Spy City

When I think of Spy City, I conjure up images of night goggles and hidden cameras and other doodads and whatchyamecallits that you typically only see on TV.
What it really is is all of those things, but with real world application. Suspect your boyfriend is cheating on you? Get a phone tap or a hidden camera. Everything from child and cell phone trackers to a smiley face camera moonlighting as a button and gismos that can wirelessly transmit your video to a nearby computer. Oh, and did I mention they do knife proof and bullet proof vests? Yep, someone phoned in about one while I was looking around. You’ve got to come down to be properly fitted for one.
The store itself was a little sparse. Apparently it was overly busy on Friday and Saturday (Halloween? Or are infidelity cases on the rise in Calgary?)
The store recently experienced some flooding as well, so one section was down sized. From the sounds of it, it’s been undergoing renos for awhile too.
About the «creepiest» thing in the store was a DVD player that also filmed the people watching TV. They said don’t get into the «really creepy» stuff like shower radio cameras and the likes… although I was left with a tip that I thought I’d share with you ladies: If someone you’re dating or you think has a crush on you gives you a shower radio as a present. BE VERY SUSPICIOUS! No, they would never… or would they? :p

If you’re mightily concerned about getting stabbed, or mauled by a bear, or if you just wanna keep an eye on things, then Spy City is where you should get to.
This odd little store is a paranoiacs paradise.
No matter what kind of unlikely object outfitted with a camera you’re looking for, chances are you’ll find it at Spy City. As for their anti-​stabbing apparel, well, let’s just say they’ve got your Kevlar covered. They carry stab & slash resistant vests, gloves, and arm sleeves, as well as cut resistant sweatshirts and hoodies. I don’t know what you’re up to or where you’re hanging out for such items to be necessary, but hey, better to be safe than sorry, I suppose. Me, I’d probably stop whatever I was doing and move if I thought getting stabbed was a likely outcome, but that’s just me.
In addition to their stab & slash resistant clothing, they also carry bear and dog repellent in spray form. No clothing yet to deal with bear attacks, but dare to dream.

They got some cool stuff here. One of my favourite items (besides the dog spray that I’ve been meaning to purchase for a number of years), is the liquid solution that renders your licence plate unreadable to photo speed radars that our beloved city has set up in some areas. You spray a little on and it looks the same. But when a flash goes off, the photo can’t read the numbers. This is useful; I can think of a number of opportunities this creates for me…
In any case, there are a lot of useful gadgets here for everybody, but I suspect paranoids and crazies would love it the best. You can even buy a device here that changes your voice for making harassing phone calls late at night and a CIA letter opener.
The store isn’t big although they’ve separated one area to serve as a knife room. They play James Bond music in here all day which must drive their employees crazy, but they seem to have a sense of humour about everything. Which is important when you start selling home drug kits and software to spy on employees… Dangerous stuff, but they tell me it’s all nice and legal. But if you really want to record your phone calls, save yourself a hundred bucks or so and go to the Source (Circuit City, formerly Radio Shack and pick up a tiny device for $ 20).
This place is definitely worth checking out, though.