Remembering the Mother's who have lost their children

Today, Mother's Day, is a sad time to remember all the women who were mothers and lost their children. Accident, sickness, war - the world is full of grieving in many women's hearts because of circumstances out of their control. It is even more tragic to think about the mothers who are grieving because they have killed their own children. Through ignorance, fear and selfishness, women are being supported in their decisions to choose their own lives over the lives of their children, to the point of death. These women need to be remembered also, with love, because the deep trauma to their hearts and souls is more than we can even imagine. 

Unfortunately there are people out there who not only embrace this selfish murder, but are so ignorant as to misrepresent it; painting a pretty white-picket-fence picture of a couple who were "saved" from the terrible prospect of raising the child they brought into this world. They embrace a decision to value finance and culture comfort over human life. Perhaps it is a terrible world to be raised in, full of suffering and pain. But who we are to judge what a persons life will be?  I for one am grateful to be alive. And if my mother, or anyone, decides that I am too much of an inconvenience, I will certainly fight for my life. The innocents, the unborn children, they need us to fight for theirs. 

I copied (below) an article in the Chronicle Herald that was published today. It is about a women and a man and a baby who wasn't born, but there is little truth in it beyond the selfishness it portrays. 

Have a read, and leave a comment. I added a beautiful excerpt of a speech by Mother Theresa after.

And to my mom:  I love you.  Thank you, for the sacrifices you made that I could live. I pray that I am able to be as loving and giving someday to my children, as you have done for me.  You have set an example of faith and beauty in this world, may we all have to grace to do the same.

<>< L

Original Article:  http://thechronicleherald.ca/opinion/95186-lowe-a-day-to-be-thankful-for-abortion-access

My friend, Linda, might sleep in this Sunday. Maybe garden. Maybe run. She’ll fritter away the day in just the way she wants.

Linda won’t be ticking off her Mother’s Day blessings surrounded by the contented chaos of children.

She’ll be happy, instead, that she had an abortion in 2007. She’ll be celebrating Mother’s Day with the knowledge that she’s not a mom and, given her druthers, never will be.

And I’ll be happy, too, eating burnt toast and wet eggs and receiving hand-drawn cards and knowing this: access to safe abortion makes Mother’s Day all the more special.

“It was the right choice,” Linda says. “It was, in no way, the wrong choice.”

Linda had been married for a little less than a year when her birth control failed. She and her husband were carrying debt; he is an entrepreneur who is away a lot; she’s the primary earner. They have no family in town.

“And more than that,” she says, “I have always been ambivalent (about having kids.)”

Once she pieced together the missing period, weird-feeling body and mood swings, she peed on a stick, swallowed the meaning of the two little lines staring up at her and shuffled downstairs to deliver the news to her husband.

“The look on his face was not joy,” she says, “but devastation and confusion. And I realized it mirrored what I felt. That it was not right. Not for us, not for me, not for him.”

Canada’s abortion laws were struck down two decades ago, but there remain perennial challenges to accessing the procedure, from Conservative backbenchers putting forward pie-in-the sky anti-choice private member’s motions to last month’s pre-emptive cancellation of abortions at Capital Health because of the anticipated strike.

Ninety per cent of Nova Scotia women who receive abortions receive them in Halifax. Many travel. On Prince Edward Island, there’s no access to abortion whatsoever. It shouldn’t be this difficult to end an unwanted pregnancy.

Linda was nervous about how her physician might respond to a request for an abortion referral.

“Turns out, my doctor is one of three in Nova Scotia who performs abortions. So, it was easy. I didn’t have to struggle at all. She was so helpful and compassionate.”

Four weeks later, it was a merciful memory.

“The next day, I swung my legs out of bed,” she says. “For the first time in weeks I just felt free.”

Linda hasn’t told many people about her abortion. And that’s why Linda isn’t her real name in this column.

“No one talks about this,” she says. “There are so many abortion stories. And they are not what people think they are. It’s not just sluts who aren’t using birth control, which is the prevailing attitude. That is not the reality.”

The couple has never second-guessed their choice. Linda laughs that when she and her husband visit friends with kids, they quietly high-five on the way out the door.

“I didn’t have a moment of regret,” she says. “I didn’t have a moment of ‘what might have been.’ ”

What might have been, after all, is a fool’s chase. So let’s talk about what is. Let’s talk about Mother’s Day, why don’t we? Because if there’s any day to be thankful for abortion access, that’s the one. That’s what I’ll think about when I’m woken way too early by wiggling weasels crawling on the bed to wish me a Happy Mother’s Day.

And when Linda wakes, late?

“I will spend a few moments acknowledging that the choice my husband and I made was without question,” she says, “the right one for us.”

Lezlie Lowe is a freelance writer in Halifax. Follow her on Twitter @lezlielowe.

(llowe@herald.ca)

About the Author

By LEZLIE LOWE

I’m going to guess that this journalist has never actually spoken to a woman who has gone through the heart-wrenching, soul shattering realization that she has killed her child. Even for the people who dis-illusion themselves that it is “okay”, it is never “easy”.

I found a talk by Mother Theresa, on abortion.  Here is the link:
 

 http://www.priestsforlife.org/brochures/mtspeech.html
 

and an excerpt. Her words are so true.  Read/listen. She will touch your heart.

Speech of Mother Teresa of Calcutta to the National Prayer Breakfast, Washington, DC, February 3, 1994

 (An excerpt)

...

But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself.

And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even His life to love us. So, the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love, that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts.

By abortion, the mother does not learn to love, but kills even her own child to solve her problems.
And, by abortion, the father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world. That father is likely to put other women into the same trouble. So abortion just leads to more abortion.

Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. This is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.
Many people are very, very concerned with the children of India, with the children of Africa where quite a few die of hunger, and so on. Many people are also concerned about all the violence in this great country of the United States. These concerns are very good. But often these same people are not concerned with the millions who are being killed by the deliberate decision of their own mothers. And this is what is the greatest destroyer of peace today - abortion which brings people to such blindness.

And for this I appeal in India and I appeal everywhere - "Let us bring the child back." The child is God's gift to the family. Each child is created in the special image and likeness of God for greater things - to love and to be loved. In this year of the family we must bring the child back to the center of our care and concern. This is the only way that our world can survive because our children are the only hope for the future. As older people are called to God, only their children can take their places.
But what does God say to us? He says: "Even if a mother could forget her child, I will not forget you. I have carved you in the palm of my hand." We are carved in the palm of His hand; that unborn child has been carved in the hand of God from conception and is called by God to love and to be loved, not only now in this life, but forever. God can never forget us.

Supporting CBC and the beautiful things that Canada represents

Private companies are getting mad because Canada supports FREE ARTS... This made me really frustrated, especially after the recent CBC funding cuts. I thought I'd share this on here so I would have a copy of the letter and, who knows, maybe I'll reach someone else randomly and inspire them to stand up for one of the wonderful things about Canada and the culture of Canadians. We can take action by submitting a letter of complaint to the CRTC. At the bottom is the CBC letter to listeners/reader, for more information. Or follow the link.

I sent in my support, everyone else needs to also. CBC is a national treasure, supporting Canadian music and promoting our rich culture and heritage to the world. Saying that CBC is unfairly funded to compete with private companies is like saying that the libraries are unfairly funded to compete with private bookstores.  

http://music.cbc.ca/#/blogs/2012/5/Love-CBC-Music-Make-sure-your-voice-is-heard

 

Here is my comment letter:


To the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission,

I strongly oppose the complaint by Stingray Digital Group Inc. (Application #: 2012-0447-9)

My name is Laura Albrecht; I am 28 and a proud Canadian citizen. I listen to CBC Radio (on the radio) in the morning and evenings. During the day at work I plug my earphones in and listen (online) to whatever is offered via the CBC website. I have come to know and love an incredible variety of Canadian music solely because of my CBC radio access. I have also come to know and love the radio personalities that share this music with me. The accessibility of the music as well as the rich history that is offered with it make this service a unique opportunity for Canadians to share in their cultural musical heritage. This is a service that is inherently different from that offered by private companies, and has long been supported by public interest and funding. I would like to highlight the fact that my commitment to CBC was present before the introduction of the online CBC Music program.

Not only does CBC promote and support predominantly Canadian artists via sharing their music, they also influence the listener’s entertainment purchases towards these Canadian artists: I will pay to see a small (or big) band in concert because I heard them on CBC; I will travel to a music store to purchase a new record because I heard about it on CBC; I will influence my friends and colleagues to support the Canadian arts, because of the passion that comes through to me from the CBC. What I will not choose to do is to pay for a subscription to a private company for the highly profit-controlled selection of the music they offer. There is already a large amount of “mainstream” music available for free from resources such as international radio stations and Youtube.com. CBC offers so much more than just “online music”. I come to CBC because it offers something different and because I believe in supporting my country’s interests.

In the changing environment of media accessibility, it is imperative that CBC remains relevant and available to its listeners. If part of this solution is the CBC Music approach, then we should be applauding the forward thinking efforts, not blocking the way. Part of the beauty of the CBC is that it is freely available to all Canadians and that its focus is to be a service to Canadians. Saying that CBC is unfairly funded to compete with private companies is like saying that the libraries are unfairly funded to compete with private bookstores.

I believe that CBC offers something incredibly unique to Canada. We should be proud that we have such a national treasure and that the tax dollars we spend in this country go towards the support of these resources.

I would like to conclude in saying that any company that opposes the national freedoms and pleasures that we support as Canadians, because of a profit margin, is certainly not going to receive my business.

Sincerely,
Laura Albrecht

From CBC:

CBC Music

music.cbc.ca
 
Dear CBC Music fans…

We want to take this opportunity first of all, to thank you. We launched CBC Music just over 2 months ago, with the goal of better serving the musical needs of Canadians, and the support from both artists and fans has been overwhelming.

We can’t tell you how much we’ve appreciated all of your positive e-mails, tweets, Facebook and blog posts --- it lets us know that all of the hard work that went in to CBC Music has paid off and that you appreciate our efforts to give you the music (and stories behind it) you want, when you want it, on your desktop, laptop, mobile phone and on traditional radio. So thank you.

By now, you’ve probably read some of the stories that have been circulating regarding an application against CBC Music lodged with the CRTC, Canada’s broadcast regulator, by a private company. In their application they allege that CBC Music is somehow harmful to the competitive market for online music services, including their own online subscription service, due to what they claim is a “preferential” rights payment structure and the fact that we receive funding from the government which helps to partially fund our service. Their application asks the CRTC to order CBC to either shut down the CBC Music service or to substantially modify it.

When we look at the specific concerns they raise, there are a few things that we want to clarify, and as we move forward we’d like to ask you to lend your voice to the next step of the CRTC process.
First off, CBC Music does not receive any preferential treatment when we negotiate our rights deals. Just like everyone else, the nature of the services we offer are examined (either by the Copyright Board or the party we are negotiating with) and then rates are set - or negotiated - accordingly.
On the question of whether CBC Music should be “competing” in the same space as private broadcasters, I think it’s safe to say that each one of you knows CBC Music does not exist to compete, it exists to serve; Canadians, musicians and our cultural community.  

We will be submitting a comprehensive response to the CRTC by May 17^th and, that’s where you come in.
We think it’s important that Canadian artists, music labels and the people who use CBC Music every day write to the CRTC and tell them what they think about CBC Music -- whether it be:

1)     The distinctiveness of the service (no other service features such a wide range of editorial content and context along with music);
2)    The importance of CBC Music in showcasing and promoting Canadian artists;
3)    The role we play in the Canadian music ecosystem; and
4)    The benefit of having Canadian music showcased alongside major artists from around the world.
If you are interested in submitting a comment to the CRTC on the Stingray application, you can do so by visiting the following website: https://services.crtc.gc.ca/pub/Intervention/Submission-Soumission.aspx?lang=e&EN=201204479&ET=A#SE0 (follow the steps and click Option 1, Submit an intervention/comment) before May 17^th 2012.

One important thing to note, is that if you are submitting in support of CBC Music, you would be submitting comments in opposition to Stingray’s application (click the word “opposition” that you’ll see on your screen). Also, please ensure that Stingray (rbraide@stingraydigital.com) and CBC (RegulatoryAffairs@cbc.ca) are copied on your submission.

If you have any questions on how to submit a comment, please refer to http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/info_sht/g4.htm on the CRTC website, or contact Raj Shoan in Regulatory Affairs at the CBC at raj.shoan@cbc.ca.
We want to thank you for your ongoing support of CBC and specifically for CBC Music over the last few months, it’s truly meant a lot to each of us and our teams. Lending your voice to this process would be both greatly appreciated by us, and would help further bolster the strong case we’ll be making to the commission.

Sincerely,

Chris, Mark & Steve

Chris Boyce
Executive Director, Radio & Audio at CBC
Mark Steinmetz
Director, Music Programming, CBC Music
Steve Pratt
Director, Digital Music, CBC Music 

posted by Steve Pratt on May 07, 2012

disclaimer

Hmmm.....

So, I realized after following/commenting on my big sisters travel blog, that the last post *I* have made was one from post-undergrad in which I was probably a little inebriated (even if I denied it at the time)... And it looks like the comments on her blog lead back to this one sooo... maybe an update is in order, for my reputation if nothing else.

Made it out of undergrad, through a few jobs, a new city, and back to lovely Halifax for Graduate school in, you guessed it, Chemistry. Haven't had a need for any late night "influenced" posts, but I supposed we never know our futures, only the path we are on.

I've done some of my own traveling, Sweden, Spain, France... and have more planned in the works this summer (back to France, Ireland, maybe an American city or two). But those can all wait for a day when I am NOT trying to work on grad-school related drudgery.

(scholarship Apps are my LEAST favourite part of this... )

And with that in mind, back at it.


Cheers.

Drunk Post?

Well, if I was drunk, then I suppose it could be classified as a drunk post; however, unless an intense craving for ice cream defines intoxication, then I am not drunk and this is not a drunk post. What kind of post it is, well, I don't know. I'm home from drinking. I drank quite a bit. I can walk and talk perfectly fine. Those concurrent events make me feel rather old and silly for lamenting it. Life is less fun when you have a reputation to keep. Ok, I'm bored and used to partying until the sun comes up. Or at least coming home tired and having someone interesting to talk to. Silly me. Why would I leave all this that I've worked for?

sheesh.

snow day

I think I was more intelligent four years ago. Is that possible? From reading these posts it would appear that my literary ability peaked in about 2005. I suppose I could be more forgiving of myself, in the last two years or so I have had no desire to properly share my thoughts on any subject online, let alone consider sharing something worth composing an actual blog entry for.

I still feel no such inclination; I am, however, entirely awake because I've consumed a pot and a half of coffee today, after fasting from coffee and chocolate for two weeks, and am feeling the lingering effects of a caffeine rush.

So what to post on? Well, most notable was my winter experience this Saturday: Sharon's friend invited us to go snowshoeing in the country. It was beautiful. Bright sunshine warming a crisp white winter day. The air smelling like freshly fallen snow, fir trees and woodsmoke. The sound of chikadees and crunching snow. Dazzling smiles and laughter. Winter perfection. The land we were on was completely undeveloped, with only ski-doo trails and the occasional trail for cross-country skis... and trails from rabbits and deer and wolves and any other number of wildlife. The sun was bright with the snow so white and the trees so green; it was like a paradise. My joy at being able to experience it was so intense. To escape a city full of manicured parks and man-made canals, with it's dirty slush and well dressed all people heading to meaningful employment.

I do admit that I have a much better appreciation for the beauty of Ontario now: I can picture woods full of lakes and rivers and deer. It is an impression of something much larger than Nova Scotia's woods and something tougher than the lush forests of BC. Something that I wish I had more time to explore. I understand why 'heading to the cabin for the weekend' means so much to some people. You need the space to breath.

We also did a bit of skidooing and had venison stew for dinner. It was brilliant. I can't wait for the tree tapping party in the spring.

I'd also like to note that our host was from BC, and that I felt almost as at home there as I have felt at any number of my dad's 'country' friends' houses. It was a wonderful feeling.

what I think about when there are elephants next door

What I've discovered this week:

- Drunk people are way more annoying when you're sober and trying to sleep.

- Tired people are less tolerant of drunken first-years

- It's easy to forget what it was like to be a drunken first-year when you are tired and keep getting woken up by fights over which bar is dirtier: Palace or Dome.

- There is a sort of sadness and nostalgia attached to thinking about bars like the Palace and the Dome.

- This nostalgia is very quickly replaced with an overwhelming desire to shower.


Other things I've discovered this week, unrelated to my being awake enough to write this right now:

- Paperwork with the Mount is never finished. Ever.

- You can't make mashed potatoes in the blender.

- Wooden spoons are easily eaten by rapidly spinning blender blades.

- When you cook big meals, there are leftovers.

- Cooking more than two big meals in one week means that you eat leftovers for much longer than desired.

- I don't know anything at all about philosophy. At all.

- I DO like Proust, and more than just the one quote I've memorized.

- You really can make stone soup.

- Best friends will always be just that: best friends.

- Giving blood and then walking home is not a good idea.

- Halifax is beautiful in the winter, especially when it's cold.

- I'm going to miss here, when I'm gone.

Stupid seasons...

I miss summer. Desperately. With all the passion of my being, and I have to say that that's quite a bit. Hot days. Hot nights. Twilight, swimming, green grass, flip flops, tank-tops, tourists, sunscreen... I want it now. And the painful thing is that winter, in all reality, is just getting going here in peachy Nova Scotia.

I bought new curtains (that was an experience I'll not recount here), curtains that are designed to cut down on cold winter drafts. Mom brought by an electric heater. I have two down duvets on my bed and three other blankets on the ready. I bought knee high winter boots and two winter coats (yeah, I really really really don't like being cold). None if this is helping with the summer pining.

What brought this on was the unashamed perusing of my moms best friend since forever's daughter's website. I happened to read a post from the middle of July (in Vancouver). "Its hot. Did I mention its hot? Screamingly, maddeningly, unpleasantly, hot" oh, and the previous post had talked about flowers. We won't have flowers for almost 3-4 months. MONTHS. These days I wish I were somewhere else.

I suppose that a single post can't be held completely responsible. I've got a lot of things running through my mind that somehow seem like they'd be easier to deal with if the days were longer. And warmer. Nothing bad can ever last on a long warm night. Hell, you can just go walk it off. Or at least work through it while you are walking. No hope for that now. Its cold and dark out and really, that just promotes depressing things.

Oh and I was doing so good... *sigh*

I think I'll go have a hot shower and pine some more. Maybe I can find some summery perfume to help it really hit it home. Hah.

I found this when I was formatting my computer: It is the very first assignment for my materials class with Mary Anne White at Dalhousie... man she was awesome, and I was definetly sucking up... haha although you know, I probably wasn't at all...



Laura Albrecht
Chemistry 3303B

Assignment 1


A Learning Philosophy


To have learnt something, a mind must not only be able to remember the new information that has been introduced, but it must be able to apply the new concepts to other ideas and situations that have not yet been encountered. Simply memorizing facts and outcomes, with no understanding of the underlying theory or process, allows for no expansion on new ideas. Learning how a result comes about, and why, replaces the need for memorization, as it becomes possible to derive almost everything from what has been learnt.
In my experience, learning success is found in those occasions where I am truly interested and inspired by the information presented to me. I strive to find connections between what I already know and what I am learning. These connections are not always evident and work and dedication is often required to fully grasp the concepts presented. Practice with assignments and studying the course material are essential to learning, and often outside references are necessary.
In this course I anticipate an opportunity to learn a lot of new material that I am not familiar with. I also hope to be able to apply it to, and find connections with, the things that I already do know. Every little bit is another puzzle piece fitting into the mechanics of the world.




*sigh* I miss the days when I thought like that... I suppose I still do, I just need more opportunity to exercise it.

Back.

I opened this blog and realized that it's been far too long since I've posted anything. Either I haven't really got anything to say, or nothing I have to say is blog-appropriate. I'll go with the latter.

Many big things in my have occurred since the last post on here.

My great friend Dave Rodgerson, one who Daves (not in past tense - he still Daves in his own way), passed away to be in a place so much closer to God. I still feel selfish: I want him to be here. But God knows better than we do, so we trust and keep going. I trust that I can keep going.

(and now the non sequitur)

I've moved. No longer am I a Clayton Park, Ghetto hugging, Bus-52 Junkie. I've relocated above a comic book store. Isn't that sweet? A comic book store! ...I've never actually been inside it of course, but hey - it's there all right. Quinpool is kind of fun. The lack of Needs stores is a bit inconvenient, but with the bus stop directly in front of my door, and a theatre across the street, and my sister down the block... it's not bad at all. Too many restaurants for my pitiful paycheck though. Rent all On My Own sucks. But the food in the (new!) fridge is all mine, I never have to scoop leftover Mr. Noodles from the sink drain, and I can spend an entire weekend watching Grey's Anatomy without feeling like I should be maybe socializing with my Room-Mates.

On the subject of Grey's Anatomy: I am addicted. (good segue eh?)
In the past two weeks, I have watched the entire first two seasons of Grey's Anatomy, as well as catching up with the episodes I missed of this season. That's 35 episodes. I couldn't stop myself. One show would finish, and I just needed to see what would happen next. I even got the soundtracks (both of which are great). The whole experience threatened to throw me into a whirling pit of despair over my love-triangle free, non-sleep-deprived, unambitious life as I currently live it. I decided, however, that all my problems are a result of my lack of student-status and therefore it is only a matter of time before a life like Meredith Grey is my own. Less all the men she slept with (o.k., hello? Whoring is not the answer) ... Although, I am still waiting for my very own McDreamy (but shh, don't tell Joanne: she thinks I am aspiring to be an old lady with lots of cats).

Other than that, while I am not watching someone else's McLife, I'm still working at Ocean Nutrition Canada. Fun, eh? Actually it's not so bad. I've got free reign to experiment and lots of (potentially good) ideas to experiment with. It's not in a field I love, but every day is still interesting, and I am always learning a lot. That was my goal - make a lot of money, and learn a lot; if I've only succeeded in one of the two, well, half way is not so bad. Soon I'll be applying for grad schools and finding a new city to live in, so I'm going to love where I am right now, for now.

Because life is good. It really is.

xo, <><

math wiz (no, not me)

...got this as an email foward tonight:


YOUR AGE BY CHOCOLATE MATH - DON'T CHEAT BY SCROLLING DOWN FIRST

It takes less than a minute. Work this out as you read and be sure you don't read the bottom until you've worked it out. This is not one of those waste of time things, it's fun.

First of all, pick the number of times per week that you would like to have chocolate (more than once but less than 10 times). Multiply this number by 2 (just to be bold). and then add 5 and multiply it by 50 -- I'll wait while you get the calculator. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1756, if you haven't, add 1755. Now subtract the four digit year that you were born You should have a three digit number. The first digit of this is your original number (i.e., how! many times you want to have chocolate each week) The next two numbers are YOUR AGE! (Oh YES, it is!!!!!)


I don't know how "scrolling down" would have ruined the "suprise" but at any rate my first reaction was "oh dude! that is SO cool!" ...and then I had to be a smart ass and work out the arithmatic behind it to prove to myself that my age really has nothing to do with the amount of chocolate I eat. It doesn't. I lied and picked 9 and I'm still 22... but the math always seems to fascinate and entertain.

Whoever came up with this has too much time on their hands, or too many neutrinos hitting their brains... but they still get a high five from me!

The Mpemba Effect

Does Hot Water Freeze First?
("Since the time of Aristotle, some scientists have claimed that hot water freezes faster than cold. Philip Ball looks at current attempts to shed light on this puzzling phenomenon")



I love this:


"Kell, hailing from a country with ample experience of freezing water [Canada], stated that "some say that a car should not be washed with hot water because the water will freeze on it more quickly than cold water will, or that a skating rink should be flooded with hot water because it will freeze more quickly."

woo woo - hockey and washing salt off the car, hellloooo canuck!


It's funny to me because I've thought about this alot. I'm putting my money on the speed of water evaporation explanation... don't forget that when something changes from liquid to gas it will need energy, seems logical that it'll leave something cooler behind. But that's just my 2 cents. Mr. Varner would be so proud! haha

Inspiration

Anthony J. Leggett - Banquet Speech


"What advice would you give to a student hoping to embark on a career in theoretical physics? ...for what it is worth, here it is:

First, if there's something in the conventional wisdom that you don't understand, worry away at it for as long as it takes and don't be deterred by the assurances of your fellow physicists that these questions are well understood.

Secondly, if you find a problem interesting, don't worry too much about whether it has been solved in the existing literature. You will have a lot more fun with it if you don't know, and you will learn a lot, even if what you come up with turns out not to be publishable.

Thirdly, remember that no piece of honestly conducted research is ever wasted, even if it seems so at the time. Put it away in a drawer, and ten, twenty or thirty years down the road, it will come back and help you in ways you never anticipated, and finally, take your teaching every bit as seriously as your research."

~Anthony J. Leggett, Nobel Laureate


People always say that you should never believe everything you hear; you should question anything you come across. Just because someone says it is right does not mean that it won't be wrong 5, 10, 15 years from now. This is hopeful, in it's way, because it means that there will always be something to discover, and something to pursue. And anything you publish will be proven or disproven time and time again in peoples minds, until it is finally decided that while at the time of publishing it made sense, there is now a new way of thinking and a better way of explaining. Thus there will always be a new way of looking at the same problem.

...But my favourite part is the bit about having fun. We have a lot of fun, theoretically anyways.

thrown to the lions...

CBC News: Case against Christian convert dismissed: report

apostasy (a·pos·ta·sy (a-pŏs'te-sē) n., pl. -sies.
Abandonment of one's religious faith, a political party, one's principles, or a cause.


It is incredible how different our culture is - the death sentence because you change religion, political parties... Or what if you decide you're going to follow the Leafs instead of the Habs? I'm not trying to make light of the serious situation, I just find it striking that for some people a religious belief holds less weight than a favourite hockey team. In Canaada that (legally) is ok, in Afganistan, it really is life or death.

<><

A bit of BitTorrent bother

A bit of BitTorrent bother - Feb. 28th 2006, by Adam Livingstone, Producer, BBC NewsNight


Whoooo - 30% of internet usage is attributed to BiTorrent?? Is that a US figure? N.American? Global? (meaning global-with-internet kind of global) ...how do you measure that? Whats this about terrorists? ....and damn, how do I get a bigger chunk of the internet filesharing pie? ...I love pie!

The 'CSI effect'

CBC News: 'CSI effect' adds drama to real-life crime solving

hahahahahahha. Funny and sad and true. I wonder if this means that there will be more guilty people going free, or fewer innocent people convicted: we all know how reliable some witnesses' testimonies are. Or - big thought - perhaps more money goes into the police force, so we can have evidence AND tesitmony! Then real people get to play with all those cool, slightly recognizable, scientific gadgets.

All this from a TV show. Gee, it's better than reality tv!

Don't use Google?

CBC News: Don't use Google, Tibetan protesters urge

"Google has agreed to adhere to Beijing's censorship policies and limit certain search results in China to get broader access to the large market.
...
Among the topics sensitive to Beijing are Taiwan's independence and 1989's Tiananmen Square massacre, human rights and issues involving Tibet. On Google's Chinese site, searches for topics, such as the Dalai Lama, often come up with omitted sites or name direct users to Chinese government websites. "


...And the world just felt so happy and wholesome.... dammit.

Funny though, because for some reason I'd always viewed Google as "the good guys": ousting the evil Microsoft overlords while providing a fantastic world-over search tool to better educate the nations.... I geuss its all about the bottom line with them too. hehe, or did msn buy them out? Maybe this is just a foot in the door until they can find a loophole around the censorship. But then again that might just be too optimistic.

Plane waves and other things.

Plane wave - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In the physics of wave propagation (especially electromagnetic waves), a plane wave (also spelled planewave) is a constant-frequency wave whose wavefronts (surfaces of constant phase) are infinite parallel planes normal to the phase velocity vector. By extension, the term is also used to describe waves that are approximately plane waves in a localized region of space. For example, a localized source such as an antenna produces a field that is approximately a plane wave in its far-field region. Mathematically, a plane wave is a solution to the wave equation of the following form:

u(x,t)=a exp[i(k.x-wt)]

where i is the

imaginary unit, k is the wave vector, ω is the angular frequency, and a is the (complex) amplitude. (In some conventions, this expression is conjugated.) The physical solution is usually found by taking the real part of this expression. For the vector wave equation of electromagnetism, a is the vector for the electric or magnetic field (and is orthogonal to k, for an isotropic medium). In this equation, the function ω(k) is the dispersion relation of the medium, with the ratio ω/k giving the phase velocity and dω/dk giving the group velocity. For electromagnetism in an isotropic medium with index of refraction n, the phase velocity is c/n (which equals the group velocity only if the index is not frequency-dependent). For the same reason, the ratio of c to the phase velocity is called the effective index and is proportional to the characteristic impedance of the medium. (The term is used in the same way for telecommunication, e.g. in Federal Standard 1037C and MIL-STD-188.)
J. D. Jackson, Classical Electrodynamics (Wiley: New York, 1998).



I know that should make sense to me. I know that I've been studying this for 4 months. And I know that sometime someone is going to ask me a crucial question where the knowledge of such concepts as "planewaves" is necessary. But dammit, I NEED A BETTER EXPLANATION. I get the words. I know what it says. I dont get the part where it becomes a system of protons, neutrons and electrons; with things like band-gaps and dielectric properties.

aaarrrgggg!!

If anyone out there has a reasonably clear grasp on the topics of Plane waves, Fermi energy surfaces, and/or Brillouin zones, among other key topics not covered in my collection of chemistry/physics courses... well, I would really appreciate about 6 hours of tutorial. For each.

Thanks in advance,
Laura Albrecht
BSc. Adv. Maj. Chemistry,
MSVU 2005

"All the other species are dying and so will we...

I'm whistling as I walk past the graveyard... whistling as beautifully as I can"

...

[Kurt] Vonnegut’s contempt for George Bush and his government is expressed with great force and clarity in A Man Without A Country, ... “the country is terribly at risk, because his [Bush] stupidities have terrible consequences, leading to deaths of many people, rotten schools, rotten healthcare. He should be protecting us not only from insurgents or terrorists but from disease and ignorance, and he’s not about to do either.

“Still, there’s not much difference. [Democratic candidate, John] Kerry said out of the side of his mouth at one point that he’s not for re-distributing wealth. He and George Bush belong to the same social class, went to the same university, belong to the same gentleman’s club. Can you believe that, in a country of 300 million people, we have to choose between two members of Skull & Bones [a secret society] at Yale?”

...

"We [the USA] have no army. What makes us the most powerful nation on Earth is our willingness to kill people in their thousands with remote-controlled missiles, the fact that we're prepared to set off nuclear explosions in the middle of unarmed people -- men, women and children.

"Only one country has been crazy enough to set off a nuke in the middle of a civilian population. Did it twice, and that's when members of my generation, soldiers, could see that 'we're not the good guys any more'. We were very careful not to hurt civilians."

~Kurt Vonnegut: A requiem for the USA

(SundayHerald)

(Read the article. Read the book.)

CBC headline - India aborts 500,000 female fetuses a year

Female feticide


India... Hinduism... polygamy...

Wait. Polygamy - multiple wives. That could be difficult without any women.

Oi. Silly men.

a good investment?

"Clocky"

Is this a sign of how incredible lazy we have all become? ...Or just the coolest thing ever!

....I want to be a star.

"I'd rather be a could-be if I cannot be an are; because
a could-be is a maybe who is reaching for a star. I'd
rather be a has-been than a might-have-been, by far;
for a might-have-been has never been, but a has was
once an are."

-- Milton Berle

Salsa!

Hurray for exams being finished!!!

And hurray for honours. Suprise! Or maybe not if I feel like flattering myself, my honours work turned out - in the words of Dr Joe - "Superb". The presentation went really well, I looked "smart and sexy" in my suit (thanks Jack), and I handled my defense very well, or so I am told - parts of it are blacked out in my mind, hehe! ...that said, I still need to get in gear and show my face at the office soon.... those grad students and post-docs think I'm slacker enough as it is - not a fair impression!

But! School work is not the purpose of this post. Last night we celebrated the completion of exams, and it was just a fantastic night! We Salsa'd and Samba'd and had so much fun. After few lessons "white-boy-style" even the self proclaimed non-dancers were dancing!

"You gotta hold your arms in close like THIS!"

I think that what made everything so fun was how refreshing it was to be spending time with new people, and a new ...thinking style I guess. It was about going out and being sexy and dancing.... And by "being sexy", I'm referring more to what you feel as a woman than what you see as a guy. The dancing is sexy, but without the feeling like you're actually having sex on the dance floor. As I said - refreshing. I wanted to party until the sun came up, though it might of meant losing my shoes!

Well, that said, it is now my decision to partake in some salsa lessons. I am enlisting the Brazilians for this, and it had better be good - I need something to show off at Ãno Nuevo 2006 !

Beijos,
ciao!

Isaiah 43

Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned;
the flames will not set you ablaze.






...sometimes, sometimes Bible Roulette is a good thing.

Forever

Not talkin' 'bout a year
no not three or four
I don't want that kind of forever
in my life anymore
forever always seems
to be around when it begins
but forever never seems
to be around when it ends
so give me your forever
please your forever
not a day less will do
from you

People spend so much time
every single day
runnin' 'round all over town
givin' their forever away
but no not me
I won't let my forever roam
and now I hope I can find
my forever a home
so give me your forever
please your forever
not a day less will do
from you

Like a handless clock with numbers
an infinite of time
no not the forever found
only in the mind
forever always seems
to be around when things begin
but forever never seems
to be around when things end
so give me your forever
please your forever
not a day less will do
from you

- Ben Harper

Weather Warnings - Environment Canada

"The remnants of hurricane Wilma will be racing toward the maritime provinces Tuesday as a vigorous post-tropical low pressure system. Heavy rain and high winds are likely to reach western parts of Nova Scotia Tuesday morning and to spread to the rest of the province during the day. Winds gusting to 90 km/h are forecast for all of mainland Nova Scotia with gusts as high as 110 along the atlantic coast and over the Cape Breton Highlands. Rainfall amounts in excess of 50 millimetres can be expected over the western half of the province by the end of Tuesday with further amounts likely into Wednesday."



(they could at least make it seem more exciting. sheesh)

Yes!

King of Naples, King of Spain, King of... Westphalia?

"If Buonaparte remains on the throne of France a year longer," the vicomte continued, with the air of a man who, in a matter with which he is better acquainted than anyone else, does not listen to others but follows the current of his own thoughts, "things will have gone too far..."


I found this as a part of one of those "spam email disguised as a real email" emails; the ones that have a huge compilation of random story bits all garbled together. I suppose this blog is results in me admitting that I was actually reading the garbled bits... *ahem* chalk it up to procrastination... Besides, it was worth it for this:

"with an air of a man who, in a matter with which he is better acquainted than anyone else, does not listen to others but follows the current of his own thoughts"

It's just so damn funny. That's all. I laughed out loud.



I wish I had taken more English - I think I'd be good at it writing like that. People are generally good at things they like. Except for Quantum Mechanics, but that's all relative anyways.

Relative like some descriptions of time. See, it is after 4 am right now, but it's just my culturally defined perception of 4am which which makes it feel late to me. And it is not good to be up this late. I know there are some who would disagree... I think those people should study and write my midterm on Monday for me. Those crazy, crazy people. Too bad all the crazy people I know aren't proficient in Organic Chemistry.

Hmmm... organic seems to turn up a lot in these blogs. I wonder if that is a reflection of my study habits. Strange coincidence. I'd better stop now.

pseudopotentially imaginary

"What an abyss of uncertainty, whenever the mind feels overtaken by itself; when it, the seeker, is at the same time the dark region through which it must go seeking and where all its equipment will avail to nothing. Seek? More then that: create. It is face to face with something which does not yet exist, to which it alone can give reality and substance, which it alone can bring into the light of day."

~ Marcel Proust


When I am working on honours research every once in a while I just get so amazed at what I, we, are doing. I feel so incompetent, and yet somehow so empowered to be doing this. Like I can discover the world, right down the the core of what IS and what BEING means. And life becomes so huge and special. And I feel like someone who is bumping around in the dark, with a map I can only read iBraillele, and I know that there is a wall to trail my fingers along just beside me, but I don't need to lean on it just yet, because what I am doing is trying to find out if there is another wall to follow on the other side of me. It is hard sometimes, worrying that I might trip, or fall down some pit invisible in the darkness, but that's what it's all about isn't it? To go where no one else has, not knowing what you'll find while you are on your way...