A Room Of My Own

Oh my...inspiration. I personally met Lorna Crozier on September 26/09. She was delightful. Upon first seeing her, I thought her a frail, small, being. She walked into the Writersfest wearing a long brown peasant skirt, a belted top, a colourful long scarf, and her boots stole the show. She moderated the Poets Brigade beautifully- no boring questions, she was interactive and engaging. Lorna Crozier’s voice has the grace and confidence her life experience has earned. The three attending poets, Karen Solie , Kevin Connolly , and David O’Meara , were great company for the much admired Lorna. As the Poetry Brigade wrapped up she announced with sass “Poetry rocks”. I met with Lorna at the close of the Poetry Brigade. She was handing each of the mentionned poets back her copy of their own books and requested that they be autographed. She asked them to dedicate the books to ‘Lorna and Patrick as we share everything’. I found this admirable. Lorna is accessible, generous and fun. Physically, ...

One evening last week my big black lab and I headed out for a hike at one of our favourite provincial parks. After an invigorating climb through trails up and down steep hills, poor Bailey was quite worn out. As he quickly approaches the 10 year mark in his life, we are seeing his age sneak up on him. He sleeps for much of the day, getting up after a long nap is quite laborious for him and his back legs are strained under all 120 lbs of him. After the trek in the woods, we headed down to the river for a dip to cool off. Although he is a gorgeous water dog, these days his uncertainty in his back legs prevents him from leaping into the water for that well deserved swim. I have to lead him into the water until it is deep enough and then swim with him. This was really therapeutic for both of us. I do adore him so. Following the swim I got out, dried off and grabbed my book. I settled in at the river’s edge for a good read, but what happened next took me from my reading. Bailey found friend...

During a recent hike near my home in the country, I came upon some puff mushrooms, a local delicacy that is delicious, fresh and free! This spurred my idea for that night’s dinner and today’s blog on The 100 Mile Diet. I had guests for dinner and everything on the table was from my garden or that of local farms. The remark was made that we are actually living this diet. At the time, I was unaware of this movement and its Canadian origins. The idea for this diet is truly simple, traditional and, in fact, Canadian. The history, as quoted from the website, started when “in 2005, Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon began a one-year experiment in local eating. Their 100-Mile Diet struck a deeper chord than anyone could have predicted, inspiring thousands of individuals, and even whole communities, to change the way they eat.” http://100milediet.org/ I thought I would share how my family enjoys the harvest from our local area. To begin with, apples are in season right now and I am lucky enough to...

It is distressing and staggering that in this day illiteracy is still alive and growing in numbers around the world. The immediate connection between illiteracy and poverty is clear. With specific mention to women, who make up two thirds of the illiterate population, this must change. The following is an except from UNESCO on literacy; September 08, 2009 Objective :On International Literacy Day each year, UNESCO reminds the international community of the status of literacy and adult learning globally. September 8 was proclaimed International Literacy Day by UNESCO on November 17, 1965. It was first celebrated in 1966. Its aim is to highlight the importance of literacy to individuals, communities and societies. On International Literacy Day each year, UNESCO reminds the international community of the status of literacy and adult learning globally. Celebrations take place around the world. Some 774 million adults lack minimum literacy skills; one in five adults is still not literate and...

This is a recording of Virginia Woolf as published electronically through The Book Bench with The New Yorker . I knew I had stumbled on a treasure when I saw this. Her words continue to inspire me, but there was just something so visceral, so palpable in hearing her speak her own words, listening to her pause and then emphasize certain words, it left me content. The next time a pick up one of her novels, I hope to hear her voice inside my head. “This is presumed to be the only surviving recording of Virginia Woolf. It was recorded on April 29, 1937, as part of a BBC radio broadcast series called “Words Fail Me.” Woolf would have been fifty-five at the time.” (Partial transcript in this recording) … Words, English words, are full of echoes, of memories, of associations. They have been out and about, on people's lips, in their houses, in the streets, in the fields, for so many centuries. And that is one of the chief difficulties in writing them today – that they are stored with oth...