oink, oink

i am fascinated with the pandemic of the swine flu. i watched both the who and the canadian minister of health news conferences today and was totally impressed with the information they gave, the professionalism they exuded, and the warnings they gave to the media to keep their reporting from becoming sensational and panic stricken and to doctors in their prescription of the antivirus to treat the flu.

i also learned that those masks are not very good at preventing flu transmissions, that there is only one testing facility in canada (in winnipeg) to confirm the virus is swine flu, and the differences between the flu vaccine and the antivirus used to treat it.

at first i thought that the world was over reacting and that if people are getting the swine flu and not even needing to be admitted into the hospital, it cannot truly be such a problem. but then i washed away my western bias and realised that if a flu of this nature got into the informal settlements in the developing world or if people contract the flu in countries without the health infrastructure that we have in canada, it would be absolutely devastating.

in watching the coverage of the pandemic, it makes me want to be involved in some way. perhaps because i used to work for an organisation that has a huge migration health department, which is no doubt mobilising to address the swine flu. just as i do when i hear about disasters, conflicts, and emergency responses of other natures. maybe i am an activist at heart, or just have an adventure seeking spirit. but i am busy as bee here doing what i do, so i am quite content to stay put and wait until it is my time to get more involved again.

dream job

after a fun weekend full of visits with out of town visitors, i was compelled to work from home today to ensure that i am sufficiently prepared to deliver 2 presentations tomorrow.

one is going to be on project management in the developing world and has 73 people signed up as of this morning. sure, they might just be coming for the free lunch, but i don't want them to leave disappointed!

the other is going to be a 1 hour workshop on human trafficking, should have fewer than 30 people, and is material that i have presented many a time, so it is not nearly as nerve wracking as pretending to be an expert in the field of international development as well as project management. eek!

however, if i could find a job where i give presentations, write my thoughts, and format powerpoint presentations for money, i would be one happy lady. here are some of my favourite photos that i have included in my presentation.

until then, wish me luck tomorrow (and remind me not to wear the pants that have the fly that doesn't stay up!) and once this little hullabaloo is over, i will get back to more important things, like attending improv shows and trying out my new runners!

mizuno creation

thanks to the expertise of heather, i got myself a new pair of shoes that will hopefully alleviate my bruised toe issues and make me go really, really fast.
they are also a neutral shoe and i have been running in a stabilising shoe, so i am curious to see how this affects my running and my foot/hip issues.

and by the way, heather ran the police half marathon today, so go over and say congratulations!

The Late, Late Breakfast Show

i have known one of the improvisors in The Late, Late Breakfast Show since we were just wee. and let me tell you people, she is funny. and when i say funny, i mean she has been known to rap upon request, impersonate her mother (who i adore) with the most endearing voice ever, wear lampshades on her head when she is sober, and stuff an amazing amount of grapes in her mouth on a whim.

ok, so the last 2 were when we were 13 years old, but still.

her improv group is putting on their show next week (tuesday, april 28th - saturday, may 2nd) in calgary at the Birds and Stone Theatre at 8pm.

check out their website and then join me at the show for a laugh or two.

spread, spread, spread

it is world malaria day and you know what that means...

let's keep spreading the net!

http://www.spreadthenet.org/

Little Bee lacks authenticity

over the easter long weekend, i read the book Little Bee by Chris Cleave. the subject matter, a nigerian asylum seeker struggles in the uk, would be intimately interesting to me considering my work in migration, my life in the uk, and my general love for things african and/or refugee.

and it was a good story, drawing attention to the struggles in nigeria over rights to oil deposits and the challenge to survive in migrant detention centres and in a foreign society with little to no resources.

however, i am not so sure that the author is deserving of the accolades for this book (shortlisted for the costa award for best novel in the uk) because i think it overly simplifies the storyline and its characters. someone gets their finger chopped off on a beach whilst vacationing in nigeria with their husband and then runs from the rebels back to their compound? i am not saying that it could never happen, but just throwing an incident into the story and not digging deeper left the story a little flat for me.

there is an interesting interview with the author where i think he makes a better case for bringing the issues of detaining irregular (not illegal) migrants indefinitely and in inhumane conditions to the public than he does in his book and is worth a read.

although even in this interview he completely misuses the words refugee and asylum seeker and although i realise that to most people, the differences are moot, if you are going to write an entire novel on the topic, you should get the terminology correct. the main character, little bee, is not a refugee and is instead an asylum seeker. asylum seekers are not inherently victims of anything, hence the word 'seeker' included in the phrase. they are asking to be allowed to stay on humanitarian grounds, but have not been given formal leave to do so yet.

i took slight offence to the assumption that little bee could not return to nigeria and that the british system would detain an unaccompanied minor in her situation. i am not saying these things do not happen, but i do know there are many programmes for unaccompanied minors and there are guidelines on how to handle such cases. in fact, i was involved in one such case of unaccompanied kenyan children in europe and they were not detained, not mistreated, and not forced to go anywhere that was unsafe. (but i get that this happens, i just wish there had been more information given to make the issues clear).

there are literally thousands of stories that could be told about migrants' experiences in the uk and i would most likely purchase and read any of them that are published, but i suppose i have pretty high expectations of authors who wish to tackle such an issue so personal to me. unfortunately, this book did not meet those expectations.

have you seen my legs?

i am not sure what has gotten into me (well, there was that slight funk again last week), but i have been a bit of a running machine lately.

i accidentally ran 16.7km on saturday afternoon this past weekend. it was an accident because i only intended on running 14km, but took a wrong turn and wasn't exactly going to turn around after running 8km, so just kept going. it was awesome. the best part of it was that it was my muscles that were screaming and not my lungs during the tough bits of the run, meaning that my lungs are well accustomed to the altitude, dryness, and aerobic activity.

what makes me so impressed with myself is that i ran alone and didn't plan on it, just sort of did it. i have never been a very self-motivated runner, no matter what and how i have tried, so this was quite a feat.

and last night i ran 8km, a nice, easy 8km at that.

i am on a running roll. let's hope the running continues, but the funks stop.

and does anyone know any treatments for bruised toes? is this an indicator that i need new shoes? or a new pair of feet? ouch.

flames in 6

i had the opportunity to attend the first calgary flames home game of the playoffs in the third game of the first round of playoffs this past monday (thank you charlie!). it was awesome.

what made it so awesome was that i got to go with my brother, who was also rocking his skinny jeans, and that calgary won. it was a great game and i was totally impressed with the fans who did not boo during the american national anthem (as i had expected they would) and instead many actually sung along. it was nice to feel as though i was a part of something big and to see all the flaming black c's in the sea of red.

to fit in with the red, i actually had to run to jersey city on my way to the game to pick up a flames shirt (i know, this sort of makes me a bad fan, but what do i need a flames shirt for at any other time of the year? and my bro's jerseys are just far too large unless i belted them and wore tights).

what made the night not so nice was the belligerent and irritating fan sitting behind us who insisted on starting chants along the lines of 'suck my d*ck' and 'bull sh*t.' i think he missed the memo. the one that says that he should grow up and have some class. and that i will never give him a high 10, that one too.

the other elements of the night that i was not entirely impressed with were the boos directed towards the referees and linesmen as soon as they stepped on the ice (and then calgary fans wonder why we had crappy calls against our team during the first period...) and the stomach ache that i got immediately after eating a chocolate malt (i know, i know, when will i learn?).

go flames go!

theme-less list

• i have two potential blind dates to look forward to. my dating advice? tell everyone you know that you are dating and that you are open to being set up.
• time at the cabin was wonderful over the easter long weekend. reading books, preparing training materials, winning at monopoly (even though my opponents forfeited), drinking beer in the afternoon, sunburns, dog walks, podcasts, mmmmm...... delicious
• i came into my office building this week to find all the windows painted to cheer on the flames and rogue pucks painted on the twirly doors. who doesn't love nhl playoff season?!
• that billy bob thornton is an ass
• that thailand better get these protests under control. don't they know i am coming?
• my next spanish class is starting up this week. level 6, baby!
• i may need to institute the indicator pants again...
• i purchased a new pair of shoes made by a company called Blowfish. i am really enjoying them and although i cannot link to the exact pair i bought, they have this rather interestingly shaped heel that makes walking easy. now i do not look as though i might topple over when i wear heels (or hopefully i do not appear as unstable as i feel). and yes, they are leather.
• anyone have any good recommendations (or suggestions on where to avoid) for a hotel in san francisco? (or does anyone want to join me? ahem!)
• i am a sneezing machine lately, which i will take over the congestion any day.

UPDATE: there is a really good globe and mail column that makes an interesting comparison to the cbc and media in the states when interviewing celebrities, including billy the bob. article here.

plast-eek!

i watched a most interesting documentary last night on The Passionate Eye. it was all about plastic (i cannot remember the exact name, but 'plastic' was in its title) and did you know:

- that plastic was invented during wartime and then was pushed into the common market in the 1950's to keep up the petrochemical industry that boomed during the wars?
- that plastic cannot be broken down?
- that very little of recycable plastic is actually recycled?
- that when plastic is recycled, the plastic is reconstituted and is not usually as strong?
- that there is vegetable-based plastic that dissolves in water?
- that our oceans are chockablock full of plastic bits that will never dissolve and end up in our food chain when small fish mistake tiny pieces of plastic for food and then are eaten by the bigger fish and so on and so forth?
- that things in landfills will never decompose because they are hermetically sealed?
- that manufacturers and recyclers are not communicating effectively, because manufacturing products with a variety of different plastics (think a pop bottle and it's cap) cannot be recycled together?

to think about the amount of plastic that i go through in a day (disposable coffee lids, shopping bags - even though i try to remember to bring my own, clothes and jewelry, cosmetics, all the packaging that covers most of the consumer goods i buy...), it is mind boggling for me to think of how i am contributing to the masses of plastic crap that are floating around in the ocean.

i had a thought that perhaps some of you have already had whilst pondering my participation in the plastic mess that we find ourselves in - how are you to shop ethically and green at the same time? i know that some vegans will only wear shoes like converse because they are completely animal product free and that handbag designer mat & nat makes bags that are supposed to be ethical because they are totally composed of manmade materials.

but then, isn't that just contributing to the environmental bru ha ha that all this plastic is creating by making more plastic that cannot be broken down or recycled?

if it comes down to it, i would rather wear a pair of leather shoes for which a cow had to die, than contribute to the environmental catastrophe that is plastic.

anyone who has spent any length of time in an african country can attest to the incredible amount of useless, cheap, plastic bags that clutter nearly almost any landscape. however, rwanda seems to have it right - they have banned plastic bags from their country entirely.