A Potterific Weekend!

Yep, I'm a Potterphile. Yep, I enjoyed the movie - and yep, I'm going to see it again, soon even. Kudo's to Duncan for coming with me to the movie, especially since it started out with a very large snake! I really appreciated it!

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

As I left downtown tonight I rested my head back against the bus window and watched the tops of the tallest buildings go by, all the different lights a pleasant distraction for my mind (which might try to suggest it's been a tad overworked as of late, with many more serious concerns to deal with than it's used too).

Working downtown has so far been a surreal experience for me; it's like going someplace else, like being on a working vacation - or perhaps it's more accurate to say it's like visiting grown up land. Gosh... when did I become a grown up? Wasn't there supposed to be some kind of warning sign, an exit ramp perhaps?

Architectual Beauty, Politics and History

This building has it all - which might be why I love the Alberta Legislature Building so much. Here are some shots I took while I was there earlier this week. Double Production Speed with Marble (Civ 4 joke for all you non geeks).

Welcome to the Blogosphere Quynn!

My friend Quynn has started a blog! I especially got a giggle out of his post today, I love Québec.

Check it out - Quintus Caecilius Felix.

Saddest Sign Ever...

I'm glad there was more interest in our "Meet the Leadership Candidate Spaghetti Dinner" than Elmwoods Annual Xmas Craft Sale apparently had. Our dinner was well attended and the Minister handled all questions well, especially the Anthony Henday ones. Can anyone guess who our guest speaker was?

"... and a Pink Carnation"

One of the amazing women I work with at the University just had surgery to remove breast cancer a couple of days ago. Today, she showed up at work with a huge smile and an armload of pink carnations - one for everyone in the Centre. She has been an inspiration to me - How wonderful would the world be if we each followed the spontaneous desires of our hearts every day for the rest of our lives?

Life's not always fair, but if you look for the joy in each moment, celebrate each day - you will find love, peace and happiness in it. If you are one of those people that can share that even when you are at your worst, then you are a blessing as well, and I'd wager well loved.

Remember

THEY SHALL GROW NOT OLD AS WE
THAT ARE LEFT GROW OLD;
AGE SHALL NOT WEARY THEM NOR
THE YEARS CONDEMN.
AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN
AND IN THE MORNING,
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.

My Daughter, The Author

I just got the best phone call from my daughters school!

Raven submitted an essay to an International Essay Competition and it was selected to be published! It's going to be in an Anthology of essays. I'm so proud of her! Congrats Raven!

Plato, Where Are You Now?

If "leisure" (freedom from time-consuming duties, responsibilities, or activities; freedom to choose a pastime or enjoyable activity; notion of free time; time available for ease) is about relaxation... and "politics" (activities or affairs engaged in by a government, politician, or political party; methods or tactics involved in managing a state or government; maneuvering within a political unit or group in order to gain control or power; profession devoted to governing and to political affairs; internally conflicting interrelationships among people) is about vigilance...

What happens when your leisure is politics?

Maybe I should quit my "day job" (One's primary job, usually at daytime and enabling one to pursue a secondary activity from which one would eventually like to draw an income)?

Today's post brought to you by Dictionary.com

Bound by Remembrance

In Canada, 2005 has been declared the Year of the Veteran. Personally I wanted to do something to commemorate this, so earlier this year I decided to join the Royal Canadian Legion. It is something I was asked to do a long time ago.


When I was a young soldier the only real exposure I had to the older veterans was Remembrance Day. Then, with an air of distant ceremonial duty, we would parade with them, guard their cenotaph, toast them and listen to their stories. Often, expressing fervent hope, they would implore us to consider joining the Legion; concerned that, with their membership dwindling, the Legion would one day no longer exist.

We were too young to understand why this was important to them and too proud to think about why it should be important to us. We didn’t feel like there was a lot that we shared in common with the "old guard" - after all we were young, brave, strong, and concerned with a much more modern warfare then that of the World Wars or even Korea. We were training to protect freedom in a different world that, for the most part, didn’t actually need protecting anymore. And we were pretty sure we were too tough to hang around with old people.

We were naive and arrogant; perhaps both the biggest and most common sins of youth, but often the most hurtful and neglectful.

We neglected to see that the reason the world didn’t need protecting anymore was their sacrifices. We neglected to attribute the pride we held in our own units to the battle honours bestowed a lifetime ago on a battlefield far away. We neglected to recognize their desire to count us amongst their numbers as their pride in us. We neglected to acknowledge that we all lived in a world that no "outsider" could understand, and that that’s supposed to count for something. We neglected to honour the bonds that tie us all together.

Its years ago now since I carried an automatic rifle and wore my flag on my shoulder; years since I shared that unique kind of camaraderie with a different kind of family; years since I lived and breathed an all consuming sense of duty; and a lifetime since I imagined that my world was not safe.

Actually, thanks to the personal sacrifices and decisions made by our Veterans, I have never lived in a world where I feared for my personal or national security, freedom or identity. That freedom is what defines us today as a people, and our Veteran's deserve to have us to carry on their legacy, forever. "To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high."

We are bound by Remembrance.

First Snow

It's not a lot of snow and it's currently too warm for it to stay, but it is officially our first snow fall. I guess winter is here. I'm glad it took it's time this year!

Wireless in Red Deer

So here I am, the morning after a long evening of hospitality suites, sitting in the hotel resturant eating my eggs and drinking, about as much coffee and water as I can manage. I spoke to so many people last night my whole personal space around me feels like it is still buzzing with them all.

This is the best Policy Conference ever. But perhaps that's because it's not just all about Policy... This really is an exciting time to be an Albertan and a party member; there is so much potential ahead of us!

I'm walking in Snowshine...

Walking to work this morning was delightful as a few tiny snowflakes swirled sporadically about, our first snow. Although not heavy enough to stay around, there is something inherently magical about the first time it snows (I will admit that it does quickly lose it's appeal as winter drags on) and I couldn't help but smile as I watched the snowflakes fall.

For me, snowflakes in themselves are like tiny miracles of beauty; growing up on Vancouver Island, sheltered from the realities of a true Canadian winter, I honestly thought that "snowflakes" were an artists' construct that appeared annually on Christmas cards, a decoration or perhaps an "interpretation" of what the artists felt a snowflake must look like (snow on the coast is wet, and doesn't resemble flakes as much as "clumps" of snow).

I think I will always remember the moment that, in -40 weather, I noticed the snowflakes on the ground twinkling beneath a street lamp... it was with pure childlike amazement that I reached out to touch them, and discovered that really, no two were alike!

Gomery Report...

... and it's Chrétien by a nose!

This is where the fun begins...

Trick or Treat Star Wars Style!

Life means understanding the mysteries of death and rebirth

I am usually tempted at this time of year to right the misconceptions that a Christainized Halloween inflicts upon the celebrations of the Celtic/Druidic New Year, but this year is a little different.

This is the first year, in perhaps ever, that I will be alone on Halloween. Both my children have self declared their intentions on trick or treating without supervision (how fast they grow!) and my husband is at a working dinner. So, with the animals safely tucked away, there is just me to await the hordes of darling little ghosts and goblins that have no idea what Halloween is really all about.

The Druids believed that this was a time when "the veil between this world and the world of the Ancestors was drawn aside," meaning the "living" spirits of loved ones could choose to make contact. And me, home alone, wondering if my ghosts will come calling and if so, what wisdom they will bring me...

Oh dear, my Wiccan Neopagan roots are showing again (and I just had my hair done).

Happy Samhain everyone.

On Being a Mom...

It is often difficult to put into words the emotional/spiritual transition that changes a woman into a Mother. My cousin sent me this email this morning, and despite it's length it really nails it, so I am going to share it with you all.

We are sitting at lunch one day when my daughter
casually mentions that she and her husband are
thinking of "starting a family." "We're taking a
survey," she says half-joking. "Do you think I should
have a baby?" "It will change your life," I say,
carefully keeping my tone neutral. "I know," she
says, "no more sleeping in on weekends, no more
spontaneous vacations." But that is not what I meant
at all. I look at my daughter, trying to decide what
to tell her. I want her to know what she will never
learn in childbirth classes.

I want to tell her that the physical wounds of child
bearing will heal, but becoming a mother will leave
her with an emotional wound so raw that she will
forever be vulnerable. I consider warning her that she
will never again read a newspaper without asking,
"What if that had been MY child?" That every plane
crash, every house fire will haunt her. That when she
sees pictures of starving children, she will wonder if
anything could be worse than watching your child die.

I look at her carefully manicured nails and stylish
suit and think that no matter how sophisticated she
is, becoming a mother will reduce her to the primitive
level of a bear protecting her cub. That an urgent
call of "Mum!" will cause her to drop a souffle or her
best crystal without a moments hesitation.

I feel that I should warn her that no matter how many
years she has invested in her career, she will be
professionally derailed by motherhood. She might
arrange for childcare, but one day she will be going
into an important business meeting and she will think
of her baby's sweet smell. She will have to use every
ounce of discipline to keep from running home, just to
make sure her baby is all right.

I want my daughter to know that every day decisions
will no longer be routine. That a five year old boy's
desire to go to the men's room rather than the women's
at McDonald's will become a major dilemma. That right
there, in the midst of clattering trays and screaming
children, issues of independence and gender identity
will be weighed against the prospect that a child
molester may be lurking in that restroom.

However decisive she may be at the office, she will
second-guess herself constantly as a mother. Looking
at my attractive daughter, I want to assure her that
eventually she will shed the pounds of pregnancy, but
she will never feel the same about herself.

That her life, now so important, will be of less value
to her once she has a child. That she would give
herself up in a moment to save her offspring, but will
also begin to hope for more years, not to accomplish
her own dreams, but to watch her child accomplish
theirs.

I want her to know that a cesarean scar or shiny
stretch marks will become badges of honor. My
daughter's relationship with her husband will change,
and not in the way she thinks. I wish she could
understand how much more you can love a man who is
careful to powder the baby or who never hesitates to
play with his child. I think she should know that she
will fall in love with him again for reasons she would
now find very unromantic.

I wish my daughter could sense the bond she will feel
with women throughout history who have tried to stop
war, prejudice and drunk driving. I want to describe
to my daughter the exhilaration of seeing your child
learn to ride a bike. I want to capture for her the
belly laugh of a baby who is touching the soft fur of
a dog or cat for the first time.

I want her to taste the joy that is so real it
actually hurts.

My daughter's quizzical look makes me realize that
tears have formed in my eyes. "You'll never regret
it," I finally say. Then I reached across the table,
squeezed my daughter's hand and offered a silent
prayer for her, and for me, and for all the mere
mortal women who stumble their way into this most
wonderful of callings.

Alpha and Omega - the beginning and the end

Hurricane Beta. And it's still a long way to November 30th - the expected end of the hurricane season.

1933 was the last time there were 21 storms recorded and we didn't use the current naming system then, so if you're trying to remember the last time we named storms after the greek alphabet, don't. It's never happened.

Possible understatement of the season:

"Trends in human-influenced environmental changes are now evident in hurricane regions"
- Kevin Trenberth, National Center for Atmospheric Research

Never before offered this low...

I got this fax at work today advertising a "great" vacation package; for today only, it reads, $179.00 gets you 6 days in Florida, a cruise to the Bahamas and as a bonus, 7 whole days in Cancun!

In large letters across the top of this advertisement is written:

NEVER BEFORE OFFERED THIS LOW!

It should read "Hurricanes Only, all others must evacuate"

Snugglebunnies

My life has been crazy this past little while, both busy and exciting with just a touch of stressy, so it was nice to spend this weekend snuggled up with Duncan. Wes and Raven were down in Calgary meaning we had the weekend to ourselves! Weeee!

So... we hung out in our PJ's, finished our week long CIV III game, played Star Wars Mini's and watched West Wing the whole time, with the exception of my new job stealing me away for a Saturday afternoon of strategy planning.

As a result of said new job I am dropping down to part time at the University for an indefinite amount of time, which means I am back to having two jobs, something I haven't done for quite a while. Time will tell how it all works out, but I am looking forward to the challenges and opportunities ahead of me. Well all of them except the medical tests and Doctor's visits...

Enjoying it while we can

The weather here in Edmonton has been absolutly fabulous as of late. Somewhat unusual, it's been warm, even into the night, and sunny all day long with no need for winter jackets. Duncan and I, who have had a couple days off work, have spent the better part of our time outside walking, and enjoying the fall. Winter might be just around the corner, but it's not here... yet.

Environment Canada says the beautiful fall weather will stave off the chill of winter for at least another 10 days. Next week is sopposed to be even nicer than this week, and I am very excited!

As if to prove the very tenacity of life itself, one of the plants in my garden has decided to celebrate the unseasonally warm weather by blooming again. I think we shall have to reward it by having a cooler outside in the sunshine.

Oh, and on an unrelated note, my bookclub is gearing up to begin it's first book this Thursday. I am very pleased!

Surprisingly just like real life

Duncan (playing the SIMS): Does anyone know why my cat would be peeing everywhere?

Raven: Have you cleaned it's litterbox?

Duncan: ...

Allie: (laughing) "It's just like real life..."

Helping Kids be Kids Again

"When you wish upon a star
makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires
will come to you...

If your heart is in your dreams
no request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star
as dreamers do...

Fate is kind
she brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of
their secret longing...

Like a bolt out of the blue
fate steps in and sees you thru
When you wish upon a star
your dreams come true..."

Lifetimes are made up of many wishes; we tend to dream our way through life, imagining with excitement the potential that lies in front of us.

But imagine that all of a sudden you only had enough time for one last wish. Now imagine you are only a child and have very little means of making your wish come true.

Children hold a special place in my heart and are at the centre of most of my philanthropic endeavours. One of the organizations I lend my support and time to is The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada. The foundation works to fulfill the most desired wish for each child who has been diagnosed with a high risk or life threatening illness. The granting of these wishes, 11,093 in 20 years, helps each child focus on being a child during a time when everything seems dark and scary.

Today, in 106 communities across Canada, people came together to walk and raise money that will enable the granting of even more wishes. I wish that children never got sick and didn't die before they had a chance to grow up, but sadly that's not reality. But we can help them know that dreams really do come true.

Sunrise, Sunrise...

"Sunrise, sunrise...
Looks like morning in your eyes
But the clock's held 9:15 for hours.
Sunrise, sunrise...
Couldn't tempt us if it tried
Cause the afternoon's already come and gone..."
- Norah Jones

Can Allie Come Out and Play?

Busy, busy, busy... too busy to blog even. Loads of stuff I can't put out there in the written public kind of form, but exciting, interesting and busy stuff. Tonight's a political night, but I might have time for you afterwards, poor blog.

Oh, and as a point of interest, that wonderful pic of Duncan with the Hooters girls has become my highest viewed picture in Flickr!

Happy Birthday Duncan!

More pictures here!

27 Years Old!

Wow, Duncan! Twenty seven years old already! Where does the time go? Cue Rock Music:

"They say it's your birthday
We're gonna have a good time
I'm glad it's your birthday
Happy birthday to you!"

Hapy Birthday Sweetheart. I hope it's Hooterific!

"Saw you the weird sisters?"

"The issue is who used [the name] first."
- Statement by the bands lawyer

Oh. Really?

In 1988 (a full TWO YEARS before this "band" formed) Terry Pratchett wrote a book called "The Wyrd Sisters." In 1996 it was released for home video, and it has been performed as a play.

In 1605 ( a full THREE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY YEARS before this "band" formed) William Shakespeare wrote a play called MacBeth. It’s been playing ever since.

So who stole who’s name?

The "band" is complaining that they’ve "had to cancel tours and delay the release of our new album. All of this is because we're not sure if we can continue under our name any more." WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE? Who do they think they are? I never heard of them before this obviously desperate attempt to grab some fame and fortune.

Evanesco Wyrd Sisters!

Hmmmm. Did it work?

Official Goblet of Fire Poster

Shove Off, Wyrd Sisters...

Some pathetic little nobody band is trying to garner themselves some free publicity by attempting to block the new Harry Potter movie from debuting in Canada in November.

In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire there is a "cool" band called the Weird Sisters that Dumbledore hires for the kids at the Yule Ball. In the film version the band doesn't have a name and Warner Bros. says they do not intend to use the Wyrd Sisters name. This is backed up by the IMDB's HP:GoF site that identifies the actors playing the band simply as "band members" in the film's credits.

These folk singers from Manitoba think that this fact has hurt their career chances and have have filed an injunction to block the movie from showing in Canada in addition to a statement of claim seeking $40 million plus punitive damages. Are they even worth 40 million dollars? Sounds like they want to take the easy road to retirement if you ask me, and they don't care if they drive over Canadian Harry Potter fans in the meantime.

Well, I care. As far as I am concerned these folk singers can take a hike. Grrr.

5 km and 18,029.00 Closer...

To finding the Cure!

We raised 18,029.00 (and still some to count) for the CIBC Run for the Cure! Westminster Junior High took home the Junior High Team Award for the most funds raised! Way to go Westminster!

Life is so unfair

They found her body.

Still Looking for Ajay

Via: CFCN.


A frantic search is underway for a woman from the Siksika First Nation.

Ellen Kelly Wolf Leg is a student at SAIT. She went missing from her home Friday night while the rest of her family was out for a walk. Volunteers from the community started looking for her right away and called the RCMP.

Investigators are concerned because the 18-year-old left behind her cell phone and her purse which had over 100 dollars in it. They have found no sign of a struggle and no clues as to her whereabouts. Calgary police are also assisting with the investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call Gleichen RCMP at 1-403-734-3056.

My Friend's Sister is Missing

MISSING

Ellen Kelly Wolfleg, a.k.a. "AJAY"
Native, 5'1" 110 lbs, brown eyes, long dark hair
18 years old

Last seen: Siksika Nation (Calgary, Alberta)
on Friday 23 September 2005
If you have any information, please contact
the Gleichen RCMP 403-734-3923

Our Fall Trip!

Saturday may have been the most perfect day ever created in this province. Duncan, his Dad, his brother Will and I headed out to the mountains for the day, and everything was beautiful! The weather was perfect, the air was fresh and crisp, the fall colours were amazing and the mountains had just the right amount of snow dusting their peaks.

We hiked around Bankhead, an old deserted mining town, and then stopped briefly at the Cascade Ponds. From there we headed up to Lake Louise, which was fabulous! The glacier and the lake are amazing - I've seen it before in pictures but was happy to go there in person. We are definatly going back there again (I'm thinking canoeing across the lake to see the glacier up close). We had Mountain Stew for lunch and while we sat there I had a hard time averting my eyes from the Glacier and the mountains around us. After that we drove back into Banff and down to the Bow River falls (which is at the bottom of the hill that the Banff Springs Hotel is on) before starting our journey back to Calgary.

We stopped in Canmore and got some good pictures of the Three Sisters and then booted back to Calgary to get Will home on time. We ended up having some time before the kids would be done at their Dad's wedding so Duncan took me for a walk down along the Elbow River (which was gorgeous - all yellows and oranges) and then to his favourite ice cream store for milkshakes. After getting the kids we drove back out to Cochrane, which is where we were staying at our friends house and socialized for the better part of the night. On Sunday Duncan's Dad took us for dinner (Vietnamese - there's a special reason for this but I don't know if I am allowed to blog about it yet...) and then we headed home.

More pictures here and here!

Chamber of Secrets...

My ex-husband got married on Saturday. I have a small secret to confess – I couldn’t be happier for him and his new wife.

Everyone keeps asking me if I am "okay" or "how do I feel about it." I see them glance quickly at me when I talk about it, trying to discern whatever they think "my true hidden feelings" should be. I must admit I don’t understand this behaviour – do other people really breakdown when their Ex’s remarry? To be frank, I can’t imagine a better possible sum to the equation. The happier he is the happier, and stronger, my blended family becomes.

I could never hate my first husband – nor could I hate his wife for that matter, as she was my friend long before they got together. Hate is such a wasteful, unproductive and childish emotion, and one can never be truly happy if they allow hate to consume even a small part of their life. As I am amazingly happy with my life it only makes good sense to wish that also for them. They are both good people, afterall, and if there is anything in this world to celebrate it is good people coming together.

I wish him and his new wife the same happiness that I cherish in my own life – the happiness that reaches into every corner of the heart; that rings with laughter and lingers in smiles; that lives in memories and yet blooms anew every single day; the kind of happiness that fills the home and life with love, laughter and playfullness.

Congratulations, Mark and Val Smyth, and best wishes!

Hurricanes and Gas Pains

The Calm before the Storm

Ever spend a life time waiting for something, trying to prepare for what is half expected but so distant that it seems like it might not be real, or even probable?

Yesterday morning I woke up, a vivid dream slipping fast from my conciousness, leaving me with only the overwhelming feeling that "it has already began." So, if the waiting's done I can only hope that I am in the right place, whatever that might mean, and that my role becomes apparent to me.

Rita is now a category five hurricane. If it seems like a banner year for hurricanes this year, it is. Normally hurricane season in the gulf sees about 11 hurricanes in total; this season doesn't end until November and already there's been 21. According to CNN, Rita is the third largest hurricane in recorded history, but I have a feeling that these types of headlines will soon be commonplace in our world.

It is the winds of change.

Keep Honking, I'm Reloading...

Ever feel like you need a little extra fire power? How about an F-16 or a Mig21?

Hat Tip: CAPITALIST PIG VS. SOCIALIST SWINE

Fall is here... Break out the Hot Chocolate

I captured this tree on the U of A campus this morning while hanging out with Duncan's cousin Allie. I think this tree in particular caught my attention as it reminded me of the burning tree in The Ring, which we watched last night. Tonight we will watch The Ring Two!

I think I will finally have to admit that it is Fall and bid summer a fond farewell. I do like Fall, it's a pretty time of year and the colours are amazing. I think I am going to spend this week enjoying Fall, kicking through piles of leaves, and a short Fall trip somewhere is in order!

"Tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies"

Propaganda, cultural distortion, brainwashing, casual deception, lies... What happens when a lie is told long enough and loud enough?

Hi Bingo.

I appreciate biting social commentary and Bingo, albeit old now (1998) is Brilliant. An animated adaptation of a short skit called "Please Disregard This Play" (the Neo-Futurists) Bingo challenges us to think (for ourselves), or atleast suspect that we should.

A fatherly clown so real it's surreal, a cute little girl who morphs into a hideous creature, and a man made of money. It all sounds vaguely familiar...

I'm not Bingo.

HI BINGOOOOOO!

The Legacy of a Dream

On April 12, 1980 I had just turned 8 years old. Terry Fox, a boy from a town very close to mine, had just started his run across Canada. Everyone was very excited about this and we watched on TV every night. It was called The Marathon of Hope. At that young age I had no idea what cancer was, or the kind of impact it would have on my later life, nor had I reason or need for hope - but I knew a hero when I saw one.

"... by next April I will be ready to achieve something that for me was once only a distant dream reserved for the world of miracles – to run across Canada to raise money for the fight against cancer. The running I can do, even if I have to crawl every last mile. We need your help. The people in cancer clinics all over the world need people who believe in miracles.

I am not a dreamer, and I am not saying that this will initiate any kind of definitive answer or cure to cancer. But I believe in miracles. I have to..."

143 days later Terry told Canada that he had to stop his run. I remember he cried, or maybe it was me, I don't fully remember. It just all seemed so terribly unfair that even though he had tried so hard, even though he was so close, he would be unable to finish. That's when I learned that cancer was terribly unfair, and to prove it Terry died on June 28, 1981. He was only 22 years old.

Twenty five years later I have lost my Father, my Mother in law, two Aunts, an Uncle and countless friends-of-family (and family-of-friends) to this thing called cancer. Too many if you ask me. It's time to really do something about it. We need to find a cure, and to do that we need to fund as much research as neccessary.

We're sponsoring Toby in the Terry Fox Run. He is running in honour of his Mother, who died this year after a short fight with cancer. Please consider sponsoring him as well. Every little bit helps and it's for a good cause.

If you need any more convincing go and read Terry's Journal. It really is inspiring.

"If you’ve given a dollar, you are part of the Marathon of Hope."
- Terry Fox

Where were you when the planes hit the Towers?

Everyone remembers where they were and what they were during when the planes hit the twin towers of the World Trade Centre. It is like a moment preserved in a fracture of time, a moment when everything changed.

I have a unique story of that day. I was in Canmore Alberta, helping a friend of a friend clean up thier house to sell it. We turned on the TV and was shocked (as I am sure everyone was) as we watched the news unfold. It was hard to get any real work done that day (although we did), it was difficult to see how any kind of mundane house work could be even remotely important anymore.

That morning I spoke to someone working in a building in downtown New York. She was aware something was going on but due to working in a call centre she had not been allowed to leave since her shift started and didn't know what had happened. So I had the odd experience of relaying the heartbreaking news of what had happened to someone actually in New York. We talked for almost an hour.

Where were you?

YOU GO GIRL!!!

Just stop and look at this girl. Her first day as a Crossing Patrol Guard is also her first DOUBLE DIGIT BIRTHDAY. Yes, Raven is 10 years old. The years are flying by, I guess that's life... but days like this make me see it even more.

Happy Birthday Princess!

Equality and Justice under the Law for EVERYONE.

I must admit I am concerned about the prospect of allowing Islamic Law greater influence over family disputes here in Canada. Canadian laws protect families and ensure the rights of children and those of both parents are intact through the process of mediation, custody and divorce.

The Shari'ah does not. Its gender based custody and divorce laws leave the woman with frighteningly little or no rights at all, depending on its interpretation.

Divorcing, as it is understood in the Shari’ah, occurs when the husband says to his wife "I divorce you" three times, although some Muslim scholars argue once is enough. The wife only has this right if it was specifically written into the marriage contract. This act is thought to effectively and irrevocably sever the marriage, however, if a divorce is considered revocable for whatever reason the husband may resume marital relations with his wife without her consent. If the divorce is legally final the woman is not allowed to be with another man for a period of time long enough to ascertain if she is pregnant. The husband is permitted to detain his former wife until this period of time ends (or until the baby is born, if she is pregnant).

Under Shari'ah, a father is the natural guardian of his children and their property, and if a father cannot accept this responsibility custody is awarded to the closest male relative of the father. The Shari'ah allows a mother to maintain custody of her children until they reach the age of custodial transfer (usually between 7-9 years) ONLY IF she meets all the requirements of a female guardian. In some cases a mother's visitation after this time is allowed only with written permission from the father.

In addition to the above matters, what about other family related issues found within the Shari'ah, like Female Circumcision, pre-arranged child marriages, temporary marriages, polygamy, property rights, death penalties (or stoning of women) for marital offences? How will these varied traditions fit with the expectations of our modern society and our laws? I am skeptical at this time that the inclusion of even some elements of the Shari’ah can successfully be good for women living in Canada.

The Noble Qur'an and Hadith provide the basis of tradition and direction found within the Shari'ah and it is defined by many schools of thought throughout Islam in differing ways. But it is not a modern law (I am sure some would argue this is the point) and it can not be made inclusive, equitable or gender neutral by it’s interpretation. Therefore it is not appropriate to inflict upon Canadian citizens, Muslim or not. We need to protect the rights of Canadians, not allow our system to bring them harm through discrimination, gender based persecution or obsolete religious laws.

Premier Dalton McGuinty says the "the rights of women will not be compromised" if Ontario becomes the first western jurisdiction to allow the Shari’ah in settling civil and marital disputes.

My question, if he honestly believes this, is simply "How?"

What Lies Beneath

"This city has been destroyed, completely destroyed."
- W. J. Riley, New Orleans Police Official

I have avoided the topic of New Orleans because I have been uncomfortable with the situation. It’s not the actual storm damage that has shocked me, but rather how quickly New Orleans, a major american city, descended into the depths of hell. People, instead of coming together to help each other face the crisis, turned against each other. In a time of severe tribulation society broke down and we became our own worst enemies. I’m not sure how to react to that.

People shooting rescuers, raping children, looting, setting fires, killing... killing babies! The disabled and elderly dying in their wheelchairs, Doctors watching patients dying within meters of equipment that could normally save their lives...

It’s a nightmare of biblically epic proportions.

All the things we take for granted – clean water, food supplies, shelter, sanitation, civil order, police and fire departments, protection of property and self, communication, transportation, electricity, hospitals, burying your dead... it’s all gone. Like Pompeii, nature has laid waste to New Orleans.

I have problems wrapping my head around the obscene monstrosity of it all – I mean, do you know what it means to lose New Orleans?

My fear is that the worst has yet to come. They say there are thousands of bloated, decomposing bodies in the water. Thousands! They say it will take months to drain the water. Months! No one knows how long all the repairs will actually take, although I have heard estimates of a year or more and Bill Clinton suggested creating job incentives for all the people who have been forced to relocate. Bush said "recovery is going to take years." Years!

Questions swim in my head. Mostly all begin with "Why."

Like, why has it taken so very long for aid to come to people who live in one of richest countries in the world? Why didn’t some people leave (socio-economic arguments aside here, some people chose to stay). And why did the government abandon those who couldn’t leave themselves – like the poor and the people in the hospitals? Why are these people still there even now?

Why, in a city famed for its tolerance, inclusion and community, did the people so easily turn against each other?

What does that say about all of us that share the same western culture? Do we know who we are? Did we know who New Orleans was? Do we know what we would do, faced with the same forces of destruction? Are we sure?

Sure they will rebuild and fix New Orleans, eventually, and it may even be the promised new and improved version of itself. But it will forever be a changed city, there’s no way to avoid that. We will all be changed.

Who do you love?

Tell someone you love them.

A simple challenge? Telling someone you love them can be a daunting prospect; both the hardest and the easiest thing to say.

Many of us find it difficult to tell those we care for exactly how we feel about them. We have all sorts of excuses and reasons why not to do it, we think we have a lifetime of chances to say it or we think that our love is implied by our actions (which often it is). It's not reflective of the measure of our love, it's just not easy for everyone. Telling your father, your brother, or your best friend that you love them might seem a little awkward, but the satisfaction of having done so is very rewarding.

So that's my challenge: Think about someone who has come to mean a lot to you. Pick up the phone, write a heartfelt note or visit, but tell them what they mean to you. For no reason other than you do love them and you would want them to know that if anything ever happened.

Happy Birthday Alberta!

Better than Flowers anyday!

Duncan made me this bear today - he picked him out, stuffed him, fluffed him, dressed him and named him, all just for me! Allow me to introduce you to Iggy, the Calgary Flames Bear. He's beary cute!

Why you don't play with toy guns...

So, having just returned from our morning outing I am sitting at the computer checking my email when I hear the obvious sounds of the Police helicopter directly above our home, which isn't uncommon in our neighbourhood, but somewhat odd for being in the middle of the day. I finish doing my email with a vague awareness that the helo is still circling above.

I like helicopters, so I am thinking to myself that I am going to go outside and watch it for a while, as soon as I take some stuff up to my bedroom. A cursory glance out of my window reveals an EPS tactical weapons member with an assault rifle standing OUTSIDE OF MY HOUSE. Well, at least he isn't hiding behind something. That's a good sign.

This brings me downstairs quicker than I anticpated, and while Duncan and I assess the situation (there are now police everywhere) I realize that it is a few minutes to early dismissal at my daughter's school, 30 feet away. Regardless of what is going on, I have to go and get her - there's no way I'm letting her walk through this alone.

All in all it turns out to be relatively harmless - my neighbours thought it would be cool to dress up in black clothing and walk around with ominous looking black fake guns right beside an elementary school. To be fair, I think they were making a home movie or maybe even working on a project, but still, not the smartest move...

Goodbye Summer...

I am WOMAN hear me ROAR!

So I was ripped off on eBay by this Jack Toomer guy, owner of comicsbytheweb.com. Back in June I won about 18 Star Wars miniatures from him totalling about 104.00 USD and I paid right away, via Paypal.

But I never got anything but empty promises that he would send me my stuff and that I should trust him and give him a chance. Being the person that I am I did give him a chance, but lo and behold once the deadline for filing a dispute with Pay pal (to get a refund) had passed I didn't hear from this Jack guy anymore. I sent him a bill through Pay Pal and several requests for a refund, but all have been ignored.

I can tell by his eBay feed back I am not the only one this has happened to. But that doesn't make me feel any better, so I filed an complaint against Jack and his "company" with the Internet Fraud Complaint Centre (run in partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National White Collar Crime Center) for my loss of $102.67 USD.

Yep, I filed a complaint with the FBI. I was hoping that I might get my money back and that they could stop him from ripping off other people too. AND look what happened...

FEEL MY WRATH COMICSBYTHEWEB.

You picked the wrong eBayer to piss off.

Food Fight!

Companies serving potato chips and french fries are required in California to provide warning labels on their products as they contain above acceptable levels of a natural chemical called Acrylamide. Of course the lay people only hear of this now because a law suit has been launched against 9 companies (PepsiCo's Frito-Lay Inc, KFC, McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's International, H. J. Heinz, Kettle Foods, Procter & Gamble Distributing and Cape Cod Potato Chips Co) who are currently failing to comply with this FDA regulation.

Acrylamide is a known carcinogen that affects the reproductive organs of mammals. In 2002 Swiss scientists discovered it to be naturally present in starchy foods when cooked or processed at high heat (like deep fat frying). The good news is that Acrylamide has not been found in foods cooked at temperatures lower than 120 degrees celsius, including boiled foods. MMmmMMmm... mashed potatoes never looked so good!

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful Boy

One of my fav pics of a long ago time

A year ago today was my brother's memorial service in BC. A whole 19 Days after he was killed. Believe it or not that's how long it took to get the neccessary permissions and arrangements in place to bury him. Way too long if you ask me - and almost hell for my poor Mother, who had buried my Father only 2 months before. It surprises me still, looking back at it, just how much harder a bureaucracy can make certain things, things that should be as easy for people to handle as it possibly can be.

I started something this year; I met with the Mayor about School Zones in Edmonton and he promised to take it to the Council, which he did. They debate it even now, and sometimes I can't believe the stupidity I hear bantered around about it (like school zones provide a false sense of security for kids). I've been thinking I have to get back into it, partly because if you start something you should see it through to the finish... but mostly because of this and this.

I might not be able to do anything about bureaucracy, but I can affect change in my world. Indeed, the time we spend here is so short that the only way the world really knows I have been here is by what I have changed within it.

Exit stage right... again

Being a party member I have become used to "shake up" and moving these past nine months. Actually, it's usually a good thing, as I suspect is this case with Mr Love. That's all I am going to say about that.

But I did get to thinking of the first time I met Rod Love, years ago now. He came over, shook my hand and this is what he said.

"Hello there. I'm the Love Rod..."

Send up the Bat Signal!

"It's not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me."
- Bruce Wayne (Batman)

Today my friend Carol and I caught a bat while on our coffee break. The poor little guy was caught in the elevated link between the buildings, frantically trying to find a way out. I knew I couldn't just leave him there... a little bit of determination, diligence and maybe even some climbing up walls and I was finally able to catch him. It felt good to release him outside, good to be able to help.

It's interesting that this little fellow came into my life today. My contract at work ends this Friday and even though everyone keeps asking me where I will go next I haven't been thinking about it as much as maybe I should. Native teachings tell us that when bat appears in your life its message may be to examine your situation carefully to find bounty you may be overlooking, or to remind you to take a moment to get your bearings before going on. When Bat appears it is asking you to surrender yourself to the process of change; opportunities unknown to the conscious mind are about to manifest.

Change is good. Bounty is good.

Quote of the Day

"Every single Jedi is now an enemy of the Republic..."

Wingardium Leviosa!

"You're saying it wrong. It's Wing-gar-dium Levi-o-sa."

The "get-along" gang says "Zionists are our rightful target"

Modern Zionism is concerned with the support and development of the state of Israel, so technically every country in the world that supports Israel's right to exist is considered by most extremists to be Zionist, and thereby fair target.

Promising an attack soon in the Israeli city of Tal Al-Rabih (Tel Aviv), al Qaeda's "Martyr Abdallah Azzam Brigades" (cf Sinai 2004) have claimed responsibilty for three Katyusha rockets fired today at two american ships in harbour at Jordan. The rockets reportedly were fired from a warehouse rented only a few days ago "by four people of Iraqi and Egyptian descent." So while they were noticing the ethnicity of the new tenants, did they happen to miss the wheeling in of a rocket launching device and several rockets? Just how easy are these things to miss?

As easy apparently, as two ruddy great ships (the 40,500 ton USS Kearsarge is 844 feet long and the 16,000 ton USS Ashland is 609 feet long) sitting in the harbour mere feet away, but that was ultimately for the better.

Anyway, getting back to these rockets... Originally a Soviet construct from days gone by, the Katyusha rocket has repeatedly been modernized and not surprisingly, given their size, most newer versions are mounted on some manner of vehicle, including trucks, tanks and tractors.

Curious.

Although I understand that individual Katyusha's can be launched from a pipe using just a car battery, (now thats a handy feature!) these things aren't exactly small. And you'd think that harbour security might be a little tighter with american ships in port. But I digress...

When I first started studying the oft forbidden topics of religion and politics, a Prof of mine said "If we don't learn to live with each other religiously we will blow each other up." At that time I had yet to realize exactly how right he was. Religion and politics share the same creative power and destructive force, and it always seems to be in the wrong hands. Matter of fact through the years it has not been lost on me the apparent determination to actualize the prophecies of Armageddon in the middle east, almost like it is some form of birthright.

God - save us from your followers. The meek are ready for their turn.

Thought of the Day

Is it just me, or does anyone else find it amazing that the american government can track a cow born in Canada three years ago, right to the stall where she sleeps in the state of Washington (and track her calves to their stalls, and so on and so on)... but they can't find Osama bin Laden?

Maybe we should give him a Canadian cow. With BSE.

15 Things I've Done You Probably Haven't

• I have scaled a 4 storey building just to sit on it’s roof.
  
• I was married to Duncan by Alberta’s Ambassador to the USA in Washington.
  
• I once called Gorbechav in Russia (with my telephone).
  
• I have been detained by Military Police during a bomb scare.
  
• I was ordained as a Minister with the Universal Life Church 6 years ago.
  
• I have crept around campus labs with human cadavers, brains and organs in the dead of night.
  
• I have assisted in the arrest of a high profile criminal.
  
• I have had a loaded weapon (SMG) pointed at my head.
  
• I watched my son play hockey on the ice at the Saddledome.
  
• I shook Princess Diana's hand, a hero of mine.
  
• I had a boyfriend write a song for me that he then sang in front of 30,000 people.
  
• I have given birth in front of an audience (eight people).
  
• I ran/carried the Queens Baton for the 1994 Commonwealth Games.
  
• I have seen the actual original Instrument of Surrender that was signed by the Japanese on the USS Missouri (and stood on the very spot it was signed).
  
• I was a member of an Infantry Unit for six years.

This is a meme, of course, so feel free to throw up your own answers on your blogs. But don't forget to leave me your answers here in my comments so we can read them too! Oh, and if you can't think of 15 things shorten it to 10... but at least try first! Oh, and don't take this too seriously, it's for fun!

Bush Whacked by the Stones

"You call yourself a Christian
I call you a hypocrite
You call yourself a patriot
Well I think you're full of shit.

How come you're so wrong
my sweet neo-con."

I thought the Stones' new lyrics (from "My Sweet Neo-con") deserved to be paired with my favourite Bush picture. The new Rolling Stones album, "A Bigger Bang" will be released September 6th (yes Duncan, that is a hint).

With the Greatest Gratitude; a Last Sunrise

The great bell atop our Peace Tower tolled 91 times as Sgt (retired) Ernest Alvia "Smokey" Smith (VC, CM, OBC, CD) arrived on Parliament Hill today, for the last time.

Ever wonder what kind of wisdom the experience of fighting in two wars (he re-enlisted for Korea) leaves someone with?

Master Cpl. Bud Dickson (aide de camp to Smokey for the past 10 years) once sat in silence with him while they watched the sun come up over the Mediterranean, and this is what Smokey told him:

"Try to do this as often as you can. You never know when your last sunrise is going to be".

*****************************************

After 91 years of sunrises this Canadian hero will be laid to rest, fittingly, in the year of the Veteran. After laying in state in Ottawa, a full military funeral will be held Saturday, 13 August 2005 at St Andrew-Wesley Church, 1012 Nelson Ave, Vancouver, BC (following a 24-hour vigil and funerary procession from the Seaforth Armoury, 1650 Burrard St). I encourage everyone who can go to do so.

Nothing Gold Can Stay...

Chris Perkins 1974 - 2004

There was a time in my life (a much simpler time) when things were fair: when gentle lullabies made all hurts go away; when days were endless and summers forever; when the wishing star was magic, when goodbyes meant nothing and there was always enough time to fix everything... And then there was a day when it all went wrong.

There are a lot of different kinds of moments to be found in 365 days. Today contains the moments known as the first anniversary of my brother’s death.

Now there are the times in life when I want to tell him something, but I can't; when I'd do anything to hear his voice, but nothing works; when I remember something funny he did, yet he's not here to tease about it... or there's the times I see someone who looks so much like him that my heart stops and I can’t breathe. I can’t help myself, but I still entertain the childish hope that it was all some crazy mistake, a case of mistaken identity, and that one day I am going to get a phone call, or an email, or I really am going to see him on the street with that "Surprise I’m here" smile of his (my brother would often drop out of life only to reappear when you least expected him to).

Actually, there hasn't been a day since Chris died that I haven’t thought about him in some way. His death, like non other I’ve experienced, has affected me in profoundly deep ways: it was so unfair; he was too young: he deserved more than to die in such a senseless manner and place; I couldn’t protect him. I feel as if he was stolen from me and I can’t describe the anger and the pain that accompanies something like that.

He adored me; he was my first friend, my first enemy, my first charge. My little, baby brother that was born, I was sure, just as a gift for me. The relationship between siblings is a unique one and we were supposed to have our whole lives to explore it.

But never less, one year ago today, someone named Christopher Braden Robinson from Edson Alberta killed my brother.

And he has never even said he was sorry.

I just died and went to Hazzard County...

GENERAL LEE speaking the Dukes of Hazzard kicked some serious ass.

I haven't laughed my way through a movie in a long time. I still have a huge smile on my face. And deep inside of me, in a place where I thought was maybe forgotten, is a little kid catching some air and yelling

YEEEEEEEEEEE HAAAAAAAAAAAA !

My Hubby is "not so sober" this lovely evening...

Duncan: Where IS my shirt?

Allie: I don't know. You didn't come home with one...

Duncan: YES I DID!

Allie: IF you came home with a shirt, then where is it?

Duncan: I don't know! I don't know where the fox is either!

Allie: What fox?

Duncan: Exactly.

Best. Blog-post. Ever.

daveberta rebuked by the mighty alberta ndp

Look Sir... Droids!

Yes, he really did hold up his Onion Ring and say "Look Sir, Droids!" Actually, he held up each and every Onion Ring and said it. That's why I love him so...

I'll Relax When Discovery's Crew Is Safely Back Home.

"And this is the best that you cou - that the government, the *U.S. government* could come up with? I mean, you're NASA for crying out loud, you put a man on the moon, you're geniuses! You're the guys that are thinking shit up! I'm sure you got a team of men sitting around somewhere right now just thinking shit up!"
-Harry Stamper, Armageddon

NASA, who undoubtedly employ some of the smartest people in the world, spent the past two years convincing themselves they had fixed the falling debris problem that subsequently led to the Columbia disaster. John Shannon (shuttle flight operations and integration manager)said that NASA now has no idea what is causing this problem, or how to fix it, adding that he has "200 analysts working on it".

TWO HUNDRED really smart people and they have NO idea how to fix it.

Here's an idea. Instead of having Boeing continuously upgrade the shuttles (and I use the plural overly aware it now means only two) in an attempt to extend their life, face the fact that the shuttles are obsolete. Space travel is a risky enough business without purposely pushing your luck; relying on luck is not a comforting prospect when you consider that it was ONLY luck that debris that hit the Discovery during it's ascent did not (as NASA now says) seriously damage the heat tiles, as happened with Columbia in 2003.

I think (IMHO) NASA needs to consider either bumping up plans for the new Crew Exploration Vehicle or join efforts with Europe and Russia in producing the Kliper. Certainly before the advent of the planned Moon visits in 2008 they should have a reliable way of reaching the International Space Station.

I also think they should consider parking Discovery at the ISS until they are sure it is safe to bring her home.

GAME ON!

NHL Schedule was just released!

I am finding that the excitement is building inside of me faster then I even imagined possible... Even though I thought I might have hurt feelings, or harbour some form of resentment, it's gone - all of it. I couldn't try to make myself feel it, there is just excitement and passion in it's place. Hockey's back and the world seems more like it should.

GO FLAMES GO!

I have a bad feeling about this...

Or maybe it's just a bit of shuttle paranoia that plagues my generation...

But it does seem to me that this particular launch of the shuttle Discovery (delayed several times since Jul 13) has had more than it's fair share of issues and NASA's apparent willingness to overlook a malfunctioning hydrogen level sensor (a failure of the sensor can result in premature shutdown of the orbiter's engines during the shuttle's ascent, and the space agency's decision to press ahead with the launch with just three of the four sensors working is a deviation from a rule instituted after the 1986 Challenger explosion.) troubles me somewhat. I am left to trust that many people much smarter than me know what they are doing.

Regardless, they will launch this morning. They carry with them my childhood hopes and dreams. My best wishes for a safe journey are with them.

Candy Doesn't Have to Have a Point...

Many years ago, when I was a young girl in grade four (or maybe three) I remember wandering casually through my school library looking for a book. Any book, really, I read everything I could at that age, so I was just waiting for something to catch my eye. I remember seeing a book up on a higher shelf and reached up to pull it down so I could see the front cover. It was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

For some reason, it's the only book I remember finding in the school library, even though I must have read hundreds over many, many visits. It fascinated my young mind and my imagination played with it long after I had finished it, and the next book as well.

Mike Teavee: Why is everything here completely pointless?
Charlie Bucket: Candy doesn't have to have a point.
That's why it's candy.

A little while ago I bought Wesley and Raven the book and they both enjoyed it as much as I had. It only took Wes a few hours to read Raven would not put it down until it was done. Today, I took Wesley (and 7 of his friends) to see the new movie Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (for Wesley's birthday party). It was Fabulous. Everything that is childhood is wrapped up in this movie. I laughed, I cried, but mostly I revelled in the fact that I was sharing this story with my children so many years after I had read it myself. It was delightful (I love the happily-ever-after ending).

Oh, and I got to see the Harry Potter trailer on the big screen. I can't wait for that!!