Author Archives: MarilynAnderson

Wasn’t That a Party

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by Marilyn Anderson, Duet Media

Well, that’s what Canadian hockey fans are going to be asking themselves come Thursday morning…..if they watched and/or celebrated their Men’s  Team make history with a 7:3 victory over Team Russia. This is the first time  in Olympic play  in 50 years that Canada has won this match-up!  Maybe the real question will be “Isn’t this a headache?’, but one thing is for sure – it will be Olympic in proportion, no matter what it is!

On the eve of the Canadian Women’s Gold Medal game against the U.S. on Thursday, we have to pinch ourselves and think back to Salt Lake City, where both finals featured Canada vs the U.S.A., with Canada coming home with both Gold Medals.

Are we setting ourselves up for a repeat? Only time will tell.  For now, we can celebrate a great effort by our Men, who worked so very hard tonight to take and hold the lead in a game where no one ever stopped.  The Russian team did not go gently….it was a battle for every play…..and there was a lot of heart and pride at stake.

Raise a glass, sing Oh Canada! at the top of your lungs.  Celebrate advancements, and be sure to cheer hard tomorrow………….tonight just feels like gold!

Marilyn Anderson is a Communications Specialist, Co-Founder of Duet Media, and possibly a closet hockey fan!

Seeing the flame through a Father’s eyes

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We got off the train at the same station this afternoon – the father, the son, and I.  The son mentioned the

Olympic Flame to me and, as we crossed the Concourse, was excited to share their day.  His Dad had an

appointment in the morning and they had gone together.  Once the ‘have to’s’ were done, they had seized

the moment….worked out a plan…..and went across town by transit in time to see the Olympic Flame near

Vancouver City Hall.  He was very excited by what they had done!

As we approached the escalator, he urged me to catch up to the Flame, so I could see it for myself.  He knew its route,

and recited it to me – by street and avenue, corner and landmark – wanting me to share in it, too. I was ahead of him

on the stairs – he stopped to wait for his Dad.  Dad was smiling, too.

The son was about 55-60 years of age, in my estimation, making Dad 80-something, I would guess.

He wore a toque, and sported a grizzled grey beard, and used a cane.

Dad walked independently, his son staying just a step or two ahead,  and as he used his white cane to gauge his path

it occurred to me that the passing of that Flame in front of them today was not the only Eternal Moment being shared.

Aussie bobsled hopefuls Astride and Cecelia face sleepless night!

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by Marilyn Anderson, Duet-Media.tel

Figure this: you dream and you train and you prepare and you compete….it takes over your thoughts, your life and every waking impulse. Your family supports you, your friends cheer you on, your country applauds you, and when that magic time comes…..well, sorry girls….you may have ‘qualified’, but you still can’t compete.

What the heck? That is the somewhat sticky situation facing two of Australia’s dedicated and talented female bobsledders, who today placed their final appeal in Vancouver. We saw them being photgraphed on their way out that door.

They have travelled part way around the world, hopes in hearts, to spend this one last night almost literally outside the gates, as they are not allowed inside the Olympic Village, because they are not ‘eligible’ to compete.

Read the details here, http://ow.ly/15iCg , coutesy of the New York Times, and sing a chorus of Waltzing Matilda to send them sweet dreams.

Good on ya, Ladies! We wish you the best!

Marilyn Anderson, Duet-Media, Vancouver

Vancouver’s streets are filling………….with cameras and things

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I spent some time on Granville Street this morning, admiring the new (and unusual) art installations on the Pedestrian Mall.  There was plenty of room to walk and to observe, and several people were taking advantage of the chance to take photos….before the street was filled with Olympic guests.  I saw a volunteer in her Smurf-blue jacket, having her picture taken with a friend, and talked with a lady with a lovely European accent and a very impressive camera.  Turns out she lives here, just wanted to take her shots while it was still easy to do.

The only sad note was the fellow traveller whose wallet had “gone missing” from his pocket somewhere.  Stay Alert – we knew this could happen.

On the Canada Line, I saw several luggage-laden folks headed to the Airport – avoiding the rush, I suppose.  Photographer Scott is headed to Viet Nam for a month, blogging about his trip along the way; Nikki shares that she is staying here, and sometimes puts her photos on a blog.  Both of them had their cameras out and focused, as did a local News Celeb (could that be Ian Hanomansing – setting up a piece with a CBC cameraman in attendance?).  It was interesting to see them at work.  Note to self: watch tonight’s  CBC evening News!

Our streets are filling…..with cameras and things.  Stay alert, so those things don’t belong to you.

Major Olympic sponsor Coca-Cola brings staff from all over the world

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What a great ride!  I just shared the front car of the Canada Line with six of Coke’s representatives.  Splendid in their Santa-red jackets – that wonderful clear red that just happens to be my favourite colour – they were wonderful spokespeople for their company and its culture.  Indeed, it made me reflect that their company’s global employee roster probably outnumbers the population of several nations.

Together, they were a mini-United Nations, gathered from around the globe – two from Eastern Canada, one from Houston, Texas, two from Europe and another from Australia. They were marketing managers, product development supervisors, a truck driver, a product design specialist – an engaging assortment of interesting people, looking forward to their responsibilities over the next three weeks.

It was my pleasure to be the ambassador here, the one on her ‘home turf’ who could say “Welcome” and “Enjoy your stay”.  We are so lucky, I think, to have so many chances to make new acquaintances and share smiles along the way.  In the lottery of life, being born a Canadian has to rank high on the ‘winning ticket’ list.  In this case, it came with a fun experience……and my very first Olympic pin!   The “Red Birds” have landed; who knew that would happen today?

I talk to Smurfs – welcome the world to Vancouver!

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Well, it’s finally here!  After all the rhetoric, arguments, ups and downs, hypes and lows…..it’s here! We are going live in Vancouver, in February 2010, and the world is truly arriving on our doorsteps..

How do I know this for sure?  Well, I have this from the very best of sources.  You see, I talk to Smurfs! That is not my name for them; I am talking about the 25,000 volunteers who are now roaming our streets, riding our buses, taking our trains, and wearing their beautiful Olympic-colored suits, which one of them described to me as “making them look like Smurfs!”.  They are certainly a beautiful shade of not-quite-turquoise-blue, complete with those famous 5 intertwined rings, and they are outstanding as well as standing out in the crowd.

My newest passion in transit is to talk to a Smurf, and – so far, at least – that campaign has been successful.

I have met a banker on leave from his bank in Toronto, a teacher here from Calgary, and – just yesterday – an interesting fellow from the United States who, in his non-Smurf life, runs high-tech companies.  I know a few more of these generous souls personally – realtors, former Olympians, retirees – and they have several things in common.

They love people, they care a great deal, they share a true pride in their countries, and they want to be involved. They also deserve our smiles, our greetings and our grateful support for helping to get this remarkable job done!

Be a sport yourself, I’d say – find a Smurf and greet them today!  Just look for the folks in blue.

Train YOUR Perspective

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These days, with all the changes in street traffic and lane allocations for our upcoming Olympic guests, I have been enjoying the variety of people-watching opportunities on the Canada Line.

Sunday, on a train headed south to Richmond, I was in the front car.  The very front seats (with a great big window) were occupied by a family of four: two engaging young children and their parents.

The little boy was very observant, sharing his impressions of what he saw, first in the tunnel and then out in the clear as we bridged the river and had a view.

As the train ran south along Number 3 Road, his father added the observation that – having driven this route many times- it was odd to see it from this higher level,  from which many of his landmarks did not appear, or were not visible in their usual way. His perspective had shifted and with it, his sense of where he was, too.

Isn’t it interesting how often in life we change our positions, usually without realizing how that has changed our view?

How have you trained your perspective?  How has it trained you to respond?  What does it take for each of us to really change our view?  Have you trained your perspective, or has it just trained you?

Does your New Year have a name?

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Several years ago I made a decision to ‘ignore’ the whole idea of New Year’s Resolutions. Like many of my friends, I had made them before….with varied and suspect results….and decided to bypass the disappointment (in myself) by simply eliminating the exercise.

However, as each new year approached, I was reminded that there needed to be a focus or a direction to my life, and that ‘just same old…’ was not enough.

Last year, 2009, I had a concept – and it worked: I gave my year a name. I called it My MBA YEAR. No, I did not go back to school in the conventional sense, though time, effort and money were involved. What I did was invest in learning some very specific skills that would make me a more valuable asset to everyone with whom I ever work. MBA for me stood for “My Business, Accelerated”. I travelled, I studied, I brought back absolutely current approaches and wove them into what I already knew….and the more I learned, the more my business did accelerate! Yahoo. Do I stop now? No, of course not, but I have achieved a new level of traction in my business life that I want to apply in other areas.

So this year, 2010, has a name, too. It’s my Y2ES year (reallly, YES with a little 2 above the Y). This year I am going to be actively looking for ways to say Yes 2 Expanding my Space. Now, that doesn’t mean I am looking for real estate, though that could happen too. What it means to me is that I am going to enhance my experience of life in terms of available opportuniities; that could mean new places and spaces, new people, new activities, new ?. It’s not about throwing out everything I already enjoy in my life – and everything about taking it all up a notch (or two!).

I will keep you posted. In the meantime, you might want to think of a name for your new year too. Let me know, when you do. As to next year, I already have an inkling about a name or two. Stay tuned. Happy New Year to you.

Thoughts on a train

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…well, actually, that should read “thoughts on a Canada Line train”, because that’s what I was riding yesterday.  I live in Vancouver, Canada, where we will soon host the world for next year’s Winter Games.  In preparation for that event, one of the new and exciting advantages our Greater Metropolitan Area now boasts is a world-class addition to our Skytrain system (our legacy from hosting Expo 86), running from our downtown harbour core to the Vancouver International Airport (YVR).  That has been named the ‘Canada Line’ (sorry – I don’t know either….).

Now, for those of you who live outside our city, you should know that most of this transit rail line runs underground, so ‘taking the train’ is also a bit like spending some time in a time capsule.  It is its own little microcosm, a sort of ‘thin slice’ of our city and the people in it, and every ride has a flavour all its own.

Yesterday, I rode and sat and listened to my fellow riders.  It was dinner time, my car filled with people going home from work or however they spent their day.  Some travelled alone in thought, some nodded silent greetings to others, many were occupied in some sort of electronic exchange – iPods, cell phones – and a few were engaged in actual conversations.  What struck me most was that it was not until I had exited my train that I heard a single word in my own language.

A young couple with their baby in a stroller were talking to the baby, each other, and – in passing – to me.  I love that about this city: every day I can be exposed to so many different cultures and cuisines, languages and histories.  It made me wonder about other people’s experiences travelling today.

Did you take a bus in Surrey, ride the SeaBus to North Van, cycle in White Rock, park your car in Langley, walk around Deep Cove, take a ferry from Horseshoe Bay, rollerblade around Stanley Park?  What did YOU see and hear?

Where else did YOU go?  Did you take the subway in New York, ride the Marta in Altanta or take the train from the airport into downtown Athens, Greece?  Maybe you walked in Picadilly Circus or took a stroll in Beijing.  I hope you had a pleasant time and shared a smile along the way.  Please take a moment to share YOUR experience with me; write a comment and give us a ‘thin slice’ of your world today.

Vancouver rentals a la 2010

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We live in a cosmopolitan city – a place marketed around the world in ordinary times and furiously exposed in the run-up to the large-scale international athletic competition headed our way in 2010.  All this attention brings excitement, people, and the promise of cash.  It also creates scarcity of things like affordable accommodation.  Here are three stories about rent and space that I heard today:

1. some friends of mine live in a very upscale highrise condo – fabulous views and a great downtown location.  They were recently approached by phone (someone with a heavy Eastern European accent, calling himself Yuri) with an extravagant offer – we’re talking 5 figures a week here – for 12 weeks occupancy.  They (respectfully) declined, thinking Yuri and his friends might do more party damage than the generous offer was worth…….turns out Yuri was a busy boy, calling all their neighbours, too.  I said it was a desirable location, didn’t I?

2.  SFU lost a very desirable tennat for their Morris Wosk Centre for Diaglogue, when the Brits pulled out of their UK House plan.  It seems that one of the businesses involved had to beg off for financial reasons.  The Centre was lucky: they were able to find another tennant, though their staff had to pull out the stops to get things in place.

3. overheard at The Buzz, 901 Homer Street, today.  One North Shore family is taking a February holiday someplace warm and all-inclusive…thanks to an offer from some friends-of-a-friend.  This offer was legit, for $1000 per day for their home for 14 days.  One family comes in to enjoy the Vancouver Games experience, and the other family enjoys a fabulous vacation away from the madding crowd.  That’s what I call win-win-win!  Neat.