I mentioned here that I recently enjoyed two back-to-back opportunities, one for work and one for union. Through my union, I was extremely fortunate to attend the annual conference of the Pacific Northwest Labour History Association, this year held in Tacoma, Washington. This was amazing timing for me, both logistically and
Continue readingTag: we like lists
wmtc: update: strength training without a trainer
I recently blogged about my experience working with a personal trainer. I really enjoyed it, and I was considering how to continue strength training on my own. I’m not new to the concept, but this time, I’m determined to avoid injury and to make it a non-negotiable habit. Trainer-created workouts
Continue readingwmtc: we movie to canada: best of "what i’m watching" 2022
Here are the best movies and series I watched in 2022. They’re not in order — it’s not a countdown — just a list of all the really good stuff. Five stars: the best of the best BoJack Horseman re-watchMy favourite show of all time. I’m trying not to call
Continue readingwmtc: in which i have nothing new to say: just write for rights #w4r22
It’s that time of year again: time to Write for Rights. Looking back on my write for rights posts for the last several years, it appears that I’ve been recycling ideas for a long time! And I’m about to do it again. Why spend more time writing this annual blog
Continue readingwmtc: 12 reasons bojack horseman is my favourite show of all time (thoughts after re-watch)
Allan and I first watched “BoJack Horseman” in real time, from 2014 to January 2020. We liked it from the start, but as the show deepened in meaning and intensity, we became increasingly invested, amazed, moved, and sometimes awed. At times BH became so emotionally intense, we would be left
Continue readingwmtc: what i’m watching: best of 2021 (april to december)
As I mentioned here, I’ve decided to stop posting my entire “what i’m watching” list for the year. Instead I’m going to do an annual best-of. I’m also realigning this with the calendar. For 2021, I’m starting with April, where last year’s 2020-21 list left off. Next year I’ll be
Continue readingwmtc: we movie to canada: wmtc’s annual movie awards is retired, replaced with best-of list
Last year, I realized that the new format of my annual movie awards was problematic. Beginning with 2018-19, rather than grouping movies by rating (all the 5s together, all the 4s together, and so on), I started listing all the titles alphabetically, showing the rating for each. As a personal
Continue readingwmtc: not a new year’s resolution part one: precepts and generalities for 2022
A few years ago, I wrote in this blog: I don’t do New Year’s Resolutions, but I do enjoy using the revolution of our Earth around the Sun as an excuse to take stock in where I am and think about where I’m going. This is not a Big Promise
Continue readingwmtc: take a social media human rights challenge: write for rights 2021 #w4r21
Advanced planning is no match for the calendar! Despite my early preparation, December 10 — Human Rights Day — still caught me off-guard. I haven’t reviewed any cases or set any time aside. I recently finished an excellent book called Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World.
Continue readingwmtc: five negatives and five positives about living in a small town and a remote region
Everything in life is a trade-off. Everything has pros and cons, advantages and pitfalls, clouds and silver linings. I honestly can’t think of anything this rule doesn’t apply to, including the Big Life Choices that are the most obvious and clear to us. This post has an additional disclaimer, more
Continue readingwmtc: a reading plan for 2021: big stacks of nonfiction, plus some fiction, and series for mind breaks
2018: Titles and reading projects that were languishing on my List. 2019: The year of the biography. The first time I created a reading plan for the year. 2020: I liked having the 2019 plan, and created a new plan for 2020. In each case, I read many titles from
Continue readingwmtc: it’s national read a book day: let’s play the page 56 game
In honour of National Read A Book Day, grab the book you are currently reading or the last book you read. Open to page 56, and find the sixth sentence on the page. Type the line in comments, plus the title and author of the book. I’ll start: —
Continue readingwmtc: what i’m reading: a new plan
As I’ve mentioned many times, I keep a running List of books. The List dates back to the mid-1980s. It’s not a complete list of books I’ve read. I wish I kept track of every book I read, but because I didn’t start this at the Beginning of Time, I
Continue readingwmtc: 11 (more) things on my mind about the protests in the u.s.
In April, I wrote a post called “11 things on my mind about the anti-police-violence and anti-racism protests“. For reasons unknown to me, it’s one of the most widely-read posts I’ve written in a long time. So here’s an updated list. 1. When governments respond to protests with violence and
Continue readingwmtc: 11 things on my mind about the anti-police-violence and anti-racism protests
1. Most violence is not being committed by protesters. What percentage of protesters are violent? Filter for police provocateurs, filter for white nationalists, filter for random thieves hiding under cover of mayhem. All of those exist at mass protests and have been proven to exist countless times. What percentage of
Continue readingwmtc: 11 things you should know about u.s. presidential elections
Here are some facts about US elections. There are mountains of evidence to support each of these. If you have doubts, do some homework. This is merely a summary of facts. 1. The Electoral College. Up to 50% of votes in any state are wiped out. Canada has first-past-the-post voting
Continue readingwmtc: five reasons streaming is still better than cable, even if the price tag is the same (plus a long story mostly for myself)
If you stream movies and TV series, you know that the proliferation of streaming channels has had mixed results for consumers. Many shows that were formerly on Netflix have been pulled by their media parents, and are now found on different streaming apps. At the same time, Netflix’s monthly price
Continue readingwmtc: 10 things on my mind about covid-19
1. Wealthy urbanites are fleeing to their second homes — buying out grocery stores, expecting personal shoppers and home delivery, swelling vacation towns’ size to summer proportions. This is the epitome of the egocentric, classist arrogance that often pervades the United States. 2. In India, a planned lockdown of more
Continue readingwmtc: 11 things I loved about "rolling thunder revue: a bob dylan story"
Allan and I have been greatly anticipating “Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story”, the new film by Martin Scorsese released this week on Netflix. When “The Last Waltz” opened at Radio City Music Hall in 1978, I was a senior in high school. My friends and I skipped school
Continue readingwmtc: five rules of small-town life
1. Don’t be in a rush. Everything takes time. Everyone has time. You have time, too. You might have to wait while people finish chatting. No matter. You have time. 2. Don’t try to make plans. People stop by. They want you to stop by. Or you can wait for
Continue reading