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BMO Takes on the Big Boys

BMO has announced some interesting new changes to some of the ETFs—and one of them may lead to the first genuine price war in the Canadian marketplace.

The company recently announced that the BMO Dow Jones Canada Titans 60 Index ETF (ZCN) will soon be pegged to the S&P/TSX Capped Composite Index, the most widely tracked Canadian equity benchmark. That will increase the number of holdings in the fund from 60 to almost 250, since the broader index includes mid-cap and small stocks as well as large caps. In addition, the BMO US Equity Index ETF (ZUE) will begin tracking the S&P 500. It will grow its holdings from 282 to 500 stocks, though it remains confined to large caps.

BMO says the changes were prompted by requests from advisors who wanted funds that tracked the better-known indexes from S&P. The Dow Jones benchmarks the funds currently use were created specifically for the BMO funds when they were launched in 2009.

Head-to-head with the giants

This is an interesting development in the Canadian ETF market. As most Couch Potatoes will recognize, the revamped ZCN and ZUE will track the same indexes as the iShares S&P/TSX Capped Composite (XIC) and the iShares S&P 500 (XSP), two of the oldest ETFs in the country. With a management fee of just 0.15%, ZCN will be doing so for 10 basis points less. What’s more, the BMO fund is quickly gaining in size: it has already passed $900 million in assets, compared with $1.2 billion for XIC.

All other things being equal, investors prefer index funds with a large asset base, since these tend to be more efficient. ZCN’s former index tracked 60 large-cap companies, which made it a virtual clone of the iShares S&P/TSX 60 (XIU), the largest and most frequently traded ETF in Canada, and also one of the cheapest. That made it awfully tough for ZCN to grab any significant market share. But now that it’s going head-to-head with XIC, the BMO fund can claim a competitive advantage: the two funds track the same index, with a similar asset base, and ZCN offers a significantly lower fee. This could be the first time a competitor takes a real run at one of iShares’ largest ETFs—something even Vanguard hasn’t been able to do yet.

The changes to the BMO US Equity Index ETF (ZUE) are less likely to make a splash. The iShares incumbent, with over $1.5 billion in assets, is seven times the size, and ZUE is a mere two basis points cheaper. That offers no incentive for investors in XSP to switch funds. And, really, the last thing Canadian investors need is another S&P 500 index fund that’s hedged to the Canadian dollar. When will someone step up and launch a broad-based US equity fund without currency hedging?

The proposed changes will be voted on during a meeting on September 13, and if they’re approved the names of the funds will be changed accordingly—to the BMO S&P/TSX Capped Composite Index ETF and the BMO S&P 500 Hedged to CAD Index ETF—though the ticker symbols will remain the same.

27 Responses to BMO Takes on the Big Boys

  1. Francis August 27, 2012 at 2:00 pm #

    Does ZCN already made the change to is ETF or we have to wait for September 15 to see more stock and less MER

  2. J A H August 27, 2012 at 4:08 pm #

    On the assumption that XIC and ZCN will end up the same, is there any reason for those holding over $20,000 in XIC to not switch over and save the 10 basis points in the coming year (assuming 2 x $9.95 in transaction costs).

  3. Canadian Couch Potato August 27, 2012 at 6:09 pm #

    @Francis: The changes will not take place until after the September vote. Note you will not see “less MER”: the MER will remain unchanged, though it will be lower than the fee on XIC.

    @JAH: It might be reasonable to wait a year or so to see whether ZCN tracks the index accurately. I doubt that will be an issue, but I’m going to wait before switching the recommend ETF in my model portfolios for that reason.

  4. ACMZ August 27, 2012 at 7:05 pm #

    Has BMO confirm that the MER will not change? Seems to me if you have to manage more, the fee should reflect that, or are we seeing the end of the gravy train for ishares?

  5. Canadian Couch Potato August 27, 2012 at 9:07 pm #

    @ACMZ: Yes, BMO has confirmed that the MER will not increase after the changes to the indexes.

  6. gsp August 28, 2012 at 1:55 am #

    J A H, one reason would be those of us who are in a capital gain position on XIC in non registered accounts and prefer to defer the taxes.

  7. Darby August 28, 2012 at 8:47 am #

    Below is an article posted on the TDWaterhouse site. Could you comment on these new low volatility funds please.

    ETFs for a twitchy stock market
    Aug 23, 2012 by Rob Carrick

    The ETF industry is turning its attention in a big way to investors who want exposure to stocks, but hate the sharp ups and downs.

    Blackrock’s iShares family has just introduced five minimum volatility funds covering Canadian, U.S. and global markets. They join the BMO Low Volatility Canadian Equity ETF, which was introduced last October and has so far attracted a reasonably impressive $25-million in assets. Expect to see more of these low volatility products because they have the potential to solve the investor’s dilemma of how to invest at a time when bond yields are low and stock markets are as twitchy as ever.

    The five new Blackrock ETFs are:
    -The iShares MSCI Canada Minimum Volatility Index Fund (XMV)
    -The iShares MSCI USA Minimum Volatility Index Fund (XMU)
    -The iShares MSCI EAFE Minimum Volatility Index Fund (XMI)
    -The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Minimum Volatility Index Fund (XMM)
    -The iShares MSCI All Country World Minimum Volatility Index Fund (XMW)

    Each of these ETFs tracks an index built on stocks that show lower volatility than their peers. A screening process is then applied to weight individual stocks in a way that further lessens risk. An important feature of these ETFs is that they give you complete exposure to their respective equity categories rather than simply focusing on comparatively conservative sectors like utilities or consumer staples.

    An example is XMV, which is like other broad Canadian market ETFs in that energy and banks and materials are the three largest sectors. However, the three add up to a little over 50 per cent of the total, compared to something like 75 per cent for conventional broad market ETFs.

    BMO’s ZLB offers a clue of how low volatility ETFs perform. The more conventional BMO Dow Jones Canada Titans 60 Index ETF (ZCN) rose 1.9 per cent for the year through Aug. 20, while ZLB made 7.2 per cent. In the fast-rising markets of August, ZLB made 2 per cent and ZCN made 4.4 per cent. To sum up, low volatility ETFs should offer better returns in challenging market conditions, while conventional ETFs will do better in fast-rising markets.

    Low volatility ETFs still need to prove themselves in a severe stock market decline, but early indications are that they’re worth a look for investors who want exposure to stocks, but are nervous about the ups and downs.

  8. J A H August 28, 2012 at 9:53 am #

    I was thinking about the capital gain position as I walked home, which needs to be mentioned. I left that out of my own thinking probably because my position is relatively new and has yet to grow so much as to be an issue. And yes, those who have had a lot of growth in XIC are not going to want to move it if their tax payment is going to dwarf the savings on MER.

  9. Canadian Couch Potato August 28, 2012 at 1:32 pm #

    @Darby: I’m planning on doing a detailed post or two about these in the future. Stay tuned.

  10. Andrew F August 29, 2012 at 10:45 am #

    This moves makes sense. I thought BMO using a different index (Dow Jones Titans) was mistake from a marketing perspective. Perhaps it was a cost-saving measure. The interesting thing to see going forward is how many ETF providers begin to move to their own passive indexes to avoid paying substantial licensing costs to index providers. Hopefully the threat of changing indexes keeps the index providers honest.

  11. Park August 30, 2012 at 5:47 am #

    “When will someone step up and launch a broad-based US equity fund without currency hedging?”

    I agree completely. Also, when will someone offer an ETF, which invests outside Canada/USA, and which I can get tax credits for foreign withholding taxes?

  12. BC_Doc August 31, 2012 at 4:15 am #

    “When will someone step up and launch a broad-based US equity fund without currency hedging?”

    I agree completely. Also, when will someone offer an ETF, which invests outside Canada/USA, and which I can get tax credits for foreign withholding taxes?”

    I will second (and third) these statements! I am waiting for similarly priced versions of VT, VTI, and VEU traded on the TSX. Hopefully someone from Vanguard Canada is following this post…

  13. MKlee September 1, 2012 at 9:12 pm #

    I understand why anyone would go with the ETFs from BMO. If I want to purchase an ETF that follows the S&P 500 and is hedged to the Canadian dollar, I might as well go for VUS from Vanguard rather than ZUE. MER on VUS is only 0.17%, after all. For Canadian equities, VCE is the best bet. MER is 0.11%

  14. Jenn September 5, 2012 at 10:21 am #

    I’m not happy with this change. I wanted an ETF that followed an index of the 60 large cap. I already had XMD for the completion. I chose ZCN over XIU because it’s index capped each company at 10% (XIU wasn’t capped).

  15. Canadian Couch Potato September 5, 2012 at 10:33 am #

    @Jenn: It’s true that XIU is not capped, but that’s a moot point, given that no stock in the index is close to 10%. That might happen in the future, of course, but the chances of another Nortel-type situation (with one company making up 30% or more) seem rather remote. And, of course, that would not happen overnight, so you could always make adjustments if one company did begin to dominate.

  16. Tommy P September 14, 2012 at 8:14 pm #

    Any idea if the change for ZCN has been approved and if approved when it will be effective?

  17. Canadian Couch Potato September 15, 2012 at 12:29 am #

    @Tommy: Just got the notice from BMO today. All five index changes have been approved. ZCN, ZUE, ZGI will switch after the market close on Sept 21. ZCH and ZID will do so after September 28.

  18. novice investor December 27, 2012 at 11:44 pm #

    I do not want to spend too much on per unit price and neither like to convert to US currency. Any pointers/education to consider in your view for the following.
    VFV/ZUE vs VTI
    VEF vs VXUS

  19. Canadian Couch Potato December 27, 2012 at 11:51 pm #

    @Novice: VFV (or ZSP) are closer to VTI than ZUE, because ZUE uses currency hedging, while the others do not. My preference is to avoid currency hedging.

    VEF uses currency hedging, and unlike VXUS, it does not include emerging markets. It’s a reasonable choice for some global exposure, but the fact is there just aren’t very good international equity ETFs in Canada.

    I’m not sure why the unit price is relevant to the decision. It really has almost no bearing on anything important.

  20. novice investor December 29, 2012 at 12:46 am #

    Again, I again admit my novice knowledge … I understood that yield/return is distributed based on number of units purchased… please educate?

    Could you comment if XWD be a better choice to replace VXUS?

    Any ideas for “Canadian” replacement for VXUS and VTI inside RESP?

  21. Canadian Couch Potato December 29, 2012 at 2:31 pm #

    @Novice: The unit price of comparable funds is not relevant. Think of it like this: if you are shopping for cheese and there are two bricks, one selling for $3 and another for $6, which one you would buy? Your answer should be, “It depends how big the bricks are.” If the $3 brick is half the size of the $6 one, it makes no difference which one you buy: both fairly reflect the value of the asset. The same is true of ETFs: funds that trade with a higher unit price reflect the fact that each unit represents more assets. That’s why yield is expressed as a percentage and not in terms of a dollar amount.

    XWD holds US and European/Japanese stocks, while VXUS holds all countries except the US. They are very different. Unfortunately, there is no Canadian substitute for VXUS.

    If you are building an RESP portfolio, I would recommend avoiding ETFs altogether and keeping things very simple:

  22. harry October 13, 2013 at 10:54 am #

    which sp 500 etf would you buy

  23. Canadian Couch Potato October 13, 2013 at 1:12 pm #

    @Harry: ZSP, VFV and XUS are virtually identical, so take your pick.

  24. mark December 9, 2013 at 4:33 pm #

    Larry Berman on BNN, threw this name around SDIV, Global x’s SuperDividend ETF.
    It has a awesome yield of 7 percent for the etf.
    Any thoughts about including in a CP portfolio? Maybe 5-10 percent?

  25. Andrew F December 9, 2013 at 4:48 pm #

    Do you expect that ETF to have a superior total return to a simple cap-weighted index of foreign stocks? For comparison, VT (Vanguard total world stock market ETF) returned over 20% in the past year, while SDIV returned about 12%.

    Do you want it for yield? Yield is pretty much irrelevant when it comes to equities.

  1. Best of Blogs - Alberta Primetime - August 31, 2012

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CanCham - Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam

SALSA RESTAURANT Spicing Up Nguyen Hue Boulevard with Authentic Latin American Cuisine

Ho Chi Minh City, January 18th, 2017 – Times Square (Vietnam) Investment Joint Stock Company has expanded its restaurant portfolio with the opening of the Latin American restaurant ‘Salsa’ on January 18th at the heart of Saigon on Nguyen Hue Boulevard. Salsa will be managed by Windsor Property Management Group Corporation (WMC Group), a hospitality and property management company located in Ho Chi Minh City.

Salsa Restaurant presents a gourmet experience of traditional Brazilian, Mexican, Peruvian, and other Latin American dishes from Brazilian Chef Marcelo Geraldini, available for dine-in or take-away. With signature dishes including Carne Asada, Peruvian Ceviche, Fajitas, Tacos, and Alitas de Pollo, one is sure to experience a gastronomic adventure touring through Middle and South American culinary favorites.

“We are delighted to introduce authentic Latin American cuisine at Salsa Restaurant,” said Mr. Kai Speth, Vice President Operations and Business Performance of WMC Group. “The latest addition to Saigon’s restaurant scene brings new flavors for a fun and flavorful dining experience. Salsa Restaurant further diversifies our group’s portfolio of dining offers in Ho Chi Minh City.”

Located at the heart of Saigon, Salsa Restaurant is set to tantalize taste buds on Nguyen Hue Boulevard in a two story adobe adjacent to the Times Square Building. Featuring a Latin-American inspired theme throughout, the restaurant presents quaint seating for a quick lunch or dinner. And in the evening, it serves up classic cocktails like margaritas, caipirinhas, and daiquiris from the skilled bartender.

Salsa Restaurant

20 Nguyen Hue Blvd., District 1, Ho Chi Minh City

T: (84.8) 3982 6688 | F: (84.8) 3822 3355

Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Open daily from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm

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The online journal of Vermont filmmaker, Bill Simmon.

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2011 year in [geek] review

Posted on Dec 29, 2011 by billsimmon in movies, SF, TV | 7 Comments

Cross-posted at Geek Mountain State.

Andrew at Geek Mountain State asked me to write a post looking back at nerdy stuff in 2011. I didn’t see every movie or play every video game, so this isn’t an all-encompassing year-in-review post, but as I made my notes preparing to write the thing, I realized it was a pretty full year, as nerdy pursuits go. What follows is a subject-by-subject look at some of the nerdy things that I personally enjoyed in 2011.

There were several super hero films this summer (which seems to be typical nowadays). I missed the one most folks were panning (Green Lantern) but I think I caught the rest of them. The production design was lovely in X-Men First Class, but the film suffered from egregious retconning and some fairly blatant racism and sexism (I know the film is set in the 60s when these were bigger cultural problems than they are now, but did they really have to kill the black super hero first? Really?). I think I would have enjoyed seeing a whole movie devoted to scenes of Magneto jet setting around in the 1960s and hunting down Nazis.

My favorite super hero film was Captain America by a mile. It managed to live up to its source material and tell a compelling self-contained story (unlike Thor, for example) and managed to perk up my interest in anticipation of next summer’s Avengers film all at the same time.

My actual favorite genre film of 2011 is a straight up tie between Stephen Soderbergh’s Contagion and Matthijs van Heijningen Jr.’s The Thing. Contagion is really more of a science thriller than a science fiction film. It’s beautifully shot, directed and edited and it will make you hyper conscious of just how much you touch your own face. It’s the 2001: a Space Odyssey of pandemic films in that it nails the science behind the story so well. Narratively, Contagion plays out a bit like Soderbergh’s war-on-drugs polemic, Traffic, as it’s populated by an ensemble cast of loosely connected characters in different parts of the world who are affected by the outbreak in various ways.

The Thing is something special and something I’ve never seen done on film before. Here’s what I wrote in a Candleblog post that I never published:

Remakes are tricky. The problem is that nobody wants to remake crappy movies — everyone wants to remake classics, which is problematic because the classic films are already great. Remakes have an uphill battle trying to live up to these great original films and few succeed. Go ahead. Try and think of a great remake. The list is really short. Indeed some will  argue that John Carpenter’s 1982 version of The Thing is actually the best remake ever (though technically, Carpenter’s film is not so much  a “remake” of Howard Hawkes’ 1952 classic, The Thing From Another World, as it is a retelling of John Campbell’s science fiction short story, Who Goes There).

Prequels are even trickier. Just ask George Lucas. A successful prequel has to not only stand alone as its own film, it has to live up to the quality of the film it’s setting up and it has to do so while explicitly revealing the on-screen actions that led to what may have been merely throw-away backstory elements in the original. Think of all the acrobatic shenanigans Lucas had to go through at the end of Revenge of the Sith to get all the characters in the right places for the beginning of Star Wars — wipe the protocol droid’s memory, but don’t bother with the R2 unit, he seems harmless enough; Bail Organa always wanted a little princess; Yoda is the greatest Jedi master in the galaxy but he dropped his lightsaber once so now he must exile himself to a swamp world, etc.

Keep these issues in mind as you watch Matthijs van Heijningen’s new version of The Thing, because this film has done something I think no other film has ever done: it’s both a successful remake and a successful prequel. It achieves the goals of both.

I wouldn’t change a word of that. Van Heijningen made a film that is a loving tribute to the original, recreating the basic plot, tension and (nearly) specific scenes of Carpenter’s iteration. The characters’ names and faces are different, but the monster is the same, the setting is essentially the same, and up until the film’s final moments, the basic narrative is the same, as the eponymous Thing picks off the ice station crew members one by one. So it works as a remake of Carpenter’s film, but it’s also a very specific prequel — so meticulously crafted that an uninitiated viewer watching the films back to back might think they were made at the same time. And despite the perfect attention to detail spent getting all of the various pieces in place for the start of Carpenter’s film, almost none of it feels forced or tacked-on (one exception being the ice station crew member who commits suicide by cutting his own throat, just to establish one shot in the 1982 film). I’m hoping van Heijningen has started a trend and that Ridley Scott’s Prometheus will be the next example of this sort of film.

Honorable mention: Attack the Block.

Special Worst Genre Film of 2011 Award: Transformers: Dark of the Moon (see my review here)

I’m a terribly slow reader so my best-of list of genre books will be short. I recently finished Stephen King’s 11/22/63, which is part time travel adventure, part historical fiction and part romance, none of which immediately strike me as Stephen King genres. It’s a great yarn but the SF nerd in me kept asking needling questions about the mechanics of time travel that King never bothered to answer.

Speaking of time travel adventures and historical fiction, my favorite SF book of 2011 was Connie Willis’ All Clear, which was part two of a two-part story begun last year (the first part was called Blackout). These books are set in my favorite of Willis’ universes (visited before in Doomsday Book and To Say Nothing of the Dog) in which our heroes journey from the time-traveling future of Oxford, England circa 2060 to various points during WWII and then get stuck there.

On my bookshelf now, waiting to be read next are two other 2011 publications, Neil Stephenson’s REAMDE and Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One. Those will have to wait for my 2012 year-in-review post.

Game of Thrones
is the obvious 2011 champion of genre TV. Its loving devotion to the source material is inspiring and its slow-burn storytelling is something I’d like to see more of on TV. Matt Zoller Seitz (one of the best TV writers working now, IMO) described the second half of GoT season one as “The Godfather with swordplay and dragon’s eggs.” Yup. It’s that good.

2011 was also the year my wife and I finally caught up with Fringe and I can safely say that seasons two and three of that show comprise some of the finest SF TV I’ve ever seen.

I should also mention that SyFy’s version of Being Human turned out to be surprisingly good. (As good at the BBC version? Opinions vary.) Falling Skies is the show V really should have been and Walking Dead had a marginally better season than last year.

I couldn’t do a year-end round up of genre TV for 2011 without mentioning the insipid and blisteringly stupid NBC show, The Cape. Cancellation is too good for this turd. Every copy must be destroyed.

I should mention at the outset that I am not a fan of RPG video games. I like my RPGs the classic way — with dice. I mention this because Skyrim does not top my 2011 list, nor does it even make an appearance. I played a little bit of Oblivion once and let’s just say it doesn’t matter how much better Skyrim is, I’m not going to play it.

I did, however, spend a few too many hours playing L.A. Noire from Rockstar Games. I’m a sucker for anything even vaguely GTA-related and LA Noir is like GTA in 1940s LA, only you have to question witnesses. If you play it, do it in B&W. It was designed to be played that way and it really adds to the experience.

Dead Island had the best video game trailer of the year, for sure. Game play is your standard zombie romp, but set in a beautiful tropical locale.

The best video game of 2011 for me was Portal 2. I actually finished it (I rarely actually complete video game stories). It one-ups the brilliant original in two important ways: first, it expands on the physics, introducing new ways to navigate the crazy puzzles that are just as fun as the stuff in the first game; and second, the story is greatly expanded, including a compelling back story, new characters (Wheatly FTW!) and some of the funniest writing in any genre of any storytelling medium this year.

I wanted to include a best-of comics section in this post but I read so few comics this year it just wouldn’t be worth a damn. But I’ll take the opportunity to plug my friend Alex’s excellent SF romance webcomic, Artifice. I’ll make it a New Year’s resolution to read more comics in 2012.

I had some pretty great nerdy real-life experiences this year too. In Austin in March during SXSW I saw Harry Knowles from Ain’t It Cool News interview Guillermo del Toro about horror/fantasy movies on the stage of the Paramount Theater. Also at SXSW, I caught a couple of podcast tapings of Doug Loves Movies, featuring Simon Pegg, director James Gunn (Slither, Super), Rain Wilson, Dave Foley, Kevin Pollack and others. That was pretty great. I also saw They Might Be Giants play a show with Jonathan Coulton on a beautiful late summer evening in Norwich, VT. I interviewed biologist Craig Venter for a magazine article last January. Venter is the guy who created “artificial DNA” in a laboratory and was on the team that first sequenced the human genome. And my wife Emily’s knitted creations got some podcast and twitter love from the Nerdist himself, Chris Hardwick.

I’m sure 2012 will be even nerdier. The Mayans predicted it! See you next year.

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  1. I went into Cap’n America with high expectations, and Thor with extremely low ones. As a result I ended up severely disappointed with America, but thoroughly enjoyed Thor.

    I’d like to recommend Patrick Lee’s 2010-2011 “Breach” trilogy, The Breach, Ghost Country and Deep Sky as the Sci-Fi of the year. In spite of certain appearances it is definitely Sci-Fi, and perhaps the best of its particular kind I’ve read, in my 30-plus years of reading Sci-Fi. I actually can’t say what it’s specialty is without a spoiler…suffice it to say, it’s an incredible job of leading up the the conclusion of the third book (released this week).

    Game of Thrones has bored me to tears. But then, I always thought the books were incredibly overrated potboilers.

    For games, I’m still working on Dragon Age–although persistent DRM/add-on authorization problems have just about ruined it for me.

  2. On December 30, 2011, Raedia said:

    I scoff at your puny games review! Here are my favorites of the year, in approximate order:

    Indie Games:
    Iron Brigade

    Big Releases:
    Portal 2
    Dragon Age 2
    Gears of War 3
    Deux Ex: Human Revolution
    Assassin’s Creed Revelations
    Batman Arkham City
    L.A. Noire

  3. Rae – I have no problem with any of your game choices, except one. Dragon Age 2 was a huge disappointment for me. I found the combat to be spastic and irritating — things are either moving too fast or paused at an arbitrary moment either just too soon or just too late to give an appropriate command — and as with DA:O, I continue to find the world deliberately mundane and colorless.

    Were you playing it on PC or console? I was on console — do you think that makes a difference?

  4. On December 30, 2011, billsimmon said:

    I can’t believe I forgot about Rise of the Planet of the Apes. I actually really liked that film. It doesn’t change my best-of picks, but it’s a runner up (despite the fact that, as Emily points out, the title contains a double “of the,” which is way awkward).

  5. On December 31, 2011, Raedia said:

    Alex – I never played DA Origins, but I got DA 2 for Xbox and I thought it was great. I’m a big bioware fan and I love the stories and personalities they put in there. (I’m playing Skyrim now, and I miss the unique individuals that DA had. Though Skyrim has a more fun and developed world, for sure). With combat, I really took advantage of the tactics system, so that I didn’t have to micromanage during battles too much. YMMV though!

  6. On January 14, 2012, Alex C said:

    Game Informer magazine agrees with me. From their Top 10 Disappointments of 2011 article:

    Dragon Age II

    Even as we marveled at the advancements in the Mass Effect series, longtime BioWare fans loved Dragon Age: Origins for sticking close to the company’s turn-based, epic fantasy past. However, the rushed and misguided sequel felt like a slap to that core audience, with its stripped down, shallow button-mashing combat, small world, repetitive dungeons, and poor storytelling. This was the rare BioWare title that felt rushed and – even worse – halfhearted.

    Elder Scrolls Bugs

    We love The Elder Scrolls V. It’s our Game of the Year for a reason. You know what we don’t love? Having to keep 100 different save files because we spend our time in Skyrim in constant fear of random, quest-breaking bugs. From skeleton dragons flying backwards to giants sending guards hurtling into orbit, we’ve seen it all when it comes to bugs in this game. While patches have helped, your time in Skyrim may always be a buggy experience, and that’s a shame.

    (And they must be right, since according to their web site, “Today, one in every forty people in the United States subscribes to Game Informer. With over 7 million paid subscribers, the popularity of the magazine has grown to become the 4th overall largest consumer publication in the United States.”)

  7. On January 23, 2012, Alex C said:

    Sorry to beat a dead comment thread, but thanks to GameFly, I just played Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2, a spastic button masher with explosions and XP, which was clearly the inspiration for Dragon Age 2.

    (It’s a pretty mediocre game, but at least they were trying to add RPG elements to a 3rd-person action game, not trying to dumb down a real RPG.)

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Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Snake Boy's Story

Do you know Snake Boy's story? I made it up. Ok, we'll go on with the story. Once apon a time there was a kid. He was walking to find some place to camp. Then, a snake bit him. It pulled him down it's snake hole. Down there, was a whole other world. Standing beside him was his car. Later he came out with his car without a college degree or a driver's license.

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Culture Shocks for an American in Canada

I suppose it was foolish of me to think I would not experience culture shock when I moved four hours away from Ohio to Ontario, Canada. Foolish or not, I was wrong.

Language Differences
My husband, who is Canadian by birth and lived most of his life in Canada, has no accent or strange speech habits.  I've heard the "eh" jokes in reference to Canadian lingo most of my life and didn't get it when I became a resident.  I've almost never heard "eh" in conversation.  I have heard it, but not much.  There are other things though.

Some pronunciations are different.  For instance when I pronounce "been" it sounds like bin.  But Canadian newscasters and educators say it like I say "bean."  It makes my ears tickle.

Like Bostonians, the accepted proper Canadian pronunciation of pasta is "pass-tah".  With an emphasis on the the first syllable.  Again:  ear tickles.

The article "a", as in I ate a single grape is pronounced the same as the a in apple.  My youngest children learned to read in Canada and each would correct me when I'd correct them over their pronunciation of the article "a".  It seems odd to me to say "a" like apple and not like ape. I don't hear this in everyday conversation, though.

The letter z has a name and it is not Zee.  It is Zed.  If you say Zee you are outing yourself as an American. (Though I cannot help but see an elderly, white-haired wizard anytime "Zed" is mentioned.  "Bags!" Now if you get that reference, you're a nerd like me ;) )

The other ear tickler is the word drama.  It's pronounced DRAM - uh here with emphasis on the first syllable and the first "a" is clearly an apple "a", unlike what I'm used to hearing which is more of a soft "o" sound or shortened "aw" sound.

Again!  Oh man, this is like a gain.  I'm used to uhgen with a hard g.  Nope.  They really emphasize that long hard A sound in the second syllable.

Sorry...actually I think Canadians probably pronounce things more like they should be pronounced based on the sounds of English letters, but still, I'm accustomed to different pronunciations so "sorry" to me sounds very much like sari but in Canada it's like sore- ee.

I'm sure there is more but I'll stop there and move on to something else.

Canadian Cigarettes
To an American these are weird.  The Canadian government has gone to great lengths to curb smoking and prevent prospective new smokers from ever wanting to pick up the habit.  In Canada the standard pack size contains 30 cigarettes (they do sell 20 packs, but people only buy those when they're short on cash.) Canadian cigarettes are very expensive.  $10 a pack for decent ones.  $7 a pack for economy ones.  If you're adventurous you'll buy what's called "reserves" but I'll discuss that later.

Many years ago the Canadian government required cigarette manufacturers to cover HALF the cigarette package with graphic health warnings.  Those warnings are:

These are on every pack of Canadian cigarettes.  On one side they're in English, on the other side they're in French.  Same pictures.  My favourite is the impotency one.  I'm a girl and impotency doesn't scare me so much.  I hate the bloody brain, rotting teeth, and diseased lungs ones though.

Canadian cigarette packs also list all their toxic emissions and the percentage of each chemical:  Tar, Nicotine, Carbon Monoxide, Formaldehyde, Hydrogen Cyanide and Benzene.

Those who wish to avoid the $10/pack fee for cigarettes, and those with Native status, will buy their cigarettes on a Native Reserve for about $15/carton.  They come in giant ziploc bags which contain 200 cigarettes (pictured on the bottom two shelves):
There has been a large anti-reserve cigarettes campaign, however, with warnings about the dangers of these "unregulated" cigarettes.  (They are unregulated because they're made in factories on Native Reservations, which are sovereign from the Canadian Government so unregulated by the Canadian Government.)  According to billboards and print ads that have been appearing all over Canada these "Cheap Smokes" "contain insect eggs, mold and human feces." I suspect the Canadian Government is somewhat annoyed that it's not collecting its $7 taxes per pack that it does on other cigarettes sold here. (I have to admit I do wonder how exactly human feces can be in cigarettes....?  Then I try not to think about it any more!)

And by the way, nobody smokes "cigarettes" in Canada -- they're called "smokes" here.

Highways and Byways
In the states I was accustomed to routing many drives many different ways.  Going between two main cities, I could choose a few different routes based on traffic or construction or scenery if I wanted.  That's not very likely here.

Canada's got a couple highways. I do mean a couple. There seems to be one going north to south in Ontario and another going east to west across the entire country. There are no more. That's it. Want to find a quicker route from Niagara to Toronto? Want to avoid the holiday weekend traffic?  Want to avoid the construction?  HA! Unless you're swimming or flying, there is ONE WAY to drive it and one way only.

And for those who weren't aware, Ontario is the center of the universe. Just so ya know. Other Canadians are a bit miffed that darned near everything in Canada is in Ontario, but it seems to have worked out that way. Sorry. I didn't do it. I just enjoy the benefits of it.  (40% of Canada's population resides in Ontario.  In a way this center-of-the-universe thing makes sense once you know that.)

Hopefully no one thinks I am poking fun at Canada.  I love it here.  I love the land, the scenery, the people, the sense of community in every community I've lived.  There's more, but I'll save it for another day.

Bzzing about Danactive

No, that's not a typo.  Bzzing is what a Bzzagent does.  BzzAgent is a word-of-mouth marketing company.  Bzzagents are people who receive products or offers to try products and then review and bzz about those products.  Bzzagents can earn rewards for their bzzing, but we are not paid to say nice things about products.  In fact, we're expected to be honest.

If there is a fault I have (okay, one among many) it is brutal honesty.  When I bzz about anything, whether I was introduced to it by BzzAgent or stumbled across it all on my lonesome, that bzz is my honest experience.

About a month ago I received the DanActive bzz kit which included several DanActive coupons, one for a free 4-pack, and a stack of cards containing contest pins for a current DanActive contest.

Danone (Dannon in the states) tells us that DanActive promotes a healthy immune system with its proprietary probiotic culture L. Casei Defensis(TM).  Actually, I phrased that rather mildly.  Danone tells us that DanActive "strengthens our bodies' natural defenses to harmful bacteria from our environment."

I've seen the commercials for ages.  What did they make me think?  Snake oil!  They're selling some snake oil on the heels of a snake infestation!

Danone assumes that people don't know about healthy gut bacteria.  Yes, our guts -- meaning our entire digestive tracts from top (mouth) to bottom (bottom ha!) -- contain a wealth of bacteria.  Good bacteria and bad bacteria.  It's best to have more good than bad.  That's just common sense.  Things can throw this balance off -- long term, high-dosage antibiotics for instance will often result in a yeast infection.  Yeast is a bad bacteria that lives in our guts.  Another good bacteria (L. acidophilus) fights yeast bacteria overgrowth.  Antibiotics kill good bacteria so yeast gets to grow uninhibited and you end up with a yeast infection.  (It's not the only way to get a yeast infection.  I'm trying to be brief here.)

Danone didn't go out and create a brand new bacteria.  L. casei has been around a long time.  L. casei Defensis is simply Danone's special blend.  I really don't understand how Danone's L. casei can be any more special than the L. casei I could easily replicate in my kitchen, but I'm not a biologist or chemist or whatever kind of scientist it takes to create "special" bacteria.

L. casei is a good bacteria.  It does support healthy immune functioning and healthy digestive tract flora.It lives in our mouths, stomachs, intestines.  A baby's saliva will contain L. Casei.

My verdict:  This was incredibly sweet. It was palatable, but ridiculously sweet.  My mouth is not accustomed to this kind of sweetness.  I avoid products containing added sugar like the plague that sugar has become to Western society.  Find your live, active bacterial cultures in natural yogurt that contains no added sugars.

Because of the extremely high sugar content of Danactive, it will never be a feature in my diet.  69% of the calories in Danactive are from sugar.  (There are 14 grams sugar in a bottle of vanilla Danactive.  There are 63 calories in 14 grams sugar.  Danactive Vanilla contains 80 calories total.  13.5 of those calories are from fat.  This is all packed into 3.3 OUNCES (93 grams) of yogurt beverage.)  That's ridiculous.  Would you pour 4 teaspoons sugar into 3 ounces of any beverage?  I wouldn't.

And while Danone's "immunity" hype is actually true, you can get L. Casei from many other sources including cheddar cheese!

Conversations with a Five Year Old

My five-year-old son is still learning the rhythm of conversation.  Each night during dinner our family discusses our day, events, news, and all sorts of things.  Often my five-year-old, Ky, will interrupt another person's speaking, but most often he simply bursts out with something seemingly from nowhere.  These moments leave me wondering about the mechanics of his thought process and chuckling at some of the results.

The other night, during a conversational lull, Ky burst out with "Kung Hay Fat Choy!"  I knew what it meant, but I like to know what my children's grasp is of their lessons so I asked, "What's that?"

Ky tells me "It's 'Happy New Year' in Chinese!"  He goes on to tell me that it's still 2009 in China and the Chinese haven't yet had 2010.  Red is a lucky colour in China and did you know that Canadian dragons are mean, fire breathing, destructive dragons but Chinese dragons are good dragons who bring good luck and help it to rain.

I am always amazed at the wealth of information he is able to absorb in a day.  Later that evening, he read his daily message to me.  (Each day the teacher sends home a one-page message in the form of a letter.  This is the kindergartners' daily reading assignment.  I think it's one of the most brilliant ideas a teacher could have for learning readers.) After the date information, the letter begins "Dear Monkeys and Ram".  I stopped my son at this point as usually the letter begins with "Dear Boys and Girls" or "Dear Good Friends" or some variation of those two.  I asked Ky, "What is up with your teacher calling you monkeys and ram instead of boys and girls?"

He matter-of-factly explains "We are Monkeys and a Ram!"

"What is a monkey?"  I ask.

"A monkey is an animal with a tail who likes to eat bananas."  He replies adding an eye roll for emphasis.

"Oh.  So you are an animal with a tail who likes to eat bananas."

"NO moooooooooom.  I'm not a mon-KEY, I am a HUMAN. A monkey is an ANIMAL. I am a HUMAN."

"A human is an animal, too, honey.  You just told me you were a monkey and now you're telling me you're not a monkey.  I'm confused."

He sighs a long, exaggerated sigh and explains, "Boys and girls born IN THE YEAR OF THE MONKEY are called monkeys, but they are not animal monkeys, they are just CALLED monkeys."

"OHHHHHH.  I get it now.  So you are a boy who was born in the year of the monkey and that is why your teacher called you a Monkey."

He smiled as wide as the monkey's banana and confirmed, "YES!"

After he finished reading his daily message, I informed him that I was a Rooster.  He giggled and told me, "No you're not.  You're mom"  in that don't-be-silly tone of voice that children do so well.

Meanwhile, my husband was across the room pulling faces.  Ky laughs at him and his daddy tells him to guess what he is.  Ky first guesses Rabbit but is wrong and immediately figures out that daddy is mimicking a rat.  Yet another thing to make me wonder how on earth his mind works as I don't think I would have guessed it correctly if I hadn't already known my husband's Chinese zodiac.

At bedtime Ky tells me that Monkeys are smart.  Of course they are.  Mine sure is.

Update on the baby kits and our other foster cats

Simon and Stephen graduated from bottles to soft food several weeks ago and from soft food to hard within a few days of that.  Small kittens cannot chew standard kitten kibbles so they started out on this stuff:

 Which is the cutest, tiniest kibble I've ever seen:

Normal cat food is on the right, and the babycat(TM) kibble is on the left.

Now that you think I'm completely daft for getting all silly over kitten kibble, I'll show you adorable pictures to make you forget how daft I may or may not be.

This is Simon at about 7 weeks.  Simon is a little love.  He likes to climb up on me, nuzzle my chin, sleep under my chin or just nuzzle on me while getting his noggin scratched.  I have never come across so affectionate a kitten as Simon.

Simon likes to hug, too:

Simon will make someone a very good companion.

Steven is also an affectionate one, as evidenced by his nap with my son.

Both Simon and Steven are happy, playful kittens full of love and exuberance.  They have no health concerns or negative behaviours and will be wonderful additions to any home.

I am so going to miss them!

They burrowed into this blanket themselves and had a nap!
As for my other foster cats....

Allow me to introduce 11-07 ("eleven-oh-seven").
Odd name, you think?  Can you see why?

Yes, she has very clear 1107 markings on both her sides!  11-07 is a bit skittish, but I think she will relax in a quiet home.  She is used to children as she's been with us since infancy.  While she does spend time with my 10 year old, she could not be bothered with my five year old.  Younger kids tend to be unpredictably loud at times and she does not enjoy loud noises.

This is Blondie.  We named her Blondie for her blonde-coloured eyes, pale colouring and the fact that she seems a bit dense at times. (In this photo she is stalking and swatting the black shoes.  You can make of that what you will.)  I think she's actually just very skittish and her nervousness pre-empts her intelligence.  She's a funny one, that's for sure.  Blondie is still not fully socialized, despite the fact that I've been working with her for a very long time and she came to me as a kitten.  Blondie will be staying with me a bit longer as I give socializing her one more go before she goes to another home for more intensive socializing.

This is Princess.  She is completely black -- not a spot of white on her anywhere!  Princess came to me as a one year old extremely skittish cat.  She hid for the first week in the rafters of our basement.  I decided to cage her when I realized that she would live in those rafters until eternity if I didn't force her hand.  While caged I would daily remove her, hold her, stroke her, scratch her head and talk to her.  At night she would cry and cry to be let out of the cage.  Finally I gave in and let her out of the cage, but barred her access to the basement.  It took seven long months of coaxing before Princess ever let me touch her after uncaging her.  She simply came to me one day, lay down at me feet and meowed at me.  She wanted scratched!  Now she comes to us all the time for back scratching.  She does not like to be held, but will sit next to you (never on! she's not that kind of cat!) on a sofa and allow you to pet and scratch her.  She's a very well behaved, but quite skittish cat.  She needs a quiet home and will most likely have a period of adjustment when she gets to that home.  She will hide and come out only when she is comfortable.  Coaxing will not work with this girl.  If you are a local reader, I would like you to consider whether you or someone you may know would be interested in adopting Princess.  She will make a wonderful pet.  After all the work we've done with her to socialize her to humans, children, and other cats, I would hate to see her sit in an adoption center's cages before being adopted.  I think that would cause her to regress.  I know she will have an adjustment period regardless, but I think it would be FAR FAR less traumatic for her to transition directly into her forever home.  If you or someone you know is interested and serious about adopting Princess, please contact me via the comments section.  I would be happy to facilitate her transition to a forever home.

Simon, Steven, and 11-07 will be available for adoption this weekend, February 13th at the PetSmart on Vansickle Ave. in St. Catharines.

About This Blog

Saving money. Saving graces. Raising children, husbands and, sometimes, cats. Laughing. Living. Thinking. Doing. Life in the Niagara Region of Ontario.

About Me

I am a happily married woman with four children and various cats and kittens (fosters). I love to read and my favourite authors are George RR Martin, Thomas Hardy, Raymond Carver, PD James, Kurt Vonnegut, J. K. Rowling, and Margaret Atwood. I know there are only three women in that list (and none of them American), so if you'd like to suggest some I'm willing to give them a shot! And yes, I am an American living in Canada. (Hence the nick -- CannedAm.) I like it here. There are things about the states that I miss, but my love is here and this country has things to offer that my own does not. Things that make my quality of life much better than it ever was in Ohio. Guess I'm stuck here. Though there's a nice spot in the Appalachian hills where I'd love to spend my retirement.

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Fishing The Everglades

 By Captain Charles Wright

 The west gateway to the Everglades National Park is through Everglades City and Chokoloskee Island. Located just 30 minutes from Naples, 90 minutes from Miami, Ft. Myers, Ft. Lauderdale and Boca Raton, it offers some of the best fishing you will ever experience. It has been rated one of the top ten fly fishing locations in the world and it is right in your Florida back yard!!!

DaiwaPermitThe Everglades National Park is vast and richly diverse in fish species. With 1.4 million acres in the Park alone, everglades fishing is very special. In the same fishing charter, it is possible to catch bass in the freshwater, snook in the backcountry, tarpon in the rivers, redfish on the beaches, trout on the flats, as well as, permit and cobia on the near shore structure. It is not uncommon for Chokoloskee Charters anglers to catch 12 or more species of fish during their stay.

The Everglades and the Ten Thousand Islands are a traveling fisherman’s ideal destination. How many times have you had your trip hurt by weather? The vast area of protected waters means that weather days are virtually non-existent. There is always sheltered places to fish so you do not have to spend your fishing day cooped up at the fishing lodge or villa. The everglades fly fishing is wonderful for this reason alone. Never, do you have fish in the wind all day!!

Though a five-day fishing package is recommended, a typical three day fishing package should include a morning of snook fishing along the inside islands shorelines followed by sight-fishing redfish and snook on the beaches in the afternoon. A morning of trout fishing on the flats, followed by tarpon fishing laid-up giants in the bights should also be part of your trip. With just one day left you will have some choices to make for your last day … fly fishing (or spin/plug) tarpon in the rivers, sight fishing 15-25 lb permit, digging grouper, live baiting for giant tarpon in the passes and rivers, catching our “brown marlin” (cobia), fishing the near-shore wrecks. etc. You will have to choose.

Chokoloskee Charters has four types of boats serving its angling clientele to handle the diverse fishing. The staff guides have been fishing the Park since the early 70’s and have a vast amount of experience to make your trip exceptional. Whether you are being poled in a flats boat fly fishing snook, chasing permit and cobia in a 20′ open fisherman, digging grouper in a 26′ center console offshore or fishing and enjoying the wildlife with your wife and another couple near a beach or rookery on our 26′ foot deck boat, your trip will be special.

Chokoloskee Charters offers complete fishing packages including boats, baits, tackle, guides, meals and fishing villas to make your trip easy, comfortable and rewarding.

With the ten thousand island and the everglades fishing so close, why Naples fishing? Miami fishing is good. Everglades fishing is great. Come and experience it.

Capt. Charles Wright.

“Not Just Another Boat Ride”
P.O. Box 824 Chokoloskee Island, Florida 34138
ph. 239-695-9107 fax. 239-695-9108
Email Captain Charles Wright
Click here to book your charter


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Friday, March 31, 2006

Sea Fever

The days are warmer, the evenings lighter, and daffodils are in bloom - yes, spring really is coming. And with it thoughts turn to the waters again. Not just the re-start of the Volvo Ocean race (more on that tomorrow), but that inner voice that reminds one of the wind on the cheek, the taste of salt spray, the endless open horizon, the feel of the wheel under hand, and the motion of deck under boot.

In other words Captain JP is suffering from what doctors and John Masefield would no doubt call a clear case of Sea Fever.

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by;
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a gray mist on the sea's face, and a gray dawn breaking.

I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.

I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

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Friday, July 4, 2008

the underrated ramekin

a few years ago i received some ramekins from my mother. they sat in my cupboard and collected dust until her friend sent me this recipe from oprah. it is one of those super-yummy desserts that is easy to make, and makes a good impression on guests. like you worked all day...

when i saw that fiestaware makes ramekins also, i bought some more. they have to match my dishes, no?

real point of the post - since we have purged our house of all plastic, these little ramekins have become indispensable. the kids haven't broken one (yet) either. some examples of what we have used them for just in the last few weeks...

mac 'n cheese bowls
rice bowls
chili bowls
strawberry shortcake
cheez-it containers
small cereal bowls
fruit salad
regular salad
syrup bowls
veggie dip bowls
ice cream bowls

they are the perfect kids' size. love them! does anyone else love their ramekins?

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please click here for an area map.

The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) is a national land trust with 25,000 members. They have targeted the Carden Plain for protection due to its globally rare alvar communities. Starting with 200 acres donated by the MacDonald bothers twenty years ago, they have purchased the Cameron Ranch (2850 acres), then the adjacent Windmill Ranch (1500 acres), the Prairie Smoke Reserve (675 acres), the Little Blue Stem Alvar Reserve (710 acres), in 2008 McGee Creek Reserve ( 500 acres) was donated, then they purchased North Bear Alvar (800 acres) and in 2014 they purchased the Holt Reserve (200+ acres) named after Margo Holt who bequithed the money in her will.The Couchiching Conservancy working in partnership bought Wolf Run Alvar (200 acres), Blue Bird Ranch (200 acres).and Starr property abutting Queen Elizabeth II Park (100 acres) All together summing to over 7800 acres. In addition the Couchchiching Conservancy hold Conservation Easements on three properties totaling 600 acres. The expectation for 2015 is to add acquisitions and easements totaling another 600 acres. In 2005 Ric Symmes the regional director presented NCC’s grand ten-year plan for the Carden Plain. As shown on the map, NCC has defined a “project area” of 25,000 acres that includes all the quality alvar and borders Queen Elizabeth II Park (3,000 Sq. Km.) on the Canadian Shield. Their announced goal is, by 2015,to directly protect 12,000 acres, either alone or with partners such as Ontario Parks and Couchiching Conservancy, and indirectly protect the balance by deflecting aggregate development elsewhere. As of 2014 they will be two-thirds of the way there.

Much of this success is due to a Environment Canada grant to the Nature Conservancy of $225 million of matching funds over five years called the Natural Areas Conservation Program with the goal of acquiring and protecting 500,000 acres across Canada. Fortunately Carden is one of those target areas. Unfortunately this program has now expired and is not likely to be renewed.

In 2007 the Nature Conservancy of Canada, the Couchiching Conservancy, the Carden Plain IBA and Wildlife Preservation Canada began an initiative to expand the 25,000 acre alvar focused project to include the IBA boundaries into an area of 50.000 acres focused on species at risk as well as alvar. The goal is to develop a program that protects species and alvar within the target area while at the same time creating benefits to local landowners. The initiative is named the Integrated Carden Conservation Strategy (ICCS). Initial public meetings revealed that landowners fear that the designation of their property as environmentally significant will reduce its economic value. They fear if a Loggerhead Shrike is spotted on their land they will lose control. With Bobolinks and Medow Larks added to the endangered species list, landowner concerns have intensified. Bird watchers present another landowner irritant sometimes slowing or blocking traffic and occasionally trespassing. Landowners question why bird watchers can’t be directed onto conservation lands and away from private property.

Taking advantage of several new sources of funding (Species at Risk and Lake Simcoe Restoration) to address some of these issues. A “Birder’s Code of Conduct” was published in 2008 addressing many birder behavioural concerns. In addition some parking pull-off areas were built on Wylie Road and Prospect Road to facilitate traffic flow. A viewing blind was constructed at Box #10 on Wylie Road to focus attention toward conservation lands. A parking area and a 3.5 km nature trail was built on the Cameron Ranch to provide access while keeping birders and cattle separated.

A grazing seminar was sponsored and well attended. It offered suggestions to improve grazing productivity. Prompted by the seminar, a number of landowners have become partners in property improvement programs such as fencing, water supply and hawthorn thinning partly paid for by government programs accessed by the Couchiching Conservancy. In an enterprising initiative, landowners that host breeding shrike were offered $15.00 rent for each acre they owned within a 600 metre radius of the nest. Of the thirteen landowners qualified in 2014 five took advantage of the offer resulting in one pay-out of $1000 The plan is to repeat the program in future years in the hope more landowners will participate .

he last weekend of May each year is set aside for the Carden Challenge. This is a fund raising event in which teams of four birders each compete for the most species spotted over 24 hours and the most money raised. Each team promotes pledges from sponsors in the form of outright gifts or $ per species. The species winner in 2014 listed 148 species and the pledge winner over $1500. Overall $22000 was raised half of which is directed toward the sponsorship program to protect Loggerhead Shrike habitat mentioned above.

The City of Kawartha Lakes Council protested to the Ministry of the Environment that the current and potential cluster of quarries in the area could threaten the source water supply to municipal wells and that before any more licenses were approved a “Cumulative Ground Water Impact Analysis” (CIA) was required. The Minister wrote back agreeing and pledging to conduct the CIA and make the results available. The CIA has begun by the Ontario Stone, Sand and Gravel Operators Association (OSSGA) under the supervision of MOE. The CIA was completed in May 2012 with the finding that, under reasonable operating assumptions, there was no threat to ground water supply In the meantime external events changed the conditions.

In September of 2005, the Carden Plain IBA together with Couchiching Conservancy, the Carden Field Naturalists and the Victoria Land and Water Stewardship Council, hosted the Carden Plain Natural Heritage Conference chaired by Ron Reid. Among the ninety attendees were naturalist, local landowners and quarry representatives. A wide range of expert speakers expressed why the Carden Plain was special to them. The objective was to kick off a dialogue between the quarry industry, conservation interests and local landowners based on mutual respect and factual inputs. At the end of the conference the audience was asked to recommend future action. The overwhelming consensus was to form a multi stakeholder task force to seek a more harmonious future.

In October of 2005 the first task force meeting occurred with representatives of two major quarries, Lafarge and Dufferin (Tomlinson joined latter), plus the Ontario Stone, Sand and Gravel Association (OSSGA), the Couchiching Conservancy, Carden Plain IBA, Nature Conservancy of Canada plus one cattle rancher (later two local landowners were added). On March 25, 2006 The Task force hosted Workshop #1 “A Dialogue on the Future of the Carden Plain”. Attendance was by invitation only in order to ensure a broad representation of views. Approximately 65 people attended. The purpose was to identify the key issues of concern to local landowners. Five key issues emerged; security of water supply, quarry operations especially blasting, the Official Planning process and zoning, land valuation resulting from zoning, quarry truck haul routes.

On July 9, 2006, the Taskforce hosted Workshop #2 “Quality and Quantity of Ground Water”. This time invitations were open to anyone interested. Approximately 50 attended. Expert speakers presented material on; Hydro geology on the Carden Plain, the Role of the Conservation Authority and the Role of Ministry of the Environment. An extensive panel discussion followed guided by questions from the floor.

On November 1, 2006, the Taskforce hosted a bus tour of three local quarries, Lafarge, Dufferin and Miller, to demonstrate the operations process including a blast. Invitations were open to all and about 50 attended. In each case the site manager led the tour and questions were encouraged.

Having fulfilled its education mission, the Taskforce transformed itself into an information sharing process called the Carden Forum. The Forum is open to anyone interested but a potential list of about 50 stakeholders are invited to two meetings a year. The propose of the meetings to provide up-to-date information about plans and concerns of the many stakeholders. Attendees include representatives from quarries, conservancys, landowners, Ontaruio Parks, MNR and CKL. One of the major reasons for tensions in the past was the spread of misinformation. The Forum seems to have gratly reduced this problem.

In March 2007, another Workshop was held directed at Official Plan process. The intent was to provide attendees with a factual understanding of what Official Plans are intended to accomplish and how they are created. The timing anticipated that the City of Kawartha Lakes would publish their revised new Official Plan in the spring of 2007. In fact the Official Plan was finally published and approved in 2012. In 2014 the City tabled a draft Secondary Plan for quarries. It provides protection from extraction for all the significant alvar habitat and protection from competing development for all other locations with significant aggregate resource. The Secondary Plan also designated haul routes for quarry truck accessing the GTA. Primary routes included county roads 48 and 8 while secondary routes included county roads 45 and 6.

The environmental theme is being challenged politically by a significant group of landowners, both local and away, who call themselves alternatively the Rural Revolution or the Ontario Landowners Association (OLA) They reject any government planned use of their private land (i.e. zoning) especially if it interferes with what they can do on it and who they can sell it to. They have posted signs throughout the City reading “THIS IS OUR LAND, GOVERNMENT BACK OFF!”. Seven local landowners, on the Carden Plain, went further in the summer of 2006 and posted signs prohibiting birders from looking for birds in their fields from the road. One local landowner even began stopping birders, walking on public roads, telling them to stop bird watching. He ceased this activity after being confronted by the police.

In the spring and early summer of 2007 tensions between OLA and birders appeared to have abated. Most of the anti-birder signs were not reposted and no confrontations with birders were reported. This calm was deceiving. In September the OLA hosted a rally on a member’s property on the east side of Wylie Road opposite box #10. They announced that they intended to clear all the hawthorn trees from 13,000 acres to prevent Loggerhead Shrikes from nesting. About 70 people attended the rally most of whom came from outside of Carden. There were numerous speeches and loud cheers before the rally broke for lunch. In all, about 100 hawthorn trees were cut down in a 100-acre site. While the threats proved empty, the rally did attract a good deal of local publicity and sparked the initiative to create an Integrated Carden Conservation Strategy and the Carden Forum mentioned above.

From Herb Furniss, IBA Steering Committee.

2014 was a especially cool summer however 82 bluebirds fledged about average .To date we have fledged over 3000 Eastern Bluebirds. As always we look forward to the next year.

LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE RESULTS For 2011 Prepared by Hazel Weeler, Species Recovery Biologist, Wildlife Preservation Canada

Wild Pairs

16 pairs, 9 in Carden, 6 in Napanee, I in Smith Falls
35 fledged

Captive pairs

26 pars in Ontario
21 fledged young
91 fledges released, 11 retained for breeding

The wild population is in continuous decline since about 40 pairs in 1991 and is now far outnumbered by the captive population. Environment Canada has cut off funding. Wildlife Preservation Canada has branched out to other species that are funded. The long term prospects for the Loggerhead Shrike appear discouraging.

This fold out map and guide was first produced in 2005 and proved to be very popular It was repeated with updated versions in 2007 and 2012. Copies are still available from the Couchiching Conservancy office (705)326-1620 or picked-up at the City Service Center in Kirkfield

June 2007 saw the launch of the inaugural Carden Nature Festival as a celebration of the natural wonders of the Carden Plain, a smörgåsbord of biodiversity in southern Ontario, close to the GTA, and formed by a distinctive geological history. In 2010, the fourth year, 325 people attended, compared to 280 in 2009, 280 in 2008, and 200 in 2007. Attendees came from from all across the province with about half from the GTA and another third from Simcoe County. Market research has revealed the Festival contributed $60,000 to the local economy 2009 Comments from participants were extremely positive. Beginning in 2011 attendance began to decline possibly due to a lack of novelty in the events, In 2014 the Festival was reduced from 2 ½ days to 1 ½ days to save money and reduce the organizing effort. Attendance was only 120.

to browse and register
(or call 705-326-1620 for a free brochure)

Bird Watching:

Grassland Birding

  Birding for Beginners
  Calling in Birds
  Birding by Ear
  Sparrows by Voice
  Lawn Chair Birding
  Birds of Prey

Alvar Plants
  Alvar Flowers

New Sites to Explore
  Cameron Ranch
  Windmill Ranch
  Little Blue Stem
  Prospect Marsh
  McGee Creek
  Wolf Run
  North Bear Alvar
  Blue Bird Ranch
  Reflections and Gratitude
  Spirituality of a Tree
  Watercolour Painting
Learning (continued)
  Aquatic Wildlife
  Nature Photography
  Loggerhead Shrike Captive Breeding
  lue Bird Box Care
  First Nations in Carden
  Pond Study

  15 vendor booths inside

  Dragonflies and Butterflies in the Field
  Butterflies and Dragonflies for Beginners
  Moths by UV Light
  Bike Tours
  Wilderness Hikes
  Boat Tours
  Cameron Ranch Tours
  Wilderness Hikes
  Cameron Ranch Tours
  Paddle Lakes and Wetlands
  Voices of the Night
  Fossil Hunt
  Carden Land Forms
  Kids Nature Safari

Photo Contest

Less than 2 hours from Toronto and 30 minutes from Orillia

1/10th the cost of an exotic eco-vacation weekend

Designed and Maintained


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Reflecting on Unity and Freedom on the 50th Anniversary of President Kennedy’s Death

Fifty years ago today, on November 22, 1963, our nation and our world mourned the death of President John F. Kennedy. As our country’s first Catholic president, his assassination was for many Americans like a death in the family.  But in an outpouring of national grief, men and women of all beliefs came together when they heard the terrible news, as the common decency and goodness that is deep-seated in our human nature came to the fore and overcame divisions and political discord.

Three days later, the slain president was brought before the sanctuary of the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle for a Pontifical Requiem Mass to commend his soul to the unending mercy of God.  Present for this state funeral was the new President Lyndon Johnson, former Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Harry S. Truman, and world leaders from over 90 countries. Outside, a reported million people lined the streets to witness the funeral procession, with six horses drawing the caisson bearing the president’s flag-draped coffin.  Catholics and non-Catholics, Democrats and Republicans, those who had acclaimed John Kennedy and those who disagreed with him – they all were able to set aside their differences and stand as one people.

Bishop Philip Hannan – then an auxiliary bishop of Washington and a personal friend of President Kennedy – was asked by the family to deliver a few remarks of remembrance.  He shared some excerpts from the late president’s favorite quotes from Scripture, and from his notable speeches, including his inaugural address. “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,” read Bishop Hannan. “With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking his blessing and his help, but knowing that here on Earth, God’s work must truly be our own.”

On this 50th year since President Kennedy’s death, that call to serve our country and carry out God’s work here on Earth continues to ring out.  This is the perennial Christian message that we are all one human family, that only through building that culture of fraternity and solidarity that Pope Francis speaks about will we find genuine peace and prosperity.

This reminiscence also reminds us that there was a time when some believed that a Catholic should not be president simply because of his faith. We can never take our religious freedom for granted.  Nor can we neglect our responsibility as Catholics and as Americans to bring our faith to the public arena, especially since being a good American does not require abandoning or privatizing one’s Catholic faith.  To the contrary, to promote publicly the Catholic message is to encourage America to strive for her own highest ideals.

In colonial Maryland, which had been the birthplace of religious freedom in this land, laws were later passed that forbade Catholics from publicly practicing their faith.  In 2009, I participated in the ceremonial unlocking of the reconstructed Brick Chapel in Historic Saint Mary’s City – a reminder that we must remain vigilant in defending our first freedom.  That is why, to cite but one example, we have challenged the HHS mandate that would force many Catholic institutions to violate Church teaching by facilitating coverage for abortion-inducing drugs, contraceptives and sterilization procedures in employee health insurance plans.

With John Kennedy, the bigoted taboo of not electing a Catholic as president was broken, but clearly much remains to be done since efforts to restrict Catholic faith to merely personal private belief continue.  However, authentic Catholic faith is lived not just in houses of worship, but also through our educational and charitable outreach, as well as by being an advocate for justice and human dignity, and laws must protect our right to live this faith fully and in good conscience. Today, as faithful Catholics and thus loyal Americans, we continue to stand strong for our country and our faith, knowing, as the president once said, that “here on Earth, God’s work must truly be our own.”

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Business Analyst in Dubayy [Dubai], United Arab Emirates

at Boeing

Aviation & Aerospace
Minimum Qualification
Bachelor's Degree
Required Experience
Entry Level
Employment Type
Full Time
Male or Female

Job Description

Support in the development and implementation of Boeings Middle East strategy at the direction of the President, Boeing Middle East.

 Global corporate citizenship: Collects information and data to assist in the identification of community investment opportunities and distributes information and inquiries as directed.

Processes inquiries, coordinates logistics, and distributes information to facilitate community and university programs.

Support employee related outreach activities and coordinate volunteers. Maintains contact information and databases for internal and external stakeholders.

 Processes correspondence related to external community inquiries and supports grant application process by organizations and universities with direct guidance.

Retrieves information and enters data that assists in the documentation of due diligence.

 Retrieves information to create evaluation forms, presentations and templates.

Government relations: Assists in analyzing proposed legislation/regulations and routes information to subject matter experts.

Performs research.

Assists in maintaining relationships with external entities (e.g. government organizations, customers, universities, business associations) and supports to strengthen company positions through a joint sphere of influence.

Assists with visits by Government officials, Senior Leadership and key stakeholders.

 Assist in research and compiling reports on competitive activities, political developments and university activities across MENA region.

 Support the development of needed metrics, presentations, and background papers, and reports.

 Support BI and Communications in logistics and coordination for events such as speaking engagements, press releases, conferences, and offsite meetings, among others

Business development: Supports studies to identify customer requirements. Under close supervision, contributes to business case opportunities analysis by learning and utilizing research and evaluation tools.

Solves routine problems of limited scope and complexity following established policies and procedures. Maintains databases to filter and disseminate industry information.

 Compiles data from research using information technology to support the marketing process.

Researches customer, company, technical, regulatory, and other market information to support strategic planning analysis.

Generates standard reports.

Assists in the identification of market environment trends to support trend studies. Helps with compiling analyses for strategy presentations.

This position will open either in Dubai or in Abu Dhabi. In case it is opened in Dubai, it will require frequent travel to Abu Dhabi and vice versa.

Contributes to the completion of task-related activities. Errors typically do not have a major effect on the organization.

Follows directions for routine work with close supervision. Receives detailed instructions for specific assignments.

Interacts primarily with immediate supervisor and other personnel within the group.

Solves routine problems of limited scope and complexity following established policies and procedures.

Bachelor degree in related studies. Fluent in English and Arabic. Advanced MS office user.

  Apply Now

Sponsored Jobs in United States

Ads by Careerslip


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Thursday, March 25, 2010

Update on the Girl's Skin Boils

I really don't have the time to blog this much to little time!  I've already fixed breakfast for my kids and hubby, weeded and watered my flower beds and garden, and hung 3 loads of clothes on the line....I think I deserve a few minutes of sitting down.  I mean...come's only 9 o'clock!

I needed to update everyone on how my daughters are doing.  Thank you so very much for all the emails and messages on fb asking about them.  It's so wonderful to know that so many are praying.

Boils are messy business.  Sunday night in church, there was a big one by Alexis's ear that burst.  I will spare you the yucky details.  She was in a lot of pain, but about an hour after it burst she said it felt so much better.  The pressure was relieved.  As of today, Moriah has a new one on her calf (her 5th one).  And Alexis still has a very painful one, about the size of a silver dollar on her thigh.  Alexis has only had two.

Thank you to everyone who has sent me home remedies and precautions I should take.  I really appreciate that.

Here's what we are doing.  The dressings are changed morning and night, unless they get wet or seep out.  I am applying a gooey black medicine called ICHTHAMMOL and a cream that we bought from the doctor.  I sterilize the area with alcohol before dressing.  They each are taking an antibiotic we bought from the doctor.  We are also giving them each zinc once a day.  I have also gave them tylenol, a couple of times, if they have much pain.

I only give them showers not baths, and I am bleaching the towels and washcloths after each use.  Also bleaching the tub.  Please continue to pray,

Jolene said...

Praying for you, Maria! It's no fun when the little ones are in pain!

I would love to see you put a subscription box on your blog, so I can receive your posts into my inbox. You can do this free of charge through "Feedburner." Hope you don't mind my suggestion... but I love reading your posts and would even like to see them pop up into my ever-full inbox! :)

Love ya!

raising3princesses said...

thanks for the prayers!

I think I have a subscribe box on the left side. Is that what you were talking about? I think it's the same thing. Any suggestions you have are VERY welcome!

You inspire me, Maria

Sarah said...

I've had trouble with boils. To relieve the pressure I'd use a sterile needle and puncture it, as you would a blister. Hope you get to the root of the problem.
As always, your family is in our prayers, Sarah Krogmeier

Here to Serve Him... said...

I have enjoyed browsing your blog! You have a beautiful family and you live in a beautiful area! We love Jamaica as we have been there on multiple cruises...a great place to visit and from the looks of it...a great place to live! :o)

Our family will be lifting you to Jesus!

Kimberlyn said...

We are praying for you and your family. I think you are doing everything right for the girls. It's so hard when it's our kids that are suffering.

I really enjoy reading your blog!

raising3princesses said...

Thank you so much, Ladies. Your comments mean so much to me! - Maria

Kami Gimenez said...

We sure will be praying for you and your sweet babies. I know it's tough when they don't feel well.
I've enjoyed reading your blog and experiences in Jamaica. We'll be your neighbors soon! Well, not really, but in the same area of the world! It's fun to read all about your West Indies adventures and know we might have some of the same adventures soon too!
Thanks for being a blessing.
Kami Gimenez

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Tuesday, 24 March 2009

And this image was just round the corner on Hoxton Square.
My friend Caroline is designing a wallpaper for B3 designers. I was trying to describe this wallpaper I've often noticed walking by Cây Tre Vietnamese Kitchen on Old Street to her, but my memory is obviously playing tricks on me because I told her it was full on monkeys climbing trees, which it's not. Apparently it's by a local artist called Andy George Magee, the waiter pointed out that his name is printed in the design - a nice touch. Couldn't find all that much about Andy George, except for his work at Comme Ca Art. I'm looking forward to seeing Caroline's design, take a look on her website to see her lovely floral prints.
Looks like some original Clothkits in the Amelia's magazine! Could this really be 2009?

London Print Works

I did a print course at London Print Works a few weeks ago. It was an 5 day introduction to screen printing. I loved every second, and bashed out as many artworks as I could. Here's one. I accidently played around with the hue and saturation on photoshop and got this bright green and blues. The course was taught by a very friendly lady named Dawn Dupree. Take a look at her website if fancy seeing some more print based artworks.

Sunday, 15 March 2009

A friend of mine posted facebook about a fund raising event at area10 in peckham for The Tree House Gallery. I missed it, but the photos on the site were really appealing. When I was stuck for something to add to the blog this eve, it came back to me. Anyway, it turns out that tree nests I really liked were designed by Ryan Frank. The sight of these leaves makes me want to run away to the countryside and climb a tree. I might just make it to Regents Park where The Tree House Gallery runs from 13th July till 6th September.
Another appealing seat by Moroso and Kim Beck.
I can't remember where I came across Sergio Rodrigues, but I like his style. His chairs are pretty cool too.

Tuesday, 10 March 2009

Christian Wijnants is one of my very favorite designers. I could pick the colours of any of his collections. But Spring/Summer 2006 was photographed by Viviane Sassens and I've kept a set of photocopies all this time. She has a new book out Flamboya, a collection of photos taken in Africa.

Wednesday, 4 March 2009

This was from a colour palette suggestion, image from Keetra and Ktoj, well, from Keetra to be precise.
Hui Hui an indie Berlin fashion label. They always do a great line in a variety of sludgy shades.
Marcus Oakley gets crafty.
This Vogue fashion shoot entitled Light and Fantastic by Javier Vallhonrat is aptly named, just fantastic! Neons under sheer white crepe, I don't often come over all fashion luvey, but heres getting close!
AJ Fosik discovered in a fun book called Illustration Play published by Victionary. Photos courtesy of Jonathan Levine gallery in New York.


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Welcome to ...

The place where the world comes together in honesty and mirth.
Windmills Tilted, Scared Cows Butchered, Lies Skewered on the Lance of Reality ... or something to that effect.

Saturday, February 23, 2013

When repugicans Govern, Government is the Problem

 Elections definitely have consequences.  Instead of the job creation they promised, House repugicans spend what little time they are in session working on votes to repeal Obamacare, doing all they can to prevent job creation and supporting a sequester that, according to Macroadvisers,  will kill 700,000 jobs and reduce economic growth by .6%.  Senate repugicans abuse the filibuster to the point that everything needs 60 votes. The only thing worse than repugicans acting like spoiled children in Congress, is a repugican running a state.
We know about Rick Snyder’s obsession with replacing elected officials with unelected (and unaccountable) Emergency Financial Managers. We know about Scott Walker’s attacks on unions. We know about Rick Scott’s voter suppression program, along with his opposition to Obamacare. Maybe North Carolinians thought that somehow their new repugican Governor, Pat McCrory, would some how be different. Maybe as the moderate as he said he was during his campaign and during Monday’s State of the State Address,  but he’s turning out to be a boiler plate wingnut extremist on steroids.
Of the laws McCrory passed since he arrived at the Governor’s mansion, nothing captures the essence of his mind set like his unemployment law. It includes cuts to Unemployment benefits reducing the maximum weekly cap from $530 to $350, North Carolina Unemployment Benefits Cut – North Carolina Takes A Turn As Mississippi – Esquire  reducing the duration of benefits from 20 weeks to 12 weeks and eliminates benefits for people who left work for health or family reasons. McCrory’s statement about the bill sounds like he’s channeling Paul Ryan’s logic on Medicare and his worship of the almighty job creators, “This bipartisan solution will protect our small businesses from continued over-taxation, ensure our citizens’ unemployment safety net is secure and financially sound for future generations, and help provide an economic climate that allows job creators to start hiring again.”
But wait, there’s more. Aside from the dramatic cuts in benefits, the law increases unemployment taxes paid by businesses through a combination of eliminating the zero-percent rate that roughly 30,000 businesses weren’t paying, a 20 percent state surcharge and Federal taxes of $21 / employee. Aside from these goodies, North Carolina will lose Federal emergency relief benefits that were part of the fiscal cliff agreement. According to the Charlotte Observer:
” The federal benefits, extending payments past 26 weeks of unemployment, were awarded as part of the “fiscal cliff” deal in Congress. But the federal law requires states to maintain their existing benefit structure. The U.S. Department of Labor said 170,000 people will lose an estimated $780 million in benefits in North Carolina because of the new law.”
Besides gutting unemployment benefits at a time when the unemployment rate in North Carolina is 9.2%; McCrory signed a new law that should make xenophobes everywhere proud.  After resisting Federal requirements for states to issue drivers licenses to undocumented immigrants under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, (DACA) McCrory changed his mind and opted to issue the licenses albeit with a North Carolinian version of Star of David armbands.
The Winston-Salem Journal reports:  ”Across the top of the new license is a pink strip. In the center, red capital letters say, “NO LAWFUL STATUS.” On the side another set of red capital letters say, “LIMITED TERM,” referring to the license holder’s two-year reprieve from deportation.” As Moises Serrano, told the W-S J : ”Imagine trying to get on a flight at the airport, and you have to use this license. It’s an invasion of my privacy. I am undocumented and unashamed, but I say that on my terms.” I’ll bet the Queen of “papers please” wished she could high-five McCrory for this stroke of genius.
As if cutting unemployment benefits when unemployment is high and stigmatizing DACA license holders, McCrory is looking to Jindalize North Carolina’s tax system . He also said no to expanding Medicaid under Obamacare, though if Rick Scott can change his mind, it’s remotely possible that McCrory will do the same.  McCrory’s plan to make education more “business friendly” by discouraging post-secondary education got a nod from the State House. The House gave overwhelming final approval Wednesday to a bill creating new kinds of high school diplomas and course plans that emphasize vocational or career paths that don’t require 4-year college degrees. (my emphasis) Oh, and there’s one more thing.  It seems that McCrory wants to replace members of local boards with people who think like he does because it just makes things more efficient. From the News Observer: ”The state’s repugican-dominated legislature and repugican governor would have a free hand to sweep out all the members of several key boards and commissions and replace them with their own appointments, under a bill advanced Tuesday.”
The barbarity doesn’t end there. Cherie Berrie (I swear that really is her name) who was recently elected as North Carolina’s Labor Commissioner, wants to abolish the minimum wage. Of course, one may be tempted to wonder why on earth would North Carolinians vote for these people?  The answer reminds us just how consequential state elections can be. This is the sort of government that gerrymandering builds. Erik Spanberg of the Charlotte Business Journal explains:
“Two years after the repugican cabal took control of the House and Senate for the first time in a century, the party increased its margins to super-majorities, meaning repugicans are now veto-proof. As for a Congressional delegation now firmly in repugican hands — Democrats held a 7-6 advantage but enter 2013 with just 4 of the state’s 13 Congressional seats — and the dominance in the General Asembly, Parker and others say the vote is more evenly divided (true) and skewed by redistricting carried out by repugicans (also true). State Senator Dan Blue of Wake County, a Democrat who spent 22 years in the House, calls the revamped districts “resegregation” and hopes legal challenges will lead to new boundaries.”
One can’t help noticing the irony. When repugicans govern, government is the problem.

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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

"Create a quilt of memories to keep me warm
An inner warmth that comes from light of happy times
Weave in the threads of holidays of friends and families. . .
Delights of seashore, fields of city parks.
The simpliest happenings threaded out in love
become a pattern for my quilt of memories."

author unknown


text:
January 29, 2013

Book: Language and Intercultural Communication in the New Era

From http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415808897

Language and Intercultural Communication in the New Era
Edited by Farzad Sharifian and Maryam Jamarani
Published by Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group

Summary: Studies of intercultural communication in applied linguistics initially focused on miscommunication, mainly between native and non-native speakers of English. The advent of the twenty-first century has witnessed, however, a revolution in the contexts and contents of intercultural communication; technological advances such as chat rooms, emails, personal weblogs, Facebook, Twitter, mobile text messaging on the one hand, and the accelerated pace of people’s international mobility on the other have given a new meaning to the term 'intercultural communication'.

Given the remarkable growth in the prevalence of intercultural communication among people from many cultural backgrounds, and across many contexts and channels, conceptual divides such as 'native/non-native' are now almost irrelevant. This has caused the power attached to English and native speaker-like English to lose much of its automatic domination. Such developments have provided new opportunities, as well as challenges, for the study of intercultural communication and its increasingly complex nature. This book showcases recent studies in the field in a multitude of contexts to enable a collective effort towards advancements in the area.

Visit the publisher’s website at http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415808897

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Make It A Part Of Your Lifestyle

by / Monday, 03 August 2015 / Published in VLOG

An old friend is supposed to drop by the gym today, Mr. Jeff Goldstein and his family. We had a discussion on the phone yesterday and part of it was about working out/not working out. Here are my thoughts.


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Sunday, March 10, 2013

Rammstein's Snow White

The tone of the music video was intense. The intensity set the mood of the ‘tale’ in the video, which felt a lot heavier than the Snow White fairytales. The main character(s) of the video is also different than the tale. Instead of the main character being the beautiful, kind, and lovely Snow White, the video focused on the dwarf’s perspective in a darker version of the tale.
The Snow White presented in Rammstein’s music video was amusingly dressed in the Disney’s Snow White’s costume. Why amusing? As soon as I see the costume, my mind puts Disney’s Snow White’s kind and pure personality into the Snow White in the music video…and that is quickly turned up side down by the contrasting personality of Rammstein’s Snow White. This Snow White, although appears to be the symbol of a truly innocent young woman, she is actually has the persona of the evil stepmother.
I laughed when I considered the correlation to the ‘false Snow White’ and Little Red Riding Hood’s wolf as a ‘false gentleman’. Rammstein’s music video appears to visually depict a Snow White fairy tale, however expressing the moral of the Little Red Riding Hood’s fairytale.

What also struck me was the difference in the ending. Technically both show Snow White dead inside a class coffin and awoken from her sleep. However, the feeling at the ending of the tale and video are so very different. On the one hand, the Snow White fairytale is triumphant and happy, and on the other the video’s ending was sad and downtrodden with the heroes (dwarfs) loss against the villain (Snow White).
Rammstein’s video strikes down what we think of when we see the imagery of Snow White, and manipulates it into something as twisted as the contorted tree in Rammstein’s video. The symbol of Snow White is replaced by the symbol of the Evil Queen. This is further emphasized by the adoration Rammstein’s Snow White has for the poisonous, tempting red apple- forcing the dwarfs to polish her coveted bundle.
The symbol of the apple is contorted just as Snow White as well as similar. The fairytale’s apple is the sign of temptation power, and although the apples in the video also symbolizes the temptation of power, it is a symbol of the accomplishment of attaining such power which is literally represented by the video’s Snow White’s power over the dwarfs.

After comparing the vastly different depiction of Snow White between the fairytale and the music video, I prefer the fairytale version of Snow White. The video, although eye opening, distorts the classic tale too much for my taste. I appreciate the format of the fairytale and maintaining the magic within its format over its distortion.

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Sunday, November 25, 2007

I'm back, and I'm exhausted. Funny how the holidays can do that to you, huh?

I'm fortunate because I don't have a crazy week next week - just some standardized patient stuff during the week, about a day's worth. Plenty of time to focus on auditions and eat the leftovers I hauled back from New England. And I can watch a lot of football, too!

Hoping that your weekend was as grand as mine...

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My main goal for this blog is to help Network Marketers to build their MLM business through social media and also help them maintain their business for a long time.

My second goal is to empower Network Marketers on how to Lead with  Value. What does that mean?
That means you have to give something of  Value to others and not expect anything in return from them.
In theory this  maybe very simple, but in practice its a little bit more difficult. In this blog I aim to empower you to be able to go the next level in your business!

As an entrepreneur for the Worlds’ Largest Direct Seller of Telecommunications, Energy and Essential Services for Home & Business, I empower people from all walks of life to be paid on their bills. Imagine getting paid residual income, month after month, year after year, for your own bills. Bills that you have been paying already and will continue to pay.

Currently trading in 4 continents, covering 25 countries: USA, Mexico, Canada, New Zealand, South Korea, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland & United Kingdom
Expanding soon into Turkey, Philippines & Taiwan

Looking for Open-Minded Business Entrepreneurs to join my rapidly expanding team. Get in Touch With me for a Meeting or call.

Learn More


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Saturday, September 7, 2013

social entrepreurship : or what goes wrong with chartity?

Recently i have reported from a group of young people that started a social enterprise, named inside travel, that tires to offer authentic travels to Ethiopia and offer new tourism market opportunities to rural communities.

I have been thinking about how to support these communities to build up an institution/structure so that they  build a benefit sharing mechanism allowing the community as a whole to benefit from tourism, rather than just a few, splinting the community in to rich and even more poor. My first over the thumb computation showed that we would need about 100 000 USD in 5 years to make this happen. The dramatic part of this story is that not one dollar would go to the community. It is just about helping them with building up an institution that will enable them to raise money from markets when ever after and develop themselves out of their own effort... sounds like a very smart and sustainable idea, but who will be willing to fund a project where no money flows to the community? Who is willing to take the risk to fund a project that might fail?

But in the middle of these thoughts, I found this TED talk. Dan Palotta, talks out of my heart, showing what goes wrong in funding aid.

"Activist and fundraiser Dan Pallotta calls out the double standard that drives our broken relationship to charities. Too many nonprofits, he says, are rewarded for how little they spend -- not for what they get done. Instead of equating frugality with morality, he asks us to start rewarding charities for their big goals and big accomplishments (even if that comes with big expenses). In this bold talk, he says: Let's change the way we think about changing the world."

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