National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Port Hardy was especially meaningful this year. Not quite as many people joined the walk as in the previous two years, but there was still a good-sized crowd of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people. Totem pole at Port Hardy Secondary School In Port
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wmtc: a trip to victoria: beyond van gogh, puzzle lab, library… and food. lots of food.
I had two recent experiences that I want to preserve on wmtc — a trip to Victoria, and this year’s National Truth and Reconciliation Day ceremony in Port Hardy. * * * * Victoria is a lovely small city that’s perfect for us for a relatively inexpensive urban fix. I
Continue readingwmtc: maya’xala: things i heard in the library, an occasional series # 40
In my ongoing efforts to make the Port Hardy Library a safer workplace, and a more comfortable space for customers, I was invited to a elders’ luncheon at the Gwa’sala-‘Nakwaxda’xw Nations. Addressing the elders, I tried to convey how we have worked hard to make our library a welcoming space
Continue readingwmtc: moananuiākea: historic voyage for earth: coming to port hardy
An astounding event is taking place, and it seems to be happening under the mainstream radar. If I didn’t live in a Pacific coastal community, and if I weren’t actively following local Indigenous news, I doubt I would be aware of it either. Indigenous people from Hawai‘i are traveling around the
Continue readingwmtc: community meetings: what we heard about the library
As I mentioned some weeks ago, our library system is in the midst of the strategic planning process, crafting a roadmap for the next five years. Part of the process is community engagement — hearing directly from library users and local partners about the library’s mission, its place in the
Continue readingwmtc: north island book tour and community meetings: what i’m up to at the library
Inside the Port Hardy Library September and October have been a whirlwind for me at the library. In September, we hosted a locally famous author. Yvonne Maximchuk lives on a remote island in the Broughton Archipelago, and writes about the people who live in these tiny coastal communities. She has
Continue readingwmtc: the north island report: whale watching, little huson caves park, zeballos
While we had family visiting, we did a little more exploring of the North Island. We went to Telegraph Cove, a historic village and tiny tourist resort just south of Port McNeill, which is the easiest place to pick up a whale watching boat, a guided kayaking trip, or similar excursions.
Continue readingwmtc: the north island report: where to eat in port hardy and port mcneill, updated for 2022
It seems like everything in our lives will be divided by covid — pre and post. The lockdown, the case counts, the death counts. Quarantining our groceries. Masks. Vaccines. Hand sanitizer. The anti-maskers. Back in 2019, the beforetime, I listed all the decent restaurants in our town and the nearest neighbouring
Continue readingwmtc: in which i observe education, job creation, and community building in progress
For the last couple of weeks, it’s been my privilege to witness some exciting progress for our community, plus have a really interesting experience. Literacy first As a librarian and library manager in a remote region, I work closely with the local literacy society, and I sit on its board
Continue readingwmtc: who else turned 60 this year: celebrating the bc ndp
The great Tommy Douglaswas an MP for a BC riding in the 1960s. I recently learned that the BC NDP — the party I vote for, the party that currently leads the provincial government — is 60 years old this year. There’s a website showing highlights of the party’s accomplishments.
Continue readingwmtc: indigenous peoples day at the kwalilas hotel in port hardy
On Indigenous Peoples Day, the day of the summer solstice, we attended a ceremony held by the local First Nations communities outside the Kwa’lilas Hotel, the beautiful Indigenous-owned hotel in Port Hardy. I purposely didn’t bring a camera, thinking photography was prohibited — only to discover that because this was
Continue readingwmtc: in which the cool coastal climate kicks my ass: my first #gardenfail
I decided to convert a small patch of the front yard, overflowing with plantings from the previous owner of our house, into a small garden. My experiences with my gardenettes in southern Ontario were all very positive. They were also very easy: buy seedlings, put them in the ground, feed
Continue readingwmtc: north island life: in which we buy a generator (when in rome)
Our new friend Here on Vancouver Island, frequent power outages are a fact of life. Obviously outages happen everywhere, but when high-wind storms come ripping off the Pacific, we’re the windbreak. On the North Island, add thousands of acres of tall trees, with instability caused by logging. Add to that
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: As cases grow, so too do fears that this third wave will be amplified by long-weekend travel
It seems that we have been chasing COVID 19 instead of proactively shutting down the risk factors. Our federal and provincial governments have called for and supported closing our borders with the USA to restrict Read more… The post As cases grow, so too do fears that this third wave
Continue readingwmtc: five negatives and five positives about living in a small town and a remote region
Everything in life is a trade-off. Everything has pros and cons, advantages and pitfalls, clouds and silver linings. I honestly can’t think of anything this rule doesn’t apply to, including the Big Life Choices that are the most obvious and clear to us. This post has an additional disclaimer, more
Continue readingwmtc: art in our new home
When we were in Salt Spring Island, we went to the Saturday Market, and I instantly fell in love with this man’s work. Salt Spring artist Lorne Tippett uses wine-barrel stays to create a hanging frame, and carves the designs from reclaimed wood. We splurged and bought one. It’s not
Continue readingwmtc: cpmvfsgu days 8 and 9: monday and tuesday on salt spring island; whether or not to leave a negative review for an airbnb
I’ve spent the last two days reading, blogging, scratching, and occasionally eating and sleeping. There were other things to do on Salt Spring Island, but I was too uncomfortable to do anything. It was very nice to have uninterrupted time to read and write. Tomorrow we’ll take an early ferry
Continue readingwmtc: cpmvfsgu day 7: salt spring island (sunday)
Today’s big news is that the GP Dermatologist in Campbell River will see me on the day we are driving through that town, on our way home. Which is two days from now! I’m so relieved I could cry. I called and pleaded my case — to be honest, just
Continue readingwmtc: cpmvfsgu day 6: salt spring island (saturday)
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times? Perhaps not as dramatic as all that, but yesterday was a tale of two days, for sure. We had a leisurely morning — well, when you barely sleep, all mornings seem long — and drove the dogs over
Continue readingwmtc: cpmvfsgu day 5: victoria to salt spring island
I am having the surreal experience of looking through photographs of the wildfire devastation in Washington State, Oregon, and California, and seeing the names of towns where much of my family live. They are all personally safe, and as of right now their homes are intact. It’s very scary, both
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