“Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens / Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens / Brown paper packages tied up with strings / These are a few of my favorite things.” So goes the delightful Christmas song. For Whitehorse florist, Crystal Rose, Christmas is more chaos than delight. The P.E.I. native opened her shop, …
Sometimes you experience things that you never would have expected. I never thought I would be living above the Arctic Circle in Old Crow dressed as Santa while sitting in a sleigh with mush dogs towing me down the street. Indeed, it wasn’t some bizarre dream; this year I was Saint Nick at the Parents …
It’s a sight you don’t expect to see: on most weekends and occasional weekday evenings, a lone woman with long blonde hair and a very strange looking backpack can be found walking the streets of downtown Whitehorse. Barbara Quilty starts the evening on her own, but it doesn’t take long before she has a small …
In southern Canada’s ice-fishing season, lakes have been traditionally dotted with wooden ice huts or shanties. These are frozen in places with propane or home-built oil drip stoves to keep the anglers warm. Rarely in the Yukon have I seen such huts, but occasionally a collapsible tarp and plywood structure are seen. The modern ice-angler …
People who bemoan the state of Canadian film, when compared with the media juggernaut that is the American film industry, would do well to watch Popcorn With Maple Syrup: Film In Canada From Eh To Zed, a clever and entertaining 2004 documentary that is still timely. It goes a long way to dispel what at …
Deep-pocketed balletomanes (ballet fans) could spend thousands of dollars flying to Russia to catch the legendary Bolshoi Ballet in action. Or, for a mere fraction of that, they could experience the splash and spectacle of one of the world’s most celebrated dance companies without leaving Whitehorse. On Saturday, January 10, the Yukon Arts Centre (YAC) …
If you thought royalty was something found only in Europe, check again. In the Yukon, February ushers in a new breed of Queens for the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous festival. However, becoming a queen is no easy task — because there is much to learn and prepare for. One aspiring candidate is Whitehorse resident Brittany Mai. Originally …
Ah, Christmas — the time of year when magazines abound with recipes promising taste sensations derived solely from rainbows and snowflakes. At least that’s my assumption because they are the only things not on the list of excluded ingredients. Consider a delectable chocolate cake that carries no sin because it has no fat, sugar, or, …
Nuts are a staple product come Christmas time. The Nutcracker ballet is a staple theatre production, too. Combine the two and you have yourself a merry little nutcracker soldier man. But where on earth did the nut-cracking device originate? Believe it or not, it goes back to pre-historic times. Ruins of stone nutcrackers go far …
Until recently, collections of Yukon natural history have been given homes in other parts of the country. Our own territory has had no formal collection of our own diverse species of birds, plants, or insects. Someone living in Ottawa had a better chance of viewing such collections. But, something is coming. To the Yukon Research …
If there is anyone left in Canada still interested in figuring out how Neil Young’s brain functions, his second memoir Special Deluxe, A Memoir of Life & Cars, is not likely to clear up the fog. Young, 69, is just not wired like the rest of us. He may possess too many talents to be …
Manufacturing, transportation — even writing styles — have all changed since Clement Moore’s famous ditty, A Visit from St. Nicholas, first appeared anonymously in the Troy, N.Y. Sentinel on December 23, 1823. As a public service, What’s Up Yukon is pleased to present a more contemporary version of this oft-told tale: Yo, Nick. Is that …
The Yukon Film Society is very excited to present a film that is currently at the top of many “Best Films of 2014” lists, as well as the award season buzz (5 Golden Globe nominations): Boyhood, by Austin-based filmmaker Richard Linklater, plays on Sunday January 11, at the Yukon Arts Centre. Starring Ethan Hawke and …
Clancy the Cat didn’t show a lot of interest when I dropped in to the Humane Society Dawson (HSD) shelter to visit him a couple of weeks ago. The big orange tabby looked up at me sleepily and curled his tail back around his feet before closing his eyes contentedly. Clancy is a little out …
Jake will be getting presents from Santa Claus, and his dog, Spencer, will too. What about the dogs & cats at the Mae Bachur Animal Shelter?
Marilyn Jensen was inspired to start a dance group after finishing her master’s degree at the University of Victoria. She studied Indigenous governance, and said she was surrounded bypeople who were connecting with their culture, language, traditions, and old ways of life; this propelled her. She returned to her hometown of Carcross, and in the …
I’m grateful for my Canadian citizenship. I’m grateful for the constant support of my family. I’m grateful for the serving staff at the Gold Rush. I’m grateful for my job and my co-workers. I’m grateful for the dogs in my life. I’m grateful for quiet moments of truth in literature. I’m grateful for frozen pizzas. …
Sheldon Currie wrote a short story about a family in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, that echoed his message in the acclaimed Margaret’s Museum. Lauchie, Liza and Rory, too, looks at a Cape Breton Island community that is populated with good people, from all over the world, who are otherwise cogs in the machine. Unlike Margaret’s …
