Wow. We were looking into some new Aussie music to play in our Australian Boot Company stores and have been surfing the web for some inspiration. There’s a tonne (that’d be metric) of awesome music out there, and one of the highlights of our search was this guy. John Butler. Wow. Amazing 12 string guitarist. And if you notice at minute 2:16, his footwear is featured. Yup, those are Blundstones. Coincidence? I think not.

Anyway, do check him out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VAkOhXIsI0

Saturday April 18th was an undisputed success! Evergreen had set the lofty goal of planting 4000 trees in a single day. Last year for Earth Day 1000 trees were planted in Jericho Beach, Vancouver. Not only did Evergreen reach it’s goal of 4000 trees, thanks to the hundreds of volunteers that participated, the trees were planted in less than two hours. Pretty amazing! Blundstone Canada was at the event, as a percentage of every boot we sell goes to support Evergreen. Our booth had a great turn out, hundreds of kids coloured and plenty of boots were tossed in our now infamous boot toss game. For more pictures of the event, check out Australian Boot Company’s flickr site. Blundstone Canada will also be participating in Doors Open Toronto at Evergreen’s Brickworks.

eye weekly April 16, 2009
Eye of the storm
With her fiery voice and smouldering looks, Neko Case has long been the sweetheart of the indie-rock rodeo; now, with her new disc, Middle Cyclone, she has the Top 5 album to make her an overground success.
The first time I interviewed Neko Case, back in January of 2001, the scene was very much what I expected from a Neko Case interview: we sat in the front lounge of the Cameron House, enjoying a steady stream of bourbon shots delivered by servers with whom Case was on a first-name basis.

Interviewing her eight years later, not much has changed about Case: her long red hair is as formidable as ever, and — in her loose-fitting sweater, worn-out jeans and Blundstone boots — she still looks like she’s dressing for a lazy Sunday at the cottage…more

So I’m walking to work on your very last day

And a poem has decided to flow my way

Because of the time, short this must be

As waiting you are for the coffee on me!

All that I wish to say my dear friend

Is good luck with what’s waiting for you ’round the bend

For now the most important thing you must do

Is keep your artistic hands away from the poo!

Well this is all I could think of in such a short time

Whilst I stopped by Arbutus and froze my behind

So in closing I say to my very dear friend

May you never say the word 1870 again!

Katrina.

On March 31st, exiting through the doors outfitted in his R.M.Williams and Icebreaker, Heavy-D walked away for the last time with a single tear running gracefully down his cheek.

On September 21, 1999 Australian Boot Company in Vancouver was blessed with the first day of work from ol’ Heavy-D and nearly 10 years later he finished a shift for the very last time.

I’d like to take this blog to share some thoughts, stories, memories and the like about our co-worker and friend Heavy:

1. He absolutely loves to repeat himself so if you see him on the street don’t forget to ask him “what is the difference between the Original 500 and the Comfort 550?” or he also likes to discuss the many differences between R.M.Williams and Blundstones.

2. I will miss witnessing the pure rage that travels from his face through his arm and to his fist when he punches with all his might the 4 box-deep-stack of Blundstone CSA’s.

3. Heavy is also an expert researcher. He LOVES and is very knowledgeable about Mexican and Cuban vacations, mountain bikes, computer parts from 2004, World of Warcraft 2006, Vancouver real estate, Toronto real estate, mens designer peacoats, and high end digital cameras. Feel free to contact him with regards to any of these products or perhaps sell him on and idea of yours and he will research it for you!

4. Ugg Ascots- size 15- enough said……..

5. For the rookies, Heavy was often very welcoming by incorporating his very own version of hazing. You would have the choice of facing him in a tonfa fight, competing against him for pull ups on the rafters, or proving yourself with the Australian Boot Company “Test of True Strength.”

6. During his last weeks here Heavy-D became a fan of Australian Mountain Bread- introduced by our in-house aussi. If you visit our location you may still see drool stains on the barber chair in the back.

Heavy-D’s sense of humour and his amazing work ethic will truly be missed around here. If you see him on the street don’t be afraid to stop and say hello…..and if you do please remind him of his gifts for lovely B, his moldy tupperware, and dirty gym bags still sitting at the store.

Best to you and your adventures Heavy-D!

If you’ve need an excuse to enter the Your Boots contest at Blundstone.ca for the trip to Tasmania – besides the scenery, the air, or the wildlife – then here’s one: the unusual history. A prime example would be the naming of the Hazard Mountain Range in Freycinet National park, and how it came to be named after a wily ship’s captain called Richard “Blackie” Hazard.

Story has it he was a former convict who, having served his time, scraped together some money to buy himself a rickety old ship and began ferrying supplies to British whaling camps from the mainland. One evening while making a delivery his ship hit a coral reef and, being the bucket that it was, sank almost instantly. Capt Hazard and all of his men managed to swim to a small island close-by, but once there they realized that there was little in the way of food, water or shelter. Knowing that none of them would last long under the hot Australian sun once it came up the next day, Hazard then did an extraordinary thing: he took off his boots, jumped back into the ocean and swam for land, which was over a kilometer away through dark, shark-infested water. Once ashore, he then ran all night – barefoot – over the mountains and into town to raise the alarm. Miraculously, they were able to save all of his men the next morning, and, because of this insane act of courage, they chose to name the mountain range after him.

This story was told to me with a straight face by a tour guide while we hiked through the mountains, who swore that every word of it was true; given how strange and wonderful Australia is, I don’t doubt it.

- Casey