The Canericans

A year of living... not living a certain way or for a certain thing or doing anything special, right now a year of living is the only thing many people have to hold on to. About a year ago, we "locked down" and changed the way we lived. So, having the privilege of still being alive, here are some memories from the last year. The uncertainty of what was to come upended several supply chains including that of toilet paper. It was so notable that Boy Canerican seemed concerned that we might run out. To quell his concerns we did mathematical estimations on usage and supply to show that we didn't think we would have a TP problem. The beach changed some lives in a flash when our close friend went ass over tea kettle under a wave while boogie boarding. The event took place the day before my 40th birthday. A very near miss of both paralysis and death, his recovery was slow at first, and still ongoing. We're thankful he's mostly recovered, and I think the event helps remin...

Do you remember the holidays you took while you were growing up? Do you remember what went "right" and what went "wrong" and what your parents seemed to be doing while all that was occurring? Sometime in the early 1980s my family was travelling to Waskesiu Lake (Prince Albert National Park) pulling a boat. The boat trailer tire came off or went flat and there was some involvement of a pop can to cover the wheel bearing. I don't know if we were South or North of Prince Albert, nor do I remember how old I was or if I was even there . I have heard the story a few times and I am not sure if I actually experienced it first hand or if I only "remember" it through other family member's memories. Either way, the outcome was clear, my parents found a solution and kept going. In the late 1990s my friend and I hitched a ride with my employer to Medicine Hat (2.5 hours away). She was making a weekend day shopping trip and we went along. I remember my friend ...

Recently a close friend's parent from my childhood passed away. This parent holds a special place in my heart. When I reflected on my relationship with her I referred to her as my "other Mother". During her last few weeks I considered my current relationship with my own close friend's children, and stepped into a generational placement seeing myself as her. This empathy brought both joy, and intense grief. Since her passing, every couple of weeks I find myself returning to her online journal, thinking I might find something new, but knowing that her presence is now only available to us in dispersed energy. During her last months as she battled with cancer (#fuckcancer) I purchased a copy of Mary Pipher 's book Women Rowing North . I had heard a short interview with Pipher on NPR in the spring and thought that the book might help me feel closer in spirit to my other Mother, and better understand what she might be going through, even though I could not be physica...

Good morning and happy Thanksgiving to all our "American" Canerican friends. This is a quick update to let everyone know that we have received our permanent resident cards. The annual Christmas Holiday letter is well underway and should make it out soon. Our visitor calendar is filling up with visitors in January, February and April. Be sure to contact one of us soon if you are interested in a stay.

I am a number. I am a number in a system. I am a number in a system built by humans with authority. Last year I came across the concept of Interpretive Labor  after receiving this link about distillation and research debt from another operations engineer who I met briefly at a conference. Of course the link hole ran deep and took me to this research article that talks about  bureaucratic incompetence  from the University of London in 2006. This is an excerpt from the abstract: "...the responsibility to do the interpretive labor required to allow the powerful to operate oblivious to much of what is going on around them, falls on the powerless, who thus tend to empathize with the powerful far more than the powerful do with them" I think this might be a bit confusing, so let me describe what I took away from the aforementioned link hole. I'm often considered a subject matter "expert" on topics at work. I also hold some level of authority. I feel frustrat...

Being a Canadian in the United States is an interesting endeavor, especially in the current political climate. In many ways, Canucks and Yanks are very similar and much of the American culture has migrated north over the years. However, there are some pretty big differences when it comes to perceived social benefits. Healthcare being the biggest one. I have never appreciated the Canadian healthcare system so much now that it is unavailable to us. It very much feels like a business here with co-pays and insurance always in the back of your mind when you are deciding whether you really need to go to the doctor or not. Not to mention the questions of, 'Do I want this thing to show up on my medical record? What if we have to switch insurance providers? I don't want this to show as a pre-existing condition?" All things I had never contemplated when we lived in Canada. Get sick, go to doctor. It wasn't such a process of how it will affect me later, or what the consequenc...