Kispiox Village, 1929 Art Gallery of Ontario
Sunday, October 11, 2020
BATHROOM PROBLEMS
It has been quite an inconvenience to have a broken bottom shower guide and a missing faucet dummy, and I haven't been able to find replacements. I have the overflow replacement, but can't get the screws out for the rust!
I was hoping to live with this bathroom for pennies, because replacing the faucets and shower will need a new surround, new tub, and likely demo of the entire room, which are plaster and chicken wire, id est, not easy, nor cheap. Anyone have an in-between alternative? Or a good bathroom renovator with high standards and low prices?
HOMEMADE SPANAKOPITA
It's been months that I haven't been able to find the Pilaros spiral spanakopika that I love. I can find triangles, but I find they are often underfilled and over cooked, and don't prefer them.
I realized I had a roll of frozen phyllo, so I bought spinach (how can it still sell for $1 for 500g) and feta, and made a few styles. The rugelach version is the best of both worlds, but they were are very beloved. Still, I managed to put aside a few for the freezer, for another day.
BUTTERFLY GARDEN
Yesterday we may have seen the last monarch of the season, but I am really not sure if this is a ladybug with hearts, or its own separate species!
AUTUMN LEAVES
It's a particular joy to live in Montreal in the fall. This is the first year that I don't imagine that others wished they were here, but for those of us who live here, the beauty of the fall is in the leaves yet again.
After the loss of our maple tree in the front, it's hard to get much of pile to jump in. I thought it was enough to get a pile together, but I was not counting on the determination of two grade niners. Princess Pirate might have finally started using the adjective literally properly, but she was still ready to play in a leaf pile that covered her body and her friends!
I suggested that they rake other parts of the yard, but they were looking for higher yield that were dryer than the ones in the garden beds I had hoped they could clean up! Yes, they used the leaves in the street gutters!
There were beach moments when we covered her completely, snow moments of forts and fights, and the action shot in the pile that were the yearly photo op.
Princess Pirate is in this pile!
Today, 48 hours after we were compelled to collect a few beautiful leaves, I realized that they had already started to curl up. Thanks to wilted celery and carrot experience, I thought I'd give rehydration a try, and it seemed to work.
TIPS:
1. Do this as soon as pick up the leaves. If that is too late, lower your expectations, and hydrate in a water bath just long enough to become pliable. Plan for a few losses, as some corners may break or fold over before you can do anything about it.
3. Start with the leaves face down, from the stem iron up and then out. It makes it more likely, especially with complex leaves like maple, that the edges will turn out well.
4. Iron each side until dry, about 1 minute each. The rehydrated ones take longer, but the smell is nice!
5. Use clean cereal box lining to place the dry leaves on. I have Mod Podge that you paint on. It looks worrisome, but the end result dries clear.
Friday, October 9, 2020
INSPIRING QUOTES
"They tried to bury us. They didn't know we were seeds".
-Mexican proverb
"Here at NASA, we all pee the same colour."
-Hidden Figures (movie)
"Being deeply loved by someone give you strength, while loving someone deeply give you courage."
-Lao Tzu
"Always do right. This will gratify some people, and astonish the rest."
-Mark Twain
"No winter last forever; no spring skips its turn."
-Hal Borland
"I was a late bloomer. But anyone who blooms at all, ever, is very lucky."
-Sharon Olds
"The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches but to reveal to him his own."
-Benjamin Disraeli
There are only tow ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."
-Albert Einstein
"The miracle is this: The more we share the more we have."
-Leonard Nimoy
ABOUT WRITING
"I admire anyone who has the guts to write anything at all."
-E. B. White
"All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know."
and
"There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."
-Ernest Hemingway
"Writing is easy. All you have to do is cross out the wrong words."
- Mark Twain
"There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you."
-Maya Angelou
"Let me live, love, and say it well in good sentences."
-Sylvia Plath
"A word after a word after a word is power."
- Margaret Atwood
"Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing."
-Benjamin Franklin
Monday, October 5, 2020
MY MODEL NOVEL
FROM NANOWRIMO HANDBOOK 101:
Think of books you’ve read recently. Which were novels? Which weren’t? Choose one of those books, preferably one that you really like a lot or just know inside and out. Write the name of that book and its author here:
My Model Novel (title)
By (author)
Jules Verne
For the rest of your novel-writing adventure, think of that book as a model you can use when you get stuck. You don’t have to imitate it—and you never want to copy it, of course—but you can always look at it for ideas. Just think of that novel’s author as your own personal novel-writing coach.
Light up the noveling part of your brain! Jot down a few sentences about what you loved or remember the most about your Model Novel.
This book surprised me with the depth of description of London. Compared to the original French, there were no embellishments lost in translation. M. Verne know London well.
Now, fill in the blanks below. (This is easier if you have your Model Novel with you.)
1. Who are the important characters in your model novel?
Passe-Partout
2. Which character do you think is the most important? Why?
Finneas Fogg, because without whom, the adventure would not happen.
3. What is the book mostly about? What is the central conflict, or major problem?
The voyage they took was the adventure. There were many little challenges, but the major problem was Finneas' own habit of keeping to a timed schedule.
4. Whose perspective is the novel written from (as in, who is telling the story)? How do you know?
A narrator
5. What point of view does the author use? Here are some options:
* 1st person (The person telling the story is a character in the story, using “I.”)
* 3rd person (The story is told by an outside narrator, not a person in the story.)
* 2nd person (The story is addressed to “you.” This is very rare!)
* Multiple perspectives (more than one of the above is used)
Third person
6. How does the novel begin?
In the study with many clocks at Phineas Fogg's residence where Passe-Partout is applying for a position.
7. Where and when does it take place, generally?
1872, London
8. What is your favorite thing about this novel (such as “The quirky characters.” or “The
suspenseful plot.”?
The consistent person of Finneas Fogg defeating the odds and winning the bet, thanks to the sacrifices and loyalty of Passe-Partout.
The characters
Now that you’ve explored how and why your novel makes a good model, you’re ready to present it to classmates with a book talk. Don’t worry; a book talk is not a book report. You don’t have to describe everything that happens in the book in excruciating detail. Instead, a book talk is like an advertisement for the book, or a movie trailer.
Your job is to give your audience just enough information to want to wrestle that book out of your hands and read it themselves. Take a look at this book talk, for example, about the real novel When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to know what’s going to happen in the future? Well, what if somebody else could tell you, but only communicated by sending mysterious messages? In When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, 12-year-old Miranda starts finding notes about events in her future—that end up coming true! All of a sudden Miranda’s life is turned upside down: her mom’s apartment key is stolen, her best friend Sal will no longer talk to her, and the anonymous notes start hinting that something dangerous is about to happen. Miranda realizes that she may be the only one able to prevent a tragedy, and maybe even change the future.
After reading this book talk, you know the basics of When You Reach Me: its title, its author, its main character, and some important things happening in the main character’s life. But you probably have a bunch of questions, too. How is Miranda getting the messages? Are they really warnings from the future, or is something else going on? Why did her best friend stop talking to her? Perhaps you are curious enough to check out this book for yourself!
As you can see, a book talk simply gives the audience a “taste” of the book.
Below, prepare your own book talk about your Model Novel. Think of structuring it like this: a hook to grab attention; a topic sentence to introduce the title, author, main character and set-up of the book; and a few more sentences to describe important events or details. And remember, if you sound excited about the book, your audience will be excited too!
Love It or Leave It
Of all the books you’ve read so far in your life, there were probably some that were ridiculously fun to read, and some that were just about as fun as visiting the dentist on your birthday. Before you start thinking about the novel you’ll be writing, it’s helpful to write down what makes you, personally, love a book and what makes you want to leave a book.
Love It
Let’s start by making a list of books you love. Think about all the novels you’ve read that you couldn’t put down no matter how tired you were or how much unfinished homework was piling up all around you. In the spaces below, write down the title and author of three books you love:
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Natural Born Heroes
Full Tilt
Now, make a list of everything that made those books so amazing. Why were the characters so fascinating? What made you so excited to keep turning the page? You can be as general or as detailed as you like; include anything from “adventurous characters” to “high school drama” to “hilarious and realistic dialogue.”
Layers of complexity
Gripping storytelling
Adventure
Once you've finished this list, keep it with you at all times as you write your novel. Why is this list so important? Because, as you might imagine, the things you like as a reader are going to be things you also love writing. As you work on your story, refer to this list of ingredients, and consider adding them to your novel when you're stuck for ideas or directions.
Leave It
Now, think about all those books you’ve read or started to read that put you to sleep by the end of Page One. You know, the ones that you’d rather eat a mayonnaise, peanut butter, and onion sandwich than have to read again. In the spaces below, list the title and author of three books you really did not like reading.
The Casual Vacancy
The Old Man and the Sea
The Secret Life of Bees
Now, write a list of things that made those books so awful for you. Were the characters unlikeable or unrealistic? Did the story events move too slowly, or not make sense? Did you think to yourself "I could totally have done a better job than these authors"? Again, you can be as general or as detailed as you like; include anything from “cheesy endings” to “painfully boring dialogue.”
Unreadable
Didn't care about the character
Boring
Toxic masculinity
Incest
Just like the list of things you love in a book, keep this list with you as you write. It might seem strange that you would have to remind yourself of the things you dislike in novels, but these items are experts in the art of ending up in your story without you even realizing it.
I FINISHED MY NOVEL. NOW WHAT?
November is coming quick, and a November with COVID restrictions should be a great time to write a novel. My biggest problem is that I haven't finished the one I started last year, and I hardly remember the details!
So to review my current novel in hopes of finishing it for at least the two precious friends I would trust to share it with, and to get a leg up on my upcoming new November project, I am going through the NaNoWriMo workbook that are comprehensive and practical.
What you want your beta reader to do:
- Read through the draft once without writing comments
- Forget about grammar, spelling, and how you would say something. Focus on the content - characters, events, setting, writing devices used
- Highlight words, sentences, and sections that you really like. Annotate them.
- Ask questions, especially if something doesn't make sense
- Be kind, and specific, while you point out things that aren't working.
- Keep criticism private!
Novel title:
Author:
Based on the beginning, what do you think this novel is about?
Who is the most important character so far? Describe them.
What do you like most about the first line? paragraph? chapter?
What is the setting? What other details would you like to know?
List three parts where the story was working so well you couldn't stop reading.
Is there anything else you really love about the story so far?
List 3 parts that didn't work well.
List 3 big questions that you have about the story.
List any suggestions for the writer to try when they revise, especially character, plot, dialogue, or conflict.
Finish this sentence: This is a story about...
UNLEASH YOUR INNER EDITOR
What is the heart of the story? Does it keep things alive, strong, and moving forward?
- Change how your draft looks
- Read as fast as you can, like other books. Jot down notes and highlight what you like
- Write a 1-3 page synopsis
- Answer the revision questions
- REWRITE!
ORGANISATION
Is it organized into chapters? If not, where can you make chapter breaks?
Are chapter transitions clear?
Name three places readers might be confused. Fix them.
CHARACTERS
Is it clear what the protagonist wants?
Will the reader root for them?
Are you characters flat or complex?
Change 3 things that would make them feel more real.
CONFLICT
Name the conflict
What will happen to the protagonist if they lose?
Can you foreshadow at the very beginning?
Is there anywhere the reader would lose interest? Revise.
Name three changes to keep the conflict present throughout (on every page?)
LANGUAGE AND LITERARY TECHNIQUES
Dialogue that moves the story forward, reveals things about your characters, and increases tension
Detailed settings that create moods and reinforces characters
Specific sensory details, including sights, sounds, tastes, smells, and sensations
A beginning that hooks the reader and introduces the main character
A climax that makes the read gasp "What's next?!"
An ending that resolves the conflict and shows how the character changed.
If your first draft doesn't contain these, try and add them to your second.
COPY EDITING
Use correct capitalization and end punctuation.
Check your spelling.
Pick and stick to one verb tense.
Use commas to combine.
Choose correct pronouns.
Use capital letters, quotation marks, and sometimes commas to make it clear where the dialogue is.
Indent new paragraphs.
Start a new paragraph each time the story moves to a new place, time, action, idea, speaker, or section.
PLOTTING
NANOWRIMO has a great workbook for novel writing 101. Here are a few useful ways to get started:
FOUR WAYS TO DEVELOP AN IDEA
1. Borrow a plot - write 3 summaries of stories (books or movies) that you love
-change around the elements
2. Borrow a character - invent a history or future for someone you know
3. Use the news - Pick and event, and imagine the perspective of different people involved. Change the details and see where the story goes.
4. Invent a whole new world
LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT
Pick a model novel or more. Break it down and figure out what works and why it works. It works best if you have the book, or can access online.
Similarly, think about books you disliked or couldn't finish. Analyze why you didn't like a book and why.
SPARK AN IDEA
Brainstorm thinks that excite, inspire or make you curious. Try to get at least 20. Circle 9 and and write novel ideas for each.
One author would often write short stories that would later become chapters in her book (Erin Morgenstern).
CREATE COMPLEX CHARACTERS
Protagonist
Supporting characters - how do they know the protagonist, love/hate, similarities/differences
Antagonist - how are they in the protagonist's way, are they likeable, weaknesses
CHARACTER QUESTIONNAIRES
Name, age, height, eye, hair, and skin colour, other physical traits
Skills, abilities, passions
Family, where do they live, pets
Favourite music, movies, TV shows, books, food
Annoyances, secrets
Style, gestures, movements, things about themselves they would like to change, speaking style, happiest memory, insecurities, quirks, temperament, negative traits, embarrassments, fears, other's opinions, dreams
CONFLICTS
External - between protagonist and antagonist
Internal - fears and insecurities that a protagonist has to overcome to get what they want
PLOT
ROLLARCOASTER
1 set-up
2 inciting event
3 rising action
4 climax
5 falling action
6 resolution
Jot every single scene that you can brainstorm (50-100). Index card could be used.
Sort them in to beginning, middle, and end. Don't through anything out yet, but you can make a "maybe not" pile.
Put the piles in a grand list order of the story
1. ordinary world
2. inciting incident (call to adventure)
3. first plot point (point of no return)
4. first pinch point (first battle)
5. midpoint (victim to warrior)
6. second pinch point (second battle)
7. second plot point (dark night of the soul)
8. final battle (triumph!)
9. return to the ordinary world
SAVE THE CAT! (3 ACT SCREENPLAY)
I. 1. Opening image 0-1%
2. Set-up 1-10%
3. Theme stated
4. Catalyst 10%
5. Debate 11-20%
II. 1. Break into 2 (adventure/transformation/journey/new thing) 20%
2. Promise of the Premise/Fun and Games 21-50%
3. B story
4. Midpoint 50%
5. Bad guys close in 51-75%
6. All is lost 75%
7. Dark Night of the Soul 76-80%
III. 1. Break into 3 (aha! try againa) 80%
2. Finale 81-99%
3. Final image 99-100%
OUTLINE YOUR STORY LIKE A SUBWAY MAP - character -centred lines can be helpful
TANGENTIAL SPEECH AND BRILLIANT CONVERSATIONS
As with many things that I learned in medical school, tangents in speech were to be recorded as pathological, usually implying psychosis. As with all things, the extreme of anything can be illness, but I often find myself at home enjoying the tangents of my brain, and this morning I had a conversation (by Signal, apparently the safest videoconferencing modality, as promoted by Edward Snowden) that was more tangential than most!
We covered the economics of dictator leaders like Hitler and Stalin, philosopher groups from the communal to the individual, religions from reformed Mormonism to evangelical Christianity, conspiracies of COVID era and before, generic foods, debate sites like procon.org and kialo.com, the paradoxes we humans have, Utopia experiments (a dystopian show I will likely never watch), what is a panopticon, local parks, population limits, GMOs, and grass fed cattle.
The privilege of reaching middle age is having enough general knowledge, that it bears synthesizing and propogating from time to time. Our conversation reminded me of the diverse topics that I am privileged to hear about on my current podcast playlist, and I thought I'd highlight a few to marvel at the diversity.
One of the highlights of reviewing the podcasts I have listened to is the intensity of recollection in the place or time period where I had listened to them.
I was painting in the backyard when I listened to the "upside" of the Black Plague, in After the Plague, by Planet Money. I was driving the Gaspé coast when I heard about the modern life of the truck driver, in Over the Road. I was weeding when I heard about the first ambulance service in the US (episode 405) how policing of us in our cars came to be (episode 410), and how franchises can reflect the injustice of race in economics (episode 406). I was on the commuter train when I heard about the Japanese mythical monster called the Yokai (episode 403).
My go-to listening favourites do nothing in retrospect but reinforce my love of their relevance.
Here are last shows I heard of 99PI (Ninety-nine Percent Invisible):
If you want to hear about when we became dependent on toilet paper, listen to Wipe Out, episode 397.
If you want to understand the seemingly ugly concrete architecture trend called brutalism that is evident here in Montreal, listen to The Smell of Concrete After Rain, episode 400.
If you want to hear how the COVID stay-at-home orders afforded marine biologists an unprecedented opportunity to research whale communications, listen to episode 401.
If you want to know why we valued diamonds for engagement rings, listen to Article of interest #11.
If you want to hear how meta modern life has become, listen to Instant Gramification, episode 402.
Friday, October 2, 2020
WA SUN WARM MEMORIES
My grandma died on October 2nd, seven years ago. Each year I try and spend the day in nature, because it's a beautiful time of year, and eat chinese food, because that was what we always ate for celebrations.
She spend her Sundays at a Chinese Alliance Church, and we always went to a local restaurant called Wa Sun run by a family she knew from church. Inevitably, she would excuse herself to go to the bathroom, and pay the bill, until we got old enough, and liquid enough to do the same for her.
We sat around drinking tiny cups full of hot tea, and preferred white rice to fried.
Princess Pirate and I had a celebration from a local place called Wok Express, finding it very hard these days with foot traffic so low in the mall. The leftovers, with extra tofu and rice lasted a good while. She is sorely missed, but a shared meal in celebration makes it worthwhile.
Green tea, wonton soup to start. Used to be eggrolls, but spring rolls will do!
Lemon chicken is the tradition, but orange chicken will do!
Looking for ginger beef, but settled for broccoli beef.
Stir-fry vegetables, and lavender candies for dessert (because her parents were British, and we love them).. Hard to find covid appropriate fortunes! Life with restrictions were not in the cards.
Friday, September 25, 2020
PARC MAURICIE
This summer, we visited this National park run by Canada Parks. We didn't have a reservation, and we stayed in Shawinigan at a hotel, but we did have a chance to visit. We came in via the southeast entrance from Saint-Gerard-des-Laurentides and parked near Lac-à -la-Pêche at Saint-Gérard. We walked to the Parker waterfalls on the way to Parker lake.
There are three drive-in campgrounds: Mistagance, Wapizagonke, and Rivière-de-la-Pêche. The most hikes seem to be near Rivière-de-la-Pêche, but there are trails that interest me across the park. It may be a mistake to follow the beach icons, as the campground Wapizagonke doesn't list one even though it seems to be along the shore of a lake, but I am going to book us at Mistagance and RdlP if I can. If I found a willing partner, it would be quite a feat to canoe/portage up Lake Wapizagonke to hike up to Waber falls some day too.
Actually, there is a provincial trail in the Mauricie region that is 99 km long! It's part of a longer 1650 km network of trails called Le Sentier National, and it's free! It was a collaboration between 9 regions including the Mauricie organized by La Fédération Québécoise de la Marche. I am inspired, especially if visiting the US is a few years off still, with the longer hikes laid out in detail, like this weeklong intermediate hike (divided into sections or "troncons"), or a shorter 4 day version, complete with elevation maps and shelter photos. The only caution is to avoid it during hunting season, that tourists might be tempted as it coincides with autumn colours. . I might have to join a hiking club. A website called RandoQuebec might help! Years ago, the bus for the group called Randonnee Aventure came close to my apartment, and I went a few places because of it! Maybe one day again!
Within the park, there are 5 maps of trails. They all look tempting! To narrow it down, since the next visit will only be for 3 days, I found an article that lists a top five beautiful places within Mauricie Park. It may not be scientific, but it gives me a template. I always like to find the lookouts (eyeballs on a map), and hiking to get there makes it seem even more worthwhile. From the southwest around to the southeast, Sentiers les Cascades et Les Falaises (Falls and Cliffs starts at Shewenegan picnic spot), Belvédère de l'Ile-aux-pins (up a short path with stairs between km 52 and 53), Belvedere du passage (view of Wapizagonke lake), Sentier du Lac-Solitaire (Pavillon RdlP, 3 hour loop, et Belvédère du Lac-Bouchard (between km 8-9 near Saint-Jean-des-Piles)
Sunday, September 20, 2020
Saturday, September 19, 2020
Wednesday, September 16, 2020
VIGNETTE: MINT TEA
My garden is starting to look touched with the colour of the advancing autumn. A hausta has lost its colour on a cooler night, and my mint is colouring a deep burgundy. I have the mint growing in my garden, but as expected, it did not respect the raised bed perimeter, and grew across my path. It's annoying to some who probably try to walk around it, but I love the smell of spearmint that arises when I tromp right through, knowing no amount of trampling is going to control this heavenly weed.
I have dried a bunch of stems, hanging them upside down in the kitchen, and tonight they were ready for removal. It's not cold yet, but the colours are warmer than the night when it falls, so it seemed like a good night for mint tea.
Mint tea always makes me think of my friend Uli, and the sugar I put in it is because of him. The tea is perfectly lovely without anything but time to cool, but Uli would always make it sweet, so tonight I drink it sweet in the memory of Austria. It became a ritual at school to meet up with Uli and my roommate Sara to enjoy a cup of this aromatic tea together just before saying good-night, or Grüsti or Ciao.
I still imagine Uli sitting, like this figure he gave me to remind me of him, presumably at a later date that we have arguable arrived at, sitting in a comfortable chair, now with reading glasses, reading a book and drinking a cup of piping hot mint tea with a little sugar stirred in. I am pretty sure Sara might be doing exactly the same thing, but she would be singing a song while she did it. So, while tonight I have only the company of a purring kitty on a pillow on the couch, always an arms-length away, I drink my garden mint tea, and am in good company.
Monday, September 14, 2020
MISPRONUNCIATION
WRONG
Di-gi-lent
Diligent
Pa-si-fic
Specific
Per-scrip-tion
Prescription
Sup-pose-a-by
Supposedly
Nu-clee-er
Nuclear
Ir-re-gard-less
Regardless (There is no irregardless!)
?RIGHT
Prob-ly
Probably
Close
Clothes
Ah-mund
Almond
Sked-je-wel
Schedule
Mis-che-vus
Mischievous
Tri-ath-a-lon
Triathlon
Kern-nel
Colonel
Lef-ten-it
Lieutenant
War-ches-ter-shire
Worcestershire (Woostershwa)
Friday, September 11, 2020
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