And now it's time for: trecera actualizacion!!
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| 紅葉: Fall leaves in Perth |
Yep, I'm starting to learn more spanish! Slowly but surely.
I
am still in Perth, still on the organic farm, still having fun with
Gaby and my Perth-Gracias group! And yet, much has happened
since my last update!
Firstly, the leaves are changing colour already up here and it is
absolutely spectacular. This is the first fall in 3 years that I have
been in Canada, and although I always loved driving the number 7 highway
from Kingston to Ottawa during university, I have a whole new
appreciation for Canadian autumn since I have been away. I understand
in a much greater way why Japanese people are crazy about Canadian 紅葉
which means coloured leaves.
So what have I been up to?
Farmwise - a lot of harvesting, weeding,
covering beds, planting spring crops. We've already had our first frost
up here!! And, although it's been pretty warm since, we're expecting
another one this weekend. So we will probably be doing another big
harvesting tomorrow. I've also become an expert vegan pumpkin pie maker
;) So you'll have to ask me about it next time you see me if you want
some :) haha Kristine and Malcolm are still wonderful and very
accommodating to Gaby and I. I think we lucked out on our host family
for this half of the program anyway!
A number of weeks ago Kristine took Gaby and I to Ottawa for the day. I
took Gaby to do some of the typical Ottawa tourism. We went to
parliament and the market, ate beaver tails(!) and then we met up with
one of my friends (that I haven't seen for 4 years) for dinner! It was
great, even though it was raining and pretty cold all day.
2 weeks ago we had a very interesting EAD hosted by 2 members of our
lovely group on the importance of conservation areas. They work with
the
Rideau Valley Conservation Authority
to protect watersheds, stop the erosion of and conserve shorelines,
maintain trails, get rid of invasive species etc. It was really
interesting to learn about how even a small change in the shoreline can
greatly damage the ecosystem of a body of water.
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| Back field at Blue Chicory |
Then last week Gaby and I decided to go check out a potluck lunch held by
MERA,
a volunteer group devoted to promoting arts and crafts in and around
McDonald's corners (where I live!). We were the youngest people there
by at least 20 years. But we got to interact with a number of ladies
from the community and learn about the interesting projects they're
going to be sharing with each other over the year. I'm so sad I'm
leaving! They have looms to learn weaving, felting, pottery, basket
making, spinning, and of course knitting! It was really interesting to
see how excited the ladies were to share their skills with each other
and how friendly and connected they were to each other as well. Yay
small communities! By the way, I've also just completed (close enough) a
pair of Alpaca
thrums!
aka warmest mittens EVER! Next I will be working on a pair of
Newfoundland mittens, the pattern for which I acquired through very
curious circumstances. . .oooOOoo
Last weekend we had our mid-project camp. It was held at
Camp Davern,
a YMCA/YWCA camp. The purpose of the camp was to evaluate our program
thus far, talk about the learning that we've done through our work
placements, host families and community, and group/counter-part pairs as
well as consider things we can improve on for the remainder of the
Canadian phase and the rest of the program. We are the first year of a
five year program between Perth and Gracias and so it is important for
us to make suggestions for improvement for the coming years. I was on
the planning committee for the camp evaluation activities and I think,
although they didn't go off exactly according to schedule, they went
over really well and were really well received by the group.
We also had a talent show on the Saturday night that I wrote my first
rap for!!! haha Hopefully I'll be able to get it on video and somehow
make it available later. My costume was amazing though.
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| Perth Rap Presentation: old skool style |
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| Lonely rodes of Lanark County, great for cycling! |
On Monday I
went to see David Suzuki give his "Legacy Lecture" in Ottawa. I've seen
him speak before but it was still very interesting. He focused alot,
as he did last time, on the disharmony between our economy and ecology.
Although they come from the same "eco" which means home or household,
they both seem to embody very different meanings. Dr. Suzuki's main
argument (I guess) is that until we can see worth, in economical terms
in our environment and in the things that are most important to us
(loved ones, connections to people, memories, etc.), we are in serious
trouble.
Nic Marks,
whose TED talk we watched at camp had a very interesting and very
related (I think) topic to talk about. The Happiness Index :)
Today we volunteered at a water awareness day! We taught 108 elementary
school kids about various aspects of water, the water cycle,
conservation, watersheds, wetlands, oilspills, etc etc etc. Takes me
back to my elementary school field trip days to St. John's outdoor
center :) hee hee.
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| Canadian Autumn is spectacular |
Again, sorry for the length! There was A LOT to update on. I'll
try to send another update before we head off to Honduras. There will
probably be alot more to update on before then!
Farmwise - a lot of harvesting, weeding,
covering beds, planting spring crops. We've already had our first frost
up here!! And, although it's been pretty warm since, we're expecting
another one this weekend. So we will probably be doing another big
harvesting tomorrow. I've also become an expert vegan pumpkin pie maker
;) So you'll have to ask me about it next time you see me if you want
some :) haha Kristine and Malcolm are still wonderful and very
accommodating to Gaby and I. I think we lucked out on our host family
for this half of the program anyway!
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