Chugging Along and New Project

I'm writing (sometimes more reading and note-taking) on dissertation. Trying to write some every day. That is hard!

The Remand Centre here in Edmonton was looking for a couple of people to run a writing workshop - so I am going to do it with my friend Jessica. In some ways I know it's risky, because of having to finish school. But when I heard the call for volunteers via another friend, and realized that others weren't doing it, and that I *really* wanted to do it, I thought: I'm going to.

It's part of this "bootcamp" thing they have going there, which includes military drills / formation and other exercises meant to give some kind of structure to inmates' days and approaches to their days? So we aren't sure what they'll want - maybe help on how to write a cover letter, or how to work on school, or just creative writing. I'm very excited!

I'm going toooooooo

I'm going to to go to Chicago while Lisa is there! Right before, I go to Winnipeg for a workshop that I have co-coordinated (work pays) and I am going to have a little vacation right after.

My proposal is in. It was very hard work, and I felt exhausted right after. I know it'll need editing, but it feels free. Two days after I put it in, I had the exterminators come for their second visit (standard). The guy said that I should probably have a third, which made me feel defeated. But I think it is getting there. But another 4 weeks of things in garbage bags and storage totes. Almost all my clothes are freshly cleaned / dried now but bagged up in the basement until upstairs is clear. I am thinking of it as the chance to move in again in a more thoughtful, organized way as opposed to when I did move in first.

Today the bank appraiser comes to look at our building for our new mortgage approval (prepping for the subdivision).

Lots of tomatoes ripening in my garden. Purple beans, and I think beets will do well.

A Fine Birthday

My birthday was quite nice. Haircut the day of, so generous hairdresser gave me some free 'product' (which might also be a plea to 'style' my hair more). My friends Laura and David took me out for dinner. Judith made me spaghetti (without judging my choice) and had Grace, Sam, and Nancy over. So nice! Todd and I might go out this week, I think. Things are starting to settle a bit for him now that the gallery is open in its new space. New space is so beautiful! They have done a wonderful job, and there's way more room there. Summer patios start this Thursday at Latitude, and they did a successful online fundraising campaign to build the patio.

Writing for a deadline on Wednesday, which I think is doable. My proposal won't be perfect, but it'll be improved. It feels good not to be so anxious about what I submit, and okay with whatever feedback I get back.

Tiny little pea and bean shoots coming up in the community garden! I also have lots of tomato seedlings that I have to use up older seeds. They are pretty small, so I will see if any tomatoes come from them. It is still nice to plant. Got some delphinium and lilies from a nice and sort of crazy gardener.

Police found my bike! I am going to go get it next week. I will sell it to a friend (if it's in good enough condition) and give the money back to the co-op. They know, so even though I felt guilty about purchasing new bike right away, this seems okay. (why would I feel guilty about this? had to buy a bike!)

Going to Pride parade today and to a friend's for afternoon cocktails. Then trying to 'work.' Will probably more likely be 'nap.'

The Winter of My Discontent

I'm not really discontented. But I am very tired these days. I am winding down at work, and trying to keep myself rolling with my readings, as I prepare for my comprehensive exams. They start on December 10, and go for either 7 or 10 days, and I'll write 5-6 essays during that time. But it's open book, working at home. My friend Tami, who got her doctorate a couple years ago, said that it was all about information management, rather than memorizing -- so knowing where you can get more information or quotes -- so good note-taking and binder-filling. No binders of women! Just information!

I've done the storybook recordings at the prison three times in the last 2 months, and do it once more at the end of this month. Although when I went on Saturday, I brought two big bags of christmas picture books for inmates, and I had done lots of errands on the way there, and then once I got in, I realized I forgot my laptop for doing the actual recording. ugh.

I've also been cooking a lot. I'm endeavouring to use all the vegetables from my vegetable delivery box, rather than just letting some of them go bad and guiltily putting them in the compost. So I made roasted fennel and eggplant and roasted pumpkin soup. Vegetables I do not normally understand!

Bathroom Begins Again

Today the renovator came to complete (or start completing) the job on my bathroom. I did decide ultimately to replace that aluminum casing window, so had to wait while new one was constructed. It's one of those super high R rating windows that opens but also keeps heat in during winter. I had hoped to come home to the walls insulated and closed up today but no go. There's always tomorrow! Now that I know it's going to be done by next week, I can't wait. Will post pictures. Flooring will have to be done later in Feb, I think.

Just turned in a couple of pages of writing to my professors towards my research proposal. Why is it so hard and why does it take so long?

Today I was on the reference desk, wearing a black & white sort of graphic dress and a woman told me that my dressed "looked like science."

Big News All Around

Well, it's been a big week. I found out this week that I will ordained on May 8, in Victoria. For those keeping track, this the day before I graduate. Bishop James decided to schedule the ordination for the same weekend as Convocation, so that my family wouldn't have to travel out twice. So, in addition to all of you being invited to Convocation in Vancouver May 9, you are also invited to my ordination on May 8, at St. George the Martyr, in Victoria! Anglicans are ordained twice, once to the diaconate, and then again in six months or a year to the priesthood. So if you can't make this one, you have a second chance!

The other big news is that I've been offered a job! The job is as an assistant curate at St. Luke's, Victoria. An assistant curate is a training role - a little like an intern. We typically spend two years in a curacy, learning all the bits and pieces that we don't learn in school (all the practical stuff. I'm super excieted about this - I was not expecting to be placed in Victoria, or to know where I would be going so quickly. I think I'll start July 1.

The final piece of good news, and nothing to do with me, is that Jesse and Colleen had their baby! Madison Shirley Robertson was born yesterday afternoon at 2:45 in Edmonton. She and mom are healthy and doing well.

Graduation

I've finally heard the official word about tickets for grad. It's excellent news - a small class and large venue means no tickets. Everyone who wants to watch me graduate is very welcome to come! It'll be first come first served seating on May 9 at Christ Church Cathedral. The guest speaker is Catherine Keller. Should be an awesome weekend!

It's been an interesting couple of weeks.

As you might expect, we have a weekly community worship service here at school. In the fall these are planned and led by the faculty, and in the spring the graduating students take turns. I wanted to get it over with before the work of the semester really picked up, and so I volunteered to be the first student this spring. This involves not only simple things like picking hymns, but preaching to all the other students and all the professors.

The musican for community worship, who comes in just for that, has a reputation of being fairly bossy when it comes to the music. He also insists on including at least one piece that he wrote in every service. Knowing this, I didn't consult him at all when I picked my hymns, and just let him know what they were. He pushed back on a couple of the hymns, but when I pointed out why I had a chosen them, he agreed. A few of them were traditional texts (the Magnificat) and I let him choose what music they were set to. He chose music he had written.

The sermon part went pretty well. It took quite a long time to write, and I still had a bit of finishing to do the night before. This was also the night of the inaugeration of the new Indigenous Studies Center (a new name for work that has been going on for a while). I thought I'd slip down there for an hour, and then have lots of time work on my sermon. I didn't realize that Native time is a lot like Sri Lankan time - things take as long as they take! The keynote speaker alone was an hour, and there were lots of other speeches, and some west coast dancing. It was great, but I didn't get home till 10:30, which meant that the sermon got finished quickly!

It went well though. People seemed to like it. Our Distinguished Theologian in Residence Sallie McFague, told me that it was good, and she was proud to have me graduate from the school. That was nice to hear, especially since Sallie is not shy about speaking her mind!

That was the first interesting thing. The other is adventures in babysitting. A fellow student, Patrick, is around the same age as I am, and is married with a 20 month old daughter. Mallory (Patrick's wife) is taking a course at UBC, and yesterday she had to get some work done. Patrick was at his field placement. So, they asked me to babysit. A toddler.

Actually, it went ok. I was only there for an hour or so, and Esther and I spent the whole time playing. She likes to read, and her book of the day was one that I remember from when I was growing up "There's A Monster At The End Of This Book", starring Grover. I was pretty happy to read that to her, and she was happy to listen.

New Year

So, the new semester at VST is a bit later than at many institutions, but in my case they seem to make up for that by handily eliminating any kind of gentle lead in period. It's only the second week of the semester, and already I've got the feeling that I'm a juggler. There are lots of balls up in the air, and I'm praying that I keep catching them all.

Classes are really interesting. One is "Spirit and/as Mindfulness Practise" which is sort of looking at how the notion of Mindfulness, often found in the Eastern traditions, such as Buddhism is present/can be worked into Christianity. Part of what makes it interesting is that the professor is sort of learning along with us. She's done tons of background reading and so forth, and gives a lecture each class, but much of it is discussion, and working through things as a class. The other really interesting class is a class on the book of Amos (a prophet in the Old Testament). It's a class on social justice, so alongside our learning about how Amos called for social justice in the 7th century BCE, we work on social justice issues in our time. Apparently we even get to write oracles at one point! We are working on a case of a Seattle Police officer shooting a partially deaf homeless first nations man.

I tried my hand at Lisa's Christmas Perogies this week! I think they turned out really well. I brought them over to my friends' place, and their 19 month old daughter loved them - much smacking of lips and "mmmm"s. She's not the pickiest eater, but it made me feel good! I had lots of filling left over, so I gave them the perogies, and will make some more dough. I was surprised at how easy it was!

This Blog

This blog always cracks me up. No one posts for days and days, and then there is a flurry all at once. Great minds think alike I guess.

Every now and then it sinks in that I'm in my last year here. Mostly it's just normal school busy, but then I think about all the things I don't know yet, and worry that I'll be done too soon. Then I look at all the reading I have to do and decide the soon I'm out of here the happier I'll be.

Classes are all quite interesting. The one with the most general interest would have to be "Opening the Hurt Locker: Religious and Spiritual Pedegogies of Pain". It's a course on how we look at and deal with pain, culturally and within various religious traditions (mostly looking at Christian, Jewish and Buddhist). Part of the idea is that pain can teach us something, or that at the least there is a positive aspect to pain, which we miss when we medicate it all away. One of the students is a medical doctor, so that makes for some interesting discussions. We have to do a presentation on a "practicable pedegogy of pain"; I've asked if I can do country music, or more specifically, John Wort Hannam. We'll see if I'm allowed!

On November 15 there is a religious trialog between a Rabbi, one of the profs from the school and a Muslim theologian, discussing the character of Job through the lens of the Cohen Brothers movie " A Serious Man". Should be pretty interesting if anyone is planning on being in Vancouver in November!

This is for Steph

Anne and Jude have made it safely to Rocky, and brought with them a directive from Steph that I post more on the blog. I made it here last week, after a pretty straightforward paper/ exam period. Two long papers that both went quite well (well, the one I've heard about went well, and I'm pretty sure about the other) and one Hebrew exam that was more difficult than it should have been. Part of the problem was that we weren't taught all that well. It was a very basic introduction in six weeks, and the instructor had trouble fitting it all in, which led to him going very quickly over how to parse verbs in the last class. His hurry meant that I and a friend had to teach ourselves how to parse the verbs, and then I got up the morning of the exam and taught more of my classmates. The upside was that I really understood it all quite well, since I always learn better by teaching. The downside was that, well, my classmates had to learn from me, a dodgy proposition at best.

But it came and went, and it was ok. Not a piece of cake, by any means, but manageable. With a little luck that will be the last Hebrew I have to do.

And now I'm home until the 4th, when I'm going to Toronto for two weeks. I don't know if I've mentioned this, but I'm going overseas with the church for three months next summer. I don't know where yet, but I will be working with an Anglican church in a non-western country. I'll be seeing how they do things and getting a sense of how the church works in the world wide context. The two weeks in Toronto are training and orientations, mostly of the "how not to be a stupid white person" genre. Normally the two weeks of the course would not mean that I miss any school, since VST usually has a two week interterm. However, this year, because of the Olympics, the interterm is cancelled, and we have a two week reading break (during the Olymics). So, I'm going to miss the first two weeks of all my classes. I've arranged for notes, and bought the books and started pre-reading, so if I keep this pace up I'll be actually more prepared than usual!

December and May

I wish I could have come home for chocolates! My downstairs neighbours are disapproving because I have not put up any lights or other Christmassy things, but it doesn't seem like Christmas yet and probably won't until I leave... and anyway, I would then just have the depressing task of taking them down again when I returned in January! However, am looking forward to decorating in Rocky (if any remains to be done) and the the winter wonderland that is Alberta (Steph says she walked seven blocks and pushed out three stuck cars!) In preparation for such things, I have bought some new boots that are plaid AND knee-length AND laceup... and totally waterproof and lined! They weren't cheap, but if there is one thing I learned from my aunts, it is that if you don't have a car you must spend on shoes instead of tires.

I have to submit a "Grad Student Progress Report" every semester, in which I try to justify my existence. This semester, I totted it all up and was amazed to learn that I collected data from 93 participants (8 of them substance-dependent and in treatment, which are a million times more difficult), ran and analyzed a pilot study and three experiments, started another study with the other PhD student and the post-doc from our lab, and wrote a review article and a conference abstract (as well as two scholarship applications). No wonder I've been tired all the time. It definitely felt busy, but I didn't realize quite how much till I looked back. However, I further realized that my ultimate goal was not necessarily to add to the annals of research, but to get an abstract in for that conference in Florida next year! All that work to get the studies done before December was mainly for that reason. But they are done, the abstract is submitted, and whether or not my abstract is accepted, I am going to the conference. The most exciting part is that some of the girls from my lab last year are going, and since there are a lot of us, we can rent a house together rather than stay in the expensive hotel. And THIS is the house they have in mind! I think I can live with this... roll on May.

Barkerville!

At about 53 seconds in, you'll see the soul of the town strolling by.

Nostalgic videos aside, things are going surprisingly well. I'm noticing the difference from 6 classes last year to 5 this year, and it doesn't hurt that my classes are more practical (which is still quite a bit of work, but less paper writing). I've nearly finished everything - one paper to polish, one sermon that's about half done and a Hebrew exam. I have lots of time to study for that, so I'm not too worried.

Alfie's Neighbour Fights Back

This is what Alfie's neighbours should do this year.

Glad everyone is safe at Windy Yett (which makes me think of yeti - have you seen any of those yett?) Wish I was there but it is a bad time to leave. I am racing against time to get something written up before December, because a). there is a conference that I really want to go to, but it is necessary to have some data to present, and b). then I will feel like I accomplished something this year. I'm still collecting the data for the study while concurrently writing up the Methods section, but I might be able to actually pull it off. Hope so, because it will soften the blow when my supervisor finds out that I'm going to Alberta for a month.

In other news, have weird stabbing head pains* just behind my right ear. Del says I should go to the doctor, but I know they will say it's stress or hypochondria. Lisa, Grace? Any suggestions as to how I can make this go away? It hurts :(

* insert dad telling me that he "better just cut it off then"

In more exciting news, got a parcel from Edmonton! I am not going to open it till Monday but is it hard. Thanks Judith!

Handmade

This is a stuffed kitty doll that I made in a workshop at Latitude yesterday. The show is by Chris Reid (from Saskatchewan) and it's this great mix of very colourful paintings, stuffed kitties and bunnies, and Baba Yaga chicken-leg-house sculptures. I made the kitty out of a sweater that Magda wrecked. I still need to make its eyes.

Things are rolling along. I have one presentation done for school, and two more that will be done by next Saturday. I have my final paper topic for one class, so will start to find material for that paper today. Surprisingly, being busier means that I am more motivated to work at my job; much less ennui than I was experiencing during the summer.

L53 had our AGM this week and I am officially past-president, meaning I don't need to do much for next 12 months. Very few people other than the Board attended the AGM. Either that means that people hate us and what we do (I can think of at least one example of this), or that they think that AGMs are boring, or that we are probably doing fine. Our Board is an excellent group, I think, and I am really happy with them. The freedom I feel is the reason I was actually able to go to L53 and do the workshop...usually I have seen so much of what we do as 'work' that I can't always relax and enjoy it. It's a new era.

I paid the deposit of 100 pounds for our Tobermory rooms. I won't collect just yet; it might be that I could just take this off my room cost at the end of the trip. And I did book my flights! I arrive Nov 11 and leave Nov 20. My flight home is direct, London-Edmonton. But it does leave Glasgow at 6:45am. Maybe I should stay my last night in Glasgow instead.

I think Lisa should go ahead and arrange for houseboat for 7 day trip....

Of Accidents, School and the Canadian Government

I've been meaning to post here for a long time, but things keep getting in the way. I'm back in Vancouver, and back at school now. As mom mentioned, I was rear ended on the way down here, just outside Clinton (a couple hours from Quesnel). I was stopped at a construction flag, and the lady behind me didn't stop. It was pretty bad - the truck will be a write off it looks like. The tailgate was hanging on by just a thread (well, by a wire). I managed to wedge it into place, drove to Clinton (after the police came and talked to us), where a mechanic and I strapped the tailgate on to the truck so my stuff wouldn't all fly out. Then I just kept driving. After all, I can't let a little accident keep me from my schedule!

School will be good, but busy. I have a couple jobs - I'm the chapel assistant for the Anglicans, which means that I organize a lot of the worship that we do (8 times a week), and make sure the first years know what they are doing. Lots of baking communion bread and ironing altar linens! The other job is as the research assistant for the Liturgy Professor. This is really interesting- he's doing a paper on the changing attitude toward the Jews in the Good Friday liturgy. I can't wait! I'm also in 5 classes, ranging from pretty straightforward (Skilled Listening, Homiletics) to the interesting but full of hard work (Global Cities, Spirituality and Ecological Justice and Greek/Hebrew).

I went to Victoria last weekend, where I was inspired to take part in some political activism. Our diocese there has a companion relationship (ie we pray for each other) with the Church of the Province of Myanmar. Our bishop had invited 15 people from the church there to come to the Island for a visit, but only 4 got visas from the Canadian government. The others were considered a flight risk, despite the fact that the church is paying for and sponsering them. Apparently that wasn't good enough for the Canadian Governement. So I spent last night writing letters to 4 MPs, 4 Cabinet Ministers, the Leader of the Opposition, the Prime Minister and the Governor General.

I did get to meet the four who got through- all very nice. We are doing a return trip next year, in November/December, and I was asked to go along! Assuming it will work out with school, it will be awesome.

School and What I'd Like to Do On My Summer Vacation

School is going well so far. One class is every 3rd Saturday (8 hrs) and the other is every Wednesday afternoon. Both are interesting -- a qualitative research methods and a multimedia literacies class. Multimedia class more interesting just because we get to do things like watch Dr. Seuss adaptations and talk about them. Lots of work and reading, but I'm trying to get assignments done earlier (presentations, etc.) if I can and that will free up some time later in term. I really like it so far.

I'm also hoping it gives me a bit more motivation for work....I seem to be more likely to even work on boring things if I have more interesting things going on.

I'd really like to go houseboating next summer. Anyone want to also?

I'm IN!

Okay -- I just got a call from Elementary Ed here at UA and they have recommended me for acceptance! And, my GPA is good enough to get recommended for a provost's award, which covers 2 years of tuition. HOORAY!

Returned; Applied; Tidied

It's good to be home. I super enjoyed Mexico. I felt a little jumpy at times due to not doing much (Shouldn't I be accomplishing something? Appreciate, appreciate, appreciate.). But after I caught up on sleep from late-night flight home, I found that I had all this energy to unpack, putter around, clean up, tidy the house. And I'm not even dismayed by the temperatures and snow here.

My PhD application is in, and my co-supervisors really helped me a lot with it. I feel it's strong! And more importantly, I feel I could do it! I'm nerdily enough excited that I took some books out on parts of my topic so I can do some 'pre-reading.' I think Anne will appreciate this nerdiness.

I am also excited because we are showing a video project at Latitude right now (Judith and Grace, have you seen it? Want to, still?) where male sex trade workers are talking about their grandmothers -- it's about humanizing prostitutes rather than making assumptions of who they are & what led them to that work. We are going to show it in the women's prison! And, the artist is interested in maybe doing a future project with the prison, if we could organize it. So cool!

More Good News! (get it?)

Good news seems to be all around the family this week.  I just found out I was approved on my huge 20 page paper for my synoptic gospel class (gospel means "good news" just a little theological humor for you all...).    I was impressed with my prof- I e-mailed it to him Saturday night, and he got it back to me today!  I guess there are benefits to handing things in early.