Trigger Warning: This essay includes information about the deaths of indigenous students in residential schools in Canada. Canadians are shocked and horrified to learn of the extent of the genocide of indigenous children which took place at residential schools. It is a story that must be retold if there is to be any justice. We […]
After a heavy rainfall a few weeks ago, I noticed that the stucco on the walls by the front steps had started to come away from the wood underneath. On the horizontal ledges, water had gone between the stucco and the wood and caused the stucco to buckle and break open. So, I contacted a […]
Google Maps thinks this bridge is called the Walter Dale Bridge, but they are wrong. It is named after the nearby neighbourhood called Walterdale and it, in turn, is named after John Walter who was among the early settlers here. He operated a ferry across the North Saskatchewan River at this location. The original bridge, […]
This morning, somewhere between sleeping and being awake, I was trying to remember Dolly Parton’s name. I could see her in my mind’s eye, but I couldn’t recall her name. I knew the shape of her first name and that it had two syllables and that it probably ended in “y”, but I couldn’t remember […]
In a recent blog post entitled “Look,” were photos of a wall mural that included some versions of dreamcatchers. Because of the size of the wall and the limitations of the camera used at the time, not all of the objects could be easily seen. As a consequence, today I returned to that wall with […]
Near Delton School in Edmonton, on 121 Avenue, is an interesting mural. It is on the side of a building that was once a retail outlet or perhaps a restaurant, but is now residential. The wall faces a small park. The art work is three-dimensional and made up of a combination of artifacts and bundled […]
I have just discovered Adobe Lightroom and am figuring out how to use it. I wanted to find a way to add a copyright to the metadata on my pictures, and several of the videos I found online seemed to recommend this software. Adobe provides seven days free then it costs $13.49 Cdn a month […]
Here are three more books that I have recently read and my thoughts about each of them. They all involve some sort of mind control but in very different ways. End of Watch by Stephen King This is the third in a trilogy about police inspector Bill Hodges (retired), but it is a standalone story. […]
Across the street from the Edmonton CFL football stadium, and beside the parking lot for the Stadium LRT Station, is a magnificent mural. It runs the full length of the Canadian Linen and Uniform Service building, which is about 66 metres (215 feet). I have not yet identified the artist and will be grateful if […]
In early May in central Alberta we are just beginning to see signs of spring. There are tiny green buds on the birch trees and when the sun shines on them they have a subtle green glow. The signs of beaver activity are everywhere. They have felled a lot of trees that lie near the […]
I am very fortunate to live only half an hour away from Elk Island National Park where there are about 400 plains bison and 300 wood bison. It is the only fully fenced national park in the country, and the fencing is necessary because the bison population is being actively managed. The fence is there […]
Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?Thou art more lovely and more temperate.Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,And summer’s lease hath all too short a date. William Shakespeare
A few days ago, I expressed some frustration because I don’t know who is vaccinated. That makes me feel unsafe when I’m among strangers. I was worried about this because Alberta seems to have a high number of people who are vaccine-hesitant or resistant. In response to that blog post, Tildeb provided extensive comments for […]
OK, bear with me. This is a completely unbaked but possibly brilliant idea related to the vaccine-hesitant. I live in an area in which a significant minority of the population is refusing the Covid-19 vaccination. Their justifications are varied and often contradictory, but these vaccine resisters are a part of my community. You probably have […]
This week my eldest son said he had been harassed by someone in the street. He was happily walking along, minding his own business, when a man started taunting him. He asked if my son was sick, if he wasn’t feeling well. He wanted to know what his problem was, and why he was wearing […]
These painted particleboard fence panels have dried out over the years to create these interesting textures. I wanted to take a few pictures just to capture the details in case the home owner decides to take these panels out and build a new fence. It is a little bit of unintentional art in the ordinary.
Now that the news is fairly humdrum compared to the last few years, the time I spend reading newspapers online has reduced considerably. I’m still mostly housebound because of Covid-19 and cold weather, so I have been looking for things to do. I finally finished making a child’s hat and scarf that I began about […]
