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Weeding Out Unwanted Neighbours
I am self-delusional enough to believe that, for the most part as a neighbour, I mind my own business. I have several great, mindful neighbours, which is good fortune in itself, and am glad to keep an eye out for their health and well-being as they do for mine. But there are a couple of…
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The Houseplants Are Calling Me
I don’t know whether to laugh or be filled with dread, but a group of science students at NYU have come up with BotaniCalls, a monitoring system that enables your houseplants to ring you up when they need a drink. Kind of like your friends do, but without the stellar company, human interaction and demand…
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You Can Go Home Again (Hint: Try Knocking on the Front Door)
Note: this entry was written in mid-February but posted today. For the past two weeks I’ve been back in Vancouver for my annual journey “home.” But this year was different. I returned to find permanent lodging and care for my father, whose Alzheimers has taken a significant turn for the worse. I simultaneously advocated…
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The Burning Smell of Childhood
How do you like your tea? Sweet? Or very, very black? On moving day, a little girl gives a tea party for her dollies in the garden of her new home. However, her parents are unaware of her unusual ability to channel the spirit of John Rambo. Moving Day, a film by Jason Wingrove. *****************…
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Should I Make Backyard Sacrifices?
Another curious tidbit from the Eighth Wonder of the World. 119 Ministries offers an organized, scripture-based argument answering the common biblical question: Should I, or should I not, make backyard sacrifices? Great for personal knowledge and to have in your ready-made stash of neighbourly advice. http://vimeo.com/33794856
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Mr. Toilet’s Big Squat
A funny, bold short film about Mr. Toilet, a social entrepreneur who, as his nickname suggests, has issues with poop. Jack Sim most specifically has a problem with 40% of the world’s population not having access to toilets in their homes and communities. No toilets = contaminated drinking water = unnecessary death and suffering. His…
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The Bed Bug Registry
Bedbugs. Say that word in a crowd and watch everyone take two giant steps backwards. While I’ve not experienced a bedbug infestation, I did unknowingly introduce a nasty case of fleas into a friend’s apartment once while travelling overseas. Not good. Obsessing about bedbugs seems like a terrific way to ruin a holiday.…
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Shelter from the Storm
Fear. Mental illness. Apocalyptic visions. It’s so hard to tell the difference between them these days. In Take Shelter, Curtis, a young husband and father from the midwest, obsesses about building out his underground storm shelter. Times are tough, jobs are in short supply, and families teeter on the edge of survival. Not a great…
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The House of Alone-ness
For being alone is not only the worst we can experience; it is also the inevitable moment of some of our greatest experiences. In the solitude of our selves we learn something that is otherwise unavailable to us – how to become who we are. – Thomas Dumm, Loneliness as a Way of Life On…