You may recall a few weeks ago, upon my first trip to the Desolation Sound cabin this year, that I made good on a promise I made to a friendly fellow named James. James attended a Calgary book event for Adventures in Solitude back in January, presenting me with a bottle of moonshine that he had brought from his home on Prince Edward Island. I in turn promised him that I would complete the moonshine’s cross country opus by bringing the bottle of white lightning with me to Desolation Sound. Above is the video proof.

Moonshine receives reoccurring mentions in my book, as it was the Desolation Sound contraband of choice for many years. Thanks very much to James from PEI for the firewater! I have enough to last me the rest of the summer, and the tiny bit I sipped in this video, and three more subsequent swigs, made me wonky for the next couple hours.

With the gang from Harbour Publishing

It will be a long time before I forget the week of April 17 – 22, 2011. Several of my favourite passions collided, including my hockey team the Flying Vees winning our division championship, my other favourite team the Canucks going up 3-0 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the BC Book Awards last night.

Everything but the Canucks has worked out pretty well so far.

The BC Book Awards was held at the Kay Meek Centre, a sparkling new theatre located not only in my hometown, but actually attached to my old high school, West Van Secondary (I went to both Hillside and West Van highs).

Before I even arrived at the theatre, a few signs pointed to possible good things ahead. A listener/reader/fan in Newfoundland tweeted me her new tattoo: “Amor Fati”, the credo of Russell the Hermit in Adventures in Solitude, meaning love your fate.

A few minutes after 7pm, my inbox was flooded with people from across the country saying that Ron McLean, host of Hockey Night In Canada, had given huge pre-game shout outs to Said the Whale, my wife Jill and her new album Mischievous Moon, and to me! Outrageous! Sadly, the only full moon over the Canucks game would be that ominous “0” on the scoreboard…

But those random acts of ink and kindness boded well at the BC Book Awards, when the last award of the night was read for the Bill Duthie Booksellers’ Choice Award for the BC Book of the Year… and Adventures in Solitude won!

The certificate says “Adventures in Solitude merits distinction as the most outstanding work published in BC this year in the opinion of the judges of the BC Book Awards”.

Since I was in my old high school I made sure to thank my favourite creative writing teacher Mr. Weinberg, (“if a book isn’t good after the first 50 pages, toss it… and somebody flip the Pink Floyd record, please?!”) and my favourite English teacher Mrs. Martin.  Also, Harbour Publishing, all of the incredible bookstores across BC and Canada who have been so supportive of this book, as well as my family, my wife, all my friends at CBC, and all of you for your unbelievable kindness.

I’ll be celebrating on Savary Island this weekend. Happy Easter!

English and writing students at Earl Marriott Secondary

Over the past week or so, I’ve had the pleasure of getting “back to my roots”, at high schools up and down the coast as part of the BC Book Prizes Tour and Powell River Writers Conference.

Stepping back into high schools for the first time in years is like stepping back into time… all those cliques that existed when I went to high school 25 years ago in West Vancouver still exist today… the geeks over in one corner, the jocks in another, the pretty girls, the disabled kid, the punk/alternative kids, the requisite pair of goth kids. It’s the Breakfast Club x 300 at every school. John Hughes so nailed it. (The only sect that actually seems extinct is the banger).

What I have had the pleasure of doing is speaking to these groups of kids in each school and telling them the story of how my book Adventures in Solitude came to be, as well as all my years in The Smugglers, my friendship with Nardwuar, what CBC Radio 3 is all about, the Canadian music scene, and my past colliding with bands like Nirvana, the White Stripes, and the Hives. It’s great watching the students react positively, but hey, I love to sell the sizzle, right? I was dropping so many names I’m surprised they didn’t call the janitor in to sweep up.

At each school I’ve read the “out of control house party” story from the book (Chapter 13, Take Me To The Riot) and each time the kids seem to actually like it, laughing at various parts, especially when I make out with a Smugglers fan during the melee, and when my Dad sees our house on the front cover of the paper miles away from home.

Over the past few days I’ve visited Brooks Secondary in Powell River, Seycove Secondary in Deep Cove, Carson Graham Secondary in North Vancouver, and Earl Marriott Secondary in Surrey. In Powell River, when I asked if there were any questions, the goth kid said “Yeah, DON’T LEAVE” (he didn’t want to go back to reading Animal Farm). In Surrey, a kid who was obviously a little smart ass, followed me out into the parking lot, and asked me two questions: “Can I be your best friend?” and “Can I have a party at your house?”

He reminded me of a lot of another little smart ass from my high school 25 years ago: me.

Want a grown-up smart ass to come and talk at your school? Get in touch.