Another busy weekend “Out and About with Seeker Chick Mai-Liis”

Of course this past weekend saw a lot of activity at the Cornwall Civic Complex with the Curling Championships which started on January 27th, concluding yesterday, February 2nd. As one of Ontario’s premier curling events, the 2020 Ontario Curling Championships saw the province’s top men’s and women’s teams battle it out for the right to represent Ontario at the 2020 Tim Hortons Brier and Scotties Tournament of Hearts.

Curling fans saw some of curling’s biggest names in attendance, including the No. 2 world-ranked John Epping and world champion Glenn Howard on the men’s side and Olympian and world champ Rachel Homan on the women’s side. 

The Complex was a hub of activity and so was Olympia Bowl, buzzing with bowlers taking part in the Tim Hortons Big Brothers and Big Sisters Bowl For Kids Sake … but as always there were many other things going on in our community.

Friday evening I stopped in at the Cailuan Gallery (225 Pitt St, Cornwall, ON) where the current show is called 125 at 225 Show. It was the opening night of the show, hosted by Cailuan. This month long event is showcasing the work of 13 local artists from the 125 Pitt Street Studios and it was wonderful to see so many familiar faces and such a wide variety art styles adorning the walls. Check out the show Wednesday to Saturdays 12-5 p.m. For more info about the Gallery and events happening there visit their website at www.cailuan.ca or their Facebook page and for information about 125 Pitt Street Studios you can visit their Facebook page as well.

As always, Tracey Lynn Davies, the owner of the Gallery has done an outstanding job, so much so that I went back for a second there again on Saturday morning where I had a great visit with one of the artists, Jacqueline Milner (Photographer / Visual Artist) and Tracey’s son, such a professional young soul, who served us with an assortment of popcorn from The Happy Popcorn Co. (located at 5 First St E, Cornwall, ON).

The next stop on Friday evening was La Citadelle High School (École secondaire catholique La Citadelle – 510 McConnell Ave, Cornwall, ON) where 325 Grade 7 and 8 Students were enjoying the tunes and Light Show of DJ Shellshock (aka Sheldon Grant) This dance is organized and well supervised by Club Octagon and the dances take place every month. The next one is on Friday, February 28th. As DJ Shellshock’s assistant I take care of the requests and then help him take everything down at the end of the evening at 9:30pm. Sheldon has been DJing this dance for 27 years and has seen a lot of students passing through the doors – and has also probably DJ’d many of their weddings over the past 30 years!

Friday night ended for us at midnight and Saturday morning I was once again “Out and About” checking out the Scrabble Tournament which was taking place at the Cornwall Public Library. This was the Montreal-Ottawa Challenge hosted by the Cornwall Scrabble Club. A rated tournament and all players including the Cornwall players who participated, are registered with NASPA (North American Scrabble Players Association)

Games started at 10 a.m with eight games played – four in the morning followed by a pause for lunch and four more games  in the afternoon followed by the awards. Be sure to pick up the March Seeker to see the results and full story by Vivianne Panizzon and if you are interested in joining the Cornwall Scrabble Club please contact her at 613-931-1792 or email her at: [email protected]

Just around the corner there was a business celebrating 35 years. I’m sure every young kid interested in comic books and Magic Cards has at some time visited this place. I know that I was a frequent visitor there with my then 9 year old son Kristian  who is now 31 years old. As so many years ago, I walked in to Fantasy Realm (227 Pitt St, Cornwall, ON) and was greeted by Randy Sauve behind the counter. Walking in to this place was like stepping back in time and when I talked to Randy, this is what he told me. “As I reflect on the 35 years that Fantasy Realm has been in operation at 227 Pitt Street in Cornwall, It’s a job that has allowed me to watch my five children grow into incredible, responsible adults, and that would not have been possible without the community support of the city of Cornwall, Ontario. Thank you so much for allowing me to live my dream, here’s to 35 more.” Congratulations Randy and it is so nice to see that Eric Duncan, MP and            the City of Cornwall have recognized you by presenting you with certificates commemorating your achievement. You can also visit Fantasy Realm’s Facebook page for more information.

Also remember that Fantasy Realm hosts CAPE (Cornwall and Area Pop Event) so GET YOUR CAPE ON this coming April 25-26. For more information visit www.cornwallpopevent.com

When I walked out of Fantasy Realm, as I mentioned,  I headed back to Cailuan Gallery for a quick visit. Then as I left the Gallery I heard some beautiful singing which seemed to come from the corner of Pitt and Second and I followed it to Pommier Court where I came across a group from the Bible Baptist Church (who meet for a Worship Service every Sunday at 10am at the Benson Centre (800 Seventh Street West, Cornwall, ON). They were singing an assortment of lively religious tunes. Despite the cold winter weather one of the members told me that they often meet here to sing and I know it these wonderful voices really brightened up my Saturday morning.

One more stop for me was at the Cline House Gallery. (I was actually on a tight schedule as for those who know me, during the week I am Seeker Chick Mai-Liis, Co-owner of The Seeker and a Graphic Designer and on weekends I transform into DJ Shellshock’s assistant at Weddings and today was the start of our Wedding Season so I had to hurry back so that Sheldon could go and set up for the wedding of Robyn Everall and Dylan Prendergrast.

As I walked into The Cline House Gallery (204 Second St E, Cornwall, ON) I was greeted by Tracy-Lynn Chisholm and Emily MacLeod who own and operate the Gallery and are well known as the owners of OBO Studios (OBO stands for “Our Beautiful Obsession”) where they teach many workshops of which I attended one and thoroughly enjoyed myself. Presently The Cline House is hosting their the OBO studios 8th annual Group Show, featuring “the work of the amazing inspired souls who gather regularly at OBO studios to learn, grow and share their creative journeys”. The opening night was this past Thursday (January 30th) but unfortunately we were celebrating my dad’s 88th birthday that evening so I wasn’t able to attend. Instead I spent some time looking at the pieces in this beautiful space. Check out their website at www.obostudios.com and stop by the exhibition which runs til the end of February.

We are so lucky in Cornwall to have two beautiful art galleries, Cailuan and The Cline House. I do hope that you take the time to visit them at some point soon and go back often.

My Saturday evening ended at the wedding of Robyn and Dylan, Congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Pendergrast. We got home at 3am much like every Saturday night/Sunday morning during the wedding season! Visit www.djshellshock.ca if you need DJ and Videography services or www.invitationsandmore.ca if you need help with your Wedding Invitations.

and who says there’s nothing to do in Cornwall!

In fact pick up the print issue of the Seeker each month to check out what is going on in Cornwall and area or read us online and be sure to enter all your events in our FREE online Calendar because if I don’t know about your event I won’t be able to include it in my “Out and About” article!