Hello to all my American friends + family (in the lower 50) and new acquaintances in Kelowna, British Columbia and Calgary, Alberta. Everyone else around the world – Bonjour, Salut, Ni Hao, Konnichi wa, Ciao!, Guten Tag, Hola, Shalom, Mahalo, and many more.

“An American in Kelowna” – is a cinematic salute to the 1951 film classic “An American in Paris” starring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron.

In this award-winning flick (voted in 1952 as Best Picture by the Academy Awards and Golden Globes), an American artist moves to a new country and meets a girl.  The dance-crazy main characters of Jerry and Lise have digitally ceded the floor to their slow-dancing  Canadian counterparts of Jim and Elaine.

 Jim, that’s me,  has a plethora of stories and experiences about life in Kelowna. By not having a Canadian open work permit, I cannot engage in any employment. No work. No exceptions. No freebies. No classes to take. No officiating. No income. No complaining.

What fills my 9-5 hours the most – Volunteering:

• The Kelowna Community Food Bank
• The Kelowna Shoe Bank
• Shaw TV Cablesystems – Okanagan Channel 11
• Weekend races/charity events (mostly in summer)

These are my starting points. Fantastic people. Rock-solid engagement with the community. Terrific hands-on experiences to crow about. Original content only.

My self-titled job description – Content Creator.

The pay is bad. But the benefits of content marketing and brand journalism are invaluable. I’ll be ready-for-hire in about 6-9 months. Comments welcomed.