Thursday 29 June 2017

Update on BC Politics... AGAIN!

Christy Clark has officially lost leadership of the BC government after losing a confidence vote.

So many thoughts but I have to get ready for PMJ so for now...


Sunday 25 June 2017

Sunday Sundries

1. Summer has finally arrived in Victoria. It showed up just in time for the first day of summer. Yesterday, it decided it was ready to skip straight to the August heatwave for a ridiculous 30C. I don't really 'do' heat, so I am very happy that the forecast calls for the temperature to drop back into the 20s. I can finally stop dunking my head in cold water every two hours.

Me all weekend
2. Wednesday was National Aboriginal Day here in Canada. Two big things came out of this day nationally:

  1. Starting next year, it will be called National Indigenous Peoples Day which is a much better word to use to refer to this group of people than Aboriginal.
  2. Hector-Louis Langevin's name will be removed from Government offices. Hector was was one of the Fathers of Confederation and did much good for this country. However, he was one of the architects of Canada's Residential School system so I will not cry over the removal of his name.
I attended a presentation and discussion at the Royal BC Museum on repatriation. It was an interesting discussion with both members of the First Nations communities and museum staff who liaison with the FN communities regarding repatriation of items in the BC archives.

3. I am going to see PostModern Jukebox on Thursday. If you don't know who PMJ are, they take modern popular songs and perform them in various music styles from the 1920s to the 1960s. I am so excited! They just recently released this video of Weezer's "Say It Ain't So" as an old-school torch song.


Ah-maze-ing.

4. I went for a hike on Saturday around Royal Roads, also known as the home of Xavier's School for Gifted Children. Deadpool was there recently but no one was in when we stopped by. I was an amazing walk but I was very grateful that the majority was amongst the trees or beside the ocean.

Looking south across the Esquimalt Lagoon towards the Olympic Mountains (Washington State)
5. The work project is done... well, it's moved into stabilization which means I'm back to a normal work day with a few floor walking/support sessions. I can actually take my lunch breaks again!


Monday 19 June 2017

Sunday Sundries

It's another Sunday Sundries on a Monday. Meh... things happen.


1. On Saturday night, I headed to Phillips Brewery for the Under the Maltworks series. This month's movie was "This is Spinal Tap". I knew that we'd get a beer and a themed snack as part of the event, but we also got pins on our way out. So now I have a pin that goes all the way up to 11. It was a very enjoyable way to watch a movie, and I'm a bit bummed that I have a competing event for the next movie. That competing event is my friend's wedding so it is going to win the decision, but I did spend a couple of minutes trying to figure out how to do both.


2. "Thunderbird calls the people to the long house so they can witness. The act of witnessing is very important in our culture. To witness, you see, you hear, you experience, and then you go away from the place of witnessing and tell others what you witnessed." This explanation was given during the Git Hayetsk Dancers performance at the Aboriginal Cultural Festival this past weekend. So, this is my witness. I had a lovely time; I got to see my favourite dance piece by the Le-La-La Dancers, I enjoyed the Bison Taco from the Songhees Food Truck, I picked up Andy Everson's "Rise" to go with "Resistance" that I purchased last year (and at some point, I'm going to get "Defiance" to complete the set), and I finally bought myself a silver First Nations pendant I've been wanting to get (the design is Raven). I wish I could have stayed longer to watch more of the performances but it was cold and occasionally raining. After two hours, I was ready to head home. Because of the damp, cold weather, I didn't bring my camera this year so you'll have to make due with one of last year's photos.

Andy Everson is also one of the Le-La-La Dancers
3. My friends, Emma and Katie, and I have decided to start going to hikes once a month starting this Saturday. The long-term goal is a couple of short, multi day hikes next summer. While we have tentatively agreed that we will stop once the weather turns in October/November, I have a sneaking suspicion that Emma will convince us that the weather's not that bad. If it turns really bad, then we can always go snowshoeing.


If you're a Victoria-peep and are interested in joining us, let me know. I'll forward you our plan.

4. After finishing House of Cards, I started watching Riverdale. Wow. Archie and the gang have changed a lot since I used to pick up Double Digests as a treat when I was waiting inline at the store. At least Betty and Veronica still have the correct hair colour.


5. June 21st is National Aboriginal Day. If you're in Victoria, the Royal BC Museum is holding a participatory discussion on Repatriation. I hope I see you there.


Sunday 11 June 2017

Sunday Sundries

1. We're in the middle of a big project at work right now, so it might be Sunday-only posts for the next three weeks.

Me last Friday... and probably every day this week.
2. Black Raven Armoury currently has their Wonder Woman pattern available for free. You can sign up for it here.


3. The UK election was... interesting. To ensure she maintains the balance of power, Theresa May - who wants to take a harder stance on terrorists - has made a deal with a political party that once funded terrorists. I will turn to one of my favourite satire sites, The Ulster Fry, for my take on it.

Also from The Ulster Fry.
4. Speaking of elections, the end is in sight for the BC Election. Christy Clark has called parliament for June 22nd. The big fight will be who gives up an MP to be Speaker of the House. Then it's the Throne Speech and, hopefully, Christy's goodbye.


5. I finished Season Five of "House of Cards". I can't believe how they ended it. I get having a cliffhanger, but they had, like, eight. AHH!!! (Also, I love Michael Kelly. This link contains spoilers.) There was one story that felt like it didn't go anywhere this season, but it also seemed like it could be cause plenty of problems in a future season so...


6. Part of the Alberta contingent was visiting this weekend which means day drinking. Had a few trips down memory lane in the past 24 hours. We'll add Alberta to the places I'm feeling nostalgic for this week.

Looking at the Sweetgrass Hills from Writing-On-Stone Provincial Park.

Monday 5 June 2017

Sunday Sundries

It's Sunday Sundries... on a Monday. Like Freedom Friday on a Taco Tuesday but less tasty.


My Internet has been dropping the last few days causing my Sunday night post plans to be thwarted.


1. I went to Wonder Woman after work on Friday. I need to do a full proper review but with my Internet still playing hide-n-go-seek, all you get is "I loved it. It was everything I wanted and more. My only complaint was that I couldn't just sit in the theatre and watch the next showing being apparently pets need to be feed or something. I don't know. I just know they ruin everything. But the movie was fantastic. It has flaws - I've yet to see a movie that doesn't - but they are so minimal and inconsequential when compared to what it got so very right."

Look at her kick butt!

2. I spent the weekend with Noah and Rachel. There was a failure with Noah's kidney transplant and they have had to start the search for another donor roughly 10 years sooner than anticipated. This is my reminder that there is a need for kidney donors. For more information about being a living donor in Canada, visit The Kidney Foundation of Canada. In the States, visit The National Kidney Foundation.

By The Awkward Yet
3. Ireland have officially entered their bid to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup. If they win the bid, I'm making plans to go the RWC visit my family. Who wants to come with me? 😉


They're even going to open up Croke Park to non-GAA games. LOVE IT!

4. National Aboriginal Day is coming up - many indigenous people celebrate the whole month - which means the Victoria Aboriginal Cultural Festival is just weeks away. I will be going because I believe it is important to support the First Nations in celebrating their heritage. There will be Māori dancers from New Zealand this year. That's something different!

If you are planning on attending, I highly recommend that you try and catch Andy's Totem Tour, the Le-La-La Dancers, and Alex Wells. Food, as always, is available from the Songhees Seafood and Steam Food Truck. My personal favourite is the Indian Taco (bison version).

It's a few years old, but a few good words from Wab Kinew.


Here's to a great week, everyone! Only four more days until the weekend.