Heartwarming story on CBC tonight on how an American family helped this Canadian author.
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Always a good reminder.
I remember one time I had paid for a parking meter to go into my office to collect all my things, it was the day after I had been laid off, but the meter didn’t recognize the payment even though my card was charged, and a dude was in the process of writing me a ticket.
I tried to explain the situation but became so overwhelmed and started having a meltdown and sobbing/yelling and told him I had just lost my job and this was turning into an exceptionally shitty day for me. I was not at my best, and I’m ashamed of how I responded in that moment. The guy should have still given me the ticket because I was definitely NOT doing myself any favors, but he took pity on me and let me leave.
It really stuck with me. He was kind in a moment I really needed kindness, even though I was a real dick.
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Warm sunny day in Vancouver today so my wife and I bicycled to Van Dusen Gardens to renew our membership and enjoy the spring flowers. It felt good to walk around the extensive grounds and forget about geopolitical tensions for a few hours!
We saw a bald eagle with a big fish in its talons land in a tree right by the house I am staying in.
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i am happy every time I see the eagles. glad I get to see them pretty often. sunday driving home one flew about 30 feet off the ground in the direction straight at me as I drove on the highway. Perfect view.
10+ years ago had one fly about 10 feet over my head with a fish in the talons and it was very cool (we were about 200yds from the shore of the lake).
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Got a big pot of veggie stock simmering on the stove. The aroma is great!!!
@SpaceLobster : I made sure to put in a heapin’ helpin’ of rosemary, chives, and thyme!!! 
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Unfortunately i don’t get to see bald eagles at home, but I’ve had the chance to see them many times. I’m down in Alabama on the Gulf, and the friends we are staying with had never seen one there let alone right outside their house.
Probably more bald eagles in the Vancouver area than in any other major North American city. It was a thrill for this Toronto guy to see them when we first moved here but the novelty has pretty well worn off.
They are a magnificent bird though.
I’ve got a big ole pot of American Eagle stock brewing on the stove. Smells like freedom!
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ETA: seems confirmed. News coverage: Dog who repeatedly stole stuffed unicorn from dollar store gets adopted | FOX 29 Philadelphia (includes that Dollar General donated some food to the shelter)
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A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad
Metuktire, a village in the Indigenous Capoto-Jarina territory in the Brazilian Amazon , stands as a stronghold against logging and mining in the rainforest. The village has preserved its traditional ways while embracing sustainable energy through solar panels.
The community actively resists illegal intrusion by patrolling their territory and educating younger generations on environmental protection. They maintain their customs, such as harvesting cassava, while adopting modern conveniences such as mobile phones and solar panels (pictured above).
Chief Beptok Metuktire remains a beacon of resilience fiercely defending the local heritage. “We have had goldminers and outsiders who wanted to occupy our lands,” he says. “We show them that this is our territory.”
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Happy thoughts! Everyone has written the University of Waterloo’s Euclid math exam now, and we’re going in to mark it in a couple of weeks. Happy thoughts, because marking is such a fun, social activity. I’m the dumbest person in the room (so I’m surrounded by cool, very smart people), a bunch of whom I haven’t seen since last year this time. The marking is a lot of work, but it’s also very social and very fun. Very much looking forward to it again.
And I’ve had a look at the questions I’m marking, and actually can solve them. Last year they had me marking a problem that I don’t think I could’ve solved lol.
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Kudos to you on the marking.
I wrote the University of Waterloo’s predecessor to the current Euclid exam in Grade 13 in 1968. It was a very humbling experience for someone who thought he was a math whiz! I think I scored in the 20s (out of 100) and that was good for second place in the county.
What would be the median mark now on the test?
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I dunno the median mark.
I distinctly recall writing this exam back home too. My hs average at the time was sub 80’s, the exam is the only reason I got accepted to UWaterloo back then.
In fact, i can remember the question I screwed up on. I did the question twice, both times (it was a trig problem) i arrived at root 3/2, concluded that number was insane and I’d done something wrong, erased the whole problem - twice.
ofc, it was actually the correct answer. If I’d have left the problem stand, I’d have received a scholarship lol. i’d have been in the 97th or 99th percentile, i forget. I’m an idiot. Well, I did well enough otherwise that I got accepted into CS anyway.
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It’s not a hardship!
I get to rub shoulders with smart people, always fun.
They have ‘math moments’ coffee breaks where they entertain us with really cool math stuff.
I see some people I haven’t seen since last year.
They feed us. And the dinner on the first night is at a local steak house - the very same steak house we had our wedding reception in. Same room even.
So it’s a lot more benefits, the marking is almost secondary to a few days of fun.
Actually I say that, but we had tech issues last year that put us behind, and we ended up running some pretty late nights. It was brutal. But satisfying.
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Just watched Coach Carter.
Inspirational.
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