Canada Votes 2011

Tomorrow is election day!

I cant tell you how excited I am about the potential for a real change in canadian government and hopefully a turnaround of voters who have come to feel that their votes don't count. Voters who have learned that if they are going to vote they had better do it strategically or in effect vote against the leader they dislike most instead of voting for someone that they want representing their interests and their country on the national stage.

I love my country and I love voting, making my mark. The truth is that for all the democratic jostling of our political system, we are a GREAT country but I want to help us be better still. This is why i vote.

Canada is one of the heaviest polluters by population in the world, we have a deficit in our national retirement plan that threatens quality of life for our entire population, we have racism along the lines of language and reserve boundaries, classism between our urban and rural population, pressure cracks in our canadian healthcare system, and a history of miserly international aid.

All of these issues that float under the sightlines of our international reputation are not things to be ashamed or afraid of, they are opportunities to be resourceful, to lead by example, to really astound the world with our potential. I believe in canada and I think we should be champions in far more than international olympic hockey!

We constantly compare our country to the united states, but the comparison weakens us. Its not enough that we have healthcare, that doesn't equate to the superior attitude i sometimes witness by canadians towards our greatest trade partner to the south.

We also can't be fairly compared to other european nations that are so much smaller physically and larger by density than we are. They have developed systems of efficient transit, and resource management out of necessity.

Our diverse and sprawling nation, is its own challenge, an example of this is the fact that we have 2 official languages and 6 official federal parties. We need to balance our tradition of accommodating difference with the importance of working together, choosing a government and not leaving those elected to their own devices until the next election.

A good friend told me that he sends handwritten letters to his government because the weight of one such letter is so much greater than emails and signatures on petitions. I think as a nation we owe it to our country and to the success of our economy, to our families, to our future selves who will be the benefactors of the choices made in parliament today to be involved.

The federal government belongs to us as citizens, it is our responsibility and our legacy. We are the ones who give them the power. If we don't remind our politicians who we are as individuals how can we expect them to see us as anything more than a number.

Voting is just the beginning.

Voting is the LEAST we can do for the love of our country.

Dreary Schmeary!

SO:

I had a little revelation recently.

I have NOT Been taking enough pictures of my city.

I have not been treating it the way i did seattle and i am guessing that has something to do with the fact that i always compare and prefer that souf of the border city to the one i must definitely now start calling my own.

The winter here is a time for hibernation.

For most people.

In fact, for me it is a bit of a tedious balance between being uninspired in my usually challenging and inspiring full-time career, and being swamped with long and vibrant nights at my part-time evening job at the fantastic local theatre 'the cultch'.

You can read the interview they did with me just before i made the switch from volunteer to actual employee on the cultch blog here:

http://blog.thecultch.com/2010/08/volunteer-profile-meet-kiki-hastings/

I want to hibernate, the dark and the rain make me linger home on mornings when i know i should have already left for work, and equally keep me at work longer because i know i'll have to face the elements again when i do leave.

I've decided that i'm going to relish the last few months of winter by doing a little more winter exploring... i'm going to endeavour to

- go out snowshoing with some friends (finally!)

- Have a cheese fondue valentine making night

- Make blood orange and spice winter sangria

- take long exposure night photographs of this city's year round greenery and only take sepia daytime photos. Grey is depressing.

Thank goodness for vitamin d capsules!

Being the butcher

http://vimeo.com/7192517

I watched/listened to this talk from 43 folders about a year ago. Its something that i've come to really honor in my own fledgeling career.

The key tidbit is this:

'You can't take a course to learn all the skills and become an expert at something, you can't become the butcher with 30 years experience, until you ARE the butcher with 30 years experience.

I also liked how Ira Glass of This american life put it, let me paraphrase; Its nice to be recognized as being good at what i do now, the radio, but its not like that happened all of a sudden. For a long time i really sucked at it.

So, yes, its been almost 2 years since i've started work in my chosen field, and i'm still loving it.

I got to repair clock springs on a kaiser euphonium today, and repad 2 clarinets.

I got to playtest some mouthpieces and i learn every day little things, like 'i like deep cupped mouthpieces'.

So in the interest of constant improvement, i think its important that i start to post some of the great experiences i'm having in my life/work that are in fact related to the work i do.

My new years resolutions this year were almost entirely career centric:

1: play all the instruments i repair

I have copped out on this for too long and already after just a week i'm feeling so much more comfortable and learning so much more quickly what impact adjustments actually make, what 'feel' means, and i'm getting over my stage fright and building an embouchure. YAY!

2. Get the Buffing Room up and running.

This year i had several projects that would have benefitted immensely by having buffing equipement available. I am the one who would benefit most from this, i need to make it a priority.

3. Learn to do Removable French Bell Conversions

This is such a cool/lucrative thing to be able to do. Luckily i have a plethora of french horns that are inactive and some time before may that i can spend learning this.

4. Research and Publish relevant articles in trade magazines about the decorative/craft elements and history of musical instruments.

I have my pitch in the outbox waiting for me to groom it a little more before i send it to SNAG, but i'm also planning some spin-off articles that are loosely woven around the chance i have to spend time with Jason DuMars this year and learn about him and his saxophone engraving.

5. Learn Chasing and REpousse and some engraving

I would like to build a bit of a business making decorative bell wreaths for large brass and i guess some other brass as well. I'm trying to think of a jewellery/craft object i could make and sell to develop the skills i'll need to do intricate work. I feel like this is a great focus for my creative self, it even incorporates my love of radial symmetry and hammering. :)

P.S. Sweet 'Naked Lady' engraving no?!

So here's to a great year! 2011, lets make music together!