And so the winds whirl

And so the winds whirl
And they sweep and they swirl
Through the leaves in the trees
Across the waves in the seas

Whipping my hair into tangles and mess
Reminding me to beauty that words can't express
Finding my soul in a forest of towers
Sky-scraping cement and task packed hours

Where is the viewscape that will make my heart soar
Draw my camera lens until I can't snap anymore
Where is the smell of mouldering leaves?
In my concrete cage, a part of me grieves.

But soon will come summer - and I will sometiems escape
To the forests and streams with their natural shape
Until then I'll glimpse, from the 401's trail
The magnifican escarpment on the far side of the rail.

Thoughts Meander Like a River

Just around the bend there is another eye-kind view
Although from where we stand, it is hard to see where to
Our thoughts meander like a river
Until our brains begin to quiver
But I don't mind, because I walk this trail with you

Stream Dreams

It is so easy to misplace friends, especially when you practically collect postal codes that you think of as home. I hardly have time to see the people I live with, finding time to keep in touch with people is impossible. Especially once they start getting married and altering their last names. I'm sure it was worse before the internet. I stumbled across my lab partner from Gr. 10 Science in facebook and found a blog belonging to an old boyfriend from Lakehead. (btw - he is married to a woman) Another friend I'd not talked to in a year or so caught up with me on MSN and I found out that they are getting married. As is another friend, that I haven't caught up with yet. I can think of at least 4 upcoming weddings this summer and I suspect a few more are in the works.

I figure I've done okayish at maintaining ties. I'm still in touch with my best friends from Grade 3-7 and 7-highschool. Heck, I've even seen a good portion of my highschool friends recently. I'm regularly in contact with my two best friends from Lakehead and 2 dozen odd folk from camp. But there are a zillion people I'd love to catch up with, at least long enough to get a current address for christmas card purposes and find out where their lives have taken them. What happened to the people from my 7-8 years? What ever became of Christina Morris and Samina Ahmed? Carrie and Penny from Grade 2? Donnie Boyd and Rick?

Its a strange world. People migrate distances that few mammels can - across barriers like mountain ranges and oceans and political borders. I'm currently reading shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card. I'll grant him credit for his research into the vast variety of human culture on a global scale and extrapolating a fasinating future from it. I guess I should count myself lucky that all of my friends are still on the same planet. I, at least, am easy to find. My name (due to this blog) is easily googled, although I sometimes worry that that isn't a particularly good thing. Well, I suppose it is good and bad. I know that it would be safer to be annonymous, but my desire to be found by any lost friend who is looking for me seems to keep me from caution.

Such is...

Jennith

Snow Falling on Parking Lots

So winter finally made it to Ontaro. The symptoms are many. At the outdoor ice near my home, there was 15-20 kids skating outside, the ground is white and the ski resorts finally got to open. Still we could use some real serious snow - so I can actually make use of my cross country skis. Still the flurries I can see falling on the parking lots outside my winter are peaceful and I'm feeling relaxed and keen to spend a bit of time being outdoors and doing things I love like painting and playing the guitar/paino.

I've been sucked into Facebook. I initially scoffed at this phenoma until I accidently signed up - then wasted most of yesterday evening (my first totally free evening in a long while) hunting for lost friends. I've gone from 0-50 in 48 hours. Technology is weird. I'll give them credit for designing it well. It'll be neat to watch it evolve, but I have more exciting plans for my time really.

Anywho, I must learn more about Stream Restoration.

Jennith

Jaberwocky

Hopefully I didn't leave the impression that I'm currently in some kind of personal hell. That wasn't my intention at all. I was just pointing out that the darkest moment in my life was the trials and tribulations of a first year teacher, up north, teaching grade 8 of all foolish things. I don't even have nightmares about it 7 years later. I got caught up being dramatic, but I fear I missed the point. There are people who suffer through some terrible things out there - abuse, neglect, addiction. Stuff that makes teaching look like a picnic. I meant to highlight just how good I have it, and how much more society could do to help people in need. Yet, even solving those problems is mind boggling. Oh, and of course you can't really solve other peoples problems - they have to find it in themselves to take up the challange - but you can try to give them the scaffolding they need to at least make it easier and a few vorpal swords wouldn't go amiss to scare off the monsters and predators.

Today's excitement is that after coming into the office early to aviod bad driving conditions with traffic - I appear to be locked out of my office. Sigh. So, I'm huddling in this chilly room trying to work on my stuff, but it isn't really great. Hopefully they'll open the doors soon and I can go up to a nice chilly room with a desk. In the meantime... life continues. The picture is of a lake somewhere between Ottawa and Kingston last October. Saturday, I met with a couple of old friencd at "the Harp" in Port Credit. A bit of a drive for a pub, but the decor was nice and the bathrooms were almost perfectly clean. It was nice to see everyone, although the volume of the coverband "Sonny Boy Mick" precluded much meaningful chat - hopefully next will be easier.

Anywho..

Ta for now

JP

The Things You Don't Know

I was complaining of my need to post other people's photographs the other day, when Gabe insisted that I must have some left from our trip out east. He was right and wrong. I've actually posted more pictures from out east than he thinks - the problem is that Blogger was undergoing a blog eating phase about when I came back and starting posting - so a lot of them didn't come up. In actual fact, I did not take that many pictures and the bulk of them were taken on 3 occassions - St. Martin's, Fundy Park and Halifax. So, although the count is around 130 photos for the trip, many of them are a bit on the repetitive side and quite of few of them aren't really that great. Gabe should have some pictures of the evening we spent with Char and Andrea - I'll see if I can get them up here soon. So, I do have a few left, but I'm hoping to get out on a hike this weekend and take some new ones too.

My big excitement for the day is a pot of soup burbling joyously on the stove filled with tomatoes, zuucchini, green onions and corn. I'm looking forward to eating it at supper. Beyond that, I have been working on my proposal and collecting papers for my Masters. Not really an exciting day, but a cosy one.

Oh.... and about the things you don't know - I don't know them either - but what you don't know can kill you. Take climate change - in spite of tonnes of research - there still isn't any irrevokable proof that CO2 is the major cause. Myself I can't really say what I agree with, lacking time to read up thoroughly and knowledge to judge the conflicting scientific views critically. I do know that the recent weather has me wondering - and I prefer erring on the side of caution in general. I guess the flip side is that even if we did know all the details of what was going on with our planet and all the mechanisms - it still might kill us or not... I guess only time will tell depending on our actions.

Cheers

Jennith

A True North View: Quonset Hut in the Snow

I believe that this is the house that the stork delivered my mother too in Yellowknife, NWT. She was born in the summer - so there was a little less snow, but you get the idea. I found a website with a number of current and historic Quonset Hut photo's. My most recent experience in a Quonset hut (acutally that should probably read only) was actually in Fredericton, NB at Master Dave Murrey's Tai Kwon Do Club. It worked well for a martial arts studio - I could see it working for a home. Last year, I was all excited by geodesic dome houses and their many excellent qualities - that said - furniture is easier to fit into a square house and a square house is easier to sell if one plans on moving over their lifetime.

I'm sure that I can obtain some excellent stories from my Grandparents about this house. For now, I'll dispell the myth that my mother's first bed was a drawer. While I personally think that this is a practical solution in the north where it takes months to order furniture at times and costs a small fortune in shipping, the truth in this myth is that once in a hotel a drawer bed was improvised for my mother when she was an infant - she did indeed have her own crib in Yellowknife and the drawer was a temporary solution while travelling.

Thats all for now.

Jennith

Quick note to introduce new links

I've added 3 links. The first is to the "Daily Puppy" for a bunch of heart melting photos of people puppy dogs. The second is a link to a paper, Where Rivers are Born" by Meyer and 9 others, descibing the importance of headwaters and the threats they face. Its longish, however, there are tonnes of photos and graphs - an excellent paper though aimed at normal folk - not scientists.

Then I added link I got their from - the river basin centre in the water resource section of links - mostly so I could remember to check it out later.

Last note - David Usher's new single "The Music" is fantastic. I think the album is going to be the best since Little songs. Here is a link to his new website where you can hear the song if you like.

Paddling in Calm Waters - and movie recomendations

After the last few stressful weeks, Gabe and I decided that we needed to go on a date (to celebrate increased sleep rations and all that). We went to Failte - an Irish Pub near Square One with a fairly standardly priced menu including a tempting selection of pub favorites, pizza and then some nicer stuff. The food was good (the fries unusally so) although I would not have called the servings overly generous, there was more than enough to fill us up. I had a stuffed chicken breast and Gabe has Salmon - I got fries, he got salad - which we each ate half of. The only down side is because we went there later in the evening - they had the hockey game up fairly loud. However, it probably would have been cool, if we hadn't been aiming at a romantic dinner. Then we went to see the Pursuit of Happyness [sic]. Will Smith and his son were fantastic. The movie was really well done, and while maybe the take home message equates happiness with money - I think thats an oversimplication. It was weird seeing Will Smith look so old and ungoofy, but I was impressed. I think I might just buy this one when it comes out on DVD (high praise from me). I think among its best points is that it made the concept of poverty for normal, well intentioned people, far more real to me. How it impacts your ability have choices, the stress of fearing bills and no support system to fall back on. An interesting and related Toronto Star article "War on Poverty" compliments this topic well. Actually, the Star has been running a series on Poverty lately, many of which are superb.

Not much other news. Watch for an upcoming series of old photograph taken by my gradparents. My grandfather has offered to work with me to tell the stories behind some of the pictures- like the one above. Sometimes - the sorries may appear as comments and sometimes they may appear as edits to the original post - which I'll put back links to in new posts so you'll know to check them again. This picture - I think will require some explaining, however, you'll have to wait for it later - not the elk?? Caribou?? swimming in the water.

I'll leave you in suspense for now...

Cheers,

Jennith

Thank You Kindly - and all I want for Christmas is 8 uninterupted hours of sleep

I have to admit that the graphic above (obviously) is not my doing or work. I obtained from the following fan web site. Why post it? Well - I don't really care that much about Paul Gross, however, I harbour significant affection for Benton Fraser of Due South Fame, his best character.

I was needing inspiration - What would Fraser do when faced with an unpleasant and daunting task? Probably tell an Inuit tale and buckle down and "suck it up". So here I will try to go Fraser style into another long night of writing.

I have a couple of links I wanted to share, but I won't have time to edit my template before I forget about them.

Inuktitut Snow Lexemes
M.I.L.K. Project (Moments of intamicy, love and kindness)

Ca c'est for today and probably tommorrow - I'm cashing in on that nice chunk of sleep soon hopefully.

Cheers,

Jennith

Little House on the Barrens

Gabe recently spent a day scanning old photos my grandfather too while working up north. (I do come by it honestly.) I love old pictures - and this would be my perfect first house complete with scraggley spruce, and a location undoubtedly proximate to a bog. They really don't make homes like they used to.

Truthfully, the urge to go north is still strong in me - unless you've lived in a remote community you probably can't understand the sense of isolation, which although occasionally is frustrating, more often it left me feeling a sort of peace impossible to capture in the city or even in Sussex, NB. The cold too. The bone wrenching, unrelenting cold of the north - unafraid to dip below -40 C - there is a quiet in that cold (and it not just being muffle in a fir trimmed parka and a few dozen layers of clothes) thatRobert Service captured in Sam McGee. I like it. I like having snow all winter and I like being able to guess the degree of coldness from tone of the squeaking-to-crunching snow under your feet. I like the hiss of grainy snow blowing over sculpted snow and the smell of woodsmoke.

So, I'm crazy. This being my first winter in Southern Ontario in 12 years (I spent 5 in TB, 1 in Kash and another 5 in the maritimes), I must admit to missing the more wintery weather I'd become accostumed to. But such is. Here is to winters of the future (immediate gradification preferred).

Funny - I wonder if this lack of winter (yes, I know everywhere else the country is having some real winter weather) will undermine our Canadianess?

Cheers,

Jennith of the North

Horescope creepily correct

"Your life may be quite noisy as tensions become obvious and there seems to be no way through an unpleasant situation. But, of course, there is a way, for circumstances will continue to change throughout the day. You still might be processing your feelings by the afternoon, but the problem itself could very well be in the past. Even if it feels uncomfortable, let your emotions run their course without too much interference from your analytical mind."

This is my google horescope for today. It is remarkabley accurate if you sub stress for tension. And kind of optimistic. Lets hope...

Jennith

Over the Rainbow

Ha! We finally got snow (much to the joy of Blue Mountain and all the tragically neglected skiers). I'm hoping to get my draft done soon - and hopefully that means time to go hiking, skiing and excerising and knitting and painting and reading and playing music. My most recent musical aquisition is a harmonica in C - my brother and I are trying to teach ourselves how.

Things are getting closer to done. I'm sort of multi-tasking right now - saying hi to Gabe and writing this post. The photo upload is working slowly - so no pics today.

Gabe and I are discussing stressful episodes of life... and I still have to say the day I had a mechanics exam and a soils exam on the same day with only 2 hours between. I think I'd had an exam the day before too. Soils was okay, but I really wanted to do well, but mechanics had been a rough class with most of us on the borderline of not passing. I did okay on soils - but my attempts at studying between exams were hopeless, so I finally went to the gym where the exams were being held and took a 30 minute nap and then did really well on the final. Sometimes sleeping is better than cramming....

I went to my first class of this semester - Stream Restoration. It looks like a lot of fun and a lot of reading, but intersting stuff. I heard lots of friendly biology stuff, so I think that I'm going to really like it and probably do fairly well. I also excited because we are also going to do a bit of stuff to do with wetlands. I could really see having a career in this area. My final course will be a watershed planning reading course next semester - then my life is writing, reading, field work, modelling, editing, more editing, stressing, stressing and more editing... then hopefully defending and graduating by next Christmas.

Gabe is telling me about his photography courses. They get to play with fun stuff. A bit better than trying to cram a zillion conflicting theories into my poor leaky brain.

A fish is swimming up a stream
Chasing the scent of an elusive dream
Barriers in his way he sees
Discontinuities....

Oh my...

Jennith

Updaticus

All right, another speed post in the moments of insanity between the lines of sanity on the pages of obscuritus internetus blogiae.

I've added a few new links - mostly to author's webpages - look left. I'd recomend Diana Gabaldon's in particular as she has a quirky sense of humour. On that topic, I read her Outlander series on the advice of my cousin "Liz" starting at girl guide camp - so the book, which has a few smutty moments got passed around among the senior staff. (Truth be told compare to a lot of books its fairly tame - if you want something a bit more riske - may I recomend any of the excellent books by Jacqueline Carey.) I also finally got my brother, his wife and my boyfriend reading the series. It might not be the deepest series I ever read, but boy is it fun. :D Her next book - well, eventually - but not coming soon.

Robin Hobb on the other hand is busily finishing the last book of her Soldier's Son Trilogy - It'll be a while before its out, but still exciting. Jacqueline Carey, the same as above, has a book scheduled to come out in June (YEAH! maybe by then I'll have time to read). Robert Jorden has been very ill - and may never finish his series, but the lastest news is good and it appears he is on the mend. Even David Usher is finishing his new album with the first single out soon and an upcoming tour. I guess I'd better get all my work done cause I have a ton to read - starting with Terie Garrison's Autumnquest. As for George R. R. Martin - he's also a bit behind on his next book and worrisomely old. Terry Goodkind also had dramatic health issues - appearantly resolved with good results - but no news on the last Wizard book.

Anywho,

Must run,

Jennith

Ottawa River Pictures

I'd actually love to hear what kind of superheroes you all turned out to be. :P Please feel free to comment.

Here is a quick poem:

The world is a wild run.
A saultation from heights
Into oncoming brights,
But in the long run, wickedly fun.

Jennith

P.S. The picture is from Ottawa in October on the nicest weekend all fall. I can't wait to actually go back their and see some of the museums

great superhero quiz :D

I always like spiderman best :D

Your results:
You are Spider-Man

Spider-Man 75% Superman 70% Iron Man 70% Robin 62% Hulk 55% The Flash 50% Supergirl 44% Wonder Woman 39% Catwoman 35% Batman 35% Green Lantern 30%

You are intelligent, witty, a bit geeky and have great power and responsibility.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

So I redid it today, and in spite of feeling kind of stressed - apparently I'm way more super, but not especially different in make up. I posted the link to Robin Hobb's fansite newsgroup. Robin Hobb came out most like the Hulk, but there were a few other spidermen too. I think someone found a link for a villian quiz, but they didn't post it.

Your results:
You are Spider-Man

Spider-Man 90% Superman 80% Robin 70% Hulk 60% Wonder Woman 57% Supergirl 52% The Flash 50% Green Lantern 45% Batman 40% Iron Man 35% Catwoman 30%

You are intelligent, witty, a bit geeky and have great power and responsibility.

Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...

other pic

Well, I managed to get two copies of the one of Amanda up and it utterly refused to upload the picture of me in the bog... So I settled for a picture of Margo and baby puppy in the hinterlands outside of Kash.

Quick - Look Left, Look Right

I've returned my blog columns to their original places after numerous requests. My brother explained precisely why it was a good idea several weeks ago, but I can't remember what it was.. it had to do with which part was cut off if the screen settings made the blog too wide.

Its been one of those painful, tailchasing days of slow spiralling progress. I've been circling my project, picking a bit at each piece and slowly getting somewhere, but I feel stressed to the max. I miss the days where I had straight forward problems that I could just solve and feel - I wish I could draw a picture and write out the problem on engineering paper - and better still find the instructions in some text book. Its coming. I'm looking forward to having it done.

When I haven't been entirely stressing about this paper, walking the dog, sleeping through movies or spending time with my family, I've been knitting - mostly while in the car. I have most of a neat scarf done - using funky multi-hued wool and the seed stitch. I have about half a ball left - maybe by the time I get home on Tuesday.

Well, back into the fray for me.... I just need to keep chugging away - looking for the light at the end of the tunnel. Or at least the station where I pick up about 3 more projects, but hopefully more straight forward ones.

Oh yeah! The photos were fantastic. The one photographer was a pre-wwII german photojournalist who captured a fascinating era with neat pictures, while Ansel Adams landscape prints were simply breath-taking. Now I really want to see Yosemite park!

Finally, the two pictures attached to this post are two of my favourites from Lakehead. One is me hunting for plants during a wetland biology lab, and the other is Amanda playing my acoustic in my Prettie single.

Too cute for words

You really have to see this - a series of pictures of a real life bambi-thumper relationship. Its as sweet as cotton candy and cute as nermal.

Star Article on the Flying Spagetti Monster

I can't say this is the best article ever, but I like the Flying Spagetti Monster.

Sunday Bloody Sunday

A long time favourite song of mine, U2's Sunday, Bloody Sunday - continues to retain its relevance so many years later. There are people in the world who dedicate so much of their lives to doing good - from volunteer firefighters to candystripers to those people who pick up their lives and move to war torn 3rd world countries to do what they can to help. Conversely, there are people who's greed, stupidity and apathy constantly cause misery and pain. I can understand those who are willing to give up their cosy North American life to make a difference, and certainly I can see circumstances that lead people to a life of being a desparate criminal - but again, out there are true sociopaths - some with power (Hilter, Sadam Hussain) and others simply random psycho's who feel no remorse for raping, killing, stealing or destroying lives, familys or the world. This I cannot begin to understand. This is why I cringe when reading the newpaper - even in the relatively safe world of the GTA - mothers are shot dead when they open the door, children are abused and works of art and history are destroyed for quick cash. Alas for the human race.... hopefully one day we'll find ourselves a better species.

Jennith

AGO bound

We are off to see Ansel Adams and company at the AGO today. I don't know much except that there is an exhibit of classic photography - naturally Gabe is much more excited since he knows the history of the photographers. I'm looking forward to a long standing tradition with my Grandmother of visiting art galleries.

I'm posting from my brothers computer and I marvel at the difference in appearance of the colours on my blog compared to my own or the ones at school. Actually, I like it better on his. Hopefully, the contrast is good enough for people to read and stuff. I can't post picture from here.

Wait I found a historic picture of my grandma canoeing. :D

Jenn

Picasa Disconnect

Well, I'm missing 2 short posts from picasa... maybe three...but posts directly from blogger are working. I'm sure they'll turn up eventually.

Jenn

Missing Posts - Oh Where oh Where could my little posts be

Well, last time I attempted to post and nothing showed up - they reappeared several days later - WHere do posts go during that time is not for me to know - perhaps I don't want to know.

The look of boing

I'm not sure what Gabe was doing when I took the picture - but he does have an entertaining look upon his face. I couldn't help but post.

I have just recieved official go ahead to switch to the new version of blogger. Hopefully, it won't result in catastrophe, but Geoff has tested it and says he didn't have any problems which is a good omen.

Cheers,

Jennith 

Familiar Faces

Well, Em turned the big three oh, providing an excellent opportunity to meet with old friends. I'm not sure about the shaved head, but Jason looked about the same as ever - good to see hes still a leafs fan (or at least likes them well enough to wear their hat in public.) I believe that Gabe has now met nearly all of my highschool friends and he's still speaking to me - so all is well. Actually, I had a blast at the party - hanging out with parents - thus a great deal of the discussion centred on car seat law, infant language acquisition and child care, but still entertaining. People have changed remarkably little.... mellowed some - but not real shockers.

Myself - I'm insanely busy for the next 4 months, but especially the next 4-5 weeks - so I appologize in advance for fewer and shorter posts likely with worse pictures and spelling. I'll keep you posted as I return to the swing of student life.

Cheers,

Jennith 

Hiking in Fundy

Here is Gabe and his sister after a 15 km hike in Fundy. I made it, although admittedly I've been in better shape. However, I've been working on my fitness over the holiday and hope to be ready for a busy outdoor summer including long hours of field work and some good hiking.

We are off to my grandparents for supper - the first time having all of us together for a long time. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Jennith