Around this time of year, everyone is out and about buying expensive gifts and receiving lots of requests for donations to their favourite charities. What if you donated money to help stop the unnecessary slaughter of animals for fashion, only to find out that the faux fur jacket you bought for your mom is actually made of real fur?

Well, if you’ve bought “faux” fur items from Bloomingdale’s, Neiman Marcus, Lord & Taylor, Dillard’s, Saks Fifth Avenue or Yoox.com, you might just have some dead animal parts in your closet you don’t know about.

It seems that many of the major luxury brands are sourcing their materials and production from China, one of the countries where fur manufacturers still skin animals alive, and mislabel the products.

Quote from The Humane Society Website Article:

“Holiday Shoppers Beware: Six Major Retailers Selling Real Fur as Faux

Last winter, of 25 fur-trimmed jackets tested by The HSUS, every single one was falsely advertised, falsely labeled, unlabeled or had a combination of these problems. Twenty were identified by laboratory testing as raccoon dog and three as domestic dog.”

I read somewhere that in China there is a certain kind of ostrich that when scared will duck it’s head under the river water to hide. Some times it stays under for so long it drowns. I can’t think of a more fitting example of the way we are dealing with the climate change issue.

As you should know, Al Gore received the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway this year for his work on halting climate change. At the same time world leaders have gathered in Bali to come to an agreement on a new platform to replace the Kyoto Protocol. The proposal on the table is the so-called “two degree mark” meaning that nations would work to keep global warming to two degrees globally. Unfortunately the greatest emitters of global warming gasses like the USA and Saudi Arabia are refusing to agree to this term claiming that it would harm their economy.

This comes on the heels of a report published by Germanwatch rating the top 56 CO2 emitting nations on emission trends and climate protection policies. On the list Sweden, Germany and Iceland take the three top spots while Canada took 53rd, USA took 55th and Saudi Arabia hit rock bottom at 56. It’s worth noting that both India and China ranked higher than both the USA and Canada (India came in 5th and China 40th) because these two countries have been used as a reason not to sign the Kyoto treaty for years.

In two days time Al Gore is speaking to the conference in Bali and he is bringing with him signatures from as many like-minded people as possible. From my inbox:

Dear Friend,

In less than forty-eight hours, I will step on stage at the UN Climate Conference in Bali. With me I will bring hundreds of thousands of messages demanding a visionary global treaty be completed and brought into effect by 2010.

If we want to solve the climate crisis, we need to demonstrate the broad public support for action together. That’s why it is vital you sign our petition right now by visiting:

http://www.climateprotect.org/standwithal

Over the past few months we’ve taken many positive steps towards uniting governments worldwide around the goal of solving the climate crisis. Just over a week ago on December 3rd, Australia’s new Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was sworn in. His first formal act in office was to ratify the Kyoto Treaty. This was a clear demonstration of Australia’s priorities.

Yet this progress has not swayed the Bush Administration. With thousands of delegates gathered in Bali for the UN Climate Conference, this is our last chance in 2007 to show the world how serious the American people are about ending the climate crisis. That’s why it is so vital all of us join together and demonstrate the political will of our country.

Only two days remain before I deliver your messages to the delegates meeting in Bali. Over the past few days more than 174,612 people have added their voices. Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to demonstrate your support for a visionary global treaty to end the climate crisis.

Sign our petition, then reach out to everyone you know and ask them to sign today by visiting:

http://www.climateprotect.org/standwithal

Your activism and enthusiasm for this cause inspires me every day.

Thank you,

Al Gore

So do your part: Sign the petition and hope that the world leaders start thinking with their brains rather than their wallets and act on this impending catastrophe we have put ourselves in.

We’ve decided to ad a new feature on Dabbler.ca called “Found Items”. Why? Because we spend a lot of time surfing the web and we’d like to share some of the more odd / interesting things with you. We won’t feature anything overtly offensive or provocative, just the stuff that we think you might find interesting, amusing or just bizarre. And if you find something you’d like to share with us don’t hesitate to put it in the comments.

Oh, and stay tuned! There are big things happening with Dabbler.ca in the near future!

If you are a frequent visitor or wanted to contact us Thursday night or Friday morning you might have noticed that the Dabbler.ca domain was not working properly. This was because we were switching name servers to facilitate better use of the Dabbler.ca domain name. The switchover is now complete which means you can now use links such as www.dabbler.ca/category/videos/ rather than the old dabbler.pinkandyellow.com subdomain.

This changeover will not effect any old links or bookmarks but will make it easier for you to surf our site.

It was with sadness we got the news that The Urban Peasant James Barber passed away on Thursday. We had the pleasure of shooting a segment with him during his promotional tour for his book, Cooking for Two in July and as a tribute to Barber and his great cooking, we are re-posting the video for you to enjoy. Our thoughts go out to Barber’s family and friends. He will always be remembered for his cooking, as well as his great personality.

CBC story on James Barber’s life and passing

Angela isn’t a big fan of tooting her own horn, but that doesn’t mean I can’t. This morning one of the world’s most recognized gadget and technology blogs Gizmodo.com featured the Dabbler.ca video from a while back about Oakley’s Rolling ‘O’ Lab. The Giz guys found it in a post about the Lab on NotCot.com. So, in the true spirit of Black Friday and the blogosphere, here’s a link back to the gadget gurus.

Gizmodo.com via NotCot.com

Really wish it didn’t but I gotta be realistic here. Producing Dabbler is something I sincerely crave to do full time but while still in its early stages, it doesn’t quite help cover the bills that don’t care whether or not I’m doing something that I love.

Since many of you have emailed me wondering why the video postings have not been as frequent as you’ve become accustomed to, I’ve decided to address this through a posting.

I’ve had to take on a few side projects for Pink & Yellow Media, Dabbler’s mother company, so the postings have been a bit more sporadic than I’d like. And since I do all the shooting, editing, and writing myself, my absence certainly has quite the impact on the output of the website. Rest assured however, that this is but a temporary interruption and I will very soon be back in full swing.

Also on the agenda is a revamp of the site to make it bigger and better, so if you have any thoughts on how it can be improved to serve you better, please let me know! After all, this is all done for all of you!

Our self-defense team is taking a break for Thanksgiving and will resume our lessons next Monday October 15th. See you then!

Every once in a while, a news item dumps into my inbox that surprises even a jaded music critic like myself. That’s exactly what happened today. What’s the news you ask? Radiohead is releasing their new album In Rainbows on Wednesday October 10th. That’s 9 days from now. Why is that news? Well, first of all the album was slated for release some time in the spring of 2008. Secondly, the announcement is unusually close to the release date. But what really knocked my socks off (or at least would have if I wasn’t wearing shoes) was the way in which they are selling the album. By logging on to their website InRainbows.com, you can buy the new album in digital format without DRM (Digital Rights Management – or copy protection for the layman) for whatever price you see fit! Yes, you read right. Whatever price you see fit. So you can pay $59 per track or $0 for the whole album. It’s up to you. It even says so on the website!

For the hard core fans, there is also an option of buying the “discbox,” which contains not only the digital download but also the album on CD and on 2×12 inch vinyls for the audiophiles. The discbox also contains a second enhanced CD with more songs, digital photos and artwork and a hardback book containing artwork and lyrics; all for the not-so-palatable price of £40.00 (though I don’t think they’ll have any problems selling these boxes either). The discbox is set to start shipping on December 3rd, just in time for the holidays.

Why is the band doing this? Although I don’t actually have the facts in front of me, I can make an educated guess. Radiohead are long-time opponents of music files containing DRM, but at the same time, they are victims of widespread pirating as are every other major recording artist. By announcing the release of the album so close to its release, they are curbing any real efforts to leak tracks from the album prior to its launch date. And because they are selling the tracks DRM-free, there is no good reason for anyone to pirate them anyway. To top it all off, giving people the option to pay whatever they think is reasonable (and giving others the option to download the album for free) makes it downright stupid to get an illegal copy. Once again, a stroke of genius from the band that never seizes to impress.

The unfortunate thing is that only a band with a solid fan base and massive album sales like Radiohead can pull off something like this. I doubt the major record labels would allow this to become the standard for future record sales, no matter how smart it is.

Radiohead – In Rainbows

I have long claimed there is nothing good on the radio these days. It’s not that I’m one of those angry old music critics that has become jaded (I’m not old), I just like music that carries something more than just a catchy rhythm or a sticky chorus. To me, music is a medium by which one communicates pure emotion. And let’s be frank, there ain’t much emotion in the crap they fill the radio waves with these days.

So, as a service to the Dabbler.ca readers, I’ve compiled an introductory list of music that will broaden your horizons and take you to places you’ve never been before.

First up is Sigur Rós. This quartet from Iceland have created a genre all their own, melding ambient moods and classic melancholia into something that defies regular description. A favourite amongst critics for years, they are only now beginning to reach a mainstream audience through the use of their music in movies and trailers, most notably Hoppípolla in the Children of Men trailer and Untitled 5 in the Invasion trailer. Their three latest albums Ágætis Byrjun, ( ) and Takk… are all masterpieces in their own right and I really can’t recommend one over another. The albums are pieces of art best enjoyed in their entirety, the dreamy songs are long and often meld together. I’d recommend these albums to anyone looking for something new.

Next we have the British singer Goldfrapp and her album Felt Mountain. The first time I heard this, I wasn’t quite sure what I was listening to. Again, this album defies description. Felt Mountain is an experiment in vocal acrobatics and electronic mayhem. Songs like Utopia and Felt Mountain bring a feeling of being in a vast open space surrounded by nature. Sounds odd, but it works. Sadly, Goldfrapp’s later releases were over-commercialized and frankly quite bad. Stick to the original.

Have you seen the ad for the new TLC medical show called Diagnosis X? It features the song Wires by the British band Athlete from their debut album Tourist. To be brutally honest, this is the best song on the album but the song is so strong it justifies buying the entire album anyway. You won’t hear me say that very often so…

Another ad featuring some interesting music is the Geico commercial with the Neanderthal on a moving walkway in an airport. In the background you hear a guy singing “Everywhere I go, there’s always something to remind me.” The song is, not surprisingly, called Remind Me and is by Röyksopp, an electronica duo from Norway. It can be found on their debut album Melody A.M. I’m not particularly fond of electronica and I really hate one of their other songs but as a whole, the album is great – especially as background music for a dinner party. It carries a weird quality of relaxedness. Also worth mentioning: The music video for the song Remind Me is amazing.

This is an odd one: Cranes – Wings of Joy. I’m always apprehensive about recommending this album because I know not everyone will appreciate it. To call it strange isn’t quite enough. Bizarre might be a better description. It’s like listening to a group of people who have fantastic musical talent but can’t really play their instruments. The singer’s voice is shrill and you don’t understand a word of what she’s saying but there again is that undefinable something that makes it worthwhile. The two tracks Tomorrow’s Tears (worst video EVER. Please just listen to the music. Trust me!) and Adoration are breathtaking in their magnificence. Unfortunately their other albums are not worth the plastic they are printed on. But like I said, this one is a gem, if you like dirty badly cut gems that have an inert beauty.

Several years ago I watched a live show in Sweden featuring Esbjörn Svensson Trio (or E.S.T.). Their extreme approach to jazz and use of unconventional methods like a distorted stand-up bass and guitar picks in a piano intrigued me. A true live band, their albums don’t fully capture the magic but From Gagarin’s Point of View gets pretty close. Much of their material can be found in the crossroad between jazz and trip hop. Dodge the Dodo is a perfect example.

When Sekiden‘s Junior Fiction dropped into my mailbox, I didn’t quite know what to think. Normally I’m not into the whole lo-fi scene but the cuteness and naive innocence of this act got to me. There is something to be said for people who don’t take themselves too seriously and songs such as Stay are just good clean fun.

Apart from having the best cover ever made, Mike Patton‘s side project Peeping Tom is a must-have for the serious record collector. The project is a collaboration between Patton – often referred to as a modern Frank Zappa – and a bunch of different artists. The music fits awkwardly into the trip-hop genre with some overtones of heavy metal and experimental rock. It’s also the only time you’ll ever hear Norah Jones swear repeatedly on a record. Take a listen to Mojo and see if you like it, but be warned; Patton treats music like an extreme sport so there are plenty of unexpected turns and surprises here.

Here’s another band best enjoyed live, if nothing else, for its sheer size. Norwegian jazz act Jaga Jazzist is a massive jazz orchestra that has taken the genre to a whole new realm. I didn’t fully appreciate their ingenuity until I saw them live at the Vancouver International Jazz Festival but from then on I was hooked. Their album The Stix is an exploration of the outer realms of big band jazz and ambient rock with a heavy dose of brass. Sounds weird but sounds great. Oslo Skyline is not on this album but gives you a good idea of what’s in store.

Finally there is Seigmen’s Total; in my view, the best album ever recorded. The Norwegian goth-metal act redefined melancholia and goth rock with this masterpiece and changed the face of Norwegian music forever. Like Sigur Rós’ albums, Total is an art piece more than an album in the conventional sense – the perfect example where the whole is more than the sum of its parts. The songs are in Norwegian and the music is heavy, dark and melancholic but for a true music lover, this is as close as you will ever get to perfection. The success of their reunion tour 6 years after the band’s breakup was a statement to the band’s timeless relevance. Unfortunately, simply hearing one song like Döderlein doesn’t give you a complete picture. To truly understand the greatness of this band, you have to hear the whole album in one sitting, preferably in a dark room where you can immerse yourself in the sound.