Winter Workshops

I never post about politics or current events, but when virtually every conversation and social media post alludes to what’s happening in the world, ignoring it feels odd. My old university friend, who I recently reconnected with, is the NDP candidate for our riding in the upcoming provincial election. I have absolutely no problem supporting his candidacy – he’s intelligent, has integrity and I know he’s in it for all the right reasons – but I hesitated when it came to putting a sign on my lawn, which led me to contemplate why that was, and why I choose not to be politically active.

I think it’s because I really struggle with us-versus-them thinking. And, yes, I realize that elections are by definition us-versus-them scenarios, but there’s already so much divisiveness that I guess I just don’t want to contribute to that.

It’s important to stand up for what you believe in, but everywhere I turn these days, entire groups of people are being vilified, and that’s what scares me the most. There’s a lot of uncertainty in Canada, and in the world. That uncertainty leads to fear. Fear breeds anger, mistrust, and us-versus-them narratives. For myself, as corny as it may sound, I want to focus my energy on kindness, rather than on hate or anger.

And so ends the political portion of this blog.

I’ve added a few items to my 60 at 60 list in the past couple of weeks and I only have seven weeks until I’m no longer ‘at’ 60, so I’d better get moving on those.

#49 Visit Saint Martin

The rest of our trip to Saint Martin went smoothly, but it was a bit of a shock to the system to go from this…

…to this.

#50 Take a Cookery Workshop

I’m a sucker for charity auctions, so a few months ago, I bid on a private Cookery Class for Six (with the support of my book club). We won! The class was held at The Waring House in Prince Edward County. We made pasta from scratch, puttanesca sauce, risotto and pear galettes. Then we got to sit in the restaurant with a glass of wine and share the meal we’d cooked. A nice way to spend a cold February afternoon.

Speaking of food, we also tried raclette for the first time, which is both a type of Swiss cheese, and a way of serving it. It’s one of those fun participatory meals, like fondue.

#51 Take a Mosaic Workshop

I don’t see myself as an artistic person, and I’ve realized from having a husband and son who are artistic, that that’s partly because I’m not a visual person. They notice so much more than I do – colours, textures, shapes – whereas I tend to be oblivious to what’s happening outside my head. But, in the spirit of my 60@60 list, I joined Lorrie and Josée at a mosaic workshop.

We were asked to come up with our own pattern, so I decided to use a photo from one of my favourite travel memories, swimming with sea turtles in Curacao. At one point, my mosaic resembled a very fat bird, but with a little help from the instructor, we gave him a neck and he became more turtle-y. Once I got past all the negative self-talk, I quite enjoyed the process. The instructor has big bins of cracked plates and chipped cups, plus stained glass, bead and buttons, so half the fun is choosing the pieces. Cutting them was easier than I thought with the tools provided. Something I may try again.

Ray’s carving class

While I was taking an art workshop, Ray was busy leading one. A new arts centre opened on Main Street and Ray was asked to deliver a beginner’s woodcarving workshop. It sold out quickly. Ray is very good at that kind of thing so, not surprisingly, it went well. He’s already been asked to deliver it again as there’s a waiting list.

Nick in West Virginia

Nick, meanwhile, was leading a Queen’s Climbing Club trip in West Virginia. Twenty-four students drove down in five vans, just as a storm system was hitting the eastern states. They had rain and unseasonably cold temperatures for the whole week, but they still managed to get a lot of climbing in.

We haven’t seen Nick boulder in years, so it was very cool to watch this video and see how far he’s come.