In loving memory of...

In one of the stars, I shall be living. In one of them, I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing when you look at the sky at night.

Le Petit Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupery



To Vanessa, Bob, Claudia, Laleah, Emma and family - my love and strength in this difficult time.

For Love of Water

Watching: Grey's Anatomy from last week

Just finished watching: FLOW - For Love Of Water

The second of my three water-themed events this week was better than the first. It was more cohesive, and had a stronger pitch for what we can do to help with the water problems we're facing.

Sadly I'm pretty tired and don't feel like writing much more than that. So, in lieu of my laziness, I think you should see the trailer here: FLOW, and then I recommend you sign their petition for Article 31 to be part of the UN Declaration of Human Rights. It's a step in the right direction.

The Myth of Water Abundance in Canada

Tonight I spent the first of three water-themed events I will attend in the next week. It was put on by the Sierra Club of Canada's Ottawa chapter at St. Paul's University and it was entitled The Myth of Water Abundance in Canada. 

The rundown:

MC Adrian Harewood, CBC Radio

Presentation by Maude Barlow, Global Water Activist, Council of Canadians
Published author: Blue Gold, Blue Covenant

Panel Discussion:
Stephen Hazell, Executive Director
Maude Barlow, Chair, Council of Canadians
Meredith Brown, Executive Director, Ottawa Riverkeepers
Clive Doucet, City of Ottawa Councillor, Capital Ward

Some notes:

• One of the causes of climate change has been the changes we have caused to the hydrologic cycle
• China is creating deserts the size of Rhode Island every year by draining watersheds
• Hot spots are being found around the world now (areas running out of water) - Middle East, Australia, 22 countries in Africa, SouthWest United States, Mexico City, India, Northern China...)
• Canada's last water legislation at a federal level was the NAtional Water Act of 1970
• Water is a tradeable good (i.e.: private commodity) in NAFTA, where there is a proportional sharing agreement so hypothetically corporations could sue if we ever restricted their water usage
• Nestle (and other companies across the country, and mostly around the Great Lakes) are getting water permits and taking water out at insane levels -at only the cost of the permit!
• Four trillion liters of water a day are removed from the Great Lakes
• Lake Michigan actually had its water flow reversed because of so much water removal
• Only 3% of the wildlife in the Great Lakes are native
• There are more than 300 chemicals in the Great Lakes, including nitrates and chemical fertilizers from livestock and industrial agriculture in the area
• Alberta's tar sands, described by Maude Barlow as Canada's Mordor, have shown exceptionally high cancer rates in populations nearby - including the unseen bile cancer in children 
• Most environmental groups are fighting for a National Water Strategy where there would be a ban/limits on commercial water exports, a right to safe drinking water for all, and sustainability in our water strategy

I'll post more notes after the next two events: the Flow movie, and the Blue Gold movie.

On Packing

Packing for The Big Move began a little over a month ago...but didn't really kick into high gear until the last two weeks. First came the books. We have two overflowing book shelves, and they took up no less than ten 2 cubic feet sized boxes.

Pretty much everything is packed up now... but the big thing left are the dishes. Yes, those in the cupboards....but more so the ones in the sink. I used to like doing dishes by hand. It was soothing and quiet and didn't take very long. Now I hate it. I like to say it's because it's greener to do dishes with the washer, but really I think it's just because it means being in my small, dark, music-less, window-less kitchen.

So. I've been avoiding those dishes until the very last minute where I'll have to wash and pack them. I'm actually considering packing them dirty and then just throwing them in the dishwasher at the new house. Would that be so wrong?

I'm avoiding doing dishes so badly, in fact, that I just spent the last hour packing and cleaning up the bathroom. Including o-mop-ing the floor behind the toilet where water had dripped for gosh-knows-how-long before we finally noticed and is now stained with rust coloured cirlces of dried water.

Maybe I'll just hire a maid for the new house to solve all my cleaning problems.

On Leaving

In four days we get the keys to our new house. Our first house. And in five days we move.

T mentioned he was going to miss the apartment and the memories, but not me. I have a bad memory and don't miss my parent's place (though I do miss the cottage) and I don't think I'm going to miss this apartment.

I never liked it, and I only moved here because T was already here. My dislike of things has turned to angry hatred and disgust in the recent months as I anticipate our perfect house (shut up, that's what it is in my head! Don't ruin it for me yet -- let me learn on my own.)

The kitchen here is small, has no counter space, and really crappy lighting.

There's no real suitable place to have a dining room table and guests.

The balcony is small and overlooks the parking lot.

The road that runs out past our window has three bus routes on it and seeminly too many idiotic drivers who live to rev their engines at 2 a.m. as they speed down the street.

The master bedroom is small and I have a computer desk and chair just a few inches from my nose as I sleep.

There is no air conditioning which has been disgusting these last two summers where the average temperature of the apartment is 26 C. Don't even think of turning on the stove or oven.

The TV and video games are on the other side of the bedroom wall which isn't good for sleeping for me when T wants to stay up.

I can only do laundry at certain times and on certain days which isn't conducive to my Martha Stewart ways.

Out-of-town guests have been sleeping on our couch, in our living room where we have a towel for a curtain on the balcony door.

I don't care for any fond memories here. Everything I want to remember I'm taking with me. The cat, my books, my music and T. What else do I need?

Well, seeing as you asked.

The new house has a large kitchen with lots of counter space and natual light pouring in through the patio door.

There's a dining room and a new dining room table and chairs being delivered.

The backyard is a decent size and will have a BBQ, a patio set and overlooks parkland. There is a library, community center, park, splash park, tennis courts and two baseball diamonds all within a ten minute walk out the backyard.

The street in front of us is residential but at the end of the street is a major road with a bus to take us both to work. Out of earshot.

The master bedroom is large, and though it is currently pink and mauve, it will soon be transformed into a nice oasis for us to get some fantastic shut eye in our new king sized bed...and maybe something else.

The computer and video games will all be in the basement -- also out of earshot of sleeping Laura.

I can do laundry whenever I want.

We will have A/C so we won't have to go "condo swimming" as my friend puts it (showering/bathing repeatedly before bed to try and cool off -- often ends in sleeping naked and wet to keep cool).

Our out-of-town guests (the first of which will be two weeks after we move in!) will have their own bedroom and bed to sleep in. With real curtains in their room!

I can't wait.

Time to make new memories.

When you're bored

LAYER ONE:
Spell your name with bands/artists
LoudLove
Arcade Fire
U2
Rebel Emergency
A 311...ok I couldn’t think of another A band


LAYER TWO:
-- Name: Laura Anne Marie Nicol
-- Birth date: August 13, 1983
-- Nicknames: Laur , Laura-loo, Laura-lee Laura-loo, chaton
-- Current Location: Ottawa
-- Eye Color: Blue
-- Hair Color: Brown
-- Righty or Lefty: Righty.
-- Best friend(s): Theo, Salma, Daniel, Christine, Nicole ...

LAYER THREE:
-- The shoes you wore today: black flats to and from work, 2 in black heels at work
-- Your perfect pizza: sauce, green peppers, mushrooms, pepperoni, cheese OR bbq sauce, chicken and cheese
-- The last time you cried: Probably like a week ago

LAYER FOUR:
-- Your best physical feature: Eyes? Breasts?
-- Most missed memory: I have a horrible memory. I miss my memory. And the cottage. :>

LAYER FIVE:
-- Pepsi or Coke: Coke
-- McDonald's or Burger King: McDonalds
-- Adidas or Nike: neither
-- Lipton Ice Tea or Nestea: meh
-- Chocolate or Vanilla: Chocolate
-- Cappuccino or coffee: French vanilla

LAYER SIX:
-- Curse: I don’t know what exactly this is asking?
-- Do you sing: Yes...when I’m alone.
-- Take a shower everyday: Usually.
-- Do you think you have been in love: Yes
-- Want to go to college: Went to university and took college classes in PR. I’d go back in a heart beat
-- Get motion sickness: rarely
-- Think you're a health freak: nope
-- Get along with your parents: yes.
-- Play an instrument: I can play guitar, bass and drums in Rock Band 

LAYER SEVEN:
In the past 3 months...
-- Gone to the mall: yes
-- Kissed someone: yes
-- Eaten an entire box of Oreos: no, but I did share one with Mat and Theo
-- Eaten Sushi: yup
-- Been on stage: no
-- Gone skating: noooope
-- Made homemade cookies: Not cookies—but cupcakes and banana bread
-- Stolen anything: nope

LAYER EIGHT:
Have you ever...
-- Gotten in big trouble with your parents: not really
-- Used a fake id: Hmmm maybe? I don’t recall. Don’t think so?

LAYER NINE:
-- Age you hope to be married: No rush...but maybe by 27-28
--Number of Children: 2

LAYER TEN:
In a guy/girl...
-- Best eye color: don't care
-- best hair color: ditto
-- Short hair or long hair: ditto


LAYER ELEVEN:
-- Number of people I could trust with my life?: 10ish?
-- Number of cds you own: tons!!
-- Number of piercings: 4
-- Number of tattoos: none

LAYER TWELVE:
--The one place you never want to go back to: cottage, montreal, kap, toronto, NYC, D.C., boston, Vegas
--The one place where you want to die: wherever home is
--The one feeling you have never felt: loss – true, deep loss
--The one person you would like to meet: Hmmm...does 311 count as a person? If not, George Stroumboulopoulos. I’d love to go to a concert with that guy.

Banksy

I've been a fan of Banksy for a few years now. I don't recall how I first came across his graffiti/political art ... but I especially adore his recent work in Palestine/Israel. It's not mindless tagging on public property type graffiti - it's always got a point.




At Urban Outfitters I found a book of some of his work. Some of my favorite quotes:

"Once upon a time there was a Bear and a Bee who lived in a wood and were the best of friends. All summer long the Bee collected nectar from morning to night while the Bear lay on his back basking in the long grass.

When Winter came the Bear realised he had nothing to eat and thought to himself 'I hope that busy little Bee will share some of his honey with me.' But the Bee was nowhere to be found - he had died of a stress induced coronary disease."

"The human race is the most stupid and unfair kind of race. A lot of the runners don't even get decent sneakers or clean drinking water.

Some runners are born with a massive head start, every possible help along the way and still the referees seem to be on their side.

It's not surprising a lot of people have given up competing altogether and gone to sit in the grandstand, eat junk and shout abuse.

What the human race needs is a lot more streakers."

"We can't do anything to change the world until capitalism crumbles. In the meantime we should all go shopping to console ourselves."

Banana Bread

I tried studying his face while he spoke on the phone. It had been 12 hours since we'd heard any news.

Normally I can hear the conversation because her excited voice carries through the 680 km of airwaves to his cell phone and loud enough for me to hear sitting next to him. Not tonight.

"Why didn't you call?" in a frustrated tone. Does he normally chew his bottom lip? Are his eyes welling up or is that the lighting in the room?

"When will you know?" in an anxious tone. He lets go of my hand. Am I making it worse by watching him?

I leave and go to the kitchen. I open my recipe book to the banana bread page and immediately start throwing the ingredients into a large bowl. Not in order. I didn't sift the flour. I had no vanilla extract but used homemade vanilla sugar instead. That looked about a quarter cup. Blend. Butter pan. Pour mixture into pan. Bake at 350 for 60 minutes. Wash, wash, scrub dishes. Clean countertop. I feel better. At least if I have to go anywhere tomorrow I can bring a banana bread. Banana bread helps everything. As a recent recipient of one of my banana breads noted: Banana bread is the greatest stuff ever as it serves as a snack, breakfast or dessert. It's a disorganized mother's best pal. A disorganized mother and an anxious girl.

I'm an anxious eater. And apparently an anxious baker.

Why we should NOT pass Bill C-10 in Canada

For those Canucks who haven't heard about Bill C-10.... it essentially gives the government the power to not fund Canadian movies with "controversial" subject matter.

Yeah. Ok. Censorship much?

GREAT interview by George Stroumboulopoulos here: Charles McVety on The Hour

From the Facebook group: Keep your censoring hands off of Canadian film and TV! No to Bill C-10!

Please concentrate your letter writing/lobbying on
the Senate Commerce, Banking and Trade Committee.

General email:
banking_banques@sen.parl.g

c.ca

General mail:
Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce
The Senate of Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
Canada, K1A 0A4


Here is a list of email addresses of the Standing Committee members:

anguswd@sen.parl.gc.ca, goldsy@sen.parl.gc.ca, bironmi@sen.parl.gc.ca, rokosg@sen.parl.gc.ca, harbm@sen.parl.gc.ca, jaffem@sen.parl.gc.ca, massip@sen.parl.gc.ca, meighen@sen.parl.gc.ca, moorew@sen.parl.gc.ca, ringup@sen.parl.gc.ca, tkachd@sen.parl.gc.ca

Angus, W. David Chair - C - (Alma - Quebec)
Goldstein, Yoine Deputy Chair - Lib. - (Rigaud - Quebec)
Biron, Michel - Lib. - (Mille Isles - Quebec)
Eyton, John Trevor - C - (Ontario)
Harb, Mac - Lib. - (Ontario)
Jaffer, Mobina S.B. - Lib. - (British Columbia)
Massicotte, Paul J. - Lib. - (De Lanaudière - Quebec)
Meighen, Michael A. - C - (St. Marys - Ontario)
Moore, Wilfred P. - Lib. - (Stanhope St. / South Shore - Nova Scotia)
Ringuette, Pierrette - Lib. - (New Brunswick)
Tkachuk, David - C - (Saskatchewan)

Grain Farmer Claims Moral Victory in Seed Battle Against Monsanto

Grain Farmer Claims Moral Victory in Seed Battle Against Monsanto

On The Fire

My lovely and very talented pal Teresa is completing her Masters at Carleton -- working on education and the environment. Her very cool blog is tracking some of the things she's coming across in her research/interest and she's looking for feedback on some of her thesis thoughts...

Check out On The Fire.

Entries of interest:

Vampire Energy/Phantom Load
List of Foods that Contain GMOs (2003)

Terminator Seeds

I've written before about Terminator, or Suicide, Seed technology, but I wanted to include a few more links and facts from a forum I attended here in Ottawa. There were three speakers - Dr. Ricarda Steinbrecher of ExoNexus, U.K.; Susan Walsh, Executive Director of USC Canada; and Colleen Ross, Women's President of the National Farmers Union. Lucy Sharratt, Coordinator of the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network hosted the evening.

First some notes from Dr. Ricarda Steinbrecher's portion:

Genetic Use Restriction Technology (GURTs) is used in Terminator seeds to render them sterile in the second generation (ie. the seeds this plant will produce will be sterile). Terminator seeds DO NOT prevent cross-pollination - or contamination - of other fields/plants. Other problems with transgenes/GURTs:

• By definition, any biological system is not static, but dynamic, it changes.
• Evolution, genetic adaptation, metabolic adaptation
• Mutations (alteration of DNA sequence)
• Gene silencing (epigenetic changes - as a defense mechanism within the seed)

Therefore - no biological system is 100% reliable.

There is insufficient data for assessment of environmental, socio-economic and cultural impacts, as well as economic, legal, societal and food security impacts.

Have we even considered if we NEED this technology?


From Susan Walsh, who presented on Terminator technology and Farmers from the Global South:

• 1.4 billion people are dependent on seeds farmers save (seed banks - both formal and informal)
• Biodiversity is even more important with climate change already showing its head
• To buy new seeds every year the Canadian Wheat industry (85%) would cost US$85 million according to the ETC Group.
• The companies behind Terminator technology say that this is too expensive for farmers in developing countries and therefore wouldn't affect them -- this is not so. Farmers around the world receive seeds via farm aid, food programs, and cross-pollination.

From Colleen Ross' portion on Farming in Canada:

• Not all technologies are good
• We embrace it -- doesn't mean it will embrace us!
• Canola, cotton, corn, and soybeans are often genetically modified
• 85% of farmers have off-however -- this isn't profitable for the farmer, and isn't healthy either
• We're losing 2% of our diversity every year

So -- what can you do to stop this?

• You can take action to Ban Terminator here
• Educate yourself - tell your friends and family. Get a great discussion started with this Seed Map
• Article on Doomsday Seed Vault
  

Article: GM Crop Trial Locations May be Hidden from Public

I will not go into a full entry here on my opinions on Genetically Modified (GM) Foods because I fear I will never stop writing.

The Guardian in the UK reports that there are plans for GM crop trials out of the public eye. The companies behind GM organisms and food are well aware of the public backlash against this attack on their foods, their privacy and their freedom of choice.

Another story, perhaps more shocking/disturbing, on the consequences of GM crop contamination, something we're all too familiar with here in Canada.

I strongly suggest you learn more about the terminator seeds, the campaigns to ban them around the world, and what you can do to help stop this. The future of our food is at stake.

Brain Purge

(inspired by pamused who was inspired by audra)



thankful for:my family and friends

proud of: finally getting my ass to the gym consecutively
missing: what can never be again
looking forward to: a warm bed to crawl into

preoccupied by: politics, capitalism, the state of the world. What style will i get my hair cut next?thrilled by:everything

disappointed by: politicians, fellow humans, that my Christmas tree won't grow

thinking of:being more creative

wondering:if anyone can ever know for sure

hoping:that i'm over exaggerating everything negative

wanting: une maison to call home

reading: The Story of French

recommending: lying on the floor at 3 am in the dark and listening to konstantine by something corporate

making:cupcakes

listening to: patrice

would kill for: 311 day concert in New Orleans

forgetting to:breathe

most recently snuggled by:toby cat

most recently slept on: not so comfy bed

Recommendation: Empire Builders - Third Wall/GCTC

We have season tickets to the Great Canadian Theatre Company, here in Ottawa. They put on fabulous and energetic plays and performances by Canadian and local playwrights, with Canadian and local actors. The new Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre, newly opened this season, provides a lovely space and location for bigger productions.

Interestingly, the new theatre also has a smaller studio theatre so two productions can be rehearsing and performing at the same time. Enter Third Wall Theatre Company. At the last GCTC production we saw an advertisment for the upcoming Third Wall production to be held there.

Third Wall has made the studio theatre it's new home, and we were delighted to catch their adaptation of Boris Vian's 1958 play Empire Builders. It's funny, because neither of us fully understood everything about the play, but we both loved it. It's one of those plays that encourages discussion afterwards. This family who is continually fleeing an unknown enemy/fear and who refuse to talk of it raises questions that are eerily relevant today. How do we deal with fear? The Enemy? The Unknown? What/how much are we willing to risk for freedom/safety? Do we collectively repress the past so as to pretend it's not how we arrived to the present?

The actors were all phenomenal. Katie Bunting, Julian Doucet, Matt Miwa, Alix Sidaris, Maureen Smith and Riley Stewart all played their parts (some of them non-speaking!) extremely well and it really added to the performance. We've been lucky enough to see some of these same actors in other productions at the GCTC and love when we get to see them return!

One of the things I love about theatre is the use of the stage and props. The studio theatre is quite small, but the whole team did a lovely job with the space. The actors were in between the audience and the story moved from side to side. Voice projection wasn't a problem in the small area, even if the actor had their back to you. The costumes were eerie and great - though I haven't figured out if the all-white clothing and pale faces/white hair was supposed to sybolize something? Death? Limbo...? Regarless...it was striking.

I don't want to give away too much, except to say it's a stellar performance and a great play to follow up with a coffee or drinks or a nice drive home to discuss the issues raised.

The show runs until February 16 at the GCTC and I strongly recommend you check it out.

Up next: For the GCTC it's The Optimists, by Morwyn Brebner, running until February 17. For Third Wall, it's Moliere's Tartuffe, running May 27th to June 7th.

Ten Myths about the Canadian Healthcare System

Great article here debunking common myths about our healthcare system.

Election Fun

While I am born and bred Canadian, I can't help but be interested in US politics. They're such a global player, and so close to home, that practically everything they do, say, and make policy has some bearing on us folks to the North.

Some interesting quizzes you can do to see which candidates your views align with most:

Glassbooth

Electoral Compass

Happy quizzing!

Green Giant

Some very interesting green initiatives by my fave love to hate big box behemoth - Wal-Mart. As any of you who know me probably know, I grew up in a Canadian retail family and therefore have a big hate-on for Wally World as we fondly call it. I have many issues with their employee policies around triple-split shifts, inadequate pay and their shady PR practices. I also think they are largely responsible for pushing this "lower price" mentality on people to the point where everyone would gladly drive farther to save nine cents on whatever cheap product it is they want...only to be hugely disapointed when they discover how poorly the product is made to get it to them at that 'great' price or what it's driving those suppliers to do to stay afloat. I also have issues with Wal-Mart coming into small towns and putting all the other small mom and pop shops out of business only to close up and leave town. I have issues with them also bullying employees/stores where unions are trying to be formed to protect worker's rights. I do not shop at Wal-Mart, and haven't for years, because of this and much more.


However, I have to admit that they carry a lot of weight. Wal-Mart is the largest retailer in the world and have a lot of buying power and influence. Take a moment to read this article on Wal-Mart's greening efforts. They've realized that there are financial benefits to going green. I'm not sure I'm ready to drop my boycott and start shopping there yet, but at least they're heading in the right direction, and hopefully setting a green path for other retailers to follow.

Good News and Bad News from Starbucks

To be honest, I don't know how applicable this is in Canada, as I was under the impression that Canadian cows do not get these hormones, but I made need to brush up on my homework. The story here discusses Starbucks move to hormone-free milk (yay!) but how this means they will also not sell organic milk anymore (boo!).

How about we just stick to Bridgehead instead?

Roll Up Your Sleeves, America!

http://www.relocalize.net/u_s_oil_dependencies


By the wonderful Art Spiegelman

Environ-mental

Great article here about a book on greening your life, without the depressing serious 'tude.

Excerpt from the article:

And if if you think you're pretty eco-conscious already, there is still some fun facts to learn. Here's some of my favorites:

• "Some 20 billion diapers are buried in US landfills per year, representing about 7 billion pounds of garbage."
• You can flush dog poop down the toilet but not cat poop (and ironically, it seems you can potty train cats, but not dogs -- drat!).
• "There is a Green Wi-Fi project, which has developed a solar-powered wireless router that can run for up to four weeks even in prolonged periods of gray skies."
• Burning a single gallon of gas produces 20 pounds of C02.
• Lunch boxes are hipper than tupperware.
• "Americans are said to throw away enough aluminum in three months to rebuild our entire commercial air fleet."
• "The average dishwasher uses about 15 gallons of water per load, while the average dish-washer (that would be you) uses about 5 gallons of water per minute at the sink.
• The US airline industry uses 53 million gallons of jet fuel each day.

I don't see it on the Octopus Book website yet, but Chapters and Amazon have it if your local indie book store doesn't.

Guess who's back?

So....I'm back.

I stopped posting here seriously almost a year ago. I blame facebook. I'd just post up links, funny stories and the occasional comment so easily to facebook, that I figured there was no point in repeating it here, as I think most people who read this are people I know. However, I still have been getting statistic reports every week and it boggles my mind that there are still (a few) people who just stumble onto the site. Also, I come across so many interesting articles etc. that I want to share, that I inundate my "friends" on facebook and lose most of the posts as the page only fits so many entries.

So, Stealing Happy Hours is back. I'm sure I should reorganize it somehow...but for now it's going to remain the melange of articles and interesting links and occasional comments on everything from eco-friendliness, to travel, to shopping, to music, to activism, to politics, to humour, to books, to food and photos.

Please send me any comments or suggestions!