Jigsaw Puzzles

My father bought me this M C Escher puzzle back in October. So, a couple weekends ago when Blaise said "let's do a puzzle!!!" I thought of this 1000 piece one in the basement that I was saving for Christmas holidays and brought it upstairs. That Friday night, Blaise helped me sort the edge pieces and even got a couple out in himself before getting bored out of his skull. I persisted late into the evening and then again the next day I worked on the monochrome problem for about 8 hours late into the following morning.

Seeing that I might never come out of this alive, Amber started to pitch in and Sunday night my mom who came for a visit added her two hands to the task. I finally finished the puzzle off on Tuesday night after what I figure to be close to 20 hours of work. I'm going to mount it and frame it.

Blaise got a puzzle at the Salvation Army Store in High River this past weekend. We assembled it together with Blaise doing most of it. He's studying geography this month, so it even tied into his formal learning.

I remember my Mémère (grandma) doing puzzles when I was young and I've always enjoyed working on them.

In French they are called casse-tête which means head-breaker. I like that.

Prostates of the World Unite!

In honour of Movember (Mo(ustache No)vember), I decided to shave my beard down to a stache for a couple days.

I guess the whole tradition started in Australia where people started fundraising for research prostate and testicular cancer by getting sponsors for their month long moustaches. In North America it became more of a beard growing thing (kind of like the play-off beard) in order to raise awareness.

Apparently, 1 in 6 men get prostate cancer. This is a "fact" from the internet, so don't quote me, but even if just half that many people get it, it makes for quite the issue to be aware of. I sure don't want it.

So, when you see my moustache, think "take care of your prostate" or "keep your testes healthy."

Embarrassing Purchases

OK, think of the two most embarrassing things to purchase.

I purchased both of them at the same time today! I'm a hero!

Used Luxury Vehicles

Posits:

• People who buy new luxury vehicles generally replace their vehicles within five years
• Vehicles do not typically require any major repairs in their first five years.
• People who can afford to buy new luxury vehicles, do not typically drive them into the ground as they can afford alternative transportation for long distance trips.
• Five-year-old luxury vehicles cost about the same as new midrange vehicles, but they have all the perks of luxury vehicles and they probably will not have registered many kilometres so they will garner appeal.
• The cost of repairing luxury vehicles is high - highly specialized parts and high dealership labour rates.

Conclusion:

• Do not under any circumstances buy used luxury vehicles.

Owen Pallett Live

A couple weeks ago I attended a rich musical event: Owen Pallett performing at Knox United Church.

I had heard from a friend that Mr. Pallett was kind of full of himself, a bit pouty, but a superb performer. All of this was true in my experience. He was very gracious towards the opening artist (Little Scream) who came on stage and then asked if anyone had a pick and he developed a great rapport with the audience. But his vibe was kind of that of a spoiled brat.

Musically, the guy is brilliant! Most of the music is produced through loops that he records with his violin and a little synthesizer. Another musician joined him for about half the songs playing drums, doing back up vocals or playing bass. The violin loops were most impressive as the heavy effects that could make a heavy bass or woodwind sound, let alone the multitude of energetic percussion loops.

Western Canada Character Education Conference 2010

I was privileged to attend a this conference a couple days ago with several of my coworkers. The conference's purpose is to equip educators to teach/instill character traits to/in their students.

The keynote speaker impressed me so much by doing one simple, though I'm sure it required hours of preparation. Michele Borba is an American scholar and speaker on the subject of raising and educating children. The fact that she is American makes what she did at the conference that much more impressive: she used Canadian statistics and examples to support and demonstrate every point she made. It showed she cared enough about the distinctiveness of our society to lift up the good parts and challenge the deficits.

Her thesis was not earth shattering, but the practical applications were extremely relevant.

New Cohousing Name

We have been involved with cohousing for about a year now and have since become associate members and then equity members. A couple weeks ago our group, Whiskeyjack Cohousing, merged with Silver Sky Cohousing to form a new group. At our meeting last Sunday, we chose a new name. Prior to the meeting, we were all invited to submit names for the group to choose from. These were my submissions:

Acorn Cohousing
Firefly Cohousing
Hummingbird Cohousing
Snapdragon Cohousing
Riverstone Cohousing

I thought it would be funny to submit these name possibilities too:

Dog Poop Cohousing
Platinum Ukulele Song of Harmony and Peace Cohousing
Run for the Hills Cohousing
It's Different from a Commune Cohousing
Bomb Shelter Cohousing

The name we ultimately chose was Dragonfly Cohousing.

Airport Geocaching

While waiting in Kelowna airport on a layover on my way to Calgary, my buddy Mike was waiting in Calgary airport on a layover. We connected over Facebook and started chatting. We discovered that I was going to arrive about 5 minutes after he left. I asked him if he was into hiding something in the airport for me to find when I arrived. He was in.

When I walked out of my gate, I followed his directions to a spot behind some pay phones at a particular gate and picked up a keychain he left for me.

It made me feel oddly connected to Mike over time, like in Back to the Future II when Joe Flaherty's mailman character walks up to Marty McFly in the rain with a letter written to him 70 years earlier.

How not to win over unlike-minded listeners...

At teacher's conference a couple days ago, Josh McDowell said

". . . I wish those emergent post-moderns would get that through their thick skulls."

Interview on CBC Radio 1

A couple days ago I was interviewed by Jim Brown on CBC Calgary Radio 1. The Calgary Eye Opener does local special interest pieces every day and one of their reporters, Meghan Grant, discovered our cohousing group on Kijiji and decided to investigate. In the end they interviewed me on Friday for an edited news story that ran every hour and then live on Monday morning by phone. You can listen to it here (look for the cohousing piece on Oct 18) for a limited time. I'll get an .mp3 to put on the Whiskeyjack Cohousing site.

I was quite nervous and I kept waking up in the night thinking "I have to mention aging in place" or "it's not about the money, it's about community!" or "I must remember to drink water and go to the bathroom before the interview" and on and on. I think I contradicted myself once, but otherwise I think I was pretty upbeat and clear.

I was at school for the phone interview, so I ducked into an office so it would be quiet. The residents of the office waited outside and listed to the interview on an iPhone. When I was done, I walked out and they were still listening so there was a good 1 minute delay - I thought there would be about 10 seconds, but a minute is serious business.

TDMCTC Study Guide

Earlier this year, before my pastor published his book The Day Metallica Came to Church, I was invited to read through the book with the pastor and a handful of other church members. When we finished the 3 months of discussions around the book, John (the pastor/author) asked me to compose thoughtful discussion questions for each chapter. We edited the questions and then John added some great spiritual exercises to try after reading the chapters and voilà! it's a Study Guide. The publisher (Faith Alive) has posted the Study Guide for free for readers of the book.

Air/Rail/Sea/Road in 90 minutes

8:15 PM: Descending into Vancouver on WestJet Flight 437

8:22 PM: Touching down at YVR

8:31 PM: Walking through the terminal to the SkyTrain.

8:46 PM: Boarding the Canada Line at YVR-Airport towards Waterfront.

9:11 PM: Exiting SkyTrain at Waterfront Station

9:16 PM: Departing Waterfront on the SeaBus

9:28 PM: Stepping off the SeaBus after crossing Vancouver Harbour

9:36 PM: Piling into my sister's car at Lonsdale Market in North Vancouver

9:45 PM: Driving on Hwy 99 towards Squamish

Mavis Staples Quote

Mavis Staples: "They said I was singing the Devil's music."

Stephen Colbert: "Were you singing the Devil's music?"

MS: "I'm positive, I was not singing the Devil's music."

SC: "Did you ever sing disco madame?"

MS: "The Devil ain't got no music!"

In Outer Space

Last year I took Blaise to a star gazing night at my school where my coworker and friend Jeff gets a bunch of folks from the local chapter of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada to bring their mondo telescopes to a field so his grade 8 science class can view the sky through their lenses.

This year Blaise studied astronomy as his first unit of kindergarten at home school which lasted the whole month of September. He learned about the planets and about orbits and stars and the moon. On September 30 we went with Jeff's class to inspect the heavenly bodies.

This time we saw Jupiter and its moons complete with the largest planet's brown stripes. We saw Comet Hartley 2. We saw galaxies Andromeda, M81 (Bode's) and M82 (Cigar) (the last two are 150,000 light years apart and yet both visible in the telescope). We saw Albireo (two stars that align so closely they look like one to the naked eye, but they are different colours). We saw the M13 star cluster.

Blaise's favorite planet is Jupiter so it was pretty special for him to see it so well in some world class telescopes.

Disposable Business Model

There are two things that I hate: Junk and Paying for Junk.

My Canon Pixma MP520 only prints when all the toner cartridges have ink in them - even when I just want to print in black. So, I had to go buy toner at $20 each because my colour ones were empty. As a result I had to throw out 3 perfectly good cartridges because they were empty rather than refilling them. Well, I could have refilled them, but I don't have the gadget to reset the computer chips. So, the cartridges were Junk. A waste!

While shaving is not my favorite activity, I do shave. Usually. And over time I've moved from the Gillette Sensor Excel to the Gillette Mach 3 to the Gillette 5-Blade Fusion and then back to the Mach 3 because it's cheaper. Four cartridges cost $15 or $3.75 each. They are a blend of plastic and a few thin metal blades that last about 6 shaves. So for me to shave costs a fortune and I'm tossing out items that are not renewable.

It's clear that the business plan of both Canon (and other printer manufacturers) and Gillette (who hold a near monopoly on the shaving world) have created a dependence on their products and are cashing in on the replaceable items.

This was not always the case. In the shaving world for instance, there was a multitude of razor blade producers and a host of razor makers. This kept competition up and prices low. Plus the bulk of the money made was not on the disposable blades (which were just the double use blades, no cartridge), but the razor which would last a lifetime. The only place where I can purchase an old-style razor is an online specialty store (Rasage Poulin) as no pharmacies carry them (thanks to Alan for putting me on to this). I will do this. I also picked up an old straight razor at the Red Deer Farmer's Market a couple weeks ago. I need to sharpen it, but it promises to be a treat to shave with.

My printer cost me $100 - to switch out all the cartridges it costs $80. When this toner dies out, I'm buying a laser printer, a Lexmark that takes back your toner cartridge and promises 21,000 printouts per $400 cartridge (though a friend of mine can get them at $80 from a distributor). No waste. No unnecessary costs.

In closing, I think human kind would do better to move towards a less disposable consumer model. Thinking of all the preventable landfill contents (and use of natural resources) of diapers, cartridges, shampoo bottles, etc. saddens me. It also saddens me that we have moved away from high quality products for the sake of saving a few bucks in the short term. Even cars are disposable these days.

The Arcade Fire - Sept 26

I've seen some good shows in my limited concert attending life. This one will stand forever as a great concert: The Arcade Fire at the Corral, Calgary, AB, September 26 with Calexico.

Amber and I scored tickets through my friend Gary at church. They were on the floor, so I pushed for us to line up a little early so we could get close to the stage. Close we did get - right at the gate, just a couple feet from the stage, just left of centre.

Calexico, a roots/rock/mariachi band from Phoenix, opened. We were right in front of the trumpets. They were a lot of fun, some great music.

Earlier that day at New Hope Church, our pastor John preached on the truths that God speaks through Arcade Fire. A couple dozen New Hopers were at the show that night. It was a great big church party!

“This concert experience was totally different because of what we did at church this morning,” said Kailey, a fellow New Hoper who sat (stood dancing) beside me at the Arcade Fire explosion last night. She’s right. It was… for me too. (from John's Blog)

The theatrics were awesome! Two of the musicians were especially furious in their playing: William Butler (keyboards, percussion, and shouting) and Richard Parry (everything). At one point William beats a drum, but actually beats it into a pulp during Power Out – a song about kids reclaiming life after humankind is found to be dead (empty hearts). There’s a physical response, not just words. Actions, not only faith. Régine Chassagne, the female lead singer and multi-instrumentalist does an amazing job flitting around the stage like a pixie or angel or oracle. Her songs are less angry, more desire – singing about Haiti or about how disappointing the suburban sprawl is. Her dancing evokes new life, rebirth, purity.

One of the big highlights for me: Rococo - a song about today’s kids being entranced by emptiness, lavish materialism, and their fake feral nature. (Rococo is an art era marked by meaningless swirls, gaudy decor and French despotic rule that is beheaded decades later for their disregard for real justice) The song on the album almost seems playful, peppy. Live, it is an ominous experience, an angry trudge. Win asks at one point, shouting “What is this horrible song they’re singing?” I had shivers. He’s singing about deception, lies, being duped and he’s genuinely reviled by it.

The string section in Rococo was arranged to sound like mosquitos biting colonial Frenchmen in Haiti.

Another highlight was catching a drumstick that flew out of William's hand as he pounded the tar out of a tom during Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out).

Tim, the main guitarist was in front of us most of the time at the far left. He is probably the least dynamic of the band, but he was rock solid on his instruments.

At one point Win's mic stand fell on the ground, so he got down and kept on singing into it. Gary snapped this great shot of him.

The set list was brilliant. Not one song was out of place.

The Spirit of God was definitely at the show, not only brought by those of us from New Hope Church, but by all of the desires for something more in all the fans. Brought by the thousands of fans who are drawn not by glamour and veneer, but by the gritty chafe against it. Brought by artists who have forged their talents into magnificence. Brought by a God who asks “What are my children doing, letting their hearts fill with nothing? What are my people doing making religion a mockery of justice?”

This is from their Madison Square Gardens show a couple months ago:

Photo Credits go to Gary who brought his camera to the show. Thanks Gary!

Fall Colours in Calgary

I was shocked at how much I missed the mighty and diverse deciduous trees of the east while visiting Tennessee after living four years in Alberta. I also remember the overwhelming power of the fall colours while driving through the Eastern Townships of Québec and the striking yellows of Montréal when we lived there seven years ago. And every autumn I spend in Alberta with its limited and diminutive trees I feel cheated - especially when autumn passes in a matter of hours:

FROST - BIG WIND - BARREN LANDSCAPE

This year we got a gorgeous week! Driving in from Red Deer two weeks ago we saw the grassland covered in burning oranges and reds. The lines of trees that separate farms were bright yellow and leafy green. It was glorious!

Then, behind our house, in the green space the city has reserved for kids to litter and build forts the greenery transformed and every blade of grass and each leaf began to die and chemical reactions brought colour and it remained for a week before a series of strong winds ushered in the purgatory that is October and November before the serious snow comes.

See the photos in larger sizes at ZAAKISTAN.COM.

I, Leper

Before summer break ended, I decided to spend some of my carefree time at my doctor's office to see if she could deal with some of my chronic conditions. I won't disclose everything here, but one of my ailments is a fungal thing under my toe nail. Another is the crud in my eye lashes. As I was finally picking up some prescriptions today, I reflected on all of my skin diseases - and I have had a lot of them, I guess I have weak skin:

Impetigo

Eczema

Sarcoptic Mange

Furuncles

Athlete's Foot

Onychomycosis

Verruca Vulgaris

Verruca Plantaris

Blepharitis

Aphthous Ulcer

Herpes Labialis

Dermatophytosis

Acne

Pityriasis Simplex Capillitii

Blister

Pseudofolliculitis Barbae

Sun Burn

Coral Scrape Infection

Aren't those names awesome! Makes me want to name some rock bands (Zaak and the Furuncles or Eczema Verruca Salad which could be affectionately known by fans as EVS or The Sarcoptic Mange).

I'll spare you photos, but if you're interested Wikipedia has some great ones! Best viewed before mealtime.

Oh, and I don't want to make light of leprosy or minimize the suffering of actual lepers by comparing my relatively inconsequential afflictions to theirs - the title just seemed appropriate and compelling.

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Addition February 2015:  I can add Cellulitis onto the list, which, if left unchecked, could have permanently done some damage (death or otherwise).

A Name by any other Font

I enjoy fonts. I'm not obsessed and I don't go hunting for new ones on the web, but I enjoy fonts. I hate to admit it, but my favorite font for the last 15 years has been the clean Helvetica Sans Serif (not available in blogger). I don't know why it gets bashed so much.

For our family names I decided to try them all out with all my default fonts to see what would make them look best. This is what I came up with:

ZAAK: Handwriting - Dakota
AMBER: Mona Lisa Solid ITC TT
BLAISE: Harrington
ACADIA: Kino MT

Rewarded

I was running late. The wind was strong. I had errands to run. I seriously considered calling Amber for a ride from school rather than biking home.

But I deliberately chose to ride rather than copping out when it is convenient. As I sweat up the second hill I was rewarded with 5 minutes of a hawk soaring above me to my left. He flew low enough for me to see him scanning left to right for field mice and such prey. Pretty cool.

I only hit girls. . .

. . .when they are texting and walking on the side of the road with the sun behind them and I'm riding the opposite direction on my bike.

Fortunately, I swerved in time, let out a nervous laugh.

Waterton Lakes Hikes

Amber and I spend a glorious couple days and two nights in Waterton Lakes National Park (or the Waterton Glacier International Peace Park) for the 10th anniversary of our marriage. Neither of us have ever visited the park, so we are eager to take in as much as possible. We also splurge for the occasion and spend a small fortune to spend our nights at the Waterton Lakes Resort.

Before checking into our hotel, we climb the Waterton standard hike - Bear's Hump (2.8 km), a rock that overlooks the town of Waterton and the Waterton Lakes. There is a colony of fat chipmunks at the summit and a breathtaking view!

The next morning, under a cloudy sky we hike up to Forum Lake (8 km) which heads west into British Columbia which means we cross the continental divide!! The wild flowers are stunning. It starts to rain lightly at the lake, so we quickly eat and hike back to the car.

After we have lunch and a rest, we drive as far down the road as they will let us (construction at the parking lot) and then trudge 2.2 km to the beginning of the hikes at Red Rocks Canyon (1.4 km) and Blakiston Falls (2 km).



We are drenched at Red Rocks canyon in a flash thunder storm. We take refuge under a bridge as hail pounds all around us.

We sup at the Bayshore Lakeside Chophouse and then have desert and coffee at the Prince of Wales Hotel up on the hill.

Lightning lights up the lakes as we leave for our hotel.

The next morning, we pack up and do a quick trail south from the town of Waterton to Bertha Falls (5.6 km). The falls are tremendous! I run into a former student teacher I had when I was in grade 4. We drive home to our children and their caregiver (thanks mom!).

10 Years Married

August six, ten years ago, I wed a wonderful woman. After three years of courtship including a year apart, we exchanged vows on the hottest day of the year under the sun in Smithers, BC. Officiating was my friend Todd and witnessing were 150 family and friends, many of whom travelled great distances to support our commitment.

Since that day, Amber and I have lived in Edmonton, Montreal, Spruce Grove, Tactic, and Calgary. We have traveled across Canada and through much of Central America. Five years ago, we began adding to our family and have nurtured two great kids. We have enjoyed countless meals, films, books, and dates together.

I highly endorse this institution.

I love my wife. So much.

Canmore Folk Music Festival

My mom has been raving about the Canmore Folk Music Festival for a years now and we were finally in province for it this year. I'm glad we were!

The great blues musician Matt Anderson (from NB) played a couple workshops and we were excited to see him. We saw him last at the Vinyl Cafe concert at Christmas. This guy has the voice.

A couple big highlights for me were a traditional Québecois band called Le Vent du Nord. They were reminiscent of La Bottine Souriante who I have been listening to for years. Part of their ensemble is a hurdygurdy player which adds a sweet tone. Also there was Ali Farka Touré's son - Vieux Farka Touré of Mali. Again, I've been a fan of Malian guitarists for quite some time (especially Vieux's father Ali and Habib Koité). Both gave great sets! Too short really.

Some other notables were Dala, Four Men & A Dog, Ruthie Foster, Geoff Muldaur & Amos Garrett (pictured below), and the legendary Buffy Sainte-Marie (above).

We lunched at the Grizzly Paw Brew Pub where I sampled their 8 lovely brews.

My family got covered in CKUA tattoos. I thought about it, but my belly is pretty hairy.

It started to rain a bit later in the evening, but most people just put up their hoods and stayed.

Next year I'll be making an effort to get the whole weekend in.