Yes I know, I know I have become deliquent about updating my blog.
Sorry, I've been a bit bogged down with finishing the first draft of my thesis which is now done so I feel like I can write again.
Anyhoo. In honour of my 24th Birthday I have decided to undertake twenty-four random acts of kindness.
As of 8:30 this morning I am already well on my way here's what I've done so far.
1. Last night I shared a cupcake with my friend Stephanie who, for extenuating circumstances, will be unable to attend my party.
2. This morning I left a note for my room mates on the front door wishing them a beautiful day.
3-8. I handed out 6 flowers to people on the way to work. This was quite the experience, the first person who got one was a man who I came upon standing outside a vetrinary clinic with his cat and I simply handed him the flower without saying anything, he thanked me. The next two people who I shared flowers with needed to be reassured that I didn't want anything in return for the flowers. The fourth accepted and wished me well and the fifth and sixth seemed genuinely touched by the flower they received. I also had two people decline the flowers. I didn't know anyone who I gave the flowers to and I didn't tell them why I was giving them out. I found this to be a humbling experience.
9. I dropped a thank you note off at the Starbucks which I frequent while I'm at work.
10. I gave the commissionaires in the lobby of my building a box of timbits.
11. I shared a box of timbits with my colleagues.
12. I circulated a card for a colleague who was adopting a baby
13. I posted a picture in a bus stop wishing passers by a beautiful day.
14-15: I wrote thank you cards to my swing dance instructors
16-23: I made Stars saying something nice about all of my swing dance class mates and handed them out at the end of class.
24: I shared things I liked about two people who attended the class that I didn't have stars for with the entire class.
Follow Up:
Some interesting things started to happen after I started this endeavour. First when later speaking to one of the commissionaires who I shared timbits with earlier in the day, she told me that after I brought her timbits that someone else brought her coffee. She told me that no one ever shared things with them and asked rhetorically whether it was her Birthday, then I told her it was mine.
Sadly my colleague who was adopting was not able to adopt the baby he and his wife had been promised as the mother of the child changed her mind.
The picture I put in the bus shelter was gone within 12 hours, I'm optimistic someone took it home.
When I went out to dinner after Dance class everyone shared something that they liked about me.
A week later the girls who regularly serve me at starbucks thanked me for the card and gave me a free drink.
In terms of what I actually did, in most cases I didn't tell the people I was sharing with that I was doing these things in honour of my Birthday, I felt that it was better left unsaid, the exception of course being at swing.
I can't wait to do it again next year.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Friday, August 27, 2010
Terry Fox Run 2010
This year marks the 30th Anniversary of Terry Fox's Marathon of Hope, which I will proudly be running in.
It's not something that I often talk about but I had an older brother named Alan. He was born in March 1982, less than a year after Terry Fox died. Before his first Birthday my parents took him to the doctor when he seemed to be having trouble recovering from the flu. It was at that point that they discovered he had Leukemia. After receiving treatment including chemotherapy and blood transfusions, he went into remission from the cancer. Sadly the cancer returned when he was three and my brother passed away at home in August 1985, a year and 2 months before I was born.
Growing up my parents often talked about my brother and by the time I started school I not only knew about him and his fight but also about cancer. When I was very young even watching the video that they showed every year before the Terry Fox Run was enough to move me to tears.
In addition to losing my brother both of my mom's parents with whom I had a close relationship, died of cancer and complications due to cancer. I also lost an uncle, my dad's older brother to cancer in 2008.
Although I have participated in the run in the past through school, this will be my first run as an individual. I am running 4 times a week to increase my running distance from 5 to 10km (I'm currently at 8).
If you would be interested in donating to the Terry Fox Society to support me in my run please visit my fundrasing page at: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?registrationID=931962&LangPref=en-CA
If you would prefer to support me in other ways, if you're in Ottawa I will be participating in the run at Carleton University on September 19th at 9 a.m. and would love to see you there.
Having the opportunity to participate in the Terry Fox Run means a lot to me.
It's not something that I often talk about but I had an older brother named Alan. He was born in March 1982, less than a year after Terry Fox died. Before his first Birthday my parents took him to the doctor when he seemed to be having trouble recovering from the flu. It was at that point that they discovered he had Leukemia. After receiving treatment including chemotherapy and blood transfusions, he went into remission from the cancer. Sadly the cancer returned when he was three and my brother passed away at home in August 1985, a year and 2 months before I was born.
Growing up my parents often talked about my brother and by the time I started school I not only knew about him and his fight but also about cancer. When I was very young even watching the video that they showed every year before the Terry Fox Run was enough to move me to tears.
In addition to losing my brother both of my mom's parents with whom I had a close relationship, died of cancer and complications due to cancer. I also lost an uncle, my dad's older brother to cancer in 2008.
Although I have participated in the run in the past through school, this will be my first run as an individual. I am running 4 times a week to increase my running distance from 5 to 10km (I'm currently at 8).
If you would be interested in donating to the Terry Fox Society to support me in my run please visit my fundrasing page at: http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?registrationID=931962&LangPref=en-CA
If you would prefer to support me in other ways, if you're in Ottawa I will be participating in the run at Carleton University on September 19th at 9 a.m. and would love to see you there.
Having the opportunity to participate in the Terry Fox Run means a lot to me.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Racism
Over the past year I have witnessed a trouble amount of racism and prejudice both in South Africa and in Canada.
While I was in South Africa I was troubled to hear that the local people, both black and white, were not accepting of refugees and felt that they did not have the resources to support them. There seemed to be an overarching ignorance of what would prompt someone to be a refugee and the significance that refugees could play within society.
What was equally troubling was the implicit racism which continues to prevail there. White people fear "black" violence, some black people vow revenge for white oppression in the political spotlight. On a more troubling level people continue to segregate themselves. There are dance clubs where black people go, and those where white people go, but they aren't the same clubs and it has nothing to do with the style of music. I heard stories of black people being refused entry to business and white people being spat at on the street.
Having had the opportunity to interact with white South Africans, black South Africans and refugees, listening to their hopes and dreams for their own lives as well as their country's, really reaffirmed for me that race is simply a social construction through which we identify other but doesn't really exist. I had already felt this way before, but now I was certain of it.
I had never noticed in Canada prior to my trip to South Africa that there was a significant amount of racism here. I heard my friends and family make they occasional comment which I often shrugged off or objected to, but I attributed this to a few people who were behind the times. I mean, I grew up in one of the most multicultural cities in Canada, I was one of the only blonde hair blue eyed students in my grade 8 class and I loved it. I loved learning about other peoples cultures and traditions and never once considered someone to be any less important than me because of the colour of my skin. I also never felt resentful when my friends got opportunities that I didn't in the name of diversity.
However, since I have been back and working in the refugee community and with the broader public outside the academic sphere I have been noticing an increasingly worrying trend. Several white men have approached me complaining of the disadvantage that they experience as a result of their status as white men. They complain about employment equity, suggest that immigrants and aboriginals cause the majority of the crime in this country, and that we should close our doors to refugees (although many of them seem to use the words refugee and immigrant interchangably). The problems with these positions are clear. We as a country have systematically discriminated against minority groups for generations, which continues to influence capacities within current society. We still think its appropriate to throw around words like nigger and claim that we can't support refugees and immigrant here in our country (which is the farthest thing from the truth, we aren't reproducing at a rate fast enough to support ourselves and need the extra bodies) and then we force immigrants and refugees into jobs that nobody wants. I have a hard time sympathizing with people who think they should get an easy ride because their grandfathers colonized a country by killing off our aboriginal people and denying those who survived of a cultural identity. Its like people are using the race card to legitimize their own mediocrity. Even worse is the fact that they use their supposed "disadvantaged state" as a cover for their own racism by for example suggesting that people of a certain ethnic background (or gender) are less capable of doing the same job as them or have a lower IQ, or are responsible for crime or are all drug adicts.
To be honest I am tired of listening to white men complain about how disadvantaged they are, I am tired of my friends being called niggers and I don't think for a minute that there is any argument that could legitmize saying that anyone does not have the same capacity to achieve their goals solely on the basis of their cultural backgrounds.
I'm tired of sitting quietly and nodding or faking a smile when someone makes a racist joke or a flat out racist comment. I'm not going to do it anymore. I am going to start standing up and saying something when someone says inappropriate and I am not going to feel bad about it. Racist remarks make me lose a lot of respect for people.
I think its time that we all learned or accepted that we are all created equally and that we can live much better lives by working together rather than working against each other.
While I was in South Africa I was troubled to hear that the local people, both black and white, were not accepting of refugees and felt that they did not have the resources to support them. There seemed to be an overarching ignorance of what would prompt someone to be a refugee and the significance that refugees could play within society.
What was equally troubling was the implicit racism which continues to prevail there. White people fear "black" violence, some black people vow revenge for white oppression in the political spotlight. On a more troubling level people continue to segregate themselves. There are dance clubs where black people go, and those where white people go, but they aren't the same clubs and it has nothing to do with the style of music. I heard stories of black people being refused entry to business and white people being spat at on the street.
Having had the opportunity to interact with white South Africans, black South Africans and refugees, listening to their hopes and dreams for their own lives as well as their country's, really reaffirmed for me that race is simply a social construction through which we identify other but doesn't really exist. I had already felt this way before, but now I was certain of it.
I had never noticed in Canada prior to my trip to South Africa that there was a significant amount of racism here. I heard my friends and family make they occasional comment which I often shrugged off or objected to, but I attributed this to a few people who were behind the times. I mean, I grew up in one of the most multicultural cities in Canada, I was one of the only blonde hair blue eyed students in my grade 8 class and I loved it. I loved learning about other peoples cultures and traditions and never once considered someone to be any less important than me because of the colour of my skin. I also never felt resentful when my friends got opportunities that I didn't in the name of diversity.
However, since I have been back and working in the refugee community and with the broader public outside the academic sphere I have been noticing an increasingly worrying trend. Several white men have approached me complaining of the disadvantage that they experience as a result of their status as white men. They complain about employment equity, suggest that immigrants and aboriginals cause the majority of the crime in this country, and that we should close our doors to refugees (although many of them seem to use the words refugee and immigrant interchangably). The problems with these positions are clear. We as a country have systematically discriminated against minority groups for generations, which continues to influence capacities within current society. We still think its appropriate to throw around words like nigger and claim that we can't support refugees and immigrant here in our country (which is the farthest thing from the truth, we aren't reproducing at a rate fast enough to support ourselves and need the extra bodies) and then we force immigrants and refugees into jobs that nobody wants. I have a hard time sympathizing with people who think they should get an easy ride because their grandfathers colonized a country by killing off our aboriginal people and denying those who survived of a cultural identity. Its like people are using the race card to legitimize their own mediocrity. Even worse is the fact that they use their supposed "disadvantaged state" as a cover for their own racism by for example suggesting that people of a certain ethnic background (or gender) are less capable of doing the same job as them or have a lower IQ, or are responsible for crime or are all drug adicts.
To be honest I am tired of listening to white men complain about how disadvantaged they are, I am tired of my friends being called niggers and I don't think for a minute that there is any argument that could legitmize saying that anyone does not have the same capacity to achieve their goals solely on the basis of their cultural backgrounds.
I'm tired of sitting quietly and nodding or faking a smile when someone makes a racist joke or a flat out racist comment. I'm not going to do it anymore. I am going to start standing up and saying something when someone says inappropriate and I am not going to feel bad about it. Racist remarks make me lose a lot of respect for people.
I think its time that we all learned or accepted that we are all created equally and that we can live much better lives by working together rather than working against each other.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
"Asheville is the Shit, Y'All!"
Well Howdy,
Fancy meeting you here. Well maybe not. But thanks for checking in anyway.
So as most of you know On the weekend of July 16th I traveled to Asheville North Carolina for my cousins wedding. And so here's the story.On the morning of July 16th I rose from bed at 3 a.m. having not slept a minute during the night, to go to the airport for my flight at 6:00 a.m., I arrived at the airport at approximately 4, to discover that none of the line ups had opened to go through security. Anyway, after a bit of a wait I was able to go through since I opted not to pay an extra $25 each direction to have a piece of checked luggage.
While I waited in line at the passport desk, which again hadn't opened yet, I met my first interesting group of people. One was a professor from a University in Kentucky who I believe studied agent history in the Middle East (Turkey and Syria) and a fellow who worked for the Dept of National Defense who knows my friend Josh's room mate Cale. Small World.
I was a bit nervous getting on the plane in Ottawa as the plane which had 13 rows of four seats was the smallest plane I had ever been on (it was a rapidair jet). To my surprise the flight went quite well. There was no one sitting directly next to me but the couple across the aisle were friendly and going on their honeymoon.
My stop over was in Detroit, which contrary to popular belief is not a ghetto airport. In fact it has this amazing tunnel that plays relaxing music and fills with light which move in time with the music.
While I was in Detroit I decided to get Breakfast and, not recognizing any of the chains I decided to go the restaurant with the longest line up which happened to be called "Einstein's Bagel Brothers" or something to the effect. I got a breakfast bagel which was potentially the most disgusting thing I have ever had in my mouth. And I've eaten cow intestine! (Okay it may not have been as bad as the cow intestine, but it was close!
On my flight from Detroit the Ahseville I wondered whether the pilot had perhaps stood in the above tunnel to long as he proclaimed at the beginning of the flight that it was going to be a smooth flight, and then we encountered significant turbulence, and then told us we were going to land in 5 minutes and then we circled the airport three times and landed 30 minutes later. In any case my seat mate on that particular flight was very interesting. A lawyer who represented municipalities, including Asheville. He told me all about Asheville which was really nice.
When I landed I waited for my aunt and cousin who were landing on a different plane 20 minutes later and then we got a cab to the hotel. I have to say the Hotel Indigo is the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in. I couldn't really afford it, but it was at a reduced cost and only for two nights so I put up with the amazing service and King sized bed :P.
Later that afternoon my aunt, cousin (Laura) and I explored something called the arcade that was full of little niche craft and other such thing shops. It turns out that Asheville has a law prohibiting major chains from operating in the downtown area (except for some reason Urban outfitters) and so its primarily full of independent, fair trade, organic coffee shops, craft and clothing stores. So as you can imagine I was in heaven.
That night we attended the rehearsal dinner which was expertly catered and a good opportunity to catch up with my dad's fam. (Mom wasn't invited, I don't want to get into it), I went to bed around midnight and slept for 8 hours. I had gotten through the day on around 6 cups of coffee since I hadn't slept, so when I finally did sleep it was gooood.
The next day I went for breakfast with my aunt and La
ura at a cool little place called Early Janes, that served local food and was really amazing. Laura then went off to a mall (she had specific orders to bring back something from Abercrombie for her husband) and my aunt and I went into what was called "the river arts district" at first the area was somewhat disappointing as a lot of the studios were closed but we eventually found this wonderful little group of studios, with a garden and everything. While in one of the studios I found a hand painted ceramic plate which I couldn't resist and also couldn't afford but there were also mugs done by the same artist. After some contemplation I went back and went to consult the vendor on my purchase. Well he (Greg Vineyard) and I got into the lovely conversation about his aspiration to be a children s author and illustrator, and we talked about the ways in which people often dumb down information for kids or won't tell the full truth of the world to kids for fear of negatively effecting them in some way. In any case I ended up talking about how I had been really proud of my mom's cousin when he explained to his daughter about the Rwandan Genocide. Considering I vowed that I would not have any political conversations while I was in NC that was a really great one.
I also ended up having a very politically charged conversation with one of my cousin Chantal's readers at her wedding (Sal). We started talking about the global market and fair trade and how capitalism wasn't working but communism also wasn't working and we talked about whether there was enough will for anything to change. I of course said there was and talked about South Africa because that's what I do.
Anyway going back to the actual wedding. The wedding was supposed to be outside at a place called Homewood which was in a suburb of Asheville. Unfortunately it had just started raining when we arrived on location and the wedding was moved inside. It was a good thing to since the rain became a thunderstorm which boomed while my cousin was reading her vows (she has more of a Type A personality than I do so this was very appropriate).
Afterward there was a light meal and dancing. I mingled and talked to the family a bit. We then went back to the Hotel Indigo where the younger crowd drank at the bar. Two odd things happened there, first my cousin handed me a redbull and vodka, which I drank despite protesting and later in the evening, someone through an egg at us from a car, which fortunately didn't hit Chantal. That night I only slept 5 hours (that's right between Thursday morning and Sunday night I slept a grand total of 13 hours, this was a mighty poor decision indeed).
The next day I had hoped to go on a hike. Unfortunately I had injured my ankle a bit at the beginning of the trip and decided I better hold off so I wandered around town. Upon returning to the hotel I found my Aunt Karen and cousins Chantal and Roshan. Chantal and her new husband Greg were just packing up to hit the road. After everyone dispersed I spent about 2 hours with my aunt which was nice. I think that was the first time she and I had ever spent any time together.
On the way home there was major turbulence during both flights. The seatbelt sign stayed on the entire time for both. The first we flew around thunderstorms but the flight attendant was still able to get up and do drink service. The second we flew right through a thunderstorm so you can imagine the flight attendant didn't get up.
During my 3 hour stop over at Detroit this time I bought some poor quality, over priced sushi. I ended up sitting next to an author and motivational speaker who works on issues relating to demographics. It was quite nice to speak with him until he shared that he was a born again christian and started bible thumping. Not my cup of tea. Later I came upon a young man sitting in the middle of the floor video taping the tunnel so, after saying good bye to the born again christian, I returned and sat down with this fellow. It was really interesting to sit with him in the middle of the floor while people bustled around us. Frankly I was surprised airport security didn't come and hastle us.
Anyway, it was a great trip. I really feel inclined to go back to Asheville someday. The people are very warm and the mountainsides are beautiful. Plus there are fairtrade organic coffee shops everywhere!
Cheers
Fancy meeting you here. Well maybe not. But thanks for checking in anyway.
So as most of you know On the weekend of July 16th I traveled to Asheville North Carolina for my cousins wedding. And so here's the story.On the morning of July 16th I rose from bed at 3 a.m. having not slept a minute during the night, to go to the airport for my flight at 6:00 a.m., I arrived at the airport at approximately 4, to discover that none of the line ups had opened to go through security. Anyway, after a bit of a wait I was able to go through since I opted not to pay an extra $25 each direction to have a piece of checked luggage.
While I waited in line at the passport desk, which again hadn't opened yet, I met my first interesting group of people. One was a professor from a University in Kentucky who I believe studied agent history in the Middle East (Turkey and Syria) and a fellow who worked for the Dept of National Defense who knows my friend Josh's room mate Cale. Small World.
I was a bit nervous getting on the plane in Ottawa as the plane which had 13 rows of four seats was the smallest plane I had ever been on (it was a rapidair jet). To my surprise the flight went quite well. There was no one sitting directly next to me but the couple across the aisle were friendly and going on their honeymoon.
My stop over was in Detroit, which contrary to popular belief is not a ghetto airport. In fact it has this amazing tunnel that plays relaxing music and fills with light which move in time with the music.
While I was in Detroit I decided to get Breakfast and, not recognizing any of the chains I decided to go the restaurant with the longest line up which happened to be called "Einstein's Bagel Brothers" or something to the effect. I got a breakfast bagel which was potentially the most disgusting thing I have ever had in my mouth. And I've eaten cow intestine! (Okay it may not have been as bad as the cow intestine, but it was close!On my flight from Detroit the Ahseville I wondered whether the pilot had perhaps stood in the above tunnel to long as he proclaimed at the beginning of the flight that it was going to be a smooth flight, and then we encountered significant turbulence, and then told us we were going to land in 5 minutes and then we circled the airport three times and landed 30 minutes later. In any case my seat mate on that particular flight was very interesting. A lawyer who represented municipalities, including Asheville. He told me all about Asheville which was really nice.
When I landed I waited for my aunt and cousin who were landing on a different plane 20 minutes later and then we got a cab to the hotel. I have to say the Hotel Indigo is the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in. I couldn't really afford it, but it was at a reduced cost and only for two nights so I put up with the amazing service and King sized bed :P.
Later that afternoon my aunt, cousin (Laura) and I explored something called the arcade that was full of little niche craft and other such thing shops. It turns out that Asheville has a law prohibiting major chains from operating in the downtown area (except for some reason Urban outfitters) and so its primarily full of independent, fair trade, organic coffee shops, craft and clothing stores. So as you can imagine I was in heaven.That night we attended the rehearsal dinner which was expertly catered and a good opportunity to catch up with my dad's fam. (Mom wasn't invited, I don't want to get into it), I went to bed around midnight and slept for 8 hours. I had gotten through the day on around 6 cups of coffee since I hadn't slept, so when I finally did sleep it was gooood.
The next day I went for breakfast with my aunt and La
ura at a cool little place called Early Janes, that served local food and was really amazing. Laura then went off to a mall (she had specific orders to bring back something from Abercrombie for her husband) and my aunt and I went into what was called "the river arts district" at first the area was somewhat disappointing as a lot of the studios were closed but we eventually found this wonderful little group of studios, with a garden and everything. While in one of the studios I found a hand painted ceramic plate which I couldn't resist and also couldn't afford but there were also mugs done by the same artist. After some contemplation I went back and went to consult the vendor on my purchase. Well he (Greg Vineyard) and I got into the lovely conversation about his aspiration to be a children s author and illustrator, and we talked about the ways in which people often dumb down information for kids or won't tell the full truth of the world to kids for fear of negatively effecting them in some way. In any case I ended up talking about how I had been really proud of my mom's cousin when he explained to his daughter about the Rwandan Genocide. Considering I vowed that I would not have any political conversations while I was in NC that was a really great one.
I also ended up having a very politically charged conversation with one of my cousin Chantal's readers at her wedding (Sal). We started talking about the global market and fair trade and how capitalism wasn't working but communism also wasn't working and we talked about whether there was enough will for anything to change. I of course said there was and talked about South Africa because that's what I do.Anyway going back to the actual wedding. The wedding was supposed to be outside at a place called Homewood which was in a suburb of Asheville. Unfortunately it had just started raining when we arrived on location and the wedding was moved inside. It was a good thing to since the rain became a thunderstorm which boomed while my cousin was reading her vows (she has more of a Type A personality than I do so this was very appropriate).
Afterward there was a light meal and dancing. I mingled and talked to the family a bit. We then went back to the Hotel Indigo where the younger crowd drank at the bar. Two odd things happened there, first my cousin handed me a redbull and vodka, which I drank despite protesting and later in the evening, someone through an egg at us from a car, which fortunately didn't hit Chantal. That night I only slept 5 hours (that's right between Thursday morning and Sunday night I slept a grand total of 13 hours, this was a mighty poor decision indeed).
The next day I had hoped to go on a hike. Unfortunately I had injured my ankle a bit at the beginning of the trip and decided I better hold off so I wandered around town. Upon returning to the hotel I found my Aunt Karen and cousins Chantal and Roshan. Chantal and her new husband Greg were just packing up to hit the road. After everyone dispersed I spent about 2 hours with my aunt which was nice. I think that was the first time she and I had ever spent any time together.
On the way home there was major turbulence during both flights. The seatbelt sign stayed on the entire time for both. The first we flew around thunderstorms but the flight attendant was still able to get up and do drink service. The second we flew right through a thunderstorm so you can imagine the flight attendant didn't get up.During my 3 hour stop over at Detroit this time I bought some poor quality, over priced sushi. I ended up sitting next to an author and motivational speaker who works on issues relating to demographics. It was quite nice to speak with him until he shared that he was a born again christian and started bible thumping. Not my cup of tea. Later I came upon a young man sitting in the middle of the floor video taping the tunnel so, after saying good bye to the born again christian, I returned and sat down with this fellow. It was really interesting to sit with him in the middle of the floor while people bustled around us. Frankly I was surprised airport security didn't come and hastle us.
Anyway, it was a great trip. I really feel inclined to go back to Asheville someday. The people are very warm and the mountainsides are beautiful. Plus there are fairtrade organic coffee shops everywhere!
Cheers
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
A good old fashione eye roller.
I promise that I will post an update about my trip to North Carolina, but I simply could not resist posting this.
As many of you know about two weeks ago I went out on a date with a fellow who turned out to be 22 years older than me who was a commissionaire in my building. Needless to say I was turned off by his advancements and creeped out by the fact he offered to take me home.
Ever since I have been hurrying through the security gates at the office, trying to avoid conversation. Today returning from lunch he cornered me and said "I want to talk to you"
I thought to my self "oh no"
He said, "I don't know about you, but I think everything happens for a reason"
"I see" I said hoping it wasn't going where I thought it was going"
"I am leaving my job" he continued "and before I left, I wanted to ask if I might be able to... read your thesis when it's done"
Relieved I answered "Why of course"
As many of you know about two weeks ago I went out on a date with a fellow who turned out to be 22 years older than me who was a commissionaire in my building. Needless to say I was turned off by his advancements and creeped out by the fact he offered to take me home.
Ever since I have been hurrying through the security gates at the office, trying to avoid conversation. Today returning from lunch he cornered me and said "I want to talk to you"
I thought to my self "oh no"
He said, "I don't know about you, but I think everything happens for a reason"
"I see" I said hoping it wasn't going where I thought it was going"
"I am leaving my job" he continued "and before I left, I wanted to ask if I might be able to... read your thesis when it's done"
Relieved I answered "Why of course"
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Low Point
So. This is definitely the lowest point in the past year. After finding out about my eye monday and being told to reduce my stress levels I decided to cut out most of the caffeine from my normal routine which is going okay but I am tired. Today I spoke on the phone with the opthamologist about my eye again and we talked about the fact that I didn't stare into the sun and he explained that there were several causes of fluid build up on your retina and that it is a condition that usually affects young people and particularly males (I guess I don't quite fit the bill).
I also went to the dentist today and was told that I need extensive dental work. In response to this I burst into tears, mostly because I didn't need any more bad news (although he seemed to think it was primarily about the dental problems).
In any case these past three days have been pretty hard. I know my vision will probably come back but its frustrating to know that even if it does it might not be until 2011. I also know that my teeth will probably be fine with some work but I hate going to the dentist.
Anyway I am heading to North Carolina this weekend, hopefully that will bring some good stories.
I also went to the dentist today and was told that I need extensive dental work. In response to this I burst into tears, mostly because I didn't need any more bad news (although he seemed to think it was primarily about the dental problems).
In any case these past three days have been pretty hard. I know my vision will probably come back but its frustrating to know that even if it does it might not be until 2011. I also know that my teeth will probably be fine with some work but I hate going to the dentist.
Anyway I am heading to North Carolina this weekend, hopefully that will bring some good stories.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Now with 20% more Blindness
So Friday night I noticed a red blotch in my vision, and then I noticed it again and again and it didn't seem to want to go away. Saturday, I was a little bit nervous and started looking up possible causes on the internet. By Sunday the spot was pretty much constantly there and my vision had become very blurry and a little bit doubled in my left eye. I was worried (and of course didn't tell anyone) but knew I had to go to the doctor.
When I headed for the walk in clinic this morning I was optimistic that he would send me to work saying that it was just eye strain. No such luck. Upon seeing me he suggested that I go to the emergency eyecare center at the hospital. When I got there they informed me that the doctor should have called in advance of my arrival but fortunately made an appointment for me anyway. I was seen about three hours later by an opthalmological intern who initially said he didn't see much but then called the ophthalmologist who said he saw a yellow spot on my retina. He said it was either the result of too much sun exposure or a hole between the macular and the retina and took a whole lot of images of my eye. The one was simply of my retina and the other showed the amount of fluid in my eye. As it would happen, there is a build up of fluid on my retina probably from sun over exposure.
Unfortunately my friend of a red spot is likely to be with me from a few weeks to a few months. I hope that the double vision goes away soon because my visual acuity in my left eye this morning was well within the range to be considered legally blind.
The doctor also said that I should try to reduce my stress since that for some reason could aggravate the situation.
UGH.
When I headed for the walk in clinic this morning I was optimistic that he would send me to work saying that it was just eye strain. No such luck. Upon seeing me he suggested that I go to the emergency eyecare center at the hospital. When I got there they informed me that the doctor should have called in advance of my arrival but fortunately made an appointment for me anyway. I was seen about three hours later by an opthalmological intern who initially said he didn't see much but then called the ophthalmologist who said he saw a yellow spot on my retina. He said it was either the result of too much sun exposure or a hole between the macular and the retina and took a whole lot of images of my eye. The one was simply of my retina and the other showed the amount of fluid in my eye. As it would happen, there is a build up of fluid on my retina probably from sun over exposure.
Unfortunately my friend of a red spot is likely to be with me from a few weeks to a few months. I hope that the double vision goes away soon because my visual acuity in my left eye this morning was well within the range to be considered legally blind.
The doctor also said that I should try to reduce my stress since that for some reason could aggravate the situation.
UGH.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
More Wanderings
So. It's been a while.
As you had probably guessed from my last post, I have been doing quite a lot of bouncing around Eastern Canada lately. I am going to attempt to describe the last month to you in the most succinct way possible. Its been amazing, yet exhausting.
31 May- 7 June "Congratulations, you got the job"
30 minutes away from Halifax, arriving by train from Montreal on May 31st, my phone rings. I can see that it's my mom. Not the call I am hoping for. You see I had interviewed for a student job with the Ministry of Public Safety on May 25th, and unsure of how the interview went I had convinced myself that I would hear on the 31st and it was already 5 p.m. Atlantic time.
However, I was also not expecting a call from my mom. I answer. Trepedation. She tells me that Helen from Public Safety called and wants me to call back. I try, I try again, no answer. I get home. There's an email. I got the job!
Freak out:
This job seemed like a great opportunity, much better pay than the clinic, less stress, back to Ottawa. It also had its down sides: Putting off my thesis yet another semester, moving, quitting my job. Woah stress. I am excited, but start wondering if taking the job is the right decision.
I center. I take the job.
The next day I go into the clinic knowing that I have to quit. I have never quit a job before, and the timing couldn't be worse. I am helping to organize a conference for June 30th and I have come back with a lot of new ideas from Montreal.
I break the news to Julie, this is already a high stress time for her, I am not sure if she absorbs it. But I assure her I will come in every day for the rest of the week since I have to leave on Monday for Mississauga and my mom's retirement party.
I spend the rest of the week. I tie up loose ends, I find someone to sublet my room, I pack and say goodbyes. I also work dilligently with four refugee women, conducting interviews about their experiences as refugees and taking pictures of the places which make them feel most like home in Halifax. This is for a multimedia project for the conference. I put it together and it is done two weeks later. Beautiful
Saturday night I have another going away party. It's mostly friends from swing dance (Pluse Valerie from school and Chloe from the clinic). It is amazing how much swing dancing changed my experience of Halifax. I never imagined I would have so many new friends to miss when I went back.
Reflection: I can't believe the last four months were so much better than Sept '08 to August '09.
June 7- 13th: The Retirement Party
I had to leave Nova Scotia in a bit of a rush because I had bought a plane ticket months earlier to come home for my mom's retirement party. This is scary, my mom is retiring. What is her life going to look like now? How will things change? Will she be happy?
So many questions.
Tuesday I meet with friends. Wednesday is the party. Its cloudy but the weather holds. Good thing, the party is outside. There are speeches, presents and a whirlwind of socializing. A wonderful occassion, but mom's nerves are frayed. She's not so sure about retirement either.
My mom has always been a teacher, it is how she defines herself. I can't imagine having to step away from that.
June 10th Day Trip to Guelph:
This isn't really separate from my trip to Mississauga but it was delightful. I went to visit my friends Dalbir and Sarah who I met at the masterclass in Montreal. We had such a great time. I never remember hitting it off so well with two people that we could simply sit down and talk without realizing that time is passing. Hope to see them again soon
Rest of the visit: Visited with friends. Delightful. Anticipation is rising.
June 13 - June 30: Coming home or starting again?
The train gets into Ottawa. I hop in a cab. We get closer to the place I am subletting for the summer. Worry. I have not yet seen the place in person. I look out the window. I see my friend Josh sitting on the patio of a cafe. I see my friend Josh sitting on the patio of the cafe?!
I arrive at 91 Russell. I am greeted, I go in, see the room. It looks nice. I park my bags, walk back out and find Josh, still sitting on the patio. Catch up (not ketchup). Flow of ideas. Amazing.
First Day of Work: Everyone is super friendly. It seems like the Center for Mitigation Excellence will be a nice place to work. I am too new for anyone to talk to me yet though.
First week: I become certified in Basic Emergency Management, I get a box full of office supplies, get to know my coworkers, write a research proposal. In the evenings I visit with friends who are all anxious to see me. It seems the universe is coming together and bringing everyone to me who I have missed for so long without me having to move a finger. Even people from outside Ottawa. I run into Madut from my program who is working at Citizenship and Immigration Canada, on the same street as my office. Even Kai and Judy, Niko's room mates from Halifax are in town for a wedding. I drank a lot of Sangria. I try swing dancing for the first time and it is totally worth it.
Second week: I settle in at work. Still getting to know colleagues. Monday there is a fire alarm and we are evacuated down 17 flights of stairs earlier than we should. This does not bode well for Emergency Management. Two days later there is an earthquake. We evacuate again. Let me tell you, you do not want to be on the 17th floor of a building when there is an earthquake. Terrifying. But, I can't wait to tell my grandchildren some day "When I was you age, I started a job with the emergency management division at PS when there was an earthquake!" what an adventure. My socializing dies down. It turns out that all of my old friends are now occupied with boyfriends and girlfriends. I wonder how much longer I will have to wait before I find a boyfriend of my own. I am also getting to know my knew room mates. They are a couple and just bought a kitten. They are really lovely people. I get more into swing dance. Its lovely, but not quite the same feeling as in Halifax.
The Guy who sits in the cubicle next to me:
The guy who sits in the cubicle next to mine read my blog and demanded to know why I hadn't mentioned him, knowing full well that my last blog post was written before I even arrived in Ottawa. We made South African Chicken Curry for a potluck, and get in trouble for talking too much. Thanks for keeping me occupied Suresh :).
On the 30th there was a picnic for Public Safety. We went, we ate, we won a karaoke competition. What more can you ask for.
July 1st- 4th Canada Day.
I come home by train the evening of the 30th. The morning of the 1st my mom is upset. Yesterday was her last day as a full time teacher. Having just left a job, and trying to adjust my identity from "Kirsten Van Houten, overworked intern!" to " Kirsten Van Houten, assistant policy analyst!" has been somewhat challenging. If this is challenging, I can only imagine what my mom is experiencing is 50 (million) times worse. I worry.
Canada Day evening I go over to Claire's house and have dinner with some of my favorite people. We roast marshmallow. The conversation drifts to politics, fatal error but I recover beautifully. We canoe down the credit river to watch the fireworks sitting in our canoes. Happy Canada Day!
Friday evening I meet with my life-long friend Karen. We have dinner with her boyfriend, whose companionship strangely is a catalyst for both he and I to become more than bonkers (in a good way) and we bounce around. That evening blues dancing. I have only been here once before but I recognize some faces. Martin. Kyle (the one who we met in Halifax) joins us. Awesome. I have to drag myself away.
Today, more catching up with friends, with a slightly more urgent tone. Tomorrow back to Ottawa.
Heavier Things
I realize that my words seem heavier than normal. Moving around takes its toll. I find it incredibly hard to say goodbye to people and worry because I am still not sure where I belong. I know I will always have a place in Mississauga which comforts me. Yet, when I think about the autumn I am not sure whether to return to Halifax or remain in Ottawa. There are really pros and cons to both. Not to mention that I keep mixing up Ottawa and Halifax, I say the name of one when I am talking about the other.
I am also left with a mild sense of loneliness. It has been 2 years since I was in any sort of stable relationship. I am so happy for all of my friends who are in wonderful relationships but when all of your friends who live in a particular city are dating (or married) to someone except you, it kind of starts to weigh on you.
Lighter Things
I am so very blessed inded.
The last year has just been amazing (incidently it was just over a year ago that I started this blog) I have seen so many things and made so many beautiful and wonderful friends, and I have got to spend so much time with the old ones too. I have been to new places experienced new things. I could never have imagined that such a life changing trip would be followed up by a position in Halifax that would challenge my patience and courage but have me come out swinging on the other end and then see me move to Ottawa where I think I could easily be working with the nicest group of people who I have ever had the pleasure to share an office with.
Wow. Enough said.
What an adventure.
If you're reading this, chances are I am missing you a little bit right now.
Hope you like the new design.
As you had probably guessed from my last post, I have been doing quite a lot of bouncing around Eastern Canada lately. I am going to attempt to describe the last month to you in the most succinct way possible. Its been amazing, yet exhausting.
31 May- 7 June "Congratulations, you got the job"
30 minutes away from Halifax, arriving by train from Montreal on May 31st, my phone rings. I can see that it's my mom. Not the call I am hoping for. You see I had interviewed for a student job with the Ministry of Public Safety on May 25th, and unsure of how the interview went I had convinced myself that I would hear on the 31st and it was already 5 p.m. Atlantic time.
However, I was also not expecting a call from my mom. I answer. Trepedation. She tells me that Helen from Public Safety called and wants me to call back. I try, I try again, no answer. I get home. There's an email. I got the job!
Freak out:
This job seemed like a great opportunity, much better pay than the clinic, less stress, back to Ottawa. It also had its down sides: Putting off my thesis yet another semester, moving, quitting my job. Woah stress. I am excited, but start wondering if taking the job is the right decision.
I center. I take the job.
The next day I go into the clinic knowing that I have to quit. I have never quit a job before, and the timing couldn't be worse. I am helping to organize a conference for June 30th and I have come back with a lot of new ideas from Montreal.
I break the news to Julie, this is already a high stress time for her, I am not sure if she absorbs it. But I assure her I will come in every day for the rest of the week since I have to leave on Monday for Mississauga and my mom's retirement party.
I spend the rest of the week. I tie up loose ends, I find someone to sublet my room, I pack and say goodbyes. I also work dilligently with four refugee women, conducting interviews about their experiences as refugees and taking pictures of the places which make them feel most like home in Halifax. This is for a multimedia project for the conference. I put it together and it is done two weeks later. Beautiful
Saturday night I have another going away party. It's mostly friends from swing dance (Pluse Valerie from school and Chloe from the clinic). It is amazing how much swing dancing changed my experience of Halifax. I never imagined I would have so many new friends to miss when I went back.
Reflection: I can't believe the last four months were so much better than Sept '08 to August '09.
June 7- 13th: The Retirement Party
I had to leave Nova Scotia in a bit of a rush because I had bought a plane ticket months earlier to come home for my mom's retirement party. This is scary, my mom is retiring. What is her life going to look like now? How will things change? Will she be happy?
So many questions.
Tuesday I meet with friends. Wednesday is the party. Its cloudy but the weather holds. Good thing, the party is outside. There are speeches, presents and a whirlwind of socializing. A wonderful occassion, but mom's nerves are frayed. She's not so sure about retirement either.
My mom has always been a teacher, it is how she defines herself. I can't imagine having to step away from that.
June 10th Day Trip to Guelph:
This isn't really separate from my trip to Mississauga but it was delightful. I went to visit my friends Dalbir and Sarah who I met at the masterclass in Montreal. We had such a great time. I never remember hitting it off so well with two people that we could simply sit down and talk without realizing that time is passing. Hope to see them again soon
Rest of the visit: Visited with friends. Delightful. Anticipation is rising.
June 13 - June 30: Coming home or starting again?
The train gets into Ottawa. I hop in a cab. We get closer to the place I am subletting for the summer. Worry. I have not yet seen the place in person. I look out the window. I see my friend Josh sitting on the patio of a cafe. I see my friend Josh sitting on the patio of the cafe?!
I arrive at 91 Russell. I am greeted, I go in, see the room. It looks nice. I park my bags, walk back out and find Josh, still sitting on the patio. Catch up (not ketchup). Flow of ideas. Amazing.
First Day of Work: Everyone is super friendly. It seems like the Center for Mitigation Excellence will be a nice place to work. I am too new for anyone to talk to me yet though.
First week: I become certified in Basic Emergency Management, I get a box full of office supplies, get to know my coworkers, write a research proposal. In the evenings I visit with friends who are all anxious to see me. It seems the universe is coming together and bringing everyone to me who I have missed for so long without me having to move a finger. Even people from outside Ottawa. I run into Madut from my program who is working at Citizenship and Immigration Canada, on the same street as my office. Even Kai and Judy, Niko's room mates from Halifax are in town for a wedding. I drank a lot of Sangria. I try swing dancing for the first time and it is totally worth it.
Second week: I settle in at work. Still getting to know colleagues. Monday there is a fire alarm and we are evacuated down 17 flights of stairs earlier than we should. This does not bode well for Emergency Management. Two days later there is an earthquake. We evacuate again. Let me tell you, you do not want to be on the 17th floor of a building when there is an earthquake. Terrifying. But, I can't wait to tell my grandchildren some day "When I was you age, I started a job with the emergency management division at PS when there was an earthquake!" what an adventure. My socializing dies down. It turns out that all of my old friends are now occupied with boyfriends and girlfriends. I wonder how much longer I will have to wait before I find a boyfriend of my own. I am also getting to know my knew room mates. They are a couple and just bought a kitten. They are really lovely people. I get more into swing dance. Its lovely, but not quite the same feeling as in Halifax.
The Guy who sits in the cubicle next to me:
The guy who sits in the cubicle next to mine read my blog and demanded to know why I hadn't mentioned him, knowing full well that my last blog post was written before I even arrived in Ottawa. We made South African Chicken Curry for a potluck, and get in trouble for talking too much. Thanks for keeping me occupied Suresh :).
On the 30th there was a picnic for Public Safety. We went, we ate, we won a karaoke competition. What more can you ask for.
July 1st- 4th Canada Day.
I come home by train the evening of the 30th. The morning of the 1st my mom is upset. Yesterday was her last day as a full time teacher. Having just left a job, and trying to adjust my identity from "Kirsten Van Houten, overworked intern!" to " Kirsten Van Houten, assistant policy analyst!" has been somewhat challenging. If this is challenging, I can only imagine what my mom is experiencing is 50 (million) times worse. I worry.
Canada Day evening I go over to Claire's house and have dinner with some of my favorite people. We roast marshmallow. The conversation drifts to politics, fatal error but I recover beautifully. We canoe down the credit river to watch the fireworks sitting in our canoes. Happy Canada Day!
Friday evening I meet with my life-long friend Karen. We have dinner with her boyfriend, whose companionship strangely is a catalyst for both he and I to become more than bonkers (in a good way) and we bounce around. That evening blues dancing. I have only been here once before but I recognize some faces. Martin. Kyle (the one who we met in Halifax) joins us. Awesome. I have to drag myself away.
Today, more catching up with friends, with a slightly more urgent tone. Tomorrow back to Ottawa.
Heavier Things
I realize that my words seem heavier than normal. Moving around takes its toll. I find it incredibly hard to say goodbye to people and worry because I am still not sure where I belong. I know I will always have a place in Mississauga which comforts me. Yet, when I think about the autumn I am not sure whether to return to Halifax or remain in Ottawa. There are really pros and cons to both. Not to mention that I keep mixing up Ottawa and Halifax, I say the name of one when I am talking about the other.
I am also left with a mild sense of loneliness. It has been 2 years since I was in any sort of stable relationship. I am so happy for all of my friends who are in wonderful relationships but when all of your friends who live in a particular city are dating (or married) to someone except you, it kind of starts to weigh on you.
Lighter Things
I am so very blessed inded.
The last year has just been amazing (incidently it was just over a year ago that I started this blog) I have seen so many things and made so many beautiful and wonderful friends, and I have got to spend so much time with the old ones too. I have been to new places experienced new things. I could never have imagined that such a life changing trip would be followed up by a position in Halifax that would challenge my patience and courage but have me come out swinging on the other end and then see me move to Ottawa where I think I could easily be working with the nicest group of people who I have ever had the pleasure to share an office with.
Wow. Enough said.
What an adventure.
If you're reading this, chances are I am missing you a little bit right now.
Hope you like the new design.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
The Nomadic Life
So those of you who follow me on facebook (which is nearly all of you) know that there have been some recent changes in my life and also that I have had a few adventures along the way.
I will start by saying in mid May I was contacted for an interview for a position with the Department of Public Safety under the Federal Work Experience Program. The interview consisted of four questions, the first of which was "If you were to be stranded on a deserted island what are the three things you would want to have with you?" To which my response was 1. clean water/food 2. Shelter or the means to build shelter 3. a communication device.
After completing the interview I was a bit unsure of how it went.
Two days later I left for Montreal
Montreal
I decided to travel to Montreal by train because the day which I found out that I had been accepted to the masterclass on human rights at Concordia happened to also be the day that VIA had its seat sale, and I had discovered that airline tickets to Montreal were a bit expensive. So for a lower price than an airplane ticket I took a sleeper car to Montreal and economy class on the way back.
So on the way too Montreal about three hours into my trip I take a little walk down the coridor of the train to the lounge area when I bump into an adorable six year old playing with her stuffed bunny rabbit. Naturally I start playing along. After some hopping I started talking to the little girl's mom and a conversation something like this followed
Mom: I was in Halifax for my daughter's convocation.
Kirsten: Oh at Dalhousie?
Mom: Yes, my daughter was studying international...
Kirsten: ...development studies?
Mom: Yes
Kirsten: What was your daughter's name?
Mom: Stephanie...
Kirsten: Stephanie Smith...?
Mom: Yes...?
Kirsten: Oh my gosh I was your daughter's teaching assistant last year!
Mom: Really? Oh really? (Somewhat incredulous partly because I am a few years younger than her daughter and the statistical unlikelihood of this encounter occurring is astronomically high)
Enough said. On the train I also met a Sweedish woman who was also attending a conference at congress (which the masterclass was a part of) who was a forensic anthropologist) insert interesting discussion here.
I arrived in Montreal around 9 the next day and dropped my things off at the Grey Nuns, the Concordia Residence where I was staying. I then checked my email/ facebook to discover several other people I knew were also in town for congress and made plans.
I then ate brunch at eggspectation and proceeded on a walking tour of downtown Montreal guided by a guide book.
Al though it was a hot afternoon I realized I still had quite a lot of time on my hands so I decided to climb Mount Royal, Montreals Mountain. I used the stairs which are the most direct route up the mountain, however I took the winding foot path down, both of which were interesting routes.
The view from the top was quite magnificent. Also on the mountain I stopped at Lac Castor (Beaver Lake) where I was hit on in French by an icecream truck salesman. I was impressed both because the individual did not choose to switch to English while speaking me and that I understood that I was being hit on.
In the evening I met up with Matt Scribner from Carleton who was one of the people who were in town for Congress. We had a delicious meal and a restaurant whose name I can't even begin to remember. Following this I went Swing Dancing at Cat's Corner where I ran into Matt Tufts a Swing Dancing friend from Halifax and learned how to do six count swing dancing (or at least tried to).
The next day was a masterclass and WOW what an experience. If I could stretch that day over the rest of my existence I would die a happy person. There were so many people there of different ages and different backgrounds all studying issues at the graduate level on issues relating to human rights. There were two other girls with human rights degrees from Carleton and one girl who did her Masters at Dal in IDS a few years ago. The presenters included 3 women presenting on issues relating to child psychology and the rights of the child, Jane Stoyles from the Candian Center for International Justice (who responded to my paper at a conference last year, so exciting ahhh), Reza, a photo journalist from Iran who has won many awards and has deicated his life to photographing the sufferring of civillians in war (I couldn't but buy his enormous book) and finally a presentation by Kyle Matthews (who incidently went to highschool with my cousin Laura) and Frank Chalk on the will to intervene (which made me consider doing a PhD at Concordia).
That night most of the masterclass participants went out for dinner.
and then some of us went to listen to live jazz music at Upstairs which was amazing!
The next day I got up early, checked out from Grey Nuns and went to breakfast with James and Britta who were visiting a relative who was in town for the conference (I hadn't seen them in over a year!). I then went up with some of the masterclass people and went on a refugee guided bus tour of the city which was part of the life stories project and advertised at the masterclass. It was a really amazing experience to see the projects that people working on refugees in a bigger city had the resources to do.
On the anecdotal side of things for part of the bus tour we went up Mount Royal to the Oratory, where we were told if we were there for the first time we could make a wish and that it would be granted. When we first arrived there Dalbir, one of my new friends said that he wished they had icecream. At the next bus stop it was announced (fairly randomly) that there were ice cream vendors there.
In my case I found out that I got the job with public safety in Ottawa when I arrived back in Halifax the next day.
So I packed up and left town, first for Mississauga for my mom's retirement party, then on to Ottawa. The adventures never cease. But that's another story.
Tomorrow I am off to Guelph to visit Dalbir and Sarah from the masterclass!
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
A Minor Celebrity at Dalhousie Law School?
So I went to Tom's Little Havana in Halifax to meet my room mate and her friend for a beer. I stood waiting for a seat for some time and after a while approached a table where the three patrons looked like they might be preparing to leave and asked if I could sit down. They said yes and so I sat. After a while we got to talking, I introduced myself, and they introduced themselves. It turned out that one of them, Natalie, was in first year law school at Dalhousie. I excitedly responded "Oh, I took a couple of law school courses last year" and explained that I had completed them as part of my M.A. The girl the looked at me incredulously and said "So you're the girl who fought her way into law school classes..." And I said "excuse me?" and asked her to explain. Apparently the law school has been quite firm with its policy this year to not allow outside students to take their courses and cited the example of a girl last year who fought her way into two courses.
Now what actually happened was that the professor invited into his Intellectual Property Law II course as international development study MA students, and the law school was obliged to accept us. At this point I was informed that I would only be allowed to take 1 law school course despite the fact that I had the permission of the graduate coordinator and the instructor to take a second course in International Criminal Law second semester. I accepted this but when I mentioned it to the chair of the department, she went into a blind rage and demanded that the law school allow me to take the second course (I do have a substantial background in law after all). In any case the law school obliged. I am happy to report that I got an -A in both classes and that this is how I became a minor celebrity at Dalhousie Law School.
Now what actually happened was that the professor invited into his Intellectual Property Law II course as international development study MA students, and the law school was obliged to accept us. At this point I was informed that I would only be allowed to take 1 law school course despite the fact that I had the permission of the graduate coordinator and the instructor to take a second course in International Criminal Law second semester. I accepted this but when I mentioned it to the chair of the department, she went into a blind rage and demanded that the law school allow me to take the second course (I do have a substantial background in law after all). In any case the law school obliged. I am happy to report that I got an -A in both classes and that this is how I became a minor celebrity at Dalhousie Law School.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Future Dating Columnist? I think not
So I haven't blogged in a while and there are a million better things that I could write about but here I am writing about this. The precursor to this story is that I remain woefully single and maybe a tad desperate.
What you shouldn't do to get a guy's attention:
So today I was sitting in Starbucks with my friend Irenee, when a voice from behind me says "Hi Irenee", I turn to look and see a rather attractive young man to whom Irenee responds "oh hi John", as he walks away I ask her who he is. She explains she knows him from choir, to which my response was "is he legal" (meaning over 19) at which she burst out laughing (who could blame her). After some consideration I scrolled my name and number in bright pink sharpie on a napkin and asked her to deliver it to him at choir practice, which was proceeded and followed by more giggling. Don't worry he won't call.
What this did achieve was possibly the best-worst pick up line ever.
Are you legal? Because it should be a crime to look so good!
Anyway next weekend I am going to Montreal, there should be some good blogging material from that.
What you shouldn't do to get a guy's attention:
So today I was sitting in Starbucks with my friend Irenee, when a voice from behind me says "Hi Irenee", I turn to look and see a rather attractive young man to whom Irenee responds "oh hi John", as he walks away I ask her who he is. She explains she knows him from choir, to which my response was "is he legal" (meaning over 19) at which she burst out laughing (who could blame her). After some consideration I scrolled my name and number in bright pink sharpie on a napkin and asked her to deliver it to him at choir practice, which was proceeded and followed by more giggling. Don't worry he won't call.
What this did achieve was possibly the best-worst pick up line ever.
Are you legal? Because it should be a crime to look so good!
Anyway next weekend I am going to Montreal, there should be some good blogging material from that.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Leaving me raw.
So while I was home in Mississauga I went out for my traditional dinner with Claire, Tina and Sherry (Jen was in Montreal), instead of going to one of the limited options at Square One, Tina suggested we go to a Raw food restaurant. I was skeptical. Did I really want to pay restaurant prices for some cut up vegetables? I have to say I found myself pleasantly surprised by the quality of the food at Raw Aura, it certainly wasn't what I was expecting. So as I was eating I thought to myself "Hey, this could be really healthy" and I wondered whether it would be possible to live off of a raw food diet for the week (It turned out after I did a bit of research that apparently people just live on raw food diets).
So last Sunday I only ate raw food (with the exception of a chai latte as I had decided to allow myself one Chai Latte a day during this little experience). Day one I felt a little funky but it wasn't so bad. I didn't cheat. By the second day I was getting a little bit hungry but I had discovered that you could make something reminiscent to noodles by peeling a zucchini. I did cheat that night by having a desert, but it could have been worse. In fact it did get worse everyday I would make exceptions but I tried to make healthy ones. For example Wednesday I had sushi for lunch in an attempt to eat something with protein. I did not cheat on caffeine. Unfortunately I started to get an upset stomach on Wednesday which lasted until the end of the week. Friday night I failed rather dramatically by eating a hamburger and fries for dinner but I had decided I would still try to stick it out until the end of the day Saturday when I had been invited to both a Bread and a Nacho party. However, when I woke up Saturday morning I discovered that my room mates had eaten the fruit I had put aside for my breakfast and gave up. I have to say the raw food diet left me with a very upset stomach and very tired. It definitely was not a healthy choice for me however it did introduce me to some new recipes which I am sure to return to in the future.
Back to the subject of Mississauga I guess the only other thing to talk about is Blues dancing. I guess I never shared with you readers that I had enrolled myself in swing dancing classes in Halifax. Coupled with regular social dancing I have to say my dancing ability is coming along and that I am getting pretty okay at it. In any case coming home I found myself somewhat disappointed because I was missing the final swing dance lesson in Halifax but in a stroke of genius I remembered that my oldest friend Karen had also taken up swing dancing and concluded that we should go swing dancing together. So on Friday night of Easter weekend Karen, her boyfriend Lionel, my friend Adam and myself headed out to a blues dancing lesson and social dance (Blues dancing is essentially the same thing as swing dancing with a less complicated step). It was really fantastic to get a chance to dance with new people taught by different instructors. I found the dancers in Toronto to have a bit more of a creative streak, to the point that Karen's Boyfriend and I included making faces at each other in our swing dance routine, which was embarrassing for Karen and Adam but fun for us.
Finally, bad news about my thesis. I am still planning on having a first draft done by the beginning of June but I have discovered that my supervisor is having hip surgery and that as a result I won't be able to defend until late August. Well shit.
Til Next time,
Cheers
So last Sunday I only ate raw food (with the exception of a chai latte as I had decided to allow myself one Chai Latte a day during this little experience). Day one I felt a little funky but it wasn't so bad. I didn't cheat. By the second day I was getting a little bit hungry but I had discovered that you could make something reminiscent to noodles by peeling a zucchini. I did cheat that night by having a desert, but it could have been worse. In fact it did get worse everyday I would make exceptions but I tried to make healthy ones. For example Wednesday I had sushi for lunch in an attempt to eat something with protein. I did not cheat on caffeine. Unfortunately I started to get an upset stomach on Wednesday which lasted until the end of the week. Friday night I failed rather dramatically by eating a hamburger and fries for dinner but I had decided I would still try to stick it out until the end of the day Saturday when I had been invited to both a Bread and a Nacho party. However, when I woke up Saturday morning I discovered that my room mates had eaten the fruit I had put aside for my breakfast and gave up. I have to say the raw food diet left me with a very upset stomach and very tired. It definitely was not a healthy choice for me however it did introduce me to some new recipes which I am sure to return to in the future.
Back to the subject of Mississauga I guess the only other thing to talk about is Blues dancing. I guess I never shared with you readers that I had enrolled myself in swing dancing classes in Halifax. Coupled with regular social dancing I have to say my dancing ability is coming along and that I am getting pretty okay at it. In any case coming home I found myself somewhat disappointed because I was missing the final swing dance lesson in Halifax but in a stroke of genius I remembered that my oldest friend Karen had also taken up swing dancing and concluded that we should go swing dancing together. So on Friday night of Easter weekend Karen, her boyfriend Lionel, my friend Adam and myself headed out to a blues dancing lesson and social dance (Blues dancing is essentially the same thing as swing dancing with a less complicated step). It was really fantastic to get a chance to dance with new people taught by different instructors. I found the dancers in Toronto to have a bit more of a creative streak, to the point that Karen's Boyfriend and I included making faces at each other in our swing dance routine, which was embarrassing for Karen and Adam but fun for us.
Finally, bad news about my thesis. I am still planning on having a first draft done by the beginning of June but I have discovered that my supervisor is having hip surgery and that as a result I won't be able to defend until late August. Well shit.
Til Next time,
Cheers
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
" This is the final Boarding call for Flight 606 to Halifax"
So there are tales from my trip home for Easter coming but before that I thought I would impart this short story with you today from the airport in Toronto.
Today I was flying back from Toronto to Halifax and arrived at the airport quite early, having gotten a ride up from my friend Claire on her way to work (thanks again :)). So I arrived at my gate and this fellow sat down next to me saying that he recognized me from Halifax. I was somewhat surprised as I didn't recognize him at all but as it would turn out he is an up and coming spoken word artist originally from Bermuda now going to school in Hali.
After quite an extensive conversation I turned to reading my book when said individual asked if I would watch his stuff while he went to the bathroom. I said of course. It was 20 minutes to boarding.
15 minutes pass and they make the first boarding announcement, you know the one for people with young children or for star alliance gold and star alliance members. He still isn't back and I'm a little concerned but I'm convinced he must be just around the corner.
Five minutes pass and they make the second boarding announcement, for people in rows 22 and up. I am in row 24 but I still have this man's things with me (which included a lap top and demo CDs.
5 more minutes pass and they make the final boarding announcement. Not knowing what to do I decide to take the baggage to the woman at the boarding gate and explain the situation. She not only refuses to take the luggage but tells me she is not going to let me board the plane until the guy returns for his things. At this point I am freaking out and a pilot who is waiting for a flight on stand by notices and tells me to go and dump the guy's things around the corner and tell the flight attendant that I found him. I frankly wonder why they won't just do a call out for him. Anyway as the line was dwindling here comes this fellow around the corner. He seems oblivious to the fact that there was any problem with him leaving his things with me for over a half an hour and assures me he wouldn't have missed the flight. We then both get a stern lecture about not leaving items unattended, and me about agreeing to watch his things.
I guess in the Age of Terrorism there is no room left for being a good Samaritan.
Today I was flying back from Toronto to Halifax and arrived at the airport quite early, having gotten a ride up from my friend Claire on her way to work (thanks again :)). So I arrived at my gate and this fellow sat down next to me saying that he recognized me from Halifax. I was somewhat surprised as I didn't recognize him at all but as it would turn out he is an up and coming spoken word artist originally from Bermuda now going to school in Hali.
After quite an extensive conversation I turned to reading my book when said individual asked if I would watch his stuff while he went to the bathroom. I said of course. It was 20 minutes to boarding.
15 minutes pass and they make the first boarding announcement, you know the one for people with young children or for star alliance gold and star alliance members. He still isn't back and I'm a little concerned but I'm convinced he must be just around the corner.
Five minutes pass and they make the second boarding announcement, for people in rows 22 and up. I am in row 24 but I still have this man's things with me (which included a lap top and demo CDs.
5 more minutes pass and they make the final boarding announcement. Not knowing what to do I decide to take the baggage to the woman at the boarding gate and explain the situation. She not only refuses to take the luggage but tells me she is not going to let me board the plane until the guy returns for his things. At this point I am freaking out and a pilot who is waiting for a flight on stand by notices and tells me to go and dump the guy's things around the corner and tell the flight attendant that I found him. I frankly wonder why they won't just do a call out for him. Anyway as the line was dwindling here comes this fellow around the corner. He seems oblivious to the fact that there was any problem with him leaving his things with me for over a half an hour and assures me he wouldn't have missed the flight. We then both get a stern lecture about not leaving items unattended, and me about agreeing to watch his things.
I guess in the Age of Terrorism there is no room left for being a good Samaritan.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
For Your Amusement
So today I had a facebook status conversation and it looked like this.
Kirsten Van Houten saw a wood pecker while she was running today, it flew right up to her. Legs starting to hurt
Marie: Was it looking for your wooden leg? Muahahahah (I couldn't resist I almost got jumped on by a squirrel when I ran this morning.
Kirsten: Hahaha was the squirrel looking for your nuts? It's nice running weather isn't it?
Marie: Beautiful- then I nearly killed a squirrel with my car on the way home, squirrely squirrels.
Kirsten: you might call it treevenge! :)
Kirsten Van Houten saw a wood pecker while she was running today, it flew right up to her. Legs starting to hurt
Marie: Was it looking for your wooden leg? Muahahahah (I couldn't resist I almost got jumped on by a squirrel when I ran this morning.
Kirsten: Hahaha was the squirrel looking for your nuts? It's nice running weather isn't it?
Marie: Beautiful- then I nearly killed a squirrel with my car on the way home, squirrely squirrels.
Kirsten: you might call it treevenge! :)
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Transcriptions
Completed!
39, 484 words. That is 14,484 words longer than my thesis should be.
I am sooooo giddy it took sooo long!
39, 484 words. That is 14,484 words longer than my thesis should be.
I am sooooo giddy it took sooo long!
Monday, March 15, 2010
So a clown walks into a bar.
and sits down.
That's not funny.
And yet, it still involves a clown.
So here I find myself blogging for the second day in a row after something of a sabbatical. I am feeling much more upbeat today, maybe its the weather, maybe its because I finally didn't spend my day sick in bed. I still have bronchitis but I am healing.
Other:
So I bought a scarf in South Africa. A pashmina, red,gold and orange which I haven't gone a day without wearing since I returned from South Africa. Today I spontaneously swapped scarves with a friend for a week today. I plan to photo-document the adventures of said scarf and report back to you.
A Rant:
So. I was listening to one of my interviews today, the first one I have made an attempt toward transcribing in a while. I thought it was a relatively straight forward interview without an exceptional amount of sorrow. A good way to ease back into things. Unfortunately it was not quite so straightforward. The respondent, a young woman who is now 19 told me about when war reached her city, Kisangani, in 2000. She was 10. When the Rwandans and Ugandans started fighting in her city they cut off the power and water supply to the entire population. They went for an entire week without bathing or clean drinking water and survived off of the food her mother was able to collect at the beginning of the week. A day into the fighting her neighbour's house was struck by a bomb, killing to people. Their bodies lay exposed in the rubble for days until the stench became unbarable and her family had to seek shelter elsewhere. That, she told me, is when they became "displaced". She also told me about how a number of children in her class died when a bomb was dropped on the school and how she was unable to attend classes for 5 months after the week long conflict.She also explained unwaveringly that the exiting armies lay land mines around the border of her city which killed many children who picked them up, thinking they were toys.
For the first time today, I succumbed to tears today after listening to one of my interviews. We almost all know that such things occur but its hard to imagine until someone sits in front of you and tells you about it or worse yet it happens to you.
My distress has now subsided into ambivalence. How do we, as Canadians, as citizens of a peaceful developed countries, as youth, and most of all as people, how do we continue to allow these tragedies to continue to occur? Is it that we have become cynical and believe that in certain countries, in the heart of darkness, there is no hope? Is it because the media only reports on certain conflicts and when they do its largely inaccurate? Is it because its happening too far away and you don't know what you could do anyway?
No child should ever have to smell the rotting corpses of their neighbour.
The reason that we should care, and perhaps must care is that such events are in no one's interest in the long run. They only serve to divide us further, to breed hatred against the people who stood by and did nothing. Even if you are an ardent capitalist, it removes access to markets, reduces the amount of consumers for your capital. It could just as easily be your town or city which is bombed to pieces or left riddled with bullets. How would you feel if the world looked on and did nothing. Sighed when they heard that more than 5 million people have died after a decade long war.
If we are ever interested in seeing long lasting, sustainable peace in the world we have to start acting. We have to abandon the us versus them mentality that sees people living these realities as others, glad we're not them. We have to start looking out for one another. Its not that hard. Get informed. Write a letter. Stop supporting companies which contribute to arms proliferation or the continuation of war. Better yet, demand that our governments also stop. Donate to a charity that is doing something if you must. Spread the word.
I have a friend with whom I debate such matters. Recently we were talking about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He insisted that there were more civilian casualties caused by insurgents and the Taliban than by coalition forces. When he forwarded me a report showing this and asserting that the insurgents and Taliban were intentionally targeting civilians while those who died as a result of coalition activities were unfortunate but unavoidable collateral damage, I asked him whether he really thought it mattered to the family and friends of the people who died whether they were killed intentionally by militants or accidentally by soldiers. It doesn't. Loved ones are still lost. Bodies still rot in the streets.
Stop war.
That's not funny.
And yet, it still involves a clown.
So here I find myself blogging for the second day in a row after something of a sabbatical. I am feeling much more upbeat today, maybe its the weather, maybe its because I finally didn't spend my day sick in bed. I still have bronchitis but I am healing.
Other:
So I bought a scarf in South Africa. A pashmina, red,gold and orange which I haven't gone a day without wearing since I returned from South Africa. Today I spontaneously swapped scarves with a friend for a week today. I plan to photo-document the adventures of said scarf and report back to you.
A Rant:
So. I was listening to one of my interviews today, the first one I have made an attempt toward transcribing in a while. I thought it was a relatively straight forward interview without an exceptional amount of sorrow. A good way to ease back into things. Unfortunately it was not quite so straightforward. The respondent, a young woman who is now 19 told me about when war reached her city, Kisangani, in 2000. She was 10. When the Rwandans and Ugandans started fighting in her city they cut off the power and water supply to the entire population. They went for an entire week without bathing or clean drinking water and survived off of the food her mother was able to collect at the beginning of the week. A day into the fighting her neighbour's house was struck by a bomb, killing to people. Their bodies lay exposed in the rubble for days until the stench became unbarable and her family had to seek shelter elsewhere. That, she told me, is when they became "displaced". She also told me about how a number of children in her class died when a bomb was dropped on the school and how she was unable to attend classes for 5 months after the week long conflict.She also explained unwaveringly that the exiting armies lay land mines around the border of her city which killed many children who picked them up, thinking they were toys.
For the first time today, I succumbed to tears today after listening to one of my interviews. We almost all know that such things occur but its hard to imagine until someone sits in front of you and tells you about it or worse yet it happens to you.
My distress has now subsided into ambivalence. How do we, as Canadians, as citizens of a peaceful developed countries, as youth, and most of all as people, how do we continue to allow these tragedies to continue to occur? Is it that we have become cynical and believe that in certain countries, in the heart of darkness, there is no hope? Is it because the media only reports on certain conflicts and when they do its largely inaccurate? Is it because its happening too far away and you don't know what you could do anyway?
No child should ever have to smell the rotting corpses of their neighbour.
The reason that we should care, and perhaps must care is that such events are in no one's interest in the long run. They only serve to divide us further, to breed hatred against the people who stood by and did nothing. Even if you are an ardent capitalist, it removes access to markets, reduces the amount of consumers for your capital. It could just as easily be your town or city which is bombed to pieces or left riddled with bullets. How would you feel if the world looked on and did nothing. Sighed when they heard that more than 5 million people have died after a decade long war.
If we are ever interested in seeing long lasting, sustainable peace in the world we have to start acting. We have to abandon the us versus them mentality that sees people living these realities as others, glad we're not them. We have to start looking out for one another. Its not that hard. Get informed. Write a letter. Stop supporting companies which contribute to arms proliferation or the continuation of war. Better yet, demand that our governments also stop. Donate to a charity that is doing something if you must. Spread the word.
I have a friend with whom I debate such matters. Recently we were talking about the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He insisted that there were more civilian casualties caused by insurgents and the Taliban than by coalition forces. When he forwarded me a report showing this and asserting that the insurgents and Taliban were intentionally targeting civilians while those who died as a result of coalition activities were unfortunate but unavoidable collateral damage, I asked him whether he really thought it mattered to the family and friends of the people who died whether they were killed intentionally by militants or accidentally by soldiers. It doesn't. Loved ones are still lost. Bodies still rot in the streets.
Stop war.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
A Comedy of Errors
For as long as I can remember I have hated making mistakes. The earliest example I can think of this was when I was 8 and was at a Birthday party where I was given pop. Pop was something of a luxury for me and reveled in being able to blow bubbles in it. Unfortunately blowing bubbles in my pop had the foreseeable result of the pop bubbling out of the can and ending up all over my good clothing. I was so upset that I cried for about an hour because I was sure my parents would be disappointed in me. They weren't.
In high school and at the beginning of university I would often hold back from raising my hand to answer questions or if I did raise my hand by the time it was my turn to respond my heart would be raising and my face would be a lovely shade of red as I spat out my response to the question. This fear of making mistakes continues to persist in my life in the strangest of ways. For example I sometimes struggle with speaking french because I am very concerned with making a grammatical error. Francophones for the most part of course don't mind if you make mistakes, they are just glad that someone is trying to speak their languages.
Recently I have been making a ridiculous number of mistakes. It probably started when I returned from South Africa regretting that I had not told a certain individual how I felt about him. I found myself sitting up at night thinking about him and eventually sent him a letter telling him how I felt. This was not a mistake. It didn't change my feelings for the person one bit, but they were out there and known and sharing that load made things just a bit easier.
When I arrived back in Halifax I almost immediately started spending time with a new fellow who I had known before but not very well. I discovered that we shared a number of similar interests and dove head first into having the most ridiculous crush on him than perhaps I have ever experienced.
After about a month of this, I felt uncertain as to where I stood with him so I started to try to find ways to tell, asking friends advice, trying to engage in additional physical contact, but I couldn't tell how he felt, although it had become more clear that I was not the only woman after his affections.
With the added bit of stress I decided to step it up a notch and tried to find ways or opportunities to tell him how I felt. Some of these were missed others never materialized. So in a move of exasperation I prepared a straightforward hand written note which I handed to him last Sunday. The following week unfolded for me and involved a theatrical performance which was attended by said person and additional encounters in group settings. I also mistakenly sent a text message to him which was intended for a friend which read "He came to my performance last night and he was beaming at me the entire time. Still no word on the note" It took me 3 hours to realize this text had not gone to the right person and I was totally mortified.
As the week went on my nerves became more frayed and I began to try to push for an answer. Eventually I asked him over facebook whether he had read the note and he said he had and that we'd talk but all subsequent attempts to make plans have failed. (In fairness to him he has been really busy with school work and I may not be being sensitive enough to this).
So obviously I have made a number of errors throughout this saga, ranging from my almost hilarious text message to the more serious mistake of diving into a new crush to try to forget about something across the ocean.
Of course we all make mistakes. To me this feels like a pretty massive one.
This particular string of mistakes seems to point to the sentiment that if you ever expect to find true love, you have to put up with a lot of heart ache along the way.
More importantly it raises the question: how can one learn if they never make mistakes?
In high school and at the beginning of university I would often hold back from raising my hand to answer questions or if I did raise my hand by the time it was my turn to respond my heart would be raising and my face would be a lovely shade of red as I spat out my response to the question. This fear of making mistakes continues to persist in my life in the strangest of ways. For example I sometimes struggle with speaking french because I am very concerned with making a grammatical error. Francophones for the most part of course don't mind if you make mistakes, they are just glad that someone is trying to speak their languages.
Recently I have been making a ridiculous number of mistakes. It probably started when I returned from South Africa regretting that I had not told a certain individual how I felt about him. I found myself sitting up at night thinking about him and eventually sent him a letter telling him how I felt. This was not a mistake. It didn't change my feelings for the person one bit, but they were out there and known and sharing that load made things just a bit easier.
When I arrived back in Halifax I almost immediately started spending time with a new fellow who I had known before but not very well. I discovered that we shared a number of similar interests and dove head first into having the most ridiculous crush on him than perhaps I have ever experienced.
After about a month of this, I felt uncertain as to where I stood with him so I started to try to find ways to tell, asking friends advice, trying to engage in additional physical contact, but I couldn't tell how he felt, although it had become more clear that I was not the only woman after his affections.
With the added bit of stress I decided to step it up a notch and tried to find ways or opportunities to tell him how I felt. Some of these were missed others never materialized. So in a move of exasperation I prepared a straightforward hand written note which I handed to him last Sunday. The following week unfolded for me and involved a theatrical performance which was attended by said person and additional encounters in group settings. I also mistakenly sent a text message to him which was intended for a friend which read "He came to my performance last night and he was beaming at me the entire time. Still no word on the note" It took me 3 hours to realize this text had not gone to the right person and I was totally mortified.
As the week went on my nerves became more frayed and I began to try to push for an answer. Eventually I asked him over facebook whether he had read the note and he said he had and that we'd talk but all subsequent attempts to make plans have failed. (In fairness to him he has been really busy with school work and I may not be being sensitive enough to this).
So obviously I have made a number of errors throughout this saga, ranging from my almost hilarious text message to the more serious mistake of diving into a new crush to try to forget about something across the ocean.
Of course we all make mistakes. To me this feels like a pretty massive one.
This particular string of mistakes seems to point to the sentiment that if you ever expect to find true love, you have to put up with a lot of heart ache along the way.
More importantly it raises the question: how can one learn if they never make mistakes?
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Adventures
So if you are reading this post you may have noticed a change in the title of my blog from "Adventures in the travels and life of Kirsten" to "Adventures in the Life of Kirsten". As most of you know this blog was initially intended to keep friends and family abreast of my experiences in South Africa and Switzerland, and you also know that I have now been back in Canada for more than 2 months and while I miss South Africa terribly my adventures there have meant that I have even more friends all over the world who I need to keep in touch with. Also it would seem that my adventures are not travel dependent. In fact after some thought about it Adventures seem to be a major theme in my life. My love for adventure even goes as far as to explain a lot of the random things that I have experienced that previously seemed inexplicable. One example of this is the delightfully random people who I meet and tell me their stories, since meeting new people is often part of my adventures. So right now my adventures happen to be occurring in Halifax, and they will be for a little bit longer than I thought since my contract with the Halifax Refugee Clinic has been extended. And while the location of my adventures may be shifting well into the future, you can count on one thing, that I will keep writing about them in this blog.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
In memorial
Its been a while since I updated my blog.
I wish it was in happier circumstances that I wrote this.
I have been working at the Halifax Refugee Clinic now for 4 weeks. Today when I got into work I was informed that one of the refugees had disappeared after leaving a suicide note, that all of his things in his room and that they were continuing to search for him.
This refugee was from Eritrea where where he had been part of the army, which is known for having committed serious human rights abuses. After having tried to desert the army and being recaptured and forced into retraining, this man left the country leaving his life and his family behind. He was found inadmissible for refugee status in Canada as a result of his involvement in the army, despite the fact that there is documented evidence that if he returned to Eritrea he would be tortured and killed.
The law making people who are suspected of being involved of major human rights abuses makes a lot of sense on its surface, Canada probably doesn't want people to seek asylum here from legal repercussions resulting from actions which they perpetrated in their home countries. However, this line of logic assumes that the countries where these people are coming from have just non corrupt legal systems that don't inflict torture and death on their prisoners and returned refugees. Sending someone accused of human rights abuses to a country where they almost certainly will face torture and death seems to follow the same logic as the death penalty, which is flawed at best. In such cases arguably it would be better for Canada to exercise universal jurisdiction and detain and hear the case of the individual hear and in the case of a guilty verdict also detain them here to avoid such unthinkable situations.
The day that this refugee disappeared was the same day that he was supposed to have a meeting with Canadian Border Services Agency to begin the process of deportation (a flight risk assessment).
At 1:30 this afternoon the clinic got a call informing us that the refugee had hung himself in Clayton Park.
I wish it was in happier circumstances that I wrote this.
I have been working at the Halifax Refugee Clinic now for 4 weeks. Today when I got into work I was informed that one of the refugees had disappeared after leaving a suicide note, that all of his things in his room and that they were continuing to search for him.
This refugee was from Eritrea where where he had been part of the army, which is known for having committed serious human rights abuses. After having tried to desert the army and being recaptured and forced into retraining, this man left the country leaving his life and his family behind. He was found inadmissible for refugee status in Canada as a result of his involvement in the army, despite the fact that there is documented evidence that if he returned to Eritrea he would be tortured and killed.
The law making people who are suspected of being involved of major human rights abuses makes a lot of sense on its surface, Canada probably doesn't want people to seek asylum here from legal repercussions resulting from actions which they perpetrated in their home countries. However, this line of logic assumes that the countries where these people are coming from have just non corrupt legal systems that don't inflict torture and death on their prisoners and returned refugees. Sending someone accused of human rights abuses to a country where they almost certainly will face torture and death seems to follow the same logic as the death penalty, which is flawed at best. In such cases arguably it would be better for Canada to exercise universal jurisdiction and detain and hear the case of the individual hear and in the case of a guilty verdict also detain them here to avoid such unthinkable situations.
The day that this refugee disappeared was the same day that he was supposed to have a meeting with Canadian Border Services Agency to begin the process of deportation (a flight risk assessment).
At 1:30 this afternoon the clinic got a call informing us that the refugee had hung himself in Clayton Park.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
There's a lot going on!
Wow. What a long way I have already come in 2010. I have a couple of pieces of news to report.
First, as most of you know I started to look for a job when I came back to Canada to at least hold me over until I finished my thesis. I am happy to say that I have been taken on as an intern at the Halifax Refugee Clinic for 10 hours a week and I am also up for a 5 hour a week job on campus. This should work out nicely with the continuation of my thesis as I will continue to have time to transcribe and read and since the position is in Halifax I will have access to the University library. Also I am taking some steps to make my stay in Halifax a bit nicer than the last time. I have found a beautiful apartment with three room mates who seem eager to make friends with me, I am developing some old connections and I will be taking both a theatre and swing dancing course (fun fact, I have always wanted to learn how to swing dance).
On the darker side of things I found out last week that my credit card was compromised while I was in Durban with the person who copied it trying to make over $7000.00 worth of transactions on it in a one month period. Fortunately my credit card company was quick to react after the first transaction was $3000.00 which is three times my credit limit. Ha. So I have to say that I am a little bit disappointed about this, feeling quite smug having escaped any crime in SA after being mugged at gun point in the Netherlands. Oh well, the fact of the matter is, they didn't succeed and really much worse things could have hapened. However, I would be curious to know which of the vendors I used my card at copied it as there weren't that many.
A Comment On Hati
With my life business out of the way I thought I would make a comment on the earthquake in Hati. Two weeks ago disaster struck Hati when a 7.0 earthquake flattened the city of Port au Prince, killing and injuring many more than most of us would care to think about. In the days following the earthquake we saw non-stop media coverage of the disaster which prompted many Canadians, including myself, to donate money to various agencies (I donated to Humanitarian Action which is an NGO comprised of Oxfam, Care and Save the Children, given my history with Care and knowing that one of their project managers is Hatian). Our donations have sent millions of dollars in relief to the country.
When we look at these donations at face value it seems to exhibit a high degree of compassion and generocity. Of course the media has played a major part in provoking this response by continually broadcasting images of the destruction (The CBC has been mainly focussing on how the earthquake has effected Canada which somehow seems to miss the point but never mind). However, I can't help but think that since 1998 Congo has experienced many of the same problems Haiti is experiencing now; a lack of access to food, water, shelter and security and while the Hatian death toll continues to climb into the hundred of thousands, in 2009 the death toll in the DRC surpassed 5 million. Yet there have been no benefit concerts or telethons to help the victims of the conflict in the Congo, there is very little media coverage and the Canadian government along with many others continues to support business and continue other practices which continue to feed the conflict (resource exploitation being the main problem). As a result there is a significant lack of awareness about the disaster in Congo and so very little is being done about it. To be honest if we had been meeting our milennium development goals and providing assistance to Haiti all along I can't help but think that the earthquake would not have had such disasterous consequences.
I strongly feel that more awareness does need to be created about the situation in Congo and other war and natural disaster affected countries. It shouldn't take a media storm for us to take action to end global sufferring.
First, as most of you know I started to look for a job when I came back to Canada to at least hold me over until I finished my thesis. I am happy to say that I have been taken on as an intern at the Halifax Refugee Clinic for 10 hours a week and I am also up for a 5 hour a week job on campus. This should work out nicely with the continuation of my thesis as I will continue to have time to transcribe and read and since the position is in Halifax I will have access to the University library. Also I am taking some steps to make my stay in Halifax a bit nicer than the last time. I have found a beautiful apartment with three room mates who seem eager to make friends with me, I am developing some old connections and I will be taking both a theatre and swing dancing course (fun fact, I have always wanted to learn how to swing dance).
On the darker side of things I found out last week that my credit card was compromised while I was in Durban with the person who copied it trying to make over $7000.00 worth of transactions on it in a one month period. Fortunately my credit card company was quick to react after the first transaction was $3000.00 which is three times my credit limit. Ha. So I have to say that I am a little bit disappointed about this, feeling quite smug having escaped any crime in SA after being mugged at gun point in the Netherlands. Oh well, the fact of the matter is, they didn't succeed and really much worse things could have hapened. However, I would be curious to know which of the vendors I used my card at copied it as there weren't that many.
A Comment On Hati
With my life business out of the way I thought I would make a comment on the earthquake in Hati. Two weeks ago disaster struck Hati when a 7.0 earthquake flattened the city of Port au Prince, killing and injuring many more than most of us would care to think about. In the days following the earthquake we saw non-stop media coverage of the disaster which prompted many Canadians, including myself, to donate money to various agencies (I donated to Humanitarian Action which is an NGO comprised of Oxfam, Care and Save the Children, given my history with Care and knowing that one of their project managers is Hatian). Our donations have sent millions of dollars in relief to the country.
When we look at these donations at face value it seems to exhibit a high degree of compassion and generocity. Of course the media has played a major part in provoking this response by continually broadcasting images of the destruction (The CBC has been mainly focussing on how the earthquake has effected Canada which somehow seems to miss the point but never mind). However, I can't help but think that since 1998 Congo has experienced many of the same problems Haiti is experiencing now; a lack of access to food, water, shelter and security and while the Hatian death toll continues to climb into the hundred of thousands, in 2009 the death toll in the DRC surpassed 5 million. Yet there have been no benefit concerts or telethons to help the victims of the conflict in the Congo, there is very little media coverage and the Canadian government along with many others continues to support business and continue other practices which continue to feed the conflict (resource exploitation being the main problem). As a result there is a significant lack of awareness about the disaster in Congo and so very little is being done about it. To be honest if we had been meeting our milennium development goals and providing assistance to Haiti all along I can't help but think that the earthquake would not have had such disasterous consequences.
I strongly feel that more awareness does need to be created about the situation in Congo and other war and natural disaster affected countries. It shouldn't take a media storm for us to take action to end global sufferring.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Trip Home
Howdy,
wt
Its been a while. You may be wondering where I have been. I guess the truth is trying to reaquaint myself with Canada and spending some time with Friends and Family in Mississauga and Ottawa. However, if this blog is to keep going I must at least occassionally write so I thought I might pick up where I left off which was the trip home.
My trip home was approximately 30 hours from Jo'burg to Toronto with a stop over in Zurich and Montreal. The first leg of my flight was over night. I was a bit concerned that I might not sleep as this tends to be a problem for me on most aircraft. Lucky for me (yeah right) my entertainment system did not work for the entirety of my 12 hour flight with Swiss International Airways and so it was quite easy to sleep (especially after a glas of wine) My favorite part of this flight was when we flew over the Mediterranean sea and reached the French alps where you could see the outline of the European continent lit up by city lights. It was stunning.
After landing in Zurich, with a 6.5 hour stopover ahead of me I had to make a decision. To stay in the airport or to spend some of my time exploring Zurich. Because I slept on the plane I chose the latter and headed through customs, which I am fortunate enough to be able to do with my Canadian Passport. I then took the train to Zurich Central and proceeded in a direction which looked like it might have a cafe which was open at 7 in the morning. At this point it was still quite dark out which was a bit unusual as I had become acustomed to the sun rising at 5 a.m. in South Africa and boy was I feeling the cold (this only got worse when I arrived in Canada). So I found a cafe/bar which was open and enjoyed a cappucino. I then informed my server of what I was doing in Zurich and asked whether she could recomend anything to do at such an early hour in Zurich with such a constrained time frame and she suggested that I head for "The Lake" and gave me directions. So I made my way to the lake, once again amazed by the beauty of Switzerland and found myself at a lake very similar to lake Geneva, with hills and mountains on both sides. I later learned from my Aunt that it was Germany which I saw on the other side of that lake. Wow! what a beautiful sight! At this point I decided to make my adventure a photographic one and then proceeded to walk around just looking at and photographing things until my camera battery died.
After my battery had enough I was feeling very cold so I decided to stop for a tea. I chose a store attached to a chocolate shop that was quite busy and I was quite delighted to be served organic earl grey tea and I bought a croissant filled with chocolate. While I have discovered that for some reason I only like swiss croissants anyway, this was the best croissant I had ever has as it was also filled with swiss chocolate (which as I am sure you remember if you have been reading from the beginning that I ranted and raved about and truly feel that its better than Belgian chocolate) (my mouth is waterring just thinking about it). After my tea I walked around Zurich some more, taking in more sights and buying some last minute Christmas gifts. Before I stop blathering about Switzerland I do have to say that the people of Zurich were incredibly nice and friendly. While I found that the people in Geneva could be a bit aloof at times the people in Zurich seemed eager to talk with me, very polite and in some cases wanting to help if they could. When it was time for me to get on the train back to the airport I was wandering around a bit dazed trying to find my platform which had some absurd number like 254 (I was seeing numbers like 18 and thinking back to the Bassel incident I was getting a bit nervous) so a nice (and cute) young man approached me and asked if I needed help. Not only did he give me directions but he also walked with me to a point where he was sure I was headed in the right direction. Very nice indeed!
So then I headed for my next flight, to Montreal, desparately hoping that my entertainment system would work and it did. So for the first half of my flight I read the magazine called Intelligent Life (Whose content overrides the pretentiousness of its name) and watched "The Ugly Truth" for the second half. That flight arrived early and finished with a container of Movenpick ice cream (which was as delectable as when I purchased it from that street vendor in Geneva) so I was much more satisfied than with my first flight.
In Montreal I had to retrieve my bag from customs before I could connect to my domestic flight. I thought I might be in trouble when the Canadian Border Services official gave me a hard time about making a mistake on my form, knowing I lied about not having any wood products in my luggage (they were carvings given to me as gifts), but when I responded that I was sorry and that I was just tired and had been travelling for nearly 30 hours, this was sufficient and he le me through.
The plane ride from Montreal to Toronto was interesting. It was with Air Canada on some kind of new airplane where the over head luggage compartments folded into the ceiling and lights which faded into different colours and went bright pink when we started to land (this really happened I wasn't delusional from lack of sleep). I enjoyed an episode of big bang theory and was greeted at the gate by my mom Adam and Kristen. I really appreciated that they took the time to come and meet me at the airport. (Adam came all the way from Ottawa and Kristen's presence was a surprise). We then continued with my tradition of after arriving back on Canadian soil heading to Swiss Chalet for a festive special. Then exhausted I went home and went to bed.
I plan to fill in some more blanks in later posts but for now please enjoy a selection of pictures from my photographic adventure in Zurich!
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