FIRE!!!!

Not my home.

So we had a fire alarm last night.  I did the typical thing and waited just long enough to see if the alarm was a quick blip as sometimes happens, or if it was continuous.  It was continuous, so I did the responsible thing.  "Kids!  Let's go!"  Well let me just tell you that it took the kids WAY too long to get out of the house!  And to think i thought we'd be good.  After all, we'd talked about it several times.  

They were wandering around in circles like it was a school morning and they just weren't focusing on their task at hand.  You know... "Get your coat and boots and GET OUT!!"  In the confusion as I tried to heard more than one child out the door, I hadn't noticed until we got down to the first floor that one of my children had taken the time to save his cat.  

Houdini.  No, she was not in the stroller at the time of the fire alarm.

Glad the cat got out... wasn't glad that was part of the reason it took so long to get out.  The other son, upon seeing this, asked to go back upstairs to save his cat.  "No!"  *sigh*  And then I hoped like mad there was no fire, because I was really not looking forward to the anger and grief that would follow if anything happened to his kitty, but at least I was smart enough to remember the multitude of news reports about people dying in fires while trying to save their animals.  I understand that while we love our animals dearly, it does nobody any good to burn to a crisp trying to save them.  

Squirrely

So I was disappointed with our exit time and disorganization, but was proud that we had obeyed the alarm and used the stairs like good little doobies.  Until I met up with my mom and she mentioned that she had tested the doors for heat and smoke before she opened them.  *smacks self in head*  I forgot all about that.  *sigh*

And then there were all the people who were using the elevators, and let's not forget the various people, mostly women, one of which pregnant, who all thought it was a fantastic idea to send their spouse down to check on the situation while they stayed upstairs in their apartment.  This alarm had turned out to be a glitch in the system which they are working very hard to resolve today with professionals, but if the threat had been real, those women would have been relying on their husbands to somehow track down the building manager who would be very busy SOMEWHERE in the building taking care of the situation, or by word of mouth information/gossip from tenants before they made their decision that there was indeed a threat somewhere. Then they'd go back upstairs, (probably by elevator, I might add,) and THEN finally save their wives and children?  Are you freaking kidding me??

In an epic way!

So what have I learned?  I've learned that we've got a lot of work to do, both in our home and in our little micro-community we call an apartment building.  It's time to reeducate ourselves and each other.  Think you're ready in case of a fire?  Think you don't need any preparation?  You might be very surprised to learn what your actual level of preparedness is, and with any luck, you won't have to find out in the middle of an actual fire.  

So What Should We Do?

• Plan ahead and develop a routine to keep basic needs at the door so they can be grabbed quickly: Keys, coats, footwear
  
• Consider sleeping in pajamas or have a housecoat hanging at the door at all times so you can quickly cover yourself without losing any time in case of a fire.
  
• Consider keeping your cell phone in a location where it is easy to grab on the way out without causing any delays so you can call for help once you've gotten outside.
  
• Move quickly!  Don't stop to save your animals or favourite pictures. Get yourself and your family out the door immediately. If your pet just happens to be at the door on your way out, by all means bring them with you, but they should in no way be impeding or slowing your exit from your home!
  
• Check the door for heat with your hand , and look for smoke entering the cracks around the door before you open it.  If the door or knob are hot, use your pre-determined alternate route.
  
• If there is smoke, stay low!  Cover your mouth and nose with clothing if you can, crawl on hands and knees to the nearest exist if need be. Remember to check all doors first before opening.
  
• Use the stairs!  NEVER use the elevator.
  
• Meet outside at a pre-determined location.
  
• NEVER go back in until you are given the all clear from officials.

What tips do you have for getting out safely during a fire? Feel free to share!

That's it, people!  Stay safe and be well.  :0)

Registration Woes

So this post is specifically for my Chatzy friends, but if anybody else out in cyber world is chatting up a storm at Chatzy and needs help with the free registration process, feel free to use these instructions.  So here we go.

First you have to go to www.chatzy.com to look for the sign up link.  You will have two options, sign in by linking up to your facebook, or sign in using your email addy and request a password.

If you choose the email addy route, enter your email address and then select "I am a new user at Chatzy" and then a button will suddenly appear below it.  Click on it.

 Once you make your selection and enter your email address and click on Send password, you will get a notice telling you that your password has been sent to your email.

So next you have to go to your email account and look for an email that looks like this:

Open the email, get your password and then go back to www.chatzy.com to sign in with this new password.  Please note that this is NOT your chat room password!  After all this is said and done, you will still have to go to your room as normal and sign in with the regular chat room password.

Your sign in page will look like this.  Enter the email address you used to register, click on "I am a registered user", put in the password that was emailed to you, and then choose whether or not you want your information to be remembered.  If you want to be remembered, you won't have to do this step every time you enter your chat room.  If you prefer the more secure option to be logged out when you close your browser, you'll have to log in here first every time you want to come chat in a registered users only room.

Once you log in, you'll be faced with a list of preferences.

Take a moment to consider your options carefully.  Who do you want to be able to send you invitations?  Do you want to be questioned each time about your room preferences before you enter the room?  Do you prefer the 24hr clock, or the 12hr clock?  Do  you want to see the time stamps on the right hand side of each post?  You may also take this opportunity to change your password to something you choose, rather than use a computer generated password if you wish.

So now you've made your selections, and you've clicked on "Save my preferences"

After you click on that most informative dialogue box up there, using the OK button, you will be shown a most confusing page!  For those of you who are here because you are in an existing chat room and suddenly find yourself with a need to register... IGNORE THIS NEXT PAGE!!  No seriously!  It's just there to help you create a NEW chat room, should you not belong to one already.  If you are here reading these instructions, chances are, you already have a chat room filled with people who love you, and therefore you have no need to create a new one.

So instead you will navigate to your usual chatroom, by way of typing in the address, or using your bookmarks, or whatever other way you have of getting there.  Once you are there, enter the usual chat room information, and start chatting with the amazing people who are there waiting to greet you!

For those of you who may have to check your spam box to find your Chatzy password email, allow me to show you Gmail users how to find your spam box.  Look to the menu to the left of your email page.  Click on the more button at the bottom of the list if "Spam" is not showing.  In this case, it says 6 more, but yours will most likely have a different number, as I've created some folders.  

Now that you've opened up the list to show the rest of your folders, you can now  find and click on your spam folder, and take a peek inside to see if your Chatzy password email has accidentally been sent there instead.  

If you have a different email provider, like hotmail, yahoo, etc., then look around, the spam folder won't be far away, should you need to go looking for your email there.

What's in a Name? - Part 1

Well apparently plenty!  In a discussion this morning with some friends, a couple of them were describing how they have many cities in the states named after entire countries as well as many holy cities in other lands.  I commented that there must have been quite a few homesick settlers, to which one of them asked, "You don't have towns named after French or English towns?"  You know, I'm sure we do, but as far as I know we don't have any named after entire countries, and that we tend to have a lot of Native based names.  So being the curious type, I started to look into some of our more famous Canadian names:


Canada: comes from a Wendat (Huron-Iroquoian) word, kanata, meaning "village" or "settlement".


Newfoundland: was the "new founde isle" of John Cabot who sailed westward from Bristol in 1497; although Norsemen, Basques, and Bretons (among others) had undoubtedly preceded him. By 1502 "New found launde" was being used in official English documents with the French version "Terre Neuve" appearing as early as 1510 - a clear indication of the acceptance of the designation. Giovanni da Verrazano used the term "Terra Nova" on his map of 1529. Newfoundland entered Confederation as the tenth province of Canada on March 31, 1949.


Prince Edward Island: The island appears under the name Île de Saint Jean in Champlain's narrative (1604) and on his map (1632); however, according to Ganong, the name is of earlier origin. After its acquisition by the British in 1759 the island was known as St. John's Island until the name was changed in 1798 to honour Prince Edward, Duke of Kent (1767-1820), father of Queen Victoria, then in command of the British forces at Halifax. Separated from Nova Scotia in 1769, Prince Edward Island entered Confederation on July 1, 1873.


Nova Scotia: means New Scotland.  Prior to this, the name Acadia was generally used by the French to denote the Maritime provinces along with adjacent portions of New England and Quebec. The origin of the word Acadia is in dispute. It is generally accepted to be from Archadia (Acadia), assigned by Giovanni da Verrazano in 1524 and suggested by the classical name for a land of rustic peace. The claim that it is of Micmac origin is probably coincidental. The Micmac word Quoddy or Cady was rendered by the French as cadie and meant a piece of land or territory.  Hence the Acadians, of which are my maternal heritage.


New Brunswick: Originally the territory included in modern New Brunswick was part of Nova Scotia.  The name was chosen as a compliment to King George III (1760-1820) who was descended from the House of Brunswick.


Québec:  comes from the Algonquin word kepék meaning "(it) narrows", originally referred to the area around Quebec City where the Saint Lawrence River narrows to a cliff-lined gap.


Ontario:  This Huron name, first applied to the lake, may be a corruption of onitariio, meaning "beautiful lake," or kanadario, which translates as "sparkling" or "beautiful" water.



Manitoba:  The likeliest source is the Cree maniot-wapow, "the strait of the spirit or manitobau." This name refers to the roaring sound produced by pebbles on a beach on Manitoba Island in Lake Manitoba. The Cree believed the noise sounded like a manito, a spirit, beating a drum. It has also been suggested that the name comes from the Assiniboine words mini and tobow, meaning "Lake of the Prairie."


Saskatchewan: The province got its name from the Saskatchewan River, which the Cree called Kisiskatchewani Sipi, meaning "swift-flowing river."


Alberta:  The name was suggested by the Marquess of Lorne, Governor General of Canada from 1878 to 1883, in honour of his wife, H.R.H. Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, daughter of Queen Victoria.


British Columbia:  Much of the mainland region was originally known as New Caledonia; however, this name (duplicated in South Pacific) was discarded in favour of British Columbia. The designation appears to have originated with Queen Victoria and was officially proclaimed in 1858. Columbia (after the Columbia River which was named by the American Captain Robert Gray for his ship Columbia ) had previously been loosely applied to the southern portion of the colony.


Northwest Territories:  Historically, the term was loosely applied to the vast lands north and west of Lake Superior; later it signified the administrative district which pre-dated Saskatchewan and Alberta; and from January 1, 1920, it has meant "that part of Northern Canada between the Yukon Territory and Hudson Bay, including Baffin Island, the islands in James Bay, Hudson Bay, Hudson Strait, and the Arctic Archipelago".

Yukon: this name belonged originally to the river, and is from a Loucheux word, LoYu-kun-ah, meaning "great river."

Nunavut: the name of Canada's newest territory, which came into being on April 1, 1999, means "our land" in Inuktitut.

An attempt has been made to link to source materials.  These source materials may have produced information for more than one name listed here, but have only been linked once. 

Hugs

It's wondrous what a hug can do.
A hug can cheer you when you're blue.
A hug can say, "I love you so," or
"Gee, I hate to see you go."


A hug is "Welcome back again," and
"Great to see you! Where've you been?"
A hug can soothe a small child's pain,
And bring a rainbow after rain.


The hug! There's just no doubt about it...
We scarcely could survive without it!
A hug delights and warms and charms
It must be why God gave us arms.
Hugs are great for fathers and mothers,
Sweet for sisters, swell for brothers.
And chances are your favorite aunts
Love them more than potted plants.


Kittens crave them; puppies love them;
Heads of state are not above them.
A hug can break the language barrier
And make your travels so much merrier.


No need to fret about your store of 'em;
The more you give, the more there are of em!
So stretch those arms out without delay,
and GIVE SOMEONE A HUG TODAY!


      - Author unknown

What Is Faith?

I wish to share with you an article a friend of mine wrote:  

June. I’m currently planning for Family Camp at Sasamat, and already thinking ahead to the next church school year. I say this every year but it’s no less true – I can’t believe we’re at the end of our time together! 

I’d like to remind you that the last service of the year, the Flower Communion, is a multi-generational service. We will be doing a child blessing during this time as well as our usual Flower Communion. The kids have already done one “practice” of the Flower Communion, and we will be doing it again with a little further detail between now and then. I love the liturgical lessons of Spirit Play. For the littlest kids, they give an opportunity to practice, so they have an idea of what’s coming and what’s happening when they join our congregation. For the older kids (and even for me!) they provide some insight into why we do things the way we do, and some of the history.

And I love the story of Norbert Capek and the first Flower Communion. Capek designed the ceremony as a way to tie people from many different backgrounds together, despite their differences. As you know, we all contribute a flower and make a beautiful bouquet together, and we all take one home at the end. I like to think of the taking of a flower as the “different perspective,” for I know that nobody else thinks exactly as I do about their spiritual path. 

And this, is timely. At the moment, there is a complex online battle going on. The problem? A pagan mom was nominated as one of the Top 25 Faith Blogs by Moms. Her blog is excellent. Well-written, funny, and offering a perspective on living in her faith. Unfortunately, I’ve watched this week as one Christian mom wrote a direct attack against this blog, proclaiming that (in short) “different faith is wrong faith,” and the pagan mom has no business writing a “faith” blog. Unfortunately there are others who have jumped on the bandwagon with please to vote the pagan mom out of the contest floating all over social media. It is modern religious persecution, without any doubt. I’m sad to see it in front of me. 

But I am hopeful. Dave Dalley’s work on the “Honouring Diverse Beliefs” documentary has made me hopeful that our kids will grow up in a world where the Top 25 Faith Blogs are comprised of MANY different faiths. I would love to see all the world religions in there.

Our liturgical lessons on the Flower Communion also make me hopeful. We have a small group of kids who are beginning to understand that together, we are amazing. I will have lots to contemplate at this year’s Flower Communion. And I hope that you have a chance this summer to stop... and smell a different sort of flower.

Kate Coghlan, DRE South Fraser Unitarian Congregation

I wish there were more churches filled with more people like this.  The above may not be what most would consider to be status quo for churches, but it most certainly knows how to teach about love and kindness and turning the other cheek.  They've chosen a loving, kind God, rather than an angry, vengeful and yes, even mean God.  Even in the bible, God states "I am known by many names."  Would that not then, in one simple statement, indicate that He did not just choose one small group of people upon this great earth to speak to, while He allows the rest to perish forever simply because the biggest telephone game in the history of man didn't get to them yet?  God, Creator, Allah, El Shaddai, The Alpha and the Omega, Gitche Manitou, Great Spirit.... It is quite possible the list could go on forever.  Why does the difference in language... the different customs used to focus our thoughts and prayers have to be considered to worship different gods?  Just because one person kneels and clasps their hands and another stands tall and uses smudge, or another sits cross legged and uses incense, doesn't mean they are not praying to the same God, and doesn't make any one of them more or less humble than the other.

When I read the article Because Christianity Does Not Own "Faith", I was terribly upset with the arrogance and abusiveness of one who claimed to be Christlike.  I find myself constantly rewriting this post because I find I keep trying to join this woman in her negativity... my words keep floating to my own brand of darkness and then I catch myself, because that's not where I want to be, and that's not where the real story is either.  So I delete sections of text and try again, because while the things that upset us and make us angry are very important to our development as selves and society, it's the bright shining lights that cause the darkness to retreat.  Anger and frustration, outrage and a sense of injustice are healthy and are what tell us to act.  They are merely catalysts and that's why we should not dwell there longer than necessary.  Bright shining lights like the outpouring from people who want to protect the bullied... that's Spirit.  And the voice of a church that teaches it's congregation and more importantly still, it's children to love and respect all peoples of all faith... to truly and meaningfully be teaching them that we are ALL God's children the way the church of the article above does well... that... that my friends, is faith.  Faith shines bright, and chases away the darkness not only in the world, but the darkness that grows in our hearts when we've been wronged once too often.

Yes, it may have taken me a few tries to get this blog right... to stay focussed on what really matters here, but it is because of the shining beacon above that I am finding it much less difficult to catch myself and make the necessary changes. It filled my heart and brought persistent tears to my eyes and has affected me deeply.  Instead of wanting to run away screaming... instead of feeling resentment and the budding seeds of prejudice growing in the wake of such religious cruelty, I found myself wanting to run to this woman and her church, and more shockingly, my children too.  This is the first time since before my children were born that I actually felt they'd be safe visiting and learning in a church.  No dreadful frightening and R rated stories  being taught to the children there, (let's face it, many stories being taught to children in churches would have R ratings for extreme violence if they were made into movies), just love...  only love and spirit and faith and good citizenship with all of God's creation.  This is the story... this is the faith.

 Faith, is the courage to love and to believe.

.

A Wolf's Spirit

It all began so innocently.  A conversation with a friend in which I mentioned that I seem to be having a hard time resting. I told her that I can only seem to rest in front of a screen lately. The meaning being; lately my idea of rest is a computer or a TV screen. What I didn't say was the hidden meaning is I never rest anymore, because such activities are stimulating, and not truly restful.  They are ways of never being alone with ourselves... never thinking very much... never feeding our spirits.  And suddenly as I consider such things, I feel very uncomfortable with myself.  I guess if I were to be honest, I'd have to say I haven't been comfortable with myself for some time now.  But the knowledge and the acknowledgement of this discomfort is my greatest discomfort yet.  


The conversation quickly flowed to discussing our need to run away, and how for me, that means camping.  You see, every year it is in my genetic make-up to return to nature.  If I do not perform this task, it unsettles my entire being for year.  Well due to complications with my husband's job, I've been unable to do this for a few years.  Imagine if you will, an aquarium where the water filter never gets changed.  After a few years it would be mighty gross and clogged and unpleasant.  Perhaps the buildup might even cause it to cease functioning.  This would be me... this would be my spirit.  I must return to the earth to reset... recharge... reconnect...change my filter, if you will.  This is my church... this is where I gather, this is where I commune.


I quickly realized that not only do I need to get back to nature, but I urgently need to get to the first pow wow I get an opportunity to go to.  Not just any pow wow, not a competition or exhibition pow wow, though those have their own merits, but rather a traditional pow wow.  I am exceedingly blessed to live in a land where pale faces like me are welcomed with open arms in the native community not as a visitor or a tourist, but as a sister.  In the end, when I look back into my past, this is where my spirit has always called me to be.  This is home to me, and I am homesick.  


The conversation soon turned to discussing the different kinds of pow wows, and when I mentioned hoop dancers, she admitted to being unaware of their existence.  Being the woman that I am, I very quickly sought to rectify such a tragedy and located a couple of hoop dance videos on youtube.  What had begun as a small wisp of smoke burning in my Spirit turned to small licks of flames, and I began to hunt for more pow wow music.  The licks quickly grew to full sized flames, swallowing me whole and reminding me what it is like to feed my spirit.  Hours upon hours were spent listening to my spirit music, and I feel a great weight and a great sadness lifting.  I am coming home.


Perhaps tomorrow I shall clean my home pow wow style.  ;0)

Welcome

So I've decided to maybe give this blog thing a try.  Why not?  So many things on my mind... some off beat and witty, some deep and philosophical, and some opinionated and quite possibly unpopular.  But this is me.  I am at times the clichéd lone wolf, and at other times I am the devoted pack member.  I am certain my blog will have no flow at all, because that's not the way my mind works.  Everything you see here will most likely be infrequent and random.  I hope you enjoy the ride!  So I invite you to come curl up with me into a furry ball of  companionship and enjoy a moment with me. 

The beauty of the trees, the softness of the air,
the fragrance of the grass speaks to me.
The summit of the mountain, the thunder of the sky,
The rhythm of the sea, speaks to me.
The faintness of the stars, the freshness of the morning,
the dewdrop on the flower, speaks to me.
The strength of the fire, the taste of salmon, the trail of the sun,
and the life that never goes away, they speak to me
And my heart soars.
- Chief Dan George