CITY PEOPLE
Of all the intros we've used for this section over the years, our favourite is probably the Soylent Green one: "Peeeople! Regina is made up of peeeople!" Although the Funny Girl intro from last year where we said Babs knew what she was singing about with the lyric "People who need people are the luckiest people in the world" was pretty good too - but kind of sappy.
BEST BOUNCER
CHRIS "TINY" MATCHETT (O'HANLONS)
Bouncing requires walking a fine line. As the first staff member a customer meets the bouncer has to emanate a blend of "Welcome to our establishment, have fun" and "Don't act like a dick or I'll bust your head." Chris Matchett a.k.a. Tiny is not only one of the most well liked fellows hanging around O'Hanlon's, he also manages to make sure everyone is having a good time - all without being confrontational. To top it off, not only does he bounce, but he's a gifted musician, trivia host/king of facts, Casino Regina Employee and father. There hasn't been a bouncer this well rounded since Patrick Swayze in Roadhouse! /Craig S
BEST PERSON TO GET ADVICE FROM
HAIR STYLIST
Okay, but people, people - like, WHICH Regina hair stylist gives the best advice? The specific person? You know? Sally? Bob? A name please? Sigh. We had a big, long explanation on the online ballot to clarify this. The intent here was to identify an actual Regina human individual who gives good advice, such as your favourite bartender, manicurist or, yes, hair stylist as opposed a category of individuals. So as far as new ideas go, our Best Person To Get Advice From was an epic fail. Boo. Send your suggestions on improved wording to feedback@prairiedogmag.com. /GB
BEST DENTIST
DR. KELLY RUSTEIKA
2905 Gordon Rd.
(306) 352-6188
Writers who don't read suck. Musicians who don't listen to any new music suck too. Anyone who doesn't use what they bring into the world generally suck. That's part of why Dr. Kelly Rusteika is awesome. He's is the kind of calming, good-natured presence that makes sitting around with your mouth open for 20 minutes relatively easy. More than that, he's got a big, toothy smile that he's more than willing to pull out that shows he knows how to take care of his own pearly whites. He smiles and proves he knows what he's doing. /JB
BEST FACEBOOK FRIEND
JASON CAWOOD
So what makes a good Facebook friend? Is it someone who's always there for you, no matter how tough the going gets? Someone who, even if you don't see them for awhile, you instantly connect with when you do meet up again? It could be, I suppose. But due to its on-line nature, Facebook friendship is different than traditional friendship. For me, what makes a good Facebook friend is someone who puts a lot of thought into their site: posting photos, links to interesting news items, and offering tidbits of personal information that give you a sense of who they are and what they're up to. For prairie dog readers, Jason is THE MAN. /GB
BEST FITNESS INSTRUCTOR
DIANA BYE
Senior Advertising Consultant for Rawlco Radio by day, Group Exercise Instructor at Gold's Gym Specializing in Body Training Systems at night (and on weekends, perhaps). That pretty much sums up your nominee for Best Fitness Instructor. Oh, and apparently Diana is certified in GROOVE, Group KICK, Group CENTERGY, Group POWER and Group RIDE. I don't have a clue what any of that means, but anything that gets people off their butts and moving to promote fitness and health I'm in favour of. So congrats to Diana. /GB
BEST HIPSTER
ERIC HILL
"Hipster" is an iffy term. Yes, it can be used to describe someone who is really engaged with the latest trends in music, fashion, film and other cultural pursuits. But it can also be used as a pejorative label to poke fun at someone who comes across as vain and pretentious.
I don't get that vibe from Eric Hill. He might hit some hipster requirements: he's worked at a local coffee shop, he's got a deep knowledge of obscure music, he's a projectionist for the local repertory theatre, he wears big-framed glasses (which, he'd like everyone to know, have actual prescription lenses in them, unlike some). And he's been seen wearing a hat on occasion.
Eric seems to have the same reservations as I do about the word. "I feel like it tends to reflect someone with more style than substance, which I hope I am not," he says.
A man like Eric requires a different definition for the word. His clothes, his taste in music and film, all of that stuff stems from his earnest and authentic aesthetic, which itself is informed by the fact that he's a really discerning dude.
So, instead of hipster being essentially synonymous with douchebag, let's run with this definition: "Hipster: (noun) a real cool gal or guy". That's Eric to me, even if he wants to make it clear that he's "never felt cool." /JB
BEST HIPPY
NEIL MACDONALD
First time I met Neil, he came up to a friend and me at a music festival and launched into the story of how he came to love the band Cat Empire. That could be cut-and-dry; a lot of my own stories about bands would be "I read something good about them" and that'd be it. With Neil, the story included a quick recap on a relationship, the aftermath, and then a moment of revelation.
From everything I've seen of the man, he lives life like it's an awesome story, and succeeds a lot of the time.
I don't know if he's the spitting image of your prototypical hippy. You can run down all of the negative attributes that'll spring to mind -- unkempt, smelly, etc. -- and he isn't any of those. (Also, there's no doubt a few hippies who'd object to such trash talk). His facial hair is always scruffy but in an under-control way, and he's generally well put together in terms of clothes and what-not.
Then again, he is known to stand up for a cause. In the past few months he picked up a certain amount of notoriety and/or cred for resigning from a well-known Regina business organization after a censorship scandal involving U of R profs. He's also been hassled by the fuzz on (well, one) occasion for his shameless hula-hooping.
Let's call Neil the New Face of Hippiedom. He's passionate for political causes but not a dick. He's open and fun-loving without being out of control. But something about him also encourages a certain level of myth, partially because he's a great storyteller and partially because he's got great stories to tell.
A fun-loving guy who can have a shoes-off dance party while keeping things together -- Regina could use more hippies like that. Hell, so could the world. /JB
BEST DOCTOR
DR. SALGADO
414-2125 11th Ave.
352-2299
I'm not a patient of Dr. Salgado myself. But in the mid-1970s my grandmother was. She was old-school Scottish/Gaelic, a bit cantankerous in her old age, but still active and engaged in the world around her. Regina was pretty homogeneous back then with the vast majority of citizens, like my grandmother, of solid (and respectable) European stock. Dr. Salgado, conversely, was born in Mexico City. And while foreign-born doctors are common here now, back then they were pretty rare. Factor in the 60-year age difference between them, and you'd think the potential would've existed for some frosty encounters. But my grandmother loved her visits to his office. And all these years later, prairie dog readers apparently do too. /GB
BEST OBGYN
DR. RASHMI BHARGAVA
Golden Mile Centre
522-2229
Part of my gig at the prairie dog is the pussy beat: anything to do with cats or sex. Best OB/GYN is a little of both. Prairie dog readers take their (human) pussies to Dr. Rashmi Bhargava for her gentle touch and medical expertise. Sometimes love is as simple as a kind ear and a warm speculum. /CS
BEST VET
DR. MARILYN STHAMANN
Lakewood Animal Hospital
1151 Lakewood Crt. N 545-6487
Everyone loves Dr. Sthamann. Is it her friendly and professional demeanor? Her love of animals? Is it that she offers a wide array of medical services for animals, from conventional care to nutritional counseling, acupuncture and even homeopathy? I don't know, but if prairie dog readers like her so much, I'm going to take my cats to the Lakewood Animal Hospital to get them repaired. Cats needs repairs, right? Or is that cars? You can see why I need Dr. Sthamann so badly needed. /AM
BEST ESTHETICIAN
JODI TRACEY
(ESSENCE ORGANIC HAIR & DAY SPA)
Hotel Saskatchewan 522-7272
If you've been reading diligently, you'll know who won Best Doctor, Best ObGyn and Best Vet. With this category we recognize the people who are indispensible in the OR when doctors and vets perform surgery. Whether applied locally or generally, the pain relief patients receive from highly trained professionals like Jodi … oh, wait, my mistake. It's not Best Anesthetist, it's Best Esthetician. With all the medical categories preceding it, I naturally made the assumption. Although given the name of the business where Jodi works, I obviously shouldn't have. There's no way you'd call a surgical or vet clinic "Essence Organic Hair & Day Spa" unless the only thing you did was cut hair. And you don't need anesthetic for that. But proper skin care is an important facet of health, too. So congrats to Jodi. /GB
BEST WOMENS HAIR STYLIST
FRAN GILBOY
(FRANKS BARBER SHOP)
Generally speaking, it's tougher to cut women's hair than men's, because generally speaking, men are ugly, old bald trolls. So hats off to Fran for her kindness to God's more repulsive gender. The hair they do have needs love, too. /SW
BEST MEN'S HAIR STYLIST
FRAN GILBOY
(FRANKS BARBER SHOP)
If I didn't know Fran personally (or at least know of her through her work at FadaDance), I'd be tempted to assume that readers had inadvertently misspelled her first name when casting their ballot. Add a "k" to "Fran", after all, and you get "Frank", which is the barber shop where Fran plies her trade as a hair stylist. If you don't know where Frank's is, it's located in a neat little mini-mall at the intersection of 15th Ave. and Montreal St. The mall, which is anchored by Hemp Haven, was recently refurbished, and had a grand re-opening in August. If you get a chance, stop by and say Hi. /GB
BEST LAWYER
NOAH EVANCHUK
#100-2184 12th Ave.
525-8136
If the universe were correct, Noah Evanchuk would have won for Best MP. But the universe is anything but correct, especially the bit of it that floats over Saskatchewan's electoral map, so Noah will have to be satisfied with being the best lawyer in town instead of saving the world from Ottawa. Welcome to Canadian electoral politics, Noah. Enjoy your stupid plaque. /CS
BEST LOCAL CELEBRITY
PAT FIACCO
A couple of months ago on a Friday I was waiting in line with my dad at the Golden Mile Smitty's at lunch hour. Suddenly, a guy darted out of the adjacent lounge, blurted something along the lines of "Hey Greg, I really enjoy the writing you do in prairie dog. Keep up the good work!" and shook hands with me, then he darted back into the lounge, leaving me standing there with a bunch of people gawking at me. Fame sure is a cruel mistress sometimes, isn't it Pat? /GB
BEST MASSAGE THERAPIST (TIE)
JUSTIN SAWKA
(ESSENCE ORGANIC HAIR & DAY SPA)
ELVERA KATER
(KATER MOBILE MASSAGE) (TIE)
What makes a good massage therapist? A solid understanding of human anatomy and expert technique, I imagine, are two top attributes. That's especially true when you're seeking treatment for a painful and debilitating medical condition. But massage therapy is much broader than that. It also has a psychological angle tied to relaxation and the release of natural chemicals like endorphins that happens when we're on the receiving end of another person's touch. For that to work, though, the therapist has to have the right demeanor. And in your judgment, Justin Sawka and Elvera Kater are the two best in town. /GB
BEST CITY COUNCILLOR
FRED CLIPSHAM
Hey, I like Fred, if for no other reason than when I want a comment from a city councillor for a story, he's the first to respond. He flew a kamikaze mission for the NDP in May's federal election against the Cons' Andrew Scheer in Regina Qu'Appelle, and while he didn't win he did a good job bringing important issues to the campaign. It's not as if Fred doesn't have enough to do at City Hall, and we should consider ourselves lucky to have him. / SL
BEST MLA
WARREN MCCALL
In the post-Lingenfelter era (the party won't talk about it officially, but barring a miracle NDP win in next month's election, Link will either jump or be gently pushed out as leader), the party's going to need some younger blood to do what should have been done earlier - rebuild the party and try to expand its base. McCall, who's a good grass-roots constituency man in Regina Elphinstone as well as an important member of the opposition caucus, is someone who'll play a big role reshaping the NDP. /SL
BEST MP
RALPH GOODALE
Yeah, the competition was pretty intense. On one hand, you have the long-serving Liberal MP from Wascana, and on the other … three Conservative MPs who, during the potash debate last year, were so lazy and out of the freaking loop that the Auditor General should have cut one paycheque instead of four and sent it to Ralph. Oh well, looks like we'll have to wait for realignment of our federal ridings to create some true urban seats in Regina before he'll have some decent competition. /SL
BEST TEACHER (K-8)
DENNIE FORNWALD
Way cool Ms. Fornwald! It totally rocks that you won Best Teacher (K8) in prairie dog's annual poll. Us students here at Haultain - I mean, we students - couldn't be prouder for you and all the hard work you do trying to cram knowledge into our ever inquisitive brains. Congrats also for being appointed to the Board of Directors for the Saskatchewan Outdoor & Environmental Education Association. The environment rocks too and we appreciate what you're doing to try to save it. /GB
BEST TEACHER (HIGH SCHOOL)
DEAN VENDRAMIN
"He just does all the things good teachers do, and he does them well," says Geoff Gilbert Vice-Principal of Archbishop M.C. O'Neill high school. He's talking about the defending prairie dog Best Teacher champ Mr. Dean Vendramin.
It's hard to pin-point what makes a teacher great, but Vendramin has what it takes to earn this award. "He's the technology guy, students know if they have a question about that stuff they go to Deano, and they'll learn something while having fun," says Gilbert.
When Vendramin started at O'Neill the school was hardly a technological wonderland. Now, students are inundated with a constant tide of silicon-chipped stimuli. Distractions like Facebook, twitter and the occasional round of sexting have been added to the traditional focus-stealers of a well spent youth (parties, substances and organized sports). Despite all this Mr. Vendramin has a knack for keeping his students focused and has gone the extra mile to keep himself current with all the techno-trends. /DK
BEST U OF R PROFESSOR
MARC SPOONER
It's not the first award the defeated NDP candidate in Wascana has won this year. In May, he received the prize for Best Beard from CBC Radio Saskatchewan's The Afternoon Edition. Spooner, who received his PhD in education from the University of Ottawa, teaches at the U of R's Faculty of Education. He also sits on the board of directors for Carmichael Outreach, and in the past couple of years has become a go-to guy for reporters doing stories on affordable housing and urban poverty. /SL
BEST SIAST INSTRUCTOR
MARC VERBRUGGE
This was originally assigned to Rosie, but when he couldn't reach the finish line on the assignment I was forced to pick up the baton and continue on in prairie dog's race to get this mega huge issue off to the press at a half decent time. With SIAST's offices closed for the day, the only tool I had at my disposal was almighty Google. But even it semi-failed me. About the only nuggets of information I could uncover about your choice for Best SIAST Instructor is that Marc works in the area of adult education, and that in 2010 he ran the Queen City Half-Marathon in a time of 2:27:08. Oh, and his bib number was 2479. Outside of that I got nothing. /GB
BEST REAL ESTATE AGENT
SEAN MALCOLM
(ROYAL LEPAGE)
527-0615
According to September stats released by the Canadian Real Estate Association, Regina recorded the largest year-to-year increase in home sales of any Canadian city. We also registered the largest year-to-year increase in price. In Regina's so-called "new housing market" advice from experienced professionals like Sean can be a god-send, helping first-time buyer and experienced home owners get maximum value for their money. So congrats to him on being named Regina's Best Real Estate agent for the second year in a row. And if you want to know what those September stats are, keep reading. / GB
BEST U OF R COUGAR
MARC MUELLER
It's been an up and down year for quarterback Marc Mueller. In the off-season, he was signed as a free agent by the Edmonton Eskimos. Following training camp, and a brief (but impressive) showing in a pre-season game against the Riders at Mosaic Stadium on June 17, he was cut. He returned to the University of Regina Rams, only to get sidelined for the season after injuring his shoulder in the first series of the first game against UBC. This was to be his fifth and final year of university eligibility. But because of the injury Marc has the option of returning to the Rams next year. Without him, the team has struggled. But if he returns in 2012, look out. /JB
BEST REGINA PAT
GARRETT MITCHELL
Given how pathetic the Pats were last season, I imagine the balloting went something like: 1. Garrett Mitchell. 2. Jordan Weal. 3. Nobody. Mitchell, a Regina product, is currently playing for the Hershey Bears, the Washington Capitals' top affiliate in the American Hockey League. Under new head coach Pat Conacher, the Pats are off to a great start in 2011-12. So voting in this category could be a lot of tougher next year. And good luck to Garrett in his pursuit of a pro hockey career. /SL
BEST ROUGHRIDER
WESTON DRESSLER
Weston's in terra incognito here. First off, he's never won Best Roughrider before. And second, for the first time since he joined the Green & White from the University of North Dakota as a free agent in 2008, the team is not good enough to qualify for the CFL playoffs. But through it all - the early struggles, the mid-season coaching change, the brief resurgence under Ken Miller, the humiliating losses to B.C. and Calgary - Dressler's performed competently, recording 70 receptions for 946 yards and 5 TDs. Indeed, a strong argument can be made that he's under-utilized, and that the Riders should work harder to find ways to get him the ball. He's prairie dog readers' pick for Best Rider, after all. /GB
BEST TATTOO ARTIST
NATHAN DONAHOE
Black Sea Tattoo
1373 Rose St.
347-8288
Good tattoos have clean lines, style and class. But not all good tattooists possess these qualities. Like many artists, the best ink-slingers have a well-earned reputation for being a little rough around the edges. Nathan is an exception. The young tattoo artist has a dapper sense of style (he's the only guy I know who can rock a pocket watch) and an aptitude for leaving his customers satisfied. Nathan is relatively new to the industry. But he's already cultivated a strong client base and a solid reputation as one of the city's best. His work is consistently strong, remarkably creative, and his attitude reaches a level of professionalism not often seen amongst artists. Over the years, I've been tattooed by many people and my experiences have ranged from enlightening to tragic. It's been a while since I've gone under the needle, but my next tattoo is booked with Nathan. /DK
BEST VOLUNTEER
DANIELLE GAUTHIER KRATZ
There are many kinds of donors - some give in a moment of weakness, others give regularly to a variety of charities. The hardcore givers are called tithers, people who are compelled to help one cause and give it their all. Often the cause seems to choose its champion, and not the other way around.
"I've just always loved animals and enjoy being around them," says Danielle Gauthier Kratz, prairie dog readers' choice for volunteer of the year for her work with the Regina Humane Society. She loves animals for their bottomless unconditional love and their ability to live in the moment. They love you no matter what. "People should try it. We'd all get along better."
By day, Danielle works as a dog groomer. In her time off, she does whatever is needed at the shelter: bathing dogs, working at fundraisers, catering events (her way of getting veganism on the menu), hosting Pet Catalogue on Access 7 and even playing Santa. Her favourite is bottle-feeding newborn kittens and other baby strays in need of intensive care, which she does for both the RHS and People For Animals. She lives with one human, three cats and a dog. Her pet rat recently shucked off its mortal coil, which leaves her with plenty of room for more critters to foster, she says.
Her dearest wish? Compassion for all kinds of animals.
"I'd like the whole world to be vegan." On that front, she says, preaching doesn't work. You can only lead by example. "It's coming," she says. /CS
