Flower Power

The other day we received a surprise gift from the family that delivered our last care package to our daughters. Three pictures that T had drawn while the family was visiting with them. She wrote her name in both Amharic and English at the top of the pictures. I have hung them in a place of honour on our refrigerator, but will be putting them into an art portfolio for her soon. The most amazing thing is that one of the pictures is of beautiful flower. She is going to fit right in. When her momma was out photographing flowers, she was drawing them. Homer is hoping that she is a budding gardener. I'm hoping for a budding artist. Either way, we already have a connection and we have not even met.

Here is the picture drawn by our sweet rose. I am a proud momma.

Let your Bright Star Dreams blossom

Just When Africa's Luck was Changing

Blog (Red) had a link to this article about the impact of the global credit crisis on Africa and it really hit home. I've been worried about my job situation as a result of the economic downturn. Since I work on contract, I have no guarantees of a job when I return from parental leave. We are lucky and have been saving for a long time to do this, so we have resources to last a while if we need to.

Africa had hoped to weather the storm of the global credit crisis, but it has been hit hard as well, as foreign investment is drying up. For Africa, this crisis is the difference between subsistence living and long-term sustainable economic growth. For me, it is the difference between one car or two. It really puts perspective on how lucky we are to have been born in Canada.

The article has caused me to think about how I could invest in Africa to move them closer to their long term goals. KIVA is an organization that provides micro credit to small business owners in impoverished nations. I am going to go look to see if there is a business owner like myself that needs my support.

Supporting others
Bright Star Dreams

Medicals are Done!!!

T & M's Immigration medicals were completed on Wednesday, along with the other families in our travel group. Our documents are finally on the way to the High Commission in Nairobi!!!

We hope to get confirmation that the documents have been received at the HC later next week. CAFAC (our agency) is projecting 8 - 12 weeks for travel after the documents are received by in Nairobi. 8 weeks from Monday is October 5th, so we could be in Ethiopia for Thanksgiving and we will have a lot to be thankful for. Visas were "only" taking 6 weeks in the spring, so maybe just maybe, we can travel sooner and give our thanks in Canada. A girl can hope can't she?

Both girls have really grown and are very healthy. CAFAC now has a teacher that comes to the transition home 5 mornings per week. T knows her ABC's and can count to 20. She led a song at a concert they put on for the representatives from CAFAC when they were in Ethiopia. M is picking up English words from T and the other older children at the home.

It has been a long hard summer waiting for our medical news and watching the tragedy of the Imagine families from the sidelines. I am starting to get excited again about the prospect of traveling. I even emailed our travel agent with our update and she has never even met me. I guess I just was so thrilled I had to tell everyone. Hopefully, we can start looking for flights again soon.

Keep dreaming to reach
Your Bright Star Dreams

I've been slapped

Last night I noticed that my wrist and thumb were extremely itchy. It looked like I had hives. At first I thought it was an allergic reaction, so I took some benedryl. No response. This morning I woke up stiff and sore and then I remembered someone else at work had a similar rash and aches a couple weeks ago. Turns out it is likely Fifth Disease - aka the slapped face virus. The kicker - once the rash appears you are no longer contagious. However, I could have a rash and other symptoms for up to 20 days. There is not much that can be done for it either. That's one smart virus. I guess it is a good thing that we are not travelling to Ethiopia this month.

Here's a picture of what the rash looks like - lots of small red dots. I think is is spreading to my ankles now.

Pookie is also not feeling well. You know a beagle is really sick when he turns his nose up to food. I had him at the vet and they gave us something to settle his stomach. Hopefully this will pass quickly.

I guess we will be having a quiet family weekend at home.

Be well

Bright Star Dreams

Medical Update and Sunday Garden Tour

We've been told that our medical request is in the pouch to Addis this week. So hopefully the medical can be completed and all of our paperwork will be sent to Nairobi this week. Then next week we can start to officially count the weeks to get the visas issued. Unfortunately, our agency says the visa time lines have been averaging 8 - 12 weeks, not the 6 weeks we had hoped. So for us that means we are at least 11 weeks from traveling. October it is. I was hoping we would be able to celebrate the Ethiopian New Year (September 11) in Addis, but it was not meant to be.

We received some new pictures this weekend of T & M, from another family that just returned from Addis. They have grown so much since the last set pf pictures we had in May. I am going to have to buy more clothes for T as I think the clothes I bought for her will fit M in October. We did manage to pick out the beds for the girls. They will be delivered at the end of August. So hopefully, we will have the basement done and the girls rooms painted in a month's time.

Here is how I am keeping distracted -- taking pictures of the garden. More roses 'cuz they are my favorite and some of the Saskatoon and Red Currants we have growing. Maybe next week I will add a picture of the vegetable gardens that I actually planted (only because Homer is busy with the basement - he is the green thumb at Chateau Bright Star - I usually just get to enjoy the flowers and fruit)

Morden Belle Rose

Morden Fireglow

Prairie Dawn Rose in full bloom

Coral Bells (I think)

Salvia

Red Currant

Saskatoon

Let your Bright Star Dreams grow.

No Medical - Update on Imagine Adoption Bankruptcy

Yesterday, we received confirmation from our agency that CIC has not yet requested the medical. Until this is done, we cannot move forward to request the Permanent Resident Visas. We have been told by our agency that once the medical is requested it is a matter of days for them to send the remaining paperwork to Nairobi. Then it is normally a 6 to 12 week wait for the visa to be reviewed, issued and sent to Addis. Since my mother-in-law has to give her work 2 weeks notice before she leaves, that means we are 8 to 14 weeks waiting to travel after the medical is done. However, with the bankruptcy of Imagine Adoption and the urgent need to get the children home, I am expecting that we will be on the long end of this timeline or potentially even longer, before we can travel.

I do not mind waiting for the Imagine families. I know that their need is urgent. I am sad that the greed of the few can impact the well being of the many. My children are well cared for, just not by me. I soooo want to be the one caring for them.

The Imagine families are developing an action plan to save their adoptions. Most of the families would prefer to have their adoption files continue and a match made to a child, rather than getting their money back. They have started the blog Families of Imagine Adoption (FIA) to coordinate their efforts and to increase the awareness to their plight. They have been very active all week and I believe they are very close to formulating the solution they desire. I hope their efforts prevail.

I have started a list of why this delay is a positive rather than a negative:

• All our renovations will be done, the girls rooms will be complete and both will probably be fully paid.
• I will be working at least one more month, so we should have more money in the bank.
• I will have more time for shopping (so much for the bank account)
• I likely will be able to take the full 12 weeks off I had planned.
• If we had left in August, my 12 weeks would have been up in mid November. Since I work contract, this is the worst time of year to be looking for a new contract.
• August is the rainy season in Ethiopia and the high season for flights, so we will be saving money and we will get good weather.
• I will likely be off work at Christmas time

I hate the fact that we are not leaving when I had hoped, but I know it will happen. During these dark days that is truly a blessing.

Patience will bring you

Your Bright Star Dreams

Ways to help

I was given this list of ways that we can take action to help the families that have been devastated by the bankruptcy of Imagine adoption agency.

Here are some things we can do to help:


1 - There's a Facebook page that has been created called Imagine Adoption Program - Support Group.
http://www.facebook.com/s.php?q=imagine+adoption+support&init=quick#/group.php?gid=100987897477

2 - sign the petition to urge the Ministry of Children and Youth Services into immediate action. Post the link on your Facebook page (if you have one!), your blog, your website, etc. and urge your friends and family to do the same.
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/SaveOurDreamofAdoptingInternatio/

3 - sign the petition to urge the Ministry of Children and Youth
Services to immediately return the files of the families working with
Imagine to the families so that they may retain another agency to
continue the work. Post the link on your Facebook page (if you have
one!), your blog, your website, etc. and urge your friends and family to
do the same.
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Returnfiles2day

4 - If you want to help financially, Jenny Adachi has set up a PayPal account on her blog to accept donations that will be sent with a family travelling next week - the money will be going to help care for the children - and if that has already been taken care of it will be given to the caregivers who are no longer being paid by Imagine.
**Update: Jenny has indicated that they have collected more money than they could have expected ($3,100 CDN) Some of the money has already been sent, the remainder will be put in a bank account that will be accessible to assist families in Ethiopia.

5 - Write to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney asking that he issue emergency visas to those children who have been legally adopted and are waiting for their travel docs. Make sure you say in your letter that you are copying in the Citizenship and Immigration critic, Maurizio Bevilacqua, and Leader of the Opposition, Michael Ignatieff. Then send a copy to Mr Bevilacqua and Mr Ignatieff with a cover letter asking that they follow up with the Minister. Details are below (Parliamentary mail is the same for all MPs.).


Parliamentary address:

House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6

Honorable Jason Kenney:

kennej@parl.gc.ca

Hill Office:

325 East Block
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6

Constituency Office:

1168 137 Ave SE
Calgary, AB
T2J 6T6


Take action to achieve
Your Bright Star Dreams

Sad day for International Adoption in Canada

Yesterday, rumours were flying in the adoption community and much to our shock and dismay they tuned out to be true. There are only two agencies in Canada that are licensed to facilitate adoptions in Ethiopia. One of those agencies declared bankruptcy yesterday. Imagine Adoption was facilitating adoptions in Ethiopia, Ghana and Ecuador. We are with the other agency, CAFAC. We feel very fortunate to have chosen CAFAC as our agency, as this so easily could have been us.

To the over 400 families affected by this devastating situation, our hearts go out to you. We are thinking of you and your children in Ethiopia. We hope you get positive answers soon.

Here are some links to the media coverage of the story:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/adoption-agencys-bankruptcy-devastates-families/article1217223/

http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20090714/CGY_adoption_agency_bankrupt_090714/20090714/?hub=CalgaryHome

http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20090714/adoption_bankrupt_090714/20090714/?hub=TorontoNewHome

Here is the information being provided by the bankruptcy trustee:

http://www.bdo.ca/extranets/imagineadoption/index.cfm

Hold on to your
Bright Star Dreams

Looking for support - working moms & stay at home dads

Homer and I have agreed that he will be a stay at home dad and I will return to work and be the "bread winner". I likely will be taking "only" 8 - 12 weeks off when we do leave to pick up our girls. I may take less time if everyone is settling in OK. I have not received a lot of support for this decision. The Dads that I work with all tell me how their wives had a hard time balancing their need to be with the children and their need for stimulating work. They do not talk about how soon after their children were home that they returned to work. The Moms that I work with keep telling me how men do not nurture in the same way as women. I argue that no two women nurture in the same way, but that does not seem to hit home.

What everyone fails to comprehend is that if I was a man and the main bread winner, it would be OK for me to return to work only 3 weeks (or less) after we become a family of four. Yes, I would love to take more time off, but that is not reality. Realistically, I am going to be home longer than many working dads would have been. One of us needs to work to pay the bills and it only makes sense that the person who has the higher more stable income should be the one. I am completely comfortable with this decision. Homer is going to be an awesome Dad. The girls and him are going to have so much fun together. And Homer is going to teach them so much. They are going to learn to follow their curiosity and will be given a classical education.

I know this is the right decision for our family. It was something Homer and I discussed before we were married almost 10 years ago. It was always part of our vision for our family. Apparently, I have a radical feminist view of a family. I have never considered myself to be a radical, but I guess there is a reason why I never feel like I fit in. I just wish I did not have to justify this decision to almost everyone I meet.

If there are others out there who have also taken on role reversal within the family, I would love to hear from you and how you have dealt with the critics. The closer we get to making this a reality, the more I am being told how I am going to regret this decision.

Believe in your
Bright Star Dreams

The Rose Garden Chez Chateau Bright Star

For those that are wondering -- no news. No good news, no bad news, just plain no news. To keep myself occupied I am attempting to hone my photography skills.

Homer and I have discovered that the Morden variety hardy roses seem to grow well in our hillside garden. Last summer we added 4 more to our garden and we are now enjoying the bouquet of colour in the garden. My favorite is the sunrise, although I think the Amorette may be a new contender. We also have a Prairie Dawn variety rose in our protected garden near our back deck. This is the last rose in the pictures below. This rose is full of blossoms all summer and even into the fall. It is absolutely spectacular when it is in full bloom.

Sunrise


Snow Beauty

Blush

Amorette

Fireglow

Prairie Dawn

Let your Bright Star Dreams blossom

Chateau Bright Star Sunday Garden Tour

We had one nice day this summer so far, so I took some photos of some of the things we have growing in our yard. Every day I take a walk through our garden to see what is blooming and what new treats we have popping up. Every day I spy something new. Here are some items that caught my interest on Saturday. I am not a photographer, nor do I have the photography gene that some in my family have, but I think I did an alright job.

Golden Moss Stonecrop (sedum)

Columbine


Miss Kim Lilac

Oriental Poppy

Morden Variety Hardy Rose

Grow your

Bright Star Dreams

We have walls!

Homer has been hard at work scheduling contractors, framing, preparing for the trades to arrive, waiting for deliveries and inspectors, cleaning and organizing. The rough plumbing is done, the furnace ducts have been moved, several new gas lines have been added, the electrical is done, the framing is done, the drywall is up, the taping is started, the flooring is ordered and scheduled to be installed. Taping will be finished this week and then painting will be started. Whew! The end is in sight now. Just one more week of drywall dust.

We may even get this and the girls room done before we leave for Ethiopia. When will that be, you ask? Right now your guess is as good as mine. Due to daily power outages in Addis, our agency has not been able to get through to their representatives in Ethiopia. so we don't know if we are officially waiting for a visa or if we are waiting for CIC in Nairobi to issue the medical request. I know I should be jumping up and down about this, but I don't think it would do any good and it may even make things move slower. I have been stressed about it absolutely - as a planner it is hard to sit on my hands and not plan. Believe me I have been sick about it, but I know that everyone is doing their best to move the process along. Jumping up and down will only make me feel worse, so I try to wait patiently for news this week.

Here are some pictures of the basement progress.

Bedroom

Bathroom

Rec Room

Rec Room

Build your

Bright Star Dreams

Big News at Chateau Bright Star - Dreams Do Come True!

Almost 3 years ago, Homer and I decided to pursue our dream to expand our family. In March of this year, our dreams were answered. We received news that a pair of sibling girls needed a family and they had been matched to us -- a couple of crazy canucks who needed a family too. We waited for two days to see their faces, and when we did, they took our breathe away. They were gorgeous. I'm not just saying that because I am their mom, they really are gorgeous. Since Homer and I don't consider ourselves to be card carrying members of the beautiful people society, we felt like we had just been dealt a royal flush. But there were more steps to go before everything was official, so we decided to hold our tongues (and blogs) until we knew for certain they would be joining our clan.

On May 29, the court officially decreed that we are parents to these breathtaking girls. We waited 6 days after the decision to find out the news. Our daughters T & M are ages 6 and 4 and are currently living in Ethiopia. We hope to travel by the end of the summer to bring them to their new home.

This journey has been an emotional one and more than once I have questioned whether we were doing the right thing for the children. I had one person this week tell me that our daughters will be so grateful to us. I explained that we are the ones that are grateful. Our daughters are the ones who are losing and have lost so much - their culture, their birth country, their language and so much more. And they have to move to a country where this happens in June. They did not choose for this to happen to them - we have made a selfish decision that we hope that they can accept. We are so grateful to have this opportunity. This person said the same thing to me the very next day. Some people just don't get it.

I had every intention of posting a picture or two today, but upon reflection have decided to not post pictures to the world wide web. Once the pictures are out there, I cannot take them back.

Hold on to your
Bright Star Dreams

Seriously - Is this Mother Natures Idea of a Joke?

Our back yard May 31, 2009

Our backyard today

Global warming huh?


I think our Saskatoon bushes got the worst of it - at least one of them has snapped down the center.

I'm dreaming of moving west...

Wishing you warm

Bright Star Dreams

Happy (Belated) Birthday Homer!

It was Homer's birthday this week. So what does one get for the man who says he does not want anything.

Answer: Something he has wanted, even coveted, but did not really need. New dishes!!

LOL, it was something I wanted and coveted and he went along with me. He just wanted the baking bowls. So this is what he got for his birthday:
I am sure my grandmother had a set like this in cream. They lasted forever.

We have been looking for new dishes for some time now and found a brand we liked while in Hawaii a year ago. Our old dishes were over ten years old and they were starting to look chipped and battered. With all the issues with products from China and with new additions to our family in the future, we were reluctant to purchase anything that was not guaranteed lead free. We were unable to find anything we both liked and was not made in SE Asia. Homer Laughlin is made in America and is one of the last commercial pottery/china companies left in North America.

We both loved the Fiesta Dinnerware from Homer Laughlin, but we could not agree on a colour. Sometimes too much choice can lead to an impasse in our house. So finally, we decided not to have just one colour but two. I chose three colours that I liked and told Homer to choose one colour he liked and hopefully one of the ones I chose would go with it. He ended up vetoing two of the colours I chose and the colour he liked the most won't be available until June. So we purchased the four piece settings and gusto bowls in Peacock and Sunflower for now. We may purchase some more dishes in June when the Lemon Grass colour becomes available. Neither of us liked the bowls in the four piece setting, but it was actually less expensive to buy the set and add the gusto bowls than to buy the pieces separately. Here's the four piece setting (in Peacock). The handles on the mugs are slightly different than shown:

Here are the Gusto Bowls (In Tangerine - wait maybe this is Persimmon a retired colour):

Five huge boxes arrived mid-week and the delivery driver actually rolled one of them off the truck. Homer was certain they would be damaged and we would be sending them back. Amazingly, they arrived unscathed. The dishes were well packed in bubble wrap and expanding foam.

We are happy with our selected colours, but I like almost all of the colours, so I am not sure we could have gone wrong. If you are interested in checking out all of the colours and the large selection of dinnerware, here is the link to their website. I think there is a lifetime of birthday gifts for us to choose from.

http://www.homerlaughlin.com/ffd/home.asp

Enjoy your colourful
Bright Star Dreams

Sunday cuteness...

Hmm, what is this...

Smells pretty good.

Tastes good too.

The bottom is even better.

After all that work, it's time for a nap.

25 Kilos is never enough

Have a great Sunday

Floor, Check

The sub floor is done! I guess I should say mostly done, as we still need to do the floor in the bathroom. We are now calling the plumber to do the plumbing and heating work. We have to move several of the heating ducts to reduce the number of bulk heads we have to build. We were going to put up the walls before the plumber came, but have decided we want to leave everything as open as possible for the plumber to work. We will be putting up the one wall where the bathtub/shower taps, spout, and shower head will be attached. We now have to go find a tub we both like. It is just a basement, so it won't be anything too fancy.

On another note, we still have snow in our back yard, but I can see some greening of the grass. We have had above average temperatures this weekend. Maybe spring has finally decided to grace our presence. The dogs have been enjoying sunning themselves on the deck. We are having a lazy Easter weekend, hence the decision not to build walls just yet.

Hope Easter brings you

Bright Star Dreams

P.S. If anyone is looking for an elliptical trainer, we are planning to sell the one in the picture.

Let Me Eat Cake!

Today is my birthday. For most people that means cake, but for me, being both gluten and lactose intolerant, cake is not part of my diet. This year, I really wanted to have a chocolate cake with icing for my birthday. This is a tall order, but Homer was bound and determined to deliver.

We have found a great bakery in Cochrane that makes the best gluten free baked goods that I have ever had. The GF Patiserserie was started by mother and daughter and it is the only bakery I know of where it is safe for celiacs to enter and smell the freshly baked goods. Without a doubt their products are better than the non-gluten free baked goods at most bakeries. You would have no idea that their products are gluten free. Many of GF's products are also lactose free, but not many of their cakes. They do have a vanilla one, but I wanted chocolate.

GF does sell a gluten free flour mix, so Homer picked some up the last time we were in. He also found gluten free icing sugar, and treated milk and butter with lactaid drops. He picked up fresh vanilla bean and Bernard Callebaut cocoa. Yesterday, he spent the day in the kitchen making mini cakes until he found just the right mixture to make a fat and sugar free vanilla / chocolate double layer cake. He then added a chocolate icing (it contained the butter and the icing sugar, so not fat or sugar free, but it's my birthday so calories don't count today). The result was amazing!

He also made me two incredible vegetarian curries for dinner last night. I am so fortunate to have a husband who wants to ensure, that despite my intolerances, I can still enjoy a fabulous meal for my birthday.

Celebrate your

Bright Star Dreams

Spring?

Nothing says spring in Calgary like a fresh layer of snow.

I actually like it - it adds moisture to the ground for my garden to grow, it covers up the brown we usually have due to the chinooks and because it is spring it doesn't actually last that long.

And it gives me an excuse to curl up on the couch with Homer and the dogs and do absolutely nothing.

Bright Star Dreams

Windows and Floors and Boards, Oh My!

The first load of building materials arrived on Monday, so I thought I would do a "what are you doing on your vacation?" post.


Above is the "before" picture of the basement windows. Oh how I loved my lilies.

Here is the "after" picture - I guess I have some gardening to do in the spring. Homer moved the lilies to a safe place in the late fall, so we should be able to have a lily garden again, just not here. We may have to give the ones in the middle some TLC after the trauma of the digging around them. We also have to replace all the "drip guards" and "flashing" on the siding and put in permanent window wells. (Hey aren't I just sounding like a contractor now! Holmes on Homes beware. LOL!)

Here is a view of one of the windows from the inside - It lets in way more light than the original windows and I am pretty sure a fireman can fit through it with all his gear. That was one of my criteria for selecting a window. The stacks of 2' x 2' "tiles" are for the subfloor. These tiles come with 1" OVRX foam insulation on the bottom (according to Homer - heck it just looks styrofoam to me), so the floor will stay nice and toasty warm.

Here are all the 2x4 boards that will (hopefully) soon become the walls around the furnace room. The stuff behind it, is what is left of all the junk from our basement after the great purge. We thought we might use our old king size head and foot board in the new bedroom, but I think king size is going to be too big. If anyone is in the market for a king size head and foot board, let me know. Oh and we have the old basement windows too, but they are no longer code for a basement bedroom. Although, I am hoping to build a playhouse in our back yard and maybe they could be put to use in that. (OK, I know I am getting a little ahead of myself and who am I kidding - Homer would be doing the building, I would just be doing the "design" and quality control jobs)

The wood has to acclimatize for about a week, so the work will likely start on Saturday. Three more days of freedom!

Build your
Bright Star Dreams

Happy St. Paddy's Day

Green is my favorite colour. My childhood bedroom was green and I think it is something I will pass along to my children. To me it symbolizes spring, nature, growth, and birth. Green is the feng shui colour of renewal, fresh energy and new beginnings. My spirit always lifts in spring and when I see the colour green.

Here is a picture of my favorite print and not surprisingly it is green. This print by Robert Bateman named Tsitika and Her Son is hanging beside my bed and I have the companion print, Potlatch Village, on the other side of the bed. I go to bed and get up each day seeing these calm, peaceful images.

Tsitika and Her Son
By Robert Bateman

"We heard the orcas before we saw them. On the boat's hydrophone their squeals, squeaks, whistles and sighs sounded as if they were echoing in a cavernous space. Finally the mist lifted a little and we saw a phalanx of black dorsal fins not too far off - a family pod. Then the mist swallowed them up again. Perhaps one of the pods we glimpsed on that magical day of whale watching belonged to a whale that researchers have named Tsitika, an orca matriarch whose life history has given me a glimpse into the orca world. Tsitika and her family belong to the northern resident population of British Columbia killer whales. They have a remarkable social system that we are just beginning to understand."

- Robert Bateman

Potlatch Village
By Robert Bateman

"A few years ago, I had the privilege of visiting a now empty village on an island off the northeast coast of Vancouver Island. Because it was a foggy summer day, we were navigating by compass and radar over the glassy water, occasionally glimpsing the gray-green shoreline, barely aware of the muffled purring of the motor of our big, old wooden boat. First the houses on the village outskirts materialized from the mist, then the lonely outline of a frontal pole. It was all that remained of a traditional native house where a noble family would have lived and held its potlatch feasts, a ceremonial festival accompanied by ritual dancing and lavish gift-giving which the guests would later attempt to surpass.

Of all the aboriginal inhabitants of the northwest Pacific coast, the tribes of this area clung most tenaciously to the potlatch even after it was banned in 1885 by the Canadian government. Despite repeated attempts by local Indian agents to eliminate potlatching, which was regarded as immoral and wasteful, these feasts continued to be held quite openly into the second decade of the twentieth century. One of the biggest potlatches on the central coast took place in the winter of 1921-22 at this now-deserted village. By that time, however, the Indian government had decided to crack down hard on the potlatch using newly granted summary powers that enabled the Indian agent to act as both judge and jury. But the potlatch simply went underground.

As we explored the village that day, I thought of this wrong-headed attempt to suppress native culture and lamented how much had been irretrievably lost. In the mist, the deserted, decaying buildings seemed to echo with voices from a time when this was a vibrant community with ancient roots.

In addition to the two totem poles still standing (they have since fallen), three smaller poles lay close together in various stages of returning to nature. One of these - the least decayed - displayed a magnificent wolf carving, representing a mythical ancestor of the pole's owner. Interestingly, one west coast native group regards the wolf as the land equivalent of the orca, claiming that the first killer whale was a supernatural white wolf who transformed himself into a sea creature."

-Robert Bateman

My green dream would be to visit the spots depicted in these prints.

Bright Star Dreams

Spring Break

I am taking a much earned break from work for a week. I worked more than a week in overtime to get this week. So I am really going to make the most of it.

My plans: sleep in, visit with friends that I've lost touch with, "help" with the basement development, maybe a little shopping, some yoga and walks with the two super beagles - if I can get them (and me) off the couch.

These two sure make my life fun.

Enjoying life and relaxation
Bright Star Dreams