My Letter to "Friends Of The CBC" to the CRTC/ or Give Jan Arden her own show!

I submitted this today after my opinion was requested by CRTC , the "Friends of CBC. " Mr Morin may be sorry he asked. I know I feel better for answering!

I have been listening to CBC Radio as long as I can remember, my family always had CBC Radio playing. I have been a very loyal fan and dearly love CBC Radio.

I do still appreciate it, find it entertaining and informative. The only complaints I have are these I have listed.

1. I understand the demographics have changed, however frankly some of the music programming I find lacking, particularly on shows like Jian Ghomeshi's list of so called Indi groups. A lot of it is just untalented, noise making, no names.

2. I am a huge fan of Jian and love his show generally.

Michael Enright's choice of high brow noise making, is worse than the aforementioned no names I'm afraid, and I have never been a fan of Mr. Enright.

3. Brent Bamberry? Got to go! DNTO ? Got to go!

4. Financial cut backs have resulted in repeats, repeats, and more repeats. Not a good thing. It's diminishes the standard and quality of CBC.

Please, no more Erin Costello repeats of Atlantic Airwaves or Jen Grant! Very annoying singers, and to listen to them so many times, I've lost count and makes me want to rip my hair out by the roots! That's my own personal opinion, but hey you asked for it!

5. Afghanistan show, mostly just depressing! Crap we know all to well what's going on there, death, death and more death. Lets put tax payers dollars toward bringing our troops the hell home!

6. Give Jan Ardin her own show!

Larry Joe

I am a late night radio listener and learn a lot of things through World Service Radio. Last night I heard a story about a young South African by the name of Larry Joe. He was an inmate at the Douglas Correctional Centre in South Africa.

I invite you to listen to the interview he gave on BBC World Service radio.

" Larry Joe is a living testimony of someone who has undergone a truly remarkable inner transformation with music being at the core."

Barbara Davidson/ Ed Burtynsky - Canadian Photographers

The Pulitzer Prizes | Works

After listening to Q this morning on CBC with Jian Ghomeshi who interviewed two major photographers consecutively today and yesterday I wanted to share these links for Ed Burtynsky and Barbara Davidson. Both are remarkable artists and their work is profoundly moving.

GRUBB

GRUBB Workshop #01 from GRUBB Music on Vimeo.

I have always had a love and fascination for so called "Gypsies" every since I was a young girl. I would always dress as a "gypsy" when I was little at Halloween.

As a adult I learned more about Roma culture and also learned about how they were and are persecuted and marginalized now and throughout history. It sickened me to know of this kind of man's inhumanity again humanity.

Being a hopeful person some how I still believe in the basic goodness of humanity in spite of all the atrocities within the world. Especially when I see adults helping children through creativity because it is such an empowering and life changing tool.

This week I found out about this project happening a movement really I would even dare to say involving Roma Youth. I hope you will find it as hope inspiring as I do.


This is a poem on the site...

Because those who have no voice should be able to sing.
Because education is the shortest route to emancipation.
Because art is a homeland for those who have none.
Because there should be a dialogue between the Romany people and the rest of the world.
Because it is high time that Romanies under twenty had the opportunity to tell us what they are and what they aren’t.
Because indifference kills more people than all the bombs in the world.
Because it is no longer acceptable to act as if the segregation of Romanies does not exist.
Because it is no longer acceptable to act as if they do not exist.
Because it is important to go beyond clichés and trite generalizations.
Because we are not always the Gypsies you would like us to be.
Because we have something to say to you and we invite you to hear it.

For all these reasons…

G.R.U.B.B.

Apple River Art Camp

It always inspires me to see how naturally creative and insightful young minds are.

This past Sunday I started to offer art classes to the kids locally and here is some of the drawings they did, and two adult kids, myself and a parent, we participated too.

We started first with some discussion about what art was and we all agreed art and being creative helps us to learn about all kinds of things and if we didn't have art and creativity we would be without just about everything that life and the world has to offer.

Then, a little fun drawing, warm up exercise followed that we did together. After all art should always be fun, we all agreed! It was a funny looking evolving kind of creature we all took turns at creating. Very colourful they were and very unique!

The subject theme was , "What are some of my very favourite things to do in the Summer. "

The Wood Buffalo Youth Project

Growing up as a troubled kid, at risk, I know all to well what art and music did to change my life in a positive and hopeful way.

After many years as a Youth Care Worker with the same kind of kids, I had once been myself, I could not only relate, but was grateful to be able to give back to others as an adult, which was once so freely given to me, by proactively caring adults, when I was that messed up kid.

Youth Care had become my vocation and I had the privilege and opportunity to use my skills as an artist and musician to make a connection and even a positive change in the lives of these young people.

Many times I have heard, and it is commonly repeated, how children are our greatest resource, but rarely do you see this same statement put into real action.

I want to share with my readers, "The Wood Buffalo Youth Song Project", I heard about today, during Atlantic Air Waves, on CBC radio. The two very talented and gifted musicians instrumental in this project are, Keith Mullins and Thom Swift.

Thom I worked with many years ago, as a Youth Care Worker, who was very gifted and a dedicated Youth Care Worker, I will add.

This adage of, children being our greatest asset and resource is born out by putting words into action, through just this kind of creative and very valuable project that Thom and Keith have actualized. The kind of creativity Sir Ken Robinson speaks of that is so beneficial to children.

After living and working three years in the North West Territories, I know first hand the difficulties remote and isolated communities experience and bare, especially among the youth.

We have a serious crisis in our society throughout this vast country of Canada, with our "most treasured and important resource", and it is very much up to us, as a global community of adults, to make this world a hopeful, positive and loving world were children feel safe, where elders let them know they belong, are wanted and loved.

Creativity is a powerful tool to really make a difference in a child's life that empowers and enables this to happen in such a wonderful and positive way. Keith and Thom's project sets the bar for how this can happen, and I want to congratulate them, for what I am certain is making all the difference in the lives of these young people through their music and creativity. I also want to say thank you to them both and for all those who made this project possible for them and for the children they touched and shared their talents and gifts with. You guys really rock, and what a team!

Owens Art Gallery director honoured - Arts - The Sackville Tribune Post

Owens Art Gallery director honoured - Arts - The Sackville Tribune Post

This is my Art History Professor. An amazing teacher, mentor and person!!! Congratulations Gemey!

Stacy Westfall

I received this email today. I believe I had seen it in the past, but regardless it was like seeing it for the first time again it is so amazing, powerful and inspirational.

I dedicate this to all who have over come difficulty, thriving not in spite of them but because of them.

Post Script: Stacy is not deaf as previously posted, none the less, what she has accomplished is remarkable.

A Horse Whisperer

THIS IS NOTHING SHORT OF AWESOME... This is absolutely amazing ...no bridle, no saddle... All commands are by touch only.

This girl riding the horse is in her 20's - her father passed away just 24 days before this performance.
You can hear her dedication to him just before her performance so turn up your speakers a bit.
Notice that it is just her and the horse - no bit, no saddle. She uses signals and touch cues.
Oh yes, this isn't even her horse. She is training it for someone else, although she obviously has a relationship with this one.

" Who am I, where am I going , how am I going to get there and how much is it going to cost?"

I think many people spend a lot of their lives contemplating on and about, who they are, especially in relation to their family. Perhaps for the majority us, who have experienced some kind of family dysfunction, like alcoholism, or some other kind of ism, the struggle with the question of personal identity is common. I am no different. It is difficult to wade through all the extraneous familial issues and baggage that result often in years of confusion, self doubt and lack of self esteem.

It has been my own personal experience, that one grows up with a myriad of negative and destructive extremes with growing roots, reaching into all aspects of our lives, often poisoning and damaging our relationships with others , and more importantly especially the relationship with ourselves.

Without continuing on into psychobabble, I will say, I grew up with a very loving mother, a very ill brother, living with Multiple Sclerosis and an absentee father, who was over whelmed by alcohol problems, and his own family of origin dysfunction, which does a complete and thorough job of destroying a family.

I want to share a recent family experience I had this week online.

I have a cousin, I'd only met once face to face, many years ago. She'd emailed me after recently reading my blog. I was thrilled that she''d contacted me. She had been raised by my grandmother, Catherine. I am her name sake. She died a month before I was born.

I'd always longed to know more about her, as I heard she was very talented with her hands and I knew my father had loved her very much. My father did not speak of his familly much, and not knowing my grandmother, I felt it was a great loss in my life, as I believed she would have been a loving mentor to me, as she was creative, strong woman. My cousin spoke very lovingly and tenderheartedly about our grand mother and of my father. I wept healing tears.

After communicating with my newly reacquainted cousin, I found out about more cousins who painted, played music, sang and had a special love of animals and horses. I felt like I had been given a big beautiful piece of the family puzzle from my cousin, who told me about my grandmother, her children and great grand children. I felt a strong sense of my own creative family identity. This encounter was a confirmation, and a validation of who I am, where I am going and it cost me, nothing, but I got a priceless gift in return.

I have posted a tribute video, of my late cousin, Phillip Hahnen, a very talented musician, song writer and a beautiful man, who died far too young. Along with this, another video of another young cousin, Jocelyn, both whom I would have never known even existed, had I'd never decided many years ago, to contact my father after he had been gone for 26 years, from my life. I have never regreted that decision. I did it for myself, but in turn it helped to heal my family.

I am very grateful, for the gift of sobriety, for family and for faith in a God of my understanding, otherwise I'd not be sharing this with you today.

My wonderfully creative childhood friend and artist Cliff Eyland, use to say this, when we were both once long, ennui-suffering teenagers. " Who am I, where am I going, how am I going to get there and how much is it going to cost?" This always made me laugh, but in retrospect they have become very important questions to ask and to answer about life.

Artists may get federal boost for their rights

Artists may get federal boost for their rights