You can download the this week’s edition in PDF format HERE (or grab the full newspaper HERE,) or just keep reading (the unrated version) below.

Episode 2 – Ultimate Summer Cocktail: Shaken, of course!

Image Cutline: Steve shakes up the Summery Ramos Gin Fizz with tremendous passion.

Raj: What’s Shakin’, lil’ lady?

Fury: I’ll tell you what. A dozen of shaker boys are lined up behind the bar to prepare one of my favourite Summer drinks, the Ramos Gin Fizz.  Just like in the pre-prohibition days in sweet New Orleans.

Raj: The year is 1888, those shaker boys are slaves and they’re not as scantily clad as you’d imagine oh Furious one! I see where you’re coming from, though. If you don’t shake this drink for at least five minutes, it’s going to taste like something nasty.

Fury: Steve Da Cruz at the Corner Suite Bistro rescued me from that disaster once.  As a gin enthusiast, I once ordered this complex drink with great anticipation, only to be disappointed by a watery, curdled, undrinkable mess.  Steve swooped in…

Raj: You swooned…

Fury: and shook the living heck out of the concoction of seltzer, orange blossom water, orange bitters, and a touch of cream.

Raj: SWOON!  It’s like drinking a flower, the ultimate Summer cocktail.

Fury: The Ramos Gin Fizz at the Corner Suite is my sultry, adult version of the creamsicle.

Raj: I was in a famous restaurant in Whistler recently, one of those places that purports to have an extensive cocktail program.  The first two drinks didn’t cut it so as punishment, I assigned the bartender a Ramos Gin Fizz. Needless to say, they totally struck out.

Fury: That just shows how you have to be very selective on who shakes up your drinks. The bartender’s heart really has to be into it.

Raj: Since you’re running the Vancouver Craft Cocktail Tour with Jay Jones, you’re the lady to go to.

Fury:I only put my drinks in the hands of those I trust.  Since Corner Suite is the ultimate bibliotheque of spirits, they have no choice but to work it like no tomorrow.

Editor: No shaker boys were harmed on this cocktail quest.

- – -

Raj Taneja is part technologist, entrepreneur, social media juggernaut and foodie. He runs urbanmixer.com and publishes a miscellany of musings at raj.jp and on twitter @tinhead. Melody Fury is the founder of Vancouver Food Tour.  Follow this YVR lifestyle ambassador on twitter @GourmetFury.

I’ve accessing more than one Exchange account via push for several years. In an interesting twist of fate, the iPhone now has this functionality as of iOS4 making iPhone 4 and the upgraded iPhone 3Gs excessively attractive. The newly-released E73, on the other hand, isn’t worthy.

Up until the E71 was released a couple years ago, I was pretty happy with the E-Series product. Then, something changed. Nokia released the E75 and started to ram buggy and slow software down the consumer’s throat. No longer was the top-of-the-line Nokia phone usable. Instead, users were forced to wait several minutes for their phone to respond or worse, they were forced to constantly reboot their phones in order to get access to contacts, calendars and their inbox.

The E75 looked to generally be an upgrade to the E71. It had the latest OS, geotagging of photos from the camera, N-Gage gaming, podcasting, Internet destinations and more. Sadly, it lacked adequate memory to install third party software and was really slow. Another neat feature that surfaced with the E75 was the ability to charge the phone from either the standard Nokia circular charger or from the micro-USB port.

In a baffling move and shortly after the release of the E75, Nokia quietly killed N-Gage, alienated hundreds of thousands, if not millions of users, and started to prepare to sell stuff in their OVI store.

Around that time, I acquired the E72 and was confounded by some of the important features that were missing. Where was the podcasting software? How about the geotagging feature for my photos? The 5 megapixel camera was definitely great to use but it seems like Nokia decided to make the phone less functional than it’s predecessor. The phone, similar to the E75 also charged from the standard Nokia charger or micro-USB and also used the same battery as the E71. Great news, I could use my old accessories, spare batteries and car charger. Another bonus was that the upgraded processor and storage made the phone more usable than the E75.

Then something happened. Nokia pushed out a firmware update to the E72 and made the phone completely unstable and unusable, even when one reverted to factory settings. I tried unsuccessfully to load in an older firmware using Navifirm and some flashing tools. This turned my phone in to a brick and I was forced to go back to my E71 while my E72 made it’s way back to Malaysia for service.

Enter Wind and the E73. My contract with Fido’s been up for some time. The unlimited talk for $45 and unlimited Internet for $50 plus all the taxes (real and imagined by Fido) seemed less attractive than what the new provider Wind was offering, so I bit and bought a few months of service from the company to see if I was missing anything. I then embarked on a journey to Bellingham to purchase a Nokia E73 from T-Mobile which is compatible with Wind’s AWS network.

Unlocking the T-Mobile was a breeze. I’ve been a TMo customer for some time and they graciously provided me with an unlock code within 24 hours of my purchase. Getting it set up on Wind was a bit of a task – it has been years since I’ve entered Internet and MMS settings into my phone and changed the SMS delivery but after that, the phone was good to go. In the E73 I noticed they brought back podcasting but the geotagging feature was still absent.

The E73 is geared towards the T-Mobile network so some of the usability items like Wifi hotspot connectivity is confounding but to be expected.

Then I noticed something really amiss.

Nokia, in their ultimate wisdom, removed the standard Nokia charger port from the phone! The only way to charge the phone is to lift the micro-USB port and use the provided micro-USB charger. Yikes! No backwards compatibility with chargers I’ve acquired along the way. Additionally, the same dreaded software update (new firmware) that Nokia pushed to my E72 appears to have also hit the E73 so the phone now has fits of instability and the threaded SMS program (Nokia Conversations) doesn’t run anymore.

To top it all off, Wind seems to only be delivering EDGE type Internet speeds to the phone making the change feel like a step backwards compared even to my E71 which gets a good dose of HSDPA 3.5G speed.

The Wind network hasn’t hit primetime yet and the E73 is definitely not worth upgrading to. Better off in the bin, it’s no wonder why Nokia is in trouble and looking for a new CEO to give them direction. Not for me, I’m off to get an iPhone 4 and I’ll stick with Fido.

You can download the this week’s  format HERE (or grab the full newspaper HERE,) or just keep reading (the unrated version) below.

Episode 1 – Edgy Summer Cocktails at Conviction Kitchen

Image cutline: Simon concocts cool cocktails under the hot film lights.

Summer is upon us.  Vancouver, very much like our mayor, is two-faced.  One week, we feel like we’re in bone-chilling November when nobody’s on the bike-lanes, the next, it’s frickin’ Summer!  It’s time to enjoy a refreshing cocktail and relax in the sun.

Raj:  So what about a bunch of sweaty ex-convicts in a kitchen?

Fury:  Yes folks, they’re filming the second season of “Conviction Kitchen” at a Westend icon, Delilah’s.  Reality shows usually irk me but I’ve really warmed up to these boys.

Raj:  Well, that’s because you fed them a bunch of vodka shots and bonded with them in the kitchen!  But Simon and Stephen, the management, are here to handle any drama.  Imagine a group that’s mired in tardiness, lacking in attention to detail, and are overall nonchalant about work.

Fury:  You mean they perfected their hustle in jail. So back to Simon, the head-bartender.  He started off in Australia, found a job at the faux Earls on Alberni… what do they call that place?

Raj: Oh ya, Town Hall.  I vowed once to never ever go back, but then I discoveredSimon, who’s graduated to a legendary establishment that actually suits his talents.

Fury: After six cocktails, we agreed that the Cherry Caiprinha is the money shot.  For one, he utilized the best of B.C. to concoct the signature drink, including sunny Ranier Cherries and organic Okanagan honey.

Raj: As a well-travelled bloke, he’s experienced both goodness and grit. Take, for example, his contribution of African teas to the beverage, add the complexity of his work environment and the possibility that the wrong cocktail might leave him with a shank in the back. Working at Conviction Kitchen can be perilous, I’m sure!

Fury: No mis-steps on Simon’s part yet. The team’s unique characters, the restaurant’s historic charm, combined with that Caiprinha made for an entertaining start in our search for THE ultimate Summer cocktail.

—

Raj Taneja is part technologist, entrepreneur, social media juggernaut and foodie. He runs urbanmixer.com and publishes a miscellany of musings at raj.jp and on twitter @tinhead. Melody Fury is the founder of Vancouver Food Tour.  Follow this YVR lifestyle ambassador on twitter @GourmetFury.

A paradox is something that reveals a seemingly opposing nature and Sweeney’s has an item in their menu that is a paradox of sorts – a vegetarian “meatball.” This fitting finale on the meatball quest will definitely give vegans and health-conscious food junkies alike something to look forward to when they grab a bite to eat at this “slow-fast food” place along Hamilton Street in Yaletown.

You can download the this week’s edition in PDF format HERE (or grab the full newspaper HERE,) or just keep reading (the unrated version) below.

Episode 6 – Surprise Taste on the Finale of Meatball Quest

Image cutline: When it comes to good karma, Raj and Fury believe the balls at Sweeney’s of Yaletown have it nailed.

Can’t really put our finger on it…

There’s something amiss about a humble sandwich shop that opens in the city’s swankiest culinary district. Right next door, Blue Water Cafe features champagnes such as Salon’s Blanc des Blancs at $1000 a pop.

Raj: If you check under the hood, Sweeney’s of Yaletown is by no means average.

Fury: What confounds me is that their menu is Ocean Wise, local, and organic.  Even their containers are bio-degradable but there are no signs boasting of it.  No stickers, no symbols, no hint of it on the menu.

Raj: I’d have to say that they’re believers in good karma.  They make good, honest food, use quality ingredients, and hope the universe is benevolent enough to send some customers their way.

Fury: Perhaps it’s the universe that has guided us here for the final chapter in our quest.  The thought of conquering their meatball sub has held me captive ever since I found out about it on twitter.

Raj: It’s a good start that they serve these meatballs on a torpedo bun.  To enhance the flavour, they add a bit of homemade tomato sauce and Provelone cheese, just like what they use in Philadelphia.

Fury: The meatballs were soft, kinda gummy, and I definitely tasted mushroom and thyme.  Even under the tangy sauce, I still sensed a little je ne sais quoi.

Raj: I couldn’t put my finger on it either –

Editor: You guys know that those were vegetarian meatballs, right?

Raj: There you have it, good karma!  No animals were harmed in the creation of these meatballs and they were pretty darn good.

Fury:  Considering all the meat we’ve consumed on our six-part meatball quest, I’m just thankful that we found a meat-free alternative that doesn’t suck.

—

Raj Taneja is part technologist, entrepreneur, social media juggernaut and foodie. He runs urbanmixer.com and publishes a miscellany of musings at raj.jp and on twitter @tinhead. Melody Fury is the founder of Vancouver Food Tour.  Follow this YVR lifestyle ambassador on twitter @GourmetFury.

Trout Lake Beach

This Thursday about a hundred geeks, civilians, and their families are expected to descend upon the beach in search of treasures and adventures of the digital variety. SMCYVR and Nokia Canada have combined forces to produce a 21st Century-style treasure hunt which will guide teams around the lake and park via smartphone as they learn to integrate the digital and actual worlds.

Smartphones are not necessary; nor is money! Nokia is supplying loaners for each team, so if you’re unsure how to use the darn things there will be social media superstars/gurus/ninjas/jedi on hand to decode them for you. And the event is free and open to all ages!

Rain or shine, people! It’s not like you don’t own Gore-Tex!

From the SMCYVR site:

The event will run from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm on Thursday, August 5th. Trout Lake Park is easily accessible via Skytrain, and Nokia Canada will be on site demonstrating their latest phones. Some of them are so user-friendly that even a five-year old could operate them!

And the last one to check in on Foursquare is out! (Just kidding…)

Pucker up! Here it comes!

If you’re as gaga for tea as Gaga here, you won’t want to miss the 5th Annual Prêt-A-Pour-Tea & Inaugural Prêt-A-Pour-Nuit events in October. By day, wear your crispest suit and snappiest trilby; by night, wear your slinkiest dress and a fascinating fascinator (well, that’s not a look that flatters all genders, but you can make anything work, can’t you?) and have fun raising funds for the BC and Yukon branch of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. Last year with only one event they raised $75,000. With this swanky dinner and cocktail party as an addition, they’re set to do even better.

My personal pick of the party attractions? The chance to have your portrait painted by internationally known Vancouver artist Pamela Masik; and for only $20! The Masik Mosaik Project is a groundbreaking art piece, and you can be a part of it! Meet her now, before the rest of the world catches on to this local meteor of talent.

The Masik Mosaik Photo Project invites ALL women and C.B.C.F. supporters to participate in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to celebrate the women in your life.  Become part of “The Bigger Picture”!  Make a $20 donation, which will buy you a place on the Masik Mosaik, to help in the quest to eliminate this disease that affects so many women.

Send us photos of women that you love, cherish, miss, admire or sadly, have lost to breast cancer…Each photo is a $20 donation - send in as many as you’d like!  The year 2020 has been earmarked by the C.B.C.F. as the year to end breast cancer – in commemoration of that date ONLY 2,020 photos will be accepted. Each photo will become a pixel on a large canvas – part of “The Bigger Picture” so to speak!

Pamela Masik will create an awe-inspiring piece of art with the photo covered canvas, which will be auctioned at our new Prêt a Pour Nuit~Evening Fundraising Event for the CBCF. All of the donations from this photo project will be added to the donation from our signature daytime event, the 5th Annual Prêt a Pour Tea~High Tea & High Fashion Gal’s Day Out Luncheon on October 27^th, 2010.

You can download the this week’s  format HERE (or grab the full newspaper HERE,) or just keep reading (the unrated version) below.

Episode 5 – Japadog Eat Your Heart Out

Image cutline:The only word that can describe Zakkushi’s legendary chicken meatball aka Tsukune is … ‘YUM!’

If you ever wondered how the creators of Japadog got inspired into making their acclaimed street meat, look no further than your local Izakaya.

Fury: An Izakaya is a Japanese after-work drinking and unwinding destination that serves up small dishes in a communal atmosphere. Uncomplicated, fast, and fun.

Raj: When I lived in Japan, ultimately my coworkers and I lived for one thing – getting to the Izakaya for a dozen after-work bevies. Heck, most of our business entertaining was done in Izakayas.

Fury: You mean when the clients weren’t taking you to hostess bars, right?

Raj: … You mean… Karaoke bars…

Fury: I know you love public humiliation… anyways, back to Izakayas. There many types of Izakayas out there.  Yakitori, literally translated to “barbequed-bird” is essentially meat and vegetable skewers that are grilled to perfection over a charcoal grill.  Zakkushi’s topmost chefs take this whole charcoal grill business to a new level in their quick-paced open kitchen-bar.

Raj: If there’s one thing that Zakkushi is really known for, it’s their Tsukune (pronounced skoo-nay), a Japanese chicken meatball that’s grilled over intense heat generated from special charcoal imported from Japan. Retaining up to 1000 degrees of heat, even the charcoal in Japan has an outrageous work ethic!

Fury: They grill their chicken-ball skewers from raw as opposed to par- boiling them, resulting in a much juicier and more flavourful meatball.  A squeeze of Japanese mayo, a hit of seaweed, a two-litre bottle of Asahi’s “Bigboy” beer, and you’re ready to rock!

Editor: Raj and Fury also enjoyed the newly launched Kobe beef-ball skewers on their beer-fueled rampage that evening.

—

Raj Taneja is part technologist, entrepreneur, social media juggernaut and foodie. He runs urbanmixer.com and publishes a miscellany of musings at raj.jp and on twitter @tinhead. Melody Fury is the founder of Vancouver Food Tour.  Follow this YVR lifestyle ambassador on twitter @GourmetFury.

Indeed, it was a worthwhile adventure into the Land of the Sleeping Dragon right in the heart of Vancouver. The ‘Lion’s Head’ is a customary dish in Shanghai, which usually has pork as its main ingredient, and is normally boiled or steamed. There is also a Cantonese version of the dish, which makes use of beef instead of pork and is considered a dim sum dish. Another variant of this dish is made of pulverized fish instead of meat. This is definitely an appetizing dish which more than a billion people would never go wrong with.

You can download the this week’s  format HERE (or grab the full newspaper HERE,) or just keep reading (the unrated version) below.

Episode 4 – Raiders of the Lost Meatball

Image cutline: The leafy green vegetables surrounding this delicious meat-boulder represent the mane of the Lion’s Head.

The quest for Vancouver’s ultimate meatball has taken us to many foreign culinary lands and this episode is no exception.

Raj: Legend has it that there’s a mystical meatball known only as the “Lion’s Head” in the Far East.

Fury: Hailing from the heart of China, we dared to try this specialty at Shanghai Village on Cambie Street. Traditionally, the Lion’s Head is a dish comprised of several meatballs in a sizzling claypot.

Raj: What was initially just a quest for a new flavor played out like the most famous Indiana Jones scene ever!  Picture this: you’re in a booby-trap filled temple, and all of a sudden you’re running for your life to avoid being crushed by a two ton boulder.

Fury: To our amazement, Shanghai Village only serves one prolific meat-boulder.  You can’t stuff the whole ball into your mouth here!

Raj: Aside from the size, this was the first pork meatball we’ve tried on this journey.  It tastes like it’s infused with some sort of tea.

Fury: That would be the preserved cabbage that brings a touch of sweetness and smokiness to the mix.

Raj: And what about that mystery brown sauce that they slather on everything? What’s up with that?

Fury: Don’t diss it until you try it mixed into a bowl of steamy rice.  It’s the ultimate comfort staple, yo.

Editor: Fury and Raj completed this voyage unscathed and lived to write about it.

—

Raj Taneja is part technologist, entrepreneur, social media juggernaut and foodie. He runs urbanmixer.com and publishes a miscellany of musings at raj.jp and on twitter @tinhead. Melody Fury is the founder of Vancouver Food Tour.  Follow this YVR lifestyle ambassador on twitter @GourmetFury.

And this was one error that allowed us to come across something wonderful. After peeling off the layers that has wrapped Bin 942 with the false impression of being just another hyped-up tapas bar, the secret that lay within was discovered . . . and what a satisfying discovery it was.

You can download the this week’s  format HERE (or grab the full newspaper HERE,) or just keep reading (the unrated version) below.

Episode 3 – Uncovering the Secret Recipe

Image cutline: Bin 942’s secret recipe is the essence of simplicity – patience, a whole lotta onions and a dash of port make the best base for extremely juicy meatballs.

Up until recently, we deemed Gord Martin’s menus at his infamous Bin Restaurants as simply glorified tapas items, dished up to the late-night wine bar crowd.  Not the most discerning clique from our standpoint, that is, until we ­­sampled their meatballs.

F: Personally, Bin has always been a wine-forward establishment for me, with their dolled-up bar food served as an amenity.  This is a spot where truffle oil is not a subtle enhancement, but merely a liberally used condiment on every other menu item.

R: You know, Fury, itwas really worth checking out Bin 942 to take a peek at what’s under all that sass.

F: When we peeled off the superficial layers, we were surprised to discover the labour intensive secret behind the balls’ extreme juiciness.  There’s actually no slight of hand going on here.

R: That Gord guy has some serious patience.  I mean making the base of his meatballs by caramelizing a potful of onions for hours? What type of maniac does that?

F: Sometimes subtlety is the best approach – like the dash of port to coax out the onion’s complex sweetness.

R: Just throw in the meat and we’ve got some good good balls.  In the esteemed words of Glenn Quagmire, the best summation would be “giggitygiggity, alright!”

Editor: To their horror, Raj and Fury later discovered that there was truffle in the accompanying Pinot Noir sauce. They weren’t able to escape it.

—

Raj Taneja is part technologist, entrepreneur, social media juggernaut and foodie. He runs urbanmixer.com and publishes a miscellany of musings at raj.jp and on twitter @tinhead. Melody Fury is the founder of Vancouver Food Tour.  Follow this YVR lifestyle ambassador on twitter @GourmetFury.

My initial reaction was to call bullshit and shake a few trees to see who I may know at flickr or Yahoo! HQ. After all, I take photos of people, food and cars – all done in a public space, not some sort of bedroom antics.

The original message:

From: Flickr Support <caseXXXXXXX@support.flickr.com>
To: Urban Mixer

Hello Urban Mixer,

We’ve changed the safety level of your photostream to “moderate”.

As per our Community Guidelines, content like that in your account is not considered “safe” for everyone to view. You may or may not be aware that Flickr has a Safe Search system. When people browse or search on Flickr, they can filter what they see based on a safety level that they are comfortable with – either Safe Search is on, set to moderate, or off. In order for Safe Search to work, we relying on *you* to filter your content appropriately. As you upload stuff to Flickr, you need to make sure that you’re applying appropriate filters (safe, moderate or restricted) and telling us what sort of content it is (photos, video, screenshots, art & illustration). If you don’t apply filters correctly, there’s a very good chance another member will let us know – in fact that’s why we’ve taken action today. (No need to be upset – it’s every member’s right to let us know if they ever feel uncomfortable. Yours too.)

We want Flickr to be a place that everyone can enjoy. That means making sure that potentially offensive content is filtered from public, safe areas of the site. If you read our Community Guidelines, you’ll see the key points are:

play nice, upload things that you have created yourself, and respect the fact that there are millions of people visiting Flickr who may not see the world the same way you do. Use your common sense about whether or not your content is suitable for a global, public audience. If the answer is no, you need to filter it from public view. <br><br>You should also know that if we receive another report about your content or conduct, it’s very likely we’ll terminate your account.

So, please take a moment to find out how to work with safety levels, use ‘em, and everybody’s happy!

Regards,

Flickr Staff

What was most irritating about this message was that firstly, I wasn’t really aware of the ramifications of being marked as moderate; secondly, I wasn’t aware of how to remedy the situation. It felt like some idiot at flickr decided to flip a switch and forever cast my profile into the abyss.

In the original note, there wasn’t any mention on how to remedy the issue nor was there any indication as to what was considered ‘not kosher’ by the flickr folks. Talk about frustrating. What’s worse is that after a couple of replies to the original email, I received no response.

What’s worse is that people started to email me, telling me that they had to log into flickr to see my photos and the viewership counts on my photos were severely affected. Others told me they couldn’t see my photos (unbeknownst to them, they had their safety filters set to the default – high) and the straw that broke the camel’s back was that I missed a photo publish opportunity with 24hrs news. Talk about a smack in the face.

After that, I decided I needed to call upon someone but first I did my research. After some digging and serendipitously, I got a reply to my original message (only five days late).

From: Flickr Support <caseXXXXXXX@support.flickr.com>
To: Urban Mixer

Hello,

Thong bikini images need to be classified as “moderate”.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/me/popular-interesting/

Female breasts, bare/thong bottom, see through topless nudity, pasties, etc.. images need to be marked as “moderate”.

Genitalia/pubic hair images need to be marked as “restricted”.

(marking the content as private is different then moderating the content as “moderate”/”restricted”)

You can bulk moderate your “moderate”/”restricted” content using the organizr tool.

(Do not worry about moderating your “safe” content)

www.flickr.com/photos/organize/

Load your images into the organizr tool, pull all(public, private, and friends/family) images that need to be marked as Moderate”/”restricted” into the main window, choose the “moderate”/”restricted” option from the “permissions/set safety filter” pulldown on top, click save and you’re done.

Because your account status is set to “moderate”, all of the images will appear as “moderate”/”restricted” in the organizr tool. This may seem a little confusing at first but if you take the required action of moderating your content as “moderate”/”restricted” where appropriate, that will show on our side when you request a re-review of your account status.

Regards,

-Terrence

Okay, it wass a hint but not a really firm answer on what but at least I had direction so I got to work, found every swimsuit, pasty, lingerie and other similar type of event that I’ve shot (out of my almost 40,000 photos) and marked them all as moderate. Since I haven’t shot any nudity, I knew I didn’t have to worry about marking things are restricted. An hour later I was done. I then requested (under a new case) a review of my flickr photostream and something miraculous happened, they came back in a little over an hour and opened up the floodgates on my flickr account again.

Hello Urban Mixer,

We appreciate you taking the time to bring your account in line with the Flickr Community Guidelines. Your account has been classified as “public”/”safe”. Please keep the Flickr Community Guidelines in mind in the future.

http://www.flickr.com/guidelines.gne

http://www.flickr.com/help/filters/

Thank you again for contacting us. If you have any other questions, please feel free to reply to this email.

Regards,

Terrence

Hindsight? The flickr uploadr allows you to set the ‘scariness’ level of your photos. I suggest you use it.