep-fried porklard), as well as omelettes, sausages anddoughnuts slathered in the sweet stuff.

In general, sugar shacks are open to thepublic until mid-April. It’s always best tocall ahead, since most “authentic” sugarshacks sell out in advance.

14 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

Townships Calendar

Shacking up

Retailers and boutiques!The time to order is now!

2008 Eastern Townships calendar (bilingual)Barns and Farms of the Townshipsby Louise Abbott and Niels Jensen

Variety of towns, seasons and subjects.Size (bigger this year!): 24 inches high by 133⁄8 unfolded

Same size as the “Lang-style” framesRetail: $16.95. Call now for the best retailers’ discount.310 Victoria Ave., Suite 105, Westmount, Quebec H3Z 2M9

Tel: 514.223.6138 – Fax: 514.935.9241Email: accounting@pricepatterson.com

Our

3rd

year

by John Smith

What future events will benefit the pru-dent investor who has anticipated their po-tential?

The relentless passing of time can ben-efit the investing public. It makes a goodwine taste even better. Apparently, it doeswonders for teenagers. Moreover, in theevent of a market reversal, it can have re-cuperative powers for most good long-term investments.

Recently, investors and the media havehad a tendency to concentrate on weeklyannouncements that turn out to be of veryshort-term importance. Housing starts,gasoline stockpiles, metal inventories andeven weather forecasts have made thefront page and beckon us to follow hedgefund and portfolio traders in minute-to-minute vacillations.

A few years ago a press release record-ing changes in US money supply wouldtransfix the marketplace. That particularindicator is no longer in use, yet its disap-pearance hasn’t made one iota of differ-ence to the performance of markets. Agood investor will look well beyond the im-mediate headlines and prepare for move-ments that underlie good investment prac-tice.

Here are some important events thatwill affect the marketplace in the next fewyears. But remember, these prognostica-tions are guesses at best. The market willabsorb the information and do preciselywhat it wants to do without the slightestregard for the pundits, prognosticators,analysts and, particularly, this watcher.

2007 or 2008: UK Election

The demise of Tony Blair and the re-moval of the Labour Party from power.This will be an event that will leave the USwithout its one significant political ally.Investors tend to follow the path laiddown by senior elected officials. Any re-treat by UK investors would not be a wel-come departure from the markets inNorth America.

September 2007: Demise of Greenspan

Alan Greenspan will cease to be on thelecture circuit after forecasting possible re-cessions in the US and finding that hisforecasts are not winning many friends athis old employer. Interest rates will haveticked up and the markets will be lookingahead to a recovery.

Summer 2008: The Olympic Games

History tells us that the country thathosts the summer Olympic games experi-ences a severe and very uncomfortablehangover when the party ends. China hasspent more than any other nation prepar-ing for this showcase event. The rulinggovernment has used the games as aspringboard to revitalize Beijing and sur-rounding infrastructure. Once the touristsleave town and the letdown begins, therewill be little or no new construction andancillary activity for a significant period oftime. (Montrealers, think of the Big Owe.)

The effect of this slowdown will be agreatly reduced demand for all sorts of ma-terials in world commodity markets. Theabsence of substantial purchasing of oil,metals and lumber are a few areas thatcould have a negative effect on Canada’smarkets.

January 20, 2009:Inauguration of US president

Inauguration of a new president of theUS and the departure of the incumbentberserker. This will make for a desired seachange in attitude about the politics of theUS and should revive a conciliatory atti-tude from investors around the world.However, the shift in political comfortzones will not be achieved quickly andmarkets will remain skeptical for a longtime before restoring the US to a predom-inant role. The challenges left behind bythe present administration will remainsignificant burdens for many years tocome.

Late 2009: The War in Iraq

The last foreign troops leave Iraq andthe country reverts to being a loose cannonlooking for a dictator to quell the factionsthat make the country such an interestingtopic for historians. The result will be theinclusion of Iraqi oil exports in the OPECclub, with little benefit to the rest of theworld. Oil will continue to be the propel-lant of choice for most vehicles and theMiddle East and OPEC will be the pre-ferred suppliers. Unless Alberta undercutstheir price.

John Smith is the nom de guerre of aretired investment executive. John has beena broker, investment banker and trader in

Montreal and Toronto, as well as incompany management and the investment

industry’s self-regulatory agencies.

Practical Points: Investing

Prognostications

Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007 – 15

Festival

� Le Temps des sucres. Local artisansshowcase their wares throughout the townof Knowlton. For more information call1.877.242.2870. Various locations inKnowlton. April 7 & 8, 14 & 15 and 21& 22.

Movies

� Theatre Lac Brome screens Quinceañera,the Sundance Film Festival Grand JuryPrize-winning film about how a Mexicangirl’s 15th birthday celebration iscomplicated when she discovers she ispregnant. Tickets are $7, $5 for members.Arts Knowlton, 9 Mount Echo Rd.,Knowlton. For more information call450.242.2270 or go to www.theatrelacbrome.com. April 1 at 5 pm.

� Theatre Lac Brome screens ManufacturingLandscapes, an NFB documentary aboutCanadian photographer Edward Burtynsky.Arts Knowlton, 9 Mount Echo Rd.,Knowlton. For more information call450.242.2270 or go to www.theatrelacbrome.com. April 1 at 5 pm.

Music

� Festival du Lac Massawippi kicks off in

April and will feature recitals of classicaland popular music throughout the springand summer, as well as an antiques fair.For more information call 819.842.2784.St. Elizabeth Church, North Hatley.April 15 at 4 pm.

� Classical guitar prodigy Thierry BéginLamontagne in concert. Tickets are $14.For more information call 819.849.6371or go to www.pavilliondesarts.qc.ca.Pavillion des Arts et de la Culture deCoaticook, 116 Wellington St., Coaticook.April 1 at noon.

Theatre

� Arts Knowlton presents The Dik And MitsyAnniversary Show, a vaudeville show.Tickets are $23, $26 on Saturday. For moreinformation call 450.242.2270 or go towww.theatrelacbrome.ca. Theatre LacBrome, 9 Mount Echo Rd., Knowlton.March 29 to April 1.

� Le fantôme de Canterville. An evening ofimaginative entertainment in French.Tickets are $25. For more information call819.849.6371 or go to www.pavilliondesarts.qc.ca. Pavillion des Arts et de laCulture de Coaticook, 116 Wellington St.,Coaticook. April 27 at 8 pm.

Eastern Townships Events

KNOWLTON3 Victoria

450 242-2000Fax: 450 243-0914

lois@royallepage.ca

BRICK BEAUTY – 1865 country house, shel-tered in the folds of the hills near Bromont, fac-ing south with views to Mt. Pinnacle. Lovinglyrestored and featuring spacious light-filledrooms, the warmth of wood flooring, wood andgas fireplaces. 150 acres, 2 ponds, brook, fieldsand woodland. Enchantment. $1,250,000

HILLSIDE HAVEN – Overlooking The Glen, nearKnowlton, and the mountains, this home hasyear-round appeal. The view evolves throughthe changing light and vegetation of the sea-sons, always fresh and appealing. A large poolwith extensive decking awaits your summerfrolics. 5.7 acres $345,000

SHANGRILA – Equestrian paradise in Dunham.95 acres, half in meadows and fields, miles ofattractive fencing, large stable with big boxes,ponds, trails. Sumptuous 1890 4-bedroom res-idence, each window framing a pastoral view,set in perfect privacy on a long and windingdriveway. Tranquillity. $1,345,000

TROUSER LAKE – A quiet, ecological lake, nogas motors. Here’s a find! Impeccable 3-bed-room lakefront home facing east on over an acreof land, well-landscaped with perennial gardensand hidden spots for contemplation, 260 feet onthe water. Bonus: insulated garage/atelier.$525,000

TAKE ME HOME country roads. Idyllic, private,leafy setting of almost 6 acres near Knowltonand Brome Lake. Beamed ceilings, very largeopen plan dining/kitchen, livingroom with fire-place, 4 bedrooms, master suite with mezza-nine, 4-season solarium, open air spa on thedeck. Perfect. $399,500

IT’S WHERE YOU WANT TO BE – 80 acreswith a view of Brome Lake just minutes south ofKnowlton. There is a great building site with thedriveway in place, several ponds, a well and, ofcourse, the view. A stable is under constructionand the CPTAQ says you can build a house ifyou have horses. $550,000

SUPER LAKEFRONT BUILDING SITE – Seizethis rare opportunity to discover a spot on beau-tiful Brome Lake for your new home. 130 feet onthe shore, an area of almost 2 acres with moun-tain and lake views, south-easterly orientation.Near Knowlton and a few minutes fromAutoroute 10. $469,000

Eastern Townships Living by Lois HardackerChartered Real Estate Agent

Au Bec Sucré5677 Airport Rd.Valcourt, QC450.532.3771

Cabane à sucre Bellavance773 Bellavance Rd.St. Cécile de Whitton, QC819.583.0441

Cabane à sucre Mégantic3732 10e RangLake Mégantic, QC819.583.1760

Cabane du Pic Bois1468 Gaspé St.Brigham, QC450.263.6060www.cabanedupicbois.com

Érablière du Lac d’Argent1050 Carette Rd.Dudswell, QC819.887.1030

Érablière la Grillade106 Érables Rd.St. Alphonse, QC450.375.5959www.grillade.ca

Érablière Landry830 PopeCookshire, QC819.875.3851

Érablière Leclerc275 Brandrick St.Shefford, QC450.777.7128

Érablière Martin675 Route 137 SouthSt. Cécile de Milton, QC450.772.1196

Érablière Paré155 Route 112 EastDudswell, QC819.887.6621

Érablière Sanders256 Domaine St.Ascot Corner, QC819.346.0852www.erablieresanders.com

La Sucrerie Haut Bois Normand426 George Bonnallie Rd.Eastman, QC450.297.2659www.hautboisnormand.ca

Sugar shacks

16 – Vivva MONTREAL – April 2007

BRIAN, TIMOTHY, JOAN McGUIGANAGENTS IMMOBILIER AGRÉES / CHARTERED REAL ESTATE AGENTS

TRUST. REACH. RESULTS.

Downtown Live as you would at the Ritz, except own yourown condo. Prestigious building with a discreet neighbour-ly feel. Enjoy Mount Royal, as if it were your own backyard.Parking, doorman, security. Galley-style kitchen, moldings,archways. Asking $210,000

Virtual tour: www.mcguiganpepin.com/571544

NDG A rare find! Older style NDG s/d cottage with origi-nal woodwork and features, left beautifully intact. Idealfamily home with five bedrooms. Set back from street. Ex-ceptionally deep lot provides sun-filled outdoor living withdeck, garden. Asking 359,000

Downtown Situated at the back of a quiet courtyard ina prime downtown Montreal location, this house haspotential for renovators. With 4 bedrooms, plus two inthe basement, house is bright with windows on 3 sides.Asking $599,000

Westmount Victoria Village! Large 3-bedroom semi-de-tached beauty with stunning woodwork, architecturaltreasures. Exposed brick and fireplace in living room.Kitchen has a pantry and adjacent mudroom. Deck,garage. Asking $695,000

Virtual tour: www.mcguiganpepin.com/571575

Westmount Prime living in the heart of Victoria Village.Bright with skylight in stairwell and bathroom. Nicely ren-ovated kitchen and bathrooms (’02). Fin. basement withbedroom, accessible by private door. Garden, 3 balconies.Asking $569,000

Virtual tour: www.mcguiganpepin.com/571517

Westmount Impeccably maintained 4 bdr cottage onsought after street. Upstairs den with f/p and lrg balcony.Spacious teak carpeted playroom in bsmt. Enjoy 3 fp’s,garden. Asking $1,100,000

Westmount Charming turn of the century family homein Westmount's best location – the flat. Cross hall planbetween spacious living room and dining room. 10 ft. ceil-ings, ornate moldings. Parking for 3 cars. Lrg family roomand bedroom in basement. Asking $999,000

Virtual tour: www.mcguiganpepin.com/571081

Downtown Bright two-level 2,300 s.f. penthouse apart-ment with a large balcony off the living room providing amagnificent view of Mount Royal. Top floor features entryhall, spacious living room, adj. dining room and gourmetkitchen. Asking $849,000

Virtual tour: www.mcguiganpepin.com/571559.

Westmount Prime location, close to shops, transit, park.Magnificent house blending contemporary and old worldcharm. Quality renovations, street-level multipurpose of-fice space, 2 parking spaces, brick/stone terrace. Asking$955,000

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The bubble is in the champagne.The market is high, demand is strong.

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