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Support arts that you appreciate

The weather, it seems, is catching up to the smorgasbord of our summer festivals just in time. It’s been gloomy, cool and/or wet for many an outdoor event so far in 2011.

The weather, it seems, is catching up to the smorgasbord of our summer festivals just in time.It’s been gloomy, cool and/or wet for many an outdoor event so far in 2011.Conditions were ideal for MusicFest earlier this month and the inaugural Rhythm on the Rock festival Saturday, at least meteorologically speaking.The economic situation has been gloomy like the weather, as people hang onto their wallets.The price of gas is generally up, and so is the Canadian dollar.Americans are discouraged from travelling to Canada when their greenback is worth less than our loonie.Canadians are conversely more likely to take advantage of this rare reversal to visit the U.S. and spend there rather than being tourists in their own province and country.That leaves us.The local competition for your entertainment and cultural spending is fierce.Every artistic endeavour — from MusicFest and its impressively large and talented lineups to buskers on the street — rely on our support. This is especially true at a time when government grants are drying up.Long story short — support events and people whose offerings you like if you want them to continue to enhance your quality of life.The list of remaining summer events is too long to mention, but it includes the Big Time Out in Cumberland next month and — mere days away — Nautical Days and the Filberg Festival in Comox this weekend.All of your favourite events are back at Nautical Days, which offers great fun for kids and adults.Some people squawk about paying to get into the Filberg fest, but revenue is needed from the park’s biggest fundraiser of the year to operate the idyllic site the rest of the year.The $15 daily admission price remains affordable and, if you like music at all, you will easily get your money’s worth.For details about the two festivals this weekend, visit www.comoxnauticaldays.ca and www.filbergfestival.com. editor@comoxvalleyrecord.com