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I saw some standup last night at The Mint. Seven new comedians gave five-minute sets. I had some hearty laughs.
Kudos to each of the seven for their courage and wit.

— Mark

Today’s approx. read time: 6 minutes

Today: 🌤️ 19 / 8

Tomorrow: 🌤️ 18 / 8

Friday: 🌤️ 16 / 9

7-day forecast

The middle-school teacher was let go last May after SD63 determined he had sent 80+ emails to a student over two years and also had scheduled three days of sick leave so he could fly to Japan.

In a decision made public yesterday, the BC Commissioner for Teacher Regulation (BCCTR) said Alex Chen was primarily the initiator of the emails—including one at 11:55pm on New Year’s Eve—with the student, who had transferred schools.

The board also contends Chen gave the student a gift card, recommended they listen to sexually explicit music, attended games in which the student played, and initiated correspondence with them in the summer and over school breaks.

The decision said SD63 previously had raised concerns about Chen filming personal social media content during work hours, reminding him that it constituted time theft. 

In March 2025, Chen worked two days one week and then booked three consecutive sick days. “Chen was not, in fact, sick, but had scheduled those days off so that he could fly to Japan on March 12, 2025, for a personal vacation over the spring break period,” the decision reads.

Two weeks ago, on April 7, Chen entered a consent resolution agreement with the BCCTR, which includes a two-week suspension of his teaching certificate. 

He is prohibited from working as a teacher in BC until he completes a course called “Reinforcing Respectful Professional Boundaries.”

Cowichan District Hospital emergency department entrance temporarily relocated to the main entrance. [Island Health]

Saanich road closure: Wascana between Burnside and Maddock West, through July 21.

Single-lane alternating traffic: Shelbourne between Cedar Hill and Torquay, through Friday, 9am-3pm.

Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.

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Victoria-based Mostar Labs is one of four BC companies that are getting $100K in provincial funding to demonstrate clean energy technologies that could help coastal communities move away from diesel power.

Mostar Labs will use the funding to test its LilyPad, a modular floating renewable energy platform designed to replace diesel generators at remote coastal sites. The company joins three other recipients working on different approaches to the same problem.

Vancouver's Ascent Systems Technologies received funding for its autonomous monitoring platform that combines renewable energy, battery storage, and smart controls in a self-contained module. 

Surrey's Cleohydron Innovation is developing hydrogen production technology for coastal conditions, while Nova Scotia's Voltai is bringing its wave energy system to BC waters, setting up local operations.

All four will test their technologies at the BC Marine Energy and Decarbonization Hub, a partnership between COAST and UVic.

"One of the reasons COAST exists is to help entrepreneurs turn bold ideas into real solutions, and these Innovation Challenge companies are doing exactly that," said Jason Goldsworthy, COAST's executive director.

See more tech news from the capital city at Victoria Tech Journal.

As we head into another summer that’ll likely feature more than a few forest fires, and as smoke billows in the Middle East, now, maybe more than ever, is a time to give Mother Nature a warm embrace.

Maybe hug one of her trees today while you’re at it.

It’s Earth Day, and despite our monstrous capacity to harm it, there remain plenty of humans who take the time to protect and serve the planet.

The fine folks at Surfrider are holding their Earth Day Power Hour, encouraging people to spend their lunch break on cleanup duty. “It looks like we will have well over 500 participants in this year's event, which is incredible,” Katie Keats of the beach cleanup program tells Capital Daily.

If you’d like to join them in doing the planet a real solid, here are a few Earth Day events to consider attending. And you can get there for free today if you take the bus.

📸 Photography as Meditation workshop today, 1:30-3pm.

🏃TC 10K (& Thrifty Foods Family 1.5K) is this Sunday. 

🌎 Go paperless for Earth Day. Sign up for a MySaanich account.

🧑‍🎨 From April 30 to May 3, Design Victoria returns with over 50 (mostly) free events, inviting you to explore the city's creative and design scene.*

📚 New and notable adult fiction books at local libraries. [GVPL]

*Sponsored Listing

$100K in merch seized in raid on Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club
The unlicensed nonprofit sells cannabis mostly to low-income clients with chronic ailments. The last time it was raided was three years ago. But just before noon yesterday, peace officers from the province’s Community Safety Unit, along with VicPD, arrived at the VCBC’s storefront on Quadra and Balmoral and began lugging product in black bags and garbage bins. Protestors shouted “shame” and “you’re taking our medicine.” [Times Colonist]

Friends of Buccaneers chair calls for working group to prevent further festival cancellations
Bob McKie knows what it’s like to have to call off an event because he can’t find enough volunteers. That’s what happened to this year’s Buccaneer Days parade. McKie says new provincial regulations adopted following last April’s tragedy at Vancouver’s Lapu Lapu event—11 people died when a car rammed through the crowd—have made for stricter security requirements. [CHEK]

Vancouver Island in spotlight on new Netflix show with Zach Galifianakis
The six-part series, which starts today, was shot mostly on the Island, including in the Cowichan Valley, Courtenay, and Ladysmith. “This is a Gardening Show” is described as a mix of joy and jokes in tight 15-to-20-minute episodes propelled by Galifianakis’s effortless ability to combine sophomoric and sophisticated humour. “The Hangover” star also shares some funny moments with Comox-area elementary school kids. [Vancouver Sun]

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👐 Louise Rose: Alone Together: Canadian jazz legend Louise Rose—who studied with Oscar Peterson, Leonard Bernstein, and Duke Ellington—performs solo jazz piano and vocals at Hermann's. Tonight. 7–9pm. [Info]

🧑‍🔧Trades de France Night: Pre-season Mixer: Trades professionals, past and potential teams, and sponsors gather for a casual happy hour to connect ahead of Victoria's month-long charity cycling challenge. Swans Pub. Tomorrow. 4:30–6:30pm. [Info]

🩷🎸 RELICS: Playing the Music of Pink Floyd: The Victoria tribute act digs into Pink Floyd's 1967–1975 era, performing deep cuts and classics from Piper at the Gates of Dawn, Meddle, and beyond. Hermann's. Tomorrow. 7–9pm. [Info]

💃 Solidaridad Tango: An all-female tango ensemble brings bold, boundary-pushing interpretations of the genre to the stage in a concert celebrating women's artistry and expression. Mary Winspear Centre. Tomorrow. 7:30pm. [Info]

🎼 Illuminare: Wings of Silence featuring the Emily Carr String Quartet. Centred on Christopher Tin’s striking cinematic oratorio, The Lost Birds—a soaring tribute to the beauty of flight and a poignant lament for species lost to time. Christ Church Cathedral. May 2. 3pm. [Info] 

🖼️ Art Show and Sale: Cordova Bay 55+ Association Art Group. Featuring original artwork, art cards, and a wide variety of artistic creations in various mediums, including watercolour, acrylic, oil, pastel, collage, mixed media, ink, pen, and pencil. Cordova Bay Elementary School. May 2. 10am-3pm. [Info]

 🚶 The Victoria Mile: Annual community run/walk that brings people together to support those living with Parkinson’s. The new route starts at Parliament and finishes at Government and Chatham. May 18. [Info] 

Tuesday’s headlines: 31 Islanders killed by toxic drugs in February; Baseball’s ‘Superman’ to make RAP appearance this summer; First 2026 wildfire for the Island. [April 21]

Victoria MLA Grace Lore reflects on two years of battling cancer. [Times Colonist]

Coast Appliances files for creditor protection. [CHEK] 

1 Canadian tourist killed, another injured in mass shooting at Mexican historic site. [CBC]

Orpheus & Eurydice opens today at the Royal. 

Last week to see “Naming a Crisis” art show at the Bay Centre, marking 10 years of BC’s toxic drug crisis. Show ends April 26. [Details]

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