Is there a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?

A stormy night of heavy rain mixed with patches of blue sky. Maybe Gabe can get money for his markety photo. We had to tinker with the contrast to get it to look this cool - the rainbow was faint. Off to bed for me.

Jenn 

Gabe and the Dragon

I be the real drag - on! I DRAGged Gabe ON no less than the Dragon Fyre, WildBeast, Italian Job, Mine Buster, Top Gun, Silver Streak, Ghoster Coaster and Fly rollar coasters - largely against his better judgement and will.

Thanks for being a sport Gabe!!

Love

The DRAG ON 

Berry Picking Pictures

Here we are picking berries at Springridge. After eating the berries and the Father's Day Chocolate Cheese Cake courtesy of Geoff - running into my Grade 3 teacher - Mrs. Pickering was pretty cool too. I have good memories of grade 3 hanging out with Simone.

Jenn 

Meet Molly and Arooo

Aroo found a new friend in the Cabbage Patch - or rather Gabriel did. Its a long story, but when I was 7 or 8, my grandparents battled away in a Canadian Tire and bought the last Cabbage Patch Doll (orange hair/green eyes - named Cornelia) for me for Christmas. I had her for quite a while, and lost her at a friend's house while playing there. I finally gave up looking for her and went home. I suspect what happened is that my friend hid her. Several weeks later she was found - but had been severly mutilated - hair cut and face coloured with marker. If you can imagine I was terribly upset and never talked to my friend again. I guess Gabe remembered the story (I suppose its a bit long to hold a grudge against Nicki, but she was my favourite toy at the time)- and found Molly on ebay for my birthday. Aroo seems to have taken a shining to her. :D I'm sure its the beginning of a good friendship between the two.

Aroo is the puppy dog with the loveable face.

Cheers,

Jennith 

Water: A National Tresure

One need only read popular science fiction books such as Dune (Herbert) or Stranger in a Strange Land (Heinlein) to see how important water is to humans and the lengths that we might go in the future in arid places to conserve that resource.

But to grasp its value, you need not go any farther than this planet at this date and time to see that in places - water (especially clean water) is scarce indeed, and that its scarcity results in hardship.

In Canada, and particularly in the lake riddle Canadian shield making up much of northern Ontario - clean water courses and natural areas abound. Michael Valentine Smith, the "stranger in a strange land" would have been shocked to see Kilarny Lake in its glory when he first arrived on Earth - to him a glass of water was an extravagance. However, the booming population of the GTA is most certainly putting pressure on all of the watersheds in its vicinity. The Toronto Star today reported on the precarious state of Lake Simcoe. While past articles have discussed fears that the Oak Ridges Morraine Act will be undermined by municipalities seeking to appease developers in their bounderies. Its a difficult dilemma. Land that can't be developed loses value - yet, the future value of protecting the integrity of our environment is nearly impossible to measure. I don't blame the developers for trying, but I hope that before any decisions are made, people consider the long term consequences seriously.

Jenn 

NAMES: The answers to the picture below

Fred Gno, David Price, David Swain, David Baine, Josh Hunter, Chris Sousa, Kyle Novak, James Harison, Chris Cole

Jonathon Whitaker, Vivek Balasubramanyam, Michal Readman, Bradley Stirton,Chris Bardon, Issaac Smith, Ryan Donelly, Peter Morely, Ms. Johnston

Angela Sethi, Jenn Peart, ?????, Erin Sandilands, Supriya, Sunita Sayeram, Laura Snell and Denisse ?Williams.

Pretty good for an old fogie.

School Days: Grade 8b Class Picture

Wow! Here we are 12-14 years old with the dreaded Ms. Johnson - who always wore her hair in a bun, except when she broke her arm. Aside from telling my best friend not to hang out with me because I was holding her back or something - in retrospect, Ms. Johnson wasn't so bad. Just unlucky to have to try and fill Ms. Jaakkimainen's amzing shoes. I'll have to find my grade 7 picture.

Having lost touch with all but 3 people in this picture, I'm afraid I don't have much to say. 2 became engineers (both at Waterloo) and the third is in med school. Another one I think recently graduated from law school - so the folk rumours go and one is alive and not too far away and another was alive and living out west last I ran into his sister.

So, here I am rambling again.

I'd better email all the people I owe emails and stuff and try and be friendly or something.

Cheers,

Jennith

Steady as the garden grows :D

Here is a close up of the clay pot, Trinica Flowers and the railing basket we picked out yesterday.

Encore 'Ol Acer Keys

Here are some lake aquitaine maple keys photoed earlier this spring. Acer is the latin genus of the maples. I'm embaressed to admit that I don't know what kind these are, but I'd guess red maple or silver judging from the bits of leaves protruding in the pictures. I can't believe that it is almost July. I'm starting to get my brain around the basics of the ecology of rivers and the effects of low flows.

After a bike ride that ended when Gabe's tire blew up, we walked to Canadian Tire where we, after much kerfuffal got all the pieces we needed. We were rescued from further walking in the hot sun by my dad. My mom and I went to the Graden Centre and bought some flowers for the clay pot on the deck, bogonias for the front, and a super on sale basket for the porch. We also bought some soil. I even found a pair of awesome gardening gloves that fit my hands and were breathable enough for me to wear all day. We edged a bunch of beds and mixed some fancy dirt into some of them. There is still lots of gardening to do though.

Tomorrow we are doing a belated fathers day at my grandparents. It'll be good to see them and my Uncle Stevie again after a few weeks. Its been a weird few days of hearing from people I haven't heard from in a while from school and from years ago when I was practice teaching in Nunavut. Who knows. I feel really bad that I have been completely antisocial and haven't seen or talked to any of my friends in weeks. I really should give Erin a call. Oh, my other goal for tommorrow is to clean up the corner of my room that is my office, because right now there is still junk and half unpacked boxes of junk everywhere.

Its time for bed... look for some exciting pictures later this week.

Jennith 

The River Beautiful

A peaceful view of riffles and pools in South Eastern Ontario shot on a sunny day. 

A Butterfly for your Thoughts

Here is one of those moments that just need to be photographed. I was taking the speed tour of the field sites with my boss - but the butterfly couldn't be passed up.

I feel fluttery and all over the place these days. Can't make up my mind or stop worrying it.

I know I'm slacking off on writing these days I've beem pretty busy with school and thinking.

So, off to bed for now and eventually I'll get some more pictures up.

Jenn 

In Perfect Focus

. . . and Gabe says "That's old!" - Still the sunset reflected in his glasses is cool. Another picture taken somewhere near sussex and long enough ago that Gabe has short hair. Looks cute doesn't he.

So many thoughts and neither the energy or the wisdom to get it all down coherently. I've been generally neglecting my blogging duties lately, owing to an attempt to cram as much info as I can into my brain about rivers and flows and cars.

I can't even stand to think about cars right now, it makes my blood pressure go up.

Sigh. No Stanley cup for Canada this year - it was fun watching the game though.

Okay, more thoughts that by the time you get here you will have already read.

Jenn 

I smile and wave

Welcome to a lovely stormwater management pond in Fredericton, NB. Also, for notes on the picture associated with the "apocalypse planning" article - it was taken in Toronto as an example of porous pavement installed as a result of their new by-law. Some other interesting Urban Planning news is the "anti-sprawl" legislation for the GTA.

As a rant topic - - - Yeah for the Oilers!!! Even if all the so called Canadian's around here are so wound up with World Cup soccer they can't be botehr with the most exciting hockey Canada's seen in at least a year. We might win!!!!

Okay... I'd better go to bed.. much stuff to do tomorrow.

Jennith 

Apocalypse Planning

I've always been a contingency planner. I like having at least a plan b and a rough plan c. . . and there are times that plans d through z aren't entirely out of line.

That said, I'm not expecting the apocalyse is going to happen. In fact, I rather hope it doesn't, since I'm neither well prepared or in favour of the odds of my surviving should such an unpleasant event occur. That said, every once and a while I give learning a skill bonus points for being useful in the event of a nasty global disaster. . . such as fixing a roof or raising chickens or having friends who know a bit about medicine or engineering.

The subject of the apocaplyse (and whether thinking about it is devient) came up over an empty threat to not own a television or have cable. I figure I've survived happily without for 10 years on acount of having more interesting things to do with my money (i.e. buy food) and time (i.e. plow through scads of homework). The advantage of not having a television is that the temptation to veg is removed and you are much more likely to do something more fulfilling and constructive (i.e. knit mittens - although much of my knitting occured while watching episodes of Due South, so this isn't a great example.).

So, honestly, I don't have any great plans for the apocalypse. Its hard to plan for when you not only don't have a clue if or when it'll happen, nevermind the circumstances surrounding it. I think the government must have some musty plans left over from the cold war years on how it would handle a nuclear catastrophe (or you could read one of the zillions of after the bomb science fiction books (Z is for zachariah being a children's book, Farnham's Freehold (Heinlein), The Chrysalids, The Stand(King)) Its a terribly popular science fiction theme, especially in the 60's and 70's.

So, here is some advice gleaned from an Australlian Survivalist Website "A good library full of practical information is a necessity for anyone who hopes to survive a worldwide cataclysmic event." Phew... I'm ready. . . hope that all those sci-fi and fantasy books are as useful than the engineering and biology text books. Ohh, the rest of this site is too wacky[TEOTWAWKI - being an acronym for "the end of the world as we know it"], not to find entertaining. . . it includes a poll of I'm-not-sure-who on what they think the most likely cause of the apocalypse will be. . . and the winner is . . . Natural Pandemic followed by natural disaster, economic collapse, world war III, weapons of mass destruction and finally asteroid crash.

Still, as much as the site makes me uncomfortable in the sort of way that makes you make fun of it - I still believe there is merit in making some plans for surviving disasters whether it be on a small personal scale, something the size of hurricane katrina or being world wide. The people who plan a little are more likely to be the ones still around after the dust has settled and the rest of us may not be around to call them paranoid, hippies or scientoligists as the case applies.

I figure I have some reasonable wilderness skills - walking long distances, purifying water, pitching shelters, first aid, plant identification and fire building. And perhaps a few useful engineering skills, although I'm lacking in practical carpentry, husbandry or serious medical skills. Prehaps I should get more involved with the SCA. :D They're great people learning useful skills.

Anywho,

I'm rambling and should get some sleep. I'm not making much sense. Good night.

Jennith 

More Fashion

In her defense, I believe the ocasion was some kind of school spirit day. 

Ultimate 90's Fasion

Jamie had a style of his own - he was famous for his "vest-with-a-sleeve" ensemble. 

Whatever happened to Dave Price?

Ah... another endearing pictures of highschool - books, busses and obscene gestures!!

Maybe a few dirty looks for being snap-happy too!

JP 

Canoe Trips Gone By

Here we are on the French River. . .you really can't beat the shield for rugged beauty and nifty windswept white pine. Having begun my tripping in grumman aluminum canoes, this picture brings to mind a sound unique to use. As for my dream canoe, I'm torn between the Langford Nahani and Swift Kipiwa

Post Picnic Enclave

The topic of discussion was out of my hearing range, but was possibly related to the assorted exciting books in the background or possibly foreign films or culture. I had a few moments of wonderment that my years in the quieter corners of Canada had caused a cultural lag on my part. Probably, its just my personality. I can't see living in Toronto causing me to be excessively interested in movies that require subtitles or spicy food. I'd rather be hiking and camping and identifying plants - not to knock other pursuits. And eating things which spiced with nothing more exciting that garlic or bay leaves or thyme or plain old table salt.

That aside - I had a wonderful reunion with a bunch of old highschool friends and if some topics left me with little to add owing to my ignorance, there is much to be said for listening and learning in all social circles. Besides, to my relief they haven't changed all that much - still prone to goofy antics, british humour (aka monty python) and properly geeky things. So, if I can stop reading about plant communities in the headwaters of the Thames river long enough to have an intermittent social life - it'll be good to be home.

Cheers,

Jennith 

Thoughts for June 2006

I thought it would be a reasonable follow-up to my blog about the terrorist arrests to provide this link to Walkom's Star article. While my view isn't exactly the same has his - I felt he raised some points about popular opinion being shaped by alarmist political and journalistic behavior.

Link

This second link to a Toronto Star article discusses the interaction between Muslim spokespeople and the media and who speaks for who. The article highlights the fact that the "terrorists" don't really represent the views of the vast majority of Muslims and diversity of interpretation of the religion by immigrants and Canadian-born Muslims. Here is the link to "and who speaks for the Muslims?"

On the four sisters at the Lakeview generating station. . .

I think it would be neat if they erected a wind generator or a large solar power complex as part of a new marine landmark (or perhaps a new candu reactor) to commemorate the shift to cleaner energy sources in Ontario.

River Ecology Thoughts:

Hygropetric or Madicolous Habitats: neat names for a habitat where there is a continuous thin sheet of water trickling or seeping over a bare-rock (Hygropetric) or rock-muck-moss(Madicolous) surfaces.

Thoughts on the best decade to date...

I really liked the nineties. There are lots of things to be proud of as a species that happened.... the growth of the internet, environmentalism being cool, grunge, folk, alternative and celtic music (well a matter of taste), way better TV than now (Ninja turtles, Simpsons, Reboot, Due South).

This new decade (I don't think I need to comment on the 70's and 80's - there are lots of comments out there) hasn't been that exciting. Music and television content are embaressing (Reality TV - need I say more), attire that is uncomfortable, unflattering and shows no regard for the dangers of skin cancer, little kids with cellphones, ipods and dressed for the bar, epidemic childhood obesity, a war in the middle east (although the nineties had their share of conflicts - they didn't seem to have the prominence of the current one), The US being run by George (ex-addict with likely brain damage) Bush, the fumbling of the Kyoto accord (and I'm not stating whether I'm for or against it - just that either the scientists got it wrong and the politicians are doing the right thing and the environmental movement is set back or the scientists got it right, the politicians are doing their own thing for their own gain and we're screwed. Either way it isn't anything to feel good about)

So, there is a rant!!!! Maybe I'm just becomming an old fogey longing for the good old days before i gave in to drinking coffee.

Things I miss about Fredericton:

1. The tap water - Brita filtered Mississauga municipal water is okay, but Fredericton's water was awesome.
2. The walking bridge
3. Pool at the 20/Twenty ($2/hour - although I don't think it is anymore)
4. Watching the sun set from my balcony.
5. Eating breakfast on the balcony.
6. Downtown Fredericton and the local character created by old buildings (also on Campus)
7. The windows seats in the Old Head Hall
8. Odell park
9. The bike trails to Marysville
10. Heather's parties

Things I like about Guelph University.

1. People are generally friendly and dressed casually
2. Coffee and a muffin for $1.99
3. Lots and lots of computer terminals in the libraries and quiet spaces to work.
4. Lots and lots and lots of books about hydrology
5. Eclectic and surprising monuments and bits of arts.
6. My sister in law and Kirsten
7. Really cool stormwater management stuff in the city.
8. A real rock climbing wall
9. Actual engineering jackets
10. Pictures of my brother all over the engineering building

okay.. brain is refreshed.

Over and out for now,

Jennith

Neat Columbine

So, this is getting to the point where I'm tired, so quick recap on my life.

On the exciting side, we got to watch my step dad gently beat my mom with a limp head of romaine lettuce amid a sea of bad puns. Wish I had a picture but my camera was elsewhere.

Saturday was James' b-day and I went to Centre Island and a party in TO. I think I rattled on about that and posted a few pictures. Excitement = $5 filing cabinet at a garage sale.

Today was a work day. We cleaned up the year, trimmed back some hedges raked up some leaves and planted some haustas. Geoff and Erin came over and we taught Gabe how to play Settlers of Catan. Yeah.

Tommorrow... back to learning.

Jennith 

All your geese in a row!!

 

Just liked the Tree and the Beach

 

Taller towers

Here is the good old CN tower, proof that even though Centre Island seems like a peaceful park - it really is only a few minutes away from they hustle and bustle of downtown. Its considerably taller than the lighthouse.

On a related story, I was reading that they plan to demolish the 4 sisters (the smoke stacks of lakeview generating station) are being demolished tommorrow on breakfast television. (Okay- they are getting demolished because the generating station is closed, but Breakfast Television is covering the demolition live. I guess some boaters are sad because it is a prominent landmark and helps people who are lost, turned around or travelling a long distance.

Cheers,

Jennith 

Maritime Momments on the Great Lakes

Gibralter Point Lighthouse in the Toronto Harbour is a fantastic old stone lighthouse 82 ft high on Ward Island. We're all a little red now - after a pleasent picnic in the sun, chasing aerobies (and climbing trees to retrieve them) and eating lots of junk food, and some healthy food.

Gabe finally got to meet some more of my highschool friends. I think he was relieved that they weren't too normal and all read lots of books.

It was a nice break from being cooped up with tonnes of reading - I'm starting to wish I had a bit of calculus practice to break up the reading. However, it is intersting stuff and I know way more about rivers than I did a week or so ago.

I'll post a few more pictures and then maybe a few from the archives.

Jenn 

Thoughts

I hope Erin doesn't mind that I snatched this picture and reposted it on my blog. Its just exactly how I imagine myself. . . braids, backward baseball cap and big backpack and boots. It took me a while to figure out where it was taken. . . it seemed to be too open to be Erin's landing and then I saw the intercom box and placed the wooden railings. This is the enterenceway to Frogmore Estates (the apartment building where I had been living for the last 4 years.) What threw me was that the walls are white - now they have this fancy green/blue paint.

Its been a good day, in spite of working most of the day. You'll note that they frequency and quality of this book are both likely to decrease now that I am working. My mom gave me this book that starts off with the line "Do princess's where hiking boots?". :D It was great. I won't spoil it, but I highly recomend it.

I have curtailled my newspaper reading. I'm surprised at my lack of desire to follow the terrorist arrests closely. Generally, I follow local stories closely. I think partly that it is my own mixed feelings about it. I certainly am not happy to hear that people born and raised here were turned against their own country, yet I have too many friends of Muslim background to want to join the feeding frenzy on yet more bad publicity for their community. What I have skimmed in the papers, shows that different writers have handled the story differently - but its not a straight forward issue (in contrast to the ecoli disaster in Kashechewan) so you are getting more variety of opinions. Some of the articles are well thought out, and some are a touch nasty and most are simply calculated to get the best readership and not especially brilliant journalism. I don't mind hearing updates on the case, but I'd like to see a bit more variety in the news. I'm glad the police were on the ball - kudos to them. But if you beat the issue long enough, its only going to show up the dirty underside of all of our hearts as we let 17 young men and youths represent the entire Canadian Muslim communtiy.

Gabe baked a wonderful cake, but we were too full to eat it tonight... but its cake for breakfast for sure!! I have lots of thoughts, but I can't seem to get them all down. It could be the lateness of the hour. Thanks to everyone for making today special. Life is a crazy place. I guess you can only live it as it comes. I'll think some more tomorrow.

Jenn 

Bleckflies!

Only picture of Jason in my repatoire to date. This was from our first French River trip when the black flies were unbarable.

Glasses were bigger back then! Having recently been diagnosed with an eye-turn (an overly active focusing tendency) and told to wear some weaker glasses when reading at the computer - I have had the joy of revisiting some of my own larger glasses. None of which are particularly flattering. However, I have noticed a difference in the ability of stay watching the computer screen. He he... but I'll be getting another pair of glasses eventually - so I won't have to look like an owl forever.

Lots of other thoughts I wish I had time to share, but my lunch hour is done and I'll have to get back to reading massive pdf files whole. I really wish that they would cease publishing pdf of papers with 2 or more columns - its next to impossible to read.

Anywho - later.

Jennith