Friday, June 25, 2010

Loss of a photographic and cultural icon

Another sign of the passing of time and of a generation.



These two captured the hearts and imaginations of generations that followed.
I feel just as I did when I found out that the woman they credited with inspiring the iconic "Rosie the Riveter" had passed on as well.

With the passing of this generation, there is a collective loss of knowledge and experience that may not ever be regained.

Thursday, June 24, 2010

What colour is a Carrot?

Today I wore oranje... I will wear oranje on monday as well.

Why did I wear oranje today

Netherlands 2, Cameroon 1

I am not a soccer or football fan at all, but I might become one.

12 years ago I was in the Netherlands when they were playing Brazil during the World Cup.

The country was draped in Orange, or Oranje if you please. Oranje fabric draped buildings and orange banner bunting draped the entire Nation.

They lost the game 12 years ago, but if I am reading the stats correctly, they are doing quite well now.

Why Orange? The Netherlands team colour is Oranje in honour of their Royal Family which descends from the House of Orange. The Crown Prince is given the title "The Prince of Orange".

How much do people from the Netherlands love their Royal Family and the colour Orange? Well what colour is a carrot? It is orange now, but in the 16th century it was purple. Dutch Botanists successfully bred carrots to be orange, rumour has it to honour their Royal House.

Canada, Ukraine, and Poland are not in the world cup, thankfully I can cheer for part of my ancestral heritage when I put on the Oranje and cheer for the Netherlands on Monday!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Buzz buzz buzz

I read a friends posting about an artist, tomáš gabzdil libertiny who was using bees to create art by building a honey comb structure on a human form.
Looked familiar I thought... I remember seeing a beautiful clothing installation at the Banff Centre of the Arts that was done by a Canadian Artist.
Sure enough I scrolled down the comments on the site and found the artist I was looking for


Check out her web page, (a nice bit of web design) her installations are wonderful. I have seen them in Banff and Vancouver. I appreciate what she is doing with her bees, she sets out objects and lets the bees create art. I did not find the installation that I read about today to be as interesting. The artist created the honeycomb structure in which he wanted to see worked on by the bees.

A few years ago I began thinking about getting a hive some day, when I had the space. Now I want to put a window in the hive so I can see the art they are creating.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

itchy, itchy, scratchy, scratchy...

Dear Mosquitos
Is there any way we could convince you to leave us alone?
There are a few welt free spots left for you to attack,
but I would really prefer you wouldn't.
thanks...

itchy, itchy, scratchy, scratchy, a mosquito bit my backy.
go away mosquitos, go away mosquitos

yesterday I gave in to intense pressure to actually use some spray
a mosquito landed on my legs while the spray was still wet
and began biting anyway... then 3 of his friends joined him.

I am going out shopping for a beekeepers suit tomorrow.
Calls from the neighbourhood kids of
"Look out here comes the crazy lady"
be damned.

Monday, June 21, 2010

The Longest Day

The Longest Day... not just a great WW2 movie, but an actual day. (D- Day didn't actually take place on the longest day,
it just felt like it)
Unfortunately it means that tomorrow the days get shorter.

Summer Solstice 2010: Why It's the First Day of Summer

Most people know the Summer Solstice, some the Winter (dec 21) fewer still the autumnal and spring equinox's (sept 23 and march 20 respectively this year) . For all your other Pagan Holiday needs you may need to consult a specialized calendar

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Where did the weekend go?

Were did the weekend go?
Seriously, much too fast.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

Can Wendel Clark Get Back To Shape?

This one is just for you Jay.

Can Wendel Clark Get Back To Shape?


a tale for all of us of a certain age. (I went to highschool with Wendel)

Friday, June 18, 2010

The virtues of Facebook (part one)

I am very grateful for Facebook for one reason ( no it is not because of the online farming ). I am so lucky that I have been able to reconnect with so many important people in my life. Sometimes it is nice to reconnect with someone solely to see how they are doing and what they are up to, but on the very rare, very nice occasion you get to reconnect with someone and you know that you have come back into each others lives for a reason. I reconnected with a friend I haven't seen or spoken to in 12 years. We exchanged phone numbers and had a nice long phone chat. She has just been cleared of cancer after 5 long years of worry. She was able to give me some very needed advice and incite into what I have been going thru with my daughter. And she was thinking about making a career change, going from the world of designing computer games to getting into teaching. I was able to give her some incites on making a complete shift in mentality and starting over at 40 something.
Facebook is more than just farming and a place to place inappropriate pictures of your friends... it is a great tool to help to make real world connections.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Webquest proposal vsn 2

Target Learner:

Webquest designed for students enrolled in Food Studies 10 and 30. There are no prerequisites for either of the Foods classes, so this webquest could be used in either class.

Specific reference to the Saskatchewan Education Curriculum guide:

The webquest would be used in Module 2- Kitchen and Food Safety. The link to the Sask Ed guide is http://www.sasklearning.gov.sk.ca/docs/paa/foodst/1_2.html#2

Concept map:

Question for the students:

Why is food safety an important issue? Why are safe kitchen practices important?

What procedures and practices are needed to ensure food and kitchen safety?

Rationale:

This is probably the most important part of the Food Studies area. Improperly cooked food and improper food handling can cause serious illness and even death.

The webquest will involve researching specific websites and finding the information needed to safely set up and maintain a home or commercial kitchen. This information can, and will at some point transfer to real world application, either when the student leaves home to live on their own, or if at some point they work in a commercial food establishment.

Teaching Activities:

Part One:

- Define food safety terms

- Create a chart with the food groups/types of contamination or food born illness/effects from contamination or food borne illness/ prevention of contamination or food born illness

Part Two:

- Create a chart with common kitchen hazards / prevention / first aid treatments

Part Three:

-Take the food safety quiz

- play 2 food safe games given online

Part Four:

-Design a simple kitchen (free hand or with software if available) that meets all of the food and kitchen safety goals.

-Write a short report detailing where foods / equipment/ hazardous good wills be stored (detailing exact locations in with in the fridge/freezer eg: top shelf, middle shelf: bottom shelf) justify your reasoning using the data collected for your charts

Resources:

Computer/Internet

Food safety quiz

Internet sites:

Some of the websites that the students will access for this quest are

The Canadian food inspection agency: food borne illness, http://www.inspection.gc.ca/

and kitchen safety, http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fssa/concen/tipcon/kitchene.shtml

Health Canada – In your kitchen: safe food handling tips, food related illness

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/index-eng.php

Be food safe website http://www.befoodsafe.ca/en-home.asp

Canadian partnership for consumer food safety education http://www.canfightbac.org/en/

Food safety, public health agency of Canada http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/fs-sa/index-eng.php

although this is a pregnancy and baby site, it does have some excellent advice on kitchen safety

http://www.babycenter.ca/baby/safety/kitchensafety/

good kitchen safety from the London, Ont. Fire department http://www.fire.london.ca/Kitchen.htm

watch the video: what happens if you put water on a grease fire

the food network has very good info on kitchen safety

http://www.foodnetwork.ca/guides/entertaining/kitchen+safety+tips/2177740/story.html

food safety pdf, http://dsp-psd.pwgsc.gc.ca/Collection/A104-11-2003E.pdf

this is an American site, and it is meant for the workplace, but it does give good info on kitchen safety

http://www.fsafood.com/fsacom/News+and+Information/Solutions/Operations/Kitchen+Safety.htm

uk site on safe knife handling, http://www.hse.gov.uk/catering/knives.htm


Evaluation:

Part One: Food Safety

Definitions – one mark for each right answer

Food safe chart - based on rubric

Part Two: Kitchen safety

Kitchen safe chart - based on rubric

Part Three:

Food safety quiz – one mark for each right answer

Part Four:

Kitchen design - based on rubric

Kitchen design report - based on rubric

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

How fruit trees in Indian village save girl's lives.

This is the best story I have come across in a long while.

A simple, globally effective solution to a globally horrific human rights issue. This exact solution may not work in non temperate climates, but it is an inspiration and practical solution here.

Monday, June 14, 2010

"The Times They are a Changin"

On the way into class today listening to the good ol CBC Radio One, I was surprised by an interview about the BP oil spill. An 11 year old boy was interviewed and he said that he was sad about the spill because everyone would lose money and they might lose their homes as well… that is a scary thought for a child to have. But if I am remembering correctly when the Exxon spill happened in march of 1989 the news reports of the day focused on the environmental impact and the world was heartbroken about the lives of the birds and see life that were lost and the long term effect that it would have on marine life. Now obviously there was an economic crisis that followed within the fishing industry of the area, that the people are still recovering from today, but News reports of the time focused around the environment first. I was surprised to hear an 11 year old talk about the jobs and money that would be effected as his biggest concern. Is it because he has close ties to the fishing industry and this is the talk around the table that he is overhearing from his parents? Is it because this is the same Louisiana coastline that was so badly devastated during Hurricane Katrina only 5 years ago in Aug 2005 and this young person has already lost his home once to a natural disaster? Or is it because the world that we live in today has changed its collective priorities. Yes money and economics are important to the well being of society as a whole, but at what cost?

Another person interviewed from the area effected by the disaster was not just concerned for the fishermen, but for the oil workers who would be out of work too. She blames Washington for the spill, for not enforcing the safety regulations. My question is, if there were safety regulations in place, why weren’t the oil workers themselves helping to enforce them, and if BP wasn’t compliant, why didn’t any of the workers blow the whistle. Is the almighty dollar so important that we are collectively willing to destroy our selves in getting it?

The big picture isn’t the bottom line for our pockets, the big picture is the bottom line for our planet. Maybe my tree hugging socialist roots are showing but The Times they are a Changin. Or maybe it is because I share a birthday with Bob Dylan.


Sunday, June 13, 2010

Retired people like free stuff

With the new RONA store opening at Preston Crossing, an interesting revelation has come to light. Retired people like free stuff. Or maybe it is just my Dad. He has been up every morning to go stand in line at the new store so he can be one of the first 500 people there so he can get free stuff. Wednesday – tape measure (my Dad already has about 16 of these) Thursday – work gloves (again, there are already multiple pairs of these strewn throughout the workspaces in the house) Friday – shopping bag (I really don’t need to comment here do I?) Saturday – he insisted that Mom go with him so they can both get a $5 gift card (ok that one may have been worth while) and today, Sunday – a Rona baseball hat. Now the hat is nice, and well fitted, but I doubt that my dad will ever wear it. When my dad does wear a baseball hat, it is to do work in the yard, and he wears an old UGG hat with the mesh and plastic adjust strap in the back that he does up too small so it sits on top of his head. This new Rona hat will probably sit on the shelf for years, because it is too dressy.

My Dad will drive a fair distance and take up a good chunk of the day in order to get something for free. It is not just him though, he insists that he has seen the same group of people at the store every day. All retired. If the stores that run these promotions think they are building brand loyalty by these giveaways, they are mistaken. If Home Depot were to give away free doughnuts and coffee next week, these same people would all be stopping in there, or at least my Dad would.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Volunteer

Volunteer: 1vol·un·teer

Pronunciation: \ˌvä-lən-ˈtir\

Function: noun

Etymology: obsolete French voluntaire (now volontaire), from voluntaire, adjective, voluntary, from Old French, from Latin voluntarius

Date: circa 1600

1 : a person who voluntarily undertakes or expresses a willingness to undertake a service: as a : one who enters into military service voluntarily b (1) : one who renders a service or takes part in a transaction while having no legal concern or interest (2) : one who receives a conveyance or transfer of property without giving valuable consideration.

I was introduced to volunteerism at a young age. Helping my Dad when he had big projects or events at his work. Volunteering has led to some fun learning experiences and even a bit of travel.

I am very proud of my 5 year old girl. Today she had her first taste of volunteering. She helped the people at the LEGO interactive tent at the children’s festival take down all of their models and sort thousands of blocks into separate totes based on colour and size. She had a blast, and said that she thought she might like to help out like that again. She might not be doing something as fun next time, but that will be another lesson to teach. For now, she is a volunteer, and I am a proud mama.

Friday, June 11, 2010

webquest proposal

Jay, I don't know if I am on the right track or not...

Webquest designed for students enrolled in Food Studies 10 and 30. There are no prerequisites for either of the Foods classes, so this webquest could be used in either class. The webquest would be used in Module 2- Kitchen and Food Safety. This is probably the most important part of the Food Studies area. Improperly cooked food and improper food handling can cause serious illness and even death. The link to the Sask Ed guide is http://www.sasklearning.gov.sk.ca/docs/paa/foodst/index.html

The webquest will involve researching specific websites and finding the information needed to safely set up and maintain a home or commercial kitchen. This information can, and will at some point transfer to real world application, either when the student strikes off from home to live on their own, or if at some point they work in some form of a commercial food establishment.

Some of the websites that the students will access for this quest are

The Canadian food inspection agency http://www.inspection.gc.ca/

Health Canada – In your kitchen: safe food handling tips http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/kitchen-cuisine/index-eng.php

Be food safe website http://www.befoodsafe.ca/en-home.asp

I really do not know about any activities, the resources, a concept map or main questions to be addressed in the site at this point.

Let me know if I am on the right track so far and I will try and flush out the rest by the next posting.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

I am an online farmer

Following todays WOW conversation in class, I have a confession...

I am an online farmer

Alright I admit it, I am addicted to virtual farming on Facebook. I can’t help it. I really can’t. Maybe it is because I don’t have dirt of my own to get my hands into and grow something. I figure the next best thing is to be virtually productive. I won’t tell you how many farm type games I play, but I will tell you I am very excited about the new crafting shops that one game has just introduced. Now you can grow crops, singularly or in a co-op, and then use those crops to make something else, well, virtually make something else. Maybe it is a combination of not having my own garden and being a home ec teaching candidate that is fueling my late night forays onto my virtual farm. I really really want to grow and use my own food, but you can only grow so much in containers. I can’t wait for the Berry barn to be open to the public, then maybe I can wean myself from the virtual farm and get myself into the real kitchen and my own personal canning nirvana.

My Avatar has a purple mohawk.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

I CAN’T BELIEVE I MISSED THE SEASON FINALE OF GLEE!

I am a gLeek... there I said it. But I missed it for a good reason. The Children’s Festival kicked off last night with Ache Brazil. They were fantastic. It is always amazing to watch artists at work, especially when they enjoy sharing their talents. Saskatoon is very lucky to have such a fantastic festival centered around children, that really is accessible to all. The site has changed a bit this year, as it is only on the south side of the Bessborough hotel, and they have added some fantastic new free attractions. You wouldn’t believe the cheer that went up in the red and white striped tent tonight when the audience was told of one of the new attractions this year... the interactive LEGO tent! The only downside to the festival is that it is traditional that the weather never cooperates. WHY WHY WHY does mother nature feel she has to rain on everyone’s parade, especially on something so fun for kids.

The children’s festival only comes once a year, so we will but on our rain jacket and rubber boots and head out as much as possible to have some kid friendly fun. I can always watch Glee when it is uploaded to Global TV’s website later this week.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Thinking about "Last Train Home"

I saw a great movie last night with my Mom and my Sister. We went to The Broadway Theatre and saw a Chinese/Canadian co- production "Last Train Home". The film was beautifully shot and edited. You could physically feel the difference between rural and urban China. Urban China was crowded, grey, smoggy, harsh, tiresome, and you got the very real sense that the smells were probably not too pleasant either. Contrast that to rural China where the landscape was green, fertile and not too crowded. Even though the labour being done on the farms was physical and continuous, it felt so much calmer and almost refreshing compared to the work the migrant workers were doing bent over the sewing machines in the massive factories in the over crowded cities.
SPOILER ALERT!
The film centered around one family. Grandmother was looking after a 16 year old girl and a 13 year old boy. Mom and Dad had moved 2100 miles away to find work in a clothing factory. They left rural China when the girl was 1 year old. They only come back once a year during the Chinese New Year to see their children. 1,300,000 other migrant workers in China do the same. The mass of travel at that time of year cripples the transportation systems. Mom and Dad had to stand in lines every day for a week to try to get tickets, then when it was announced that there were no tickets and no more trains being added, they were forced to go to the "resale" ticket window where they were able to find tickets. Although it was never said in the film that the price was more than it would be regularly, you got a very distinct impression that the price was inflated by the look on the fathers face. Mom and Dad spend 2 days traveling back to their remote village by train, boat, bus and foot.
The reunion appears happy, presents are given and warm hugs are exchanged. It is clear though that this really is as deep as the relationship between the parents and the kids is. The parents lecture the kids about studying harder and getting good grades so they can be successful, the children clearly look to grandma for their parenting needs. A great deal of pressure is placed on the young 13 year old son, he is "the hope for the whole family". It is clear that the children feel abandoned.
The film has left me with questions, and that is good. I question whether the daughter feels an extra sense of abandonment because of the way her younger brother is placed on a pedestal? Is this a remnant of the one child policy that was officially in place in China for years, and that unofficially still is, or is it because she is not doing as well in school and her parents simply favour the son? The girl does drop out of school and heads for factory life in the city. After a huge confrontation back at home during the next New Years holiday she does not go back to the city to work in a factory with her parents, she heads of to another province and finds work in a bar. The mother decides to return to the village to parent her son, so he will stay in school and not make the same mistakes as his sister. The family is further fractured. The biggest question I am left with is what has happened to the girl? I doubt that she makes the yearly migrant return during the New Years holiday anymore.