Rob Ewaschuk's BlogThe adventures, travels, thoughts and photos of Rob EwaschukGot a Gig!- (Found July 11, 2008 ) Yesterday I had a chat with someone from the Toronto office of the Pembina Institute. I'll be ramping up slowly with them, by mutual agreement. It's a one-person office, and she's very busy, while I'm spending a lot of free time working to get Chris Tindal elected, or at least record-setting vote numbers. Though I don't think they're secretive about what they're doing, I don't want to go into detail -- it's related to the Renewable is Doable campaign. And electricity grids. And things...http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/03/09#got-a-gig Finding Leverage- (Found July 11, 2008 ) One of my goals for my leave was to find leverage: places where I could make a disproportionate impact, by helping the right group of people with the right goals at the right time, where they needed the things I could bring to the table. I think I found it. Yesterday's by-election put the Green Party nearly tied with the NDP in three of the ridings. It probably squished expectations for an imminent election. And it looks like it helped push the Liberals towards Green Tax Shift. The..http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/03/19#finding-leverage Six Months; Two Months; a Train Ride- (Found July 11, 2008 ) Quietly, we passed the six-months-in-Toronto mark on March 18th. A week later, I passed the two-months-on-leave mark. Easter happened -- ending Lent, and my associated restriction on durable purchases, and presently I'm on a train to Halifax. The rest is just details and thoughts. I like this part of Nova Scotia, that the train is rumbling through. This is my fourth or fifth time through it by rail, and for a while I'm pretty sure the rail line was twinned with the highway I cycled on for.http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/03/28#six-months-two-months-a-train-ride Another Sad Trainride- (Found July 11, 2008 ) I was on the train back from Halifax when this happened. :-(http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/04/06#another-sad-trainride Food Crisis- (Found July 11, 2008 ) Update: Some guy named George Monbiot did the analysis better than me: The Pleasures of the Flesh From Soaring food prices now top threat, IMF says: WASHINGTON - The global food crisis has pushed aside fears of a recession and mounting banking woes as top priority for the world's economic leaders Ministers representing 185 countries agreed on the weekend that soaring food prices threaten global calamity and pledged to co-operate on a solution to save the world's poorest people from...http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/04/14#tax-meat Visits, Kayaking, and a quarter of leave- (Found July 11, 2008 ) I updated my Objectives for Leave with scores, comments, and the goals for next three months, most of which are carry-overs. Comments welcome. Especially on how to have more self-discipline. :-) I tried to go kayaking with my friend Jeff. We got all packed up and ready to go, then drove up to Port Severn, unloaded, and got going. Three hours and about three kilometers later, our hands were cold (no gloves, but socks were making it livable) and the waves were picking up. We pulled into..http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/05/02#visits-kayaking-quarter-complete Man vs. Nature- (Found July 11, 2008 ) This morning at about 3am, I went to the kitchen to grab a snack, and saw a little furry quadruped skitter across the counter and down behind the couch. "Something must be done!" I thought to myself, and then went to bed. Today, I've put together a humane mouse trap from instructions I found on the internet. Mine is a little simpler -- instead of the wooden board for stability and weight, I just wedged it into a corner. I used twist-ties instead of heavy-gauge wire, a Chris Tindal pin and.http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/05/06#man-vs-nature Update and Morals- July 11, 2008 A friend sent me a link to a New York Times article called The Moral Instinct (free reg req'd.) Fairly interesting, though it contains one of my pet peeves: On your morning walk, you see a trolley car hurtling down the track, the conductor slumped over the controls. In the path of the trolley are five men working on the track, oblivious to the danger. You are standing at a fork in the track and can pull a lever that will divert the trolley onto a spur, saving the five men. Unfortunately,...http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/05/31#update-and-morals A Good Day- (Found July 11, 2008 ) Yesterday was a good day. I spent two hours working with the local Green Party candidate on the permanently soon-to-launch new website, with great productivity in terms of deciding what content to put up, and where to draw the lines around duplicating the central Green Party website. Then I got a call from Jesse and we had a good lunch at Fresh -- the Ninja Bowl has the tastiest preparation of tofu I've ever had. Then I went into Pembina and did some actually-good work, which I'd been.http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/06/06#a-good-day Letter to Minister Prentice- (Found July 11, 2008 ) I just fired this letter off to Jim Prentice, who tabled the rather vile Bill C-61 on Canadian copyright dereforms. I'm not sure if it's all properly addressed, but then I realized I really shouldn't have to care.Hon. Minister, As a Canadian citizen, I'm disappointed by the lack of balance in Bill C-61. The balance in copyright policy should be struck by governments, with strong provisions for fair dealing and personal use to maximize art and the enjoyment of art. Certainly, a "balance"...http://rob.infinitepigeons.org/blog/2008/07/03#jim-prentice-letter |