Recently, friend Ocean's monetary income was enriched, as she had applied and has received, Canada Pension Plan benefits and the Supplement for Elderly Renters. Her quality of living soared. For those of us living in financial poverty, it is a real relief when our fortunes improve. It also gives us the opportunity to say thank you to all who support us along the way. Ocean has done this in the …
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Today, I went to my post box and discovered a card from a special friend. My smile lightened my step as I went forward to my little shack in the woods. Once I got home and opened the envelope to find a treat from one who could least afford it, I was elated. It is amazing to feel so uplifted! Such a small thing, others would say, but I know how much it means to receive this unexpected present. …
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I am enraged, again, with this story about the pro-life righteous, religious, right-wing-nutters in the USA. Is there no end to other people deciding how a woman comes to a decision about seeking an abortion? I'm beginning to realize that all the die hard pro-lifers seem to believe that a woman thinks 'Ho-hum, I'm pregnant. I better find an abortion clinic and get rid of the damn thing.' Where …
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Okay, so here I am, still visiting at my sister's place in Southwestern Ontario. She says, 'Let's go camping for a few days along Lake Huron'. 'Great', I say. I view this as chance to enjoy some of Ontario's beautiful natural conserves without having to fork over pots of money for overnight accommodation. We will use tents! We will bring our own food and cook it over an open fire! However, …
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Here I am, at my sister's place in Ontario. A surreal land of plenty. A one way plane ticket was sent so I could attend my nephew's wedding. Sis lives in beautiful Southwestern Ontario in a two bedroom, two bathroom, full basement brick home with her hard working husband. Her now adult children (and grandchildren) all live within a 20 mile radius and everyone gets along well. I love my sis …
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Kittimati, Cascadia UnAssociated Press The Union of People with Uteri United to Reduce Savagery (UPURS) met last week in Kittimati, Cascadia to confer on findings from researchers at the International Medical Science Institute (IMSI) and reports from UPURS. IMSI researchers have concluded that symptoms of the debilitating Testosterone Overload Associative Disorder Syndrome (TOADS), that affects …
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Not again! Children are being punished for the 'sins' of their parents. Lesbian parents, that is. In Denver, Colorado, at the Sacred Heart of Jesus School, two children have been barred from attending school by the Catholic Archdiocese. "Parents living in open discord with Catholic teaching in areas of faith and morals unfortunately choose by their actions to disqualify their children from …
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Rob Johnstone has been moved to file a complaint with the Manitoba Human Rights Commission over his inability to find a non-religious support group to help him fight his addiction to alcohol. "I should not be forced to participate in someone else's religious beliefs. I shouldn't have to add to mine," said Johnstone, who added he has been an alcoholic for 40 years. "I have my own beliefs and I'm …
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International Women's Day. Today. One day only. Set aside to 'celebrate' women's progress in a (still) male dominated world. The rest of the year is dedicated to men and the mess most of them are making of our little blue planet. Like this diatribe visited on women unfortunate enough to be anywhere near 'right-wing ultra-extremists CHRISTIAN men'. When Virginia Del. Bob Marshall publicly …
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OMG! A janitor that does other than clean up after people! This one writes books! Lots of them! The books are published! People buy these books! Academics are astounded!! When the University of Victoria's bookstore hosted a display honouring writers employed by the university, the most prolific scribe was - wait for it - a janitor. Yes, a lowly janitor writes books. "It is," said …
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For those of you who are wavering on whether to embrace a vegan diet this year, here's food for thought. Change your life for the better and save the lives of animals in 2010 by pledging to be vegan!What a great way to start the year! …
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Yes, in this news, vegetarians fare better. Anyone thinking that vegetarian diets were risky was told otherwise when the Dietitians of Canada and the American Dietetic Association issued a joint statement in June. After reviewing the most current science, the report concluded that a well-planned vegetarian diet is healthy for people of all ages, including infants, children, teenagers and …
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Merry Christmas, everyone! Most of us celebrate the holiday surrounding the birth of Christ on the 25th of December, yes? Some of us celebrate the winter Solstice, which is an undeniable return of longer days to come and the celebration of new life in the spring. Some very thorough research has been done in regard to the birth of Christ, which is nicely summed up on the video Zeitgiest - …
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I started a post on the latest social funding slash by Gordo's BC Liberals, when I came across this page. “The cuts are coming fast and furious in all directions, “ wrote Times Colonist columnist Jody Paterson on October 2, 2009, “with neither a plan nor an understanding at any level of what it’s all going to mean when the dust settles. Without a word of public discussion, vital social programs …
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Big Pharma is onto a good thing when doctors, teachers, health care professionals, physiologists, psychiatrists and parents recommend, subscribe or outright order prescribed drugs for childrens' 'dis-orders'. The path to child drugging in the US started with providing adolescents with stimulants for ADHD in the early 80s. That was followed by Prozac in the late 80s, and in the mid-90s drug …
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People the world over are shouting about Climate Change. People are demanding that their governments work together to stop the downward spiral spin. And what can an individual do, you might ask. One giant step would be to stop eating meat. Yep. Get rid of the meat in your diet.Half, yes half of all greenhouse gas emissions are caused by growing, slaughtering, rendering, transporting and …
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What a difference a pet can make! Imagine recovering from a painful surgery and the doctor orders two doses of pet therapy a day while recovering in hospital. Imagine snuggling up to a soft and purring kitten when you are ailing, lonely, frightened or stressed to the max. Well, it seems that researchers have finally acquired enough 'evidence' to support what we've known for a long time: that …
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So, get ready goils. Here's another Dis-ease being foisted on us by Big Pharma: 'Restless Vagina Syndrome' aka 'Female Sexual Dysfunction'.You are among the "43 percent of American women [who] experience some degree of impaired sexual function," according to a Journal of the American Medical Association article. The FDA’s evolving definition of FSD includes decreased desire or arousal, sexual …
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It seems that young men today are struggling to create a new masculine identity for themselves, one that takes them away from the good 'ole boys idea of a REAL man. And they are brainstorming new ways to be in this post-feminist world. This is about so much more than the 200 men who attended this conference. They are on the front lines, but there are legions of progressive men of all ages, all …
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According to researchers at BC Cancer Agency a breakthrough has been achieved in the fight against breast cancer. For the first time in history, BC Cancer Agency scientists in British Columbia, Canada have decoded all of the three billion letters in the DNA sequence of a metastatic lobular breast cancer tumour, a type of breast cancer which accounts for about 10 per cent of all breast cancers, …
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So, there have been complaints from a neighbourhood in the lower mainland about the sex trade workers.A targeted police investigation led to the arrest of 15 sex trade workers last week in downtown Maple Ridge. This was the latest effort by Ridge Meadows RCMP to clean up the streets and address complaints from the community.“It is illegal and when it is that type of activity that is so blatantly …
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We all seem to have an image of Bossy, the milk cow, placidly chewing her cud in a field of vibrant green grass. This is the cow we all get our milk from, carefully raised on the local farmer's field. Isn't it?The reality of cows bred for milking is far different. This video may be an extreme example of cruelty, but it is more common than we want to believe.The dairy industry's standard forms …
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Unbelievable, but true. The BC government has restored the $440,000 it axed from domestic counselling in the province. Solicitor General Kash Heed made the announcement in a press release, after his government faced a wave of criticism in recent days for slashing funding to women's groups.Now if the Powers-That-Be would only reconsider cuts that have dug into the province's daycare programs, …
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What do poor working people like me do when they have to visit the dentist? When they know they have work to be done or risk losing their teeth? Or suffer the consequences of infection and the following agony of pain?For me, I visit the dentist and have the doctor inform me of what needs to be done to avoid complications before deciding to follow through - or not. Luckily for me, I have …
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Those uppity women of the vast Canadian 'left-wing fringe group' and their children are going to endure more funding cuts here in BC.The BC government, lead by Liberal Gordo Campbell, have decided that women fleeing criminally abusive partners, don't really need money already allocated to support them in their efforts to protect themselves and their children.The province's Ministry of Public …
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Front Page news this week in the local paper announcing the Grand Opening of yet another Big Box Store.A few weeks ago it was the Grand Opening of a large chain drug store, with people sleeping overnight on the sidewalk to be the first fools - oops!, I mean 'shoppers' - to bustle inside the next morning for a chance at winning the door prize of an in-store spending coupon.In late spring, the news …
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What this story doesn't tell anyone is that the 'funding' provided to scoop homeless people off the streets of Vancouver and deposit them at the doorway of shelters will end, conveniently, shortly after the 2010 Olympics are over."This bill would have police arrest citizens who are not guilty of any crime, and detain them without any charge, simply because they are homeless," Eby said.The officer …
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My clothes are chosen for comfort, not style and are often handed down to me by friends who know my tastes and intense dislike of shopping. Makeup left my face forever when I passed my 41st birthday. Silver streaks adorn my once blonde-streaked brown hair. Nearing 60, I have become 'invisible' to most of the population, except to be seen as a looming burden.I lived through the ups and downs …
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Yep, after twelve years as a vegan I've begun eating living food. That is raw, organic food only. First to go was morning coffee, which resulted in a three day headache. Next was the one slice of whole wheat bread I consumed with tofu, garlic and tahini, which I haven't missed at all. And finally, the steamed vegetables, hot bean recipes and other specially planned menu items that were …
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This story really got to me.I constantly hear about 'humane' ways to kill animals that some humans ingest. My response is 'what is humane about killing any animal when we really don't have to eat meat to survive?'A vegan diet is sufficient for all our bodily needs. It is also environmentally-friendly and financially responsible, especially when the food we eat is grown at home or in our local …
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Test tube, that is. Coming soon to a grocery store near you, meat that is designed in Petri dishes then transferred into large vats to grow.Rapidly evolving technology and increasing concern about the environmental impact of meat production are signs that vat-grown meat is moving from scientific curiosity to consumer option. In vitro meat production is a specialized form of tissue engineering, a …
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It's highly unlikely to see mushrooms in the summer season around here, but the past weeks a few brave specimens have popped up around the boles of a number of the larger evergreen trees. Their arrival indicates that rain is on the way, for reasons still unknown to mycologists. Agaricus Agustus, also known as 'The Prince' is a highly-prized edible variety, if you can get to the mushrooms before …
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Okay, Okay, I know I go on a LOT about a meat-free diet, but the proof shows up in our bodies. Eating without ingesting animal flesh is definitely beneficial to our health.[T]he fact that eating meat leads to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, obesity, and lethargy, I'll skip extended analysis of these facts, other than to say: When Johns Hopkins, Columbia, the American Dietetic Association, and …
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My Friend has died. The four to six month prognosis turned out to be a mere six weeks.Friend stayed at home for one month before a decision to move to an 'end-of-life' bed in a tiny Care Home in a small community twenty miles from his residence was made. His room there was as home-like as possible, with windows that were left open at all times, as he requested. His dog was allowed to visit, …
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