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Happy Birthday, Following Augustine!

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Eight years ago today, I wrote my very first blog post. It was just three sentences long and simply announced:

Richard and I have just accepted positions teaching conversational English in Japan. This is a one year commitment and we’ll be leaving in mid March. The main purpose of this blog is to share our adventure with friends, family and anyone else who’s interested.

What a lot has happened since that time and how the blog has grown! Prior to today, I’ve written 688 posts on a wide variety of topics and the blog has been viewed more than 66 000 times. It’s traveled the world with me, chronicling my adventures in each of the countries listed to the right, and early in the new year we’ll be adding yet another one to the list! For the past 27 months, it has also helped me process and share my ongoing cancer journey.

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Though I originally thought the blog would only last for the one year that we lived in Japan, it has become such a part of me that I can’t imagine it ever coming to an end! It’s given me a voice I never knew I had and causes me to live life with my eyes wide open. It connects me with interesting people around the world and fulfills my lifelong passion for writing.

I look forward to many more fine adventures to share, but recently it’s been my opinion pieces that have garnered the greatest readership, so I will continue to write those too. I pledge to do so with as much wisdom as God allows me, with integrity and with respect for those whose opinions differ from mine.

And today, in closing, I raise my glass to you, my readers! Without you, Following Augustine would be nothing more than a lot of empty words floating about in cyberspace!

My love/hate relationship with Facebook

/ edebock / 18 Comments

I have a friend who left Facebook recently (an actual friend, not just an acquaintance who “friended” me), another who has seriously curtailed her friend list by “unfriending” most of the people on it, and a third who is threatening to delete her account.

Why?

What is causing people to abandon what has become by far the world’s most popular social networking site?

Negativity! Plain and simple.

In the past year, I’ve literally seen friendships torn apart on Facebook! That’s largely due to the fact that we in Alberta have been through two very divisive elections in the past seven months; a provincial one in May followed by a national one in October. It’s long been said that there are certain subjects that ought not to be discussed in public and politics is one of them. After what I’ve seen on Facebook in the past year, I’d have to agree! Even amongst people with similar views, opinions vary. In face to face discussion, emotion often takes over and people say things that might be better left unsaid. When they’re sitting alone at their keyboard, some people seem to have no filter at all!

With the elections over, I had hoped that Facebook would return to the more peaceful place that it once was; a place where people shared what was actually happening in their own lives, but I have been sadly disappointed. Controversy seems to be the main course these days with topics like our new Canadian government’s pledge to bring 25 000 Syrian refugees into the country and Alberta’s controversial farm safety bill taking centre stage.

Perhaps it’s only here in redneck Alberta that Facebook has become a forum for speaking out in this manner. One of the reasons that I will not join my friends who are choosing to jump ship is that I have, amongst my 365 Facebook friends, 103 who live outside Canada. They represent 16 different countries or world areas such as Hong Kong, Macau and Saipan and I don’t see any of them posting the kind of angry, negative hoopla that has become the norm for many users here.

There are many things that I really like about Facebook. I’ve used it to reconnect with several people from my past including my best friend from high school, a Norwegian exchange student who shared our home for almost a year in the late 1980s and a second cousin who lived with us for awhile when she was a toddler and I was a teen. It allows me to live vicariously through the words and photos of a former student who lives in Paris and a fellow teacher from our days in China who has retired to DaLat, Vietnam. At any one time, I might be found using the chat feature to converse with my nephew in Red Deer, my daughter in Calgary, a friend in Tokyo and a group of local ladies from my church. Even my 7-year-old grandson has recently started using his Mom’s Facebook to chat with Gram and I’m tickled to discover that he’s already as literate as some of my much older friends!

I miss the days when my News Feed was filled with photos and status updates written in their own words by my friends. Now it seems that I have to scroll through reams of reposted news articles, opinion pieces and absolute trivia to find those few nuggets. As a result, I have decided to reclaim my News Feed!

How, you ask?

It’s not easy. In fact, I’m finding that cleaning up Facebook and keeping it that way is a lot like housework. The job is never done! Every time I see that one of my friends has reposted something, I go to the little v in the upper right hand corner of that post and select “Hide all from…” in the pull down menu. At first, I just hid media sites that I didn’t consider to be legitimate news sources and a few other sites that I found objectionable, but recently I’ve become much more ruthless. I already read the world, national and local news on several sites of my own choosing every day. I don’t need to see the news on Facebook where I’ll only find the articles that support other people’s points of view, so I have started blocking every single news source, mainstream or otherwise. Though some of the thousands of memes that are shared on Facebook are entertaining, I’m tired of seeing my News Feed filled with them too, so I block the source of every one of those as well. If you’re my Facebook friend and you repost something that was written by another friend of yours that I don’t know personally, there’s every likelihood that I’ll block that person too. I realize that by doing all this, I will probably miss a few things that I might have enjoyed seeing, but I’m actually seeing a lot more of what I actually want to see and taking a lot less time to do it.

There are things I dislike about Facebook that I can’t change including the growing amount of advertising that now appears in the main column of the News Feed instead of in the margins where I could more easily ignore it. I do recognize, however, that these ads are what pays for this free site,  which now boasts more than 1.5 billion users worldwide, and keep the myth that Facebook is planning to start charging subscription fees from becoming fact.

There are numerous articles on the internet listing common sense rules of etiquette for Facebook use, but here are a few of my own that I try to hold myself to:

  • Speak the truth. That includes researching a subject and making sure that I have my facts straight before I comment. It may also include refuting those things that I know are false. The endless reposting of false or seriously outdated information is one of the things that drives me crazy about Facebook.
  • Within the confines of being truthful, seek to bless and encourage.
  • Never say something to or about someone on Facebook that I wouldn’t say to their face.
  • As Kenny Rogers sings, “You’ve got to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em, know when to walk away and know when to run.” In other words, know when to leave the conversation. I don’t always have to have the last word.

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Image: guardianlv.com

 

NET Cancer Day

/ edebock / 2 Comments

ncd-logo-newNovember 10 is Worldwide NET Cancer Day, a day for raising awareness of neuroendocrine cancer.

It’s not surprising that this disease has escaped the attention of even the medical community at large until now. Many family practitioners will never see a case. My doctor has been practicing medicine for about 20 years and I’m his first NETS patient. A locum filling in at our local hospital last spring went so far as to debate with me whether I even have cancer! He was completely unaware that neuroendocrine tumours can be malignant as most are not.

Is NET cancer really that rare? Here in Canada, specific numbers are not even reported separately, but my estimate, based on US statistics, is that there are approximately 890 new cases per year across the country with only about 106 of those residing here in the province of Alberta. In comparison, 2100 Albertan women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year and 2500 men with prostate cancer. Is it any wonder that those cancers have a much higher profile?

Since it falls upon those of us with the disease to do what we can to raise awareness, there are several key messages that we would like to highlight today. First of all, as with other cancers, early diagnosis is important. Sadly, it doesn’t happen often. If the initial tumour is found before any secondary growths occur, it can often be removed surgically and the patient is considered cured. Once it has spread, however, the disease is incurable. I had 5 tumours at diagnosis and many patients have more. I have been told that I may have had this cancer for as long as 10 years before it was detected quite by accident! Fortunately, it’s usually very slow-growing.

Awareness of symptoms is key to early diagnosis. Unfortunately, however, misdiagnosis is extremely common. On average, patients see 6 healthcare professionals at more than 12 clinical visits before receiving a correct diagnosis because symptoms of NET cancer are often very similar to more common conditions including Irritable Bowel Syndrome, asthma, diabetes, stomach ulcers and lactose intolerance. Depending on where the tumours are located, typical symptoms include abdominal pain and cramping, diarrhea, joint pain, wheezing, fatigue, and flushing of the skin. In very severe cases, there can be heart damage causing shortness of breath.

I endured stomach pain and diarrhea off and on for at least 7 or 8 years before my tumours were finally detected. At one point, a medication used to treat acid-related stomach problems was prescribed, but it had little effect. Another time, I tried a dairy free diet for an entire month to see if that would help, but it didn’t.

NET cancer can arise in any organ that contains neuroendocrine cells including the stomach, intestines, lungs, liver, pancreas and appendix. My primary tumour is located in my colon, but I also have three growths on my liver and one in a lymph node. Though it can occur at any age, the usual age of diagnosis is somewhere between 40 and 60.

So what are some of the goals of NET Cancer Day?

  • to raise awareness among decision makers, health professionals and the general public
  • to promote research aimed at improving quality of life and prognosis for NET cancer patients
  • to advocate for equity in access to care and treatment for NET cancer patients around the world
  • to bring hope and information to people living with NET cancers, their caregivers and their families

What can you do to help? You can help us spread awareness by simply reposting this on your blog if you have one or posting a link to it on your Facebook page. Thank you!

NET Cancer Awareness

Shoppers Drug Mart Beauty Gala

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Shoppers Drug Mart Canada is a huge supporter of both the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation and the Look Good Feel Better program that offers workshops for women battling cancer to help them deal with the appearance related aspects of the disease and its treatment. Yesterday, Shoppers stores across Canada hosted their annual Holiday Beauty Galas to raise funds for these two worthy causes. Galas across the prairie provinces and in the Maritimes were held in support of Look Good Feel Better while those in the rest of the country supported the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

I wasn’t actually aware of the Shoppers galas until I was asked to write a brief testimonial about my experience as a Look Good Feel Better workshop participant for possible use in publicizing the events. I soon learned that half ($5) of each ticket sold is donated to the cause and the other half is actually returned to the participant in the form of a coupon that is redeemable on any purchase of cosmetics, fragrance or jewellery made during the event. Participants are able to book time with Shoppers Drug Mart beauty consultants during the event for skin analysis and/or cosmetic tips and makeovers.

When I arrived at the Camrose Cornerstone Shoppers Drug Mart yesterday morning, I was warmly greeted by three of the store’s beauty experts. When they learned that I’m a cancer patient and that I have attended a Look Good Feel Better workshop, they treated me like visiting royalty! My makeover began with Teia who started by using a BB cream to even out my skin tone and then showed me how to add contouring. Next, Sherry did my eye makeup and added a bright lipstick to finish the look. I felt pampered and came away looking great, if I do say so myself! I love the fact that I didn’t look overdone and I really appreciate the fact that there was absolutely no pressure to purchase any of the products that were used. I’m also looking forward to trying out the many product samples in the gift bag that I received!

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Thank you Teia, Sherry, Jocelyn and Shoppers Drug Mart! I’m already looking forward to next year’s gala.

My “Have Done” list

/ edebock / 5 Comments

It was Benjamin Franklin who said,

“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing.”

After running her first half marathon recently, my blogger friend, Donloree, wrote a post entitled The ‘Have Done List’. Some people write bucket lists noting the experiences or achievements that they hope to have or accomplish during their lifetime, but why not a “have done” list instead remembering and celebrating what has already been achieved? As I pondered this idea, I started jotting down some of the craziest and most adventurous things that I’ve ever done. Those are the things that I want on my “have done” list.

Perhaps the most daring thing that I did as a child involved sneaking out of bed and out of the house on a late summer evening with my younger sister and a visiting cousin. I don’t remember how old we were, but I wasn’t more than nine. That would have made my cousin ten and my sister six. In our bare feet, we made our way down to the beach in front of our house and picked our way over the rocks to the public park half a mile away where the annual summer fair was in full swing. Marvelling at the music and the bright lights, we desperately wanted to try out the merry-go-round or maybe even the ferris wheel, but we had no money for tickets. Searching the ground around the various booths and rides, we hoped that a happy fairgoer or two might have accidentally dropped some coins, but our efforts were in vain. Eventually, tired and a bit discouraged, we gave up and headed home along the darkened street which was much easier on our feet than the beach had been.

I was such a quiet, well-behaved child that as an adult I actually began to wonder if this had really happened or if I had only dreamed it. Eventually, I asked my sister if she remembered that night and was delighted to discover that she did! Hidden under my shy exterior, there must have been an adventurous spirit even then!

So what else would be on my “have done” list? Here are a few more from my younger years:

  • As a teen, I walked 25 miles (twice) through the streets of Vancouver in that city’s first two Miles for Millions walkathons. The hugely popular fundraiser for Oxfam Canada was introduced in Canada’s centennial year, 1967, several years before the country went metric. I even had the privilege of meeting one of my heroes, Coast Salish First Nations Chief Dan George, at the starting line of one of these walks.
  • A couple of years later, I spent a night on a tiny island on the Canadian shield without a tent, sleeping bag or any other camping equipment. My sister was in on that adventure too. We slept so close to the campfire that we woke up with tiny holes in our clothes from the sparks!
  • I’ve often paid no heed to an ancient Inuit legend and dared to whistle at the aurora borealis. Some say that that will cause the northern lights to dance while others claim that it will bring them down to earth. Some even fear that they will bring great misfortune or even death. None of these things has happened, of course, but I must include this on my list as the most common question I heard during the year that we lived in Japan was, “Have you seen the aurora?”

When our children were young, we spent many summers on the road camping and exploring Canada and the United States. It was during those years that I:

  • crossed the Arctic Circle

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  • explored the reconstructed Viking settlement at L’Anse aux Meadows on the northern tip of Newfoundland

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  • visited Anasazi cliff dwellings in southwestern Colorado

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The number of memorable items on my “have done” list has grown significantly in the eight years since Richard and I retired from teaching. I’ve blogged about most of these before, but here’s a recap with links to the original posts:

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  • appearing on stage in a teeny, tiny jungle girl costume

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  • riding a tandem bicycle on the city wall at Xian, China where we also saw the amazing army of terra cotta warriors

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  • seeing two of my grandchildren born and cutting their umbilical cords

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  • eating a wide variety of weird and wonderful things including bullfrog

Perhaps, given the most recent happenings in Canadian politics, I should also mention that I once shook hands with Pierre Elliot Trudeau and, incidentally, found him to be a much smaller man than he appeared to be on TV.

Greater than all these things, however, is the fact that I’ve managed to remain married to the same man for 39 years and by far my proudest accomplishment in life has been raising three wonderful kids and watching them become the adults they are today!

My “have done” list could go on and on, but now it’s your turn.

What would you include on your list?

The meaning of dreams

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Most of my dreams seem ridiculous and random. If I remember them at all, I certainly don’t analyze them or try to figure out what they might signify. Others, however, are recurring and do seem to have meaning.

As a child and young adult, I often had gory dreams about having all my teeth pulled or knocked out. When this happened, I’d often wake up with a sore jaw, but little did I realize that I was grinding my teeth during the night! Since I started sleeping with a bruxism splint, I’ve never had one of those dreams again.

For many years, in spite of the fact that I enjoyed my teaching career, in the days leading up to each new school year I had what I called my “school dreams“.  These were dreams in which everything went wrong.  All a teacher’s worst nightmares would visit me as the end of August approached! Though I anticipated the beginning of each new school year with excitement, I recognized that my strange dreams were a symptom of the stress involved in teaching. When these dreams started recurring several years after I retired, however, I was puzzled, but I soon figured out that my brain still equates stress with teaching. Regardless of the cause, it still reacts to higher than normal levels of stress by filling my nights with bizarre school dreams!

Last night, I had a series of unusually vivid dreams. In the first one, I was planning to catch a ferry. Where to, I have no idea, but I arrived early and had time to kill so I parked my car a short distance from the ferry terminal and went for a walk through the town which bore no resemblance to any place I’ve ever actually been. As I admired the historic architecture of the town, I found myself walking with another woman who urged me to explore a path that led up and over a hill between some houses. Knowing that I had a limited amount of time, I was reluctant, but I agreed to walk a little ways with her. Before long, I realized that I had gone too far and was in danger of missing my ferry. I turned around and began to run back to my car. I remember running and running and running, frantically hoping that I wouldn’t be too late. And then I woke up.

I don’t remember the second dream quite as well, but I do recall that I was supposed to be attending an awards ceremony at the local school. Shortly before it was due to begin, I was out on the street chatting with various people who all urged me to hurry home and get ready. How I got there is a bit vague, but I ended up back in an apartment, which was apparently my home, trying to figure out what to wear. As I tried on and rejected one outfit after another, I soon realized that it was only a few minutes until the event was to begin. I became more and more frantic, but I continued trying on and rejecting item after item until I finally woke up again!

Each ensuing dream became more vague than the one before, but there was a common theme. In each one, I was going to be late for something. I couldn’t help but wonder if that meant something and so this morning, I googled “the meaning of dreams”. Apparently, according to several sources, dreams of being late represent feelings about having missed an important opportunity. One so-called dream expert suggested that a person ought to respond to these dreams by asking where in your life do you feel that time is running out or what do you need to do before it does. So, I ask myself, were last night’s nocturnal imaginings telling me something of significance or did I simply eat the wrong snack before I went to bed? What, if any, opportunities have I missed?

With another cancer treatment and it’s follow-up scans coming up next week, a night of school dreams probably wouldn’t be too surprising, but the closest I can come to the lost opportunity scenario is the vague feeling that’s been growing within me lately that perhaps I ought to be doing something meaningful with my experiences of the past couple of years. What that might be, I’m not at all sure.

What do you think? Do your dreams have meaning?

Because I can

/ edebock / 6 Comments

Here in Canada, we are nearing the end of the longest federal election campaign in recent history. When we go to the polls on October 19th, 78 days will have passed since Prime Minister Stephen Harper asked Governor General David Johnston to dissolve Parliament and call a general election. 78 days of rhetoric and sadly, 78 days of name calling and fear mongering. How glad I am that I don’t live in the US where the electoral process goes on for many months!

Regardless of which country you live in, however, when election day finally rolls around, VOTE! Consider the issues, research the candidates, and then VOTE!

Official turnout for our last federal election, held on May 2, 2011, was 61.1%, only 2.3 percentage points higher than the all-time low of 58.8% in 2008! What is the matter with people? Why does 40% of our population fail to cast a ballot? Are we Canadians really that apathetic?

I will vote, if for no other reason than because I can. It’s a privilege that I don’t take lightly. Women before my time fought long and hard so that I could exercise this right. Women like Nellie McClung, well-known advocate and popular speaker on the subject of women’s suffrage in the early 1900s, who said “Our worthy opponents will emphasize the fact that women are the weaker vessel. Well I should think that a woman who cooks for men, washes and bakes and scrubs and sews for her family could stand the extra strain of marking a ballot every four years.”

The United States began allowing women to vote in 1920, after the ratification of the 19th Amendment to their Constitution. Here in Canada, many women voted for the first time the following year, but it wasn’t until much later that all Canadians had the right to vote. Most “people of colour” were prohibited from voting at the provincial and federal level until the late 1940s and it wasn’t until 1960 that every Canadian of age had the right to vote. That’s right! 1960! Prior to that time, aboriginal Canadians were required to give up their treaty rights and renounce their status under the Indian Act in order to qualify for the vote.

While I consider our record abysmal, there are places where the situation is much worse. Women in Saudi Arabia are registering to vote for the first time in history, but keep in mind that they won’t be able to drive themselves to the polling stations as they are still completely banned from driving. They won’t even be able to leave their homes to go and vote without being accompanied by a male guardian!

On election day, get off your butt and VOTE! Don’t make excuses. Don’t be one of the apathetic masses. Vote, if for no other reason than because you can!

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October!

/ edebock / 10 Comments

“I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”
L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

October is my favourite month; a bittersweet interlude between summer and winter. Here in Alberta, it arrives amidst a blaze of colour, but by the end of the month, there will likely be snow on the ground. Each golden day is a treasure.

The tiny hamlet of Gwynne, located midway between Camrose and Wetaskiwin, is nestled in a valley that is absolutely gorgeous in the fall. We often take that route on our way to Edmonton, but until today we’d never stopped to explore the area. I recently learned of two hiking trails in the valley, however, and they were today’s destination.

The first, officially called the CPR Canyon Hiking Trail, is a relatively easy 4 km walk along a creek. The name seems apt as the railway follows the creek on the opposite bank and three trains rumbled by while we were hiking. It’s known locally, however, as Chickadee Trail and we soon found out why!

The inquisitive little critters were landing on my outstretched hand before we even took any food out of the pack on Richard’s back. Soon we were sharing lunch!

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There were six geocaches hidden along the trail which added to our fun.

The second trail circled through Pipestone Creek Conservation Lands where we searched out three more geocaches and enjoyed some spectacular views including an oxbow lake.

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There are clearly many more trails criss-crossing the conservation area and we found a lovely little campground close by, so I suspect that we’ll be spending more time there in the future.

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I have no idea how far we walked today, but my knees are telling the tale this evening and it’s time to go soak in a hot bath!

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Hopefully October holds many more days like this one!

What’s stopping you?

/ edebock / 6 Comments

Is there something you’ve always wanted to do, but never tried? Somewhere you’ve wanted to go, but never been? Why? What’s stopping you?

Did someone tell you that you couldn’t and you believed them? Maybe you’ve been wounded by a parent, a spouse or a so-called friend. Maybe you were told that you were worthless or that you’d never amount to anything. Maybe now’s the time to prove those naysayers wrong!

Be unstoppable!

I realize that sometimes there are financial constraints or physical restrictions that make it difficult to achieve our dreams, but sometimes those just become excuses.

My daughter-in-law  had her second major back surgery before she graduated from university and she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis while pregnant with her first child. Six years ago, she was almost bedridden, but on September 12th, she rode her bike 120 gruelling kilometres from Vancouver to Whistler, BC in the RBC Gran Fondo! She has endured more pain in her life than most of us will ever know, but she’s unstoppable!

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Maybe it’s your age that’s holding you back. For some people, the space between “you’re too young” and “I’m too old” is far too short! Pam Lutrell, writer of over50feeling40, one of my favourite fashion blogs, is transitioning into a new career at 62 because she’s unstoppable!

Be unstoppable!

Is it fear that’s stopping you from doing something you really want to do? Perhaps you’re simply afraid to step outside your comfort zone. Michael Jordan, possibly the greatest basketball player of all time, said, “Never say never, because limits, like fears, are often just an illusion.” Yes, fears are just that, an illusion; something we create in our heads that stops us from trying something new or achieving something great. Why not stop the negative self-talk and take a chance?

What is it that you’ve always dreamed of doing?

Be unstoppable!

When my life is over, I’d be happy if my epitaph said, “She was unstoppable!”

Unstoppable

What the heck is vegan leather?

/ edebock / 10 Comments

Lately, I’ve noticed more and more ads and fashion blogs referring to garments and handbags made of vegan leather. Really? What the heck is that? As a lover of words, I was compelled to find out.

Vegans are usually defined as a strict vegetarians who omit all animal products, including dairy, from their diets, but The Vegan Society offers a much broader definition. “Veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.” Hence, vegan leather.

In reality, though, vegan leather is nothing more than fake or faux leather by a different name. Pleather, as it was once known, is a synthetic leather usually made out of petroleum byproducts such as polyurethane or PVC bonded to a fabric backing. A few are cork or kelp based. Though once deemed tacky, under its new and classier name, pleather is suddenly seen as eco-chic.

Make no mistake though, the production of these synthetic leathers involves excessive levels of toxic substances and since they aren’t fully biodegradable, they produce micro-particles that are ingested by animals and thus enter the food chain at all levels.

Animal-friendly or not, synthetic leather offers advantages to both fashion designers and consumers. The softer, realistic-looking material is a popular choice with designers as it offers them a flexible, versatile textile to work with; one that can be made to sparkle or shine or even be saturated with a rich or bright shade that no tanning process could mimic. Not everyone in the industry is happy to call the fabric vegan leather, however. Some would prefer to avoid the connotation that their clothing is designed exclusively for animal-cruelty advocates.

Like many consumers, I simply like the fact that faux leathers are a nicely priced alternative to the real thing. I can’t help thinking that the new term sounds overly pretentious though and I’ve also noticed that the so-called vegan leather products that I’ve seen advertised tend to be pretty pricey. Could it be that people are paying more for the sense of superiority that comes with the fancier moniker and the feeling that they’re doing something good? With apologies to William Shakespeare, a faux leather by any other name is just as fake!

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One of my latest thrift store finds. The label says it’s “100% polyurethane with 100% rayon woven backing.” It doesn’t say vegan leather. It doesn’t pretend to be anything it isn’t!