Welcome to New Westminster, which is sort of like Vancouver’s version of late-90’s Williamsburg, Brooklyn. In “New West” (that’s what the locals call it, FYI) you’ll find one of the great used game stores in North America: Gamedeals. I visited Gamedeals during the week before E3, and I got to meet Jade and Celeste. I’ll be honest with you: It’s beyond rare to find two women manning (woman-ing?) the counter of a used game store. We talked about games, collectibles, Platinums, blowing on cartridges, repairing scratched discs, boyfriends, virtual reality, game-making, modding, relationships, etc. etc. In short: It’s a good conversation, as…
In late May I traveled south to Seattle early on a rainy Thursday morning. Took the 9 a.m. Amtrak bus from Central Station here in Vancouver. Yes, North America’s oldest, most decorated passenger railroad also operates a legitimate bus-line. Why? Who knows. (more…)